Welcome Guest! You are here: Home India Branded terrorists out to kill Modi died in fake police encounter: Justice Bedi Report Of the 17 cases that he was monitoring, Justice Bedi found that three persons - Sameer Khan, Haji Ismail and Kasim Jafer, were killed in prime facie fake encounters Almost sixteen-year after Sameer Khan was shot dead by Gujarat police, a report submitted by a former Supreme Court judge, Harjit Singh Bedi has concluded that the branded terrorist was killed in a fake encounter. Khan, who was in his 20s when he was killed by the police, was identified as a rickshaw puller by his father. But as per police version, Khan was a terroristwho had come to Gujarat to assassinate the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi. On Wednesday, the Supreme Court had directed that a copy of the report on the cases of fake shootouts in Gujarat be furnished to the petitioner, noted lyricist Javed Akhtar. The 229-page report was submitted in the Supreme Court in late February 2018 and the Gujarat government had opposed its sharing with the petitioners. Of the 17 cases that he was monitoring, Justice Bedi found that three persons, Sameer Khan, Haji Ismail and Kasim Jafer, were killed in prime facie fake encounters. Recommending action against nine police officers, he has also sought a compensation of 10 lakh to 14 lakh to the families of the victims. Sameer Khan The encounter of Sameer Khan in October 2002, was the first after the post-Godhra riots. The police had claimed that Khan had plotted to kill the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi to avenge killing of Muslims in the riots. Rejecting the police account, Justice Bedi in his report found it hard to believe that a dreaded terrorist, who was on an alleged mission to assassinate the CM, was handcuffed so loosely. He also noted that all courts, including the Supreme Court, had rejected the theory of assassination plot against CM, and had discharged the other 15 men who were accused of being part of the conspiracy. Justice Bedi rejected the police version that Khan had gone to Pakistan for training in a terror outfit. He further found the police version implausible on following grounds: The bullet wounds in the dead body were also found to have blackened, suggesting that firing took place from a close range. He was shot at his chest and head. From a reconstruction of the crime scene, it appeared that the deceased and police officers were standing face to face. The bullet trajectory in the head injury suggested that firing was done in a top to bottom angle. The police officers were close and towering over the deceased and he was probably sitting on the ground and perhaps cringing for his life. The report details the tortuous and agonising journey of Khans father, Sarfaraz Khan, who lost his 30-year job as a driver with the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, when his son was declared an absconder. It recommended that Inspector KM Vaghela and Inspector TA Barot should be prosecuted for murder and other relevant offences. Pertinently, Vaghela was questioned by CBI in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh case, though not charge-sheeted. Barot is an accused in the alleged fake encounter case of Ishrat Jahan. Haji Ismail Haji Ismail was killed by police in cold blood during the wee hours on October 9, 2005 at Mumbai-Ahmadabad highway. Claiming that he was a notorious smuggler, police had maintained that Ismail was travelling to Mumbai when he got killed in retaliatory action after he fired at the police. Justice Bedi, however, found police version deeply suspicious and hard to believe due to following reasons: The five bullet wounds on his body were blackened, showing that he was shot at from a distance of two feet or so. There was no sign of nitrite in the hand wash sample of the deceased. This led to the inference that the deceased had not used any fire arm. There was nothing on record to show that the deceased was notorious. The fact that as many as 20 rounds had been fired at the deceased from almost point blank range are indicative of a cold blooded murder, the report said and recommended that the officers involved in the case, Inspector KG Erda, PSI LB Monpara, PSI JM Yadav, PSI SK Shah and PSI Prag P Vyas, should be brought to trial for murder and other offences. Erda was accused in the Gulberg Society massacre case of 2002 and was later acquitted. Kasam Jafer Kasam Jafer was taken into custody by Ahmadabad police on April 13, 2006 along with seventeen others, on suspicion of being part of the crime snydicate Irani Gang. Next day, his dead body was found near an underbridge. As per police version, Kasam Jafer disappeared from the police head quarters building on April 13 night. The police stated that he was hit by a motor vehicle while he was on the run. Suspecting the police version, deceaseds wife Mariam Jafer filed an application in the High Court. Though the death was supposed to be investigated, but nothing happened. The case became part of the writ petition filed by Javed Akhtar in the Supreme Court after his wife approached Teesta Setalvad. Justice Bedi again found the police version to be unbelievable on the following grounds: The police head quarters was a fortress, and it was not possible for a person to escape from the building easily. If the arrested persons belonged to the notorious Irani Gang, the police would not have been careless in security. No departmental action was taken against constable Ganeshbhai. According to police version, it was the negligence of Ganeshbhai which led to the escape of Jafer. Other seventeen persons, who were taken into custody along with Jafer, were not informed about his escape and subsequent death. Rather, police had let them go on April 14 early morning, with a warning that they should not set foot in Gujarat again. The post mortem report suggested that Jafer died due to external and internal injuries shock and hemorrhage, caused by a hard and blunt substance. Police were reluctant to inform the relatives and family members of the deceased that he had met with an accidental death. There was no evidence to indicate that Jafer and his companions were part of any criminal gang. The report has recommended prosecution of Sub-Inspector JM Bharwad and constable Ganesh. [National Herald] For all the latest News, Opinions and Views, download ummid.com App . Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. Air Arabia Egypt has started new direct flights connecting Sharm El Sheikh to Amman, the capital city of Jordan. The one-hour flight operates twice a week, every Sunday and Wednesday. Return flights depart Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport at 11:45 hours on Sundays and 19:30 hours local time on Wednesdays arriving Queen Alia International Airport at 12:45 hours and at 20:30 hours local time, respectively. Adel Al Ali, group chief executive officer, Air Arabia, said: This new route is the latest addition to our growing network from Egypt and will enable our customers to discover the amazing lifestyle experiences that both cities offer. Intra-regional tourism in the Arab world is a growing segment of the travel industry and we are glad to contribute to this growth through the launch of affordable and value-driven direct flights." Air Arabia currently operates flights to more than 155 routes across the globe from four hubs located in the Middle East and North Africa. - TradeArabia News Service Emirates has announced adjustments to its operational schedules in 2019 to minimise the impact of the closure of Dubai International Airports Southern Runway in April and May, and to respond to global travel demand trends. The airline also outlined its fleet plans for the year. Sir Tim Clark, president - Emirates Airline, said: At Emirates, we pride ourselves on being a customer-focused airline with a commercially-driven business model. We invest in a modern and efficient aircraft fleet so we can offer industry-leading comforts to our customers, and we are agile in deploying our aircraft to destinations where it best serves customer demand. The changes we are implementing to our network schedules in 2019 are in line with this approach, taking into consideration global market dynamics and operational limitations including the maintenance work on Dubai Airports Southern Runway. Through the year, we will continue to keep a close watch on global markets and will maintain our flexibility to optimise the usage of our aircraft assets. A significant number of scheduled Emirates flights will be impacted by the closure of Dubai International Airports Southern Runway for maintenance work between April 16 and May 30. Given the limitations around operating flights using a single runway at its hub, many Emirates flights will be cancelled, re-timed or have the operating aircraft changed in order to reduce impact on customers. This will result in up to 48 Emirates aircraft not being utilised, with a 25 per cent reduction in the overall number of flights operated by the airline during the 45-day period. 2019 network adjustments Emirates will deploy additional flights to several markets in Africa starting in June 2019. The additional services will satisfy the increased demand that the airline has witnessed in these markets, and will offer customers even more seamless connections between these destinations and Emirates global network through Dubai. Cities in Africa that will be served by additional Emirates flights include: Casablanca, Morocco: Emirates will operate a second daily flight starting June 1 to Casablanca. The service will be operated by Emirates Boeing 777-300ER aircraft which will complement the airlines existing daily Airbus A380 flight. Abuja, Nigeria: Three additional flights will be operated every week on Emirates Boeing 777-300ER aircraft to Abuja starting June 1 increasing the frequency to the Nigerian city to a daily service. Accra, Ghana: Emirates will also augment its current flight frequency to the Ghanaian capital with four additional Boeing 777-300ER flights a week bringing Emirates total service to 11 weekly flights to Accra effective June 2. Conakry, Guinea and Dakar, Senegal: The capitals of Guinea and Senegal will be serviced by one additional linked flight every week starting June 1 on Emirates Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. Multiple destinations across Europe will also be served by additional Emirates flights during peak travel season leading up to and lasting through the summer of 2019. These destinations include: Athens, Greece: Emirates will deploy a second daily flight to Athens between March 31 and October 26. The service will be operated by a Boeing 777-300ER aircraft between March 31 and April 15 and between October 1 and October 26. During the busy summer months from May 31 to September 31, Emirates will deploy its Airbus A380 aircraft to meet additional demand. Emirates will not operate the second daily flight during the period of closure of Dubai Airports Southern Runway (April 16 May 30). Rome, Italy: The Italian capital will be served by three daily Emirates flights between March 31 and October 26. The third additional flight, operated with a Boeing 777-300ER, will be suspended during the Dubai Airport Southern Runway closure. Stockholm, Sweden: Emirates will provide additional capacity to Sweden during July and August 2019 with a double daily service on its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft. This will allow additional passengers to travel to and from the Swedish capital during the peak summer season. Zagreb, Croatia: As part of the strategic partnership between Emirates and flydubai, Emirates will once again begin operating its Boeing 777-300ER daily to Zagreb from March 31 until October 26. The daily service will be reduced to four times a week during the Dubai Airport Southern Runway closure. In order to meet increased seasonal passenger demand Emirates will be introducing its Airbus A380 aircraft to destinations including: Boston, USA: Emirates customers travelling to Boston will be able to experience the worlds largest commercial aircraft famed for its Onboard Lounge accessible to First and Business Class passengers as well as the Onboard Shower Spas for First Class customers. Emirates A380 will operate to Boston between June 1 and September 30 and between December 1, 2019 and January 31, 2020, to accommodate the increased seasonal demand in travel to the US East Coast. Glasgow, UK: Emirates will fly its flagship double-decker aircraft to Scotland for the first time between April 16 and May 31. The Emirates A380 daily service, with a total capacity of 489 seats, will replace the double daily Boeing 777-300ER service during the Dubai Airport Runway closure. From June 1 until September 30, Emirates will resume operating a double-daily service to Glasgow with one daily Boeing 777-300ER and one Airbus A380, offering additional capacity to meet increased travel demand during the summer season. Emirates will also adjust its services into South America to optimise fleet utilisation. From June 1, the airline will deploy its newly refurbished two-class Boeing 777-200LR on its daily service from Dubai to Rio de Janeiro. Offering wider Business Class seats laid out in 2-2-2 format and refreshed seats in Economy Class, this service will continue from Rio de Janeiro to the Argentinian capital city of Buenos Aires four times a week, and on the remaining three days it will operate onwards to Santiago, Chile. With this change, Emirates will suspend its linked flight from Dubai to Santiago via Sao Paulo. Sao Paulo will continue to be served with a daily non-stop Airbus A380 service to and from Dubai. With a view to providing more efficient and direct connection options for customers travelling to and from Australia, Emirates will suspend flights EK 418/419 between Bangkok and Sydney from June 1. Emirates will continue to serve Sydney with three flights a day non-stop to Dubai, and Emirates customers wishing to travel between Bangkok and Sydney will have flight choices provided by Emirates partner Qantas. Effective March 31, Emirates will suspend EK 424/425 and serve Perth with a once daily Airbus A380 service non-stop from Dubai. Emirates customers travelling from Perth will continue to enjoy rapid two-way connections through Dubai to over 38 destinations in Europe, and a further 16 cities in Europe via Emirates codeshare partner flydubai. Customers will also be able to enjoy a seamless Emirates A380 experience between Perth and close to 20 destinations in Europe. Operating a modern aircraft fleet During the financial year 2019/20, Emirates will take delivery of six new Airbus A380 aircraft. At the same time, the airline will be renewing its fleet by retiring seven older Boeing 777 aircraft. Emirates took delivery of its last Boeing 777-300ER aircraft in November 2018 and will commence taking deliveries of the next generation Boeing 777Xs in 2020. - TradeArabia News Service Bahrain-based Peninsula Dairy Farms has won an ISO 22716:2007 certification in good manufacturing practices (GMP) for cosmetics from Intertek, a leading Total Quality Assurance provider to industries worldwide. It is the first time that Peninsula Dairy Farms has obtained certification for the ISO 22716:2007 standard, and it is also the first time for Intertek to issue this certification in Bahrain, said a statement from Intertek. Peninsula Dairy Farms is a major producer of vegetables on hydroponic farms, goat dairy products, as well as soap created from goat milk. The ISO 22716:2007 is an international standard for GMP for the cosmetics industry that provides guidelines and requirements that an organization must meet to assure its cosmetics products are consistently high in quality. The ISO 22716 introduces a management systems approach to documenting and regulating the production, control, storage, and shipment of cosmetic products. The ISO standards guidelines also provide cosmetic manufacturers with practical methods for managing the many factors that can affect product quality and aims at enhancing the safety and quality of the cosmetics products. The ISO certification was presented to Sheikh Rashid Khalifa Al Khalifa, the general manager of Peninsula Dairy Farms, by Roxanne Oclarino, Technical & Marketing Supervisor at Intertek Business Assurance in Saudi Arabia & Bahrain during a special ceremony held at the company premises. On the achievement, Sheikh Rashid said: "I feel extremely proud of Peninsula Dairy Farms on this unique and remarkable achievement. I would like to thank Intertek for its professionalism and support throughout the process. Intertek is an exceptional and strategic partner that helped our team obtain this important ISO 22716 GMP certification. Oclarino lauded the Peninsula Farms team's manufacturing standards and drive for excellence across its operations. "Intertek supported Peninsula Farms with a training programme to increase the level of awareness on the certification requirements. This also helped equip the team with essential skills for implementing a management system in line with the ISO standards guidelines. The certification is a testament to the continuous efforts demonstrated by the entire team at Peninsula Farms," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Are you using the computer while installing updates? The updates sometimes pop up an installation dialog box that you need to click through to proceed with the install. Unfortunately, malware was exploiting pop-up dialog boxes, hoping you'd be typing something when the malware popped up an admin privilege elevation request, and you'd accidentally approve it. So Microsoft changed it a few years back so these pop-ups are now pop-unders. This means if you're doing other stuff while installing updates, the installation dialog boxes can show up underneath your other windows where you can't see them. The update just appears to hang. So try closing all your open windows, or don't use the computer (have no windows open) while updating. Some updates require other updates to be installed first before they can install successfully. Unfortunately, Microsoft doesn't seem to have a system in place to insure they're installed in the proper order. So if an update fails and there are other updates pending or available, go ahead and try installing them first. Reboot, check for more updates, install, reboot, etc. Eventually you'll get the required update installed, and the failing update will then install correctly. An alternative approach is to try installing updates one at a time, instead of everything at once. You can try manually downloading and installing the update. A Google search for the failed update's ID will usually turn up a link to download the update directly from Microsoft's website. Then you can right-click it and run it as administrator to try installing it directly. If you suspect Windows Update is borked, there's no need to reinstall Windows. Simply disable the Windows Update service. Then delete everything in the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder. Re-enable Windows Update (and manually do a check for new updates if you're impatient). That's the folder where Windows stores downloaded update, and maintains a database of installed updates. Deleting it will force Windows to check your PC for all updates which have been installed, then query Microsoft again to see which updates are available. Basically it puts Windows Update in the same state as a clean install (except you still have the old updates installed). Be forewarned that it will take a very long time the first time you check for new updates after doing this. MBABANE Is she a victim? Senate President Pastor Lindiwe Dlaminis name features prominently in the controversial Win a Car scheme ran by former Times SUNDAY journalist Kwazi Masuku. At E25 a ticket, the scheme was run by Kwazi Foundation, whose directors are Masuku, Sipho Nhlanhla Makhanya and Mabandla Harries Zulu. The Times SUNDAY has ascertained that the Senate President, using her own foundation known as The Bridge Foundation, partnered with Kwazi Foundation to raise funds through the now ill-fated charity raffle draw that had a brand new E800 000 valued Ford Ranger Wildtrak grand prize. GRANTED LICENCE Documents seen by this publication show that it is Dlaminis The Bridge Foundation that applied and was granted a licence by the Gaming Board to run the Win A Car competition, which was, however, taken over by Kwazi Foundation. As it has turned out, Kwazi Foundation did not have the licence to run this competition. Further, it is The Bridge Foundation that entered into an agreement with MTN Eswatini to utilise the mobile telecommunications companys mobile money (MoMo) platform to sell tickets to members of the public who would want to participate in the competition. It is understood that during the signing of the agreement, MTN Eswatini was represented by Prime Minister Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini, who was the companys Chief Executive Officer at the time. The PM did not respond to questions that were sent through WhatsApp regarding his role in the signing of the agreement. He read the WhatsApp message as indicated by the two blue ticks. When he was called on his mobile phone, it was answered by a male who was presumed to be part of his security detail and he said the premier was still busy, but he would inform him of this reporters call. Government Press Secretary Percy Simelane, meanwhile, said: I choose not to be party to an enquiry about a deal that has nothing to do with government or the prime minister as head of government. It is worth noting that Simelane was asked to enquire from the PM, on behalf of this publication, about the agreement between the senate presidents The Bridge Foundation and MTN Eswatini. Other answers sought from the PM include whether the Bridge Foundation presented the car to be won before the agreement was signed. An impeccable source within MTN Eswatini said the decision to enter into the agreement was taken after the telecommunications company was told that the Ford Ranger Wildtrak vehicle had already been bought and it was a guarantee that someone was going to win it. CONVINCED PRIZE was REAL There is no way MTN could have agreed had we not been convinced that the grand prize was real, said the source. It is, however, not clear how Kwazi Foundation then assumed the leading role in the whole initiative, yet it did not have the licence for the competition and had no standing agreement with MTN Eswatini for the MoMo facility. The Senate President feels she is also a victim of Masukus actions. Responding through a statement issued by senior attorney Zweli Jele from the reputable Robinson Bertram law firm, the Senate President said The Bridge Foundation is a vehicle through which she carries out her philanthropic endeavours and the institution was duly registered in accordance with the kingdoms laws. She said in the course of her charity work, she was approached by Masuku who indicated that he could assist in raising funds for the Foundation and thereby enabling it to expand its outreach. His ideas which appealed to the Senator included the exercising of funds through a Win a Car competition. The foundation accepted the idea and proceeded to apply for the necessary licence with the relevant authorities. The licence was duly granted to the Bridge Foundation, reads the statement. It further confirms that the competition was to be carried out through a mobile telephone company, and again it is the foundation that made an approach to the mobile company and request was accepted. The statement continues: Regrettably, Kwazi had an ulterior motive and misrepresented a number of facts to the senator, representatives of the mobile phone company and more fundamentally to the public at large. As a consequence of the various misrepresentations, a matter has been reported to the relevant law enforcement authorities and as such the matter is now under investigation. The statement adds that in deference to those processes, the Senate President would not make any further statements on this matter until such time that the investigations have been concluded. Notwithstanding the Senate Presidents statement, sources have questioned her silence upon seeing that Kwazi Foundation had taken over an initiative that was supposed to be run under the banner of her-The Bridge Foundation. Further, the sources said it should also be explained as to who MTN Eswatini remitted the money that was collected through the selling of tickets through the MoMo platform to. As far as we know, the money was paid to Kwazi and what is not clear is whether he used The Bridge Foundation and Kwazi Foundation to get it. However, for him to get it through The Bridge Foundation, he would have had to get the signature of the Senate President, said one of the sources. Another source at MTN Eswatini said at one point there was an attempt to withdraw money from the MoMo platform, but this was stopped because it was suspected that the signature of the Senate President had been forged. The person who had come to withdraw the money is said to have been turned back after being told about the suspicious signature. It now remains a mystery how the money was eventually paid out to someone else other than The Bridge Foundation. Part of the ongoing investigation is to find out from MTN Eswatini as to which foundation did the papers that were used to withdraw the money belong and whose signatures are on them. Suspicion is that the person who withdrew the money got hold of stationery that belongs to The Bridge Foundation. Thats the only way MTN would have released the money if the agreement was between them and Pastor Lindiwe, said the source. PROBING MATTER FURTHER When Jele, the senate presidents attorney, was asked to clarify some of these mysteries, he said he was also still probing the matter further. For instance, I need to know why the Gaming Board did not stop Kwazi Foundation as soon as it appeared in the press that he was running this competition because he did not have the required licence. This is a controlled thing, so I cannot just suddenly stand up and announce that I am running a win a car competition. Everyone who wants to do this has to apply to the Gaming Board and pay certain fees, he said. Jele stated that the Gaming Board could have also approached the Senate President to ask her about this Kwazi Foundation they were now seeing in the media and ask if she had changed the name of her foundation. The lawyer stated that he could not say anything beyond this because the matter was still a subject of an investigation. Mandla Luphondvo, MTN Eswatinis Corporate Communications Manager, said as far as they were concerned, they did their part from start to finish and did all that was needed. We dont want to talk about this issue any further. Yes, it looks unfortunate but we cannot comment further. As stated before, ours was not a partnership with Kwazi Foundation, but a payment arrangement, he said and promised to share any new information that comes up. On the other hand, Masuku, when questions regarding the latest information were posed to him, gave a one-line answer: I cannot comment on this. He did not give reasons for his failure to comment. The draw for the Ford Ranger Wildtrak was held on December 22, 2018 at the Manzini Bus Rank where the winning ticket was announced as belonging to one Senzo Gamedze. However, it is said that this Gamedze person was not present during the draw and had to be contacted through his mobile phone for the good news. People who were at the draw said when the winner was called, he said he was at Lomahasha. The people were then told to watch Channel S Television station and the Times of Swaziland newspaper where they would see the winner being handed the car, but this never happened. To date, Kwazi Foundation has failed to publicly identify the winner and Masuku, in a statement released last week, claimed they had signed a non-disclosure agreement with the winner. He also said the winner was not handed the vehicle as promised, but was given compensation because they had failed to raise enough money to purchase the Ford Ranger Wildtrak. Together with Carson Motors, they said the vehicle that was paraded to the public was a demo and had not been bought by Kwazi Foundation but still belonged to the vehicle retailer. PROMISED TO REFUND Masuku has since promised to refund all those that would bring proof of having bought the tickets either from their agents or through MoMo. Agents whose numbers were published in our sister publication Swazi News as the ones to be contacted for the refunds said they had not been told anything about such. Instead, they complained that they were now targets of insults from aggrieved people who bought the tickets. As reported by the Swazi News yesterday, the Gaming Board has since referred the matter to the police Fraud Department. MBABANE Governments principal legal advisor has spoken and the ball is now in the administrations court in as far as the construction of lidlokolo is concerned. Attorney General Sifiso Mashampu Khumalo has reportedly advised government that the late former Prime Minister, Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini, was not entitled to be built a retirement house at the time of his death. According to senior political sources, the AGs legal opinion is that Dlamini died while he was technically still in office and, therefore, clause 5.3 of Finance Circular No2 of 2013 had not yet been triggered. The clause, titled housing, reads: The State shall provide a house for the prime minister at the end of his term of office. The house shall belong to the prime minister whether built on nation land or title deed property. The former PM died on September 28, 2018, with his last day in office being September 4, 2018 when His Majesty King Mswati III dissolved the Cabinet of the 10th Parliament The King had dissolved Parliament on June 30. The attorney general has advised that even though Cabinet was dissolved on September 4, the late former prime minister was still considered to be in office because he was still on government payroll and no new Parliament was in place. In fact it was not just the deceased who was considered to be still in office, but all politicians elected or appointed into the 10th Parliament, said the senior politician. Indeed, as previously reported by this publication, documents show that the ex-PMs salary and that of the rest of the politicians of the 10th Parliament was stopped on November 1, 2018, which means October was their last month on governments payroll. So, the attorney general is saying the deceased was technically still a Member of Parliament when he died, stated the senior politician.Secondly, according to the higher-ranking source, the AG has opined that there was further no need for the construction of the retirement house because the person it would have been intended for is deceased. opinion directed to govt The premise of the attorney general is that this clause was made to protect the dignity of retired prime ministers, so that they are able to maintain a certain standard after their political life and therefore whose dignity will it protect now if it were to be built. He is saying this benefit was not in honour of a deceased former prime ministers estate, but was intended for a living one, continued the senior source. When the AG was contacted, he said he could neither deny nor confirm the contents of the legal opinion he had given to government. My opinion is directed to my clients, so there is a client-lawyer confidentiality agreement. I am therefore not at liberty to divulge the opinion. I cant override that confidentiality, he said. MBABANE The level of neglect that a two-year old toddler has gone through is overwhelming. First, he was abandoned by his mother and now his biological father has teamed up with his stepmother to inflict on him, the most despicable treatment one can imagine. The father is employed as a driving school instructor in Matsapha while the step mother is a teacher at a community school in Mankayane. He is neglected to such an extent that he does not have a name and a birth registration card. Two health motivators, otherwise known as bagcugcuteli, who were visiting all homesteads in the rural area of Kakholwane to weigh children, were shocked to their wits to find the two-year older sleeping in the dog shelter. ONE WAS MISSING Forty-nine-year-old Thembi Sikhondze one of the motivators related how upon reaching a Manana homestead, they found two children with their mother, but noted that one was missing. I have always known that there were three children in the homestead and when I asked the mother where the third child was, she said there was no third child. But luckily, as if the child wanted to be seen, we saw his arm protruding from a dog shelter. I drew my other colleagues attention to this and we went to see what was going on, and what we found was unimaginable, she said. Sikhondze said teye found the child naked, evidently starving and with mosquito bites all over his body. Even scarier was a large lump on his back whose cause we dont know but seemingly he was badly assaulted. There is a dog that sleeps in that shelter and the child sleeps with it, she said. She said when they asked the step mother why the child was being kept in the dog shelter, she (step mother) said she did not care because the child was not hers. She said her children were the other two. She said the other child was her husbands responsibility, not hers, Sikhondze said. She said it was on a Thursday when they discovered the terrible living conditions and thought things would be better when they left because they had moved him out of the dog shelter to be with the other children. I returned to the homestead and was shocked to find that he had been put back into the dog shelter. It became clear to me that he spent the night there. I told the mother that what she was doing was wrong and against the law, but she arrogantly told me that no one can arrest her for neglecting a child that is not hers. She said the child had no clothes hence he was naked, the motivator related. Sikhondze said the woman then said her husband was angry at her (motivator) for having come to the homestead to weigh his children and bothering their peace. WEIGHED AT HOSPITAL She said her husband said I should mind my own business and stop weighing his children because they were weighed at the hospital. I told her that I had been trained to do what I was doing and I was going to fight for the rights of the child. I told her that I was going to the police station to report the matter and she quickly went into the house to pack her clothes. she said. She said she then left and fortunately came across the police along the way on other policing business and informed them about the neglected child. When we went to the homestead with the police, we found her and her two children on their way, having left the other child in the dog house. The police even took pictures of the child inside the dog house and then took him to hospital, Sikhondze said. The child is currently admitted to the Hlatikhulu Government Hospital and it has been gathered that he was to be taken for an x-ray yesterday to determine the extent of damage caused by his living conditions. Yesterday, the police went back to the homestead where they arrested the father while the step mother was reported by her husband to have left for her parental home in Mankayane. Sikhondze said she wished the woman could be beaten up and taught how to be a proper and caring mother. That woman is not a mother. She needs to be taught how children are taken care of even if they are not yours biologically, she stated. Another woman of the area, identified as Zanele Vilakati, was also at pains describing the childs situation. MINDER FOR A MONTH I was the childs minder for a month in November last year when his father asked me to take care of him in the absence of the step mother who was away at her workplace. I agreed to take care of the child but I was soon to regret that decision because the father never bothered checking up on him or bringing him food, she said. She said even when the child fell sick, the father, when told about it, would suggest that they gather wild plants and prepare a concoction for the child. Together with my husband, we decided to no longer bother the father because we saw that he did not care about him. The child became our responsibility and he soon adjusted to living with us fulltime. He was growing like all other children and we felt sad when the father took him away in December as he said the stepmother had come back and would take care of him, she said. Vilakati said she, however, got to learn that the child was not being taken good care of because every time she passed by the homestead, she would see him alone near ash dump while the others children were happily playing around the yard. BODY WAS FRAIL I could even see that his body was frail and he could no longer walk yet when he was with me he had started walking perfectly. Even when I saw the mother going to town, she would be with the two other children and not him. I later learnt that she always locked him inside the house, she said. She said she was not surprised this week when heard that police officers had rescued the child. I just wish the father had not taken him away from me, she added. Chief Police Information and Communication Officer Superintendent Phindile Vilakati said the man had been charged under section 48 of the Childrens Protection and Welfare Act 2012. Section 48(1) states that: Any person who, being a person having the care of a child abuses, neglects, abandons or exposes the child in a manner likely to cause the child physical, psychological or emotional injury or cause or permits the child to be so abused, neglected, abandoned or exposed commits an offence and is liable on conviction for the offence to a community based sanction or to imprisonment for a term of not less than five years. The sentence may include an additional binding agreement on the offender binding him with sureties to be of good behaviour for a period to be specified by the court. Vilakati said the police were still looking for the stepmother to also face similar charges. MATTER NOT REPORTED In another incident of child abuse, the Swazi News yesterday reported that a two year-old toddler had been raped, allegedly by her grandfather and the matter was not reported to the police but kept a family secret. However, the matter has since been exposed and the Deputy Prime Ministers office has promised that heads will roll. Sir, Mr Editor allow me to express my deepest concern about the issue that recently hit global headline news, aired at CNN News channel under the topic: Anti-Semitism is on the rise in Europe Please let me begin my discussion by asking few rhetorical questions like: What did the Israelis do to deserve all hatred the hell and the world has thrown at her? Can someone try to explain the sin that they have done that justify all the worlds actions of hatred and evil criminal acts against them? Is it because we think they have sinned as a nation than the rest of the nations of the world? Are the nations of the world sinless and pure and deserving to punish and hate the Jews? Are all this reactions of hatred and crimes committed towards them politically and rationally correct? I guess you do have your own answers to these questions. In case the reader didnt know. The Jews are descendants of Eber (Gen 10:21, 24; 11:14) from Shem one of the Noahs three sons. Therefore, Eber is regarded as the progenitor of the Hebrews better known to us today as Israelites. Hence, in The Book of Luke 3:35 is named Heber, the ancestor of Abraham (v34), who himself was Jacob/Israels ancestor too. Nomads: All this people mentioned above probably lived like any other ethnic groups that lived in the ancient world. They were perhaps nomadic and having a polytheistic kind of religion possibly until God appeared to Abraham in the Land beyond the Rivers (Jos 24:2) and said get thee out of thy country (Gen 12:1). It looks like from that time on Anti-Semitic hatred began to take its roots growing bit by bit to date. Biblical narratives have indicated that in later time the Jewish people were subject to hatred, torture even in Egypt in much greater proportion. Again, after The Exodus on their way to The Promised Land they were in constant conflicts with other ethnic groups that stood on their way that may have contributed to the hatred that Jewish people encounter even today from people around Middle-East. Take a moment and think about these. We all at some point through our ancestors lived nomadic or semi-nomadic lives, we did fight small and big wars until we became Settlers; and that is how we have the political boundaries and countries of today. The question is who then can blame the nations we have today?, of course no one blames anyone except blaming the Jews for reclaiming their land. Gods choice: Did Abraham have something to do that influenced God to choose him among all other people of his time, of course not. So, why are his descendants hated specially Israel? Im drawn to assume that the worlds hatred towards Jewish people is a way of questioning God of his divine choosing and Sovereignty. The Conquest: The Jews began to possess and settled in Canaan around 1406 BC, they conquered the Canaanites, Ammonites, Jebusites, Philistines and Hittites etc. as you can read it in The Book of Joshua. Hence Canaan became Jewish land historically and theologically. Only those who are not acquainted with this truth can question the authenticity of Jewish claim today. The challenge is that humans have developed tendency of wanting to distort historical facts to suite their new ideologies (as I will try to show you later). Canaan became Israel: You should note that it did not come any easier; they too like most of the nations today the Jews fought their wars to become the nation it is today. Likewise, being in the Land as people was no guarantee of peace and security. They fought different foreign invaders from ancient past like: Assyrians under Shalmaneser V, around 722 BC (2 Kings 17:4-6); they fought Egyptians under Necho II around 609 BC (2 Kings 23:29; 2 Chr. 35:20-24). They also were engaged with the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar around 586 BC (2 Kings 24:1ff) and the results of this battle was so devastating. And then later they found some relief when Medo-Persia united front overthrew the Babylonians around 538BC to become the world power under Cyrus (Dan 5:30, 31); they took control over all territories that were under Babylon that includes The Promised Land. But, after some years the mighty Greeks under Alexander the Great around 331 BC defeated the Persians. And later the divided Greek Empire was overrun by the Romans, which their influence overlapped even to AD era. Again, it is important to indicate that most of this ancient emperors showed no mercy but pure hatred toward the Jewish people, but emperors like Cyrus and Xerxes were easy in helping the Jews in time of need and also help them begin the process to return from Exile. But even after their return to their Mother Land there were constant threats aimed them. Biblical narratives tells us about Hamans failed scheme to exterminate the Jews under Persian Empire (Est. 3:6, 13); what is surprising is that though Haman was only in conflict with one person (Mordecai), but his hatred for the Jews made him to resolve in his heart to want to eradicate the entire Jewish ethnicity. That is what hate can do against another person. Rev JS Ndzimandze Nkalaneni/Mooi-Hoek Happy New Year dear readers of the Peoples Column. I know very well that we had a very tough 2018 in which our living and working conditions did not improve, but let us remain hopeful and face another year with courage because, surely, a brighter day is coming to Eswatini. In the words of renowned African writer, Ngugi wa Thiongo, There is no night so long it does not end with dawn. With those words, I wish you a happy and prosperous 2019. This week I had four issues that I wanted to address and I decided not to write about anything. First, we have the Matsapha Municipal Council kindergarten-type of issue that has been a rude welcome to our computer illiterate minister. If it was not for the latter (ministers computer illiteracy problem) I would have written an email advising him on how to deal with this matter once and for all. In my article I would have loved to address one Sandlane Zwane and remind the nation who Zwane is and where he comes from so that we are all clear before we make an attempt to help here. Anyway, in the best interest of the people in whose name I write this column, I thought it would not be wise to start giving attention to certain people because to do so would be to aid their political resurrection which may be very costly to the country. Why not scrap JC The second issue I wanted to address is the Junior Certificate (JC) examination. Honestly, I do not think that in 2019 we should be wasting financial and other resources, including time, on an external examination whose certificate is not even recommended for domestic work purposes. This is no longer relevant and we can develop other assessment models as opposed to wasting taxpayers money preparing for an exam that is no longer relevant. I listened with disgust as the results were being announced on national radio a few days ago sikolwa lesilandzelako yi and I said to myself: what a waste of radio airtime, what a playful society! Anyway, it was not until a friend on Facebook answered my question as to why we still continue to do this JC thing. But if you scrap all you are denying the minister to hold press conferences; you will deny the markers the looting; you will deny the colonizers their royalties; the list is endless; dont forget the jobs at Exams Council; the tenders to print those papers; dont forget the corruption in all this, he said. Based on this, I started to make an abstract assumption as to what might make the JC examination to live for years to come; it benefits some people and you might not win this debate or discussion because it threatens the pockets of individuals. Now, I ended up making a decision not to write about it this week. Thirdly, one would have liked to address what is happening in schools throughout this country; free primary education and OVC money coming late in schools and our schools being forced to operate for months without money! I have had conversations with head teachers across Eswatini who share their frustrations on this issue. Mabuza, how can we run a school without money to buy basic items necessary for running the school? By the time we receive the government money we are down and out as schools, they say. Expensive education for some This is really painful; and what makes it more painful is the indisputable fact that the children of the politicians and other decisions makers within government do not go to the public schools they get education in private schools like Little School, Khanyisile, Njabulweni, Usuthu, Sisekelo and others. They even take them to expensive schools outside the country in South Africa and elsewhere while they destroy the schools of the ordinary men and women in the country. They do not care whether the public schools are run efficiently or not because it doesnt directly affect them. They have done the same with our public health facilities because they get medical care in South Africa, Taiwan and other countries. What a painful issue! Again here, I ended up deciding not to write about this because we have written about it over and over without change. Fourthly, I wanted to appeal to the new prime minister to please make sure that civil servants get their cost of living adjustment because everything has gone up: food, tuition fees, clothes and other items. Our people need to have their salaries raised so that they survive the harsh economic environment. I wanted to tell the prime minister the easiest way out of labour unrest; because before you know it police will be beating up peaceful protesters on the street for demanding what rightfully belongs to them. resolve issues amicably It is important that we resolve issues amicably as a country, without the brutal violence that has become a selfishly guarded policy of the government over the years. Beating up people and using teargas and bullets against unarmed citizens is backward and barbaric. That is what I wanted to write about. However, I recalled that I raised this with the prime minister when he got into office in 2018. I cannot write about the same thing to the same person, lest I be accused of being deficient in ideas. At the end of the day I did not have anything to write about and I made a decision to reserve my first article of 2019 for next week Sunday. Brace yourself for a year of fearless, confrontational and analytic writing; we must write ourselves to prison or even death and generations to come will say: they used pen and paper to raise progressive issues despite the consequences of writing about those in power. What else do we have against those who have guns, scary trucks, prisons and power? We can only use spoken and written words to raise our issues and hope that one day a brighter day will come. We have another year to speak and to write! Thomas Gift, UCL No sector in the UK has more enthusiastically embraced globalisation than higher education. Top universities have erected campuses in new continents, expanded their share of students from abroad, and touted their instruction of global citizens. Restrictive immigration policies make it difficult for overseas students to stay on and get jobs after their degrees. shutterstock globalisation Too many students? favour them Shutterstock sceptics subsidise Other benefits economist Valuable skills With firms struggling to fill skills gaps and vacancies outstripping the people available to fill them, it is economic madness to send these talented youngsters packing as soon as their studies are over. The University of Oxford, for example,that its international profile rivals that of any university in the world. My own institutionitself Londons Global University. Such branding doubtlessly appeals to a new footloose class of international elites. Yet asoversurges amid Brexit, UK universities now face their own discontents. This is especially true when it comes to educating foreign students. Ahas found a sizeable majority of the UK public supports a cap on international students.some university administrators: Foreign students are being deterred from courses at British universities because of public paranoia over immigration.Cultural xenophobia may explain some antipathy toward international students. Yet my ownwith Stanford political scientist Carlos X. Lastra Anadon paints a more complex picture. It seems the publics perceived self-interest also plays a pivotal role in shaping attitudes. We discovered people were about 15% more likely tocapping the number of international students when primed to think aboutcrowding out domestic students in university admissions. The bottom line: people are more likely to reject international students when they are perceived as a threat to those people or their children.Within the ivory towers of progressives, nods to the moreof international students such as diversity and multiculturalism receive well-deserved praise. Our results, however, suggest that convincingabout the merits of international students also requires appealing to self-interest. By showing how international students help finance home students, for example.by London School of Economics professor Stephen Machin and Richard Murphy at The University of Texas at Austin revealed that by paying higher fees, international students in effectcertain domestic students.A recentalso highlighted the benefits international students bring to the UK economy. The findings by the Higher Education Policy Institute and Kaplan International Pathways revealed how international students outstrip their costs by roughly ten times. Educating international students can even help to advance the UKs national interests. Antonio Spilimbergo,at the International Monetary Fund,how international student exchanges with democratic countries facilitate the spread of democracy abroad. Likewise, my previous research with Daniel Krcmaric of Northwestern University in the UShow developing world leaders who are educated in the West are more likely to pursue democratic reforms in their home countries. In the long run, this makes all countries including the UK safer and more prosperous.If international students do have a downside, its that they too often leave after graduation. This deprives the economy of valuable skills. Yet this is a problem with, not talented international students. As Jasmine Whitbread, CEO of London First, a not for profit advocacy groupAs someone who teaches at one of the worlds most international universities, I know firsthand the unique benefits of international students. Balancing a global student body with a commitment to the nation isnt a zero-sum game. UK universities know this, but they need to do better at explaining why. If, as my research shows, self-interest drives public support for international students, then its essential that Britons know the facts. International students offer myriad advantages for the UK and they should be welcomed with open arms. Thomas Gift , Lecturer of Political Science and Director of the Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) Programme,This article is republished fromunder a Creative Commons license. Read the Thank you for Reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and Purchase a Subscription to continue reading. Letter to the Editor The efforts been renewed to bond for a new school. . Let me state the problem Everybody, including me, wants a new school, nobody wants to ... A British pub in Manilva has found a novel way to bring in more customers during the winter months - by offering free Spanish classes. Almost 50 people turn up for the free lessons at Mirror Mirror Lounge Bar in Puerto de la Duquesa every week. The lessons are taught by bilingual Brit Christian Lee Dun who grew up on the coast after his parents moved here in the 1980s. Bar owner Christian, 34, told SUR in English, "It all started because customers overheard me speaking Spanish in the bar and kept asking me if I would be interested in teaching them. So I thought I would give it a go and came up with the idea of doing a conversational course. "The majority are British and Irish, but we've had Italians, Belgians, Scandinavians, Portuguese and people of all ages. We even had a family in this week." Christian, who was born in Wigan, explained that the course starts off with numbers, basic conversation and how to greet other people. He added: "I teach proper Castilian Spanish, but also how to speak with the Andalusian accent and useful slang words. We do practical classes that focus on cafes, bars, restaurants and supermarkets too. "It's good for business as it brings a lot of people in. But it's also something to do mid week when there's a bit of a lull in things to do and not much is happening. "Even if you don't speak the language fluently, it's important to try as you get a lot of respect from the locals for making the effort. "It's all done in a relaxed atmosphere. And because it's a free course, people are a lot more relaxed about attending." The Spanish classes are every Tuesday from 7.30pm to 8.15pm for beginners and 8.15pm to 9pm for improvers, with the course running from October to April. For more information visit the Mirror Mirror Lounge Bar Facebook page. Changes to the SunCommercial's back end processing means the e-edition is getting a facelift. The biggest change is the e-edition, by default, is now presented in Text view. Middle class federal workers and their families are stretching their pennies until the shutdown is over. Even though pay will be restored eventually, bills still arrive on time even if paychecks don't, and many federal employees are being forced to make difficult and unnecessary financial decisions to make ends meet. Make no mistake: this is a huge advance for the state of Florida as the existential threat of sea-level rise becomes more and more apparent, no matter your views on the underlying cause. Our collaborative editorial-page project, The Invading Sea, has been arguing for months for state action to bolster localities organizing to help their regions prepare for the higher waters headed our way. On Thursday evening, Corona, 22, had responded to a crash involving three vehicles at 5th and D streets, taking information from drivers, when witnesses said a man rolled up on a bicycle and began to shoot at Corona. She was struck multiple times and died at UC Davis Medical Center. As an emotional service for Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office K-9 Cigo who was killed in the line of duty commenced, hundreds of attendees filled the seats of the Coral Sky Amphitheatre while over 70 current police K-9s barked from the amphitheater lawn. ASHTABULA [emdash] Vincent John Collise, 77, passed away unexpectedly, Monday, June 14, 2021 at ACMC. His is survived by wife, Nancy and daughter, Kimberley. No services will be held. Ducro Funeral Services and Crematory is handling arrangements. www.ducro.com Durban (South Africa), January 13, 2019 (SPS) - President of South African, Cyril Ramaphosa, has reaffirmed support for the just struggle of Sahrawi people for freedom and independence, in a speech marking the 107th anniversary of the founding of the African National Congress (ANC) in Durban, South Africa. "The struggle of the Sahrawi people for freedom and independence is our struggle," he said. "In the ANC, we will continue to fight alongside the Polisario Front to enable the Sahrawi people to exercise their right to self-determination, freedom and independence, he added. He also affirmed continuation of work alongside the Government of the Sahrawi Republic in the African Union and at the United Nations level in order to complete its sovereignty over all the territory of Western Sahara, the last colony in Africa. (SPS) 062/SPS/TRA Jeffrey Jackson is the managing editor of the Owatonna People's Press. He can be reached at 507-444-2371 or via email at jjackson@owatonna.com The Government has come under fire for the lack of consultation over the proposed Hydropower dam at Alaoa. Since September, Papalii Malietau Malietoa, has been trying to get answers from the Electric Power Corporation (E.P.C.) around the building of the Alaoa Flood Control Multi-Purpose Dam, which is supported by the Asian Development Bank (A.D.B) through technical assistance to the project. I believe that the consultative process for something so important that could pose a huge danger has not been adequate, Papalii said. In fact I believe that the process thus far has more to do with building a case for a dam rather than the meaningful consultations of affected communities and parties and the importance of their voices in the process. Plans for the dam began in 2016, and community consultations kicked off in July last year. But it was not until later Papalii realised his family could be in danger. It wasnt until Fiu (Mataese Elisara) wrote to the Observer about the dam we learned about it at all, he said. Its only via our continuous emailing to the A.D.B offices in Manila and Fiji did we manage to get some answers to our questions, and yet under the A.D.B Safe Guard Policy as affected people we should be consulted. As beneficiaries of the estate of Malietoa Laupepa, myself and family members have not had an easy time with the project team. The land proposed for the multipurpose dam spans four million cubic metres, and allegedly encroaches on customary land, not formally registered or surveyed so affected families may not even know about it. Papalii said of the proposed land, at least 400 to 500 acres of Malietoa Laupepa Estate land is inside the project boundary, and includes gravesites of family members at risk of desecration if the dam goes ahead. The major concern is the size of the dam, and the amount of water it will contain. According to a response by Civil Society leader Fiu Mataese Elisara, when compared to the hydro project at Afulilo, Alaoa presents a daily safety concern. This Alaoa initiative is a relatively massive undertaking with the proposed hydro dam constructed in a much lesser area, more confined space, and with immense water pressure that need to be safely contained in a dam structure, Fiu said. At least the 600 acres of land area taken up by the Afulilo hydro project is expansive enough for water to be distributed rather safely throughout, he said. How to safely manage the immense pressure of damming four million cubic meters of water in a dam with such constraints will undoubtedly be a human nightmare for E.P.C but especially a daily safety concern for those residing close to it in the likelihood of failure. In Samoa it is difficult for citizens to participate in the early stages of a process because they dont know their rights, especially in regard to international organisations like the A.D.B, Papalii said. They need to have their safeguard policies translated in to the Samoan Language to fully give effect to their meaningful consultation standard, he said. They have indicated that they will speak to the Government of Samoa on that issue, however its my viewpoint that its not a Government of Samoa issue, its an A.D.B issue. When consultation did finally take place with a meeting well attended by people from the eight affected villages on the 23 October last year, Papalii found the minutes distributed after did not accurately represent the meeting. It took over a month for him to receive amended minutes. Viewpoints expressed by participants were not recorded so the minutes did not reflect what was actually said at that consultation, [but] this has been corrected. Papalii is still not satisfied with responses to what compensation would be offered, if any at all to families needing to relocate from the land, or for any land value diminishing as a result of the dam. The A.D.B in light of this situation has moved swiftly to recruit a consultation expert to draw up a consultation plan for this project, Papalii said. This is great news but something that should have been in place at the start of the project rather than an ad hoc response to our expressed concerns. Papaliis full concerns to both E.P.C and A.D.B were published on the Samoa Observer in September 2018. Fiu, also waiting months for E.P.C to respond to detailed concerns about the dam said he does not trust the consultations were done in good faith. Promised response and record of meetings with villages have not been shared. I am therefore disappointed and unable to further contribute and concerned that E.P.C may have used the N.G.Os to tick their program delivery boxes. I implore on Program Manager and E.P.C that it is imperative for all concerned that they be more transparent on the Alaoa Multi-Purpose Project as it is indeed a risky undertaking where the safety concerns on peoples lives and property are fundamental, Fiu said. Papalii said there is too much happy happy talk about the benefits of the multi-purpose dam, and not enough about the potentially risks. They are just interested in telling us there going to be a dam and no more flooding, but what about when something goes wrong? Acts of God happen all the time. It was not possible to get a comment from E.P.C. before press time yesterday. Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi will visit Jordan on Sunday, his spokesman Bassam Rady has said on Saturday. El-Sisi is expected to discuss bilateral cooperation with Jordans King Abdullah, Rady said. According to the latest figures, Egypt's trade exchange with Jordan stands at $587 million. El-Sisi's spokesman also said that the pair will discuss regional developments, especially the situation in the Palestinian territories, as well as efforts to reach political settlements. Short link: Hong Kong: Village polls see 62% turnout rate The 2019 Village Representative Elections last polling day saw an overall turnout rate of 62.12%. The election started last Sunday and the second polling day was held today. There were 367 candidates from 108 villages contesting 195 seats, including 129 Indigenous Inhabitant Representatives and 66 Resident Representatives. A total of 30,113 out of the 48,476 registered voters cast their ballots today. Click here for details. This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Steve Bull started on the pole of the T.A.Ward Construction 270 Sprint Feature and claimed a green to checkered win as his competition was eli Reserve Bank governor Adrian Orr says stress tests of banks have inherent limitations, suggesting they shouldnt be relied on. We emphasise in our public articles that stress testing results should not be read at face value, Orr says in a letter. Both the significant modelling uncertainties, and the fact that the banks know how/when the stress situation ends, limits the value of stress tests, Orr says. Further, passing a stress test covering only dairy portfolios is not a meaningful indication of overall capital strength, given it is only approximately 10 percent of banks exposures. Orr was responding to a BusinessDesk story questioning whether the central banks proposed new capital requirements for the major banks amount to gold-plating. The Reserve Bank has published the results of a number of stress tests, including one that looked solely at dairy portfolios, but it has also conducted more general tests. The major banks are also required to conduct their own stress tests on a continuous basis and to share those results with the Reserve Bank, although the results arent made public. But the last time the central bank conducted such a test itself was in 2017 when it looked at the big four banks in conjunction with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority - APRA. The banks passed with flying colours, as they have in all such tests. The scenario for that test was far broader than just the dairy industry it included a 35 percent plunge in house prices, a 40 percent fall in commercial property prices, unemployment of 11 percent and a Fonterra payout to dairy farmers averaging $4.90 per kilo of milk solids for three years, below break-even for the average farmer. On top of that, the regulator overlaid an industry-wide scandal relating to bad behaviour in mortgage lending, such as customers successfully suing the banks for poor lending practices and failure to abide by the Responsible Lending Code. This scenario includes far more severe conditions than the last actual test of banks financial resilience, the global financial crisis, but the New Zealand registered banks have come through all such tests, real and simulated, with their balance sheets intact and capital capacity to spare. According to the Reserve Banks new Bank Financial Strength Dashboard, the big four banks mortgage books account for another 58 percent of their balance sheets, so that latest test covered more than 68 percent of bank lending, not counting commercial property lending. The big four banks, ANZ, ASB, BNZ and Westpac, account for about 88 percent of New Zealands banking system. The Reserve Bank is proposing that the big four banks will have to effectively double their minimum tier 1 equity during the next five years. Orr says that the actual increase will be between 40-60 percent, given that current capital levels are above current regulatory requirements. However, when announcing the proposals on Dec. 14, deputy governor Geoff Bascand said that "we are proposing to almost double the required amount of high-quality capital that banks will have to hold." But banks do hold significantly more than the minimum capital required currently. ANZ Bank, for example, which is New Zealands largest, had a tier 1 equity ratio of 11.1 percent at September 30, much higher than the 6 percent regulatory minimum. The Reserve Bank is proposing to lift this to 16 percent the smaller banks would have a slightly smaller 15 percent minimum. Given banks current practice of comfortably exceeding statutory minimum capital requirements their prized banking licences depend on such compliance it would be unreasonable to expect they will hug minimum requirements in future. Orr also dismissed criticism from Australian Financial Review journalist Tony Boyd who has written for that paper on banking issues for more than 35 years and currently writes its flagship Chanticleer column. Boyd had suggested that the Australian banking regulator, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority, has more stringent capital requirements than most Western countries but not nearly as stringent as the Reserve Bank is now proposing and that no Australian depositor has lost money. All four of New Zealands big four banks are owned by Australias big four banks and Boyd was clearly suggesting the Reserve Bank proposals are extreme, but Orr dismisses his views. Group capital requirements are not relevant for New Zealand creditors and/or taxpayers. Only capital in the New Zealand subsidiary can be relied on, Orr says. The Reserve Bank has long insisted that the New Zealand arms of the major Australian banks have registered subsidiaries with their own capital adequacy requirements distinct from their parents. It famously won a long battle with Westpac in late 2004 when that bank finally agreed to incorporate a local subsidiary, a process finally completed two years later Orr was Westpacs chief economist between 2000 and 2003. No Australian bank depositor has lost money because a) the Financial Claims Scheme has been in place since 2008 and b) institutions that failed in the early 1990s period of stress were rescued by state governments, he says. BusinessDesk also highlighted international ratings agency Fitchs view of the Reserve Banks proposed changes as radical. It also considered them highly conservative relative to international peers and would go "well beyond the international norm. But Orr argues that the Fitch article also said the proposal sets a global standard and is positive for banks credit profiles, although we do not expect any immediate rating changes. Theres no question the proposals would make New Zealand banks much stronger but there is a question as to whether they amount to unnecessary goldplating. Orr also dismisses the suggestion that the Reserve Bank might have failed to consult APRA on its proposed changes. We are in constant dialogue with our Australian colleagues at APRA. On this particular topic, we have shared many conversations, papers and briefings over a period of many months, he says. Our APRA colleagues are always pleased to be briefed and we jointly recognise each others sovereignty with respect to the issues. Orr says the Reserve Bank will shortly release all the background material that supports the consultation document released on Dec. 14. The consultation period ends on March 29. (BusinessDesk) Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: 404 NOT FOUND Fonterra looking to lift China's importance in new strategy A2, Synlait shares climb as takeover bid revives optimism about Chinese appetite for milk Service sector activity eases in August but still expanding Lumpy imports drive bigger July trade deficit than expected Nimbys, carparks and the status quo under threat as govt tells big cities: grow up and out Dairy manufacturers got better prices in June quarter Orr defends RBNZ rate cut, says monetary policy looks ahead, not behind RBNZ's Orr says investors need to put their money to work Auckland building consents hit record in year to June Press Release January 13, 2019 SSS amendments measure ready for PRRD's signature A measure seeking to overhaul the Social Security System's (SSS) charter has been transmitted to Malacanang early this week for the President's signature. Sen. Richard Gordon, chairman of the Senate Committee on Government Corporations and Public Enterprises and author and sponsor of Senate Bill 1753, said once signed into law, both land-based and sea-based overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) would be covered, "provided that they are not over 60 years of age." Earlier, SSS president and chief executive officer Emmanuel Dooc said the enrolled bill, signed by Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III and House of Representatives Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, has yet to be transmitted to the Office of the President for signing. Dooc said the bill is expected to generate P16 billion in premium collections in a year. He said the adjustments would be able to help extend the fund life of the SSS. The bill would repeal the 21-year old Social Security Law, or Republic Act 1161, as amended by Republic Act 8282 and expand the powers of the SSS to ensure the long-term viability of the said system. In particular, the amendment aims to empower the Social Security System Commission to increase benefits, condone penalties, and rationalize investments, among others. The bill would ensure the mandatory SSS coverage for overseas Filipino workers. Gordon said the move may help expand the number of OFWs with SSS coverage from 500,000 OFW members to two-and-a-half million members. It also provides unemployment insurance for SSS members who will be displaced involuntarily. One of the main provisions of the bill seeks to increase the contribution of SSS members by one percentage point every other year starting 2019 until the current rate of 11 percent rises to 15 percent by 2025. It would also adjust the minimum and maximum salary credit of members. The measure would also give the SSS Commission the power to determine the salary credit and monthly contributions of members, which would allow it to increase contributions "depending on the actuarial survey." Gordon said the expanded powers are needed since it would allow the SSS management to increase the salary credit and contribution of employees "considering that at present it is only limited to P16,000 which yields very little benefit." At the same time, the SSS would also be empowered to invest its Reserve Funds to "grow the wealth of SSS and ultimately yield higher income." "The SSS must be given a chance to do what they can for the people because the government could not base its policies on fear but on trusting the people, especially those with tremendous responsibility," he said. Congress approved the bicameral report on the disagreeing provisions of Senate Bill 1753 and House Bill No. 2158 last month. The Senate version of the bill was earlier passed on third and final reading last October 8, 2018. Press Release January 13, 2019 Dispatch from Crame No. 449: SEN. DE LIMA LAMENTS THE "WEATHER WEATHER LANG YAN" NARRATIVE 1/13/19 For two years now, the advent of a New Year painfully brings to mind the impending anniversary of my detention. In six weeks, I would be under detention for two full years. 2 years of unjust detention as a prisoner of conscience. Guilty of nothing more and nothing less than the sin of "doing the right thing." I have developed a new pet peeve. It used to be clerical errors: I have an eagle eye in spotting typographical and grammatical errors. Now, what really irks me is when people - most of them well-meaning, but unintentionally infuriating - attempt to summarize my unjust detention and political persecution as a consequence of the political climate. "Weather-weather lang yan, Leila." It infuriates and hurts me - this unfair oversimplification of what I am going through. It even implies that, when I was under better political climate, I did as my enemies now have done to me. I protest! Vehemently and indignantly. I have persecuted no one for political reasons or personal vengeance. I have killed no one. I have stolen nothing. I have sold or traded no drugs. I have not conspired with anyone to engage in any criminal activity. I confess to one thing and one thing only: I made powerful enemies by performing my mandate without fear or favor. I am here, under detention, for no other reason than our efforts then at accountability led us up a trail that reached powerful and influential personalities: a former President, a Senate President, Senators, Congressmen, local government chief executives ... and now even an incumbent President. Under my leadership, the DOJ and its attached agencies simply went where the evidence took us. And despite recent developments - including puzzling and suspicious acquittals - I am certain that Filipinos know the truth of the matter: elections and billions of taxpayers' money were stolen. As for me, if anyone wants to truly scrutinize and seek the corpus delicti of my alleged crimes, really, you will find no drugs, no money trail, no illicit or unexplained wealth. Instead, look at my public service record. There you will find the investigations that were conducted under my term as CHR Chair and DOJ Secretary, my privilege speeches, the resolutions I filed, my writings, interviews and statements. Those are my "sins." This is not a matter of "weather-weather". Even when the political winds blew in my favor, I suborned no false testimonies, I fabricated no evidence, I invented no false and baseless charges - as proved by the fact that the Office of the Ombudsman filed cases after its own investigation, and the decision of the Sandiganbayan in a recent case of acquittal was far from unanimous. Even when the weather was fair for me, I held nothing more sacred than Truth, Justice and the Rule of Law. I am reminded of former US Attorney General Elliot Richardson, who is perhaps better known as "The Martyr of Watergate" - the head of the US DOJ who chose to resign than heed President Richard Nixon's order to fire special prosecutor Archibald Cox. At about the same time that the US President was under investigation for the Watergate scandal, three federal prosecutors came to him to report that their corruption investigation has revealed that the official who is first-in-line to succeed the President, Vice Pres. Spiro Agnew, was engaging in extortion and bribery activities. AG Richardson was a Republican cabinet member, serving a twice-elected Republican President and his very popular Republican running mate. Knowing the peril that the White House was under because of the Watergate scandal, the 3 federal prosecutors fully expected AG Richardson to tell them to shut the investigation down - after all, the worst time to indict a Vice President is when the President is about to be impeached and possibly indicted too. To their surprise, AG Richardson said no such thing. He didn't decide based on political climate or political affiliation. He decided based on what is right. Just as I did. Time and again. For that decision, AG Richardson received the John Heinz Award for Greatest Public Service by an Elected or Appointed Official. This February, I will receive an award that I will proudly accept: my second year as a prisoner of conscience. So, please, spare me the "weather-weather" false narrative. Press Release January 13, 2019 'Justice' elevates, anchors people - De Lima As her unjust detention nears its second year, Opposition Senator Leila M. de Lima has shared her personal reflection on the true meaning of justice - a term that is often downplayed by the present administration - as "Word of the Year" in 2018. De Lima, a strong advocate of social justice and human rights, said she realized, among others, that justice elevates people and gives true meaning to the virtues they aspire to. "What is power without justice? Tyranny. What is peace without justice? Repression. What is productivity without justice? Slavery. What is prosperity without social justice? Exploitation. What is exploration without environmental justice? Disaster," De Lima wrote in her recent Dispatch from Crame No. 442. She noted that "What is 'justice'?" is a question that many people all over the world wondered about in 2018, considering that it was the top lookup at Merriam-Webster. com. Note that US publishing company Merriam-Webster has named "justice" as its Word of the Year for 2018, with it being searched 74 percent more than in 2017. De Lima seized the moment in recalling what Supreme Court (SC) Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio said, calling her detention as "one of the grossest injustices" in recent memory in his dissenting opinion on the SC ruling dismissing her Petition for Certiorari in 2017. "I, of course, would be the most surprised, as it is next to impossible, if this Administration ever does the right thing and release me. But it only makes me ponder about the word 'justice' and its antonym, 'injustice', even more," she shared. In her days of most unjust and unfair detention, De Lima said she was able to define justice as something that "anchors" people, thus preventing them from "hurtling dangerously and uncontrollably into space." Likewise, the former justice secretary said she realized that "injustice" is not the complete absence of justice but the "abuse, misuse and perversion" of justice. "So, really, what we should takeaway from 2018 is that we should be more careful about the people we trust," she said. "The greatest harm comes from the enemy we did not immediately recognize, the one that perpetrates the gravest acts of betrayal of public trust. It takes many forms, one of them being 'Injustice,'" she added. Considered as a leading prisoner of conscience, De Lima is currently detained in Camp Crame, Quezon City for trumped-up drug charges fabricated by the Duterte administration, borne out of Duterte's personal vendetta against her. Press Release January 13, 2019 ANGARA URGES GOV'T TO HELP FARMERS AMID OVERSUPPLY, LOW PRICES Senator Sonny Angara wants immediate government intervention to aid farmers hit by huge losses due to oversupply and low prices of farm produce, as well as put in place long-term solutions to make farming sustainable. "The government should go beyond giving loans to affected farmers as this is just a short-term solution. What we need are solutions that are sustainable in the long-run such as providing them assistance in marketing their produce or facilities to process their harvest," Angara said. Cordillera farmers were reportedly forced to throw away tons of vegetables they harvested last week as prices have taken a dive due to overproduction and the lack of means to transport the harvest to market. It was also reported that traders were not able to buy the produce to transport to Bicol and the Visayas due to flooding brought by Tropical Depression Usman. Bicol is part of the overland supply route to the Visayas connected by ferries. The Department of Agriculture has announced that farmers who lost their produce could avail of a loan of up to P50,000 at six percent annual interest under the agency's Production Loan Easy Access. "Farmers could easily go out of business if there is a glut in supply because prices can plummet below cost," Angara pointed out. The lawmaker said the government, particularly the agriculture department, should heed the call of farmers for the building of more and bigger processing facilities to address oversupply. He said that processing facilities, such as the Benguet Agri-Pino Trading Center, can prolong the shelf life of farm produce since they have dry and cold storage facilities. "Kung may mas marami at malaking processing facility, mas marami sanang gulay ang na-preserve habang hinihintay nating humupa ang baha sa Bicol," Angara pointed out. Thus, Angara said there should be a greater government intervention regarding facilities and the use of technology to help farmers operate effectively. The government, he added, could also help farmers find the best price for their crops by dealing directly with large buyers. Angara believes that the focus of the government should be on supporting farmers if it wants to lift the ailing agriculture sector. According to the lawmaker, agriculture remains a sector most vital to the overall development of the country, not just as the main driver of food security, but also as a source of livelihood. It is for this reason why he filed a bill seeking to institutionalize agri-entrepreneurship program in the Philippines. The proposed Entrepreneurial Agricultural Education Act filed by Angara aims to develop and strengthen the agricultural education and training in the country to encourage more Filipinos to become "agri-preneurs." SWS is building the first two cruise ships to be constructed in China to operate for the new Chinese brand CSSC Carnival Cruise Shipping Ltd. The first 133,500gt vessel is due for delivery in 2023. To cope with the massive project of building cruise ships, we have created a team for cruise ship design and each section of the team will work closely and pay high attention to the overall process, emphasized Zhou Qi, project manager of the cruise department. Fincantieri connection The structure of the cruise ship design team has been agreed after lots of research and communications and we believe it is the most reasonable arrangement in the present situation, said Chen Gang, general manager of SWS. We are introducing technology and knowledge from Fincantieri and developing our own cruise shipbuilding technology, he added. Our main target is to complete the cruise ship design and coordinate with other departments including production, purchasing, shipbuilding etc to jointly promote our cruise ship project, Chen continued. 2 + 4 option order The deal between Carnival and CSSC which has options for four additional vesselswas signed in November 2018 in the presence of the Undersecretary of State for the Italian Ministry of Economic Development Michele Geraci. The China cruise market is forecast to grow to 4.5m cruise passengers by 2020. Seatrade Cruise Asia Pacific 2019 will take place in Baoshan, Shanghai in the last quarter of this year, dates yet to be confirmed. Egypt ranks towards the bottom of a list of countries for Internet connection quality and speed, according to tests carried out by Speedtest, Akamai Technologies and OpenSignal, the three top agencies measuring Internet quality, with some results showing Internet speeds in Egypt to be slowing down. This is in spite of increases in the number of Internet subscribers and the launch of infrastructure projects to raise Internet quality. The results come at a time when the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology has announced its readiness to provide 5G Internet services in the country. In a report published in 2018, Speedtest stated that Egypts infrastructure had suffered from a lack of investment following the 25 January Revolution. It started seeing improvements in the third quarter of 2016, but Egypt still ranks 146 out of 150 countries for fixed broadband download speeds and 95th for mobile Internet, Speedtest said. In the North Africa region, Egypts fixed broadband was faster only than that in Libya, and its mobile Internet speed was faster than that of Algeria and Sudan. The average speed of Egypts fixed broadband for downloads was 4.02 megabytes per second (MBps) in the first quarter of 2017, slower than its average mobile download speed of 7.75 MBps. Speedtest reported that in November 2017 Egypts Internet speeds had increased to reach 9.07 MBps after it measured those offered by commonly used Internet service-providers such as WE, Nile Online, Vodafone Egypt, Orange, Link and Telecom Egypt. According to November 2018 figures, for digital subscriber lines (DSL) Egypt ranked 121 out of the 126 countries mentioned. Among the Arab countries, Egypt came in 12th from the 16 countries looked at. Worldwide, Iraq ranked 88th and Syria 115th.. For mobile Internet speeds on an international scale, Egypt ranked 89th out of 123 countries, placing the country 11th on the list of Arab states. The speed of the mobile Internet is slow in Egypt, but not as slow as fixed broadband. The fact that Egypt provided 4G services last year contributed to increasing the speed of the mobile Internet, said a source at Telecom Egypt. Etisalat, a telecommunications company, is the fastest provider of fixed broadband download speeds, averaging 8.74 MBps, according to last years statistics. The upload speeds of Etisalat, Vodafone and Orange are almost the same, with Etisalat at 3.65 MBps and Vodafone at 3.63 MBps, followed by Orange. US content delivery network and cloud service-provider Akamai Technologies serves up to 30 per cent of all web traffic. In its report measuring mobile Internet speeds in 62 countries, Egypt ranked 22nd, with an average of 12.2 MBps. The fastest speeds in the world, according to Akamai, are in the UK, providing mobile Internet speeds of 26 MBps. OpenSignal dedicated part of its report to countries making available 4G services, such as South Korea and Japan that came in first among countries providing the fastest 4G Internet. The US ranked fifth and Kuwait eighth and the first among the Arab countries, with an average speed of 88.4 MBps, followed by Qatar, rated 18th internationally, with 84.4. Egypt ranked second to last among the Arab countries and 83rd worldwide, followed by five other countries and one Arab country, Algeria, which also came in last worldwide. The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology announced in mid-2018 that it was embarking on a strategy to increase the quality of Internet connections in Egypt and was developing the entire network by replacing copper cables with fibre-optic ones that allow faster DSL and fixed broadband connections. These developments, the ministry said, would allow for Internet speeds of no less than 40 MBps. Mohamed Abu Koreish, secretary-general of the Association of Communications and Network Engineers, an NGO, said the ministry had not succeeded in increasing the quality and speed of Internet connections in Egypt and subscribers had grown tired of complaining to Internet service-providers. There were no effective measures in place to oblige telecommunications companies to commit to contracts signed with Internet users, Abu Koreish said. Internet speeds for DSL are commonly given as up to 16 MBps in such contracts, but the companies concerned do not always provide these as they do not follow international guidelines on the availability of equipment and outgoing ports in relation to the number of Internet users, causing congestion on the web, he said. As far as mobile Internet is concerned, speeds may reach 18 MBps during rush hours and 44 MBps at other times. 4G technology allows mobile Internet speeds to reach 100 MBps for video and one Gigabyte per second for static material. Ahmed Al-Beheiri, president of Telecom Egypt, said his company had replaced more than 50 per cent of its copper cables with fibre-optic ones in the past two years and is slated to finish doing so during 2019. *A version of this article appears in print in the 10 January, 2019 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly under the headline: Seeking speedier connections Short link: Egypt's Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr says business opportunities in Egypt are promising, assuring investors about a friendly climate that is guaranteed by law and encouraged by incentives. Addressing a conference on investment in the Middle East and North Africa region Sunday, Nasr talked about economic stability in her country, as well as an integrated investment map that would help the private sector pump even more money into the market. The conference was organised by CI Capital Holding and was inaugurated by Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli and attended by 250 Egyptian, Arab and foreign investors. The government believes the private sector can contribute to achieving comprehensive economic development, Nasr said. She told the gathering that 70 percent of the jobs in Egypt are with the private sector. According to Nasr, sustainable economic development is the result of effective cooperation between the private and public sectors, which materialised in giant projects in the country. Indeed, the partnership between the private and public sectors in Egypt helped establish a solar energy station in Aswan, the biggest in the Middle East, the minister stated. Cairo is acting to implement a comprehensive economic reform programme that includes institutional and legislative amendments meant to create a stable landscape and hone the competitiveness of the Egyptian economy, Nasr said. She urged investors attending the conference to expand their businesses in Egypt, assuring them that further measures have been taken to protect their money, enhance good governance and end bureaucracy. Egypt is also seeking to up investment in infrastructure, which plays a key role in attracting businesses and creating new jobs, Nasr said, adding that foreign direct investments have increased in the country. Search Keywords: Short link: The head of Iran's nuclear program said Sunday that the Islamic Republic has begun ``preliminary activities for designing'' a modern process for 20-percent uranium enrichment for its 50-year-old research reactor in Tehran, signaling new danger for the nuclear deal. Restarting enrichment at that level would mean Iran had withdrawn the 2015 nuclear deal it struck with world powers, an accord that President Donald Trump already pulled America out of in May. However, Ali Akbar Salehi's comments to state television appeared aimed at telling the world Iran would slowly restart its program. If it chooses, it could resume mass enrichment at its main facility in the central Iranian town of Natanz. ``Preliminary activities for designing modern 20 percent (enriched uranium) fuel have begun,'' state TV quoted Salehi as saying. Salehi said adding the ``modern fuel'' will increase efficiency in Tehran research reactor that consumes 20-percent enriched fuel. ``We are at the verge'' of being ready, he said, without elaborating. In June, Iran informed the UN's nuclear watchdog that it will increase its nuclear enrichment capacity within the limits set by the 2015 agreement with world powers. Iran continues to comply with the terms of the deal, according to the UN, despite the American pullout. Salehi heads the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, whose Tehran campus holds the nuclear research reactor given to the country by the US in 1967 under the rule of the shah. But in the time since that American ``Atoms for Peace'' donation, Iran was convulsed by its 1979 Islamic Revolution and the subsequent takeover and hostage crisis at the US 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 US 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 UN 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 10,000 kilograms (22,046 pounds) of higher-enriched uranium it once had. Trump, who campaigned on a promise to tear up the nuclear deal, said he ultimately pulled America out of the accord over Iran's ballistic missile program and its malign influence on the wider Mideast. In an interview in September with The Associated Press, Salehi warned that Iran could begin mass production of more advanced centrifuges if the deal collapses. ``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 at the time. ``We will be standing on a much, much higher position.'' Short link: Sen. Ben Hueso, chairman of the state Senates Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee, was one of a dozen California lawmakers to join 60 utility executives and other paid sponsors at the Fairmont Kea Lani resort in Hawaii last November. Such conferences are often criticized as inappropriate hobnobbing of policymakers with businesses affected by their decisions, and defended as legitimate working sessions. This one had the added timeliness of occurring while wildfires raged on the mainland some of them possibly sparked by equipment owned by utility companies whose liability is an ongoing issue in state government. Much of the work in Maui was focused around panel discussions on health care, public safety, energy and economic development, among other policy issues. Hueso spokeswoman Erin Hickey said in an email that it is vital for the senator to participate in important policy discussions facing California and to listen to all stakeholders. Advertisement This national policy conference addressed a broad range of issues, including jobs and health care, she wrote. It was hosted by a nonprofit organization and involved no lobbying. In fact, Sen. Hueso paid for his own flights and shared in the costs of his stay. The four-day convention was hosted by the Independent Voter Project, a San Diego nonprofit co-founded by former state Sen. Steve Peace. The tax-exempt organization said it works to inform voters about specific debates and to encourage them to participate in the electoral process. It also provides a forum where policies involving billions of dollars are hashed out far from the public square of the California State Capitol. The Independent Voter Project is incorporated as a 501(c)(4) entity under the Internal Revenue Code, meaning donations to the group are not tax deductible. It is legally defined as a social-welfare organization that is permitted to lobby. According to utility executives and others who attended the Maui conference, numerous issues that affect consumer costs and corporate profits were debated throughout the week. The main discussion topics for the utilities included electric rate impacts on customers as well as clean energy programs and customers options, Southern California Edison said a statement. The utilitys equipment is under investigation as a possible cause of the Woolsey Fire, which killed three people, chewed through almost 100,000 acres and leveled more than 1,600 homes and other buildings on its march through Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Advertisement Much of the destruction occurred as Edison officials were in Maui talking with lawmakers about how to prevent such disasters. Though wildfires were not a main topic for the panel discussions, wildfire-related topics were discussed in the context of the needed utility investment for wildfire mitigation, Edisons statement said. Wildfires are an urgent problem with devastating consequences for all Californians. Far-off luxury Private conversations between elected officials and business leaders that take place thousands of miles from the state legislature are controversial because they do not always provide for countervailing perspectives from other interested parties, experts say. Going to Maui for a public-policy conference is perfectly appropriate if, say, you work for the Maui County Department of Environmental Management, said Jack Pitney, a political science professor at Claremont McKenna College. It does not make sense if your portfolio is in California. Advertisement Corporations and the nonprofit groups they fund purposely host retreats in far-off luxury resorts to promote private discussions with key governmental decision-makers, he said. There are plenty of conference centers throughout the state, Pitney said. If you wanted to get actual work done, youd meet in Glendale, where there arent many distractions. The host groups executive director, Daniel Howle, said the multi-day events promote better governance by providing a venue for lawmakers and regulators to meet industry leaders and other experts and explore details and nuances of complicated issues. The Maui conference included more than utility executives and California lawmakers, he said. A total of 25 legislators from three Western states and the governor of Idaho attended. Advertisement Because of the nature of business in state capitols, these kinds of discussions rarely take place, Howle said. The conference offers a bipartisan approach that often translates into greater cooperation when public officials return to their jobs in state capitols. A career government relations professional, Howle said the Independent Voter Project restricts discussions that directly relate to specific legislation and monitors panel presentations to make sure no lobbying takes place. He said sponsors are not told which lawmakers are attending the conferences until they arrive. We do that to prevent individual businesses or other sponsors from arranging for private dinners or inviting specific legislators, Howle said. The critics have no idea what they are talking about when they complain about influence gained through this conference. Advertisement Even so, executives from Pacific Gas & Electric opted not to attend the November conference. At the time, PG&E power lines were suspected as a cause of the Camp Fire, which killed 86 people and virtually destroyed the Butte County town of Paradise. San Diego Gas and Electric, which has been working for more than a decade to charge its customers hundreds of millions of dollars in costs leftover from three San Diego County wildfires that were caused by its equipment, also was represented at the Fairmont Kea Lani. SDG&E spokeswoman Allison Torres said the conference presented a unique opportunity to engage in a broad dialogue with a diverse group of stakeholders. Participants provided meaningful contributions on a host of issues, including rates, clean energy, wildfire mitigation, energy storage and natural gas, she wrote. These substantive conversations could not have occurred without the convergence of policy, business and industry experts. Advertisement Mai tais at the tiki bar While Howle and others are adamant that no undue conversations are permitted during the multi-day retreats, the larger policy questions under review can mean billions of dollars in profits or losses to the companies that sponsor the events. After the Independent Voter Project-sponsored trip to Hawaii in 2017, for example, legislators passed a bill allowing PG&E to issue billions of dollars in bonds to pay for damages for wildfires earlier that year. The bill, signed into law by former Gov. Jerry Brown, then allowed the utility to pass those costs on to ratepayers. Critics like Jamie Court of Consumer Watchdog worry that another such arrangement may be in the works. These decisions are being made over mai tais at the tiki bar -- not in the light of day at the Legislature so the other side has a chance to counter those arguments, Court said. Edison executives were there while the Woolsey Fire was burning, and they are very much concerned about whether they will be on the hook for those costs. Advertisement Court recently wrote to Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon and Senate Pro Tem Toni Atkins, urging them to take up legislation that would require lawmakers to publicly disclose outside-funded trips once they accept the invitations not months later as current rules allow. The public is left in the dark about how and when their elected officials hobnob with special interests who have business before the legislature, the letter said. The public deserves full and immediate disclosure. An aide to Atkins, who served with Hueso on the San Diego City Council for three years, said her boss was not warm to immediate-disclosure idea. California has among the strictest financial interest disclosure laws in the country, spokeswoman Lizelda Lopez said in an email Friday. The senator does not feel compelled to require another layer of reporting at this time. Advertisement A Rendon spokesman, Kevin Liao, agreed, saying, Existing campaign finance laws already require lawmakers to disclose gifts. Hueso, D-San Diego was the only state lawmaker from San Diego County to attend the conference in Hawaii. He is required to disclose how much the Independent Voter Project spent hosting him at the Fairmont Kea Lani later this year. Last year, Hueso reported that his 2017 trip to Hawaii cost $3,479. Advertisement jeff.mcdonald@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1708 @sdutMcDonald Sudanese police fired tear gas Sunday at crowds of anti-government protesters in Khartoum and war-torn Darfur as organisers called for more nationwide rallies against President Omar al-Bashir this week. The demonstrations in Darfur were the first of their kind since unrest erupted on December 19 over a government decision to triple the price of bread. The protests have since swiftly escalated into nationwide rallies widely seen as the biggest threat to Bashir's rule in his three decades in power. Protesters who took to the streets in the capital's Bahari district chanting "peace, peace" and "revolution is the people's choice" were quickly confronted by riot police, witnesses told AFP. Authorities say the protests have left 24 people dead so far, while Human Rights Watch has put the death toll at 40, including children and medical staff. The European Union said on Friday that security forces have used "live ammunition" against protesters causing casualties, although Sudanese officials including Bashir have blamed the violence on "thugs" and "conspirators". Protest organisers have called for near daily demonstrations across the country against Bashir this week, calling it a "Week of Uprising". In Khartoum on Sunday protesters were seen carrying the Sudanese flag as others held banners bearing the words "peace, justice, freedom", which has become a key slogan in the rallies. Witnesses told AFP that police were pursuing protesters down Bahari's streets and alleys. "It's like a cat and mouse game," a witness said. Stench of Tear Gas Many of the protesters were women who wore masks to protect themselves from tear gas as they whistled and clapped in the streets of Bahari, the hub of Sunday's demonstration, witnesses said. Some residents in Bahari took protesters inside their homes and offered them juice as tear gas canisters stuck the facades of their buildings, a witness said. Video posted on social media showed police arresting several protesters. The footage could not be independently verified. Police dispersed the rally later on Sunday, but the smell of tear gas lingered across the neighbourhood, witnesses said. Several streets remained blocked with burnt tyres and rocks thrown by protesters, a witness said, adding that riot police, some in vehicles loaded with machineguns, remained deployed in the area. Protests broke out in Darfur after calls for rallies there by the Sudanese Professionals' Association, which has spearheaded the demonstrations. Police fired tear gas at demonstrators who took to the streets of El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state and in Niyala, the capital of South Darfur state, witnesses said. Darfur, a region the size of France, has been torn by violence since 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing it of economic and political marginalisation. Economic Crisis Protests were also reported in the central town of Madani and in some villages of the eastern impoverished, agricultural province of Gadaref. Anti-government demonstrations first erupted last month in towns and villages before later spreading to Khartoum. Rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been arrested since the protests began, including opposition leaders, activists and journalists as well as demonstrators. The crackdown has drawn international criticism, with countries like Britain, Norway, Canada and the United States warning Khartoum that its actions could "have an impact" on its relations with their governments. Although the unrest was triggered by the rise in the price of bread, Sudan has faced a mounting economic crisis over the past year, led by an acute shortage of foreign currency. Repeated shortages of food and fuel have been reported in several cities, including Khartoum, while the cost of food and medicine has more than doubled. Bashir and other officials have blamed Washington for Sudan's economic woes. The US imposed a trade embargo on Khartoum in 1997 that was lifted only in October 2017. It restricted Sudan from conducting international business and financial transactions. But critics of Bashir say his government's mismanagement of key sectors and its huge spending on fighting ethnic minority rebellions in Darfur and areas near the South Sudan border have been stoking economic trouble for years. Short link: The longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history ground into a fourth week Saturday with President Donald Trump showing fresh defiance on Twitter, congressional Democrats firmly resolved to resist his calls for a border wall, and unpaid workers caught in the middle. We will be out for a long time unless the Democrats come back from their vacations and get back to work, Trump tweeted Saturday morning. I am in the White House ready to sign! Trumps statements came a day after some 800,000 federal employees missed an expected paycheck, and after he tamped down speculation that he might declare a national emergency to begin construction on his wall and break the impasse. Instead, he told reporters Friday, we want Congress to do its job. Meanwhile, many lawmakers were back home hearing from frustrated constituents, including Democratic Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, who held town hall meetings Saturday in southeastern Pennsylvania. Advertisement There, she said in an interview, she heard from a young schoolteacher afraid the local food bank would no longer be able to offer meals for her students, the operator of a federally funded womens shelter that is now having to turn people away, and a tax preparer who could not begin securing refunds for her indigent clients because the IRS had not made the necessary software available. Its disappointing to say the least, because the things that I ran on and that many of the people who just came into this Congress ran on, are getting lost in this nonsense, Houlahan said. Things that we were brought to Congress to do - like health care, like reforming the way our government works - wed very much like to get to soon. While they may never be precisely calculated, the costs of the shutdown are likely already into the billions, and they continue to mount. Beyond the likely cost of paying furloughed employees for work not done, additional costs include eventual overtime costs to deal with backlogs of work and the indirect impacts of various shuttered programs and services. The Obama administration estimated the direct costs of the two-week October 2013 shutdown at $2.5 billion, while estimating another $2 to $6 billion in lost economic output. Those figures did not include miscellaneous other fiscal impacts, including millions in lost user fees and interest owed on late federal payments. Federal workers who have been forced to work without pay have started going to the courts to challenge the shutdown. In one major action, five federal employee unions representing a combined 244,000 members working in coastal Virginia, southern California, central Montana and the Washington area filed suit in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims Friday, demanding full compensation for time and overtime worked over the three weeks of the shutdown. This lawsuit is not complicated: We do not believe it is lawful to compel a person to work without paying them, said Randy Erwin, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees, one of the groups suing. With this lawsuit were saying, No, you cant pay workers with I.O.U.s. That will not work for us. While no prior lawsuit has forced the government to pay employees during a shutdown, a Federal Claims judge ruled in 2017 that some federal employees were entitled to damages for the delay in their paychecks. Advertisement Congress on Friday passed legislation to guarantee back pay for all workers affected by the shutdown - both those who have been furloughed and those who have continued working as personnel deemed essential to the protection of life and property. Trump said Friday that he would sign it. In past shutdowns, both furloughed and nonfurloughed workers have gotten back pay, though federal contractors and their employees are generally left uncompensated. Local authorities have stepped up to aid workers and families affected by the missing paychecks. Tampa International Airport, starting Monday, is hosting a food bank for about 700 federal employees working at the airport, as well as offering other assistance with day-to-day needs. In Washington, the city government on Saturday served free lunches for kids 18 and under at nine recreation centers, and District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser, D, pledged to do so every Saturday until the shutdown is resolved. In his tweets Saturday, Trump reacted sharply to a televised comment that he lacks a strategy for ending the shutdown. The tweets came shortly after an NBC Today panel with network reporters Peter Alexander and Kristen Welker, as well as Washington Post reporter Philip Rucker discussed the topic. Advertisement I do have a plan on the Shutdown, he said. But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised safety and security for the American people. Part of that promise was a Wall at the Southern Border. Elections have consequences! But Democrats are fully aware of their own mandate - particularly in the House, where the party gained the majority for the first time in eight years by winning 40 seats in a midterm election suffused with Trumps apocalyptic warnings about the threats posed by illegal immigrants. Before lawmakers left Washington Friday, House Minority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., attempted to make a similar point as Trump did Saturday about the 2016 election in a floor exchange with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. He was elected by the American people as president to carry out border security and build a wall, Scalise said. It was part of the national debate. I know some people on your side dont even want to recognize that that election occurred and the result. But it happened. Advertisement Replied Hoyer, Oh no, I think there was an election, and he did raise that question. And as I recall, thats why Im the majority leader and youre the minority whip. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., called the record-breaking duration of the shutdown unfortunate and totally unnecessary Friday. House Democrats have spent their first days in the majority passing various spending bills that would reopen government, bills negotiated by Senate Republicans, but none have included the wall money Trump is demanding. More such votes are expected next week. We have given many paths to alleviating this, opening up government, Pelosi said. But Trump has made clear he will not sign the bills the House is passing, and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., says he will not have the Senate act on any spending legislation Trump wont sign. While a few Republicans have called for a truce - Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., for instance, on Friday proposed immediate reopening the government for three weeks while lawmakers and Trump hash out a compromise on the border - most are putting the onus on Democrats to budge. Advertisement Theres a way to get this done - you just have to have the will of both the minority leader in the Senate and the speaker of the House to come to the table, and they are not yet willing to do that, said Rep. Patrick McHenry, R-N.C., referring to Pelosi and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. But many Democrats said this week they are feeling little pressure to cave. My constituents understand who has triggered this, and they continue to hold him responsible, and that is Donald J. Trump, said Rep. Gerald Connolly, D-Va., who represents a suburban Washington district with tens of thousands of federal workers. Theyre very clear about that. I mean, theres no faux equivalency here, like, Youre equally to blame. They get it. Houlahan said her constituents, too, were mainly focused on Trump and the Republican Senate: There are pragmatic people here, theyd like a solution, but right now they recognize that those are their lever points. Advertisement Border security, she added, was a topic of discussion at the Saturday town halls: Largely, people believe that we need to enhance and protect our border but also believe that a wall, as its been described by our president, is not the answer. Other lawmakers said they were solely focused on breaking the impasse and ending local disruptions in their home districts. Rep. Anthony Brindisi, D-N.Y., who was sworn into Congress this month after serving more than seven years in the state assembly, said his office is taking calls from unpaid food and drug inspectors, among other affected constituents. Im someone who is used to getting things done, so it is very frustrating, he said. Look, lets get the government up and running. I am for border security - I believe that some element of physical barrier makes sense, but that cant be the only solution. Advertisement Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., who represents the Hampton Roads ports, the nations third-largest, said she was particularly determined to pay Coast Guard personnel who are now behind on their paychecks. These are peoples lives and livelihood, and we need to pay them for the work that theyre doing, she said. The Washington Posts Darryl Fears, Ashley Halsey III, Carolyn Y. Johnson, Seung Min Kim and Erica Werner contributed to this report. First published in The Washington Post The grandfather of a northwestern Wisconsin girl who authorities say was abducted during a home invasion that left her parents dead said Saturday that the family has no connection to the suspect and doesnt understand why he targeted her, deepening a mystery that has captivated the state for months. Someone blasted open the door of James and Denise Closs home near Barron with a shotgun in October, gunned the couple down and made off with their 13-year-old daughter, Jayme Closs. Jayme had been missing for nearly three months Thursday when she approached a stranger near the small, isolated north woods town of Gordon and pleaded for help. Officers arrested 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson minutes later based on Jaymes description of his vehicle. He was jailed on suspicion of kidnapping and homicide. Investigators have said Pattersons goal was to kidnap Jayme, but he appears to have no connection to the family. Jaymes grandfather Robert Naiberg said in a telephone interview Saturday that the only thing the family knows for sure is that no one knew Patterson. He said Jayme told FBI agents she didnt know him at all. Advertisement He didnt know Jayme, he didnt know Denise or Jim, Naiberg said. "(Jayme) dont know him from Adam. (But) he knew what he was doing. We dont know if he was stalking her or what. Did he see her somewhere? Patterson attorneys Charles Glynn and Richard Jones said in a statement they consider the situation very tragic and that they are relying on the court system to treat their client fairly. Charges are expected against Patterson on Monday, when he is expected to make his initial appearance in court. The news that Jayme was safe set off joy and relief in her hometown of Barron, population 3,300 and about 60 miles from where she was found. The discovery ended an all-out search that gripped the state, with many people fearing the worst the longer she was missing. Jaymes aunt, Jennifer Smith, posted on Facebook Saturday that Jayme was doing well. Jayme had a pretty good night sleep it was great to know she was next to me all night what a great feeling to have her home. As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has. It will be a long road but we are family strong and we love this little girl so much!! Another aunt, Sue Naiberg Allard, posted that Jayme got the most awaited hug ever when she returned home. Jayme told one of the neighbors in Gordon who took her in that she had walked away from a cabin where she had been held captive. She said that this persons name was Jake Patterson, he killed my parents and took me, said another neighbor, Kristin Kasinskas. She did not talk about why or how. She said she did not know him. Advertisement Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said investigators are trying to figure out what happened to Jayme during her captivity and why she was seized, and gave no details on how she escaped except to say Patterson was not home at the time. He said there is no evidence Patterson knew Jayme or her family or had been in contact with her on social media. I know all of you are searching for the answer why any of this happened, Fitzgerald said. Believe me, so are we. The sheriff said he didnt know whether Jayme had been physically abused. Patterson took measures to avoid leaving evidence at the scene, including shaving his head beforehand, and a shotgun was recovered from the home where Jayme was believed held, Fitzgerald said. Advertisement 1 / 16 Jake Patterson, right, appears with his attorney in jail via video at the Barron County Circuit Court on Jan. 14, 2019, in Barron, Wis. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Minneapolis Star-Tribune) 2 / 16 Jake Patterson, accused of kidnapping Jayme Closs, made his first court appearance via video from jail on Jan. 14, 2019, in Barron, Wis. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Minneapolis Star-Tribune) 3 / 16 Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald appears next to Jayme Closs aunt, Kelly Engelhard, as Jake Patterson made his first court appearance at the Barron County Circuit Court on Jan. 14, 2019, in Barron, Wis. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/Minneapolis Star-Tribune) 4 / 16 Jayme Closs, right, is seen in a photo with her aunt, Jennifer Smith, after they were reunited Jan. 11, 2019. (Jennifer Smith) 5 / 16 Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald holds up the booking photo of Jake Patterson, who allegedly kidnapped Jayme Closs, during a news conference Jan. 11, 2019, in Barron, Wis. (Jean Pieri/Pioneer Press) 6 / 16 Jeanne Nutter speaks to the press on Jan. 11, 2019, in Gordon, Wis. Nutter, walking her dog near the cabin she owns with her husband, Forrest, encountered Jayme Closs coming out of the nearby woods. (Kerm Yucel / AFP/Getty Images) 7 / 16 The sign outside Barron City Hall the morning after 13-year old Jayme Closs was found. (Aaron Lavinsky/Minneapolis Star Tribune) 8 / 16 A sign displayed after Jayme Closs was found alive more than three months after she disappeared, on Jan. 11, 2019, in Barron, Wis. Jayme disappeared in October after her parents were killed inside their home. (Jeff Baenen/AP) 9 / 16 Jake Patterson has been jailed on kidnapping and homicide charges in the October killing of a Wisconsin couple and abduction of their teen daughter, Jayme Closs. (Barron County Sheriffs Department ) 10 / 16 Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald speaks during a news conference Jan. 11, 2019, in Barron, Wis., regarding the arrest of Jake Patterson in the kidnapping of Jayme Closs. (Aaron Lavinsky/Minneapolis Star Tribune) 11 / 16 Local and national media, as well as community members, wait for a news conference Jan. 11, 2019, about the reappearance of 13-year old Jayme Closs and the arrest of 21-year old Jake Patterson. (Aaron Lavinsky/Minneapolis Star Tribune) 12 / 16 A police car blocks the road where teenager Jayme Closs was found on Jan. 11, 2019, in Gordon, Wisconsin. (Kerm Yucel / AFP/Getty Images) 13 / 16 A Tree of Hope for teenager Jayme Closs outside her school, Riverview Middle School, in Barron, Wis, on Jan. 11, 2019, shortly after she was discovered alive. She had been missing for months. (Jeff Baenen/AP) 14 / 16 The home where teenager Jayme Closs lived with her parents is seen Jan. 11, 2019, in Barron, Wis. Closs, who went missing in October after her parents were found dead, was found alive Jan. 10 in the small town of Gordon, Wis. (Jeff Baenen/AP) 15 / 16 Volunteers cross a creek and barbed wire near Barron, Wis., on Oct. 23, 2018, searching for 13-year-old Jayme Closs. (Jeff Baenen/AP) 16 / 16 Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald speaks during a news conference about 13-year-old Jayme Closs. (Jerry Holt/Minneapolis Star Tribune) Property records show that the cabin belonged to Pattersons father at the time of Jaymes disappearance. The cabin is in Eau Claire Acres, a development about 10 miles outside the tiny town of Gordon, nestled in the dense evergreen forests of northwestern Wisconsin that are popular with vacationers in the summer and snowmobilers and ATV riders in the winter. Law enforcement barricades blocked the road leading to the property Saturday. Naiberg, Jaymes grandfather, said he spent a few hours with her on Friday. No one pressed her to talk, he said, adding that FBI agents and doctors advised them to let her speak when shes ready. He said she was largely silent and did not talk about how Patterson had kept her confined. Advertisement Patterson, who was unemployed, remained largely an enigma Saturday. He has no criminal record, the sheriff said. He worked for one day in 2016 at the same Jennie-O turkey plant in Barron as Jaymes parents. But the sheriff said it did not appear Patterson interacted with the couple during his brief time there. Over the past few months, detectives pursued thousands of tips, watched dozens of surveillance videos and conducted numerous searches for Jayme, including one that drew 2,000 volunteers but yielded no clues. In November, the sheriff said he kept similar cases in the back of his mind as he worked to find Jayme, including the abduction of Elizabeth Smart, who was 14 when she was taken from her Salt Lake City home in 2002. Smart was rescued nine months later after witnesses recognized her abductors on an Americas Most Wanted episode. Advertisement Associated Press writers Jeff Baenen in Barron, Wisconsin; Amy Forliti in Gordon, Wisconsin; Gretchen Ehlke in Milwaukee; and Brady McCombs in Salt Lake City contributed to this report. Dear Mediator: Our neighborhood has a longstanding problem with a property owner who repairs cars all night long, with lots of banging noises and people coming and going. Our street is not zoned for an auto repair shop. Our Neighborhood Watch group has complained repeatedly to police, city staff and elected officials. They all say the same thing: He has been cited, he has agreed to clean up his property, and they will monitor the situation. But instead of cleaning up, he keeps adding more cars to his lawn and along our street. Outraged in El Cajon Dear Outraged: Advertisement In a perfect metropolis, agencies that enforce city codes would have enough resources and tenacity to pursue justice relentlessly, and violators would face swift consequences. In the real world of modern cities, code enforcement units are underfunded and overburdened, and the imposition of penalties involves herculean administrative work. Knowing that, offenders can keep on offending with rueful promises of compliance they never intend to keep. The resulting cat-and-mouse game the sluggish municipal cat never quite catching the wily scofflaw mouse puts too many neighborhoods in a state of siege. Our community mediators are well-versed in these standoffs. One of the resolution strategies they offer is based on the Safe Streets Now initiative, a model that could give your group a new path forward. Launched in California in 1990, Safe Streets Now empowers citizens to carry out their own nuisance abatement measures through civil courts. The program began as a response to illegal drug activity in residential communities, but it quickly expanded to cover boisterous party houses, incessantly barking dogs and industrial activities that pose environmental risks. Such public scourges are addressed by California Civil Codes 3479 and 3480, which rule out anything which is injurious to health ... so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property and which affects at the same time an entire community or neighborhood. The last phrase is pivotal. An individual who lives next to a house-from-hell faces a lonely uphill battle. Several neighbors with such a house in their midst can join forces. Your group has already completed the first two of the four steps in the Safe Streets Now playbook. You have documentation of the infractions (and you should continue building that record of notes and photos), and you have carried out notification of authorities, who in turn have notified the violator. Advertisement Steps three and four are negotiation and litigation via San Diego Countys small claims court, which allows individuals to seek up to $10,000 in civil damages. Given how long this problem of environmental toxins and disruptive noise has lasted, your group might consider pursuing both steps simultaneously. The key to the success of Safe Streets Now has been neighbors filing consolidated small claims cases that put defendants at risk of substantial civil judgments. The threat of financial ruin, especially where evidence of wrongdoing is clear, can move people from intransigence to compliance. These are the legal options available to your group. Now lets consider the human dimensions of the problem. A person who persists in operating an illegal business in the face of imminent reprisals is suffering from one of two afflictions: delusion that he can somehow evade justice or desperation because he sees no other course. Advertisement Either way, this man could use assistance. Offer to help him scout alternative sites for fixing cars by drawing on your groups collective resources. That could provide the stimulus he needs to get his business on a viable footing. His personal difficulties are not relevant under the law. But engaging him in an effort to surmount those difficulties would be an act of neighborly kindness. Such an exchange would help you understand his situation, and youll need that when you enter mediation and work with him on achieving resolution. Steven P. Dinkin is a professional mediator who has served as president of the San-Diego based National Conflict Resolution Center since 2003. Do you have a conflict that needs a resolution? Please share your story with The Mediator via email at mediatethis@ncrconline.com. All submissions will be kept anonymous. Though the partial government shutdown over President Donald Trumps quest for a border wall has gone on for weeks, closing most immigration courts among other federal services, many immigrants still showed up for hearings this week. Those hearings are postponed indefinitely. Once the court reopens, it will send out new dates for them to appear in court. Those hearings are likely to be months or even years into the future because of how many cases are already pending and judges schedules are already tightly packed. In the meantime, judges, their clerks and government attorneys go without paychecks, and the court backlog often called out by the Trump administration as a pull-factor for migrants to come to the U.S. continues to grow. Ashley Negrette, an immigration attorney in San Diego, has a client who came from Mexico in late 2016 and applied for asylum. Her first individual hearing, where the judge would hear the facts in her case to make a decision, was originally scheduled for June 2018 and then rescheduled by the court for this week. Now its going to be bumped again. Advertisement Luckily, my client is patient and understands that she has to wait her turn, but these delays undeniably cause hardship for her emotionally and financially, Negrette said. The upside to the court closure, said immigration attorney Kirsten Zittlau, is that for clients who may eventually go on to lose their cases, the delay will buy them a little more time in the U.S. The downside is that for some who have good chances of winning their cases if theyre heard now, witnesses memories may fade or conditions may change in the country they fled. Immigrants who dont have attorneys often dont know that the courts are closed. The voicemail for the San Diego court was never updated to reflect the shutdowns closure. They take time off of work and pay for downtown parking only to be turned around once they reach the 8th floor of the A Street building that houses San Diegos immigration court. A lone security guard contracted through a private company stands outside the courts double doors, patiently explaining through language barriers that the court is closed. Others know that hearings are canceled, but they come anyway out of anxiety that somehow they will still be deported if they dont. Liza Delarea took Thursday off work to accompany her friend, who is originally from the Philippines, to immigration court in downtown San Diego. We knew it was closed, but we had to make sure it was closed, Delarea said. If she doesnt come to court, its going to be on her, not them. Advertisement Delarea took a picture of her friend in front of the courts closed sign before they left as proof that she had been there. Its frustrating, Delarea said of the delay. We cant do anything about it. Saman Nasseri, an attorney who specializes in both immigration and criminal defense, also came to take a photo of the courts closed sign to send to his clients. He hoped the visual would ease some of their fears. They dont understand what it means that the government is shut down, Nasseri said. Its been a little bit of a nightmare. Advertisement Hes already had six hearings cancelled and has four trials coming up in the next two weeks, he said. Meanwhile, at Otay Mesa Detention Center, in courtroom five, Judge Scott Simpson briskly worked through more than a dozen cases on Tuesday afternoon. While those who have been allowed to remain free while their cases progress will have their hearings rescheduled months or even years into the future, court continues for those held in immigration detention centers. As with other federal employees still showing up to do their jobs in affected agencies in recent weeks, Simpson wont be paid during the shutdown. Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Rico Bartolomei is the only judge working in San Diegos downtown court. The rest have been furloughed. Advertisement On Tuesday, he heard four cases for unaccompanied minors who are being held at Southwest Key facilities contracted by the federal government. Those are considered detained cases. He also heard detained cases over video conference this week for detainees in Imperial County, Hawaii and Guam. Whether theyre furloughed or working without pay, the shutdown is frustrating for immigration judges, according to Ashley Tabaddor, head of the National Association of Immigration Judges. Theyve already been under pressure from the Trump administration to push through the backlog of cases currently numbering more than 800,000 and the shutdown is only adding to the bottleneck. This means that when we come back our already ballooning dockets are going to become even more, and we dont even have time to be able to sit down and figure out what were going to do with the cases that were canceled because were going to come back to a calendar that is scheduled years out in advance, said Tabaddor, who hears cases in the Los Angeles court. Everything is booked. Advertisement Shes heard from judges who have had to borrow money to pay their bills on time. She worries about court staff as well. The only ones who are winning [in this situation] are the ones who dont have a good claim and would be happy to get a few years delay in their case, Tabaddor said. She said the agency that runs immigration courts, the Executive Office for Immigration Review, was already running short on money before the shutdown and was planning to scale back on in-person interpreters. It was shocking to find out that in spite of the massive growth of judges weve seen in the past two years, they hadnt accounted for fact that more judges means more hearings which means more interpreters, Tabaddor said. Before they hire judges, they need to make sure they have the money to support those judges. Advertisement Jason Aguilar, chief counsel for Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the agency whose attorneys represent the governments perspective in immigration cases, is the only government attorney working at the San Diego court. His staff have similarly been furloughed. Because of how long it can take to finish an asylum case, some hopeful immigrants move to other parts of the U.S. and then fly back for hearings because they already have attorneys here. Those travel plans have been complicated by the shutdown. Tammy Lin, a San Diego-based immigration attorney, said one of her clients flew in from Texas this week for a hearing that got canceled. The man has already waited more than two years to have his case heard. Attorney Elizabeth Lopez of the Southern California Immigration Project, who specializes in asylum cases from African countries, had two clients who were supposed to come from Minnesota and Texas this week for hearings as well. Advertisement The airlines agreed to let them rebook their flights within 90 days, Lopez said. She hopes that gives them enough time. Immigration Videos On Now New developments in family separation case 9:53 On Now A San Diego woman volunteered as a medic in Texas helping migrant families 2:35 On Now Immigration policy protests in Carlsbad nearly cancelled after permit issue 1:38 On Now When children are separated from their parents at the border, here is where they go next On Now Prospects of a deal for 'Dreamers' may hinge on separating Trump from hard-liners on his staff On Now What is DACA? On Now Border wall prototype contractors selected On Now Video: Ukrainian boxer wins asylum in U.S. On Now 30 apprehended after Border Patrol agents discover tunnel On Now Video: Kurdish diaspora prepare to vote on independence Advertisement Follow me on Facebook for live updates about immigration news kate.morrissey@sduniontribune.com, @bgirledukate on Twitter This year, when volunteers comb the region to count and interview San Diegos homeless population, theyll have a bit of high-tech help. Organizers of the annual Point-in-Time Count will use infrared technology on drones and helicopters to help them locate people living in canyons and other areas were they might be harder to find. The idea is that those images, and other changes planned for the Jan. 25 event, could provide more useful and accurate results. The count, conducted by the San Diego Regional Task Force on the Homeless as a funding requirement by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, is challenging on many levels. Its done in pre-dawn hours, when people are most likely to be asleep, in an attempt to make them easier to count, but inevitably some people are missed. Advertisement Task force CEO Tamera Kohler said several steps are being taken this year in an effort to count more people and gather more demographic information. There was some confusion and a little controversy with last years count. While the official report of 8,576 homeless people represented a 6 percent drop from last year, the count did not include at least 300 people who were staying at the San Diego Rescue Mission, which did not file its paperwork in time. Volunteers also did not count people who live in recreational vehicles last year, although some were counted in past years. The January count will include RVs as well as many people who have been missed in the past because they live in canyons and other places out of sight of volunteers. Taking a cue from Las Vegas, San Diego will use overhead thermal imaging devices that can locate people in the dark by detecting their heat. The San Diego Police Department will fly a helicopter equipped with thermal imaging equipment over central areas of the city and the Sheriffs Department will fly a helicopter with the devices over Lakeside. The Chula Vista Police Department also will use thermography to find people, but will fly a drone instead of a helicopter. Sheriffs Lt. Fran Passalacqua said the flights over Lakeside could find homeless people who have gone uncounted in past years. Advertisement We thought this was a great opportunity, she said. Passalacqua said the largest number of homeless people in Lakeside are along the San Diego River near state Route 67 near Mapleview Street and at the end of Vine Street. A helicopter is scheduled to fly overhead before sunrise Jan. 25 to locate people in the area. The helicopter crew then will phone the volunteers doing the count to direct them to where people were detected, she said. For safety reasons, crews will wait until sunrise before walking into the brush to interview people in encampments. Passalacqua said a more accurate count could mean more money for homeless services in East County. Advertisement The east region is severely lacking in resources for those who are homeless, she said. If we dont get an accurate count, how can we get resources? We do not have any shelters. We dont have a Father Joes or Alpha Project. San Diego County has the fourth largest homeless population in the nation but often is ranked 20th in funding from HUD. Last years countywide count found about 5,000 homeless people outdoors or in vehicles and about 3,600 in shelters. So far more than 700 people have volunteered to participate in this years count by registering at rtfh.volunteerhub.com. Volunteers also must participate in a one-hour online training session. Advertisement HUD has pushed the task force to collect more information from homeless people, and 11 contracted workers from the federal agency have been in San Diego since Tuesday to help prepare for the count. The most significant change in this years count will be an increased effort to gather demographic information from more homeless people through a 21-question survey. People will be asked about their race, health, the reasons why they became homeless and for how long, whether they are a veteran, have a substance abuse problem and other questions. Only 19 percent of people counted last year were surveyed, and the goal this year is 50 percent, Kohler said. Conducting those surveys can be tricky, however, because the count begins at 4 a.m., when most people are asleep. The early hour is intended to make the count easier and avoid accidental duplicate counts that could happen when people are up and about. Advertisement It also means the volunteers will have to wake people up to ask them questions. To prepare for that scenario, Kohler and point-in-time count coordinator Kathryn Duran participated in a trial run in December by going out with a Downtown San Diego Partnership crew that conducts monthly counts. Most volunteers in the January count wont have to wake people up, however. About 120 outreach workers, including people who work for nonprofit service provides and police officers in homeless outreach team, will conduct the surveys after participating in special training sessions. Volunteers will assist the outreach workers in teams of two or three, Durant said. Advertisement Surveys wont be conducted in most of the 627 census tracts covered in the count, but only in areas with the most dense homeless populations to make the best use of resources. In a new approach, census tracts throughout the county are given priority numbers from one to five, with priority one having the highest homeless populations. Surveys will be conducted in priority one and two areas, which are found in parts of downtown, El Cajon, Spring Valley, East County and Ramona. Chula Vista also may open a parking lot for one night to allow homeless people in recreational vehicles a safe and legal place to park, she said. Also new this year, volunteers will interview all RV dwellers they find on public streets and will only count those who consider themselves homeless. Advertisement Last years results were challenged by homeless advocate Michael McConnell, who asked HUD not to accept the task forces report because it didnt include RVs. HUD did accept the report, but said the task force should have followed the more preferred method of interviewing people in RVs to determine if they were homeless. Kohler said she does not know how many people in RVs will be included in the upcoming count because they had never been surveyed before. This years report will more accurately reflect who is homeless and who is simply choosing to live in recreational vehicles, she said. Advertisement Homeless Playlist On Now San Diego hepatitis outbreak continues to grow: 481 cases On Now Homeless entrenched in booming tent city along Santa Ana River On Now San Diego mayor agreed to homeless hub, then delayed, advocates say On Now Homeless outreach in San Diego On Now Video: Street Art: Portraits of San Diego's Homeless #8 On Now In poverty himself, 'Water Man Dave,' is the fearless saint of San Diego's homeless 5:41 On Now Video: Homeless living in cars find safe havens 2:21 On Now Street Art: Portraits of San Diego's Homeless #7 On Now Pitching a tent plan for San Diego's homeless On Now Homeless efforts get $80M boost for various services Advertisement gary.warth@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @GaryWarthUT 760-529-4939 Theres a way out of this border wall mess. But that would require the president and congressional leaders to step into a rational world of politics, which seems like an oxymoron. There are some 650 miles of various kinds of fencing and other barriers along the nearly 2,000-mile border with Mexico. Thats already being upgraded, fortified and expanded. For political purposes, smart people could take that, make some adjustments, morph it into something new, and include other border security measures everybody says they want (technology, equipment, personnel). Advertisement Key to this would be allowing young immigrants who are temporarily here under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals to remain in the United States. Thats also something people on both sides of the aisle say they want. Toss in funding to improve the sorry conditions at immigrant detention facilities, clogged immigration courts and an overloaded asylum system, and there it is. None of this is new, yet its within reach. Democratic and Republican leaders have supported most of this before. Of course, tying it together in a comprehensive immigration policy overhaul would be nice, but thats too much to ask during a stalemate that has shut down government. All this would take is diplomacy, compromise and giving the other side a way to present the deal as a victory to its core constituencies. So, dont hold your breath. That would require nuance, and theres been little sign of that in the escalating debate that only seems to result in both sides hardening their positions or, perhaps more accurately, digging themselves further into a hole. To make his case, President Donald Trump has thrown so many things against the wall, so to speak, that its hard to keep track, yet very little has stuck. The extended wall, he says, is needed to keep people from illegally pouring over the border, stop drugs and keep violent criminals and terrorists from entering the country. Most of that is simply not true. There are reasons to have border barriers in certain areas, but those arent among them. Advertisement It gets old reciting what the record is, but its necessary because Trump doesnt stop distorting it: Illegal immigration on the rise but still much lower than in peak years, most unauthorized immigrants come here legally and overstay their visas and the vast majority of drugs come through ports of entry and tunnels. He has talked about unauthorized immigrants who have committed horrific crimes, and some effective changes should be sought to try to keep that from happening. Building a $25 billion wall isnt one of them, but perhaps shifts in immigration law and law enforcement strategy are areas to explore. People with ties to terrorist groups are largely stopped before they get here because of intelligence-gathering. They are not being caught at the border by the thousands, as the administration has suggested. After the terrorism angle to support the wall had been so thoroughly debunked even by the administrations own data Trump didnt mention it in his televised speech Tuesday night. Democrats, meanwhile, need to get off their high horse that walls between the U.S. and Mexico are immoral, as House Speaker Nancy Pelosi likes to say, because they look like hypocrites. Pelosi and most Democrats including Sen. Chuck Schumer and then-Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama supported the Secure Fence Act of 2006. Advertisement If border barriers werent immoral then, why are they now? Pelosis better argument is that constructing a wall is an old way of thinking; it isnt cost-effective. Certainly opponents will disagree, but at least that brings the debate back to what works on the ground. Trump has already acknowledged in so many words that his vision of a 30-foot concrete wall stretching the entire length of the border isnt going to happen, having discussed other kinds of barriers. Whatever you want to call it, he said. But to suggest hes looking for an opening by giving in on semantics is tricky. Hes so unpredictable that its hard to read his tea leaves. Advertisement The reality is that barriers do work in targeted locations. That brings us back to San Diego, where increasingly fortified fences have made mass rushes across the border a distant, historic memory. Granted, the barriers have pushed many hopeful illegal crossers east to the harsh and deadly mountain and desert geography, while increasing their reliance on dangerous coyote guides. After the presidents televised appeal on Tuesday, Rep. Juan Vargas, D-San Diego, told CNN that Trumps wall will never be built. But he reminded the national audience there are places where we already have fencing where it made sense for some security. Vargas, whose district includes the border region, ridiculed Trump for suggesting there was a crisis here. Its San Diego. I mean, its basically paradise, Vargas said. Its one of the safest places in the country. The notion that we have a crisis there, a security crisis, is absolute nonsense. He said the real problems were sewage spilling into San Diego County from Tijuana, long waits to cross legally and increasing numbers of families with children showing up at the border. Advertisement So, border barriers already made sense to some Democrats. But even if they dont agree that they make sense now, Democrats could focus on everything else the agreement would bring and declare victory, noting they denied Trump his wall. Trump could point to the better barriers and claim he won. Trump increasingly has talked of declaring a national emergency to get funding for the wall, though on Friday he backed off for now. Still, his administration has explored redirecting funds allocated to the Army Corps of Engineers for projects aimed at preventing disasters, including flood control and water projects in California. He has also discussed reallocating funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Surprisingly, some Democrats are OK with an emergency declaration. They believe the courts would overrule Trump or at least the litigation would tie up his wall funding for a long time.Trump can then blame federal judges, another of his go-to tactics. If this transpires, both sides could satisfy their political base and, hopefully, reopen vital federal government agencies. Advertisement It would be classic Washington: loud action that didnt really change much Tweet of the Week Goes to Cindy McCain (@cindymccain), widow of the late Sen. John McCain. Why dont we just repair the wall we have? The East Bay Express laid off nearly its entire editorial staff this week in a blow to the alternative weekly, which has been a pillar in the community for four decades. Five of seven editorial staffers were laid off Friday, Editor Robert Gammon said. The newspaper, which is known for its investigative reporting as well as arts, culture and music coverage, will rely on freelance writers. These are not only great journalists, but great people, Gammon said. This was through no fault of their own. It was just an unfortunate series of events that occurred. Over the last six months, the owners of Telegraph Media, which acquired East Bay Express, were trying to sell their publications. They appeared to have found potential buyers, Gammon said, until the Express lost a lawsuit filed by a former sales and marketing director who said he was illegally denied overtime by the newspaper. Advertisement The First District Court of Appeal ruled that the newspaper should have paid overtime to Terry Furry and remanded the case to the trial court to determine how much he is owed, according to a blog Gammon posted this week. The Express also must pay Furrys legal bills. As a result, Gammon said, the sale seems very unlikely. The East Bay Express itself has been struggling for a number of years now, and there were hopes that with a new buyer wed be able to potentially invest more money into the paper, he said. But without that new capital coming in, we had to cut back. Azucena Rasilla began working as a freelancer for the Express in 2016 and later became an associate editor. Rasilla, who is from Oakland, grew up reading the newspaper. It was a dream come true to work for my hometown publication, she said. But after the paper lost the lawsuit, staffers feared layoffs were imminent. Rasilla, one of those laid off, called it a huge blow for local journalism. The fear obviously is if the paper ends up folding, whats going to happen to local journalism? she said. Whos going to be the voice of the community? The newspaper is considering launching a membership program as a way to raise money, Gammon said. Advertisement If we can find another alternative revenue stream to make up for the shrinking of our traditional ad revenues, it could help us hire back, perhaps, some of the people we had to lay off, he said. Publisher Stephen Buel, who stepped down in July after admitting to using a racial slur during a staff meeting, will return to the paper next week. Gammon, who had taken over as publisher, will focus on editing responsibilities. Gammon said he asked the editorial staffers who were laid off to freelance for the newspaper, which they agreed to do. Ive been really heartened by the outpouring on social media, Gammon said. I can really see that people really care about the newspaper and they want it to continue. Advertisement brittny.mejia@latimes.com Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia The gunman who fatally shot Davis Police Officer Natalie Corona in an ambush before taking his own life was identified Saturday as Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48, of Davis, according to the Yolo County Sheriffs Office. Limbaugh had been involved in a fight in September with a co-worker at Cache Creek Casino Resort, about 40 miles northwest of Sacramento, according to police and court records. Late Saturday, the resort emailed a statement confirming that Limbaugh had been an employee there and was involved in an altercation. The incident was reported to the Sheriffs Office and the suspects employment ended immediately thereafter, according to the email from resort spokesman Mike Traum. We cannot offer any further details on this personnel matter. Advertisement Limbaugh had been involved in a fight in September with a co-worker at Cache Creek Casino Resort, about 40 miles northwest of Sacramento, according to police and court records. (Yolo County Sheriffs Office) The Yolo County district attorneys office had charged Limbaugh with a felony but later reduced it to a misdemeanor as part of a plea deal in October. Limbaugh agreed to surrender firearms in his possession, said Lt. Paul Doroshov of the Davis Police Department. In November, Limbaugh was ordered to turn in a black .223 Bushmaster AR-15 semiautomatic rifle. Doroshov said Limbaugh went to the station to drop off the firearm. Before the fight in September, his ex-girlfriend had called police about Limbaugh harassing her. Doroshov said investigators found two semiautomatic handguns at Limbaughs apartment and were trying to determine how he obtained them. Investigators also found a letter on his bed that accused Davis police of using sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking against him. In the letter, Limbaugh said he notified internal affairs, the media and the FBI. I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I cant live this way anymore, the letter read in part. Advertisement Doroshov said Limbaugh did not make any formal complaints with the Police Department. Investigators found a letter on LImbaughs bed that accused Davis police of using sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking against him. In the letter, Limbaugh said he notified internal affairs, the media and the FBI. (Davis Police Department) On Thursday evening, Corona, 22, had responded to a crash involving three vehicles at 5th and D streets, taking information from drivers, when witnesses said a man rolled up on a bicycle and began to shoot at Corona. She was struck multiple times and died at UC Davis Medical Center. Police Chief Darren Pytel described the shooting as an ambush. Advertisement Pytel said that after shooting Corona, the gunman reloaded and began shooting in another direction, hitting a firetruck, a house, a bus and a backpack being worn by a person. After reloading a second time, the gunman approached a fire rescue squad, prompting a firefighter to run. The suspect fired, and a bullet struck the firefighters boot, he said. After firing more shots, the gunman fled, eventually barricading himself in his nearby apartment and fatally shooting himself. Corona started at the Davis Police Department as a part-time employee in 2016, when she was a junior college student. The daughter of a retired Colusa County sheriffs deputy, she finished her training in December and had been on the job for a few weeks. ruben.vives@latimes.com Advertisement For more Southern California news, follow @latvives on Twitter. A Northern California pastor has parted ways with his church following outrage over a sign outside the parish that read, Bruce Jenner is still a man, homosexuality is still a sin. The sign, shared on the pastors Facebook page, sparked protests and national news coverage. Justin Hoke announced his departure on the Trinity Bible Presbyterian Church Facebook page on Saturday evening. I was informed that essentially all but one couple in membership would leave the church if I continued as pastor of TBPC, Hoke said in his post. Another church elder agreed to assume pastoral responsibilities, according to Hoke, who did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The church has been under fire since the sign went up less than two weeks ago, targeting transgender celebrity Caitlyn Jenner. Hoke first announced that the message was going up outside the church through a Facebook post. Advertisement The response were receiving from this sign proves that it was posted way too late, Hoke commented under a photo he shared of the sign. If a conservative mountain farming community is no longer a safe place to call sin, sin. Then is anywhere in this country still safe for real Christians? The church is located in Siskiyou County, near the Oregon border. Someone vandalized the sign earlier this week, breaking the Plexiglas and stealing some of the letters. It went back up the following day with essentially the same message. The sign prompted a few people to organize the Shastina Love Rally to show our love and support for the LBGTQ community; not only to our community, but worldwide. The first rally took place Jan. 6, and the second one is planned for Sunday. Amelia Mallory, a resident of Lake Shastina and organizer of the rally, said the sign was shocking. When the organizers reached out to the pastor about taking down the sign, He seemed really not open to the idea, she said. Even acknowledging that we live in a more rural, and generally a more conservative area the fact that somebody thought that that would be accepted by our community was definitely surprising, Mallory said. The rally organizers applauded the congregation for being willing to stand on their convictions, but also expressed concern for Hoke and his family. On the churchs Facebook post announcing the pastors departure, Mallory offered to help take down the sign. Advertisement brittny.mejia@latimes.com Twitter: @Brittny_Mejia A man wanted on a warrant was shot and killed Saturday by authorities on the 101 Freeway in Calabasas following a reported domestic violence incident and high-speed pursuit, Ventura County sheriffs officials said. Deputies encountered the man after responding to a reported domestic violence incident in Camarillo about 10:30 a.m., said Sgt. Eric Buschow of the Ventura County Sheriffs Office. While they were investigating the report, they learned that the suspect was wanted for an out-of-state warrant and considered armed and dangerous, Buschow said. The mans identity and what he was wanted for were not immediately available. Deputies planned to arrest the man when he fled in a stolen vehicle, authorities said, and the chase began. Advertisement After leading officers to Point Mugu, the man reversed course and got onto the southbound 101 and headed toward Los Angeles, Buschow said. When the man drove onto the highway, the California Highway Patrol got involved. About 11:20 a.m., the man crashed the vehicle into a guardrail at the southbound Las Virgenes exit in Los Angeles County. CHP officers ordered the man to surrender and kept communicating with him while Ventura County sheriffs deputies arrived at the scene. 01/12/19 Copter3 assisted @camarillovcso @toaksvcso @CHP_Ventura @CHPMoorpark with a pursuit that started in Ventura County and ended when the suspect crashed S/B 101 at Las Virgenes Rd. Expect traffic delays on the north and southbound 101 freeway. pic.twitter.com/9oc3cnNzNH VenturaCoAirUnit (@VCAirUnit) January 12, 2019 Sometime between noon and 12:30 p.m., CHP officers and Ventura County sheriffs deputies opened fire on the man while he was outside the crashed car. He died at the scene, and authorities did not immediately say whether the man had been carrying a weapon. The incident shut down U.S. 101 in both directions for hours. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department will investigate the fatal shooting because it occurred in L.A. County. joseph.serna@latimes.com Advertisement For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter. Islamic State militants are "living their final moments" in the last enclave they hold near the Iraqi border, where US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are attacking them, an SDF official said on Sunday. A defeat of the jihadists in the enclave would wipe out Islamic State group's territorial foothold on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. A spokesman for the US-led coalition said the SDF were making "great progress ... but the fight continues". The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a coalition of militias led by the Kurdish YPG, have driven Islamic State group from a swathe of northern and eastern Syria with the help of the US-led coalition over the last four years. Mustafa Bali, SDF media office head, said the SDF had stepped up attacks in the last two days and taken control of the area between the Islamic State group enclave and the Iraqi border, cutting an escape route. "They are living the final moments and realise that this battle is the battle to eliminate them," he added. US President Donald Trump last month announced he would withdraw US forces from Syria, declaring they had succeeded in their mission to defeat Islamic State group and were no longer needed. Since then, US officials have given mixed messages. On Friday, the US-led coalition said it had started the pullout, but officials later said only equipment, not troops, were going. Colonel Sean Ryan, the coalition spokesman, said: "The SDF is making great progress and continues to liberate more territory once held by ISIS (Islamic State group), but the fight continues. "The lasting defeat of ISIS is still the mission and they still present a very real threat to the long-term stability in this region, so it is not over yet." The US decision has injected new uncertainty into the eight-year-old Syrian war and spurred a flurry of contacts over how the security vacuum will be filled in the swathe of northern and eastern Syria where the US forces are now stationed. While Turkey aims to pursue the Kurdish forces allied with the United States, the Russia- and Iran-backed Syrian government sees a chance to recover extensive territory. US national security adviser John Bolton suggested last week that protection for Washington's Kurdish allies would be a precondition of the US withdrawal. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan called his comments "a serious mistake". Bali said the people of northern Syria and the coalition must discuss a plan for "after the elimination of Daesh, and to take measures to prevent Daesh reorganising itself and returning once again". Islamic State group still holds territory on the western bank of the Euphrates, between areas controlled by the Syrian government and its Russian and Iranian-backed allies. Short link: In President Donald Trumps public push for $5.7 billion to extend existing border fencing by 215 miles, he has painted a dire picture filled with deadly drugs, violent criminals and bloodshed. Meanwhile, congressional Democrats argue the border crisis Trump is referring to either doesnt exist or was manufactured for political reasons. Besides, they contend, a wall wouldnt solve many of the problems Trump has identified. It is a debate filled with facts facts offered by each side that tend to support their own perspectives and agendas. The truth as it often does lies somewhere in between. Advertisement It doesnt help that immigration is an incredibly complex issue, one that Congress has struggled to agree on and failed to comprehensively reform for decades. Here is what the data, research and expert analysis show. Two-thirds of the 1,933-mile southwest border is not divided by any type of man-made barrier. The majority of that gap is in Texas, where the Rio Grande acts as a natural obstacle of sorts and swaths of private land extend to the international line. In Texas, 91 percent of the state is without any fence or wall, compared with 36 percent of New Mexico and 18 percent of Arizona, according to 2017 Border Patrol data. Californias border with Mexico is the most heavily fortified, with all but 23 miles fenced to some degree. In the unfenced areas, mountains and treacherous wilderness areas act as natural barriers. Advertisement The types and condition of fencing along the southwest border vary greatly. Taller, stronger pedestrian fencing is concentrated around cities and towns in some areas three layers deep, such as Friendship Park while rural areas typically have barriers designed to keep vehicles from driving through but are easy for people on foot to breach. The border along Texas, particularly the Rio Grande Valley where Trump visited earlier this week has in the past several years become the hotspot for illegal crossings. The regions Chief Border Patrol Agent Raul Ortiz told Trump during his visit that while there are 55 miles of fencing already in the sector, 90 percent of the illegal traffic occurs in areas without fencing. Advertisement 1 / 11 To most, concrete walls like these are how they imagine the border between the U.S. and Mexico. However, a variety of different fencing types are used, based on the environment. (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) 2 / 11 In the far Western end of the border, the border wall extends into the Pacific Ocean, separating International Friendship Park and the Playas de Tijuana (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 3 / 11 Razor wire tops most of the border wall that separates San Diego from Tijuana. (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 4 / 11 Two Border Patrol agents keep an eye on the border, as seen from the Mexican side at Playas de Tijuana. (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 5 / 11 Along populated areas, the border wall is filled with murals, graffiti and other forms of art (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 6 / 11 Much of the work on the border has been replacing fencing that has fallen in disrepair. Here workers set in a new section in Tijuana. (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 7 / 11 Older sections of the wall like these are the target of ongoing repairs. (Hayne Palmour IV / San Diego Union-Tribune) 8 / 11 Here, an older part of the border fence shows graffiti. (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) 9 / 11 In Calexico, the border wall allows for sand to pass through, and also allows agents to monitor both sides of the border () 10 / 11 An example of vehicle fencing in Andrade, California, which is just outside of Yuma, Arizona. (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) 11 / 11 Steep cliffs, rocks and chaparral serve as a natural border wall in some parts of California. This is an aerial view in southeastern Imperial County (John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune) Fencing helped slow and shift illegal immigration in San Diego but only when combined with increased enforcement and use of technology. San Diegos border with Mexico was largely without any barrier before the 1950s. Residents on both sides of the border at that time remember crossing easily back and forth to work, to visit family, to play. Some barbed wire was strung up in more populated areas, but it was easily breached. It was more of a visual reminder of the border line than an actual deterrent. Advertisement The scene on the border changed dramatically by the 1980s as Mexican migration spiked, largely single men crossing for economic opportunity. Thousands would gather on any given night in Tijuana and wait to cross illegally under cover of darkness. They would run into the U.S. in droves, overwhelming Border Patrol agents. (Border Patrol polices the areas between legal ports of entry, while Customs and Border Protection officers enforce vehicle and pedestrian traffic entering at the ports of entry.) The primary fencing that covers the 14-mile stretch between the Pacific Ocean and Otay Mountain started going up in 1989, constructed of Vietnam-era landing mat up to 10 feet high. But, according to the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, the primary fence, by itself, did not have a discernible impact on the influx of unauthorized aliens coming across the border in San Diego. So Operation Gatekeeper was launched in 1994 during the Clinton administration, focusing on the first five miles of border. The campaign brought increased manpower to the area and deployed agents in three layers at the border, first to deter illegal entry and then apprehend. Vehicle checkpoints were set up inland. Agents were also much better equipped with night vision goggles, portable radios, light towers, and all-terrain vehicles. Technology such as seismic sensors came into play. Advertisement A secondary layer of fencing came in 1996. Apprehensions in San Diego dipped significantly, cut in half from nearly 484,000 in 1996 to nearly 284,000 in 1997. With the border hardened in San Diego, migrants headed east, with apprehensions in the El Centro Sector spiking in the late 1990s as a result. More fencing was constructed there, and illegal crossing routes moved to Arizonas remote deserts. But with the shift to remote wilderness areas came an increase in migrant deaths. Advertisement San Diego is in the middle of replacing its aging primary border fence. The landing mat barrier was initially praised by border authorities, but it has been easy to scale and for power tools to rip through. The Obama administration began planning to replace the first 14 miles of the fence in San Diego in 2009, and the project was later funded under Trump. Advertisement The new fence, 18 feet tall, is made of hollow steel bollards placed closely together, filled with concrete and topped by a metal plate. Trump pointed to the project during a recent White House news conference: In San Diego and in areas of California, we just finished brand new walls, beautiful walls, steel walls, and they wanted them badly They really needed it, they were having tremendous problems. So we built the brand new wall in San Diego, and its working really well. You should go and look at it, its amazing. Its incredible how well it works. In a news conference last year, Ronald Vitiello, then the acting deputy commissioner of CBP, said requests for new border barrier systems came from agents in the field. The truth is walls work: the data show it and agents know it, Vitiello said. Advertisement However, the Government Accountability Office in 2017 reported that the U.S. didnt have a reliable way to measure how well fencing along the border was working. Border Patrol agents who work the line are excited about the taller, stronger new barrier, especially the fact that it is see-through, unlike the opaque landing mats. It is one of the reasons Trump has said his previous calls for concrete walls have morphed into plans for steel slats. Any assessment on the effectiveness of San Diegos new barrier is premature, as the construction is only halfway finished. The new fence has been scaled or otherwise breached numerous times in the past several months. A similar replacement project was recently completed in Calexico, although at a height of 30 feet. Advertisement In July, Congress approved $251 million in funding to replace the secondary fence made of metal mesh but construction has not yet begun. Other plans to replace some existing fencing and build some new miles of fencing were also funded at that time, primarily in Texas. Agents also continue to rely on a vast network of seismic sensors and remote cameras to patrol the line. The technology helps deploy agents more efficiently to where they are needed, especially in remote areas. Migration through the southwest border as a whole has steadily declined not just in areas with fencing. In fiscal 2018, Border Patrol apprehended about 396,500 unauthorized immigrants at the southwest border 10 percent of those in the San Diego Sector. That is a dramatic downturn compared to a peak of 1.6 million apprehensions in 2000. Advertisement Much of the decline can be attributed to a steep drop in Mexican migration. Many have found it harder over the past few decades to find well-paying jobs in the U.S. due to the economic recession that followed the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and later the housing market crash. The economy in Mexico, in turn, is more stable than it was during massive crossings in the 80s and 90s. Greater enforcement is also believed to be a factor, with more emphasis on border security and advancements in technology since 9/11. According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security which is developing better ways to measure the effectiveness of border security available data indicate that the southwest land border is more difficult to illegally cross today than ever before. The 2017 report suggests 55 to 85 percent of those trying to cross illegally between the ports of entry are caught, and about 55 to 75 percent are deterred from making a subsequent attempt after being returned to their home country. Advertisement While apprehensions these days are similar to those seen in the early 1970s, they are ticking back up, with a 30 percent increase last year compared to the previous year. The nature of migration has changed, shifting more from economic migrants to asylum seekers of all ages. When a single man or woman from Mexico who comes illegally to work or visit family in the U.S. is apprehended, returning them used to be a relatively straightforward matter. If they werent being criminally charged for their entry, they would be detained for maybe a day and walked back across the border. But the face of todays migrant has dramatically changed to Central American families and unaccompanied minors fleeing rising gang violence, corrupt governments and extreme poverty. Many are claiming persecution in their home countries as a reason for wanting to resettle in the U.S. Advertisement An asylum claim sets off a whole different legal process, starting with an interview in which the migrant must show a credible fear of persecution if returned. If that is passed, the civil process handled in immigration court can take years. Officials encourage migrants to present themselves at a U.S. port of entry to ask for asylum. Many migrants, including those in the caravan camped out in Tijuana, are trying to do just that. However, U.S. authorities have limited the number of asylum applicants they will see on any given day between 30 and 100 at San Ysidro creating an unofficial line that forces asylum seekers to wait in Mexico. Many migrants, desperate to enter the U.S., have taken to crossing the border between the ports, giving themselves up to Border Patrol agents immediately and claiming asylum. Advertisement In fiscal 2018, nearly 93,000 migrants 14 percent of those who crossed between the ports and 31 percent of those who presented at a port of entry claimed a credible fear, according to CBP. The Trump administration has said it would like to detain asylum seekers but there isnt enough detention space, especially for the growing number of families, and laws and legal rulings put restrictions on how children can be detained. Many migrant families seeking asylum are released into the community as they go through the legal process. December was a record month for families arriving between the ports of entry, with 27,518 family members apprehended by Border Patrol, along with 4,766 unaccompanied minors. Ninety-five percent of those family members are from the Northern Triangle: Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Border authorities say some adults are lying about being related to children they are traveling with, causing concern about child sex and labor trafficking. From October 2017 to May 2018, more than 700 migrant children were taken from adults claiming to be their parents, including more than 100 children under age 4, the Los Angeles Times reported. Advertisement But many of those adults turned out to be grandparents, uncles or other relatives, and some had to sue for DNA tests to prove they were in fact related including the lawsuit by a Congolese mother, known in court documents at Ms. L. that sparked the landmark family separation litigation based in San Diego. A small percentage of unauthorized immigrants caught trying to illegally cross into the U.S. have been convicted of a crime. In fiscal 2018, Border Patrol apprehended 6,259 people with some kind of known criminal record. It is not clear how many of those apprehensions occurred on the border with Mexico versus Canada. But even if all of those apprehensions occurred on the southwest line, that would account for 2 percent of total apprehensions there. CBP breaks down the data by crime type, although some people have multiple convictions. Advertisement Just over half of the prior convictions were for illegal entry into the U.S. a crime often charged as a misdemeanor. About 1,000 were for DUI. Drug and gun convictions totaled about 900. About 500 were for assault, battery or domestic violence, while 328 were for burglary, robbery or theft and 78 for unspecified sexual offenses. Three were for murder. Besides immigration offenses, the data does not specify how many crimes were committed in the U.S. versus another country, or when. Also last year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which enforces civil immigration law, made about 158,500 administrative arrests for immigration violations against people in the country both illegally and legally. Of those, 87 percent had U.S.-based criminal convictions or pending charges. Advertisement Nearly half of those 46 percent included immigration-related offenses such as illegal entry. The most common crimes were for DUI, drugs or traffic offenses, while about 2,000 were for homicide and another 2,000 for kidnapping. Sexual assault accounted for 5,350 charges or convictions, sex-trafficking offenses for 1,739 and other sex offenses for 6,888. Using ICE arrests to extrapolate how many immigrants in the U.S. have serious criminal backgrounds can be misleading because a high priority is put on finding and deporting unauthorized immigrants or visa holders with criminal records. Determining how many people in the U.S. illegally commit crime while here has always been a challenge because there is no official data collected regularly on the subject and there are hundreds of thousands of criminal justice jurisdictions across the nation. Advertisement Studies on the issue have shown that the nations population of unauthorized immigrants is less inclined to commit crime than Americans, and those in the country legally even less so. A 2018 study by the libertarian-leaning Cato Institute looked at 2015 conviction data in Texas, finding there were 56 percent fewer criminal convictions of unauthorized immigrants than native-born Americans. The rate for legal immigrants was 66 percent below Americans. The study did show that unauthorized immigrants were more likely to be convicted of gambling, smuggling, vagrancy and kidnapping but those crimes account for 0.18 percent of all convictions in Texas in 2015. Another study published in the journal Criminology last year suggested there was less crime in areas with higher populations of unauthorized immigrants. Advertisement Certainly, a handful of killings by unauthorized immigrants have been spotlighted recently, including one last month of a police officer shot to death near Modesto after pulling over a driver. The suspect is in the U.S. illegally, has allegedly boasted of ties to a street gang and has two prior DUI arrests. Drugs are mainly entering the U.S. through the ports of entry. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the lead agency in multinational drug trafficking investigations, reported in its 2018 assessment that Mexican cartels largely prefer using passenger vehicles and semi-trucks to smuggle hard narcotics through the ports of entry not through areas in between. The assessment is based on seizure trends, as well as on intelligence sources that include undercover investigations and wire-tapped cartel business communications. Advertisement The trial of Sinaloa Cartel drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, happening now in Brooklyn, has detailed the powerful organizations preference for using everything from cars and trucks at the ports to trains, airplanes, boats and submarines to smuggle drugs. The DEA notes that Mexican cartels still sometimes smuggle drugs in backpacks through remote crossing routes. While it is unknown exactly how many drugs are entering the country due to the nature of illicit smuggling, seizure data has traditionally been considered a good indication of such trends. For the first 11 months of fiscal 2018, nearly 67,300 pounds of methamphetamine were seized at the ports of entry, whereas nearly 10,400 pounds were seized by Border Patrol agents at points between the ports, CBP reports. Advertisement Similar seizure ratios are seen for heroin, cocaine and fentanyl. The U.S. Attorneys Office has said about 80 percent of the fentanyl coming through the southwest border enters through the San Ysidro and Otay Mesa ports of entry in San Diego. A large amount of fentanyl is also arriving in the U.S. mail or through services such as FedEx, direct from China where the deadly synthetic heroin and its precursors are manufactured. The one exception to the port trend seems to be marijuana. Last year, nearly twice as much was seized by Border Patrol than at the ports. Advertisement Mexican cartels, especially the Sinaloa, also rely on tunnels. Several that were complete or under construction, with advanced rail and lighting systems, have been found along the border in San Diego, considered to have good clay soil for such engineering. Many went under existing fencing. Two were found in the San Diego Sector in fiscal 2018, according to the Border Patrol. While tunnels are often used for drugs, agents in 2017 found one after about 30 unauthorized immigrants emerged from a vacant lot in Otay Mesa. kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @kristinadavis Advertisement UPDATES: 12:40 p.m. Jan. 15: This article was updated to specify that ICE administrative arrests pertain to those with U.S. criminal convictions and charges. This article was originally published 5 a.m. on Jan. 13. This weeks In Depth story looks at the data and research behind border security and how it might inform a decision on funding additional barriers along the southwest barrier. Reporter Kristina Davis shares how she tackled the assignment. Q: The controversy over a border wall isnt new. Why write this story now? A: It is an issue that has long been raging in this country, and it is a story that the Union-Tribune has written in one way or another several times over the years. But my editors thought it was worth re-exploring in light of the partial government shutdown. It is whats dominating the public conversation right now, and its been a frustrating conversation, I think, for everyone. It has been difficult to cut through the political and emotional rhetoric on both sides to have a measured examination of the facts. Advertisement Q: What are you hoping to accomplish with this story? A: My goal was to lay out the facts based largely in data and government reports to give a glimpse of what is going on at the border now and put that into context with where weve been historically. What essentially needs to happen in deciding how to approach a proposed border wall is a cost-benefit analysis weigh the pros, cons and risks and determine how much a wall is worth. This story doesnt attempt to go anywhere near providing an answer, but hopefully some of the findings can help inform such a debate. Though the difficulty with this conversation right now is that it is being posed in extremes and along such partisan lines. Is the answer zero wall? Status quo? Fifty, or 100 additional miles? The span of the entire border? Q: What did you find challenging about this assignment? A: The issues are extremely complex, and it was impossible to have a comprehensive look at everything related to the border. I recognize there are many areas that are not addressed in this story; I was limited by time and space and, in some instances, a lack of publicly available data or research. Q: Have you had much personal experience with the border? A: Yes. I grew up in Tucson, Ariz., and traveled frequently to Mexico. My journalism career often leads me to stories related to the border. Ive done ridealongs with Border Patrol in Arizona, spent time with officers at the San Ysidro Port of Entry and two months ago toured the entire 14 miles of fencing in San Diego with Border Patrol. As a federal law enforcement and courts reporter here I frequently write about drug trafficking, organized crime, immigration and human trafficking. kristina.davis@sduniontribune.com Advertisement Twitter: @kristinadavis Nicole Mione-Green had already worked as a teacher, but was looking to transition into non-profit work that would still allow her to work in education, while also working with families and the community. She found the right fit at Casa de Amistad, a North County nonprofit that works with students and their families to provide educational and social enrichment programs, tutoring, mentoring and parenting workshops. I wanted to work at Casa de Amistad because I truly believe in the power of education and realized that not everyone in our community had the same access to support, she says. As a graduate of Torrey Pines High School, I understood how difficult it is to succeed in such competitive schools. I felt called to help those in our community who didnt have the same access to academic support and enrichment activities as their peers. Mione-Green, 41, is executive director of the nonprofit, where she raises money for their programs, develops relationships with other organizations, and oversees the staff and program. She lives in Encinitas and took some time to talk about her work and the impact the organization, and the community it serves, have had on each other. Q: Tell us about Casa de Amistad. Advertisement A: Casa de Amistad, or House of Friendship, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering the education and character development of underserved children and teens from neighborhoods in coastal North San Diego County. We are inspiring the next generation of leaders through mentoring, academic support and leadership development. We started as an outreach ministry of the Solana Beach Presbyterian Church. In 1997, families in the community reached out to their pastor asking him to help their children with homework. Many of the parents had limited English and education, and found it difficult to help their children with their schoolwork. Casa de Amistad became a registered nonprofit in 2001 and has grown and evolved since its creation. Currently, we serve 250 children and teens and have developed programming that works to educate the whole child, attending to the academic, social and emotional development of children and youth from widely diverse backgrounds. In addition to providing after-school tutoring and mentoring for students in kindergarten through 12th grades, we also offer preschool enrichment, leadership development and engineering programs. Currently, more than 250 academic mentors/tutors volunteer on a weekly basis. Q: What was it about their mission that you felt drawn to? A: My parents were the first in their families to go to college. I understand that I have greatly benefited from their choice to get a college education. All of the students at Casa de Amistad will be the first in their families to go to college. I am motivated by the idea that we are not only investing in this current generation, but we will be positively impacting generations to come. Q: Whats your goal for the organization now that youre serving as executive director? A: As executive director, my main goal is to continue to expand and deepen our programs. There are many factors outside of school that impact a students learning. In the short term, I would like to raise funds to bring on a social worker or therapist to help support our students and parents. It is extremely difficult for our families to access quality mental health services. I have found when a student is not doing well in school, it is usually not from a lack of trying; there are usually greater factors at play. I would like to help them process their feelings and ease their emotional burdens. Casa de Amistad is also expanding into new communities. Our first satellite program opened in Encinitas last fall. In addition, we have more than 50 students on our waiting list. Our main goal for this year is to create a strategic plan, so we can be thoughtful and sustainable in our growth. What I love about Encinitas What I love most about Encinitas is the small-town feeling and being close to the ocean. Advertisement Q: How does Casa de Amistad operate? A: We do not advertise for students. Parents hear about our program from friends and family, and teachers will refer students to our program. Most of the students come from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and are facing barriers to achieving academic success. Many new students are on a waiting list for a few years because we have very little turnover of students. Registration for our study companions program begins in August, and the tutoring program follows the school year calendar. We also offer a summer enrichment camp and classes. Parent participation is also a major part of our program. Parents are required to volunteer throughout the year and are encouraged to attend a wide range of parenting workshops. Q: Why is this work important to you? A: This work is important to me because I believe that education will disrupt the cycle of poverty many families face. Unfortunately, achievement gaps are evident as early as kindergarten and often persist and widen as students advance in their schooling. Casa seeks to fill the gap. Were helping vulnerable families become stronger, and therefore, better able to help themselves through education and support within the community. Studies show that when high school students are enrolled in after-school programs, they exhibit more positive feelings and attitudes toward the pressures of teen life and are more willing to share their talents with the community. Advertisement Q: What has this work taught you about yourself? A: I have learned that in order to be a good leader, I must be true to my own core values. I also understand the value of identifying and listening to key stakeholders in our community, and the importance of working together toward a clear vision for the future. Q: What is the best advice youve ever received? A: Over the summer, I took our staff and volunteers to see the Mister Rogers documentary, Wont You Be My Neighbor?, and I was truly moved by this film. He said, As human beings, our job in life is to help people realize how rare and valuable each one of us really is, that each of us has something that no one else has or ever will have something inside that is unique to all time. Its our job to encourage each other to discover that uniqueness and to provide ways of developing its expression. Advertisement Q: What is one thing people would be surprised to find out about you? A: I have traveled to all of the continents except Antarctica. I have always been interested in learning about new cultures and experiencing how other people live. Q: Describe your ideal San Diego weekend. A: My ideal weekend would start by scoring an oceanfront campsite at the San Elijo State Beach campground in Cardiff. I would start the day by taking a walk on the beach at sunrise, heading to Del Mar to look for sand dollars, and taking my dog to dog beach. I would end the day barbecuing tri-tip from (Cardiff) Seaside Market and making tacos with friends and family. Advertisement Advertisement Email: lisa.deaderick@sduniontribune.com Twitter: @lisadeaderick Americas oldest collegiate a cappella group the Yale Whiffenpoofs is coming to San Diego on Sunday for two events: one for a fundraiser benefiting the Honeymoon Bridge Reconstruction Project in Balboa Park and a public concert at La Jolla Country Day. The Balboa Park event, in the Prado Ballroom, costs $85 per person and starts at 5:30 p.m. The La Jolla concert starts at 4 p.m. The Whiffenpoofs, which tours extensively worldwide, includes former San Diegan James Nydam, who first fell in love with singing in San Diego. A physics major, Nydam sang with with the San Diego Childrens Choir. This year is an important one for our group as a whole, he said, because its the first year weve had a woman member. Sofia Campoamor became the groups first female member since its founding in 1909. Yale Whiffenpoofs: 4 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 13. Four Flowers Theater, La Jolla Country Day School, 9490 Genesee Ave., La Jolla. $10 student, $15 seniors, $20 general admission, $35 guaranteed front-row seating, $49.99 two adults and two students. Tickets available online or at the door. whiffs.ticketbud.com/the-whiffenpoofs-at-la-jolla-country-day Advertisement Twitter: @outdoorlivingsd michael.rocha@sduniontribune.com For many years, the historic Victorian home in Oceanside thats now home to Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond was rumored to be haunted. The former Hill Street Cafe at 524 S. Coast Highway was said to be the haunting grounds of the mysterious Lady in Blue. According to news reports, workers on the property reported seeing the ghost of the homes original owner, Sarah Weitzel, cruising the hallways and sitting on the patio in a Victorian-style blue dress. The Lady in Blue was said to regularly rattle the walls, push open doors and turn off the lights whenever she was upset that the historic 1888 home was not being well cared for in her absence. Advertisement If any of thats true, then the Lady in Blue must be pleased with the recent restoration of the 131-year-old property. New tenants Marcus Belke and Luigi Colangiuoli havent had any reports of spooky goings-on since they opened Saint Tropez last June, after spending a full year renovating the property to its original glory. We had some flickering lights that scared some workers during construction, but we havent heard anything from her since then, Belke said. She can be really proud. The freshly painted exterior and expanded patio at the Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond in Oceanside, which replaced the old Hill Street Cafe. (Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune) Belke and Colangiuoli are the co-owners of the Saint Tropez Group, a Carlsbad-based restaurant company that includes three Coastal North County locations and a European-style bakery in San Diego that supplies all of the restaurants daily with fresh bread and pastries. The duo are old friends from the German town of Konigswinter, where their children went to school together. Colangiuoli is a corporate CEO with more than 30 years in the European restaurant business. Belke is a software designer who moved to Carlsbad four years ago to run the American division of his company. During a visit to Carlsbad a few years ago, Colangiuoli asked Belke about possibly opening a restaurant here and Belke started looking. He found the Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond in Encinitas, a successful French-inspired restaurant that has been in business since 2000. We liked the menu and we could identify with it, and we liked how it engaged the community, Belke said. It was a concept that had been working well for a long time. In 2017, the partners purchased the Saint Tropez brand and concept as well as the Encinitas restaurant at 947 S. Coast Highway. Advertisement They also purchased the 5-year-old Carlsbad location of Saint Tropez Bistro, which the founder had previously sold to a different owner, and they bought Gourmet Artisan Bakery on Miramar Road to serve as the restaurants supplier. Then, as they looked to expand the Saint Tropez brand, Belke came across the Hill Street Cafe & Gallery in Oceanside. View of some of the upstairs dining areas in the Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond in Oceanside, which operates inside a historic home built in 1888. (Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune) Hill Street Cafes then-owner Dan Callaway, who had leased the property since 2000, was looking to retire the business. But Belke said the property was in a poor state of disrepair and would need extensive work to function in the style and quality of the other Saint Tropez locations. So, after negotiations with property owner Paul Adams, the pair leased the Oceanside property in mid-2017 and promptly shut it down for repairs. What they thought would be a couple months of work turned into a full year of restoration. Advertisement Because the home is an historic property, every change in the building had to go through an approval process. And because its located along Coast Highway, any changes to the front patio needed to go through setbacks approval with road planners. They also had to make the building compliant with the American with Disabilities Act. Even more daunting were the surprises they found hidden in the walls and floors of the property as they did construction. Faulty, non-code-compliant wiring, plumbing and carpentry work had to be completely redone before new walls and flooring could go in, Belke said. The finished project retains all of the buildings historic character, but with a brighter shade of yellow exterior paint, a new checkerboard tile floor on the first floor, new glass walls on the porch, new Victorian-style brass light fixtures and a redesigned lobby that opens up the space for a larger pastry display case, European-style coffee machine and checkout counter. Belke said customer response has been positive. Advertisement People are really happy that this place shaped up, he said. Also, now everyone who drove down to Encinitas to visit our restaurant there are happy they dont have to drive so far anymore. Ingrid Thomson, co-manager of the Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond in Oceanside, brings breakfast to customers in one of its upstairs dining areas. (Charlie Neuman / San Diego Union-Tribune) Originally known as the Weitzel House, the two-story, five-bedroom property was built in 1888 by Dr. Martin and Sarah Weitzel at 602 N.Clementine Street. A year later, Dr. Weitzel died. His grieving widow held on to the property until 1904, when she sold it, moved to L.A. and died two years later. The home changed hands many times until 1923, when it was purchased by machine shop operator Peder Larsen and his wife, Martha, according to the Oceanside Historical Society. The Larsens had five children and a happy marriage until 1931, when he was killed and she was severely injured in a head-on car accident on Mission Road. Martha Larsen stayed in the house until her death in 1964. Advertisement The property is now owned by Paul Adams, who had loved the home ever since his childhood when hed deliver newspapers to Martha Larsen and shed meet him at the back door with a cookie. When it came up for sale after Larsens death, Adams bought the building and, in 1981, he moved it one mile away to property he already owned on Coast Highway. The house was loaded by crane on a flatbed truck and transported in a slow-moving operation that required the temporary removal of telephone and electric wires along the road as the house passed by. The move drew crowds of onlookers and newspaper coverage. Adams used the property for many years as a florist shop. Later it became a coffeehouse. In 2000, Callaway leased the property and renamed it the Hill Street Cafe & Gallery. It was known for its vegan-friendly menu and live music. To carry on the Hill Street legacy, the Oceanside location still offers live music from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays on the patio stage. Saint Tropez also has a number of vegetarian and vegan menu options. Advertisement Belke said the Saint Tropez menu now is more European in style than just French. They have also introduced some German and Belgian beers. The most popular French items from the past remain top-sellers. He said these include croissants, the French Burger with sweet onion marmalade and the Salad Nicoise. Saint Tropez Bistro & Beyond Hours: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily Where: 524 S. Coast Highway, Oceanside Phone: (760) 633-0084 Advertisement Online: sttbistro.com pam.kragen@sduniontribune.com CITY COUNCILS CARLSBAD The Carlsbad City Council met Tuesday and upheld the Planning Commission decision to allow additions to a 573-square-foot commercial building and allow hot glass-blowing at 3060 Roosevelt St. The council voted 3-2 to name Councilmember Priya Bhat-Patel as mayor pro tempore. ENCINITAS Advertisement The Encinitas City Council met Wednesday and chose Kellie Shay Hinze, executive director of Leucadia 101 Main Street, as its new councilmember, taking the seat vacated by Tasha Boerner Horvath. The council voted to proceed with raised crosswalks with rapid-flashing beacons and other traffic calming measures for certain spots of its Streetscape project, but not for a bike lane. The council introduced an ordinance amending the zoning code to allow emergency shelters in the business park and light industrial zones. The council also authorized staff to provide an energy assessment and to identify conservation and renewable energy options to bring the citys energy demand to net zero. OCEANSIDE The Oceanside City Council met in closed session Wednesday to discuss labor negotiations. In regular session, the council appointed Ryan Keim to the vacant City Council position. It was decided that applications will be taken for the city clerk vacancy until Jan. 23, and interviews will be conducted Feb. 20. The council approved a request to eliminate its 43-dwelling unit per acre density cap for areas designated for higher densities. POWAY The Poway City Council met Tuesday to discuss water and sewer rates and charges, which will take effect in March 2019. The suggested increase to the Water Commodity rate is 4.5 percent, and the fixed Water Meter Charge would be 7.5 percent. Also, the Sewer Commodity rate would increase by 3.25 percent and the fixed Sewer Service Charge would grow by 3.25 percent. According to the city, because of the elimination of the Drought Recovery Surcharge, the bi-monthly bill for a typical single-family residential customer would see a net reduction of $3.87 per month. The council directed staff to proceed with the rate-setting process to publicize the rate changes and get residents input before a hearing on March 5. SAN MARCOS The San Marcos City Council met Tuesday and introduced an ordinance amending the licensing, zoning and health and safety requirements for massage businesses and massage technicians. A closed session to discuss labor negotiations followed. SOLANA BEACH Advertisement The Solana Beach City Council met in closed session Wednesday to discuss litigation. In regular session, the council approved a three-year agreement with the Solana Energy Alliance to procure greenhouse gas-free energy resources. VISTA The Vista City Council canceled its meeting scheduled for Tuesday. Beginning in 2019, the city of Vista will begin live webcasts of the City Council meetings. These webcasts will create a more direct link between Vistas elected representatives and the public in real time during the meetings. There will no longer be a delayed broadcast on the cable channels. To view a live council meeting, visit bit.ly/2Sn4LDI. Advertisement SCHOOL DISTRICTS BONSALL The Bonsall Unified School District board met Tuesday and unanimously adopted a resolution to transition to a by-trustee area election system and adopted Map Scenario 1 to divide the district into voting areas. CARLSBAD Advertisement The Carlsbad Unified School District board canceled its Wednesday study session and governance team workshop. It will be rescheduled for a date in February. FALLBROOK The Fallbrook Union Elementary School District board held a public hearing Monday to discuss proposed district maps for the new by-district trustee elections. The board also approved $1 million in emergency flood repairs at the San Onofre reconstruction project site. VALLECITOS/RAINBOW Advertisement The Vallecitos School District board met Tuesday to hear an audit report from the Taylion San Diego Academy Charter School for fiscal year 2017-18. The board approved the districts 2017-18 annual audit report, and approved a contract with Spot Kids for special education program consultative support. VALLEY CENTER The Valley Center-Pauma Unified School District board met Thursday in closed session to discuss personnel and labor negotiations. In regular session, the board reviewed and accepted its 2017-2018 Audit Report. The board also reviewed the Governance Handbook. Advertisement laura.groch@sduniontribune.com With Californias grid going through dramatic changes, San Diego Gas & Electric has approached the Legislature in Sacramento with a proposal that, at least at first blush, sounds pretty radical it wants to get out of the business of buying and selling electricity. Instead, the company is calling on the state to create a separate entity that would handle all those transactions. SDG&E officials are quick to say it has no plans to go away it and other investor-owned utilities in the state would still shoulder other responsibilities such as delivering power to customers through transmission and distribution facilities, maintaining poles and wires and taking care of billing and metering. But it wants to be relieved of the job of purchasing the sources of electricity (natural gas, solar, wind, etc.) to meet customers energy needs. Advertisement Choice is happening and we need to evolve with it, said Kendall Helm, SDGEs vice president of energy supply said. And this old model doesnt make sense. The proposal comes as San Diegos city council is expected this month to clear the way to form a community choice aggregation, or CCA, that would provide an alternative to SDG&E when it comes to procuring different sources of power. CCAs and other changes to the power system CCAs have sprung up across California in recent years, boasting they offer customers cleaner sources of power at roughly equal or sometimes even lower prices than traditional utilities. Under the CCA model, local governments purchase the power. Since elected officials often dont have expertise in energy markets, many CCAs hire third parties with experience in energy markets to perform all sorts of complex scheduling and marketing transactions. Those third parties are paid by the CCAs through the rates the CCA charges to its customers. A potential CCA in the San Diego area would likely include a joint powers authority that would fold in other municipalities such as Solana Beach, Del Mar, Encinitas, Carlsbad and Oceanside. That would make it one of the largest in California. By state rule, once a CCA is established, customers in that given area are automatically signed up. Advertisement If customers feel more comfortable staying with the local utility, they can opt out of the CCA but it often requires customers to fill out a request form first. SDG&E anticipates the creation of a CCA would result in about half of its current customers migrating to community choice. Throw in the increasing numbers of customers getting their power from rooftop solar panels and private electric re-sellers called Direct Access providers not to mention large industrial customers buying power directly from renewable generators and SDG&E and other investor-owned utilities anticipate steep erosion of their customer base. Advertisement SDG&E officials have said more than 85 percent of retail electrical load could be supplied by sources other than California utilities by the mid-2020s. But its job delivering power to all customers regardless whether they are in a CCA or other entity will remain intact. We will always, for all customers, serve the delivery of energy through our transmission and distribution, Helm said. But if they have chosen another provider or another option and say, I want this provider purchasing my energy, we dont want to be purchasing their energy for them. Theyve chosen that provider. Let that provider do the purchasing. So what would take the place of the utilities when it comes to power purchases? And how would a change be structured? SDG&E proposes creating a task force to look into the issue. Advertisement It would be led by the California Energy Commission (the states primary energy policy and planning agency), the California Public Utilities Commission (which regulates SDG&E and the states two other investor-owned utilities, Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas & Electric) and the California Independent System Operator (which oversees the operation of about 80 percent of the states electric power system, transmission lines and electricity market). SDG&E in November asked lawmakers in Sacramento to introduce legislation creating the Energy Procurement Task Force by March of this year. Obtained by the Voice of San Diego, the draft bill looks to have the state establish a body that would handle power purchases and act as the default provider in other words, assume the responsibilities investor-owned utilities now perform in that space. The so-called state-level electricity procurement entity would be formed by Jan. 1, 2023 and get up and running no later than July 1, 2025. By then, the expected San Diego area CCA would be well under way. If 85 percent of customers are procuring their energy through a CCA or a (Direct Access) provider, it just makes sense theres this third party entity that captures the (remaining) 15 percent, said SDG&E spokesman Joe Britton. Maybe it doesnt make sense for the utilities to continue to do that. Advertisement But one of the major reasons the state established a framework for CCAs to proliferate was to create competition and alternatives to the utility model. Wouldnt shifting the responsibility of procuring power to a state-created central entity undermine that? There will always be a default provider, Helm said. Were just saying it doesnt need to be SDG&E. And there are many places in the U.S. and around the world where its not the investor-owned utility who is the default provider, so its not an untested model. Outstanding contracts SDG&E, like the other investor-owned utilities in the state, have agreements with other power companies that typically range from five years to as long as 25 years. But with utilities serving fewer customers as CCAs and asother programs grow more popular, what happens to those contracts? Advertisement Thats a key part of SDG&Es push for a state-level central entity. Part of the entitys responsibilities, as SDG&E sees it, is to shrink those portfolios. The state or a third-party group could buy some of the contracts that have shorter terms left on them. Other contracts could be re-assigned to the central entity. And, Helm said, excess resources can be taken off the table through auctions and markets. Crucially, the draft bill calls for utilities receiving full cost recovery from those contracts. We have commitments to developers who absolutely do want to be made whole, Helm said. We cant just walk away from contracts. Advertisement Bill Powers, an engineer, consumer advocate and frequent critic of SDG&E, says the company is pretty bulked up on utility-owned assets and therefore sees the proposal to the Legislature as an opportunity. This is SDG&E and Sempra (SDG&Es parent company) doing what they do, which is looking for the most favorable financial pathway for themselves, Powers said. And Im sure if they could get a sympathetic legislator to float legislation that gives them a financially advantageous exit from the generation business, why not take it? What kind of effect would the proposal have on monthly bills for ratepayers? I really cant predict that, Helm said. It will depend on the choice they make If they are receiving service from a CCA in the future, it will depend on the choices their CCA makes and it will depend on power markets and all those other factors. Advertisement CCA customers pay a monthly exit fee (called a Power Charge Indifference Adjustment) each month on their bill. Over the years, utility customers through their rates have paid power companies to build things like power plants and sign long-term power contracts with independent power producers. The exit fee is designed to make sure those costs are not unfairly shouldered by customers who decide to remain with their traditional utility instead of joining a CCA. Last October, the utilities commission adjusted the exit fee, which varies depending on the service territory of each of the states three investor-owned utilities. SDG&E has estimated the new exit fee will come in at 3.3 cents per kilowatt-hour. That would equate to approximately $16.50 per month for a prospective residential customer who uses 500 kWh per month. Advertisement But backers of CCAs want the utilities commission to rehear the decision, complaining the fees have been adjusted too high, which they argue will reduce the financial incentive for prospective customers to jump on the CCA bandwagon. If SDG&Es proposal for a central entity is eventually adopted, Powers suspects ratepayers may be left on the hook. If the state were to legislate that its now state responsibility to keep all of these owners of capacity and owners of utility-owned generation whole, then inevitably its the citizens of the state who are going to pay for it, Powers said. Helm said SDG&E is focusing on investing in assets that help integrate renewable energy into the grid. About 45 percent of the electricity the company delivers comes from renewables, a higher percentage than SDG&Es instate rivals at PG&E and Southern California Edison. Advertisement If we were out of (the) procurement (business), we would probably not continue to try to build new plants, Helm said. Nicole Capretz, executive director of the Climate Action Campaign and a major advocate for CCAs in San Diego, said its too early to tell if the SDG&E proposal is a net positive or negative but its good to know they (SDG&E) are rethinking their business model and adapting to a new world view. Eventually, it might make sense for them to just be in the wires business. SDG&E sent a letter in November to state Sen. Ben Hueso, D-San Diego, that outlined the proposal. Hueso is chairman of Senates energy committee. Huesos office said the senator is still reviewing the proposal and is not ready to comment on it. Its something were obviously going to be vetting thoroughly, said Erin Hickey, Huesos communications director. Advertisement Business rob.nikolewski@sduniontribune.com Advertisement (619) 293-1251 Twitter: @robnikolewski WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump avoided directly answering when asked whether he currently is or has ever worked for Russia after a published report said law enforcement officials, concerned about his behavior after he fired FBI Director James Comey in 2017, had begun investigating that possibility. Trump said it was the "most insulting" question he'd ever been asked. The New York Times report Friday cited unnamed former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation. Trump responded to the story Saturday during a telephone interview broadcast on Fox News Channel after host Jeanine Pirro, a personal friend, asked the Russia question. "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked," Trump said. "I think it's the most insulting article I've ever had written, and if you read the article you'll see that they found absolutely nothing." Trump never answered Pirro directly, but went on to assert that no president has taken a harder stance against Russia than he has. "If you ask the folks in Russia, I've been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any other ... probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents." Trump's claim was disputed by Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. He said almost all the sanctions on Russia arose not in the White House but in Congress, due to concerns by members of both parties about Moscow's actions. Warner accused the White House of being very slow to put in place the penalties. The Times reported that FBI agents and some top officials became suspicious of Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign but didn't open an investigation at that time because they weren't sure how to approach such a sensitive probe. Trump's behavior in the days around Comey's May 2017 firing helped trigger the counterintelligence part of the probe, according to the newspaper. In the inquiry, counterintelligence investigators sought to evaluate whether Trump was a potential threat to national security. They also sought to determine whether Trump was deliberately working for Russia or had unintentionally been influenced by Moscow. Trump tweeted early Saturday that the report showed that the FBI leadership "opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof" after he had fired Comey. Robert Mueller took over the investigation when he was appointed special counsel soon after Comey's firing. The overall investigation is looking into Russian election interference and whether Trump's campaign coordinated with the Russians, as well as possible obstruction of justice by Trump. The Times says it's unclear whether Mueller is still pursuing the counterintelligence angle. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., said the report "may well suggest what it was that helped start this investigation in the first place." He and other Democratic senators said this report and others within the past week questioning Trump's behavior toward Russia give new urgency to the need for the Mueller investigation to be allowed to run its course. A new report in The Washington Post said Trump went to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin even from high-ranking officials in his own administration. The report cited unnamed current and former U.S. officials. In the Fox News interview, Trump questioned why the newspaper made such a "big deal" out of his discussions with Putin in Helsinki last summer. "Anybody could have listened to that meeting, that meeting is up for grabs." Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., defended the president, who he said was "burned earlier by leaks of other private conversations." Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani told the Times he had no knowledge of the counterintelligence inquiry but said that since it was opened a year and a half ago and they hadn't heard anything, apparently "they found nothing." Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, who is close to Trump and chairs the Judiciary Committee, said he intends to ask the FBI director if there was a counterintelligence investigation into the president. "If this really did happen, Congress needs to know about it and what I want to do is make sure how could the FBI do that?" Trump has repeatedly and vociferously denied collusion with the Russians. Also Sunday, Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said he will force a vote in the coming days on the Treasury Department's decision to ease sanctions on three companies connected to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin last week defended the decision, saying the companies are undergoing a major restructuring to "sever Deripaska's control and significantly diminish his ownership." He saids Deripaska himself and any companies he controls remain under sanctions. Schumer, however, contends the Russian oligarch maintains significant influence on these companies, including the aluminum manufacturing giant Rusal, and said it's important the sanctions remain in place while Mueller's investigation proceeds. Deripaska has figured into the investigation due to his ties to former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort. Warner predicted some Republicans in the GOP-controlled Senate would join Democrats in voting to override the removal of these sanctions. Warner and Johnson spoke on CNN's "State of the Union," while Coons and Graham appeared on "Fox News Sunday." The unfortunate recent turbulences undermining national carrier Samoa Airways is not deterring true Samoan patriots from raising their hands up to be part of the solution. Samoa professions in the airline industry have come out in force to work for their National Flag Carrier. Among them includes Samoan pilots Patrick Moore and Andrew Roebeck to name a few who have left their comfort zones and sacrificed lucrative salaries overseas to be part of the growing Samoa Airways family. While Cabin Services, you will find the return of some familiar and friendly Samoans who have decades of first-hand and priceless experience to share with their Samoan Cabin crews. Ropati Eves is back in the fold joined by Mary Pavitt Chang and of course who could forget Leataataoletaeao Blakelock; all renowned prominent Samoan Cabinet crew pioneers who have served their industry with distinctions. Its all about Samoan pride for us, says Blakelock. To serve our people and our national flag carrier in this challenging industry is an indescribable privilege. We are proud Samoans and this is how we show our pride to the world. And their presence provides a massive dose of confidence for rookies such as Lumaava Tuna Papalii. She was Miss Tahiano Mauga Lui, contestant number three in the McDonalds Miss Samoa Pageant 2017. Growing up as a young Tamaitai Samoa I have always wanted to work for our community and give back to our people, she said. This job is one of the best platforms to showcase our Samoa and what we as a people have to offer to the world. Her best experiences which she will treasure for the rest of her life is the positive feedback and compliments from Samoans after every flight. Faamanuia le Atua ile galuega, from a passenger goes a long way for Lumaava Those simple words gives me more strength and passion for my job. Like they always say, smile is the key that fits the lock of everybodys heart. And for Samoa Airways to continue to blossom, Chief Executive Officer, Seiuli Alvin Tuala is calling on Samoans for their support. Quite simply the Samoa Airways is relying on the support of our people not merely to survive, but to thrive among other international carriers, he said. Our people need to come and support the airline because without their support, the airline is not going anywhere. With their support, we can achieve a lot of different things. We can ensure that airfares remain affordable because they werent affordable before Samoa Airways came back on board. Weve been operating since November 2017 and flight numbers are starting to increase, but we would like to see more of our people travelling with us. Weve got a good product, we have a full on board service and of course the airline will look at other ways to improve. And improvements have been visible, with new direct flights established for Sydney and Brisbane Australia. There is more in the pipeline. Samoa Airways is here to stay, reaffirms Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr. Sailele Malielegaoi. Calling the return of Samoa Airways to the international circuit long overdue, Prime Minister Tuilaepa elaborates; Samoa can no longer rely on others to determine our destiny in terms of air travel, we can no longer sit back and let others dictate to us whats best for our people and this country. Having our own airline ensures that we will be able to determine our destiny. Having our own airline will create jobs and will contribute to the economic growth of our country through increase exports and also contribute to increasing tourist to our country. Something that was not done under past arrangements. He said that the decision to set up Samoa Airways was based on sound and well researched studies. No one else will look after our countrys needs but us. If we do not do it now, it will never be done. If you look around our region, from Vanuatu to the Solomons, Nauru to Kiribati and Tahiti to Fiji, our neighbours have their own national airlines and they have maintained their airlines successfully and profitably. If others can do it why cant we? The answer is yes we can. A Sociology Lecturer at the National University of Samoa (N.U.S.), Tahere Siisiialafia, has been chosen as a global leader by the former President of the United States, Barack Obama. Ms. Siisiialafia, was one of six Pacific Islanders selected as the first cohort of Obama Leaders by the Obama Foundation for the Asia-Pacific Leaders programme in 2019. She met the former American President during a workshop the Foundation hosted in Hawaii January 4-7, featuring 21 leaders from 16 countries and territories across the Asia Pacific. Ms. Siisiialafia and the young leaders engaged in leadership development sessions and hands-on design workshops to help guide the Foundations future programming. The former President addressed the group. [The Asia Pacific] is a place of tremendous diversity and natural resources and rising economic and political power, and its also a very young region, said President Obama, speaking in Hawaii. So today, Im pleased to announce that this year were going to bring our next regional leaders program here in the Asia Pacific just as we did in South Africa. President Obama also participated in a session during the workshop with the leaders, hearing directly from them about the hard and soft skills they need to strengthen and develop, the support they need to amplify and accelerate their impact, and key issues such as climate change, human rights, and good governance that should be addressed in the Asia-Pacific Leaders program. You talk to [these leaders] and you will be reminded about how much talent and energy these young people have, this generation has, and how ready they are to get moving building even bigger, more impactful organizational efforts than theyre already doing, President Obama added. And Ive also heard more than once from them about the value of connecting to one another, how theyre sharing ideas, making relationships, and building the type of movements that can move the world forward. Part of what were going to be trying to do with the Obama Foundation isto promote a values-based approach to leadership development, because we believe that real leadership involves dialogue and inclusion and tolerance and a commitment to human dignity, that if you dont get that right, whatever technical solutions you come up with are going to end up failing, President Obama said. Ms. Siisiialafia has been involved in community development since her early adolescent years, a passion that was fostered by her Bahai Faith. She is currently the Chairperson for the Pacific Youth Council and often uses a variety of regional and global platforms to advocate for youth development in the Pacific region. Intergenerational connection is powerful, and for me seeing beliefs and traditions passed down from mother to daughter, generation to generation is a great example of the approach I value so much about my work, she said. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that a rift between Qatar and its Gulf Arab neighbors had gone on for too long and was threatening regional unity needed to counter Iran. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and non-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member Egypt cut diplomatic, transport and trade ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism and their regional foe Shia Muslim Iran -- something Doha denies. The United States, an ally of the six-nation Sunni Muslim GCC, sees the rift as a threat to efforts to contain Iran and has pushed for a united Gulf front. "When we have a common challenge, disputes between countries with shared objectives are never helpful," Pompeo, who is on an eight-day tour of the Middle East, told a news conference in the Qatari capital Doha. "They never permit you to have as robust a response to common adversaries or common challenges as you might," he added. Gas-rich Qatar says the boycott is aimed at undermining its sovereignty and has started charting a course away from its Gulf neighbors, including forging new trade partnerships, strengthening its ties with Turkey and quitting OPEC. Those moves have deepened expectations that the row will not be resolved quickly. "We're hoping that the unity of GCC will increase in the days and weeks and months ahead," Pompeo said, adding that Gulf unity was essential for a planned Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) that would also include Jordan and Egypt. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have repeatedly said the dispute is not a top priority and assured Washington it will not affect defense cooperation. Pompeo later told reporters that he had brought up the rift with officials in Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE. "It's ... not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday and I regret that," he said. Pompeo has used the regional tour, which included stops in Abu Dhabi and Cairo, to shore up support for the US troop withdrawal from Syria. He will head next to the Saudi capital Riyadh, where he said the United States would ensure there is "full and complete" accountability on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi US-based Washington Post journalist from Saudi Arabia. "We will continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable certainly by the Saudis but by the US as well where appropriate," Pompeo told the news conference. * This story was edited by Ahram Online. Short link: The Governments decision to ban the use of plastic bags is cause for concern among market and village shop owners. While they accept that the decision is good for the environment, they say the Government must come up with a better and cheaper alternative to plastic bags so they can continue their service to the public. Moulu Viliamu, who owns a pork bun stall at the market, said he hopes the Government can source a good quality paper bag, which is affordable. We are small businesses and unlike the bigger wholesales and big shops, we cannot afford reusable tote bags that they have shipped in, he said. What we can afford are paper bags. He added that paper bags are not good quality for selling pork buns. The paper bags will soak up because it is not good for hot food, like steamy pork buns, Moulu explained. Moulu uses plastic bags bought from Chinese stores to sell his pork buns. We know that plastic bags are bad and switching to reusable bags is a good thing but we question how well this was really thought out. Of course this will work great with the bigger companies and businesses that can easily afford it, but what about us? Elia Shop owner, Aotoa Leiataua Elia, agrees. Partly the reason why some of us are having trouble with coming to terms with the new law, is because there are still some unanswered questions we have, Aotoa said. She said the Government must give them some options and alternatives. Do we have any other options beside paper bags? And who will be able to provide them for us? Businesses are hoping to hear from the relevant authorities so they can sort out the matter before the ban becomes effective at the end of the month. They have done it again. The Army of Kins crew from Vaiala has been heralded Samoas Best Dance Crew for 2019, defending the title they won last year. On top of the accolades, money and prizes they collected during the final of the TV1 contest at the C.C.C.S. Youth Hall on Saturday night, the group secured themselves the covetous ticket to represent Samoa at the Hip Hop South Pacific Dance competition in New Zealand. Group leader, Numia Viliamu, was overwhelmed. Being back to back champions is very overwhelming for us, he said. You know when we came here tonight, we wanted to defend our title but we knew we had to do the best we can because the competition was very tough. But every good thing comes with a lot of challenges and I thank God He helped us all the way. Mr. Viliamu said they were very disciplined in their preparations. It wasnt easy coming back here especially with the pressure of being the champions but we put so much pressure on ourselves. The preparation took us two weeks of sweat and pain, but it just feel so sweet knowing the fact that our hard work has paid off. It was pretty hard and tiring but the boys were willing to take the challenges. The 23-year-old proud Vaiala villager acknowledged the support of their village, families and everyone else. I would like to dedicate this to our dance teacher, Sulusi Faapopo, for always being patient with us, our manager Lelepa Niue Titi, for having our back, and to all my boys for making this night a memorable one, and to my little brother ET who danced for Blackie Yes, Im so proud of you. And on top of all the people, we dedicate this night to our families and friends who are our greatest supporters. And lastly to my grandfather who passed away last year when we just won. He would have been very proud of us. The final held at Sogi was well attended. The noise was deafening when the 11 crews who made it to the final took the stage for their performances. The competition was sponsored by S.S.A.B, M.N.R.E, Fiji Airways, Central Bank of Samoa, AST Industries, Niedes Boutique and Hair Salon. Les Papalii, 17, shared Mr. Viliamus excitement, being the youngest member of the Army of Kins. Being the youngest was tough for me, he said. I had to be on time and adjust to whatever the boys were doing. But the fact that I was passionate to be part of the crew, I took all the challenges that came my way. I was motivated to be part of this because dancing is one of the many talents that the Lord has blessed me with and am thankful that we made it this far. The Army of Kins enjoyed the victory on Saturday night but they know they have their work cut out before the Hip Hop South Pacific Dance Competition in New Zealand fast approaching in April. Results: First place: Army of Kins Second place: United Uso Third place: Blackie Yes Tulsi Gabbard is a name to remember. She has dominated news around the globe for the past few years, and has become especially prominent in the past few days. Having announced her intention to run for the President of the United States of America, she will continue to dominate the news for months and years to come. It will be both positive and negative. It is expected of course. It is not every day that someone wakes up and decides to run for what is arguably the most powerful political office in the world. Which is precisely what Gabbard has done. Her decision therefore is not just significant, it means her name will go down in the history books as someone who challenged the establishment and dared to give it a go. Despite the advances in the United States democratic system, a woman has yet to become President. It makes Gabbards announcement all the more important. In Samoa today, of course we are excited. How can we not be? Gabbards connections to Samoa, and the fact that she was born Leloaloa, American Samoa, before she moved to Hawaii, makes the announcement even more significant on these shores. Its a massive achievement already. Now who wouldve thought in their wildest dream that one day a Samoan let alone a woman would dare to run for the U.S. Presidency? Interestingly enough, prior to Gabbards announcement, all eyes were on Seiuli Dwayne Johnson as perhaps the first Samoan to vie for the role. There had been a lot of reports and talks encouraging Seiuli to take the plunge. Alas, Gabbard has stolen the limelight and she will now be remembered in history as the first Samoan to have challenged for the White House role. I have decided to run and will be making a formal announcement within the next week, Gabbard told CNN. There are a lot of reasons for me to make this decision. There are a lot of challenges that are facing the American people that Im concerned about and that I want to help solve. Already, she has indicated that she will campaign on health care access, criminal justice reforms, climate change and much more. As a war veteran the issue of war and peace will be top of her agenda. There is one main issue that is central to the rest, and that is the issue of war and peace, Gabbard said. I look forward to being able to get into this and to talk about it in depth when we make our announcement. Ironically, this might be the issue that will divide and change the view of many Americans about her and her ambitions. All you have to do is read the piece titled Can Tulsi Gabbard shake her ties to dictators and nationalists? from Mother Jones published below to get an idea of where the critics will target her. But such is life. You cannot win everything, let alone please everyone. Now just because Gabbard has announced her candidacy doesnt mean she will automatically gain the seat. Far from it. If we are realistic enough, we can honestly say her candidacy is a very, very long shot. The first hurdle will be to overcome the Democrats Presidential nomination process which will not be a walk in the park. And if she survives, then the real work begins. Still, in Samoa today and for Samoans all over the world, this is a moment to savour. Here we have a woman with very real connections to Samoa who has dared to dream and do the impossible. If that doesnt inspire us, I dont know what will. Which brings us closer to home. In a couple of years time, this country will be returning to the polls to choose their political leaders. Last week, a woman Member of Parliament, Aliimalemanu Alofa Tuuau, revealed her mission about getting more women in Parliament. Having achieved her dream of becoming a Member of Parliament for her constituency, she told this newspaper that her goal is to inspire and encourage more women to take the journey with her. There is so much strength and experience in our women, she said, adding that many of them have the potential to make real meaningful changes in their communities. But she said the transformational change must begin with women, themselves. Speaking about her experience, Aliimalemanu said her transformation to believing herself and her abilities to be the difference was liberating and moving. In moving forward to women leadership, I had my own fears, she said. These included fear of failing, fear of being criticised, laughed at and many others. But during her time in Parliament, she has learnt to overcome those fears. Now she is determined as ever to encourage other women to overcome their fears and give Parliament a try. I wanted to make a difference. If we really want to make a difference in settling issues like ending violence against women and gender based equality, then women should take ownership of becoming those courageous leaders, that will initiate the movement, she said, adding that to make a change, the change must begin with you. We couldnt agree more with Aliimalemanu. If Aliimalemanu had overcome her fears, and another Samoan woman in Gabbard has dared to aim to topple the all-powerful Donald Trump to become the next President of the United States of America, what are our other Samoan women waiting for? This is your moment, your time to shine. Have a wonderful week Samoa, God bless! Ten more local applications for funds from the Global Environment Facility (G.E.F.) Small Grants Programme (S.G.P.) have been successful. The applicants have been awarded financial grants totaling more than US$218,000 (T$545,000). The funds support communities who are at greatest risk in their fragile ecosystems. Two inception workshops took place last week to congratulate the successful grantees in Upolu and Savaii. Held to commend those Community Based Organisations (C.B.Os) throughout Samoa for embodying the very essence of sustainable development, thinking globally, acting locally, the inception workshops also provided an opportunity for the S.G.P. team to clarify any queries that the project leaders may have, and to help build their capacity in implementing the approved work plans. The newly appointed Resident Representative of the UNDP Multi-Country Office, Charles Chauvel, said the grants will provide financial assistance to our fragile and vulnerable communities, but equally importantly, result in sound financial injection into the Samoan economy. The Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (M.N.R.E), Ulu Bismarck Crawley, thanked the ongoing efforts of the National Steering Committee (N.S.C.) and Technical Advisory Group (T.A.G.), whose work in the final year of Operational Phase 6 (O.P.6.) has led to approximately US$800,000 (T$2million) disbursed across Samoa. The rigorous evaluation process of the N.S.C. and technical recommendation of the T.A.G., ensures those who are in greatest need receive the financial grants, empowering the most vulnerable communities to lead their sustainable development though transformational interventions. This message was reinforced by the Chair of the N.S.C., Anne Rasmussen, when she addressed the C.B.O.s of Savaii, who wished them all the best in their endeavours as they begin implementing the projects within their local communities. As OP6 comes to a close in Samoa, the future work of the S.G.P. Samoa Office, with the important assistance from government partners, will continue, a statement from the project said. This is to ensure the positive impact of civil society interventions at a national level, a strengthened voice and influence of civil society actors at a policy level, and a continued effort to build the capacity of civil society actors to be successful transformative agents of change, contributing to Samoas efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The village of Letogo yesterday celebrated its 116 years anniversary. The village came alive with sporting activities, dancing and lots of fun. Rev. Lavilavi Soloi from the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa said the objective of the celebration is to give thanks. The whole purpose of the celebration is to give thanks to the man above for so many reasons especially for our survival each day, he said. The celebrations started early in the morning with a parade of colorful decorated vehicles. The participants represented the Catholic Church, Congregational Church of Samoa, Seventh Day Adventist Church and Assembly of God. The parade yesterday was followed by morning tea and sporting activities. A Letogo youth, Mulinuu Alii, said he was happy to be there to witness the occasion. Ive always looked forward to this day because I wasnt here the first time and I heard some pretty good news about it and now that Im finally here, Im now witnessing what a special day it is for my village and my people, he said, while adding that he is proud of the villages achievements. The organisers of the celebration also spoke of the villages ability to survive the 1918 influenza epidemic in Samoa, which were highlighted in posters and banners that the villagers carried yesterday. The villages celebrations will continue today and will end with a final programme, which the whole village is expected to participate in. The village has celebrated the anniversary in the past. Dear Editor, I am comparing two different articles. Prime Minister Tuilaepa is saying one thing in the other and making other suggestions in one. There is no knowing where his heart is. I am very confused but I am not surprised if the political filth has engulfed his soul completely. Anyways, below are our comparisons of the two articles and our interpretation of what transpired therein. #1 P.M. hails A.D.Bs contribution to the development of Samoa In this article, the PM is quoted saying For more than 50 years, we have worked with A.D.B. and together we have made progress in improving water and sanitation, establishing reliable, clean energy and better internet connectivity. We will continue to work with A.D.B. and our other development partners to help deliver better basic social services to the people of Samoa. #ADB #LOAN #BUSINESS #WATER #2 Water shouldnt be an issue for poorest, says P.M. In this article, the PM is quoted saying In Samoa, we have so much water. It would be ridiculous to say nobody has any water to drink, especially in this rain. Long ago, when we did not have pipes, what we did in our villages, there is a thing called tufu along the beaches. All you do is dig and spring water comes in. That is the value of local knowledge. In every village, there is a tufu. Article #1 PM talks about improvements made because of its partnership with A.D.B that started more than 50 years ago. In one example, the PM mention of progress in improving water. Now, after those upgrades, the only visible difference today with water is, you have to pay for it to get it and continue paying for it for the rest of your lives to continue getting access to it. Article #2 the PM suggested the poor of Samoa who cannot afford water to use primitive methods, outdated ways like the tufu to get their water which it could still work today but then why say water has been improved when if you cant afford it you aint getting it. That is not improving it, it is capitalising an essential part of our livelihood on our islands. Making people pay for things that promised improvement in their lives. The quality of water on the islands is good and quantity is plentiful. The country used to have free water, all piped and all well managed which the government absorbed implementation and maintenance costs. Why make a change that later would cost the people directly an essential bit of their livelihood? The people trying to fork out money to pay for water that used to be free. The government loaned more and more money in the guise of improving our livelihood but rather is costing us more and more and our peace of mind and harmonious living disturbed and turned over. The HRPP #1 Spin Doctor Stui, once again at the forefront of this Sad campaign. What a nuisance he is not to heed the wisdom of the people. Obviously, as the media proclaimed, a mad man. Lets conclude with this thought, this Samoa government so-called praised developments helps only the wealthy. The system was designed to help support people in business, government, and their major partners and families. It is a business and a business is only interested in one thing, profit, -the bottom line. A.D.B. and its praises, the loans, the grants, it is all a distribution of wealth amongst the wealthy of this country. The infrastructure PM spoke of and the new improvements are there to help sustain these businesses, relationships, and their growth. So when a poor Samoan praises the government for the shiny things it built it saddens the heart that some informed few in the position of power and prestige would live off the ignorance of fools. While they tell the fools to get off their butts and work the land and use aging technologies to obtain an essential need like water. Faafetai, Tama Poto Dear Editor, Unasa Iuni Sapolu should be questioned about what Samoa Firsts policy is regarding leasing on customary land. Everything she is saying so far points to her wanting to make it illegal to even lease customary land in Samoa. If that happens, you watch the howls of outrage from Samoans who all of a sudden cannot do anything to develop their own lands because Unasa has made it illegal. If leasing is banned on customary lands, go to the nearest beach and watch all the investment and money leave the country and thousands more Samoans follow it out the door. Samoa First and Iuni Sapolus rhetoric is nice for Facebook and the foolish people who believe everything they read from OLP, but in reality, it will make the lives of Samoan people that much harder. People leave the country for a better life overseas because the number one reason is they cannot do anything with their land to earn money from it. Why? 1) the banks will not lend them any money to develop it because it is customary land (there is no single owner to be responsible for the debt). 2) They cannot get jobs in Apia. Why? because the Samoan economy is fighting with one arm and one leg tied behind its back because 80% of Samoas land is unproductive and not earning money for the economy. Why? refer to point number 1. I also read what she said about alienation already happening. She is deliberately fudging the issues here by referring to leasing on customary land and by using the word alienation (a legal term) to mean permanent loss of land. In short, she is saying leasing on customary land amounts to the loss of ownership of the land. This is complete bull dust. Leasing is a temporary alienation of customary land because the owners no longer have use of the land for the term of the lease. It DOES NOT mean the loss of the ownership of the land and there is no court in the land which would support her argument. That is probably why nobody has taken this stupid argument to Court (especially her). She thinks going through the media has more impact because she doesnt have to legally prove a thing she says. She leaves her fake news out there and people believe it and that is all she and her group wants. Leasing has been around long before the LTRA 2008 came into force. It has been legal to lease customary land since the Alienation of Customary Land 1965. This is why it is fake news. Petelo Suaniu Dear Editor, Re: Fiu Elisara decries lack of opportunity The A.D.B. Presidents trip to Samoa was to meet the government leadership only. One has to understand that simple fact of life. I reckon if Fiu and cohorts had wanted to ever meet the A.D.B. President or officials, him and them (his people) should send a proposal to the A.D.B. for a trip to meet in Samoa just for themselves. Fiu and his people should not piggyback on a trip intended only for the A.D.B. to meet the government leadership. That is the truth and if it hurting so good to digest, there is nothing the A.D.B. and the government can do rot help. Any delaying of the fact is a stifling of democracy hence a corrupted activity to satisfy the truth. Tofaeono Joe Hollywood After a controversy erupted, Supreme Court judge A.K. Sikri, who last week sided with the government in the three-member committee to remove CBI Director Alok Verma, on Sunday withdrew his "consent" to be nominated to the post of President/Member of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). Sources close to the jugde said that Sikri communicated to the government on Sunday expressing his withdrawal of consent after news broke out over his nomination to the post. They said that the judge was asked by the government in December about his inclination to hold the post. He had then agreed. As there was "no word of communication" from the government till the news broke out about his nomination, Sikri told the government on Sunday evening that he was withdrawing his earlier consent, the sources said. Sikri was part of the Selection Committee including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge that on Thursday decided 2:1 to remove CBI chief Verma from the post. Kharge gave a dissent note and opposed Verma's ouster. The CSAT was established to meet the requirements of the Agreed Memorandum on the Commonwealth Secretariat (1964) which was revised by governments in 2005. In fulfilment of its obligations under the Agreed Memorandum, the UK government passed the Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966 which, among other things, gives the Commonwealth Secretariat legal personality and accords it certain immunities and privileges. The CSAT has a full complement of eight members comprising the President and seven others. The members are selected by Commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country. The members are appointed on a four-year term which may be renewed only once. Born on March 7, 1954, Sikri was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge on April 12, 2013. He earlier served as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Calling the opposition alliance "opportunist", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the parties coming together ahead of the Lok Sabha polls of practicing negative politics for their own existence and said the BJP was not in politics for "divide and rule" or building vote banks. The Prime Minister's attack come during his interaction with booth level BJP workers from Mayiladuthurai, Perambalur, Sivaganga, Theni and Virudhunagar in Tamil Nadu through video conference. "Unlike other parties, we are not in politics for divide and rule or building vote banks. We are here to serve the country in every possible way. The upcoming polls are very important for BJP and the country," he said. "On one hand, we have our development agenda and the vision of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' while on the other hand there are opportunist alliances and dynastic parties. They want to build their own empires while we want to empower the people," he added. Modi said that success of his government had upset the opposition leaders and that was the reason they were busy in negative politics. "They are abusing Modi and the BJP but they should not underestimate the people. Our friends in opposition are anyway a confused lot. They leave no opportunity to say that Modi is bad, government is not working, people dislike the BJP, yet the first thing they do is form opportunist alliances with parties they disliked till recently and still do perhaps," he said in a apparent jibe at the coming together of SP and BSP in Uttar Pradesh. He asked if Modi was so bad and that his government was not working, why were they making alliances. "Should you not be confidant of yourself? The truth is that they know this government is a working government. They know the poor, youth, women and farmers have a strong bonding with BJP. Just for their own existence, they are making short term alliance," he said. Expressing confidence that his party would do well in the Lok Sabha elections, he urged the workers to keep reaching out to different sections of society. "We are not a coterie-based party but a cadre-based party. Make first time voters your priority." Taking a jibe at Congress, he said it was only in the BJP that a person born to a socially backward and economically poor family can think of reaching the top and needed no loyalty to "one family". "In the BJP, one only needs hard work. We do not need big wallets or loyalty to one family," he said, adding that this made the BJP family different from the rest. To a question on potential of India's MSME sector, he said: "When it comes to India's growth story and the role of small industries, small is big. Small industries may seem small but their impact on employment and on bringing people out of poverty, is big." He said that it was a wrong perception that Ease of Doing Business helped only big companies. It also helped the MSME sector and small businesses. The Iranian-aligned Houthi group threatened on Sunday to launch more drone attacks after a deadly strike last week on a Yemeni government military parade, stoking tension between the warring parties amid U.N. peace efforts. Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarea said Thursday's drone strike on a military base in Lahaj province, which killed several people, was a "legitimate operation against aggression". He said the movement was building a stockpile locally manufactured drones. "Soon there will be enough in the strategic stockpile to launch more than one drone operation in multiple battle fronts at the same time," Sarea told reporters in the Houthi-held capital Sanaa. The attack on the military parade came as the United Nations tries to get peace talks going between the Houthis, who control most urban centres in Yemen, and the Saudi-backed government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, which is based in the southern port city of Aden. The day after, a Saudi-led military coalition said it destroyed a Houthi communication and control centre used to direct drones. The Houthis said in November they were halting drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and their Yemeni allies, but tensions have risen over how to implement a U.N.-sponsored peace deal reached in December in the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are leading the Western-backed Sunni Muslim Arab coalition that intervened in Yemen's war after the Houthis ousted Hadi's government from Sanaa in 2014. The Gulf states accuse Iran of supplying arms to the Houthis, a charge Tehran and the group deny. *This story was edited by Ahram Online. Short link: Israel has uncovered all cross-border attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon and now plans to bring its operation to find and destroy them to an end, a military spokesman said Sunday. "We have found yet another Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnel from Lebanon to Israel," Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told reporters of the operation that began on December 4. "According to our intelligence and our assessment of the situation there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel." The latest tunnel, found on Saturday, began in the Lebanese village of Ramyeh, some 800 metres (yards) away from Israel, the army said. It reached a few dozen metres into Israel, and at 55 metres under the ground was the deepest as well as "the longest and most detailed" of all the tunnels the army exposed, Conricus said. The latest tunnel was the sixth revealed to the public and the army said its discovery marked the end of the operation dubbed by the army "Northern Shield". The last tunnel will be destroyed in the coming days. "We have achieved the goal (to expose and destroy the tunnels from Lebanon) which we set out to achieve at the beginning," Conricus said. Conricus said there were no more tunnels reaching Israel from Lebanon but the army was still monitoring "facilities" being dug by Hezbollah within Lebanese territory. He also reiterated that Israel holds the Lebanese government accountable "for any act of violence or violation of 1701," the UN resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, was informed of the latest tunnel, Conricus said. Israel alleges Hezbollah had planned to use the tunnels to kidnap or kill its civilians or soldiers, and to seize a slice of Israeli territory in the event of any hostilities. It has said, however, that they were not yet operational. A month-long war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. The highly publicised Israeli operation to expose and destroy the tunnels has gone ahead without drawing a military response from Hezbollah. Israel says all operations have taken place within its territory. Short link: Weather Alert ...The Flood Warning continues for the following rivers in North Carolina... Contentnea Creek Near Hookerton affecting Greene, Pitt and Lenoir Counties. For the Contentnea Creek...including Hookerton...Minor flooding is forecast. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Additional information is available at water.weather.gov/ahps. ...The Flood Warning remains in effect... The Flood Warning continues for the Contentnea Creek Near Hookerton. * Until further notice. * At 8:00 PM EDT Tuesday the stage was 13.4 feet. * Flood stage is 13.0 feet. * Minor flooding is occurring and minor flooding is forecast. * Recent Activity...The maximum river stage in the 24 hours ending at 8:00 PM EDT Tuesday was 13.4 feet. * Forecast...The river is expected to rise to a crest of 13.4 feet just after midnight tonight. * Impact...At 13.0 feet, Minor flooding of low lying areas adjacent to creek can be expected. Several homes threatened by water in northwest Greene County near HWY 58. && Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El Sisi and Jordan's King Abdullah II called on Sunday for the resumption of Palestinian-Israeli negotiations based on the two-state solution and the Arab Peace Initiative. The resumption of talks should aim at reaching a just and comprehensive settlement to the Palestinian issue that would protect the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people to establish an independent state on the 4 June 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, the two leaders said at a session of talks. Upon arrival in Amman earlier in the day, El-Sisi had summit talks with the Jordanian king, followed by a session of talks involving the delegations of the two countries. The two sides discussed ways of boosting bilateral ties in the economic, trade, investment, pharmaceutical, transportation and energy fields as well as the export of natural gas from Egypt to Jordan. El-Sisi lauded during his talks with King Abdullah the special Egyptian-Jordanian relationship at the official and popular levels and affirmed Egypt's interest in promoting it on all levels, Egyptian presidential spokesman Bassam Radi said. Search Keywords: Short link: Welcome Guest! You Are Here: US Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas): I understand from whats been testified to the Forest Service and the BLM [Bureau of Land Management], you want very much to work on the issue of climate change. We know theres been significant solar flare activity, and so is there anything that the National Forest Service or BLM can do to change the course of the moons orbit, or the Earths orbit around the sun? Obviously that would have profound effects on our climate. Jennifer Eberlein, associate deputy chief for the National Forest System, responded that she would have to follow up with you on that one, after a brief pause. Gohmert: Well, if you figure out a way that you in the Forest Service can make that change, Id like to know. U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-13th District) is making headlines again, though this time its for something said about her, not for something she said. Dwight Ray, 74, left his auto sales job due to excruciating pain related to neuropathy and dementia. With Dwights declining cognition, his wife Jane quit her job because of the mounting caregiving needs at home. Egypts parliament the House of Representatives approved on Sunday a three-month extension of a nationwide state of emergency. The extension of the state of emergency will go in effect starting 1am Cairo local time on 15 January 2019. According to the parliament bylaws, a majority of MPs should approve the declaration of the state of the emergency, while the support of 1/3 of MPs is required to extend the state of emergency. President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi first imposed the three-month nationwide state of emergency in April 2017, following twin bombings at two churches in Gharbeya and Alexandria, which killed at least 47 and wounded over 120. Search Keywords: Short link: South Africa: SA calls for international community to support peace in DRC This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. The South African Revenue Services (SARS) Customs unit scored a massive victory when officials pounced on a consignment of rhino horns worth over R23 million at the OR Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) on Thursday. In a statement issued on Friday, SARS said the 36 pieces of rhino horn were found after Lizzy, a detector dog, reacted p... See more Thank you for reading the Philadelphia Tribune. You have exhausted your free article views for this month. Please press the "subscribe" button below and see our introductory price of $0.25 per week for 13 weeks. Otherwise, we look forward to seeing you next month. President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries. As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trump's continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. Former U.S. officials said that Trump's behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Trump's secrecy surrounding Putin "is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous," said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. "It handicaps the U.S. government - the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] - and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump." A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to "improve the relationship with Russia" after the Obama administration "pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement." The Trump administration "has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities," said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 "gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press." Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a "nut job," and said that firing Comey had removed "great pressure" on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the president's interactions with foreign leaders. "Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him," said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trump's meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trump's encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. "It's been several months since Helsinki and we still don't know what went on in that meeting," Engel said. "It's appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head." The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russia's election interference as a "hoax," suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria - a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trump's decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the president's two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putin's interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he "was present for the entirety of the two presidents' official bilateral meeting in Hamburg," but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreter's notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had "pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement" in election interference. "President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past," Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putin's claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Tillerson's account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, "I believe you." Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. "We were frustrated because we didn't get a readout," a former senior administration official said. "The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable" with Trump's interactions with Putin, the official said. "God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to." Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trump's conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trump's presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. "There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them," said a former administration official who worked in the White House. "The feedback tended not to be positive." The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. "I recall Fiona reporting that to me," one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson "didn't offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didn't brief senior staff," although he "gave a readout to the press." A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trump's interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trump's meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putin's "powerful" denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clinton's meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. - - - The Washington Post's John Hudson, Josh Dawsey and Julie Tate contributed to this report. It was never going to break through the loud pot-banging of the 24/7 TV-news cycle -- not in a week when the president of the United States is facing credible allegations that hes doing Russias bidding from the White House -- but theres a new idea in Washington that could have a real impact on your life and your pocketbook, by seeking to dramatically lower the price you pay for prescription drugs. And if youve been paying attention to U.S. politics the last few years, it wont surprise you to hear that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders was at the center of it. If the pharmaceutical industry will not end its greed, which is literally killing Americans, then we will end it for them. Sanders said in rolling out the innovative proposal that aims to force Big Pharma to charge Americans the same prices as in other developed nations where a trip to the drugstore is considerably cheaper. The United States pays by far the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs. This has created a health-care crisis in which 1 in 5 American adults cannot afford to get the medicine they need. It was a pure Bernie moment, but whats remarkable about the 77-year-old leader of the democratic socialist movement in the country is how many of these moments there have been in the two-plus years since he rocked the American body politic with an upstart Democratic presidential bid that captured 23 primary or caucus victories against the heavily favored Hillary Clinton. After falling short, no one would have blamed the septuagenarian senator for enjoying the fall foliage on Lake Champlain, cashing the royalty checks from his inevitable best-selling book and playing with his grandkids. Instead, Sanders has crusaded for progressive causes with the energy of a 27-year-old, and scored some real victories -- most notably when he hectored the worlds richest man (for now) Jeff Bezos to pay Amazons workers a $15 hourly living wage, and the massive online retailer did exactly that. That was an amazing win at a moment when the GOP still controlled the entire government. The Vermonter has also been a leading critic of Americas ungodly role in prolonging the war and sparking a large-scale humanitarian crisis in Yemen, gaining bipartisan support for ending the conflict. No political figure has been a stronger advocate for labor, including bringing the power of unions to the Deep South. In 2018 alone, Sanders introduced bills that would end cash bail and break up the most powerful U.S. banks, and continued his fight for a Medicare-for-all universal health-care system. His supporters see that agenda not just as the progressive policies that America needs right now, but as the foundation of another White House bid in 2020. But heres the thing: Bernie Sanders absolutely should NOT run for president again. While his 2016 run was electrifying, historic and changed the direction of American politics, I believe a 2020 bid would prove divisive and could tarnish his legacy. It would also ignore the reality that the senator clearly has a lot more to give his country -- but as the spiritual and intellectual leader of the movement that hes built over a half-century, not as an Oval Office hopeful. This is a very, very hard thing for me to write. After all, Im the guy who (for 30 days, anyway) changed my longtime voter registration from independent to Democrat just so I could vote for Sanders in the Pennsylvania primary. Heres what I wrote, specifically, in the spring of 2016: On April 26, I am going to vote for Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders as if my life depended on it. Its just that important. The previous fall, with the cadences of the late, great Hunter S. Thompson ringing in my ears, Id followed Sanders around the country and talked to scores of his supporters to produce an e-book that tried to capture the revolutionary fervor of his movement. In my piece urging a 2016 Sanders vote, I praised the fact that the senator had managed to form an idealistic vision of a better America during the 1960s and clung to that in the face of the kind of pressures that cause most politicians to sell out their principles. Three years later, Bernie still hasnt changed. But something else important has changed: The times. The zeitgeist, if you will. This weekend, Sanders' still dedicated legion of followers hosted a slew of house parties -- about 400 in all -- with the goal of fomenting excitement for a 2020 bid. That didnt get much news coverage. I did find one Boston Globe reporter who dropped by the Sanders house party in Nashua, N.H., and talked to the 10 people gathered there, but who found more enthusiasm -- and some of Sanders' 2016 supporters -- at a Sen. Elizabeth Warren rally nearby. One 2016 Sanders backer, Jessi Hull, told the Globe she was undecided but was wearing a T-shirt reading She Persisted, the Warren catchphrase that was one of many moments that energized women voters moving toward a 2018 midterm Democratic House landslide. In 2016, Sanders took on an important mission that no one else would: To challenge big money in politics and the corporate oligarchy. In 2019, many of his formerly radical ideas about single-payer health care, universal college education and a $15 minimum wage are now Democratic orthodoxy, but theres something else in the air: A sense that white dudes from the baby-boomer-and-older generation have been running things for far too long, and that America needs some new blood. The hopes and excitement of 2015 and early 2016 melted into bitterness when the autocratic Donald Trump grabbed the White House -- bitterness that has also, to borrow a phrase, nevertheless persisted. I see it online every day. Only a fairly unified Democratic Party is guaranteed of ousting Trump in 2020, and Sanders is now seen -- arguably unfairly -- as a divisive, polarizing figure. Yes, hes currently second in those (pretty meaningless) early Democratic beauty contest polls behind another, almost-as-old white dude, Joe Biden, but Sanders also has the largest number of Democrats who do not want him to run at all (unless you count a highly unlikely Hillary 2020 campaign). Thats because a decent number of the 65 million who voted for Hillary in November 2016 have assigned at least partial blame to Bernie for saddling America with The Donald. Again, I think thats unfair -- Sanders gave Clinton an unqualified endorsement, campaigned for her, and 88 percent of his backers (like me) voted for Clinton in the general election. Thats higher than the percentage of 2008 Hillary primary voters who cast ballots for Barack Obama in that years general election. But reality is fundamentally unfair. And the reality is that too many people would use a 2020 Sanders campaign to waste ridiculous time refighting 2016, when Americans so desperately need to rally behind ousting our pro-Putin wannabe dictator from the White House. And I believed these things before the discouraging revelations of recent days that the Sanders 2016 campaign was ridden with a misogynistic, boys-club culture that both encouraged and ignored sexual harassment and abuse. Some of these allegations hit very close to my home here in the Philadelphia region. In one allegation, a Sanders aide forcibly kissed a female staffer at a Mediterranean restaurant and hookah bar in Center City during the 2016 Democratic convention. At that same confab, my friend Gwen Snyder reported she was groped by a fellow Sanders delegate, and the campaign never followed up on a promise of support. Sanders himself isnt accused of any personal misconduct. Thats a marked contrast from the confessed female-genital-grabber who currently lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. But the candidate is responsible for the culture of the campaign, and these #MeToo revelations are a terrible look for Team Sanders. Any Bernie 2020 momentum that was meant to be gained from this weekends house parties was more than undercut by the senators need to apologize not once but twice for the misogyny of his 2016 campaign. The #MeToo movement -- while, in many ways, transcending politics -- was nonetheless central to the energy that was the Womens March in 2017, the House election that made Nancy Pelosi speaker in 2018, and to the strong effort on the ground that the Democrats so desperately need if they hope to win in 2020. Instead of riding the winds of resurgent feminism, Sanders and his would-be White House bid are pushing against that storm. Thats simply not going to work. And its on top of other distractions -- from his wife Janes mismanagement of Burlington College to his 2016 campaign strategist Tad Devines work with Paul Manafort and the unsolicited support for Sanders from Russian bots -- that would make the 2020 vibe very different from the last time. The good news for Bernie Sanders is you dont need to be president to change America in ways that will be remembered for generations to come. Just ask Al Gore, who lost the White House only to win a Nobel Peace Prize for raising climate-change awareness, or John Kerry, another just-missed candidate who then negotiated a peace deal with Iran, or John McCain, whose recent passing inspired honors and tributes as great or greater than many presidents, past or present. Sanders already occupies such a lofty place in American history. The values that hes fought for over 50-plus years -- sometimes virtually alone -- are the current gift of the progressive movement and almost certainly the future of this nation. And he can best serve the goals of a more equitable and more just America by doing exactly what hes done these last two years -- using his skill as a lawmaker and his bully pulpit as the unquestioned leader of democratic socialism to bring that agenda home. Instead of damaging that legacy with an ill-advised White House bid, Sanders can use the new six-year Senate term he won in November to cement his legacy -- not as a president but as a patriot who changed America for good. Moments before Niela Collins was presented the keys to her new house, the reality began to set in. This is a dream come true, she said Saturday. I am a homeowner. Say that again! urged U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D., Pa.), who was standing a few feet away for the occasion: the completion of Habitat for Humanity Philadelphias $3.7 million, 21-home Diamond Park development project in North Philadelphia. Im a homeowner! exclaimed Collins, 26, to the applause of a few dozen volunteers, planners, friends, and family outside her house, a few blocks north of Cecil B. Moore Avenue. Each home in the three-block development is 1,150 square feet, featuring three bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, and a back yard. Habitat for Humanity built the homes for families earning between 30 percent and 60 percent of the local median income. In lieu of a down payment, homeowners in Habitat programs become vested in their property through 350 hours of sweat equity, according to the group. Customers Bank secured an affordable housing grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh to fund the final phase of the project. Habitat for Humanity has built and sold 217 energy-efficient homes to first-time homeowners in the city since 1985, according to the organization. May this home motivate each of us to listen, serve, advocate, build, repair, and give more so that every Philadelphian has a decent place to live, Tya Winn, Habitat Philadelphias director of project planning, said during the dedication. Collins, a single mother and patient coordinator at the University of Pennsylvania, said she was inspired to apply for Habitats program two years ago after learning a coworker had become a homeowner that way. Collins said she had been living with her son, Nylan, in a one-bedroom apartment. She moved in with her mother while she awaited her new home. Nylan, now 6, said he had already picked out a room. I cant wait to play games in the basement, he said. WASHINGTON Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said Sunday that President Donald Trump should agree to reopen the government and continue trying to hammer out a deal with Democrats on funding his long-promised border wall but that the president should declare a national emergency if no progress is made in three weeks. In an appearance on "Fox News Sunday," Graham maintained that Trump is not going to give up on his demand for more than $5 billion in funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. But he argued that reopening the government and attempting to find a legislative solution, then declaring a national emergency if those talks don't bear fruit, is the best way forward. "I would urge him to open up the government for a short period of time, like three weeks, before he pulls the plug. See if we can get a deal. If we can't at the end of three weeks, all bets are off. See if he can do it by himself through the emergency powers," Graham said. Waiting three weeks would take the negotiations past Trump's State of the Union address later this month. A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that more Americans blame Trump and Republicans in Congress for the shutdown than congressional Democrats. Fifty-three percent of respondents blame the president and Republicans, while 29 percent blame Democrats. Thirteen percent blame both equally. More Americans remain opposed to the idea of a border wall than support it, the poll found, although the margin has narrowed over the past year. Trump continued making his case for the wall in Sunday morning tweets, arguing that it "will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country!" He again sought to blame Democrats, who he said were "everywhere but Washington as people await their pay." "I'm in the White House, waiting," Trump said, accusing Democrats of "having fun and not even talking!" Trump also suggested that he is open to including protections for "dreamers," who were brought to the country illegally as children, as part of a deal. But last week, Trump shot down a deal floated by Senate Republicans that would have included those protections, and he has repeatedly said that he plans to wait until the Supreme Court rules on the matter before seeking to negotiate with Democrats on it. "Democrats are saying that DACA is not worth it and don't want to include in talks," Trump said Sunday. "Many Hispanics will be coming over to the Republican side, watch!" As pressure to end the shutdown continues to mount, some Democrats have begun urging Senate Republicans to take up House-passed legislation to reopen the government, regardless of whether the president agrees. Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, said on NBC News' "Meet the Press" that centrist Senate Republicans who sought to broker a deal last week should step forward and make an appeal to their party's leader in the chamber, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. "It's time for those centrists to speak up in their own Republican Senate caucus and tell Mitch McConnell, 'The party's over. We want this to end, there's no excuse for the shutdown,' " Durbin said. "The Republican-controlled Senate and a handful of senators will make that decision." Sen. Joe Manchin III, D-W.Va., said in a statement Sunday that given Trump's suggestion late last week that he does not immediately plan to issue an emergency declaration, "it's time for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to bring up the House passed appropriations bills that would finally reopen government." "As an equal branch of government we have the authority to override the President's veto, if that's what he chooses to do," Manchin said. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., also called for the president to reopen the government before debating the issue of border security."What we don't want to do is waste taxpayer money on a vanity project that's ineffective, that the president said Mexico would pay for," Kaine said on "Meet the Press." Some Republicans on Sunday called for Trump to continue negotiating with Democrats rather than seek to declare a national emergency. Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., said on CNN that he would "hate to see" Trump declare a national emergency to end to his administration's stalemate with Democrats over a border wall. "If we do that, it will go to court and the wall won't get built," Johnson said on "State of the Union." "I want to see this wall get built, so I want to keep pressure on Democrats to actually come to the negotiating table in good faith and fund what they've supported in the past." Johnson also accused Democrats of minimizing what he called a "crisis" at a border. "The easiest solution to the shutdown is to just give President Trump the money for the mandate he received from the American public," he said. "As a candidate, this is what he talked about, and if there's any mandate he can claim from his election, it was better border security and keeping this nation safe." As Democrats and the White House continue to negotiate, Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Del., questioned on "Fox News Sunday" why McConnell has not taken a more active role. While McConnell has been part of the process, he was not present outside the White House last week after talks between Trump and congressional leaders collapsed. "Why is Mitch McConnell completely absent from these negotiations?" Coons asked. Coons also took aim at Trump's abruptly shifting positions as the shutdown has dragged on. "I feel like I signed up for the 'Trump of the Day Club.' " Mr Stephen Kwame Quaye, District Chief Executive (DCE) for Awutu Senya District, has called on all sectional leaders in the area to bury their differences for the development of the area. Mr Quaye, who made the call in an interview with the Ghana News Agency at his office at Awutu Beraku, said development can be accelerated with a united front and it is imperative for us to put aside our partisanship lens to come together to address challenges which confronts us. The DCE said the assembly has been able to complete 50 percent of on-going projects they inherited which include school infrastructures, CHIP Compound at Ayeresu-Offadaa, J Kroduia Area Council Block, and the I.C.T Center at Senya. He said they were funded with the Common Fund adding that the Assemblys Internal Generating Fund (IGF) improved by 30 percent as compared to the previous year. He said the assembly has acquired a site at Bonsuoko near Senya for the final disposal of both liquid and solid waste. On roads, the DCE said a lot of re-sharpening of road have been done, including Nyarkokwa- Obrachire Ahintia-Kemuwu to Loe yee-Akrampah junction, Obrachire SHS roads. He said the assembly will this year extend the re-shaping works to other area in the district for free movement of goods and services and embark on construction of permanent accommodation for DCEs, pavement of Awutu Durbar grounds and Senya Lorry station, Teachers Quarters at Krobonshie, alongside the completion of projects they inherited from the past administration. On education the DCE expressed concern that, a total of 2,420 candidates registered for the 2018 BECE, but 2,384 wrote the examination saying the percentage of passes was 73 percent more that of the 2017. He said the achievement came about as a result of measures the assembly in collaboration with the district directorate of the Ghana Education Service. He said Obrachire SHS is the only school in the district executing the double track programme and teaching and learning is going on smoothly. He commended the assembly member for Ahentia Electoral Area through whose initiative a Non-governmental organization has constructed a six unit classroom block for Darko Yaw Bentum community. He said the district has challenges but the most serious is one chieftaincy disputes in the two traditional which is hindering the progress and the development of the area and appealed to factions in such disputes to cooperate with the assembly to find lasting solutions to their concerns. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Director of European Studies at the University of Ghana, Professor Ransford Gyampo has lashed out at the Akufo-Addo government for turning their backs on Civil Society Organisations and Experts of various fields. Professor Gyampo accused the government of developing a 'winner knows all' posture which makes them hold their views as superior to all others thus no need to consult. He recalled how in opposition Akufo-Addo and the NPP constantly engaged CSOs, Experts on various fields and people with technical know-how on various subjects in relation to issues of national concern. This attribute he said has suddenly vanished after they won the 2016 elections. The handling of the recent impasse at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology as a result of students' demonstration over alleged maltreatment by security and School authorities Professor Gyampo insisted is a perfect instance of government's 'know it all' attitude. "When they are in opposition, they consult Civil Society Organisations, they consult individuals. Once they get into power, they know everything. They don't consult anybody. One of the challenges of this government is not 'Winner takes all' but also 'Winner knows all'. They go about their administration as if they know all but there are things that people have advance knowledge, people have prior knowledge and people have built expertise in them. An example is a recent incident that happened in KNUST and the speed with which the government sought to behave in a totalitarian manner, dissolving governing council and thinking about determining the choice of the various constituents of the governing council. Clearly, they didn't know" he mentioned to www.ghanaweb.com in an exclusive interview. Akufo-Addo listening to ignorant spiritual advise The European Studies Director at the University of Ghana also alleged that Akufo-Addo and the NPP government are paying heed to advise from 'ignorant' spiritual leaders instead of well knowledgeable individuals. He conceded that it wasn't a peculiar situation to Akufo-Addo as it was a canker of many developing countries. The situation he observed was rife in the lead up to elections when political leaders fall on the predictions of the so-called spiritual persons mostly because they lack credible message to convince the electorates. The consequence of this in situations when they gain power is that they rely on these spiritual leaders to influence their decisions on key issues of governance. "It is a feature of most developing countries and this particular government is no exception. We tend to listen more to ignorant spiritual advice than views from experts and people who know. This is a problem that plagues many developing countries. In the lead up to elections, many African leaders who have no message, take consolation and solace from the predictions and promises from spiritual advisors. And so when their predictions come true then the next thing they do is that these spiritual advisors become key advisors of government on matters of governance and matters of running the economy and so people who know will talk they will not listen but then people who do not know anything about governance and economy will give advice and that will be the direction that these governments will follow" Professor Gyampo detailed. Akufo-Addo doesn't trust civil service, brought his own people He described the bloated size of the Akufo-Addo government as an attempt to create a parallel civil service. Professor Gyampo alleged that the lack of trust of the abilities of the civil service is the driving factor behind President AKufo-Addo's decision to appoint a huge number of people to do the work of the public service. This he believes is bleeding the nation of its scarce resources as the civil servants have been rendered ineffective and redundant in some ministries and agencies and the work is being done by appointees of the government. In his opinion, the civil service has the competencies and experience to live up to expectation, however, if the President doesn't trust them, the best thing to do is to overhaul and not to create a parallel system. "The practice where the moment a new regime assumes office, everybody, who did not or does not belong to that regime is sidelined is winner takes all and it doesn't help the nation. It amounts to needless dissipation od national brains and talents because those who know will not be brought on board" he stressed. "The size of government that we have now clearly show that the government does not trust the civil service but na who cause am? Isn't it the NDC that staffed the civil service with its appointees? Was it not the NPP that also staffed the civil service with its own appointees without recourse to meritocracy? It is the politicians themselves. When they come people who do not merit those appointments are put there so another regime comes and says I don't trust them. If the civil service is ineffective and inefficient, the way to go is not to create another civil service by having a huge size of government but the way to go is to overhaul or restructure the civil service so that they can deliver their mandate effectively as the administrative machinery of the state" Professor Gyampo said in an assessment of the Akufo-Addo government's first two years in power. The head of the University of Ghana European Studies rated the performance of the President 49.5% and tasked him to focus more on his key promises in the lead up to the 2016 elections. Source: Ghanaweb.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Mr Wisdom Senanu Seneadza, the District Chief Executive of Afadzato South, has said the New Patriotic Party's (NPP) plan for economic liberation was the right path to ensure the development of the country. "There is massive progress under Akufo-Addo and it would be a mistake to change Government in 2020- that would be sacrilegious", he said. The DCE said this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency on the sidelines of a New Year gathering of the aged in the District organised by Kafui Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation. He said Ghanaians must hold their stomachs because crucial interventions that would completely transform the nation is ongoing. Mr Seneadza said the general economic outlook, free SHS, and the creation of new regions were clear indications of an able leadership that must be given more time to better the lot of the people. The DCE said the massive reorganisation of the agricultural sector, which had succeeded in ending corn imports and halved that of rice, was a vindication of the NPP's approach to national transformation. He said the people of Ghana must unite to lift themselves out of poverty and that Government was giving the youth hope by providing them with jobs. "I will entreat all of us to stop thinking about the next election. We must instead focus on the next generation and remove barriers between the NDC and the NPP for development", he said. Source: GNA Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry will leave for New York on Monday to participate in a ceremony to mark the handover of the chairmanship of the Group of 77 and China from Egypt to Palestine. The ceremony will he held on Tuesday at the UN headquarters in the presence of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Egypt's foreign ministry spokesman Ahmed Hafez said that Shoukry will deliver the opening speech at the ceremony. Cairo's 2018 chairmanship of the G 77 and China, Egypt's third time chairing the group, is part of the country's leading role in the service of developing countries and its belief in the principles and goals of the group, Hafez said. The G 77 and China is the main negotiating bloc in the UN for developing countries that works on boosting the economic and development interests of its members, he added. Egypt has, through its chairmanship of the group last year, and with the help of all members, defended the interests of developing states according to their priorities and needs in the various economic, social and environmental fields, he said. It has also sought to promote a better represented international system during a time of UN reform, he said. Shoukry will meet during his stay in New York with several top UN officials, he added. The G77, founded in 1964, is a large coalition of 134 developing countries at the UN, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the UN. There were 77 founding members of the organisation, but by November 2013 the organisation had expanded to 134 member countries (including China). Since China participates in the G77 but does not consider itself as a member, all official statements are issued in the name of The Group of 77 and China. Search Keywords: Short link: Do you appreciate the work we do as the only independent media outlet dedicated to serving OU students, faculty, staff and alumni on campus and around the world for more than 100 years? Then consider helping fund our endeavors. Around the world, communities are grappling with what journalism is worth and how to fund the civic good that robust news organizations can generate. We believe The OU Daily and Crimson Quarterly magazine provide real value to this community both now by covering OU, and tomorrow by helping launch the careers of media professionals. If youre able, please SUPPORT US TODAY FOR AS LITTLE AS $1. You can make a one-time donation or a recurring pledge. Police said Fair took the girl to a local hospital after she passed out from the attack, but Skylar died a few days later at Lurie Childrens Hospital in Chicago following a failed attempt to relieve the swelling in her brain. "My brain heard that question as, 'You should have tried harder. You should have run, you should have yelled, this is somehow your fault,'" Smart said. "So, I would just caution her community and anyone able to interact with her to really think about the questions they are asking her." We are not looking for any suspects and we dont feel like this incident is a safety issue for this neighborhood or this community at all, Marcum said. Hosting the live, one-hour town hall will be Spectrum Bay News 9 anchor Veronica Cintron, who will be at Haus 820 in Lakeland, and Spectrum News 13 reporter Erin Murray, who will be in Mexico Beach. Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi arrived in Amman on Sunday for a one-day visit during which he will meet with King Abdullah of Jordan. El-Sisi was welcomed by the king upon his arrival. El-Sisis spokesman Bassam Rady said on Saturday that the talks between the two sides would cover means of boosting Egyptian-Jordanian relations and the latest regional developments, including conditions in the Palestinian territories and efforts exerted to reach a political settlement to outstanding problems and restore security and stability across the region. Egypt's trade exchange with Jordan stands at $587 million. Short link: Jaros, who previously toured with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, also has an ensemble role, which means she nightly performs some of the fiercest choreography in musical theater. With a strong dance background, she was up for the challenge even if it was daunting for her and her cast mates at first. Related Egyptian universities order disciplinary action against couple who hugged on campus A female student at Al-Azhar university who was expelled last week after a video of her hugging her fiance on campus went viral can appeal the decision to expel her in front of a university committee, an Al-Azhar official told Ahram Online. "The expelled student now has the right to appeal the university's decision before a high disciplinary board," university spokesperson Ahmad Zarei told Ahram Online on Sunday. The board has the power to reduce the penalty, he said. Last week, a video appeared on social media showing the man surprising the student with a bouquet of flowers, and kneeling in front of her to propose. He then embraced the young woman and lifted her off the ground. The woman studies Arabic language at Al-Azhar University branch in Al-Mansoura in Nile Delta but the video has been taken at Al-Masnoura University, where her fiance studies. The university investigated the incident then decided to expel the female student on Saturday following investigations. "No decision is taken haphazardly; this is all according to the university's law. The student has violated the values of Al-Azhar, society and the university," said Zarei. The incident and the expulsion of the woman have caused a controversy on social media, with some criticising the decision and others hailing it. Short link: What's Included With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please call our customer service team at 716-372-3121 or email nfinnerty@oleantimesherald.com. One immediate outcome of Amazons move to New York is union construction unions are doing much of the work on its new headquarters which will also employ as many as 3,000 unionized SEIU 32BJ members to maintain the property. (Notably, 32BJ is one of the biggest unions signed on supporting the Green New Deal.) Australia has one of the most generous humanitarian programs in the world, and all applications are considered in accordance with Australian law and procedures, said Coleman in a statement. We wish Ms. Al-Qunun all the best for her future in Canada. Egypt's River Transport Authority decided on Sunday to halt navigation along the Nile, including cruise ships navigating between Aswan and Luxor, due to heavy winds and bad weather conditions. It also decided to halt navigation in Lake Nasser, including river transportation between Egypt and Sudan. The Alexandria Port Authority has said two major Mediterranean ports have also been closed due to bad weather. Alexandria and Dekheila ports were shut down on Sunday after the Egyptian Meteorological Authority recorded a rise in wave height and an increase in wind speed that could pose problems to maritime navigation. Authorities have closed the Lake Burullus port in the Nile Delta. The Red Sea Port Authority also closed Sharm El-Sheikh Port on Sunday due to strong winds, high tides, and turbulent maritime navigation, according to a statement from the authority. Egypt's Meteorological Authority said the country is expected to witness dusty winds, rain and extremely cold weather in the coming days. Sunday temperatures (low/high): Cairo: 8-15 Alexandria: 6-15 Nile Delta: 7-16 North Sinai: 3-18 South Sinai: 10-20 Upper Egypt: 9-19 Short link: Lowey says she wants to do what she can to help vital projects in New York, like funding the foundering MTA, the giant Gateway tunnel program and restoring state and local tax breaks. But most of the time, people probably won't hear about it until it's done. And if she isn't setting social media aflame, she is known well by the senators she will have to deal with to get the spending New Yorkers and Democrats want. Given the Trump administrations ongoing assault on immigrants, including heightened threat from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and other Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agencies not to mention the long list of data breaches in the financial services arena there is clearly a tremendous amount at stake for New Yorkers with this proposal, wrote the NYCLU, New Economy Project, New York Immigration Coalition, Lower East Side Peoples Federal Credit Union, Brooklyn Cooperative Federal Credit Union, Immigrant Defense Project and other groups to Mayor de Blasio on Dec. 26. Reacting to a New York Times report claiming the FBI investigated the possibility Trump had actively worked for the Russian government, Texas Sen. Cruz claimed Americans are more concerned with building a border wall that they are with Trumps possible collusion with Russia to sabotage elections in the United States. Trump who has blamed Democrats for the shutdown under his watch said nothing about a possible emergency declaration to end the impasse without any Congressional involvement. He also showed no inclination for a compromise agreement on the wall that has become even bigger in its absence than Trump could have imagined. The mandate would bar its landlords who control approximately 400,000 of the city's rent-regulated apartments from harassing tenants to move out so the rent can be raised. It also mandates members report violations committed by landlords affiliated with CHIP. Tampa International Airport is working with different agencies to set up a food pantry, get bus passes and work with utilities to help hundreds of federal employees who may be struggling to pay bills. School staff was advised by a caller that a student was walking in with what appeared to be a heavy object in their pants, police officials wrote on the departments Facebook page. The student was encountered at the entry door and a handgun was quickly recovered from the student. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory rejects the unsubstantiated and reckless personal opinions Dr. James D. Watson expressed on the subject of ethnicity and genetics, the statement read. Dr. Watsons statements are reprehensible, unsupported by science, and in no way represent the views of (the laboratory), its trustees, faculty, staff or students. The laboratory condemns the misuse of science to justify prejudice. The suspect fled the scene after firing the shots at the Fashion Place mall in Murray, Utah, and is not yet in custody, according to ABC4 Utah. "As tragic as this event is, and certainly there is potential for additional fatalities I want to emphasize that it certainly would have been far worse without the response and dispensing of Naloxone by Chico police officers, the life-saving efforts of Chico firefighters and Butte EMS and the emergency care of course received by Enloe Hospital staff," Chico Police Chief Mike O'Brien said, according to ABC News Radio. * As the clock struck midnight, the partial government shutdown over disputed congressional funds for President Donald Trump's border wall entered the 22nd day on Saturday, making it the longest government closure in the US history. * The Syrian air defenses intercepted most of the missiles launched by Israeli warplanes on areas near the capital Damascus on January 11 night, the Syrian army said. The Israeli warplanes flew from the Galilee Panhandle and fired several missiles on the vicinity of the capital Damascus, said an army statement. * The United Nations on January 11 stepped up its battle against starvation in Yemen with a 32-million-US dollar transfer of funds from its Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) to the humanitarian relief effort in the war-scarred country. * US National Security Adviser John Bolton said on January 11 discussions between the militaries of the United States and Turkey on Syria would continue next week, expecting the result of discussions would be acceptable on both sides. * Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Jens Stoltenberg's statements that NATO is ready to resort to military measures for settling the problem of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty are aimed at distracting attentions from a crisis within the alliance, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on January 11. * Macedonian Parliament members voted on January 11 to endorse the constitutional changes regarding the name of the country. Eighty-one MPs voted in favor of the amendments 33, 34, 35 and 36 to the Macedonian constitution, paving the way to changing the country's name to the Republic of North Macedonia. * The Republic of Korea's defense ministry said on January 11 that it will increase defense budget by a yearly average of 7.5 percent in the next five years, according to local media reports. Under the mid-term defense budget plan, KRW270.7 trillion (US$242.6 billion) will be spent on strengthening independent defense capability from 2019 to 2023. * Germany, the European Union (EU) and Russia must cooperate more closely economically and politically, the German Eastern Business Association (OAOEV) demanded on January 11. * The cold wave that has brought heavy snowfalls to southern Europe, where such weather has rarely been seen, is likely to last for another week, while above-normal precipitation in the eastern Mediterranean sub-region and northern Middle East is expected over the coming week or two, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) warned on January 11. * A winter storm is spreading snow along a 1,500-mile path from Denver to New York City and may affect more than 20 million people over the weekend, US weather service said. The storm will crank up on January 11 and should last until at least late Sunday before it peters out, according to a USA Today report. * Iranian fighter jets on January 11 fired domestically-made missiles and bombs on the designated targets during the ongoing aerial military exercise, Press TV reported. The F-4 Phantom fighter jets fired Maverick tactical air-to-ground missiles and the domestically-manufactured "Qassed" smart bombs. * Twelve people were killed and two others injured on January 10 in a terrorist attack in Burkina Faso's northern province of Soum, the country's security ministry announced late on January 11 in a statement. After the Camp Fire ravaged the town of Paradise and killed nearly 100 people in the area last fall, residents and city staffers of Nevada City, Calif., are determined to prevent something similar happening to them and thats where the goats come in. "Many controllers who work for the (Federal Aviation Administration) literally got pay checks that said $0.00, and many are doing overtime, working holidays, nights, weekends, and are in facilities that are already very short-staffed," said Dave Lombardo, an air traffic controller from Long Island who spoke to the Huffington Post in Canada about his colleagues good deed. For other generations, like the baby boomers, the challenge is proof that the more things seem to change, the more they stay the same though not in all cases, as some users have taken to showing off things like grandchildren and weight loss. When she was finally caught, Sansone at first resisted and then said she "didn't have anything on her," according to cops. Pairs of women's underwear were found in the car, and panties and a bra were found on the side of the road. "Well, right now we're looking for 88 days of evidence," Fitzgerald said Saturday, according to CNN. "So, we're looking for receipts, where the suspect may have been over the last 88 days. Did he take things with her? Did she go with him to the store? Did he buy clothes for her? Did he buy food?" "He was a very loved officer," Sgt. Heath Boackle, president of the Birmingham Fraternal Order of Police union, told ABC. "Everyone thought very highly of him. When the bell rings, we all have a duty to respond and react. That's just what this sergeant and the other officer were doing. [They] were trying to protect the community ... and he paid the ultimate sacrifice." "I'm originally from Kenya, I grew up in the Bronx and I've always had a hyper-awareness of nature," Okeyo says, citing a November climate report released by the U.S. government. "We don't have a very large amount of time, about five to 10 years in order to make incredibly radical change. The other many issues are political, or you could look at what's happening in the United States in terms of the excitement of so many women being elected to the House of Representatives." A JetBlue flight got all jammed up Saturday when this lavatory waste truck slammed into the underbelly of an Airbus A321. Port Authority police helped extricate the truck from the plane. (Obtained by the Daily News) Meanwhile, Carranza made the unpopular decision to hire two staffers from his former districts in San Francisco and Houston for senior roles in the office without posting one of the jobs at all and posting the other for just over two weeks. The word is going to go out, and it should have been out that If you disrespect anyone in our communities, your business will not stay standing, he said. If you think that you can come and talk to us any which way, were going to hurt you economically. The trade pact already took effect for Mexico, Japan, Singapore, New Zealand, Canada and Australia on December 30, 2018. With comprehensive commitments and high standards, the CPTPP is expected to boost trade, investment and economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region. Vietnams Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT) is working with the Australian Embassy and the World Bank to build an information portal on the CPTPP in order to help Vietnamese enterprises to understand and take advantage of the trade pact. The portal, expected to come online soon on the MOIT website, will provide businesses with the tools to look up specific commitments and rules concerning each sector and category of goods for members of the trade agreement. For now, enterprises can visit the MOIT website to learn about general information, the commitments in major fields, opportunities and challenges, frequently asked questions and read the full text of the CPTPP. Vice Secretary of Hanois Party Committee Ngo Thi Thanh Hang (R) welcomes Chairman of South Ostrobothnia Regional Council Kai Pontine (Source: hanoimoi.com.vn ) Speaking at the meeting, Hang said 2018 witnessed fine developments in Vietnam-Finland ties, especially in economic, trade and investment cooperation. Hanoi and South Ostrobothnia also carried out many collaboration activities, particularly in culture, education and training. The signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the Hanoi Peoples Committee and South Ostrobothnia Regional Council on January 7th marked a new milestone in bilateral relations. Along with traditional cooperative fields like education, vocational training and cultural exchanges, both sides will intensify collaboration in social welfare, trade, investment, tourism, green technology, energy and sustainable development, Hang added. To give cooperation programmes the highest efficiency, Kai Pontinen suggested the two sides hold annual review conferences. Thanking Hanoi authorities for the warm welcome, he expressed his hope to receive working delegations from the city in the future./. Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar has, through the Director-General of Atiku-Obi Campaign Or... Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar has, through the Director-General of Atiku-Obi Campaign Organization, Dr. Harry Oranezi, warned the Governor of Anambra state, Willie Obiano, to stop campaigning for President Muhammadu Buhari. News Agency of Nigeria reports that the warning came following recent comments credited to Obiano wherein he stated that Buhari had done well for the South-East and South-South geopolitical zones for commencing work on the second Niger Bridge. The governor also had reportedly hailed Buhari for completing the Zik mausoleum in Onitsha, otherwise known as Zik Place, awarded 22 years ago, but abandoned by successive administrations. But Atiku said Obianos support for Buhari ran counter to the collective and corporate interests of the Igbo. Buhari has continued to maintain studied silence over the massacre of innocent South Easterners in the North, strategic exclusion of Southeast in rail connection, security architecture of the country and sundry appointments. The Igbos shall not be deceived by the actions and utterances of persons who want to achieve ill-conceived objectives. Obiano had expressed satisfaction with the standard and pace of work on the Second Niger Bridge as he also thanked the Buhari administration for completing the Zik Mausoleum. The Mausoleum is located at the popular Borome in Onitsha, the commercial nerve of Anambra, and home of the first President of Federal Republic of Nigeria. Obiano spoke during some visits to the mausoleum and the Second Niger Bridge. He said the completion of the mausoleum by the Buhari administration was an immeasurable honour to Anambra people and the entire South-East people. Obiano said that previous administrations paid lip services to the project, resulting to its abandonment for more than 20 years. The governor also appealed to the Federal Government to step up action in the procurement of necessary facilities for the library section. He said it would be nice to have everything in place before the visit of Mr President to Anambra in a few weeks time for the inauguration of the mausoleum. President Buhari is determined to keep to his promises on the Ziks mausoleum. The project is an honour to Zik of Africa, who played major roles in shaping the nation. The project is an honour to Zik of Africa, who played major roles in shaping the nation. This project started 23 years ago and we must thank President Buhari for keeping to his words, Obiano said The governor was visibly happy with the extent of work done so far at the site of the second Niger Bridge. He said he was confident that the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari would deliver on the job as scheduled. He noted that the bridge, when completed, would not only boost the economic activities of the South-East and South-South but that of the whole country. I have no choice than to praise President Muhammadu Buhari for his determination in the implementation of other federal government projects in the state and other states in the region, he said. The Project Director, Julius Berger Construction Company, Mr Fredrick Wieser, explained that the construction would be in three phases. Wieser noted that the federal government has already made advance payment of 15 per cent which amounted to N30 billion as mobilisation fee. According to him, the bridge will be 1.6 km, while the access road from Asaba axis will be 3.3 km and 7km from Anambra respectively. Right now, we are doing foundation work in the river which will be 50 metres deep. The pilling work in the river will be 15 metres above water level to allow free flow of ships, he said. He, however, pointed out that with the determination of the present administration, the project would be delivered on or before Feb. 28, 2022. Five governors from the south-south have asked Walter Onnoghen, the chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), to ignore the summons by the Code ... Five governors from the south-south have asked Walter Onnoghen, the chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), to ignore the summons by the Code of Conduct Tribunal. The governors, who met in Abuja on Sunday, accused President Muhammadu Buhari of not having any regards for the feelings of the Niger Delta. The Code of Conduct Bureau has filed charged bordering on non-declaration of assets against Onnoghen and is expected to appear the tribunal on Monday. The governors said the trial is directly aimed at humiliating the nations highest judicial officer and a prominent son of the region and described it as totally unacceptable. The communique was signed by Governors Henry Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Ben Ayade (Cross River), Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom) and Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta) all members of the PDP. Godwin Obaseki (Edo), the only APC governor from the south-south, did not attend the meeting. FULL TEXT OF COMMUNIQUE An emergency meeting of the governors of the states of the South South geopolitical zone, held at the Bayelsa State Governors Lodge, Abuja on Sunday, January 13, 2019. The meeting, called at the instance of the Governor of Bayelsa State, the Honourable Henry Seriake Dickson, who is also Chairman of the South South Governors Forum, was attended by the Governors of Cross River State, Rivers, Akwa Ibom, and Delta States. The meeting deliberated on the recent happenings at the Supreme Court involving the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Walter Onnoghen and resolved that the action against him constitutes a setback to the gains of the nations democratic experience of 20 years. We note that under Section 158(1) of the 1999 Constitution, the National Judicial Council, has ample powers to deal exhaustively with matters pertaining to allegations of misconduct and discipline of Judicial officers. Specifically, the NJC has the powers and clear procedures for investigating allegations, and recommending appropriate sanctions or disciplinary measures against judicial officials as a matter of first instance before any further steps. The judicial pronouncements in the cases of FGN Vs Justice Sylvester Ngwuta of the Supreme Court (January 9, 2018) and Justice Ngajinwa Vs FGN 2017 at the CCT have given validation to the express provisions of the constitution on this issue. We note that the attempt to drag the CJN to the CCT is also a grave and dangerous escalation of the assault on institutions of state including the National Assembly and the judiciary We believe that the President, Muhammadu Buhari has a constitutional responsibility and huge moral obligation to defend our democracy. Therefore, we consider this step, which is directly aimed at humiliating the nations highest judicial officer and a prominent son of the region, as totally unacceptable as it is reflective of the South South story of endless marginalization and intimidation. The unceremonious removal of former Acting Director General of the Department of State Service, Mathew Seiyefa and his replacement is still very fresh. We note that the unfortunate action against the CJN further reinforces the perception that the Buhari administration has no regard for the sentiments of Nigerians, in particular the people of Niger Delta, and the rule of law It is a fact that this administration has a penchant for flagrant disobedience of and disregard for legitimate and valid court orders. We expect President Buhari to know that democracy cannot survive without respect for the constitution, strict adherence to the rule of law, and separation of powers as enshrined in the constitution. We strongly believe that the regrettable development at the Supreme Court at this critical time, when preparations for the general elections are wobbling (with serious concern about INEC and security agencies) is capable of causing avoidable anxiety, tension and possible breakdown of law and order in the country. We note further that the action undermines confidence not only in the judiciary but also the electoral process that has already commenced, in view of the pivotal role that the judiciary plays in the process of electoral adjudication. We affirm President Buhari should know that the continuous assault on critical institutions of state is a defining feature of a dictatorship, and that the President is obliged to live up to his word that he is a born-again democrat, as he assured Nigerians in 2015. Based on the foregoing, we hereby call on the President: 1) To condemn without any equivocation, this assault on the CJN and the judiciary especially coming after similar assaults on the National Assembly, to save the country from this embarrassment and global contempt. 2) We call on the CJN to ignore this so-called Court summon from the CCB and the provocative call for his resignation in some quarters. While we are not opposed to a genuine fight against corruption, such an action must always be anchored on the rule of law. We also decry the massive buildup of arms by APC leaders and members across the Niger Delta with the intent to cause mayhem and a general breakdown of law and order during the elections. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council in Kogi State has described as fictitious, unfounded and tendentious,... The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council in Kogi State has described as fictitious, unfounded and tendentious, claims that the party has abandoned the spokesman of the council and senator representing Kogi West Senatorial District, Dino Melaye, in his hour of need. Director-General of the Council, Chief Clarence Olafemi, made the this rebuttal in an interview with Guardian newspaper published on Sunday. Recall that Melaye surrendered to the police after an eight-day siege to his residence by the Nigeria Police Force, over the case of attempted culpable homicide involving the shooting of a Police officer, Danjuma Saliu. Days after he gave himself up, an ailing Melaye was whisked away by masked security operatives on Friday, from the police hospital in Abuja, where he had been receiving treatment . Force spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, claimed Melaye was moved to a health facility of the Department of State Services (DSS) following complaints that his condition was not improving. He was yesterday moved to the Federal Special Anti-robbery Squad (FSARS) office in Guzape District, Abuja. However, Chief Olafemi, maintained that despite his travails, Melaye is in high spirit following the outpouring of solidarity and encouragement from partymen and women. Olafemi, a former speaker of the Kogi State House of Assembly and one time acting governor of the state disclosed that some leaders of the party had kept vigil at the hospital, while supporters were also trooping in to see him. The claim that Senator Dino Melaye has been abandoned by the party is a lie from the pit of hell. Dino Melaye knows that the party cannot abandon him. Would you say that Bukola (Saraki), has abandoned Dino? Can he abandon him? Would you say that Atiku (Abubakar) has abandoned Dino? Can he abandon him? These are Dinos friends come rain, come sun. I am the director of the campaign council (in Kogi State) and Dino Melaye is a very strategic figure to the campaign. I am reassuring you that we are doing every thing possible to ensure that Dino wins the Kogi West Senatorial District election, whether they keep him in prison or they dont keep him in prison. The war against Melaye is purely political. We in Okunland; we in Kogi West, we are going to vote for him, we cannot abandon him because he is useful to us. How can a government spend so much money; so much manpower running after a single person? In my 68 years in Nigeria, I have not seen such thing, Olafemi said. On what steps the PDP leadership has taken so far to ensure Melayes release from detention, Olafemi said, there is no step we can take other than to give him moral support and encourage the lawyers to work hard towards securing his release, and they are doing that. Visitors, party leaders and supporters, are trooping in daily to the hospital to see him to give him strong moral support. I can assure you authoritatively that Dino is in high spirit where he is. As a human being, his incarceration is a denial of his human rights, and a denial of his liberty. No doubt he will have some element of psychological depression. Like Nelson Mandela, he is struggling against the tides, but one day, he shall be liberated. Half of our presidential rally in Lokoja on Monday January 7 was devoted to celebrate Melaye, and we are aware that he will hear from where he is, and this would further boost his morale. The presidential campaign team that visited Lokoja for the Monday rally paid a solidarity visit to him in Abuja before embarking on the journey to Lokoja. The meeting between Vice President of the CPP and President of the Cambodias Senate Say Chhum (R) and Tran Cam Tu, Secretary of the Party Central Committee and head of the commission, in Phnom Penh on January 10 (Photo: VNA) The delegation met Honorary President of the Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) and Chairman of Cambodias National Assembly Heng Samrin; Vice President of the CPP and President of the Cambodias Senate Say Chhum; and Deputy Prime Minister Men Sam An. At the meetings, Tu briefed the hosts on major events in Vietnam and the outcomes of talks between the Vietnamese delegation and the CPP Inspection Commission delegation. He congratulated Cambodian people on their important achievements in national construction and development, expressing his belief that under the reign of King Norodom Sihamoni and the leadership of the Cambodian National Assembly, Senate, and Government, the Cambodian people will go on to achieve even greater success. Tu thanked the Cambodian people for their support and warm sentiments towards Vietnam so far, affirming Vietnams unrelenting policy of exerting every effort together with the Cambodian side to preserve and promote the traditional friendship, solidarity, and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia on the foundation of the substantial principles and orientations defined by the two parties and countries. The Cambodian side conveyed their delight at the great achievements that Vietnam has made during the renewal cause, as well as the working results between the two commissions. They expressed deep gratitude for Vietnams timely and effective help given to Cambodia during its national liberation, saving Cambodian people from the genocidal regime and ending the darkest period in Cambodias history and reviving the nation, as well as during its current period of national construction and defence. The traditional solidarity, friendship, and comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia is a priceless asset shared by both nations that needs to be passed on to the younger generations. During the visit, Tu and the Vietnamese delegation also burnt incense and laid flowers at the Vietnam-Cambodia Friendship Monument. They worked with the Anti-Corruption Unit of Cambodia and the municipal Party Committee of Phnom Penh, while visiting the Vietnamese Embassy and representatives of the Vietnamese Cambodian Association, as well as Vietnamese investors in Cambodia./. Kayode Egbetokun, former chief security officer to Bola Tinubu, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has been... Kayode Egbetokun, former chief security officer to Bola Tinubu, a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has been named the new commissioner of police in Lagos state. Edgal Imohimi, the outgoing commissioner was redeployed on Sunday, to the force headquarters in Abuja. Sources revealed that Imohimi, who is said to be an ally of Akinwunmi Ambode, the incumbent governor of the state, was fired from Lagos because he did not provide adequate security for the APC rally, which held in Ikeja last week. Egbetokun was Tinubus CSO for a few years before he became the commandant of Police Training School, Ikeja, Lagos. The new commissioner was also the commander of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Lagos, from 2005 to 2007. Imohimi was deployed to Lagos state on August 31, 2017, after serving as the deputy commissioner of police in charge of Operations in the state. He would now head the explosive ordinance unit of the police force in Abuja, the countrys capital. Details later Kayode Egbetokun has been asked to take over from Edgal as acting police commissioner in the state till further notice. The All Progressives Congress (APC) says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is sympathetic to corruption. The ruling party said th... The All Progressives Congress (APC) says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is sympathetic to corruption. The ruling party said this in reaction to a statement credited to the PDP. The opposition party had said that the allegations against Walter Onnoghen, chief justice of Nigeria (CJN), is a move by the APC government to constitute a constitutional crisis and instill fear in judicial officers to do its bidding. We had earlier reported that there were moves to remove Onnoghen before the elections. The CJN has been accused of false assets declaration. But in a statement on Sunday, Lanre Issa-Onilu, APC spokesman, said the fight against corruption remains a cardinal promise made by his party to the electorate. Following reports of the move to prosecute Justice Walter Onnoghen, chief justice of the federation, over an alleged infraction on the Code of Conduct laws, the swift statement by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemning the purported move has again exposed the Party as one with a natural inclination to rise up in defence of cases of alleged corruption, he said. Resort to baseless postulations anytime issues of corruption is leveled against public officers only confirm what Nigerians already know. PDP and corruption are siamese twins that are difficult to separate from each other. One would have thought that the PDP will call for impartial investigations when corruption cases are levelled against public officers, but spinning falsehoods and conspiracies remains the opposition partys favourite past time. The APC administration will not hesitate to investigate and prosecute any public officer if and when such is indicted for corruption. Achieving acceptable elections in all democratic climes is a collective effort which require the contributions and support of all well-meaning Nigerians, political parties, institutions and sundry interests. Commendably, in successive elections conducted under the APC administration, the party has played by the rules, which has led to credible elections. This cannot be said of the PDP era when state institutions were deployed to manipulate the electoral process. Issa-Onilu said the APC is committed to ensuring that the forthcoming elections go on record as one of the freest, most credible and peaceful elections in the country. The Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari has put the performance rate of the 2018 budget at 75 per cent. Director-gen... The Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari has put the performance rate of the 2018 budget at 75 per cent. Director-general of the Budget Office, Mr. Ben Akabueze disclosed this during an interactive session with editors in Lagos, yesterday. He said the federal government did not spend up to the projected amount on capital expenditure. According to him, As for the extent of implementation of the 2018 budget, usually budget is expressed in terms of how much is your projected expenditure. We now have the final numbers for the last quarter and we reckon that total performance is about 75 per cent. That means we didnt spend about N2.2 trillion we projected to spend. Sadly, the bulk of that shortfall comes from capital revenue. Earlier, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, in a presentation on the 2019 Appropriation Bill, said the amount provided for recurrent expenditure in this years budget proposal rose to N4.72 trillion, from N3.52 trillion in 2018, because of the intended minimum wage hike. Udoma explained that the technical committee on minimum wage constituted by the president last week was mandated to look for ways of raising additional revenue to ensure that payment of the higher minimum wage did not affect resources available for capital expenditure. He added, We all want a larger budget. Indeed, Nigeria deserves a much bigger budget. Our budget is too small for our needs. However, we have to find the money. But there is no point having a large budget that you cant fund. This is a budget that I believe we can fund. I believe that as we get more revenue, we would continue to increase the size of our budget. The minister said the $60 per barrel crude oil benchmark adopted for the 2019 Appropriation Bill was appropriate, saying analysts generally believe the recent decline in crude price is for the short-term. Forgive me. I cant keep track of the revolutions. True, I grew up on the back side of the 1960s. The Summer of Love began shortly after my 11th birthday. Woodstock took place just before I went to high school. A step off of history, I came of age in the nether-period following a radical decade. No marching in the streets for me, though I did ride a float one year in my hometowns Cotton Carnival parade. My contribution to the counter-culture amounted to wearing bell-bottom jeans and listening to Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on eight-track tapes. Once, I joined a protest over closed-campus lunch policies at my school. In the end, administrators told us to shut up and enjoy the cafeteria. Power to the people. News magazines reported on the hippies who flocked to San Francisco. For a kid in small-town Missouri, this seemed quite exotic, young people of like mind convening in peace and love. Only later did I recognize that living 20 people to an apartment and getting a shower once a week diminished the romance of the age, not to mention standards of good grooming. When I finally visited San Francisco, on a business trip decades later, I went to the intersection of Haight and Ashbury and found a Gap store. Hence, the old phrase: Turn on, tune in and wear some flat-front khakis. Recent years have found all manners of revolution proposed. A portion of the 2016 presidential campaign got energized by Sen. Bernie Sanders message of economic justice. A large number of Americans warmed to the idea of eliminating wealth inequities. A time after that election gave rise to a womens movement, a gender tired of being harassed, marginalized and paid less than men. While the pink hats have largely disappeared, this cause retains its momentum, maybe not in large rallies but in the mid-term elections. History has yet to be written on whether these revolts lead to cultural, political or other changes. Americans might look back, a half-century from now, and say, That was it, that was where it all started. Nearly a half-century ago, a poet-musician named Gil Scott-Heron wrote some verse that name-checked any number of cultural tokens of the day, from Spiro Agnew to Bullwinkle to The Beverly Hillbillies. You will not have to worry about a germ in your bedroom, a tiger in your tank, or the giant in your toilet bowl. It would be published, then put to music, with the name, The revolution will not be televised. Ive heard this referenced numerous times over the years and wondered about it. In studying the words, I take it to mean that sweeping change in American life wont be affected in mainstream ways, that it will play out spontaneously, without promos, without sponsors, without slick production. Of course, technology and the times might have eclipsed this notion. Instagram gets to the street before most of us can rise from a chair. Video chronicles every move. On Thursday, Beto ORourke, a possible presidential candidate and thought to be at the vanguard of new political leaders, livestreamed his dental appointment. There on social media, anyone with a Wi-Fi connection could get to know the man, from his incisors back to his molars. True, the visit had a theme of discussing the border wall, but still. Hes probably a great guy, and I favor transparency, yet some boundaries appear in order. The revolution might not be televised, but it will come apparently with a dental hygienist and an admonition to floss. While many have weighed in on the recent uptick of shootings that St. Joseph has been experiencing, some have pointed fingers at drugs, others at an increase in guns and some have said it is because of a lack of funding for the police department. For Mayor Bill McMurray, the violent crimes are just a blemish following a year of decreased crime. According to McMurray, the number of part one crimes were down by nine percent, but aggravated assault was up by 50%. It is counterintuitive, we actually are making a dent in some of these crime problems, down nine percent, but here comes this outlier, all these shootings in the first few days of the year, this frequency problem, McMurray said. McMurray said he has faith in the police department, that they will figure out who is responsible for these shootings. He also said he does not think the shootings are a trend that will continue. There have been a handful of shootings, which doesnt constitute a crime wave even though its serious, and were taking it seriously; were not dismissing it as incidental, McMurray said. As far as the cause of the shootings, McMurray said he believes domestic assault and drugs are playing a large role. Of the five (shootings) most recently discussed by me and the chief, three of the five were domestic assaults and two were drug-related, so two out of the five, McMurray said. Certainly there is that problem in town. In an effort to decrease drug use in the city, McMurray said that the city has donated to local rehabilitation centers, giving $5,000 to the St. Colbe-Puckette Center, $20,000 to The Center and working with Family Guidance to rehabilitate those leaving prison. McMurray said the city also put some funds toward the police department, but does not believe that adding officers to the streets will fix problems like domestic assault and drive-by shootings. Any police department could always use more officers, McMurray said. I think theyre doing a fine job, and I dont think the solution is more officers. How would more officers solve the problem of domestic assault? Instead, McMurray said the shootings are a result of societal problems and the community needs to join together to put an end to the crime. If you get mad at somebody that youre in a relationship with or related to, you cant just punch them in the nose, or worse, take out a gun and shoot them, McMurray said. This is a societal problem, and we as a society need to work on it. Despite freezing temperatures and snowy roads, hundreds of people attended the 99th St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce Annual Banquet at the Civic Arena. The theme of the night was Blast Off! which was reflected in futuristic decorations and a performance by Americas Got Talent and Cirque du Soleil juggler Viktor Kee. The banquet serves as an annual meeting for Chamber members and included a review detailing highlights from 2018 as well as a preview for the year to come. Matt Robertson, principal at CLA St. Joseph, was honored as 2018 board chairman before the ceremonial changing of the guard for officers. While there were many highlights over the past 12 months, Robertsons favorite was the launch of the Imagine St. Joseph 2040 initiative in partnership with United Way. A personal highlight for me would definitely be the 2040 campaign, just how large it was in scale and how many people actually cared about what St. Joe would look like in 2040, I thought that that was a very big initiative, he said. Other points in the Chambers annual report include growth in Chamber members and event attendance, student education about jobs in manufacturing and the organization of the St. Joseph Lean Discussion Forum. 2018 was also the year of business growth and economic development in St. Joseph, as reflected in the Missouri Department of Economic Developments November job report. In addition to business openings, existing companies are expanding their facilities. Yellow Frog Graphics announced the construction of a 3.9 million dollar facility in Mitchell Woods Business Park and the addition of 50 jobs over the next five years. Schultz Containers is expanding its facility and creating 15 new jobs for a total capital investment of around 21 million dollars. The banquet was also the official end of Robertsons chairmanship, which was taken over by his cousin J.L. Robertson. Were both very excited for the future, Matt Robertson said. I think that where St. Joe has really climbed up the scales is unemployment as well as wage scale. I think in this next year, what youll start seeing is more of those middle management positions open up as well as some of those wages that people ask for when theyre looking for jobs. The Chambers full report can be read on its website, www.saintjoseph.com In early January, Lanny Frakes stands on a levee and sees fields of earth-colored soybeans still waiting to be harvested. Dont tell Frakes and other bottomland farmers in Buchanan County that 2018 was a year of drought. For them, the problem still is too much water coming down the Missouri River and soaking fields that remain too muddy for farm combines. He estimates 12 to 15 farmers still have crops that are unharvested along the Missouri River. This continues to be a problem each year, said Frakes, president of the Halls Levee District that covers more than 18,000 acres. With the river running like it did all summer, were more or less like a sponge. Missouri River water topped levees and inundated thousands of acres in 1993 and 2011, years that are associated with major floods. Last year didnt bring that kind of dramatic flooding, but rather something more subtle that may have gone unnoticed except among those who make a living farming some of the richest soil in the country. The Missouri River largely remained within its banks but stayed high at 15 to 18 feet for most of the summer. That prevented levee districts from opening flood gates to allow excess water to flow back from drainage ditches into the Missouri River, either through pumps or gravity. High water levels contributed to groundwater seepage that kept fields soggy, even before heavy rains made things worse in September. The gates were closed, due to the Missouri River running high, Frakes said. That impounded water. We couldnt get rid of any of the excess water. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said 2018 ranked as the third-highest year for Missouri River runoff in 120 years of keeping records. Last week, the Corps of Engineers outlined plans to increase water releases from the Gavins Point Dam in South Dakota from 20,000 to 24,000 cubic feet per second. Thats higher than the 17,000 to 19,000 cfs releases often seen in winter months. The Corps of Engineers doesnt anticipate as much runoff as last year, with estimates calling for 25.7 million acre feet of water in 2019 compared to 41.9 million last year. Those estimates could change based on snowpack, rain and other factors. Its trending lower, said Eileen Williamson, a spokeswoman for the Corps of Engineers. We reached peak snowpack around April. Thats a big thing to watch between now and then. Critics believe river levels have less to do with the whims of weather and more to do with river management that emphasizes endangered birds and fish over flood control. Dan Boulware, a local attorney who sued the Corps of Engineers, said some water releases in past years were intended to clear sandbars of predators that harm birds. Where does some of that water end up? In farm fields, like the ones in Buchanan County. Some of the best farmland in the U.S. is destroyed, Boulware said. This is going to have an adverse effect on schools in Northwest Missouri. Certainly its going to hurt the economy. Frakes said the loss of crops comes at a time when farmers are dealing with thinning margins and the uncertainty of a trade war with China, which used to be the largest market for U.S. soybeans. Soybeans are $5 to $6 less per bushel than they were in 2012, he said. We have to have all the bushels we can get off these lands. Boulware won his lawsuit that linked damage to farmland to a reduced emphasis on flood control, but hes not sure if farmers will see much of a change in the river this year. The Corps of Engineers is backing away from a controversial spring rise that was intended to benefit endangered species. The rise was removed from the rivers master manual. For a farmer like Frakes, the river still runs high and plenty of water remains in storage for future releases and flooding risks. Its worsened quite a bit, Frakes said. The river runs higher and comes up quicker. Weve had a lot of change to the detriment to farmers. I foresee it getting worse, until Congress or the federal government makes some changes. MONDAY Total body workout, 8:15 a.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $3. Class is held at 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday and Friday as well. TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Chapter No. 0345 weight-loss and fitness group, 9 to 9:40 a.m. weigh-in, 9:45 a.m. meeting at East Hills Church of Christ, 3912 Penn St. TOPS assists with weight loss and healthy living. The public is invited to attend. For more information, call Donna McDonald 816-662-3395 or Pat Anderson 816-238-7533. Tai chi class, 9:30 a.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $3. Yoga, 10:45 a.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $3. Class is held at 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday as well. Get Up and Get Moving exercise class with Kelly Jarrett, 1 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center. Cost is $2 per person. Line dance lessons, 3 to 4 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $2. Line dance lessons, 6 to 7 p.m., couple pattern partner lessons, 7 to 9 p.m., Eagles Aerie No. 49, 2004 N. Belt Highway. Cost is $5 per person. For information, call 816-232-0526. TUESDAY Joyce Raye Patterson Kitchen Band, 10 a.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center. Salvation Army womens group, noon, 602 Messanie St., bring your own lunch. For more information, call 816-232-5824. Downtown Rotary Club, noon, Benton Club. Masonic High Twelve Club 49 lunch meeting, noon, The Benton Club. Tri-Al-Anon family group, noon, Patee Park Baptist Church, 1107 S. 10th St. Mahjong Queens, 1 to 4 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center. Cardio body sculpting, 5:15 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $4. Eagles Auxiliary No. 49 past madam presidents, 6 p.m. Dinner will be followed by business meeting. South Side Lions Club, 6:30 p.m., Community Christian Church basement, 2009 Mason Road. Guests invited for dinner and meeting. WEDNESDAY Sunrise Optimist Club, 7 a.m., Dennys. East Side Lions Club, 8 a.m., Dennys. East Side Rotary Club, noon, Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art. St. Joseph Sertoma Club, noon, Golden Corral. Intermediate contract bridge, noon, Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $.50. For more information or to participate call 816-695-5372. Beginner line dance lessons, 3 to 4 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $2. Eagles Aerie and Auxiliary No. 49 joint officers, 6:30 p.m. All officers and committee chairmen should plan to attend. Line dance lessons, 7 to 9 p.m., Eagles Aerie No. 49, 2004 N. Belt Highway. Everyone is welcome. Cost is $5. For information, call 816-279-9302. THURSDAY East Hills Optimist Club, 7 a.m., Dennys, public invited. South Side Rotary Club, 11:45 a.m., King Hill Christian Church, 5828 King Hill Ave. Optimist Club of St. Joseph, noon, Whiskey Creek Steakhouse. For more information, contact Craig Sumner at 816-279-7450. Kiwanis Club, noon, Albrecht-Kemper Museum of Art. St. Joseph Host Lions Club, 12:15 p.m., Benton Club. For more information, contact a club member or call 816-232-5120. Body sculpting, 5:15 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center, $4. Pony Express Composite Squadron, 6:30 p.m., Building 5 at Rosecrans International Guard Base, photo ID required. For more information, call 913-956-9745. Eagles Aerie No. 49, 6:30 p.m. for trustees, 7 p.m. for general membership. Initiation of new members will be held during general membership. RiverSong, a Sweet Adelines International Chorus rehearsal, 7 p.m., Wyatt Park Christian Church. Visitors welcome. For more information, call 816-233-0368 or log on to www.RiverSong Chorus.com. Bingo, 7 p.m., VFW 5531, Wathena, Kansas. For more information, call 785-989-3487. Tri-Al-Anon family group, 8 p.m., Patee Park Baptist Church, 1107 S. 10th St. FRIDAY South Side Sertoma Club, 6:45 a.m., Spanky and Buckwheats Catering. 10-point pitch card group, 1 p.m., Joyce Raye Patterson Senior Citizens Center. SATURDAY Tri-Al-Anon family group, noon, Patee Park Baptist Church, 1107 S. 10th St. Debtors Anonymous, 3:30 p.m., Alano Club, 401 S. 11th St. Having trouble with debt, payday loans and not enough money at the end of the month? Join us. For information, call 816-617-1145. When the moniker The Felix Street Experience was first coined a decade ago, it stood for the long line of thriving bars in Downtown St. Joseph. There were watering holes for all types, including hard rock fans (Hammerjacks), country music enthusiasts (Buffalo Bar) and people looking for a relaxing time (Fosters Martini Bar). In the past five years, all of those businesses closed. While some of the bigger spaces remain vacant, new businesses, ranging from coffee shops to restaurants, have popped up to re-define The Felix Street Experience. Offering gourmet food and wine, Felix Street Gourmet and the events space Room 108 have taken over part of Fosters old space. Down the road, Mosaic Life Care moved in to the German American building. Coleman Hawkins Park has been revitalized with a concession space. In the spring, a home decor and antique shop will move into the old Shaft Nightclub spot. Theres also CoJoe, a co-working space aimed at incubating start-ups and freelance workers. A larger, more secure parking garage replaced a crumbling old structure. Its one of the biggest changes to the area since the urban renewal process of the 1970s, which destroyed more than 100 dilapidated and historic buildings in Downtown St. Joseph, under the intention of civic progress. In its wake were decades of bitterness from residents who remember it from its halcyon days. In the 90s and 00s, bars took over took Felix Street, creating the Felix Street Experience in 2008. Becky Boerkircher, president of the St. Joseph Downtown Partnership, said she remembers when the strip of bars was a bustling row of businesses. Bars used to be one of the only things that were going on Downtown, she says. The two bars that remain from that time are the punk rock-oriented The Rendezvous and The Felix Street Pub. An additional establishment, The Tigers Den, which combines a bookstore and bar, opened in 2015. When Brian Myers and co-owner Amy Heath opened The Tigers Den, it was in the midst of changing times in the area. On the same block, once-thriving venues like Club Hammerjack and The Buffalo Bar, both of which catered to specific audiences and featured large dance floors, either recently closed or were about to be shuttered. It seemed to be a sign for Downtown St. Joseph in general, where smaller businesses targeted toward a broader audience would overtake bigger bars in the area. That seems to be the buzz right now is event venues, Boerkircher said. One of the biggest indicators of change for Felix Street was Mosaic relocating 250 employees Downtown in the German American Building in 2017. When you have someone like Mosaic put the amount of money and relocate 250 employees off of the Belt, its serving as an anchor that it can be successful, Laura Stover Wyeth, a Realtor for Berkshire Hathaway Home Services, said. Helping sell spaces in Downtown St. Joseph, Stover Wyeth said the diversity of businesses means a bigger variety of people returning Downtown to shop, eat and drink. The more people you get down here, theyre going to eat at the restaurants, theyre going to shop at the shops. Some of them choose to live down here to be closer to work, she said. One of the biggest targets Stover Wyeth said businesses on Felix Street need to continue to aim for: younger generations. You want the newer generations, the millennials, to be coming down here. Whether its going to the shows at the Missouri Theater or the concerts at the Sounds of Summer, I think were making really good progress, Stover Wyeth said. Japan Airlines has been excluded from a list of the world's 20 safest airlines. The carrier had been on the list for 3 years in a row from 2016. All Nippon Airways was selected as one of the 20 safest airlines by Australian media company AirlineRatings. The firm compiles its annual evaluation of 405 carriers by investigating accident reports, government audits and financial performance. An AirlineRatings official says Japan Airlines was excluded from the list because of a series of alcohol-related problems involving flight crew. Japan's transport ministry has urged Japan Airlines to overhaul its policies. The recommendation came after a female flight attendant was found to have drunk some champagne on a JAL plane flying from Japan to Honolulu last month. A London court sentenced a JAL copilot to 10 months in prison in November last year after a pre-flight breath test found his alcohol level was more than 10 times Britain's legal limit. Warnings have been made of a group of car thieves who apparently use an advanced remote control that has been smuggled into Bahrain to open the vehicles. This video has been filmed by one of the victims, a Bahraini resident of Hidd, documenting how one of the thieves stole some belongings from his car that was parked outside the house. The incident took place on January 10 and a manhunt was immediately launched to catch the culprit. Following the manhunt police identified and apprehended the culprit. The 21-year-old male suspect was apprenehended for stealing some personal items from a car in Al-Hidd area. Authorities were able to find some of the stolen items in the culprits possession. Muharraq Governorate Police Directorate pointed out that the necessary legal procedures have been taken and that the case has been referred to the Public Prosecution. Ithmaar Development Company (IDC), the Development Manager for Dilmunia at Bahrain announced awarding the early works package for the Dilmunia Grand Canal & Marina to NSCC International, an Abu Dhabi based contractor. The deal was signed in the presence of Mohammed Khalil Alsayed, CEO of IDC and Khalil N. Khouri, CEO of NSCC International along with representatives from IDC and NSCC International. The contract for the early works package valued at US$4.5 million, commenced in mid-December 2018 and is targeted for completion in mid-March 2019. Jean- Claude Bejjani, the Project Director of Dilmunia stated that the awarded works in Dilmunia consist of soil improvement, soil levelling and contiguous pile works. The Grand Canal will cut through the entire stretch of Dilmunia in a semi-circular route, making it Bahrains largest man-made water body. It will feature public promenades, geysers, water fountains, water walls, cascades, boardwalks and viewing decks. With a total length of 1.7 km, and a width spanning 15 to 35 meters throughout the Grand Canal, it will have seawater pumped in around the midpoint of the Canal with the water flowing via gravity in two opposing directions of the entire canal. Dilmunia completed its Second Phase Infrastructure Works in December 2017, and awarded the Third and Final Phase of Infrastructure Works in early 2018, and with it ensuring the availability of all services to developers constructing on the Island and its first residents. The Daily News-Miner encourages residents to make themselves heard through the Opinion pages. Readers' letters and columns also appear online at newsminer.com. Contact the editor with questions at letters@newsminer.com or call 459-7574. Community Perspective Send Community Perspective submissions by mail (P.O. Box 70710, Fairbanks AK 99707) or via email (letters@newsminer.com). Submissions must be 500 to 750 words. Columns are welcome on a wide range of issues and should be well-written and well-researched with attribution of sources. Include a full name, email address, daytime telephone number and headshot photograph suitable for publication (email jpg or tiff files at 150 dpi.) You may also schedule a photo to be taken at the News-Miner office. The News-Miner reserves the right to edit submissions or to reject those of poor quality or taste without consulting the writer. Letters to the editor Send letters to the editor by mail (P.O. Box 70710, Fairbanks AK 99707), by fax (907-452-7917) or via email (letters@newsminer.com). Writers are limited to one letter every two weeks (14 days.) All letters must contain no more than 350 words and include a full name (no abbreviation), daytime and evening phone numbers and physical address. (If no phone, then provide a mailing address or email address.) The Daily News-Miner reserves the right to edit or reject letters without consulting the writer. South Africa: Portfolio committee condemns police killings The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police, Francois Beukman, has condemned the killing of a South African police officer and the wounding of another one in Koffiefontein, in the Free State. It is unacceptable that officers of the law continue to be killed especially while they are on duty and carrying out their duties. The committee remains of the view that the killing and attack of police officers is a direct attack on the rule of law and the constitution of the country, said Beukman. Reports suggest that the attack in Koffiefontein happened when the officers where implementing the rural safety strategy which the committee has highlighted as an important pillar of the overall crime fighting strategy. The committee extended its heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Constable Vuyani March. The committee further wished the wounded officer a speedy recovery. The committee called on the SAPS not to be deterred by these attacks and has urged the public to continue working with the law enforcement authorities to deal decisively with this scourge. Meanwhile, the committee further condemned the attack of officers in Philippi East, Western Cape who were responding to information of illegal firearm in the area. The SAPS must leave no stone unturned in working to rid our society of criminal elements as well as illegal firearms. The committee emphasises that the police will only win the war against crime through the direct participation and sharing of information by the community at large, said Beukman. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Fairbanks, AK (99707) Today Partial cloudiness early, with scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon. High 81F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 60%.. Tonight Scattered thunderstorms this evening followed by occasional showers overnight. Low 56F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%. (Newser) With Jayme Closs safely in the arms of her family, investigators are trying to figure out exactly what happened and why. "Well, right now we're looking for 88 days of evidence," says Barron County Sheriff Christopher Fitzgerald, per CNN. "So, we're looking for receipts, where the suspect may have been over the last 88 days." Law officers have arrested Jake Patterson, 21, for allegedly kidnapping the 13-year-old Wisconsin girl and murdering her parents on October 15, but otherwise little is known about his motive or treatment of Closs since she escaped captivity and was found Thursday. "I don't understand it yet myself," says Fitzgerald. "That's the million-dollar question, is why." What has emerged: Patterson's hair: It was "a very well-planned attack," per Fitzgerald. He says Patterson shaved off his hair to avoid leaving strands behind. story continues below The shotgun : Several guns have been recovered in the investigation, including a shotgun likely used to shoot open the Closs family's front door and kill Denise Closs, 46, and James Closs, 56. "We believe Jayme was the target, and [Patterson] was getting rid of possible barriers to taking her," says Fitzgerald. : Several guns have been recovered in the investigation, including a shotgun likely used to shoot open the Closs family's front door and kill Denise Closs, 46, and James Closs, 56. "We believe Jayme was the target, and [Patterson] was getting rid of possible barriers to taking her," says Fitzgerald. The motive : There's no apparent evidence that Patterson knew Jayme. He did work three years ago at the Jennie-O Turkey Store plant in Barron where Jayme's parents worked, but quit after one day, saying he was moving away. "We don't know if he was stalking her or what," Jayme's grandfather, Robert Naiberg, tells the Chicago Tribune. "Did he see her somewhere?" Jayme apparently told the FBI she didn't know Patterson in the least. : There's no apparent evidence that Patterson knew Jayme. He did work three years ago at the Jennie-O Turkey Store plant in Barron where Jayme's parents worked, but quit after one day, saying he was moving away. "We don't know if he was stalking her or what," Jayme's grandfather, Robert Naiberg, tells the Chicago Tribune. "Did he see her somewhere?" Jayme apparently told the FBI she didn't know Patterson in the least. Jayme's "hell" : No one is pushing Jayme to reveal details of her ordeal, says Naiberg, which meshes with the advice of doctors and other experts. "She is going to have to grieve the loss of her parents and also come to terms with the fact she was abducted, escaped and whatever (other) hell she went through," a former kidnapping victim tells the AP. "And it's not going to be easy." : No one is pushing Jayme to reveal details of her ordeal, says Naiberg, which meshes with the advice of doctors and other experts. "She is going to have to grieve the loss of her parents and also come to terms with the fact she was abducted, escaped and whatever (other) hell she went through," a former kidnapping victim tells the AP. "And it's not going to be easy." Her emotions : Jayme's emotions were "pretty flat" when she was found, said Peter Kasinskas, who saw the girl when a neighbor spotted the bedraggled teen and knocked on his door, per the Star-Tribune. : Jayme's emotions were "pretty flat" when she was found, said Peter Kasinskas, who saw the girl when a neighbor spotted the bedraggled teen and knocked on his door, per the Star-Tribune. Her recovery : "Jayme had a pretty good night sleep it was great to know she was next to me all night what a great feeling to have her home," Jayme's aunt, Jennifer Smith, wrote Saturday on Facebook. "As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has." : "Jayme had a pretty good night sleep it was great to know she was next to me all night what a great feeling to have her home," Jayme's aunt, Jennifer Smith, wrote Saturday on Facebook. "As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has." The cabin : The remote cabin where Patterson allegedly held Jayme underwent a title change eight days after the kidnapping, WEAU13 reports. According to records, Jake Patterson's father transferred it to the Superior Choice Credit Union on Oct. 23. The property's appraised value was $79,300. : The remote cabin where Patterson allegedly held Jayme underwent a title change eight days after the kidnapping, WEAU13 reports. According to records, Jake Patterson's father transferred it to the Superior Choice Credit Union on Oct. 23. The property's appraised value was $79,300. The attorneys: Patterson's attorneys say they consider Jayme's kidnapping "very tragic" and hope the courts will treat their client with fairness. He will likely be charged and appear in court Monday. (See what Closs' family had in store after she was found .) (Newser) Volkswagen may be in trouble all over again for allegedly installing software in cars to help them duck emissions standards, Reuters reports. German authorities are investigating whether 1.2-liter engine Volkswagens, including the Polo, received a software update allowing them to trick emissions tests. Germany may also file charges against company managers and recall more Volkswagens. story continues below This after VW admitted to similar trickery with diesel-engine vehicles in 2015 and had to recall hundreds of thousands worldwide. Meanwhile, VW ended 2018 with record deliveries around the world and likely became "the world's biggest carmaker," per the Financial Times. (Also, Tesla has added a car feature involving more personal emissions.) Former vice president Joice Mujurus ex-ally Kudakwashe Bhasikiti has called on the National Peoples Party (NPP) president to dissolve her party and join the Nelson Chamisa-led MDC. Bhasikiti is a former member of the Zimbabwe People First (ZPF), which was led by Mujuru, before she left to form the splinter NPP. Mujuru and Bhasikiti, a former Masvingo Provincial Affairs minister, are both former members of the ruling Zanu PF party. The former vice president, along with a coterie of her backers, including Bhasikiti, Ray Kaukonde, Dzikamai Mavhaire, Didymus Mutasa and Rugare Gumbo, among others, were shown the door by former president Robert Mugabe in 2014. Mujuru and her cabal were expelled on allegations of seeking to topple Mugabe from power. Her dismissal saw 15 ministers being dropped from Mugabes Cabinet, in a serious carnage that threatened to break the party. Bhasikiti and Mavhaire are now members of the MDC, while Mutasa has since been readmitted into Zanu PF. Mujuru, who has gone into hibernation since the July 30, 2018 harmonised elections, has been deserted by a number of her supporters, who have either joined the MDC or Zanu PF. In a Twitter post, Bhasikiti said Mujuru must join the MDC in order to fulfill her dream for change in the country. I still believeMujuru should honour not only those she caused to be sacked from ZPF but also the masses which supported her to see change in Zimbabwe, by joining hands with the MDC as the change agent, Bhasikiti said. Mujuru made waves after forming the ZPF, some months after leaving Zanu PF. Observers believed she had a chance to create a formidable force in the countrys political space. However, a few months after its formation, ZPF split because of irreconcilable differences between its founders. Mutasa and Gumbo were among those who clung to the partys name and offices while Mujuru moved on to form the NPP. Mutasa was to later dump the ZPF after being readmitted into the ruling party late last year. Before their sacking in 2014, Mutasa was the partys secretary for administration while Gumbo was its spokesperson. Both were members of the partys politburo. Daily News As far as the chief magistrate is concerned, we have gathered that there are some influential people that have been attempting to interfere in his case. There are witnesses who were being forced to change their statements. We want to assure the public that this case will be dealt with to the fullest extent of the law. Government has launched an investigation into the operations of the National Aids Council (NAC) over allegations of sexual harassment, corporate sleaze and maladministration. The probe coincides with last weeks departure of NAC chief executive officer Dr Tapiwa Magure after a 14-year tenure. Dr Magure was reportedly given a golden parachute ostensibly for his long service. Over the past few months, NACs top managers and board members have been battling a slew of allegations that include tender scandals, abuse of public funds and sexual harassment. A recent report by the Zimbabwe Gender Commission (ZGC) a statutory body implicates NACs board members and top directors, including Dr Magure, in some of the shenanigans. He, however, noted that he wasnt in a position to shed light on the matter as this would jeopardise ongoing investigations. I am not in a position to discuss any issues pertaining to NAC at the moment. Anything I say may work against what we are doing to restore order at the institution, he said. An internal memorandum dated January 8 2019 generated by NAC purports that Dr Magure had left the institution in compliance with the new Public Entities and Corporate Governance Act, which limits the term of CEOs of State enterprises and parastatals to 10 years. Those who had already served more than 10 years when the law was gazetted on May 11 last year were allowed to stay on for six months while replacements were being sought. This serves to notify all employees that the NAC chief executive officer, Dr Tapuwa Magure, has left employment with effect from January 7 2019. The termination of his employment is in line with provisions of the Public Entities and Corporate Governance (Act Chapter 10:31), read the letter from NACs human resources department. Dr Magure had not responded to questions sent to his email by the time of going to print. Also, NACs board chair Dr Evaristo Marowa, who recently told The Sunday Mail that my hands are clean, could not be reached for comment last week. The ZGC fell short of calling NAC which is ironically mandated to reduce and eliminate incidences of HIV/AIDS a brothel. ZGC said: There are rampant consensual intra-organisational sexual relations amongst NAC secretariat including senior management who have sexual relations amongst themselves and also with junior employees. Sexual harassment is taking place within the organisation, with female students on internship and junior staff members being the targets. Students on internship are falling prey to junior male staff members while junior female staff members are targeted by senior management. Interestingly, ZGC said the jettisoned CEO admitted to having improper relations with three staff members. He also claimed to have subsequently married two of his lovers. The chief executive officer admitted having three relationships with junior officers within the organisation. He admitted to customarily marrying two of the junior officers over and above a civil marriage which is still subsisting. What's Included With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. If you have any questions or need further assistance, please call our customer service team at 574-583-5121 or email cgrace@thehj.com. One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021 Columnist Tom Kacich is a columnist and the author of Tom's Mailbag at The News-Gazette. His column appears Sundays. His email is tkacich@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@tkacich). Reporter Mary Schenk is a reporter covering police, courts and breaking news at The News-Gazette. Her email is mschenk@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@schenk). The recommendations, which are still being vetted, will be released 'soon,' Executive Vice President Barbara Wilson said Tuesday. Trustees last month had urged administrators to expedite their review. Copy Editor/Entertainment Editor Frank Pieper is a copy editor and entertainment editor at The News-Gazette, and the author of Frank's Faves and Frank's Weekend Faves. His email is fpieper@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@frp308). 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. By PTI PESHAWAR: The minority Sikh community in Pakistan celebrated the 352nd birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh in the country's restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province amid tight security. A three-day event to celebrate Prakash Parv at Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh here was concluded on Sunday. The event was organised by Department of Hajj, Auqaf, Religious and Minority Affairs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to show the signs of harmony and inclusiveness. Over 5,000 Sikh devotees took out a procession and converged at a programme to mark the occasion. Adequate security measures were put in place to ensure a smooth and hassle-free event. The major attraction of the procession was the display of 'Gatka', a famous Sikh martial art and other famous sword exercises. ALSO READ: Year-long celebrations of 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak kicks off in US On the occasion, member of the provincial assembly Ravi Kumar paid tributes to Soran Singh, the provincial minister for minority affairs who was shot dead in 2016, saying his services will always be remembered. Kumar said the three-day event will build an understanding of traditions and beliefs of minorities. People here have shown signs of interfaith harmony. Lawmaker Wazir Zada said celebrating events of minorities will help spread love and peace. Guru Gobind Singh's birth anniversary is one of the major festivals of the Sikh community across the world. Known as Guru Gobind Singh Prakash, or the dawn of light, he was born on January 5, 1666. He is the 10 Sikh Guru, a spiritual master and philosopher. By PTI WASHINGTON: Year-long celebrations of Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary has kicked off in the US to spread his message of brotherhood and sharing. The Indian Embassy and Consulates have chalked out a calendar of activities including musical concerts, seminars and interfaith events throughout the year, India's new Ambassador Harsh V Shringla said. The year 2019 marks the 550th birth anniversary year of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak, whose birthplace is Sri Nankana Sahib, in Pakistan. He was addressing people gathered to celebrate the occasion with colourful events where artist Bhai Baldeep Singh played devotional music Saturday. "Guru Nanak Dev ji was one of India's greatest philosophers, teachers and social reformers. Born in an epoch when the Indian society was caste-riddled, Guru Nanak's voice was an empowering call to unshackle the human mind of centuries of religious and political tyranny and for the creation of a new egalitarian order," Shringla told the gathering of some 200 people. The Indian government, he said, is planning celebrations in various countries around the world. "In the US, the Embassy has reached out to various Gurudwaras and Sikh community leaders to discuss various ideas with them," he said at the first of the series of year-long events in the US, being organised by the Indian Embassy here in association with various Sikh groups and Gurudwaras. Observing that the enthusiasm and support of the local Sikh organisations and Gurudwaras have indeed been heartening, the Ambassador said the Indian Embassy with their cooperation have set up a task force to coordinate planning of different events. The planned events include seminars on the philosophy and teachings of Guru Nanak in prestigious venues; musical concerts like the one today during the year at different venues; and interfaith events to get the message of Guru Nanak to the wider American society, Shringla said. "We are joined by our five Consulates in Houston, New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Atlanta which will similarly partner with the Gurudwaras and Sikh community organisations in their regions to chalk out a calendar of activities throughout the year," he said. The ethos of Sikhism -- hard work, simple and honest life, compassion for fellow human beings -- have formed the success of the Sikh community across the globe. In the US, the Sikh migration dates back to more than 130 years when they first arrived in California and on the eastern coast in New York, he said. "We are proud to see five Indian-Americans in Congress today but it is important to remember that they are following in the footsteps of pioneers like Judge Dalip Singh Saund who was the first person of Indian-origin and first Asian-American to be elected to the US Congress from California in 1957," Shringla said. The Sikh community in the US has prospered through their hard work and ethics, and today numbers about five lakh, wielding influence in all walks of American life, the top Indian diplomat said. Throughout the programme, Bhai Baldeep Singh along with an ensemble of musicians, held the audience captive with his masterly presentation of mystical hymns of Guru Nanak. By PTI WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump has denied reports that he did not share details of some of his meetings with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, saying that he would not mind releasing those details. "Well, I would (release details of the conversations with Putin) I am not keeping anything under wraps," Trump told Fox News in an interview following a report by the Washington Post that claimed he has concealed details of his face-to-face encounters with Putin from senior officials in the administration. ALSO READ | Love amidst shutdown: Three weddings in Washington amid Donald Trump's US shutdown "I don't care. I mean I had a conversation like every president does, you sit with the president of various countries. We had a great conversation. We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things and it was a great conversation. I'm not keeping anything under wraps. I couldn't care less," he said. "Why not release the conversation that you had with President Putin in Helsinki along with some other stuff?" he was asked by Fox News following the damaging report by The Washington Post. Trump described the news report as "ridiculous". "The Washington Post is almost as bad as probably as bad as The New York Times. I have a one-on-one meeting with Putin like I do with every other leader and I had many one-on-ones. Nobody ever says anything about it," he said. "I meet with every leader individually. I meet with (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi. I meet with (Shinzo) Abe (of Japan), I meet with them. Nobody says anything. But, I meet with Putin, they make a big deal. Anybody could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," Trump said, denying the Post report. The Post reported that Trump has gone to "extraordinary lengths" to conceal details of his conversations with Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials. "Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-secretary of state Rex Tillerson. US officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson," the daily said. "The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries," the daily reported. As a result, according to the Post, US officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. "Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what US intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference," the daily reported. Trump denied the allegations. "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked," he said when asked if he has ever worked for Russia. By PTI KATHMANDU: A Nepalese non-governmental organisation has launched a signature campaign demanding the return of territory that Nepal lost to British India through the historic Sugauli Treaty of 1815. The campaign was initiated here by the Greater Nepal Nationalist Front on Friday coinciding with National Unity Day, according to 'The Rising Nepal', a government-owned national daily. Signatures will be collected from within and outside the country, and the campaign will continue until coming mid-April, according to the front's chairman Fanindra Nepal. Nepalese territories including Darjeeling were handed to the British East India Company as concessions under the treaty which was signed in 1816 on the conclusion of the Anglo-Nepalese War. Under the treaty, Nepalese-controlled territory that was ceded included all areas that the king of Nepal had won in earlier wars such as the kingdom of Sikkim in the east and Kumaon and Garhwal in the west. The signatures collected will be handed over to the Nepal president, UN secretary general, the five members of the UN Security Council, and to the SAARC secretary general, according to the report. By PTI WASHINGTON: There doesn't seem to be much love in the air in Washington these days, as long and bitter government shutdown drags on with no end in sight. But couples whose marriage plans were thwarted by the partial shutdown have gotten a break, thanks to the action of Mayor Muriel Bowser and city council. The city's Marriage Bureau, part of the US capital's federally funded court system, had been deemed "nonessential" and shuttered as part of the thorny standoff between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats. ALSO READ | Donald Trump urges Democrats to visit White House for talks to end government shutdown But on Friday, Bowser signed an emergency measure authorising city officials to validate marriages in the absence of the Marriage Bureau, which closed when the budget standoff began on December 22. "They can shut down the US government, but they cannot shut down love in the District of Columbia," City Council member Brandon Todd said when he introduced the measure. Titled the Let Our Vows Endure Emergency Amendment Act, or LOVE act, the law is valid for 90 days and will spare future brides like Claire O'Rourke from finding themselves in Kafkaesque situations. "Practically, we couldn't sign all the legal certificates during the shutdown without having a marriage license," O'Rourke, a Washingtonian who was preparing to wed fiance Sam Bockenhauer, told AFP. "So we were going to have a wonderful party, of course, but couldn't be legally married in DC until we got our marriage license." Some couples, like Dan Pollock and Danielle Geanacopoulos, had no time to spare. They managed to get their wedding license on December 27, just two days before their scheduled wedding. ALSO READ | US government shutdown enters 22nd day, becomes longest in federal history "By the time we figured out we couldn't get a license, we were running out of time before friends and family were coming to Washington to celebrate with us," Geanacopoulos said. "So we focused on the really important thing -- celebrating -- and decided to figure out the rest later." Her mother, Daphne, said she was "delighted." "We had a really great big wedding two weeks ago (but) it feels wonderful to have it official." For Caitlin Walters, who plans to wed Kirk Kasa on February 2 on the campus of Catholic University, the shutdown was simply "a small speed bump in the road." "Obviously we knew about the shutdown, but we didn't know that it would directly affect our ability to get married in DC legally," said Walters, a New York resident who was determined to get married in the nation's capital. But while some have taken the shutdown in stride, it has brought "chaos" to those in the wedding business. "It's a lot of chaos, it's a lot of uncertainty," said Rachel Rice, a wedding planner who recently had to shift a wedding ceremony from Washington to nearby Virginia. ALSO READ | FBI agents say shutdown affecting operations Even if the shutdown were to end next month, Rice said, "some people might say, 'I can't wait to book my venue; I have to book my catering, my photographer." On top of that, the approximately 800,000 federal employees sent home or forced to work without pay -- some of them with wedding plans, no doubt -- have just missed their first paycheck and will be forced to scale back their plans. Claire O'Rourke has her own shutdown-related regret. She had hoped to have her official wedding photo taken in the National Portrait Gallery. But like most of the capital's vast Smithsonian system, the popular museum remains closed. By PTI SAMARKAND: India and five Central Asian countries along with Afghanistan on Sunday condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering the menace which poses a threat to people across the world. This was part of a joint statement issued at the end of the first ever meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue which also saw the participation of Afghanistan at the ministerial level in Samarkand. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with the foreign ministers of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan took part in the meeting. ALSO READ | Terrorism, WMDs, climate change today's critical challenges: Sushma Swaraj "All sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering terrorism which posed a threat to the people and economies of the world," the statement said. It referred to the ancient civilisational, cultural, trade, and people-to-people links between India and Central Asia and expressed commitment to dynamic and fruitful friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between India and the Central Asian countries at bilateral and multilateral formats. "The countries reaffirmed their willingness for cooperation, mutual support, joint solution on relevant issues in order to ensure security, stability and sustainable development," the statement said. The ministers welcomed the participation of Afghanistan in the India-Central Asia Dialogue as an important land link in the regional cooperation, transit of goods and energy and expressed support and commitment of Central Asian countries and India to peace, security and stability of Afghanistan. They also called for an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and reconciliation, and assistance in economic reconstruction of Afghanistan through the implementation of joint infrastructure, transit and transport, energy projects including regional cooperation and investment projects, the statement said. The ministers noted the importance of sustainable economic growth in Afghanistan by attracting Afghan women to participate in the public life of the country and welcomed the successful holding of forums and conferences on this issue in the countries of Central Asia. They also noted the results of the seventh Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA VII), held in Ashgabat in November 2017, and expressed willingness to cooperate in preparation for the RECCA VIII meet in Tashkent in the second half of 2019. The participants welcomed the accession of India into the Ashgabat agreement on creating an international transport and transit corridor. The ministers emphasised the importance of developing and implementing projects, that provide a concerted solution to the problems and issues of economic growth of the countries of Central Asia based on the principles of equality, mutual benefit and respect for their interests. The statement said the nations expressed their intention to strengthen cooperation in order to create real opportunities for expanding economic cooperation, and ensuring favourable conditions for mutual free trade. They discussed promising opportunities and areas of cooperation in promoting mutual trade, attracting investments, innovations and technologies in key spheres of industry, energy, information technologies, pharmaceuticals and agriculture, education and training. They also highlighted the importance of concerted efforts to improve the investment climate and the market attractiveness of the region's economy, business opportunities of the Central Asian countries on the world stage. The statement said special attention was paid to the need to expand and establish direct mutually beneficial economic and cultural ties between the regions and cities of India and the countries o Express News Service By NEW DELHI: After the khichdi spectacle at Ramlila Maidan, the humble dahi-choora will become yet another desi cuisine that the BJP plans to dish out for connecting with the masses. On Sunday, the BJP unit in Delhi will be hosting a dahi-choora feast for the migrants from Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh to connect with the Purvanachali voters in an election year. Not that the party is hiding its strategy either. The BJP had earlier decided to hold four major rallies, including one for the Purvanchalis, as it wanted to counter any possible alliance between the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress. BJP leaders estimate that there are about 40 lakh Purvanchali voters who can decide the electoral fortunes of any party in Delhi. The party is looking to repeat its 2014 Lok Sabha performance when it won all the seven parliamentary constituencies in Delhi. Incidentally, the Purvanchalis had played a major role in the BJPs stupendous win in the MCD polls in Delhi in April 2017. Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari, the partys Purvanchali face, had a big hand in the saffron partys win. Purvanchalis are found majorly in Burari, Seemapuri, Gokalpuri, Karawal Nagar, Kirari, Badli and Nangloi Assembly segments of Delhi. Around 5,000 people have been invited to the dahi-choora feast, Delhi BJPs Purvanchal Morcha president Manish Singh said. Union ministers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have been invited in the programme that will be held at North Avenue. The event will be held to celebrate the Makar Sankranti festival along with the people from Purvanchal and the participants will be served dahi-choora. Makar Sankranti, which marks the end of the month with the winter solstice, holds a great significance for the people hailing from the two states from the Hindi hinterland. Tiwari will preside over the event. BJP MP Udit Raj, who represents the North West Delhi Lok Sabha seat, has also invited the people for Bihari dish litti-chokha in a programme at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts on Sunday. By Express News Service CHENNAI : Stoutly denying as baseless the allegations made by an editor of a Delhi-based news agency, regarding Kodanadu Estate robbery attempt in April, 2017, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Saturday said Those who have no guts to face us politically alone have resorted to such shortcuts. I lodged a complaint with State police on Friday night itself. Those who are behind this move will be brought to light soon. Answering queries of reporters, he said There is not an even an iota of truth in the allegations made against me. Ten persons were arrested in the robbery attempt at Kodanadu Estate and the trial is on in the court. The accused have appeared before the court 22 times in the past a year and a half. They did not make such allegations before the court, but now they are levelling some allegations with a view to diverting the case. The next hearing of the case is scheduled for February 22, the Chief Minister said and pointed out that many cases have already been filed against these accused on charges under POCSO Act, impersonation, cheating, theft and acting as mercenaries. Whether there is an effort to dilute the case against the accused or some persons who have political animosity against the AIADMK government tried to malign its image, will be found out, he said. Meanwhile, AIADMK IT wing secretary Raj Satyan filed a complaint with Chennai Cyber Crime Cell against the allegations by the editor. Cybercrime division of Chennai police has booked the editor of a Delhi-based news agency and five more people for releasing the documentary on a series of deaths in Kodanad Estate after the demise of former CM J Jayalalithaa. By Express News Service CHENNAI: As the stir over the documentary on the Kodanad deaths continues, opposition leader and DMK president MK Stalin, on Sunday, demanded a high court-supervised special investigation into the case and said Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami must resign. Stalin, speaking to members of the media, said the DMK had sought an appointment with the Tamil Nadu Governor and with the President to apprise them of the issue. "The CM has not properly responded to the allegations made by journalist Mathew Samuel. Instead, he has filed cases against the journalist, demanding his arrest," Stalin said. He added that the DMK would take the issue to the courts if a proper team was not constituted to investigate the allegations. Meanwhile, Law Minister, C Ve Shanmugam, in Villupuram, said the investigation into the murders that occurred two years ago was underway. He alleged that the entire documentary had been fabricated and the allegations made were all baseless. "We do not fear such allegations, if there is proof why should the journalist wait two years? He should have presented the evidence in the court where the case is underway," he said. "Let us carry out a CBI inquiry into the murders of Anna Nagar Ramesh and Sathique Badshah and ask if the opposition leader is ready to face a probe," he asserted. By Express News Service SAMBALPUR: A Space Technology Innovation Centre will be set up by Indian Space Research Centre (ISRO) in VSSUT-Burla here.In September last, ISRO Chairman K Sivan had announced that six Space Technology Innovation Centres will be set up across the country over the next one year. Following this, a group of VSSUT students sent a letter to Sivan requesting for a centre at their institution. On December 19, two representatives of ISRO visited VSSUT to check the infrastructure available in Burla for establishment of a space lab. They were also given a presentation on the sounding rocket developed by the students of the institution. Taking the infrastructure and enthusiasm of students towards space technology into consideration, ISRO agreed to establish the centre which will be named as Surendra Sai Space Innovation Centre. An amount of `50 lakh will be allocated by ISRO for the purpose and work would begin soon.ISRO has also agreed to extend support for developing and testing projects designed by the students through the centre. It also suggested VSSUT students to carry out the sounding rocket launches in future from its facilities in either Thumba, Shriharikota or Balasore.Students of Idea Club of VSSUT said they will meet Sivan in Bengaluru next month to present a paper on their other innovations. By Express News Service KOZHIKODE: Dubbing the 10 per cent reservation for economically weak in the general category as a jumla (gimmick) by the Centre, actor Prakash Raj said it has parallels with the note ban. He was speaking at a session titled The Silence That Swallows Us, at the Kerala Literature Fest(KLF) here on Saturday. The multilingual actor, who has been a vituperative critic of the BJP-NDA Government at the Centre, said, My worry is whether he (PM Narendra Modi) will implement the decision or not. I do not trust him. Raj, had earlier announced his intention to run as an independent from the Bengaluru Central LS seat in the general polls due this year. When it comes to the election manifesto, I do not want to sound arrogant like the others (candidates) to say I know what you want. The time has come now where citizens need to give manifesto to the leaders, he said. On Sabarimala, he said, They will call me anti-Hindu, but if a custom is not giving freedom to women, should wefollow it? The actor said the tinsel world does not excite him anymore. However, Im seeing a lot of male and female voices trying to sensitise people and the younger crowd have realised who the real heroes are, he said. Prabhu Chawla By During the heady days of post-Independence nation-building, Indian politics was defined as a battle of beliefs between ideologies and parties. Now, its no longer about following rules; politics means rule at any cost, having lost both purpose and perspective. The 17th Lok Sabha elections are barely 125 days away. However, statecraft is no more a committed competitive confrontation over providing an alternative model of governance, energized by social philosophy and economic ideology. Indian politics has ceased to be an art of possibility and desirability. This jaded instrument of democratic governance tempered by ideological missions and methods has degenerated into a devious device for snatching and retaining power. No leader talks from the heart anymore on creating a better, vibrant India. Their rhetorical pivot is either Congress-mukt Bharat or Modi-Mukt India. Power is being wielded to demolish institutions, opponents and civil conduct. Both national parties and regional outfits are out haggling in the poll market to win at any cost and pay for whatever it takes. The means justify the endgame as uninhibitedly unscrupulous unanimity ups the ante. With a captive audience and a docile organization, individuals are dictating the narrative, grammar, arithmetic and chemistry of national politics. When Mayawati meets Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow, the political tremors are felt in New Delhi. Maratha power player Sharad Pawar hosts a high tea for Rahul Gandhi and the BJP goes into a huddle over dinner. The additional vote quotient no longer dictates victory and defeat. Who meets whom and where is enough to cause turbulence in the political stock market. The theoretical electoral formulation, One plus one delivers the power of eleven, is still a digestible algorithm. The political probability of One plus zero plus zero equals 100 is also acceptable algebra. But ludicrous numerical equations are crashing the calculus to derive a preferred outcome. Clearly, a large number of powerful personages who own their own parties and caste bases are coming together to not just wallop the BJP but to ensure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not get a second term. To formulate a national strategy, they are collectively and individually exploring chances of forging state-level pacts against the saffron monolith. They firmly believe that Modi does not enjoy the Power of 100, with zero significant allies and zero regional satraps. The Opposition is confident that a regionally effective combination of 111 leaders will successfully trounce magnified Modi magic. Undoubtedly, a mahagathbandhan (great alliance) of caste and regional parties will have larger numbers than the largest political party in the world. With the latest figures on the official caste-wise distribution of votes missing, random numbers are being used by neo-psephologists to predict possible electoral scenarios. They are conveniently ignorant or ignore the significantly altered social and economic backgrounds of the new leadership that is taking over decision-making in every political party. Caste alone does not bring votespolitical manners and methods of leaders now determine the empathy of engagement. Akhilesh Yadav may be from the landed backward class, but his schooling, upbringing and demeanour make him more acceptable to other classes and castes than his father Mulayam, whose rustic ways and wrestlers bluster belong to another era. Mamata Banerjee is not from the elitist coconut class (brown outside but white inside) of West Bengal like many of her predecessors from the Communist Party and the Congress. Her rise from a small waterlogged house on an unfashionable South Kolkata street to becoming the darling of all communities and religions is a textbook case of the new poll barcode in action. In Bihar, the discredited and detained Lalu Prasad and undergraduate son Tejashwi enjoy the substantial patronage of a diverse social spectrum that includes their own caste, Muslims and socially and economically weaker sections, thanks to an antipodal aversion to the land-owning upper castes and other rich communities in the BJP. Dravidian inheritor Stalin became the chief ministerial favourite after his panoramically popular father Karunanidhi died, because the national parties are unable to locate a local leader with social re-engineering moxie. In Maharashtra, the 78-year-old Sharad Pawar is still the most sought after groom for any political marriage, with neither the BJP nor Congress having delivered a credible chieftain to match his machinations and methods. The BJP has no local leader to maul the might of Uddhav Thackeray or Pawar, who are the kingmakers in their state. However, the future of the BJP and its loquacious leader would be decided by the kinetics of mutuality, driven by the pull-and-push dynamics of just half a dozen individualsYadav, Mayawati, Mamata, Pawar, Thackeray and Naveen Patnaik. Of the 282 seats the BJP won in 2014, around 110 are from UP, Bihar, West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand. It won another 65 from Gujarat and Maharashtra. Even BJP insiders feel that it would be desperately difficult for the party to retain even half of these seats. It has pinned its hopes on the north-east. Amit Shah claims that the BJP will win 50 seats in the east as against its less than a dozen at the moment. There are only 25 parliamentary seats in the seven north-eastern states. Hence, Shah assumedly expects a rich ballot bounty from West Bengal and Odisha, with 73 Lok Sabha MPs. Even in 2014, the BJP, fuelled by Modis power-packed popularity, could garner just three seats. In Maharashtra, Pawar had captured only four seats, while the BJP won in 23 of the 24 constituencies it had contested in alliance with the Shiv Sena. In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP alone got 71 seats because the opposition was divided. In the new me, my and myself universe, May 2019 will see a contest between MY (Modi and Yogi) and MY (Maya and Yadav). Of the 131 seats in south India, the BJP must improve its tally in Andhra, Telangana and Karnataka while opening its innings in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Barring Karnataka, it is yet to launch a credible leader or slogan to generate pan-state acceptability. It may have more members than local parties, but it lacks an estimable leader who can take the fight to Chandrababu Naidu, Chandrashekar Rao and Pinarayi Vijayan. In the rest of India, its a donnybrook between Modi and Rahulnot between the Congress and the BJP. Between Jammu and Gujarat, the BJP has over 90 per cent MPs. It has 62 of the 65 seats from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. The Congress and its fellow travellers are confident that they would decisively dent the BJP in these states without being a gathbandhan component. The challenge to them will come from the formidable sanghathan (organisation) which Amit Shah has built over the past five years. With the ruling party empowered by cadre and cash, the Mahabharata between the mahagathbandhan and the sanghathan led by its lone general Modi would further fray the fabric of finesse in the finale. E-2019 is more about throwing out a person than bringing in another one in the numbers game. Add or ad-lib, do the math. T J S George By Two factors are preventing the Sabarimala conundrum from moving towards a solutionand the self-promoting politics of BJP-RSS forces are too unimportant to be one of them. Its true that Hindutva extremists political obstructionism drew attention in the early days through violence. Although their campaign was in the name of tradition, they had no compunctions about breaking traditions; a leader climbed the holy steps to deliver a speech. Only when they realised the counterproductive nature of their agitation did they move to Thiruvananthapuram with the idea of relay fasting, which, when we think about it, is a con game: One person lying in a bed for a couple of days without food and then going away to eat while another person takes to the bed, presumably after a hearty meal. The real reasons behind the crisis continuing in Sabarimala are, first, wrong readings of the issue of discrimination and, secondly, the tactlessness of the chief minister that defies common sense. Liberal opinion has taken a one-track position based on womens right to equality. According to them, a prolonged campaign was necessary in Kerala to let Dalits enter temples, and a similar campaign has become necessary to let women enter Sabarimala. This is a mixing of issues that have neither historical nor sociological similarities. Dalit oppression, which had reached sadistic levels in Kerala, was based on open, shameless, caste-based discrimination. It violated the basic tenets of any civilised society and had to be brought to an end. Sabarimalas no-woman stance is not a comparable case of discrimination. It is based on faith, tradition and, let it not be forgotten, a High Court ruling in 1991. The court remarked that the practice was there from time immemorial because women could not do the mandatory 41-day penance due to menstruation. The present court ruling has to be weighed against the previous one. More importantly, the no-woman tradition in Sabarimala runs parallel to no-man traditions in other temples. What is considered the largest annual gathering of women in the world takes over the main roads in Thiruvananthapuram to cook rice in earthern pots for the Goddess in Attukal temple at Pongala time. Men are barred from participation. In fact, the Attukal temple is known as the Sabarimala of women. Another revered pilgrim centre in Kerala, Chakkulathu Kavu, is also for women only. No one accuses these temples of discrimination against men and there is no campaign for mens equality. By the same token, no one should accuse Swamy Ayyappans temple of discrimination against women. The space for faith in our lives is legitimate. Thoe who do not have the faith should not hinder those who have. That is what makes a society free.As has been said before, It is natural for an old civilisation to have old practices. Justice is best when it recognises that there is no offence in the logic of the faithful being at variance with the logic of the rationalist. The second factor that keeps Sabarimala on the boil is Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayans haste in helping women to enter Sabarimala. The steps he has taken in the wake of the Supreme Court order and the statements he has made in a stop-me-if-you-can tone reflect a Communist leaders attitude rather than a chief ministers. As head of government, he could have gained much by keeping tempers low, ensuring an atmosphere of peace and giving time to various players to adjust to new concepts. But he rushed into action saying that he had no option but to carry out court orders. A week ago, he showed that he did have options. A court order allowed a Christian faction to conduct services in a disputed church. An opposing faction physically prevented this, but the state government did nothing to ensure that the court order was duly implemented. Evidently the Pinarayi government picks and chooses cases in which it wants to use the courts and cases where it likes to ignore the judiciary. Never has Kerala politics been in such a mess. Pinarayi is considered the strong man of politics, but there is no sign of his strength benefiting the state. He cannot even control the faction-ridden police force despite repeated reshuffling of top officers. The Congress is in Trishanku Swarga, not knowing who is its leader and who is not. In the melee, the BJP has outshouted others and matched communist murder politics with its own. These manipulators are only committing sacrilege in the name of the Lord of Sabarimala. Shankkar Aiyar By When Members of Parliament voted this week, they also, in a sense, certified the true state of the political economy. Indians were informed by the political class that India needs more reservations. The passing of the 124th amendment to the Constitution to enable expansion of reservations by a further 10 per cent deserves to be marked as a watershed moment in the journey of the republic. The fact that India needs more reservationsseven decades after Independence, in the 69th year of the republic, after 16 general elections, after 12 five-year plansto deliver on the promises made in the Constitution, in the Directive Principles of State Policy, is a testament to benumbed politics and the precarious state of public policy. The genesis of reservations in India was about inclusion. The Poona Pact, signed by Mahatma Gandhi and B R Ambedkar on September 24, 1932, led to the reservation of seats in Parliament for scheduled castes and tribes, initially for a period of ten years, later extended through six Constitutional amendments. On May 10, 1951, the first amendment to the Constitution in Article 15 allowed a policy for advancement of socially and educationally backward classes of citizens. The window created for scheduled castes and tribes triggered angst and agitation by other backward classes. On August 7, 1990, V P Singh implemented the Mandal Commission recommendations and included OBCs. On November 16, 1992 the Supreme Court validated the decision with a cap of 50 per cent. On January 9, MPs voted to enable 10 per cent reservation to economically backward classes (EBC). The expedition of expediency has reduced the argument of inclusion into the thesis of political privilege and exclusion. The cause and consequence of failures to address deprivation and denial is located in flawed crafting of policy. Consider, for instance, the approach to reservations to the economically backward classes. Submissions made in Parliament said the 10 per cent reservation will be available for any household earning less than Rs 8 lakh per year or owning less than 5 hectares. The definition seems to have been borrowed from the Supreme Court judgement on excluding the creamy layer of OBCs. In effect, the creamy layer of the OBCs is the poverty level of EBC! Little thought has gone into the varying purchasing power of Rs 8 lakh across India. Consider another matrix. The average per capita income of Indians is Rs 1.11 lakh per annumwith Bihar at Rs 38,860 and Karnataka at Rs 1.81 lakh. Again, is the value of 5 hectares uniform across India? Eligibility criteria across many programmes of the government reflect confusion. The Pradhan Mantri Aawas Yojana defines economically weaker section as households earning less than Rs 3 lakh per annum. Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is available to those living below the poverty line (BPL). Similarly, the free LPG programme, PM Ujjwala Yojana, is available to women from BPL households. Importantly, in rural areas, BPL is Rs 32 per day, and in urban areas it is Rs 47 per day. Juxtapose this with the proposed contours of economic backwardness under the proposed reservation. Ayushman Bharat, the health care programme, stipulates six conditions listed by the socio-economic caste census of 2011. Curiously, the National Food Security Act covers two-thirds of 24.7 crore households, while the Ayushman Bharat scheme covers 10 crore households. Is it that those who need subsidised food may not need subsidised health care? This brings us to the question of jobs in government. There is the saga of 2.25 crore persons, the population of Australia, applying for 90,000 railway jobs. And then there is the fact, raised by this column, of over 2.5 million posts lying vacant in governmentfor much-needed police personnel, schoolteachers, aanganwadi workers, and in health care and railways (http://bit.ly/1rEHhMo; http://bit.ly/2xw1gTD). For sure, many of these posts are in the states, but despite many of them being ruled by BJP, the vacancies continue (http://bit.ly/2x6frv5). What about more than 4.12 lakh posts lying vacant just at the Centre? And merely reserving posts doesnt help. In December 2018, Parliament was informed that 28,713 posts (8,223 for SCs, 6,955 for STs and 13,535 for OBCs) in the Centre were vacant as of January 2017. Much lather was generated for the creation of a judicial appointments mechanism by MPswithout any reference to the reality that over 26 per cent of the poststhat is one in four posts in the judiciary are vacant. The debate in Parliament was intense, with rhetoric about job creation, but lacked specifics. Forget the promise of 100 new cities. The May 2016 Urban Development Ministry directive to provide 3784 Census Towns with statutory urban bodies is yet pending -- do the math at 50 jobs per Census Towns to get a sense of apathy. The rise of cynicism and scepticism about quota politics is fuelled by poorly crafted policy worsened by apathy in implementation. The question is not whether there is a need to address asymmetry of circumstance and opportunity. The Constitution of India explicitly promises Equality of status and of opportunity. Sadly, however, good intent is never enough. The goal of empowerment has been waylaid by placebo politics which has presented quota policies as the answer to failings in governance. shankkar.aiyar@gmail.com Fayaz Wani By Express News Service SRINAGAR: I have two sons one has passed Class 12 and another Class 10. I wanted my sons to continue their education. However, my elder son was denied admission in colleges in Jammu and Kashmir as we are not citizens of the state even after living here for 72 years, said a West Pakistan Refugee (WPR) Ram Singh, who lives in Samporanpur, Kulia area in Jammu. Ram Singh has been living in border areas of Kathua, Samba, Reasi, R S Pura, Jammu, since 1947 after migrating to J&K following the Partition of India. According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, about 5,764 families comprising 47,215 persons migrated from West Pakistan in 1947 and settled in different areas of the state. The West Pakistan Refugees Action Committee (WPRAC) chairman Labha Ram Gandhi said in last 72 years the number of WPR families has gone up to 20,000, comprising about one lakh people. The J&K government rehabilitated them and gave them land (approximately 4 kanals per family) but without property rights. Since the refugees belonged to Pakistan, they were not granted Jammu and Kashmir citizenship. The WPRs are entitled to vote for parliamentary elections but cannot vote for Assembly or municipal or panchayat polls. We cannot get state government jobs and our wards cannot get scholarships, added Gandhi. Successive state governments have ruled out granting citizenship to WPRs. We are being denied benefits of J&K government schemes, said another refugee Sukhdev Singh.Last year, the state government had given identity certificates to WPRs on directions of the central government. The WPRs, he said, feel let down by BJP at the Centre. After the BJP came to power, we thought that we will be given rights but our hopes were dashed, Ram Singh said. The central government had last year approved a financial package for WPRs and announced a compensation of Rs 5.5 lakh to each family. About six months have passed, but we are yet to receive the money. The state government wants us to produce electoral rolls from 1951 and 1957 mentioning our names. Is it possible? asked Sukhdev. He also pointed out that amount sanctioned is meager. The central government should settle us in a place where we are treated as citizens of India and have equal rights, he said.With elections scheduled in the next few months, the refugees said they will now decide which party they will support. Last time, we had supported the BJP but they did not do anything for us, added Gandhi. By PTI LUCKNOW: Officials in Uttar Pradesh are yet to complete the relocation of stray cattle to shelter homes, even as the deadline set by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for shifting the bovines to proper facilities ended January 10. On January 3, the chief minister had given district magistrates about a week to ensure stray cattle across Uttar Pradesh are shifted to cow shelters with fences and veterinary care. He had issued the direction during a video-conference with the DMs, amid reports that stray cattle were destroying crops. Farmers in some parts of Uttar Pradesh had reportedly herded stray cattle into places like government schools to save their crops. "Work is going on at all the places on war footing. All the district magistrates (DMs) are adopting innovative ways and means as per their local needs to implement the policy," a senior official of the state animal husbandry department told PTI. He added that some of the innovative models that the department has come across are from Lalitpur, Etawah and Firozabad districts. "Under the Lalitpur model, a cow shelter is being run and managed with public partnership. In Firozabad, funds under MGNREGA have been used for this purpose, while in Etawah district, a good mechanism has been developed to identify stray cattle, and provision made with the help of locals to arrange for fodder," the official said, requesting anonymity. "Temporary shelters for cow have been identified at the district, village and panchayat levels. Work is going on in several areas to establish shelters," he said. On when all the cow shelters will become operational, the official said,"This is a continuous process, and every district has its own local needs. On an average, a shelter at the village or panchayat level will have a capacity to hold 50-100 cattle." The directives to the DMs were issued following a meeting on December 26 when Adityanath had directed the officials to make immediate arrangements for proper care of stray cows and asked the chief secretary to present recommendations within a week. On why cattle was being abandoned, the official said, "The problem is at places where there is low productivity, and the animals have turned out to be economically non-viable asset." "Why are buffaloes or goats not left by their owners. In Bundelkhand, there is 'anna pratha', (mainly during summer), in which farmers let loose their cattle, especially unproductive and pregnant cows, to graze freely," the animal husbandry official said. The chief minister had also told the DMs to ensure that farmers and others do not face any problems due to stray cattle. The district magistrates should impose fines on those who come to the shelters to claim their cows after abandoning them, Adityanath had directed. The Basti district administration has started a helpline for people to report stray cattle. "Many people narrate to me stories of stray cattle that have been left in the open by their owners. They also tell about how they (the cattle) escaped an accident or how they were hit by a speeding vehicle." "In these circumstances, the public does not know where to call for assistance," said Basti District Magistrate Raj Shekhar. The 'cattle conservation' helpline is 05542-245555, he said. The chief minister had also said funds allotted for cow welfare -- Rs 60 crore in 2017-18 and Rs 95 crore in 2018-19 -- should be used effectively. The state government also decided to levy a 0.5 per cent cow welfare cess on some public sector undertakings to help construct and maintain more cow shelters. Abhijit Mulye By Express News Service MUMBAI: Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray fired yet another salvo at the BJP on Sunday. "I heard words like 'patak denge' from someone. The one who can trounce Shiv Sena is yet to be born," Thackeray said while addressing a special mega session of Sthaniya Lokadhikar Sanstha, the employee union affiliated to Shiv Sena. It may be noted that BJP President Amit Shah, while deliberating on prospects of BJP-Shiv Sena alliance at a party meeting recently, had said that if allies go with opposition they would be trounced in the elections along with the opposition. Thackeray in public rallies or through his newspaper hadn't replied to Shah, which he did today. "Nobody is bothered about the nation. I am. I'm concerned about how the nation can prosper and hence I show hollowness in the things whenever I see them," Thackeray said. "I would even prefer a tamed government because I want my nation to be strong. Government which is least bothered about its people is only good to be burnt down," he added. He also cautioned his supporters to not to fall prey to any of the gimmicks played ahead of the election. "If people lose faith in you, they would burn you down. But, if you gain faith then you can even win battle at Panipat," Thackeray said while cautioning the ruling party. Thackeray also came down heavily against the BJP over the issue of Ram Temple. While countering the BJP claims that the Congress is delaying the Ram Mandir and that the temple would be built, Thackeray asked, "Just tell us how the Congress is hindering the temple construction. The party could not even get the post of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. How are they hindering the temple construction?" "Also tell us how the party plans to build the Ram temple when it's allies like Nitish Kumar of the JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of the LJP opposing it," Thackeray said. "We are raising the issue for the cause and not to earn votes out of it like the BJP that had been raising the issue before every election," he added. He also said, "There is no Ram and they are talking of RamRajya."The forthcoming election is not just important for you and me, but it would decide the fate of India as well as Maharashtra, Thackeray told his party cadres. Thackeray also attacked the government over its recent decision to grant 10 per cent quota for economically backward class. "If people who have less than Rs 8 lakh annual income are eligible for the quota, the government should do away with income tax on that much of income. If Modi does that I should say he has a 256-inch chest," Thackeray quipped. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday slammed the first Congress government in independent India for its inability to make Kartarpur Sahib as part of the Union during partition.The Kartarpur Sahib corridor, the ground breaking ceremony for which was recently held, would link Dera Baba Nanak Sahib in India to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib across the border. The latter is considered to be the final resting place of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikh faith. Referring to the Kartapur Sahib corridor, he said now devotees do not have to look at the shrine in Pakistan using binoculars and they could visit the place without visa using the corridor. "A mistake took place in August, 1947. It (the corridor) is an atonement of the mistake. An important place of our guru was only a few kilometers away. But it could not be made part (of India during partition)..the corridor is an effort to reduce the damage," he said in a veiled attack on the then Congress government. ALSO READ: Congress awarded killer of Sikhs during 1984 riots with CM post, says PM Modi in Punjab Guru Nanak passed away in Kartarpur on September 22, 1539. Interestingly, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, was among the dignitaries in attendance at the event to commemorate the 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh guru. Former Chief Justice of India JS Kehar and several Sikh leaders were also present at the event. Releasing a commemorative silver coin, of the denomination of Rs 350, at the event, the PM also came down hard on the Congress for the 1984 riots that took place following the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Guru Nanak is believed to have died in Kartarpur on September 22, 1539. Modi said be it Guru Nanak or Guru Gobind Singh, they have taught us to be on the side of justice. Following the path shown by them, the central government is trying to get justice for the people who suffered during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Modi said. "The central government is making efforts to get justice for the period of injustice which started in 1984. For decades, mothers, sisters, daughters and sons have shed tears, the law will deliver justice, wipe (their) tears," the PM said referring to the riots that took place following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi. ALSO READ: AAP, BJP, Punjab Congress leaders welcome Sajjan Kumar's conviction in 1984 riots case The PM released a Rs 350 denomination commemorative silver coin to mark the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. He described the founder of the Khalsa sect as a warrior and a poet who had immense knowledge of religious scriptures. Modi said the government now plans to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak across the country. Modi said while the event will be held various states and union territories, Indian embassies abroad will also organise programmes as part of the celebrations Guru Nanak was born on April 15, 1469, in Nankana Sahib, now Pakistan. Modi said, for the last four years, his government has been making comprehensive efforts to bring the cultural and knowledge heritage of India to the world. "From Yoga to Ayurveda, the country has succeeded in re-establishing its status. This work continues," he said. (With PTI Inputs) Prasanta Mazumdar By Express News Service GUWAHATI: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed Meghalaya Police to probe 1,200 cases of illegal quarrying across the coal and limestone-rich state. A three-member NGT committee, constituted in August last year to study the environmental aspects of rat-hole mining in Meghalaya, issued the direction. The committee, headed by Justice (retired) BP Katakey, is likely to conduct a field visit to the state by January-end. The NGT direction came even as at least 15 miners remain trapped in an illegal and flooded rat-hole coal mine in East Jaintia Hills since December 13, and are feared dead. ALSO READ: Meghalaya miners tragedy: Over 15 lakh litre more water pumped out, but still no significant drop in water level Ever since the incident, multiple agencies such as National Disaster Response Force, Coal India Limited, Kirloskar Brothers Limited and Odisha Fire Service have been engaged in pumping out water from the ill-fated mine to be able to reach the trapped miners. There has not been any breakthrough yet. Official sources said a team of scientists from outside the Northeast arrived in East Jaintia Hills on Sunday to share its expertise in the ongoing operation. There are illegal coal mines galore in Meghalaya's three regions Garo Hills, Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills. In 2014, the NGT banned rat-hole coal mining in the state after two Assam-based groups had filed a petition complaining that the acidic discharge from the unscientific coal mines was polluting a river downstream. Despite the ban, illegal coal mining thrives in the state. Coal in the state is mined following the primitive surface mining method, widely called 'rat-hole mining'. As part of this method, the land is cleared by removing vegetation. Subsequently, pits measuring from 5 to 100 sq m are dug to reach the coal bed. ALSO READ: Submersible robotic inspection firm joins Meghalaya mine rescue operation The rat-hole mining poses a serious threat, not just to rivers but also the caves. Meghalaya has the largest concentration of caves in the sub-continent. Most of the about 1,000 caves discovered so far are yet to be explored and mapped. The defenders of coal mining allege that the NGT ban snatched away the livelihood of tribals. They allege the ban was an infringement on their customary practices and right to life. The livelihood of many locals, traders and transporters depend on coal mining. By IANS Justice AK Sikri has been nominated by the Narendra Modi government to join the prestigious Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT) based in London. Sources in the Ministry of External Affairs said the decision regarding Sikri's nomination was made last month in view of his retirement on March 6, 2019, from the Supreme Court. The CSAT was established to meet the requirements of the Agreed Memorandum on the Commonwealth Secretariat (1964) which was revised by governments in 2005. In fulfilment of its obligations under the Agreed Memorandum, the UK government passed the Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966 which, among other things, gives the Commonwealth Secretariat legal personality and accords it certain immunities and privileges. The CSAT has a full complement of eight members comprising the President and seven others. The members are selected by Commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country. The members are appointed on a four-year term which may be renewed only once. Justice Sikri was a member of the three-member committee which voted to sack CBI director Alok Verma over corruption charges on January 8. ALSO READ: Alok Vermas sacking a very hasty decision: Justice AK Patnaik The three-member committee led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also had opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge, both of whom took opposite stands on the corruption charges levelled against the 1979 batch IPS officer Verma. Justice Sikri's vote tilted the balance as he sided with the government and the 2-1 decision led to the CBI director's removal. Born on March 7, 1954, Sikri was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge on April 12, 2013. Justice Sikri is second to Chief Justice Gogoi in terms of seniority and is due to retire from the Supreme Court in March. He will serve a four-year term on the tribunal which has eight members, including the president, from Commonwealth countries. (Online Desk) By PTI NEW DELHI: Justice AK Sikri Sunday withdrew his consent to a government offer to nominate him for president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). The government is understood to have recommended Supreme Court Justice Sikri's name for CSAT late last year. Sikri's consent was "taken orally for a vacancy" in the Commonwealth tribunal, sources said. Sources close to the second senior-most judge after the Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi told PTI that the consent was withdrawn Sunday evening when the judge wrote to the Law Ministry, seeking withdrawal of his consent. The insinuation linking the CSAT assignment with Justice Sikri's participation in the committee, which decided on the ouster of Alok Verma as CBI director, was wrong, they said. ALSO READ: Here's why Justice AK Sikri backed Alok Verma's ouster "Since this consent was taken in the first week of December 2018, it has no connection with the CBI matter for which he became the CJI's nominee only in January, 2019," the sources added. They said "a totally unjust controversy" has been raised by connecting the two. "True facts are that sometime in the first week of December 2018, Justice Sikri's consent was taken orally for a vacancy in Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT)." "CSAT is meant to decide service disputes between the employees of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Secretariat itself," sources close to Sikri said. Justice Sikri was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikajurn Kharge which decided on removal of Verma from the post of CBI Director. Sikri's vote proved crucial to remove Verma from his post as Kharge opposed the move strongly while the government was pushing for Verma's removal. On the CSAT issue, the sources said, "It is not an assignment on regular basis. There is no monthly remuneration. There may be two to three hearings in a year. There was no question of staying in London or at any other place." The government has not got back to him on the CAST assignment, they said. "The government had approached him for the part-time assignment last month. He gave his consent. The job required attending two to three hearing per year and came without emoluments," the sources said. Sikri wrote a letter to the competent authority in the government withdrawing his consent. "He (Justice Sikri) has withdrawn his consent, he has given no reasons. He just wanted to be away from the controversy," a source close to Justice Sikri said. The source said Justice Sikri "is a man of very simple nature" and he felt that there should not be any controversy over his appointment and that is why he wants to keep himself away from the controversy." Hitting out at the government, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said the Centre has a "lot of explaining to do" on the nomination of Sikri to CSAT. "The Government has a lot of explaining to do (sic)," Patel said in a tweet tagging a media report. Official sources said nomination of Sikri, who retires on March 6, was made last month following an internal process carried out by the Law Ministry. The External Affairs Ministry communicated to CSAT about India's nomination, the sources said. There was no reaction from either the Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Law and Justice on it. The Commonwealth Secretariat, established in 1965, plays the role of an arbiter in case of disputes among its 53 member-countries. The CSAT has a total of eight members, including its president. The members are picked up on the basis of regional representations. A CSAT member has a tenure of four years. Mukesh Ranjan By Express News Service RANCHI: Security Forces on Sunday gunned down a CPI (Maoist) during a gun battle which took place near Chhatupara under Shikaripara Police station in Dumka. Police claimed that there might also be some more casualties on the other side as several blood stains have been recovered at the encounter site. "So far one dead body has been recovered from the encounter site, but some other blood stains have also been recovered during the search operations which suggest that there might be some more casualties on the other side," said IG (Provisions) and Jharkhand Police Spokesperson Ashish Batra. Since the search operation is still on, anything could be said only after it is completed, he added. Batra further added that at least one AK-47 and 2 INSAS Rifles along other articles used by the ultras like backpacks and sleeping bags have also recovered during the search operation. "Acting on a tip-off that some of the Maoists had been spotted in the jungles of Chhatupara, intensive search operation was launched in the area. As soon as police team reached there, the Maoists started firing on them, who also retaliated and started firing during which one of the Maoists was killed," Batra said. The dead Maoist, according to sources, has been recognized as Shahdeo alias Tala Da having a bounty of Rs 15 lakh on his head. Tala Da, who was active in Dumka and other adjoining districts, was also wanted in the killing of the then Pakur SP Amarjeet Balihar in 2013. The rebels ambushed Balihar's cavalcade after triggering a landmine and fired indiscriminately on it at the Kathikund jungles, some 40 km from Dumka, killing the SP, his driver and three of his bodyguards. Namita Bajpai By Express News Service The Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samajwadi Party (BSP) tie-up may have come as a public put-downer to the Congress- looking to forge a pan-India Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance) against the BJP. But a deeper look at the tactical thinking of the alliance in politically critical Uttar Pradesh suggests a deliberate and well thought-out strategy for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.Why have Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati decided to stick together, leaving the Congress out of the formation despite the latter recent electoral showing in Hindi belt states? ALSO READ: SP, BSP announce tie-up sans Congress for Lok Sabha polls, to contest 38 seats each in Uttar Pradesh Some may say Mayawatis ire over Congress not tying up with the BSP electorally in the central Indian states could be one reason, and perhaps, retaliation of some kind. But to seal the alliance, closing the door on the Congress shows that beyond the turf war, there is the calculation of the SP-BSP combined vote share of close to 43 per cent equal to what the BJP commanded with the Apna Dal in 2014 being adequate in 2019 and the gambit, that by forcing a Congress-led third front, the SP-BSP could gain from shearing of upper caste votes from the BJP, leaving themselves ultimate gainers. Outwardly and publicly the SP-BSP combine has claimed that the Congress demand of at least 22 out of the 80 seats was difficult to spare in the face of continuously dwindling Congress vote shares over the last three decades. The Congress stood decimated with just two seats in the 2014 LS polls as against the 22 it won in 2009. In the 2017 UP Assembly elections, it shrunk to a new low of just 7 seats as against the 28 seats it won in 2012. ALSO READ: SP-BSP alliance for 2019 Lok Sabha polls: How sworn enemies became friends again The broader understanding on seat sharing of 38 seats each to SP and BSP, leaving 2 each to the Congress and the RLD, while leaving the burden on SP to spare some for potential partners like Apna Dal,was based on the 2014 LS results, the allies claim. Insiders say the haggling for seats by allies was high pitched and, protracted with both claiming the seats of 2014 where they came in second. By this formula, while the BSP had been placed number two on 34 seats and SP on 31, the Congress could claim no more than 6 while winning two Rae Bareli and Amethi which have been spared. We were demanding such seats which we had won in 2009. In fact, in 2014, no party could withstand the Modi wave and BSP was decimated. We were even ready to settle for 15-16 seats, but they were not prepared, said a Congress leader.If the Congress is upset, it is not showing as much beyond Abhishek Manu Singhvis terse History would judge them for not coming together on one platform to fight a common enemy, though the thinking within is that, On the back of recent successes in central India, UP in 2019 could be another turf for Congress to recreate more magic-if not wholly so. ALSO READ | SP-BSP alliance: Mayawati rakes up guesthouse incident of 1995 where she was held hostage Both the SP and the BSP strongly feel that seats to the Congress would have been a waste. For, in 2014, results demonstrated that even on the 22 seats it won in 2009, the Congress came a distant 5th on 3 seats, 4th on 11 seats, 3rd on 2 of them and 2nd on 6. Sparing those seats would have weakened the alliance to the extent of losing collective impact, accepted a BJP leader. The bigger worry, however, to the SP-BSP combine was their respective experience of a tie-up with Congress and the latters inability to transfer its vote to allies. SP, which tied up with the Congress for the 2017 Assembly polls, did not witness any Congress vote accruals on seats it fought as a partner, while even traditionally Congress votes shifted to the BJP. Despite a high-octane campaign slogan: UP ko yeh Saath pasand hai (UP likes this alliance), SP suffered severe reverses and slid to 47 seats from 221 seats it had won in 2012 buried in the Saffron tidal wave. BSPs own experience with the Congress has been no different as was demonstrated in the 1996 Assembly elections.Many SP-BSP insiders however believe, keeping the Congress out for 2019 is not entirely over grouses or shared experience, but part of a calculated, conscious strategy. There is no tit-for tat here. Its sheer maths and its practical. The Congress going alone without the OBC, BC and SC core of the SP-BSP for support, might present itself as a more attractive package to upper castes and keep them away from swinging to the BJP, said a SP legislator. Interestingly, Akhilesh is believed to have conveyed to the Congress leaders that it would be in the interest of the secular forces, if the party contested on its own.How far the proposed 10% quota for the poor among upper castes would help the BJP mollify the dominant upper castes which had openly shown their resentment against state governments during the recent elections in three states, is not certain. But it is widely believed in both SP and BSP top circles, that a Congress outside the alliance would be a better servant of the secular cause and placed better to cash in on the upper caste and middle class anger against the BJP.For the record, the Congress has not complained loud enough over the scenario it faces despite being dumped, as would have been expected of it! By PTI NEW DELHI: Much water has flown under the bridge since January 12, 2018, unprecedented presser by four senior judges of the Supreme Court who had raised a litany of problems, including the issue of assigning of cases, plaguing the apex court. The historical press conference was held by four judges Justices (retired) J Chelameswar, Madan B Lokur, Kurian Joseph and Ranjan Gogoi (current CJI). The then CJI Justice Dipak Misra has also retired. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi took over from Justice Misra, while the three judges-- Justices J Chelameswar, Kurian Joseph and Madan B Lokur -- have superannuated from service. November end last year saw allegations against Justice Misra, with one of the judges again dropping a bombshell saying "someone from outside controlled the then CJI". The judges had said the situation in the top court was "not in order" and many "less than desirable" things have taken place. Unless this institution is preserved, "democracy will not survive in this country," the four judges had said in a letter to the then CJI Justice Misra. ALSO READ: Justice Kurian Joseph should clarify basis of allegations against Dipak Misra, says ex-CJI The apex court, under the new CJI, has witnessed a spate of appointments to various high courts and the top court as well. Four new judges joined the top court in November last year, increasing its strength to 28 against the sanctioned 31. Recently, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended the names of Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, the chief justice of the Karnataka High Court, and Justice Sanjiv Khanna of the Delhi High Court for elevation as judges to the apex court. ALSO READ: 2018: The year crisis-hit Indian judiciary redeemed itself to glory The five-member Collegium, headed by Chief Justice Gogoi, took the decision at its meeting on January 10. Ejaz Kaiser By Express News Service RAIPUR: With dubious credentials a security personnel, who is native of Tamil Nadu, not just managed to get a job in another paramilitary forces in Chhattisgarh after being sacked by BSF, he sneaked out with AK-47 rifle of his fellow jawan and 30 cartridges from one of the worst Maoist-affected Dantewada to kill 5 persons in his home state. Constable Pandeeswaran G, 31, was dismissed from Border Security Force (BSF) in 2012 but surprisingly got himself positioned on the same rank in Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) at Bacheli (Dantewada), about 470 km south of Raipur. CISF units stationed in Dantewada to safeguard the installations of the mining giant National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC). On Friday last, a CISF constable Pappu Gogoi kept his AK-47 and 30 cartridges in a cupboard of the barrack and left for another assignment. The next day he found the weapon and bullets missing. The worried CISF officials carried out an extensive search but in vain. It was finally reported to the police. "We scanned the CCTV footages of barrack's main gate (the only entry-exit point) but couldn't find anyone taking away the weapon nor any civilian entering the premises. We saw four men moving out of the barrack with their luggage and proceeding on leave in the evening the same day. We then gauged the size of the bags they carried that can accommodate AK-47. They all had left for different places - Raigarh, Bhopal, Bilaspur. So we called them back and checked their travelling bags and suitcases. In one of the bags we found a cloth with small oil stain and on chemical testing found the mark was that of grease used in AK-47 rifle", Dantewada district superintendent of police Abhishek Pallava told the Express. After minutely examining the same bag another dress material had imprint mark of the rifle standing out in the luggage belonging to the security personnel (Pandeeswaran). "AK-47 being heavy weapon left an impression on the cloth and after physical verification, it matched with the weapon. The constable Pandeeswaran initially feigned ignorance but was trapped during our cross-examination and he finally admitted his crime", the SP added. Pandeeswaran was to leave for Tamil Nadu, but his location the other day was at Bilaspur district raising suspicion, as he wrote in an application of going to TN. The SP was also astonished over the CISF not verifying the past track records of the person before employing them for sensitive role. "We arrested him. His family in Tamil Nadu has an intense property dispute with some group of 5 people whom he wanted to eliminate with the stolen AK-47 weapon and returned Chhattisgarh where he perhaps also entered into some deal of selling the weapon and cartridges later. We need to find out who were the buyer: Maoists or any trader-", the Dandewada SP said. After taking away AK-47 rifle, he hid it somewhere near NTPC Sipat at Bilaspur where he was working from 2013-15. His bank passbook showed over 200 transactions in a year, which was quite startling, Pallava said and further expressed his apprehension that had he not been arrested Pandeeswaran may possibly get away with more modern weapons from the barrack in future. "We are tracing out his connections", the SP stated. Pushkar Banakar By Express News Service NEW DELHI: The turmoil in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) refused to die down on Saturday with aggrieved officers likely to move the Supreme Court against interim director M Nageswara Rao's orders to revoke his predecessor's actions. According to sources, the applicants plan to seek contempt of court actions against the interim director. Rao was appointed as the interim director of the country's premier investigation agency after a high-level selection committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Justice AK Sikri and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge sacked Alok Verma. ALSO READ | Modi made 'all efforts' to remove Alok Verma from CBI sensing probe into Rafale deal: Kejriwal Earlier, the Supreme Court had reinstated Verma but directed him to refrain from taking any policy decisions. In his first day in office after being reinstated, Verma had ordered the withdrawal of all transfers facilitated by Rao when he was first appointed the interim director in a midnight change of guard at the CBI in October last year. Verma had recalled 13 officers, including AK Bassi and SS Gurm who were part of a special investigation team that was probing corruption allegations against special director Rakesh Asthana in the Moin Qureshi case.On Friday, Rao had withdrawn the transfer orders and brought them back to be a part of the SIT. ALSO READ | Alok Verma resigns from service after removal as CBI chief by PM Modi-led committee The Delhi High Court on Friday had refused to quash the FIR registered against Asthana, his aide DSP Devender Kumar and alleged middleman Manoj Prasad and directed the agency to conclude its investigation in the case within 10 weeks. Anand S T Das By Express News Service PATNA: In a strong rebuff to ally BJP on the triple talaq issue, Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) national president Nitish Kumar on Monday said the government should have interact with the Muslim community to end the practice instead of interfering in their traditions. My partys suggestion on this (triple talaq) issue is that instead of interfering in such matters, there should be interaction. This would make Muslims think over the issue and rectify the tradition if needed, said Kumar while clarifying JD(U)s stand. JD(U) had refused to vote in favour of a Bill brought by the Centre in Lok Sabha recently seeking to make the practice of instant triple talaq punishable with imprisonment. After the bill was passed by voice vote in the Lower House, senior JD(U) leaders embarrassed the government by saying the regional party would stay away from voting on the Bill in Rajya Sabha, where NDA is in minority. READ: Triple Talaq is a matter of gender equality, Sabarimala is about tradition, says PM Modi They (BJP-led NDA government) have started a campaign to address the impacts of triple talaq on a lot of women. But it is a tradition of the people belonging to a particular religion. These people should be encouraged to dispel if there is anything wrong with this tradition, said Kumar after chairing the years first Lok Samvad public interaction programme. The JD(U) chief also reiterated his partys independent stand on the Ram temple issue, disapproving of any ordinance to ensure construction of the temple in Ayodhya. He firmly denied the Oppositions charge that he was practising a double standard while continuing to ally with BJP. The Ayodhya temple issue should be resolved either through mutual discussions or as per the courts verdict. The issue is with the court. If anything comes out of it through discussions, it would be good. Or else the courts verdict should be awaited. It is our stand from the beginning, said Kumar. Facing constant attacks from the Opposition parties for ditching RJD and Congress and allying with BJP despite Bihars mandate in 2015 being against the saffron party, Kumar asserted he was not practising double standards. When those who tore apart a copy of the ordinance were not ready to recognise corruption, it was difficult for me to stay with them. There is no question of me compromising, he said, referring Congress president Rahul Gandhi and RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav. In September 2013, Gandhi had angrily torn apart a copy of the then UPA governments proposed ordinance aimed at protecting convicted politicians from disqualification from elected office. The UPA government had brought the ordinance just days after Yadav was convicted in a fodder scam case for the first time. Kumar was referring to silence of Congress when BJP raked up the alleged corrupt dealings of Yadav and his family members in mid-2017, when JD(U) ruled Bihar in alliance with RJD and Congress. There is no double standard. If there is any of it, you (media) have it, said Kumar in a reply to journalists queries, stressing that he has zero-tolerance for crime, corruption and communalism. Shevlin Sebastian By Ten-year-old Manisha Nair (name changed) looked at the egg in Mauritian artist Arvin Ombikas hand and said, Yuck, how will I break it? Arvin smiled and said, I will help you. He gently broke the egg inside a container so that Manisha could see the yolk floating about. The yolk is inside a sac. Now, I will give you a needle. And you should prick it, instructed Arvin. Manisha poked the egg and the runny yellow yolk oozed out. Arvin quickly mixed it with paint pigments and added distilled water, to get rid of dust particles. The result is what is known as egg tempera. All the participants carefully followed what the artist was doing at the workshop that was held at the Kerala History Museum, Kochi. Egg tempera paintings were seen in the first century when the Egyptians would draw portraits on mummies. The rest of the tomb was decorated in encaustic paint, which is composed of beeswax, resin and pigment, says Arvin, adding, The popularity of egg tempera reached its peak during the early Renaissance period (14th to 16th century). Some of the most famous works in style of paintings are that of Italian artist Sandro Botticellis Birth of Venus, Giotto Di Bondones Madonna in Maesta and The Doni Tondo by Michelangelo. In Kochi, Arvin showcased two of his previous works30X20 cm portraits of two men looking at each other. Its not hard to tell that one is the artists self-portrait with thick black beard, curly shoulder-length hair and hairy chest. The other is a painting of his bespectacled friend Santanu Duttaa Rabindra Sangeet musician from Kolkata. Both the potraits have a golden halo around the head. The duo had met when Arvin was studying at Viswa Bharati University in Shantiniketan, while Santanu worked as an associate professor at the nearby Labpur College in West Bengal. We are in a quest to know our identity. Thats what I wanted to convey through the work, comments the artist. When asked about the advantages of using egg tempera, the 33-year-old is quick to say, If it is used properly, there is a shine on the painting, a sort of a satin finish. One does not then need to use varnish. Earlier, insects and cockroaches would attack the paintings. But now when cloves are put in the yolk, which lessens the smell of eggs, it keeps the insects away, says Arvin. The disadvantage of using egg tempera is that the yolk dries quickly, so one has to work fast. Also, for large paintings, one needs a lot of eggs. These factors led to the decline of the style. When oil was discovered in the 15th century, artists naturally opted for it. Arvin, who is based in Mauritius, is a fifth-generation Indian in the island nation. In the 18th century, his forefathers had migrated as indentured labourers from Arrah, Bihar. Today, of a population of 12 lakh, 70 per cent are of Indian origin, he says. The rest comprise the French (Mauritius was a colonial outpost from 1715-1810), some Britishers, again because of colonialism (1810-1968), a few Chinese, who came as labourers, and Africans, who also came from Madagascar and Mozambique as slaves. While studying at the Adolphe De Plevitz State Secondary School, Arvin opted for art and fell in love with the subject. Later, he secured an Indian Council for Cultural Relations scholarship to do his masters at Viswa Bharati University, Shantiniketan, from 2015-2017. Today, Arvin is a full-time artist. He has showcased his worksegg tempera, oil and acrylicat exhibitions in Mauritius, Italy and Canada. But he does admit that being an artist in Mauritius is not easy. Artists need to have a job so that they can finance their art. But, I guess the case is perhaps similar in many parts of the world, he laments. Sunita Raghu By Express News Service Northeast India is a biodiversity hotspot housing some of the most exotic plant and animal life. One such interesting spot is Arunachal Pradeshs Ziro. Recently, Indias first wild orchid conservation trail was inaugurated at Pange, 15 km from Ziro, which is the gateway to the Talle Valley Wildlife Sanctuary. It was organised by Ngunu Ziro, a community-based NGO set up in 2009. The founder Hibu Tatu believes in promoting sustainable development and manages five homestays in the region. Part of the income from the homestay is invested in community development. Ngunu Ziro has been promoting the rich culture of the Apatanis, one of the 26 tribes found in this region, by documenting their homes and celebrating their festivals. In March, we celebrate the Myoko festival which focuses on themes of fertility and prosperity. The Dree festival in July is celebrated to ensure a bountiful harvest by offering prayers to the Gods. During Dree, folk songs are sung along with dancing and during this time we get a lot of tourists, says Tatu. Ziros geographical location makes it a haven for butterflies with some of them endemic to the region. To promote butterfly tourism Tatu has been conducting Butterfly Meets for the last couple of years. The fifth edition of the Ziro Butterfly Meet was held at Yazali in September 2018 with the Butterfly Man of India Isaac Kehimkar joining us. The most important butterflies of Ziro are the Kaiser-e-hind, Bhutan Glory, Brown Gorgon and Himalayan Scar Evening Brown with the first three butterflies never being found together anywhere, except in Ziro, says the 61-year-old. The orchid trail has been evoking great interest. The inspiration came from a book, The Orchids of Ziro: Arunachal Pradesh, authored by Naresh Swami. We cooperated and helped the authorities set up the trail, which was inaugurated by Arunachal Pradeshs Forests and Environment Minister Nabam Rebia. There are 150 varieties of orchids to be found in this 1.5km trail, which has become a great trekking spot, explains Tatu. A blog about life under, and resisting, a dictatorship Anuja Chandramouli By Express News Service History is oftentimes an unjust mistress choosing to forget or ignore those who deserve to be cherished or at the very least remembered. World War I fought between imperialist powers anxious to annexe more chunks of the planet for themselves irrespective of whether they called themselves the Central or Allied Powers, truly upped the ante when it came to large-scale carnage. By the time the unmitigated horror of it all came to an end, more than 16 million were dead. Many a tome or movie has been devoted to the heroics of the Allied forces for having successfully held on to their ill-gotten gains and having put themselves in a prime position to satiate their gluttonous appetite for more land and power, but not much is known about the contribution of the 1.5 million (not counting those who volunteered or were coerced into serving) Indian soldiers who fought in the Great War and left their own indelible prints in the sands of time. George Morton-Jack in The Indian Empire at War puts in painstaking effort into piecing together the lives of these intrepid warriors who lived in a tumultuous, topsy-turvy age where they were asked to fight for democratic ideals by their masters who had denied them and their countrymen the same. The book focuses not only on the nitty-gritty of an Indian soldiers personal reality and the cultural as well as practical factors which motivated him to pick up arms on behalf of the loathed imperial overlords but also beyond and into the decision-making processes of higher forces at play in a deadly game of bloody conflict. This historians account is thorough and painfully blunt which is readily apparent when he discusses the mind-set of the Indian soldiers who pulled their triggers against peaceful protestors in the infamous Amritsar Massacre simply because General Dyer and the British told them to. It is a chilling example of men who are trained to obey and kill because they have been taught to put aside principles and feelings when in uniform. The puzzle of Indians who fought and killed other Indians is hard to unravel despite the divided identity of the nation and an even harder reality to stomach. The indictment of British rule in India is readily apparent given that few practised what they preached when it came to denouncing tyranny. For all their high-flown rhetoric of fighting the Great War for all the right reasons, the British to ensure their primacy over Indians as their racial inferiors subjected them to constant belittlement and abuse while practising segregation and denying the Indian troops their basic rights such as forcing them to live in hovels, depriving them of decent medical care and rations, while of course their British counterparts were living it up in style and given double their wages. Of course, the Indian troops despite years of loyal service could not expect to be promoted to a rank that meant anything or given their own command. Worse, they were not allowed to fight white armies in case they got new-fangled ideas about their place in the racial hierarchy. There is a balance to the narrative which includes anecdotes about the bravery as well as cowardice evidenced by Indian troops and a fascinating tale of two brothersMir Dast and Mir Mastone of whom remained loyal, while the other, who had won a medal for bravery, was persuaded to desert when a holy Jihad was declared by the Turkish Sultan. Even among the British officials, care has been taken to document actions that were fair, decent as well as disgraceful. Ultimately it is a stirring tribute to those troops whose achievement was bearing their humiliations at the hands of the British with such strength in the face of adversity and not letting go of their humanity. By Express News Service NEW DELHI: An international narcotics cartel operating in Delhi and neighbouring states has been busted with the arrest of two men from Afghanistan and Ivory Coast, police said on Friday. Deputy Commissioner of Police, Special Cell, PS Kushwah said his team has recovered 8 kg heroin valued at R32 crore from the two. While Asadullah, 27, an Afghan national, was arrested on Tuesday from Malviya Nagar, Moussa Zie, 30, an Ivory Coast national, was nabbed on Wednesday near Max hospital in Saket. Asadullah told police that he used to bring consignments of heroin to Delhi from Afghanistan and hand them over to many African nationals, including Zie. He further confessed to bringing two consignments of heroin in his stomach. By Express News Service CHENNAI: Now, residents of Chennai can pay their property tax on the Namma Chennai App, a press release from the Chennai Corporation said. Users can pay using net banking, debit/credit card, RTGS/NEFT and UPI options. Users can save their property tax number in their profile and view the outstanding amount by either providing their registered mobile number or entering the bill number and specifying their respective zone and division details. The integration of the property tax option is the latest addition to the app, which allows users to procure birth and death certificates and view the status of property, professional tax and trade licences. The app also allows the submission of complaints. It is learnt that the app has received 18,735 complaints since its introduction and has benefitted over 48,212 users. The app is available on both Android and iOS platforms. Rashmi Belur By Express News Service BENGALURU: Parents looking to get their kids admitted in private schools in the city are having a tough time, as a majority of the schools are not taking in new admissions to Class 1. Many schools have a policy to give priority to their own students, who start at the nursery level and then go on to Class 1. Some schools even insist on parents admitting their child to the kindergarten level, just so that they can promote them to Class 1 the next year. This is despite the fact that the childs age is appropriate for Class 1, as per the age defined and fixed by state Department of Primary and Secondary Education. Shilpa Prashanth, a parent, told The New Sunday Express, I sent my son to a montessori school nearby where he completed both LKG and UKG, and is now eligible to get admission to Class 1. However, at least five schools we approached denied admission, saying they already have enough students. Meanwhile, another parent in the same situation, suggested that schools should set up another section for students from other schools. Let them promote their own students, we have no objection, but they can also open a new section for children who seeks admissions from other schools, the parent said. Parents said this policy followed by private schools is inconveniencing them, and they end up admitting their kids into an average school. I tried at least seven schools in south Bengaluru, but none of them were willing to admit my child. Finally, I was forced to put my child in an average school, said one parent. Meanwhile, schools are also justifying their policy, saying that if a parent wants a seat at a school of their choice, then they must admit their children right at the entry-level. Mansoor Ali Khan, board member, Delhi Public School, said, At most leading schools, the entry level is LKG, and obviously those who are in UKG will be promoted to Class 1. If at all parents want the same school then they should think of putting kids directly from the entry-level. He further said that parents should admit their kids from entry level instead of putting them in a montessori school, as the fee was equal in both. D Shashi Kumar, general secretary, Associated Management of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka, said, Schools should admit kids according to age prescribed by the government. And parents should admit children from entry level if they need only that school. By PTI MUMBAI: Given the rising challenge to the free trade, Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said Sunday that while the aim is to open up more for free trade and make WTO more efficient, the government is also keen to work on bilateral trade with more nations. "One of the big challenges before the world is protectionism. We as a country are supporting open trade with all the countries but we also want to develop bilateral trade agreements with many countries. For each of the geographies we are keen to have free trade agreements with the countries in Latin America, Africa, Southeast Asia," he said, adding that New Delhi already has trade pacts with ASEAN and some other countries. Addressing a CII event, he also said there has been an ongoing discussion with Sri Lanka for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). For countries in Africa like Angola, he said such association can be in the form of technical assistance, financial assistance and a trade agreement which will not initially have any ambitious targets but will be a win-win for both the parties. Prabhu, who is also the Civil Aviation Minister, said the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have decided to use India as a base for their food security. "This is happening at an interesting time because we just had made a policy for agriculture exports which has identified food items that can be exported," he said. He informed that this year the country would be producing 290 million tonnes of farm produce as per advance estimates, and 305-310 million tonnes of horticultural items. "In the export policy, we have decided to remove all restrictions on organic products and processed products. Both the UAE and Saudi want to invest in both organic as well as food processing industries. This will be a win-win situation for the UAE, Saudi, and other GCC countries but also for us, particularly for our farmers, who want better prices to their produce," he said. Saudi Arabia has said it can make an investment in logistics, food parks and make a sector-specific investment in food processing, Prabhu said. The farm export policy will go a long way in reducing wastage, the minister said. On the UDAN policy, he said the government will announce its phase III in the next few days, which will also focus on air cargo. On January 15, the government will be announcing the first air cargo policy, Prabhu added. The UAE and Saudi Arabia are keen to invest in all these infrastructure initiatives, he said. By Express News Service MUMBAI: The ambitious 60 million tonnes a year refinery project the largest at a single location planned on the Konkan coast in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra may have seen the land acquisition plans put on hold following political opposition and local protests, but the management of Ratnagiri Refinery & Petrochemicals (RRPCL) are carrying out the groundwork be it looking at designs, technology and configuration, or being engaged in building public opinion around the Konkan villages to make the refinery possible. Around 80 per cent of the overall land (15,000 acres) earmarked for the refinery are not under cultivation, and 35-40 per cent of land owners have already given their consent for land acquisition, claimed B Ashok, CEO, RRPCL. He said the state government is extending full support and that he is confident of starting the work as per schedule by 2020. I am pretty confident that this is the best place, he said, commenting on the location. Unlike refinery projects in the past, when Indian refiners had to scout for global partners for investment, the Ratnagiri refinery project has started with two strong global leaders in oil industry as partners: Saudi Arabias Aramco and UAEs Adnoc have signed up to pick up 50 per cent stake in RRPCL. Public sector oil companies such as IOC, BPCL and HPCL hold the rest 50 per cent. Konkan farmers have also been concerned about anything that would impact the world-famous Alphonso mangoes that grows in the region. I have promised hundred thousand trees in the refinery complex, Ashok said. The management is also trying to sensitise the villagers on the economic benefits of a `3 lakh crore project. To show them how the refineries have transformed locations, villagers from the Nanar area were taken to Panipat a month ago, he said. There are 14-villages with 850 families in the project area, and the consensus building exercise is on. Recently, former BJP MLA from the area, Pramod Jathar, said the step to stop land acquisition this time is aimed at buying a temporary truce with the Shiv Sena, the most vocal opponent of the project. He expects that the project would gain pace once the land acquisition package is announced. Not only is BJPs coalition partner opposing the project, they are also joined by the opposition Congress and NCP. Our refining capacity right now is at par with demand, leaving aside the export-oriented refinery capacity. We need greenfield refineries, said Ashok. India plans to more than double its refining capacity to 533 million tonnes a year by 2040, considering the pace at which the fuel demand is growing as well as petrochemical product demand. Most of the public sector refineries are also looking at integrated refinery projects refinery-cum-petrochemical complex. Regional Traders threaten to withdraw from Tripura border haat A view of Kamalsagar border haat along Indo-Bangla border. (Northeast Now) KAMALSAGAR, Jan 13 (Agencies) | Publish Date: 1/13/2019 12:14:16 PM IST Forty-nine Indian traders at the local border haat here have threatened to withdraw unless their demands for outsider participation is conceded. According to Northeast Now, under the revised MoU by Indian and Bangladesh governments, outsiders residing beyond a 5 km radius from border haats are not allowed to enter and buy from the four border haats now existing on the India-Bangladesh border. Since populations in this radius are limited and already have access to local products sold at the border haats, sale has plummeted since the system of outsiders by guest passes were discontinued. When entry by guest passes was allowed, each vendor was selling products worth 40000 to 50000 Indian rupees per day. They ensured a decent profit for us but now sales are down to 5000 rupees a day and we can barely cover costs, said Manik Laskar, a trader at the Kamalsagar border haat in Sepahijala district of Tripura. On behalf of the 49 Indian traders here, he submitted a list of demands to Sudhakar Shinde, SDM of Bishalgarh, under whose jurisdiction the border haat is located and who is on its management committee. Unless outsiders with guest passes are allowed, our sales will remain at the poor current levels and we just cannot continue. This border haat is a great idea to develop the economy of frontier regions of both countries but its purpose stands defeated if entry is limited to people within 5 km radius, Laskar told Northeast Now. The leader of the 25 Bangladesh vendors at Kamalasagar border haat, Mustafa Haroon, supported the Indian traders wholeheartedly. Our condition is worse because our goods have less demand on Indian side than their goods on our side and because there is much less population on the Indian side, he told Northeast Now. But Haroon said they are not yet threatening withdrawal and will wait for the new government in Dhaka to take a call on their demand. SDM Shinde told Northeast Now that our hands are tied by the revised MoU provisions. He said the border haats have not only boosted border trade and improved people-to-people relations but also curbed smuggling. But the border haat arrangement cannot be expanded in ambit too wide because it will impact on government revenues, Shinde told a group of experts from CUTS of India and Unnayan Samanay of Bangladesh now conducting a joint study on the border haats. ADB expert Pritam Banerjee contested Shinde, pointing to the taxes that have already been paid on the local products. CUTS executive director Bipul Chatterji told Northeast Now that the point raised by traders was crucial to the success of the border haats. We would closely examine these issues, he said. The withdrawal threat comes at a time when seven more border haats are proposed on the Tripura-Bangladesh border. International Brexit: Theresa May warns of catastrophic breach of trust London, Jan 13 (IANS) | Publish Date: 1/13/2019 12:24:30 PM IST British Prime Minister Theresa May on Sunday warned that a failure to deliver Brexit would be a catastrophic and unforgivable breach of trust in our democracy. Writing in the Sunday Express newspaper, May pleaded with lawmakers to back her Brexit deal in Tuesdays vote, the BBC reported. Not doing so risks the UK leaving the European Union (EU) with no deal or Brexit not happening at all, she said. May said the House of Commons vote on her Brexit withdrawal deal would be the biggest and most important decision that any MP of our generation will be asked to make. The Prime Minister is widely expected to lose the vote on the withdrawal agreement she reached with the EU, which some ministers have said will lead to Brexit paralysis. May said: When you turned out to vote in the referendum, you did so because you wanted your voice to be heard. Some of you put your trust in the political process for the first time in decades. We cannot - and must not - let you down. Doing so would be a catastrophic and unforgivable breach of trust in our democracy. So my message to Parliament this weekend is simple: It is time to forget the games and do what is right for our country, May said. The UK is due to leave the EU on March 29 automatically, whether the deal is passed by British lawmakers or not. On Monday, the debate on the vote on Mays deal will resume for a fourth day. The vote had been scheduled to take place in December but was called off at the last minute by the Prime Minister, who was facing almost certain defeat. Last week the government was defeated twice in the House of Commons on Brexit votes. In the first, lawmakers backed an amendment aimed at making it more difficult to leave the EU without a deal. While in the second they voted for the government to come back to the House of Commons with a plan B for Brexit within three days should it lose Tuesdays vote. WALLINGFORD The Calare Properties application to build two warehouses on the former Bristol Myers-Squibb site is part of a growing trend in smart warehouses to support the rise of e-commerce. The 180-acre Research Parkway site is among the last large parcels of land along the I-91 corridor. In fact, some experts describe it as developer gold to accommodate the need for distribution warehouse operations between the Greater Boston and New York metropolitan markets at less cost. With regard to sites like Bristol-Myers, I would say that the northern New Haven industrial market, and all of Connecticut for that matter, has seen demand for industrial product bolstered by the way retail goods are bought and sold, Timothy Mitchell, vice president of CBRE Valuation and Advisory Services Group, said in an e-mail. The states industrial market is beginning to adapt to changing consumer behaviors, Mitchell said. In North Haven, the former Pratt & Whitney manufacturing facility was demolished for a new 855,000-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center. Just north of that in Middletown, the former Aetna office campus was razed to build a 525,000-square-foot Fed Ex Ground distribution hub. With e-commerce sales forecast to grow over the next several years, and given Connecticuts proximity to consumers, we are projecting demand for new sites and high quality industrial real estate to increase over the next several years, Mitchell said. Calare Properties bought the former Bristol Myers-Squbb campus in March for $5 million with an initial plan to lease the space to another bio-pharmaceutical user. But Calare found few takers in an industry that is changing how it conducts research and development, with a desire to be linked to universities and medical hubs. After finding no tenants, Calare saw the propertys future in flex warehouse space. The company altered its initial plan and submitted a proposal to demolish the former campus and build two warehouses one at 600,000 square feet and the other at 400,000 square feet to accommodate emerging companies looking to emulate Amazons operation. The ceilings would be 38 feet high, within the industry standards to accommodate automated production. It will also have some office space and bio-tech space if needed. Wallingford, like the rest of Connecticut, has a glut of office space, said Dennis Ceneviva, a land use attorney representing Calare during the regulatory process. Why would you want to develop more? Ceneviva and others dont worry about the overdevelopment of warehouses, confident retailers will need more storage and shipping operations. He points to local automotive dealer and developer John Orsini, who built a distribution center for Best Buy not far from the Bristol-Myers site on Northrop Road. As (Town Planner) Kacie Hand said, when the town designed this as an IX zone, one of its features was the proximity to the highway, Ceneviva said. Certainly this region is prime. Calare Properties is no stranger to warehouse and distribution deals and large returns on investment. Founded in 2003 in Hudson, Massachusetts, Calare has expanded its reach into New Hampshire and Connecticut. The company is a private real estate manager and operator focused on acquiring warehouse, manufacturing research and flex/office commercial real estate. Earlier this year, it had acquired 17.5 million square feet of properties representing $800 million in transactions. The Bristol-Myers property acquisition included 915,000 square feet of research and development and office space. There was no market for a company to take a building of 1 million square feet, said Jim Manley, Calare vice president of economic development. Knowing that it probably wasnt likely to get someone to come in and take that building, the other path was an industrial use. He also said theres no site on (Interstate) 91 with 84 acres of buildable land that close to the expressway. Calare has owned several properties in the state, including the Lego campus in Enfield. Last year it bought a 175,000-square foot warehouse and secured a 10-year lease with one of the worlds leading suppliers of chemical additives and measuring instruments to be the sole tenant. The real estate and location is prime for a growth industry, Manley said about Research Parkway. Things are changing so quickly, the way people buy and sell is what makes e-commerce attractive. We react to what people want. If the Planning and Zoning Commission approves the project, Manley said he expects to fill the buildings with tenants similar to FedEx and Amazon. But negotiating with tenants is difficult until Calare gets its permits, he added. You cant leave this property empty, he said of the Bristol-Myers proposal. Its zoned industrial. When asked to change something, weve never said no. We want to make it work. If this can be completed it can be a real asset to the community. mgodin@record-journal.com 203-317-2255 Twitter: @Cconnbiz SOUTHINGTON Complaints of racial bullying at a recent Board of Education meeting surprised and disheartened school officials, who said speakers made it clear there was work to be done on the issue. A group of residents, many of them minorities, said during a school board meeting Thursday that children of color have experienced differential treatment and racism for years, including racial slurs, from white classmates. They also complained of unequal discipline and questioned the lack of diversity among school district staff, some pointing out the board itself has no minorities. School leaders said theyd consider changes proposed by members of the Southington Women for Progress group, but defended the districts discipline process as fair. The meeting Thursday was the first since a Snapchat video circulated online last month in which a Southington High School student threatened black students. The 17-year-old student was charged with breach of peace by police. His case has been sealed due to his age. Any discipline he may have received from the school district was not released, with school officials citing state and federal confidentiality laws. Students who spoke Thursday said they were frustrated not knowing whether those who had racially bullied them suffered any consequences. Board Chairman Brian Goralski said discipline was a complicated matter. Consequences can depend on the student, with special needs students facing different consequences for an offense than typical students. School administration also has more information about a situation through video surveillance and multiple interviews than a parent. Theres a method thats fair thats used by the administration at all levels, Goralski said. We do the best we can with the facts and evidence before us. A greater percentage of Southingtons minority students faced discipline in the previous school year than white students: In the previous school year, 3.8 percent of white students received at least one suspension or were expelled, compared to 14.1 percent of black students and 7.5 percent of Hispanic students. Its an issue that people brought up. I dont know where we stand with that, School Superintendent Tim Connellan said. We have to look at everything. According to state data, the district in the previous school year was 82 percent white students, 8 percent Hispanic, 4 percent mixed race, 3.5 percent Asian and 2 percent black. The number of minority students has been increasing in recent years and the number of white students declining. Southington is not unlike many other towns in regards to discipline rates and low numbers of minority educators, Connellan said. A report released in April by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that white students represent 50.3 percent of enrollment nationwide, but account for just 32.5 percent of those suspended. Conversely, black students account for 15.5 percent of enrollment but 33.8 percent of those suspended. The GAO report also found Hispanic students and students with disabilities also account for disproportionate rates of suspension, and that boys are more likely to be suspended than girls. Some said hiring more minorities could help, but Connellan said black and Hispanic teachers often gravitate toward districts with more minorities, leaving other school districts with predominantly white staff. We do everything we do so that we can have the very best staff in front of our students, Connellan said. Thats our primary concern. We hire the best possible people we can, regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion. Cheryl Hilton, a local real estate agent and member of Southington Women for Progress, had five proposals for the board that included training for teachers to realize their own biases, a less Eurocentric curriculum and an equity audit by a third party. Hilton had another group member read the proposal to the board on Thursday, saying that the board wouldnt listen to someone brown like herself. She said Friday that the boards response was predictable and questioned whether anything effective would be done. Hilton said shes been bringing up these issues to the board for years. Has anything meaningful been done? she asked. The answer is no, in my opinion. She also said the overall arching theme was that (minority students) dont feel valued and they dont feel safe. Goralski said safety was the districts first priority and that leaders would develop a plan to make students feel heard and safe. Connellan said the stories of racism experienced by students horrified him. Theres just no excuse for that, he said. That shouldnt be. Nobody should experience that. Connellan said he was encouraged by the communitys rejection of the video posted to social media last month, as well as the nature of most Southington residents. We do have really, really good staff and we have good families, he said. That gives me hope. jbuchanan@record-journal.com 203-317-2230 Twitter: @JBuchananRJ Major League Baseball has apparently decided that there are 42 too many minor league baseball cities and, according to Commissioner Rob Manfred, after the 2020 season, that will change. There will be a new agreement between the majors and the minors signed and a lot of cities will lose their The city council has a good plan. The narrower lanes will slow traffic. Narrower vehicle lanes will make it too difficult for larger vehicles. A separate pedestrian solution should be constructed away from any vehicular traffic. Widening the sidewalk could work best if a barrier is put up between the sidewalk and vehicular traffic. Vote View Results The outgoing IDF chief of staff has acknowledged that Israel has been bombing Syria on a near-daily basis for years, in a massive military campaign allegedly aimed at degrading Tehrans supposed military buildup in the region. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) rarely acknowledge striking specific targets in Syria but its outgoing chief of staff just openly confessed to running a large-scale bombing campaign in its neighbors territory. In 2018 alone, Israel dropped around 2,000 bombs on alleged Iran-linked targets, Gadi Eisenkot told the New York Times in his final interview as chief of staff of the IDF before he retires next week. We struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit, Eisenkot stated, confessing to carrying out strikes on a near-daily basis. Also on rt.com Netanyahu praises Israeli air force after reckless Christmas raid on Syria While the Syrian government repeatedly accuses the Jewish state of constantly violating its sovereignty and aiding the terrorists by their raids in the countrys airspace, Eisenkot claimed the Israeli actions are justified and that, anyway, neither Damascus nor Tehran can do anything about it. We have complete intelligence superiority in this area. We enjoy complete aerial superiority. We have strong deterrence and we have the justification to act. Despite the Lieutenant Generals claim about a moral high ground in the battle against the perceived Iranian threat, the Israeli Air Force was caught in several reckless and sometimes lethal actions during their missions in Syria. On Christmas Day the Israeli jets used two civilian aircraft in flight as cover to engage targets in Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said, noting that the IDFs F-16s flew in as civilian jets were landing at Beirut and Damascus airports. Also on rt.com Israels airstrikes on Syria threatened 2 civilian flights landing in Beirut & Damascus Russia While a tragedy involving civilian airliners was averted last month, similar Israeli tactics led to horrific consequences before. On September 17, Israeli jets put Russian Il-20 recon plane into the path of Syrian air defense interceptor missile after failing to give Moscow enough warning of a strike on Syrian targets. Also on rt.com Netanyahu praises Israeli air force after reckless Christmas raid on Syria The Israeli tactics resulted in the deaths of all 15 Russian crew on board and compelled Moscow to supply Syria with S-300 missile defense systems. Russian also warned that, in the event of any threat to its servicemen deployed in the country, it will jam radio and satellite signals from military aircraft approaching from the Mediterranean, which seemingly forced Israel to slightly adjust its bombing routine and routes. Also on rt.com Israel engages air defenses to intercept anti-aircraft missile from Syria IDF Yet, despite repeated dangerous behavior in the air, Israel continues to intrude in Syrian airspace under the the campaign between wars military strategy which envisions a continuous and lengthy engagement to degrade an enemys military capabilities. Developed by Eisenkot, the tactic was given the green light by the cabinet in January 2017. Since then Israel carried out thousands of sorties, striking over 1,000 Iranian targets. Also on rt.com Israeli defense minister met with Syrian rebels, former IDF commander reveals in a first Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! Donald Trumps reluctance to provide unfettered access to his conversations with Vladimir Putin has upset nameless American officials, the Washington Post has revealed. The US president dismissed the story as absurd and offensive. According to the revered paper, Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his face-to-face conversations with Putin. During a meeting with the Russian leader in Hamburg in 2017, Trump even purportedly confiscated the notes of his own interpreter, who was then instructed not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials. Various (and of course nameless) US officials have now apparently complained to the Washington Post about how theyve been left in the dark about five conversations that Trump had with the Russian leader, colorfully described by the newspaper as one of the United States main adversaries. The storys thinly veiled assumption is of course that Donald Trump has used his handful of private meetings with Putin to receive secret instructions from Moscow impose new sanctions on Russia, bomb Syria, send lethal weapons to Ukraine, shred the Iran deal and missile treaties, and so forth. The creatively framed story suffers from a few other inconvenient plot holes. The super-secret meeting with Putin in Hamburg was also attended by then-secretary of state Rex Tillerson. Does this mean that Tillerson is also a deep-cover KGB agent? Tillerson even released a readout after the meeting following completely standard, but apparently unsatisfactory protocol. The self-contradictory report goes on to explain how, as part of Trumps obsession with ultra-secret Putin pow-wows, the president generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with the Russian leader. Trump allies interviewed by the Post said that the presidents caution when it comes to meeting with Putin may be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. This theory is of course way less fun than the airtight idea that Trump is actually a Russian agent thats why WaPo only gave it one sentence. Also on rt.com Collusion with Ukraine? NY Times corrects its bombshell Russiagate report Responding to the report, Trump told Fox News that there was nothing scandalous about his talks with the Russian leader. When Fox News host Jeanine Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working on behalf of the Kremlin, Trump responded: I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked. Among hardcore Russiagaters, his answer was naturally interpreted as an explosive non-denial. Credit to Jeannine Pirro for asking Trump if hes a Russian Agent. The President, notably, never actually answered that question, Colby Hall, founding editor of Mediaite, tweeted. Rehashing months-old Russiagate news, the Washington Post also disclosed that Democratic lawmakers are still demanding details about Trumps meeting with Putin in Helsinki last summer. House Democrats reportedly plan to form a subcommittee which aims to obtain State Department records of Trumps various encounters with the Russian president. Like this story? Share it with a friend! Venezuelas opposition leader Juan Guaido was reportedly arrested and released days after vowing to assume the presidency and calling for an uprising, armed coup and an international mandate to depose leader, Nicolas Maduro. We inform the world and the country that today, Jan. 13, a SEBIN commando detained the president of the Venezuelan National Assembly and we do not know where he is, a statement, published on Guaidos Twitter page on Sunday, read. However, an unnamed congressional official soon told Reuters that Guaido was only held briefly by the authorities and then released. The opposition leader was reportedly apprehended on his way to an anti-government rally as his SUV was intercepted on a highway by Bolivarian National Intelligence Service (SEBIN) agents. An unverified video of what is claimed to be the moment of Guaidos detention has been reposted on social media. Also on rt.com Venezuelan opposition seeks to depose Maduro in US-backed democratic coup Venezuelas socialist president, Nicolas Maduro, was sworn in for a second term on Thursday, but the opposition-run congress has called his reelection illegitimate. During a rally on Friday, Guaido announced that he was eager to assume the presidency in the country, and urged both the army and the international community to help him depose Maduro. Following the call for a coup, the US State Department said that it was time to begin the orderly transition to a new government in Venezuela and praised the commitment to democratic principles of the elected members of the Venezuelan National Assembly. It also called on the Venezuelan people and the army to uphold and respect the role of the National Assembly and ensure all protections the constitution affords to Guaido. A lawmaker from the Popular Will opposition party, Guaido became the head of the National Assembly on January 5. He has blasted Maduro as a dictator, who was only in charge of de facto government. Washington, which has been actively pushing for a regime change in Venezuela, was quick to throw its weight behind Guaido. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! Qatar agrees to expand airbase hosting thousands of US troops during Pompeo visit Qatar agrees to expand airbase hosting thousands of US troops during Pompeo visit Qatar and the US have reached an agreement on expanding Al Udeid Airbase, which currently hosts over 13,000 American and coalition troops. We are grateful for your countrys willingness to make sure that the airbase can meet the needs of the US military for decades to come, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told his Qatari counterpart Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani in Doha. Qatars foreign minister said his countrys ties to the US have enabled us to confront so many regional and international challenges.Source : RT - Daily news A US ambassador has reportedly threatened to punish German contributors involved in the multinational Nord Stream 2 pipeline project, and has tried to fan the Russia scare to make his point. US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell warned companies based in the country that they may face sanctions from Washington over their participation in the Nord Stream 2 project. As you are aware, the United States strongly opposes Nord Stream 2 The pipeline poses serious geopolitical consequences to our European allies and partners, he wrote in a letter obtained by Bild am Sonntag newspaper. We continue to stress that firms operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector are engaging in activities that carry significant sanctions risk, Grenell asserted. Every German company contributing to Nord Stream 2 should consider the danger this project represents to European energy security as well as reputational costs and sanctions risk associated with it, he added. Grenell, who took up the post in May 2018, has extensive experience of talking to German businesses. Throughout last year, he pushed the countrys firms to leave Iran slapped by a fresh set of American sanctions in the same way that he is now seeking to scupper Nord Stream 2. Threats aside, the diplomat used conventional claims about Russias increasingly aggressive behavior. Moscow, Grenell suggested, uses energy cooperation to garner political and economic leverage. In his view, companies participating in Nord Stream 2 are actively undermining Ukraines and Europes security. The latter claim seems particularly odd because Grenell, who served as a US spokesman at the UN, has previously found himself in hot water over accusations that he was meddling in the domestic affairs of his host country. Last year, he told the right-wing Breitbart in June that he hoped to empower like-minded conservatives across Europe. Many German politicians, along with reputable media outlets, reacted angrily to the interview. Martin Schulz, a prominent Social Democrat, likened the ambassador to a far-right colonial officer. Gerhard Schroeder, a former chancellor, was more colorful, saying: We cant accept being treated like an occupied country. Also on rt.com US threatens sanctions against Nord Stream 2 contractors as construction goes at full drive Likewise, Berlin has been defying US attempts to sink Nord Stream 2. Matters related to the European energy policy must be decided upon in Europe, not in the United States, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas stated earlier this week. Construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline has been recently approved by Germany, Finland and Sweden, with the project set to enter its final stage by the end of 2019. Denmark is the only country that hasnt authorized the project so far. Smaller EU members, such as Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, and Hungary have severely criticized the project. to RT newsletter to get stories the mainstream media wont tell you. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini has praised Brazils new government for its support in extraditing an Italian ex-communist militant, who went on the run for almost 30 years after four murders were committed in the 1970s. Writing on his Facebook page on Sunday, Salvini thanked Brazils recently inaugurated right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, and his government for a change in the political climate that allowed for Cesare Battistis arrest and future extradition to Italy. The fun is over, he added, promising that Battisti would end his days in jail rather than having a comfortable life on the beach. Also on rt.com US hopes Brazil's Bolsonaro will be useful counter to China, but not according to Chinese media Battisti, 64, was detained in neighboring Bolivia late on Saturday. He had previously settled in Brazil after being granted refugee status by former left-wing president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in 2010. However, he fled and disappeared in December following the revocation of his status and the issuance of an arrest warrant. Arrested in 1979 for his membership of the far-left Armed Proletarians for Communism (PAC) terrorist group, Battisti escaped in 1981 while awaiting trial in connection with four murders. He denies all charges. Prior to his stint in Brazil, he previously lived in France and Mexico and made a successful career writing police novels. Announcing the capture on Twitter, an aide to Bolsonaro said on Sunday that Battisti would soon be transferred to Brazil ahead of his probable extradition to Italy to stand trial. READ MORE: Italys Salvini suggests European Spring to bring end to German-French axis on continent However, a statement by the Italian government on Sunday said an airplane had already been sent by Rome to collect Battisti in Bolivia directly. During his election campaign, former-army captain Bolsonaro reaffirmed his commitment to extraditing the loved by the Brazilian left Battisti if he was elected to office, tweeting in October that Brazil deserves respect. In a tweet to Italys Salvini, Bolsonaros politician son, Eduardo, wrote: Brazil is no longer a land of bandits. The little gift is coming. Think your friends would be interested? Share this story! The owners of the newly opened Revel Social in Bethlehem are offering a $2,500 reward leading to the recovery a party bus stolen early Thursday morning. An owner of the nightclub said Saturday afternoon that surveillance footage showed a man getting in and out of the bus around 3 a.m. Thursday before driving off with it. The 2008 Ford D450 was loaded with televisions, DVD players and other equipment. The theft was reported to Bethlehem police, who said the investigation is active. Anyone with information about the theft or bus can call the nightclub at 610-868-2555. Club ownership is offering a $2,500 reward for information leading to the bus recovery. Revel Social had its soft opening Nov. 1 at 217 Broadway, the former home of the Broadway Social. About three weeks after the Janus ruling, Molina submitted a letter to Lehigh County and SEIU Local 668, resigning from the union and instructing the county to stop deducting dues from his paycheck, according to the suit. But SEIU did not respond to his request, and the county continued to dock the dues from his pay, according to the suit. ALLENTOWN The friends and family of Johnathan Williams buried the 25-year-old father of seven last week, mourning his murder and celebrating his life. But on Saturday, they and members of the Jordan Heights neighborhood in Allentown got together to do what Williams was passionate about talk about how to improve their community. Melinda "Mindy" Kaye (Tweet) Tarleton, age 52, of Budapest, Hungary, originally of Leota, MN, graduated to heaven on June 12, 2021 in Mankato, MN. Funeral service will be 9 a.m. on Thursday, June 17, 2021 at Hosanna Lutheran Church in Mankato, lunch following. Visitation and concurrent memor Peace adviser seeks UN help in Moro areas posted January 12, 2019 at 08:53 pm by Manila Standard January 12, 2019 at 08:53 pm READ: UN, Misuari hail Bangsamoro Law Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. has urged the United Nations to continue its assistance in providing capacity development to key leaders in the Bangsamoro region. Our focus now is how to have good governance on the new Bangsamoro government. I would like to request the UN family to help us in mentoring key leaders on how to be efficient and effective in governance, Galvez told officials of various UN agencies who called on him at his office on Friday. Galvez also thanked the UN for its continued support for the peace process in the Philippines. I think your projects that are people-centered and those on human resource development are good. I would like to thank you for helping us and sharing the same goal, he said. Galvez cited the role of UN agencies in helping counter violent extremism, preventing the recruitment of child soldiers, empowering women, and developing the whole Mindanao region. I believe that if we have peace in Mindanao, we have peace in the Philippines. If we have development in Mindanao, we have development in the Philippines, he said. The United Nations partnership framework is anchored on the Sustainable Development Goals 2019-2023.It aims to achieve outcomes related to people-centeredness, economic prosperity, and peace. In his remarks during the courtesy call, UN Resident Coordinator Ola Almgren expressed interest in OPAPPs practices in the peace process. OPAPP has contributed a lot to the global practice. UN is looking forward to your experiences and best practices, hoping that you can participate in global fora and share them as well as to work with you and your staff, he said. Among the UN agencies present in the meeting were the United Nations Development Program, United Nations International Childrens Emergency Fund, UN Women, International Organization for Migration, and Prevention on Violent Extremism. READ: Galvez hails PH Marines for helping beat terrorists COMMENT DISCLAIMER: Reader comments posted on this Web site are not in any way endorsed by Manila Standard. Comments are views by manilastandard.net readers who exercise their right to free expression and they do not necessarily represent or reflect the position or viewpoint of manilastandard.net. While reserving this publications right to delete comments that are deemed offensive, indecent or inconsistent with Manila Standard editorial standards, Manila Standard may not be held liable for any false information posted by readers in this comments section. South Africa: DIRCO commends DRC on credible elections International Relations and Cooperation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu has commended the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for conducting free, fair and credible elections. On Thursday the DRC electoral commission, CENI, released provisional results which declared opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi Tshilombo as the newly elected President. Election candidate runner-up and opposition leader Martin Fayulu is contesting the election results and has appealed to the DRCs Constitutional Court to cancel the provisional result. In light of these developments, Sisulu commended the people of the DRC for conducting credible elections. She also commended Fayulu for following the appropriate legal steps to challenge what he believes to be an incorrect result. We would like to see an end to what has been going on. We believe that we are on the precipice of a new dawn for the country. Whatever the outcome of the Constitutional Court in relation to Fayulu, ultimately we want to see peace, said Sisulu. The Minister said while the Southern African Development (SADC) Observer Mission is due to release its final report on the DRC elections, its preliminary report indicates that the elections were fair and credible. Commenting on this landmark election, Sisulu said the fact that former DRC President Joseph Kabila did not run for the presidential elections is indicative of how far the country has come. The Minister made the remarks at a media briefing on recent international developments, including the Madagascar elections, the UN Security Council agenda and upcoming international engagements for South Africa. Sisulu congratulated the newly elected President of Madagascar Andry Rajoelina for winning the election. Detention of SA citizen in Mozambique On the detention of South African national Andre Mayer Hanekom on terror-related charges in Mozambique, Sisulu said her department is in talks with the neighbouring country and Hanekom to offer the necessary consular assistance. Furthermore, Sisulu said President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to travel to Mozambique on 14 January 2019 to engage on various issues. Among the issues to be discussed is the detention of Hanekom and the arrest of former Mozambique Finance Minister Manuel Chang in South Africa. SA to punt African issues at UNSC With South Africa having taken up its non-permanent seat at the UN Security Council (UNSC) as of 1 January 2019, Sisulu said Pretoria will aim to represent Africa at the UNSC. We will do our best to represent Africa at the council. We would like to see the UNSC restructure itself so we have regional representatives. We believe that Africa needs to be there to solve those problems that affect our continent, she said. SAnews.gov.za This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Floridas officials are already setting their sights on algae. Newly sworn-in Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order Thursday in Bonita Springs to address the states environmental crisis. I think the people of Florida wanted to see action, and this is action that was requested regardless of your party I think this is something that can unite all Floridians, he said before signing Executive Order 19-12, which aims to secure $2.5 billion over the next four years for the protection of water resources. The order, titled Achieving More Now For Floridas Environment, also established several new departments and one official position. DeSantis announced that they will appoint a chief science officer. So were doing sound science, making sure that were getting ahead of the curve on as many of these issues as possible, he said. The order also created the Office of Environmental Accountability and Transparency, the Office of Resiliency and Coastal Protection, and a Blue-Green Algae Task Force. This task force should support key funding and restoration initiatives to expedite nutrient reductions in Lake Okeechobee and the downstream estuaries, the order reads. It also seeks to update and secure all restoration plans, within one year, for waterbodies impacting South Florida communities. Lee County Commissioner Brian Hamman said hes impressed to see the governor take action on this issue so quickly after being sworn in on Tuesday. The additional funding is extremely good for Lee County. Until we have the money to actually build the projects that need to be built, its all talk. Putting the extra money to expedite construction of projects that will redirect the flow of water is probably the most significant part of the order that will help Lee County out, he said. The biggest project that I think is called out in the executive order that will benefit Lee County is the C-43 reservoir, and the fact that the executive order is asking for a water treatment component to be developed along with that. C-43 is the Army Corps of Engineers name for the Caloosahatchee River. The full name of the project is the Caloosahatchee River (C-43) West Basin Storage Reservoir. According to the South Florida Water Management web site, The above ground Caloosahatchee River (C-43) West Basin Storage Reservoir, located in Hendry County, will capture and store stormwater runoff from the C-43 basin and regulatory water releases from Lake Okeechobee, reducing lake discharges reaching the estuary. The reservoir would store excess flows and allow them to be released at times that are more beneficial for the estuary. If we can keep that project funded, keep that project on track, and make sure the water that ultimately is released from that reservoir is clean, I think those are very important things that were at least contemplated in this executive order, he said. Its very important to understand that between now and next summer, theyre not going to have any new projects that will be built. These projects are so massive theyre pieces of infrastructure that will take years to design, permit, and construct, Hamman said. Theres no guarantee we will have algae next summer, but we need to plan for it and prepare for it like we will. We need to all be ready to handle it. So I was excited to see that in this Task Force they used the word now, that theyre going to be thinking of ways to prepare for the next wet seasons algae blooms. Meanwhile,in Washington Wednesday, Congressman Francis Rooney introduced an amendment to the Stafford Act that could do that. The amendment to the act that governs disaster response would officially list algal blooms as a natural disaster, allowing FEMA to provide aid in the event of another major algae crisis. We must make every effort possible to mitigate harmful effects of red tide and toxic algae and we must also take the steps necessary to eliminate the root causes of these outbreaks our water quality. I will continue to fight for the resources we need to fix our water, Rooney said in a prepared statement. They seemed an unlikely pair of spies. The older man, Majid Ghorbani of Costa Mesa, worked at a posh Persian restaurant in Santa Anas South Coast Plaza Village. At 59, he wore a thick gray mustache and the weary expression of a man who had served up countless plates of rice and kebab. The younger man, Ahmadreza Mohammadi Doostdar, was a Long Beach native who held dual U.S.-Iranian citizenship. Round-faced and bespectacled, the 38-year-old answered to the Farsi nickname Topol, or Chubby. Yet even as the men sipped coffee at a Costa Mesa Starbucks, chatted outside an Irvine market or made trips to Macys at South Coast Plaza, they were doggedly trailed by federal agents. Despite the pairs disarming appearance, U.S. authorities allege they were operating in Orange County as agents of the Islamic Republic of Iran an accusation that has alarmed many in the local Persian community because it suggests tensions between the U.S. and Iran have spilled over into Southern California. The mens goal, authorities say, was to conduct surveillance on Israeli and Jewish facilities in the U.S., and to collect information on members of the Mujahedin Khalq, MEK, an Iranian exile group that has long sought to topple the regime in Tehran and enjoys newfound support among members of the Trump administration. Within the span of a year from the summer of 2017 to the spring of 2018 the men crisscrossed Orange County and the United States, authorities say, videotaping participants at MEK rallies in New York and Washington, D.C., and photographing Jewish centers in Chicago. During that time, the men also flew back and forth between Iran and Los Angeles International Airport, and appeared to be assembling target packages dossiers that would enable an intelligence or military unit to find, fix, track and neutralize a threat, according to documents filed in Washington, D.C., federal court. In at least one instance, the pair were recorded by an FBI listening device as Ghorbani briefed Doostdar on a New York MEK event in September 2017, according to court documents. I took some pictures and collected some information of them and some senators that they are working with, the waiter said, according to court documents. I have prepared a package, but it is not complete. :: The target of the alleged spying, the MEK, is a shadowy organization with a militant past. Up until 2012, it was deemed a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Although few Americans have heard of it, the group has vexed the Iranian government since the revolution of 1979, when members helped to overthrow the shah. Led by a husband-and-wife power couple Massoud and Maryam Rajavi the group was sheltered and armed by Saddam Hussein for nearly 20 years. Known for its female-led military units, the MEK was disarmed after the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Massoud Rajavi went missing that same year and is believed to be dead. Despite a long history of lobbying U.S. lawmakers and officials for support, few have taken the group seriously up until now, that is. President Trumps national security advisor, John Bolton, is not only a prominent hawk on Iran, he has championed the MEK. Rudy Giuliani, Trumps lawyer, has also supported the group. The MEK in recent years has spent time and money building political capital, said Daniel Benjamin, director of Dartmouth Colleges Center for International Understanding. Bolton has been the MEKs most dedicated long marcher. Although the Trump administration has not explicitly stated that it seeks regime change in Iran, it has reimposed tough economic sanctions and pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal. These actions, as well as new, cozier relations with the MEK, have apparently worried Iran enough to act against the group. In a case similar to the one in Orange County, two Iranians in Albania were arrested in March after allegedly surveilling the MEK. In July, an Iranian diplomat in Germany was arrested on suspicion of plotting to bomb a MEK rally in Paris. This is escalation of Iran attempting to attack us, said Alireza Jafarzadeh, the U.S. deputy director of the National Council of Resistance of Iran an MEK-linked organization. :: It is unclear how Ghorbani and Doostdar first came into contact, but investigators believe their first physical meeting occurred behind Darya, the Persian restaurant where Ghorbani had worked for more than 20 years. Doostdar was born in Long Beach but left at a young age to move to Canada and then Iran. An energy tech consultant, Doostdar had visited the U.S. on only a few occasions, court documents say. His wife gave birth to a baby girl in late August and was hoping to bring her to the U.S. Ghorbani, whom neighbors and co-workers described as quiet and easygoing, was born in Iran but immigrated to the U.S. in 1995. He kept mostly to himself and lived with his brother and a Pomeranian dog in a quiet Costa Mesa apartment complex not far from the restaurant. A fellow employee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she wasnt authorized to speak on behalf of the restaurant, said Ghorbani was well-liked and generous. On one occasion, Ghorbani lent money to a co-worker who was struggling, the employee said. Investigators said Ghorbani also infiltrated meetings the MEK held at Darya. During one meetup in early August, Ghorbani met with MEK members as they discussed sending three American senators to evaluate the groups base in Albania, according to the indictment. Rene Redjaian, a spokeswoman for Darya, said the restaurant owners had no idea that Ghorbani was allegedly involved in spying. Our owners love America and knew nothing about the events that took place at Darya, Redjaian said. As time went on, the men continued their alleged covert operation, unaware that federal agents were closing in. In December 2017, Doostdar returned to Iran, allegedly to hand over the intelligence Ghorbani had collected. Unbeknownst to him, FBI agents searched his checked luggage at LAX and found an orange and white CVS pharmacy envelope. Inside the envelope, FBI agents found photos of Ghorbani standing next to people who were at the New York City MEK rally from September 2017. Many of the photographs had names and positions of the individuals written on the back, including one photograph that had Dr. Ahmad Rajavi, the brother of Massoud, written on it, prosecutors said in court documents. In March 2018, Ghorbani traveled to Iran to conduct an in-person briefing about ways to take photos for an upcoming conference supported by the MEK, prosecutors allege. When he returned April 17, authorities found tucked in his luggage a list written in Farsi that detailed his future tasks, including deeper infiltration into the MEK and recruiting a second person, according to court documents. The pair never succeeded in allegedly recruiting another operative, however. On Aug. 9, FBI agents swarmed Darya restaurant and arrested Ghorbani in front of stunned co-workers. Doostdar was arrested the same day in Chicago. Both men have been accused of acting as agents of a foreign government without prior notification of the U.S. attorney general and with providing services to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. Both men have pleaded not guilty and remain in custody. Ghorbanis lawyer has declined to comment on the case. Doostdars attorney, Thomas Durkin, said hes suspicious about the timing of his clients arrest considering it comes on the heels of Trump reimposing sanctions against Iran. Theres political machinations going on between the Trump administration and Iran. Why did the government all of a sudden decide to arrest these people? he said. :: The arrests of Ghorbani and Doostdar have left many in Orange Countys Persian community shaken. There is a sense of fear in the Iranian community that the regime in Iran are sending people to USA and keeping track of movements, said Mike Kazemi, an Irvine immigration lawyer. For those in the Persian community who are against the Islamic Republic but also disagree with the Trump administrations policies toward Iran, the escalation in tensions has been disconcerting. They say it serves as a reminder of how both American and Iranian officials view members of the Iranian diaspora with suspicion. We are in the middle of two hard places, Kazemi said. Yet others in the community say they are refusing to allow geopolitics to interfere with their day-to-day lives. Nasrin Rahimieh, a professor of humanities at UC Irvine, said she understands how recent developments might cause some Persians to feel scared of being too visible. Throughout her career, Rahimieh said, she has been chastised for either appearing pro-Islamic Republic or anti-Islamic Republic. But those experiences have left Rahimieh emboldened to speak out against what she said is fear-mongering rhetoric in todays political environment. There is such rabid desire to show Iranians as bad actors and as bad agents that its had the opposite effect on me, Rahimieh said. To paint all Iranians with the same brush is something that needs to be protested. Four years after California voters embraced an effort to strengthen state government rules for cash reserves, a new kind of conventional wisdom is taking root in Sacramento about how that system works. Not all dollars, it turns out, may be equal. Proposition 2, championed by Democratic legislators and former Gov. Jerry Brown, offered a relatively straightforward approach. It requires a fixed percentage of tax revenues to be set aside in the states rainy-day fund some for future use and some to pay off debt. Once the cash reserve grows to an amount equal to 10% of general fund revenues, its considered full and the set-aside dollars flow to infrastructure needs. At the outset, no one thought the Proposition 2 fund would be topped off in the near future, given the percentage of total revenue to be set aside is pretty small. Advertisement But things changed when Brown who watched multibillion-dollar tax revenue windfalls materialize began urging lawmakers to make extra payments to the rainy-day fund to fill it up sooner rather than later, and as a result the state last year socked away an extra $3.5 billion, which will bring the reserve fund to $15.3 billion by next summer and very close to the 10% threshold. Newsom unveils a $209-billion budget to boost schools and healthcare and fight poverty Then, in his budget proposal last week, new Gov. Gavin Newsom asked lawmakers to set in motion plans to add even more to the fund a total of $4.1 billion more over the next four years. To those who would suggest that thats more than Proposition 2 says the account can hold, Newsom pointed to a legal opinion little talked about until now that argues there are no real rules governing extra or voluntary transfers of tax revenue. That would mean not only no rules on how much extra money can be put in, but no rules on how it must be spent. The legal opinion in question was written by the Legislatures attorneys last September. We think a court would conclude that the voters did not intend to restrict the Legislatures authority to voluntarily transfer funds [to the rainy-day account], to limit the amount of voluntary transfers, or to limit the appropriation of those funds, because there is no express language to that effect, it said. In effect, the legal opinion charts a future where the rainy-day fund is essentially divided into two parts: money thats required to be there and hard to spend, and money that was put into the account just to be prudent and can be spent any time lawmakers see fit. Newsoms own budget ledger already has two entries for the reserve fund: one showing total deposits and a subset of those that are mandatory. Advertisement Having more flexibility isnt necessarily a bad thing. Last year, the nonpartisan Legislative Analysts Office cautioned lawmakers about the unintended consequences of shoving money into the rainy-day fund too quickly. They suggested that valuable, one-time needs might go wanting even when cash was plenty under the arcane rules of Proposition 2 that govern what happens when the fund is full. Critics of the legislative process might argue that continuing to add to the voluntary part of the reserve fund means the money can be raided any time that a majority of lawmakers and in Sacramento, that means Democrats want to. That may be technically true but could prove politically difficult. Newsom insisted last week that hes aiming for budget resiliency, not new ways to simply increase spending. Voters will be watching to see whether the new, untested approach to the rainy-day reserve fund meets that test. john.myers@latimes.com Advertisement Follow @johnmyers on Twitter, sign up for our daily Essential Politics newsletter and listen to the weekly California Politics Podcast In 2016, when a slew of 17 Republicans sought the White House, the number seemed to push the boundaries of both plausibility and physical capacity. In 2020, the Democratic field may be even larger. If, as the saying goes, everyone in America has a shot at growing up to be president, Democrats may come close to testing that theory. Its easier and more expeditious to list those whove flatly ruled out a run among them New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick than those weighing, or at least publicly toying with, the idea of a 2020 bid. The flood of potential contestants stems from a confluence of factors some political, some practical and not all of them related to President Trump and his perceived vulnerability. Advertisement The nominating process, which changed drastically in the 1970s, encourages competition by taking power away from party leaders and giving it to voters, awarding delegates based on candidates popular appeal in caucuses and primaries, rather than loyalty or long-standing political ties. Its no longer possible to win the Democratic nomination, as Vice President Hubert Humphrey did in 1968, without competing in a single electoral contest. In 2016, more than 30 million votes were cast in the nominating fight between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. (With Clinton, a heavy front-runner the two times she ran, gone from the scene and no incumbent seeking reelection, the unfurling Democratic contest is arguably the most wide open in decades, offering would-be contenders further incentive to run.) Other changes are more recent, such as the rise of social media, which has revolutionized and democratized small d fundraising and the means of campaigning. All it takes these days to reach a vast audience is a smartphone and reliable Internet service, bypassing the traditional gatekeepers of the national media. One of the biggest factors, though, is the current occupant of the White House. 2020 candidates: Whos in and whos on the fence? Trump appears highly endangered, making the Democratic nomination especially worth having. He suffered a severe comeuppance in Novembers midterm election, which was effectively a referendum on his first two years in office, and appears stuck in the dismal 40% approval range, far below the norm for a president experiencing todays good economic times and a signal of political peril. Trump also serves as an inspiration of sorts for any candidate who may suffer doubts or uncertainty about their presidential prospects. People say, If Donald Trump can get elected president, what am I, chopped liver? said Charlie Cook, who has tracked campaigns and elections for more than three decades for his nonpartisan political guide. Advertisement People say, If Donald Trump can get elected president, what am I, chopped liver? Charlie Cook, nonpartisan campaign analyst In winning the White House, Trump took a sledgehammer to a number of perceived verities. He was elected president despite having no government experience, no military background, being vastly outspent by his Democratic rival and running a seat-of-the-pants campaign that seemed driven more by impulse than any well thought out strategy. But its not just Trump who changed the long-standing rules of presidential politicking. Barack Obama was barely two years removed from the Illinois Legislature, serving his freshman term as U.S. senator, when he launched his winning 2008 bid. It was proof, well before his successor, that a long and deep political resume was not only superfluous but, among voters hungry for change, an actual disadvantage. After electing presidents like George H.W. Bush, who boasted an exhaustive government resume, and Bill Clinton, who served more than a decade as Arkansas governor, It looks like the American people want people they can relate to instantly, regardless of experience, said Ken Duberstein, who served as chief of staff under President Reagan and counseled a number of GOP White House hopefuls. Advertisement Every election, of course, is different. After Trump, voters may crave the Washington know-how and political longevity of an old hand like, say, former Vice President Joe Biden, or the sleeves-rolled-up experience of Michael R. Bloomberg, a media mogul and former three-term New York mayor. Both are weighing a 2020 bid. But the success of Obama and Trump is, at the least, reassuring to any number of prospective candidates seeking to buck history no mayor, for instance, has ever gone straight from City Hall to the White House or make the leap from relative obscurity to the presidency, a feat that takes in a very long list of Democratic prospects, among them South Bend, Ind., Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii. Modern technology has changed just about everything in the world: how people shop, vacation, hail a ride. The same applies to seeking the nations highest political office. No longer beholden to a handful of rich donors to bless their aspirations or a network of contacts gathered over a lifetime collecting IOUs, presidential candidates can build a financial juggernaut or at least collect enough cash to compete in the key early-voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire by establishing a fundraising page and sharing their Web address. Sanders, who began his campaign as a seeming lark, raised more than a quarter of a billion dollars, much if it from supporters chipping in $200 or less. Advertisement Beto ORourke, whose 2018 Senate bid in deeply red Texas initially seemed far-fetched, raised $80 million in his unsuccessful effort to oust GOP incumbent Ted Cruz. More importantly, his perpetual campaign live-stream which captured ORourke doing laundry, skateboarding through a Whataburger parking lot and, yes, discussing issues turned the former El Paso congressman into a national political phenomenon. Some polls even peg him as a top contender for the nomination, should he declare his candidacy. (The political exhibitionism, meantime, continues as ORourke ponders the race; last week he shared on Instagram a trip to the dental hygienist.) Even if he doesnt run, there will be no lack of alternatives. mark.barabak@latimes.com Advertisement @markzbarabak Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican leader, promised action after the latest racist remarks by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa). Action will be taken, McCarthy said Sunday of King on CBS Face the Nation. Im having a serious conversation with Congressman Steve King on his future and role in this Republican Party. In an interview published Thursday in the New York Times, King, who has represented a district in northwest Iowa since 2003, said he wondered how white supremacy had become offensive. The top three Republicans in the House and other lawmakers from the party condemned the remarks. King, who has a long history of statements that have been criticized as racist, later released a statement labeling white supremacy an evil ideology. McCarthy, who said the two would meet Monday, didnt say specifically what he would do about King but suggested that a number of things would become public. The Congressional Black Caucus, a group of lawmakers currently composed entirely of Democrats, has called for King to be stripped of his committee assignments. Advertisement McCarthy said the language used by King has no place in America. He said he wouldnt allow such words to continue to stand and have any role with us. House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, right, speaks to the media on Jan. 9. (Saul Loeb / AFP/Getty Images) Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) the No. 2 House Republican, also stopped short of calling for specific punishments, and countered on ABCs This Week that Democrats hadnt policed bigotry in their own ranks especially anti-Semitism. I dont see Democrats condemning Democrats on their side who are doing this kind of thing and using this kind of language, he said, without offering a specific example. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) criticized GOP silence about comments like Kings in a Washington Post opinion piece Friday, which Scalise recommended that King read. Scott, the Senates only black Republican, wrote that silence enables those who want to label the partys members as racist, and imperils an agenda based on spreading opportunity. When people with opinions similar to Kings open their mouths, they damage not only the Republican Party and the conservative brand but also our nation as a whole, Scott wrote, calling Kings views separate from conservatism that should be ridiculed at every turn. The Republican Party has struggled in recent decades to attract or retain minority voters. President Trump was roundly criticized including by Scott and other Republicans for not condemning white supremacists after a violent 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Va., in which a counterprotester was killed. Republican House candidates attracted just 9% of black voters in the 2018 midterm races, according to the Pew Research Center. Advertisement Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said King, who was co-chairman of Cruzs 2016 presidential campaign, needs to stop it. What Steve King said was stupid, Cruz said on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday. It was stupid, it was hurtful, it was wrong. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said Sunday that President Trump should agree to reopen the government and continue trying to hammer out a deal with Democrats on funding his long-promised border wall -- but that the president should declare a national emergency if no progress is made in three weeks. In an appearance on Fox News Sunday, Graham maintained that Trump is not going to give up on his demand for more than $5 billion in funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. But he argued that reopening the government and attempting to find a legislative solution, then declaring a national emergency if those talks dont bear fruit, is the best way forward. I would urge him to open up the government for a short period of time, like three weeks, before he pulls the plug. See if we can get a deal. If we cant at the end of three weeks, all bets are off. See if he can do it by himself through the emergency powers, Graham said. Advertisement Waiting three weeks would take the negotiations past Trumps State of the Union address later this month. A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that more Americans blame Trump and Republicans in Congress for the shutdown than congressional Democrats. Fifty-three percent of respondents blame the president and Republicans, while 29% blame Democrats. Thirteen percent blame both equally. More Americans remain opposed to the idea of a border wall than support it, the poll found, although the margin has narrowed over the last year. Trump continued making his case for the wall in Sunday morning tweets, arguing that it will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country! He again sought to blame Democrats, who he said were everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. Im in the White House, waiting, Trump said, accusing Democrats of having fun and not even talking! Trump also suggested that he is open to including protections for dreamers, who were brought to the country illegally as children, as part of a deal. But last week, Trump shot down a deal floated by Senate Republicans that would have included those protections, and he has repeatedly said that he plans to wait until the Supreme Court rules on the matter before seeking to negotiate with Democrats on it. Democrats are saying that DACA is not worth it and dont want to include in talks, Trump said Sunday. Many Hispanics will be coming over to the Republican side, watch! As pressure to end the shutdown continues to mount, some Democrats have begun urging Senate Republicans to take up House-passed legislation to reopen the government, regardless of whether the president agrees. Advertisement Sen. Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate, said on NBC News Meet the Press that centrist Senate Republicans who sought to broker a deal last week should step forward and make an appeal to their partys leader in the chamber, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Its time for those centrists to speak up in their own Republican Senate caucus and tell Mitch McConnell: The partys over. We want this to end, theres no excuse for the shutdown, Durbin said. The Republican-controlled Senate and a handful of senators will make that decision. Sen. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) said in a statement Sunday that given Trumps suggestion late last week that he does not immediately plan to issue an emergency declaration, its time for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to bring up the House-passed appropriations bills that would finally reopen government. As an equal branch of government we have the authority to override the Presidents veto, if thats what he chooses to do, Manchin said. Advertisement Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) also called for the president to reopen the government before debating the issue of border security. What we dont want to do is waste taxpayer money on a vanity project thats ineffective, that the president said Mexico would pay for, Kaine said on Meet the Press. Some Republicans on Sunday called for Trump to continue negotiating with Democrats rather than seek to declare a national emergency. Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) said on CNN that he would hate to see Trump declare a national emergency to end to his administrations stalemate with Democrats over a border wall. If we do that, it will go to court and the wall wont get built, Johnson said on State of the Union. I want to see this wall get built, so I want to keep pressure on Democrats to actually come to the negotiating table in good faith and fund what theyve supported in the past. Advertisement Johnson also accused Democrats of minimizing what he called a crisis at the border. The easiest solution to the shutdown is to just give President Trump the money for the mandate he received from the American public, he said. As a candidate, this is what he talked about, and if theres any mandate he can claim from his election, it was better border security and keeping this nation safe. As Democrats and the White House continue to negotiate, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) questioned on Fox News Sunday why McConnell has not taken a more active role. While McConnell has been part of the process, he was not present outside the White House last week after talks between Trump and congressional leaders collapsed. Why is Mitch McConnell completely absent from these negotiations? Coons asked. Advertisement Coons also took aim at Trumps abruptly shifting positions as the shutdown has dragged on. I feel like I signed up for the Trump of the Day Club. Sonmez and Zakrzewski report for the Washington Post. There are fresh faces and old hands. Thirty-somethings and senior citizens. Billionaires and at least one person still paying off student loans. A skateboarder, a brewery founder and a coffee magnate are all taking a look. Dozens of Democrats are thinking about running for president in 2020. The result could be a divisive, messy set of primaries, but many Democrats are exhilarated by the prospect of a wide range of choices, mirroring the congressional races in 2018. If theres one thing we learned over the last two years, its that primaries are a good thing, said Amanda Litman, founder of Run for Something, a group established after President Trumps election in 2016 to recruit and train young progressives to run for office. They make our party stronger. Advertisement In sorting through their choices between young and old, liberal and more centrist, white men and women and people of color, Democrats will be deciding not only who they want as a nominee, but what kind of party they want to be now that the Clintons quarter-century political dynasty is essentially over. With Trump as target, Democrats 2020 presidential field may be the biggest ever The earliest candidates to announce underscored the unparalleled diversity of the emerging field. A woman, Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, was the first major national figure to set up an exploratory committee. A Latino, former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, formally announced Saturday. A black woman, Sen. Kamala Harris of California, is on a book tour that will likely be followed by an announcement later this month. But three white mens decisions about whether to run could have outsized impact on the 2020 field: Former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and former Rep. Beto ORourke of Texas all have the rest of the field watching for their decisions. If Biden runs, he becomes an instant front-runner on the strength of his experience and vast political network. His entry would also guarantee that a central question of the primary will be a generational one, as younger rivals will argue that it is time for the older guard to pass the baton. Beto ORourke, the 2018 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, greets supporters after a rally at the Pan American Neighborhood Park in Austin on Nov. 4. (Nick Wagner / Associated Press) That generational split will widen further if the 46-year-old ORourke jumps in. He became a national sensation in his failed 2018 Texas Senate campaign, with viral Facebook livestreams of him skateboarding, driving and cooking dinner. ORourke is not the youngest hopeful: California Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Dublin), one of the youngest at 38, still owes about $100,000 on his student loans. Advertisement If Sanders decides to run, his will be a big presence in the lane of left-leaning candidates, one that would likely crowd ideological allies such as Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, who announced her candidacy Friday, and Oregon Sen Jeff Merkley if he runs. With about three dozen Democrats either in the race or saying they are considering it, 2020s Democratic primary field could rival the GOPs sprawling 17-candidate field in 2016. It could break the Democratic record set in 1976, when 13 candidates ran serious bids for the nomination, according to Larry Sabato, director of the University of Virginias Center for Politics, who sees some parallels to todays situation. Democrats that year were riding high after their 1974 post-Watergate landslide, and the power of party bosses had been weakened. With no one influential enough to say no, anyone with presidential ambitions said yes, said Sabato. Now, the role in the nominating process for party leaders and so-called superdelegates has been diluted, and ambitious Democrats have been emboldened by their success in the 2018 midterm elections. Advertisement The huge and varied field of potential candidates cries out for a guide for keeping track of the herd. The older generation Biden, 76, and Sanders, 77, ride atop many polls thanks largely to name recognition and already have strong national political organizations in place. One obstacle they face, however, will be the clamor from some Democrats for a changing of the generational guard after a midterm election that reinforced the importance of young people to the Democratic Party coalition. According to exit polls, 67% of 18-to-29-year-olds voted for Democrats in House races in 2018. We are in the process of turning our party over to the next generation, said Howard Dean, the former Democratic National Committee chair who ran for president in 2004. I want a candidate under 50 or 55. Dean did not name names, but about half the people who are or are considering running including Warren, 69 are over 55. Advertisement Former Vice President Joe Biden, left, and Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont top many of the polls for the next Democratic presidential nominee. (Associated Press) Still, older candidates can appeal to younger voters, as Sanders showed during the 2016 campaign. In an August 2017 Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll, Sanders ratings among voters ages 18 to 34 were 53% positive and 22% negative. Bidens ratings in a January 2018 poll were 46% positive and 21% negative. Bidens supporters say his age is less important than his experience as a lifelong public servant at the highest levels of government 36 years as U.S. senator and eight as vice president and see him as the best equipped to go toe-to-toe with Trump. I think Im the most qualified person in the country to be president, Biden said in a December speech in Montana. Advertisement But he is also going to have to show he is in step with a changing America. Any candidate who is going to win a Democratic primary needs to engage young people and women, African American women in particular, said Amanda Litman. Its hard for me to imagine many of the older white men being able to engage those groups. Women Warren and Gabbard are the first to step into what could be a crowded lane of women candidates, including Sens. Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota. Coming on the heels of the 2018 midterms, when a record number of women ran for office and were elected to Congress, womens advocates hope 2020 could see another election with a woman at the top of the ticket. Advertisement But some Democrats are gun-shy about a female candidate after Hillary Clinton failed in her bid to become the first woman in the White House. Some worry about the sexism that lingers in the political arena. Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) is on a book tour that will likely be followed by an announcement of her plans to run for president later this month. (Chris Delmas / AFP/Getty Images) There are some voters who are reluctant to vote for a woman for president, said John Grennan, co-chairman of Iowas Poweshiek County Democratic Party. It was not specific to Hillary Clinton. That still could be a factor. Both Harris and Klobuchar have backgrounds in law enforcement, a less traditional career path for women. Gillibrand has the profile most closely associated with womens issues, as a vocal ally of the #MeToo movement. Although many women praised her for her role in forcing Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) to resign over sexual misbehavior, other Democrats hold against her what they consider a rush to judgment. Advertisement People of color A decade after the country elected its first black president, Democrats will probably have more than one candidate of color to consider. In addition to Castro, two black senators, Harris and Cory Booker of New Jersey, are almost certain to jump into the race. Also weighing a bid is Eric H. Holder Jr., who was the nations first black U.S. attorney general, under Obama. In a recent interview on The View, Harris said she feels the United States is absolutely ready for a woman of color to be president. Glynda Carr, cofounder of Higher Heights a group that promotes black women in politics said that some Democratic hopefuls have already reached out to the group in a hat tip to the importance of black women as both voters and candidates. Although its no slam dunk that a person of color will top the ticket, Carr said: I cannot imagine that the president and vice presidential nominee will both be white men. Advertisement Governors A passel of former and sitting governors are considering running including Washingtons Jay Inslee, Montanas Steve Bullock, Virginias Terry McAuliffe and Colorados John Hickenlooper (who also was a founder of a brewery before being elected). None have yet caught fire, despite long-standing traditional wisdom that governors make stronger presidential candidates than senators because they have executive experience. Over the last 50 years, four governors, but only one senator Obama were elected to the White House. But the current Trump-centric political climate has made it harder for governors to get attention for their home-state accomplishments. Democratic senators have had an easier time grabbing the spotlight by opposing the Trump presidency. Also in the we get stuff done lane are three mayors and former mayors considering a bid Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles, Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans and Pete Buttigieg of South Bend, Ind. Advertisement 2020 candidates: Whos in and whos on the fence? Being an executive carries risks, as well, though, as Garcetti has found as he tries to schedule a presidential announcement around a teachers strike in the nations second-largest school district. Tad Devine, a Democratic strategist who worked on the presidential campaigns of Al Gore in 2000, John Kerry in 2004 and Sanders in 2016, said that Democratic primary voters may be looking less for governing experience this time around than for inspiration and evidence that a candidate can beat Trump. The old stuff is going by the wayside, said Devine. The experience stuff while important, and Biden will dwell on it I dont think its nearly as relevant as whether you have ideas that can excite people, whether you yourself can excite people. Advertisement Billionaires Media billionaire Michael R. Bloomberg, who invested heavily in Democratic candidates in the midterm election, is considering a presidential bid, as is former Starbucks Chief Executive Howard Schultz. Both have the advantage of boundless personal resources and status as political outsiders. But super-wealthy business people dont fit easily into a party dominated by liberals in a populist mood. In her inaugural swing through Iowa, Warren derided billionaire candidates. One such hopeful, Tom Steyer, the former hedge fund manager from San Francisco, has already ruled out a presidential bid. The latest from Washington Advertisement janet.hook@latimes.com Twitter: @hookjan To the editor: Its not surprising that the president of a small liberal arts college in Michigan that charges $41,138 tuition per year would be opposed to the idea of free college tuition. What is surprising is that the Los Angeles Times would publish such a biased piece from an out-of-state author whose supposed concern for addressing college affordability is not reflected in his own practices at Alma College. In states where community college is tuition-free, the benefits to low- and middle-income families are clear. They have brought more federal dollars in support of higher education into their states through a focus on completion of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid for Pell Grants, increased post-secondary enrollment, and in Tennessee, a double-digit decrease in student loan applications. I look forward to the California Legislature passing and Gov. Gavin Newsom signing AB 2, which will make two years of community college tuition-free for full-time, first-time high school graduates. Advertisement Morley Winograd, Arcadia The writer is president of the Campaign for Free College Tuition. .. To the editor: Cost of living is the same, whether one attends a community college or a university. The difference is a few thousand dollars in tuition versus tens of thousands of dollars. In 1995, UC Santa Barbara tuition was about $1,500 per year. The student population was about 20,000; now, it is about 25,000. Adding those 5,000 students was done at enormous cost, reflected in the skyrocketing tuition increase. But such are the times, and there are numerous pluses as well as the minuses. The immediate answer is to have students commute to school from home, whereas the longer term answer, Im sorry to say, is for parents to have fewer children and make a lot more money. Arthur D. Wahl, Port Hueneme Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook On an April night in 1989, Jo Ann Parks survived a house fire in the Southern California city of Bell that claimed the lives of her three small children. Two years later, investigators announced that the seeming accident was actually a monstrous crime in which the 23-year-old waitress had set several fires, then barricaded her 4-year-old son inside a closet so he could not escape. Convicted through the power of forensic fire science, Parks was sentenced to life in prison without parole. She has steadfastly proclaimed her innocence. Nearly 30 years later, a revolution in the understanding of fire has exposed many of the scientific certainties of the era as guesswork in disguise including forensic evidence used to convict Parks that was flat-out wrong. At her trial, the prosecutions lead arson expert incorrectly claimed that a common and very intense burning known as flashover did not occur in the fire. Flashover can obscure a fires origins and make an accident look like arson, and its absence allowed the prosecution to argue with powerful certainty that the fire was deliberately set. Research since then has led to more accurate ways of looking for evidence of flashover and a greater understanding of its misleading effects, and even prosecution fire experts acknowledge now that it did occur in Parks case. Yet she remains in Californias womens prison in Chowchilla. Advertisement Welcome to the real world of forensics, where the wizardry lionized by the CSI television empire turns out to have serious flaws. The science of bite-mark comparisons, ballistic comparisons, fingerprint matching, blood-spatter analysis, arson investigation and other common forensic techniques has been tainted by systematic error, cognitive bias (sometimes called tunnel vision) and little or no research or data to support it. There is, in short, very little science behind some of the forensic sciences used in court to imprison and sometimes execute people. Welcome to the real world of forensics, where the wizardry lionized by the CSI television empire turns out to have serious flaws. The rigorously researched and peer-reviewed newcomer to forensics, DNA matching, has thrown into sharp relief the lack of scientific rigor in many other forensic disciplines. According to data gathered by the National Registry of Exonerations, of the 2,363 inmates exonerated of murder or other serious felonies since 1989 (most commonly through DNA), 553 were convicted with flawed or misleading forensic evidencenearly one out of four. Forensic sciences shortcomings have left the justice system alternately in a quiet panic or massive denial. The issue was first brought into the spotlight by a highly critical report from the National Academy of Sciences in 2009, which found a dearth of scientific backing for most forensics methods other than DNA. It cited evidence that faulty forensic science analyses may have contributed to wrongful convictions of innocent people. That report was followed by an even more blistering presidential commission report in 2016, which found serious errors and junk science in a host of commonly used forensic methods tying suspects to crimes. Even the seeming infallibility of fingerprint evidence took a big hit. Multiple experts at the FBIs vaunted Latent Print Unit incorrectly matched a Portland, Ore., attorney to prints found at the scene of the 2004 Madrid train station bombing. The prints actually belonged to an Algerian terrorist. A form of cognitive bias finding what you expect to find has been blamed because the FBI examiners had received extraneous information about the lawyer converting to Islam, and they were also told that a respected senior agent had already declared a match. Closer to home, the murder conviction of Bill Richards of Mojave led the California Legislature to confront the problem of junk science in the courtroom but only after an innocent man served 22 years in prison for supposedly killing his wife. After two hung juries failed to convict Richards, prosecutors found a bite-pattern expert who tilted the scales by matching a mark on the victims hand to Richards crooked teeth. Years later, attorneys at the California Innocence Project based in San Diego requested testing of samples from the murder weapon, which uncovered DNA that did not belong to either Richards or his wife. The expert recanted and admitted there was no scientific basis for any of his bite-mark findings in the case. But Richards release was delayed for eight years after prosecutors argued successfully that only factual testimony, not expert opinions, can be false evidence under California law. It took new legislation to change the definition of false evidence to include disproven or recanted expert opinions before Richards walked out of prison in 2016. The change in expert witness law also allowed the California Innocence Project attorneys to attempt to overturn Parks conviction for burning her children to death. Her attorneys argued that false forensic expert opinion was used against her at her original trial. But the fire investigation community remains divided on how to handle cases such as Parks. Experts testifying for her during a recent habeas corpus hearing said the misleading fire patterns and destruction wrought by flashover made it impossible to determine the origin and cause of the fire, and that she deserved a new trial. Prosecution experts argued they could still read the fire patterns like a book despite their concession that flashover had occurred. They offered little in the way of research or error rate studies to back that assertion. Advertisement Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion In November, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge William C. Ryan ruled that the new flashover evidence was insufficient to win Parks a new trial because the experts cannot agree on its significance. The world of fire science and fire investigation is a complex area rife with differing opinions and contentious debates, Ryan wrote. His decision is being appealed. Whatever the outcome of the Parks case, it is one of many demonstrating the profound difficulty the justice system has in separating good science from bad. The National Academy of Sciences has suggested raising the bar for expert testimony by requiring hard data and error rates for all forensic disciplines. Advertisement Right now the bar is shockingly low. One expert in the recent Parks hearing testified that his analysis of door hinges showed that she had barricaded her child in a closet, using a technique he had never attempted before and for which he cited no scientific data. This lack of scientific rigor in the courtroom has to change. A commission formed by President Obama to study solutions to flawed forensics was disbanded by the Trump administration. It may be time for the states, individually or in partnership, to undertake this effort. The stakes are too high to maintain the status quo. Edward Humes is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and the author of 15 nonfiction books, including his latest, Burned: A Story of Murder and the Crime That Wasnt. Two years ago, when I was 23 years old, I traveled across 10 countries by bus, boat and foot to get from Brazil to the U.S.-Mexico border. At the time, I had the same goal as most migrants who arrive here: I wanted to get to the United States, in my case to join my mother and sister in Florida. Two years later, Im still here in Tijuana. Unexpectedly, Im thriving, and Im happy here in Mexico. Ive got a job with an immigrant aid organization, and Im applying for college. When I began my journey, it seemed possible to get to the United States, with the Obama administrations moratorium on deporting Haitians back to their home country. But the policy changed as I was making my way to the U.S. border, planning to ask for asylum, and when I arrived, that door was closed. I know most people migrating to the U.S. have their minds set on the American Dream, but I have come to realize theres a Mexican Dream, too. Advertisement When I first got to Tijuana, I couldnt wait to leave. The city seemed loud and chaotic, and I didnt speak a word of Spanish. I moved into a church-run shelter and needed money, so I got a job washing dishes at a restaurant, and then a different job at a tire factory. I applied to Mexican authorities for a humanitarian visa, and then was able to get a four-year work visa. Two years later, I am still here, however, and I have made a life for myself. Sure, I want to visit my family in Florida at some point, but my goal is to be happy and stable here in Mexico. Im an organizer for a group that offers language classes and social services to immigrants. I even published a book about my travels and experiences. I know most people migrating to the U.S. have their minds set on the American Dream, but I have come to realize theres a Mexican Dream, too. Its possible to work here, to study and nurture talents. Those doors are still open in Mexico for ambitious immigrants, and the costs arent as great as they are in the U.S. There isnt as much pressure here from the government, from immigration authorities, from society. Yes, theres violence, prejudice and racism against migrants in Mexico, just like there is in the U.S. Dont get me wrong, Im not supporting the U.S. governments current immigration policy, and Mexico certainly doesnt have an open-door policy for all immigrants. But I have found that in Mexico theres more of a way forward for migrants. We have options here. The United States might be the richest country in the world, but that doesnt mean life is automatically better there for migrants. Many Americans dont understand a lot of things about us or about what life is like in countries that are their close neighbors. Most migrants dont want to leave their homes or families, but we do because of poverty and violence. We flee hunger, insecurity, a complete lack of educational opportunities. Mexicans, I have found, better understand this desperation. Whether or not they respect us, they get why Central Americans and Haitians have fled their countries. Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion Advertisement Last week, I gave a talk at one of the shelters in Tijuana where hundreds of Central Americans have been staying since they began walking north in the fall. I explained to them my reasons for making a life here in Mexico and the process of getting started: applying for a visa, securing housing and finding a job. The advice I gave to my Central American brothers and sisters was to have patience, but not passive patience. I urged them to continue to pursue getting to the United States if that was their goal, but not to wait at a shelter indefinitely. I suggested that they find jobs in Tijuana and move forward in life, and that they be open to making a life in Mexico rather than putting everything on hold in pursuit of a goal that may be unattainable. Being a migrant is something to be proud of. While some view us as a problem, we need to see ourselves as we are: ambitious and determined people who left unbearable situations at home in pursuit of better lives. We need to be a team and support each other. Together we are stronger. Ustin Pascal Dubouisson is the author of the book, Sobrevivientes and works for the Espacio Migrante nongovernmental organization in Tijuana. Hes originally from Port au Prince, Haiti. Advertisement Translated from Spanish by Jesse Hardman. The grandfather of a northwestern Wisconsin girl who authorities say was abducted during a home invasion that left her parents dead said Saturday that the family has no connection to the suspect and doesnt understand why he targeted her, deepening a months-long mystery. Someone blasted open the door of James and Denise Closs home near Barron with a shotgun in October, gunned the couple down and took their 13-year-old daughter, Jayme Closs. Jayme had been missing for nearly three months Thursday when she approached a stranger near the small, isolated north woods town of Gordon and pleaded for help. Officers arrested 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson minutes later based on Jaymes description of his vehicle. He was jailed on suspicion of kidnapping and homicide. Investigators have said Pattersons goal was to kidnap Jayme, but he appears to have no connection to the family. Jaymes grandfather Robert Naiberg said in a telephone interview Saturday that the only thing the family knows is that no one knew Patterson. He said Jayme told FBI agents she didnt know him at all. Advertisement He didnt know Jayme, he didnt know Denise or Jim, Naiberg said. "(Jayme) dont know him from Adam. (But) he knew what he was doing. We dont know if he was stalking her or what. Did he see her somewhere? Pattersons attorneys Charles Glynn and Richard Jones said in a statement they consider the situation very tragic and that they are relying on the court system to treat their client fairly. Charges are expected to be filed against Patterson on Monday, when he is scheduled to make his initial appearance in court. The news that Jayme was safe set off joy and relief in her hometown of Barron, population 3,300 and about 60 miles from where she was found. The discovery ended a search that gripped the state, with many people fearing the worst the longer she was missing. Jaymes aunt, Jennifer Smith, posted on Facebook on Saturday that Jayme was doing well. Jayme had a pretty good night sleep it was great to know she was next to me all night what a great feeling to have her home. As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has. It will be a long road but we are family strong and we love this little girl so much!! Another aunt, Sue Naiberg Allard, posted that Jayme got the most awaited hug ever when she returned home. Jayme told one of the neighbors in Gordon who took her in that she had walked away from a cabin where she had been held captive. She said that this persons name was Jake Patterson, he killed my parents and took me, said another neighbor, Kristin Kasinskas. She did not talk about why or how. She said she did not know him. Advertisement Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said investigators are trying to figure out what happened to Jayme during her captivity and why she was seized but gave no details on how she escaped except to say Patterson was not home at the time. He said there is no evidence Patterson knew Jayme or her family or had been in contact with her on social media. Patterson took measures to avoid leaving evidence at the scene, including shaving his head beforehand, and a shotgun was recovered from the home where Jayme was believed held, Fitzgerald said. Property records show that the cabin, nestled in dense evergreen forests popular with snowmobilers and ATV riders in the winter, belonged to Pattersons father at the time of Jaymes disappearance. Patterson, who was unemployed, remained largely an enigma Saturday. Advertisement He has no criminal record, the sheriff said. He worked for one day in 2016 at the same Jennie-O turkey plant in Barron as Jaymes parents. But the sheriff said it did not appear Patterson interacted with the couple during his brief time there. In November, the sheriff said he kept similar cases in the back of his mind as he worked to find Jayme, including the abduction of Elizabeth Smart, who was 14 when she was taken from her Salt Lake City home in 2002. Smart was rescued nine months later after witnesses recognized her abductors on an Americas Most Wanted episode. Congressional Democrats on Sunday pledged heightened scrutiny of President Trumps dealings with Russia, spurred on by news reports of extraordinary secrecy surrounding his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the opening in 2017 of an FBI counterintelligence probe into whether Trump worked on behalf of the Kremlin. Trumps Republican allies in Congress and his administration defended him, impugning the motives of federal investigators, insisting the White House had been tough on Russia and denouncing as ludicrous any suggestion that Trump had been compromised by Moscow. The intensifying Russia-related furor coincides with a partial government shutdown that pushed over the weekend into a record-shattering fourth week. More than three-quarters of a million federal workers have been furloughed or are working without their salaries, missing their first paychecks of 2019 last week. There was little sign of any imminent breakthrough in ending the shutdown, whose effects are being more broadly felt with each passing week. Trump spent Sunday morning demanding on Twitter that Congress allocate funds for building a wall on the border with Mexico, a project Democrats vehemently oppose. Advertisement In snowy Washington, the president called into a conservative talk show on Saturday night to denounce a report in the New York Times that in 2017, after Trump fired FBI Director James Comey, the FBI opened a counterintelligence investigation into whether the president was acting as an agent for Russia. Asked by Fox News personality Jeanine Pirro whether he had ever worked for Russia, Trump fumed, but did not take the opportunity to directly respond to the query. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written, he replied. On Sunday news shows, several leading congressional Democrats expressed deepening concerns over Trump and Russia, following the New York Times report and a Washington Post story about Trumps strenuous efforts to conceal what was said in face-to-face talks with Putin over the past two years. Delaware Democratic Sen. Chris Coons, interviewed on Fox News Sunday, called word of a counterintelligence investigation alarming, and said it underscored the need for the wide-ranging Russia investigation by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III to proceed unimpeded. Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) said on NBCs Meet the Press that in order to open a counterintelligence probe of a sitting president, the FBI must have had a very deep level of concern. With a new Democratic majority in the House, freshly anointed committee chairmen are pledging to use their expanded powers to look into Trump and Russia, including the ability to subpoena witnesses and sensitive documents. Rep. Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.), who now heads the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said his panel would hold hearings about what he called Trumps bizarre relationship with Putin and his cronies. Advertisement In a statement issued Saturday night and tweeted out again on Sunday, Engel suggested that secrecy about what was said when Trump met with the Russian leader to the extent of keeping his own national security team in the dark -- was of paramount concern. Every time Trump meets with Putin, the country is told nothing, Engel said. America deserves the truth, and the Foreign Affairs Committee will seek to get to the bottom of it. Republican allies of the president said the acts of concealment described by the Post, including Trumps demand that an interpreter hand over the U.S. sides only notes of a private meeting with Putin in Hamburg, Germany, were well within his authority. Speaking on CNNs State of the Union, Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), noted that this is not a traditional president. Advertisement He has unorthodox means, Johnson said. But he is president of the United States. Its pretty much up to him in terms of who he wants to read in to his conversations with world leaders. Rep. Adam B. Schiff (D-Burbank), chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said Democrats had been stymied in earlier efforts to learn what was said between Trump and Putin during a summit last year in Helsinki, Finland but signaled that was about to change. Last year, we sought to obtain the interpreters notes or testimony, from the private meeting between Trump and Putin, he said in an announcement. The Republicans on our committee voted us down. Will they join us now? Schiff, a former federal prosecutor, added: Shouldnt we find out whether our president is really putting America first? Advertisement Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, who is traveling in the Middle East, dismissed the possibility that Trump acted on Russias behalf, calling it an absolutely ludicrous notion. The idea thats contained in the New York Times story, that President Trump was a threat to American national security, is silly on its face, and not worthy of a response, he told CBS Face the Nation. The ranking Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia, said it was curious that as investigations were getting underway in 2017, you had Vladimir Putin policies almost being parroted by Donald Trump. Asked on State of the Union whether he thought Trump ever worked on behalf of the Russians and against American interests, Warner said: Thats the defining question of our investigation, and the Mueller investigation. Advertisement He added: You had Trump say only nice things about Putin. He never spoke ill about Russia. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), one of Trumps staunchest defenders, suggested that the FBIs reported counterintelligence investigation pointed to malfeasance on the part of senior bureau officials. It tells me a lot about people running the FBI, Graham, a onetime Russia hawk, said on Fox News Sunday when asked about the Times report. He blamed news leaks by people with an agenda. While Trumps purported toughness on Russia has been a major talking point among his defenders, Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Sunday he would force a vote on a resolution to disapprove of the administrations decision to ease sanctions on companies connected to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin announced plans to relax the sanctions last week. Advertisement Calling the Treasury Departments proposal flawed, Schumer issued a statement Sunday urging the Senate to block this misguided effort by the administration. A simple majority would be needed to proceed. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), meanwhile, played down the latest Russia revelations as of little interest to anyone outside the nations capital. Washington is obsessed with this, he said on NBCs Meet the Press. Beyond the Beltway, the interstate highway ringing Washington, he said, I dont find anybody concerned with this at all. laura.king@latimes.com Advertisement Twitter: @laurakingLAT Lets hear it for ineptitude. Thats one of the unexpected lessons of President Trumps tenure as he nears the halfway mark of his term. The president hasnt been tamed; hes every bit as autocratic and disruptive as when he took office in January 2017. But hes been restrained by courts from California to New York. He was rebuked by voters in the midterm election. And now he faces a new obstacle, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her Democratic colleagues. Not long ago, the never-Trump half of the nation was gripped by fear of an authoritarian takeover; books with titles like Fascism: A Warning became bestsellers. But as Trump begins what may be the second half of a one-term presidency, democracy looks newly resilient. Advertisement I recently asked Harvard Universitys Steven Levitsky for a report card. In How Democracies Die, another bestseller, Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt warned that Trumpism looked much like the one-man populism that turned Hungary and Turkey into autocracies. Levitsky says he still worries about the long-term corrosion of democratic norms but his worst fears havent been realized. American democracy isnt dying, he told me. Were not turning into Hungary. First, the institutional bulwarks of democracy have held. Federal courts have stopped many of the Trump administrations most imperious actions, including attempts to ban Muslims and separate migrant children from their parents at the southern border. California and other states have fought back hard to protect the environment. A special counsel has indicted or convicted 33 individuals so far, including Trumps former national security advisor and his former campaign chairman. Levitsky gives the news media credit too for fact-checking a president who relentlessly distorts the truth. Perhaps as a result, a Washington Post poll last month found that most Americans, including most Republicans, dont believe Trumps biggest whoppers, such as his claim that Democrats want open borders. Second, Trump has proved remarkably inept at governing. He begins his third year without a permanent chief of staff, Defense secretary, attorney general or Interior secretary. Top White House jobs have turned over at a record rate (83%, according to the Brookings Institution). Thats not normal. The presidents chaotic style has gotten in his way. Republicans in Congress complain that they cant make a deal with the White House (to reopen the federal government, for example) and know it will stick. Foreign leaders know that commitments from administration officials can be upended by a tweet. Advertisement Trumps incompetence is a good thing for democracy, Levitsky said. He has authoritarian inclinations, but he hasnt been able to put them into practice. Finally, the midterm election put a massive new obstacle in Trumps way: a Democratic House led by the implacable Pelosi. In countries where authoritarians take over the opposition tends to be weak, Levitsky noted. We have a very strong opposition. Thats important. The Democrats can block Trumps remaining legislative agenda, from building a wall on the border to getting approval for the renegotiated NAFTA trade deal. House committees will investigate every facet of Trumps business empire leading off on Feb. 7 with Trumps former lawyer, Michael Cohen, who may prove the greatest threat to a president since John Dean blew the whistle on Richard Nixon in the 1973 Watergate hearings. Advertisement Even though Trump has denied it, the Democrats sweep of 40 House seats their largest gain since Watergate was a stinging backlash from voters. It showed that the president hasnt expanded his support; hes shrunk it. Other Republicans, especially those up for reelection in two years, noticed. A handful of GOP senators called for a compromise to end the government shutdown without giving Trump the $5.7 billion he is demanding to build a wall. The mini-rebellion died quickly but it was a sign that some Republicans are wavering. Still, Levitsky argues, The institution that has performed worst in the last two years is the Republican Party. There was a wing committed to democratic norms, people like John McCain and Jeff Flake. That wing is gone. None of this means the crisis of American democracy is over or that the next two years will be placid. The rest of the Trump era will still be chaotic, just in a different way. Advertisement Instead of an authoritarian takeover, we have a different problem: total dysfunction, Levitsky said. Divided government only works if the two parties achieve at least a minimum of cooperation. It wont function if the two parties cant even talk to each other, which is what were seeing now. But the specter of an autocratic president running roughshod over democratic institutions has ebbed. Thats worth at least two cheers. Doyle McManus, whose column has appeared on the op-ed page of The Times since 2009, will appear on Page A2 every Sunday. Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo on Sunday urged Saudi Arabia and other regional Arab allies of the U.S. to repair a long-festering rift with Qatar, expressing frustration that little progress has been made. The dispute has dragged on too long, he told reporters in the Qatari capital, Doha, between meetings with top government officials there. Its on everyones mind and not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday. And I regret that. Pompeo was winding down a whirlwind nine-nation Middle East mission to drum up support for a stronger coalition against Iran. He flew later Sunday to Riyadh, the Saudi capital, and on Monday heads to Oman and Kuwait. Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates imposed a blockade on Qatar more than a year ago, cutting land and sea lines in an attempt to cripple its economy. Its neighbors say gas-rich Qatar, home to the regions largest U.S. military base, is too friendly to Iran, too independent and too supportive of Islamist opposition groups that the regions autocrats would like to crush. Advertisement The diplomatic crisis began in June 2017, and initially President Trump gave unequivocal support to the Saudis over Qatar. Some diplomats believe that may have hardened the Saudi position and made the Saudis less willing to negotiate. Then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson sought to rebalance the U.S. position and push for a more equitable diplomatic solution, an effort that Pompeo has continued. Lack of unity within the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council hurts U.S. goals, he said. Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful, Pompeo said. Were hopeful that the unity of the GCC will increase in the days and weeks and months ahead. At an informal meet and greet with U.S. Embassy employees stationed in Doha, the rift was one of the main questions weighing on the participants minds. The other was the partial shutdown of the U.S. government, which has also hurt State Department personnel overseas. Pompeo said he also will press Saudi officials on the Oct. 2 murder of U.S.-based Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. Pompeo was scheduled to meet Monday with Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi crown prince and de facto ruler whose close aides have been implicated in the killing. It will be the second time since the murder that Pompeo will sit down with Mohammed for discussions aimed at as he put it ensuring that the accountability is full and complete. Pompeo was widely criticized for seeming overly chummy with the crown prince in a meeting in Riyadh two weeks after Khashoggi was killed. We will continue to have conversations with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring that the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Pompeo said. He said he wanted to make sure investigators had all the facts. U.S. intelligence agencies have suggested that Mohammed may have been involved in the killing, which the crown prince has denied. Both Trump and Pompeo have been reluctant to pin blame on him because of Saudi Arabias important role in countering Iran. Advertisement tracy.wilkinson@latimes.com For more on international affairs, follow @TracyKWilkinson on Twitter They seemed an unlikely pair of spies. The older man, Majid Ghorbani, worked at a posh Persian restaurant in Santa Anas South Coast Plaza Village. At 59, he wore a thick gray mustache and the weary expression of a man who had served up countless plates of rice and kebab. The younger man, Ahmadreza Mohammadi Doostdar, was a Long Beach native who held dual U.S.-Iranian citizenship. Round-faced and bespectacled, the 38-year-old answered to the Farsi nickname Topol, or Chubby. Yet even as the men sipped coffee at a Costa Mesa Starbucks, chatted outside an Irvine market, or made trips to Macys at South Coast Plaza, they were doggedly trailed by federal agents. Advertisement Despite the pairs disarming appearance, U.S. authorities allege they were operating in Orange County as agents of the Islamic Republic of Iran an accusation that has alarmed many in the local Persian community because it suggests tensions between the U.S. and Iran have spilled over into Southern California. The mens goal, authorities say, was to conduct surveillance on Israeli and Jewish facilities in the U.S., and to collect information on members of the Mujahedin Khalq, MEK, an Iranian exile group that has long sought to topple the regime in Tehran and enjoys newfound support among members of the Trump administration. Within the span of a year from the summer of 2017 to the spring of 2018 authorities say the men crisscrossed Orange County and the United States, videotaping participants at MEK rallies in New York and Washington, D.C., and photographing Jewish centers in Chicago. During that time, the men also flew back and forth between Iran and Los Angeles International Airport, and appeared to be assembling target packages dossiers that would enable an intelligence or military unit to find, fix, track and neutralize a threat, according to documents filed in Washington, D.C., federal court. In at least one instance, the pair were recorded by an FBI listening device as Ghorbani briefed Doostdar on a New York MEK event in September 2017, according to court documents. I took some pictures and collected some information of them and some senators that they are working with, the waiter said, according to court documents. I have prepared a package, but it is not complete. :: The target of the alleged spying, the MEK, is a shadowy organization with a militant past. Up until 2012, it was deemed a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Although few Americans have heard of it, the group has vexed the Iranian government since the revolution of 1979, when members helped to overthrow the shah. Advertisement Led by a husband-and-wife power couple Massoud and Maryam Rajavi the group was sheltered and armed by Saddam Hussein for nearly 20 years. Known for its female-led military units, the MEK was disarmed after the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Massoud Rajavi went missing that same year and is believed to be dead. Despite a long history of lobbying U.S. lawmakers and officials for support, few have taken the group seriously up until now, that is. President Trumps national security advisor, John Bolton, is not only a prominent hawk on Iran, he has championed the MEK. Rudolph W. Giuliani, Trumps lawyer, has also supported the group. The MEK in recent years has spent time and money building political capital, said Daniel Benjamin, director of Dartmouth Colleges Center for International Understanding. Bolton has been the MEKs most dedicated long marcher. Advertisement Although the Trump administration has not explicitly stated that it seeks regime change in Iran, it has reimposed tough economic sanctions and pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal. These actions, as well as new, cozier relations with the MEK, have apparently worried Iran enough to act against the group. In a case similar to the one in Orange County, two Iranians in Albania were arrested in March after allegedly surveilling the MEK. In July, an Iranian diplomat in Germany was arrested on suspicion of plotting to bomb a MEK rally in Paris. This is escalation of Iran attempting to attack us, said Alireza Jafarzadeh, the U.S. deputy director of the National Council of Resistance of Iran an MEK-linked organization. :: Advertisement It is unclear how Ghorbani and Doostdar first came into contact, but investigators believe their first face-to-face meeting occurred behind Darya, the Persian restaurant where Ghorbani had worked for more than 20 years. Doostdar was born in Long Beach but left at a young age to move to Canada and then Iran. An energy tech consultant, Doostdar had visited the U.S. on only a few occasions, court documents say. His wife gave birth to a baby girl in late August and was hoping to bring her to the U.S. Ghorbani, whom neighbors and co-workers described as quiet and easygoing, was born in Iran but immigrated to the U.S. in 1995. He kept mostly to himself and lived with his brother and a Pomeranian dog in a quiet Costa Mesa apartment complex not far from the restaurant. A fellow employee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she wasnt authorized to speak on behalf of the restaurant, said Ghorbani was well-liked and generous. On one occasion, Ghorbani lent money to a co-worker who was struggling, the employee said. Advertisement Investigators said Ghorbani also infiltrated meetings the MEK held at Darya. During one meetup in early August, Ghorbani met with MEK members as they discussed sending three American senators to evaluate the groups base in Albania, according to the indictment. Rene Redjaian, a spokeswoman for Darya, said the restaurant owners had no idea that Ghorbani was allegedly involved in spying. Our owners love America and knew nothing about the events that took place at Darya, Redjaian said. As time went on, the men continued their alleged covert operation, unaware that federal agents were closing in. In December 2017, Doostdar returned to Iran allegedly to hand over the intelligence Ghorbani had collected. Unbeknownst to him, FBI agents searched his checked luggage at LAX and found an orange and white CVS pharmacy envelope. Inside the envelope, FBI agents found photos of Ghorbani standing next to people who were at the New York City MEK rally from September 2017. Many of the photographs had names and positions of the individuals written on the back, including one photograph that had Dr. Ahmad Rajavi, the brother of Massoud, written on it, prosecutors said in court documents. Advertisement In March 2018, Ghorbani traveled to Iran to conduct an in-person briefing about ways to take photos for an upcoming conference supported by the MEK, prosecutors allege. When he returned April 17, authorities found tucked in his luggage a list written in Farsi that detailed his future tasks, including deeper infiltration into the MEK and recruiting a second person, according to court documents. The pair never succeeded in allegedly recruiting another operative, however. On Aug. 9, FBI agents swarmed Darya restaurant and arrested Ghorbani in front of stunned co-workers. Advertisement Doostdar was arrested the same day in Chicago. Both men have been accused of acting as agents of a foreign government without prior notification of the U.S. attorney general and with providing services to Iran in violation of U.S. sanctions. Both men have pleaded not guilty and remain in custody. Ghorbanis lawyer has declined to comment on the case. Doostdars attorney, Thomas Durkin, said hes suspicious about the timing of his clients arrest considering it comes on the heels of Trump reimposing sanctions against Iran. Theres political machinations going on between the Trump administration and Iran. Why did the government all of a sudden decide to arrest these people? he said. Advertisement :: The arrests of Ghorbani and Doostdar have left many in Orange Countys Persian community shaken. There is a sense of fear in the Iranian community that the regime in Iran are sending people to USA and keeping track of movements, said Mike Kazemi, an Irvine immigration lawyer. For those in the Persian community who are against the Islamic Republic but also disagree with the Trump administrations policies toward Iran, the escalation in tensions has been disconcerting. They say it serves as a reminder of how both American and Iranian officials view members of the Iranian diaspora with suspicion. Advertisement We are in the middle of two hard places, Kazemi said. Yet others in the community say they are refusing to allow geopolitics to interfere with their day-to-day lives. Nasrin Rahimieh, a professor of humanities at UC Irvine, said she understands how recent developments might cause some Persians to feel scared of being too visible. Throughout her career, Rahimieh said, she has been chastised for either appearing pro-Islamic Republic or anti-Islamic Republic. Advertisement But those experiences have left Rahimieh emboldened to speak out against what she said is the fear-mongering rhetoric present in todays political environment. There is such rabid desire to show Iranians as bad actors and as bad agents that its had the opposite effect on me, Rahimieh said. To paint all Iranians with the same brush is something that needs to be protested. melissa.etehad@latimes.com Follow me on Twitter @melissaetehad An ongoing FBI investigation into Los Angeles City Councilman Jose Huizar is part of a broader corruption probe in which agents are seeking possible evidence involving Councilman Curren Price and a senior aide to Council President Herb Wesson, as well as several other city officials and business figures, according to a federal search warrant. The warrant, which was filed in federal court in November but reviewed by The Times on Saturday, said agents were seeking evidence related to an investigation into an array of potential crimes, including bribery, kickbacks, extortion, and money laundering involving 13 people. Agents served the warrant on Google in July for information from a private email account for Ray Chan, the former head of the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety for Mayor Eric Garcetti, according to the warrant. Chan also served as a deputy mayor for economic development under Garcetti. Along with Chan and Huizar, those named in the warrant included Price, who represents part of South L.A.; Deron Williams, chief of staff to Wesson; Joel Jacinto, a Garcetti appointee who serves on the citys Board of Public Works; and other City Hall aides who have worked for Huizar. Advertisement The warrant does not say the FBI has gathered evidence of criminal activity by any of the people named in the document, and there were no records attached to the warrant saying what evidence, if any, was discovered in Chans email account. No one has been arrested or charged in connection with the investigation. But the court documents lay out a more expansive FBI investigation into City Hall than has previously been revealed. Price said Saturday that he does not know anything about the warrant. He also said he had not been contacted by the FBI. Jacinto told The Times he was unaware he had been mentioned in a federal search warrant. He said neither he nor his wife, who is also named in the warrant, had been contacted by investigators or received subpoenas seeking records or testimony. I dont know what its about, so I cant really comment, Jacinto said. None of the others named in the warrant could be reached for comment Saturday. An FBI spokeswoman declined to comment. Huizars attorneys, Vicki Podberesky and Mary Carter Andrues, did not address the warrants contents but released a statement Saturday in response to questions from The Times saying that Huizar and his staff are focused on serving all the residents in Council District 14 and continuing to advance citywide efforts. Advertisement Chan, who retired from city employment in 2017, declined to say whether he had received a federal grand jury subpoena when contacted by The Times in November. The first sign of an FBI investigation into City Hall occurred Nov. 7 when FBI agents hauled an array of materials from Huizars home and office, including a cardboard box with the word fundraising on it. The FBI declined to discuss its investigation but confirmed that the Internal Revenue Service, which looks into unreported income, was involved. The warrant was first reported in a tweet late Saturday by Seamus Hughes, a counterterrorism expert who is currently deputy director of the Program on Extremism at George Washington University. The document is publicly available on the federal courts online records-retrieval system. Much of the agents focus centered on Huizar. Agents were seeking all financial records relating to the councilman and his mother and brother, Salvador, according to the warrant. The FBI also wanted all records relating to projects in and around Los Angeles in which Huizar, his staff or several other men were involved in acquiring permits, licenses or other official city processes. Advertisement The warrant also named three companies described as foreign investors and sought records relating to involvement by the companies or other foreign investors in development projects in and around Los Angeles. At least one of those companies was listed on a document that was linked to Chans email account and which appeared to be a long list of business deals in which Chan was involved. The warrant sought any information related to the document. The agents also wanted records relating to fundraising for Bishop Mora Salesian High School, which Huizar attended as a student and where his wife later worked as a fundraiser; Proposition HHH, a local ballot initiative that raises funds for homeless housing developments; and other fundraising expeditions/campaign contributions. The Times reported last month that Huizar personally asked companies that did business at City Hall to donate to Salesian and assigned his staff to help with the effort while his wife worked at the school. During Richelle Huizars employment at Salesian, money came in to the school from real estate developers, billboard companies, engineering firms and others who were seeking or had received favorable votes from her husband, according to interviews with donors and documents obtained by The Times. Advertisement The three foreign companies named in the warrant donated to Salesians annual gala, according to the documents. Greenland USA, which was one of the most generous, is one of the three foreign investors named in the warrant. The company is developing the Metropolis project, which consists of four towers along the 110 Freeway in downtown Los Angeles. In December 2014, Huizar and his City Council colleagues approved up to $18.7 million in financial aid for the Hotel Indigo, which is part of Greenlands project. The other two companies, Oceanwide and Hazens, are developing multistory projects on Figueroa Street in the downtown section of Huizars district. In addition, at least one political action committee has received a subpoena from a federal grand jury seeking information on two men with City Hall ties lobbyist Morrie Goldman and Art Gastelum, the owner of a Pasadena-based construction management firm along with Huizar and his wife. When a severely autistic teen at an El Dorado County school for special needs acted out violently, staff put him in a restraint hold, the Sheriffs Office said. The boy, identified as Max Benson, stopped breathing, and a teacher at Guiding Hands School began CPR before paramedics arrived. He was taken to a Folsom hospital, then to a UC Davis hospital, but died. Sheriffs officials said there was no evidence of foul play in the November incident, but the California Department of Education announced it was investigating the schools actions. Now, the Education Department said it is revoking the schools state certification, and all students referred there from public schools would need to be moved. Advertisement A week after the incident, the department determined that staff violated school code when they restrained the boy and suspended the private school, preventing it from enrolling new students. The department didnt know the boy had died until officials visited the school unannounced, according to the suspension letter. The department said in its initial report: Evidence supports a finding that GHS staffs actions were harmful to the health, welfare and safety of an individual with exceptional needs. School districts in the area that dont provide services for students with special needs contract out to Guiding Hands School, said Alex Barrios, a spokesman for the Sacramento Unified School District. The districts that worked with the school were notified Wednesday that they had to move their students from Guiding Hands by Friday. When the incident happened about a month ago, we reached out to all of the families that had a student enrolled there, let them know we were aware of the situation and offered to assist them in moving to an alternate school if they chose, Barrios said. Some families moved at that time. Sacramento Unified is moving its 26 students still enrolled at Guiding Hands to schools in Arden Arcade, South Sacramento and Orangevale, he said. The Elk Grove Unified School District is moving 53 students, said district spokeswoman Xanthi Pinkerton. The Folsom Cordova Unified School District is moving four students, said spokesman Daniel Thigpen. Because Guiding Hands certification was revoked, public schools wont be able to use special-education funds to pay for its services for their students. But the department does not have authority to close a private school, said department spokeswoman Cynthia Butler. Advertisement Representatives for the Guiding Hands School could not be reached for comment, but in a letter to one parent obtained by the Sacramento Bee, school officials said that they intended to appeal the revocation and that the school would remain open for as long as possible. The department said that its investigation is ongoing and that Guiding Hands has yet to give the department written notice about preventive measures being taken. alejandra.reyesvelarde@latimes.com Twitter: @r_valejandra The message has been clear for months from the president of the Los Angeles teachers union: Not only does the L.A. Unified School District have no deficit, it has a huge reserve, more than large enough to meet the unions demands for higher wages, smaller classes and schools staffed every day with the supportive services they need. Thats partly true: The district hasnt recently had deficits, but Alex Caputo-Pearl is ignoring future projections. L.A. schools Supt. Austin Beutner has seemed just as certain when he declares the district on the brink of insolvency. That could be true, but if it is, why is the district able to offer any pay raises? Advertisement In the intense dispute between Los Angeles Unified and United Teachers Los Angeles, hyperbole, passion and spin have often trumped fairness, moderation and neutrality. Thats been especially the case in the tense immediate run-up to a teachers strike that is set to begin Monday in the nations second-largest school system. After the district made a new offer Friday, which the union quickly rejected, no further negotiations were scheduled for the weekend. Meanwhile, 31,000 union members readied to walk picket lines as the district scrambled to keep schools open with substitutes, reassigned office workers and skeletal staff. For the teachers, this strike is about more than money. They are concerned about the direction of education and their place in it. But money remains central: What can the district afford to do? And, within those parameters, what are district leaders willing to do? It hasnt helped that the dispute has gotten personal, with the union attacking Beutners motives and Beutner taking actions that have angered union leaders. Each side has made questionable assertions and offered misleading interpretations of what the other side has said. Deficit or surplus? The union says the district can afford to pay for much more. It points to last years ending reserve of nearly $2 billion, the largest in district history. The school system points to projections that show potential insolvency in three years. Both sides have data to back them up. The union is correct in that, for the better part of a decade, school district officials have talked of an approaching fiscal cliff about three years out that has never been reached. In fact, the districts ending balance has increased over the last several years. That would not be possible if the district was spending more than it was taking in. Advertisement But the district is not lying about sobering projections, whether or not they come to pass. Potential future problems come from several sources. One is sharply increasing required payments into the California State Teachers Retirement System, which pays for the pensions of retired teachers across the state. These accelerated payments to keep the fund solvent are causing a financial strain on all school systems. Without some form of relief, school systems soon will be paying into this fund about 1 of every 4 dollars they receive. Gov. Gavin Newsoms budget may provide short-term relief because it takes some burden off school systems on pension payments. L.A. Unified has not yet been able to calculate how this assistance could alter the gloomy budget forecasts. Advertisement L.A. Unified also faces rapidly rising costs for retiree health benefits. Such benefits are a rare perk, and accountants recently scored them over time at a cost of about $250,000 per employee. Unfortunately, the school system has not set aside money to pay for the benefits. This problem will gradually subside on its own because the qualification rules for lifetime benefits, as they are called, have become extremely stringent. But for the next 10 to 15 years, these expenses could hobble L.A. Unifieds ability to cover some services to students and to pay its current employees competitive wages. The district also has had trouble cutting spending as its financial base enrollment has shrunk. This drop in students has been caused by population trends and the growth of charter schools, which, like restaurants, can open without considering the limits of the customer base in this case, students. In spite of these factors, the reserves left over at the end of the year have grown larger in recent times, finally reaching nearly $2 billion, the figure highlighted by Caputo-Pearl. Advertisement Analysts have cited three reasons. First, state tax revenue has come in higher than projected. That was the case again this year. Score one point for the union. Second, new money from a revised state funding formula also came in faster than anticipated. The goal is to provide extra help for targeted students: those from low-income families, those learning English and those in the foster-care system. L.A. Unified has lots of these students. And lastly, the district has indeed been putting money aside, but is that hoarding, as the union calls it? Advertisement Thrifty or tightfisted? A large portion of the money in the reserve is set aside for future employee salary increases that the district has already offered or agreed to, including $175 million to non-teaching employees and $303 million to cover the 6% raise currently being offered to teachers. If teachers get more than 6%, many other employees also will qualify for more under a me, too clause in their contracts. The largest chunk $680 million is being held back because the district has concluded that, starting this year or next, it will spend much more than it takes in. If thats the case, this money would be used to delay but not prevent the district from going bankrupt. Union leaders say the district could spend this money now and dont believe the projections of future deficit spending. Advertisement The districts analysis, however, has been endorsed by outside experts as well as the Los Angeles County Office of Education, which has the legal responsibility for tracking the financial health of L.A. County school systems. The union challenges the independence of these outside analyses. That challenge would have more credence if the union could offer an independent analysis that reaches different conclusions. It hasnt. Still, the record of the county education office has been imperfect in spotting problems and preventing districts from getting into financial trouble. The county analysis also will probably be conservative because thats the prudent course from an accounting standpoint. That means the county is unlikely to accept an optimistic prediction of future state funding until that money is in the bank. Its also not going to factor in the possibility that legislators could provide more money or that state or local voters could approve pending ballot initiatives that would increase taxes to better fund schools. Such tax measures will be appearing on ballots in 2020. Advertisement Some conservatism might be called for. The state has enjoyed about a decade of economic growth. Many economists say that in such situations, a recession which would shrink state revenue for a time is almost inevitable. Score one for the district. Budgets within budgets Advertisement And yet these outside financial reviews dont typically look at all the budgets within the school systems budget. The district could, in fact, stash money in smaller accounts that are never reviewed by analysts. Such actions are an almost natural outgrowth of collective bargaining. No employer wants to show all its cards and thus lose leverage in negotiations. L.A. Unified has absolutely hidden money in the past that it eventually applied to salary negotiations, according to former district officials. Even within the districts publicly posted numbers, there is wiggle room beneath the surface. For example, the district lists $284 million as discretionary funds spent by principals at school sites. Each line item in this category is a story of its own. Some of this spending would seem essential even to UTLA; some would be of debatable importance, even to L.A. Unified. Whatever the case, this discretionary money mostly pays for staffing and its possible that, if money is moved around, some union members could lose work so that other union members could get more work or perhaps higher pay. Also, one key desire of the union is to win teachers and parents more authority at schools. If schools lose their discretionary funds, such involvement could be severely undermined. Advertisement That being said, additional money for a union settlement will probably come from this fund. More available money can be found in the $303 million that is committed to students most in need, as required by law. This line item refers to money that the district has committed to spend on behalf of those students specially targeted for help by the state: those from low-income families, those learning English and those in the foster care system. Here, the district hopes to pull off a two-for-one. It hopes to use some of this money to satisfy the unions demands while also still serving these students. It could do so by hiring more teachers and lowering the size of classes in schools that serve the most needy students. This approach was in use in the revised contract proposals L.A. Unified made last week. Advertisement Advocates for these students are worried about this strategy. They fear the needs of students could become secondary to the imperatives of a contract settlement. All about money? Beutner says the unions demands would cost $3 billion. Thats debatable, partly because the union has not responded to the district with specifics on how much smaller it is asking for classes to be. The unions position, so far, is to demand the elimination of a contract clause that gives the district broad authority over class sizes. Many teachers would gladly accept smaller raises in exchange for better working conditions and better learning environment for students. Advertisement But most issues come back to money. Everyone wants smaller class sizes teachers, parents, students. But meaningful class-size reduction is one of the most expensive reforms in education. Its rarely been done anywhere except in pricey private schools that often pay teachers small salaries. howard.blume@latimes.com Twitter: @howardblume Hello! Im Mark Olsen. Welcome to another edition of your regular field guide to a world of Only Good Movies. What a week that was. From the Golden Globes to guild awards nominations, its been quite a time for awards watchers. Josh Rottenberg dug into the Globes and what that means (or doesnt) in terms of the Oscar race. As he wrote, Providing the latest set of potentially confusing data points in what has already been an unpredictable awards season, the 76th Golden Globes gave major boosts to the racially inflected period road movie Green Book and, more surprising, the Freddie Mercury biopic Bohemian Rhapsody in their pursuit of Oscar glory. With Oscar nominations voting open this week it was a real free-for-all. As Glenn Whipp noted in his look at the troubled week for the Green Book campaign in what should be a triumphant moment after three big wins at the Globes, How the latest controversies will hurt or potentially even help Green Book through the next few weeks of Hollywoods awards season remains to be seen. Oscar nomination voting continues through Monday. Nominations will be announced Jan. 22. Advertisement And then there is the ongoing drama of who, if anyone, will host the Academy Awards ceremony. Rottenberg got into whether it would be Kevin Hart or no one at all, with the academy and producers now apparently leaning toward a host-less ceremony. Well have our first Indie Focus Screening Series event of the new year coming up in early February. For info and updates, go to events.latimes.com. MEDIA, PA, JANUARY 6, 2019 Director M. Night Shyamalan is seen in his office at Blinding Edge Pictures in Media, PA. He wrote and directed a new film Glass. (Jennifer S. Altman / For The Times) WINTER MOVIE PREVIEW The Times published our winter movie preview this weekend, with a look at some of whats going to be hitting screens over the coming months. Jen Yamato talked to M. Night Shyamalan about his upcoming film Glass, which unites characters from his films Unbreakable and Split. As he said, The nature of doing something very unusual Im doing a sequel to two separate movies, from two separate generations, from two separate studios! is the exciting, challenging part for me that makes me go, OK. This dish has never been made before. Sonaiya Kelley wrote about Captain Marvel, the first female-centered story from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the first Marvel film with a female director. Starring Brie Larson and directed by the team of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, the movie comes to theaters in March. Advertisement Larson, an Oscar winner for the drama Room, spoke about the difficulty of training to play a superhero on-screen, saying There were moments where I cried, there were moments where I thought it was too hard, where I got pushed beyond my comfort zone, but those were ultimately my favorite moments. At the time, youre like, Why is this happening to me? And then afterwards, you feel so proud of yourself. Amy Kaufman spoke to Erin Cardillo, Dana Fox and Katie Silberman, the credited writers on the rom-com Isnt It Romantic. As Cardillo said of making a modern romantic comedy, I think romantic comedies have gotten more grounded Theres a call to not have them all be pretty white girl problems. I love that theres more diversity. Not everyone in the dating world is a supermodel when they take off their glasses. Hermione Corfield in a scene from Rust Creek. (IFC Midnight) RUST CREEK Advertisement Releases at this time of year often provide fresh takes on genre storytelling, and that includes Rust Creek, a survival thriller directed by Jen McGowan. In the film, Hermione Corfield stars as a college student who first finds herself battling the elements after become stranded in remote Kentucky woods, and then forced to summon her courage to fend off assorted unsavory characters who are coming for her. Reviewing the film for The Times, Noel Murray called it a well-acted, well-plotted backwoods noir. He added, McGowan makes good use of autumnal Appalachia, staging a lot of scenes outdoors in the barren, brown hills Even better is Rust Creeks feel for how these people are all making the best or, in some cases, the worst of bad circumstances, in a place where moneys scarce. By the time the film turns back into a rural chase story, its clear exactly what everyones running after. McGowan recently appeared on the reliably insightful podcast Switchblade Sisters, hosted by April Wolfe. McGowan spoke not only about her own Rust Creek, but also her deep admiration for Jonathan Glazers Under The Skin. Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie as the Baxters from Nic Roegs Dont Look Now. (courtesy of American Cinematheque) Advertisement NICOLAS ROEG Since the death of Nicolas Roeg in November, there have been many tributes to the filmmaker. But now, thanks to the American Cinematheque, local audiences get a chance to revisit his work on the big screen for themselves. At the Egyptian Theatre from the 17th to the 20th seven of Roegs film will play, including better known titles such as Dont Look Now and The Man Who Fell To Earth, but also movies ripe for rediscovery that still spark with Roegs specific touch such as The Witches, Bad Timing and Eureka. Special guests scheduled to speak along with many of the films include Roegs son Luc Roeg, actress and Roegs ex-wife Theresa Russell, actress Anjelica Huston and cinematographer Tony Richardson. Email me if you have questions, comments or suggestions, and follow me on Twitter: @IndieFocus. SIGN UP for the free Indie Focus movies newsletter Actors who take on small roles may have fewer lines to memorize, but they must create an entire life in just a few scenes. Their appearances may be brief, but their performances are crucial to the movies theyre in. As we do every awards season, its time once again for The Envelope to celebrate three of the people who supported three celebrated films so artfully. Jorge Antonio Guerrero Fermin, Roma Roma centers squarely on Cleo (Yalitza Aparicio), who works as housekeeper and nanny to a middle-class family in Mexico City. Her fleeting moments free of work are spent with her suitor, Fermin. In the role, actor Jorge Antonio Guerrero forges a path from enthusiastic boyfriend and martial artist to something far more tragic, personally and politically. Roma was his first film role. At his first audition, he learned the role would involve martial arts, so before even landing the part, Guerrero trained for eight months. By the final callback, I was working for about seven or eight hours per day. We get a few glimpses of Fermin applying these lessons, the most revealing of which is a nude baton-wielding performance in a hotel room to impress Cleo. Speaking by phone from Mexico, Guerrero recalls that after he got over his initial nervousness, he had so much fun with the scene that when director Alfonso Cuaron offered him a towel to cover up between takes, he refused. I say no, I want to finish. Then I will cover myself. Much more difficult was acting out a moment of terrible cruelty toward Cleo. It was tough for me, but the communication with Alfonso was very powerful and created inside of me the exact expressions for the scene. Advertisement Jorge Antonio Guerrero Martinez as Fermin in Roma. (Alfonso Cuaron) Emily Rios Victoria Rogers, If Beale Street Could Talk Emily Rios plays a ghost of sorts. Her character, Victoria Rogers, haunts the residents of Beale Street before we even meet her, holding them hostage with a critical decision. When she finally appears, facing off against matriarch Sharon (Regina King), all of our expectations are upended. Rios calls the filming night and day from anything Ive ever experienced in my entire life. Working with director Barry Jenkins, its not so much direction as, lets open up the dialogue, and from there we can see if we meet at the middle or if we have completely different ideas, and try to branch out from there. So he let me go ahead and do my take on it, and from there he had subtle little directions, to expand on or minimize something in my performance. When it came time for her to give a particularly raw reaction, he put a hand on my shoulder very gently and said, Take as much time as you need. He let me do whatever my body was doing and whatever I was feeling in the moment, which was phenomenal. She has an equal amount of praise for King, her scene partner. After the first take, I thought, shes bringing it up to a level that I didnt even know I could reach as an actor. She made me feel so safe and comfortable, and she also challenged me in a way I hadnt been challenged professionally. Jake Ryan as Gabe in Eighth Grade. (A24) Jake Ryan Gabe, Eighth Grade Eighth Grade stars Elsie Fisher as Kayla, a middle-schooler possessed of a level of social anxiety matched only by her hope for connection. Mercifully, she finds occasional moments of relief, none sweeter than from young Gabe, played by Jake Ryan. Gabe might be just as awkward as Kayla, but it doesnt seem to bother him. I felt like he was more comfortable with who he was, and in himself, than Kayla, says Ryan, who at 15 has been acting for 10 years. I try to put myself into every role that I play, but for Gabe it was easy. Hes a lot like myself. Hes a little bit shy, kind of nervous sometimes, but he still tends to be the one to start up the conversation with somebody else. He likes to make people feel good, make them laugh. Ryan adds that director Bo Burnham was pretty laid-back, but it always felt like he had things under control. I felt like I wasnt being rushed at all. He respected our opinions and ideas of how the characters should be. He gave me a lot of confidence, him and Elsie. They were just super-nice people. Advertisement And for the record, Jake Ryan is well aware that he shares a name with a certain films dream date. Throughout my entire life and career, people have asked me if my name came from Sixteen Candles. Ive never actually seen the movie yet. FULL COVERAGE: Get the latest on awards season from The Envelope calendar@latimes.com Most of the layoffs at SpaceX that were announced last week will be taking place at its Hawthorne headquarters in the South Bay. Hours after launching its first rocket of the new year on Friday morning, Elon Musks company told stunned employees that roughly 10% of SpaceXs workforce would be laid off. Workers were sent home early to await notification to their private email addresses about their fate. The vast majority of Space Exploration Technologies Corp.s more than 6,000 employees work at its headquarters and rocket factory in Hawthorne, and hundreds of others are based in Seattle, Florida, Texas and Washington, D.C. Some 577 positions will be cut in Hawthorne, Jan Vogel, executive director of the South Bay Workforce Investment Board, said in an interview Sunday. Advertisement Those cut include production managers, avionics technicians, machinists, inventory specialists and propulsion technicians. Its always unfortunate when there are large layoffs, Vogel said. Were in touch with SpaceX, and were to provide transitional services to impacted employees. There are a lot of aerospace companies in the Los Angeles area. Were ready to help people. The layoffs were first reported by the Los Angeles Times. SpaceX flew a record 21 missions in 2018 for customers that include commercial satellite operators, NASA and the U.S. military. But the market size for launches is not infinite, and SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell warned there might be a slowdown in orders from the geo-telecommunications industry. Next year you wont see as many launches as you see in 2018, Shotwell said in an interview with CNBC last May. 2019 is a lower-cadence year. Musk founded SpaceX in 2002 to revolutionize space technology. The company, along with Boeing Co., has a contract with NASA to fly American astronauts to the International Space Station on a spacecraft named Crew Dragon. Despite the partial government shutdown, Crew Dragon is slated to fly for the first time in February without humans on board. SpaceX is also working on a space-based broadband satellite network and Starship, a larger spacecraft designed to carry humans to Mars. To continue delivering for our customers and to succeed in developing interplanetary spacecraft and a global space-based Internet, SpaceX must become a leaner company, SpaceX said in a statement Friday. This action is taken only due to the extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead and would not otherwise be necessary. Musk is also the chief executive of electric-car maker Tesla Inc., which laid off roughly 9% of its workforce in June. As with Tesla, some SpaceX employees who were laid off took to social media to thank Musk for the opportunity to working for him. Advertisement Last week, SpaceX disclosed in a regulatory filing that it had sold $273 million in equity as part of a plan to raise a total of $500 million. The sale would boost the rocket companys market capitalization to about $30.5 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported in December. PG&E Corp., facing billions of dollars in wildfire liabilities, may notify employees as soon as Monday that its preparing a potential bankruptcy filing, according to people familiar with the situation. The San Francisco utility owner is planning to send the notice to fulfill a state law that requires the company to alert workers at least 15 days before a change of control, said the people, asking not to be identified because the information isnt public. The notice wouldnt necessarily make a bankruptcy filing certain and the company could still decide not to if its situation changes, one of the people said. PG&E declined to provide a statement, saying the company doesnt comment on rumor or speculation. A notice may signal that the company has accelerated plans to make a Chapter 11 filing as way of dealing with crippling liabilities from wildfires that tore through California in 2017 and 2018, killing over 100 people and destroying hundreds of thousands of acres. Investigators are probing whether PG&Es equipment ignited the deadliest of the blazes. Advertisement The company is facing as much as $30 billion in damages a prospect that has wiped out two-thirds of PG&Es market value, sent its bonds plummeting to record lows and prompted rating companies to downgrade PG&Es debt to junk. California passed legislation last year in the aftermath of the deadly wine country fires requiring utilities to post public notices for employees at least 15 days before a change of control, including a bankruptcy filing. California Gov. Gavin Newsom said during a news conference Thursday that his office would be making an announcement related to PG&E within the next few days and that the issue was at the top of his agenda. He said in a later interview that the announcement would involve appointments to the California Public Utilities Commission, the states grid operator and to a commission established by the Legislature to explore wildfire issues. Newsom is monitoring the situation very closely, Nathan Click, a spokesman for his office, said Saturday. PG&Es deepening financial crisis has already spread to the companies that supply its natural gas and generate electricity for its customers. At least two small gas suppliers have restricted sales to PG&E out of concern that the company wont be able to pay, people with direct knowledge of the situation said earlier this week. Some banks are taking a long look at a potential $2-billion debt financing for the Geysers, the worlds largest geothermal complex, because it supplies the utility, people familiar with the matter also said this week. On Thursday, S&P Global Ratings cut the credit rating of Berkshire Hathaway Energys 550-megawatt Topaz Solar Farms to junk, noting that the plant counts on PG&E for all of its revenue. People familiar with PG&Es situation said last week that the company is considering filing for bankruptcy within weeks. Chediak writes for Bloomberg. Starbucks begins to sell "lucky bag," a random selection of goodies, at its stores, Thursday. / Courtesy of Starbucks Korea By Jun Ji-hye Kim Ha-na, a 22-year-old university student in Seoul, got up early in the morning Thursday even though she is on winter vacation. Then, she rushed to a Starbucks store to grab a "lucky bag" the coffee chain began to offer that day. The Starbucks' lucky bag contains a random selection of items such as tumblers and mugs for less than stores usually sell them for. "I arrived at the store at 7:58 a.m., two minutes before the store opened," Kim said. "There were already several people queuing up, but I succeeded in buying a lucky bag. I was so lucky." She posted pictures of the bag she bought and goods inside it on her blog, with a number of netizens adding comments saying, "Congratulations!" On the other hand, another university student Jeong Yoo-jin living in Mok-dong, western Seoul, was disappointed as she failed to buy a bag although she visited more than 10 Starbucks stores in the morning. "I bought a bag last year, but couldn't this year," Jeong said. "All the bags sold out during the morning even though the price went up this year." As the cafe chain gave a notice on Tuesday that that it planned to begin to offer the lucky bag beginning from Thursday, many SNS users shared information about stores where they could buy the bag more easily. The Starbucks' lucky bag has been brought into conversation every year, with the bags having sold out within a few hours of sales launching. This is because the cafe chain has provided low quantities since it began selling lucky bags since 2007 as an event for New Year. Starbucks Korea said it provided 17,000 bags this year, which means each store could secure about 15 bags. Among those, 1,000 bags contain four additional coupons for free drinks, making people expect more luck. There is a limit one person can buy only one bag. This year, the bags sold out within five hours, according to Starbucks Korea. "The Starbucks lucky bag is our representative customer appreciation event that takes place every year," said Hong Seok-kyu, a Starbucks Korea official. "This year, we organized more diverse items in addition to eco-friendly bags." But some customers expressed complaints that the prices of the lucky bag have increased every year from 38,000 won ($34) in 2011 to 42,000 won in 2012 to 55,000 won in 2016 and to 63,000 won this year. They claimed the event seems like the coffee chain's scheme to sell products that it failed to sell last year. "I was thinking about buying the lucky bag this morning, but I abandoned it due to its price," a netizen wrote in an online community site. "The bag is too expensive. With 63,000 won, I would be able to buy other items that I need more. I don't know why the name of the bag is the lucky bag." Foreing Investment Ombudsman Kim Sung-jin gestures during an interview with The Korea Times at the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) in Yangjae-dong, southern Seoul, Dec. 13. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk Anti-foreign sentiment No.1 obstacle in attracting FDI By Nam Hyun-woo In his third year in office, President Moon Jae-in has seen a significant drop in his approval rating due to the economic downturn, which seems to be a consequence of putting much of his energy and focus on addressing the North Korea issue. While local companies complain about the government's "distribution-centric" policymaking, foreign companies also say they feel marginalized in the government's economy plans, despite their contribution to the country's economy and job market. "The most common complaint from foreign companies is that the Moon Jae-in administration is not welcoming foreign investments compared to previous governments, and so they feel marginalized," Foreign Investment Ombudsman Kim Sung-jin said in an interview with The Korea Times. "However, that is a misunderstanding. This government also needs foreign investment and President Moon also has a firm belief in this. Since the presidential election was held earlier than the initial timeline and the administration's top priority has become the North Korea issue, economic matters including foreign firms came second to that." The foreign investment ombudsman is commissioned directly by the president to provide support and grievance addressing services for foreign investors and foreign-invested companies in Korea. Established in 1999, the system of foreign investment ombudsman marks its 20th anniversary in 2019. Along with Kim, seven private sector experts and staff supporting them are trying to make the country a more attractive investment destination, but what they hear these days are complaints from foreign companies that the Moon administration has not made "significant advances" from previous governments in terms of regulation. "They said the previous government at least held events for them to air their difficulties, but this government does not hold such events," he said. Kim, however, said the President will work on addressing their complaints when North Korea issues are on track for a resolution. To show this, Kim said he proposed Moon meet with heads of foreign firms early this year and underscore the importance of foreign companies' role in Korea. Reportedly, Cheong Wa Dae also responded positively. Afraid of foreign biz While calls are growing for the government to make swift changes in its regulatory environment, Kim said it is more important for Koreans to admit "they don't have warm views on foreign businesses" and to "change this attitude and recognize them as the same players in the economy." "I still see many xenophobic ideas in Koreans," Kim said. "Whether it is because of Korea's homogeneity or its experiences of seeing some foreign firms fleeing after raking in huge profits, society has an unfriendly attitude toward foreign companies, especially those making a lot of money here." Such a hostile attitude is not only mentioned by Kim but also American Chamber of Commerce in Korea Chairman James Kim, who said in November that Korea's Fair Trade Commission (FTC) tends to treat investing firms as "criminals." One foreign firm that officially complained about the Korean authority's hostile attitude is Apple Korea. In June, Apple Korea filed suits with domestic courts crying foul over an FTC investigation of it, following an audit demand by an FTC official who allegedly treated Apple Korea "unfairly" during an investigation. "That is one of the reasons why Korea can't be the home of many multinational companies' Asia-Pacific headquarters, even though the country has a great natural environment and advanced workforce," Kim said. "And I think that is a more convincing reason than the potential threat of North Korea." Another factor that hampers foreign investment in Korea is the so-called "window guidance" by the authorities, Kim said. Window guidance is an unofficial intervention or suggestion on what certain companies can or cannot do. Window guidance have been rampant in not only Korea but also other Northeast Asian countries including Japan because the authorities can expect faster results in putting companies into their planned policy through a phone call, memo or remark, even if there are no legal grounds. "Even these days, firms see a lot of window guidance taking place in multiple industrial sectors, and this is clearly a hurdle for foreign firms considering Korea as their investment destination," Kim said. "The reason behind doing window guidance is because the country's regulations are ambiguous," he said. "No matter how tough a regulation is, firms can fit themselves into it. But when it becomes ambiguous, it becomes a problem. What's worse than a bad regulation is an ambiguous one." This is a stance that foreign firms in Korea have been stressing. A joint statement of five foreign chambers of commerce last year urged the government to "give greater weight to the predictability and consistency of the regulatory environment." "Business is all about sentiment," Kim said. "To draw investment, we should not make a company's CEO concerned, but give them the confidence that there won't be trouble if they play within legal boundaries." Despite growing calls for regulatory improvements and more Korean firms going abroad, the country is still growing as an investment destination. According to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Korea's total amount of inbound foreign direct investment (FDI) stood at $22.94 billion in 2017, up 7.72 percent from a year earlier. In the first three quarters of 2018, the inbound FDI amounted to $19.2 billion, up more than 40 percent from $13.58 billion during the same period a year earlier. Kim stressed that this shows the country is still appealing to investors, especially tech companies. "Despite lingering issues such as high labor costs, labor-management conflict and regulations, Korea is still attractive for foreign tech firms because of its rich talent pool, productivity, social security, large market for tech products and administrative support," Kim said. "Due to its rich manufacturing experience, the country has many source technologies as well as tech-savvy consumers who provide a test bed for companies." He added that foreign firms play a significant role in Korea's economic growth, especially in terms of job creation. "The Bank of Korea expects that about 80,000 people found jobs in 2018, and approximately 20,000 of those were created by foreign companies. What's important is those are quality jobs. Given the employment cliff these days, the role of foreign companies in the Korean economy is huge," Kim said. "We have experienced that industrial competitiveness improves through competition. Foreign investment spurs industrial advances through competition, spreads technology and injects capital. We should understand that all of these contribute to the growth of the Korean economy." Jo Seong-jin, LG Electronics CEO and vice chairman, speaks during a news conference held at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Wednesday. Courtesy of LG Electronics By Jun Ji-hye LG Electronics, which has been suffering from a deteriorating performance, is seeking for a breakthrough in merger and acquisition (M&A) deals in a bid to secure future growth engines at the earliest possible date. CEO and Vice Chairman Jo Seong-jin said, "We are contacting about 50 companies for M&A deals," during a media conference with Korean journalists at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Wednesday. In its October-December earnings guidance issued Jan. 8, the tech company estimated 75.3 billion won ($67 million) in operating profit and 15.7 trillion won in sales. The operating profit and sales decreased by 79.5 percent and 7 percent from a year ago, respectively. KB Securities analyst Kim Dong-won said the performance of LG's smartphone and TV units may have worsened due to market stagnation and cut-throat competition. "Competition in the mobile phone and TV markets is highly likely to continue this year, and will become an uncertainty factor for LG Electronics' performance," Kim said. Amid a negative outlook, it is urgent for LG to make profits from other business it has cited as future growth engines including robotics and the automotive electrical parts business. The company has already begun efforts to take over companies specializing in those businesses. In August, LG Electronics acquired ZKW, an Austrian automobile lighting supplier, to expand its customer base as global automakers such as BMW and Porsche are ZKW's customers. The company has also made equity investments in a wearable robotic exoskeleton startup SG Robotics, developer Robotiz, emotion recognition start-up Acryl and industrial robot maker Robostar as well as U.S. robot developer BossaNova Robotics since 2016. "We plan to achieve a turnaround in the robot business within two years," CEO Jo said. Jo noted that the firm could set up joint ventures with other companies, or establish cooperative relations first through investments before signing M&A deals. Besides M&A deals, LG Electronics appeared to be active in seeking partnerships with firms in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving during the CES 2019. The home appliance maker said it will partner with the nation's largest portal operator Naver to develop an advanced guide robot. Under the partnership, Naver's integrated location and mobility system eXtended Definition and Dimension Map (xDM) will be featured in LG's guide robot Air Star to upgrade its function. By Jung Min-ho Huawei has sacked the Chinese executive arrested on espionage charges in Poland last week, as the Chinese tech giant tries hard to distance itself from the incident. The move came after Polish authorities arrested Huawei sales director Wang Weijing, also known as Stanislaw Wang, in Warsaw on charges of spying on Poland for Beijing along with a former Polish security official. The news has deepened international concerns about Huawei, the world's largest telecom equipment manufacturer, which is facing problems amid growing suspicion over its ties to the Chinese government. Huawei claimed Wang acted alone, saying his actions had no relation to the company. "Huawei has decided to terminate the employment of Mr. Wang Weijing, who was arrested on suspicion of breaking Polish law," Huawei said in a statement on Saturday. "In accordance with the terms and conditions of Huawei's labor contract, we have made this decision because the incident in question has brought Huawei into disrepute." The Chinese government also denied its involvement. A spokesman for China's embassy in Warsaw told Chinese state media that Beijing "attached great importance" to the case and was following it up with the Polish foreign ministry. Meanwhile, Poland's internal affairs minister, Joachim Brudzinski, said the European Union and NATO should work on whether to exclude Huawei from their markets. "There are concerns about Huawei within NATO as well. It would make most sense to have a joint stance, among EU member states and NATO members," the minister reportedly said. Wang, who had worked for Huawei's Polish division since 2011, was an attache to the Chinese General Consul in Gdansk from 2006-2011. Huawei, founded in 1987 by Ren Zhengfei, a former engineer at the People's Liberation Army, denies that the company has close ties to the Chinese Communist Party or has any intention to design equipment to facilitate eavesdropping. But many experts say no Chinese company is fully independent of its government, which can legally require companies to assist with gathering intelligence. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won gestures during a meeting with employees at SK headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, in this photo released Sunday. The meeting, held Tuesday, was in a talk show format in which Chey and the employees shared their thoughts on what makes a happy work/life balance. Courtesy of SK Group A young woman holds a map of Europe that reads: "Wake up!" during a protest against climate change in Brussels, Jan. 10. The demonstration attracted many young people to protest on green issues. AP By Emanuel Pastreich and Alexander Krabbe Vanuatu turns the Corner LETS USE THIS AS A SPRINGBOARD FOR THE FUTURE By Tong Kim Watching North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's recent visit to China, following his New Year address and U.S. President Donald Trump's favorable response to Kim's latest "great" letter, it is reasonable to expect that a second U.S.-North Korea summit appears imminent. South Korean President Moon Jae-in said at a New Year news conference in Seoul that Kim's latest meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping will soon be followed by his second meeting with Trump. Like Xi, who reportedly told Kim that the North and the U.S. should meet halfway to find a breakthrough to the current deadlock in nuclear talks, Moon suggested bolder action by Pyongyang and reciprocal action by Washington. Both parties know what the other side wants. The U.S. demands concrete action on denuclearization beyond Kim's commitment, and the North demands an easing of sanctions before it takes a further step. Absent mutual trust, neither side is willing to blink. On Jan. 6, Trump said at a cabinet meeting that the U.S. was having "a very good dialogue" with North Korea and that a second meeting with Kim will be set up "in the not too distant future." He also said there would have been "a nice, big fat war" in Asia with North Korea if he had not been elected. As Trump says both he and Kim want to meet again to resolve the North Korean issue that Trump says has been around for 80 years. Kim has not been critical of the American president since their meeting in Singapore in June 2018, despite his obvious disappointment with a lack of a "corresponding measures" from Washington. Kim's visit to Beijing and his letter to Trump seem to have helped erase concerns that Pyongyang was backing away from denuclearization amid the diplomatic stalemate, Kim's failure to pay a return visit to the South, and his reaction to mounting pressure from the sanctions imposed by the U.N. and the U.S. Some portrayed Kim's meeting with Xi, a fourth in ten months, as a strategic planning session for the second summit between the North and the U.S. Some suspected its aim was to influence the U.S.- China trade talks, the timing of which coincided with Kim's visit. This was not true. The trade talks appear to have made some positive progress to the satisfaction of both Beijing and Washington. Through his New Year address, Kim reaffirmed his commitment to the June 12 Singapore agreement, declaring his intent to produce an outcome from a second summit with Trump that will be welcomed by the international community. Kim conveyed essentially the same message to Xi. Kim's vague statement, "if the United States attempts to unilaterally enforce something upon us and persists in imposing sanctions and pressure against our republic, we may be compelled to find a new way for defending the sovereignty of the country and for achieving peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula." deserves comment. The latitude of the meaning of "a new way" includes going back to the "byungjin policy" of nuclear and economic development, ending dialogue with Washington and relying on China's support, an arduous march to self-reliance and survival, or a dangerous confrontation with the U.S. in a final showdown. Perhaps, it could have been a tactic to raise negotiating leverage for the upcoming second summit. Or it could have reflected Kim's frustration with the U.S. insistence on the sanctions, which Trump also says will be in full force and effect, until major progress is made in denuclearization. According to the North Korean Central News Agency, Kim told Xi that the North keeps "the goal of the denuclearization of the peninsula, and sincerely seeks a negotiated peaceful solution." But Kim brought up "the difficulties and concerns arising in the course of the improvement of the U.S.-North Korea relations and the negotiations for denuclearization." In response, Xi "fully agreed with the principled issues suggested by North Korea and its reasonable points of concern should be resolved properly, adding it is a correct choice for the parties concerned to prioritize and reasonably tackle them." It is interesting to note that the two Koreas, China and the United States are all focusing on their economic issues. Kim spent 70 percent of his New Year speech on the economy; Moon is shifting his focus from peace to the economy; and Xi on resolving trade disputes with Trump. The priority of a state is to feed its people. Tong Kim (tong.kim8@yahoo.com) is a Washington correspondent and columnist for The Korea Times. He is also a fellow at the Institute of Corean-American Studies. Ex-chief justice should admit his role in power abuse Prosecutors summoned former Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae, Friday, and questioned him over an abuse of power scandal. He has become the first ex-head of the Supreme Court to be criminally investigated. This has left an indelible mark on Korea's constitutional history arguably a shameful one. Yang, after retiring in September 2017, is now a criminal suspect. This alone is a disgrace not only for him but also the judiciary and the country as a whole. He is entitled to enjoy the presumption of innocence until proven guilty; yet, in all probability he has to face arrest and multiple criminal charges for what he did during six years at the helm of the top court. It is more disappointing that he has continued to deny his alleged deep involvement in the scandal to avoid any responsibility. He even provoked the ire of the pubic by making a statement before the media in front of the Supreme Court, instead of at the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office in southern Seoul when he was summoned. This behavior was seen as arrogant. If he still insists on the special privilege of being a former chief justice, he is wrong. Yang should cooperate with the prosecution's investigation and try to shed light on the power abuse case. He should no longer try to give only lame excuses to justify his actions. He needs to remember Article 103 of the Constitution that stipulates that judges shall rule independently according to their conscience and in conformity with the Constitution and laws. Much evidence and many circumstance have so far indicated that what Yang did was apparently against constitutional values and obligations. He should realize that he undermined the judiciary's political neutrality and independence, weakening the rule of law the basis of a functioning democracy. Yang may face more than 40 charges, including abuse of power and leaking state secrets. Most of all, he allegedly tried to use politically sensitive trials to curry favor with Cheong Wa Dae under then-President Park Geun-hye. The Supreme Court under his leadership was found to have used such trials as bargaining chips in dealing with the presidential office in an unsuccessful bid to create a second separate court of appeals. According to investigators, Yang allegedly delayed the deliberation of a damage suit filed by Korean victims of Japan's wartime forced labor to please the former president who wanted friendlier ties with Tokyo. He seemed to seek favor with Park by turning a deaf ear to the victims. Yang faces further allegations of instructing officials at the National Court Administration, the top court's governing body, to work out ways of interfering in trials to make rulings in Park's favor. He was also allegedly implicated in having secretly monitored judges critical of the court administration and the conservative government. Now the prosecution should conduct a fair and thorough investigation to get to the bottom of the scandal. The Moon Jae-in administration must speed up reform to turn the judiciary into the last bulwark of justice that can serve the people better. By Gwynne Dyer If you live long enough, almost anything is possible. It is now possible, for example, to hear the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill, describe a former KGB agent and avowed atheist as a "miracle of God." The miracle in question, Vladimir Putin, made his career in the Soviet secret police before the collapse of the Soviet Union, which meant he had to be a member of the Communist Party. As a loyal Communist, he had to struggle against the evil influence of religion, the "opium of the people," and as an ambitious careerist he did just that. But the regime changed in 1991, and Putin had to carve out a new political career in a post-Communist Russia. So he got religion, or at least pretended to, and made an alliance with the Russian Orthodox Church. That's why he is now warning that there may be bloodshed if the Ukrainian Orthodox Church is allowed to break away from the Moscow patriarchate. The president of Russia got the best education the Soviet state could provide, and his private opinion about the Russian Orthodox Church is probably not far from that of Pussy Riot (although they would agree on little else). But the church has always served the interests of the Russian state if it is allowed to, and as the embodiment of the Russian state Putin feels obliged to return the favor. What has upset Patriarch Kirill and his colleagues is that recently Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople granted a"tomos of autocephaly" to Metropolitan Epiphanius of the newly formed Orthodox Church of Ukraine. Which probably needs a bit of translation. The ecumenical patriarch is the head or rather, the "first among equals" among the heads of the various national Orthodox Christian churches. "Constantinople," actually now Istanbul, is still the headquarters of Orthodox Christianity although it has been under Muslim control for over 500 years. The Ukrainians had asked Patriarch Bartholomew if they could have their own church back, and after due consideration he decided that they should. The tomos of autocephaly (independence) was the document that contained his decision. He was just putting things back the way they were. Kiev, now the capital of Ukraine, was the first capital of the Russian state, and naturally the headquarters of the Russian Orthodox Church as well. But Kiev was destroyed in the Mongol invasion of 1240, and for centuries afterwards the new centers of Russian civilization were in the forests far to the north. In 1686, when Muslim slave-raiders from Crimea were still operating regularly in the vicinity of Kiev, the patriarch in Constantinople officially transferred the seat of the Russian Orthodox Church from Kiev to Moscow. All that's really happening now is that Kiev is getting its own patriarch back. The people who live in this area now are called Ukrainians, speaking a language somewhat different from Russian. Normal Orthodox rules say that each national group is entitled to its own national church, so what's the problem? Politics, of course. For three centuries after 1686, Ukraine was part of the Russian empire and its successor, the Soviet Union. It was the Russian Orthodox Church that made the religious decisions for everybody, and received the revenues from the 12,000 Orthodox parishes in Ukraine. But since Ukrainian independence in 1991, all that has been in question. The question became more urgent with Russia's unilateral annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its military support for separatists in eastern Ukraine since then. Moscow wanted to keep control of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, since it was a way to influence Ukrainian opinion in Russia's favor. But for the same reason, it was a priority for Ukrainian nationalists to expel the Russian influence. Ukraine won, and Ukraine's president, Petro Poroshenko, thanked Patriarch Bartholomew "for the courage to make this historic decision...Finally, God sent us the Orthodox Church of Ukraine." (Is Poroshenko really a believer? Maybe, but he's certainly running for re-election in March.) Putin and Poroshenko are both using religion for their own purposes, but Bartholomew just did what was right. That has a cost: the Russian Orthodox Church accounts for almost half of the 300 million Orthodox Christians in the world, and the hierarchy in Moscow has now broken off relations with the patriarchate in Constantinople. This is a schism that may take a long time to heal. But Pussy Riot should have the final word. As they said in their famous "punk prayer" in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow in 2012 (for which two of them did serious jail-time): The Church praises rotten leaders The march of the cross consists of black limousines Patriarch Kirill believes in Putin, Would be better, the bastard, if he believed in God! Virgin birth-Giver of God, drive away Putin! Drive away Putin, drive away Putin! Gwynne Dyer (gwynne763121476@aol.com) has worked as a freelance journalist, columnist, broadcaster and lecturer on international affairs for more than 20 years. He is the author of "Growing Pains: The Future of Democracy (and Work)." By Francis Wilkinson House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate minority leader Charles Schumer left empty-handed from their White House meeting with President Donald Trump on Wednesday. And so did the president, who failed, yet again, to gain a commitment to fund a symbolic wall on the nation's southern border. The Democrats had appeared together on camera the night before, responding to the latest jumble of lies, fear-mongering and pure laziness (making an argument is too much work, and making one logically or persuasively is well nigh impossible) that passes for presidential discourse. While Pelosi is pretty brilliant at leading the House, neither she nor Schumer are very good at public communication. But the problem with their response to Trump Tuesday night wasn't so much what they said. It was the same problem that plagued them in their meeting the following day: They were talking to the wrong person. To borrow a construct from the classical orator Marco Rubio, let's dispense with the notion that President Donald Trump knows exactly what he's doing. Because he really, really doesn't. Trump is not in control of Washington. He's not even in control of his own administration, where officials simply ignore his diktats until his feeble attention shrivels. Trump is not in charge even of the West Wing of his White House, where his own aides regularly leak embarrassing details of his ignorance and buffoonery and his recently departed chief of staff defined his personal achievements in terms of repeatedly foiling the boss's half-baked (and not quite half-legal) schemes. And, of course, the reason Trump still doesn't have a wall is that his fellow Republicans refused for two years to fund one. With Democrats in charge of the House, Pelosi should stop wasting time and energy on the reality-television president and deal instead with the closest thing we've got to the real thing: Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky. Increasing pressure on Trump to end the government shutdown, which he backed into without a suspicion of a hint of something that resembled a strategy, makes a certain amount of sense. At least it does if your goal is to embarrass and expose the president. But Pelosi surely must recognize that on both the presidential embarrassment and exposure fronts, the returns are diminishing. In any case, identifying McConnell as the real Republican power in the federal government, and treating him accordingly, is the most humiliating thing she can do to Trump. In addition to being satisfying politics, it's highly practical. Trump, as my colleague Timothy O'Brien points out, never mastered far less demanding jobs. He will forever be an agent of chaos, and an enemy of competence. But the House and Senate don't need a president for budget negotiations. They can work out a compromise between them and send it over to Trump, who can lie about what it means and sign it into law. Ann Coulter won't like it. But nobody elected her, and, realistically, that may be the best Trump can do. McConnell doesn't want to antagonize the president's tribe, which, as one Trump supporter eloquently explained to the New York Times, wants to be sure that Trump is "hurting the people he needs to be hurting." But McConnell's tribe is smaller 53 senators and not all of them are as solemnly invested in buttressing the racial hierarchy and punishing their perceived enemies as the MAGA troops tend to be. Some of McConnell's Republican colleagues are looking at an uncertain path to re-election in their states. They are eager to get the government open, appear sensible, moderate and competent, and move on. Pelosi should put the onus for doing so squarely and completely on McConnell not Trump. After all, when two parents have a squabble, they don't sit around and wait for their 2-year-old to resolve it. The House speaker should make it clear that Trump is not the decisive factor in the dispute. McConnell is. For reason to prevail, or at least to have a chance, McConnell will have to take the reins while Trump howls. Can the chaos chief executive veto what Congress sends to him? Of course, he can. But figuring out how to avoid that outcome is really not Pelosi's problem. It's President McConnell's. Francis Wilkinson writes editorials on politics and U.S. domestic policy for Bloomberg Opinion. He was executive editor of the Week. He was previously a writer for Rolling Stone, a communications consultant and a political media strategist. His commentary was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. By Joseph S. Nye, Jr. BEIJING Time magazine did not choose Donald Trump as its Person of the Year in 2018, but it may do so this year. Trump ended last year facing criticism for announcing troop withdrawals from Syria and Afghanistan without consulting allies (resulting in the resignation of his respected defense secretary, James Mattis) and partially shutting down the government over a Mexican border wall. In 2019, with Democrats having taken over the House of Representatives, he will face increasing criticism of his foreign policy. Administration supporters shrug off the critics. Foreign policy experts, diplomats, and allies are aghast at Trump's iconoclastic style, but Trump's base voted for change and welcomes the disruption. In addition, some experts argue that the disruption will be justified if the consequences prove beneficial for American interests, such as a more benign regime in Iran, denuclearization of North Korea, a change of Chinese economic policies, and a more evenly balanced international trade regime. Of course, assessing the long-term consequences of Trump's foreign policy now is like predicting the final score in the middle of a game. Stanford historian Niall Ferguson has argued that "the key to Trump's presidency is that it is probably the last opportunity America has to stop or at least slow China's ascendency. And while it may not be intellectually very satisfying, Trump's approach to the problem, which is to assert U.S. power in unpredictable and disruptive ways, may in fact be the only viable option left." Trump's critics respond that even if his iconoclasm produces some successes, one must assess them as part of a balance sheet that includes costs as well as benefits. They argue that the price will be too high in terms of the damage done to international institutions and trust among allies. In the competition with China, for example, the United States has dozens of allies and few disputes with neighbors, while China has few allies and a number of territorial disputes. In addition, while rules and institutions can be restraining, the U.S. has a preponderant role in their formulation and is a major beneficiary of them. This debate raises larger questions about the relevance of personal style in judging presidents' foreign policy. In August 2016, 50 primarily Republican former national security officials argued that Trump's personal temperament would make him unfit to be president. Most of the signatories were excluded from the administration, but were they correct? As a leader, Trump may or may not be smart, but his temperament ranks low on the scales of emotional and contextual intelligence that made Franklin D. Roosevelt or George H.W. Bush successful presidents. Tony Schwartz, who co-wrote Trump's book "The Art of the Deal," notes that "Trump's sense of self-worth is forever at risk. When he feels aggrieved, he reacts impulsively and defensively, constructing a self-justifying story that doesn't depend on facts and always directs the blame to others." Schwartz attributes this to Trump's defense against domination by a father who was "relentlessly demanding, difficult, and driven You either dominated or you submitted. You either created and exploited fear, or you succumbed to it as he thought his elder brother had." As a result, he "simply didn't traffic in emotions or interest in others," and "facts are whatever Trump deems them to be on any given day." Whether Schwartz is correct or not about the causes, Trump's ego and emotional needs often seem to color his relations with other leaders and his interpretation of world events. The image of toughness is more important than truth. Journalist Bob Woodward reports that Trump told a friend who acknowledged bad behavior toward women that "real power is fear You've got to deny, deny, deny and push back on these women. If you admit to anything and any culpability, then you're dead." Trump's temperament limits his contextual intelligence. He lacked experience, and has done little to fill the gaps in his knowledge. He is described by close observers as reading little, insisting that briefing memos be very short, and relying heavily on television news. He is reported to have paid scant attention to staff preparations before summits with experienced autocrats like Russian President Vladimir Putin or North Korea's Kim Jong-un. If Trump's iconoclastic style was merely a breach of traditional presidential etiquette, one might argue that his critics were being too fastidious, or were trapped in old-fashioned views of diplomacy. But crudeness can have consequences. While pressing for change, he has disrupted institutions and alliances, only grudgingly admitting their importance. Trump's rhetoric has downplayed democracy and human rights, as his weak reaction to the murder of Saudi dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi demonstrated. Although Trump has echoed President Ronald Reagan's rhetoric about the U.S. being a city on the hill whose beacon shines to others, his domestic behavior toward the press, the judiciary, and minorities has weakened the clarity of America's democratic appeal. International polls show a decline in America's soft power since he took office. While critics and defenders debate the attractiveness of the values embodied by Trump's "America first" approach, an impartial analyst cannot excuse the ways in which his personal emotional needs have skewed the implementation of his goals for example in his summit meetings with Putin and Kim. As for prudence, Trump's non-interventionism protected him from some sins of commission, but one can question whether his mental maps and contextual intelligence are adequate to understand the risks posed to the U.S. by the diffusion of power in this century. As tensions grow, reckoning with Trump may well become unavoidable in 2019. Joseph S. Nye Jr. is a professor at Harvard and author of the forthcoming "Do Morals Matter? Presidents and Foreign Policy from FDR to Trump." Copyright belongs to Project Syndicate (www.project-syndicate.org). Lee Hyon-chol About 60 years ago, when we were elementary school students, we had to come together in the school's playground to attend the morning meeting to celebrate New Year's day. It was in the middle of the coldest winter vacation, though. Usually after the national anthem, the principal gave a speech to the effect of being a better student in the New Year by making plans and doing a kind of self-study during the vacation. It was too cold and long for us to listen to on the playground but eventually we were able to sing together the New Year's day song that we learned and practiced before we began winter vacation. And after this singing, we were really free from school for the whole month of January. The lyrics of it I remember are somewhat like the following: A light made of all the wishes of people is rising with the sun. And the sun this morning is more brilliant than that of the past. Who dares to complain it is cold in this winter? Rather than idling or just waiting for the spring to come, Let's make blooming spring on our own. The village where I lived then had a somewhat big population but now is reduced to a tenth of its former self because of migration from rural areas to the cities to seek better jobs for the family. At that time in my elementary school, the number of pupils was almost 1,000. To my surprise, the home page of the elementary school at the moment shows that the number of pupils is 52. That's why our music teacher then was keen on trying to make the chorus a better harmony when as many as 1,000 of us sang the national anthem or the songs for national holidays. He must have been enjoying the harmony of a 1,000 pupils. Now the world has changed. There seems to be no national holiday celebration meeting in schools. So there seems to be no singing together like we did in schools any more. On a national holiday last year, only dozens of students appeared on TV to sing the national anthem and the song for the national holiday celebration. Where have all my friends gone who sang the national anthem, the New Year's Day song or other national holiday songs 60 years ago? And where are the songs we sang together? Lee Hyon-chol was an adjunct professor at the Teachers' College in Kyungnam University, South Gyeongsang Province. The 2019 CICI Korea Image Awards ceremony was held at the InterContinental Seoul COEX in southern Seoul on Thursday. The non-profit Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) has been presenting awards each year to those who promote the image of Korea to the world. Award winners this year were YouTubers Mack and John Rock, Korean Englishman Josh & Ollie and ballet dancer Park Sae-eun. Rep. Lee Hae-chan, the chairman of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), speaks during a press conference held to commemorate the New Year at the National Assembly, Sunday. / Yonhap By Park Ji-won The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) said Sunday it will commit itself to explore ways to boost inter-Korean projects. Saying "achieving peace means saving the economy," Rep. Lee Hae-chan, the leader of the DPK, stressed the importance of inter-Korean economic cooperation during a New Year press conference. "This year will be critical in building an economic bloc on the Korean Peninsula and finding new ways for Korean firms and the government to complete tasks ranging from resuming operations at the Gaeseong Industrial Complex and tour programs to Mount Geumgang, to connecting inter-Korean railways and roads and the Eurasian continent." His remarks tally with President Moon Jae-in statements unveiled in a New Year press conference at Cheong Wa Dae. The President said inter-Korean exchange programs will help improve the local economy as they will allow South Korean companies to sell their projects and products to their North Korean counterparts. The two Korea's economic exchanges have been restricted due to international sanctions on the North. Lee said the party will launch a special committee, the "New Centennial Committee for the Korean Peninsula," where members will discuss related issues as well as holding inter-Korean events with the North to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement and the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai in 1919, during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule. Lee pledged that he will also participate in events which will vitalize inter-Korean projects. The party leader said events to commemorate the June 15 and Oct. 4 summits held by the late Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il are scheduled this year. Meanwhile, Lee said the party will put an emphasis on coming up with economic measures to prepare for the next 100 years amid the opposition parties' criticism of failing to boost the economy while facing a decreasing approval rating. "The DPK decided Peace, Economy and a New 100 Years as the key agenda for this year. The most important task for this year will be improving people's lives and revitalizing the economy. In order to do so, we will focus on communication and compromise." Lee pledged to enact basic law to categorize small businesses and the self-employed as an independent economic sector to come up with related policies and revitalize them. Presidential Chief of Staff Noh Young-min, right, smiles in his meeting with the ruling Democratic Party Korea (DPK) leader Lee Hae-chan during his visit to the National Assembly, Jan. 11. Yonhap By Kim Yoo-chul President Moon Jae-in's chief press secretary said Sunday that Cheong Wa Dae will simplify its communication channels for effective and efficient communication with reporters and reporters. "Cheong Wa Dae will change the way the presidential office communicates with reporters and the public for greater for greater simplicity. Presidential spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom will handle all questions and requests by reporters. My role is only to respond to questions relating to communication policy-related issues," chief press secretary Yoon Do-han said in a lunch meeting with reporters. Yoon, a former broadcast journalist who replaced Yoon Young-chan, added he will take a back-office role supporting presidential spokesman Kim. "As I will be sharing all things happening inside Cheong Wa Dae with Kim, if you want fact-checking of daily issues from time to time and needs-based questions, please ask him," Yoon said. At the presidential office, the Cheong Wa Dae Press Center chief gives briefings on the President's main schedule around 09:00 a.m. Between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., presidential spokesman Kim makes daily briefings regarding questions by reporters. The question-and-answer session lasts about 10 minutes. Upon requests and situations, Kim makes himself available to take additional questions. Chief press secretary Yoon said Cheong Wa Dae wants to ensure coherence and avoid unnecessary overlaps between the chief press secretary and presidential spokesman. Another senior Cheong Wa Dae official said the presidential office is considering reshuffling the cabinet in mid-February in a step to bulk up the President's muscle ahead of the next general election scheduled for April 2020. "We are considering changing some ministers; however, further specifics on when and how have yet to be decided," the official told reporters during the meeting. He asked not to be identified. The President has recently shaken up his cabinet by appointing close associates to senior positions. Moon replaced his chief of staff, chief press secretary and chief presidential secretary for political affairs. Getting a majority of parliamentary seats is crucial in order to keep the momentum of the Moon administration's legislative and diplomatic agenda alive. The ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and Moon have already confronted numerous internal and external challenges such as a slow progress of negotiations aimed at dismantling North Korea's nuclear weapons and tepid economic growth. South Korean presidents serve one five-year term, and Moon is due to leave office in 2022. Therefore, he faces a lame-duck period during the latter half of his presidency. Out of the 299-member single-chamber parliament, the DPK has 131 seats with the country's major opposition Liberty Party Korea (LPK) securing 112 seats. GETTYIMAGESBANK Masked foreign tourists walk down a street in Myeongdong, Seoul, Sunday, amid high levels of fine dust reported nationwide. / Yonhap By Kim Hyun-bin Thick fine dust blanketed most parts of the nation Sunday, forcing the government to take measures to reduce its levels in Seoul and the surrounding areas. According to the Korean Meteorological Agency (KMA) the situation won't get any better today, as fine dust concentration levels are forecast to be higher nationwide. This was the first time this year that the government has taken reduction measures; it last took the action Nov. 7 last year. According to the Ministry of Environment, the level of fine dust in Seoul was measured at 126 micrograms per cubic meter (/) as of 2 p.m., with Gangseo-gu logging 150. The average levels in Gyeonggi Province and Incheon stood at 130 and 122, respectively. Reduction measures are taken when fine dust levels exceed 50 / for two consecutive days. On Saturday, the fine dust concentration level in the capital was 72 /, with 60/ in Incheon, and 81/ in Gyeonggi Province, the ministry said. It enforced the emergency reduction measures from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday for these areas with the exception of Yeoncheon, Gapyeong and Yangpyeong in Gyeonggi Province. Frustrated with the continuous poor air quality, people have urged the government to come up with better countermeasures to tackle the fine dust issue. "We can't go outdoors or ventilate the house. The fine dust has negative effects on our everyday life. The Moon Jae-in administration needs to come up with better measures to reduce fine dust," said Chung, a housewife in her mid-30s. Power plants in the affected areas have limited their output to 80 percent of normal operations as they generate a large amount of fine dust in their emissions. Fourteen oil- and coal-fired plants in Gyeonggi and South Chungcheong provinces have reduced their output, and 106 government operated businesses and 441 construction sites have limited operations to reduce dust. Seven hundred and eighty-six street cleaning trucks will be deployed in the capital and the surrounding regions, while the local councils will order the washing of subways and multi-purpose facilities after operational hours. To strengthen monitoring of fine dust levels, the affected areas around Seoul will set up an additional 199 fine dust detection devices near highly congested roads and car parks. The Seoul city government closed its outdoor skating rink as well as canceling other outdoor events masks were provided for events that could not be postponed in time. A compulsory odd/even vehicle operations order and a ban on the use of old diesel vehicles are over 2.5 tons was also issued during the weekend. The National Institute of Environmental Research says most of the fine dust came from China and contained pollutants. "Researchers at the Seoul Institute said 50 percent to 60 percent of the fine dust came from China)," Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon said in a radio interview, last week. An F-35A Lightning II fighter flies over Lockheed Martin's assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas in this March 28, 2018. / Korea Times file By Park Ji-won Two F-35A stealth fighter aircraft will be delivered to South Korea from the U.S. by the end of March, a military source said Sunday. "Two F-35As out of 10, which the Air Force will receive this year, will arrive in South Korea by the end of March. They will be deployed by around April or May," a source familiar with the matter said. The source said two aircraft will arrive every month and up to 10 stealth fighters will be handed over by the end of the year. The Air Force will possibly complete their deployment during the same time. By the end of 2018, the Air Force had taken over six F-35As for training at Arizona's Luke Air Force Base in the U.S. The F-35As are expected to play a key role in South Korea's pre-emptive strike system, previously referred to as Kill Chain and currently known as the strategic target strike against North Korean missile provocation. The planes will a stop in Hawaii and Guam, and also be refueled by U.S. air tankers. In March 2014, the Air Force agreed to purchase 40 of the radar-evading strike aircraft from Lockheed Martin for 7.4 trillion won. A single plane is reportedly priced at around 120 billion won. The first F-35A stealth fighter aircraft for South Korea made its public debut last year in the United States. South Korea and the U.S. held a joint rollout ceremony for the plane at Lockheed Martin's assembly line in Fort Worth, Texas in March. From the end of 2017, South Korean fighter pilots were dispatched to the U.S. to receive flight training for the jets. The first solo mission was flown in July last year. South Korea will acquire two stealth fighters from the United States in late March. Yonhap South Korea will acquire two stealth fighters from the United States in late March, allowing the country to fly the latest fifth-generation aircraft in the world, sources said Sunday. The two F-35A jets will arrive in Seoul, and they will likely be assigned to combat units that defend the country starting in April or May, several insiders familiar with the matter said. South Korea has agreed to purchase 40 F-35As in a 2014 contract. The jets are designed to evade detection and have the latest electronics suite that can allow them to be effective even in well defended airspace. A single plane is reportedly priced at around 120 billion won (US$107.5 million). Korea may buy 20 additional F-35s as the Air Force has requested more assets. Of the 40, the South Korean military will have 10 jets delivered before the end of this year, with the rest to be brought in by 2021 as planned, the sources said. Adding to the Air Force's existing fleet of F-15Ks and F-16s, the F-35As are expected to play a key role in South Korea's envisioned Kill Chain pre-emptive strike system. (Yonhap) Staffers of Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE) urge its president Park So-youn to step down at the body's office in Seoul, Sunday, following revelations that the organization had euthanized sheltered animals. / Yonhap By Kim Jae-heun The head of the nation's largest animal rights organization is under pressure to quit in the wake of disclosure that the organization put hundreds of its sheltered animals to death "indiscreetly." The call comes after a former employee of Coexistence of Animal Rights on Earth (CARE) revealed that its president, Park So-youn, was responsible for the euthanization of more than 230 animals at its shelter from 2015 to 2018, including 80 last year, without telling employees about the mercy killings. "We are very sorry as staff of CARE. We did not know such a horrible thing happened. Park, who has deceived us, should resign," an official said during a press conference at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul, Saturday. "CARE's slogan that it is a no-kill shelter has turned out to be a downright lie. Given that Park made most of the decisions on her own, we did not hear anything about the alleged mercy killing of sheltered animals." According to the whistleblower, the animals were killed because there was not enough room at the shelter. "Even the healthy animals had to give up their lives for a systematic procedure here and some animals that were not supposed to be killed were also put to death," the official said. The staff said that Park recently called a meeting at which she claimed the rule book has been lost, and that a new person was in charge of administering euthanasia. "It is nothing but changing the death stage for animals when we rescue animals to kill or kill animals we have rescues," a CARE official said. "Park should've sought our opinions if CARE was to carry out such large-scale euthanasia. CARE is neither Park's exclusive property nor a private organization. We are a civic group funded by 2 billion won of donations annually." "We trusted Park and followed her decisions, but her arbitrary actions have gone too far. "For example, she pushed the decision to rescue over 250 dogs kept at a farm in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, last year, but it was beyond CARE's capability," an official added. President denies allegations However, Park said she had never decided on her own to euthanize rescued animals and had always discussed the matter with others beforehand. "I have lots of evidence on my Kakao Talk account, proving my innocence," Park told The Korea Times, Sunday, adding that she had talked with three people familiar with the issue. "Also, when the revelation was made Friday, I was going to hold a board meeting to explain it, but suddenly a camera appeared in front of me, urging to clarify the decisions. "Most of animals that were put to death suffered from incurable infectious diseases. However, I tried my utmost to save them." Park added: "We have rescued animals outnumbering the number of shelters to house them. We need to discuss euthanasia more and must not just believe that it must be avoided." A 29-year-old "Purchasing uncle" Hwang Jung-ho carries a huge vinyl bag stuffed with clothes, after visiting a number of shops in Dongdaemun, Seoul, Wednesday. Korea Times photo by Kang Aa-young. By Kang Aa-young When the clock strikes midnight, it's time for many to go to bed. Some have already fallen asleep. But there is a group of people who start their day at midnight. In a freezing mid-winter night on Tuesday, Hwang Jung-ho, 29, just started his day, business as usual. Wearing a military-style parka with his signature glasses, he smoothly entered Dongdaemun shopping street, the nation's largest wholesale market. It became vibrant at night with a flux of local and foreign purchasers. A former barista, Hwang started his new job as a so-called "purchasing uncle" two years ago, following pieces of advice from his close friend who recognized Hwang's business acumen. "Purchasing uncle" is a slang term referring to a "middleman" who shops for clothes from wholesalers for their customers on a margin. Their customers are mostly online shopping mall owners in other cities or overseas. So far, so good, Hwang says. "I mean I have been doing great over the past two years," he told The Korea Times. Staff from LinkShops are sorting orders by region in order to send them on time. Hwang said he has always liked clothes and was into fashion. "A year ago, my goal was to start an online fashion mall on my own after learning the knowhow. But now I have become even more ambitious as my business is going well. I want to earn more money to open a cafe on the scenic Jeju Island." Big wholesaler malls, including Nuzzon, Chung Pyong-hwa just opened their business at midnight. With over 1,000 stores, the malls are packed with small-sized shops in the six story building. Each store has its own specialized items, such as clothing, shoes, jewelry, bags, and other fashion-related items. Some fashion experts say Dongdaemun is emerging as a fast-fashion hotspot. The area was rediscovered by some foreign tourists who were inspired to visit the country for K-pop or hit Korean TV series. As small apparel businesses in Dongdaemun are thriving, so are purchasing uncles like Hwang. Unlike many purchasing uncles who work independently, Hwang works with an online business dubbed Linkshops. The online business has a website and a smartphone app and is a platform through which local and international customers can connect with purchasing uncles to make orders and get products. Linkshops is a game changer. With the app, its members can have access to details of all Dongdaemun wholesalers' products, such as names, units of the clothes, as well as store names in each building. Based on the information, local and global customers check out the clothes and make orders. Linkshops has nearly 20,000 overseas subscribers from about 30 countries. The global network brought a lot of change. In the past, purchasers had a hard time getting a closer look at samples to make an order. But for Linkshops customers, they get a 1-day guarantee with order updates. Globally, Linkshops has a seven-day guarantee to get their items delivered to customer's doors. Many of their customers are from Asian countries including China and Hong Kong. Linkshops charges their customers 3.3. percent commission. Hwang does not have to bring cash with him as the app is taking care of the finance side as well. Payments are made solely online. Every night he drops by at least 1,000 stores to get what he needs for his customers. That night, he started off from the top floor of Apm luxe mall. Luxe is one of the "high-end" malls that attract lots of Chinese purchasers. It was even hard to move around the building. "It's Linkshops," Hwang said to the owners of each store. Then they hand him over what he ordered on behalf of his customers. Hwang picks up his orders at an assigned area and checks with other team members and ships them to his customers, nationwide. Five-ton cargo trucks leave at 3am for Busan. A purchaser's work is all about being punctual and showing up at the right time. Otherwise the whole process will be delayed. "Being late is a disaster," Hwang said. Time management as well as problem-solving skills are essential for those who want to be purchasers. If one fails, one will lose all customers. Although he is now successful, Hwang said he had a rough first start as a purchasing uncle two years ago. There were and still are barriers to entry in this world, he said. Wholesalers don't do business with those who they don't trust. So first-timers have a hard time getting what they want. "The wholesalers would never sell their clothes to someone they do not know, especially who's buying only one or two pieces," Hwang said. A store clerk checks receipts and items with LinkShop's staff to make sure there aren't any mistakes. With years of good working relationships with wholesalers, Hwang said some wholesalers even refund for some of damaged clothes from Linkshop customers, which was unthinkable to other purchasers. "In the past, those who purchased the products were supposed to take the risk and brace for the loss," Hwang said. Pretty much every shop owners recognized him at once and greeted him with smile. He was easy going, easy to get along with anyone. But he became a very different person once the brief greeting is over. He is cool when it comes to business. Hwang was fast. He dropped by each store and skillfully picked items that drew his attention. The shop clerks picked out a small package with "Linkshops" written and gave it to him. Soon his vinyl bags, called "Daebong," were full of his picks, just like snowman. Carrying huge vinyl bags on his shoulder, Hwang said Tuesday was not just another day. "Actually it's my birthday," Hwang said. He said he has been working on his birthday and even holidays without rest ever since he started the job. The only day of the week he can rest is the day the market is closed Saturday. He loved his job. Everyone in the industry is very trendy, they care a lot about how they look. "For two hours after work at 7 p.m., I check out store's newest clothes, just to learn the trends," Hwang said. He sure is a workaholic. He spends about 12 hours straight working after he arrives in Dongdaemun. A Chinese seller sells clothes on a live stream. When sellers display items on their stream, customers can take photos of items they want to buy and message the sellers directly. The night market in Dongdaemun is packed with Chinese sellers. For Korean purchasing uncles, Chinese live-streamers are competitors. The Chinese broadcast items to show them to their customers, encouraging them to choose what they want. "They are a little annoying," Hwang said. But they are welcomed by wholesalers and sometimes get special treatment because they buy about ten times more than that of Korean purchasing uncles. "When giant Chinese live-stream sellers arrive, shop owners sometimes close their store temporarily for other clients in order to show the big buyers the hottest items, exclusively," Hwang added. He recalled the time when Korean online shopping mall Imbly's major wholeseller was once discovered by a Chinese giant seller. The seller pretty much bought it all. The other sellers had to wait for the factory to make more. The fur jacket was a big hit in the Chinese market at that time, according to Hwang. Like other shopping districts in Seoul, Dongdaemun was hit hard by the U.S. Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) debate that pitted South Korea against its largest trading partner, China. Fashion suffered the fallout from the security discourse. Chinese tourists stopped coming to Seoul which ultimately negatively affected shop owners who were heavily dependent on big Chinese clients. A woman delivers late night meals to shop owners. At that time, shop owners in Dongdaemun mega franchise wholesale malls like APM were desperate as their business had gone slow. They were anxious to have the Chinese back, Hwang explained. "Shop owners hosted huge promotional events, such as free $500 gift certificate to attract the Chinese and now the newcomers became steady visitors." Midnight in Dongdaemun is unlike anywhere else in Seoul. Everyone's moving fast including shoppers, motorcycles and small trucks. They move around the narrow brightly-lit alleys, all carrying huge vinyl bags stuffed with clothes, to meet their times. Workers of KB Kookmin Bank participate in a strike at a stadium in Jamsil, Seoul, Jan. 8. Experts say the Bank's management need to further reduce workforce given the recent one-day strike attended by at least a third of union workers caused no major disruption at the bank's over 1.000 branches nationwide. Yonhap The country's employment rate reached 60.7 percent in 2018, down 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier. Korea Times file South Koreans in their forties and fifties were hit hardest by the tougher job market last year stemming from protracted corporate restructuring and an economic downturn, government data showed Sunday. The country's employment rate -- the portion of hired people to the working-age population -- reached 60.7 percent in 2018, down 0.1 percentage point from a year earlier, according to Statistics Korea. It was the first time that the annual employment-to-working population rate lost ground since 2009, when the number fell 1 percentage point in the aftermath of the global financial crisis. By age group, those in their forties saw their employment rate drop 0.4 percentage point to 79 percent last year from a year ago, marking the steepest on-year decline in nine years. Also, the employment-population rate of workers in their fifties also fell 0.7 percentage point on-year to 75.2 percent. Experts said the on-going corporate restructuring in the labor-intensive manufacturing and construction sectors affected the sharp decline in the employment rate of middle-age workers in South Korea. On the other hand, the employment-population rate of those in their late twenties and seniors over 60 years old marked a record high in 2018. The statistics data showed that 70.2 percent of those aged between 25 and 29 were hired last year, surpassing the 70 percent line for the first time since the country compiled comparable data in 1980. At the same time, the corresponding numbers for people 65 years old or over rose 0.7 percentage point on-year to a record 31.3 percent in 2018. "Baby boomers are continuing their economic activities even after their retirement," said a recent report by the government-funded Korea Labor Institute. (Yonhap) British artist Jo Bannon speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at Ieum Korea Disability Arts & Culture Center in Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of British Council Korea UK artist, audience communicate without speaking By Park Jin-hai Jo Bannon, 36, a British artist born with albinism, visited Seoul for a five-day performance called "Exposure," which runs until Jan. 13. In her performance, which belongs to a lesser-known genre called "disability art," audience members are guided into complete darkness. In the ten-minute, one-on-one performance, the audience listens to the artist's recorded voice talking about her life with the genetic disorder and her identity. It is not until the very end, the audience gets to see the artist's face and the artist and audience share a moment to look at each other. "So much happens in that moment when we look at each other. We don't speak, but some kind of conversation happens," said Bannon, who met 20 Korean audience members in her opening performance, held at Ieum Korea Disability Arts & Culture Center in Seoul, Wednesday. Bannon calls it a "little experiment" and says it is really about being together. "I think having all of this visual information can be so distracting in a way, to see who that person is. The recording really talks a lot about how we might be able to see each other without seeing," she said. "Even though I've done this thousands of times now, it feels like a surprise to see a face suddenly." Bannon as a person with albinism being looked at by others. "I'm doing my shopping in the market and somebody comes to me and will say 'you have white hair. Let me look at your eyes. Every week once, probably. It was almost like a little act of violence when someone tries to look at you and you don't want to be seen," she said. "So I made this work, I was interested in setting up a space I control. So I control all of them. You only see me when I only want you to see me." One member of the audience, who first gets frightened of the idea of one-on-one interaction, learns that it can be a quiet soft conversation. She says the piece is very gentle and welcoming. "It's always exciting when you see someone who begins very nervous then kind of feels comfortable. There is this idea that might be confrontational, but actually it's much more hypnotic and gentle," she said. "What I'm trying to say is that I would prefer this kind of way of looking at each other in the world. Maybe that's the proposition in the work that we should look each other more softly." As a teenager, living in a small industrial town in the U.K, she was a shy person and thought that boys would never be attracted to her, because she was different from the stereotypical beauty of a blond girl at school. As her eyes are weak in sunlight due to the lack of melanin pigments, the fear of inevitably losing her eyesight due to overexposure has also haunted her for a long time. "I think the work talks about how we are seen and I'm talking from the perspective of someone with albinism which is very distinct way of looking. But I think we all have this relationship with how we are looked at and how we are seen, also as a woman aside from having albinism," she added. "Sometimes I can really see the audience really engaging. Yes, they're thinking about me, my story and what I'm telling them. But I can tell they are also applying that to themselves. In some way, it gives you this understanding that we are all in a way same though." She performed "Exposure," the first autobiographical piece, in 2010. Since then she has been traveling around the world and performing it in different languages and different cultures. Counting, Kelly Gallagher, Northern Ireland Paralympics skier with oculocutaneous albinism, who skies almost blind, listening to the voice of a guide skier in front of her, Bannon says she regards herself as "slow activist." Mentioning the effect of door-to-door campaign, giving more chances to change people's mind, compared to billboard campaign, Bannon says she believes her one-on-one performance do something in the world. "I do as many shows of this as I can but it's still a small number. I've come to Korea and only a hundred people will see the work. While it's very slow way to change the world, one at a time, but I think it's long lasting. I think these exchanges in this performance do something. So yes, I'm a very slow activist." 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. The Clean Missouri amendment took effect January 1, but has been criticized by Gov. Mike Parson. (Benjamin Singer) Booking.com It is no question that Colombia is changing. Once known to have quite the notorious reputation, a different side of Colombia has found itself emerging. With positive initiatives on the horizon, Colombia today finds itself in a much more peaceful and prosperous state. As the reputation of Colombia rebuilds, the country has seen an influx of foreigners within the past year. With tourism on the rise, Colombia is now eager to show the world all that it has to offer. In the capital city of Bogota, luxury hotels, farm-to-table restaurants, and new trendy spots are whats driving this city into fruition. To experience the energy and creativity of Bogota, staying at the Four Seasons is an urban retreat in itself. The property is situated in the popular Zona T". This prime location allows guests to be just steps away from some of the citys best shopping, nightlife, and cafes. Acting as an oasis from a cosmopolitan city, settling back into an intimate setting after a buzzing day in Bogota is key. Recognized as one of the citys top modern luxury hotels, one will easily find contemporary elegance sprinkled throughout the property. Inside, the sensible arrangement of impressive architecture and style is key for any Four Seasons property. Displaying ultra-sleek decor, everything from the sophisticated neutral colors to its custom-tinted wooden floors, make the Fours Seasons, wellthe Four Seasons..All 64 rooms boast natural light, filling these chic street-view rooms with ample space to work or play. The modern attention to aesthetics is evident. You'll see it from the hand-knotted carpets that exude the hallways to the luxurious amenities complemented by plush surroundings. In addition, the Four Seasons Bogota offers an array of exciting dining options and dishes. At Nemo, guests can find themselves in a social atmosphere where you'll dine on everything from an elegant distillation of Colombian cooking to specialty meats seared over charcoal and freshly caught fish. Handcrafted signature cocktails and an impressive wine list pairs perfectly with each dish offered throughout the property. For a quieter setting, Biblioteca provides a space for a more relaxed setting to enjoy a glass of wine, a leisurely read, or a casual breakfast. The Four Seasons originally planted its first roots in the upscale North Zone of Bogota. The historic building that was used for the Four Seasons Casa Medina was first launched on October 15, 2015. The building was originally built by architect Santiago Medina Mejia back in1946. It has since been converted multiple times from apartment buildings to even another hotel in 1988. In the restoration process, the hotel was developed by the local female architect Milena Vargas with designs from Rottet Studio and Four Seasons Home office design team. With hopes in keeping the buildings history alive, Vargas used her unique design concept to create that alluring experience of this new Four Seasons Hotel Casa Medina Bogota. The property comes with hand-carved doors, stone columns, and an interior full of brickwork and stained-glass windows. Several elements inside were preserved from the demolished convents of San Agustin and Santo Domingo. These old and historic architectural pieces incorporate Colombian historical and cultural moments woven into the atmosphere with a modern-day interpretation. Dining at inside at the property's restaurant, Castanyoles, brings in a Mediterranean touch where diners experience a plethora of dishes that best portrays an impeccable food scene. Each dish is carefully crafted, using every sense in the process. It best represents that of a sophisticated tapas bar, where the atmosphere easily transports you to some corner of Barcelona. With a touch of modern creativity, the seamless blend of the Spanish influence to the Colombian culture creates a truly fascinating gastronomic experience. The pinnacles of these two properties define what upscale luxury truly means. From the grand entrance to the hotels to the 5* star services and decadent specialties, the entire scene is invitingly grand. Each nook at the Four Seasons holds its own distinctive wonder, making it one of most sought-after hotels to stay at in Bogota. Colombia is bountiful, bold, and beautifulall with good reason. And just as one would expect nothing else from this iconic brand, The Four Seasons is brilliant, stylish, and absolutely timeless. The Four Seasons The Four Seasons Punjab Agriculture Farm Consultant Job 2019 in Kasur Latest Agriculture Farms Consultant Posts Kasur 2021 Punjab Agriculture Farm Pakistan required the services of highly qualified and well educated candidate for the position of Consultant in Kasur Punjab 2019. How to Apply on Agriculture Farms Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Company Address: 63 / E-1 Gulberg III Lahore Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Narowal Public School & College Teaching & Non Teaching Jobs Latest Narowal Public School Education Posts Narowal 2021 Qualified and experienced candidates for the positions of English Teacher, Urdu Teacher, Math Teacher, Science Teacher, Social Studies Teacher, Computer Teacher, Art Teacher, Helper Teacher, Librarian, Ambulance Driver, Security Guard, Lab Attendant, Naib Qasid, Aya, Sanitary Worker, Mali required for Narowal Public School & College in Narowal Punjab 2019. How to Apply on Narowal Public School Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Company Address: Principal Narowal Public School & College Narowal Official Website: www.npsnarowal.edu.pk Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Ministry of Science & Technology Director General Job 2019 Latest National Institute of Electronics NIE Management Posts Islamabad 2021 Government of Pakistan Ministry of Science & Technology required highly qualified and well educated candidate for the position of Director General for National Institute of Electronics NIE in Islamabad Pakistan 2019. How to Apply on National Institute of Electronics NIE Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Company Address: Section Officer Org-II Ministry of Science and Technology Constitution Avenue G-5/2 Islamabad Telephone: 051-9205302 Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. Doctors & Nurse Jobs 2019 in Makkah & Jeddah Saudi Arabia Latest Airview Associates Pvt Limited Medical Posts Saudi Arabia 2021 Medical, health, mbbs and experienced candidates for the positions of Doctors & Nurse required urgently for a well established and known Hospitals in Makkah & Jaddah Saudi Arabia. How to Apply on Airview Associates Pvt Limited Job Advertisement Apply as per details in job advertisement. In some cases, you may apply online at vacancies after registering at https://www.jobz.pk online. Note: Beware of Fraudulent Recruiting Activities. If the employer asks you to pay money for any purpose including processing to shortlisting, do not pay at all and report us using our contact us form. Apply as per instuctions & dates mentioned in official job ad. Govt jobs cannot be applied online here. Error & omissions excepted. The Federal Government, has dragged Chief Justice of Nigeria, CJN, Justice Walter Onnoghen, over allegations that he refused to declare his assets, slamming a six-count criminal charge against him. Apart from alleged failure to disclose his assets as stipulated by law, the federal government has also accused the CJN of operating foreign back accounts in the charge filed by the Code of Conduct Bureau, CCB. However reacting to the report, former governor of Ekiti state, Ago Fayose has said that the move is out of sheer desperation. Fayose further added that the speed at which the petition was filed against the CJN , clearly shows that the sinister intention of the Presidency. Those the gods wish to destroy, they 1st make mad. This sinking govt taking on CJN is desperation taken too far. From Amina Zakari to the illegal plot to extend the IGP tenure & now assault on the CJN, it is obvious that God has departed from this govt as He left the Biblical Saul. The speed with which the petition against the CJN was acted up clearly exposed the sinister intention of the Presidency. How is it explainable for a petition to be written on January 7, received by the CCB on January 9 and charges made against the CJN on January 11? Those the gods wish to destroy, they 1st make mad.This sinking govt taking on CJN is desperation taken too far.From Amina Zakari to the illegal plot to extend the IGP tenure & now assault on the CJN,it is obvious that God has departed from this govt as He left the Biblical Saul. Peter Ayodele Fayose (@GovAyoFayose) January 12, 2019 Also reacting is Kaduna central lawmaker, Shehu Sani. In his opinion he wrote that the idea to prosecute Onnoghen, was a wrongly bought idea. CJN onnoghen;whoever sold the idea to the Government sold to them a powder of pepper in a pack of a snuff. Information Nigeria is Nigerias largest information portal, with over 5 million social media followers and 3 million monthly unique visitors. Founded in 2008, the portal publishes content across several verticals and works with leading Nigerian and international brands. We are currently looking for a talented and creative individual to fill the position below: Job Title: Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) Specialist Location: Lagos Job Type: Full Time Job Description The SEO Specialist will have the following responsibilities: Ensure website content is optimised for search engines. Work with content team to ensure content is created in the most effective ways Develop effective link building strategies Review website performance with data tools and look for enhancement opportunities Craft strategies to improve user engagement and time spent on the website. Job Qualifications Graduate with a B.Sc or HND from any Tertiary institution At least two (2) years working experience in SEO or Web development Experience with SEO tools, keyword research, link analysis and data analytics Highly motivated and target driven, with a proven track record in traffic growth Application Details The recent case between the federal government, Code of Conduct Bureau, CCB and Nigerias Chief Justice, Walter Onnoghen has generated a huge storm on social media. While so many Nigerians have given the FG, a thumps up for the move to prosecute Nigerias apex chief judge, for allegedly refusing to declare his assets as the law demands, others have condemned the move in its entirety. Like Kemi Adeosun, former minister of Finance, that resigned over allegations of National Youth Service Corps, NYSC certificate forgery, many are calling that Onnoghen, honourably tows that path. According to them, Adeosun didnt know that her certificate was forged yet everyone was calling for her resignation and she did. Onnoghen has also claimed that be didnt know, so he should be like Adeosun and also resign as what is good for Adeosun is good for Onnoghen. However, there are others who say the cases are different, and Onnoghens, is motivated because of where he comes from. Heres what they are saying on the streets of Twitter The hypocrites who hounded Kemi Adeosun until she dropped her resignation letter for an NYSC certificate are already on overdrive quoting judicial 7 Books of Moses to defend a CJN whos now pleading culpability by ignorance Souljah (@jeffphilips1) January 12, 2019 Kemi Adeosun was relieved of her job for presenting a fake NYSC certificate and the SW never raised an eyebrow, now the CJN is accused of false asset declaration, some SE are beating the drum of Ethnicity even though the CJN is not from their region Sunday Ogo (@Sidac06) January 13, 2019 Yesterday, Kemi Adeosun admitted her mistake, the same people became her Court and her Judge, they asked her to resign without trial, but today, Justice Onoghen admitted his mistake as well, the same people become his Court and his Judge to defend him Good Bashir (@Goodbash) January 13, 2019 Kemi Adeosun said she did not know. She resigned. Walter Onnoghen says he did not know. He must resign. Gbamsolutely Yeskomi (@yeskomi04) January 13, 2019 Others who dont agree I don't know why people keep mentioning Kemi Adeosun in this CJN Walter onnoghen saga. This is a different case entirely. Kemi Adeosun is basking in immunity somewhere in the UK despite everyone admitting she was a fraud. She hasn't faced any judicial prosecution ever since. Omo Oba Adeyemi (@I_amNeyo) January 13, 2019 Vanguard The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) cannot justify the detention and hasty arraignment of Dr. Doyin Okupe, a former presidential aide, according to a group, Nigerians for Democracy. ThisDay The Federal Governments planned arraignment of the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, was greeted with massive pushback by senior lawyers, politicians and human right groups, warning government of the grave implications of such an action. The Sun Why I parted ways with President Buhari Buba Galadima From 2003, when President Buhari first contested the presidential election to 2015, when he was eventually elected, after losing the presidential election in three consecutive times, Galadima, who was national secretary of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), was his man Friday. Daily Trust Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal of Sokoto state has appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to be honourable enough to accept defeat and stop intimidating the judiciary. The Nation A Nigerian lady caused a scene this morning as she set a Virgin Mary statue ablaze at St. Jacobs Parish, Orba, Enugu State. It was gathered that the woman waited until the end of the early morning mass before perpetuating the act. The suspect was immediately arrested and is currently being interrogated to find out the reason for her action. The Virgin Mary statue is sacred to Catholics, in the Catholic Church, the veneration of Mary, mother of Jesus, encompasses various Marian devotions which include prayer, pious acts, visual arts, poetry, and music devoted to her. President Muhammadu Buhari held his Presidential Campaign Rally on Saturday at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa stadium in Bauchi State. The president was welcomed by a huge crowd at the stadium, a feat that has earned supporters of the president some bragging rights on social media. See more photos Former BRPC Executive Director Nathaniel Karns presented a report card on the progress being made on the five-year-old Sustainable Berkshires plan. Five Years Later, 'Sustainable Berkshires' Plan Being Implemented PITTSFIELD, Mass. When it comes to local planning efforts, nothing was more ambitious than the Sustainable Berkshires master plan. The 800 or so page document was developed by stakeholders throughout the county as it looked to create a master plan for the entire county. After three years of work, Berkshire Regional Planning Commission adopted the full document in 2014. That process revealed what planners at the time called "sobering" information that the trends in the county were unsustainable and it developed 352 strategies to turn the tides. But a plan doesn't do much if it just sits on the shelve collecting dust and Sustainable Berkshires was particularly at risk of doing so because of its unwieldiness. Now five years since adoption, former BRPC Executive Director Nathaniel Karns says a lot of it has taken hold. "To our knowledge over half the strategies are being actively worked on and we have to consider that a real success," Karns said. Karns may have retired last year but he's still around, sticking with a few projects he had going when he was the director. Sustainable Berkshires was one of those and he recently undertook an effort to find out the effectiveness of the massive planning process. He presented an update to the commission on Thursday. The plan was broken into eight areas: conservation and recreation, economy, food and agriculture, climate and energy, housing and neighborhoods, historic preservation, infrastructure and services, and land use. Throughout all of those 80 goals, 137 policies, and 352 strategies were outlined. "It was and is a very ambitious plan," Karns said. He said 22 percent of the strategies have shown "solid progress" or were complete; 32 percent of the strategies were initiated or are in progress, and 46 percent have shown either no progress or are unknown to him. Most of those goals, policies, and strategies depended on people and organizations outside of BRPC so Karns expects those numbers to be conservative because BRPC may not be aware of something being worked on by another stakeholder. "This was not the Berkshire Regional Planning Commission's responsibility to take on all 352 strategies," Karns said. In conservation and recreation, Karns reported that 35 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress or were completed. He noted the goal to increase partnerships across town borders. "The Rest of River communities that are involved with the GE cleanup they've been actively working together, they continue to work together. They've been doing that for four or five years already," Karns said. That was shortly followed by the issue of the pipeline in which eight towns joined together and then the Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership which involves 21 towns. "Partnerships across boundaries was a strategy in the plan and I think we've done it really well," Karns said. He said creating a regional bike path has shown significant progress with nearly all of the towns either in design, in construction, or have a section of the trail in place. With Complete Streets, which increases such things as bicycle lanes, half of the county's towns have adopted programs. However, Sustainable Berkshires called for increased use of the Community Preservation Act, which can earmark funds to conservation and recreation, but only six municipalities have adopted it, and most of the ones that have did it prior to the adoption of the plan. Karns said statewide half of the municipalities in Massachusetts have adopted it, far outpacing the Berkshires. "We are either missing something or know something nobody else knows," Karns said. Karns also said there has been a lack of funding from the state for open space. He said anybody who walks onto a local Department of Conservation and Recreational property can tell there is a lack of resources to properly manage the land. The plan hoped to rally support around the state increasing its funds but that hasn't happened. Economically, 22 percent of the strategies have shown progress and 40 percent have been initiated. Karns highlighted a collaborative approach to education as an area that has shown progress. Particularly, he cited the regionalization of Lanesborough, Williamstown, and Mount Greylock into one school district. Overall, the plan calls for school districts to work more collaboratively in order to provide more options for the students. Karns said the array of programs offered at high schools is significantly less than it had been in the past. "It is not really about finances it is about the quality and breadth of education available, particularly at the secondary level," Karns said. He highlighted broadband being expanded into every town. Yet, while Karns highlighted that more and more towns are now being connected, he also voiced concerned about the quality of internet connections in the economic centers. He said the push to expand broadband had brought "first-class" technology to Mount Washington, which was previously underserved, but in Pittsfield, old cable lines are still being used. "It is an obsolete technology that is leaving our economy centers behind," Karns said. He said with rail and freight there has been progress. The state crafted a new freight plan that Unistress helped with and a lot of focus was put on updating regulatory issues that had kept businesses from using rail. Meanwhile, Karns highlighted a section of the Housatonic Rail line that is being refurbished. He said some 800 manufacturing jobs depend on that rail line that dates back to the 1920s. He also highlighted the public transportation issues. While there hasn't been a solution put into place, there has recently been a collaborative effort from employers and others to find a viable solution for the county. "We are starting to deal with the public transportation issues," Karns said. Yet Karns said the county has yet to articulate a regional economic development strategy, lags behind on bolstering broadband in the economic centers, and still hasn't found a way to guide the younger population into having greater career aspirations. "Our young male population really sticks out that way to me. It may just be an impression," Karns said. Only two of the 15 strategies in food and agriculture have shown progress, but Karns said it was one area that BRPC had very little involvement in so there could be more. However, the Mohawk Trail Woodlands Partnership that plays a role in helping farmers become more sustainable is showing progress, towns have adopted right to farm bylaws, and local agricultural commissions are more active. The key piece showing a lack of progress is the food infrastructure. The plan had called for slaughterhouses, a countywide food hub, and commercial kitchens, most of which haven't come to fruition. While there have been some attempts at opening commercial kitchens, Karns said the others have shown no progress. "That food infrastructure piece is where we don't seem to be making much progress at this point," Karns said. In the climate and energy sphere, 22 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress or were complete and another 25 percent have been initiated. "Over half of our communities have adopted Green Communities," Karns said of notable progress. He added that emergency planning has increased to ensure vulnerable populations are cared for during heat events or power outages. He highlighted the state's efforts with culverts and bridges which are further at risk because of climate change the importance of which the town of Adams can recently attest. Karns said some of the areas showing a lack of progress is actually identifying the vulnerable populations during such an emergency, a lack of progress with public transportation to reduce automobile use, and a lack of proactive identification of potential renewable energy sites. In housing and neighborhoods, a category BRPC typically heavily involved in and therefore more easy to track, 24 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress or completed and 37 percent have been initiated. "Age-friendly Berkshires and the Public Health Alliance are very active in these areas. They both have been very successful. They've done a lot of good work," Karns said. He also highlighted towns like Lee, Great Barrington, and Pittsfield which have adopted 40R zoning, which was identified as a way to increase housing density in downtowns. "It is useful in Lee, in any communities that have fairly dense centers even if it isn't very big," Karns said. Karns has also noticed that organizations are being much more deliberate in reaching populations that have been historically under-represented. "We have other elements of the population that tend to not be involved in public hearing, public meetings, they are under-resourced in one form or fashion, in some cases they aren't really wanting to come out of their houses too much," Karns said. He said there are a lot of people in the community barely getting by or struggling through trauma and the plan called for a stronger effort to try to understand and reach out those members of the population. "That's been something we certainly haven't completed, nor will it ever be completed, but it is something all of us ought to be sensitive to in our communities because they tend to be a hidden population," Karns said. He also highlighted the efforts to develop a regional housing rehabilitation program, which BRPC has done. The county's housing stock is mostly built in the 1950s and a lot of repairs are needed. The regional program is hoped to help residents up the condition of the homes. However, with housing and neighborhoods, the strategy to increase funding for public transportation has not shown much progress. Nor has efforts to curb public safety issues or increase workforce housing. Historic preservation has shown little overall progress, according to Karns. He said only 11 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress and 15 percent being initiated. That leaves 74 percent of the strategies the plan outlined showing no progress. "Historic preservation suffers from very weak financial support at local, state, and federal levels. The lack of activity here is really due to lack of resources," Karns said. However, the Western Massachusetts Historic Commission is meeting regularly and six municipalities in the Berkshires did adopt the Community Preservation Act which sets aside money for historic preservation. However, the county has shown little progress in updated historic preservation surveys. In infrastructure and services, 17 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress or are complete and another 57 percent have been initiated. Karns highlighted an increased level of planning for climate change taking place in communities, state education funding increases, the talks about revamping the county's public transportation system, the Berkshire County Education Task Force, and the last mile broadband efforts all as notable progress in these categories. Yet, while the state has increased funding for schools it has yet to restructure the funding formula. The state's support for public transportation hasn't increased, local governments haven't been given many tools to collect revenue on its own other than marijuana tax, and emergency services such as ambulances haven't gotten the staffing support the plan outlined. In land use, 20 percent of the strategies have shown solid progress and 27 percent has been initiated. Karns highlighted new master plans that were drafted and adopted in a number of Berkshire towns, that there have been more planning education and workshops for county and town planners, zoning reform talks have begun in the state Legislature to revise the 45-year0old regulations currently in place, and a few towns have adopted 40R zoning. However, outdated zoning bylaws and subdivision regulations haven't been changed and more towns could adopt 40R. Sustainable Berkshires also called for the creation of a priority development and conservation plan with the state and an enhanced number of inter-municipal land use cooperation. For the latter, Karns highlighted Dalton and Pittsfield which shares a border and roads but don't work together to manage it. Sustainable Berkshires remains the regional master plan and while it was a massive document which called for a lot, Karns is happy with the progress made so far. Los efectos secundarios de una segunda inyeccion de la vacuna COVID-19 son una senal de que esta proporcionando una proteccion mas vigorosa y duradera contra el coronavirus. Para la mayoria de las personas, los efectos secundarios deben ser leves y pueden incluir sintomas parecidos a los de la gripe durante uno o dos dias. Las personas con alergias graves deben consultar a un medico (CNN) Students and faculty at the University of California (UC) have been warned not to use messaging apps and social media while visiting China, for fear their communications could be used against them by the country's law enforcement agencies. The guidance from one of the biggest school networks in the U.S. is the latest concern to be raised over Western travel to China following the December 1 arrest of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of U.S. authorities. Meng, who was detained in Vancouver and is currently on bail, is facing possible extradition to the U.S. on suspicion of violating U.S. sanctions against Iran. Since her arrest, multiple Canadians have been detained in China and two Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig are being investigated on suspicion of "activities that endangered China's national security," charges which supporters say are politically motivated. The UC guidance also appeared to reference the case of Paul Whelan, a U.S. citizen arrested in Russia last month on suspicion of espionage. "While the use of WhatsApp, WeChat and like messaging apps are legal in China, we have seen in the latest espionage charge of a U.S. citizen in Russia where the use of WhatsApp has been cited in his espionage charges," read an email seen by CNN. "Our concern here is the possibility China could use this condition similarly against western travelers to levy charges or as an excuse to deny departure. We recommend not using these messaging apps in China at this time." Representatives for WeChat and WhatsApp did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 'Exercise increased caution' A spokeswoman for UC Davis confirmed staff and students at the campus had received the email, after the news was first reported by the South China Morning Post. Students at UC Berkeley also received the email. "UC Davis Global Affairs routinely posts links to State Department travel advisories and CDC (Centers for Disease Control) health advisories for places where our faculty, staff and students travel," the spokeswoman told CNN. The email was sent by Gary Leonard, an executive director with UC's Risk Services department, under the Office of the President. Leonard, who is traveling, did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. Claire Doan, director of media relations for UC's Office of the President, told CNN the Risk Services department "relayed the guidance from WorldAware (a security and risk management company with whom we consult) to risk managers on our campuses and medical centers." "We sent the email following a recent Department of State travel advisory for China; it is meant for consideration by staff involved in ensuring the safety and security of international travel by individuals in the UC community," she added. That government advisory, stating the threat level as 2 on a four point scale, told Americans to "exercise increased caution in China due to arbitrary enforcement of local laws as well as special restrictions on dual U.S.-Chinese nationals." 'Do not sign anything' China has always had a slightly uneasy relationship with foreign students. While around half a million international students live in the country, and numerous prestigious Western institutions run or partner with universities in China including New York University, Duke University and the University of Liverpool foreign academics in particular have also been treated with suspicion. In 2016, a propaganda poster released as part of National Security Education Day warned Chinese citizens that handsome foreigners could be seeking to steal sensitive information. The comic book-style poster showed a female named Xiao Li, being showered with compliments, red roses, fancy dinners and romantic walks in the park by David, a "visiting scholar researching issues about China" who persuades her to share internal government documents. Academics and even some students visiting China have complained about being watched and followed by police, or dragged in for questioning about their research and who they are speaking to in the country. As well as warning "do not sign anything," the new UC guidance instructs staff to "be cautious of lengthy Q&A or interrogation to avoid inadvertently providing any information that may be distorted to deny departure or facilitate an arrest." In the past, concerns have mainly focused on people's public pronouncements or statements to the authorities, but the new guidance suggests officials are concerned that even private comments could be used against academics and students. 'New level of suppression' UC's concerns would appear to be well founded. China is increasingly cracking down on previously tolerated spheres of dissent, with even private comments being policed. In recent months, the authorities have "detained or summoned dozens or more (Chinese) Twitter users, forcing them to delete sensitive tweets or close their accounts," according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). "In some cases, authorities appear to have hacked accounts themselves." Twitter is blocked inside China and while a tiny number of Chinese dissidents and activists do use the platform, their influence is limited and in the past they were mostly ignored by the authorities. While tweets are public, the Chinese authorities have in the past also pursued people for things they say in private, particularly on Tencent's messaging app WeChat, which has a track record of conforming with government censorship and surveillance. In a report on privacy protections in messaging apps, Amnesty International ranked Tencent zero out of 100, and WeChat has been accused of reading users' messages and storing data. While Tencent has denied reading messages, under a new Chinese cyber security law, tech firms must store logs and relevant data for at least six months and provide them to the authorities when requested. "Numerous instances have shown that Chinese authorities have access to private chats on WeChat," HRW's Yaqiu Wang told CNN. "The crackdown on Chinese Twitter users and the punishment leveled against WeChat users for their private messages show that authorities have become increasingly intolerant of speeches that are either private or anonymous." While WhatsApp which boasts end-to-end encryption and overseas servers without a backdoor for the Chinese authorities is in theory far more secure than WeChat or other Chinese messaging apps, if authorities are able to compromise a target's phone with malware or other methods, encryption will not protect them. Experts have long warned against using WeChat for anything sensitive, even as the sheer dominance of the app makes it difficult to avoid entirely in China. "It's not an exaggeration to say I live in and work on WeChat," New York Times technology columnist Li Yuan wrote recently, adding that surveillance fears are "just the way of life." "The reality is that ordinary Chinese often feel powerless and fatalistic when it comes to censorship and surveillance," she said. This story was first published on CNN.com "University of California tells students not to use WeChat, WhatsApp in China" (CNN) The newest road in the West Bank is sparking controversy. Designed to ease traffic between Jerusalem and nearby settlements, it looks and feels like any other road. Israeli officials call it Route 4370, but its detractors have another name for it: "apartheid road." The road, which runs north-south, is actually two parallel roads separated by an 8-meter (approximately 26 feet) concrete wall topped with metal fencing. The western half is designed for Palestinians, though it can be used by anyone, and it bypasses Jerusalem; the eastern half is for Israelis, and anyone else with a legal permit to enter Jerusalem. Israeli officials say the western road will alleviate Palestinian congestion in the area by connecting traffic from north of Jerusalem towards east and south, without requiring drivers to pass through checkpoints around Jerusalem. Israel's transportation minister, Israel Katz, praised the project after years of delays. He called the opening of the road "an important step in connecting the residents of Binyamin Region to Jerusalem, and in strengthening Jerusalem." Binyamin Region is an area in the West Bank home to 72,000 Israeli settlers. Under international law, Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and the presence of settlers there, is considered illegal because the international community -- through repeated United Nations Security Council resolutions -- has declared the West Bank, along with Gaza and East Jerusalem, to be occupied territory, though Israel disputes that characterization. The new road drew sharp criticism from Palestinian officials who said the situation in the West Bank bore similarities to apartheid-era South Africa. "The creation of this new apartheid road affirms Israel's willful intent to entrench its racist colonial regime and superimpose 'Greater Israel' on all of historic Palestine," Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi said in a statement. "With the blanket support of the current U.S. administration, including endorsement of Israel's egregious violations and total disdain for international law and the global consensus, Israel is successfully destroying the territorial contiguity and territorial integrity the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) to enhance its colonial settlement enterprise and facilitate the creation of Bantustans throughout occupied Palestine." "Bantustans," or homelands, as they were often referred to, were lands allotted to non-white South Africans by the apartheid-era government to separate them from the white population. Non-whites had to use passbooks, a kind of passport, to travel into designated white areas. The homelands for non-whites were only a small percentage of the total land. Israeli officials reject those comparisons. They say the two roads, which are open to Palestinians and Israelis alike -- as long as they have the right paperwork -- is more about functionality than separation. "The claim that this is an apartheid road is complete nonsense. Apartheid is discrimination based on ethnic and racial background," Israel Gantz, head of the Benyamin Regional Council, told CNN. "The entry to Jerusalem through the (eastern) road is allowed to all those who have a legal entry permit, regardless of their nationality, religion, ethnic or racial background." All Israelis, regardless of background or religion, can pass freely in and out of Israel, while Palestinians from the West Bank need special permits issued by Israeli authorities. Currently, the roughly 3.5-kilometer (approximately 2.2-mile) eastern road connecting Jerusalem to nearby settlements is open from 5 a.m. to 12 p.m., Sunday to Thursday, but authorities say they plan to have it open round the clock in the future. The 5-kilometer (approximately 3.1-mile) western road for Palestinians is already open any time of the day. But Israeli officials are clear that the road is not just about facilitating better traffic flow. It is also meant to reinforce Israel's hold over parts of the West Bank. "This is one move of many to strengthen the services of the ministry to residents of Judea and Samaria, and to the strengthening of sovereignty in the region," Minister of Public Security Gilad Erdan said at the opening ceremony, using the biblical terms for the West Bank. "The road that was opened today is an example of how we can create mutual life between Israelis and Palestinians, while at the same time safeguarding all the existing security challenges." Palestinian officials regard this "strengthening of sovereignty" as a further obstacle in the way of a future two-state peace deal with Israel; the construction of roads and walls further entrenching Israel's settlements around Jerusalem and in the West Bank. "Israel wants to give Palestinians transportation contiguity rather than territorial contiguity," Fouad Hallaq, a senior adviser to the PLO, told CNN. "They want to create an infrastructure program to further isolate Jerusalem from the rest of the Palestinian territories, and isolate Palestinians within Jerusalem while facilitating the movement of settlers." "It makes it more difficult to reach a final status agreement when you add these layers, the walls and Israeli-only roads that Israel is adding on the ground," he said. This story was first published on CNN.com, "A wall runs through it: New road divides Israelis and Palestinians." Narbonne goes on a late charge to pull out a victory over the Poly boys, while the Poly girls advance to the regional semifinals. Tagaloan, Misamis Oriental (CNN Philippines, January 13) Around 1,400 tons of trash, housed in 51 containers were loaded and ready to be shipped back to South Korea from Mindanao on Sunday. The containers, housing from scraps of plastic such as straws, bottles, gloves, styrofoam wrappers and cellophane, to electrical waste namely cables, keyboards and cellphone batteries, were loaded in a ship set for South Korea from the Mindanao International Container Terminal (MICT) in Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental. This is in line with the agreement between the two countries to return shipments of garbage amounting to a total of 6,500 tons that was illegally shipped to the Philippines in July and October last year. READ: South Korea to take back drug shipment MICT Customs Collector Joh Simon said the remaining 5,100 tons left in Mindanao will also be returned to South Korea within a month. Environment group, EcoWaste Coalition, applauded the move, calling it a "triumph for environmental justice, morality and the rule of law." "By saying 'no' to garbage dumping from Korea and other countries, we say 'no' to the derogation of our country's dignity and sovereignty, 'no' to the disrespect for national and international laws, and 'no' to the harm they will bring to our communities," EcoWaste Coalition National Coordinator Aileen Lucero said. Stringer Alwen Saliring contributed to this report. RTHK: Trump denies suppressing details of Putin talks US President Donald Trump has rejected a Washington Post report that he has refused to share details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin with top US government officials. Trump, in a telephone interview late on Saturday with Fox News, dismissed as "ridiculous" the Post story that alleged he went to great lengths to hide the content of his talks with Putin, even confiscating the notes of his interpreter and ordering that person to not discuss what was said. Trump said he had "a great conversation" with Putin in Helsinki in July 2018. When asked why not release details of the nearly two-hour conversation, Trump said: "I would, I don't with care. "I mean, I had a conversation like every president does. You sit with the president of various countries... We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things ... I'm not keeping anything under wraps, I couldn't care less. I mean, it's so ridiculous." He added: "Anybody could have listened to that meeting, that meeting is up for grabs." According to the Post there is no detailed record of Trump's personal talks with Putin at five locations over the past two years. The newspaper quotes unnamed current and former government officials as sources for the story. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. A financial analyst, Joe Jackson, has reportedly claimed that some Ghanaian celebrities are responsible for the Menzgold scandal. According to a report by 3news.com, he claimed that Menzgolds clients should blame Shatta Wale, Sarkodie, Becca and others for their woes. He argued that the actions of the celebrities compelled some Ghanaians to invest their monies at Menzgold. READ ALSO: Former Adentan MP Opare Hammond is dead In terms of holding people accountable, I think the people who should be held most responsible are all those so-called celebrities; people of responsible influence and give credibility to this scheme, Joe Jackson stressed. Thousands of customers have their monies locked up in the embattled gold trading firm, following the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) directive, ordering the company to shut down for trading without appropriate licenses. There have been several reports of hardships the customers are facing even including some losing their lives. In his opinion, though the woes of customers regrettable, persons who tried to warn them about the potential of it being a Ponzi scheme were branded enemies of progress. His comments, however did not go down well with some social media users, and they expressed their opinions in that regard: Afriyie wondered why the celebrities should be blamed. Somuah added that it makes no sense. Arkoh however agreed that they are to be blamed. To Daniel, the statement made no sense. An arrest warrant has been issued to the Ghana Police Service to apprehend the Nana Appiah Mensah as well as directors of the company. He is being sought after in about 194 countries by Interpol for defrauding by false pretense. READ ALSO: NPP MP for Assin South marries girlfriend Yenkasa: What Did You Do Before During And After Christmas? #YENcomgh Click here to get the latest exciting English Premier League news. Get match highlights, reports, photos & videos all in one place. Source: Yen 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. Our directory features more than 18 million business listings from across the entire US. However, if we're missing your business, add your business by clicking on Add Your Business. Venice, FL (34285) Today Mostly cloudy early with scattered thunderstorms developing this afternoon. High 84F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 50%.. Tonight Scattered thunderstorms. Low 76F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%. Expert Interviews with Kevin Turner. 14/01/2019 Technology is having a big impact on how real estate agents work and likewise it is having impact on how consumers find and work with agents to buy or sell property. Joel Leslie from Coicio takes us through some of the developments that will shape how our property experience will change. Listen to the interview now: Transcript: Kevin: In another show that we do, which is called Real Estate Uncut, we talk to real estate professionals around Australia. Weve been doing it for well over a decade now. Its been an interesting journey because technology has evolved enormously, particularly in the last couple of years. A little bit later next month, early in the new year, at the end of January, were going to be broadcasting live from a conference in New York, which is called the Inman Conference. One of the people wholl be joining us there is Joel Leslie. Joel is from a company called Coicio, which we, through our new portal, Property TV, have a very close relationship with. Kevin: Joel, I want to talk to you today in the show about technology, but not so much how agents are working with it, but how its going to impact consumers in the transaction, that is both selling and buying. Hello, and welcome to the show, Joel. Joel: Thank you, Kevin, and thank you for having me. Kevin: Thats a pleasure. Lets talk about technology because weve seen it evolve in our home life. Like, as an example, we now have a Google Home Mini, I think its called, but were talking to her all the time. Theres things like Alexa, theres Siri, as well, on the phones. So these AI, or this technology, is taking on a personality of its own, isnt it? Its becoming a part of the family. Joel: It is, and thats the whole goal of this type of technology, is to integrate it into the house, so it actually does more for you and make your life simpler. If you can imagine, at the moment, a lot of people do have these products, the Google, the Amazon Alexas, and Siris and the like, and what they do is they take control of whatever function that you need them to, so it could be controlling the lights, or it could be turning on the vacuum, or anything like that. Joel: But what it does really help us with from a property perspective is that its starting to come around and help us buy and choose a home. So imagine if you could say to Alexa or Google, Find me the best real estate agent, or, Id like to sell my house next month. How do you think I should go about that? These are all open-ended questions that arent necessarily going to result in a yes and no. Theyre going to result in some type of smarts to come back to you and give you, as the consumer, the buyer, the seller, the best information that you need right then. Kevin: Yeah, weve got to look at these devices as helping us, aiding us, giving us more information and access to it. One of the developments weve seen in the real estate industry, and Im now talking about agents, Id like you to just describe Alexa, even Google. How they can be rearranging our diary without us even being involved in it. Could you just talk me through that process? Joel: Well, well touch on it, just so we dont talk about one product, so we can do an overarching product. Well just touch on the real estate agent, just for a little bit, and Ill flip back to the consumer. So, if you could imagine a real estate agent, quite busy in the day, running from one house to the other, and they usually have a team of people behind them to help them facilitate that. Now, if you could imagine that, all in one person. So what would happen is, this technology resides in the cloud or in the internet, and then it comes through any device that you have and you need, to talk to them. Joel: If you think about the Alexa product, well then its actually a little box that sits on your kitchen bench, or if you think about it in your phone. So youre driving from one to another, and then what happens is youll say Hey, I need to reschedule my tomorrow at 4:00 to 2:00. Would you mind arranging that for me? Then that actual product, the AI product, will actually then call the owner or the seller, whoever it might be that theyre arranging that inspection with, and then rearrange, without the actual agent talking to them. That actual piece of technology will actually talk to a person and that person will talk to that piece of technology, without any hiccups or any concern. Kevin: When youre doing that, too, its quite amazing. Ive experienced it. Its like talking to a normal person. Some of them, you can tell that its a machine, but theyre so intuitive, theyre so clever, and they pick up on accents and so on, and then, if theyre not sure, theyll actually ask for a confirmation. Joel: Thats right. Now, if you think about it, we actually use this a little bit in our day-to-day. If you call Telstra, or if you call some of those big companies out there, they actually have this type of product, but thats an IVR, and thats very different to an AI. In an IVR, what theyre doing is theyre listening for specific words and phrases that have been pre-programed. If you say something that they dont know, like, Push one, or something like that, they wont do anything. Joel: But these products, what they are, theyre actually mimicking a persons understanding of what it is youre trying to say. Theyre actually pasting together a sentence and working out what it is youre trying to ask for. So you could say, Look, I dont know how to sell my house. Ive never done it before. Ive owned this for four years. Can you please give me some advice? and this AI can actually then say to you, You need to do these things and these steps. Kevin: As I said earlier, weve got to start thinking of these things as part of the family, or part of what we do, and the more we use them, the more educated they become, Joel. Joel, were out of time. I want to thank you so much. Looking forward to catching up with you in New York a little bit later, at the end of next month. If youd like to watch our live stream, too, by the way, you can do that through a product called Property TV. The website to go to is propertytv.io, and in fact, all of our programmes are now being streamed through there, and our association, of course, with Coicio, and Joel Leslie is from that organisation. Joel, thanks very much for your time. Joel: Thank you. Thanks for having me, Kevin. ................................................................................................................................................... The political echelon bid farwell on Sunday to departing Chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot in HaKirya headquarters in Tel Aviv. "Gadi, tremendous work has been done under your command, and we still have a lot to do ahead of us," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. Iran is taking preliminary steps to design uranium fuel with a purity of 20 percent for reactors instead of having to copy foreign designs, Iran's nuclear chief said on Sunday. Iran's 2015 nuclear accord with world powers caps the level to which it is able to enrich uranium to 3.67 percent purity, well below the 20 percent it was reaching before the deal, and the roughly 90 percent that is weapons-grade. Jordans King Abdullah and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Sunday during their meeting in Amman that the renewal of negotiations talks between Israel and the Palestinians is of the utmost importance. "Negotiations should be based on the two-state solution and the Arab peace initiative, aiming to reach a fair solution, which honors the Palestinians' legal right to establish a state within the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital," the two leaders said in a statement. In addition, Abdullah and Sisi discussed efforts to end regional crises in Syria, Yemen and Libya. It was a weekend of revelations. Outgoing IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, in his farewell interviews, finally confirmed that the Israeli army has attacked thousands of targets in Syria. On Sunday, the prime minister revealed that Israel was responsible for the Friday night attack in Damascus. This is a calculated move. The Israeli decision to end the ambiguity of its attacks in Syria is based on events in Iran itself, where a lively debate has been going on for almost a year about the extent to which the Islamic Republic should involve itself in conflicts outside its borders conflicts that also mean huge expenditure. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The supporters of Iranian interference throughout the Middle East including assistance to Hezbollah, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas are the conservative ayatollahs and members of the Revolutionary Guards. This group also includes Qassem Suleimani, the head of the elite Quds Force within the Revolutionary Guards, who is directly subordinate to the Supreme (spiritual and political) Leader Ali Khamenei. The supreme leader supports Suleimani's actions and approves budgets for exporting the Islamic revolution, which is the mission of the Quds Force. PM Benjamin Netanyahu, left, comfirmed Friday's Israeli airstrikes in Syria, right (Photo: Amit Shaabi ) Iranian opposition to military operations and insurgent activity abroad includes President Hassan Rouhani and a distinguished group of ayatollahs who support him, among them Iranian conformists. Rouhani argues that Iran needs to focus on military developments and preparations for confrontations that would strengthen Iran strategically, on the condition that these activities take place within Iran's borders and not outside them. This Rouhani-led camp further argues that the entire enterprise of building a main radical axis including the militias in Iraq, Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the Palestinians is not only a waste of time, but diverts resources needed to bolster real Iranian strategy. Akram al-Kaabi, left, the head of an Iraqi Shiite militaia, with Quds Force commander Qassem Suleimani As such, Rouhani supports Iran's ballistic missile program and in principle the military nuclear program, but demands a drastic downsize of the involvement in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Due to Rouhani's opposition to these activities, the budgets allocated to Hezbollah, Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad have been reduced, especially after the American sanctions imposed by US President Donald Trump came into effect. These sanctions, which are down to Trump's decision to abandon the Obama-brokered nuclear agreement, include, inter alia, a partial ban on Iranian oil exports as well as on global financial and commercial dealings with Iran. It is important to note that this internal debate is a major factor in why Israel suddenly chose to end the ambiguity over its operations against Iran in Syria, the transfer of high-quality weapons to Hezbollah, and the advancement of precision missiles and rockets in Syria and Lebanon. In an interview with The New York Times, the outoging chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot said that Israel had carried out thousands of such attacks, most of them from the air, and others by special units and surface missiles. Prime Minister Benjamin Netayahu repeated this message in the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday, partly perhaps because Israel wants to make sure that the Iranian leadership is fully aware of the losses and damage they are suffering in Syria under Suleimani, and of the resources they have expended in vain trying to entrench themselves there. Palestinian Islamic Jihad Secretary-General Ziad al-Nakhala meeting with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani Israel has an intelligence and aerial advantage in the region, and this led to Suleimani's inability to set up shop in Syria. In fact, he wasted tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars on this adventure. None of that has harmed his standing in Iran, however, which is still allowing him to continue his plans to make Iran and Shiite Islam the true powerhouse in the Middle East. Iran has already cut some of its budgets to foreign proxies, including Hezbollah, and the debate inside the country goes on. Israel meanwhile, is trying to show the all different Iranian camps what the truth is. Israel has an interest in making Iranians understand that these efforts by Suleiman which Israel has foiled in recent years cost huge sums, something that is terrribly lacking in the welfare of the people. As such, Israel decided that it was time to end its policy of ambiguity so that Iranians will finally know why senior Revolutionary Guards officials are coming home in coffins. The White House's national security team last fall asked the Pentagon to provide it with options for striking Iran after a group of militants aligned with Tehran fired mortars into an area in Baghdad that is home to the US Embassy, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The request by the National Security Council, which is led by John Bolton, sparked deep concern among Pentagon and State Department officials, the newspaper reported, citing current and former US officials. The Pentagon complied with the request, but it is not known whether the options for an Iran strike were also provided to the White House or if President Donald Trump knew about it. The Syrian government hopes dialogue with Syrian Kurdish groups will intensify, a minister said on Sunday, signalling support for talks the Kurds hope will lead to a political deal between two of the main players in the multi-sided war. The Kurds have sought Russian meditation for the talks with President Bashar Assad's government, part of their strategy to fill a vacuum that will be left when US forces withdraw from the country, as instructed by President Donald Trump. The past weekend, which he spent in the IDF's subterranean Command and Control Center at the Kirya base in Tel Aviv, sums up IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot's tenure well: Friday saw violent rioting on the Gaza border, and on Saturday night a rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip. At the same time, a stabbing attack in Kiryat Arba was thwarted by troops and a civilian, and several hours later Syrian state media reported an IAF strike against an arms shipment coming from Iran. This was the state of the three significant fronts the IDF chief, who retires on Tuesday, has had to deal withand this without taking into account the civilian and political fronts he had to contend with. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter On the backdrop of this, there's the fierce hatred towards him on social media and in the comment sections of news websites, the likes of which no IDF chief before him has seen. It originates in two incidents that happened during his tenure: the first is the Elor Azaria affair, and his choice to stick to his values, which polls show was not a popular choice; the second is his handling of Gaza terrorism over the past eight months. It's true that Eisenkot's tenure was far from perfect, but the hatred directed as someone who has served the state for 40 years should concern us all. He doesn't deserve this, and neither do we. PM Netanyahu and IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot A true evaluation of an IDF chief's tenure can only be done years after the dust settles, but initial conclusions can be drawn. On the northern front, in the fight against Iranian military entrenchment, the outgoing IDF chief has completed his mission. His predecessor Benny Gantz began this war-between-wars, and Eisenkot took it to the next level, achieving great results thanks to accurate intelligence and an excellent Air Forcetwo branches of the IDF that are far superior to its infantry. This success is likely what made Eisenkot in recent days to lift the veil of ambiguity surrounding Israel's attacks in foreign countries, an ambiguity the IDF has been zealously maintaining during his years at its helm. In interviews published in the foreign media over the weekend, Eisenkot boasted of attacks on "thousands of targets without claiming responsibility"comments the likes of which he hasn't made before. In the West Bank, he dealt correctly with the wave of terrorism and led a policywhich has proven itselfto differentiate between the Palestinian population and the terrorists, despite pressure from ministers to impose collective punishment on the Palestinians. In the Gaza Strip, he could take credit for accelerating the construction of the underground obstacle on the border as well as the border fence, and mostly for thwarting the Hamas tunnel threat, making it near irrelevant compared to what the terror group had planned for its next conflict with Israel. IDF troops uncovering Hezboolah tunnels on the Israel-Lebanon border (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) And a lot has already been written about his multi-annual "Gideon" plan that allowed the IDF to develop long-term stability. But not all was great during his tenure, and that too should be noted. He inherited a greatly deterred Gaza, but his replacement Aviv Kochavi will have to contend with the significant erosion of that deterrence. In addition, the IDF's performance and results in recent rounds of fighting against the strip have not been good: over the past eight month, Hamas launched over 1,000 rockets at Israel, an unquestionably high number. Then there's the incendiary balloon and kite terrorism, which Eisenkot erroneously underestimated. In fact, Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya Sinwar is the one who decides what life would look like for Israeli communities on the Gaza border, not the State of Israel. In the past year alone, there has been a series of severe incidents in elite units, which exposed a problematic culture: playing with guns at the Duvdevan Unit, which claimed the life of IDF soldier Shachar Strug; hazing at the Maglan Unit, which was exposed after the unnecessary serious injury of soldier Eli Hayut; and last week an unnecessary death of IDF soldier Evyatar Yosefi in the Paratroopers' reconnaissance battalion, after commanders decided to hold a solo navigation exercise on a stormy winter day. There were also mishaps: The poor operational conduct of the forces of the Netzah Yehuda Battalion in the Ramallah area; a Hamas anti-tank missile hit a bus that had been carrying soldiers along the Gaza border, which only miraculously did not lead to a major disaster; and the failure of the classified operation in Khan Yunis in November that led to the death of an officer. An IDF bus burning after it was hit by an anti-tank missile near the Gaza border in November 2018 (Photo: AFP) But the main problem during Eisenkot's term - which is unrelated to the operational sphere, but no less important - is the issue of motivation. The motivation to serve in combat units reached an unprecedented low during his tenure. Even the motivation for enlisted service is constantly in decline; it might be harder to measure, but senior officers in the General Staff are quite vocal about the fact that the new model for service has been catastrophic in terms of the quality of personnel remaining in the army, and it will be many years before this can be rectified. And we haven't even touched on the damning June 2018 report by the IDF ombudsman, who harshly criticized the military's readiness. Eisenkot's inner circle is touting the fact that Israel did not go to war during his tenure an achievement. But the main task of the chief of staff is not to prevent war, but to win a them and to prepare the army properly for the next one. Three security guards at the Foreign Ministry building in Jerusalem were lightly injured Sunday after a smoke grenade exploded at the buildings warehouse. A technical failure is believed to have caused the grenade to go off. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised Sunday the outgoing Israeli military chief, Gadi Eisenkot. "Today we take our leave from IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eizenkot. Gadi, on Tuesday you will complete 40 years of dedicated service in the IDF, four of them as Chief of Staff. During this time we worked together against varied threats in order to build up Israel's security. In achieving these goals, the IDFunder your commandworked with exceptional cooperation with all of the security arms: the Shin Bet, Mossad, Israel Police and other bodies," said Netanyahu. "We worked with impressive success to block Iran's military entrenchment in Syria. In this framework, the IDF attacked Iranian and Hezbollah targets hundreds of times." Israel has carried out thousands of attacks in Syria as part of its covert campaign against Iranian entrenchment in the Golan Heights, outgoing IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot said in interviews with the Sunday Times and The New York Times published over the weekend. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter "We struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit," Eisenkot told The New York Times. When the civil war in Syria broke out in 2011, Israel began attacking convoys transporting Iranian weapons from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon. But the IDF, Eisenkot said, made sure not to directly target the Iranians themselves. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) But in late 2016, as the US-led international coalition's war on ISIS was drawing to an end, Iran changed its strategy, planning to use the vacuum created with ISIS' fall to establish regional hegemony. "They planned by the end of 2018 to have up to 100,000 Shiite fighters in Syria. They were bringing them in from Pakistan, Iraq and Afghanistan," Eisenkot said in an interview with the Sunday Times. "They built intelligence bases on the Golan Heights and simultaneously built wings at all the Syrian air force bases and brought in civilians to begin a process of indoctrination in schools and population centers." IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with his son during a training exercise of the Commando Brigade (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with his son on his enlistment day (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) As a result, in January 2017 Israel started attacking in Syria almost every day, dropping 2,000 bombs in 2018 alone, according to Eisenkot. "We began attacking systematically a number of times each week. Without making any statements. Beneath the radar," Eisenkot said. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot visits the Golani Brigade (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot on the Lebanon border on the first day of Operation Northern Shield (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) According to the outgoing IDF chief, the decision to directly attack the Iranians was not made lightly. The IDF chief had confidence in the plan, believing the ramifications would not be very grave because "the Iranians chose the wrong playing field" by trying to establish military presence in Syria, close to the Israeli border. "We have intelligence superiority in this area. We enjoy complete aerial superiority, a strong deterrence," Eisenkot said. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot visits the Air Force (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot visits the Air Force (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) When presenting his plan to Israel's Security Cabinet, Eisenkot said to the ministers: "We dont have a choice. If we prefer short-term considerations of keeping the quiet, we will pay a price in the long term." The Cabinet ended up unanimously approving his plan. The IDF chief said most of the attacks in Syria against Iranian target were conducted by the Israel Air Force, but there were some carried out using ground-based missiles and Special Forces raids. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with children at an Eshkol kindergarten hit by a Gaza rocket (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with Miriam Peretz after she won the Israel Prize (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) The IDF took special care to avoid harming Iranian personnel, instead targeting only infrastructure, so as to not give Tehran any pretext to retaliate. "Only a few dozen Iranians were killed in the attacks," Eisenkot said. The Iranians eventually responded on February 10, 2018, sending a drone carrying explosives into Israeli airspace. The drone was intercepted by an IDF Apache helicopter. This was Iran's first direct attack on Israel, after relegating previous assaults to its proxy Hezbollah. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with his family on his first day in office (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot with soldiers on Passover eve (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) Israel retaliated by striking 12 targets in Syria, "including three aerial defense batteries and four Iranian targets," according to an IDF statement. During that attack, Syrian anti-aircraft missiles were able to down one of the Israeli Air Force's F-16 fighter jets . Its two pilots were able to bail out of the plane. Ten Iranians were killed in Israel's retaliatory strike, including a colonel in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' Air Force. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot visits the Navy (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot on a new IDF APC (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) Iran in turn retaliated with dozens of missiles fired at northern Israel. "We identified on May 8 serious preparations for a missile attack, led by the Quds Force (the IRGC's elite foreign operations unit)," Eisenkot said. According to the Sunday Times, Israel was able to prevent some missiles from being launched, while most of the missiles that were launched the next night failed to enter Israeli airspace. Four missiles that did enter Israeli territory were intercepted. Israel hit back, carrying out airstrikes against 80 Iranian targets in Syria. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot having his footprint taken for the 'IDF chiefs' Boulevard' at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot at the Western Wall on his first day in office (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Unit) The IDF chief said Israel identified Syria as the weak link in Tehran's aspirations of creating a "Shiite crescent" in the region, stretching from Iran to the Mediterranean. Syrian President Bashar Assad now shares Israel's interest to stop the Iranian takeover of southern Syria, Eisenkot said. "Assad needed them when he had his back against the wall and now he doesnt need them," he said. IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot in one of the Hezbollah terror tunnels Israel uncovered on the Lebanese border (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) Iran, he said, might turn its attention elsewhere instead. "As we push them in Syria, they transfer their efforts to Iraq," Eisenkot told The New York Times. Hezbollah is also less of a threat. "I can say with confidence that as we speak Hezbollah does not possess accurate (missile) capabilities except for small and negligible ones. They were hoping to have hundreds of missiles in the mid- and long-range," Eisenkot said. In his interview with the Sunday Times, Eisenkot also admitted for the first time that Israel had supplied rebel groups in the Syria border area with light weapons "for self-defense." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed Sunday that the Israel Air Force struck Iranian targets in Syria over weekend, following Syrian reports of successful interceptions over Damascus. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The prime minister said that in the past 36 hours, the IAF hit Iranian arms depots near Damascus airport. The wave of recent attacks proves that we are determined more than ever to act against Iran in Syria," he told the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem. Explosions over Damascus on Friday night, in an attack attributed to Israel Netanyahu also said that the IAF has hit "hundreds" of targets belonging to Iran and its proxy Hezbollah in Syria. The prime minister's statement comes after Syria's state-run news agency SANA said the country's air defenses intercepted missiles fired by Israeli fighter jets on Friday night. The attacks reportedly caused damage but no casualties. SANA reported that "over eight targets" exploded over the capital, adding that most of the Israeli missiles had been intercepted. PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem on January 13, 2019 (Photo: Amitai Shabi) An ammunition warehouse at the Damascus airport was reportedly hit, but a Syrian Transport Ministry official said to SANA airport activity continues as normal. "At 11:15 before midnight Israeli warplanes coming from Al-Jalil area launched many missiles towards Damascus area and our air defenses intercepted them and downed most of them," a Syrian military source told SANA. Syrian state media broadcast footage of what it said were the air defenses firing, with bright lights seen shooting across the night sky. Explosions were heard in one of the videos. Border Police arrested overnight Sunday a Palestinian man on suspicion of opening fire at a Border Police base in the Binyamin region last November. No one was injured during the incident. The Central District Court rejected Sunday the appeal filed by the lawyers of one of the five Jewish teenagers arrested on suspicion of causing death to a Palestinian woman. The appeal asked the court to overturn a decision to extend the minors arrest until Tuesday. Israeli national Azaria Levi, 70, was arrested Thursday by the Interpol in Varna, Bulgaria, at the request of Guatemala. Levi is a senior official in SBI Infrastructure, a subsidiary of Shikun & Binui real estate, which became entangled last year in a corruption scandal with several of its senior employees arrested on bribery suspicions. He is suspected by Guatemalan authorities of giving $6.1 million in bribes to government ministries to receive construction contracts. He is also suspected of money laundering. The IDF declared Sunday the completion of Operation Northern Shield after locating a sixth attack tunnel dug by the Hezbollah terror group from Lebanon into Israeli territory. The tunnel is expected to be neutralized in the coming days. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter In early December, the IDF launched the operation to expose and neutralize terror tunnels Hezbollah has constructed along the Israel-Lebanon border since 2006, after years of intensive and careful planning. Map showing tunnel from Lebanon into Israel (Photo: IDF Spokesman's Office) The IDF said the latest tunnel is one of the most strategically important due to not only its location, but also in light of its size. The tunnel was 800 meters long on its Lebanese side and infiltrated dozens of meters into Israel. The tunnel is two meters high, one meter in diameter, and approximately 55 meters deep, said the military. Its equipped with railway tracks, steps carved into the rock, as well as electric power and lighting system. IDF exposes 6th Hezbollah tunnel X "All of the tunnels have been exposed and have either already been destroyed or are going to be destroyed," military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Jonathan Conricus told reporters."According to our assessments, there are no longer any tunnels crossing into Israel," he said, adding that Hezbollah retained some underground facilities on the Lebanese side. IDF works along Israel-Lebanon border (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) Operation Northern Shield deprived Hezbollah of the unique offensive abilities it had built over the years as part of its planned attack on Israeli territory," the army also said. "The operation reflected advanced operational and intelligence technological capabilities and multi-stage detection of underground areas, which have developed even more over the past few weeks. Inside the exposed Hezbollah tunnel (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) The army said once the exposed tunnels have been neutralized, the IDF will begin the construction of the defensive barrier along the border. Until the neutralization process is completed, the IDF will continue its defensive efforts on the border In addition, IDF troops and the underground detection laboratory will continue operating regularly along the Lebanese border, the army added. The Hamas terror organization released surveillance footage on Saturday night showing an undercover IDF Special Force in a recent bungled Gaza Strip raid in November, which claimed the life of Lt. Col. M. and left another officer wounded. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The footage was part of a pre-recorded TV statement by the organization's military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, which also presented photos of drills, chain saws and two pistols with silencers that the Israeli force allegedly used in the raid. Video released by Hamas about the raid X Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Obeida said the Israeli forces had attempted to install equipment to monitor the landline communications network used by the militant Palestinian factions in the strip, but that Hamas had thwarted the attempt to "plant spying devices in the Gaza Strip." The IDF has not released any details about the operation which went awry November 11, leading to the heaviest round of cross-border fire, including Hamas rockets and Israeli airstrikes, since the 2014 Operation Protective Edge. One of the vehicles transporting the Israeli force, according to Hamas The Hamas statement described an Israeli mission that allegedly spanned close to a year. Abu Obeida said Israel brought equipment and vehicles into Gaza through a commercial crossing point between January and October. Fifteen members of the unit entered Gaza on a foggy night through the perimeter fence a few days before November 11, the spokesman said. Pistols with silencers Hamas says were used by the Israel force A woman working with the Israeli unit entered Gaza several times, disguised as an employee of a humanitarian organization, the spokesman said. Members of the unit used forged IDs of local Gazans and the documents of a charity group, he added. On November 11, during what Israel said was an intelligence-gathering mission, the unit was detected by Hamas fighters as it traveled in a pickup truck and an old Volkswagen Transporter van near the town of Abassan in southern Gaza. Equipment Hamas says was brought in by the Israeli force to plant spying devices The discovery sparked a firefight, in which Lt. Col. M. and two Hamas fighters, including a local commander, Nour el-Deen Baraka, were killed. Five other fighters were killed in airstrikes as Israeli aircrafts provided cover to airlift the force, including the dead officer. In the televised statement, Hamas showed low-resolution surveillance camera footage purportedly showing two vehicles being used by the undercover squad. The footage showed some faces of the occupants of the vehicles and what Hamas said was the moment its gunmen searched the van. According to the Hamas investigation, the firefight began when Baraka, mid-level commander in charge of the Khan Yunis area, ordered the detention of the occupants of the van who then shot him with silencer pistols. In the exchange of fire, Lt. Col. M. and another Hamas fighter were also killed before the van sped away. Hamas commander Nour el-Deen Baraka The footage released by Hamas shows the route the force took along Salah Street and in the streets of the town Bani Suheila. Lt. Col. M. is seen in the video talking on the phone. Another video shows Baraka's vehicle following one of the force's vehicles, while a different clip shows Hamas fighters checking one of the vehicles and questioning its occupants. Hamas also released footage from a grocery store in the Strip, where the force's members were allegedly spotted buying groceries. Footage purporting to show members of the force shopping at a grocery store Another clip shows the Israeli force evacuating its wounded before fleeing the area toward the Israeli border. Hamas also released the picture of full name of Lt. Col. M., which have been barred from publication in Israel by the IDF censor. Hamas promised a million dollars to any local "collaborator" who would turn double agent and supply it with information about the operation. On Tuesday, Hamas said it had arrested 45 Gazan "collaborators" with Israel following the Khan Yunis incident. Hamas had already published photos of eight people and two vehicles it said were linked to the operation, prompting the IDF censor to appeal to the public and media not to republish the images. Israel Air Force fighter jets attacked two Hamas targets in the northern Gaza Strip shortly before midnight on Saturday in retaliation for a rocket fired at the Sdot Negev Regional Council earlier in the evening. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter After the strike on the terror organization's "underground infrastructure," Hamas warned the IDF that "the escalation is dangerous and using fire won't bring security to Israel and its residents." "Israel continues killing non-violent protesters in cold blood and bomb the military posts of the resistance," Hamas said. Rocket fired from Gaza at Israel (file photo) A rocket launched from the Gaza Strip at 8:59pm Saturday landed in an open area in the Sdot Negev Regional Council. No one was hurt and no damage was caused. The flare-up began on Friday afternoon, when some 13,000 Palestinians violently rioted on the Gaza border, throwing explosives, grenades and stones and burning tires. In one location east of Gaza City, protesters tried to breach the border fence en masse. Amal al-Taramsi, 43, who had regularly attended the protests, was shot dead during the rioting. Al-Mezan, a Palestinian human rights group, said she was around 200 meters (yards) from the fence when she was shot in the head. IAF aircraft struck two Hamas positions in response to the violence without inflicting any casualties. Israel has allowed Qatar to deliver $15 million in aid each month since November to pay the salaries of Hamas civil servants. The latest batch was delayed after a rocket attack earlier this month, but is widely expected to be delivered if the situation remains calm. The weekly protests have been more subdued since the understandings were reached. Qatar has also bought fuel for Gaza's solo power plant, helping to reduce power outages. Electricity is still only available for a few hours every day, and the tap water in Gaza is undrinkable. The blockade has devastated the local economy in Gaza, where unemployment exceeds 50 percent. Two Border Policemen were lightly hurt from stone throwing overnight Saturday during operational activity in Ramallah to carry out arrests and collect intelligence. The Border Police said hundreds of rioters hurled stones at the Israeli forces and burned tires, and the troops responded with crowd dispersal measures. The two hurt policemen were taken to the Shaare Zedek Medical Center in Jerusalem for treatment and discharged during the night. Israel Air Force fighter jets attacked two Hamas "underground infrastructure" in the northern Gaza Strip shortly before midnight on Saturday in retaliation for a rocket fired at the Sdot Negev Regional Council earlier in the evening. The IDF said that "Hamas is responsible for what is happening inside and from the Gaza Strip." A young Israeli Arab woman has found herself out in the cold with her family after she said she wishes to compete in the primaries for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party, ahead of the Knesset elections on April 9. The family of Dema Taya family from Qalansawe, in central Israel, released a statement last week that they are distancing themselves from their daughter over her political aspirations. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The 25-year-old Dema, who lives in the Galilee town of Kfar Manda, is outspoken in her support of Israeli democracy and its treatment of minorities. She recently participated in a public awareness campaign in the United States on behalf of Israel, sponsored by Reservists on Duty (an Israeli NGO seeking to expose and counter the BDS movement and new forms of anti-Semitism). Dema as a Knesset tourguide We, the Taya family of Qalansawe are declaring to all that we are distancing ourselves from Dema Sayyif Taya Zidan (her full name). We condemn and categorically reject all her statements that were published by the media. She is not associated with us in any manner, wrote the family. It is unclear which of her family members were signatories to the letter, as it seems that she does have the support of some of them. All that was said by her represents her views and not ours. We declare that we will not maintain any contact with her nor support her until she retracts her words and beliefs, and declares her allegiance to the people and religion that she is really a part of, they added. Taya family notice One family member told Ynet that, We are all disappointed because of what she said; it shows how weak she is. In such a manner she will not get far in Arab society and she is causing harm to herself. We are all familiar with the Likud and its leader who, during his tenure, 15 homes were demolished in Qalansawe. Dema was silent in response to that and even if she will be in the Likud she will maintain her silence like many other ministers, he added, referring to Communications Minister Ayoob Kara (an Arabic-speaking Druze Likud member) and others. Dema Taya On Wednesday, following the announcement by her family, Taya posted on Facebook that the announcement was false and signed by criminal youth and that she reported it to the police. She further wrote that if the Arab media makes use of the letter against her she will take legal action for seeking ratings at my expense. She also accused the Arab media of promoting hate and incitement to violence and discrimination against women. I assert that the State of Israel is a state of law and anyone who seeks to harm me or incite against or harm my reputation will be handled by the police and law enforcement. I am proud of the path I chose and I believe that I will be elected by the nation that loves and supports The nation of Israel lives! she wrote. Dema moved to Kfar Manda following her marriage. She said that she intends to defend Israel's public image and influence the Arab sector through the ruling party. "As a Muslim woman, I can save the sector from those committing an injustice to the state," said the young woman who declared that she intends to combat the BDS movement as well. When announcing her candidacy, Dema also praised the departure of MK Hanin Zoabi (Joint List) from politics: Knesset members like her dont help and dont represent me and many others. Zoabi herself has a relative who is a fervent supporter of Israel. Mohammad Zoabi from Nazareth has condemned the Palestinian Authority as a terrorist organization and expressed his intention to join the IDF. The confessions of a 17-year-old Israeli youth, charged with membership in a terror organization and various incidents of vandalism, were thrown on by the Lod Central District Court on the grounds that his confession had been coerced by investigators who posed as fellow inmates in a fake detention center, and who even threatened the teen with violence and rape. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook STRONG> and Twitter The Jewish minor was arrested by the Shin Bet domestic security service back in 2015 in connection with the deadly arson attack against the Palestinian Dawabshe family in the West Bank village of Duma, but the court found the teenager's confession non-admissable. In 2016, the minor was charged with a series of other offenses, which included insulting a religion with racial motivation, and arson and vandalism at the Dormition Abbey on Jerusalems Mt. Zion. The defendant (Photo: Police Spokesman) Following the charges, the minor was incarcerated at a fake detention center in Acre, erected in a ruse designed to extract information from him. He was placed in a cell together with others who were ostensibly dangerous criminals but were in fact undercover policemen placed there to eavesdrop and observe him. At the time, the minor said things that tied him to some of the events attributed to him, but when he was taken for questioning by the Shin Bet he maintained his right to silence; but later admitted to the charges. After meeting his attorney he retracted his confession. The court found that while incarcerated, the youth was subject to threats by his cellmates, the undercover policemen. Posing as serious criminals, the police officers accused the minor of being a snitch, and forced him to tell them about his crimes so that if he snitched on them, they would have incriminating material on him. The court also found that one of the undercover policemen, Aviv, intimidated the youth into giving him half of his meal on the evening following a religious fast day. On another occasion he was prevented from performing the morning prayers with his Tefilin, a religious obligation. Itamar Ben Gvir (Photo:Shaul Golan) In another incident described by the court, Aviv threatened the minor into entering a bathroom with him, and, as part of their deception and efforts to scare the youth, sounds could be heard from the next stall as if Arab prisoners were being cursed and harassed by interrogators. In another tactic used to put pressure on the youth, drugs were concealed in his bed by his undercover cellmates who ordered him to stay mum. They later accused him of snitching on them. Furthermore, one of his cellmates would call him a girl and threatened to rape him. The court ruled that the methods used to extract confessions from the minor crossed a line and were illegal. The judge reprimanded the police and Shin Bet for the abusive methods used to obtain confessions and wrote that considering the threats and intimidation he felt, the boy had no free choice when confessing to the crimes prompting the court to reject the confession. The state must ensure that a prisoner can perform his religious obligations while incarcerated, the judge wrote in reference to the limitations imposed on the boy with regards to his prayers and Shabbat observance. The judge also stated that the Shin Bet was wrong in tying the minor to a chair for extensive periods of time. The boys attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir praised the court's decision, saying his client had been denied his basic rights. "This is an important day for Israeli democracy. The time has come for the Shin Bet and the police to know that the Hilltop Youth (young extreme -right settlers) also have basic rights. All red lines have been crossed in this investigation. I'm glad the court accepted our claim and disqualified the confession," Ben-Gvir said. The prosecution said that they are studying the courts decision in depth. Intimidating questioning tactics Dozens of minors from a West Bank religious school, questioned by the Shin Bet following the arrests of five of their classmates, claim that the Shin Bet used aggressive intimidation tactics when interrogating them. The five Jewish minors were arrested on terror charges, including in relation to the death of a Palestinian mother of nine hit by a rock as she was traveling in a car with her family in the West Bank in October. Details of the case are still under gag order. The five suspects who were arrested were prevented from meeting an attorney over the weekend and their counsel expressed concern that the Shin Bet would use the advantage to extract information via illegal methods. Abusing the boys is dangerous for democracy, said their attorney Itamar Ben Gvir. Dozens of rabbis, educators and community leaders sent a sharply worded letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan accusing the Shin Bet of using illegal interrogation tactics and asking that they prevent the rights of the detainees from being trampled. Israel Police said in response: The investigation is being carried out under a gag order and consequently we cannot elaborate. That said, the police conduct investigations in a professional manner to uncover the truth while ensuring the rights of the suspects are protected. The Shin Bet also issued a response: The Shin Bets primary objective is preventing acts of terror and all of its activities are performed in accordance with the law. "Since the arrests, the Shin Bet has identified an intentional and ongoing effort by interested parties to defame the agency and its personnel and delegitimize its activity. This attempt is reprehensible, and it will not dissuade the Shin Bet from continuing its activity to thwart any kind of terrorismJewish or Palestinian," the agency said. More than 40 people stood on a slushy sidewalk in Toppenish in remembrance of the Indigenous people who have been murdered or have gone missing on and around the 1.3-million-acre Yakama Reservation over decades. Please disable your ad blocker, and refresh the page to view this content. Between the first day of the legislative session Monday and the last scheduled day April 28, state lawmakers will need to tackle a host of com In a photo taken during her name-giving ceremony, Sandra Lee Smiscon is beaming, wrapped in a turquoise shawl and a bright red embroidered head scarf. It is George Daniel Lee Jr.s favorite picture of his mother. Lee has just a few photos of her, given to him when he flew back home from England, where he was stationed, for her funeral in July 2003. Lee was 21 and had not seen his mother for a few years, not since he was a senior at White Swan High School and told her he would be joining the Air Force. She was pretty excited for me, he said. Lee tucked the photos away, still learning about the life and death of his mother, a Yakama Nation citizen killed in a random act of gun violence that has never been solved. Early on the morning of July 12, 2003, Smiscon was hit by a shot in the abdomen while sleeping along Fourth Avenue under the Yesler Way overpass in Seattle. Her male companion, also asleep, was shot in the leg. A man in his 30s or 40s stood on top of the overpass at Fourth Avenue and fired at them, authorities said. Police had received reports of multiple fireworks being set off in the area moments before the shots were fired, Seattle police spokesman Duane Fish said days after her death. They didnt know why Smiscon was shot and were investigating whether she was the intended target. Smiscon, 45, died that Saturday morning at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. Her companion, who wasnt identified, was treated and released. In November, the nonprofit Urban Indian Health Institute, a research arm of the Seattle Indian Health Board, released a report identifying 506 missing and murdered indigenous women and girls in 71 urban areas. Smiscon is among them. The exact number of missing and murdered Native women on the 1.3-million-acre Yakama reservation is unknown. Even less certain is the number of tribal members who have gone missing or been murdered while off the reservation. Born in Toppenish, Smiscon traveled between the Yakima Valley and Seattle for years. A petite woman with a big family, a broad smile and an adventurous nature, she relished her traditional upbringing, attending powwows and other special events when she came home. But she also struggled with the reality that her children were primarily being raised by others. My mom was really not a part of my life, said Lee, who was raised by his father. Theres some things I hear about her from my sister from time to time. Though Lee hardly knew her, Smiscon made him the man he is today in ways he is only beginning to understand. Years after her death, he realizes the struggles she faced and recognizes the demons she battled, because he has seen them himself. Lee is four months sober. Hes in recovery, for which he is thankful. She never got that chance, he said. Now I understand Lee has two memories of his mother before his teenage years. He remembers her pulling him in a red wagon to a restaurant in Wapato, the city where his grandmother, Elaine Frank Smiscon, still lives. Sandras father, Walter, preceded her in death. The other memory involves a day he was playing behind his grandmothers house with his older sister. Mom was laughing, Lee said. I was really young, and its strange to me that I remember those events. He keeps those memories close, recalling the details as if he were a flexing a muscle. He doesnt want to forget them. I try to remember those as often as I can because those were the two times I saw her when she was sober, Lee said. I saw her several times in my teens, but she was always intoxicated. ... Alcohol pushed us apart. His mother was born Feb. 23, 1958. One of 12 children, Sandra Smiscon worked at various nursing homes and was a crack pool player, which is how she met fellow pool enthusiast George Lee Sr., their son said. Smiscon enjoyed traditional culture, digging roots and picking berries, was active in the longhouse and supported her daughter in traditional dance, her obituary said. Like his mother, Lee grew up going to the longhouse, in powwow circles. He spent days in the mountains, hunting and fishing, and held himself to rigorous personal standards. At that point, how I knew my mom to be, I didnt do drugs or alcohol, he said. As a high school sophomore, Lee decided to join the military like his father, who was drafted into the Army and served in Germany during the Vietnam War. In the powwow circle, when an eagle feather falls to the ground, the elders look at it as a fallen soldier, he said. Only a combat warrior may pick it up, and only in a special ceremony involving other veterans. Once the veteran picks up the feather, he gives his story of combat, Lee said. To the people, what the eagle feather represents, that was the main thing that convinced me. A few months after graduating from White Swan High School in 2000, Lee joined the Air Force, serving from November 2000 to 2006. During that time, he spent two tours of duty in Iraq, from February to September 2005 and February to September 2006. Lee enlisted in the Army in August 2007, with two tours of Afghanistan for a year beginning in February 2009 and December 2011 to October 2012. The last of the seven total tours he served was the hardest, Lee said, and he began drinking. I know what its like to be at the bottom of the barrel calling for help. I recognize those actions in my mom, he said. Called into an office one day, Lee learned that his mother had died. At that point, I couldnt hear anything else he said, Lee recalled. I ended up calling the lady I was married to at the time; I wasnt driving home. I cried really bad. He flew out from London the next day, arriving two days after his mother was buried at the Methodist cemetery in White Swan. Lee visited with his sisters, Leeta Gainey, then of New York and now living in Virginia, and Pricilla Jacobs of Kent. It was the first time theyd been together in years, he said. I didnt grow up with them. They stayed with their dads or their dads families, he said. Over time, Lee processed emotions bound to emerge no matter the physical and emotional distance between him and his mom. The biggest thing is, were Native American. We live our lives with respect to Mother Earth, he said. Knowing that my mom knew all those ways if you know all those ways and dont practice those ways, youre defeating the purpose. You lose focus. That was one of the biggest things Ive seen in my mom. She didnt want to practice. Going through my recovery, there were a lot of things I wish my mom took the time to do. She didnt. Lee stopped drinking about four months ago and has weaned himself off his prescriptions. Ive been going to the mountains. Ive been going to the sweat lodge. Ive been going to the longhouse. I smoke marijuana because its better than what the Army prescribes me, he said. Recovery is hard. My mom didnt get to make it. Knowing what he knows today, Lee would have made his mother come back to the Valley for treatment, he said. That is a challenge family and friends of missing people may face adults can separate themselves from others. Still, Lee wishes someone would have tried harder to help his mother. The rest of us, they knew where she was. All my family knew she was going over to Seattle. ... She was dead set on Seattle. Now I understand. She was left high and dry by all of us, he said. Two stories, no answers Smiscon returned to the Valley for a powwow shortly before her death. It was the last time family and friends saw her. While police have said his mother was hit by random gunfire and wasnt targeted, Lee has also heard that she owed someone $300. A friend he deployed with, a Seattle resident, told Lee his father was the police chief. Lee asked for his help looking up some records concerning Smiscons murder. He said some white lady hired a hit man to kill your mother, Lee recalled his friend telling him. Two stories, no answers. Shortly before noon on Oct. 18, 2011, people began gathering near a memorial outside the Seattle Justice Center. They were there for a dedication of 13 Leaves of Remembrance by the Homeless Remembrance Project, a group that honors homeless people who have died in King County. Every Person Matters, the Leaves of Remembrance website notes. It lists information about every person remembered with a memorial and seeks comments from those who knew them. Among the comments about Smiscon one woman wrote, She had the most beautiful smile. Gainey, her oldest daughter, remembers that smile well. She works as a certified nursing assistant, like her mother. She always had the biggest smile on her face, said Gainey, 39. That really big, cheesy smile. She lived with her mother as a baby, and then from age 5 to 11, Gainey said. Thats when her father, who lived in the eastern United States, came and got her. Smiscon encouraged Gainey and Jacobs in Native dancing, Gainey in traditional and Jacobs in jingle dress. And she wanted them to finish what they started, Gainey said, remembering a time when she was making a dress at the longhouse and wanted to take a break to go play with others. Smiscon insisted that she complete it before taking a break. Their mother encouraged stability, discipline and independence while discouraging them from taking the path she took, Gainey said. I remember some times shed say, Im going to go into the clinic to get some help. I know its not good for my body. When things kind of got to her, shed start the drinking again. As a mother, Gainey understands that losing custody of ones children as Smiscon did hurts unbearably. If I lost custody of my children, Id lose it, she said. I would do something to numb the pain. Despite her demons and her weaknesses, Gainey said, Smiscon was a caring person who wanted the best for her children. She made sure that we knew better dont repeat the mistakes I made, she said. A great thing As Lee continues to learn more about the woman who was his mother, he adds to his own life story. Several years ago, Lee found out that Smiscon had another son. His half-brother would probably be around 45 years old, Lee said. I have no idea who he is. I have no idea where he is. I dont even know if hes still alive, he said. Becoming a father has helped keep his mother alive in his heart. And remarkable occurrences fate, some would say bring her back in unexpected ways. Lees oldest daughter, Lilyana Elaine Lee, was born in North Carolina on Aug. 25, 2015. All three nurses assisting with her birth were named Sandra. To me, that was a great thing, Lee said softly. He also has a 1-year-old daughter, Layla Elizabeth Lee, and a 12-year-old son, Kamiakin Avien Lee, along with two adopted sons, Devante Erik Lee, 17; and Damion Daniel Lee, 15. His daughters and adopted sons are in Vermont and his other son lives a few hours away. Recently, Lee was honored in the same traditional ceremony his mother participated in years ago. He had already received a family name, but on New Years Day, his father gave him a second name one for a warrior. It took place at the Toppenish Longhouse on Robbins Road. Lee thinks his mother, who received the name Na wy it, was a young woman, late teens or early 20s, and the naming ceremony was held at the Wapato Longhouse. Hes asking others, trying to learn more about the woman in her finest regalia, holding gifts for her guests, her long braids wrapped in fur. Having received an honorable discharge for medical reasons in November, Lee is back living in White Swan and thinking of his future. Im retired, he quips amid relentlessly polite remarks punctuated with yes, maam and yes, sir. Still a military man at heart, hes fit and stands tall, with impeccable posture, his hair cut high and tight. Hes leaving in a couple of weeks to visit his children in Vermont, then will head to north Georgia to begin hiking the Appalachian Trail with a fellow soldier. He hopes to finish in August. Ive always wanted to do things like this, the Appalachian Trail, the Mojave Desert, the Teton (Crest) Trail, Denali, said Lee, who was stationed in Alaska for six years. Beyond that, he plans to finish his criminal justice degree and, using his military and police experience, see if I can help out here, he said. Lee wants to figure out where best to advocate for women like his mother. He plans to attend Mondays meeting in Toppenish on missing Native women and will wear red, the color that honors missing and murdered indigenous women and girls. He speaks to students about his struggles with addiction. He serves on a truancy board. (I) try to set the best example I can as if my kids were watching every single step, Lee said. Sober up. Fix myself. Be there for my family. Break a pattern. Eventually, she would have. 7 day print subscribers enjoy unlimited access to yakimaherald.com Enter the LAST NAME and the 7 DIGIT phone number on your print subscription account to connect your print subscription to your yakimaherald.com account. Sanaa (AFP) - Yemeni rebels on Sunday boycotted a meeting chaired by the head of a UN-led ceasefire monitoring team in the flashpoint city of Hodeida, accusing him of pursuing "other agendas". Retired Dutch general Patrick Cammaert is leading a joint committee, which includes both government and rebel representatives, tasked with overseeing a truce in the Red Sea port city and the withdrawal of both parties. Huthi rebel negotiator Mohammed Abdelsalam said Cammaert "steered from the course of the agreement by implementing other agendas". "If (UN envoy to Yemen Martin) Griffiths does not address the issue, it is going to be difficult to discuss any other matter," he said on Twitter without elaborating. An AFP photographer said that the Huthi representatives did not take part in the committee meeting in Hodeida on Sunday. The UN declined to comment. Clashes erupted between Huthi rebels and government forces in Hodeida on Saturday, dealing a new blow to the fragile truce. The rebel-held port city, which is a lifeline for the delivery of desperately needed humanitarian aid, was for months the main front line in the Yemeni conflict after government forces supported by Saudi Arabia and its allies launched an offensive to capture it in June. But last month the warring parties agreed a ceasefire for Hodeida during UN-sponsored talks in Sweden. The United Nations has said the truce has largely held since it came into force on December 18 but there have been delays in the agreed pullback of rebel and government forces. The Huthis control most of Hodeida while government forces are deployed on the southern and eastern outskirts. Since the Saudi-led military coalition intervened in support of the government in March 2015, the conflict has killed nearly 10,000 people and unleashed the world's worst humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations. UN aid officials say 80 percent of the population -- 24 million people -- are in need of aid and nearly 10 million are just one step away from famine. Tokyo (AFP) - The wife of ex-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn has alleged her husband is being held in "harsh" conditions and subjected to round-the-clock interrogations intended to extract a confession. In a letter to Human Rights Watch, Carole Ghosn urged the group to highlight the case of her husband, who has been in detention in Japan since his shock arrest on November 19 and faces three charges of financial misconduct. The nine-page letter says the former high-flying executive is held in cell that is lit even at night, and is denied his daily medication. "For hours each day, the prosecutors interrogate him, browbeat him, lecture him, and berate him, outside the presence of his layers, in an effort to extract a confession," the letter says. It claims prosecutors have pressed Ghosn to sign documents in Japanese, which he does not understand, providing only an oral translation, and without his lawyer present. "I urge Human Rights Watch to highlight his case... to press the government to reform its draconian system of pretrial detention and interrogation," the letter adds. Ghosn's ongoing detention has prompted some international criticism of Japan's legal system, which permits prosecutors to hold suspects while they investigate an allegation, and also allows lengthy pre-trial detention once charges have been filed. Ghosn's lawyer has acknowledged his client is unlikely to be freed before a trial, and that the case could take six months to come to court. The former Nissan chief has so far been denied visits from anyone except his lawyers and diplomats from the three countries where he holds citizenship -- Brazil, France and Lebanon. But a court ruling last week means Ghosn can now begin receiving family visits. His lead lawyer Motonari Otsuru also denied last week that Ghosn was being pressured to sign documents or a confession in Japanese. "Not once has Mr Ghosn said to us he has any concerns about being asked to sign something in a language he doesn't understand," he told reporters. Story continues He also said Ghosn had now been moved to a larger cell with a Western-style bed, adding that his client had not complained to him about the conditions of his detention. Ghosn faces charges of under-reporting his compensation, trying to shift personal losses onto Nissan books, and using company funds to repay a friend. He denies wrongdoing and in a first court appearance this week said he had been "wrongly accused and unfairly detained." Grenoble (France) (AFP) - Two employees at a ski resort in the French Alps died on Sunday when the avalanche-control charges they were trying to set accidentally went off, mountain rescue experts said. The accident took place at an altitude of 1,800 metres (6,000 feet) as the pair from the Morillon ski resort "were working on an avalanche prevention programme", one of the experts said. Controlled explosions are carried out before the slopes open to mitigate the risk of larger avalanches. They were working with the explosives when the accident happened, local police said following an initial investigation. Forecasters at Meteo France had warned of a high risk of avalanches in the Savoie and Haute-Savoie regions following fresh overnight snowfall. Meanwhile, three German cross-country skiers died and a fourth was reported missing following an avalanche in western Austria, police said. The bodies of two men aged 32 and 36 and a third aged 56 were found on Saturday evening, with a 28-year-old man still missing, police said. The avalanche came after several days of heavy snowfall which saw the army called in to secure roads and buildings and help with a number of evacuations. ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish troops and tanks carried out military exercises on the border with Syria on Saturday, state-run media reported, while a monitoring group said a Turkish convoy had crossed the frontier into northern Syria. Turkey's military sent tanks and armored vehicles to the border in the second day of reinforcements near the province of Idlib, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria. On Friday, a Turkish security source said the Turkish army had been rotating forces in and out of the region, and declined to say whether the latest movement was in preparation for an operation inside Syria itself. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based monitoring group, said a Turkish convoy had entered Syria. Islamist fighters have tightened their control over the Idlib region following more than a week of fighting with Turkey-backed Syrian rebels. The rise of the jihadist Hayat Tahrir al Sham has raised doubt over the future of a deal agreed in September between Turkey - which has several military observation posts in Idlib - and President Bashar al-Assad's main ally Russia to avert a Syrian government army assault. The agreement requires banned Islamist groups to be expelled from a frontline buffer zone. The escalation in Idlib comes as U.S. forces prepare to withdraw from a separate region of northern and eastern Syria. Earlier on Saturday, the Turkish defense minister, chief of general staff and the intelligence agency head visited border military units and discussed "measures to establish peace and stability in the region," the ministry said in a statement. "We are making every effort to preserve the ceasefire and stability in Idlib, in line with the Sochi agreement. Our close cooperation with Russia continues," Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said. Akar's comments came a day after Russia said it remained committed to the agreement it had struck with Turkey to stabilize a de-escalation zone in Idlib, but said Moscow was worried by an increase in the number of ceasefire violations. (Writing by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Ros Russell) Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey on Saturday welcomed the latest statement made by Washington's top diplomat over Ankara's right to defend itself from "terrorists" after the US withdraws from Syria. "We find correct his statement about the removal of the elements that concern Turkey," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in a speech in the southern Turkish province of Antalya. Cavusoglu spoke on the phone Saturday with US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who was in Abu Dhabi as part of a regional tour, and they discussed "the steps that need to be taken" in Syria, he said. The latest comments follow tensions between the US and Turkey over the fate of Washington's Syrian Kurdish allies in the fight against Islamic State group jihadists. Pompeo had earlier said Washington recognised "the Turkish people's right and (Turkish President Recep Tayyip) Erdogan's right to defend their country from terrorists". But, he added, "we also know that those fighting alongside of us for all this time deserve to be protected as well". Turkey had rejected any suggestions that US President Donald Trump's plan to withdraw troops was conditional on the safety of the US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG). Ankara sees the YPG as a terrorist group linked to the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) which has fought a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state. Washington however considers the group as an effective force in the fight against IS. Trump's National Security Advisor John Bolton had a tense meeting with Turkish officials in Ankara this week. Cavusoglu once again "rejected and condemned" Bolton's comments on the conditional withdrawal and said despite different voices coming out from Washington, the Turkish president's interlocuter was Trump. He repeated Ankara's threat to launch an offensive to eradicate Syrian Kurdish fighters from Syria. "We will do whatever needed to clear terror across our border," he said. "Nobody should doubt about it." Khartoum (AFP) - Sudanese police fired tear gas Sunday at crowds of anti-government protesters in several cities including Khartoum, as organisers pushed for more nationwide rallies against President Omar al-Bashir this week. Deadly protests have rocked Sudan since December 19 after a government decision to triple the price of bread. The protests have since swiftly escalated into nationwide rallies widely seen as the biggest threat to Bashir's rule in his three decades in power. Authorities say the protests have left 24 people dead so far, while Human Rights Watch has put the death toll at 40, including children and medical staff. On Sunday, protesters took to the streets in the capital's Bahari district chanting "peace, peace" and "revolution is the people's choice," but they were quickly confronted by riot police, witnesses told AFP. Witnesses said police pursued protesters down Bahari's streets and alleys as they chanted "peace, justice, freedom", which has become a key slogan in the rallies. Women protesters, many wearing masks to protect themselves from tear gas, whistled and clapped as they marched in the streets of Bahari, the hub of Sunday's demonstration. Some residents in Bahari took protesters inside their homes and offered them juice as tear gas canisters struck the facades of their buildings, a witness said. Later on Sunday, the Sudanese Professionals' Association that is spearheading the rallies said "live ammunition" had been used during the demonstration in Bahari. It did not say who fired the gunshots. -- 'Stench of tear gas' -- "Inspite of the violence of security forces, the clouds of tear gas and thunder of live ammunition, our people courageously took to the street," said the association, comprising of unions of doctors, teachers and engineers. A panel of doctors within the association said in a separate statement that eight people had been wounded in Khartoum rally including "two from live ammunition". It also did not specify who had fired the gunshots. Story continues Khartoum police could not be reached for comment. Sudanese officials including Bashir have blamed the violence during demonstrations on "thugs" and "conspirators". Protest organisers have called for near daily demonstrations across the country against Bashir this week, calling it a "Week of Uprising". Hours after police dispersed the rally in Bahari on Sunday, the smell of tear gas lingered across the neighbourhood, witnesses said. Several streets remained blocked with burnt tyres and rocks thrown by protesters, a witness said, adding that riot police, some in vehicles loaded with machineguns, remained deployed in the area. On Sunday, protests also broke out in the western war-torn region of Darfur. Police fired tear gas at demonstrators who took to the streets of El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state and in Niyala, the capital of South Darfur state, witnesses said. Darfur, a region the size of France, has been torn by violence since 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing it of economic and political marginalisation. Bashir, who seized power in an Islamist-backed coup in 1989, has been charged by the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) with genocide and war crimes allegedly committed in Darfur. - Economic crisis - Protests were also reported in the central town of Madani and in some villages of the eastern impoverished, agricultural province of Gadaref. Rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been arrested since the protests began, including opposition leaders, activists and journalists as well as demonstrators. The crackdown has drawn international criticism, with countries like Britain, Norway, Canada and the United States warning Khartoum that its actions could "have an impact" on its relations with their governments. Although the unrest was triggered by the rise in the price of bread, Sudan has faced a mounting economic crisis over the past year, led by an acute shortage of foreign currency. Repeated shortages of food and fuel have been reported across cities, while the cost of food and medicine has more than doubled. Bashir and other officials have blamed Washington for Sudan's economic woes. The US imposed a trade embargo on Khartoum in 1997 that was lifted only in October 2017. It restricted Sudan from conducting international business and financial transactions. But critics of Bashir say his government's mismanagement of key sectors and its huge spending on fighting ethnic minority rebellions in Darfur and areas near the South Sudan border have been stoking economic trouble for years. NEWMAN, Calif. (AP) The flag-draped casket of a California police officer who authorities say was shot to death by a man in the country illegally was carried in a procession Friday through the streets he once patrolled to a public viewing in a community theater. The killing of Cpl. Ronil Singh has rekindled a debate over California's sanctuary law that limits cooperation by local authorities with federal immigration authorities. President Donald Trump seized on the case to call for tougher border security amid a fight with congressional Democrats over funding for a border wall, which has forced a partial government shutdown. On Thursday, Trump called Singh's family to offer his condolences, the White House said. People waving American flags lined up along the streets of the Central Valley town of Newman, where a viewing was held for Singh, who was shot Dec. 26 during a traffic stop. Prosecutors on Wednesday charged 33-year-old Gustavo Perez Arriaga with murder. He was arrested after a dayslong manhunt as he prepared to flee to Mexico, authorities said. The casket was driven in a procession from Modesto into a theater in Newman where the marquee read "Ronil Singh Forever Remember" while several officers saluted. The casket was taken from the hearse into the theater for a viewing as the police department's 12 officers and Singh's family followed. A memorial service and burial is scheduled Saturday in Modesto. "It's amazing to see all the support that we're getting," Newman police Chief Randy Richardson said outside the theater. "I hate that it's under these circumstances." Singh, 33, who emigrated from his native Fiji to pursue a career in law enforcement, joined the Newman police force in 2011. He was married and had a 5-month-old son. Prosecutors said Perez Arriaga shot Singh after the officer stopped his vehicle to see if he was driving drunk. He has two previous drunken driving arrests, authorities said. At his first court appearance, Perez Arriaga told the judge that his real name is Paulo Virgen Mendoza, but authorities were still referring to him as Perez Arriaga in court documents. His attorney, Stephen Foley, questioned his client's mental competency, leading the court to delay the case until a mental health evaluation is done. Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya. (Photo: Yury Martyanov/Kommersant Photo/Reuters) The Russian lawyer who played a key role in the infamous Trump Tower meeting with Trump campaign officials, including Donald Trump Jr., tells Yahoo News she wont return to the United States to face charges that she lied in an unrelated court case. She also said she would be willing to speak with special counsel Robert Mueller for his investigation, but she hasnt been asked. In a phone interview conducted with Yahoo News, Natalia Veselnitskaya calmly but insistently denied the charges, and said she would use all methods to defend herself, but would do so from Russia, where she lives with her four children, and would not come to the United States. On Tuesday, a Manhattan judge unsealed a December indictment of Veselnitskaya in the U.S. Southern District of New York, charging her with obstruction of justice. The charges against Veselnitskaya are not directly connected to the Trump Tower meeting, which also included campaign manager Paul Manafort and Ivanka Trumps husband, Jared Kushner. They relate to a 2013 civil court case in which she represented Prevezon Holdings, a Cyprus-based firm accused of laundering money through real estate purchases in New York. The Prevezon case was settled in 2017 with the company paying almost $6 million, and both sides declaring victory. The laundered money allegedly constituted proceeds of a tax fraud discovered by Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian accountant who worked for British businessman William Browder, a former U.S. citizen. Magnitsky died in Russian custody in 2009. In the recently unsealed case, prosecutors now accuse Veselnitskaya of misrepresenting supposedly independent investigative findings of the Russian government while working in secret cooperation with a senior Russian prosecutor. American prosecutors claim to have obtained correspondence between Veselnitskaya and the Russian prosecutors office showing that she actively worked to draft the governments findings. Veselnitskaya does not appear to deny that she worked with the prosecutors office, but says that such cooperation wasnt illegal. Story continues I actively cooperated with the General Prosecutors Office of the Russian Federation which has supported the public prosecution of Browder since 2013, Veselnitskaya said in an interview published Friday in Interfax, the Russian news agency. And the fact that we have identical positions concerning Browders false story can neither provide evidence of any conspiracy, nor constitute any wrongdoing. Veselnitskaya told Yahoo News that whatever documents the U.S. government has were illegally obtained through Browder, though she provided no details to back up the allegation. Browder did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Browder is a long-time nemesis of Veselnitskaya and the Russian government. Following Magnitskys death, Browder lobbied to pass the Magnitsky Act, a broad set of sanctions against Russian officials who are suspected of involvement in his death. Regarding the Trump Tower meeting and the ongoing investigation into the Trump presidential campaigns ties to Russia, Veselnitskaya also said she was willing to speak to special counsel Robert Mueller, but his office has made no attempt to contact her. She told Yahoo News she believes Mueller or his team hasnt attempted to interview her because the meeting had no political significance. Veselnitskaya has long insisted that overturning the Magnitsky Act was the focus of the 2016 Trump Tower meeting. An English-language memo she took to the meeting focused on the Magnitsky Act and Browder, but also mentions the Russian ban on American adoptions, which was done in retaliation for the sanctions, and mentions possible ties to the financing of Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. Donald Trump Jr., who accepted an invitation to the meeting after being promised dirt on Clinton, has since claimed that the meeting was about adoptions. Well decline to comment, wrote Peter Carr, a spokesman for the special counsels office, about attempts to speak to Veselnitskaya as part of Muellers investigation. _____ Read more from Yahoo News: DENVER (AP) Investigators believe a 7-year-old boy found dead in a Denver storage unit just before Christmas last attended school in late May, a police spokesman said Friday. Sgt. John White said investigators are focused on what happened to the boy between then and Dec. 23, when police found his body inside the storage facility after getting information from police in neighboring Aurora. A woman believed to be the boy's mother, 43-year-old Elisha Pankey, turned herself in to police on Wednesday. She is being held on investigation of child abuse resulting in death. Related Video: Woman Surrenders After Missing Boy Found Dead "Investigators are working hard to determine exactly what happened and when," White said. "We are very, very concerned about this and any incident when the most vulnerable members of our community become victims. It's just a tragic situation." Online court records do not list an attorney for Pankey, and she has not been formally charged yet. The court document laying out the reasons for her arrest is sealed. Authorities have not confirmed the boy's name or released information about when or how he died. According to 2018 homicide data tracked by Denver's Public Safety Department, a 7-year-old boy named Caden McWilliams was the victim of a homicide in late May at 5005 E. Evans Ave., the same address of the storage facility where Denver Police reported finding the body. White said Friday that he could not confirm the information and said the Denver medical examiner's office will be the agency to release the boy's identification. According to Denver Public Schools, McWilliams attended Ellis Elementary School. In a written statement, the school's principal Nichole Whiteman said Caden McWilliams "was a model student who was not afraid to do the right thing simply because it was the right thing to do." "He stood out from others from the moment he walked through the school doors every morning with a huge smile on his face," Whiteman said. "His smile and eyes showed how kind and sweet he was at the core. Other students wanted to be his friend and looked to Caden for what to do next." Story continues District spokesman Will Jones said student privacy laws prevented him from releasing any information about the boy's school attendance. He also said the district does not want to interfere with the police investigation. Police have not released any information about exactly when the boy was determined to be missing. But Denver Police first became involved when Aurora Police contacted them on Dec. 23 with information about a missing boy. Aurora officers had arrested Elisha Pankey the previous day on suspicion of heroin possession. According to a court record filed by the Aurora Police, officers came into contact with Pankey while investigating a missing child and found the drugs in a hotel room where she had stayed. Aurora Police spokesman Sgt. Bill Hummel said Friday that he could not comment on that missing child case. Pankey's husband, Leland Pankey, appeared in court Friday on charges that he strangled his wife in 2017 after accusing her of spying on him with electronic devices. An arrest affidavit in the assault case was dated November 28, 2017. The 39-year-old was arrested Dec. 21, more than a year later. Rio de Janeiro (AFP) - The new boss of Brazilian state-owned oil giant Petrobras said Thursday that he wanted to draw a line under the company's graft-mired past and offer "a new dawn." "Monopolies restrict liberty," Roberto Castello Branco told a crowd of officials and Petrobras executives on the day he took up his functions. Petrobras a couple of years ago "was looted by a criminal organization made up of corrupt politicians, enemies of capitalism, and a small group of employees," he said. "Privileged people and monopolies are intolerable in a free society." The harsh words referred to a sprawling, multi-billion-dollar corruption scandal implicating Petrobras and political parties, including those from the Workers Party that ruled Brazil from 2003-2016. Investigations into the scandal, dubbed Car Wash, brought down politicians, including former leftist leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and resulted in Petrobras paying a $2.95-billion settlement to US shareholders. Castello Branco also referred to Petrobras piling up a vast debt load, which currently stands at around $73 billion. Brought in under new Brazilian Economy Minister Paulo Guedes -- like him, part of the "Chicago Boys'" club of US-trained free-marketers who have graduated from the University of Chicago -- he is intent on turning Petrobras around by reducing its statist dependency. His strategy, he said, was simple: better management, cut capital costs, seek efficiencies, impose a meritocracy, worker safety, and protection of the environment. "It's a new dawn for Brazil and for Petrobras. The time has come to promote transformational change, for shareholders who are under control of Brazilian society," he said. Before being named to the top Petrobras job, Castello Branco, a former board member in the company, had vocally backed an idea of privatizing all of the oil giant. But Brazil's new far-right president, Jair Bolsonaro, has said he -- like many Brazilians -- is not in favor of the country's crown jewels being sold off, so that ambition has been scaled back. Story continues Petrobras is already in a cycle of divestments to cut it massive debt. It is expected Castello Branco will accelerate that process. But when asked by reporters how far he would apply privatization zeal to the company, the new chief executive said only that "we are analyzing assets" for later decisions. - Big reserves - Petrobras was founded 65 years ago as a government monopoly to tap tiny reserves that existed at the time. Its oil bonanza happened in late 2006 when it discovered what turned out to be huge amounts of crude lying under the oceanic crust far offshore -- so-called pre-salt deposits. That pre-salt oil is costly to get at, but its extraction soon made the country a net exporter, propelled into the same league as members of OPEC, of which it is not part. Today, Brazil has proven reserves of 13 billion barrels and produces 2.5 million barrels of oil a day, according to the US Energy Information Administration. Half the production comes from the pre-salt fields, with that proportion forecast to grow. The company's market value, of $94 billion, is around half of what it was at its peak. The company's focus has turned to chipping away at its huge debt. Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - The decade-long Palestinian split looks set to deepen in the coming months, with president Mahmud Abbas poised to take multiple measures against Gaza to squeeze its Islamist rulers Hamas. The moves raise concerns of more suffering for Gaza's two million residents, already under an Israeli blockade and facing severe electricity shortages, while a cornered Hamas could renew violence against Israel. Analysts say the measures will also widen the gap between Hamas-run Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where Abbas's government has limited self-rule. Hamas and Abbas's secular Fatah party have been at loggerheads since the Islamists seized control of Gaza from Abbas's forces in a near civil war in 2007, a year after sweepinging parliamentary elections. Hamas has since fought three bloody wars with Israel and fears of a fourth remain. Multiple reconciliation attempts between the Palestinian factions have failed but Egypt thought it had made a breakthrough in late 2017 when the two sides agreed to eventually share power. As part of that agreement Hamas withdrew from border crossings between Gaza and Egypt and Israel, allowing the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority to return and the Egyptian border to be reopened regularly. The reconciliation agreement has since collapsed acrimoniously. On Sunday, the PA announced it would withdraw from the Egyptian border crossing, creating a dilemma for Cairo about whether to leave it open with Hamas in control. So far they have indicated they will. Senior officials close to Abbas say he is looking for other measures to punish Hamas. - 'Very important decisions' - Among these could be removing staff from the crossings between Israel and Gaza -- making it hard for the Jewish state to allow anything into the territory without dealing directly with Hamas, which it and many other countries label a terrorist organisation. They could also include cutting salaries to families of Hamas prisoners or rescinding Palestinian passports for Hamas employees. Story continues Abbas has also pledged to dissolve the Hamas-dominated Palestinian parliament, which though it hasn't met since the 2007 split is still nominally the basis for new laws. "Very important decisions against Hamas are being discussed," a senior official said on condition of anonymity. It follows a series of arrests of those affiliated with Fatah in Gaza, according to Abbas allies. The official said the PA spent around $100 million per month in Gaza, including for electricity subsidies, and was looking to cut back significantly. "Those that want to rule Gaza must bear the responsibility of governing it," the official said. Azzam al-Ahmad, a senior Abbas ally and negotiator of the 2017 reconciliation agreement, told AFP "the leadership is considering a number of measures". Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said the Islamists had seen similar threats before. "Any type of sanctions such as electricity, preventing medicine, closing the border or cutting the salaries are intended to blackmail residents into rising against Hamas and they fail," he told AFP. "This is the most that Abbas can do." - 'Short-term thinking - The Palestinians have faced stark challenges over the past two years, with US President Donald Trump leading what he has called the most pro-Israel administration in the country's history. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government has meanwhile continued to expand settlements in the West Bank. Abbass government froze contacts with the Trump administration after it recognised the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israels capital in December 2017. The deepening split between the two factions weakens their ability to respond to such pressure, said Hugh Lovatt of the European Council on Foreign Relations think-tank. He said the PA withdrawal from the border crossings was part of a "package of measures designed to try and squeeze Hamas." "It is not irreversible but it is certainly a very negative step. This is short-term thinking triumphing longer-term strategy." Nadia Hijab, president of the Al-Shabaka Palestinian think-tank, said the infighting prevented a united front against Israeli policies. "Palestinians fear that this latest move will cement the division and lead to a complete break between Gaza and the West Bank, something Israel has been pushing," she said. Both sides were "playing politics with people's lives instead of taking on Israel's 50-year-plus occupation," she said. At least 241 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza since mass protests along the border began in March 2018. Two Israeli soldiers have been killed. The protests had calmed in recent months after Hamas and Israel struck an agreement that saw Qatari aid allowed into the territory. This week, it was reported that Israel had blocked a third tranche of Qatari funding, which could lead to increased tensions. "If the Israelis do block the money, then I think it is almost a certainty you will see Hamas increasing the tension on the border," Lovatt said. Brasilia (AFP) - Cesare Battisti, an Italian sought by Rome for four murders attributed to a far-left group in the 1970s, was arrested in Bolivia and will be extradited to Brazil and then likely to Italy, a senior aide to Brazil's new president said Sunday. Italy has repeatedly sought the extradition of Battisti, who has lived in Brazil for years under the protection of former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010), now in prison for corruption. "Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was detained in Bolivia (Saturday night) and will be soon brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be sent to Italy to serve a life sentence," tweeted Filipe G. Martins, a senior aide on international affairs to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. During Brazil's recent presidential campaign the far-right Bolsonaro -- who took office on January 1 -- vowed that if elected he would "immediately" extradite Battisti to Italy. In mid-December Brazil's outgoing president, Michel Temer, signed an extradition order for Battisti after a judge ordered his arrest. By then the Italian ex-militant was nowhere to be found. Battisti, 64, was arrested late Saturday in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Brazilian Federal Police sources told Brazilian media. Bolivian officials have not confirmed the reports. Italy's envoy to Brazil fired off a triumphant tweet upon hearing the news. "Battisti has been arrested! Democracy is stronger than terrorism!" ambassador Antonio Bernardini wrote. - Prison fugitive, author - Battisti escaped from an Italian prison after being convicted in 1979 of belonging to an outlawed leftist group, the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was subsequently convicted in absentia of having killed two Italian policemen, taking part in the murder of a butcher, and helping plan the slaying of a jeweler who died in a shootout which left his 14-year-old son in a wheelchair. Story continues Battisti admitted to being part of the group but denied responsibility for any deaths. He reinvented himself as an author and in 2004 skipped bail in France, where he had taken refuge. He went to live clandestinely in Brazil until he was arrested in 2007 in Rio de Janeiro. After years in custody, then-president Lula issued a decree -- later upheld by Brazil's Supreme Court -- in 2010 refusing Battisti's extradition to Italy, and he was freed, angering Italy. Battisti, who has a five-year-old Brazilian son, last year told AFP he faced "torture" and death if he were ever to be sent back to Italy. Cairo (AFP) - Israel's Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz arrived in Cairo on Sunday to attend a natural gas conference in a rare visit to Egypt by an Israeli official, airport sources said. Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab states to have full diplomatic ties with Israel, but the relations remain limited and taboo among the general populations. Egyptians, like most Arabs, are largely opposed to the normalisation of ties with Israel in the absence of any resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Steinitz's visit came at the invitation of the Egyptian government, Israel's energy ministry said. The Israeli minister was set to attend a regional forum on natural gas, which has become a major economic and strategic issue in the eastern Mediterranean. The "development of gas fields has geopolitical and geostrategic value," Steinitz told Israeli army radio ahead of the trip. "Here you have for the first time real economic cooperation between the axis-of-peace states Israel, Egypt and Jordan, along with European countries." Egypt has increased its meetings and agreements on natural gas with neighbouring countries as of late. In February 2018, Cairo reached a deal with Israel for the transfer of natural gas from Israel's Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs to Egypt. "Steinitz's invitation to the conference in Egypt is the positive outcome of the gas agreement," a source close to energy minister told AFP. The last time an Israeli minister visited Egypt was in November 2017 when Social Equality Minister Gila Gamliel took part in a conference on the promotion of gender equality in Mediterranean states. Relations between Israel and some Arab countries have warmed in recent months, with Israeli ministers last year visiting the United Arab Emirates and Oman. Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel has uncovered all cross-border attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon and now plans to bring its operation to find and destroy them to an end, a military spokesman said Sunday. "We have found yet another Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnel from Lebanon to Israel," Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told reporters of the operation that began on December 4. "According to our intelligence and our assessment of the situation there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel." The latest tunnel, found on Saturday, began in the Lebanese village of Ramyeh, some 800 metres (yards) away from Israel, the army said. It reached a few dozen metres into Israel, and at 55 metres under the ground was the deepest as well as "the longest and most detailed" of all the tunnels the army exposed, Conricus said. The latest tunnel was the sixth revealed to the public and the army said its discovery marked the end of the operation dubbed by the army "Northern Shield". The last tunnel will be destroyed in the coming days. "We have achieved the goal (to expose and destroy the tunnels from Lebanon) which we set out to achieve at the beginning," Conricus said. Conricus said there were no more tunnels reaching Israel from Lebanon but the army was still monitoring "facilities" being dug by Hezbollah within Lebanese territory. He also reiterated that Israel holds the Lebanese government accountable "for any act of violence or violation of 1701," the UN resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, was informed of the latest tunnel, Conricus said. Israel alleges Hezbollah had planned to use the tunnels to kidnap or kill its civilians or soldiers, and to seize a slice of Israeli territory in the event of any hostilities. It has said, however, that they were not yet operational. Story continues A month-long war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. The highly publicised Israeli operation to expose and destroy the tunnels has gone ahead without drawing a military response from Hezbollah. Israel says all operations have taken place within its territory. Baghdad (AFP) - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met with his Iraqi counterpart in Baghdad on Sunday for wide-ranging talks, including on US sanctions against Tehran. The visit came just days after US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made a surprise stop on his regional tour to urge Iraq to stop relying on Iran for gas and electricity imports. Washington has granted Baghdad a waiver until late March to keep buying Iranian gas and power, despite reimposing tough sanctions on Tehran in November. After a two-hour meeting on Sunday, Iraq's top diplomat Mohammed Ali al-Hakim said he had talked through the restrictions with his counterpart. "We discussed the unilateral economic measures taken by the US and are working with our neighbour (Iran) on them," Hakim said. Zarif slammed Washington's role in the region. "These failures have continued for the past 40 years and my proposal to countries (in the region) is to not bet on a losing horse," he told reporters. Iran's foreign minister went on to meet Iraqi premier Adel Abdel Mahdi, who released a statement affirming: "Iraq's policy is built on seeking the best ties with all of its neighbours." Zarif is expected to attend several economic forums in various Iraqi cities, including Sulaymaniyah in the Kurdish north. While in Baghdad, he discussed numerous political and economic issues with his Iraqi counterpart including Syria and Yemen. Hakim said Iraq was in favour of the Arab League reinstating Syria's membership, eight years after suspending it as the conflict there unfolded. Following Zarif's visit, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is also expected to travel to Iraq in the near future. Iran is the second-largest source of imported goods in Iraq. Besides canned food and cars, Baghdad also buys 1,300 megawatts of electricity and 28 million cubic metres of natural gas daily from Iran to feed power plants. That dependence is uncomfortable for Washington, which sees Tehran as its top regional foe and expects Iraq to wean itself off Iranian energy resources. But energy ties between Baghdad and Tehran appear to have remained close, with Iran's oil minister visiting Baghdad last week to denounce US sanctions as "totally illegal". Gracanica (Kosovo) (AFP) - A possible land swap between Serbia and Kosovo, suggested by their leaders to end one of Europe's most volatile territorial disputes, has sparked concerns that the border could be redrawn along ethnic lines and reignite festering communal ethnic animosities. With few details yet made public, media reports say that the Serb majority northern border region around the city of Mitrovica would be incorporated into Serbia under the plan, which would also see Belgrade hand over a mainly ethnic Albanian region in Serbia. The trade-off would also see Belgrade finally recognise its former province as an independent state, 20 years after a bitter war between Serbia's forces and pro-independence ethnic Albanian guerrillas that led to Kosovo breaking away from Serbia in 2008. Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci, who along with Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic last year raised the possibility of redrawing the border, has insisted a revised version would not be drawn along ethnic lines. - 'Clear ethnic division' - But the plan has sent ripples of alarm through minorities in these regions, notably among ethnic Serbs living in enclaves dispersed in Kosovo who would be unaffected by such a deal. A territory swap would mean "clear ethnic division so that within decades there will be no Serbs left in Kosovo," said Stefan Filipovic, a 24-year-old Kosovan Serb activist in Gracanica, one of those enclaves and a short drive south of the capital, Pristina. There are an estimated 120,000 Serbs living in Kosovo in total. Of those some 40,000 are thought to live around Mitrovica -- and are likely set to be part of the land swap -- while a further 80,000 live deeper in Kosovo and would remain under Pristina. Gracanica, home to one of Kosovo's main Orthodox monasteries, is one of six mainly Serbian municipalities that are like islands surrounded by Kosovo Albanian neighbourhoods. For Rada Trajkovic, an ethnic Serb politician in her 60s living in Gracanica, the border change would amount to creating "two mono-ethnic spaces" and lead to Serbs leaving Kosovan enclaves. Story continues Trajkovic is one of few Kosovar Serbs willing publicly to criticise Srpska Lista, or Serbian List, the minority's main political outlet. Most of Trajkovic's fellow Serb colleagues back the Belgrade line of President Vucic. - 'Abandoned by Belgrade' - Long a taboo subject, a territorial exchange has the backing of the United States as well as several EU officials. Germany, however, is opposed, warning of the potential for a renewed flare-up of the hardline nationalism which has marked the still fragile Balkans in the past. A NATO-led peacekeeping force has guarded Kosovo since it broke away from Serbia in a bloody war in 1998-99 that left more than 13,000 dead. Border revision "is a very dangerous, particularly dramatic idea," says Filipovic, who feels "abandoned by Belgrade". For Trajkovic, "if they cede the north of Kosovo to Serbia, I don't see why the (Kosovar) Albanians would show empathy with those (Serbs) living" in the enclaves. In the nearby village of Laplje Selo, a mainly Serb area home to around 1,000 people encroached upon by the glass and steel residences of Pristina, few people will speak openly of the border topic, still less openly criticise Vucic. But in the local pub four Serbs sip "rakija" brandy as they debate whether Vucic is abandoning them to "an Albanian prison". With barely a hint of irony one explains that "if someone can save us it's (Ramush) Haradinaj," the former Kosovo Liberation Army fighter-turned prime minister who Belgrade and the Serbs consider a war criminal. Haradinaj opposes border revision, warning that it will only lead to "new wars." - Monkish defiance - "I imagine president Vucic won't leave us to fend for ourselves," says Jagoda Trajkovic, a 69-year-old pensioner dropping off a grandson at Laplje Selo's tiny school. Others are not so confident. They include Father Sava Jancic, abbot at Visoki Decani, a Serb Orthodox medieval monastery and a UNESCO world heritage site. Recent years have passed in the vicinity in tranquil enough fashion, save for occasional demonstrations by Kosovar Albanians demanding the monks give up some of their land. But in 2008, the year Kosovo declared independence, an Albanian fired a missile at the churchyard wall. "I am personally in possession of very credible information... according to which they are already working on the details of an exchange of land along ethnic lines," says Father Sava, who during the conflict protected Kosovar Albanians from Serbian forces. In his view, border alterations "would amount to abandoning 80,000 Serbs, leaving them with a very low and dubious level of security and protection." One of the very few to oppose President Vucic in public, Father Sava was last year the target of a Belgrade tabloid press campaign that described him as a "great Albanian patriot" -- or, essentially, a traitor. MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday he will visit Fiji and Vanuatu this week as part of a push to offset China's growing influence in the South Pacific. Morrison heads to Vanuatu on Wednesday, in the first visit by an Australian prime minister to the Pacific island nation in three decades. He then will go to Fiji, returning on Friday, a spokesman said. "This is part of our Pacific step-up. It is part of a refocus of our international efforts on our own region, in our own backyard, and making sure we can have the biggest possible difference," Morrison said on Australian Broadcasting Corp TV. The trip follows Chinese President Xi Jinping's meeting in November with eight Pacific Island leaders before the APEC summit in Papua New Guinea. China's efforts to woo Pacific island nations have been watched warily by the countries that have traditionally wielded power in the region, Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Australia announced in November it would offer Pacific countries up to $2 billion in grants and cheap loans for telecommunications, energy, transport and water projects, looking to counter China's influence. At the same time, Australia said it would beef up defense and security ties with Pacific islands through new joint exercises and training. Canberra promised to bolster Vanuatu's cyber security capability in June as it agreed to begin negotiating a security treaty. China has spent $1.32 billion on concessional loans and gifts since 2011 to become the second-largest donor after Australia in the Pacific region, raising concern in the West that several tiny nations could end up in debt to Beijing. Morrison is moving into campaign mode ahead of an election expected in May, following the release of what is expected to be a surplus budget in April. One issue on the agenda in Fiji is the Australian government's decision to revoke the citizenship of a man accused of being an Islamic State recruiter, believing he was a dual citizen with Fiji as his father was Fijian. Fiji has since said that Neil Prakash, now jailed in Turkey, does not have Fijian citizenship, meaning Australia has effectively left him stateless. "We have been dealing with that issue between the governments over the last few weeks, including directly from leader to leader," Morrison said on Monday. (Reporting by Sonali Paul and Alison Bevege; editing by Grant McCool) Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra continue to jet set across the world, enjoying a blissful trip in the Caribbean. The jet-setting doesnt stop for Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra. On Instagram, the newlyweds are showing off photos from a Caribbean vacation. Mr. and Mrs. Jonas, Jonas captioned his, which showed the two embracing in front of a luxurious pool. Chopra shared a similar shot, albeit from a different angle. And then.. there was only him, she wrote. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. On Thursday, Jonas shared a blissful video of his actress wife on a palm tree swing by the ocean. Another Instagram story showed a lunch table for two right on the beach. E News! reports that the two are, in fact, on their honeymoonwhich may have been entirely organized by Jonas himself. She had no idea it was going to be the Caribbean and Nick is planning everything for the trip, it's all a complete surprise to Priyanka, a source said. She knew it was a honeymoon trip but didn't find out where they were going until they landed. Since their wedding in India, which included both a traditional Indian and Western ceremony, the two have enjoyed a string of luxurious getaways. First there was their rumored mini-moon to the cliffside city of Muscat, Oman (which Vogue found retained charms of the Arab world as it must have been years ago.) Then, a family holiday trip to Verbier, Switzerland. Chopra and Jonas hit the slopes with Joe Jonas and his fiance, Sophie Turnerwearing some seriously chic ski apparel in the process. So where in the world will Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas go next? Only timeand Instagramwill tell. In Refinery29's Sweet Digs, we take a look inside the sometimes small, sometimes spacious homes of millennial women. Today, 28-year-old Asya Varetsa shows off her apartment-slash-workspace. The first time Asya Varetsa moved to New York City, she was placed in the middle of Manhattan. Coming from Los Angeles, this was a shock. "Los Angeles was chill and covered with plants," she says, "but there every time I walked with my dog, there would be crowds of tourists and people trying to push away my dog." So when Varetsa was drawn back to New York with her boyfriend a second time, she sought out a quiet neighborhood in Brooklyn, close to parks and away from crowds. "We needed to find an apartment in two weeks, and we didn't have a lot of time," she says. But they lucked out with this gem of a one-bedroom, and got around to decorating. Luckily, with years of picking up and moving, bopping from country to country, she had a few tricks up her sleeve to make the space feel homey. Watch her video tour above, then read on to learn more about her decorating aesthetic. Can you talk a little bit more about how you found the space? "We just used StreetEasy; all our friends recommended it. But both me and my boyfriend, we didn't have a credit score and my experience before when living in Los Angeles was you met with your landlord, you're like, 'Hey, I'm a normal person,' and they say, 'Yeah you seem normal, the apartment is yours.' In New York, we paid a lot when we first moved here. We needed to get a guarantor, but we got it through an agency where we paid one month's rent to this agency, and that's it. Then we put a deposit for the last month and the first month. Luckily for us, we didn't have to pay for a broker's fee, but I never did the guarantor thing before. Next time, I'm going to be super prepared." It seems like you move around a lot. "I've gotten used to traveling around. When I stay in one place for more than 3 months, I feel a little bit anxious, like I need to go somewhere." Story continues Does that affect where you buy your furniture and decorate? "We go to Ikea a lot. It's the place where you might not sleep there for a long time so you might not want to invest a lot into the furniture. Ikea is a nice compromise. I do a lot of Muji for things for the bathroom, small decorations or organizing things for the apartment. And you can find a lot of cool stuff on Amazon." What are your decorating rules? "The rule is keep it simple. But we do like colors; we have yellow lamps and a pink couch, which I was really surprised when my boyfriend chose it. I feel like New York is a grey city, so when youre in your apartment you want to have some color in there." By Sisipho Skweyiya JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Before male beauty parlours began popping up in South Africa a few years ago, image-conscious men like Gerhard Joubert felt awkward being pampered and preened in salons filled with women. "It's a male environment. They give you a whisky if you want a whisky. In the old days we had to go to female hair salons," said Joubert, reclining in a luxury leather chair for a pedicure in Sorbet Man, a men-only parlour in Johannesburg. "I think we need to look better after ourselves. I think it's often been ignored, particular in South Africa." Two decades ago, well-groomed celebrities such as David Beckham began to change traditional attitudes towards masculinity, encouraging swathes of men to take greater care of their appearance and embrace the use of beauty products. South Africa has been slow to catch the "metrosexual" wave, but a growing middle class and the spread of fashion trends on social media has seen global companies such as Unilever, Procter & Gamble and L'Oreal target more products at African men. Salon chains are opening men-only parlours to sell these products and to meet the demand for everything from manicures to eyebrow threading. Sorbet Man was launched as a spinoff from a women's salon brand three years ago and now has 20 franchise stores. It expects turnover to rise 50 percent this year. Rival male beauty shops are springing up. "I think over the years the stigma about male grooming has really limited men from basically expressing themselves," said Dexter Pillay, co-owner of Bespoke Man, a salon in Johannesburg's business district. "It's changed now so drastically where men are more metrosexual." The global male grooming product market is expected to reach $76 billion by 2023 from $58 billion in 2017, according to industry research. Africa offers companies the chance to target millions of new consumers. "Africas youthful population is seen as a market opportunity as manufacturers look to target the young modern male who is becoming increasingly conscious about appearance," said Nicola Cooper, a trend analyst. (Writing by Joe Brock; Editing by Alison Williams) Jerry Jacka departs a trailhead on his mountain bike at Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge outside Denver on Saturday, Sept. 15, 2018, the first day the refuge was open to the public. The refuge is on the outskirts of a former U.S. government factory that manufactured plutonium triggers for nuclear weapons. AP Photo/Dan Elliott Pham says he never felt threatened by Tuan, even when he would show up while Pham was working as a barista at Common Grounds on Southeast Hawthorne or cocktailing down the street at Mulligan's. But he eventually had to stop submitting to Tuan's requests for handouts. "I was like, 'What is there for me to do for this man?'" Pham says. "We didn't grow up together. There is no shared history. I wasn't brought up in a traditional family, so I don't know that I have it within my makeup to give this gratuitous value to a biological connection." The Blue Earth Area wrestlers traveled to Waseca last Thursday to hit the mat with the Waseca BlueJays in a Big South Conference contest. Waseca took the early lead but the Bucs fought back to gain a 50-21 victory. Carson Sturtz lost by a pin at 106 pounds giving Waseca a 6-0 lead. Ty Petersons win at 113 pounds by an 11-2 major decision closed the gap to 6-4. BEA took the lead for good in the 120-pound match courtesy of Davis Sunkens second period pin which made the score 10-6. Caleb Beeler put his opponents back to the mat at the 1:39 mark in the 126-pound match to make the score 16-6 in favor of the Bucs. The Jays gained a 9-3 decision over Jacob Beeler at 132 pounds to cut the Buccaneer lead to 16-9. BEA scored the next 19 points courtesy of a technical fall, two major decisions and a pin. Jaxen Klinker at 138 pounds scored the 17-0 technical fall. Max Ehrich at 145 pounds and Koby Nagel at 152 each recorded major decisions. Logan Johnson ended the scoring run with a second period pin in the 160-pound match to put the Bucs out front 35-9. Nick Frank lost by a pin at 170 pounds with one second left in the second period. Dominic Whitlow pinned his opponent at the 1:49 mark in the 182-pound match. The score stood at 41-15 in favor of the Bucs. The 195-pound match was won by Akeira Morrow by a 10-4 decision. Erik Anderson lost by a fall in the 220-pound match but the Bucs night ended on a winning note with Ian Cornelio pinning his opponent in the 285-pound contest. The Bucs wrestled in the Big South Tournament on Jan. 12 and return home for a match against St. Peter on Jan. 17. Results of those contests will appear in next weeks edition of the Faribault County Register. Bucs go 3-0 at Iowa quad It was a sweep for the Blue Earth Area Buccaneers wrestling team last Tuesday, Jan. 8 when they traveled to Algona, Iowa, for a quadrangular wrestling meet against three Iowa high schools. The Bucs opened the evening with a 63-18 win over Okoboji, and then defeated Algona 48-24. BEA closed out the evening with a 67-9 triumph over Estherville Lincoln Central. Seven Buccaneer wrestlers won all three of their matches during the evening. They were Ty Peterson, Davis Sunken, Jaxen Klinkner, Max Ehrich, Koby Nagel, Dominic Whitlow and Akeira Morrow. BEA 63, Okoboji 18 Seven Bucs recorded pins against Okoboji with 11 of 14 BEA wrestlers winning their matches. Ty Peterson at 113 pounds and Davis Sunken at 120 pounds recorded the first two pins for Blue Earth Area. Jaxen Klinkner won his match by fall at 138 pounds followed by Max Ehrichs 5-2 win by decision at 145 pounds. The Bucs finished the match with four consecutive pins followed by three consecutive forfeits. Those wrestlers recording falls were Koby Nagel at 152 pounds, Logan Johnson at 160 pounds, Nick Frank at 170 pounds and Dominic Whitlow at 182 pounds. Akeira Morrow at 195 pounds, Erik Anderson at 220 pounds and Nick Lawrence at 285 pounds won their matches by forfeits. BEA 48, Algona 24 In what would prove to be their closest contest of the evening, the Bucs defeated Algona 48-24. This contest began with the 152-pound weight match. Koby Nagel gave the Bucs a 6-0 lead by pinning his opponent at the 3:36 mark Algona tied the match when Logan Johnson of the Bucs lost by a fall in the second period in the 160-pound match. Nick Frank lost by a fall at 170 pounds to put Algona ahead by a 12-6 margin. Dominic Whitlow closed the gap to 12-9 with his 10-7 victory at 182 pounds. Akeira Morrows victory by fall at 195 pounds gave the Bucs the lead 15-12, but Algona reclaimed an 18-15 advantage when Erik Anderson lost by a first period fall at 220 pounds. Nick Lawrence earned a 2-0 decision at 285 pounds to tie the match at 18-18. The contest then moved on to the lower weights. Carson Sturtz at 106 pounds and Ty Peterson at 113 pounds both won by forfeit to give the Bucs a 30-18 lead. Davis Sunken at 120 pounds and Caleb Beeler at 126 pounds each recorded falls extending the Buccaneer lead to 42-18. Jacob Beeler lost by a fall at 132 pounds but Jaxen Klinkner at 138 pounds and Max Ehrich at 145 pounds won by decisions making the final score 48-24. BEA 67, Estherville Lincoln Central 9 This match began with the 160-pound weight class and Logan Johnson gave the Bucs the early lead 6-0 when he scored a first period pin. Nick Frank lost a close 6-5 decision to make the score 6-3. Dominic Whitlow at 182 pounds, Akeira Morrow at 195 pounds and Erik Anderson at 220 pounds all received forfeits giving BEA a 24-3 lead. Nick Lawrence lost by a fall in the 285-pound match making the score 24-9 in favor of the Bucs. It would be the last points for Estherville Lincoln Central as the Bucs won eight consecutive matches to end the contest. Carson Sturtz at 106 pounds received a forfeit. Ty Peterson won by fall in the 113-pound match. Davis Sunken then recorded a 16-0 technical fall for the Buccaneers in the 120-pound match. Caleb Beeler won by forfeit at 126 pounds and Jacob Beeler won a 6-0 decision at 132 pounds. Jaxen Klinkner then scored a third period pin for the Bucs at 138 pounds. Max Ehrich scored a 23-8 technical fall victory and Koby Nagel ended the evening with a second period pin of his opponent. Clarksburg, WV (26301) Today Sunshine to start, then a few afternoon clouds. High near 75F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Mostly clear. Low 46F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph. Support investigative journalism For her 'Stirring the Waters' series, Charleston Gazette-Mail reporter Caity Coyne spent six months researching the problems surrounding Southern West Virginia's aging water infrastructure and traveling around the state to talk to those directly affected by the problem. Your digital subscription, starting at $0.99 per month for the first three months, helps support continued investigative journalism like this. Eric Lee is landman for a regional gas company, and an active member of Rotary International and a freelance writer. He is also a member of the World Policy Institute and is an alumnus of West Virginia University. Ou is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. She is a blockchain engineer at Global Financial Access, in San Francisco. Previously, she was a lecturer in the electrical and information engineering department at the University of Sydney. ETAN is an incredible organization. It was an important part of our struggle for self-determination, struggle for the permanent Maritime Boundary with Australia, and during the last 19 years, it has been part of Timorese struggle to reconstruct and to rebuild its country. At this critical juncture of Timor's development, it is critical to walk together with Timorese to achieve our dream for better life where every citizen has the conditions to meet its basic rights, including the economic and social rights to have a dignified life. --Gute Neves SUPPORT ETAN TODAY! Invest in justice, democracy and human rights Don't delay - donate to ETAN today! East Timor and Indonesia Action Network PO Box 1663, New York, NY 10035-1663 USA December 2018 Dear friend of ETAN, We write to urge you to support the work of the East Timor and Indonesia Action Network for the coming year. We are an organization funded almost entirely by the grassroots; we rely on you - and others like you - for support. ETAN is the only solidarity group which carries the mantle of upholding the rights of the people of Timor-Leste and Indonesia, working persistently and fearlessly to hold the world's governments, especially the United States, to account for complicity in rights violations. - Mica Barreto Soares ETAN is the only solidarity group which carries the mantle of upholding the rights of the people of Timor-Leste and Indonesia, working persistently and fearlessly to hold the world's governments, especially the United States, to account for complicity in rights violations. - Mica Barreto Soares ETAN has worked since 1991 to advance self-determination, democracy, and human rights for the peoples of Timor-Leste (East Timor), Indonesia and West Papua -- work that remains necessary. Please help us continue the struggle for justice by contributing to ETAN today There are exciting changes at ETAN: During this past year, we welcomed an impressive group of activists to our board. We are working with them to reinvigorate ETANs activism. Three new board members are Timorese who have studied in the U.S. and are now back in Timor-Leste helping to build their nation. Berta Antonieta interned in ETANs New York office in 2015. She is active in Dili with Grupu Feminista iha Timor and working for Lao Hamutuk. Policy analyst Gute Neves has worked as a journalist, a researcher with civil society, and adviser to the President of Timor-Leste. Mica Barreto Soares was active as a young student with RENETIL in opposing the Indonesian occupation. She is currently completing her doctorate on China-Timor-Leste Relations. With these new members among our leadership we look forward to strengthening our collaboration with Timor-Leste civil society groups. I have valued ETAN's work and contribution as a solidarity movement for Timor-Leste self-determination. Currently, I am working with La'o Hamutuk as economic and gender researcher. I am also interested in learning more about West Papua's current situation and want ETAN to help Timor-Leste and West Papua to connect and share experiences. -Berta Antonieta I have valued ETAN's work and contribution as a solidarity movement for Timor-Leste self-determination. Currently, I am working with La'o Hamutuk as economic and gender researcher. I am also interested in learning more about West Papua's current situation and want ETAN to help Timor-Leste and West Papua to connect and share experiences. -Berta Antonieta Our other new board members are scholars and seasoned activists with long histories of engagement in the region. Helen Hill has been involved in Timor activism since before Indonesia's invasion. An early scholar of Timorese nationalism, she moved to Timor-Leste after retiring from Australia's Victoria University. She is currently an Adjunct Professor of Community Development at Universidade Nacional Timor Lorosa'e. David Webster was active with the East Timor Alert Network (ETAN/Canada). He teaches history at Bishop's University and serves as a member of the international advisory council of Timor-Leste's Centro Nacional Chega! He recently edited Flowers in the Wall: Truth and Reconciliation in Timor-Leste, Indonesia and Melanesia. Brad Simpson has been active with ETAN since the early 1990s. He teaches history at the University of Connecticut and is Research Fellow and Director of the National Security Archive's Indonesia and East Timor Documentation Project working to declassify U.S. government documents. Please join me in welcoming them to ETANs leadership* by helping us meet an ambitious goal. We need 120 donors to contribute a total of $12,000 to help ETAN begin 2019 on a strong financial footing. Will you become one of them, joining others in investing in ETANs pursuit of justice and in the defense of democracy and human rights? This August 30, Timor-Leste, the UN, and ETAN will mark the 20th anniversary of the historic vote for independence. As we celebrate the Timorese peoples decision to break free of Indonesian occupation, we plan to remind the international community of its many unfulfilled pledges of justice. With your critical assistance, ETAN can continue its work supporting Timorese efforts to ensure accountability for Indonesias crimes as well as for the complicity of Jakartas partners-in-crime such as the U.S. government. T he recent U.S. election offers opportunities to urge the new Democratic-controlled House of Representatives, with its many new members, to support human rights, accountability and justice in Indonesia, Timor-Leste and West Papua. Opportunities to do so have been severely limited under President Trump and the previous conservative Congress. The Indonesian army is not running Indonesia any longer, but it is still powerful. The architects of attempted genocide still walk free. Timorese people's struggle for fair and people-centered development goes on. The Indonesian army still carries out in West Papua some of the tactics it pioneered in Timor-Leste. Activism is still needed, solidarity is still needed and it can still make a difference to Timorese and Indonesian struggles. No group has made this point more persistently than ETAN, which needs and merits support. --David Webster The Indonesian army is not running Indonesia any longer, but it is still powerful. The architects of attempted genocide still walk free. Timorese people's struggle for fair and people-centered development goes on. The Indonesian army still carries out in West Papua some of the tactics it pioneered in Timor-Leste. Activism is still needed, solidarity is still needed and it can still make a difference to Timorese and Indonesian struggles. No group has made this point more persistently than ETAN, which needs and merits support. --David Webster During Indonesias April 2019 elections, we plan to evaluate the leading candidates human rights promises and records. And whoever wins, we will continue to support progressive Indonesian voices calling for justice, tolerance, and environmentally-sound development. Your help is crucial to ETAN's support for the rights of the people of West Papua, including their struggle for genuine self-determination. Repression is increasing in the territory, and we are working with Tapol and others to speak out against human rights violations and support fundamental solutions to this long-running conflict. Every day, ETAN compiles and distributes information about developments in Timor-Leste to an international list of more than 6800 people (1200 more subscribers than this time last year). Many of you are subscribers to this list and/or our similar lists on Indonesia and West Papua. Please donate to support this valuable service. With your support, ETAN continues to inform, educate, advocate, and organize in support of the Timorese, Indonesia and West Papuan peoples fundamental rights, including democratic governance, adequate nutrition and decent health care, and freedom of expression. We amplify their concerns and voices for a global. audience. A luta continua, John M. Miller National Coordinator, ETAN New York, NY * The continuing members of ETANs board are Craig Hughes (NY), the Rev. Elice Higginbotham (AZ), Chris Lundry (Mexico City), Karen Orenstein (DC), Charles Scheiner (NY), Pamela Sexton (Dili), Andrew Teixeira de Sousa (Jakarta, and Jeffrey Yoder (IL). How to Donate to ETAN Donate safely by credit card below , or mail your donation to us. To support ETAN's political advocacy work, write a check made out to ETAN. For ETAN's educational efforts, U.S. tax-deductible donations of over $50 can be made out to A.J. Muste Memorial Institute/ETAN. Please mail contributions to: ETAN PO Box 1663 New York, NY 10035-1663 Thank you for your support. Support ETAN and our work for justice, human rights and democracy. Please donate today! Join others in supporting ETAN by donating now! Our work is only possible with your generous support. Mail your checks to: ETAN PO Box 1663 New York, NY 10035-1663 USA make checks payable to East Timor Action Network, Inc.; for U.S. tax-deductible donations of $50 or more, make put ETAN in memo field your check payable to AJ Muste Memorial Institute,put ETAN in memo field Donate by Credit Card To donate by credit card via Paypal. ( To support ETAN's political and advocacy work. These donations give ETAN the most flexibility, but are not tax-deductible. ): Become an ETAN sustainer Make a pledge to support ETAN Amount : $10.00USD - monthly $5/month : $5.00USD - monthly $15/month : $15.00USD - monthly $25/month : $25.00USD - monthly $50/month : $50.00USD - monthly $75/month : $75.00USD - monthly $100/month : $100.00USD - monthly #125/month : $125.00USD - monthly Your comments Make a one-time U.S. tax-deductible donation by credit card to support ETAN's educational work: Make a recurring monthly U.S. tax-deductible donation by credit card to support ETAN's educational work: Questions? Comments Email or call +1-917-690-4391 Make a non-tax-deductible donation by check. (best deal for ETAN with the fewest fees) Make a U.S. tax-deductible donation by check, make your check payable to AJ Muste Memorial Institute, and put ETAN in memo field. Mail your checks to ETAN, PO Box 1663, New York, NY 10035-1663. Thank you for your support! Gift Books Learn Tetum Order from ETAN New York residents may obtain a copy of ETAN's Annual Report by writing to the Department of Law Charities Bureau Registration Section, 120 Broadway, New York, NY 10271. WWW http://www.etan.org Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 13) As election season began with the nationwide gun ban in full effect, the first day of the police checkpoint operations has been uneventful. This, according to National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) Chief Director Guillermo Eleazar who told CNN Philippines Sunday checkpoints began operating in several areas in Metro Manila around 12:01 a.m. "On the entire operations since this morning until now, we haven't received any untoward incident, wala rin tayong naaresto na [we also haven't arrested any] motorist or passengers carrying firearms or deadly weapons," he said. Eleazar added, however, that a tricycle driver who has sachets of shabu in his wallet was apprehended. "Aside from that, it was very peaceful and I believe that sanay naman kasi yung ating mga kababayan [Filipinos are used] that we are conducting this checkpoint," he said. He added the checkpoints were not different from the ones being conducted by the police from time to time, only that because of the election happening in a few months, the checkpoint operations are supervised by the Commission on Elections (Comelec). The locations of all checkpoints are also pre-designated, Eleazar said, adding that they are located in well-lit areas and manned by uniformed policemen. Meanwhile, Philippine National Police Police (PNP) Chief Oscar Albayalde is asking for the public's cooperation over the checkpoint operations. "Hopefully ano, huwag na makipagtigasan ang ating mga motorista. Pinapakuusap natin sa kanila 'pag nakita nila ang checkpoint buksan na nila yung ilaw nila sa loob. Then ibaba na yung kanilang bintana para makita na agad ng pulis kung ano ang nasa loob," he said. [Translation: Hopefully, motorists won't give anyone a hard time. We ask them to turn on their lights when they see the checkpoints. Then, roll down their windows so the police can see what's inside their vehicle.] Penalties for violators include imprisonment from one to six years. Reminders to candidates Candidates in the upcoming elections, meanwhile, are barred from using police personnel or bodyguards, unless they are allowed by the Comelec. The Police Security and Protection Group (PSPG) has recalled personnel from over a hundred incumbent politicians nationwide, and over 300 deployed personnel nationwide reported back to their respective stations on Sunday. PSPG Director Filmore Escobal said exceptions could be granted. "'Yung mga tinatawag natin na [The ones we call] high-risk individuals, they may be allowed to apply for another additional security. But they will have to apply it to Comelec...mga incumbent government officials na hindi naman tatakbo [incumbent officials who will not run for office], they may retain their security personnel but they have to apply," he said. The PSPG has received over 50 applications for exemption from the removal of their police detail, including candidates running in some areas identified as election hot spots. However, only candidates proven to be facing high levels of threat will be given police escorts. Bearing, carrying, or transporting firearms is prohibited during the election period. The Comelec also has yet to release a list of the 18 cities and municipalities identified as areas of concern. CNN Philippines correspondent Makoi Popioco and senior digital producer Pia Garcia contributed to this report. Thank you for Reading. As a community service, our obituaries are always free to view. In order to better know our audience, we ask that you register to continuing viewing. Please purchase a subscription to continue reading. If you have a subscription, please Log In . Your current subscription does not provide access to this content. If you believe you've gotten this message in error, please Log In. STARKVILLE, Miss. (WTVA) - The town of Starkville increased safety by enforcing parking regulations in town, specifically in residential areas. Mayor Lynn Spruill released a statement reminding citizens of these regulations, alongside informing them the Starkville Police Department will be increasing their regulation on parking. No parking regulations have changed. "The enforcement of parking violations has not been a priority," Spruill said. "I asked the police department to look at the issues associated with illegal parking." Isaiah Gardenhire is accused of stabbing a 13-year-old girl to death and committing other crimes while out on bond. He is in the Isabella County jail on a litany of felony charges and was out on bond in a case in Mason County. NEW INFORMATION- Officials with the Oneida County Sheriff's Office arrested Robert Carcone, 23, of Utica for menacing a police officer and misdemeanor charges of criminal possession of a weapon, resisting arrest, criminal mischief and menacing another party prior to law enforcements arrival. According to the Oneida County Sheriff's Department, they responded to the residence on Sandy Circle for a mental health violation. When they arrived, they were confronted by Carcone who was armed with a Dagger. This home was his relatives and there were people inside the home. Deputies said Carcone came at them with the dagger several times during the incident. Officers used pepperspray while Carcone refused orders to drop the weapon. He finally dropped the weapon and deputies arrested him. Everyone made it out safe, and Carcone was taken to Oneida County C.A.P. court and arraigned on charges. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FLOYD-Officials with the Oneida County Sheriff's Department said a man had a dagger outside of a home in Floyd on Sunday afternoon, forcing a standoff for over an hour. Just before 1 p.m. the Oneida County Sheriff's Office along with New York State Police responded to a home on Sandy Circle in the town of Floyd for a mental health violation. Sheriff's deputies told NEWSChannel 2 a male subject had a dagger and there were other people inside the residence. Deputies and officers approached the home with weapons drawn for about an hour and a half. The male subject was taken into custody, and the investigation is ongoing. ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - In New York government news, an increasingly diverse state Legislature is back in Albany for its 2019 session, the first in the state's history with African-Americans holding the top leadership posts in both the Assembly and the Senate. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Yonkers Democrat, formally became Senate majority leader when the Legislature convened this past week. She's the first woman to hold the post. Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat, was elected Assembly speaker for the third time. Heastie mentioned in his session-opening speech that women hold 50 of the 150 seats in his Democrat-controlled chamber. Also, women now hold three of the Assembly's top four leadership positions. Meanwhile, some of the year's top issues - including voting reforms - are expected to be on the Legislature's agenda this week. Associated Press writer David Klepper contributed to this report. (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) Grupo Supervielle S.A., a financial services holding company, provides various banking products and services in Argentina. The company operates through Personal and Business Banking, Corporate Banking, Bank Treasury, Consumer Finance, Insurance, and Asset Management and Other Services segments. It offers savings accounts, time and demand deposits, and checking accounts; various loan products, including personal, consumer, mortgage, unsecured, and car loans; overdrafts; loans with special facilities for project and working capital financing; and leasing, bank guarantees for tenants, salary advances, domestic and international factoring, international guarantees and letters of credit, payroll payment plans, credit cards, debit cards, and senior citizens benefit payment services, as well as financial services and investments, such as mutual funds and guarantees. The company also provides foreign trade finance and cash management; advisory services; treasury services; insurance products primarily personal accidents insurance, protected bag insurance, life insurance, and integral insurance policies for entrepreneurs and SMEs; and asset management and other services, as well as operates as an online broker. As of December 31, 2020, it operates through a network of 302 access points, including 185 bank branches, 13 banking payment and collection centers, 79 CCF sales points, 20 consumer finance branches, and 5 MILA's customer support offices, as well as 457 ATMs, 221 self-service terminals, and 256 ATMs with biometric identification. The company was formerly known as Inversiones y Participaciones S.A. and changed its name to Grupo Supervielle S.A. in November 2008. Grupo Supervielle S.A. was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Read More Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Company Limited, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells petrochemical products in the People's Republic of China. It operates through five segments: Synthetic Fibers, Resins and Plastics, Intermediate Petrochemicals, Petroleum Products, and Trading of Petrochemical Products. The Synthetic Fibers segment produces polyesters, acrylic fibers, and carbon fibers that are primarily used in the textile and apparel industries. The Resins and Plastics segment produces polyester chips that are used to produce polyester fibers, coating, and containers; polyethylene resins and plastics, which are used to produce insulated cables and mulching films, as well as molded products, such as housewares and toys; and polypropylene resins that are used for films and sheets, as well as molded products, such as housewares, toys, consumer electronics, and automobile parts; and PVA granules. The Intermediate Petrochemicals segment produces p-xylene, benzene, and ethylene oxide, which are used as raw materials in the production of other petrochemicals, resins, plastics, and synthetic fibers. The Petroleum Products segment operates crude oil refinery facilities used to produce refined gasoline, fuel, diesel oil, heavy oil, and liquefied petroleum gas. The Trading of Petrochemical Products segment is involved in the import and export of petrochemical products. The company was founded in 1972 and is based in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China. Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Company Limited is a subsidiary of China Petroleum & Chemical Corporation. Read More Ad Wall Street Rebel New this week - 64 interested Investors Search for the Next Big Medical Cannabis Winner - This Is It Medical cannabis stocks have rewarded investors with astonishing profits over the last three years and investors are now looking for the next big winner in a market thats expected to quintuple by 2026. Ad Wall Street Rebel New this week - 61 interested Investors Search for the Next Big Medical Cannabis Winner - This Is It Medical cannabis stocks have rewarded investors with astonishing profits over the last three years and investors are now looking for the next big winner in a market thats expected to quintuple by 2026. First Republic Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides private banking, private business banking, and private wealth management services to clients in metropolitan areas in the United States. It operates through two segments, Commercial Banking and Wealth Management. The company accepts deposit products, such as checking, money market checking, savings, passbook deposits, and individual retirement accounts, as well as certificates of deposit. It also offers a range of lending products that comprise residential mortgage loans, home equity lines of credit, multifamily loans, commercial real estate and construction loans, personal and business loans, single family construction loans, and other loans and lines of credit to businesses and individuals. The company's loans are secured by single family residences, multifamily buildings, and commercial real estate properties. In addition, it provides wealth management services, which include various investment strategies and products, online investment management services, trust and custody services, full service and online brokerage, financial and estate planning, and access to alternative investments, as well as investing, insurance, and foreign exchange services; and treasury services. Additionally, the company offers online and mobile banking services; refinancing services; and ATM and debit cards. As of December 31, 2020, the company offered its services through 92 offices, including 80 licensed deposit-taking offices in San Francisco, Palo Alto, Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, Newport Beach, and San Diego, California; Portland, Oregon; Boston, Massachusetts; Palm Beach, Florida; Greenwich, Connecticut; New York, New York; and Jackson, Wyoming, as well as 12 additional offices that provided lending, wealth management, and trust services. First Republic Bank was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. Read More 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 7,212 kilometers of overhead lines; 2,239 kilometers of underground cables; and 347 substations in England and Wales, as well as Scottish electricity transmission systems. The UK Gas Transmission segment owns and operates gas transmission systems that include approximately 7,630 kilometres of high-pressure pipes; and 24 compressor stations connecting to 8 distribution networks in Great Britain, 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 14,659 kilometres of overhead lines, 169 kilometres of underground cables, and 396 transmission substations; an electricity distribution network of approximately 117,488 circuit kilometres and 730 distribution substations; a network of approximately 57,425 kilometres of gas pipeline; and approximately 801 kilometres of gas transmission pipes. 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 property development and insurance activities in the United Kingdom and United States. The company was founded in 1990 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom. Read More Curtiss-Wright Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and overhauls precision components, and engineered products and services primarily to the aerospace, defense, general industrial, and power generation markets worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Industrial, Defense, and Power. The Commercial/Industrial segment offers industrial vehicle products, such as electronic throttle control devices, joysticks, and transmission shifters; sensors, controls and electro-mechanical actuation components used in commercial aircrafts; valves for use in the industrial markets; and surface technology services, including shot peening, laser peening, coatings, and advanced testing. The Defense segment provides commercial off-the-shelf embedded computing board-level modules, data acquisition and flight test instrumentation equipment, integrated subsystems, instrumentation and control systems, turret aiming and stabilization products, and weapons handling systems; avionics and electronics; and aircraft data management solutions to the commercial aerospace market. The Power segment offers hardware, pumps, pump seals, control rod drive mechanisms, valves, fastening systems, specialized containment doors, airlock hatches, spent fuel management products, and fluid sealing products for nuclear power plants and nuclear equipment manufacturers; and naval propulsion and auxiliary equipment, including coolant pumps, power-dense compact motors, generators, steam turbines, valves, and secondary propulsion systems, as well as ship repair and maintenance services primarily to the U.S. navy. Curtiss-Wright Corporation was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina.Curtiss-Wright Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and overhauls precision components, and engineered products and services primarily to the aerospace, defense, general industrial, and power generation markets worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Commercial/Industrial, Defense, and Power. The Commercial/Industrial segment offers industrial vehicle products, such as electronic throttle control devices, joysticks, and transmission shifters; sensors, controls and electro-mechanical actuation components used in commercial aircrafts; valves for use in the industrial markets; and surface technology services, including shot peening, laser peening, coatings, and advanced testing. The Defense segment provides commercial off-the-shelf embedded computing board-level modules, data acquisition and flight test instrumentation equipment, integrated subsystems, instrumentation and control systems, turret aiming and stabilization products, and weapons handling systems; avionics and electronics; and aircraft data management solutions to the commercial aerospace market. The Power segment offers hardware, pumps, pump seals, control rod drive mechanisms, valves, fastening systems, specialized containment doors, airlock hatches, spent fuel management products, and fluid sealing products for nuclear power plants and nuclear equipment manufacturers; and naval propulsion and auxiliary equipment, including coolant pumps, power-dense compact motors, generators, steam turbines, valves, and secondary propulsion systems, as well as ship repair and maintenance services primarily to the U.S. navy. Curtiss-Wright Corporation was founded in 1929 and is headquartered in Davidson, North Carolina. Read More Get 25% off of the regular $65 annual All Access rate. With this subscription you will get: Digital access to ElPasoInc.com and archives (value $45) Print subscription home or business delivered (value $65) Book of Lists (annual rate only, value $50) El Paso Inc. Magazine (value $20) El Paso Kids Inc. Special sections - OR - Get 15% off of the regular $45 annual Digital-only rate. With this subscription you will get: Complete digital access to ElPasoInc.com. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. operates as the bank holding company for Citizens Bank, National Association that provides retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking. The Consumer Banking segment offers traditional banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, home and education loans, credit cards, business loans, mortgage and home equity lending, and unsecured product finance and personal loans, as well as wealth management and investment services to retail customers and small businesses. This segment also provides indirect auto finance for new and used vehicles through auto dealerships. The Commercial Banking segment offers various financial products and solutions, such as loans and leasing, trade finance, deposit and treasury management, cash management, and foreign exchange and interest rate risk management solutions; and loan syndications, corporate finance, merger and acquisition, and debt and equity capital markets capabilities. It serves government banking, not-for-profit, healthcare, technology, professionals, oil and gas, asset finance, franchise finance, asset-based lending, commercial real estate, private equity, and sponsor finance industries. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. operates approximately 2,700 ATMs and 1,000 branches in 11 states in the New England, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest regions, as well as through online, telephone, and mobile banking services; and maintains approximately 130 retail and commercial non-branch offices. The company was formerly known as RBS Citizens Financial Group, Inc. and changed its name to Citizens Financial Group, Inc. in April 2014. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1828 and is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. Read More Oshkosh Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets specialty vehicles and vehicle bodies worldwide. The company's Access Equipment segment provides aerial work platforms and telehandlers for use in various construction, industrial, institutional, and general maintenance applications. This segment also offers rental fleet loans and leases, and floor plan and retail financing through third-party funding arrangements; towing and recovery equipment; carriers and wreckers; equipment installation services; and chassis and service parts sales. Its Defense segment provides heavy, medium, and light tactical wheeled vehicles and related services for the department of defense. The company's Fire & Emergency segment offers custom and commercial firefighting vehicles and equipment; and commercial fire apparatus and emergency vehicles, such as pumpers, aerial platform, ladder and tiller trucks, tankers, rescue vehicles, wild land rough terrain response vehicles, mobile command and control centers, bomb squad vehicles, hazardous materials control vehicles, and other emergency response vehicles. This segment also provides aircraft rescue and firefighting, snow removal, and broadcast vehicles, as well as command trucks, and military simulator shelters and trailers. Its Commercial segment offers front-and rear-discharge concrete mixers for the concrete ready-mix industry; refuse collection vehicles and related components to commercial and municipal waste haulers; and field service vehicles and truck-mounted cranes for the construction, equipment dealer, building supply, utility, tire service, railroad, and mining industries. Oshkosh Corporation provides its products through direct sales representatives, dealers, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Oshkosh Truck Corporation and changed its name to Oshkosh Corporation in February 2008. Oshkosh Corporation was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Read More By National Review , Jan . 10, 2019 Law and government ought to cherish and protect life and its continuation. Thats why shielding abortion which ends human lives insults the system. But politicians currently are fixated on making abortion still more easily accessible in the state that already boasts the highest abortion rate in the country: New York. On Monday, Governor Andrew Cuomo and former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton joined forces at a Barnard College rally to promote the Reproductive Health Act (RHA). As Jack Crowe reported for National Review, Cuomo has no doubt that conservative justices will enable the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 case that legalized abortion at the a federal level. If that happens, the RHA will fortify abortion right in New York state law. Read More: Join us - become an Elderado today at: LarryElder.com Follow Larry Elder on Follow Larry Elder on Twitter "Like" Larry Elder on Facebook The scientist added that while he hoped everyone was equal, "people who have to deal with black employees find this is not true." Those comments led CSHL to relieve him of his administrative duties, but he retained his honorary titles until now. While Watson apologized for the comments in 2007, he said in the PBS documentary "American Masters: Decoding Watson," which aired on 2 January, that his views had not changed. The remarks are the latest in a series of racist and homophobic statements that have tainted Watson's career. In 1997, Britain's Sunday Telegraph quoted him as saying that women should be allowed to abort a child for any reason, such as if a gene for homosexuality were found in the fetus. During a lecture tour in 2000, he suggested there might be links between a person's weight and their level of ambition and between skin color and sexual prowess. While this universal idiom is often referenced as an effective approach to educate children, did you know that it is equally impactful when influencing what children eat in the school lunchroom? The Smarter Lunchrooms Movement offers 60 simple no-cost or low-cost strategies, which are based on research from the Cornell Center for Behavioral Economics in Child Nutrition Programs and other behavioral science research. The program offers a scorecard that schools can use to assess their food service programs at a Bronze, Silver or Gold level. The Smarter Lunchrooms Movement provides a tool to measure how we are meeting the needs and wants of our students and staff here at Dodgeland for any given menu, while giving them a wide variety of fruits and vegetables and controlling waste at the same time, said Cathy Lamb, food service director at the Dodgeland School District. I truly believe that when students are given a choice of several cooked and raw vegetables, they are more inclined to try at least one of the vegetables offered rather than not take any at all. Trachoma was identified as early as 15 B.C. in Egypt, China and Mesopotamia. It became a particular problem in Europe when people moved into crowded settlements or towns where hygiene was poor. Troops returning from the Napoleonic and Egyptian wars in the 1800s brought it back. Stringent hygiene control measures were instituted in the early 1900s, which brought it under control. With improved sanitation in so-called developed countries, it has become rare. Of the 54 countries still reporting trachoma only Australian Aborigines living in isolated communities still harbor it. Before and after 1900, trachoma was the main reason for deporting an immigrant coming to Ellis Island in New York. Globally, about 80 million people have active infections. It is categorized as one of the neglected tropical diseases, and concentrated in Africa, the Middle East and Asia. In 1996, the World Health Organization launched the WHO Alliance for the Global Elimination of Trachoma by 2020. Other groups now are involved. The strategy is called SAFE. S is for lid surgery to prevent lashes from turning in. A is for antibiotics. F is for facial cleanliness to reduce transmission. E is for environmental change to improve water and sanitation. Part of the problem is getting the right antibiotics to the impoverished places, as with so many other infections. Donald Trump, a 21st-century leader who does business around the world, owned his own jet and governs by tweet, has staked his U.S. presidency on a wall the most medieval of civic symbols. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 13/1/2019 (885 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Donald Trump, a 21st-century leader who does business around the world, owned his own jet and governs by tweet, has staked his U.S. presidency on a wall the most medieval of civic symbols. For the past few decades, as half a dozen presidents have struggled over how to manage the flow of migrants from south of the border, conservatives and liberals alike have often rejected a wall as an outdated tactic, a blunt instrument that might keep some people out, but sends a discomfiting message about American ideals of openness and fails to address the factors that drive migrants here in the first place. Trump, who rarely gets philosophical, felt compelled to address the morality of a wall in his Oval Office address Tuesday night. The president said people "dont build walls because they hate the people on the outside, but because they love the people on the inside." Wittingly or not, Trump, echoed what many historians have said about why even the most modern societies keep building walls: "By building a wall or fence, youre defining your community," said Gregory Dreicer, a historian of technology who has studied fences and nationalism. But walls have a checkered history of maintaining separation between people. No matter how high, how long, how strong the wall, people have an uncanny knack for finding their way over, under and around. From biblical Jericho to modern Mexico, walls have been put up to stop terrorists, immigrants, armies, drugs, weapons, foreigners, undesired races and creeds and tribes. The Romans built Hadrians Wall to keep out the barbarians. The Chinese built the Great Wall to keep out a series of rival countries. Walls settle scores and reinforce rows. Walls have enduring emotional sway. Theyre good at sending messages. "Tear down this wall," Ronald Reagan said at the Berlin Wall in 1987, and some people believed that an entire empire fell as a result. Some historians contend that walls have repeatedly proved their worth: they protect communities from perceived threats, bringing the people inside the wall together in security and camaraderie. But walls can also undermine community, creating and cementing "us versus them" antagonisms, letting wall builders avoid resolution of the problems they face. "A wall or gate tells you every day that there are dangerous people right outside who want to destroy you," said Setha Low, an environmental psychologist at the City University of New Yorks graduate centre and author of a book on gated communities. "Hard barriers create fear." Like the president, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has focused not only on the practical question of whether a wall works but on the larger message it sends. "A wall, in my view, is an immorality," she said. "Its not who we are as a nation." But walls and other physical barriers are as American as can be. In 1860, Abraham Lincolns presidential campaign, seeking to brand the candidate as a man of the people, distributed pieces of fence to voters, a reminder that Lincoln was a rail-splitter, a man who, like many American farmers and landowners, built fences. From the countrys earliest days, when only white male landowners could vote, many built fences on their land to show their neighbours they were eligible voters, Dreicer said. In recent decades, U.S. developers have built gated communities to keep out criminals, salesmen and vandals. Today, more than 14 per cent of Americans who live in subdivisions live behind walls or gates, according to the Census Bureaus American Housing Survey. But walls also run contrary to American ideals of openness and individualism. "Dont fence me in," says a classic Cole Porter song. "Oh, give me land, lots of land, and the starry skies above / Dont fence me in." Today, walls are a popular response to the vexing problem of mass migration in a globalized economy. When thousands of Middle Eastern and African refugees poured into eastern Europe in 2015, Hungary began building a four-metre-high fence on its border with Serbia. Similarly, Bulgaria chose a fence to slow down migrants arriving from Turkey. But many say walls are out of step with a sophisticated era. At the Vatican last week, Pope Francis recalled the Berlin Wall as a symbol of "the painful division of Europe" and pleaded with Christians to steel themselves against the "temptation to erect new curtains." The Berlin Wall was built on a lie: communist East Germany claimed it was protecting its people from western invaders; the structures official name was the "Anti-fascist Bulwark." But, in fact, East Germany erected the wall to pen in its own citizens, who had been defecting to the capitalist west in mass numbers. Unpopular for every one of its 10,316 days, the Berlin Wall stood as long as it did because it served the purposes of both sides: the East mostly halted its brain drain. And many western leaders were glad to back away from a confrontation with the oppressive Soviet and East German regimes. "A wall is a hell of a lot better than a war," U.S. president John F. Kennedy said in 1961. Governments keep coming back to walls for two reasons: walls make some people feel secure. And its often much easier to build a wall than it is to solve a problem through law or politics. "The existence of the wall constrains and shapes behaviour just as much as, if not more than, law," said Sarah Schindler, associate dean of the University of Maine law school, who has studied how barriers can accomplish policy goals that elected officials cant achieve through political means. For example, while its unconstitutional to bar people from a neighbourhood based on race or poverty, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in 1981 that the City of Memphis could barricade a street that connected a white neighbourhood to a black one. White residents had asked for the road to be closed to ease "traffic pollution" and keep out "undesirable traffic." The court rejected claims by black residents that the barrier was intended to divide the races. "The fact that most of the drivers who will be inconvenienced by the action are black" was merely of "symbolic significance," the court said. Trumps promise to build a wall along the nearly 3,200-kilometre U.S.-Mexican border is hardly new. By 1996, the Clinton administrations "Operation Gatekeeper" initiative installed fences, walls, sensors and lights to halt the flow of illegal immigrants. The net effect was to shift migration from the San Diego area to the Arizona desert. In 2007, the George W. Bush administration launched a US$7.6-billion program to add walls, fences, cameras and other technology to create "effective control" of the border. That didnt much work either. "A wall is so primitive," said Jane Loeffler, an architectural historian who has studied the fortification of U.S. embassies after the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Lebanon. "You can dig under it, go over it, catapult yourself over it. A wall is more symbolic than a real defence. A wall is fear in three dimensions." The example Trump often cites of a successful wall is the 429-kilometre barrier part wall, part fence that Israel built in the West Bank to keep out Palestinian suicide bombers. The number of bombs has indeed declined: 450 Israelis were killed by suicide bombers in 2002. Just 13 died in 2007, after the barrier was completed. Palestinians say the huge drop resulted mainly from security efforts by the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, the barriers broader impact has been mixed. "Israelis say they feel much safer," Low said, "but the wall also deepened the social divide, making it even harder to cross." Walls have a huge advantage over laws, norms and other intangible efforts to govern behaviour. Rules work only by the goodwill of the people, the recognition of a social compact about who we want to be, and an expectation that rule breakers will be shamed or punished. Walls require no such consensus and may hold special appeal for a president who came to office as a builder, a developer who repeatedly acted on his belief that facts on the ground would usually beat the code books. Proponents of walls take heart in their clarity. In 2010, when former Alaska governor Sarah Palin learned that a journalist who planned to write a book about her was moving into the house next door, Palin said she would simply build a fence, which she claimed was anything but an act of aggression. Citing the classic Robert Frost poem, Mending Wall, best known for the line "Good fences make good neighbours," Palin took Frost to mean that a fence can enhance relations with people who live nearby. But the poet was being ironic; his point was that walls separate us from each other. "Something there is that doesnt love a wall / That wants it down," Frost wrote. He saw his wall-building neighbour as an unthinking sloganeer, piling rocks atop one another "like an old-stone savage armed." Still, walls continue to be built because they are part of who we are. "Walls can be important symbols, and they can have some effect," Dreicer said. "The Berlin Wall did keep East Germans from leaving for a long time. But as with most walls, you could see from the beginning that it was just doomed." Washington Post SAN FRANCISCO Over dinner at a noodle bar, a Canadian entrepreneur pitched a table of U.S. tech executives: your foreign workers should trade sunny California for snowy Calgary, he told them. And they listened. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 13/1/2019 (885 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. SAN FRANCISCO Over dinner at a noodle bar, a Canadian entrepreneur pitched a table of U.S. tech executives: your foreign workers should trade sunny California for snowy Calgary, he told them. And they listened. Highly skilled foreign workers and the American firms that employ them are in a bit of a visa panic. U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to crack down on the H-1B visa program, which allows 85,000 foreigners per year to work in "specialty occupations" in the U.S. But there are no new rules yet, creating a climate of uncertainty and fear, particularly in Silicon Valley. Canadian businesses sense an opportunity. The Canadian tech scene has sought for years to compete with Silicon Valley, trying to lure talent north. In the early days of the Trump administration, "moving to Canada" talk surged among Americans, but most foreign workers waited. Now some are making the move. Though it is hard to track how many foreign nationals have moved from the U.S. the Canadian government tracks newcomers by country of citizenship, not residence immigration lawyers and recruiters on both sides of the border say the number of inquiries from nervous H-1B holders has skyrocketed since 2017. A small group of Canadian entrepreneurs are dropping into Silicon Valley to persuade companies that rely on foreign tech workers to move them across the border. Irfhan Rawji, the Canadian entrepreneur trying to sell U.S. tech executives on Canada over dinner, last year founded a company called MobSquad that helps tech companies move software engineers and other highly skilled workers to Canada. He travels regularly to Silicon Valley to promote his Canadian "solution." "Our turnaround to bring a foreign worker to Canada is under four weeks," he said. "Its typically longer for them to pack up their stuff." For Akshaya Murali, an Indian national who spent nearly a decade in the U.S. working for companies such as Microsoft and Expedia, moving to Toronto meant an end to living visa to visa. She and her family applied for permanent residence in Canada and were approved. Her employer, Remitly, then worked with MobSquad to move her job north. MobSquad signed a contract with Remitly and then hired her to do the same job senior product manager for Remitly from Toronto. MobSquads cut is the difference between her total compensation in pricey San Francisco and the cost of the same work in Toronto, which is lower. Remitlys chief product officer, Karim Meghji, said the process went so smoothly that he will probably do it again. "My next step is thinking through, What else can I do in Canada?" he said. Murali landed in Toronto in October and is settling in. "Its a nice place to bring up our son, really family-friendly," she said. "The only thing is the weather." Silicon Valleys visa anxiety did not start with Trump, but his policy moves and anti-immigrant rhetoric have compounded the problem, according to tech executives, immigration lawyers and people who have moved. Months into his presidency, Trump issued a "Buy American and Hire American" executive order that ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to review the H-1B visa program with the intention of more closely vetting applicants. In the wake of the order, there were reports of an uptick in visa denials and requests by immigration officials for additional information, turning the issue into a topic of conversation for big U.S. companies and immigrant communities alike. In August, chief executives from top U.S. firms including Apple, Cisco and IBM sent a letter to DHS expressing concern about the changes. "Inconsistent immigration policies are unfair and discourage talented and highly skilled individuals from pursuing career options in the United States," it said. Asked to comment on these reported changes, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesman Michael Bars said, "Increasing our confidence in who receives benefits is a hallmark of this administration." Bars said proposed changes now under review would make the H-1B process more efficient and ensure the best applicants get visas. Many have found the uncertainty over the changes to the H-1B program confusing and costly. S. (Sundi) Sundaresh, the CEO of Cinarra Systems, a startup that provides location analytics based on mobile data to businesses, says getting U.S. work visas is a significant challenge. His company employs 55 people worldwide, including 15 in the U.S. He has three people on H-1Bs but would hire more if the process was easier. Recently, an employee who was working remotely and waiting on a U.S. visa quit in frustration. When a second worker reached the same point, he started looking for options and is now talking to MobSquad about Canada. "We cant lose a second one," he said. Michael Tippet, a Canadian entrepreneur who founded a company that helps U.S. firms set up satellite offices in Vancouver as a buffer against uncertainty in the U.S., said highly skilled, foreign-born workers feel anxious and frustrated. "From the companys perspective, the primary motivation is that they can continue to attract top talent," he said. "To have those people work for you, you have to show youve got their back." If you dont have their back, they may leave. Amogh Phadke, an Indian citizen with a masters degree in computer science, an MBA and work experience at FedEx and Fannie Mae, wanted to build his life in the U.S. "I was struggling for 10 years with my immigration status," he said. His breaking point was the Trump administrations as-yet-unrealized threat to stop granting work visas for spouses of H-1B holders. His wife, an Indian national who was studying in Canada, no longer wanted to join him stateside. "She said, Its here, or we are going back to India." He decamped to chilly Edmonton last year. While the debate over immigration roils the U.S, Canadas major political parties are broadly supportive of increasing the number of immigrants, as long as they are skilled. In 2017, Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus government launched the Global Talent Stream, a program designed to fast-track work authorization for those with job offers in high-demand realms of science and tech. Successful applicants can get a work permit in a matter of weeks. Spouses and children are eligible for work or study permits. More than 2,000 companies have applied to hire Talent Stream workers, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada said in an emailed statement. With the door wide open, the Canadian governments biggest challenge may be actually making the case for Canada. Recent arrivals said the country is not really on the radar. When Phadke told Americans he was moving to Edmonton, they were shocked. "My colleagues were like, Oh, my God, nobody lives in the middle of Canada. Are there going to be roads there?" When people heard how quickly he could move, he was met with more skepticism. "They asked, Is it a scam?" "Canada is really bad at marketing itself," said Vikram Rangnekar, a former software developer for LinkedIn who recently moved from the Bay Area to Toronto. When he landed, he was so impressed with the city that he started writing about it. He later started Mov North, a site for people thinking about moving. The site includes information on dressing for the cold "The adage Theres no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothes is entirely true" and information about benefits like paid maternity leave. It also tries to connect software engineers with Canadian companies. Hugo ODoherty, an editor at Moving2Canada.com, a website catering to would-be immigrants and new arrivals, said Canada cant often compete with Silicon Valley salaries, but that tech types make good money relative to the cost of living. They also gain peace of mind. Non-citizens in the United States "dont know if they will able to stay, if their spouse will be able to work, if their kids will have a pathway to citizenship," he said. In his experience, Canada appeals to people who want stability. For MobSquads Rawji, it is all about seeking out the best and brightest and putting them on a path to citizenship. "Our social mission is to change the Canadian economy," he said. To those wondering about their status in the United States, he says: Come north. Washington Post The president of the Ukrainian Labour Temple is calling for the return of a plaque that marks the landmark as a national historic site after someone stole it over the weekend. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 13/1/2019 (884 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. The president of the Ukrainian Labour Temple is calling for the return of a plaque that marks the landmark as a national historic site after someone stole it over the weekend. "Its disappointing because the city faces a lot of challenges in terms of its reputation and its image as a city. The North End is a very vibrant, very good community. Its very safe in many respects," said Glenn Michalchuk. "To see this, its kind of an insult to the local community. Winnipeg is a better city than this." The federal government designated the building, at 591 Pritchard Ave., as a national historic site in 2009. A few years later, a bronze plaque was donated by Parks Canada. It explains the landmarks neo-classical architecture and the important role it played in the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919, which was one of the most influential strikes in Canadas history. On Saturday morning, when organizers of a Ukrainian New Years gathering arrived at the building, they discovered the plaque had been taken. "It sits in a large metal frame outside the hall. The frame is still there. The plaque is very heavy and the way it sits in the frame, it has to be unbolted from the back," Michalchuk said. JOHN WOODS / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS The Ukrainian Labour Temple "Its not a one-person job to lift it and take it out. Its really disappointing that this was just stolen for someones selfish interest to make a few bucks." Michalchuk said he filed a police report and notified Parks Canada about the theft. There are a number of important events being celebrated at the hall this year and he said it will be disappointing to not have the plaque there for the gatherings. Next month, they will gather to mark the 100th anniversary of the building. The hall will also hold events to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1919 general strike. The building served as an important hub during the strike; its where Ukrainian workers helped to organize the labour movement. Michalchuk said hes encouraging whoever took the plaque to return it, with no questions asked. "They can just leave it outside the building. Just prop it up outside against the wall. They should return it and realize that its importance is far more than some metal that can be used for scrap," he said. ryan.thorpe@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @rk_thorpe A man is dead following a confrontation with Winnipeg police officers in the West End on Friday night. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 12/1/2019 (885 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. A man is dead following a confrontation with Winnipeg police officers in the West End on Friday night. "More than one" police officer fired their weapon at the man after he produced an unspecified weapon, Winnipeg Police Service spokesman Const. Jay Murray told reporters during a Saturday morning news conference. The fatal encounter began at about 7:50 p.m., when officers "encountered a male acting suspiciously in the area of Sargent Avenue and Maryland Street," Murray said. A small blue garment on the front step of a house at 548 Sherbrook is marked as evidence in the Friday night police shooting. The officers were already in the area, he said, and were not called to the scene. The man fled after the officers approached him, said Murray, but officers later found the man "in a nearby vacant lot." Thats where police fired their weapons, he said. Officers provided medical assistance to the victim, including CPR, according to Murray. The man died after being taken to hospital. An officer takes photograph of the evidence in front of 548 Sherbrook St. "This is a tragedy for everyone involved, not only the officers that were forced to use lethal force, but you have a man that lost his life yesterday too," Const. Murray said. Murray saidpolice have no information to suggest methamphetamine was involved in Fridays incident. The investigation into the shooting is being handled by the Independent Investigation Unit of Manitoba (IIU), the provinces civilian law enforcement watchdog agency. Family members identified the deceased as 26-year-old Chad Williams. Officers gather evidence marked in the lane behind Safeway, Anyone who may have witnessed the shooting or has relevant information about the incident is being asked to call the IIU at 1-844-667-6060. The police-involved shooting in Winnipeg comes close on the heels of another that took place following a high-speed chase through the city Wednesday night. In that incident, multiple officers fired at a vehicle that rammed a police roadblock. When three suspects were taken into custody later, a 23-year-old suspect was found with a gunshot wound. The man was released from hospital after treatment, and was in police custody on Thursday. The Independent Investigation Unit is also investigating that shooting. solomon.israel@freepress.mb.ca @sol_israel Fishers on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg caught a flaming fireball on camera, that is. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 12/1/2019 (885 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Fishers on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg caught a flaming fireball on camera, that is. Video submitted to the Free Press shows an unknown object, blazing slowly through the sky above the frozen lake and leaving a smoky trail in its wake. The 19-second clip was taken sometime Friday afternoon, said Henry Traverse, who lives in Jackhead, Man., on Kinonjeoshtegon First Nation reserve land. Traverse said his son Phil Traverse and granddaughter Kiasha shot the video and sent it to him while they were out fishing on the lake. "I dont know if it was a meteor shower, or a meteorite falling, I dont know," Traverse said. Based on his knowledge of the area, he believes the fiery object was somewhere off to the northwest of Lake Winnipeg. The mysterious phenomenon is far from new for the area, Traverse said. "Weve seen lights in the night, up further north where (I fished with) my sons," he said. SUPPLIED Two people fishing on the western shore of Lake Winnipeg shot a 19-second video on Friday afternoon capturing a fireball flying through the sky, leaving a smoky trail behind it. "Ive seen lots of them, we have a lot of stories from older fishermen that have seen strange moving lights, travelling at the speed of lightning, you know? Going into the water, disappearing into the water and coming out again." In early 2015, the Canadian Forces responded to rumours that a UFO had flown near Jackhead, saying the bright lights were from an aircraft being used in a training exercise. Henry Traverse heard about the UFO rumours at the time. "I dont know how true that was, but theres a lot of things that happened there at that time," he said. People in the area have "all kinds of sightings... stories that weve been holding and knowing," he added. "This is not the first time weve seen something like this. But in broad daylight, its something to capture. Nowadays, kids, they carry these cellphones, eh? But this is true, what theyve seen there. Its not a hoax." solomon.israel@freepress.mb.ca @sol_israel Officers hold a processional for a Birmingham Officer killed in the line of duty Sunday. (WBRC via CNN Wire) Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 12) A former chief of the Philippine Navy warned over two Chinese firms' possible takeover of the Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction (HHIC) shipyard in Subic, Zambales. "Lets be aware that this Hanjin shipyard issue is not just about business, financial and other economic issues. This is a very significant national issue!" ex-Navy chief Vice Admiral Alexander Pama said in his Facebook post. Pama, who served as Navy chief from 2011 to 2012, warned that China's ownership of Hanjin's shipyard will give unlimited access to one of the Philippines most strategic geographic naval and maritime asset. "Although it is a commercial shipyard, nothing can prevent the owners from making it into a de-facto Naval base and a martime facility for other security purposes! Let us all be aware and wary of the serious security and other strategic implications of this issue!" Pama added. He then urged both government and private sector to go against China's possible ownership of the shipyard. A former U.S. military base, the Subic Bay is around 260 kilometers away from the Scarborough Shoal a subject of territorial dispute between the Philippines and China. Americans selected the bay as a repair and supply depot due to its strategic location, according to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA). Pama's concern comes after reports citing that two major Chinese shipbuilders asked on the operations of Hanjin Philippines, which filed for corporate rehabilitation on Tuesday. The said the firm filed for rehabilitation due to slowdowns in the global shipping industry. UPDATE: 12:04 PM MONDAY Police have identified the victim as Eduardo Concepcion, 30, of Bridgeport. Lt. Frank Eannotti said the preliminary investigation reveals that two males were sitting in a parked car on Regency Terrace when they were approached two males on foot. The males exchanged words, and one of the males produced a firearm and fired at least one shot striking the victim. The victim had been an occupant of the vehicle. The two males on foot fled the area. Anyone with information is asked to call the Stratford Police department at 203-385-4140 or 4128 and information may be shared anonymously on the Stratford Police TIP411 app. EARLIER STORY STRATFORD Police are investigating Stratfords first homicide in more than a year and a half, after an early morning streetside shooting led to the death of a male victim at Bridgeport Hospital. Police said the victim was sitting with someone else in a parked car on Regency Terrace when they were approached by two other males at about 2:20 a.m. The parties exchanged words, Stratford Police Capt. Frank Eannotti said, and one of the approaching males pulled out a gun and fired, with at least one shot striking the victim inside the car. Eannotti said police did not expect any further information, including the victims name, to be released Saturday. Before Saturday, the last homicide in Stratford had been Aug. 15, 2017. Raenetta Catchings, 27, of Stratford, was shot dead by her uncle, 21-year-old Michael Catchings. Police charged him with her murder. The other homicide in Stratford that year was on May 27, 2017, when 27-year-old Andre Pettway was shot on Garibaldi Avenue and later died in the hospital. Three people were charged in connection with Pettways killing Brandyn Ford, then 24, of Stratford; Jose Rivera, then 24, of Bridgeport; and Wilfredo Martinez, then 23, of Bridgeport. Pettways homicide was the first one the town had seen since 2011, according to city-data.com, a website that provides statistics on towns and cities nationwide. The data recorded on the site goes back to 2002 and showed that Stratford had two murders in 2002, 2003 and 2008; one murder in 2005, 2010 and 2011; and none in 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2016. On Saturday afternoon, Police were piecing together what happened in the overnight hours. On Regency Terrace, as on many streets in Stratford, there is a Neighborhood Watch sign under the posted 25 mph speed limit. Warning, the sign reads, all suspicious persons and activities are immediately reported to our police department. A man around the corner on Peace Street was taking Christmas lights down from a tree next to his house, dogs wandered around fenced in front yards and a few cars drove down the street. At the corner of Peace Street and Regency Terrace there were broken down Stratford police barriers left behind from the murder investigation. Another pile of signs were left on the sidewalk at the corner of Regency Terrace and Barnum Avenue. Anyone with information is asked to call the Stratford Police Department at 203-385-4140. Anonymous tips can be submitted on the Stratford Police Tip411 smartphone application. CORRECTION: The story has been updated to indicate that the last homicide in Stratford was Raenetta Catchings, not Andre Pettway. Catchings murder was in Aug. 2017 and Pettways was in May 2017. That made the total for 2017 two murders, not one as previously reported. DERBY A 40-year-old corporate jet pilot, is the new chief of the citys 115-member volunteer fire department. Mayor Richard Dziekan administered the chiefs oath to Robert Laskowski, Jr., a 22-year member of the East End Hose company, before more than 100 people Saturday morning at Derby Middle School. Laskowskis wife, Melissa, pinned the chiefs badge on her husbands uniform. She also is involved in the departments history. She is the first woman to serve as a fire captain in the city. In addition to Laskowski, Dziekan administered oaths to David M. Lenart, 40, of Storm Engine Co. 2, who will be Laskowskis first assistant chief; Michael F. Gloade, 50, of Hotchkiss Hose Co. 1, as the second assistant chief and Thomas Biggs, 29, of the Paugassett Hook and Ladder Co. 4 as the third assistant chief. Laskowski said one of his goals will be to increase the number of volunteers training to be firefighters as well as try to keep the current volunteers involved and on the job. Its an issue most volunteer departments have, he said. Ansonia, Seymour, Shelton and Oxford all have volunteer fire departments and recruit year-round. Laskowski said Derby accepts city and non-city residents who are 18 or older. They can train to battle interior fires or just assist with equipment or on the scene. He spent two years as a lieutenant and seven years as a captain at East End. Lenart, who will succeed Laskowski as chief in 2021, has more than a century of firefighting service in his bloodlines. Both his great-grandfather and grandfather, the late Edward Cotter Sr. and Jr., served as firefighters, as does Lenarts father. Lenart, a 40-year-old former city aldermen, is a trained EMT and is employed as a Bridgeport firefighter assigned to Rescue Squad 5. Gloade, 50, will become the citys first black fire chief in 2023. A native of Antigua, he signed up to become a volunteer at Hotchkiss Hose in the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. I felt I had to do something for my community, he said. I live just around the corner from Hotchkiss Hose. Biggs, 29, is a salesman and has been a member of the Paugassetts for the past 13 years. His is the son-in-law of Michael Kelleher, a longtime city fire commissioner. In 2018, the department responded to 701 calls in the city, 38 calls for assistance in neighboring municipalities and participated in 2,500 hours of training. BRIDGEPORT Six months after the owner of the former West End library announced its pending demolition, the nearly 100-year-old Sanborn building is still standing, at the busy intersection of Fairfield Avenue and State Street, a triangle of land a few blocks from downtown. And while the structures days may remain numbered, owner Burton Stevens, in a reversal, said he will not be the one to take it down. Im going to sell the property with the building standing, said Stevens, a Woodbury resident who purchased the site in 2008 for $1 million. That is a modest victory for preservationists. As of last July, Stevens, who had been unable to rent the Sanborn and was weary of the hefty $30,000 annual tax bill, had a sale pending with developer Richard Korris. And as part of that deal, Stevens was going to knock the empty library down. Stevens had also pledged at that time to demolish the structure if the deal with Korris fell through. More recently, Stevens said, I know theres a groundswell of interest in keeping the building up. Some City Council members, particularly Peter Spain, and community activists have been trying to find a way to save the Sanborn, which, after the library closed, housed a bank in the 1990s and then Aspira, a youth development program. Voices for preservation Community activist and ex-Town Clerk Alma Maya, who in the 2000s ran the Aspira program, was also pushing for preservation. And since last summer U.S. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., a former member of the Aspira board, lent his clout to the preservation effort. Stevens said Korris remains interested, but it will now be up to the developer to take the library down if and when he buys it. If he in fact does buy, hell demolish it, Stevens said. If he doesnt, then I dont have any immediate plans to demolish the building. Korris zoning attorney, Raymond Rizio, said his client is still preparing plans and selecting tenants ahead of obtaining the necessary zoning and building permits in the coming months. I think he is hoping to do some type of retail, Rizio said, adding, I dont think theres a way to preserve the building and have it make any economic sense. A few years ago, Korris made over the 1950s-era King Cole Supermarket location where Park Avenue and Pequonnock Street meet Route 1. Hes a very well-established city developer, Rizio said. New England feel The ex-library is a 13,000-square-foot brick building with a large porch, white columns and cupola, situated next to a park. It looks like it could be a town hall in any number of small New England towns, and is a stark contrast to the more urban and industrial buildings in the surrounding neighborhoods. The only modern touch is a Puerto Rican heritage mural on part of the exterior that activists also want to salvage. Its just a beautiful building, Himes said in an interview Thursday. The congressman said he was not only driven to join the effort to save the Sanborn by his time with Aspira, but also because cities are made rich by preserving their architectural heritage. I have had a number of conversations with people in and around this transaction, just exploring willingness to slow down and maybe consider ways to preserve the building, Himes said. I havent pressured anybody. Economics are economics. But I was really hopeful we could find a way to find economic value in the buildings preservation. He hoped to be part of any continued talks since the sale to Korris is still pending either with that developer or with other potential buyers. Spain urged Mayor Joe Ganim, who is running for re-election this year, to become more directly involved. Spain would also like to get the building placed on state and national historic registers. Whats most important right now is for the mayor to take bold public leadership to ensure the library (and) the unique Puerto Rican-American heritage mural on the front of it are protected for posterity, Spain said in an email. Bridgeports remaining architectural history is a treasure we should leverage for our citys 21st century revival and for future generations. Michael Tyrrell, of Fairfield, an architecture and urban design consultant who has joined the effort to save the Sanborn, agreed. It would be a great civic legacy project for Mayor Ganim if he could lend his support, Tyrrell wrote in an email. This building is such a wonderful gateway toward downtown, and a proud landmark for the West Side. Ganims economic development director, Tom Gill, said he attended one meeting about saving the Sanborn and has spoken with Spain about it. Gill said the transaction between Stevens and Korris is a private one and that the city is in no position to buy the library. But, Gill added, were a developer interested in talking to the city about saving it, Wed be open to that. A 6-year-old boy in Ohio was discovered to have entered school on Friday with a gun, police said. (Image Source: Fox News/Columbus Division of Police) The first shooting was reported at 7:55 p.m. Saturday in the 1100 block of South 15th Street in the California neighborhood, according to MetroSafe. Police responded to a report of a disturbance involving a man armed with a firearm just before 11 a.m. Saturday at a home in the 12300 block of Five Point Road in Dearborn County. (Image provided by Indiana State Police) Seeking to reduce the risk from fluctuations in the energy market, the city of Solana Beach will enter into a three-year purchase agreement for hydroelectric power, under the citys program that allows residents to purchase electricity as an alternative to San Diego Gas & Electric. The city launched its program, called the Solana Energy Alliance, last summer. Among the goals of the citys program are to offer cleaner energy to the citys residents, provide more local control regarding energy sources, and work toward the citys target of having 100 percent renewable energy by 2035, said Dan King, assistant city manager. The city also agreed to set electricity rates at 3 percent below those charged by SDG&E. Under the program established by the council, the city has contracts with two entities, said King. One organization, called the Energy Authority, is a consortium of eight or nine public energy alliances similar to the one formed in Solana Beach. The authority purchases power on the open market for its member agencies. The city also contracts with a second consultant that handles such tasks as operating a call center, customer billing and data management. At its meeting on Wednesday, Jan. 9, the Solana Beach City Council voted unanimously to authorize the Energy Authority to enter into a three-year contract to purchase hydroelectric power, to meet the needs of Solana Beach residents who are participating in the citys alternative energy program. This would be the first long-term energy contract for the city program, but the city will explore other long-term options in the future, King said. A city staff report said that in a worst-case scenario, the citys energy costs could go up by $5,699 over the three-year life of the deal, while under the best case, the city could save $25,609 over the three years. The difference, said King, depends on the amount of rainfall during the contract period, which affects the cost of hydroelectric power, and if additional agencies join in the purchase agreement through the Energy Authority. If things work out well, its a much better deal, said King. Under questioning by council member Jewel Edson, King said residents electric rates would not go up even if the citys energy costs rise marginally during the three-year energy purchase agreement. According to King, Solana Beach residents are automatically enrolled in the citys energy program unless they opt out. Currently, he said, there are about 7,000 households in the program. About 8 percent of the citys households have opted out of the citys program and have continued to purchase their electricity from SDG&E, leaving the city with a 92 percent participation rate in its fledgling energy program,. The Solana Energy Alliance offers two packages of electricity rates: SEA Choice, which promises electricity from 50 percent renewable sources, and 75 percent from sources free of greenhouse gas emissions; and SEA Green, which offers electricity generated from 100 percent renewable sources. Currently, residents who use an average of 445 kilowatt hours per month are billed $119.35 for SEA Choice, and $120.69 for SEA Green. SDG&Es charge for standard electrical service is $122.69, and it also offers a 100 percent renewable option for $121.65. A side-by-side comparison of SEA and SDG&E rates can be found on the citys website at https://solanaenergyalliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/JRC-Online-July-1-2018.pdf. Those in the program continue to pay SDG&E for use of its power grid and transmission lines. Solana Beach was the first city in San Diego County to launch a community choice energy program. According to the CalCCA, an advocacy group, there are 19 community choice programs serving some 8 million California residents. King said funding for Solana Beachs community choice program is kept separate from the citys general fund. The city did contribute $107,000 in startup costs for the Solana Energy Alliance, which will be paid back over time. The program also covers approximately $122,000 annually in city staff costs for work done on behalf of the energy program. Meanwhile the partial government shutdown over Trump's demand for $US5.7 billion ($7.9 billion) to build a wall along the US-Mexico border entered its 22nd day on Saturday, making it the longest shutdown of federal agencies in US history and there is no end in sight. Trump, holed up in the White House with Congress adjourned for the weekend, warned of a much lengthier impasse and blamed the Democrats. "Theyre the ones that are holding it up," he said told Pirro. "It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done, and everybody can go back to work." Democrats say Trump shut the government in a "temper tantrum" by refusing to sign bipartisan funding legislation last year that did not include money for his wall. The closure, which began on December 22, broke a decades-old record by a 1995-1996 shutdown under then President Bill Clinton that lasted 21 days. Federal workers affected missed their first pay on Friday, heightening concerns about mounting financial pressures on employees, including air traffic controllers and airport security officials who continue to work without pay. Demonstrators make their point outside of the White House on Saturday. Credit:Bloomberg Trump is considering a possible national emergency declaration that would end the shutdown and allow him to obtain his wall funding by circumventing Congress. But on Saturday, he told Fox News he would rather Democrats took action, adding that he was waiting at the White House ready to cut a deal. "I want to give them a chance to see if they can act responsibly," Trump said, calling the situation at the nation's southern border a "humanitarian crisis". "They think it's politics. I think it's bad politics. This country wants to have protection at the border." Democrats, who call a wall an ineffective, outdated answer to a complex problem, have passed several bills in the House of Representatives to reopen the government without funding for Trump's barrier. But the legislation has been ignored by the Republican-controlled Senate. Migrants mainly from Mexico and Central America look on as US President Donald Trump gives his prime-time address about border security, watching from a border migrant shelter in Tijuana, Mexico. Credit:AP Trump originally promised Mexico would pay for the wall, which he says is needed to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs. But Mexico has refused. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said of the FBI probe that his panel "will take steps to better understand both the President's actions and the FBI's response to that behaviour" in coming weeks. Loading He also said politicians would seek to protect investigators from the President's "increasingly unhinged attacks". "There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI, as the President did in reaction to this story," Nadler, a New York Democrat, said. "We have learned from this reporting that, even in the earliest days of the Trump administration, the President's behaviour was so erratic and so concerning that the FBI felt compelled to do the unprecedented - open a counter-intelligence investigation into a sitting president." House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said he could not comment on the specifics of the report, but said his committee would press ahead with its probe of Trump's contacts with Russia. Loading "Counter-intelligence concerns about those associated with the Trump campaign, including the President himself, have been at the heart of our investigation since the beginning," said Schiff, a California Democrat. Schiff said meetings, contacts and communications between Trump associates and Russians, as well as "the web of lies about those interactions, and the President's own statements and actions", have heightened the need to follow the evidence where it leads. Trump took notes of a 2017 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hamburg from his own interpreter and took other steps to conceal details of their conversations, a report in The Washington Post said on Saturday. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment about that report, which cited unnamed current and former US officials. Loading The New York Times said FBI officials became suspicious of Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign, but held off on opening an investigation until Trump tied his dismissal of Comey to a probe into allegations of election meddling by Russia. The FBI also considered whether the Republican President's firing of Comey amounted to obstruction of justice. US Special Counsel Robert Mueller took over the investigation into Trump days after the FBI opened it, as he examined allegations of Russian election interference, the Times reported. Russia denies it sought to influence the election. Trump responded on Saturday by lashing out at the Times and former FBI leaders, and criticised the agency's earlier probe of Democrat Hillary Clinton, his rival in the 2016 election. This deal sets out the terms of that divorce a complicated and necessary unbinding of the extensive economic, bureaucratic and legal ties that have developed over decades. The divorce deal must pass Parliament before it can come into effect. Pro-European demonstrators protest outside parliament in London on Friday. Credit:AP It includes a (roughly) 39 billion ($70 billion) payment from the UK to the EU, to cover obligations it had promised to fund (such as superannuation payments to EU employees). It covers the status and rights of the millions of EU citizens living and working in the UK and UK citizens living and working in the EU. It covers things such as "geographical indicators" the EU wont be able to sell Welsh lamb unless it comes from Wales, and Parma Ham will still have to come from Italy. It covers security and nuclear co-operation. It sets out a 21-month "transition" period to follow Brexit, as a cushion for UK businesses and to allow time for a trade and customs deal to be negotiated, during which the UK will be treated as if it had never left the EU, except without any voting rights in EU institutions. And most controversially it includes a "backstop" to kick in if the transition period ends without a trade deal, which will keep Britain and Northern Ireland in a customs union with the EU in order to keep the Irish border open and frictionless. A banner reading "Vote Again" using branding from the Britain Stronger in Europe campaign hangs on an architect's office in London on Friday. Credit:Bloomberg What's different this time? The deal the government has done with the EU remains unchanged since it was agreed in November. However it is now even closer to the March 29 deadline, and if a deal isnt done pretty soon then there may not be enough time to get everything in place to avoid a chaotic Brexit. This could focus minds among dissenters. The government has also come up with extra "assurances" on the deal: It has promised Northern Ireland a strong role in determining how the backstop would work in practice It has accepted a greater role for Parliament in deciding on alternatives to activating the backstop, such as extending the transition It expects, some time before Tuesday, to present a "clarification" from the EU on how the backstop would work, if it was required The government also hopes to get ultra-Brexiters back on side by suggesting that if its deal is rejected, the most likely alternatives would be a delay to Brexit or even a new referendum. But most commentators are still predicting a solid loss by the government. What's the sticking point? Various MPs oppose the deal for different reasons. Opposition falls into three broad camps: The "thats not a real Brexit" camp believe Mays deal doesnt deliver the kind of Brexit promised during the 2016 referendum. They are especially opposed to the backstop, which they say will leave Britain following EU rules it lacks any say in, and leave Northern Ireland too closely enmeshed in and regulated by the EU. A sign in a parking lot of a cemetery reads: "No EU border in Ireland" near Carrickcarnan, Ireland. Credit:AP The "Brexit is bad" camp say this deal is simply bad for the UK and should be voted against for that reason. This includes Remainers who have always opposed Brexit in any form. The "Labour would do it better" camp want to use the Brexit vote to bring down the May government, trigger a general election and negotiate a different deal one which would probably leave the UK much more closely tied to the EU. What happens if Mays deal is voted down? Very good question. In a nutshell, the government will have until the following Monday to provide an answer. The Prime Minister may resign rather than deal with the consequences of her defeat, but this would be quite out of character. Theresa May has said repeatedly she will not cancel or delay Brexit, or hold another referendum. Parliament appears to have a majority opposed to a "no deal" Brexit. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May prepares to welcome Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to Downing Street. Abe has expressed concerns about the effects of a no-deal Brexit. Credit:AP May could, technically, keep bringing her deal back to Parliament until Brexit day, which would force a binary choice between her deal or no deal. However, Parliament passed a law in early January that though legal opinions differ might allow it to decide the kind of Brexit (or otherwise) it prefers, and order the government to deliver it. This would lead to an exciting and unpredictable showdown between parliament and the government. What is a 'no-deal Brexit'? Loading If Parliament doesnt pass Mays deal, there probably isnt time to negotiate any alternative one with the EU, even if it were open to a renegotiation, which it insists it isnt. In that case, unless the UK and EU agree to extend Brexit which is a legal option although the government insists it doesnt want to then the UK will leave the EU on March 29 without any agreement on how that would work. This would have major, serious ramifications for the UK and EU. It would leave EU and UK citizens in legal limbo if they want to move abroad to live or work. The UK would be a "third country" with much more limited access to the EU single market. It would mean new border customs checks between the EU and UK, leading to long queues at the border and major disruption to trade and industry. UK industries that rely on "just in time" supply chains that cross the border would take a major hit and could have to relocate. It could even mean food and medicine shortages in the UK (the government and industry have been working to build up stockpiles against this scenario). The return of a hard border in Ireland could lead to a renewal of sectarian violence. UK car or truck drivers would need new permits and licences to drive in the EU. What are people saying about it? If the government cannot pass its most important legislation then there must be a general election at the earliest opportunity. Opposition Leader Jeremy Corbyn I dont think the British public are served by fantasies about magical, alternative deals that are somehow going to spring out of a cupboard in Brussels. - Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn gestures as he delivers a speech on Brexit during a visit to OE Electrics in Wakefield, England, on Thursday. Credit:AP "When the Prime Minister's deal is defeated, what else can we possibly offer to the British public which has any coherence at all but to go back and ask them to reconsider their decision?" Tory Remainer Dominic Grieve MP Scientology describes itself as the worlds fastest-growing religion but the organisation's numbers in NSW are dwindling with the church reliant on overseas devotees, defectors claim. The organisation has properties worth millions across the CBD, Chatswood and Dundas and in 2017, doubled its national revenue to nearly $40 million, the latest published financial records show. But it is struggling to find new recruits in Sydney, defector Paul Schofield said. "Australian recruits have dwindled to virtually zero as media coverage and access to the Internet has ensured the truth about the cult is well-known here," Mr Schofield said. The Church of Scientology headquarters in Chatswood. The church, which was founded by American science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, also has a history of altering its membership figures, the defector who spent 30 years in the church rising to become an ordained minister of Scientology said. Agriculture Minister David Littleproud is warning of more fish deaths in the Murray-Darling Basin this week and has called an emergency meeting of water managers to advise on how to avert mass killings. Labor has branded the death of up to one million fish an "ecological disaster" and called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to gather an independent team of scientists to urgently investigate the mass fatalities. Meanwhile, a confidential document has revealed the NSW government was warned by its own experts in 2012 that water management rules under its proposed 10-year plan for the Darling River would put threatened species of fish, including the Murray cod, at risk. Thousands of rotting fish carcasses have been found along a 40-kilometre stretch of the Darling River at Menindee, near Broken Hill in far-west NSW. It has been described as one of the largest fish deaths ever recorded. Men who had lived their lives in the bush went their ways in the shadow of dread expectancy," it said before detailing the impacts of the "devastating confluence of flame that had been "lit by the hand of man". The results included whole townships "obliterated in a few minutes", while the monstrous winds accompanying the flames uprooted huge trees that were consumed by fire. "[F]ormer forest monarchs were laid in confusion ... piled one upon another as if strewn by a giant hand, Stretton wrote. Norm Goldings used his trusty DeSoto to rescue nearly 100 people near Noojee in Gippsland during the 1939 Black Friday bushfires. "In my view, Black Friday remains Australia's largest fire in terms of its size especially in Victoria, ACT and South Australia and its impact on the population, proportionally," says Tom Griffiths, emeritus professor of history at the Australian National University. "Most of the deaths were people living and working in the bush at remote sawmills, for the interwar years were a period of intensive milling of mountain ash in the rugged Victorian ranges," he says. "Stretton recommended that sawmills be moved out of the bush and into the towns." But moving the mills out of the forests only took them so far from harm's way. Narbethong was one such town destroyed in 1939. Fast forward to Victoria's Black Saturday fires in 2009 (which has its 10th anniversary next month) and the town was again among those hardest hit, with its sawmill torched. Killer heatwaves Just as in the 2009 fires perhaps the closest analogue to 1939 the death toll in the accompanying heatwave easily exceeded that of those who burned to death. Lucinda Coates, a senior risk scientist at Risk Frontiers and a researcher at the Bushfire and Natural Hazards Co-operative Research Centre, estimates at least 420 people died in the 1939 event across Australia. More than three in four of those were in NSW "The series of heatwaves were accompanied by strong northerly winds, and followed a very dry six months," Coates says. The January 1939 event was notable for its longevity and record daily temperature maxima." While Melbourne hit 45.6 degrees and Adelaide 46.1, Bourke in north-western NSW sweltered through 37 consecutive days above 38 degrees. Menindee, site of this week's huge fish kill due to stagnant Darling River flows and extreme heat, reached 49.7 degrees on January 10, 1939 a statewide record that stands to this day. Home refrigerators were rare and air-conditioned buildings were unknown," Coates says. "Relief was sought at the beaches and baths; there were by then no inhibitions about mixed bathing. Workers leaving the Noojee area in Gippsland after the 1939 Black Friday bushfires. Record-setting heat and drought Linden Ashcroft, a researcher of climate history at the Bureau of Meteorology, says the weather in early 1939 was notably severe. Four of the five hottest days on record for New South Wales as a whole were in January 1939, and two of the five hottest days in Victoria, she says. Victoria's hottest day is now February 7, 2009, just before the Black Saturday blazes. Melbourne hit a record high of 46.4 degrees in the late afternoon. "The second week in January [1939] is generally regarded as the most extreme heatwave to affect south-eastern Australia during the 20th century," Ashcroft says. Dry conditions played an important role, too, with the fires coming at the end of two dry years that would later be known as the World War II drought, one of the worst on record for south-eastern Australia. "January 1937 to December 1938 were much drier than average across almost all of Victoria and NSW, and remain the driest two-year period on record for much of Victoria's eastern ranges where the Black Friday bushfires caused so much destruction," Ashcroft says. "December 1938, in particular, was very dry across almost all of eastern Australia, which would have helped to really crisp up any fuel. "Things were so dry that the topsoil blew up into dust storms easily, and did so for much of the summer until much-needed rain fell in February 1939." Scorched trees line the Black Spur between Healesville and Marysville after Black Friday in January 1939. Credit:Department of Primary Industries Lighting up With a hot air mass forming over the continent, the missing ingredient was a strong cold front from a low-pressure system off the south-west coast of Victoria. With forest workers, graziers and even campers busy lighting fires as normal the latter "burning to facilitate passage through the bush, according to Stretton the flames were ready to be fanned into an inferno. Even without sophisticated weather modelling or satellite imagery to guide forecasters and the public alike, the "shadow of dread" Stretton reported was real, ANU's Griffiths says. "The whole week leading into Black Friday was terrifying in the bush," he says. "No one living in the bush at that time thought their homes were safe they fled to rivers, creeks, dugouts, mining tunnels and public buildings where they existed." Stretton notes the calamity that befell those who were unable to flee, in particular one mill where all but one of the workers died while trying to bury [themselves] in the imagined safety of the sawdust heap. Making progress Some long-standing good would come out of the inquiry, as Joelle Gergis, climate scientist, notes in her book, Sunburnt Country. Apart from the CFA's creation, recommendations acted upon included "construction of a network of access trails, towers for early detection of fires, the implementation of controlled burns during spring and autumn to reduce fuel loads, and improved fire prevention education", she writes. Those gains were important, not just for humans, given the impact fires had the environment. Mountain ash in the Yarra Ranges, a region burnt out in 1939 leaving a forest largely of a similar vintage. (Image taken 12 January 2019.) Credit:Peter Hannam "Large tree hollows and other important habitats for mammals and birds, such as the Leadbeater's possum and powerful owl, were destroyed when the mature mountain ash forests burned," Gergis writes, noting that reports state the ash from the burning forests fell as far away as New Zealand. "Local soils took decades to recover from the damage, and in some areas, water supplies were contaminated for years afterwards due to ash and debris washing into catchment areas." Travellers up the Maroondah Highway beyond Healesville on Melbourne's north-eastern edge can see some of the evidence of the 1939 fires to this day. The battalion-like formations of towering mountain ash trees of similar shining white girth bear witness to their common vintage, all circa 1939. Mountain ash logs piled up at a site in the Yarra Ranges, north-east of Melbourne. Ring-counters would get close to 80 on most of them. Credit:Peter Hannam Scientific leaps Richard Thornton, chief executive of the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, said Stretton's report "was the first real attempt to gain a deep understanding of the causes and consequences of a major bushfire". "This approach continues today as we study fires to learn how to better keep people and property safe in future fires, he says. Scientific advances means technology available now and in 1939 are almost incomparable. "Not just in firefighting equipment like more protective clothing and vehicles, but in analysing the weather and the land with satellites and aircraft, before, during and after bushfires," Thornton says. "Today we have a much better understanding of extreme bushfire behaviour, and how large bushfires interact with the atmosphere and create their own weather," he says. "There is software to predict the path of a bushfire, and more experts trained to provide more accurate warnings to threatened communities." Human factors Researchers also provide expert advice on building standards to ensure that new buildings are safer and more likely to survive a bushfire, provided human psychology is taken into account. "Thats one thing that hasnt changed since 1939," Thornton says, noting that people will continue to want to build on ridges and at the end of one-way roads deep in the bush even with the attendant risks. Griffiths agrees, adding that in terms of research gaps about fire, "they are overwhelmingly cultural". "We know a lot about the physical behaviour of fire, less about the ecological effects of fire, and least of all about the cultural, human dimensions of fire," he says, citing international fire historian, Stephen Pyne: "The cultural paradigm is both the most obvious and the least developed [in fire research]". 'Beyond our imagination' Thornton from the bushfire research centre adds that studying events like the 1939 and 2009 conflagrations, or the 1983 Ash Wednesday fires in South Australia and Victoria, also have their limitations because historical precedents are only so helpful. At the time, the 1939 conditions were beyond the imagination of everyone, even those who had lived their whole lives in the bush," he says. "What does the next bushfire that is beyond our imagination look like? What will its impacts be? "Climate change is causing more severe weather more frequently, but demographic changes are having an equal impact and deserve just as much of our attention," Thornton says. "Since 1939, our population has grown from around 7 million to more than 24 million, with more people living, working and playing in at-risk areas." Climate signals The Bureau of Meteorology and CSIRO biennial State of the Climate report, released late last year, singled out extreme bushfire conditions as among the clearest changes under way as the country's (and world's) climate warms. The most extreme 10 per cent of fire weather days based on temperature, rainfall, humidity and wind speed has increased in recent decades across many regions of Australia, especially in southern and eastern Australia, the report said. One consequence is an associated increase in the length of the fire weather season, a view supported by 2018's late-season fires in March and late winter in NSW and Victoria. The trend is particularly notable in spring. "The 1939 heatwave remains a very significant event, but observations show that extreme heat events, from hot days to heatwaves to a warmer-than-average month, are happening more often," Ashcroft says. She cites the example of 86 extreme hot days (when the Australia-wide maximum temperature was in the top 1 per cent of temperatures recorded) observed during the five-year period from 2013 to 2017. "This is more than double the number of extreme heat days recorded during the 50-year period from 1911 to 1960," she says. One degree headstart Unlike 1939, when Stretton concluded that much of the evidence put to him was "quite false" and "little of it was wholly truthful", researchers have a wealth of data open to scrutiny and cross-checking (even by deniers of climate change). That means they can compare how sea-breezes eased the 1939 heatwave but were largely missing in the belter that swept across south-eastern Australia ahead of Black Saturday. Trusted local news has never been more important, but providing the information you need, information that can change sometimes minute-by-minute, requires a partnership with you, our readers. Please consider making a contribution today to support this vital resource that you and countless others depend on. Brian Gregory Robling of Washington, 23, passed away Monday, June 7, 2021. Brian was born July 11, 1997, in Washington, to Amber (Robling) Whiteman and Michael Bernard. He graduated from Washington High School in 2016. Brian is survived by his parents; his son, Zyler Mehrer of Washington; da In the Fox interview, Trump also dismissed a report by The Post that catalogued the extraordinary measures he had taken to keep details of his conversations with Putin from other U.S. officials. In once instance, Trump took possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructed the linguist not to discuss what had happened with other administration officials. Trumps secrecy surrounding Putin is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous, said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. It handicaps the U.S. government the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump. Stanytsia Luhanska is one of five locations where Ukrainians can pass between rebel and government-controlled land which average in total more than 1 million crossings per month. But it is the only one located in Luhanksa region and is also the only that bans automobiles. So all crossings must be on foot. Around the time Barrs memo was submitted to the Justice Department, it was also sent to the White House, according to a person familiar with the matter. That could be a another troublesome point for Barr. Long before he submitted the memo, Barr had discussions about potentially serving as Trumps lawyer in the investigation, though he declined. Barrs allies say they do not believe that presents a conflict with his supervising the Mueller probe, though it is likely to generate questions at his confirmation hearing. But in the weeks to follow, as he was also waging a battle with Democrats over a partial government shutdown, there were signs that Trump might be moderating his Syria position. Trump seemed less bothered by what he viewed as the reflexive caution and slow-walking of his directives by aides, more than a half dozen U.S. officials and international diplomats familiar with the debate said. The Pentagon suggested a departure timetable of four months rather than one, and Trump has distanced himself from his stated policy while denying there was a shift. Miami International Airport closed one of its concourses for half the day on Saturday. Airport officials said they plan to do the same on Sunday and Monday out of concerns they wouldnt have enough employees to operate all the security checkpoints. The question, then, is not why the FBI launched a counterintelligence investigation into Trump in the days after he fired James B. Comey as FBI director, as the New York Times revealed Friday, but why are we surprised? And why did it take so long? Why didnt it begin in 2013 or 2014? Why didnt it begin, for that matter, in 1987? Nor should anyone be surprised to learn, as The Washington Post reported over the weekend, that Trump has failed to give a proper accounting of his meetings with Putin to any of his State Department officials, any of his intelligence officers, anyone at all. Of course he hasnt: His relationship with Russia is perverse and peculiar we can all see that so he doesnt want anyone to learn anything more about it. MEDIA Delaware County's most senior medical official issued recommendations pertaining to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV), which has killed more than 100 people and sickened thousands in China. In recent years, Ginsburg, 85, has acquired a cultlike following.You can buy baby onesies and stud earrings of the jabot she wears when she delivers dissents; her workout routine has become a source of fitspiration; and, most recently, Felicity Jones played a young Ginsburg in the movie On the Basis of Sex. But, at the same time, her fragility has become clearer. Since Ginsburgs appointment to the Supreme Court, she has survived both colorectal and pancreatic cancers. In November, she took time off after a fall. And this month , Ginsburg missed her first oral argument in 25 years while recovering from surgery for lung cancer. The result has been an unusually intense cultural preoccupation with Ginsburgs mortality. Ginsburg deserves our esteem. But we cant ask an octogenarian to take sole responsibility for preserving womens rights. Trump has a long financial history with Russia. As summarized by Jonathan Chait in an invaluable New York magazine article: From 2003 to 2017, people from the former USSR made 86 all-cash purchases a red flag of potential money laundering of Trump properties, totaling $109 million. In 2010, the private-wealth division of Deutsche Bank also loaned him hundreds of millions of dollars during the same period it was laundering billions in Russian money. Russians make up a pretty disproportionate cross-section of a lot of our assets, said Donald Jr. in 2008. We dont rely on American banks. We have all the funding we need out of Russia, boasted Eric Trump in 2014. According to Trump attorney Michael Cohens guilty plea of lying to Congress, Trump was even pursuing his dream of building a Trump Tower during the 2016 campaign with the help of a Vladimir Putin aide. These are the kind of financial entanglements that intelligence services such as the FSB typically use to ensnare foreigners, and they could leave Trump vulnerable to blackmail. Election runner-up calls for recount in Congo: Congo's presidential runner-up Martin Fayulu has asked the constitutional court to order a recount in the disputed election. He could be risking more than the court's refusal. Congo's electoral commission president, Corneille Nangaa, has said there are only two options: that the official results are accepted or that the vote is annulled which would keep President Joseph Kabila in power until another vote could be held. Fayulu has accused the declared winner, opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi, of a backroom deal with Kabila to win power in the mineral-rich country. Couple dies in Manhattan high-rise fire: An elderly Manhattan couple died in a blaze that engulfed their luxury high-rise apartment before dawn Saturday and sent flames roaring out the windows. Investigators are looking into the possibility that cigarette smoking in bed may have caused the fire at the famed River House co-op on East 52nd Street. Fire officials say an 85-year-old woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Her 89-year-old husband was rushed to Weill Cornell Medical Center but died of his injuries. But its not always sad, he said. People are moved to a more euphoric brand of crying with certain music, such as the bigger, bombastic numbers you hear in a Broadway musical or sung by a choir. These intense but inspired bursts of crying often happen in the car, as well (this happened to me recently when I played Do You Hear the People Sing from Les Miserables for my children as we drove to after-school activities; I just couldnt stop thinking about the earthshaking power of a citizenry bent on righteous revolution. At that moment, perhaps thinking of the challenges our own country faces, the music made me inspired and teary.) What killed her? If it was childbirth, there is no record of a child born or buried the year she died. If it was flu or tuberculosis or another contagious disease, there is no evidence of anyone else in her family dying in May 1855, although both were common causes of death in 19th-century communities. Maybe it was a laceration that became infected, picked up in unrelenting farm and housework. The month of May in the high Catskills could be chilly, and the winter stores of food would have been nearly depleted. Crops would not yet have produced anything. There was the occasional flash flood in the nearby creeks, so maybe she drowned. The heroin worth an estimated $4 million was laced with fentanyl, according to authorities, who cite it as an example of how the powerful drug is distributed in large quantities. It also demonstrates the use of the deadly opioid additive that itself is 50 times more potent than heroin and blamed for mounting overdose deaths in the District and around the country. Todays Headlines The most important news stories of the day, curated by Post editors and delivered every morning. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy At his death, Dr. Ribuffo was working on a social and cultural study of Jimmy Carters presidency. The planned book is not in obvious ways related to The Old Christian Right, Dr. Ribuffo told the reference guide Contemporary Authors. But, as a historian, I must acknowledge continuity as well as change. My knowledge of religion, acquired while writing my first book, will help me to understand Jimmy Carter, the most devout Protestant president since William McKinley. Mr. Salter was struck with brass knuckles and slashed in the back of the head with the edge of a broken glass sugar container. A watery pepper solution was thrown in his eyes. His cuts and abrasions were filled with salt and pepper. Blood dripped onto his shirt and mixed with the ketchup, mustard and sugar that had been dumped on his head. However, the protocol already had been breached at least once. In 1967, Carol Laise, then the ambassador to Nepal, married Ellsworth Bunker, an ambassador at large who later became ambassador to South Vietnam. At their wedding in Nepal, they received a congratulatory telegram from President Lyndon B. Johnson, which would have made it exceedingly difficult for a State Department bureaucrat to have insisted that Carol Laise Bunker leave the Foreign Service. The highway was the site of a fatal crash Dec. 30 in which a pickup, driven by a man police suspect was intoxicated, slammed into the back of another car. Three siblings, 5-year-old twins and their 13-month-old brother, were killed; the childrens parents were hospitalized for injuries. The trouble comes, though, when those are the only tools men believe they have: when they need help and are afraid to ask for it, when theyre experiencing emotions they cant even name, much less express. And when they blame themselves for being unable to make those insufficient tools work, and the result is to lash out or lash in in violence. Till recently, many of us visiting the State Capitol regarded this plaque as a quaint bit of revisionist history, obviously misleading but fairly innocuous, especially given the United States in the meantime had made great progress in terms of civil rights, evident in court decisions such as Brown v. Board of Education in 1954 and legislation such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965, both pressed by a Texan, President Lyndon Johnson. So long as such progress was made in terms of racial equality, many of us gave the plaque little notice. But the 2008 election of an African-American president unleashed racism that was further stoked by latter-day politicians to the degree it inspired white nationalist violence such as we witnessed a year and a half ago in Charlottesville. Many of us then realized that, yes, maybe it was time to remove the plaque. Texans can argue about the fate of statues glorifying Confederate statesmen and soldiers such as Robert E. Lee, but the plaque by its very wording isnt history except in the sense it shows Southern sympathizers trying to rewrite history. If theres any lesson in all this, its that lies told often and long enough cultivate their own sort of truth. As Texas Freedom Network political director Carisa Lopez remarked last week, it was only last November that the State Board of Education voted to require Texas public schools to teach that slavery was the central cause of the Civil War. Eight years earlier the board refused to do so. God only knows what youngsters in Children of the Confederacy in 1959 grew up believing. Every Senate Democrat voted for the Gang of Eight bill including 36 Democratic senators still serving today. President Obama agreed to sign it. Indeed, he praised the bill for including what he called the most aggressive border security plan in our history and said that the Senate bill is consistent with the key principles for common-sense reform that I and many others have repeatedly laid out. That bears repeating: Obama said building a 700-mile fence on the southern border was consistent with the principles of the Democratic Party. Pelosi supported the Gang of Eight bill, saying at the time that every piece of this legislation has had bipartisan support. But now we are shutting down the government over a wall much like the one that Pelosi and Senate Democrats fully supported just five years ago? Democrats will object that the Gang of Eight bill did fund a border wall but that it was in exchange for a lot of concessions. Of course it was. As Obama said at the time, the bipartisan bill that passed today was a compromise. But today, Democrats are refusing to compromise or lay out what concessions they would accept in exchange for wall funding. When Vice President Mike Pence reportedly offered a deal for $2.5 billion, Democrats dismissed it. Democrats could not possibly be in a better position to demand concessions from Trump. So put some demands on the table, for crying out loud. If Democrats think they have Trump cornered, then squeeze him and try to get a lot out of him. But dont refuse to negotiate and tell us the wall is an immorality. Their voting history shows they dont believe that. Marc A. Thiessen is a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. The administration is specifically eyeing a disaster spending bill passed by Congress last year that includes $13.9 billion in funding that has been allocated but not actually spent for a variety of projects, according to the second person, a congressional aide who also requested anonymity. Graham and his colleagues should, of course, in concert with the House, pass a resolution declaring there is no emergency justifying such a power grab and commit to opposing the president in court. By cutting off Trumps illegal escape hatch, they can force the White House and the House to resolve this. And as a defender of the military (as he so often tells us), Graham should be the first to object to use of funds for the military for Trumps wall scheme. Conservative writer and lawyer David French provides guidance that Graham should find helpful: The bottom line is that even under the most generous statute, only during a national emergency that may require the use of the military may the president allocate funds for authorized construction projects that are essential to the national defense. . . . Jane Hammond covers education for the Daily Press. She graduated with a journalism degree from Mercer University's Center for Collaborative Journalism in May 2015. She previously worked for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The (Macon) Telegraph, AL.com/The Huntsville Times and Georgia Public Broadcasting. She feels strongly about Mercer basketball, Target and neon nail polish. 1. Tax Returns. Upon whichever comes earlier nomination by a major political party or taking the oath of office the treasury department should make public the last five years of tax returns of the nominee/president. This is one of those very useful and long-lived (40 years) customs suddenly no longer a norm. Modern times have reminded us of the value of Deep Throats Watergate-era command to follow the money and of the wisdom in the biblical admonition that where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. Better the voters know. 2. Blind Trust. We mean an independent legal structure for the presidents assets, not the eyes-shut-tight goodwill he expects us to extend. This is a straightforward idea: a president who doesnt know how his or her decisions are likely to affect his or her own assets is less likely to take actions for reasons of personal financial gain. The law should require that the blind trust be truly blindturning over control to relatives or partial control shouldnt cut it. A provision already in place (Certificate of Divestiture 26 U.S.C. 1043) to protect government officials from undue/premature tax burdens when selling assets to avoid conflicts of interest could be expanded to cover presidents surrendering assets. With a blind trust in place, the question of what constitutes unconstitutional emoluments no longer need occupy the courts. As a reminder, Trumps 2016 campaign promise made while he and supporters were labeling his Democratic opponent a liar was to build a border wall funded by Mexico. For two long years afterward, Republicans in charge of Capitol Hill could or would not give him his coveted prize. Now Trump demands $5.7 billion from the American taxpayer to fund a wall that poll after poll shows most Americans including the mayors and county judges of Texas border cities do not want. One wonders why Congressman Flores calls this common sense. Was it common sense to send U.S. troops to the border just before the 2018 midterms to stop unarmed migrant women and children? Were they a threat to our Texans on the border? During my stay in McAllen, I met with Mayor Jim Darling, a Baylor University graduate (BA,76; JD,78). McAllen is about the same size as Waco. If were interested in actual facts increasingly elusive these days then its relevant to consider those close to the situation and not the leader of the Republican Party who even Fox News recently called out as a liar on border issues. Mayor Darlings words matter because he knows the region, its assets, its dangers: A wall is really not the effective way to protect our border. Born Robert James Gay in Regina, New Mexico, in 1924, Robert moved at the age of two with his family to Temple, Texas. He excelled in his studies, graduating from Temple High School in 1943. Upon graduation, Robert enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in the Combat Engineers and Army Specialized Training Program before his assignment in the Signal Corps in the World War II Pacific Theater of Operations in 1944. During the war he was stationed at Diamond Head listening station in the Hawaii Islands. He served a stint in Kyoto, Japan, following the war before returning to the States and enrolling at the University of Texas at Austin. He earned three degrees there, a BS with highest honors in physics in 1949, an MA in physics in 1950, and a physics PhD Phi Beta Kappa in 1952.Robert spent several years during the early Cold War working on high-level national security and defense research at the University of Texas and teaching undergraduate courses in physics at his alma mater. In September of 1952, he received an invitation to become an Associate Professor of physics at Baylor University. It was during those first few years at Baylor when he met and married Joyce Hornaday, Assistant Dean of Women at Baylor. They were wed on April 15, 1954, by then university president, Dr. W.R. White. Williams lived off base in Mons, Belgium, with his wife, Dee Fagerburg. They married in 1970, and they spent many a day touring Europe and surrounding countries, including Germany and Switzerland. His favorite was Austria. I walked the path that Julie Andrews walked in The Sound of Music, he said. Its the most beautiful country Ive ever seen. Williams said the locals spoke Flemish, a form of French. Since his wife spoke the language, they had no problems. That made it a lot easier, he said. A specialist 5, Williams spent most of his time at SHAPE and traveling with his wife. In fact, he was honorably discharged in Europe, where the couple continued to tour after he left the military in 1972. He spent three years in the Reserves but was never called up. After their tour, Williams came back to Bloomington, then Springfield, Massachusetts, then used the G.I. Bill to attend college at the University of Houston, and later the Missouri State University, where he earned a bachelors degree in business administration. Williams went into business for himself in import/exports, traveling to Mexico to buy goods that were sold throughout the United States. At one point, his Mexican imports were available in every Kmart in the nation. The 18-year-old was driving his flashy new Dodge Charger through a Waco suburban community when he saw the unmistakable lights of a police car behind him. He was nervous as he pulled over because he had a little weed on him. The officer was aggressive, and the mans small marijuana stash quickly was discovered. The officer asked him about his shiny ride. More specifically, the officer asked if the Charger was paid for, a clear sign to the young mans lawyer that the officer was searching for a way to bump what otherwise would have been a minor infraction up to a felony. After learning the car indeed was paid for, the officer charged the man with possession of marijuana with intent to deliver in a drug-free zone, despite the fact that he had far less than an ounce of marijuana for his personal use. Waco attorney Cody Cleveland has had at least five clients who went through that or similar scenarios in at least two Waco suburbs in the past five years. He declined to identify the cities. The Central Texas Choral Society will have auditions at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Central United Methodist Church, 5740 Bagby Ave. The group will be performing Mozarts Requiem in the spring. To set up an audition time, email centraltexaschoral society@ yahoo.com. For more information, call 717-4736. Genealogy program The Central Texas Genealogical Society and West Waco Genealogy Center will host a free program from noon to 1 p.m. in the library meeting room, 5301 Bosque Blvd. The theme is learning to search, share and create memorials of ancestors using findagrave.com. GriefShare program Peace Lutheran Church will start a 13-week GriefShare session from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday in the Public Education Room at Peace Lutheran Church, 9301 Panther Way in Hewitt. Meetings will continue through April 9. The cost of the event is $15, which covers the cost of a workbook and all additional materials. Snacks are provided each week. To preregister or to arrange for child care, contact Becky Ritz at 857-9794 or rjritz@earthlink.net. Maine Game Wardens said a moose calf died after colliding with a snowmobile, Friday. Three people were riding west of Greenville on the Interconnecting Trail System 110, when it happened. Around 6 p.m., one rider saw the moose and avoided it. Wardens said, 33-year-old, Juan Fernandez, of New York, collided with the calf, which killed the animal. They said while trying to avoid the calf and Fernandez, 44-year-old, Bruce Saucier, of Bangor, crashed into the rear of Fernandez's sled. Authorities said Saucier suffered a broken leg. We're told he managed to drive his sled with his injuries back to camp in Elliotsville, which was several miles away. All three men were wearing helmets. And there's the rub. With no written history of their own, tribal legacies must lean on the records of the early colonists. Those old maps place Pamunkey turf in the general vicinity of their present-day reservation, more than 80 miles from Norfolk. The south side of Hampton Roads was marked as the land of the Nansemond and Chesapeake tribes. Of those two, only the Nansemond remain. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 13) The President has fired Bacolod City Chief of Police S/Supt. Francis Ebreo and four other police officers for alleged involvement in illegal drugs. In a statement Sunday, the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) said President Rodrigo Duterte fired Ebreo during his speech in a private event at the L'Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City. "In your involvement in drugs and making the people of Bacolod miserable, I am relieving and dismissing you from the service as of now, Senior Superintendent Francis Ebreo," Duterte said Saturday. He also laid off four officers identified in the statement as Police Superintendent Nasruddin Tayuan, P/Supt. Richie Yatar, Senior Inspector Victor Paulino and P/SSupt. Allan Macapagal. The officers have been reassigned to the Regional Personnel Holding and Accounting Unit (RPHAU), as per the Metro Manila police office. The President ordered these men to report to him at 2 p.m. on Monday. Duterte accused the officers of working with drug syndicates. "But these persons that I have mentioned have something to do with the interest of the city... you are protecting, or you are in cahoots with the drug syndicate in the city," he said. MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) - An Alabama-based chiropractor, who was accused in a scheme to conduct fraudulent physical examinations on prospective long haul truckers and submit false documents to federal transportation regulators, has been sentenced to more than three years in prison. The Ledger-Enquirer reports Chief U.S. District Judge W. Keith Watkins of the Middle District of Alabama sentenced Dr. Kenneth G. Edwards, of Columbus, Georgia, to 37 months on Thursday. Watkins says the 65-year-old physician, who practiced in Phenix City, had abused the trust placed in him by the U.S. Department of Transportation. The offense netted Edwards about $224,000. U.S. Attorney Louis V. Franklin Sr. says the doctor was willing to risk putting physically unqualified individuals behind the wheels of large commercial vehicles to make a few easy bucks. A Birmingham Police officer was shot and killed, a second was in critical condition, after a shooting early Sunday morning. According to ABC 33/40, the ABC Birmingham affiliate, the officers were responding to the break-in on 5th Avenue North just before 2:00 A.M. One suspect shot and killed an officer and critically injured the other. Police Chief Patrick Smith said one suspect is also in critical condition, and the other is behind bars. He indicated a third suspect may still be on the run. Shortly after word broke of the shooting, U.S. Attorney Jay Town released this statement: "This tragedy is a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers all law enforcement face while we sleep. While they keep us safe. While they do the job. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the officers, the officer still fighting for his life, and the fallen officer whose end of watch came much too soon." Birmingham police did not release the names of the officers or suspects. Governor Kay Ivey released a statement Sunday afternoon: We began today with the heartbreaking news that Birmingham Police Sergeant Wytasha Carter was killed in the line of duty and a second officer still remains in critical condition. On behalf of the entire state of Alabama, I offer my deepest sympathies and prayers as we all mourn the death of Sergeant Carter, which came far too soon. This is a terrible loss for Sergeant Carters loved ones, his fellow law enforcement officers and our entire state. Let us keep Sergeant Carter, his wife and children close to our hearts during this difficult time. I offer my fervent prayers to the second officer still fighting to stay alive. I also pray for the doctors, nurses and staff working to help this officer survive the tragedy. To this officer, know that the people of Alabama stand behind you. We must never forget the tremendous sacrifice that our law enforcement make each and every day. We certainly will always remember Birmingham Police Sergeant Wytasha Carter and his ultimate sacrifice for the people of Birmingham who he served so well." The gunman who killed an officer in Northern California left behind a letter accusing the Davis police department of hitting him with "ultra sonic waves." A man on a bicycle shot Davis police Officer Natalie Corona, 22, Thursday night as she responded to a triple-car crash in the city of Davis. He was later found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Accidents Accidents, disasters and safety Crime, law enforcement and corrections Crimes against persons Criminal offenses Deaths and fatalities Law enforcement Policing and police forces Shootings Society Traffic accidents Homicide Police deaths and injuries California Continents and regions North America Southwestern United States The Americas United States In a statement Saturday, the Yolo County Sheriff's Office identified Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48, as the suspect in the officer's killing. Limbaugh left behind a letter, according to Davis police spokesman Lt. Paul Doroshov, who read the letter on camera to CNN affiliate KMAX. "The Davis police department has been hitting me with ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking. I notified the press, internal affairs, and even the FBI about it. I am highly sensitive to its affect [sic] on my inner ear," the letter reads. "I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I can't live this way anymore." The letter is signed "Citizen Kevin Limbaugh." 'A rising star' Corona was shot multiple times, Davis police Chief Darren Pytel said. "This clearly to us looks like an ambush," Pytel said. After shooting Corona, the suspect reloaded his firearm and fired toward a firefighter and a fire truck that were also responding to the traffic collision. Then he fled. A manhunt for the shooter ended hours later when police found him dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a home in Davis. He had left a backpack at the crime scene with information that led the officers to his home, Pytel said. Corona died at the UC Davis Medical Center in nearby Sacramento. She began her service with the department as a community service officer in 2016. She finished the police academy in July and was promoted to police officer upon graduation. "She was a rising star in the department," Pytel said. She was a second-generation officer Corona's father, Merced, is a retired Colusa County sheriff's sergeant in California. He stepped down from the force in 2012 after 26 years. Payne, who also was newly hired, was in uniform and getting ready for work when she was gunned down at a Shreveport home, police Chief Ben Raymond said. No one had been arrested in the shooting, and it is not known what led to the killing, Raymond said. Payne was hired in July as an academy cadet and graduated in November. Raymond said her academy classmates grieved over her death. A U.S. House of Representatives committee will look into a newspaper report that the FBI investigated whether President Donald Trump has been working on behalf of Russia, against U.S. interests, the panel's Democratic chairman said Saturday. The New York Times reported that the probe began in the days after Trump fired James Comey as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation in May 2017 and said the agency's counterintelligence investigators had to consider whether Trump's actions constituted a possible threat to national security. The White House late on Friday rejected the Times article as "absurd," while Trump on Saturday lashed out at Comey and the FBI in half a dozen tweets. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said his panel "will take steps to better understand both the president's actions and the FBI's response to that behavior" in coming weeks. He also said lawmakers would seek to protect investigators from the president's "increasingly unhinged attacks." "There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI, as the president did in reaction to this story," Nadler, a New York Democrat, said in a statement. 'Erratic' behavior "We have learned from this reporting that, even in the earliest days of the Trump administration, the president's behavior was so erratic and so concerning that the FBI felt compelled to do the unprecedented open a counterintelligence investigation into a sitting president," Nadler said. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff said he could not comment on the specifics of the report, but said his committee would press ahead with its probe of Trump's contacts with Russia. "Counterintelligence concerns about those associated with the Trump campaign, including the president himself, have been at the heart of our investigation since the beginning," said Schiff, a California Democrat. Schiff said meetings, contacts and communications between Trump associates and Russians, as well as "the web of lies about those interactions, and the president's own statements and actions," have heightened the need to follow the evidence where it leads. Trump took notes of a 2017 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Hamburg from his own interpreter and took other steps to conceal details of their conversations, a report in The Washington Post said Saturday. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said the report, which cited unnamed current and former U.S. officials, was "so outrageously inaccurate it doesn't even warrant a response." The Times said FBI officials became suspicious of Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign, but held off on opening an investigation until Trump tied his dismissal of Comey to a probe into allegations of election meddling by Russia. The FBI also considered whether the Republican president's firing of Comey amounted to obstruction of justice. Mueller takes reins U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller took over the investigation into Trump days after the FBI opened it, as he examined allegations of Russian election interference, the Times reported. Russia denies it sought to influence the election. Trump responded on Saturday by lashing out at the Times and former FBI leaders, and criticized the agency's earlier probe of Democrat Hillary Clinton, his rival in the 2016 election. "Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin' James Comey, a total sleaze!" Trump tweeted. Comey took to Twitter later Saturday, offering a quote he attributed to former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt: "I ask you to judge me by the enemies I have made." "We literally might be able to use medical cannabis to get out of this public health crisis that's killing our people because of prescription pain pills that are pushing them to heroin," Caffrey said. "To me, it's this huge irony that this drug that everyone has said is so bad for so long might end up saving a lot of lives and solving that societal problem." The URL has been copied to your clipboard The code has been copied to your clipboard. Home to Apple, Facebook and Google, Silicon Valley is an American economic powerhouse, producing technology companies with global influence. But behind these influential American brands are scores of foreign workers who play a critical role in the Valley's tech workforce. Deana Mitchell reports. It is more than three weeks into the partial government shutdown. Among the hundreds of thousands of federal employees affected by the political battle are military veterans. According to the latest government data, veterans make up about a third of the federal governments civilian workforce. Tyler Holmquist of Fredericksburg, Virginia, is a veteran and an employee of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Hes one of the federal workers furloughed in the government shutdown, unable to work or collect pay. You just start making adjustments. You start cutting eating out. You try to make less trips to town to save on gas, Holmquist said. Family legacy of service Holmquist spent 24 years in the Marine Corps, continuing a family legacy of fighters that dates back to World War I. And he views his job in the Department of Homeland Security as a continuation of his service. Support and defend the Constitution, support and defend the nation (is) something a Marine can easily get behind, he said. Carey Holmquist has been out of the workforce for years, opting to stay home to care for their children during her husbands military deployments and the many family moves. But that could change soon. Actually I may be applying for jobs because we dont know how long this is going to last, she said. Border security, family security Holmquists employer, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is at the center of the political impasse fueling the furloughs. A lot of people that were talking about in terms of pay, they agree with me, President Donald Trump said during a visit to the border Thursday. Are the Holmquists among the people the president is referring to? I very much support a wall or barrier and better security, Carey Holmquist said. On the other hand, Im starting to wake up at night and be stressed because were not getting a paycheck. Theyre hoping elected leaders will quickly do their jobs, so Tyler can get back to his. BERLIN, GERMANY - The U.S. ambassador to Germany has warned companies involved in the construction of the Russian-led Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline that they could face sanctions if they stick to the project, a senior U.S. official said on Sunday. U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Germany of being a "captive" of Moscow due to its reliance on Russian energy and urged it to halt work on the $11 billion gas pipeline. The pipeline, which would carry gas straight to Germany under the Baltic Sea, is also seen critical by other European countries as it would deprive Ukraine of lucrative gas transit fees which could make Kiev more vulnerable in the future. U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell addressed the issue in a letter sent to several companies, the U.S. Embassy said. "The letter reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector is in danger under CAATSA of U.S. sanctions," the embassy spokesman said, adding that other European states also opposed the planned pipeline. Germany and other European allies accuse Washington of using its Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) to meddle in their foreign and energy policies due to its extraterritorial effect. Russian gas giant Gazprom is implementing the project jointly with its Western partners Uniper, Wintershall, Engie, Austria's OMV and Anglo-Dutch group Shell. The logo of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline project The logo of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline project is seen on a board at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2017 (SPIEF 2017) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 1, 2017. The logo of the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline project is seen on a board at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2017 (SPIEF 2017) in St. Petersburg, Russia, June 1, 2017. The letter raised eyebrows within the German government. A German diplomat said the ambassador's approach did not correspond to common diplomatic practice and that Berlin would address the issue in direct talks with officials in Washington. An Uniper spokesman declined to comment while no immediate reaction was available from Wintershall. Germany and Russia have been at odds since Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. But they have a common interest in the Nord Stream 2 project, which is expected to double the capacity of the existing Nord Stream 1 route. German newspaper Bild am Sonntag, which was first to report on the letter, said that Grenell was trying to blackmail German companies with the letter. The U.S. Embassy denied this. "The only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies," the embassy spokesman said. The letter was coordinated in Washington by several U.S. government agencies and "is not meant to be a threat but a clear message of U.S. policy", the spokesman added. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Thursday that any U.S. sanctions against Nord Stream 2 would be the wrong way to solve the dispute and that questions of European energy policy had to be decided in Europe, not in the United States. WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump is dismissing news reports suggesting he is beholden to Russia and President Vladimir Putin or hiding accounts of his private talks with the Russian leader the five times they have met, including at their July summit in Helsinki. Asked directly late Saturday by Fox News talk show host Jeanine Pirro whether he is now or has ever worked for Russia, Trump said, I think it's the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked. U.S. House Panel Eyes Reported FBI Probe of Trump A U.S. House of Representatives committee will look into a newspaper report that the FBI investigated whether President Donald Trump has been working on behalf of Russia, against U.S. A U.S. House of Representatives committee will look into a newspaper report that the FBI investigated whether President Donald Trump has been working on behalf of Russia, against U.S. The U.S. leader said, If you ask the folks in Russia, Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any other probably any other president period, but certainly the last three or four presidents, modern day presidents. Nobody's been as tough as I have from any standpoint. Trump was reacting to a report in The New York Times that Federal Bureau of Investigation officials started investigating whether he was knowingly working for Russia or had unwittingly fallen under Moscow's influence" because they were so alarmed by Trumps behavior after he fired former FBI chief James Comey in May 2017 when he was leading the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. It's a very horrible thing they said, Trump said. They really are a disaster of a newspaper. FILE - Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman FILE - Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., speaks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 27, 2017. FILE - Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., speaks with reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Sept. 27, 2017. Virginia Senator Mark Warner, the leading Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee that has been investigating Trump campaign links with Russia, told CNN on Sunday that at times Trump has almost parroted Putins policies. Its a very real consideration whether Trump is a willing agent of Russia, Warner said, especially considering information that surfaced last week that former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort shared Trump campaign polling data in 2016 with a former business associate of his that U.S. investigators believe had ties to Russian intelligence. Another key Senate Democrat, Dick Durbin of Illinois, told ABC News there are serious questions" about why Trump is "so chummy" with Putin. Earlier, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler said in a statement that in the coming weeks his panel "will take steps to better understand both the president's actions and the FBI's response to that behavior. There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI, as the president did in reaction to this story." FILE - In this Monday, July 16, 2018, file photo, FILE - In this Monday, July 16, 2018, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands at the beginning of a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland. FILE - In this Monday, July 16, 2018, file photo, U.S. President Donald Trump, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin shake hands at the beginning of a meeting at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland. Trump also assailed The Washington Posts new account that he has gone to extraordinary lengths to hide details of his conversations with Putin over the last two years. On one occasion, the newspaper said Trump took possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructed the linguist to not discuss what had transpired with other Trump administration officials. The newspaper said that incident occurred after Trump and Putin met in Hamburg in 2017, a meeting also attended by then-U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. President Donald Trump meets with Russian Presiden FILE - President Donald Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 Summit in Hamburg, July 7, 2017. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is at left, then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is at right. FILE - President Donald Trump meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G-20 Summit in Hamburg, July 7, 2017. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is at left, then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is at right. Trumps most high-profile meeting with Putin occurred in Helsinki, where the two leaders met for two hours behind closed doors with only their interpreters listening in. No official accounts of their talks have been released, but Trump told Pirro there was nothing to hide about their discussions and could release a transcript. Well Jeanine I would, I dont care, Trump said. I had a conversation like every president does. You sit with the president of various countries, I do it with all countries. We had a great conversation. We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things. And it was a great conversation. Im not keeping anything under wraps, I couldnt care less. I mean, its so ridiculous. He added, Anybody could have listened to that meeting, that meeting is up for grabs. Trumps first two years in office have been consumed by the now 20-month investigation whether his 2016 campaign colluded with Russia to help him win and whether, as president, Trump obstructed justice by trying to thwart the probe by special counsel Robert Mueller, who took over the investigation after Trump ousted Comey. Shortly after Trump dismissed Comey, he told NBC news anchor Lester Holt that he was thinking of this Russia thing when he decided to fire the FBI chief, saying that he felt the investigation was created by Democrats dismayed that Trump had upset former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to win the White House. Mueller is believed to be nearing the end of his investigation and is expected to write a report on his findings. While appearing on CNN's Reliable Source program Sunday, investigative journalist Carl Bernstein said hes been told that Muellers report will show how President Trump helped Russia destabilize the United States. From a point of view of strength rather, he has done what appears to be Putins goals. He has helped Putin destabilize the United States and interfere in the election, no matter whether it was purposeful or not, Bernstein said. He explained that he knew from his own high-level sources that Muellers report would discuss this assessment. And that is part of what the draft of Muellers report, I'm told, is to be about, he said. We know there has been collusion by [former national security adviser Michael] Flynn. We know there has been collusion of some sort by [Trumps former campaign chairman Paul] Manafort. The question is, yes, 'what did the president know and when did he know it?' WASHINGTON - U.S. President Donald Trump contended Sunday that the damage from the country's "badly broken border" with Mexico is "far greater" than the effects of the longest-ever partial government shutdown, now in its 23rd day. "The building of the Wall on the Southern Border will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country!" Trump claimed on Twitter. The building of the Wall on the Southern Border will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 About 800,000 federal workers missed their first paychecks on Friday in the closures that have shuttered about a quarter of U.S. government operations. Shutdown Day 23: Congress Gone, President Tweets Some municipalities and businesses are trying to help federal workers, while the administration is trying to make the shutdown as painless as possible The dispute centers on Trumps demand for more than $5 billion to build a barrier along the 3,200-kilometer border with Mexico to thwart illegal immigration. There was no movement toward a settlement, with Congress not meeting again till Monday. Watch related video by VOA's Michael Bowman: Im in the White House, waiting, Trump said. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking! Im in the White House, waiting. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 Trump was ridiculing about 30 opposition Democratic lawmakers who flew to the sun-drenched Caribbean island territory of Puerto Rico for a charity performance of the hit Broadway show Hamilton. Trump most recently has blamed Democrats for the government shutdown, but before it started Dec. 22, he said he said he would be proud to own it. FILE - Vice President Mike Pence, center, looks on FILE - Vice President Mike Pence, center, looks on as House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and President Donald Trump argue during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Dec. 11, 2018, in Washington. FILE - Vice President Mike Pence, center, looks on as House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and President Donald Trump argue during a meeting in the Oval Office of the White House, Dec. 11, 2018, in Washington. Numerous government services have been curtailed, while some museums and parks have been closed during the shutdown. The 800,000 federal civil servants who went without normal pay last week have been furloughed or ordered to work without pay, although they will be paid retroactively when the stalemate over Trumps border wall plan is resolved. Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can download this video to view it offline. Download File 360p | 7 MB 480p | 10 MB 540p | 13 MB 720p | 29 MB 1080p | 53 MB Original | 49 MB Copy Download Audio Thumbnail Wed, 06/05/2019 - 18:42 Anonymous (no roles) (not verified) Media Duration 00:02:07 Veterans Feel the Pinch, Weigh the Cost of Government Shutdown It is more than three weeks into the partial government shutdown. Among the hundreds of thousands of federal employees affected by the political battle are military veterans. According to the latest government data, veterans make up about a third of the federal governments civilian workforce. Tyler Holmquist of Fredericksburg, Virginia, is a veteran and an employee of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Hes one of the federal workers furloughed in the government shutdown, unable to work It is more than three weeks into the partial government shutdown. Among the hundreds of thousands of federal employees affected by the political battle are military veterans. According to the latest government data, veterans make up about a third of the federal governments civilian workforce. Tyler Holmquist of Fredericksburg, Virginia, is a veteran and an employee of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Hes one of the federal workers furloughed in the government shutdown, unable to work Trump was asked late Saturday by Fox News talk show host Jeanine Pirro why he has not declared a national emergency to build the wall without congressional approval as he signaled last week he was ready to do. But Trump said he wants to give Congress a chance to negotiate a deal. I want to give them a chance to see if they can act responsibly, Trump said. Trump: No Intent to Declare Border Security Emergency 'Right Now' President Donald Trump on Friday called the situation at the U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday called the situation at the U.S. Trump walked out of a White House meeting last week with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, when they refused to approve a border wall, even if he reopened the government and negotiated over border security for the next 30 days. Democrats have offered $1.3 billion in new border security funding, but none specifically for a wall. Trump contended, Im ready, willing and able to get a deal done. This country wants to have protection at the border. Many of our crimes, much MS-13 comes through the border, drugs, a big proportion of the drugs from, you know, that we have from this country in this country come through the border. New polls on wall, shutdown Two new polls, by The Washington Post and ABC News, along with one from CNN, showed American voters blame Trump and Republicans more than Democrats for the partial government shutdown and oppose construction of the wall. The Post-ABC poll said a slight majority (54 percent) opposes construction of the wall, with 42 percent favoring it. CNNs poll said the split against was 56-39. CNN said the public generally blames Trump for the shutdown, with 55 percent saying that he is more responsible to 32 percent for Democrats, with 9 percent saying both are responsible. The Post-ABC poll pegged the blame on Trump and Republicans at 53 percent to 29 percent on Democrats. CAIRO - The death toll from protests in Sudan that began last month has risen to 24, the head of the Sudanese government fact-finding committee, Amer Ibrahim, said Saturday. Anti-government protests broke out in December over rising food prices and cash shortages, but they have quickly turned into demonstrations against the government. Amnesty International has estimated that at least 40 people have died in the protests. WASHINGTON - U.S. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday he will force a vote soon on a resolution to disapprove the Trump administrations decision to relax sanctions on three Russian companies connected to oligarch Oleg Deripaska. I have concluded that the Treasury Departments proposal is flawed and fails to sufficiently limit Oleg Deripaskas control and influence of these companies and the Senate should move to block this misguided effort by the Trump administration and keep these sanctions in place, Schumer said in a news release. The U.S. Treasury announced Dec. 20 that it would lift sanctions imposed in April on the core businesses of Deripaska, including aluminum giant Rusal its parent En+ and power firm EuroSibEnergo, watering down the toughest penalties imposed since Moscows 2014 annexation of Crimea. After lobbying by European governments that followed the imposition of sanctions, Washington postponed enforcement of the sanctions and started talks with Deripaskas team on removing Rusal and En+ from the blacklist if he ceded control of Rusal. FILE - Oleg Deripaska attends an agreement signing FILE - Oleg Deripaska attends an agreement signing ceremony with the Krasnoyarsk region's government in Moscow, Dec. 12, 2017. FILE - Oleg Deripaska attends an agreement signing ceremony with the Krasnoyarsk region's government in Moscow, Dec. 12, 2017. The businessman, who has close ties to the Kremlin, also had ties with Paul Manafort, Trumps former campaign manager, documents have showed. An FBI agent said in an affidavit attached to a 2017 search warrant unsealed earlier this year that he had reviewed tax returns for a company controlled by Manafort and his wife that showed a $10 million loan from a Russian lender identified as Deripaska. On Thursday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin insisted that the Trump administration would keep tight control on companies linked to Deripaska, despite the decision to ease restrictions. Mnuchin said the firms would face consequences including the reimposition of sanctions if they failed to comply with the terms. FILE - Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump's for FILE - Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, leaves U.S. District Court after a hearing in Washington, May 23, 2018. FILE - Paul Manafort, President Donald Trump's former campaign chairman, leaves U.S. District Court after a hearing in Washington, May 23, 2018. Schumer said given Deripaskas potential involvement with Manafort, and because of special counsel Robert Muellers investigation into Trumps ties with Russia has not yet concluded, Its all the more reason these sanctions must remain in place. Passage of the resolution of disapproval of Treasurys decision would require the approval of both the Democratic-majority house and the Senate, led by Trumps fellow Republicans who are unlikely to break with his policy. A southern African regional bloc urged officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo Sunday to recount the votes of its recent contested presidential election. The Southern African Development Community (SADC) called for a unity government in a statement issued by Zambian President Edgar Lungu, citing examples of similar deals struck in Zimbabwe and Kenya. Opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi was declared the winner of elections Sunday, but runner-up Martin Fayulu has challenged the outcome of the country's election in court, claiming that his opponent made a deal with outgoing president Joseph Kabila. Felix Tshisekedi, leader main DRC opposition party Felix Tshisekedi, leader main DRC opposition party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) who has been declared the winner of the presidential elections, gestures to his supporters in Kinshasa, Jan. 10, 2019. Felix Tshisekedi, leader main DRC opposition party, the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) who has been declared the winner of the presidential elections, gestures to his supporters in Kinshasa, Jan. 10, 2019. Fayulu's opposition coalition said Friday he captured 61 percent of the vote, citing figures from the Catholic Church, which placed 40,000 election observers across the Central African country. The coalition said Tshisekedi won 18 percent of the vote. By law, only the electoral commission can announce election results in Congo. Fayulu, who has members of the Republican Guard deployed outside his home, called for a manual recount of the election. Pre-election polls indicated that Fayulu was the favorite to replace outgoing President Joseph Kabila. Kabila backed another candidate, his former interior minister, Emmanuel Shadary. Defeated Congo opposition candidate Martin Fayulu Congo opposition candidate Martin Fayulu greets supporters as he arrives at a rally in Kinshasha, Congo, Jan. 11, 2019. Congo opposition candidate Martin Fayulu greets supporters as he arrives at a rally in Kinshasha, Congo, Jan. 11, 2019. Congo has never seen a peaceful transfer of power since winning independence from Belgium in 1960. Last week's election was originally scheduled for 2016 but was delayed as Kabila stayed in office past the end of his mandate, sparking protests that were crushed by security forces, leaving dozens dead. CAIRO - Hundreds of protesters marched in and around Sudan's capital Khartoum on Sunday, the fourth week of unrest that began over skyrocketing prices and a failing economy but which now calls for the ouster of autocratic President Omar al-Bashir. Images circulated by activists online showed marches taking place in Khartoum and its northern twin cities of Omdurman and Bahary, despite security forces firing tear gas at the crowds. One group, hundreds strong, appeared to have reached Bahary's main train station. Security forces encircled the area and fired in the air to disperse crowds around the station, the main rally point for a gathering called by protest groups, professional associations and political opposition. Shops in the area have been almost entirely shuttered, eyewitnesses said, and crowds continued to gather. Protesters burnt tires to obscure the view of policemen chasing them down, in a cat-and-mouse game that lasted until after dark. Witnesses said security forces were breaking into local homes and businesses in pursuit of demonstrators taking refuge there. "The people want the fall of the regime," chanted a crowd in the area, as seen in one video, echoing a popular slogan of the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings that briefly defied despotism in the region, but never made it to Sudan. Demonstrations also took place in other cities across the country, particularly in Gadarif, Faw and Amri, as well in the western region of Darfur, activists said, with eyewitnesses adding that police had broken up a 1,000-person strong demonstration in the northern Darfur town of el-Fasher. The eyewitnesses spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. They said that security forces had surrounded the Haj al-Safi hospital in Khartoum, while a doctors' union warned them against attacking or firing tear gas near or inside hospitals as had been reported last week by Amnesty International. Sudan's economy has stagnated for most of al-Bashir's rule, but its recent lows have been dramatic, prompting the protests. He has also failed to unite or keep the peace in the religiously and ethnically diverse nation, losing three quarters of Sudan's oil wealth when the mainly animist and Christian south seceded in 2011 following a referendum. Bashir is also wanted by the International Criminal Court for genocide in Darfur. An Islamist who has been in power since he led a military coup in 1989, he has said those seeking to oust him can only do so through elections, and he is running for another term in office next year. He has insisted that the protests are part of a foreign plot to undermine Sudan's "Islamic experiment" and blamed the country's worsening economic crisis on international sanctions. Already among the longest serving leaders in the region, al-Bashir hopes to win another term in office. In a bid to placate popular anger over his economic policies, he has promised higher wages, continuing state subsidies on basic goods and more benefits for pensioners. His promises have been dismissed by critics as untenable. Also Sunday, the government raised its official death toll from the weeks of protest by five to 24, still undercutting numbers released by Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, who say at least 40 have been killed. Sudan's General Prosecutor said nine of those killed were in Gadaref, a province southeast of Khartoum close to the Ethiopian and Eritrean borders. The rest were killed in Omdurman and regions north and northeast of the capital. Those rights helped get African American men elected to the General Assembly, creating an environment where the legislative body looked like the male half of the state for the next two decades. A series of Supreme Court decisions, as well as the allowance of poll taxes and literacy tests, began to take effect around the turn of the 20th century, effectively disenfranchising black voters and stopping black men from running for statewide elected offices. WASHINGTON - Progress made, said one. Not so, said the other. We'll meet again, said one. Waste of time, said the other. Such has been the life lately of Mike Pence, the loyal soldier dispatched by President Donald Trump to lead negotiations over the partial government shutdown. The vice president has been one of the administration's most visible emissaries during the shutdown fight, meeting with lawmakers, sitting for interviews and leading staff-level talks. But he's been repeatedly and very publicly undermined and contradicted by his boss, who's demanding billions from Congress to build a wall along the southern border. Lawmakers and aides in both parties say it's become increasingly clear that, in this White House, no one speaks for the president but himself, leaving Pence in an all-but-impossible position as he tries to negotiate on Trump's behalf. "He doesn't really have the authority to make a deal,'' said Republican Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho, who worked alongside Pence when Pence was a member of Congress. He said legislators respect the vice president even if he is just "the messenger.'' But he added: "Trump is the one who's going to say 'yes' or 'no.' '' Even before the shutdown began, Pence was in an awkward spot in the wall debate quite literally. When Trump hosted then-incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer at a heated Oval Office meeting in December that ended with the president saying he'd be "proud'' to own a government shutdown, a stone-faced Pence sat by, speechless in his chair, drawing quips on social media comparing him to a statue or the "Elf on the Shelf.'' Budget talks Trump later sent Pence to lead a weekend of budget talks with staff for Republican and Democratic congressional leaders, an effort that Democrats dismissed as little more than a public relations effort by the White House to give the impression it was working to end the impasse. Some also saw Pence's meetings with legislative staffers as unbefitting of his title. When the first negotiation session ended that Saturday, Pence tweeted: "Productive discussion.'' An hour later, Trump countered: "Not much headway made.'' President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice Presid President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, speaks as he arrives for a Senate Republican policy luncheon, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 9, 2019. President Donald Trump, accompanied by Vice President Mike Pence, speaks as he arrives for a Senate Republican policy luncheon, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 9, 2019. The next morning, as Pence was set to return to the negotiating table, Trump again threw cold water on the effort. "I don't expect to have anything happen at that meeting ... nor does the vice president,'' Trump told reporters. "Ultimately, it's going to be solved by the principals.'' Allies of the vice president minimized the significance of the comments, and the White House denied any friction. "The vice president has been very effective in communicating on behalf of the administration,'' said White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders. "He has been in lock step with the president throughout the entire process.'' Pence, too, rejected the idea that he'd been undermined by the president or had difficulty building trust on Capitol Hill because of Trump's tendency to change his mind. Offer to Schumer He described to reporters an offer he took to Schumer from the president on the Saturday before Christmas to try to cut a deal. "I didn't have any impression that whole week that they doubted that it was a legitimate offer,'' said Pence. He would not confirm the details, but it was understood to have lowered the president's demand for $5.7 billion to build the wall to $2.5 billion. Democrats panned the offer. Days later, Trump rejected it, too, "No, not 2.5,'' Trump told reporters. "We're asking for 5.6. And, you know, somebody said 2.5. No.'' With negotiations now at a standstill, Pence has been a frequent visitor to the Capitol, focused on trying to keep jittery Republicans from breaking with Trump. The vice president is well-known in Congress, having climbed the ladder as the leader of a conservative faction to serve as chairman of the House GOP conference before running for governor of Indiana. That background was among the reasons Trump, who arrived in Washington with no government experience, chose Pence as his running mate. Vice President Mike Pence greets U.S. Customs and Vice President Mike Pence greets U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees at their headquarters in Washington, Jan. 11, 2019. Vice President Mike Pence greets U.S. Customs and Border Protection employees at their headquarters in Washington, Jan. 11, 2019. Marc Lotter, a former Pence spokesman who remains an outside adviser, said Pence "often gets called in if we're getting close to the finish line to see if we can bring in a couple of last votes'' or hold on to those who may be wavering. He recalled Pence, during a health care fight, "working back and forth, taking ideas and trying to find areas where there could be agreement, looking for areas where there could be compromise.'' Regular meetings While Pence lacks the personal relationships with Schumer and Pelosi that some of his predecessors had with opposition leaders notably Vice President Joe Biden's relationship with Senate Republicans Lotter said Pence meets regularly with members of both parties and both chambers, hosting lawmakers at his residence for regular dinners. Marc Short, the former White House director of legislative affairs who previously served as Pence's chief of staff, said the vice president's measured manner has been a "complement'' to Trump's very different style. He pointed to efforts during the "Obamacare'' repeal effort to sway Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, known for taking her time to weigh decisions. Pence worked patiently to answer her questions. Indeed, "listener'' was a word that came up often when lawmakers were asked to describe Pence. "He's a good listener,'' said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio. "Which is a rare quality around here.'' "He tells us exactly what he thinks,'' said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. "He's a good listener. He takes our messages back to the president.'' But Simpson questioned whether that's what is needed. Pence, said the Idaho Republican, is "a relayer. We need to have a negotiator ... someone who has the authority to go in and negotiate. And then someone who has the ability to go to Trump and say this is the best we can do.'' ABUJA, NIGERIA - Nigeria's chief justice will face trial Monday for allegedly breaching asset-declaration rules, the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) said Saturday, a month before a presidential election in Africa's most populous country. Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen is the head of Nigeria's judiciary, which plays a key role in election matters and has helped resolve disputes in past votes. The conduct tribunal, which tries asset-declaration misdemeanors, said in a statement Saturday that Onnoghen would face six separate counts, without giving further details. Onnoghen could not be reached for comment. Under Nigerian law, state officials must declare their assets before taking office and after they leave. The court did not say why it had brought the charges against Onnoghen almost two years into his tenure. The opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP) accused the ruling party of plotting to destabilize the judiciary ahead of elections by seeking to remove Onnoghen, which could cause a constitutional crisis. Nigerians go to the polls on Feb. 16 to elect a new president in an election where incumbent Muhammadu Buhari will seek a second term and is campaigning on his anti-corruption record. In 2016, the tribunal charged Senate President Bukola Saraki, the country's third most-powerful politician, with false asset declaration. Saraki was later cleared of wrongdoing. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a recent Israeli airstrike in Syria targeted Iranian weapons. Speaking Sunday at an Israeli Cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said: "Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus international airport." Israel's acknowledgement of a recent Israeli attack on Syria is rare. However, Israel's outgoing military chief of staff Lieutenant-General Gadi Eisenkot revealed in a recent New York Times interview that Israel had "struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit." Netanyahu said Sunday: "The accumulated number of recent attacks proves that we are determined more than ever to act against Iran in Syria. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the the Israeli strikes targeted positions near the airport and around the Kisweh area south of Damascus. Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can download this video to view it offline. SAN ANTONIO - Assailing President Donald Trump for a crisis of leadership, former Obama Cabinet member Julian Castro joined the 2020 presidential race Saturday as the rush of Democrats making early moves to challenge the incumbent accelerates. Castro, who could end up being the only Latino in what is shaping up to be a crowded Democratic field, made immigration a centerpiece of his announcement in his hometown of San Antonio, less than 200 miles from the U.S.-Mexico border. Two days after the president visited the border to promote his promised wall, Castro mocked Trump for claiming that the U.S. faces an invasion from its ally to the south. He called it a national security crisis, Castro said. Well, there is a crisis today. Its a crisis of leadership. Donald Trump has failed to uphold the values of our great nation. Castro, the 44-year-old grandson of a Mexican immigrant, said he was running for president because its time for new leadership, because its time for new energy and its time for a new commitment to make sure that the opportunities that Ive had are available to every American. Rosie Castro introduces her son, former San Antoni Rosie Castro introduces her son, former San Antonio Mayor and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, during an event where he announced his decision to seek the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, Jan. 12, 2019, in San Antonio. Rosie Castro introduces her son, former San Antonio Mayor and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, during an event where he announced his decision to seek the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, Jan. 12, 2019, in San Antonio. ?Mayoral, Cabinet experience He made the announcement as a government shutdown drags into the longest in U.S. history, and as the field of 2020 contenders widens and anticipation grows around bigger names still considering runs. Castro was San Antonios mayor for five years and U.S. housing secretary in President Barack Obamas second term. He became the second Democrat to formally enter race, after former Maryland Rep. John Delaney. Others in the race Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has also started an exploratory committee for president. Warren spoke Saturday in New Hampshire to about 450 people at Manchester Community College, taking aim at the wealthy and well-connected and championing economic reforms to benefit the middle and lower classes. She highlighted anti-corruption legislation she has proposed, and advocated for reforms to health care, student debt and the minimum wage. She also called for an end to the ongoing partial federal government shutdown. And she told reporters that Democrats need to talk about their affirmative visions instead of the man they want to defeat, President Donald Trump. Four other Democratic senators are taking steady steps toward running. Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu elected to Congress, said this week she is planning a bid, too. Former San Antonio Mayor and Housing and Urban Dev Former San Antonio Mayor and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, center right, is embraced by his twin brother, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-San Antonio), center left, during an event where Julian Castro announced his decision to seek the Democratic nomination for president in 2020. Former San Antonio Mayor and Housing and Urban Development Secretary Julian Castro, center right, is embraced by his twin brother, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-San Antonio), center left, during an event where Julian Castro announced his decision to seek the Democratic nomination for president in 2020. ?Early start Castro is getting an early start in trying to stand out. His first trip as a candidate comes Monday, to hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico, where an outcry has begun as the White House considers diverting disaster funding to pay for the wall. The impasse over paying for a border wall that Trump made a central part of his 2016 campaign has led to the partial federal closure. That stalemate, along with Trumps hard-line immigration stands, drew sharp rebukes from Castro. There are serious issues that need to be addressed in our broken immigration system, but seeking asylum is a legal right. And the cruel policies of this administration are doing real and lasting harm, he said. He argued for securing the border in a smart and humane way. There is no way in hell that caging babies is a smart or a right or good way to do it. We say no to building a wall and say yes to building community. We say no to scapegoating immigrants, he said. Joining Castro at the campaign kickoff was his twin brother, Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro, chairman of the Hispanic congressional caucus and a frequent Trump critic. The Spanish-style plaza in the Castro twins boyhood neighborhood was packed with supporters who streamed through the gates between a mariachi band. Castro had said leading up to his announcement that a Latino candidate was a must in the 2020 field. FILE - Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas, the 2018 Democ FILE - Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas, the 2018 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, makes his concession speech at his election night party in El Paso, Texas, Nov. 6, 2018. FILE - Rep. Beto O'Rourke, D-Texas, the 2018 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas, makes his concession speech at his election night party in El Paso, Texas, Nov. 6, 2018. ?Other hopefuls That group of hopefuls is starting to take shape even though the first primary elections are more than a year away. Sen. Kamala Harris of California this past week published a memoir, a staple of presidential candidates. Former Texas Rep. Beto ORourke is doing little to dim speculation that he might jump into a field that has no clear front-runner. Castro is aware he lacks the name recognition of potential 2020 rivals or the buzz surrounding ORourke, whose flirtations with 2020 have tantalized donors and activists after a close race last year against Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Even some supporters at Castros announcement could be torn if ORourke gets in the race. Diana Delrosario, a social worker in San Antonio, warned she might cry while she recounted how Castro once went out of his way as mayor to help wheel her mother out of a restaurant. I have this heart for Julian. But its going to be a big discussion if Beto decides to run, said Delrosario, 45. Castro, who has repeatedly dismissed talk that an ORourke candidacy would complicate his own chances, has framed the neighborhood and his upbringing as the story of an underdog. Convention keynote speaker He was raised by a local Latina activist, and after a brief career in law, was elected mayor of the nations seventh-largest city at 34. It wasnt long before Democrats nationally embraced him as a star in the making, particularly one from Texas, where a booming Hispanic population is rapidly changing the states demographics and improving the partys fortunes. Castro delivered the keynote speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Two years later, President Barack Obama picked him to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. He was on the short list of Hillary Clintons potential running mates in 2016. During Castros trip this past week to Nevada, one state Latino business leader told Castro that he should again be a top contender for vice president if his campaign falls short. Like other Democrats running, Castro has said he will not accept money from political action committees tied to corporations and unions, and he has sought to introduce himself to voters as a champion for universal health care and affordable housing. Israeli troops discovered the sixth and final tunnel dug by Hezbollah militants for cross-border attacks, the military announced Sunday, saying it was wrapping up its operation along the Lebanese border. The final tunnel was the largest one discovered so far, running hundreds of meters (yards) from under a Lebanese home and deep into Israeli territory, military spokesman Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus said. Israel launched the Operation Northern Shield early last month to detect and destroy what it called a vast network of Hezbollah tunnels aimed for militants to sneak across the border and carry out attacks. Conricus said the latest tunnel originated from the Lebanese border town of Ramyeh. Tunnel with rail system It was 55 meters deep and ran 800 meters inside Lebanese territory and also dozens of meters into Israel, he said. It included stairs, a rail system and a wide a passageway that allowed for the movement of equipment and a large number of forces. The tunnel would be destroyed in the coming days, Conricus said, adding that while more tunnels exist on the Lebanese side of the border, this effectively marked the end of the ambitious military operation. Israeli soldiers, right, serve near the Israel-Leb Israeli soldiers, right, serve near the Israel-Lebanon border where the army is digging to look for tunnels from Lebanon in the northern Israeli town of Metula, Dec. 19, 2018. Israeli soldiers, right, serve near the Israel-Lebanon border where the army is digging to look for tunnels from Lebanon in the northern Israeli town of Metula, Dec. 19, 2018. We have achieved the goal that we set out to achieve a month and a half ago, he said. According to our intelligence, there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels into Israel. Israel and the United Nations say the tunnels violate a cease-fire resolution that ended a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. Conricus says the U.N. peacekeeping mission, known as UNIFIL, had been updated on the latest development. Hezbollah's return The powerful Shiite militant Hezbollah, which acts independently in Lebanon, has yet to comment on the Israeli discoveries. Israel has long called for a crackdown on the Iran-backed Hezbollah, a heavily armed mini-army that is believed to possess an arsenal of some 150,000 rockets that can reach nearly all of Israel. In recent years, Hezbollah has been bogged down in fighting in Syria on behalf of Syrian President Bashar Assads government. But with that civil war winding down, Israeli security officials fear Hezbollah is refocusing its attention on Israel. In the wake of its discoveries, Israel has asked the international community to impose tough sanctions on Hezbollah and begin to act against its state-within-a-state operation in Lebanon. The military said its forces would stay deployed along the border area to monitor for any other possible underground activity, and said it holds the Lebanese government responsible for everything happening in its territory. DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned a senior Polish diplomat to protest at Poland jointly hosting a global summit with the United States focused on the Middle East, particularly Iran, state news agency IRNA reported on Sunday. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday said the summit to be held in Warsaw over Feb. 13-14 would focus on stability and security in the Middle East, including the "important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence." An Iranian foreign ministry official told Poland's charge d'affaires in Tehran that Iran saw the decision to host the meeting as a "hostile act against Iran" and warned that Tehran could reciprocate, IRNA added. "Poland's charge d'affaires provided explanations about the conference and said it was not anti-Iran," the agency added. The Polish Foreign Ministry could not be reached for comment. Relations between Tehran and Washington are highly fraught after the decision in May by U.S. President Donald Trump to withdraw from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and to reimpose sanctions, including on Iran's oil sector. Changing Iran's 'behavior' Speaking in Qatar on Sunday, Pompeo said the aims of the summit will include changing the "behavior" of Iran, which Washington accuses of destabilizing the region and supporting terrorism. Tehran denies the accusations and says U.S. military presence in the Middle East causes tensions and instability. "We will gather around a number of different topics... fighting ISIS is part of that... and address how we can get the Islamic Republic of Iran to behave like a normal nation," Pompeo told reporters in Doha. "There will be countries from Asia, Africa and all across the world. It won't be confined to the U.S., Europe and the Middle East." The United States and its regional ally Saudi Arabia back opposing sides in the conflicts in Yemen and Syria as well as rival political groups in Iraq and Lebanon. On Friday Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif criticized Poland for hosting the meeting and wrote on Twitter: "Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus." Zarif was referring to Iran hosting more that 100,000 Polish refugees during the World War II. Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said the summit was being held because U.S. sanctions had failed to bring Iran to its knees. "Americans thought pressures would break down our economy. They wanted to bring our oil exports to zero but failed... Now they've decided to hold an anti-Iran conference in Europe," the semi-official news agency Fars quoted Jahangiri as saying. Meanwhile, a cultural official said that a planned Polish Film Week in Iran would be cancelled if the summit plans are not dropped. "Iranians have hosted various nations and ethnic groups with open arms, especially the Poles," Hossein Entezami, head of the Cinema Organization of Iran, said on Twitter. "To protect the honor of Iran and Iranians, the holding of the Polish Film Week will depend on Warsaw's appropriate behavior." NEW DELHI - India's main opposition Congress Party will simplify the goods and services tax (GST) and make "rational economic decisions" to attract foreign investment if voted back to power in a general election due by May, leader Rahul Gandhi said Saturday. Launched in 2017, the GST was initially hailed as Prime Minister Narendra Modi's biggest economic reform as it replaced more than a dozen federal and state levies and unified Asia's third-largest economy. But its chaotic implementation and complexities months after a shock ban by Modi on high-value bank currency aimed at unearthing untaxed wealth badly hurt small businesses and led to millions of job losses in the cash-driven economy, presenting the biggest challenge to Modi's re-election chances. Gandhi, scion of India's Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, said during a visit to Dubai that foreign investment was at a multiyear low in India because of the "ill-advised and badly thought out economic moves" such as the currency ban and a "poorly designed GST." Quick growth promised "We will take some rational economic decisions," he told a press conference, which was broadcast live on Twitter. "We will restructure the GST and we will embrace investments from the Middle East and other parts of the world. We are the party of [India's economic] liberalization; we are the party that gave the fastest economic growth in the first decade of the century, and will do that again." He said his main priority would be to create jobs, simplify the GST, rebuild confidence in institutions such as the Reserve Bank of India whose governor resigned recently after a fight over autonomy with the government, and the Supreme Court. Four Supreme Court judges held a rare press conference early last year, saying that "unless this institution is preserved and it maintains its equanimity, democracy will not survive in this country." Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, center, is ga Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, center, is garlanded by BJP leaders on the first day of the two-day Bharatiya Janata Party national convention in New Delhi, Jan. 11, 2019. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, center, is garlanded by BJP leaders on the first day of the two-day Bharatiya Janata Party national convention in New Delhi, Jan. 11, 2019. Modi told a BJP convention in New Delhi on Saturday that for Congress "every institution was wrong and only they were right." The Congress press conference was organized by the Indian Overseas Congress, which is present in about 35 countries, as Gandhi tries to reach out to rich Indians living abroad for funds and social media support for the party that has dominated the country's politics for decades before being nearly decimated in the last general election in 2014 by Modi. But back home, Gandhi received a jolt when bitter rivals, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Samajwadi Party (SP), announced an election tie-up without Congress in Uttar Pradesh state, which sends the highest number of lawmakers to the lower house of parliament. "The BSP and SP have made a political decision," Gandhi said. "It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress Party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity. Whether we do or their alliance does, the BJP is not winning there." Modi said at the Delhi convention that the opposition was working on a "desperate alliance," while the BJP would give a "strong government." The Hindu nationalist BJP lost power in three key states recently, forcing the government to announce a flurry of measures to woo small businesses and the less well-off since then. GAZA CITY, GAZA STRIP - Gazas ruling Hamas said Saturday that Israeli undercover forces attempted to install equipment to monitor the Islamic militant groups landline communications network during a botched mission in November. The findings of a lengthy investigation were announced by the Hamas military wing, known as the Qassam Brigades, in a prerecorded TV statement. Hamas presented surveillance footage, as well as photos of drills, chain saws and two pistols with silencers, to back up its claims. Hamas thwarted an attempt to plant spying devices in the Gaza Strip, a Qassam spokesman, identified only as Abu Obeida, said in the statement. Israels military has not released details about the operation that went awry Nov. 11, leading to the heaviest round of cross-border fire, including Hamas rockets and Israeli airstrikes, since a 2014 war between the two sides. Alleged Israeli mission The Hamas statement described an Israeli mission that allegedly spanned close to a year. Abu Obeida said Israel brought equipment and vehicles into Gaza through a commercial crossing point between January and October. Fifteen members of the unit entered Gaza on a foggy night through the perimeter fence a few days before Nov. 11, the spokesman said. A woman working with the Israeli unit entered Gaza several times, disguised as an employee of a humanitarian organization, the spokesman said. Members of the unit used forged IDs of local Gazans and the documents of a charity group, he added. On Nov. 11, the unit was detected by Hamas fighters as it drove near the town of Abassan in southern Gaza. The discovery sparked a firefight, in which a member of the undercover unit and two Hamas gunmen, including a local commander, were killed. Five other militants were killed in airstrikes as Israeli aircrafts provided cover to airlift the force, including the dead officer. Palestinians inspect the remains of a vehicle that Palestinians inspect the remains of a vehicle that was destroyed in an Israeli air strike, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, Nov. 12, 2018. Palestinians inspect the remains of a vehicle that was destroyed in an Israeli air strike, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, Nov. 12, 2018. ?Casualties on both sides In the televised statement, Hamas showed low-resolution surveillance camera footage purportedly showing two vehicles being used by the undercover squad. The footage showed some faces of the occupants of the vehicles and what Hamas said was the moment its gunmen searched the van. According to the investigation, which confirmed previous reports, the firefight began when a local Hamas commander, Nour Baraka, ordered the detention of the occupants of the van who then shot him with silencer pistols. In the exchange of fire, a member of the Israeli force and another Hamas gunman were also killed before the van sped away. Hamas said the slain Israeli commander of the group was an Arab with the rank of lieutenant colonel. After he and his wife Midian moved from Mexico's southwestern coast, Rudy Pena spent years as a lumberjack in Oregon before the pair came to Suffolk three years ago with the idea of starting a restaurant devoted to the food of their home region. Somehow, Rudy also runs a contracting business on the side. But from four or five in the morning until late in the evening, the pair are at the restaurant, preparing every dish from scratch. WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama stunned Republicans when he bypassed Congress and, relying on what he called his pen and his phone, used executive powers to enact his agenda, including protecting millions of young immigrants from deportation. Now, with President Donald Trump proposing an even more dramatic end-run around Congress to build his promised border wall with Mexico, many Republicans are uneasily cheering him on. The potential use of a national emergency declaration by Trump for the border wall shows the extent to which the party is willing to yield on treasured values in this case, the constitutional separation of powers to steer clear of confronting the White House and give the president what he wants. An 'emperor' It's a different accommodation from just a few years ago. Then, Republicans often called out Obama as overstepping his authority in using executive actions when Congress failed to act on White House priorities. They complained about Obama as "king,'' "emperor'' or "tyrant.'' Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., a leader of the House Freedom Caucus, said most conservatives would go along with Trump's decision to declare a national emergency as "the last tool in the tool box'' for building the wall. Travelers wait near a closed terminal at the Miami Travelers wait near a closed terminal at the Miami International Airport., Jan. 12, 2019. The partial government shutdown is starting to strain the national aviation system, with unpaid security screeners staying home, air traffic controllers suing the government and safety inspectors off the job. Travelers wait near a closed terminal at the Miami International Airport., Jan. 12, 2019. The partial government shutdown is starting to strain the national aviation system, with unpaid security screeners staying home, air traffic controllers suing the government and safety inspectors off the job. "Does the president have the right and the ability to do it? Yes. Would most of us prefer a legislative option? Yes,'' Meadows told reporters this week. "Most conservatives want it to be the last resort he would use. But those same conservatives, I'm sure, if it's deployed, would embrace him as having done all he could do to negotiate with Democrats.'' Other Republicans say Trump has few options left after talks broke down at the White House over his long-promised border wall. "This is not something you would want to do,'' said Rep. Doug Collins of Georgia, now the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee. "But we've been put into this position. The Democrats are forcing him into a choice of doing the national emergency because they won't sit down and discuss it.'' On Saturday, the partial government shutdown stretched into its 22nd day and Trump's plans for ending the stalemate were shifting yet again. Furloughed government workers, contractors and the Furloughed government workers, contractors and their families attend a free community dinner donated from families and community organizations during the partial U.S. government shutdown at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Md., Jan. 11, 2019. Furloughed government workers, contractors and their families attend a free community dinner donated from families and community organizations during the partial U.S. government shutdown at Montgomery Blair High School in Silver Spring, Md., Jan. 11, 2019. Trump indicated he was slowing what had appeared to be momentum toward the national emergency declaration as the way out of the stalemate. Invoking the power would allow him to tap unspent defense funds to build the wall, a promise that was central to his presidential campaign. On the campaign trail, the president often said at rallies that Mexico would pay for the wall. But Mexico has refused, forcing Trump to ask Congress for the money instead. Trump walked out of negotiations this week when House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Democrats refused to give, saying they support dollars for border security, just not the big wall Trump envisions. They call the wall ineffective and say it's a symbol that does not reflect the nation's values. Slowing down After having talked for days about invoking the national emergency power to unleash the funds, the president hit pause Friday. "I'm not going to do it so fast,'' Trump said during an event at the White House. Experts have said even though the president may have the authority to invoke powers under the 1976 National Emergencies Act, using it will almost certainly bring on a court battle. The courts did not allow President Harry Truman to nationalize the U.S. steel industry during the Korean War. A boy plays as floodlights from the United States A boy plays as floodlights from the United States filter through the border wall, Jan. 11, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. The partial U.S. government shutdown has now become the longest closure in U.S. history as President Donald Trump and nervous lawmakers look for a way out of the mess. A boy plays as floodlights from the United States filter through the border wall, Jan. 11, 2019, in Tijuana, Mexico. The partial U.S. government shutdown has now become the longest closure in U.S. history as President Donald Trump and nervous lawmakers look for a way out of the mess. Moreover, they say, it could lead the country into uncharted areas. Declaring an emergency could give the president access to many other powers, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at the New York University School of Law. "The president thinks that he can do whatever he wants by declaring something a national emergency,'' said Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, who serves on the Judiciary Committee. "I think it's a very dangerous thing.'' But what cuts to the core of the concern on Capitol Hill is the executive branch wading into legislative domain to shift money Congress has already approved to the wall. The constitution provides the Congress, not the White House, the power of the purse, and lawmakers are not eager to cede their role to the president, even for a wall many Republicans support. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill objected to the administration's consideration of shifting unspent disaster funding Congress approved last year for Army Corps of Engineer projects to help hurricane-ravaged Puerto Rico, Texas and other areas to pay for the wall. By Friday, lawmakers said they were being told those projects will not be touched and the White House was now looking for other funds to pay for the border wall. Storm victims Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, part of the GOP leadership, said at a forum Friday in Austin that the lawmakers "worked very hard to make sure that the victims of Hurricane Harvey their concerns are addressed and Texas is able to rebuild.'' He said, "I will tell you that I will oppose any reprogramming of Harvey disaster funds.'' Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, acknowledged the dilemma, especially as the shutdown continues with no end in sight. Trump invoking a national emergency "might break an impasse and it needs to be broken one way or another,'' Shelby said as the Senate adjourned. But he prefers a negotiated settlement with Congress. "I'm still hoping we'll have a breakthrough, but right now I don't see one.'' The leader of the Republican minority in the U.S. House of Representatives said Sunday that action will be taken against Congressman Steve King, a Republican lawmaker from rural Iowa who has questioned why the terms white nationalist and white supremacist are offensive. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told CBS News that he is holding a serious conversation with the 69-year-old King on Monday, reviewing whether King should be stripped of his House committee assignments, which would leave him all but powerless to shape legislation. King has drawn widespread condemnation after last week telling The News York Times in an interview, White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization how did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization? After his remarks were published, King said, I want to make one thing abundantly clear: I reject those labels and the evil ideology that they define. On Friday, in a House speech, he expressed regret for the heartburn his remarks had caused. But McCarthy sharply condemned Kings comments. That language has no place in America, McCarthy said. That is not the America I know. McCarthy said he would be discussing Kings future role in the Republican party when he meets with the lawmaker. FILE - House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Cal FILE - House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 8, 2019. FILE - House Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California speaks to reporters at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 8, 2019. I will not stand back as a leader of this party, believing in this nation that all are created equal, and let Kings remarks stand as representative of the Republican party, McCarthy said. Senator Tim Scott, the Senates only black Republican, said in a Washington Post opinion article, "When people with opinions similar to King's open their mouths, they damage not only the Republican Party and the conservative brand but also our nation as a whole." He said, Kings views are not conservative views but separate views that should be ridiculed at every turn possible." House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the leader of the Democratic majority, said Friday that the House would take some punitive action against King. "We'll see what we do about Steve King, but nonetheless, nothing is shocking anymore, right? she told reporters. The new normal around here is to praise white supremacists and nationalism as something that shouldn't be shunned." KINSHASA - Congo's presidential runner-up Martin Fayulu, who is challenging his election loss in court, says the government deployed armed soldiers around his headquarters because of the ruling party's "desperation." Fayulu is legally challenging his defeat, saying that he won 61 percent of the vote, citing figures compiled by the Catholic Church's 40,000 election observers across the vast Central African country. Those figures say that election winner Felix Tshieskedi only received 18 percent of the vote. DR Congo Opposition Candidate Fayulu Challenges Election Results in Court Democratic Republic of Congo presidential runner-up Martin Fayulu has challenged the outcome of the country's election in court, claiming he defeated opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi by a wide margin.Fayulu's opposition coalition said Friday he captured 61 percent of the vote, citing figures from the Catholic Church, which placed 40,000 election observers across the Central African country. The coalition said Tshisekedi won 18 percent of the vote. Democratic Republic of Congo presidential runner-up Martin Fayulu has challenged the outcome of the country's election in court, claiming he defeated opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi by a wide margin.Fayulu's opposition coalition said Friday he captured 61 percent of the vote, citing figures from the Catholic Church, which placed 40,000 election observers across the Central African country. The coalition said Tshisekedi won 18 percent of the vote. As Fayulu was preparing to file his legal challenge at the constitutional court Saturday, the Republican Guard surrounded his offices, dispersed supporters from the premises and briefly entered the property, according to witnesses. Fayulu spoke to the press Sunday after attending mass at the Philadelphie missionary center in Kinshasa and was asked about the incident with the Republican Guard. "I'm attributing this to desperation. But we have faith," said Fayulu. "Our faith is intact, unshakeable, because the people have decided, and the wishes of the people will come true." Opposition candidate Martin Fayulu speaks to the p Opposition candidate Martin Fayulu speaks to the press at his headquarters in Kinshasa, Congo, Jan. 10, 2019. Opposition candidate Martin Fayulu speaks to the press at his headquarters in Kinshasa, Congo, Jan. 10, 2019. Tshisekedi was expected to attend a service in the same church later Sunday but he cancelled for "security reasons," according to a church press officer. Several journalists were waiting for him as Tshisekedi has made no public appearances since the announcements by Fayulu and the Catholic Church that the figures giving him victory are not accurate. "Felix Tsishekedi spoke the day the results were announced. At this stage he has nothing to add," said press officer Lydie Omenga on Sunday. "He has already started work and now waits for the results to be confirmed. We are serene and we let the process follow its course. He will speak at his inauguration." An adviser to Gabon?s President, Ali Ben Bongo Ondimba, said the government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Samsung, a South Korea-based company, to build a new oil refinery in the Central African nation. The refinery is expected to be the constructed in the oil hub of Port-Gentil. Energy and Environment adviser Gin Park said the new refinery would replace SOGARA, the Gabonese Refining Company, which he said is too old and incapable of processing the quantities required by Ondimba?s policy on developing the country?s raw materials. The old refinery, which was built in 1967, currently produces about 21,000 barrels per day. ?The old refinery will shut down in 2016, so it is important the new refinery is right on schedule. The new refinery will be built in the same site where the old one is.? Park said the construction of the new refinery is scheduled to be completed before the end of 2016. He said experts from South Korea are currently in Gabon to begin feasibility studies about the refinery project. When completed, Park said, ?The capacity of the refinery will be 50,000 barrels per day and the total investment cost is $1 billion.? Half of the refined oil, he said, will be exported, while the remainder will be for local consumption. Park said negotiations are still ongoing between the government and Samsung before a deal is finalized for the construction to begin. ?The contract is not signed yet, [it was] the MOU that was signed between Gabon and Samsung?The construction will be done by Samsung and the maintenance will be done by them and the Gabonese people,? said Park. ?The main product of the refinery will be diesel for domestic market and the other products will be for other markets, and the heavy fuel oil will be for the European market.? Park said the government has embraced public and private partnership in the president?s agenda of the ?Emerging Gabon Initiative? for the construction of the new oil refinery. WASHINGTON - In the Democratic Republic of Congo, more than 600 people (580 confirmed and 48 probable), have contracted the Ebola virus, with 383 deaths reported, according to figures released January 10 by the World Health Organization. The spread of virus has been difficult to contain because of an ongoing conflict in the country's east, despite medical advances, including a vaccine. The DRC is where Ebola was first discovered in 1976, when the country was called Zaire. The disease was named after the Ebola River where the virus was spreading. Between then and 2013, there was no treatment or a vaccine. The outbreak ran its course in quarantined communities. Scientists started studying the virus, however, trying to come up with better ways to handle its various deadly strains. They succeeded in producing a vaccine to help end the Ebola epidemic that swept through three West African countries between 2013 and 2016. More than 11,000 people died in that outbreak. FILE - Tom Geisbert, right, a professor of Microbi FILE - Tom Geisbert, right, a professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Texas Medical Branch, explains to Texas Gov. Rick Perry the work researchers are conducting in a Bio Safety Level 4 lab in the Galveston National Laboratory, Oct. FILE - Tom Geisbert, right, a professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Texas Medical Branch, explains to Texas Gov. Rick Perry the work researchers are conducting in a Bio Safety Level 4 lab in the Galveston National Laboratory, Oct. ?Treatment found At that time, treatment for the Zaire strain of Ebola was developed. It was costly to produce and didnt work on two other lethal strains, the Sudan and Bundibugyo viruses. But now scientists have found one. Their research produced a drug cocktail called MBP134 that helped monkeys infected with three deadly strains of Ebola recover from the disease. Whats more, the treatment requires a single intravenous injection. Thomas Geisbert, Ph.D., led the research at the University of Texas Medical Branch, part of a public-private partnership that also included Mapp Biopharmaceutical, the U.S. Army Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, and the Public Health Agency of Canada. Medical staff are sterilized before entering the i FILE - Medical staff are sterilized before entering the isolation unit at a hospital in Bundibugyo, western Uganda, on Aug. 17, 2018, where there is one suspected case of Ebola. FILE - Medical staff are sterilized before entering the isolation unit at a hospital in Bundibugyo, western Uganda, on Aug. 17, 2018, where there is one suspected case of Ebola. ?Must treat all strains In an interview with VOA, Geisbert stressed the need for a treatment that would be effective against all strains of Ebola. When an outbreak occurs, we really dont know which one of those three strains, species, we call them, is the cause of that particular episode, Geisbert said. He added that the treatments available have been effective only against the Zaire species, which leaves people infected with the other species unprotected. Our goal was to develop a treatment that would work regardless of the particular strain of Ebola that was causing it, Geisbert said. If I have to make a drug that only works against Zaire, and another drug that only works against Sudan and another drug that only works against the Bundibugyo species, that is extremely expensive, he added. Geisbert said the treatment will save valuable time in determining which strain of Ebola is circulating in a particular outbreak. It will save lives because people can be treated immediately, and it will also save money. No profit Theres no profit for the pharmaceutical companies that produce the drugs. Its not like youre making up vaccine for flu where companies [are] going to make a profit. Theres really a small global market for Ebola so it really has to be sponsored by the government, he said. In addition to the U.S. Army and the Canadian government, the U.S. National Institutes of Health has supported much of this research. Geisbert said the work ahead involves tweaking the dose to its lowest possible amount, making it easier to distribute again to reduce costs and conducting clinical trials in humans to ensure the treatment is safe and effective. Geisbert is confident it will work in humans, although he cautioned that in science, nothing is certain. The treatment may not be ready to help those with Ebola in the Congo outbreak, but the promise is that countries affected by the virus could have the treatment at the ready to stop future Ebola outbreaks. It also means that should someone with Ebola walk into a hospital outside of Africa, as happened in Texas when a Liberian man sought treatment, the patient can be cured, and health care workers can be protected. BEIRUT - He has survived eight years of war and billions of dollars in money and weapons aimed at toppling him. Now Syrian President Bashar Assad is poised to be readmitted to the fold of Arab nations, a feat once deemed unthinkable as he forcefully crushed the uprising against his family's rule. Gulf Arab nations, once the main backers of rebels trying to oust Assad, are lining up to reopen their embassies in Syria, worried about leaving the country at the heart of the Arab world to regional rivals Iran and Turkey and missing out on lucrative post-war reconstructive projects. Key border crossings with neighbors, shuttered for years by the war, have reopened, and Arab commercial airlines are reportedly considering resuming flights to Damascus. And as President Donald Trump plans to pull out America's 2,000 soldiers from northeastern Syria, government troops are primed to retake the area they abandoned in 2012 at the height of the war. This would be a significant step toward restoring Assad's control over all of Syria, leaving only the northwest in the hands of rebels, most of them jihadis. It can seem like a mind-boggling reversal for a leader whose military once seemed dangerously close to collapse. But Russia's military intervention, which began in 2015, steadily reversed Assad's losses, allowing his troops, aided by Iranian-backed fighters, to recapture cities like Homs and Aleppo, key to his rule. Assad rules over a country in ruins, with close to half a million people killed and half the population displaced. Major fighting may still lie ahead. But many see the war nearing its end, and the 53-year-old leader is sitting more comfortably than he has in the past eight years. Rehabilitation by Arab states is inevitable, said Faysal Itani, a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. FILE - Jordanian cars prepare to cross into Syria, FILE - Jordanian cars prepare to cross into Syria, at the Jordanian-Syrian border Jaber crossing point, in Mafraq, Jordan, Oct. 15, 2018. FILE - Jordanian cars prepare to cross into Syria, at the Jordanian-Syrian border Jaber crossing point, in Mafraq, Jordan, Oct. 15, 2018. Pushing back against Iran A key motive for Sunni Muslim Gulf countries is to blunt the involvement of their Shiite-led foe, Iran, which saw its influence expand rapidly in the chaos of Syria's war. Saudi Arabia tried briefly to help overthrow him when he seemed most vulnerable using proxy militants, Itani said. With his regime likely to survive, however, Saudi Arabia would prefer to try and exercise influence over Assad to balance against Iran while avoiding escalation with Iran itself. After Assad led a crackdown on protesters in 2011, Syria was cast out as a pariah by much of the Arab and Western world. It lost its seat at the Arab League and was hit by crippling sanctions by the international community, as the U.S. and European diplomats closed their diplomatic missions. But Syria's isolation was never complete. China, Russia, Brazil, India and South Africa maintained diplomatic ties. In the Arab world, Lebanon, Iraq and Algeria never broke ranks with Syria. Propped up by Russia, China and Iran, Assad never really felt the pinch politically. FILE - In a frame grab made available by Russian P FILE - In a frame grab made available by Russian Presidential TV, Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, greets Russian President Vladimir Putin upon his arrival to the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, Dec. 11, 2017. FILE - In a frame grab made available by Russian Presidential TV, Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, greets Russian President Vladimir Putin upon his arrival to the Hemeimeem air base in Syria, Dec. 11, 2017. A Saudi attempt to patch up relations with Assad would be a public acknowledgement of the kingdom's failure to oust him. At the same time, the involvement of Gulf Arab governments and private companies is crucial for any serious reconstruction effort in Syria. Reconstruction costs are estimated between $200 and $350 billion. Reopening of embassies Last month, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, himself an international outcast, flew to Damascus on a Russian jet, becoming the first Arab leader to visit Syria since 2011. The visit was largely seen as a precursor for similar steps by other Arab leaders. On Dec. 27, the United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus with a public ceremony, in the most significant Arab overture yet toward the Assad government, almost certainly coordinated with Saudi Arabia. The Bahrain Embassy followed the next day. The debate now appears to be about when, not whether, to re-admit Syria to the Arab League. At a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri said Syria's return to the League is connected to developments on the political track to end the crisis. Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohamed Alhakim, speaking in Baghdad at a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart, said Sunday that his country supports efforts to restore Syria's membership in the Arab League. In Lebanon, some officials insist Syria should be invited to an Arab economic summit the country is hosting next week, although final decision rests with the League. It could happen slower or faster, but if Assad is going to stay where he is, then obviously countries in the region are going to try to make the best of that situation, said Aron Lund, a fellow with The Century Foundation. American politicians can sit in splendid isolation on the other side of an ocean and pretend Syria isn't what it is, he said. But King Abdullah of Jordan can't. FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian offici FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Dec. 16, 2018, Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, meets with Sudan's President Omar Bashir in Damascus, Syria. FILE - In this photo released by the Syrian official news agency SANA, Dec. 16, 2018, Syrian President Bashar Assad, right, meets with Sudan's President Omar Bashir in Damascus, Syria. Fading Western opposition to Assad The Arab overtures come amid a shifting landscape in the Western world. The planned U.S. pullout from Syria is part of Trump's America First policy. He has repeatedly said he was not interested in removing Assad from power or keeping American troops involved in endless wars in the region, most recently describing Syria as sand and death. Right-wing parties and populist movements on the rise in Europe are also on friendly terms with Assad, seeing him as a secular bulwark against Islamic extremists. Even Turkey, whose president in 2012 famously vowed to pray at Omayyad Mosque in Damascus after Assad's ouster, has signaled it would consider working with Assad again if he wins in free and fair elections. For Syrians who rose up against Assad's rule, it can seem like the country is right back where it started eight years ago, only with half a million dead and cities in ruins. Analysts believe Syria under Assad will likely continue to face conflicts and sputter on in limbo for years to come, with only a partial recovery. But he will likely cling to power and do business with anyone who will do business with him. I don't imagine Assad's Syria becoming a fine upstanding member of the international community, but nor do I think it will languish in isolation, Itani said. Mexico is suffering an acute gasoline crisis, after the government shut down pipelines to combat widespread siphoning theft by organized crime. By James Blears Mexico's new President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has shut down gasoline pipelines, because drug cartels are tapping in and siphoning vast off amounts to illegally sell, costing the Mexican economy billions of dollars. Alternative transportation via road by fuel tankers and by rail is far slower, and has caused acute shortages in ten states, including the area around Mexico City. Queues are stretching kilometers day and night to gasoline stations, as frustrated motorists are waiting for hours to buy petrol. Meanwhile, fifteen ocean tankers carrying more than seven million barrels of imported gasoline are bottlenecked in ports with more on the way. Mexico's Energy Minister Rocio Nahle says she has no information about this. But she admits transportation by road is slower. President Lopez Obrador says Mexico doeshave enough fuel. However, the infrastructure in Mexico, especially in refineries which have not been updated in years, is failing. The gasoline output of National Petroleum company, PEMEX, fell thirty-three percent between January and November last year. The outlook for this year is looking even bleaker. At least 429 people died when a tsunami struck Indonesia's coast on Saturday. Aid agencies and volunteers are beginning to reach survivors. By Alastair Wanklyn In a town in western Java dozens of wooden houses have collapsed. Workers are using mechanical diggers to shift wreckage so vehicles can get through. Several villages are cut off by blocked roads and broken bridges, officials said. Indonesian television showed residents climbing over the remains of collapsed homes. The manager of one hotel said more than 100 people died at that site alone. The national rescue agency said many people remain missing. The search is focusing on two areas, including a beach district popular with Indonesians at Christmas. Meanwhile, the nation's disasters agency said around 16,000 people are displaced. Volunteer groups headed to the area. They set up kitchens at shelters to cook meals. China was among countries pledging help. The foreign ministry in Beijing said it would distribute funds through aid agencies such as the Red Cross. One Red Cross official said the agency is sending 22 water trucks to help prevent the spread of disease. The official said the need for clean water was one lesson learned following the Indian Ocean tsunami 14 years ago, in which an estimated quarter of a million people died. The standard regimen has not been defined yet (Gemcitabine and cisplatin vs. dense dose methotrexate, vinblastine, doxorubicin, and cisplatin). The rate of non-responders is considerably high with up to 60% of patients having invasive muscle disease following neoadjuvant chemotherapy, with no apparent downstaging. Patient selection is quite important even though great progress has been made in precision oncology, it is still not ready for prime-time. Toronto, Ontario (UroToday.com) Dr. Nimira Alimohamed presented her opinion of the question in debate: neoadjuvant chemotherapy for all muscle-invasive bladder cancer versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy guided by molecular subtyping. Dr. Alimohamed believes all medically fit patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer should be offered neoadjuvant chemotherapy before radical cystectomy. Furthermore, she strongly believes that neoadjuvant chemotherapy should not be guided by molecular subtyping at this point. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy has been shown to confer a survival benefit with a difference of more than 30 months (77 vs. 46 months).There are, however, still several unresolved issues with the current standard of care:Next, Dr. Alimohamed discussed why molecular subtyping is still not ready to be used in a standardized way. Firstly, it continues to be refined, and there is considerable intratumoral heterogeneity, making the concept of molecular subtyping quite difficult. Second, the availability/accessibility of testing is still problematic. Lastly, there is a lack of prospective validation data.There are four main molecular classification systems that have emerged during the years, including the Lund, MDA, UNC, and TCGA. Figure 1 demonstrates some attributes of these different classification systems. Using the single-sample genome classifier, investigators analyzed the impact of these different subtyping methods on patient response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy.For this study, transcriptome-wide microarray analysis was conducted on TURBT samples from 223 patients. The genomic classifier was trained to predict four subtypes: Claudin-low, basal, luminal-infiltrated, and luminal. The results showed that luminal tumors have the best overall prognosis, independent of whether patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Basal tumors had the greatest improvement in overall survival with neoadjuvant chemotherapy compared to radical cystectomy alone. Claudin-low tumors had the worst overall survival regardless of the treatment regimen. Lastly, the single-sample genomic classifier was better at assigning patients to a definitive subtype. The limitations of this study include its retrospective design and the fact that the patient cohorts are from different samples.Recently, the bladder cancer taxonomy group has issued a new classification system with six consensus classes (luminal papillary, luminal non-specified, luminal unstable, stroma-rich, basal/squamous and neuroendocrine like).The next topic discussed was whether specific gene mutations are associated with an improved response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Mutations in the ERCC2 and ERBB2 mutations have shown such an association. Moreover, defects in DNA repair genes have demonstrated an association with heightened response to neoadjuvant chemotherapy.The mutations in ATM, RB1, and FANCC have predicted such a response with 100% specificity. In a prospective study evaluating neoadjuvant chemotherapy given as dense dose gemcitabine and cisplatin, a total of 49 patients were analyzed.Neoadjuvant chemotherapy resulted in downstaging in 57% of patients, and the presence of DNA damage response gene alteration was associated with chemosensitivity. However, most responders did not harbor these mutations.Dr. Alimohamed moved on to discuss intra-tumoral heterogeneity. In a recently published study, intratumoral heterogeneity was demonstrated in 39% of cases with multiple tumor histology.This finding means that we need to worry about sampling error because if we do not account for intra-tumor heterogeneity, this could have a significant effect on our decision to administer neoadjuvant chemotherapy, based on molecular subtype.The last topic discussed was the varying accessibility of testing, and the length of time it takes to get molecular subtyping results. Additionally, the timing of when neoadjuvant chemotherapy is given is most important. Patients starting neoadjuvant chemotherapy more than eight weeks after being diagnosed with muscle-invasive bladder cancer had an odds ratio of upstaging of 1.27, p-0.031).In conclusion, molecular subtyping continues to be refined. Intratumor heterogeneity is an important concept and must be incorporated when relying on molecular subtyping to help decide which patient should receive neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Lastly, the availability of testing for molecular subtyping needs to improve, and we need more prospective validated data to ascertain its true impact.Presented by: Nimira Alimohamed, MD, FRCPC, Medical Advisory Board, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, CanadaWritten by: Hanan Goldberg, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow (SUO), University of Toronto, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Twitter: @GoldbergHanan at the CUOS Canadian Uro-Oncology Summit 2019, #CUOS19 January 10-12, 2019 Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto, Ontario, Canada References:1. Grossman et al. NEJM 2003 2. Seiler R et al. Eur Urol 2017 3. Plimack et al. Eur Urol 20154. Gopa et al. JCO 20185. Warrick J. et al. Eur Urol 20186. Audenet F et al. Urol Oncol 2019Further Related Content: The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are maintaining talks with Damascus on the settlement of their differences, but to no avail so far, SDF spokeswoman Ilham Ahmed told Sputnik DAMASCUS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th January, 2019) The Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are maintaining talks with Damascus on the settlement of their differences, but to no avail so far, SDF spokeswoman Ilham Ahmed told Sputnik. The SDF, which includes the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), backed by Washington, still controls parts of northeastern Syria, while Syrian authorities have denounced the group's actions as illegal. "We remain in the process of dialogue and have not yet come to anything ... We are primarily concerned about the recognition of our self-government in northeastern Syria. We are still Syrians and children of Syria," Ahmed said. The project on creating the self-government in northeastern part of the country is not "Kurdish or separatist, but humanistic," and implies involvement of all communities residing on the territory, the spokeswoman noted. The threat of the Turkish military operation against Kurds will promote the achievement of agreements, according to Ahmed. In December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey was ready to launch an operation against the YPG in the Syrian town of Manbij if the United States does not remove the militia from there. The Syrian Foreign Ministry confirmed earlier in the week that it has intensified negotiations with the Kurds in the northeast of Syria in light of a possible Turkish military operation. (@FahadShabbir) CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th January, 2019) The number of persons killed in nationwide clashes in Sudan between protesters and the police has increased to 24 people, the Sky news Arabia broadcaster reported on Saturday. The broadcaster noted that the information had been confirmed by the country's Attorney General of the country from the heads of commissions charged with investigating the clashes of demonstrators with the forces of law and order. The largest death toll was in the province of Gedaref, where nine people were killed, the publication noted. The unrest erupted across Sudan in late December over the rising cost of bread and general economic crisis. Residents of the cities of Gedaref and Atbara were the first to take to the streets. A state of emergency was introduced in a number of cities. At the same time, Amnesty International said on December 25 that 37 protesters had been shot dead by Sudanese security forces over five days of demonstrations. BUENOS AIRES (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th January, 2019) The Chilean government has criticized Venezuela after its opposition parliament speaker Juan Guaido was briefly detained on a road near Caracas. "The government of Chile condemns in the strongest terms the arrest this morning for almost an hour of the president of the National Assembly," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Chile was one of the Lima Group of countries who refused to recognize the re-election in May of President Nicolas Maduro for a second term and urged the National Assembly to take over as caretaker government to organize a new vote. (@rukhshanmir) Albanian President Ilir Meta welcomed the Macedonian parliament's vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to rename the country to the Republic of North Macedonia BELGRADE (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th January, 2019) Albanian President Ilir Meta welcomed the Macedonian parliament 's vote in favor of a constitutional amendment to rename the country to the Republic of North Macedonia On Friday, 81 out of 120 members of the parliament supported the amendments needed to rename Macedonia to the Republic of North Macedonia. The country's new constitutional name will open the way for Macedonia's accession to the European Union and NATO, which has long been blocked by Athens due to the long-standing dispute over the use of the name "Macedonia," which is also the name of a region in Greece. "I welcome the consensus reached in the Macedonian Parliament and the vote on constitutional changes, which will implement the agreement [of Skopje and Athens] in practice and open the door to Macedonia's goal," Meta wrote on Facebook. Meta also praised efforts by Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev, which helped to achieve the consensus, and noted the Albanian political factor in the country. On September 30, Macedonia held a referendum on its renaming after Greek and Macedonian foreign ministers signed a relevant agreement in June. While over 90 percent voted in favor of the deal, only a third of eligible electors took part in the referendum. IT GOT INTO the 90s back home the other day and friends complained to me over the phone though guiltily because they knew Id spent a day in the ER in New York which, honestly, had been a beautiful illuminatory experience and not miserable at all, but they felt sheepish about complaining of For full access, please log in, register your subscription or subscribe. Try for 99 a month for two months, cancel or pause anytime. Naturalist Dave Anderson is Senior Director of Education for The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. Forest Journal runs every other week in the New Hampshire Sunday News. E-mail Anderson at danderson@forestsociety.org or through the Forest Societys Web site: forestsociety.org. There are no classified or other detailed records of Trump's meetings with Putin over the past two years. House Democrats on Saturday said they would explore allegations President Trump has sought to limit documentation of his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel (D., N.Y.), responding to a report about Mr. Trump's meetings with the Russian president, said his committee would hold hearings on the claims, in what could be one of the first actions by Democrats to probe the president since they took control of the House in January, The Wall Street Journal said. Read alsoFBI investigated how Trump's actions seemed to benefit Russia CNN "Every time Trump meets with Putin, the country is told nothing," Mr. Engel said in a written statement. "We will be holding hearings on the mysteries swirling around Trump's bizarre relationship with Putin." Mr. Trump on Saturday said claims he took extraordinary steps to keep his discussions with Mr. Putin secret were ridiculous. "I had a conversation like every president does," Mr. Trump said in an interview on Fox News. "You sit with the president of various countries. I do it with all countries. I'm not keeping anything under wraps, I couldn't care less." A Washington Post report, citing current and former U.S. officials, said there are no classified or other detailed records of Mr. Trump's meetings with Mr. Putin over the past two years. Ukraine sees such an attack as a violation of the Minsk agreements. The Joint Forces Operation (JFO) headquarters has reported that Russian-led forces used small arms to fire at a drone of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine near the village of Chermalyk, northeast of Mariupol, Donetsk region. "According to an observer from a unit of the Joint Forces said fighters of the armed forces of the Russian Federation yesterday, January 12, tried to shoot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the OSCE SMM during a planned flight near Chermalyk to the northeast of Mariupol, using small arms," the JFO HQ said on Facebook on January 13 citing Ukrainian members of the Joint Control and Coordination Center (JCCC). Read alsoDonbas invaders shoot down OSCE SMM's unmanned aerial vehicle The Ukrainian side of the JCCC says that the act of provocation by the fighters of the armed forces of the Russian Federation is connected with intentions not to let reveal firing activity and attacks on Ukrainian positions. "The Ukrainian side of the JCCC says the actions of the Russian occupation forces against legitimate patrolling by the OSCE SMM are unacceptable and irresponsible, and considers them as a gross violation of the Minsk agreements," the statement said. He described the current situation in Donbas as a full-scale war. Chief of Defence of the Armed Forces of Lithuania Jonas Vytautas Zukas says possible escalation of the war in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, will be the worst-case scenario for Europe. "Such a scenario is the worst scenario. If it happens, then we will not return to the discussion of the political situation. It will be important to everyone, not only to us, but also to Latvia, Estonia and to the entire Europe," he said during the Ukrainian-Lithuanian telethon "Together for Victory" ("Kartu Iki Pergales"), broadcast by Ukraine's TV Channel Pryamiy on January 12. Read alsoUkraine intel: One member of Russian hybrid forces in Donbas eliminated, one wounded in past day "This is a very big conflict and a big army. I think we need to somehow prevent this. And we are aware that there is no turning back and we must fight to ensure that this does not happen," he said. He described the current situation in Donbas as a full-scale war. "This is war. There are many dead people there. And this are real hostilities. This is such a scenario. We remember when the Russian army invaded, they said it was not them, it was some unknown people who had come. And now we see that it is war. And I hope we don't have escalation. God forbid," he said. Lithuania raised EUR 110,000 during the telethon. All the funds will be spent on the Ukrainian army and victims of Russian aggression in Ukraine. No Ukrainian army casualties were reported. One member of Russia's hybrid military forces in Donbas, eastern Ukraine, was eliminated and another one was wounded in the past day, according to the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO). The JFO press center reported three instances when the enemy violated the ceasefire in Donbas on January 12. Read alsoRussia seeks to create "land corridor" to occupied Crimea Joint Forces Commander Ukrainian positions near the village of Novotoshkivske were attacked by an enemy infantry fighting vehicle, the JFO press center said in a morning update on Sunday. Grenade launchers of various systems and large-caliber machine guns were used near the village of Khutir Vilny and grenade launchers and small arms were used near the town of Avdiyivka in the Donetsk sector. The Ukrainian Armed Forces fired back. No Ukrainian army casualties were reported. The enemy has not yet opened fire since Sunday midnight, the JFO press center said. As UNIAN reported earlier, the Russian-led forces mounted eight attacks on Ukrainian positions in Donbas on January 11. Two Ukrainian soldiers were wounded. Bekirov has an artificial leg, diabetes and last year suffered a serious heart attack. The so-called head of the Federal Penitentiary Service in Russian-occupied Crimea has promised Ukrainian activist Edem Bekirov, who is being held in a pretrial detention center in Russian-occupied Simferopol, will be taken to hospital. "After our recent conversation, she [Russian Ombudsperson Tatyana Moskalkova] checked the conditions in which Crimean Tatar, patient with first-degree disability Edem Bekirov, who suffers from a number of diseases, is now being kept," Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for human rights Liudmyla Denisova wrote on Facebook after a conversation with her Russian counterpart Federation Tatyana Moskalkova. "At my request, Tatyana Moskalkova has already got into touch with the 'head' of the Federal Penitentiary Service in Crimea and he promised that on Monday Edem Bekirov would be taken to hospital for necessary health checks and would be provided with all necessary medical care," Denisova said. "According to the Russian Ombudsperson, diabetic patient Edem Bekirov has an express blood glucose monitoring system in the cell. He is said to have everything necessary," Denisova added. Moskalkova also told Denisova that members of the "public monitoring commission of Crimea" had visited Bekirov at a Simferopol detention center not long before. "They informed that Eden Bekirov was being kept in a clean cell with another detainee who 'assists him when it is needed.' According to them, he receives parcels from relatives," Denisova quoted Moskalkova as saying. Read alsoUkraine Ombudsperson names number of Ukrainians illegally held in Russian prisons Moskalkova also told Denisova about the condition of another political prisoner from Ukraine Stanislav Klykh. "According to Moskalkova, the Ombudsperson of [Russia's] Chelyabinsk Region informed her that Stanislav had passed all the necessary tests and the diagnosis of cancer that he suspects was not confirmed," Denisova said. "I will contact the consul to verify this information." As UNIAN reported earlier, a 'court' in Russian-occupied Crimea has remanded 58-year-old Crimean Tatar Edem Bekirov in custody for two months, after he was seized by the FSB on December 12 when he tried to cross into Crimea to visit his elderly mother. Bekirov has an artificial leg, diabetes and last year suffered a serious heart attack. He is, however, also married to a member of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people which Russia is persecuting. "That would seem to have been enough for the FSB to concoct a story about transporting weapons based solely on the 'testimony' of an anonymous individual," the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group (KHPG) said. It transpired on December 13, after Bekirov had reportedly been held for well over a day without water or food, that the FSB are charging him with circulating and transporting more than 10 kilograms of DNT and 190 bullets (under Article 222, Paragraph 2 of Russia's Criminal Code). Rahaf Mohammed Al-qunun at the UN building in Bangkok, before departing to the airport. UNHCR/Khaled Ibrahim UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, welcomes the expected arrival in Canada of Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun and the decision of the Canadian Government to provide international protection and a long-term solution for her there as a resettled refugee. The quick actions over the past week of the Government of Thailand in providing temporary refuge and facilitating refugee status determination by UNHCR, and of the Government of Canada in offering emergency resettlement to Ms. al-Qunun and arranging her travel were key to the successful resolution of this case. Ms al-Qunun left Thailand en route to Canada today. Ms. al-Qununs plight has captured the worlds attention over the past few days, providing a glimpse into the precarious situation of millions of refugees worldwide, said UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi. Refugee protection today is often under threat and cannot always be assured, but in this instance international refugee law and overriding values of humanity have prevailed. With political sentiment and public attitudes towards refugees having hardened in some countries in recent years, resettlement the mechanism by which Ms. al-Qunun has been accepted by Canada is available only to a fraction of the worlds 25.4 million refugees, typically those at greatest risk, such as women at risk. Ms. al-Qununs case was dealt with on a fast-track emergency basis in light of the urgency of her situation. For more information on this topic, please contact: In Gabon, we are working with the government to help find solutions for the last remaining Congolese refugees before their refugee status comes to an end on Sunday. The cessation clause will apply to some 9,500 Congolese refugees and asylum-seekers living in Gabon today. They are among nearly 20,000 people who had fled civil conflict in the Republic of Congo between 1997 and 2003, and sought asylum in neighbouring Gabon. About half this number returned home in the ensuing years. In January this year the government of Gabon announced its plan to declare the end of refugee status for Congolese nationals on its territory. The authorities consider that these refugees can now return safely to their home country and has called upon them to do. The option was also made available for those who wished to remain in Gabon to apply for residence permits according to the provisions and conditions provided for in Gabonese law. Those who are successful in obtaining these permits would remain in Gabon as regular migrants and would no longer be refugees. Some 450 refugees have signed up for repatriation over the past 10 days. More continue to do so as joint mobile teams from UNHCR, the National Commission for Refugees and the Gabonese Red Cross reach out to them across Gabon to register their preferred options and assist them accordingly. One return convoy is leaving today, and three more convoys will follow by next Friday. Last week, 51 refugees went home from southern Gabon and were welcomed at the border crossing by UNHCR teams. We have established a presence in Dolisie and Pointe-Noire in the Republic of Congo's areas of return in order to better monitor the conditions and to help returnees reintegrate in their villages of origin. To date, over 1,000 Congolese refugees have applied for the residence permit to stay in Gabon and 217 have been granted the card in Libreville, the capital, where the General Directorate of Documentation and Immigration (DGDI) has been delivering an average of 40 cards daily. Mobile immigration teams are processing another 60 per day in the rest of the country. UNHCR helps refugees to get a residence permit by paying the 150,000 CFA (USD 300) administrative fee required per refugee. UNHCR is pleased by measures taken by the Gabonese authorities to keep immigration officials informed of the new procedures, particularly their assurances that there would be no arrests made after the cessation clauses come into effect on 31 July. These steps will allow refugees, beyond that date, to continue to apply for residency, seek exemption from the application of the cessation clauses, or to repatriate. We are working very closely with the respective Gabonese authorities to implementat these transitional procedures. The last cessation clause declared in Africa was on 31 December 2008 for Sierra Leonean refugees. They returned en masse after the country regained stability following 11 years of one of the most brutal civil wars. For further information on this topic, please contact: Senderwahl Das Erste ZDF RTL SAT.1 ProSieben kabel eins RTL II VOX 3sat ARTE ZDFneo ONE sixx DMAX TELE 5 ServusTV Deutschland ProSieben MAXX NITRO RTLplus SAT.1 Gold COMEDY CENTRAL NDR WDR BR SWR/SR HR MDR RBB SPORT1 SPORT1+ Eurosport 1 Eurosport 2 DAZN Sky Sport News Sky Sport HD 1 Sky Sport HD 2 EXTREME SPORTS Sky Sport Austria Bundesliga HD 1 sportdigital Auto Motor Sport Ch. eSports1 ARD-alpha tagesschau24 ZDFinfo PHOENIX WELT N24 Doku n-tv kabel eins Doku DW (Europe) euronews BBC News SUPER RTL KiKA Disney Channel nick/MTV+ RiC TOGGO plus Nick Jr. Nicktoons Disney Junior Junior Cartoon Network Fix & Foxi ORF eins ORF 2 ORF III ORF SPORT + PULS 4 ATV ATV II oe24.TV SRF 1 SRF zwei STAR TV PULS acht 3+ tv.berlin Hamburg 1 munchen.tv Leipzig Fernsehen rheinmain tv Rhein-Neckar Fernsehen Al Jazeera BBC World News Bloomberg Europe TV CNBC CNN International France 24 (franz.) France 24 (engl.) 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HISTORY HD Heimatkanal 13TH STREET Beate-Uhse.TV FOX kabel eins CLASSICS ProSieben Fun Syfy KinoweltTV TNT Comedy TNT Film TNT Serie Motorvision TV Romance TV Universal Channel HD Blue Movie Blue Movie 2 Blue Movie 3 Sky Crime Sky Cinema Special HD SKY Sport F1 Sky Cinema Thriller HD Adult Channel AXN BBC Entertainm. BonGusto Classica Fashion TV GoldStar TV Gute Laune TV Jukebox LUST PUR Mezzo Nautical Channel NOW US Playboy TV RCK TV RTL Passion SAT.1 emotions Silverline Sony Channel RTL Crime Trace TV RTL Living 123.tv 13TH STREET 3+ 3sat Adult Channel Al Jazeera Animal Planet ANIXE ARD-alpha ARTE ATV ATV II Auto Motor Sport Ch. AXN BBC Entertainm. BBC four BBC News BBC One BBC Two BBC World News Beate-Uhse.TV Belgien 1 Bibel TV Bloomberg Europe TV Blue Movie Blue Movie 2 Blue Movie 3 BonGusto BR Bundesliga HD 1 Canal+ Canal+ Decale Canal+ Sport Canal+Cinema Canale 5 Cartoon Network Channel21 Classica CNBC CNN International CNN Turk COMEDY CENTRAL Crime + Investigation Das Erste DAZN DELUXE MUSIC Deutsches Musik Ferns. Discovery HD Disney Channel Disney Junior DMAX DR1 DW (Europe) E! Entertainm. eoTV eSports1 Euro D Euro Star euronews Eurosport 1 Eurosport 2 EXTREME SPORTS Fashion TV Fine Living Network Fix & Foxi FOX France 2 France 24 (engl.) France 24 (franz.) France 3 France 4 France 5 France O GEO Television GoldStar TV Gute Laune TV Hamburg 1 Health TV Heimatkanal HISTORY HD Home & Garden TV HR HSE24 Jukebox Junior K-TV kabel eins kabel eins CLASSICS kabel eins Doku KiKA KinoweltTV Leipzig Fernsehen LUST PUR Marco Polo TV MDR Mezzo Motorvision TV MTV MTV Base MTV Dance MTV Hits MTV Live HD munchen.tv n-tv N24 Doku Nat Geo HD NAT GEO WILD Nautical Channel NDR NHK WORLD TV Nick Jr. nick/MTV+ Nicktoons NITRO NOW US oe24.TV ONE ORF 2 ORF eins ORF III ORF SPORT + PHOENIX PLANET Playboy TV ProSieben ProSieben Fun ProSieben MAXX PULS 4 PULS acht QVC QVC2 RBB RCK TV Rhein-Neckar Fernsehen rheinmain tv RiC Rocket Beans TV Romance TV RTL RTL Crime RTL II RTL Living RTL Passion RTLplus SAT.1 SAT.1 emotions SAT.1 Gold ServusTV Deutschland Show Turk Silverline sixx Sky 1 Sky Action Sky Atlantic HD Sky Cinema Best Of Sky Cinema Classics Sky Cinema Fun Sky Cinema Premieren Sky Cinema Premieren +24 Sky Cinema Special HD Sky Cinema Thriller HD Sky Comedy Sky Crime Sky Family Sky Krimi Sky Select Sky Sport Austria SKY Sport F1 Sky Sport HD 1 Sky Sport HD 2 Sky Sport News sonnenklar.TV Sony Channel SPIEGEL Geschichte SPIEGEL TV WISSEN SPORT1 SPORT1+ sportdigital SRF 1 SRF zwei STAR TV SUPER RTL SWR/SR Syfy tagesschau24 TELE 5 TLC TNT Comedy TNT Film TNT Serie TOGGO plus Trace TV travelxp 4K Turkmax Gurme tv.berlin TV2 TV5 Monde UHD1 Universal Channel HD VH1 Classic VOX VOXup WDR WELT Welt der Wunder ZDF ZDFinfo ZDFneo The recently released Gallup-Tulsa Citivoice Index includes compelling data that should lead the state to reconsider Medicaid expansion. The survey is a fascinating look at how well Tulsans are doing in their day-to-day lives. It gauges everything from how we feel the Police Department treats us to whether we would recommend that a friend live here. Some 22,500 surveys were sent out, and the Gallup people parsed up the results along racial, geographic and income lines. Heres a number that jumped off the page at me: 36 percent of the people of Tulsa have experienced a time in the past year when they didnt have enough money to pay for health care or medicine for themselves or a member of their family. Among people who earn less than $27,000 a year, the number was 61 percent. If youre poor in Tulsa, watch out. Its a crisis invisible to a lot of the comfortably insured middle class people of Tulsa. We go about our lives secure in the knowledge that if we get sick or injured, well have the resources to be made whole. We pull out the insurance card at the doctors office, handle the copay and, from there, concentrate on getting well. I am honored to serve on the 15-member 400 Years of African American History Commission. This national body will develop and carry out activities throughout the United States to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the arrival of 20 enslaved Africans in the English colonies at Point Comfort, Virginia, in 1619. Thus began American chattel slavery. The legacy of that peculiar and odious institution still plagues us. We will never understand the history of our nation until we acknowledge and examine the centrality of the slave trade to colonial and early American society. At a time when racial tumult dominated the airwaves and the Civil Rights Movement captured headlines, James Baldwin remarked: To be black and conscious in America is to be in a constant state of rage. Baldwins provocative prose highlighted the wide gap between the ideals and aspirations of American citizenship and the realities of the black experience. We have evolved, but our evolution is incomplete. The commission aims to recognize the courage, steadfastness and resilience of African Americans from that seminal moment in 1619 forward, while simultaneously highlighting the myriad contributions of African Americans to American society. I was held for two weeks, while the United States negotiated a deal with the Soviet authorities to free me. I was not tortured physically, but being held in isolation can be a type of mental torture. You are always on edge; you never know what is going to be thrown at you. My medical issues hemorrhoids and high blood pressure were noted and attended to. I would expect the same medical attention is being extended to Whelan. We were fed three times a day through a small rectangular opening in the solid cell door. The food was bland and often consisted of buckwheat groats. We were observed through a peephole in the door approximately every 15 minutes. The ceiling light was never turned off. At night, we were ordered to keep our hands above the blanket so they could be observed on the quarter-hourly peephole inspections. During a brief visit last week by U.S. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman and a U.S. consular officer, Whelan reportedly complained of a lack of toiletries and clean underwear. In my case, prison underwear was supplied by the authorities, and I was allowed to shave every four days with a dull razor that had been used by other prisoners. The authorities obviously worried that a suspect might harm himself, and they obliged us to part with belts and shoelaces on being processed. Kevin Stitt campaigned for governor as a political outsider. Now, hours away from being sworn in Monday as Oklahomas 28th chief executive, Stitt appears committed to governing that way, too. His roster of advisers, Cabinet secretaries and administrators is, in one sense, much like those preceding it: mostly white, mostly male. But in other respects, this is not the usual cast of characters. Most have no experience in state government; many have no government experience at all. That is not as unusual as one might think. Former Gov. Brad Henrys chief negotiator was his old law school friend Scott Meacham, a western Oklahoma attorney and banker. One of Gov. Mary Fallins most durable aides turned out to be Preston Doerflinger, a businessman with little political background whose only government experience was a brief time as Tulsa city auditor. But Fallin and Henry themselves came to the job old hands at state government and Oklahoma politics. Stitt does not, which may highlight the inexperience of those around him. Meetings and events: First District Congressman Kevin Hern will speak to the Tulsa Republican Club at 11:30 a.m. Friday at the Summit Club, 15 W. Sixth St. The Tulsa Area Republican Assembly will elect officers at its monthly meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday at the Golden Corral, 9711 E. 71st St. Creek County Democrats will meet at 6 p.m. Thursday at Freddies Restaurant, 1425 New Sapulpa Highway in Sapulpa. The Womens March of Tulsa is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. Saturday at Guthrie Green, 111 Reconciliation Way. See tulsawomensmarch.site for more information. The Tulsa World is hosting a panel discussion on the upcoming legislative session at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 24 at the Oklahoma State University-Tulsa auditorium. Participants will be state Sen. Kim David, R-Porter, state Rep. Regina Goodwin, D-Tulsa, lobbyist Margaret Erling and Tulsa World reporter Randy Krehbiel. World editorial page editor Wayne Greene will moderate. The event is free and open to the public, but reservations at tulsaworld.com/events are required. Stan Monroe, Connors attorney, said a lawyer in Charlotte will appear in court with Connor on Monday to determine the best way to facilitate his return to Oklahoma. He said he was surprised by the charges, as well as with the manner in which Connor was apprehended, because Connor didnt get the chance to turn himself in to police once the warrant went out to law enforcement. Weve known the investigation, at least part of it, had been going on for some time. But I havent seen the indictment, Monroe said Sunday afternoon. Hes a lawyer. Hes not a flight risk. I thought the prosecutors would have given him the courtesy of turning himself in, but I guess it didnt happen that way. I firmly believe in Winstons innocence and I will do anything I can to help him, he said. Co-defense attorney Paul DeMuro also issued a statement, saying This arrest is one of the most outrageous abuses of power Ive seen in 23 years of practice. Winston is a longtime Oklahoma lawyer in good standing ... the state has known Winston is represented by counsel. Since the arrest warrant was issued, Winston has practiced in courts throughout the northeastern part of the state on a near daily basis, DeMuro said. The Oklahoma Ethics Commission voted 5-0 Friday to ban state legislators from operating leadership PACs. The new rule likely will never go into effect, though, because legislators are expected to reject it once their upcoming session begins in February. House and Senate leaders have used leadership political action committees, such as the Senate Majority Fund, for years to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support favored colleagues in re-election efforts. The watchdog agency considered the ban after state Auditor Gary Jones raised concerns last year. Appearing on MSNBC on Thursday morning, the 4th Districts Tom Cole struck a diplomatic tone. He said declaring a national emergency, as Trump has threatened, is not the best use of presidential power, in my opinion, and said the way to solve the standoff is to expand the scope of negotiations. Make it about multiple issues, he said. Make it big enough so everybody can point to something as a victory. Cole, who like Horn represents a relatively large number of federal employees, suggested offering Democrats a deal on DACA undocumented residents brought to the country years ago as children in exchange for a deal on border security. U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe told The Hill that declaring an emergency might be the only way to resolve the situation but added, I dont want that to happen by the way. U.S. Sen. James Lankford, speaking on the Senate floor the same day, said reopening the federal government without resolving the border security issue means additional border security wont happen. But he also said the idea of a wall is not realistic. First Oklahoma Bank is pleased to announce that Terry R. Jones joined the company in September 2018 as a Vice President and Lender. Terry brings more than 25 years of banking experience to his position as a commercial lender, with a focus on SBA Guaranteed Loans. Before joining First Oklahoma Bank, Terry worked for MidFirst Bank, where he also focused on SBA lending. Kisumu Governor Peter Anyang' Nyong'o has been flown to Nairobi for special medical attention from Aga Khan Hospital in Kisumu where he was admitted in Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Saturday, January 12. The governor fell ill during the installation ceremony of Reverend Phillip Anyolo as the second Archbishop of Kisumu Catholic Archdiocese. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Kisumu Governor Anyang' Nyong'o rushed to hospital, admitted in ICU Kisumu Governor Peter Anyang' Nyong'o (pictured) was rushed to hospital on Saturday, January 12, and admitted in ICU at the Aga Khan Hospital. Photo: UGC. Source: UGC READ ALSO: Raila, Ruto, Wetang'ula share same platform in Kisumu as 2022 succession politics rages TUKO.co.ke on Sunday afternoon confirmed the county chief was airlifted to Nairobi for further tests after he spent a night at the Aga Khan Hospital. According to the hospital's medical superintendent Dr Sam Oula, the governor is nevertheless in a stable condition and there should be no cause for alarm. READ ALSO: Aga Khan hospital slapped with KSh 3 million bill for botched operation on Kisumu woman The governor was whisked away during Rev Anyolo's installation ceremony at Kisumu Catholic Church after he said he was not feeling well. He was expected to address the public during the event but he fell sick before that could happen. The ceremony was graced by ODM party leader Raila Odinga, Deputy President William Ruto, FORD-Kenya leader Moses Wetang'ula, among other leaders. READ ALSO: MP Shah hospital bows to pressure, releases body it was holding over KSh 0.8 million bill Nyong'o was previously diagnosed with prostrate cancer and had flown to the US in 2018 where he underwent a successful hip replacement surgery. TUKO.co.ke understands the 73-year-old county chief has been in and out of the hospital over the past few years. Do you have a hot story or scandal you would like us to publish, please reach us through news@tuko.co.ke or WhatsApp: 0732482690 and Telegram: Tuko news. Kikuyu Council of the Elders message to the nation - On Tuko TV Source: Tuko.co.ke Commentary Trump is terrified of the far-right echo chamber THE Leader of the Opposition stepped way over the line last Saturday in a media release in which she sought to make comparisons between the current situation regarding last Wednesdays failed mass vaccine roll-out, and the 1990 attempted coup. Weather Alert ...Code Orange Ozone Forecast for Today... The Shelby County Health Department has issued a Code Orange Ozone Forecast effective for Shelby County Tennessee, Crittenden County Arkansas, and DeSoto County Mississippi, including the city of Memphis for today. This ozone forecast is due to forecasted ozone values that will be unhealthy for sensitive groups. These values will exceed the Environmental Protection Agency's federal safe health standard. The Shelby County Health Department recommends that sensitive groups which include active children and adults, and people with respiratory disease, such as asthma, limit prolonged outdoor exertion. Please continue to check the latest air quality forecasts and updates until monitored values return to safe levels. For more information go to www.midsouthcleanair.org. The Senate unanimously passed a bill yesterday which gives the public the right to access a sex offender website providing names, photographs and date of birth of convicted sex offenders. All present in the chamber supported the Sexual Offences Amendment which was passed 28 for, none against. vermaajay1968@gmail.com Paris, January 12 A powerful gas explosion tore through a building in central Paris on Saturday, killing two firefighters and a Spanish woman, injuring dozens of people and badly damaging nearby apartments, officials said. Around 200 firefighters were mobilised to battle the fire that broke out after the blast and evacuate victims and residents in the area, Interior Minister Christophe Castaner told reporters at the scene. The explosion came with the city on edge during the latest yellow vest anti-government demonstrations, which have often degenerated into violence and vandalism in Paris and other cities in recent weeks. Cars were overturned by the blast and glass and rubble was strewn across large swathes of the street after the explosion gutted the lower part of the building. Dozens of residents were treated by rescue workers on the street. I was sleeping and was woken up by the blast wave, Claire Sallavuard, who lives on the Rue de Trevise where the explosion occurred, told AFP. All the windows in the apartment exploded, doors were blown off their hinges, I had to walk on the door to leave the room, all the kids were panicking, they couldn't get out of their room. Firefighters advised us to leave but the elevator shaft had been blown out, there was no railing, nothing, and there was too much smoke, she said. Besides the two dead firefighters and a Spanish woman, 47 other persons were injured in the blast, 10 of them seriously, the Paris prosecutor's office said. A source in the Spanish foreign ministry said a woman who was holidaying with her husband in Paris died in hospital after the blast while another Spanish national was also injured. Around 100 police officers blocked off several streets in the area, home to restaurants and tourist attractions including the Musee Grevin wax museum and the popular Rue des Martyrs. Police also closed off streets in front of the Garnier Opera house as emergency services landed two helicopters in front of the building to evacuate victims. Dozens of tourists, suitcases in hand, were evacuated from the many nearby hotels in the area, a popular weekend shopping destination for visitors. AFP Clashes erupt as Frances yellow vests stage fresh protests vermaajay1968@gmail.com TORONTO, January 12 An 18-year-old Saudi woman who fled her family this week saying she feared for her life arrived in Toronto on Saturday after Canada granted her asylum. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun grabbed global attention this week after she barricaded herself in a Bangkok airport hotel room to resist being sent home to her family, which denies any abuse. Qunun refused to meet her father and brother, who arrived in Bangkok to try take her back to Saudi Arabia. Instead, she took a Korean Air flight from Bangkok to Seoul on Friday and then a connecting flight to Toronto. It wasnt clear what prompted Alqunon to choose Canada over Australia. Australian media reported that UNHCR had withdrawn its referral because Canberra was taking too long to decide. Agencies vermaajay1968@gmail.com Washington, January 12 The FBI had opened an inquiry into whether Donald Trump was working for Russians in the days after the American President fired James B Comey in 2017 as the top investigative agency's director, according to a report. In May 2017, the US President abruptly removed the 56-year-old Comey, Director of the FBI, who was overseeing a criminal probe into whether the Trump campaign colluded with the Russian government to influence the 2016 presidential election. The New York Times said such an investigation carried explosive implications, as the law enforcement agents sought to determine if the President was knowingly working for the Russians or had unwittingly fallen under Moscow's influence. Meanwhile, Trump alleged that some top FBI officials conspired against him by opening an investigation. Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin James Comey, a total sleaze! Trump said in a tweet. PTI uttara@tribuneindia.com Beijing, January 13 Twenty-one workers were killed after a roof collapsed at a coal mine in northwestern China, state media reported on Sunday. Eighty-seven people were working underground in the Lijiagou coal mine in the Shaanxi Province at the time of the accident on Saturday afternoon, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. Initial reports said that 19 people were killed while 66 others airlifted to safety. Rescuers found two more bodies of trapped miners on Sunday, the report said. The cause of the accident at the site, run by Baiji Mining, is still under investigation. Though the number of deaths has reduced at coal mines in recent years, mining accidents are common in China, the world's largest coal producer. PTI Satya Prakash in New Delhi Satya Prakash in New Delhi For 25 years, Amar Kaur fought to get justice for her son, son-in-law and driver, who were not seen after allegedly being kidnapped by former Punjab Director General of Police SS Saini. In December 2017, she died at 100. Justice had eluded her. Some say, justice died with her. Kaurs son Vinod Kumar, an automobile businessman, son-in-law Ashok Kumar and their driver Mukhtiyar Singh never returned home after being picked up by the police on March 15, 1994. A criminal case was registered against Saini and others by the CBI on the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court on March 24, 1994. The case was transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court in 2004 after Kaur expressed apprehension that Saini being a senior IPS officer might influence witnesses. But a year after her death, the case is still hanging fire. Her other son, Ashish Kumar, who is now pursuing the case, says, Its quite frustrating. There have been times when I have felt like quitting. But when I think about it, I feel as if my brother and brother-in-law are asking me not to quit. I want justice for my family. Until then, my mothers soul wont rest in peace. Unfortunately, Amar Kaurs is not the only such case. There are millions of other litigants whose cases are stuck at some level or the other in the Indian judiciary, notorious for working at snails pace. Magnitude of problem The Indian courts have a backlog of more than three crore cases at various levels. Of these, more than 2.76 crore cases are awaiting adjudication in the subordinate courts while 43 lakh remain pending in the 25 high courts spread across the country. The Supreme Court has its own share of the burden 57,346 plus cases. These figures relate to the mainstream court system. If the cases pending in various tribunals and consumer courts are included, the figures would shoot further up. The judiciary has never been on the priority list of the political establishment. Successive governments have ignored it. Now it appears that the government is focusing on judicial reforms of various kinds, but the task has been ignored for far too long, says KC Mittal, chairman, Bar Council of Delhi. Judicial vacancies in SC and HCs Against the sanctioned strength of 1,079 judges, the high courts are functioning with only 695 judges, while 384 posts are vacant. Similarly, there are five vacancies in the SC, which is functioning with only 26 judges as against the sanctioned strength of 31 judges. The situation is likely to get worse in the top court as three more judges, including CJI Ranjan Gogoi, are due to retire this year. Subordinate courts fare no better The vacancy situation in subordinate courts is the worst. On the eve of Independence Day last year, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote to the chief justices of all high courts requesting them to expedite the process for recruitment of judicial officers for subordinate courts where 5,223 of the sanctioned posts of 22,444 were lying vacant. One of the underlying reasons behind the high pendency is sometimes the inordinate delay in filling up the vacancies of judicial officers, Prasad wrote. Chief Justice of India-designate Ranjan Gogoi has blamed high courts for delaying the process of appointment of subordinate court judges. The government and the judiciary have been trying to tackle it. A mechanism was created in the form of Conference of Chief Ministers and Chief Justices to discuss important issues confronting the judiciary. However, it has not been able to deliver. India spends less than 1 per cent of its national budget on the judiciary. It needs to increase that. Besides this, there are several reasons behind the huge pendency of cases. Issues of manpower, infrastructure, lengthy procedures, frequent adjournments, delayed introduction of use of information technology, absence of professional court managers and judicial impact assessment all contribute to the mess. Poor judge-population ratio The problem of pendency cant be tackled without sufficient judicial manpower. Unfortunately, as judicial appointments are primarily in the hands of the judiciary, it cant blame the government for huge number of vacancies as appointments remain in their own hands, notwithstanding some occasional face-offs on certain appointments in the top courts. In 1987, the Law Commission in its 120th report recommended that India should have 50 judges per million (population) as against 10.50 judges back then. The figure has now barely reached 17 judges per million but its nothing compared to the US or the UK where it stands at 107 and 51 judges per million people respectively. Indian judges are overburdened. An average Indian judge decides 2,600 cases a year many more than a judge in any advanced country. Mittal feels filling up vacancies should be the top priority to deal with the huge pendency of cases. Without the requisite number of judges, no other measure would work. I am glad that the Chief Justice of India is focusing on filling up judicial vacancies at all levels. Docket management has been a problem. Even the existing judicial manpower can be used in a better manner if the judicial time is utilised for disposal of cases rather than devoting disproportionately higher time on procedural issues, Mittal adds. Alternative dispute mechanisms To ease the burden of cases on the mainstream court system, several alternative dispute mechanisms have been created in the last few decades, including mediation, conciliation and arbitration. One such experiment is Lok Adalats where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage are settled/ compromised amicably. Lok Adalats were given statutory status under the Legal Services Authorities Act 1987. Under the said Act, the award (decision) made by the Lok Adalats is deemed to be a decree of a civil court and is final and binding on all parties and no appeal against such an award lies before any court of law. If the parties are not satisfied with the award of the Lok Adalat, though there is no provision for an appeal against such an award, they are free to initiate litigation by approaching the court of appropriate jurisdiction. As on September 30, 2015, over 15.14 lakh Lok Adalats had been organised across India and more than 8.25 crore cases had been settled by use of this mechanism. However, it is just a drop in the ocean. Problem multiplying The problem is likely to get worse in the coming years. A 2012 report of National Court Management Systems has projected that the number of cases being filed would reach 15 crore in 30 years, requiring 75,000 judges. (See graphics) With the income and educational profile of Indians improving very fast, the number of people knocking at the doors of the judiciary is expected to go up significantly, multiplying the problem. Way forward Time demands that the government and the judiciary work in tandem. The Conference of Chief Ministers and Chief Justices should be put to better use and its decisions be implemented in a time-bound manner. Any further delay could completely derail all calculations of case management and the struggle to clear the backlog could become a never-ending exercise. The backlog More than 2.76 crore cases await adjudication in subordinate courts Almost 43 lakh cases pending in 25 high courts 57,346 cases pending in the Supreme Court Judicial vacancies Out of total 22,444 posts of judges in subordinate courts, 5,223 are Lying vacant Against the sanctioned strength of 1,079 HC judges, 384 posts remain vacant Five vacancies in SC; it is functioning with only 26 judges against a sanctioned strength of 31 judges Burgeoning problem sanjiv@tribunemail.com Mukesh Ranjan in New Delhi The NDA has fielded Union Minister and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan to give political legitimacy to the governments initiative of providing 10 per cent quota to the economically weaker sections (EWS) among the general category people. This is on account of the BJP not having a Dalit face to do the same job. Paswan claims that the amendment is a masterstroke that will give Narendra Modi his second term as the Prime Minister. Excerpts from the interview... What was your first reaction to the passage of 124th Constitution (Amendment) Bill-2019, providing 10 per cent quota to EWS persons belonging to the unreserved category, by Parliament? It is a historical decision. This fulfils the long-pending demand of a large section of poor people in the country. Even during agitations, which I had always been a part of, we were always in favour of giving reservation to the needy. I welcome it and thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his courage and vision. Dont you think that it was a disruptive move on the part of the Modi government vis-a-vis the quota politics in the country? It is wrong to say so. Positive discrimination is always based on the backwardness of the different sections of society. Earlier, it was on the basis of social and educational deprivation. Now the government has added a new criterion economic. All those initiatives over the years from the making of the Constitution to the implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations to the recent ones were aimed at making people feel empowered and happy. How do you justify reservation for upper-caste Hindus, as they had historically benefited from caste hierarchy? They may be at an advantage in the social hierarchy, but over the years, economic upheavals have made them suffer too. Therefore, they needed support to climb up the economic ladder. This will bring about harmony in society. How do you see Opposition leaders reaction over the passage of the Bill? Their criticism is similar to jealousy among fishermen when they realise one of them has netted a big fish. Opposition parties are envious of Narendra Modi over this big political measure. They dont know how to react. Many of them are questioning it, but are feeling bound to support it. What do you have to say about the claims made by a few Opposition leaders that the move will harm the interest of the poor belonging to Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs)? The present reservation is over and above the existing quota provided to those belonging to the SCs, the STs and the OBC category. In case of the SCs and the STs, there is no economic threshold to avail the reservation. Leaders who are a product of social-justice plank, including me or for that matter, Mayawati or Lalu Prasad Yadav, must realise that support of upper-caste voters, have, too helped them rise in their political careers. I appeal to all party leaders to support the move in the interest of the nation. Will the government be able to defend the law once the provisions of it will be scrutinised in the court of law? Yes, definitely. The government has taken care of all possibilities of the Bill being challenged in the court. However, if need be, the government will not hesitate to put it in the 9th Schedule of Constitution, which largely protects a law from judicial scrutiny. At the time of implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations, we tried to incorporate EWS category for upper caste, but the then Attorney General told us that under Article 16(4), there was no provision for providing quota on an economic basis. Subsequently, even the Supreme Court had asked under which section the government would create EWS category. But, now as the Constitution has been amended and sections have been added, I dont think the Supreme Court should object to it. What is your response to the criticism that the move has come with an eye on elections? It has the potential to help the BJP and other NDA constituents in the upcoming General Election. The government and political parties are there to serve public and make efforts for its prosperity. If people are happy about the governments decision, they will support us. What is wrong with this! I am confident that the NDA will come back to power under the leadership of PM Modi. Now, when the uncovered segment has also been covered under the quota scheme, dont you think that the time has come to extend the quota to the private sector? People say jobs have been shrinking in the public sector. If this is the emerging situation, it can be worked out. For this to happen, all stakeholders, including political parties, have to be consulted. If everybody agrees to the proposition, there should not be any problem in going ahead with it. As the proposed law fixes a threshold of Rs 8 lakh annual household income to avail the quota facility, dont you think that even a taxpayer would be bracketed as EWS? I have not gone into the details. This matter pertains to the Finance Ministry. I have nothing to say on this. (CNN) A blindfolded teen crashed into another vehicle while doing the Bird Box challenge in Utah this week, police said. The challenge, in which people move around while wearing blindfolds, originated from the Netflix film "Bird Box." In the movie starring Sandra Bullock, characters wear blindfolds to avoid seeing a mysterious force, inspiring the latest viral internet challenge. Utah police responded to the crash involving a 17-year-old in Layton on Monday, Police Lt. Travis Lyman told CNN affiliate KSL. "Apparently, as a part of this Bird Box Challenge,' (the driver) used her beanie to pull over her eyes as she was driving on Layton Parkway, and she ended up losing control of her car and skidded into the westbound lanes of Layton Parkway and hit another car and ended up hitting a light pole as well," Lyman said. "Bird Box Challenge while driving ... predictable result," Layton Police Department tweeted Friday. Police did not identify the teen, but said she was driving a pickup truck with a 16-year-old passenger. No injuries were reported. Netflix warned its viewers against the "Bird Box" challenge this month. "We don't know how this started, and we appreciate the love, but Boy and Girl have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes," Netflix tweeted. In Colorado, police are predicting some drivers will attempt to do the challenge, and warning them in advance. "Inevitably, somebody's going to do the monumentally stupid thing that is driving while blindfolded," a Colorado State Patrol officer said in a video message last week. "We shouldn't have to say this, but we're gonna: Don't drive blindfolded." This story was first published on CNN.com, "Blindfolded Utah teen crashes her car while doing the 'Bird Box' challenge." Lt-Gen VG Patankar Lt-Gen VG Patankar It was autumn of 1997 when I went to Kupwara in J&K to command an infantry division of the Army. Those were challenging times. Heavy exchange of fire across the Line of Control, infiltration attempts by terrorists and counter-terrorist operations in the hinterland were almost a daily affair. The good news was that my officers and men were doing a fine job of dealing with all the three challenges, taking a heavy toll on the enemy, although sometimes paying high costs in terms of losing lives and limbs. I was then no stranger to the Kashmir valley, having served there twice before. But the Kashmir I knew had changed; the paradise was lost in the daily thunder of artillery and staccato of AK-47 rifles. People appeared aloof and even hostile at times. That had to change, I thought to myself. While we were winning the encounters against the enemies, it was also important to win the battle of hearts and minds. A confluence of the stream of Kashmiri minds and the national mainstream was necessary to wash away the feeling of alienation that was how Operation Sangam was conceived. I felt that the shortest way to peoples hearts was through the minds of children. Falsehood and propaganda that had polluted young minds had to be replaced by national pride and fervour. The Republic Day parade at Delhi encapsulates our history, culture and military pageantry, demonstrating in a few how hours how mahan our Bharat truly is. That is what the children of Kashmir should see, I decided. Detailed planning, coordination and close liaison was all accomplished at a frenetic speed. Hectic preparations followed and the first batch of 25 Kashmiri children between eight and 12 years of age were soon on their way to the Capital to witness the parade. It was a trip on a shoestring budget; just six days in all. Little did we know then that history was about to be made. Even before the children arrived in Delhi, media picked up the story and flashed across all major newspapers. Soon invitations began pouring in. Appu Ghar invited them as guests to spend a full day; the newly opened PVR at Saket played host; the Army Chief, Gen VP Malik, invited them to high tea; and the crowning glory was when the President asked to meet them at the Rashtrapati Bhavan! They visited the Mahatmas samadhi at Rajghat and even offered namaz at the Jama Masjid (it was the holy month of Ramzan and they felt as if they had done the Haj!). Wherever they went, people met them with open arms. The young visitors from the Valley became virtual ambassadors of peace from a troubled state and enjoyed the attention they received. More importantly, they knew that they were among their own countrymen. From one week Sangam extended to three! Operation Sangam became the Armys pioneering effort, a historic milestone, in winning hearts and minds in J&K. Sangam-2 to Mumbai followed the next year. Operation Maitree, in which children from distant parts of the country (even from Andaman-Nicobar!) were invited to spend time with their counterparts in J&K, was a resounding success. The excursions from J&K have continued, albeit under various names; all in the cause of national integration. The well known Sadbhavana is an extension of the Sangam initiative. Achievement of Sangam can be best summed up in the words of two children from among the first batch of 25. In their feedback, one wrote that one day his name would be written in golden letters at the memorial in Udhampur in memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice defending their motherland in J&K. The other said, I want to be Indias next Gandhiji! Iqbal Sidhu Iqbal Sidhu Punjab has just over 13,000 villages. More than 60 per cent of the states population lives in the villages and forms the backbone of the socio-political structure. Just like the other aspects of village life, rural politics of Punjab is also a league of its own. No other political structure domestic or international comes close to its peculiarity. Becoming the sarpanch of a village is an honour like none other for many, and for others it may be a stepping stone for bigger things. Given the zeal with which the panchayat elections are fought, it is not uncommon for the candidates to make Herculean efforts to win the elections; sometimes even at the cost of their villages social harmony. There are more immigrants from such villages living in Europe and North America right now than during any other point in history. Some of them hold sway over elections in their respective villages, thanks to the formidable exchange ratios of their countries currencies against the rupee. In Canada, the median household income is around $70,000, which is roughly Rs 38 lakh. Although the amount is huge in INR, in Canada, $70,000 is barely enough for a family of four to get by for one year. There are households with annual incomes higher than this, and some of these are Punjabi. This does not mean every well-off Punjabi in Canada is investing fortunes in political battles back home, but there is a substantial number of those who are, and their reasons are diverse. When I was elected the sarpanch of my village, it was a big deal because the rival group had support from the UK and they spent a lot of money. They started celebrating even before the votes were counted. I won, of course, and their money couldnt do anything, says an immigrant in Montreal, who was elected the sarpanch of his village in Shahkot tehsil in Jalandhar district , some years ago. He is now a farm-hand but people still address him as sarpanch saab. It is said a villagers bond with his village is more organic than a city dweller and the commitments are more extensive. Across bigger cities of North America, there are people who hail from same native villages and come together once every few months for community events. In such an atmosphere, it is easy to forget that the elections are happening in a country they left long ago, a place where neither they nor their children are going to live. This, however, has not, and does not, stop people living in faraway lands such as Canada from participating in their villages panchayat elections. After college, my nephew could not find a job, so I told him to contest the elections... when we visit our village, people will know we are the sarpanchs relatives, said a gentleman from Toronto, who has lived in Canada for over 20 years. Many people sponsor political parties back home simply because they want to be treated as VIPs when they visit India if the party they supported comes to power. One businessman from California once made a contribution of $5,000 (almost Rs 3 lakh) to a political party before the 2017 elections because he wanted security details when he would visit India. These kinds of stories are common, and their number has only grown over time. Every political party has a foreign wing to cater to the NRIs and collect funds from them. There is also a class of NRIs who want to see the real change in their place of birth. They support whichever new political movement emerges from there and promises reform. Whether they have been successful yet is a moot subject. editorial@tribune.com Swati Rai An increasing number of experimentations are on in the space of contemporary arts, and theatre isnt untouched by them. The focus is on increasing the footfall, heightening the experience and creating awareness. This is exactly what Atul Kumar has been doing in taking his plays to unconventional venues. One of Indias most successful English theatre directors, he has been staging plays at museums and restaurants. He recently took his idea of Theatre at Home to the Serendipty Arts Festival in Goa. A series of performances were done in intimate spaces like Goan homes and public institutes like museums, pushing theatre beyond defined boundaries. Atul was curating the festivals theatre programming along with Arundhati Nag. However, his experiments with space began in Mumbai way back in 2000 after he failed to find cheaper venues to stage his plays. He continued to do so till 2004 and took the concept to places like Baroda, Bangalore, Pune, Ahmedabad and Delhi. As he once again moves away from the proscenium separating the stage from the auditorium, he also responds to and addresses pertinent social, cultural and environmental concerns such as homosexuality and gender bias. Atuls production No Place Like There is based on a Dalit soldier in the army of Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi. A unique insight into the untold Dalit history, the play is an account of an individuals contribution to what was the First War of Indian Independence in 1857. Another play, Jhalkari, explores the world of mythology, unravelling narratives of characters who try to overcome the inescapable impact of power, oppression and other constraining forces. Criminal Tribes Act and Adrak, the two other productions under the project, explore the lives of marginalised communities, while challenging the notions of theatre craft, the performative, the performance space and the audiences perception of the stage. Directed by Sankar Venkateswara and performed by Theatre Roots & Wings, Criminal Tribes Act examines Indias inherited modes of social exclusion. Alluding to the Criminal Tribes Act of 1871, a legislation imposed during British rule, the play looks at the hierarchical classification of people based on caste and status within the countrys social structure, which dictates that individuals belonging to certain castes are socially excluded, ostracised and alienated. Adrak, presented by Now Productions and written by Niketan Sharma, redefines the idea of conversation and conversations and dwells on immediacy of them. Our tryst so far with open spaces has been street theatre and we wonder if this is somehow similar to that. Kumar doesnt necessarily agree. He says the latter is more of activism while the main aim of Theatre at Home is awareness generation. Though these plays also have powerful themes and texture, the grammar of both is disparate, he says. Performing in peoples homes and public places such as the museum is a major challenge for artistes. Rehearsals at the venue are rare. The artistes are just shown pictures of the venue and given a general idea. Atul says that there is a lot of adapting while performing. Once there was a performance outdoors, but then it started raining and everything had to be shifted indoors. The artistes switched beautifully and spontaneously. He says such performances are intimate and the audience connects unwittingly. The performance sometimes moves from one room to another, engaging and involving the audiences as the action moves towards the denouement. Does this intimacy translate into informality too, thus diluting the sanctity of a performance... The ground rules for such performances are laid out right in the beginning. The hosts are informed of the no eating and drinking rule while the play is on. The involvement of the audience is such that there is no question of them taking these plays lightly, he says. The rehearsals for these plays do not change at all, keeping the spontaneity factor in the performance alive while pushing the boundaries of real-life experience in a world surrounded by virtual reality. Atul sees a growing interest in such plays with invitees pouring in through word of mouth of the hosts as well! editorial@tribune.com Navnee Likhi American documentary filmmaker Matthew Heinemans debut film A Private War is based on the true story of celebrated American foreign affairs journalist Marie Colvin, who worked for British newspaper Sunday Times. The screenplay of the film, which has been written by Arash Amal, has been adapted from Marie Brenners article Marie Colvins Private War, which was published in Vanity Fair. Marie Colvin had reported some remarkable frontline episodes from conflict zones of countries like Sri Lanka, Iraq, Libya and Syria. She was accompanied by her long-time friend, a freelance photographer Paul Conroy. Dodging gunfire, Marie goes into these war zones. Marie also covered the conflict zones in Chechnya and Zimbabwe. Back home, she dines with the elite of London. Marie is a complex person, who wants to see things for herself, even at the cost of risking her life. She sees her work as a mission to bring about awareness in the world that the victims of war should not only be mourned but also cared for. She suffers acute psychological trauma too as a result of her reporting in such zones. Her resilience and talent for breaking stories earns her top honours in journalism. She chases more such assignments, despite being repeatedly warned by her publisher that she was putting her life to risk. She even suffers from nightmares from horrors of wars and becomes reckless. The movie opens with a voiceover of Marie Colvin being interviewed about her work amid the ruins of the city of Homs in Syria in 2012 where she reported a large number of civilians caught in the middle of the Syrian Civil War. The narrative of the story unfolds with flashbacks of Maries career as a war correspondent in 2001. She takes up an assignment to cover Sri Lankas humanitarian crisis, even though her editor Sean Ryan doesnt allow her to go there as journalists were banned to cover the crisis involving civilians. Colvin walks through jungles to make her way to the war-torn region of Sri Lanka to interview the elusive leader of Tamil Tigers. Marie yells, Journalist: A few minutes later, an explosion knocks her down on the ground and she is severely wounded. Her left eye is hit by a rocket propelled grenade, which causes permanent loss of sight in her left eye. She covers it with a distinctive black-coloured eye patch. During her hospitalisation in New York, Marie writes a 3,000-word account of the conflict, humanitarian crisis and her injury. On her return from New York, she manages to convince her editor to permit her to return to her job. Marie is a not a run-of-the mill kind of reporter looking for a broadcast but goes close enough to action to make it real. The film doesnt linger on sentimentality. Neither is it a manipulative drama. Thereafter, Marie leaves for Iraq as she receives a lead about mass graveyard outside Baghdad. As she lands in Iraq, she meets freelance photographer Paul Conroy based in US military staging area. She takes him along and a translator and sneaks into city of Fallujah to find the site. She bluffs a military check post and reaches the mass graveyard of hundreds of Iraqis, who were victims of Iraqs dictator Saddam Hussein. She convinces a local construction crew to dig up the graves. She asks local people to mourn the dead. The scenes in the film are intercut by showing one moment of Marie being in an area of conflict, then back home, at a party or recovering at a hospital. She is in a constant state of restlessness. To overcome the horrors of war, Marie takes refuge in alcohol, smoking and partying. Some scenes of her drinking and relationships have been overplayed in the film. Soon Marie leaves for Libya to cover the chaos of Arab Spring uprising in 2011. She interviews Gaddafi at his luxurious palace compound while his country disintegrates around him. Later she issues a dispatch reporting his death saying, Gaddafi called his enemies rats, yet he was cornered in a sewer pipe. His cruel dictatorship ending in death. While covering the Syrian war in city of Homs, Marie ignores military warning to leave the area. She stays back to give first-hand account of the shelling and sniper attacks on civilian buildings. Colvins assignment in Homs city was her last as she was killed in an explosion, along with French photographer Remi Ochlik. The cinematography by Robert Richardson recreates the scenes of death and mass-scale destruction. The background song sung by Annie Lennox honours Marie Colvin. A Private War does not show Marie Colvin as a martyr. She didnt hesitate in going to war-torn countries to offer her services. Rosamund Pike gives a gripping performance as Marie Colvin. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 12 Senior lawyer HS Phoolka today kicked off registration for enrolling volunteers for his Sikh Sewak Army formed to depoliticise the SGPC. Talking to the media after paying obeisance at the Golden Temple, Phoolka said initially, 5,000 volunteers would be enlisted to work as supervisors. These volunteers would be appointed for units at block, tehsil and district levels. He said a website had been created where interested people could upload their details to get themselves registered as volunteers. He said talks were underway with various Sikh organisations like Sant Samaj headed by Baba Sarbjot Singh Bedi. Phoolka did not rule out meeting SAD (Taksali) head Ranjit Singh Brahmpura. He said sabat surat volunteers would work to de-politicise the SGPC and others would work to eradicate the menace of drugs from the state. He reiterated that he would not contest any elections, but after depoliticising the SGPC, he could think of taking part in its elections. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 12 Five migrant families were killed after a tractor-trailer fell into a canal and turned turtle at Vallah here today. Four persons were injured in the mishap. They were rushed to a nearby hospital. They were going to a construction site from Uthian village. The tractor was also carrying big iron pipes used in the construction work. The deceased have been identified as Shiv Parsad, Ram Parsad, Ind Lal, Ram Kewal and Arjun Kheharbar, all residents of Chhattisgarh. The driver, Rinku of Amritsar, Gagandeep Singh of Batala and Sunil and Dalbir of Uttar Pradesh sustained serious injuries, but were said to be out of danger. According to the police, the accident took place as the driver lost control over the vehicle after its axle broke. The injured were taken to Sri Guru Ramdass Institute of Medical Sciences and Research. Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police JS Walia said the victims were crushing under the tractor-trailer. Eyewitnesses said local residents rushed to the site to rescue the victims. While five of them died on the spot, the injured were taken to the hospital. Walia said the bodies had been sent for the post-mortem examination and the victims family members had been informed. Two die, 4 hurt as car rams into tree Muktsar: Two youngsters died and four others were injured after the car they were travelling in rammed into a tree along the Muktsar-Bathinda national highway near Buttar Shrinh village on Friday night. The car got divided into two pieces after hitting the tree. The deceased are Jagsir Singh (21) and Manpreet Singh (27), both residents of Bhallaiana village. Meanwhile, the injured were referred to Bathinda hospital. TNS amansharma@tribunemail.com Varinder Singh Tribune News Service Jalandhar, January 13 A dispiriting combination of much lesser pay and perks than government sector and age bar of 70 years is leading to an exodus of senior doctors of all Punjab-based private medical colleges, private health institutions and hospitals. These colleges are facing an acute teaching faculty shortage ranging between 30 and 40 per cent. The state's functioning five private medical colleges - Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Jalandhar; Adesh Medical College and Hospital, Bathinda; Sri Guru Ram Dass Medical College, Amritsar; Christian Medical College and Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana; were learnt to be short of at least 100 members of teaching faculty. The constant and lingering shortage of teaching faculty was casting its shadow on the ideal Medical Council of India (MCI) stipulated student-teacher ratio of three teachers (one professor, one associate professor and one assistant professor) after a batch of every 150 students in case of some of these private colleges. The Damocles' sword in shape of MCI de-recognition often keeps hanging over the management of some of these institutions due the shortage of teaching faculty. The major factor which was drifting senior faculty of doctor-teachers was a huge gap of salary and other perks between those who were employed in the government sector and the ones who were teaching in private colleges. For an example if a veteran teacher or faculty member of a private medical college was getting a monthly salary of Rs 1.5 lakh, his or her counterparts working in government medical colleges were drawing an average pay packet of Rs 2.5 lakh. Similarly, the maximum age bar of 70 years for teaching in private and other medical colleges was also discouraging ageing faculty to continue with teaching. They were instead preferring to either to shift to some private hospitals or were shifting to their own practice. The shortage of faculty in private colleges was very well in the knowledge of the government authorities. To retain the charm of service for veteran faculty members of the private medical colleges, the vetern doctors suggested, the age bar could at least be raised to 72 years if not 75. They give example of England and certain other European countries where there was no age bar for teaching doctors. Dr. Mandip Singh Sethi, Associate Professor (Medicine) at PIMS, however, suggested that the maximum age limit for teaching faculty should be fixed at 75 years if not at 77 years. "The same England pattern could be applied here in case a teaching doctor is physically and mentally fit.I think it will stall the exodus of veteran doctors to private practice or towards private hospitals." "Moreover, the drift towards private practice could also be arrested by removal of pay disparity and with better pay packets. It will not only improve the student-teacher ratio in private colleges but, would also lead to fulfillment of the stipulated criteria in respect to strength of teaching faculty," he said when contacted by The Tribune. Dr O.P. Aggrawal of Mullana College, Ambala, said the faculty strength stipulation has got diluted after year 2004 till when 7-8 strong teaching faculty was required for a batch or strength of 150 odd students. "It is also a fact that there is no binding on the managements of private medical colleges to retain veteran doctors as faculty members," he said. Punjab Health Minister Brahm Mohindra assured that the medical faculty would be strengthened in private as well as government medical colleges of Punjab. The government medical colleges based in Amritsar and Patiala were also facing an acute shortage of faculty. More than 50 per cent of a total of 628 faculty positions in these two colleges were lying vacant. laxmi@tribune.com Saurabh Malik Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 12 More than eight years after a judicial probe indicted Punjab cops for fabricating evidence, abetting suicide, dereliction of duty and misrepresenting facts following immolation by four of a family in Bathinda district, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the registration of an FIR. The probe had also held the cops at fault for faking visits to get the victims declared as proclaimed offenders in a 2005 attempt to murder case. The direction by the Bench of Justices Mahesh Grover and Augustine George Masih came on a petition by World Human Rights Protection Council through chairman Ranjan Lakhanpal for an independent probe. The then Bathinda District and Sessions Judge Kuldip Singh had asserted that victim Gurjant Singh and his daughter Veerpal Kaur were indeed harassed on account of registration of FIR number 109 of 2005. Gurjant Singh and his family, putting up in Behman Jassa Singh village, had set themselves afire after being hounded by the police. The report said they had poured kerosene on themselves to scare away the cops, after the police entered the house by scaling the wall. Instead of dousing the fire, the cops fled and planted kerosene cans. The inquiry officer had asserted that the police never visited Gurjants house. The two were got declared POs by misstating acts. The true facts of the FIR were never verified by the police before deciding to arrest the two. A fair inquiry could have clearly established that the occurrence, as alleged, did not take place. Moreover, the arrest should have been made during the day as Veerpal Kaur was a woman. The then Sessions Judge had added that the raiding party on September 29, 2007, disconnected power supply to the house, apparently to use some force. As a result, the entire family was scared and Gurjant Singh in order to scare away the police party put some kerosene on himself and on his wife daughters Beant Kaur and Veerpal Kaur also put kerosene on themselves for the same reason and probably lit the matchstick to scare away the police party. But one of the victims caught fire. Then, the family started embracing each other, probably to save each other, but also caught fire The act of the police in disappearing from the scene of crime after Gurjant Singh and his family put themselves on fire is an illegal omission. Inspector Mohinder Kumar Ghai, ASI Amritpal Singh, ASI Gurjant Singh, SPO Kaka Singh, Head Constable Mander Singh, HC Surjit Singh, HC Major Singh, PHG Amrik Singh and MC Mohinder Singh have committed the offence of abetment of suicide, the Sessions Judge has concluded. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Bathinda, January 12 The induction of Congress leader Harminder Singh Jassis close aide Iqbal Singh Dhillon into the SAD today triggered revolt in the Bathinda unit of the SAD. Four senior councillors, who are close aide of SAD leader Sarup Chand Singla, and a few former office-bearers resigned from the primary membership of the party. The councillors claimed that they were feeling sidelined and outsiders were being imposed on them by the party high command. The outsiders were dictating terms to them, while elected representatives were being ignored, which was the major reason behind taking the step. The four councillors who have resigned from the SAD are Harmander Singh Sidhu, Nirmal Singh Sandhu, Baljit Singh Sra and Rajinder Singh Sidhu. Both Harmander and Nirmal Singh are Finance and Contract Committee (F&CC) members and were the one allegedly managing affairs of the Mayor during this tenure. While addressing a press conference, Harmander Singh Sidhu along with other councillors claimed that they were resigning from the primary membership of the party and they would take further decision of joining any party or not after consulting their supporters in their areas. While replying to a query of mediapersons, SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal said, People come and go in the party, so these people who have resigned will have no impact on the party. We have accepted their resignation. amansharma@tribunemail.com Smita Sharma Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 13 Amid cross-border shelling and political animosity, a rare India-Pak solidarity is at display. Pakistani civil society groups, journalists and artists have joined hands to demand the Imran Khan government to lift ban on Indian film Manto. The critically-acclaimed movie by Nandita Das is a celebration of the legendary Urdu writer who chose to go to Pakistan post partition in January 1948 after having lived in Bombay since 1936. He faced nearly half-a-dozen trials for his controversial and frank writings but his legacy is respected by people of the subcontinent. Now people are coming together on Monday afternoon at 4pm (local time) to protest in Lahore, Karachi,Peshawar and Multan to demand that screening of the movie be allowed in Pakistan. Saeed Ahmed, a journalist and playwright who was also a key consultant for the movie started an online petition on change.org and has called for the protests in collaboration with Manto Memorial Society to #FreeManto. In an open letter to PM Imran Khan, petitioner Saeed Ahmed wrote,Saadat Hassan Manto had faced persecution, torture and years of court trials during Purana Pakistan. Would the same dreadful fate befall the writers, particularly,Manto in Naya Pakistan? Speaking to The Tribune from Lahore, Saeed Ahmed said while the film was cleared by the Sindh branch of the Censor board,objections were raised by the board in Lahore citing obscenity and the movies stand opposing partition. Unfortunately the distributor and the exhibitor who had applied for the CBFC clearance chose to not respond to the show cause notice and argue their case for the movie to be screened. Manto is under worst attack by the state machinery and censor board has taken liberty to snub and kill sanity in my country. This is the attack on common sense and good sense of the people, remarked Ahmed. Reacting to the support across the border for her film in which Nawazuddin Siddiqui through his powerful performance portrays the protagonist, actor and filmmaker Nandita Das wrote on Facebook, It is very moving to see that so many writers, artists, activists, concerned citizens have taken it upon themselves to fight the battle to screen MANTO in Pakistan. My team and I can take zero credit for this. I hope the needle will move and GEO TV - Har Pal Geo, the distributor, will also join the efforts. Last week the Executive Director of the Lahore Arts Council reportedly cancelled the Manto festival scheduled from January 14 to 16 and would have showcased four theatre productions based on the authors work and life. This also fuelled protests with citizens questioning if the governments of the day were wrong in commemorating Mantos fiftieth death anniversary by releasing a postage stamp in 2005 or posthumously awarding him the Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Distinguished Service to Pakistan ) award on August 14, 2012. The Communist Party of Pakistan today at the Progressive Writers Association in Hyderabad unanimously passed a resolution condemning the ban and has decided to join the protests on Monday. vinaymishra188@gmail.com Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a 24-year-old youth in the Islamic State-inspired module Harkat-Ul-Harb-e-Islam case. Muhammad Absar, a resident of Meerut, was arrested by the NIA on late Thursday evening. He teaches at Jamia Hussainia Abul Hassan in Hapur. With this, 12 suspects have been arrested so far in connection with the case. Absar had visited three places in J&K in May and August 2018 along with another accused Iftekhar Sakib in connection with the terror conspiracy, said an agency official. However, the NIA is mum about specific charges against him if whether he was collecting funds, recruiting boys or supplying arms to the reportedly highly radicalised and self-trained module. He was later produced in the Patiala House court which sent him to six-day NIA custody. The next date of hearing has been scheduled for January 18. The probe agency, with the help of the UP Police, also carried out searches at three locations in Meerut and Hapur on Saturday. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Dubai, January 12 Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with full force. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. He said the Congress party might give a surprise or two in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh "about what the party is capable of doing and to mobilise people." Rejecting suggestions that not being part of the SP-BSP alliance was a setback for the Congress, he said, "I won't be disappointed about the BSP-SP alliance as long as the BJP does not come to power." "They have said some wrong things about the Congress, but we accept it. Because that's how we work." Gandhi said it does not matter if his party fights separately or together with the SP and BSP, because the end result would be the same the BJP won't get their seats. Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced on Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. Asked about his "misogynist" remarks about Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on which the NCW has issued a notice to him, Gandhi said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has helped Anil Ambani steal Rs 30,000 crore and the House of the people Lok Sabha is where he should have defended himself but he chose to send another person and that person happened to be a woman. "I would have made a very similar comment if it had been a man. Do not impose your sexism on me. I am very clear that the prime minister should have delivered that defence but he did not have the guts." He said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether Defence Ministry officials objected to the Prime Minister "bypassing" the Rafale deal. Sitharaman had spoken on behalf of the Prime Minister and defended the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha, countering questions raised by Congress and other opposition parties. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. He alleged that every single institution in the country has been "destroyed by the government and the idea of the BJP and the RSS is that there should only be one institution in India that is RSS". "They insert their people in very single institution and pressure every single institution...universities, colleges, the CBI, Election Commission every institution." "RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is because there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on a economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non violence and its peace loving nature when people look at India and see violence they they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court, which are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. He said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Asked about special status to Andhra Pradesh, he said, "I have made the commitment to the people of the state that the moment we will form the government in New Delhi will will give special status to the state." He said it is a "tragedy and shame" that the Prime Minister Modi has not delivered the commitment to the people of the state. PTI uttara@tribuneindia.com Vibha Sharma Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 13 Bharatiya Janata Partys two-day national council meeting that ended on Saturday set tone for campaigning in the run up to general elections. Coming as it did a month after the party's loss in three crucial states in the Hindi heartland and less than four months away from the general elections, the meeting saw the BJP review its election strategy and highlight three primarily focus areas. One is the There is No Alternative, or the TINA, factorthat is, playing up the perception that there is no alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a strong, decisive, corruption-less government. This was reiterated by all the leaders, including the Prime Minister himself, several times during the meeting. Two, projecting the Congress as corrupt. This includes claiming that the anti-BJP coalition was trying to oust Modi to ensure a weakened (in their words, mazboor) and corrupt governmentthe prime ministers phrasing majboot versus mazboor sarkar was in line with this narrative. The third, and perhaps the more important takeaway from the meeting, is the attempt to change the Ram Temple narrative by pushing the blame on the Congress party. Leader after leader at the pre-election convention including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief Amit Shah and their chief Hindutva poster boy, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanathhave been telling the audience at the convention that it was Congress leader Kapil Sibal, a senior advocate in the Supreme Court who represents one of the petitioners in the Ayodhya title dispute, who wanted the Supreme Court to hold off hearing the case until after the 2019 general elections. Given that Ram Mandir is a highly emotive issue for its core Hindu voters these elections, the BJP is satisfied with letting the Sangh and its combatant affiliatessuch as the Vishwa Hindu Parishaddo the hard talk while it awaits the Supreme Courts verdict. amansharma@tribunemail.com Shillong, January 13 It is exactly a month after 15 miners have been trapped in an illegal rat hole coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district. The chances of their rescue continue to remain bleak as dewatering the mine has so far been a futile effort. Scientists and top notch agencies, known for their work in underground mines of the country, on Sunday arrived in the East Jaintia Hills to step up efforts to rescue the miners in what is perhaps the country's longest rescue mission. Operation spokesperson R Susngi told PTI that a team headed by a scientist and comprising experts from Hyderabad-based National Geophysical Research Institute, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (NGIR-CSIR) and Gravity and Magnetic Group, was at the spot. Besides, a team each from the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) and Chennai-based Remotely Operatated Vehicle (ROV) have arrived to step up the mission, he said. Till date, the dewatering of the 370-ft-deep mine where the miners are trapped has proved futile as over 1 crore litre of water has been pumped out of the main shaft in the past one month, but there has been no visible change in the water level, the offcial said. Another 2 crore plus litre of water was pumped out from the nearby abandoned mines suspected to be connected to the mine where the miners are trapped, but the rescuers are clueless 'how' and 'where' the water is coming from, he said. In the Khloo-Ryngksan area, where the ill-fated mine is located at the western side of a small hillock, the Lytein river crisscross the valley for over 2 km. Experts have been visiting the spot since December 20 for rescuing the miners after the news broke out at the national level, but the huge water level inside has foiled all their efforts. Susngi said senior scientist of CSIR-NGRI Devashish Kumar and his team have arrived for the operation. Another scientist from the Gravity and Magnetic Group, Niraj Kumar and his team too arrived as have Jayanti Gogoi of GPR and Vineet Upadhyay, who is heading the team of operators of the ROV from Chennai. A team from Pune-based KSB has also arrived at the site and work is in progress to instal another high power pump at the site, he said. The teams have been joined by about 200 people from different agencies of the Government of India, including Indian Navy and NDRF, besides Coal India Ltd and Kirloskar Brothers Ltd. The Supreme Court which is monitoring the rescue efforts has directed the authorities to step up their efforts and bring out the miners 'dead or alive'. A citizens forum here associated with RTI activist Agnes Kharshiinz has approached the Supreme Court for a complete ban on coal mining in the state, saying there has been an "absolute" loss in terms of revenue from the industry and that all indices in the mining district are down with 76 per cent of people being landless. Forum leader Angela Rangad said Sunday there were 24,626 coal mines in the district - about 52 mines/sq km at different stages of mining. The forum alleged collusion between the state government and the illegal coal miners wherein the courts and the NGT were misled on several occasions on the total amount of extracted coal waiting to be transported. "This is evident from the fact that out of the 57 months (since May 2014 when the ban was enforced), the NGT and the Supreme Court has allowed 32 months of transportation. Where did so much untransported coal come from?" Rangad said. "We have requested the court to issue direction to the state government to confiscate all untransported coal and use it in public undertaking factories," she said. The report has been submitted to the Supreme Court for its perusal in Tuesday's hearing, the forum leader said and hoped that the judiciary would take cognisance of the evidence put forth in the 600-page report of the citizen's forum. The National Green Tribunal had put a blanket ban on this type of mining since May 2014 as it said it was unscientific and put the life of miners at risk. An interim relief of Rs 1 lakh has been offered to the family members of the trapped miners, officials said. The mine owner, Krip Chullet, was arrested on December 14 while two of his accomplices are still on the run, Superintendent of Police Sylvester Nongtynger said. Kharshiing, who narrowly escaped attempts on her life by coal mafia on November 8 last, on Sunday demanded that the attack case be handed over to the CBI. Eight out of the nine persons involved in masterminding the attack have been arrested so far, police said. The arrested include Nidamon Chullet, the district leader of the ruling National Peoples Party, they added. - PTI vinaymishra188@gmail.com Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 12 The Congress plans for a national-level anti-BJP coalition by way of state pacts was jolted today with the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party declaring a unilateral understanding in Uttar Pradesh, leaving crumbs for the grand old party. We will give an official response to this development in Lucknow tomorrow. Any comment made on the BSP-SP alliance until then should be treated as unofficial, AICC general secretary in charge of UP Ghulam Nabi Azad said in the capital today even as the Congress braced for the political impact of the announcement and treaded cautiously. The development leaves Congress with no option but to go it alone or stake its very existence in the state that sends the largest number of MPs to the Lok Sabha. With the BSP and the SP leaving only two seats for the Congress in UPRae Bareli and Amethi, represented by UPA chief Sonia Gandhi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi all eyes are now on the next move of the party, which is feeling jilted. Rae Bareli and Amethi are the only seats the Congress won in UP in the 2014 Lok Sabha poll. Azad threw hints of battle readiness of the Congress in the state saying he had been meeting state leaders in preparation of Lok Sabha elections. The party is likely to contest as many seats as possible, though it will ensure a strategy that doesnt benefit the BJP. The Congress had sought 12 to 15 seats from the BSP and the SP in a potential grand alliance but was firmly rebuffed with the BSP disinterested in a pact with Gandhi. The seats Congress was eyeing include Kanpur, Kushinagar, Saharanpur, Allahabad, Dhaurahra, Moradabad, Agra and others where its nominees finished second in 2014. Within the Congress, there are two streams of thought about whether the BSP-SP pact is good for it or not. One thought, a section of veterans leads, says the developments will help the Congress regain control in UP where it has ceded too much political space in the past, with the decision to go with SP in the last state polls proving costly. The other stream backs a grand alliance as more beneficial for the Congress and its anti-BJP plans. With the die now cast, Congress leaders have begun looking at the silver lining in the cloud. The Congress fighting it alone will be better for everyone rather than the Congress fighting with the BSP and SP, said a party insider. Why BSP, SP upset gspannu7@gmail.com Lucknow, January 13 The Aam Aadmi Party on Sunday said its convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will not be contesting from Varanasi in the coming Lok Sabha elections, but the party will field a strong candidate for the seat. Kejriwal will not contest the Lok Sabha polls, as he wants to give special focus to his state. The AAP will contest on all the Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Goa. The party will contest on some seats in UP, and final modalities will be worked out by February. Apart from Varanasi, the party will contest from seats in eastern and western UP, where the organisation is strong, AAP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh told PTI on phone. Sanjay Singh said in Delhi his party is working on education, health, farmers, power and providing drinking water. If we foray into national politics, then our issues will be education for all, free education to economically weaker sections of the society, ending unemployment and implementing the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission, he said. On a recent statement made by Kejriwal to not vote for the Congress in the coming Lok Sabha elections, Singh said, Kejriwal was quoted out of context. He had said that in a meeting in the national capital that if you want to defeat the BJP, then do not waste your vote by casting it in favour of the Congress. His statement was in the context of Delhi, from where the AAP is contesting on all the seats. PTI amansharma@tribunemail.com New Delhi, January 13 Justice AK Sikri on Sunday withdrew his consent to a government offer to nominate him for president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). The government is understood to have recommended Supreme Court Justice Sikri's name for CSAT late last year. Taking note of the development, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said in a tweet that "when the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns". Sikri's consent was "taken orally for a vacancy" in the Commonwealth tribunal, sources said. Sources close to the second senior-most judge after the Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi told PTI that the consent was withdrawn on Sunday evening when the judge wrote to the Law Ministry, seeking withdrawal of his consent. The insinuation linking the CSAT assignment with Justice Sikri's participation in the committee, which decided on the ouster of Alok Verma as CBI director, was wrong, they said. "Since this consent was taken in the first week of December 2018, it has no connection with the CBI matter for which he became the CJI's nominee only in January, 2019," the sources added. They said "a totally unjust controversy" has been raised by connecting the two. "True facts are that sometime in the first week of December 2018, Justice Sikri's consent was taken orally for a vacancy in Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). "CSAT is meant to decide service disputes between the employees of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Secretariat itself," sources close to Sikri said. Justice Sikri was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikajurn Kharge which decided on removal of Verma from the post of CBI Director. Sikri's vote proved crucial to remove Verma from his post as Kharge opposed the move strongly while the government was pushing for Verma's removal. On the CSAT issue, the sources said, "It is not an assignment on regular basis. There is no monthly remuneration. There may be two to three hearings in a year. There was no question of staying in London or at any other place." The government has not got back to him on the CAST assignment, they said. "The government had approached him for the part-time assignment last month. He gave his consent. The job required attending two to three hearing per year and came without emoluments," the sources said. Sikri wrote a letter to the competent authority in the government withdrawing his consent. "He (Justice Sikri) has withdrawn his consent, he has given no reasons. He just wanted to be away from the controversy," a source close to Justice Sikri said. The source said Justice Sikri "is a man of very simple nature" and he felt that there should not be any controversy over his appointment and that is why he wants to keep himself away from the controversy." Hitting out at the government, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said the Centre has a "lot of explaining to do" on the nomination of Sikri to CSAT. "The government has a lot of explaining to do (sic)," Patel said in a tweet tagging a media report. Congress president Rahul Gandhi also tagged the media report in a tweet, saying,"When the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns." "This PM will stop at nothing, stoop to anything & destroy everything, to cover up the #RafaleScam. He's driven by fear. It's this fear that is making him corrupt & destroy key institutions," he said. Official sources said nomination of Sikri, who retires on March 6, was made last month following an internal process carried out by the Law Ministry. The External Affairs Ministry communicated to CSAT about India's nomination, the sources said. There was no reaction from either the Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Law and Justice on it. The Commonwealth Secretariat, established in 1965, plays the role of an arbiter in case of disputes among its 53 member-countries. The CSAT has a total of eight members, including its president. The members are picked up on the basis of regional representations. A CSAT member has a tenure of four years. PTI amansharma@tribunemail.com Samarkand (Uzbekistan), January 13 India and five Central Asian countries along with Afghanistan on Sunday condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering the menace which poses a threat to people across the world. This was part of a joint statement issued at the end of the first ever meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue which also saw the participation of Afghanistan at the ministerial level in Samarkand. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with the foreign ministers of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan took part in the meeting. All sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering terrorism which posed a threat to the people and economies of the world, the statement said. It referred to the ancient civilisational, cultural, trade, and people-to-people links between India and Central Asia and expressed commitment to dynamic and fruitful friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between India and the Central Asian countries at bilateral and multilateral formats. The countries reaffirmed their willingness for cooperation, mutual support, joint solution on relevant issues in order to ensure security, stability and sustainable development, the statement said. The ministers welcomed the participation of Afghanistan in the India-Central Asia Dialogue as an important land link in the regional cooperation, transit of goods and energy and expressed support and commitment of Central Asian countries and India to peace, security and stability of Afghanistan. They also called for an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and reconciliation, and assistance in economic reconstruction of Afghanistan through the implementation of joint infrastructure, transit and transport, energy projects including regional cooperation and investment projects, the statement said. The ministers noted the importance of sustainable economic growth in Afghanistan by attracting Afghan women to participate in the public life of the country and welcomed the successful holding of forums and conferences on this issue in the countries of Central Asia. They also noted the results of the seventh Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA VII), held in Ashgabat in November 2017, and expressed willingness to cooperate in preparation for the RECCA VIII meet in Tashkent in the second half of 2019. The participants welcomed the accession of India into the Ashgabat agreement on creating an international transport and transit corridor. The ministers emphasised the importance of developing and implementing projects, that provide a concerted solution to the problems and issues of economic growth of the countries of Central Asia based on the principles of equality, mutual benefit and respect for their interests. The statement said the nations expressed their intention to strengthen cooperation in order to create real opportunities for expanding economic cooperation, and ensuring favourable conditions for mutual free trade. They discussed promising opportunities and areas of cooperation in promoting mutual trade, attracting investments, innovations and technologies in key spheres of industry, energy, information technologies, pharmaceuticals and agriculture, education and training. They also highlighted the importance of concerted efforts to improve the investment climate and the market attractiveness of the regions economy, business opportunities of the Central Asian countries on the world stage. The statement said special attention was paid to the need to expand and establish direct mutually beneficial economic and cultural ties between the regions and cities of India and the countries of Central Asia and expressed their intention to contribute to this direction. PTI amansharma@tribunemail.com Shiv Kumar Tribune News Service Mumbai, January 13 Protests by sugarcane farmers across western Maharashtra over delayed payment for their crop have turned violent with offices of several sugar factories in the region being attacked and set on fire, police said here on Sunday. State police officials said at least eight sugar factories in the districts of Kolhapur, Sangli and Satara in western Maharashtra have been attacked by protesting farmers. Though there are no reports of any casualties in the incidents properties worth crores of rupees have been damaged in the arson, police said. The state government has rushed in contigents of state reserve police to the affected districts. Meanwhile, farmers' organisation Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana, which is behind the protests, has demanded that sugar factories clear pending dues of farmers by Wednesday. "We will intensify our protests if dues of farmers are not cleared immediately," SSS leader and Member of Parliament Raju Shetti told reporters after a meeting with the agitating farmers late Saturday night. He alleged that sugar factories and the Maharashtra government were working together to reduce payments to farmers. Though police have registered cases of arson and violence no one has been arrested so far, police said. Shetti warned that the farmers would not allow BJP president Amit Shah to enter western Maharashtra if dues to the farmers are not cleared. Shah is to hold a meeting of BJP workers on January 24 in Kolhapur. Though the Sugar Control Act makes it mandatory for sugar factories to pay farmers for their produce in a single instalment, most factories in Maharashtra have only made part payment so far while a few have not paid anything at all citing heavy losses. According to the Maharashtra Sugar Commissioner, 37 factories in Sangli and Kolhapur districts have so far been served notices for delaying payments to farmers. Data put out by the Sugar Commissioner indicate that 188 sugar factories in the state owe more than Rs 3,500 crore to sugarcane farmers for the crushing season which began after the last monsoons. Sugar mills are citing falling prices caused by a huge surplus of sugar stocks for their inability to pay sugarcane farmers. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Chandigarh, January 13 Thousands of devotees thronged gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Patna and other places across the country on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of 352nd birth anniversary of tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. The festivities this year coincided with the festivals of 'Lohri' and 'Makar Sankranti'. Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the 'Khalsa Panth', the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. The holiest of Sikh shrines 'Harmandir Sahib', popularly known as Golden Temple, in Amritsar and other gurdwaras elsewhere saw religious fervour to mark the guru's birth anniversary. People braved the early morning chill to offer prayers at gurdwaras. The rush of devotees continued in most gurdwraas later in the day also. Long queues of devotees could be seen waiting for up to two hours to offer prayers inside the main shrine. The entire Golden Temple complex was decorated with special lighting. Heavy rush of devotees could be seen at the Takht Keshgarh Sahib gurdwara in Anandpur Sahib town, around 85 km from here, since early Sunday morning. It was at this place that Guru Gobind Singh founded the 'Khalsa Panth'. Reports of hundreds of devotees offering prayers at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Patna city in Bihar, the birth place of Guru Gobind Singh, were also received. Hundreds of people offered prayers at gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, where the guru stayed for a few days during his lifetime. Gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh were decorated to mark the guru's birth anniversary. Religious processions were taken out at all places in the region on Friday and Saturday to mark the birth anniversary. Tight security arrangements were made around all leading Sikh shrines in Punjab in view of recent terror-related incidents in the state. At the Golden Temple complex, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) task force members and volunteers kept a strict vigil inside the shrine complex. At other gurdwaras in cities, towns and villages, hundreds of people could be seen coming to offer prayers. 'Langars' (community kitchen), were arranged at most gurdwaras. Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh greeted people on the occasion and urged them to follow the Guru's teachings and to maintain peace and harmony. IANS "Putting up a wall doesnt actually address the fact that people are mainly coming here through legal ports of entry,'' he added. Moreover, Murphy said, more people on the terrorist watch list come into the U.S. from Canada than Mexico, and most narcotics are brought in on cargo that comes through legal points of entry, not by individuals who sneak across the border on foot. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Shahira Naim Tribune News Service Lucknow, January 13 Virtually rejecting the BSP-SP offer of two seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress today announced its decision to contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state, making it a three-cornered contest. Senior Congress leader and incharge of the state, Ghulam Nabi Azad, told reporters that this was not an Assembly poll but a national election in which only the Congress could challenge and defeat the BJP. There was, however, enough flexibility to accommodate any capable person or secular-minded party on these 80 seats, he added. The decision to go it alone in the politically significant state of Uttar Pradesh comes a day after BSPs Mayawati and SPs Akhilesh Yadav announced their alliance, deciding not to field candidates from the Congress-held seats of Amethi and Rae Bareli. As a matter of fact, Mayawati described Congress and BJP as two sides of a coin and claimed that there was no benefit in allying with the Congress as its votes were not transferable. Commenting on the BSP-SP alliance, Azad said, We did not break the alliance. During the last six months I gave at least 15 bytes that any party which wanted to defeat the BJP was welcome to join the alliance. What can we do if some parties do not want to join? He said the Congress would contest the 80 seats in UP with full preparation and confidence under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi. The results would be surprising. We would double if not triple the 2009 results, said Azad. In 2009, the Congress had won 21 seats in UP and one more later in a bypoll, taking the total number of MPs from UP to 22. Without naming Mayawati, Azad said those who blamed the Congress for not doing enough for the marginalised overlook the partys history and constant endeavour to work for the mainstreaming of the deprived. vinaymishra188@gmail.com New Delhi, January 12 Terming the decision to remove CBI Director Alok Verma as hasty, former Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik, who supervised the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) probe against him, has said there was no evidence of corruption against the IPS officer. Repeated attempts to reach Justice Patnaik failed as he didn't take calls. But sources close to him said the findings in the CVC report were not his and he had submitted his report to the court in November last year. The Centre had on October 23 divested Verma of all his powers as CBI chief and sent him on leave and the decision was challenged by him before the Supreme Court. Two days after the SC ordered his reinstatement, a high-powered panel of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Supreme Court judge AK Sikri and Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge had on January 10 removed Verma as CBI Director and transferred him to the post of Director General, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards after it found that he had not been functioning with integrity expected of him. Kharge had opposed the decision and given a dissent note. Verma, who was due to retire on January 31, chose not to take up the new assignment and resigned from service. As a career bureaucrat, it is the idea of my integrity that has been the driving force for four decades in public service, Verma said in his resignation letter denying allegations of corruption. In the process he earned the dubious distinction of being the first CBI Director in 55 years of the probe agency's history who faced such an action. Verma has been at loggerheads with CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana who had written to Cabinet Secretariat leveling serious allegations of corruption against him. It was the allegations in Asthana's complaint against Verma which was being probed by the CVC. The CBI under Verma had registered a corruption case against Asthana and the Delhi HC on Friday refused to quash it. TNS Govt set wrong precedent: shiv Sena Mumbai: In an editorial in Saamana, the Shiv Sena said the government has set wrong precedents by denying Alok Verma an opportunity to defend himself. If the PM can use every platform to defend himself amid Rafale allegations, why such a chance was not given to the ousted CBI chief? it said. PTI laxmi@tribune.com Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 12 As the Army beefs up its mechanised forces in high-altitude areas to meet the emerging security challenges, the troops are combating a peculiar logistical problem. The availability and suitability of extreme cold climate (ECC) clothing for crews of armoured fighting vehicles operating in the freezing heights of Ladakh is an issue the Army is trying to sort out. The present type of ECC clothing for troops deployed in areas that experience sub-zero temperatures is bulky and cumbersome, making it unsuitable for use in the close confines of tanks and infantry combat vehicles, sources said. The Army has been highlighting the need for overalls or dungarees suitable for use in extreme climatic conditions by combat troops as well as technicians and support staff, without compromising their efficiency. In the Indian context, mechanised warfare has traditionally been associated with the plains, barring a few exceptions like the use of tanks at Zoji La in 1948 and Chuchul in 1962. There was no provision for ECC clothing for armoured crews, an officer said. The case has been taken up for scaling armoured crew specific ECC clothing and accessories for armoured and mechanised infantry units in high-altitude areas. The Army Design Bureau has also been roped in to help improve the existing items or create new designs and specifications with the help of the industry, he added. The Army began deploying an armoured brigade, comprising three regiments of 45 tanks each, in Ladakh in phases from 2014. Prior to this, there was an ad hoc mechanised force of a few T-72 tanks and BMP-II infantry combat vehicles near Leh. The Armys perspective plans call for an armoured brigade each in the northern and eastern sectors along with three additional mechanised infantry battalions outfitted for high-altitude operations.. China, on the other hand, is reported to have deployed an armoured division and two motorised infantry divisions in the Lanzhou Military Region opposite Ladakh and two armoured brigades and four motorised infantry divisions in the Chengdu Military Region opposite Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. A division has three brigades. The Army is also engaged in improving the design and quality of ECC clothing issued to all other troops in high-altitude areas to make it lightweight, modular and waterproof, without restricting mobility and ease of operating equipment. monicakchauhan@gmail.com Ajay Banerjee Tribune News Service New Delhi, January 13 An Army jawan from Rohtak has been detained after he was allegedly honey trapped by a woman posing as 'Anika Chopra' on Facebook and claiming to be a 'Captain' in the Army Medical Corps. The jawan is deployed with the Tank unit in Jaisalmer. The woman used to talk to him and send lewd messages and even pictures. She was in touch with him since 2016. A unit of the Military intelligence detained the jawan when he was allegedly caught sending pictures and location of exercise and other things, including Arjun Tanks, to the woman. Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had on January 10 spoken about the misuse of social media and had made it clear that it would attract action. Sources said that the Army has found fake profiles of leading Bollywood actresses used to woo jawans. The FB profiles of some more jawans are under watch. shalender@tribune.com Family time Shivin Narang This time, I will be celebrating Lohri with my family. I will also celebrate it on the sets of my show, Internet Wala Love. We have a very major Lohri sequence coming up on the show. I have so many memories of celebrating Lohri with loved ones. It used to be celebrated with much pomp and show in Delhi. I remember collecting wood and other utensils for the ceremony. Festive affair Tarun Khurana Lohri is a very special festival for Punjabis. Celebrating Lohri is different, fun and a unique experience altogether. Eating gajak, revri and phulle around the bonfire is the most amazing part. Dancing on dhol with family, playing games and eating Sarso ka saag and Makki ki roti is fun. Punjabi flavour Ssharad Malhotra I will be celebrating Lohri at my cousins house, as they have a beautiful open space right next to the beach. Punjabi songs, some bhangra, lots of food and a complete festive vibe is expected. Big blast Mohit Malhotra Lohri is very special for me, as its one of the prominent festivals for Punjabis. In our building, we have a lot of Punjabis and we all celebrate along with our families. Dance through Gautam Rode The entire family would come together for Lohri, it being the first festival of the new year. We gather around the bonfire and dance on Punjabi songs. Memory bank Vivek Dahiya Lohri is one of my favourite holidays as firstly its in the winter. This time, its working Lohri, as I will be shooting. Delicious food, chilly weather and family time are all part of my memories as a kid. editorial@tribune.com Suhail A Shah Anantnag, January 12 National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Saturday said if voted to power, his party would not support the Armys Operation All-out against the militants in Kashmir. The NC patron said this on the sidelines of a workers meeting at Dak Bungalow in Anantnag town. How can we support something where there is suppression, Farooq said when asked whether his party would support the Operation All-out. The Operation All-out was conceived in June 2017 to flush out militants from the Valley. Security agencies had prepared a list of over 250 militants from various outfits who were to be eliminated. Most of the militants on the list have been killed by security forces in the Kashmir valley. Farooq said his party did not want the people to suffer. Its not a question of the Operation All-out. We do not want our people to suffer. We dont want our people to be beaten up in their homes. That has never been a part of the NC policy, Farooq said. He said his party was not going to support any violence or violation of human rights. Earlier, Farooq asked mediapersons to leave the venue as he was there to speak to his party workers. Following his rebuke, local journalists held a sit-in outside the venue. Later, Farooq invited the mediapersons for an interaction. On being asked whether his party would order a probe into the civilian killings of 2016 if voted to power, Farooq said: Omar (Abdullah) has already stated that there should be a reconciliation commission. More than 100 civilians were killed and thousands were injured in violence following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani in July 2016. Farooq said his party would announce a truth and reconciliation commission the day it was sworn to power. God willing, if we are elected with a majority and we dont need crutches to hold our government together, we will announce such a commission the day we take over, he said. editorial@tribune.com Suhail A Shah & Majid Jahangir Anantnag/Srinagar, January 13 Wanted Al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam (29), a key recruiter who escaped several times by breaking the security cordon, ran out of luck late Saturday. He was killed along with his aide in south Kashmirs Kulgam district. The operational chief of Al-Badr was one of the few surviving militants on the list of the Armys 22 most wanted released in June last year. His elimination is believed to have further weakened the militant ranks in Kashmir. Since November, more than six top commanders have been killed by the forces. Except for Riyaz Naikoo and Zakir Musa, the top militant leadership has been eliminated, said police sources. The gunfight at Kathpora Yaripora on Saturday erupted after dusk when the forces launched a search operation. Initially, the police said two militants had been killed. It was midnight when the deceased were identified as Zeenat and his aide Shakeel Ahmad Dar. The police said apart from being an IED expert, Zeenat was a key recruiter. It was often at funerals of militants, when emotions run high, that he would pick recruits, a police official said. Active since 2006, Zeenat was arrested in 2009 in north Kashmirs Sopore and jailed for at least four years. In 2015, he joined the Lashkar-e-Toiba and then Hizbul Mujahideen. He was allegedly involved in an ambush in February 2017 that left three Army jawans dead and five wounded. He became Al-Badr commander a few months ago. Thousands of mourners today attended Zeenats funeral in his native village Sugan in Shopian. His father Ghulam Hassan Shah called his killing a proud moment. Clashes erupted when the forces restricted the movement of mourners. More than 10 persons were injured as the forces fired bullets and pellets. A woman suffered injuries when she was allegedly hit by a security vehicle. Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti termed the security forces action unfortunate and disturbing. Reports of aerial firing to stop the crowd from participating in the funeral of a local militant are very unfortunate and disturbing. Such interference in the religious affairs is undesirable and may backfire, leading to further anger and alienation, she tweeted. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Srinagar, January 12 Intermittent snowfall across most parts of the Kashmir valley on Saturday led to the closure of the 300-km Srinagar-Jammu highway, the main surface link between the summer and winter capitals of the state, and also disrupted air traffic in the region. A part of the fifth spell of snow this winter, the intermittent snowfall continued in the region for the third day. The snowfall was reported from Srinagar and also parts of north and south Kashmir. It led to the closure of the Srinagar-Jammu highway for all vehicular traffic, an official of the traffic department said. The official said heavy snowfall along the mountainous stretch of the highway near the Jawahar Tunnel forced them to halt the vehicular movement which was plying from Jammu towards Srinagar. The snow accumulation has also forced a continued closure of two other key roads, Mughal Road and Srinagar-Kargil highway, which lead in and out of the Valley, the official said. The snowfall also disrupted air traffic over the region as some flights were cancelled and some were delayed due to low visibility during morning hours and forenoon. The weather department in its forecast bulletin said precipitation was likely to end from Sunday. Sonam Lotus, director of Srinagar Meteorological Centre, said a gradual improvement in visibility was expected in Srinagar and weather will improve in the next 24 hours. Kashmir is witnessing an exceptionally bitter winter this season as back-to-back spells of snowfall in past two months have caused widespread disruptions and weather has remained freezing cold. The overnight temperature in the region continued to remain below the freezing point even as mercury hovered close to zero degree due to the overcast sky. The minimum temperature during next few nights is likely to drop drastically. 500 stranded vehicles cleared Banihal: Over 500 passenger vehicles were cleared on Saturday evening despite snowfall which disrupted traffic on the Jammu-Srinagar national highway, officials said. The traffic on the highway was suspended around 11 am due to slippery conditions between Shaitani nullah and Verinag, leaving hundreds of Srinagar-bound vehicles stranded, said Deputy Superintendent of Police, Traffic National Highway, Pardeep Singh Sen. However, over 500 passenger vehicles which were stranded between Banihal and Ramban were allowed to move towards Srinagar later in the day after the authorities pressed men and machines to clear the snow which had accumulated on the ground around Jawahar Tunnel. Almost all passenger vehicles were cleared, while efforts were on to clear the heavy vehicles carrying essentials to the Valley. PTI In standard law and economics theory, the argument goes like this: When offenders are hard to catch, it is both efficient and in the public interest to make punishments especially harsh, so as to deter appropriately. In the current environment, private social pressures are producing some effective and overdue punishments. Yet there is still a place for forgiveness, a need to be humane and, sometimes, a case for rehabilitation, even (or especially?) for those who have helped to make the world a richer place (Picasso anyone?). Realistically, of course, these second chances will be applied selectively. This muddled mix may very well be the best that we can do. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Jammu, January 12 The much-awaited visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Jammu region has been postponed due to his busy schedule. The Prime Minister is now likely to visit on February 3. To kick-start the campaign for the forthcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, the Prime Ministerhad to visit Vijaypur in Samba district on January 15. Apart from launching various development projects, the Prime Minister also had to address a public rally at Vijaypur. The Prime Minister is now likely to visit the state on February 3, a BJP leader, who had attended a meeting of party office-bearers at Delhi on Saturday, told The Tribune. During his visit, the PM will lay the foundation stone for the Jammu-Poonch national highway widening via Akhnoor, Shahpur-Kandi-Ujj irrigation project and the Devika river beautification project in Udhampur. He will also lay the foundation stone for the Chenani-Sudhmahadev-Doda alternative road, Leh Medical College and the Rs 210-crore Indripattan-Pargwal bridge. Besides, the PM will inaugurate a university for Ladakh. editorial@tribune.com Tribune News Service Jammu/Pune, January 12 The Army today bid a tearful adieu to Major Shashi Dharan V Nair, who was killed along the Line of Control (LoC), in the Nowshera sector on Friday. Major Nair was killed when an improvised explosive device (IED) exploded. The IED was planted by the Border Action Team of the Pakistan army with the help of militants on the LoC. The Army paid tributes to the valiant officer and remembered his sacrifice for the nation. At Rajouri, General Officer Commanding, Ace of Space Division, Major General H Dharmarajan paid homage to the officer. At Technical Airport, Jammu, Inspector General of Police, Jammu, MK Sinha; Station Commander, Jammu; Chief Security Officer, 16 Corps; Station Commander, Air Force Station, Jammu, and others paid tributes to the Army officer. Major Nair hailed from Khadagwasla, Pune, and is survived by his wife Trupti Shashidharan Nair. Born on July 30, 1985, Major Nair had joined the Army 11 years ago. The Army officers mortal remains were transported in a service aircraft from Jammu to Pune on Saturday. In Pune, Harish Kasarkhod, his childhood friend, said having graduated from the famous Fergusson College, Nair could have got a comfortable job elsewhere, but his passion was the armed forces. A pall of gloom descended on the area after the news came. Friends and relatives thronged the family's house. Meanwhile, another soldier Rifleman Jivan Gurung was killed in an IED attack along the LoC in the Nowshera sector of Rajouri. He was from Lamahatta village, Darjeeling, West Bengal. He is survived by his mother Poonam Gurung. The soldiers mortal remains are expected to be taken to his native village on Sunday. He was born on April 11, 1994. Soldier commits suicide in south Kashmir Anantnag: A soldier committed suicide by shooting himself with his service rifle on Friday night in Kulgam district of south Kashmir. The deceased soldier has been identified as Abishekh Roy Kumar. He worked as a wireless operator in the Armys 34 Rashtriya Rifles camp at the Behibagh area of Kulgam district. Confirming the incident, an Army officer said, Abishekh died on the spot after shooting himself. He, however, said the reasons behind the suicide were not known. oc editorial@tribune.com Our Correspondent Hamipur, January 12 Former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said a change in the Congress organisational setup was inevitable and the change was always for the good. He was addressing a public meeting at Kale Amb village near here on Saturday. He said the former president had damaged the party in the state, which would not be repaired easily. He said such people were given positions in the party who did not have the abilities. He said he had been suggesting the party high command regarding a change in the organisational setup to strengthen the party. Speaking on the performance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government, Virbhadra Singh said the government at the Centre had failed on all fronts. He said Modi had assumed power by misleading the people of the country and failed to keep any of the promises he had made during the election campaign in 2014. He said now, the people had decided to oust the NDA from the Centre and in Himachal, the Congress would win all seats. Virbhadra Singh once again advocated the candidature of Abhishek Rana, son of Rajinder Ran, MLA from Sujanpur, for the Congress ticket from Hamirpur. He said as the father had defeated the father (PK Dhumal Former CM), the son would defeat the son (Anurag Thakur sitting MP). He said the people had made up their mind to change the stance and the sitting MP had lost his ground in the constituency. Significantly, this was the second such public meeting that was organised by Rajinder Rana to show his strength. Earlier, a similar meeting was organised at Sujanpur and that too was addressed by former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. Leader of Opposition Mukesh Agnihotri also addressed the gathering. editorial@tribune.com Tribune Reporters Hisar, January 12 Two engineers were killed and three others were injured in a road mishap near Mirchpur village on the Jind-Barwala road in the district on Saturday. The deceased have been identified as Gaurav Singla and Virender Goyat, both residents of Jind town. They were working as subdivisional engineers at Rajiv Gandhi Thermal Power Station in Khedar village of the district. Sudhir, Naresh and Surender sustained injuries in the mishap that took place when the car they were travelling in collided with a private bus. All five were on their way to the thermal plant from Jind to join their duties. A local resident said that the driver of the bus lost control over the vehicle and it resulted in head on collusion between the two vehicles. Local residents took the victims to hospital in Jind. Gaurav and Virender died, while critically injured Sudhir was referred to the PGIMS, Rohtak. Mirchpur police post in charge Randhir Singh said a case of rash and negligent driving had been registered against the bus driver who was absconding. Jeweller dies in Panipat A 47-year-old jeweller was killed in an accident near Matrauli village in the Samalkha area on Saturday. The deceased identified as Shivdhan was the resident of Hathwala village and had a jewellery shop in the village. Vijay Kumar, brother of the deceased, in a statement to the police said that he along with his brother was going to Matrauli village for some work. As they reached near Chandan School on the Atta-Matrauli road, a speeding car hit their motorcycle. Shivdhan was seriously injured in the accident and with the help of other commuters he was admitted to the community health centre at Samalkha where doctors declared him brought dead, he added. Meanwhile, the car driver managed to flee. The police have registered a case and handed over the body to the aggrieved relatives after a postmortem examination. editorial@tribune.com Bhartesh Singh Thakur Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 12 An anonymous letter addressed to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2002, with a copy to the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, had led to registration of three cases against Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh of rape, and of the murders of Ram Chander Chhatrapati and Ranjit Singh. The dera chief has been sentenced to 20-year rigorous imprisonment in the rape case and convicted for the murder of Chhatrapati, editor of Poora Sach newspaper in Sirsa. The quantum of sentence will be pronounced on January 17. Though the Prime Ministers Office did not act on the letter, the High Court marked an inquiry, which led to registration of a rape case. The CBI contended that the dera chief had ordered Chhatrapatis murder for publishing news stories related to the letter. According to the CBI, he also suspected Ranjit Singh, a former dera follower, to be behind the circulation of the letter and ordered his murder too. The Ranjit Singh murder case is still pending. The letter alleged sexual abuse of sadhvis by the dera chief. The writer mentioned how she was called into his cave at about 10 pm, where he was watching porn and had kept a revolver. She said Ram Rahim threatened to kill her if she did not submit herself. He also bragged about his political links and how the Chief Ministers of both Haryana and Punjab touched his feet. The letter claimed women followers were exploited as their family members blindly believed in Ram Rahim. It also spoke of how a woman follower from Bathinda who raised her voice was badly beaten up. I cant stay silent and neither do I want to die. But I want to bring truth before the public. If you get it investigated, then 40-45 girls, who are in fear, could reveal the truth. We should be medically examined so our parents know who destroyed us, it said. CBI counsel HPS Verma said, The letter was typed. It didnt come out who wrote it. The letter was sent by mail to Raja Ram Handiya and Balwant Singh of Tarksheel Society in May 2002. On May 19, 2002, a meeting of Taraksheel Society was held at Kurukshetra in which this letter was discussed. Dera followers contacted both Handiya and Balwant Singh and got the letters from them. They suspected Ranjit Singh, who was of the same village as Balwant Singh, to be behind circulation of the letter. Dera followers beat up Handiya on June 2, 2002. Ranjit Singh was murdered on July 10. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Sanjay Bumbroo Tribune News Service Panchkula, January 12 A doctor is never off duty, even while travelling. Dr Payal Puri Sharma proved this when she selflessly saved the life of a passenger on board an Air Canada flight from Toronto to New Delhi. While returning from Toronto on December 31, she helped a 42-year-old man who collapsed during the flight. Being the only doctor on the aircraft, she offered her services immediately to the cabin crew seeking medical help for the person. Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Dr Payal, a general physician at the Civil Hospital, Sector 6, said she was sleeping when she heard shouts for help of a doctor. She raised her hand. She said she was seated in one of the rear seats of the aircraft. She stood up and saw a man, who was semi-conscious and breathing heavily. She immediately asked the crew to shift him to the business class seat so that he feels comfortable. Dr Payal then sought the apparatus to check blood pressure, which the cabin crew fetched from the crash cart kit. Dr Payal said she asked the wife of the passenger if they were carrying medicines or medical prescription with them. However, she replied in negative. She said the woman told her that the stock of the prescribed medicine had exhausted a day earlier and they were to purchase it after reaching India as the medicine was not available in Toronto. They were also not carrying the medical prescription with them in the cabin bag, she added. Dr Payal, along with the aircraft crew, helped the passenger and revived him by conducting a cardiac massage using the standard process of resuscitation. Air hostesses brought the emergency health kit and oxygen tank. The oxygen-supplemented resuscitation was carried out. After this, Dr Payal gave the person medicine from the crash cart kit so that he could pass maximum urine. She said as the mans condition became normal within half an hour, she offered another sublingual medicine so that his BP turns normal. She said as a general physician she had attended training for basic life support (BLS). She said every doctor and paramedic had been given BLS training by the state health department so as to enable them to provide emergency services. Dr Payal said she had gone to Toronto for her sons admission. She said she had got a letter from Dr Jim Chung, Chief Medical Officer, Air Canada, thanking her for the medical assistance. Now, the airline has provided me a voucher offering 30 per cent discount on future travel as a token of appreciation, added the doctor. Dr Payals Advice Dr Payal Puri Sharma said while travelling by air, one should carry life-saving drugs or medical prescription as it becomes easy for a doctor or paramedic to offer immediate help in case of an emergency. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 12 A 30-year-old National Geographic Channel consultant has been arrested for duping two persons of 10,000 euros at a showroom in Sector 9 here on December 24. The suspect, Snigdha Saurav Dash, is a habitual gambler and visited gambling hubs of Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Nepal, Goa and Sikkim. According to the police, Dash is a triple degree holder. He did BTech and MTech from the NIT, Nagpur, and MBA from the IMT, Ghaziabad. Dash, as claimed by the police, wanted to make easy money by duping innocent people. He used to procure contact details of persons wanting to get some currency changed through justdial.com and induced them to bring the foreign currency for conversion into Indian currency on an address given by him. He used to flee right after taking the foreign currency from the victims on the pretext of bringing Indian currency. On December 24, Dash adopted the same modus operandi. Jagdish Chander, a resident of Khuda Lahora, and Karan Kapoor, a resident of Shivalik Vihar, Nayagaon, who work at Manchanda Money Changer, Sector 32, met the suspect at a temporary office at Sector 9 to get 10,000 euros exchanged. He had taken the cabin on lease for a day on fake ID. After taking 10,000 euros from them, Dash went to another room on the pretext of returning with Rs 8,10,000. They waited for him in the cabin but he did not return. An FIR in this regard was registered under Section 32 and 420 of the IPC at the Sector 3 police station. Dash, a native of Odisha, lives near Connaught Place in Delhi where he was nabbed by a UT police team on Tuesday. On January 8, the police had received information that a person involved in a 10,000-euro fraud in Chandigarh was residing in Delhi. Acting on the tip-off, a police team, under the supervision of DSP Pawan Kumar and headed by Inspector Amanjot Singh, was sent to Delhi and the suspect was arrested. The police claimed that after fleeing with 10,000 euros, Dash went to Delhi. Later, he took a bus for Nepal. After losing all the money at Grand Casino, Nepal, he returned to Delhi on January 2. In 2016, the Delhi Police had arrested Dash for in a case of fraud involving 8,000 USD. He was presently out on bail. On Tuesday, the UT police had produced him before a Duty Magistrate, which sent him to a four-day police remand, which ended today. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Amarjot Kaur Tribune News Service Panchkula, January 12 A day after offering excuses of unavailability on the pretext of being preoccupied with the security arrangements for the CBI courts verdict on Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, Panchkula DCP Kamaldeep Singh finally handed over the copy of an FIR in the case of illegal mining on the HSVP land in Sector 25-A to The Tribune correspondent. While the Mines and Geology Department, Haryana, has slapped weak charges against unknown persons, the Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) has conveniently passed the buck to the Panchkula HSVP Estate Officer. When contacted, NK Payal, HSVPs executive engineer for Panchkula, said: This area does not fall under my jurisdiction. Still Id written a letter to the Panchkula Deputy Commissioner, Panchkula Deputy Commissioner of Police and the SHO of the Chandimandir police station on Thursday. The jurisdiction of this commercial HSVP land in Sector 25-A falls under the Estate Officer. His phone was not reachable. So I wrote to him, detailing the menace of illegal mining here, on Saturday. The FIR, by Deepak Hooda, senior geologist of the Mines and Geology Department, was registered on Friday under Section 21(4) of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act - 1957 and Section 379 of the IPC. The FIR marked to Zail Singh, ASI, for investigation reads: The field staff of the Mining Department inspected the area of Sector 25-A, Panchkula. During the inspection, it was discovered that on the edge of the river of the plot, a deep pit was discovered in which there were signs of fresh mining. On asking local residents, nobody could say who owned the plot and who had carried out the mining. Hence, after investigation you are requested to lodge a case under Section 21(4) of the Mines Minerals (DR) Act - 1957 and various provisions of the IPC against the persons/owners who have carried out illegal mining and caused loss to the state exchequer and inform this office. Section 21(4) only pertains to seizure of mineral, tool, equipment and vehicle, which had been used for illegal mining and transportation. Under the Act, the equipment can be seized and confiscated. The relevant provision of the Act, which is Section 21(1) for illegal mining, has not been invoked. The punishment under Section 21(1) is imprisonment up to 5 years and a fine of Rs 5,00,000 per hectare, said a resident. The other provision invoked is Section 379 of the IPC, which is related to simple theft. The punishment under this Section can extend to imprisonment up to 3 years. When The Tribune asked the residents, they cited instances where the HSVP had marked boundaries of their land near Sector 24, Panchkula, with a barbed wire fence. They have even put up a board, identifying that the area was owned by the HSVP, which reads: trespassers will be prosecuted. Why cant they do the same thing here? All they have done so far is digging up trenches at the entrance. If the HSVP authorities were serious, theyd erect a similar wall or a fence here, but they havent even cared to file an FIR about illegal mining on their land. Also, the Mining Department has taken a weak stance on the issue, the residents rued. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Tribune News Service Chandigarh, January 12 The BJP core group meeting, which was to be held in Delhi on Saturday, will now be held here tomorrow morning to decide mayoral candidates. City BJP core group members, including city in-charge Prabhat Jha, organisation secretary Dinesh Kumar, president Sanjay Tandon and MP Kirron Kher, will hold the meeting to decide candidates for the posts of Mayor, Senior Deputy Mayor and Deputy Mayor. Sources said councillor Rajesh Kalia is the frontrunner in the race for the Mayors post as he comes from the Valmiki community, which has a good chunk of votes here. He had a criminal record, which the party wants to brush aside in lieu of the plea that all his cases had been cleared now. Kalia has been a controversial councillor in the House. He had a spat with the former Medical Officer of Health, PS Bhatti. He had also threatened to go on a strike with the Dalit community if Bhatti was not removed. Other contenders are Bharat Kumar, Famila and Satish Kainth. Sources said the party had made its mind about the candidature, but it wants to disclose the names in the city only. The core group members want to avoid any possible protest from within party councillors in the National Capital. Kalia frontrunner for Mayors post Sources said councillor Rajesh Kalia is the frontrunner in the race for the post of Mayor as he comes from the Valmiki community, which has a good chunk of votes here. He had a criminal record, which the party wants to brush aside in lieu of the plea that all his cases had been cleared now. ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM Tribune News Service Mohali, January 12 As many as 2,448 bottles of liquor smuggled from Chandigarh have been confiscated by excise and taxation officials here on Friday night. Giving details, Paramjit Singh, Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Mohali, said they confiscated 204 cases of English and country-made liquor being transported in a Swaraj Mazda vehicle bearing registration number PB10GK 2495C last night. The officials also caught the driver of the vehicle, who was later handed over to local police. Paramjit Singh said, Our team signalled the driver of the vehicle to stop at a naka in Mohali. Instead of stopping, he accelerated the vehicle. Following a long chase, our team, with the help of the Gharuan police, managed to intercept the vehicle at Gharuan. He added that there was no hologram on any of the bottles. During our investigation, we found that the liquor was prepared at different units in Industrial Area, Chandigarh, said the excise official. The official admitted that liquor bottles sans hologram were being smuggled on a large scale from Chandigarh to Punjab area. The smuggling would adversely affect the quota lifting of liquor in Punjab, which would result in big loss of revenue. The police have arrested two persons in the case. They have been identified as Lakhwinder Singh Lakki and Shri Ram, both residents of Ludhiana. The police have registered a case under the Excise Act against Lakhwinder Singh, Shri Ram, contractor Sunny Gill and Chandigarh liquor vend incharge Kulbir Singh. Efforts were under way to arrest the remaining two suspects. The Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements began seven years later, when the pyrrhotite story broke. This coalition is run by two volunteers, Tim Heim and Cheryl Cranick, with no government funding. It attracts large crowds to meetings, but its leaders have other jobs, and Mr. Heim has added a second one to pay for his own crumbling foundation: Hes taking core samples from homes to test for pyrrhotite at Trinity College. Mark Bennett has reported and analyzed news from the Wabash Valley and beyond since Larry Bird wore Sycamore blue. That role with the Tribune-Star has taken him from Rome to Alaska and many points in between, but Terre Haute suits him best. Follow Mark Bennett Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today MCKINNEY, Texas - Velma Lynn Yettman passed away on June 4th, 2021 in Mckinney, Texas. She was born on October 25th, 1951 in Terre Haute, Indiana. She was predeceased by her sister Valeta May in 2018, and her parents Lloyd and Frances Zenor. Velma is survived by her brother Steve (Becky) Zen Santos and Fitzpatrick are not saying much about what comes next, while waiting for Colangelo. But they are expected to argue that, if there is a retrial, it must start all over again, at the very beginning meaning Skakel will have to be brought into court and asked to plead guilty or not guilty to murder. Michelle Miller, a first-grade teacher at Conemaugh Valley Elementary School, observed on Wednesday that modern teachers are often called upon to fill many different roles in the lives of their students counselors, nurses, therapists, caregivers and cheerleaders, among others. When state lawmakers return to the Capitol on Tuesday, a record number of women will be among them 51 in the state House and 12 in the Senate. Missouri refuses to name medical marijuana applicants The state of Missouri is declining to disclose the identities of those who have paid licensing fees to grow or distribute medical marijuana. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services denied requests for copies of forms filed with licensing fees. Quick look at medical protections as corporations and local government attempt to crack down as they lose this drug war battle. Read more: Two of the cars crashed head on. The two victims in the first car were pronounced dead at the scene, Deputy Chief B.J. Herz of Yantic Engine Co. 1 said. Kobach, Yoder lost because they denigrated immigrants | The Kansas City Star Americans increasingly identify immigrants and refugees not as threats, but as our neighbors. From local business owners to fellow church congregants, we know how much we lose when we push people away. This argument isn't really important but given that the rise of the suburbanite mom might equally impact JoCo politics. However, given that this suburban enclave dominates the metro discourse because of their disposable income . . . Here's the daily paper putting their opinions (and spin) ahead of everyone else . . . Checkit: [January 13, 2019] Big Lots Announces Selection of Industry Leading Reflexis Workforce Scheduler Reflexis Systems, Inc., industry leader in real-time store operations and workforce management solutions, announced today that Big Lots has selected Reflexis Workforce Scheduler to increase its systemic capabilities for their 1,400 stores, including associate scheduling, forecasting and budgeting. By combining Workforce Scheduler with its implementation of Task Manager, Big Lots will increase efficiency while ensuring the necessary resources to support future growth. Big Lots, a leading community retailer operating stores in 47 states, sought a solution to increase scheduling accuracy and engagement for more than 35,000 store associates. With the addition of Workforce Scheduler, Big Lots can more efficiently forecast workload demand, and rapidly generate accurate schedules and create labor budgets. "We are excited to add Reflexis Workforce Scheduler, giving Big Lots the complete functionality of the Reflexis ONE suite," said Mike Schlonsky, EVP Human Resources & Store Operations, Big Lots." "With the power of the full suite, we will increase visibility into store-level execution, reduce labor complexities, and automate many time consuming manual tasks. Additionally, this solution will help us increase productivity and lower associate turnover and, in turn, improve the overall shopping experience across our fleet of stores." "Reflexis is thrilled to assist Big Lots in streamlining its labor scheduling and store operations processes," said Brett Friedman, SVP Sales & Marketing, Reflexis. "We're excited to add Big Lots to a growing roster of clients who recognize the value of having a solution that handles the entire retail work challenge." To learn more: Reflexis Systems will be exhibiting at the NRF 2019: Retail's Big Show in New York City from January 13-15 in booth #4001. Preschedule a meeting by visiting www.Reflexisinc.com. About Big Lots, Inc. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Big Lots, Inc. (NYSE: BIG) is a community retailer operating more than 1,400 BIG LOTS stores in 47 states, dedicated to friendly service, trustworthy value, and affordable solutions in every season and category - furniture, food, deicor, and more. We exist to serve everyone like family, providing a better shopping experience for our customers, valuing and developing our associates, and creating growth for our shareholders. Big Lots supports the communities it serves through the Big Lots Foundation, a charitable organization focused on four areas of need: hunger, housing, healthcare, and education. For more information about the Company, visit www.biglots.com. About Reflexis Systems, Inc. Reflexis is the leading provider of real-time store operations solutions having been selected by more than 250 global retailers to simplify store operations, optimize labor spend, and improve store execution. The Reflexis ONE real-time work platform helps retailers drive simplification for stores and improved line-of-site for field management resulting in significant time savings, precise execution, and a superior customer experience. Reflexis Systems, Inc. is privately held and headquartered in Dedham, Massachusetts and has offices in Atlanta, Columbus, London, Dusseldorf, and Pune (India), with additional sales presence across Europe and Latin America. Reflexis: Unleash the Power of Your Store Associates. Learn more at www.reflexisinc.com Follow Reflexis on: LinkedIn | Blog | Twitter | YouTube View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190113005038/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [January 12, 2019] Baron & Budd is Accepting Cases for Federal Employees Who Worked During the Shutdown without Being Paid on Time as They May Be Owed Additional Money beyond the Regular Wages Today, the national law firm of Baron & Budd announced that it is accepting cases on behalf of federal employees who may not have been paid all wages due to them. The recent shutdown of the federal government has left thousands of federal employees in difficult and unfair positions. In addition, many of those workers were required to work knowing they would not be paid by the regularly scheduled pay date for that work. While it is likely that the federal government will ultimately pay them for that work when the government re-opens, it is important for those workers to know that many of them are due additional money because of the late payments. Under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act ("FLSA"), the failure to pay an employee for work performed by the regularly scheduled pay date is considered a failure to pay, even if the employer pays the wages in full after the scheduled pay date. This failure to pay on time is considered a minimum wage violation for FLSA non-exempt employees (FLSA non-exempt employees are those that are generally entitled to overtime wages and minimum wage protections). This late-pay penalty applies to government and private sector employees alike. Federal Employees who were paid late are generally owed additional money in the amount of $7.25 per hour worked for each week in which they were not paid on time. That penalty is known as "liquidated damages." So, when the late regular wages are eventually paid, an employee who worked 40 hours per week is likely owed $290 for each week that the gvernment or private employer failed to pay the regular wages owed on time. In addition to the minimum wage liquidated damages penalties, FLSA non-exempt employees who worked overtime hours are due additional money for the overtime work that was not paid on time. This penalty provision for government employees was confirmed when FLSA non-exempt employees from the 2013 federal government shutdown worked but were not paid after the scheduled pay date for that work. That case is named Donald Martin, Jr. v. the United States, and can be read here: https://ecf.cofc.uscourts.gov/cgi-bin/show_public_doc?2013cv0834-160-0. "The federal employees who worked during the shutdown are vital to our nation's safety and stability. It is absurd that they are not being paid for their work. While they will almost certainly be paid for that work later when the government shutdown ends, there is a penalty for the government not paying them on time. Of course, the government is not going to come forward and tell them they are owed that additional money, so it is important that those federal workers know their rights," said Allen Vaught, head of the Employment Law Group at Baron & Budd. The employment law attorneys at Baron & Budd have represented thousands of employees throughout the United States. They are known and respected for their results and experience in the field of employment law. If you think that your employer might not be paying you all wages you are owed, including tips, overtime wages, or minimum wages, please contact us at 866-238-4143 or complete our contact form for a free and confidential case evaluation. There is no out of pocket cost to you for a consultation to learn more about your state or federal employment protections. ABOUT BARON & BUDD, P.C. Baron & Budd, P.C. is among the largest and most accomplished plaintiffs' law firms in the country. With more than 35 years of experience, Baron & Budd has the expertise and resources to handle complex litigation throughout the United States. As a law firm that takes pride in remaining at the forefront of litigation, Baron & Budd has spearheaded many significant cases for hundreds of entities and thousands of individuals. Since the firm was founded in 1977, Baron & Budd has achieved substantial national acclaim for its work on cutting-edge litigation, trying hundreds of cases to verdict and settling tens of thousands of cases in areas of litigation as diverse as dangerous pharmaceuticals and defective medical devices, asbestos and mesothelioma, environmental contamination, fraudulent banking practices, motor vehicles, employment law, and consumer fraud issues. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190112005024/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Doris Jean Ice, 85, of Fairview, passed away Sunday, June 13, 2021. She was born February 10, 1936 in Pine Grove, WV, a daughter of the late Clarence LeMasters and Jesse Anderson LeMasters. Doris enjoyed quilting and crocheting. Doris is survived by her sons, William Ricky Ice and his wife K A century ago, on New Year's Day 1919, Alfred E. Smith began his remarkable tenure as governor of the Empire State. The Manhattan Democrat's sweeping reforms of state government and broadening of state services modernized life across New York. This was achieved through a potent blend of progressive vision and political acumen that equipped Smith to oversee an extraordinarily transformative period in the state's history. Al Smith came to power championing comprehensive investments in a substantial social welfare stateand achieved virtually nothing in his first term. His agenda was denounced as bolshevism by conservatives and roundly rejected by the Republican legislature. In 1920, he was defeated for reelection. Yet, two years later Smith was restored to office after campaigning to restructure state administration and enhance the state's commitment to health, education, and workplace safety. Over the ensuing three terms (1923-1928), Smith enjoyed sustained political popularity and, eventually, a series of policy breakthroughs. Republican control of the state Assembly and usually the Senate as well posed a daunting challenge to the governor's ambitions, but Smith's political skills were unparalleled. As hostile legislators blocked reforms, Smith took his program directly to the people. He highlighted park-building and school consolidation during his 1924 campaign and increased education funding and public hydroelectric development were featured in 1926, and always included calls to reform the executive bureaucracy. Each time, voters rallied to their governor's banner. Indeed, Smith was able to succeed broadly because he communicated his complex agenda in popular terms and in a relatable way; rather than being theoretical or elitist, the reform program proffered by Smith was transformed by its sponsor into a people's initiative a fundamentally democratic formula for success. Significantly, Smith was never shy about his progressive vision for the state; rather, he articulated an affirmative case for humane government and its tangible benefits for ordinary citizens. When denounced in 1920 as "paternalistic," he inquired which of his "paternalistic" initiatives Republicans would eliminate: Aid to orphans? Hospital funding? Care for the mentally ill? In 1926, when Rep. Ogden Mills skewered Smith's proposed public power authority as "socialistic," Smith invoked Empire State history, adducing the case of the Erie Canal and querying: "Does Congressman Mills suggest that DeWitt Clinton was a socialist?" When admonished for profligate spending in 1927, Smith cautioned: "When you hear our political friends talking about 'the great spender at Albany,' let's stop and study the amount of money the State is spending for education." Smith was remarkably frank in his prioritization of a robust social welfare regime for New York and his recognition of the concomitant costs. Repeated reelections and partisan haggling led to Smith victories on recreation, conservation, education, rural health, maternal and infant welfare, labor regulations and a slew of other reforms. Moreover, when legislators refused to fund Smith's initiatives as vigorously as the governor preferred, he turned again to the people, receiving popular endorsements of bonds for hospitals, parks, and state facilities. Worse than miserly legislators was a lumbering, archaic state bureaucracy. To remedy this, Smith pursued a constitutional amendment for executive reorganization that streamlined administration and eventually instituted an executive budget facilitating more flexible, efficient, and responsive governance. In 1928, after four productive terms as governor, Smith ran for president on the merits of this New York resume. Indeed, asserted social work pioneer Lillian Wald, Smith had "done more to promote human welfare and social justice in New York than any other man in public life throughout the history of the state." As we mark 100 years since his tenure began, New Yorkers still benefit by the legacies of the "Al Smith decade." Robert Elliot Chiles is a historian at the University of Maryland and author of "The Revolution of '28: Al Smith, American Progressivism, and the Coming of the New Deal." We in the media like to blow things out of proportion, so stories like this have an extended shelf life. It ultimately makes us all neurotic about things that we really shouldnt be worried about. Young American women are not abducted in Aruba very often, but the media TV news in particular will air stories on each anniversary of the tragic disappearance and with every newly released detail. It ends up making us think there are a lot more bad guys out there than there really are. FBI statistics show a 40 percent drop in the number of missing person reports involving a minor since 1997. But definitely, dont let your kids play outside alone. Gloversville Fire destroyed a 14 Woodside Ave. home and routed the four occupants early Saturday morning, city fire officials said. The pre-dawn fire also had some hairy moments. Gloversville and Johnstown firefighters got to the scene at about 4:47 a.m. Battalion Chief Jason Sweet saw heavy smoke at the eaves of the two-family dwelling. Capt. Brandon Lehr and firefighter Jacob Ammann put up a hose line into the second-floor apartment to try to locate the bathroom where the occupant had seen fire. A portion of the kitchen ceiling collapsed near the firefighters and a roaring attic fire became visible, according to a statement from the fire department. After several minutes trying to extinguish the fire, a main section of the roof collapsed above where firefighters were operating. Sweet ordered all firefighters out of the building and all members on the scene were accounted for. He called for more manpower. A tower ladder was called in and the fire was brought under control in about 30 minutes. Four adults were displaced and were being assisted by the American Red Cross. The fire department was assisted by the Ambulance Service of Fulton County and Gloversville police. Gloversville DPW, Gloversville Water Department and National Grid also assisted. The cause of the fire is being investigated; it does not appear to be suspicious at this time, officials said. Toronto Tired but smiling, an 18-year-old Saudi woman who said she feared death if deported back home arrived Saturday in Canada, which offered her asylum in a case that attracted global attention after she mounted a social media campaign. "This is Rahaf Alqunun, a very brave new Canadian," Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said arm-in-arm with the Saudi woman in Toronto's airport. Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun smiled broadly as she exited an airport arrival door sporting a Canada zipper hoodie and a U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees hat, capping a dramatic week that saw her flee her family while visiting Kuwait and before flying to Bangkok. From there, she barricaded herself in an airport hotel to avoid deportation and tweeted about her situation. On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would accept Alqunun as a refugee. Her situation has highlighted the cause of women's rights in Saudi Arabia, where several women fleeing abuse by their families have been caught trying to seek asylum abroad in recent years and returned home. Freeland said Alqunun preferred not to take questions on Saturday. "It was a pleasure for me this morning to welcome her to her new home," Freeland said. "She is obviously very tired after a long journey and she preferred to go and get settled. But it was Rahaf's choice to come out and say hello to Canadians. She wanted Canadians to see that she's here, that she's well and that she's very happy to be in her new home." Freeland said Alqunun commented about the cold weather and she responded that it gets warmer in Canada. Alqunun flew to Toronto via Seoul, South Korea, according to Thai immigration Police Chief Surachate Hakparn. Alqunun tweeted two pictures from her plane seat one with what appears to be a glass of wine and her passport and another holding her passport while on the plane with the hashtag "I did it" and the emojis showing plane, hearts and wine glass. Canada's decision to grant her asylum could further upset the country's relations with Saudi Arabia. In August, Saudi Arabia expelled Canada's ambassador to the kingdom and withdrew its own ambassador after Canada's Foreign Ministry tweeted support for women's right activists who had been arrested. The Saudis also sold Canadian investments and ordered their citizens studying in Canada to leave. No country, including the U.S., spoke out publicly in support of Canada in that spat with the Saudis. Freeland didn't address what Alqunun's case would mean to Saudi relations. "Canada believes very strongly in standing up for human rights throughout the world. We believe very strongly that women's rights are human rights," Freeland said. There was no immediate Saudi government reaction, nor any mention of her arrival in state media. Freeland said the U.N. refugee agency found she was in dangerous situation in Thailand and that Canada is glad they were able to act quickly to offer her refuge. Alqunun's father arrived in Bangkok on Tuesday, but his daughter refused to meet him. The office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees welcomed Canada's decision. "The quick actions over the past week of the government of Thailand in providing temporary refuge and facilitating refugee status determination by UNHCR, and of the government of Canada in offering emergency resettlement to Ms. Alqunun and arranging her travel were key to the successful resolution of this case," the agency said in a statement. Several other countries, including Australia, had been in talks with the U.N.'s refugee agency to accept Alqunun, Surachate said. "She chose Canada. It's her personal decision," he said. Australian media reported that UNHCR had withdrawn its referral for Alqunon to be resettled in Australia because Canberra was taking too long to decide on her asylum. "When referring cases with specific vulnerabilities who need immediate resettlement, we attach great importance to the speed at which countries consider and process cases," a UNHCR spokesperson in Bangkok told The Associated Press in an email reply on condition of anonymity because the person wasn't authorized to discuss the case publicly. Canada's ambassador had seen her off at the airport, where Alqunun thanked everyone for helping her. She plans to start learning more English, though she already speaks it more than passably. Alqunun was stopped Jan. 5 at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport by immigration police who denied her entry and seized her passport. She barricaded herself in an airport hotel room where he social media campaign got enough public and diplomatic support that Thai officials admitted her temporarily under the protection of U.N. officials, who granted her refugee status Wednesday. Surachate said her father whose name has not been released denied physically abusing Alqunun or trying to force her into an arranged marriage, which were among the reasons she gave for her flight. He said Alqunun's father wanted his daughter back but respected her decision. "He has 10 children. He said the daughter might feel neglected sometimes," Surachate said. ALBANY Hamsa Murdoch, an Iraqi transplant to the Capital Region, said that in many of the countries where she and other immigrants come from, citizens fear the police and see the police station as a terrifying place used for torture. One of her jobs in Albany is to try and convince fellow immigrants otherwise. When Murdoch received a call from a Syrian woman last year saying that she was a victim of domestic violence, Murdoch contacted the Albany police, which hired Murdoch, a certified interpreter, as an Arabic-speaking community liaison last year. Police guided her along with the domestic violence victim to make a report. The victim got an order of protection against her husband and went to stay with friends. The woman returned to live with her husband - as often happens in her culture, Murdoch said, adding that she checks in with the woman every couple of days to make sure she's doing okay. "At least now, the husband knows he cannot do anything bad to hurt her, because now he knows there is a police report against him," Murdoch said. "Most of women would like to reach out, however, there are some conditions to prevent them. The first thing is the language. They're afraid if they call, how are they going to speak with police? Now they know there is a community liaison who speaks their language." After the Times Union reported that an Albany police officer yelled at a Burmese man and woman during a domestic violence call "if you're going to live in this country, you need to learn to speak English" in October 2017, police say they are making efforts to bridge communication gaps with the city's immigrant population. Lt. Melissa Gipson said that although the department uses a language helpline officers can call for a translator, that night the officer couldn't understand which language the two people spoke. "We tried to take this experience and learn from it. I'm not defending anybody's actions or justifying it in any way," Gipson said. "As police we can try to outreach to those communities, but it's difficult because of language barriers." Even before the incident, Gipson said, the department was working on acquiring a two-year $240,000 grant from the Open Society Foundations to improve communication and community relations. The department secured the grant and the program started on Jan. 1, 2018. Gipson is in charge of implementing the grant. Police worked with refugee service groups to identify Albany's five major immigrant populations from Myanmar, Afghanistan, Latin American countries and the Dominican Republic, African countries, and Arabic-speaking countries Syria, Iraq and Sudan. The department hired five part-time community liaisons who are on call for emergencies and host monthly events. Officers now carry booklets immigrants can use to identify which language they speak. The department plans to also roll out a version with flags in case immigrants are illiterate. They are also working on translating booklets for the community explaining how to interact with police. The department's 17 recruits received cultural competency training last fall and the entire force will receive it this fall. Police have delivered donations of furniture and bought bicycles to replace stolen ones to build relationships. "It's very interesting to see how as time builds, the relationships start to transform and the trust, you can see it," Gipson said. Abdulhussein Alghshammar, 71 and his wife Husniyah Shammar, 66, who were resettled as refugees in Albany more than four years ago, said they avoided interacting with police in their native Iraq. Here, they said, it's different. "I feel safe here because we believe in the Albany police. I respect them so much. When my husband got sick, I called them and they came immediately. They brought an ambulance," Shammar said. "We are all a part of Albany and we consider Albany our country. We must stay and respect the law and are dependent on police." The grant program has received some mixed reactions from community leaders of immigrant service organizations. Most said it has made a difference while others want to see it go farther in addressing systemic issues of crime. Jill Peckenpaugh, the director of Albany's resettlement agency U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants, met in the fall with the new Albany Police Chief Eric Hawkins, as she's done with the two chiefs before Hawkins. Hawkins attended a meeting with representatives serving the refugee and immigrant communities in December. Service providers recounted instances where immigrants with low-English fluency had trouble communicating with the police when they were stopped or it was hard to get interpreters on the phone. The group discussed solutions. Francis Sengabo, director of refugee support organization RISSE, said police came to do a presentation at the organization and hosted an open house with the community, leading to good communication. "Before, no one would call the police for anything because they were scared. It's not in their culture. They think the police is there to punish them," Sengabo said. "Before they said they had a problem, but now they're calling the police." He did say police and the whole community need to be more educated about refugees. Timothy Doherty, director of the West Hill Refugee Corporation, which rents refurbished units and provides support services to new arrivals, said his tenants are comfortable calling police in emergencies. He often helps the tenants and police communicate. He thinks the police's program hasn't gone far enough, though, and criticized that the department didn't do anything with the grant funds for the first five months of 2018. "There's been a push from police, but that's PR (public relations) let's get a liaison, let's get a little of that. It doesn't speak nearly as loudly as the stuff that goes on," Doherty said. "Police are the bigger problem, in terms of communication, it's almost what they don't do communicates more than what they do." He doubted how much initiatives like giving toys to kids would make systemic change. He instead wants police to be more present and attentive to crime in West Hill, and to host practical community forums covering first aid or fire safety. Funding for the police department's program is not guaranteed after Jan. 1 of next year. Troy For just a moment, let's put our bitter political divisions aside. If you worship at the feet of Donald Trump, ignore for now that Kirsten Gillibrand has branded herself a key member of the resistance and that she is one of the many, many candidates trying to unseat him in 2020. If you're a lefty who wears a "Feel the Bern" tee to bed, ignore that Gillibrand was once a tobacco-industry lawyer and a conservative Democrat who bragged about the guns under her bed. And if you're somewhere in the middle, forget, just for now, that New York's junior senator vowed before the November election that she would serve out her six-year term but ditched that promise in a New York heartbeat. Left and right, progressive and conservative, we all agree that Gillibrand's decision to locate her presidential campaign headquarters in Troy is great for the city and its ever-evolving downtown. It's good for the region. "It brings national attention," said former Troy mayor Harry Tutunjian. "It brings media and workers here. It fills hotel rooms and restaurants." Tutunjian, I should mention, is a Republican, and yet is nevertheless willing to welcome Team Gillibrand to his city. Isn't that nice? See, we really can all get along. Anybody remember how the first verse of "Kumbaya" goes? "It will help her deliver things to Troy," Tutunjian added, "that she wasn't able to deliver as a congresswoman and a senator." Well, it was nice while it lasted. Gillibrand has yet to formally announce that she's running, but she announced her exploratory campaign Tuesday night on Stephen Colbert's show and is planning a visit to Iowa. Gillibrand has also eased 5,000 square feet of office space in the Frear building at River and Fulton streets. The prominent downtown landmark, a former department store, is about three miles from Gillibrand's home in Brunswick. More importantly, perhaps, it's about a half block from The Bradley, which the senator has described on Twitter as "one of the best dive bars in all of Troy." Gillibrand, of course, is originally from Albany, with deep family ties to the city's political history. So why not put her presidential campaign headquarters there? More Information Contact columnist Chris Churchill at 518-454-5442 or email cchurchill@timesunion.com See More Collapse The answer is obvious. Albany, through no fault of its own, is a bad political brand, given the Legislature's proclivity toward sleaziness and corruption. Plus, there's the Andrew Cuomo factor. You don't want a potential rival popping in or peeking through windows. Security! Andy is here again! No, the hometown of Uncle Sam will do just fine. And for anyone who loves the city, it's hard not to daydream about where this all could go. What if Gillibrand, hardly considered a front-runner, actually wins the nomination? What if she ... BECOMES THE PRESIDENT? "If a Democrat has to rise to the presidency, it would be nice to have it be a Democrat from Rensselaer County," Tutunjian said. Gillibrand's Brunswick home could become the Winter White House, the Mar-a-Lago of the North. The Bradley could become a presidential hangout; it might someday sport a plaque noting that "President Gillibrand drank here." In 2030, the Gillibrand Presidential Library could finally fill that big ugly hole at One Monument Square. The possibilities are endless. Sure, there would be downsides. Presidential motorcades would block traffic. Tourist hordes might ruin the farmers market. You might bump into Jim Acosta at Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. Hey, nobody said entering the big time would be easy. Are we getting ahead of ourselves? A recent CNN poll had Gillibrand with just 1 percent of the vote, way behind Joe Biden (30 percent) and Bernie Sanders (13 percent). She's tied with Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, who could walk naked through Times Square without being recognized. Gillibrand also faces lingering and inexplicable anger from some Democrats over her call for Al Franken to resign, which is beyond ridiculous. Eight women accuse the former Minnesota senator of sexual impropriety and Gillibrand is responsible for his downfall? C'mon. Gillibrand's obviously calculated policy flops are a more valid reason for skepticism. (She has blamed formerly conservative positions on guns and immigration on her having an "upstate lens.") But President Obama "evolved" on gay marriage, among other issues, and nobody seemed to care. Trump changes his mind every other minute. This much is true: Anybody who underestimates Kirsten Gillibrand is making a mistake. She has proven herself far more politically skilled and adept than most of us would have imagined when she announced her candidacy against John Sweeney back in 2006. Is Gillibrand a 2020 long shot? Sure. Could she win? Yes. Now, about that presidential library. cchurchill@timesunion.com 518-454-5442 @chris_churchill New York The star of the upcoming "The Sopranos" prequel says a young Tony Soprano will be a part of the film but the actor had good reason to be careful about how much else he revealed about "The Many Saints of Newark." Alessandro Nivola talked to The Associated Press about the project on the red carpet Wednesday before a panel discussion led by creator David Chase to celebrate the 20th anniversary of "The Sopranos" in New York. "I guess I got to be kind of discreet about it, so David Chase doesn't kill me," Nivola said. "I'm playing Dickie Moltisanti, who is the central character in the movie, and he is Christopher Moltisanti's dad." Christopher Moltisanti, who was played by Michael Imperioli in the series, was a protege of Tony Soprano, the New Jersey mob boss portrayed by James Gandolfini. Though the elder Moltisanti never appeared in the series, he is often mentioned as part of Christopher's backstory. The father was gunned down when Christopher was young and Nivola said the film will explore the interlocking history of Dickie Moltisanti and Soprano. "Tony will be a character in the film, and as was mentioned throughout 'The Sopranos' series, my character was an important person in his life, and it examines that relationship as well," Nivola said. The film begins in 1967 with the backdrop of the race riots that tore through Newark, N.J. Nivola said racial tension is "a big part of the story." Beijing Chinese tech giant Huawei said Saturday it has fired an employee who was arrested in Poland on spying charges. The allegations against Wang Weijing "have no relation to the company," Huawei Technologies Ltd. said in a statement. It said Wang was fired because the incident "brought Huawei into disrepute," a violation of his contract. Polish authorities announced Friday that a Huawei director and a Polish cybersecurity expert were accused of carrying out "espionage against Poland." Huawei, the biggest maker of telecom network equipment, faces accusations by the United States and some other governments that it might be a security risk. Washington has imposed curbs on use of Huawei technology and is pressuring allies to avoid the company. Huawei has denied accusations it is controlled by China's ruling Communist Party or facilitates spying. Polish authorities gave no details about what the Huawei employee, identified as Weijing W., and the Pole, Piotr D., were accused of doing. Polish state TV reported both have declared themselves innocent. Polish TV reported the Chinese suspect was a former diplomat. Huawei complies with "all applicable laws" in countries where it operates and requires employees to obey them too, said the company statement. Controversy over security threatens to disrupt Huawei's effort to sell its next-generation telecoms technology abroad. The company is a leader in developing such "5G" systems. Huawei's U.S. market dried up after a congressional panel said in 2012 the company and its smaller Chinese rival ZTE Corp. were potential security risks and told phone companies to avoid using their technology. Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and Japan have imposed curbs on use of Huawei technology. GENEVA and PARIS and LONDON and NEW YORK, Jan. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --A L'Occitane International S.A. ("L'OCCITANE" or the "Group"; SEHK stock code: 973), the leading manufacturer and retailer of natural cosmetics with a portfolio of premium beauty brands, today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire ELEMIS, the number one luxury British skincare brand, for $900 million in cash.A ELEMIS is being sold by Steiner Leisure Limited ("Steiner"), a portfolio company of L Catterton, the largest and most global consumer-focused private equity firm. Founder-led since 1990, ELEMIS is a world leader in prestige skincare and is the number one independent British skincare brand. ELEMIS' products garner strong cross-generational consumer appeal, with a proven ability to attract Millennials while maintaining loyal Gen X and Baby Boomer consumers. ELEMIS offers four award-winning skincare franchises that mirror the consumer journey and harness the power of the most efficacious natural ingredients and latest in scientific innovation. ELEMIS capitalizes on its five strategic distribution channels a digital, retail distribution1, QVC, professional spa and maritime a to drive awareness, trial, conversion and retention across the omni-channel. Reinold Geiger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of L'OCCITANE said, "We are pleased to welcome the ELEMIS business, brand and people to the L'OCCITANE family. It is a major step forward for L'OCCITANE in building a leading portfolio of premium beauty brands. ELEMIS is well positioned for continued global growth due to the brand's broad appeal, award-winning product portfolio, robust new product development pipeline and effective consumer-focused digital and brick-and-mortar distribution strategy. We have long admired ELEMIS for their commitment to natural ingredients and scientific innovation, and we look forward to utilizing our expertise in the category to expand the brand's footprintA around the world." "We are thrilled to announce this agreement with L'OCCITANE, which will strengthen the continued growth and momentum behind our timeless brand and remarkably transformative products," said Sean Harrington, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ELEMIS. "Reinold Geiger has a strong history of developing and supporting brands like ours that are creating products sourced from nature and developed through cutting edge science and technology. With his inspiring and entrepreneurial leadership, I am confident that through this transaction, we can continue to realize our mission of delivering extraordinary products and experiences and grow ELEMIS into one of the leading skincare brands in the world." Marc Magliacano, Managing Partner of L Catterton's Flagship Buyout Fund, said, "Over decades, ELEMIS has built an enduring and truly unique brand with powerful consumer appeal across generations, a relentless focus on innovation and an unwavering commitment to high quality sourced ingredients. Since partnering with Steiner Leisure in 2015, we have worked alongside ELEMIS' talented management team to invest in its innovation capabilities, expand its product assortment and evolve its go-to-market strategy with the ultimate goal of appealing to a wider consumer audience. This transaction represents a terrific outcome for ELEMIS and L Catterton, and we are confident that ELEMIS will thrive and reach new heights in partnership with L'OCCITANE." "For over 25 years, ELEMIS co-founders Sean Harrington, Noella Gabriel and Oriele Frank have committed their life's work to building a brand with the power to span across categories, geographies and generations. We at L Catterton are proud to have been partners with the founders on this remarkable journey over the past three years. We look forward to seeing ELEMIS continue to flourish with the global support of the L'OCCITANE Group for years to come," said Avik Pramanik, Partner of L Catterton. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2019. Jefferies and Nomura acted as financial advisors to ELEMIS, and Kirkland & Ellis served as legal advisor. About L'Occitane International S.A. L'Occitane International S.A. is an international group that manufactures and retails beauty and well-being products that are rich in natural and organic ingredients. A global leader in the premium beauty market, the Group has more than 3,000 retail outlets, including over 1,500 owned stores, and is present in 90 countries. Through its five brands a L'OCCITANE en Provence, Melvita, Erborian, L'OCCITANE au BreIsil and LimeLife by Alcone a the Group offers new and extraordinary beauty experiences, using high quality products that respect nature, the environment and the people who surround it. For more information: https://group.loccitane.com/ About ELEMIS The number one luxury British skincare brand that harnesses the power of the most efficacious natural ingredients and latest in scientific innovation. ELEMIS' pioneering skincare products and treatments have transformed the frontline of the beauty industry. The masterful hands of ELEMIS therapists touch over six and a half million clients a year and continues to innovate award-winning formulations. ELEMIS is available at over 1600 spas, salons, stores and multiple e-retailers worldwide. ELEMIS was launched in 1990 and is headquartered in London. For more information visit www.elemis.com. About L Catterton With over $15 billion of equity capital across six fund strategies in 17 offices globally, L Catterton is the largest consumer-focused private equity firm in the world. L Catterton's team of more than 150 investment and operating professionals partners with management teams around the world to implement strategic plans to foster growth, leveraging deep category insight, operational excellence, and a broad thought partnership network. Since 1989, the firm has made over 200 investments in leading consumer brands. L Catterton was formed through the partnership of Catterton, LVMH and Groupe Arnault. For more information about L Catterton, please visit lcatterton.com. Contacts: L'OCCITANE Media Contact Think Alliance Group Matthew Schultz / Henry Chow Tel: (852) 3978 5321 / 3978 5323 Email: loccitane@think-alliance.com Analyst Contact Janis Lai Tel: (852) 2899 4106 Email: Janis.LAI@loccitane.com ELEMIS Lisa Bobroff Tel: 646.502.1529 Email: lisa.bobroff@elemis.com L Catterton Andrea Rose / Andrew Squire Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher 212.355.4449 1Entailing wholesale chains and travel retail Tom Kalejta is an author of Building Wealth, Protecting Dreams and a financial advisor. He is intrigued by how Baby Boomers are changing retirement trends and lifestyles in the 21st century. He believes in inspiring his readers by talking less about money and more about reinvented possibilities particularly when things dont go as planned. He can be reached by emailing thomasakalejta@gmail.com. Veritiv Corporation operates as a business-to-business provider of value-added packaging products and services, as well as facility solutions, print, and publishing products and services in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and internationally. The Packaging segment provides custom and standard packaging solutions. The Facility Solutions segment sources and sells cleaning, break-room, and other supplies, such as towels, tissues, commercial cleaning chemicals, personal protective equipment and safety supplies, wipers, can liners, soaps and sanitizers, dispensers, sanitary maintenance supplies and equipment, hazard supplies, and shampoos and amenities. The Print segment sells and distributes commercial printing, writing, copying, digital, and specialty products; and graphics consumables and equipment. It also provides customized paper conversion services of commercial printing paper for distribution to document centers and form printers. The Publishing segment sells and distributes coated and uncoated commercial printing papers to publishers, retailers, converters, printers, and specialty businesses for use in magazines, catalogs, books, directories, gaming, couponing, retail inserts, and direct mail. This segment also provides print management, procurement, and supply chain management solutions. The company also offers logistics solutions. Veritiv Corporation offers its products under the Endurance, nordic+, Comet, Starbrite Opaque Select, TUFflex, Reliable, and Spring Grove brands, as well as other brands to customers in manufacturing, food processing and service, fulfillment and internet retail, property management, higher education, healthcare, entertainment and hospitality, commercial printing and publishing sectors. As of December 31, 2020 the Company operated approximately 125 distribution centers. Veritiv Corporation was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Read More Today Sunny. High 88F. Winds SSE at 10 to 15 mph. Tonight Partly cloudy. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds SSE at 5 to 10 mph. Tomorrow Scattered thunderstorms in the morning. Partly cloudy skies late. High around 95F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%. A formal decision is expected at a board meeting as early as next week, the sources said. The company will book a charge of between 200 billion yen and 300 billion yen ($2.8 billion) in the current fiscal year ending in March, the Nikkei reported. The project calls for construction of two reactors on the western British island of Anglesey. The company aimed to start operations at the plant in the mid-2020s. Hitachi was struggling to raise funds from investors and calling for the British government, which was expected to provide loan guarantees, to expand its assistance. Hitachi was hoping a group of Japanese investors and the British government would each take a one-third stake in the equity portion of the project. Hitachi is settling on the suspension as it is unclear whether the company will be able to receive additional assistance from the United Kingdom government, the sources said. However, Hitachi struggled to secure investors from among Japanese companies largely because it is hard to see if the project would be profitable. The company has so far spent some 300 billion yen on construction-related costs, including personnel expenses. The Nikkei report comes after another Japanese industrial conglomerate, Toshiba Corp 6502.T , scrapped its British NuGen project after its US reactor unit Westinghouse went bankrupt and it failed to sell NuGen to South Korea's Korea Electric Power Corp. At a new conference on Thursday after a meeting with her Japanese counterpart, Shinzo Abe, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May said that whether or not the project would go ahead was a commercial decision for Hitachi, leaving the future course of the project unclear. Giridih (Jharkhand), Jan 13 (PTI) A Maoist, who came home to observe festival in Chitara village in the district, was arrested on Sunday, police said here. Yodho Tudu was wanted in the killing of a policeman during an encounter on March 30, 2009 near Merampahari of the district, said Bagodar sub-divisional police officer Binod Mahto.PTI CORR PVR RCJ Muzaffarnagar, Jan 13 (PTI) Security has been tightened in the Morna area here following the murder of a doctor, police said Sunday. Forty-year-old veterinary doctor Satish Kumar was found murdered at Morna town under Bhopa police station limits here on Saturday, they said. He was missing since Friday, police added. Tension prevailed in the area after news of the doctor's death spread. Angry villagers blocked the Bhipa-Morna road demanding action against the killers, they said. Police said Kumar was murdered over a monetary dispute. The main accused, Kamil, has been arrested in this connection, they said. Police personnel in large numbers have been deployed in the area to maintain law and order, they said. PTI Corr AQS AQS New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has urged private doctors to notify every tuberculosis patient and register them on NIKSHAY, a web-enabled application developed by the Health Ministry. NIKSHAY is an online tool which aims to create a database of all TB patients for monitoring and research purposes. Dr R V Asokan, secretary general and chairman of IMA, said private doctors have a huge role to play in reporting TB cases and adhering to the standards for TB Care in India (STCI). "They (private) need to realise the urgency of the situation in that a drug sensitive epidemic is being transformed into a drug resistant epidemic. Standards of TB care have to be followed uniformly across the private sector. "India has the largest burden of tuberculosis in the world. Notification of every TB patient is the single most important intervention to meet the government's vision of a TB-free India. IMA is addressing this and is encouraging all private doctors to notify every TB patient in order to achieve the goal of 'End TB' in India by 2025," Asokan said. It is seen that we are unable to track the actual number of TB cases on the ground, he said. "To make the TB-free India mission a success notification of patients by private doctors has to increase by leaps and bounds. India declared TB a notifiable disease in 2012. All medical practitioners in the country need to notify their TB patients. Upon notification, the patient gets access to free drugs, diagnostic tests and nutritional support," he said. IMA has been working with the government to develop strategies that effectively address the impediments in the management of the disease, especially the low notification of patients. The IMA is holding a series of TB programmes for medical professionals across the country to increase notifications in the private sector and is encouraging them to register TB patients on NIKSHAY, he said. Notification allows access to free drugs and diagnostic tests as per the STCI and patient-centric support that ensures patients adhere to the treatment and incentives. The financial incentives are provided upon notification in NIKSHAY through integrated direct beneficiary transfer. "Ultimately, TB patients need a complete solution to their problem, regardless of whether they seek care in the public or the private sector. Therefore, it is important for the private sector to work hand-in-hand with the Revised National TB Control Program (RNTCP), and improve the overall quality of TB care in the country," Asokan said. India accounts for a quarter of the 8.6 million cases of TB that occur worldwide. India also accounts for a third of the 'missing 3 million TB cases' that do not get diagnosed or notified. PTI PLB IND IND New Delhi, Jan 13 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday attacked the previous Congress government for its inability to bring Kartarpur Sabib under India during partition. Releasing a commemorative coin as part of the 350th birth anniversary celebrations of 10th Sikh guru Guru Gobind Singh, Modi also came down on the Congress for the 1984 riots that took place following the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Referring to the Kartapur Sahib corridor, he said now devotees do not have to look at the shrine in Pakistan using binoculars and they could visit the place without visa using the corridor. "A mistake took place in August, 1947. It (the corridor) is an atonement of the mistake. An important place of our guru was only a few kilometers away. But it could not be made part (of India during partition) ... the corridor is an effort to reduce the damage," he said in a veiled attack on the then Congress government. Guru Nanak passed away in Kartarpur on September 22, 1539. Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former chief justice of India J S Khehar and several Sikh leaders were present at the Prime Minister's residence to participate in the event. Modi said be it Guru Nanak or Guru Gobind Singh, they have taught us to be on the side of justice. Following the path shown by them, the central government is trying to get justice for the people who suffered during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Modi said. "The central government is making efforts to get justice for the period of injustice which started in 1984. For decades, mothers, sisters, daughters and sons have shed tears, the law will deliver justice, wipe (their) tears," the PM said referring to the riots that took place following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi. The PM released a Rs 350 denomination commemorative silver coin to mark the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. He described the founder of the Khalsa sect as a warrior and a poet who had immense knowledge of religious scriptures. Modi said the government now plans to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak across the country. Modi said while the event will be held various states and union territories, Indian embassies abroad will also organise programmes as part of the celebrations Guru Nanak was born on April 15, 1469, in Nankana Sahib, now Pakistan. Modi said, for the last four years, his government has been making comprehensive efforts to bring the cultural and knowledge heritage of India to the world. "From Yoga to Ayurveda, the country has succeeded in re-establishing its status. This work continues," he said. PTI NAB NAB TVS TVS Lucknow, Jan 13 (PTI) A day after the SP and the BSP announced alliance for the Lok Sabha polls in the state, senior Congress leaders Sunday held a brainstorming meeting at the party's state headquarters here to discuss future course of action. The Congress, which has been left out of the alliance in the state, might go it alone in the Lok Sabha elections but may choose not to field candidates on a few seats, a senior party leader said. While announcing the SP-BSP alliance Saturday, BSP chief Mayawati had said they would not contest from Amethi (currently held by party chief Rahul Gandhi) and Rae Bareli (held by Sonia Gandhi) seats. Congress general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad and UP Congress chief Raj Babbar held a close door meeting with senior leaders, party sources said. Asked to comment on the tie-up announced by BSP chief Mayawati and SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad had Saturday said the party would not react immediately and would come out with a detailed reaction in Lucknow. He said a meeting would be held with leaders and workers of the party from central and eastern Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. PTI NAV SMI AQS TIR AQS AQS Dubai, Jan 13 (PTI) Congress President Rahul Gandhi, who had earlier argued that all women should be allowed to enter the Sabarimala temple, on Saturday said he cannot take an "open-and-shut position on the issue as there is validity in the arguments of both the sides. Speaking at a press conference in Dubai on Saturday, Gandhi said the issue is "much more complicated" and he would leave it to the people of Kerala to decide on the matter. He admitted that his initial position on the Sabarimala issue was different than what it is today. "I have heard both the arguments, my initial position was different than what my position is today. After I heard the arguments of people of Kerala, I can see validity in both the arguments that traditions need to be protected. I can see validity in the argument that women should have equal rights. So I would not be able to give you an open-and-shut position on this," Gandhi said. "After I spoke to the people in Kerala and the Pradesh Congress Committee team in the state and they explained the details, I realised that the issue is much more complicated and both sides have a valid position. I would leave it to the people to decide on this," he said. After the Supreme Court verdict, Gandhi had said that all women should be allowed to enter the Sabarimala temple, noting that his view on the issue was different from that of his party's Kerala unit. The Congress in the capital had welcomed the Supreme Court verdict, while the party MPs from Kerala opposed it. The shrine was out of bounds for girls and women between 10 and 50 years of age. The Supreme Court's September 28 verdict allowed women of all age groups to offer prayers at the hill shrine dedicated to Lord Ayyappa. The southern state witnessed massive protests from the right-wing organisations after the Left-led state government decided to implement the Supreme Court ruling. PTI PMS PMS Mumbai, Jan 13 (PTI) Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani has been accused of sexual assault by a woman who worked with him on his 2017 film "Sanju". Hirani has categorically denied the allegations. His lawyer Anand Desai termed the allegations "false, mischievous, scandalous, motivated and defamatory". In an article on HuffPost India, the woman, who calls herself as "an assistant", alleged that Hirani sexually abused her more than once between March and September 2018. She detailed her allegations in an email dated November 3, 2018, to Hirani's longtime collaborator and "Sanju" co-producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The woman said that on April 9, 2018, the director first passed a sexually suggestive remark to her and later sexually assaulted her at his home office. "I remember forming these words on my lips - 'Sir, This is wrong. Because of this power structure. You being the absolute power and me being a mere assistant, a nobody - I will never be able to express myself to you'," she wrote of the April 9 incident in the email to Chopra, as quoted by HuffPost India. The woman said that Hirani was a father figure for her. "My mind, body and heart were grossly violated that night and for the next 6 months," the email read. Chopra's wife, film critic Anupama, who is a director at Vinod Chopra Films Pvt Ltd, "Sanju" scriptwriter Abhijat Joshi and filmmaker Shelly Chopra, Vidhu Vinod's sister, were also marked on the email. The complainant later spoke to HuffPost India that she was "intimidated by Hirani", who was her reporting person at the time. She said she maintained a facade of normalcy regarding Hirani's behaviour as she needed to hold on to her job as her father was suffering from a terminal illness. "I had no choice but to be polite to him. It was unbearable but the reason I endured it all, until I couldn't, was because I didn't want my job to be taken away from me, and work to be questioned. Ever. "I was worried that if I left midway, it would be impossible to find another job in this industry if he were to speak badly about my work. Because if Hirani said I wasn't good, everybody would listen. My future would be in jeopardy," she said. Anupama Chopra had confirmed that the woman had shared an account with her, and that Vinod Chopra Films (VCF) has since set up a committee to address complaints of sexual harassment. "I have offered my full support and recommended that she take the complaint to a legal body or a neutral party since we cannot be arbitrators or judges on this. "We also offered to set up an ICC at VCF (which we have set up since then) even though a VCF ICC could not have taken up the case since she was an RHF (Rajkumar Hirani Films) employee at the time. These are two separate companies," she said in an email dated December 5, 2018. Anupama said the woman told her she needed time to think about how to take things forward. She added, "I did not want in any way to pressurise her or steer her in any direction. As Vinod and I told her then, she has our full support and we are fully respectful of whatever decision she has taken." The development comes close on the heels of Hirani's name been dropped from the new poster and trailer of "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga", directed by Shelly Chopra. A still from the film's teaser, which released on 27 June, 2018, carried Hirani's name as co-producer. Vidhu Vinod Chopra has not yet commented. Hirani's is the latest name to be called out in India's #MeToo storm, which has engulfed many a stalwart such as Nana Patekar, Alok Nath, Vikas Bahl, Sajid Khan and former Union minister MJ Akbar, among others. PTI RDS/RB ZMN RDS RDS What works against him are the below average dialogues and a sloppy script Timothy Seth Bryant Pennington was born on January 30, 1988 in Corbin, Ky. He departed this life on June 3, 2021 to be with his Lord and Savior, whom he accepted as a young boy at his church, West Corbin Baptist. Seth was assured of his salvation and knew where he would spend his eternity. S Anyone with half a brain realizes that we are in a crisis at our Southern border and it is real, not a manufactured crisis as the alphabet networks try to convince everyone. This crisis did not just begin under President Trump but has been present for years. As this letter is being written another caravan of several thousand is organizing in Central America to begin their march to our Southern border. These are not organic or spontaneous caravans but are being organized and financed by the globalist left wing open border elites. Prior to our Presidents recent national security speech from the Oval Office, the major networks threatened to not carry the speech because they wanted to fact check it first. After the speech it was such a laugh watching and reading the major news media pundits practically turn themselves into pretzels while trying to show true statements to be false. Numbers dont lie and statistics reported during the speech were all factually correct. Can you imagine the uproar that would follow had the media falsely fact checked President Obama like this? What is needed more than anything is fact checking of the Democrats response to the Presidents speech. This is not a manufactured crisis. Every recent president, including Presidents Clinton and Obama, have supported walls/fencing in the past, as did Senator Schumer and Speaker Pelosi, who both voted for the Secure Fence Act of 2006 and the 2013 Senate Immigration Overhaul. What is truly sad is the lapdog media continually repeating the Schumer and Pelosi talking point that this is a manufactured crisis as if that were true. Another mantra for the left is now that walls dont work. This is patently false and it can be shown that wherever walls currently exist that the illegal immigration has been significantly reduced. Instead of walls the left wants virtual walls consisting of more drones, sensors, and manpower. The problem with this is that virtual walls allow the border to be crossed and the transgressor to be caught and then released into the country never again to show up for their asylum hearing. This is what is happening now and in fact, knowing this, many illegals cross the border and quickly turn themselves over to our border patrol. The Democrats need to come to their senses on border security and end their manufactured government shutdown by immediately allocating funds for the wall. The amount requested is such a small pittance of the national budget that it is more than foolish for the Democrats to keep this shutdown going. Jim Schwegel Godfrey EDWARDSVILLE In the midst of Boy Scouts of America rolling out its new Scouts BSA program for girls Feb. 1, Edwardsville Boy Scout Troop 31 is preparing to be a sister group to one of the areas first troops under the initiative. For the first time in its more than 100-year history, Boy Scouts of America will be open to young women through Scouts BSA a year-round program for boys and girls in fifth grade through high school. To prepare, Troop 31 will be hosting an informational meeting at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 14 at Eden Churchs Fellowship Hall for young ladies 11 to 17 years old who are interested in joining Troop 27 purportedly Edwardsvilles first Scouts BSA girls troop. Jeff Pauk, scoutmaster for Troop 31, explained that the informational meeting would take place during the groups regular troop meeting. Girls will have a chance to see what goes on in a typical troop meeting, he said. Then, well talk with them and the parents about how a troop is organized and tell them about the importance of parent involvement with the troop. He further explained that while the girls troop will meet separately from the boys troop, the two troops will meet at the same time. In essence, we are going to treat it as a sister group to our existing group, Pauk noted. Theyll just meet in a different room so that they can have their own meetings independently of us. If they need assistance, we can help out. Under the new Scouts BSA program, Troop 27 will officially be renumbered 8027. The 8 in front designates it as a troop for girls. Both Troop 31, or 1031 its official troop number, as well as Troop 27, officially 8027, will be sponsored by Eden Church. Troop 31 will help the new troop with equipment needs and with any other items to get the program underway, but both units will operate independently. The troops will not be co-ed, Pauk said. But, what they will offer is the exact same program for girls as they do for boys. Although the new girls program is scheduled to begin on Feb. 1, they would like to have the troop roster in place for scouts and adults in advance so the girls can start meetings and participate in activities right away. When we moved to Eden Church there was troop equipment left from the old (Troop) 27 so equipment wise we are also helping the new troop get a start, so they dont have to go out and buy camping gear for the troop. We will have stuff to supply to them so that they can kind of hit the ground running, Pauk noted. Young ladies are encouraged to attend the informational meeting on Jan. 14 to learn more. Kevin Duhr, Boy Scouts of Americas district director for Madison and Bond counties, will be at the meeting to answer any questions. Applications for both girls and adult leaders are available through the Troop 8027 website at edwardsville8027.mytroop.us. A link to the troops Facebook page can be found on this website as well. Those to fill out forms in advance will receive information via email about organizational meetings, training, and other updates leading to the creation of the troop. Pauk said Troop 27 has had a long history in Edwardsville for many decades. He said that it was initially founded as a troop for boys but ceased operations in 2009. We are resurrecting what used to be old Troop 27, which was also sponsored by Eden but unfortunately that group had folded years ago. After that had occurred, we were looking for a new sponsor for our troop and for this new girl troop. They will have sort of a public tradition to carry on, Pauk noted. I think Troop 27 had something like 75 Eagle Scouts in their history. The group started in the 1920s. Our troop (31) is the original Glen Carbon troop which was started in 1928. Over the years, weve changed sponsors and locations and moved to Edwardsville. What we want to do is preserve both troops histories and have them out of the same sponsoring organization. Pauk, who was involved with scouts for 15 years as a youth, is an Eagle Scout and has been a scoutmaster for 12 years. He has proudly watched as his two sons have become Eagle Scouts, the youngest of which is currently working on his Eagle Scout project. His oldest son, now 27, has made a full circle of participating in the program as a scout and progressing through the organization to become a leader himself. I enjoy it. Ive spent a long time with scouts and really believe in the program and what they do for youth, Pauk said. Its always a great thing to watch them come through the program, watch them grow, mature and become productive citizens, and we plan to offer that to girls as well. Those who cruise down the highway in the left lane beware: Illinois State Police are cracking down on drivers who use the left lane more than Illinois law allows. A law passed two years ago restricts use of the left lane primarily to passing vehicles, Illinois State Police Trooper Sean Ramsey said. There was a grace period as drivers got used to the law, which is intended to improve safety on Illinois roads, but ISP is beginning to more strictly enforce it, he said. Its been around long enough that people should be aware of this, its no secret, Ramsey said. Its about safety, whether its to curb road rage as people can get irate, the safety of those in the left lane, the safety of emergency vehicles needing to get through its geared toward safety more than anything. The law applies to interstates and controlled freeways those accessed by access ramp. In the event of a road with three or more lanes, the center and right lanes are fair game for drivers but the far left lane falls under the laws restrictions. The left lane is intended for passing and only those in a passing situation are allowed to use it, Ramsey said. Drivers also can use the left lane if there is no traffic directly behind the vehicle in the left lane, if there are obstructions in the road in the right lane, if someone moves over for a vehicle on the shoulder, or if traffic conditions would make travel strictly in the right lane impossible or unreasonable. Emergency vehicles, law enforcement vehicles and construction and highway maintenance vehicles are among those exempt from the law, Ramsey said. The Illinois State Police have said they use covert vehicles to catch those violating the law, which is punishable by a $120 fine. Other driving violations on which ISP is focusing in 2019 include drunk driving, distracted driving and those not wearing a seat belt. Nick Draper can be reached at 217-245-6121, ext. 1223, or on Twitter @nick_draper. MADISON Eagle Days at the Old Chain of Rocks Bridge will give people a chance to not only get a close-up view of bald eagles, but a different view of the Mississippi River. The annual event is set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 19 and 20, at the bridge, located just south of the I-270 bridge. Seth Treptow, communications manager for Great Rivers Greenway, one of the sponsors, said eagles are now at the bridge year-round, but they are hoping to see more as the birds are forced downriver by winter. There are eagles that have made that area their permanent home, he said. You can see the nests in the trees year round. Eagles move downriver as colder weather freezes the lakes and rivers off which they feed. A combination of water going over the low-water dam at Chain of Rocks, and the usually open water from St. Louis south concentrates the eagles in this area because of easy fishing. The big attraction is you get to see one of our nations most emblematic symbols in its native element, he said. Its cold, but the great thing is that you see something you dont see every day, then when you throw in the educational programs its just a great opportunity to come out. Prior to the public programs the bridge will be open for visits by Illinois and Missouri schools. Illinois schools will visit the bridge Friday morning. On the weekend, demonstrations featuring captive bald eagles will be presented every 20 minutes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. both days by the World Bird Sanctuary. Visitors will also be able to observe wild bald eagles through spotting scopes manned by trained volunteers located near the middle of the bridge. Programming also includes a hands-on exhibit of local birds present by St. Louis Audubon, a full-sized replica of an eagles nest, and warming tent activities, including childrens art. There will also be live history demonstrations from Lewis and Clark reenactors. On the Missouri side of the river the Discovery Expedition of St. Charles, Missouri, will demonstrate how the expedition members lived, cooked and traveled. The Illinois side will feature reenactors from the Lewis and Clark State Historic Site in Hartford on Saturday. The bridge, owned by the city of Madison and leased to Great Rivers Greenway, was part of Route 66 and is located just above the low-water dam created when Lock and Dam 27 was built in Granite City. The toll bridge closed shortly after the construction of the I-270 Bridge. It was used for the bridge scenes in the movie Escape From New York, in the early 1980s and then closed after a double murder in 1991. It was leased to Trailnet Inc. in 1996 and reopened as a pedestrian/bicycle route several years later. Parking is available at both sides of the bridge. On the Missouri side, participants can pay $5 to park at the bridge site, located off of Riverview Drive north of I-270. They can also park free at two satellite lots; the St. Louis Welcome Center at Riverview and I-270, and North Riverfront Park off Riverview Drive South of the St. Louis Waterworks. A free shuttle is available from both locations. On the Illinois side, parking is available on Chouteau Island at the Illinois entrance to the bridge. The event has drawn thousands of people to the bridge, but attendance is dependent on weather, according to Treptow. Participants are encouraged to dress warmly. For more information visit www.greatriversgreenway.org/eagledays. A credit union and many businesses are warning others about fake currency floating around that looks strikingly real except for a couple of key tip-offs that show the paper is prop money used in movies. There has been a rash of similar incidents throughout the state, including several reports from businesses in Jacksonville. Over the past couple of weeks, Fieldstone Credit Union has received three fake bills. The fake cash looks real, President Mark Baron said. For the most part, it looks like normal currency, he said. The photos of the president, the numbers at three corners, the serial numbers. Prop money thats used in cinema is readily available online but carries a prison sentence of up to 20 years in prison if its used as real currency. Baron said people should look for a bill that feels odd. Thats one of the easiest ways to notice that you may have a phony note. They tear very easily much more easily than a currency typically would and it has more of a feel like paper, he said. There have been a number of reports in recent months about fake currency being spent in Illinois. Decatur police said a fake $100 bill was spent at a party supply store in September. A month later, Effingham police reported bank notes meant to be movie props were used at least six times there. Also in October, police in suburban Countryside reported multiple $20 and $50 bills were given to businesses there. Those bills were more sophisticated, passing a test with an iodide detector pen meant to catch fakes. The U.S. Secret Service is responsible for investigating counterfeit money circulation. Dale Pollekoff, 71, moved to Los Angeles after a long career in graphic design in Washington, D.C. As a single woman with no children, she felt drawn to the citys weather and the less conservative ideas of varied lifestyles. I feel more like I can be me here, she said. But soon after her move in 2000, she ran into the challenge of meeting people to explore her new home with. When youre middle-aged, you make friends in your job, Pollekoff said. After that, its very, very hard. Los Angeles also doesnt make relationships easy. The city is vast, and the traffic is unforgiving and constant. People often talk about the perils of dating and meeting people in major cities as young adults, but it can be just as hard for an older demographic, who, according to many of the women in the group, feel largely ignored. In 2015, after failed attempts to find a group focused on female friendships, Pollekoff decided to start her own group, called Finding Female Friends Past Fifty on Meetup, a site where people can make online groups to meet up in real life. After just a couple of weeks, the group amassed around 200 members. And it just kept growing. Today, the group has more than 800 members. There were a lot of groups that were focused on a particular activity, and there were meetups that were generalized for those in their 20s, 30s and 40s, but there was nothing for older women, Pollekoff said. And I didnt want men. Many studies have concluded that friendships are vital to a persons well-being, and this is especially true for older women. A study by the Industrial Psychiatry Journal published in Psychology Today showed a significant relationship between depression and loneliness in older people. It suggested that female friendships can be the key to happiness in older women, but theyre not often treated as such. Its not emphasized as much as exercising or eating well, but its just as important, according to the study. The first meetup Pollekoff organized was a happy hour event at a bar in Century City. Around 20 women showed up and, in her eyes, it was a huge success. Everybody had a fabulous time and everybody got along, she said. There were two women who were sitting next to each other and it turned out that they lived within two blocks of one another. They are best, inseparable friends now. The members have varied and rich interests, and that is reflected in the groups activities, including a screening of the documentary film Free Solo, a recurring Proust Questionnaire parlor game, a tour of Pasadenas mansions, and a carb crawl inspired by a New York Times article about Los Angeles as an emerging bread paradise. One of the first members was Lindsie Carlsen, 73, an Angeleno who has retired and now manages her apartment building part time. She identifies as a transgender woman and transitioned when she was 53. Carlsen was a member of a lesbian group when she lived in the San Fernando Valley but decided to find a different community after her move to Mid-Wilshire, a centrally located district close to museums like the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Her decision was prompted by a desire for more diverse activities. My interests are all over the place, she said. Finding Female Friends Past Fifty was a match for Carlsen, who appreciated Pollekoffs out-of-the-box events. None of the other groups Im part of do these really inventive things. The groups most frequent activity? Art gallery visits. On a recent gloomy Sunday afternoon in December, the women gathered to go to an Ai Weiwei exhibit at the Marciano Art Foundation. Pollekoff said she was deeply touched by Ais show at Alcatraz many years back and thought members would appreciate this show. They had to cap the attendees to nine because of ticket limitations and had more than a dozen people on the wait-list. The group, including a couple of first-time attendees, walked into the museum together. While Pollekoff initially led the charge, once inside, the women moved at their own pace. They occasionally discussed the pieces of art together or asked the docent questions. But mostly there was quiet. Standing in front of Ais massive installation Sunflower Seeds, a piece composed of 49 tons of individual porcelain sunflower seeds, and Spouts, an installation of thousands of antique teapot spouts, the group ruminated on the pieces. Pollekoff shared information about the artist to curious members. I dont have that many friends, but I dont need a lot of friends, said Linda Ralph, 66, a first-time attendee. Im quite happy with me. Ralph said she did not participate much in other groups but was drawn to this group because of this particular exhibit. I dont need to do something to do something, she said. But I was moved to do this. Another attendee, Julie Khalil, 62, looked for a group of friends after her son suggested she find people to hike with, she said. I feel like women have a lot of commonality that we dont realize, she said. Ive learned that at this stage in life, after years of putting our careers and families first, we are looking for a deeper type of friendship than weve had in the past. Downstairs, the group found another massive installation by Ai called Life Cycle, a sculpture about the global refugee crisis depicting the makeshift boats migrants use to reach Europe. Pollekoff carefully and quietly studied the delicate bamboo installation. His work always makes me emotional, she said. Its an overwhelming piece, and here the group split off. Flor Covel, 56, who wanted to check out the Yayoi Kusama exhibit upstairs, joined the group two years ago out of a desire to meet people to do things with around the city after the end of a long relationship. Once I didnt have him anymore, I thought, OK, great, now I have no friends and no one to hang out with, she said. It was very lonely. Our paths would have never crossed if it werent for this group. Even if we lived close to each other, you dont think you have much in common, said Covel, who now counts Pollekoff as one of her best friends. She said she was now close friends with a former graphic designer and a surgeon who lived a mile from her, and she believed this wouldnt have been possible if it werent for the internet. For Pollekoff, her group has its limitations, mostly distance ones. Ive met a lot of wonderful women. Most of my members I really, really like, and Ive made a lot of friends who are more than acquaintances but less than besties, she said. But Ive only made one really good friend that I know is really there for me. A friend that lives in Santa Monica or Malibu, I cant see much. After a few hours at the museum, the women drove to a nearby Korean barbecue restaurant. Members introduced themselves to one another while waiting for their meals. They discussed their lives, the things that keep them busy, the choices of some to marry or stay single and to have children or not. Lisa Baskin, 63, a retired former administrator and assistant principal for the Los Angeles Unified School District, said she spends much of her time on pottery and her grandchildren. Carol Meirow, 64 and a new member, explained her situation to the group. She had just moved from Colorado without her husband, but theyre still together. Our marriage has never been conventional, she shared. The women listened; discussions in varying degrees of depth occurred throughout the meal. At this age, you are who you are. Your life has been lived, your career is over or in its last stage, youre married or single, had children or not, Pollekoff wrote in an email a few days after the meeting. Youre not looking over the horizon for the next best thing. So theres no jealousy or competition. The struggle is over; you come to terms with who you are because theres no alternative. Acceptance is all thats left. ADULT FICTION Kingdom of the Blind by Louise Penny: When a peculiar letter arrives, inviting Armand Gamache to an abandoned farmhouse, the former head of the Surete du Quebec discovers that a complete stranger has named him one of the executors of her will. The will is so odd and includes bequests that are so wildly unlikely that Gamache and the others suspect the woman must have been delusional. What if, Gamache begins to ask himself, she was perfectly sane? ADULT NONFICTION Caregivers Survival Guide: Caring for Yourself While Caring for a Loved One by Robert Yonover: Dr. Robert Yonover draws on his personal experiences while equipping other caregivers who face similar physical, mental, social and financial challenges with tips and guidelines to help make their situation survivable. DVD The Killing of a Sacred Deer: Steven, a charismatic surgeon, is forced to make an unthinkable sacrifice after his life starts to fall apart when the behavior of a teenage boy he has taken under his wing turns sinister. CHILDRENS PICTURE BOOK Pete the Cat Checks Out the Library by James Dean: It is Pete the Cats first time at the library. He gets a fun tour and even reads a few super cool stories while hes there. Without even leaving the library, Pete goes on so many groovy adventures. All Pete needs is a little imagination and of course, his library card! CHILDRENS BIOGRAPHY No Small Potatoes: Junius G. Groves and His Kingdom in Kansas by Tonya Bolden: To build a kingdom is no small potatoes. First, you start with nothing, and then you plant a seed and watch it grow and grow. Junius G. Groves grew up on a plantation but headed west to start a new life. He grew many potatoes (roughly 12 million in one year!) and so much more. Did you know? Jacksonville Public Library will host a workshop titled Bullet Journaling 101 at 7 p.m. Tuesday. We will cover the basics, such as background and reason for using the system; the importance of the index; your future log, monthly log and daily log; collections; bullets and signifiers; and migration. Come learn how to help organize your life. REGINAPrime Minister Justin Trudeau says Saskatchewan and Ottawa have reached an agreement under which the province will shut down most of its coal-fired power plants by 2030. Trudeau says its important to phase out coal as an energy source because of the pollution it creates. Its also extremely important that were supporting the workers and their families who are in that industry now, he said Friday after a separate geothermal announcement. And the agreement that weve come to with Saskatchewan will allow for exactly that. The agreement, which was finalized in December, is to be made official once its signed by the provincial and federal governments after a 60-day public comment period. Saskatchewans greenhouse gas emissions from electricity producers will be limited to 175 megatonnes. The province has also committed to have at least 40 per cent of its electricity generation come from non-emitting energy sources by 2030. Read more: Editorial: Dont fall for politicians who promise action on climate change at no cost Ontarios climate moves could equal the pollution from 30 coal-fired power plants, Ottawa warns Canada seeking new members of anti-coal alliance at climate meeting One of its coal-fired power plants the Boundary Dam facility near Estevan is being allowed to remain active after 2030 because it is equipped with carbon capture and storage. Environment Minister Dustin Duncan said the province unsuccessfully argued to keep open its Shand Power Station until its life expectancy is up in 2042. That will result in 12 years of a stranded asset, he said. What I think the equivalency agreement will achieve is the ability to look at our fleet on a fleetwide basis rather than just individual facilities, Duncan told Global News on Thursday. He said the agreement will allow Saskatchewans Crown power utility, SaskPower, to better plan for the future. The province agreed to limit its electricity sector emissions to 33.5 megatonnes this year and not to exceed 64.5 megatonnes between 2025 and 2029. Duncan said performance credits may be generated at some facilities. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Trudeau also announced on Friday a $25.6 million for a geothermal power facility near Estevan. It said its the first of its kind in the country. The DEEP Earth Energy Production Corp. facility is expected to produce enough energy to power about 5,000 homes. Read more about: Insurers hold back payments to 91-year-old hurt in van attack, Jan. 9 The insurance company is quoted as saying: AIG is deeply concerned for all the victims of this tragedy and we take our responsibilities very seriously we adhere to processes mandated by the Financial Services Commission of Ontario. Its what AIG doesnt admit to that is most telling. Ontarios insurance companies have for many decades, on the backs and wallets of the public, enjoyed what can only be described as special privilege. They claim to be in the business of risk, but really face very little, if any, risk. They only have to whine and complain to Queens Park and our premiums go up so their profits are restored to obscene levels. We all know too well how it works: We pay the ever-increasing premiums and, in the event of a claim, they have a team of well-compensated lawyers and doctors who try to convince us to be happy and grateful with a few dollars. My elderly parents went through similar disgusting nonsense in 2008 with the Sunrise Propane explosion and their resulting home insurance claims from a different insurer. Notwithstanding the unprecedented horrors that visited our city last April, leaving 10 dead and 16 wounded, the fact that AIG would not hesitate to harass and abuse 91-year-old Aleksandra Kozhevnikova should really come as no surprise to anyone. Ontarios insurance companies are shameless. Any executive, politician or government who condones or supports such conduct has earned the same label. After years of consultations, the federal government has finally introduced tough new restrictions on the use of drones. But as robust and welcome as they are, they may still be too little, too late. Thats because in the time between cabinet approving the regulations in December and Transport Minister Marc Garneau announcing them last week, it has become clear that rules are not enough, no matter how tough they are. After all, regulations banning drones from flying within 1 km of airports in Britain didnt stop someone or some people from piloting them over Londons Gatwick Airport for three days just before Christmas. That activity which police described as deliberate caused the airport to be shut down for 36 hours, resulting in the cancellation or diversion of 1,000 flights affecting 140,000 passengers. Nor did the U.K.s rules stop someone from operating a drone over Heathrows runways last week, leading to the shutdown of that airport for an hour. Still, Canadas new rules should go a long way to preventing near-misses and accidents among law-abiding operators. Indeed, the regulations, which are consistent with those of other major countries, ban drones from flying within 5.6 km of airports and are backed up by fines of up to $25,000 and jail time. They also, sensibly, apply to drones as small as 250 grams, and require that the devices be registered. And importantly, the rules set a minimum age of 14 for basic operations and 16 for advanced ones. Further, they require anyone operating a drone to pass an online exam to obtain a pilots certificate. Still, none of these rules will stop someone who is bent on operating a drone at an airport from doing so. Thats why countermeasures to stop drone incursions are urgently needed. Despite that, Garneau could not provide a plan last week to stop drones from buzzing Canadian airports. Instead he could only acknowledge that the government is working with airports and security agencies to examine what kinds of countermeasures would be applicable depending on the type of drone and circumstances. The fact is, Ottawa is not alone in being slow off the mark when it comes to countering the increasing numbers of wayward drones, as the Keystone Cops-like efforts of police around Gatwick proved. In fact, countries around the world have been slow to respond to the growing danger from drones even as sales soared (Ottawa estimates 193,500 drones are being flown in Canada) and as the hits and near-misses involving drones and aircraft mounted. Alarmingly, near-misses in Canada tripled to 135 in 2017 from 38 when data collection began in 2014. Worse, in October, 2017, a bright yellow drone actually hit the wing of a SkyJet passenger plane during its final approach to Quebec Citys Jean Lesage International Airport. Happily, the pilot was able to land the damaged aircraft safely. That is lucky if not a miracle considering the drone that hit it was reportedly approximately 16 by 4 inches, and one as small as 300 grams can damage a cockpit. Knowing that, the government must now move beyond regulations and work with airports to introduce countermeasures to prevent those who wont follow rules from bringing down an aircraft, accidentally or on purpose. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... While Garneau would not elaborate on what Ottawa is considering, technology firms report they are working on systems to protect airports and other sensitive areas. Authorities now have to choose what to invest in. Among the new technologies are tracking systems that would allow police to quickly track down drone operators; geofencing that prevents drones from flying above sensitive areas; electronic signal jammers; and even guns that shoot out nets to capture errant drones. None of this will be cheap to deploy. But after the experience at Gatwick, the need to take action is clearer than ever. Read more about: The Golden Globes were cause for celebration as homegrown Sandra Oh pulled double-duty by both hosting the ceremony and winning Best Actress in a TV drama. She landed the most inspiring moment of the evening when she spoke of faces of change a poignant message by a woman of colour on one of the biggest of stages in Hollywood. Oh also provided the most entertaining spectacle of the night when she, and co-host Andy Samberg, pranked the crowd by bringing out licensed nurses to administer flu-shots to audience members. Not surprisingly, this stunt was received with mixed reviews. A clearly uncomfortable Willem Defoe refused the vaccine while Linda Cardellini - an actress who played a nurse in the show ER gracefully braved the needle. While this brief moment of levity was in keeping with the shows theme of positivity, it was a powerful statement in a room filled with Hollywood elite many of whom have helped popularize the anti-vaccine movement. This unfortunately includes Canadian Jim Carrey and his ex-wife Jenny McCarthy who is perhaps the most vocal anti-vax celebrity. The famous are powerful because of their ability to influence millions of people every day through social media, and this reach has a significant impact on the way the public consumes information. When inaccuracies about vaccine safety are spread through these channels, the rhetoric can become viral. The consequence is that fewer people are getting vaccinated, which threatens our collective public health. This trend has been researched with evidence suggesting a resurgence of measles in Western countries once thought to have been eliminated is a direct result. Worryingly, there are even geopolitical impacts with reports of Russian bots using social media to sow discord among Americans about vaccine safety. While public health institutions have found it challenging to combat online falsehoods, they may want to fight fire with fire. These agencies should enlist powerful celebrities and influencers to be brand ambassadors and pay them to post about the benefits of vaccines and other evidence-based science. If health officials hope to better inform people about public health initiatives, they should understand the vehicle of their messaging. Most people who follow Taylor Swift or LeBron James arent following the New England Journal of Medicine. Across Canada, over 13,000 flu cases have already been reported with at least 24 people dying from complications. Officials say that these numbers represent an increase of over half from the year before. Whether that is correlated with a change in the number of vaccinations administered is unknown. What's known is that it is still not too late to get one if you havent. So go and get your flu shot. And when you get it, tweet at your favourite celebrity. Who knows maybe youll get a mention and a follow. More importantly, youd be doing yourself and your community a huge public health service. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Adam Kassam is a resident physician who writes about health care, public policy and popular culture. Read more about: LONDONBritish Prime Minister Theresa May warned Sunday that lawmakers risk undermining the publics faith in democracy if they reject her divorce deal with the European Union in a vote set for Tuesday. May said some members of Parliament were playing political games with the Brexit debate. Lawmakers, she said, should respect the results of the 2016 referendum in which 52 per cent of voters backed leaving the EU. Failing to do so would be a catastrophic and unforgivable breach of trust in our democracy, she wrote in a commentary published by the Sunday Express. So my message to Parliament this weekend is simple: it is time to forget the games and do what is right for our country. The government also tried to pressure resistant lawmakers by saying their refusal to fall in line could result in Britain remaining a member of the EU. Brexit Secretary Steve Barclay warned Sunday of the growing risk that Parliament could block Brexit altogether. The prime ministers office also said it was extremely concerned about reports that some members of Parliament would try to seize control of Brexit negotiations if the agreement Mays government reached with the EU is defeated. The Sunday Times newspaper reported that senior lawmakers intend to try to change the rules of the House of Commons so they can wrest control of the legislative agenda from the government. Read more: May stares into Brexit abyss as Parliament takes control May brings Brexit deal back to parliament under shadow of March deadline, recent embarrassment U.K. Parliament moves to make no-deal Brexit more difficult The prime minister faces widespread opposition to the existing agreement, primarily because of language designed to prevent the reintroduction of physical border controls between Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., and the Republic of Ireland, a member of the EU. Lawmakers on all sides of the Brexit debate fear the so-called Northern Ireland backstop could leave Britain tied to the EU indefinitely. May postponed a vote on the deal in mid-December when a resounding defeat was clear. She now is urging Parliament to support it so Britain doesnt leave the EU on March 29 without a deal, which would threaten trade, jobs and economic growth. While a majority of the 650-seat House of Commons appears to oppose leaving the EU with no deal, there is no agreement on what alternative to pursue. Straw polls show more than 200 lawmakers back Mays deal, while about 100 support a no-deal Brexit and other factions advocate a soft Brexit that keeps Britain close to the EU or a second referendum. The BBC estimates that Mays deal is likely to be supported by about 240 lawmakers, far short of the number needed for passage. As evidence for the claim that lawmakers might block Brexit, Barclay cited a parliamentary vote last week that will push the government to come up with a Plan B within three working days if Mays deal fails. Thats much sooner than would have otherwise been the case. Uncertainty in terms of what will happen in the House has increased, Barclay told the BBC. So those on the Brexiteer side seeking ideological purity with a deal are risking Brexit, because there is a growing risk that events could unfold in ways that (mean) they are leaving the door ajar to ways that increase the risk to Brexit. At the very least, there is a growing chance Parliament may seek to postpone Britains departure date while politicians work on a new plan. Michael Roth, a German deputy foreign minister, was quoted Sunday as telling the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung newspaper that if the British government asked for an extension to Britains withdrawal date, we will treat it very responsibly. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... But he added that it would pose quite complicated questions, such as Britains participation in the European election. British opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn said Sunday the Labour Party will seek to force a general election if Parliament rejects Mays deal. He suggested that he might force a vote of no-confidence soon. If that effort were successful, Labour would likely also request a delay in the Brexit process. Clearly, if a general election takes place and a Labour Party government comes in...there would have to be time for those negotiations, Corbyn said. Read more about: JOHANNESBURGThe photograph of a South African classroom appeared to show black and white children separated by race, stirring allegations of racism against a school that says it has moved a long way toward integration since white minority rule. The uproar over the alleged segregation of 5-year-old children follows periodic disputes about race in a country that took big strides toward reconciliation when the bitter era of apartheid ended in 1994 but still struggles with the legacy of its past. It was amplified as the photograph circulated on social media, prompting protesters, investigators and concerned parents to converge on the school in Schweizer-Reneke, a rural town. Provincial authorities are investigating and South Africas human rights commission intends to visit the Laerskool Schweizer-Reneke for a second time on Monday after protests disrupted plans to go there earlier. A teacher was suspended pending an inquiry into the photo, which shows four black children sitting in a corner and a larger group of white children sitting in the middle of the room. As a general rule, such separation would on the face of it amount to, among others, unfair discrimination as all learners in a similar situation need to be treated the same, Andre Gaum, head of the human rights commission, said in an interview with Jacaranda FM, a South African radio station. Some commentators say the investigation should run its course, noting some photos that emerged later show the same white and black children sitting together and interacting. Jozeph du Plessis, chairman of the schools governing body, has said he was initially angered when he saw the photograph showing the white and black children in different groups. He has speculated that the children were separated in that way because the black students did not speak Afrikaans as well as the white children. Afrikaans derives from mainly Dutch settlers who arrived in South Africa in the 17th century. The governing body does not condone any distinction based on race. Learners from different backgrounds, including race, religion and language, are not merely accommodated but are fully integrated in all aspects of the school environment, the schools governors said in a statement, according to South African media. For many South Africans, the image evoked memories of apartheid, when segregated schools were a key tool of a white minority seeking to maintain its supremacy over a black majority whose education was of a far lower quality. The 1976 uprising by black students that started in Soweto, and was crushed in a deadly crackdown by security forces, was a reaction to the mandated use of Afrikaans as a language of instruction in black schools. Schweizer-Reneke school takes us back to the Stone Age, read the headline of an editorial in the Sunday Times, a South African newspaper. ROMEA left-wing Italian militant who was convicted of murder in his home country nearly three decades ago was arrested in Bolivia, authorities said Sunday, setting the stage for a climactic end to one of Italys longest-running efforts to bring a fugitive to justice. Hours later, Cesare Battisti was handed over to Italian custody, officials said, and he left on a plane carrying him back to Italy to serve a life sentence. He was captured by Bolivian and Italian officers in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, where he was located by intelligence agents after using one of his mobile devices, Italian police and RAI state television said. The 64-year-old had lived openly in Brazil for years and enjoyed the protection of left-wing governments on both sides of the Atlantic. But Brazils outgoing president signed a decree last month ordering his extradition, apparently sparking Battistis latest effort to flee. Italian police released a video of Battisti that they said was taken hours before his capture, showing him seemingly oblivious to surveillance cameras tracking him as he walked casually down the street in jeans, a blue T-shirt and sunglasses. A subsequent image showed Battistis mug shot under the seal of the Bolivian police. Cesare Battistis long flight is over, Justice Minister Alfonso Buonafede declared, adding that he would be taken to Romes Rebibbia prison as soon as he landed in Italy. Battisti escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while awaiting trial on four counts of murder allegedly committed when he was a member of the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was convicted in absentia in 1990 and faces a life term for the deaths of two police officers, a jeweller and a butcher. He acknowledged membership in the group but denied killing anyone and has painted himself as a political refugee. After initially fleeing to Mexico, he then went to France, where he joined dozens of left-wing Italian militants who enjoyed official protection from the French government. Like Battisti, they fled Italy during that nations years of lead, a bloody and turbulent era during the 1970s and 1980s when militants on the left and right carried out bombings, assassinations and other violent acts to try to bring down the Italian government. After political winds shifted in France, Battisti fled to Brazil in 2004 to avoid being extradited. He was arrested in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, prompting the Italian government to request that he be handed over. But then Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva granted him asylum in 2010. Battisti was eventually released from jail but was arrested again in 2017 after he was caught trying to cross the Brazil-Bolivia border carrying the equivalent of about $7,500 in undeclared cash. He was released after a few days. As a result of that incident, Brazilian Supreme Federal Tribunal Justice Luiz Fux said in December that Interpol had issued a request for Battistis arrest on tax evasion and money laundering charges, leading him to issue a Brazilian warrant. Based on that, outgoing Brazilian President Michel Temer signed the decree ordering the fugitives extradition. Brazils new right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, hailed Battistis arrest and denounced da Silvas government for having granted the Italian asylum. Finally, there will be justice for the Italian assassin and partner of ideas of one of the most corrupt governments to ever exist, Bolsonaro tweeted in a reference to da Silvas Workers Party. Bolivias public defender, David Tezanos, said Battisti formally requested asylum in Bolivia on Dec. 21, but he had not received a response from the leftist government of President Evo Morales. Tezanos said Battistis rights were being violated with his hasty expulsion. Brazils foreign and justice ministries said in a joint statement that Battisti will leave Bolivia direct to Italy to serve his life sentence. The statement was significant since under Brazilian law people extradited to serve life sentences must have their sentences capped at 30 years a concession rejected by Italian officials on Sunday in insisting that Battisti serve his full term. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini praised Bolivian police and Brazils new government for following through on the fugitives case. He called Battisti a delinquent who doesnt deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison. Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Battisti should be returned to Italy to serve his sentence for the grave crimes that stained Italy and let the same be said for all fugitives abroad. Police in Utah say a driver was covering her eyes and participating in the so-called Bird Box Challenge when she crashed into another vehicle on Monday. The Layton City Police Department tweeted Friday that the crash caused no injuries. The department warned drivers not to participate in the viral challenge, in which people move around while wearing blindfolds, a reference to the Netflix film Bird Box. Bird Box Challenge while driving...predictable result, the departments tweet said. Deseret News reports the driver was 17-years-old and allegedly pulled a beanie hat over her eyes while driving a pickup truck at about 35 mph. It didnt take long for her to lose control, Layton Police Lt. Travis Lyman said, per Deseret News. Its just outrageous that somebody would think to do that, Lyman said, according to the publication. The stakes are just way too high to do something like that while youre driving. Citing Lyman, the publication said the driver began swerving before she veered into oncoming traffic and sideswiped a vehicle. The teen then hit a light pole and a concrete barrier, according to the publication. Last week, Netflix warned people about the potential safety hazards of participating in the Bird Box Challenge. Cant believe I have to say this, but: PLEASE DO NOT HURT YOURSELVES WITH THIS BIRD BOX CHALLENGE, the company tweeted on Jan. 2. We dont know how this started, and we appreciate the love, but Boy and Girl have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes. In December, Netflixs popular movie Birdbox captured audiences, spurred memes and sparked debates among millions of viewers during its first week of release. In the film, Sandra Bullocks character Melanie and two children (Boy and Girl) navigate a post-apocalyptic world while blindfolded to avoid seeing an ominous figure. In Bird Box, seeing the mysterious monster has deadly consequences. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Read more about: President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trumps actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States main adversaries. As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trumps face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trumps continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. Former U.S. officials said that Trumps behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Read more: Trump lies his way through a visit to the border with Mexico as he escalates his emergency threat FBI opened inquiry into whether Trump was secretly working on behalf of Russia Trump sides with Putin over U.S. intelligence chiefs on Russian interference in U.S. election Trumps secrecy surrounding Putin is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous, said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. It handicaps the U.S. government the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump. A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to improve the relationship with Russia after the Obama administration pursued a flawed reset policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement. The Trump administration has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities, said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press. Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a nut job, and said that firing Comey had removed great pressure on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the presidents interactions with foreign leaders. Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him, said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trumps meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trumps encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. Its been several months since Helsinki and we still dont know what went on in that meeting, Engel said. Its appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head. The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russias election interference as a hoax, suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trumps decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the presidents two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putins interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he was present for the entirety of the two presidents official bilateral meeting in Hamburg, but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreters notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement in election interference. President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past, Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putins claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Tillersons account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, I believe you. Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. We were frustrated because we didnt get a readout, a former senior administration official said. The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable with Trumps interactions with Putin, the official said. God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to. Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trumps conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trumps presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them, said a former administration official who worked in the White House. The feedback tended not to be positive. The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. I recall Fiona reporting that to me, one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson didnt offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didnt brief senior staff, although he gave a readout to the press. A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trumps interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trumps meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putins powerful denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clintons meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. Read more about: The federal government shutdown became the longest in history over the weekend, and Fridays missed paycheque for furloughed workers generated another 800,000 sad stories. There are unpaid prison guards feeding New Years Day steak dinners to convicted felons. More than 1,000 federal workers set up GoFundMe pages to help cover bills, while others put their personal belongings on Craigslist to make ends meet. Even federal employees who want to be done with it all and retire cant because theres no one to process the paperwork. But amid all the heartache there was a bright spot for one family of a federal worker: As hundreds of thousands of federal workers were lamenting their missed checks, Carrie Walls was picking one up. Walls won the Virginia Lotterys Ford Expedition Plus $100K, a scratch-off contest. In a picture posted by the states lottery commission, shes seen smiling inside the drivers seat of the new white SUV, holding a Virginia Lottery check almost as wide as the front door. I cried, said Walls, who is from Ashburn, Virginia, of the moment she knew she was a winner. I couldnt believe it. Walls, a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, had the winning ticket out of 554,000 entries. She bought the scratch-off on Dec. 4, two weeks before the federal government shutdown began. Read more: Trump walks out of shutdown talks with Democrats At the border, Trump moves closer to emergency declaration Trump lies his way through a visit to the border with Mexico as he escalates his emergency threat A month and a half later, her family is perhaps one of the only ones not feeling the squeeze. As The Washington Posts Mike DeBonis wrote Friday, unions representing federal workers who havent been paid filed suit in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, demanding full compensation for time and overtime they have worked. This lawsuit is not complicated: We do not believe it is lawful to compel a person to work without paying them, Randy Erwin, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees, said in a statement. With this lawsuit were saying, No, you cant pay workers with I.O.U.s. That will not work for us. On Friday, Congress passed legislation guaranteeing back pay for furloughed workers. President Donald Trump spent Saturday battling criticism that he doesnt have a plan to end the shutdown. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... I do have a plan on the Shutdown, he tweeted. But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised safety and security for the American people. Part of that promise was a Wall at the Southern Border. Elections have consequences! For now, the Walls family doesnt have to worry about that. Theyre planning a trip to Disney World. Read more about: A theatre showcasing the work of local playwrights. A giant organic vegetable garden. A series of art studios. A world-renowned research facility. The blue-sky ideas for Ontario Place abounded Saturday during a standing-room-only event at Metro Hall, where non-profit group Waterfront for All hosted a rally to share ideas for the parks future and reflect on its unique importance to residents. Amid the positive tone and memories associated with the waterfront public space first dates, open-air concerts, movies at the Cinesphere was an acknowledgment that Ontario Place is at a critical decision point, as urban designer Ken Greenberg put it. Lets not underestimate the vulnerability of this particular moment, he said, noting the recurring suggestion that the entire park needs a big bang revamp, rather than simply an improvement on whats already there. A razing of the park does not appear to be off the table, according to comments made by Jim Ginou, the new Ontario Place board chair and a friend of Premier Doug Ford. Ginou, who will oversee the parks redevelopment, told QP Briefing this month that the parks current state is disgraceful. Everything is in complete disrepair, Ginou said. There is nothing that can be saved. He added that the park can be rebuilt in any way that Ford wants it to be built, stoking rumours of what might take its place, including a casino a possibility that has not been denied. Read more: Ontario Place must remain family friendly and accessible to all, experts say. Here are their ideas Readers have lots of ideas for Ontario Place redevelopment Opinion | Keenan: Nothing can be saved at Ontario Place? Thats simply not true Since the 155-acre park opened in 1971, Ontario Place has been celebrated as a beloved waterfront public realm that showcased Lake Ontario and drew crowds for concerts, movies at the Cinesphere and more. But when low admission led to financial problems, the previous Liberal provincial government in 2012 closed its main attractions, including its storied movie theatre. Recent years, however, have seen improvements, including the reopening of the Cinesphere after renovation and the opening of a parkland section that features a 1.3-kilometre trail named after Bill Davis, who was premier when Ontario Place opened its doors. For these reasons and more, its a myth that nothings happening on the site, Greenberg said. He emphasized to the crowd that improvements should build on existing assets, and should strengthen the idea of the park as a waterfront public realm, accessible to all. Theres a whole array of things that could happen with clever use of what we find on the ground, taking inspiration from the original creation, Greenberg said. Mark Mattson, an environmental lawyer and president of water charity Swim Drink Fish Canada, called Lake Ontario the most valuable body of water in Canada, with nine million people drinking from it. There is more industry, business and real estate development happening on the lake than anywhere else, he said. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... People downplay Lake Ontario. Well, let me be very clear: this is the most important water body in the country, and we need people to connect with it, to understand it, and this is an opportunity for that type of experience, Mattson said. He cited as an example Kingstons newly opened Gord Edgar Downie Pier, which was unveiled last year and has unlocked the citys waterfront for residents and visitors, enabling them to wade, jump or even flip a Canadian thing to do directly into the water. The same thing could be done here, which would ultimately get more people down to Ontario Place, he said, noting the water samples done on the site show its clean. Suzanne Kavanagh, a director of the newly created Waterfront for All organization, said Saturdays event was intended to be proactive. Were not militant. We dont have a petition, because we dont know what were up against, she said. Have your say However, Ginous recent comments about Ontario Place set off alarm bells, she said, and served as an incentive to organize those who support the park and want to enhance it. Were saying, dont blow up the gem polish the gem, she said. The bigger picture concerning the future of Ontario Place is about access to the water, said city Councillor Joe Cressy, who represents SpadinaFort York. Over two generations the city lost the waterfront to industrialization, the railway and the Gardiner Expressway, but we are finally starting to reclaim the waterfront, he said. If you want to build a great city, you invest in waterfront revitalization. And whats the opposite of waterfront revitalization? Mega-malls and casinos, Cressy said, referencing concerns about what the Ford government might propose for the site. Attendee Beverley Thorpe said she is concerned about the future of Ontario Place, a park she walks through regularly for spiritual rejuvenation. I think Toronto is sitting on a gem, the lake itself, she said. I would love to see how we could celebrate the lake more here. With files from Jennifer Pagliaro and Edward Keenan Wendy Gillis is a Toronto-based reporter covering crime and policing. Reach her by email at wgillis@thestar.ca or follow her on Twitter: @wendygillis Read more about: WINNIPEGManitobas police watchdog is investigating a fatal officer-involved shooting on Friday evening. Police say in a news release that a man fled when officers approached him for acting suspiciously. They say they caught up with him in a vacant lot, but he then produced a weapon and officers began shooting. The 26-year-old, whose identity hasnt been released, was transported to hospital in critical condition, where he later died. Manitobas Independent Investigation Unit has now taken over the investigation. Police and IIU spokeswoman Barbara Czech both say theyre not able to release the type of weapon the man was believed to be carrying, explaining that it is part of the watchdogs investigation. Earlier this week, police in the city shot and injured a 23-year-old man who was a suspect in an assault. Police said officers fired their guns when the vehicle the man was in rammed through a barrier. The IIU said the man was taken to hospital, but he was not seriously hurt and was released into custody. Read more about: Ottawa police say a hospital orderly has been charged with sexual assault. The charge relates to an alleged incident involving a patient at the Ottawa Hospital in early December 2018. They say the woman was allegedly sexually assaulted after receiving surgery at the facility. Officers say a 46-year-old orderly was charged on Friday. They say Wilbert Aragon-Baez is set to appear in court on Feb. 11. Read more about: Were barely into the final year of the 2010s, a decade of fundamental change in theatre in North America, from leadership to groundbreaking improvements to representation onstage (hello Hamilton). But its clear the biggest trend in the last 10 years has been immersive theatre. Since the British company Punchdrunk partnered with American producers Emursive to unveil Sleep No More in March 2011, in which masked audience members packed into the McKittrick Hotel in Chelsea and followed performers at will, immersive theatre has become the buzz word for plays that break the traditional theatregoing mould. Last year saw the trend literally breaking boundaries: Talk is Free Theatre produced The Curious Voyage, a three-day-long immersive production that sent audience members from Barrie, Ont., to London, England. And last week, the Toronto Fringes Next Stage Festival presented its first immersive, site-specific production with Athabasca, created by Torontos Convergence Theatre. Audience members gather at an office building in the west end where they overhear a heated argument between an oil company PR rep and an environmental activist. There is something subversive about not doing this in a theatre. It cracks open the possibilities, says director and Convergence co-founder Aaron Willis. That isnt to say the old contract of sitting in a chair and watching something isnt still valid, but there are possibilities to enrich it. Willis has possibly the simplest definition of what immersive theatre is. Your body, as an audience member, becomes important. Where youre sitting, who you are; youre not just sitting back and watching, he says. His first immersive production, along with his wife, Convergence co-founder Julie Tepperman, was 2006s AutoShow, seven short plays in or around a real car. At that time, the term site-specific theatre commonly described plays that took place outside a traditional theatre, usually meaning the location was directly related to the subject matter. I never really thought about it as a genre. We started working in it mostly out of expediency: it was cheap when there was no venue. But we discovered that people enjoyed that kind of theatre experience and that we enjoyed creating them, said Tepperman. Today, Convergence is one of the most well-known immersive theatre companies in Toronto. In 2015, Tepperman co-created one of the most successful immersive projects in the GTA Sheridan Colleges sprawling, sold-out musical Brantwood with director Mitchell Cushman of Outside the March Theatre, another of Torontos top immersive companies. I try to approach work stripping away as many preconceptions of what a theatre experience is as possible. I think thats whats really exciting about a lot of immersive work, says Cushman. He and Outside the March broke onto the Toronto scene in 2011 with Noah Haidles Mr. Marmalade, a quirky and darkly funny play about a young girl and her adult male imaginary friend that Cushman set in a real-life kindergarten classroom, enhancing the story with the audiences childhood memories of such a room. Cushman has since incorporated immersive elements into more traditional settings, including Treasure Island at the Stratford Festival and Jerusalem at the Streetcar Crowsnest. Cushman recognizes that a major part of the rise of immersive theatre has to do with audiences desire to shake up the traditional sequence of: arrive, sit down, watch, clap, leave. Thats a viewpoint shared by Daniele Bartolini, founder of DLT, which specializes in productions created for extremely small audiences, often single spectators who travel from scene to scene outdoors or in large buildings. Both Cushman and Bartolini created works featured in The Curious Voyage. The feedback that I receive most is, I want to be scared. The feeling of not knowing whats going on, people really enjoy that part and Im hearing that more and more, Bartolini says. But as we near 10 years of Sleep No More in New York City, Willis, Tepperman, Cushman and Bartolini worry about the buzziness of the word immersive, now generously applied to dining, travel and visual art projects, and even some big-budget theatre productions that adhere quite strictly to the status quo. A news release for the Canadian Opera Companys Hadrian this past fall described it as immersive, without demonstrating any of the trappings that mark an immersive production. Its a great word to sell an experience with. But the range of what that experience is is so vast it feels so general now. It might as well be replaced with cool, says Willis. Bartolini agrees. He feels the word is often used to get attention. Tepperman hesitates to use it in conversation. If its going to be site-specific, there needs to be something purposeful about where youve chosen to present that story and youre actively looking for ways to engage with that space The danger is that immersive theatre becomes a shellac over top of something, and it doesnt offer as meaningful or deep an experience as I think it has the potential to, Cushman says. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Ive definitely seen some projects where if you stripped away all of the immersive elements, there would be little left at its core. And thats the work that makes me a little frustrated as an immersive theatre artist because I feel like we are just scraping the surface of whats possible and I dont want it to be a fad. With Athabasca onstage until Jan. 20 and the Sleep No More-like dance/theatre hybrid Eve of St. George at the Great Hall on Jan. 17, the first month of 2019 would suggest immersive theatre is not slowing as a trend in Toronto. But the question that remains is: how will immersive theatre companies resist the temptation to simply one-up each other, creating bigger and more elaborate concepts that risk artistic integrity and turn immersion into a gimmick? Maybe its a question of investigating: if the play can be done on a stage do it on a stage. Athabasca could exist on a stage and the arguments are still there; its still a play of the here and now. But this environment, we hope, will heighten the level of engagement, says Tepperman. Cushman, on the other hand, is thinking about expanding the definition of theatre in general, as well as immersive theatre, with a production coming to Toronto this summer that involves escape rooms (another skyrocketing experiential trend within the last decade). I think that ideally it will remain a little bit fluid and open to interpretation, that people will claim it in different ways. I just think that when people are claiming it, they at least should have an understanding of what it means to them, he says. If not, then I think that the word is in danger of losing meaning. EDMONTONOne Edmonton Indigenous activist is making the case that solving the crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls means understanding why men prey on women in the first place. On Wednesday, Muriel Stanley Venne, founder of the Institute for the Advancement of Aboriginal Women, made that very point to Correctional Service Canada as part of the National Aboriginal Advisory Committee. She recommended that Corrections Canada place a greater emphasis on interviewing convicted killers who are locked up to get a better sense of their motivations, their psychology, and, ultimately, to learn more about how society can prevent women from being murdered. Indigenous women are six times more likely to be victims of homicide than non-Indigenous women, according to 2017 numbers from Statistics Canada. An 2014 RCMP report said 1,181 Indigenous women and girls were killed or have disappeared in Canada between 1980 and 2012, although some advocates say the number is closer to 4,000. We have the opportunity to turn things around and get good research done so we could take the next steps to prevent these killings, Venne said after attending the meeting with Correctional Service Canada commissioner Anne Kelly in Laval, Que. People have been saying this for a long time, and I think were at an important time in our history where we can really take a serious look at the factors faced by Indigenous women, but equally important is the research (into) how we stop the killers. Experts believe there are two types of men who kill women, with different motivations. One is serial killers the real-life bogeymen who commit incomprehensible acts again and again, preying on the vulnerable for their own sadistic pleasure. And while they occupy a large space in our imagination, they are, in fact, exceedingly rare. If were talking about the Willy Picktons of the world, were talking about a very, very narrow slice, says Liam Ennis, an Edmonton-based forensic psychologist. Hes referring to Robert William Pickton, the British Columbia pig farmer who confessed to 49 murders, but was only convicted of six, making him one of Canadas most well-known and prolific serial killers. Ennis has worked extensively on violence risk assessment as well as at dangerous-offender designation hearings. Hes assessed a large number of men who have murdered women. Research shows serial killers are usually individuals who feel isolated, rejected, or humiliated, who tend to use drugs or alcohol, and who are not successful at careers or relationships. Killing gives them a sense of power, Ennis says. Thats whats driving the behaviour for them, as opposed to most men who murder women, its a flash of anger, Ennis said. Even if theres a sexual component to it, its an impulsive sort of outburst. Rather than hunting, that sort of predatory, deliberate violence. Ennis said in the majority of cases where women are murdered (75 per cent of cases), it is by an intimate partner or family member not a serial killer. Statistics Canada numbers from 2017 show that Indigenous women are more likely than their counterparts to be killed by an acquaintance or stranger: of the total solved Indigenous female homicides reported to police between 1980 and 2014, 53 per cent were committed by family members. Theres nothing unique about that to Indigenous peoples. Women are at most risk from men they are close to, in their own homes, at the hands of men who theyve had intimate relationships with, Ennis said. (On that) we have tons of research, because theres so many more of those men, he added. We understand those men much better. Men who kill their partners tend to fall within one of two categories. There are those who have a criminal history, are anti-social and are violent across the board. Then there are those who Ennis says have borderline personality disorder. The most key characteristic there is this chronic fear of abandonment, Ennis said. Theyre always afraid the partner is going to leave them. And they would rather break all their toys than let someone else play with them. Those men tend to come from chaotic upbringings and had poor relationships with their parents as kids. Unlike killers who murder for pleasure, Ennis said if you were to measure the heart rate of a man involved in intimate partner violence, it wouldnt be relatively stable. Theyre not in a state of great arousal when those things happen, he said. In contrast, what defines serial killers is that they kill for the sake of killing, with a cooling-off period in between each murder. They are often driven by sexual deviance and violent sexual fantasies, which ultimately turn into acts of violence and murder. If were talking about those individuals, the best studies out there will have maybe 175 of those guys in North America so thats a pretty small pool to draw from if youre trying to understand those individuals, says Ennis, who was involved in the dangerous offender case for Thomas Svekla, an Edmonton man convicted of murdering a sex worker in 2008, but who was suspected of having more victims. Because thats such a relatively rare bird, we dont know a lot about (them). But Venne, who has dedicated years of her life to addressing systemic violence against Indigenous women is hoping to help change that and to learn more about serial killers and intimate-partner killers. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... We have the opportunity to turn things around and get good research done so we could take the next steps to prevent these killings, Venne said after attending the meeting with Correctional Service Canada commissioner Anne Kelly in Laval, Que. People have been saying this for a long time, and I think were at an important time in our history where we can really take a serious look at the factors faced by Indigenous women, but equally important is the research (into) how we stop the killers. According to Ennis, there was a time in Canada when federal institutions carried out in-depth assessment on incoming inmates. They assessed those convicted of murder to better understand what drives them to become killers. I had some recent experiences with federal Corrections that led me to believe that its not happening very much (anymore), Ennis said. There is no clear reason why, but he said correctional facilities have moved toward a more assembly-line processing approach. I think (Correctional Service Canada), over the last 15 to 20 years, has gravitated away from rehabilitative emphasis towards a punishment and warehousing sort of angle, he said. But Ennis too sees value in interviewing killers, including on a personal one-on-one basis as well as with a more quantitative, academic approach. I dont know that is being addressed in a very in-depth or comprehensive fashion at this point It hasnt fed into the larger literature, he said. There are two distinct conversations when it comes to men who kill women, and Ennis said much can be learned from comparing the two groups. Youve got lots and lots of violent-towards-women men in this country, who have those similar characteristics, Ennis said. They feel isolated, they have low self-esteem, they blame women for their problems but why arent they serial killers? What differentiates the guy who is more methodical and is killing for the sake of killing? The ultimate goal for research into killers is prevention, and Ennis sees two sides to that coin. When it comes to serial killers, a better understanding of what drives them and how they commit their crimes could help women protect themselves especially those at higher risk, such as sex workers or those who live a transient lifestyle from becoming victims. For intimate-partner violence, research into the factors that lead men to kill their partners could prevent boys from growing up to be men who perpetrate that type of violence. Ideally, what you want is research that covers the entire spectrum, so youve got that individual level of analysis, but you also have enough of those individuals so you can draw broader conclusions about them, Ennis said. Venne said she felt good about her meeting with the Correctional Service Canada commissioner, and they seemed open to her suggestions. She plans to meet with the service again in the future, although no date is set. The National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls is scheduled to release its final report April 30. Venne said a lack of information on what drives killers will leave a gaping hole in the inquiry. My position was this vital information needs to be addressed. Perhaps its too late for the inquiry, but it still can happen because theres still all sorts of injustices that affect the lives of Indigenous women, families, and boys and girls, she said. Hopefully its not too late, she added. The inquiry is coming to a close, but Im convinced that killings arent going to stop The numbers have increased steadily. The numbers of women being murdered has increased. And its shameful. Here we are in the greatest country in the world and we have this terrible black mark against us. And I think were at a stage where we have to deal with this. Read more about: Millennial women are participating in the American job market at levels last seen in 2000 as people like Remya Ravindran dive back into the labour pool. Ravindran landed a job at Quizlet, a San Francisco-based technology company, in late 2018 after taking two years off to care for her baby. The 29-year-old software quality-assurance engineer says she wanted to become the households second breadwinner and use her education in a labour market she describes as very, very hot. Her case is far from unique. The share of 25- to 34-year-old women who are employed or looking has staged a sharp turnaround since 2016. The group since December 2015 has accounted for 86 per cent of growth in the workforce of prime-working-age women, who are 25- to 54-years-old, and for 46 per cent of gains in the prime-age labour pool as a whole. Thats good news for the U.S. economy, as an injection of workers gives overall production more room to run. The phenomenon is also positive for newly-employed women, because they may be laying the groundwork for higher wages as their careers progress. But it creates a puzzling contrast with young men: that group has posted a comparatively weak labor-market rebound. Their participation rate though still higher than their female counterparts has failed to recover to pre-recession levels. The gap between young women who are working or looking and their male peers has narrowed to 12.3 percentage points. Thats down from 16.7 points 20 years ago, and its the lowest gender divide the age group has ever seen. Cultural shifts are probably at play. Millennial women are now more likely to have a college degree than their male peers, and employment rates climb with education. The age group has also been delaying weddings and kids. That should boost employment for women, who often drop out of work after marriage, even as married men tend to work more. Men without college diplomas have been struggling to find lucrative jobs, which could itself keep women at work as they choose to supplement household income. And single-mother households have been on the rise, leaving more young women supporting families. In fact, single mothers have staged by far the biggest comeback in the labour force of any group of young women since 2016, based on an analysis by Ernie Tedeschi at Evercore ISI. Married women without kids come in second. Still, none of those trends fully explain why female participation started taking a clear step higher three years ago. It could be that an uptick in wage growth has tipped the scale: it may be easier for mothers to afford child care as jobs pay more. And it almost certainly helps that industries doing the most hiring led by education and health services include many job titles dominated by women. Health Services Amanda Woodruff-Truog returned to her job as a travel nurse last year shortly after giving birth to her third child. Demand for nurses is so high that the 29-year-old has enjoyed her pick of locations and jobs. I just wanted to be back in the field, she says. Her husband sold his company in Florida to move to Illinois, the location of her current job, and hes working part time and helping to take care of the children while Woodruff-Truog works and pursues a masters degree at Purdue University. Theres definitely not enough hours in the day, but for some reason we make it work, she said. Laura Rosner, senior economist and partner at Macropolicy Perspectives in New York, said its up in the air whether a greater share of women will continue to join the labour market. But Americas counterparts in advanced economies might offer clues. Global Comparison Prime-age women in the U.S. used to work nearly as much or more than their peers in Canada, Germany and the U.K. In recent decades, however, their employment rates have slipped behind. San Francisco Fed economists including Mary Daly who now runs the regional bank have suggested that Americas comparatively-weak parental leave system could be holding back its female employees vis-a-vis their Canadian counterparts. Still, the fact that Americas young women are staging a reversal and one driven by mothers suggests that there may be room for catch-up even absent major policy changes. The gap that we see with other countries may not just be structural there may be a cyclical component here, too, Tedeschi said. U.S. employers increasingly offer family-related benefits like paid leave and on-site lactation rooms, Society for Human Resource Management survey data show, changes that could help some women to stay at their jobs. Labor Comeback Goldman Sachs Group Inc. economists point out that labor-force participation among women has been a cornerstone of recent progress in the job market. They see room for another modest increase of prime-age females in the labour pool this year. Without more permissive family-work policies, however, the scope for a full catch-up to other advanced economies is limited. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... But if you ask Woodruff-Truog, millennial women are poised stay on the front lines of the labour comeback. She looks around at her peers and sees a cohort thats highly motivated to work, not just for money, but also for fulfilment and financial freedom. I dont ever remember a time when so many women were like, I can do that, says the young mother, who attended nursing school while pregnant with her second child because she didnt want to depend on her now-ex-husbands income. She says the rise of dating apps and the casual relationships that come with them plus the broader decline of marriage is spurring other women she knows to get trained and go to work. Relationships are not like they used to be, she said. The dichotomy could not have been more clear. As Unifor members took to the microphone in Windsor on Friday morning amidst a vibrant rally, railing against the planned closure of the Oshawa General Motors assembly plant, GM CEO Mary Barra took to the mic at the companys capital markets day in Detroit to crow about the automakers performance and its plans for the future. At 11:15 a.m. the stock was up $2.84 from Thursdays close. On the corporate side of the river: the primacy of shareholder value. On the labour side of the river: the 2,500 autoworkers who will soon enough be out of work. Right across the water GM is holding an investor effort pitching its corporate greed direction, bellowed Unifors Dave Cassidy, first to the mic before a sea of waving red Unifor flags. Canada did not give you a bailout only for you to bail out of Canada. Over at GM headquarters Mary Barra noted reduced structural costs, considerable cash savings ($6 billion (U.S.) by the end of 2020) and announced that the Cadillac marque has been chosen as the automakers lead electric vehicle, underscoring GMs commitment to restore Cadillacs standing as a true luxury brand. The market was pleased. This is the bifurcated backdrop against which Ontario Premier Doug Ford and federal Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains will travel to Detroit this week, meeting with GM representatives. I cant imagine that GM will be substantially moved. For her part, Barra has somewhat smoothed political concerns in the U.S., which loses two assembly plants and two parts plants, through job transfers for dislocated workers. Of the 2,800 U.S. workers facing job loss south of the border, 1,500 have volunteered for transfer and 703 have already been reassigned 418 from the Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant and 285 from the Lordstown plant in Warren, Ohio with the company pledging a plan for every person. At Fridays rally, OPSEU president Smokey Thomas made a shout out to Ford to get off your lazy a. Which I guess is a call to find some political leverage this side of the border, where the plan for every person leans sorrily toward outplacement services. I suspect that Unifor president Jerry Dias rebranding of General Motors as Greedy Motors isnt going to help much. What Im getting at here, in a tortured way, is that Unifor made a public relations play on Friday, attempting to capitalize on the richness of the HQ proceedings in contrast with the dire straits at home. The rally made for OK viewing. (Message to Unifor: find more women. One is not enough.) In substance, the rally fell short. What precisely does the union propose? For that matter, where were the innovative minds in Canada years ago when the writing was on the wall for the Oshawa plant? As Minister Bains went on to plan for superclusters and hubs, what was the deep plan for the auto shop? How hard has Ottawa worked on this file since coming to power more than three years ago? Where was Queens Park? What role did Jerry Dias play? What were his strategies and tactics? It wasnt all that long ago that General Motors was singing the high praises of Steve Carlisle, who, as managing director of GM Canada, led what the company called the resurgence of the GM franchise in this country, claiming the No. 1 spot in Canadian auto sales in 2017. Carlisle started his career with the car company as a co-op student at the Oshawa truck assembly plant in 1982. Last April, he was moved south to head the Cadillac division, where it sounds as though happiness reigns today. I wonder how it feels for Mr. Carlisle to see the company he has spent his career working for so radically trimming its presence in Canada. I wonder if Mr. Carlisles tenure could have been an important one in laying the groundwork for the future of the Oshawa plant. I wonder under what circumstances Oshawa could have been part of the car of the future. The recourse now for angry workers is to call for a boycott of made-in-Mexico GM autos. As of Friday, Unifor had not yet made that call. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Instead, Jerry Dias put GM on notice that the union is going to go big and loud at the upcoming Detroit Auto Show. Well have a message, the union leader made clear. You havent seen anything yet. What we have seen is a Unifor ad campaign: Hey GM, you want to sell here, build here. Mary Barra was covered in glory Friday, at least in the community of investment analysts and happy shareholders pleased with the automakers forecast of higher than expected earnings. She noted the stresses on families affected by the closures. She seemed supremely confident that the company was already doing everything it responsibly needed to do in this situation. GM was about to unveil its Cadillac ST6 crossover in Detroit, she added. As a PR play, GMs performance was masterful. Shares closed at $37.18, up $2.45. Read more about: TORONTO - Five things to watch for in the Canadian business world in the coming week: Cabinet shuffle Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will shuffle his cabinet Monday to deal with the resignation of Treasury Board President Scott Brison who has said he wont seek re-election this fall. Observers will be watching to see if Trudeau simply replaces Brison or uses the opportunity for a broader change to his cabinet. Shaw earnings Shaw Communications Inc. will hold a conference call on Monday to discuss its first-quarter results. The Calgary-based company said in October that its federal regulator can best protect Canadians from problem sales practices by banning telecom companies from using outside contractors to do their door-to-door sales. 2018 real estate numbers The Canadian Real Estate Association will release its December and year-end home sales numbers on Tuesday. CREA predicted in December that national home sales will fall to a near decade low in 2019, as rising interest rates and strict mortgage stress-test rules continue to put a damper on buyer sentiment. Kinder Morgan update Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd. holds a conference call to discuss its fourth-quarter results on the Wednesday. The CEO of the companys U.S.-based parent company recently said theres a sellers market for its assets such as crude tank storage and rail terminals in Alberta, the Vancouver Wharves Terminal and the Cochin Pipeline system. Inflation update Statistics Canada will release its consumer price index for December on Friday. The numbers for November showed the annual pace of inflation slowed to 1.7 per cent as upward pressure from higher gasoline prices eased off, giving the Bank of Canada another reason to keep interest rates on hold. The Kingdom of Funan: The First Great Southeast Asian Empire The smaller kingdoms developing in the central peninsula came to be dominated by the Kingdom of Funan from the first to the seventh centuries AD. Funan, probably the first great Southeast Asian empire, apparently started out as a simple pirate base at Oc Eo, strategically situated on the southwest coast of Vietnam today between the Mekong delta and the main east-west maritime trade routes. History By Colin Mackay Sunday 13 January 2019, 10:00AM An early Chinese account tells us that the Funanese were a dark and curly haired people who went naked." According to Indian legend, Funan became a more civilised place when an Indian leader of high birth sailed east, married a Funanese princess and became king. He persuaded the Funanese that supplying and trading with passing ships would be more profitable in the longer term than attacking and plundering them. Oc Eo then developed as the main trading port in the Gulf of Thailand region, a central emporium for goods and traders from China, the Malay world and the Indian Ocean. Archaeological excavations at Oc Eo have unearthed objects there from as far away as Rome, India, China and Japan. Kangtai and Zhuying, two third-century Chinese emissaries to Funan, noted the wealth of the Funanese and tell us, They live in walled villages, palaces and houses [the people] go about naked and barefoot. Their nature is simple and they are not inclined towards thievery they undertake agriculture Customs and taxes are paid in gold, silver, pearls and perfumes there are books and depositories of archives and other things. Funan developed a powerful navy and army and attempted to control all trade around the Gulf of Thailand including the important trans-peninsular portage routes in the Malay Peninsula. A third-century Chinese report tells of a powerful Funanese king called Fan Chu Man who, by the might of his arms, attacked and subdued neighboring kingdoms and all admitted themselves his vassals He had great ships constructed in which he crossed over the sea [Gulf of Thailand] and attacked and subdued more than ten kingdoms and expanded his kingdom in all directions for some 6,000 li (roughly 3,000 kilometers: Phuket Island is only some 1,000 kilometers from Oc Eo). By AD 503, the imperial court of China officially recognised the King of Funan as the leader of all the Nang Yang (South Seas) and conferred upon him the title General of the Pacified south. By the late seventh century, however, Funan was attacked and overrun by the Kingdom of Chenla, a large Khmer agricultural kingdom to its north. Chenla was a more agricultural and less maritime kingdom and it was ultimately unable to maintain the control that Funan had maintained over the trans-peninsular trade routes and the local kingdoms that had grown up around them. A few existing Chinese and Arab writings leave us fleeting descriptions of these smaller central Malay Peninsula kingdoms during this period of Funanese domination from roughly the first to the end of the seventh century. Tun Sun Tun Sun seems to have been the early Chinese name for the whole central Malay Peninsula under Funanese control. It was mentioned that this kingdom was centered on the Tapi River which empties into the sea at Surat Thani and that it controlled several of the main central trans-peninsular trade routes. One third-century Chinese script tells us that Tun Sun was An ocean stepping stone, situated on a precipitous coast 3,000 li south of Funan it has five kings, all vassals of Funan On the east, the kingdom was in communication with Tongking (South China), on the west, with India and Parthia (Persia). Another third-century Chinese source, the Tai Ping Yu Lan chronicle notes, Tun Sun was originally an independent kingdom but King Fan Man [of Funan] subdued it. A fifth-century Chinese chronicle, the Fu-Nan Chi tells us: Ton-sun is a dependency of Funan. In the country there are five hundred families of Hun [merchants?] from India, two hundred fo-te [Buddhists?] and more than a thousand Indian Brahmins. The people of Tun sun practice their doctrine and give them their daughters in marriage; consequently many of the Brahmins do not leave the place. They do nothing but study the sacred canon, bathe themselves with scent and flowers and practice piety by day and night. Clearly these Brahmins, who in India would have been celibate, were enjoying the comparatively more relaxed mores and lifestyle in Suvarnabhumi, which also calls into question their authenticity. The same chronicle also states: Tun sun is situated across the Gulf of Siam 3,000 li southwards of Funan. Among the inhabitants are many with white complexions. It is unclear whether this means Malays, Persians, Romans or simply rich traders who did not have to work in the fields or on ships. The kingdom of Tun Sun is, rather strangely, never mentioned in Chinese writings after the eighth century, probably because Chinese travelers and officials got to know the peninsula better and began to identify the individual kingdoms there after they had become independent of Funans overlordship and several of them began to send their own embassies and trade missions north to China. Adapted with kind permission from the book A History of Phuket and the Surrounding Region by Colin Mackay. Available from good bookshops and Amazon.com. Order the softcover 2nd edition directly at: www.historyofphuket.com Still no charges over deadly collision in Chalong that killed two tourists PHUKET: Police still have yet to press any charges for the deadly collision on Chao Fa West Rd, Chalong, in November that killed two tourists when the motorbike they were riding on slammed into a car making a U-turn at night. tourismaccidentsdeathtransportalcoholpolice By The Phuket News Sunday 13 January 2019, 01:56PM Police still have yet to press any charges for the deadly collision on Chao Fa West Rd, Chalong, in November that killed two tourists when the motorbike they were riding on slammed into a car making a U-turn at night. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub The investigation is still ongoing, Lt Col Thada Sodarak of the Chalong Police, the investigating officer for the accident, told The Phuket News. The driver of the car, Sudapon Nontawat, made the deadly U-turn near the entrance to Land & Houses Park Phuket on Chao Fa West Rd at 11:30pm on Nov 29. The tourist riding the motorbike, 26-year-old Amine Halimi from Algeria, was unable to avoid the collision. Mr Halimi and his passenger, Turkish-Dutch dual national Zehre Yalcinkaya, both died in the impact. (See story here.) The Phuket-registered Toyota Camry that Sudapon was driving was still bearing red dealership licence plates at the time of the accident. Under Thai law it is illegal drive a vehicle with such licence plates after dark or out of the province. Photos from the scene of the accident also show that Sudapon was making an illegal U-turn across a double-yellow centre line when the accident happened. Sudapon later confessed to driving carelessly, Col Thada confirmed. (See story here.) However, Col Thada has now confirmed that no application has been submitted to the Phuket Prosecutors Office to formally press charges for the accident. I am still waiting for relatives of the foreign victims to send a lawyer to clear everything about compensation for the deaths. I have informed to their embassies but I have not yet received a reply. When that is done I can complete my part in this case, he said. Col Thada added that blood-alcohol tests on both Sudapon and the foreign victims have now been returned to the Chalong Police. Blood tests conducted by the Office of Forensic Science in Surat Thani show that Mr Amine and Ms Zehre both had blood alcohol concentrations above the limit, but that the blood alcohol concentration for Ms Sudapon was not, he said. Phuket residents vote against U-turn flyover PHUKET: Local residents have voted not to have a U-turn flyover built over Thepkrasattri Rd in Koh Kaew. The feedback was gained at a public meeting held at Phuket Rajabhat University on Friday (Jan 11). transportconstruction By The Phuket News Sunday 13 January 2019, 01:14PM The people present at the meeting voted to have ground-level U-turns in Koh Kaew. Photo: PR Dept At the meeting, organised by the Highways Department, attendees were presented with two options for providing U-turns near the Baan Yee Teng Intersection on Thepkrasattri Rd, just south of the Heroines Monument. The U-turns are considered much-needed in alleviating traffic jams in the area and are part of a project that aims to install U-turn flyovers over Thepkrasattri Rd both in Koh Kaew and in Mu Dok Kaew just north of Thalang Town. (See story here.) The options presented at the public meeting on Friday were for residents in Koh Kaew to either: 1) have two flyovers built to act as U-turns; or 2) have U-turns on the ground. The attendees voted their support for the latter, saying that ground-level U-turns would be cheaper and that not having the U-turn flyovers would look better for the area. Present at the meeting was Thalang District Chief Adul Chuthong, who explained to those present, including local residents, that the meeting, that it was important to gain feedback and approval for the project as it affected people living in the area. It is important because construction of this project will be close to the ancient sites and places important in history, he added. The meeting was the second such public meeting to be held as part of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project. EIAs are required by law for all major projects affecting communities. The previous EIA had to be discarded as it did not raise the fact to the public that the proposed U-turn flyovers at Koh Kaew were to be built near sites of historical value. One of the sites is Ban Phraya Wichit Songkram, located some 800 metres south of the Heroines Monument. Registered as a National Heritage Site in 1985, the location features the stone wall remains of the formal residence of former Governor of Phuket Phraya Wichit Songkram (That Rattanadilok Na Phuket). The house was built and fortified in response to the Ang Yi Chinese miners rebellion in 1876. (See details here and here.) The other site of historical value is the Thalang National Museum itself, located only some 280m directly southeast of the Heroines Monument in Soi Lak Mueang 1, and operated by the Ministry of Fine Arts. (See here.) Only after starting this project have we learned that the two sites are within one kilometre of the flyover. We didnt realise this until local people filed their complaint. So we are compiling a fresh EIA, as required by law, Phuket Highways Office Chief Somwang Lohanut explained to The Phuket News in November last year. (See story here.) At the meeting on Friday, Phuket Highways Office Deputy Chief Pichak Sornchana presented the plans drawn up by Consultants of Technology Co Ltd and City Plan Professional Co Ltd both hired to conduct the EIA appraisal for the flyovers. The Koh Kaew flyovers were to be one lane each and about four to six metres wide, with a 1.5m emergency lane and half-metres wide shoulder on the right side of the lane. Other measurements given for the flyovers were much more precise. The flyover reversing traffic flow from southbound to northbound was to 315.282m long and the mirror-flyover for people heading northbound wanting to U-turn to head southbound was to be 299.292m long. To make the flyovers possible and extra 10m of land on both sides of the road needed to be appropriated, expanding the full width of Thepkrasattri Rd at that point from 40m to 60m, Mr Pichak noted. However, the plans for the ground-level U-turns required much more land to be appropriated, he explained. Building the flyovers would require the road area to be widened to 30m either side of the roads centre axis. Creating ground-level U-turns will need the full road width to be expanded to 35m either side. In total, the ground-level U-turns will need 10.7 rai of land beside the road to be acquired, he said. This is so the U-turn lanes can be big enough to allow large vehicles, even semi-trailers, to make U-turns in a fully separated U-turn lane so that motorists can make U-turns safely and uninterrupted, without causing any delays to traffic passing by, Mr Pichak said. After the options were explained, the opinions, feedback and suggestions from those present were recorded and are to be included in the EIA to be submitted for the project, Mr Pichak noted. Easy Living Phuket: Top 10 Real Estate Agency in South East Asia At only 31 years old Asa Marsh has built Easy Living Phuket from the ground up and on the 7th of Dec achieved the title of Top 10 Real Estate Agency in South East Asia propertyland By Sponsored Sunday 13 January 2019, 11:00AM Easy Living Phuket was voted Top 10 Real Estate Agency in South East Asia at the Dot Property Southeast Asia Awards 2018. Easy Living Phuket was voted Top 10 Real Estate Agency in South East Asia at the Dot Property Southeast Asia Awards 2018. Easy Living Phuket was voted Top 10 Real Estate Agency in South East Asia at the Dot Property Southeast Asia Awards 2018. This massive success has been attributed to understanding the needs of property buyers in Phuket. Dedicated to being the unique bespoke real estate company Phuket needs, helping clients every step of the way through the buying process. Having previously worked in a director position for one of Phukets original real estate companies that sold over 1,200 properties, Asa Marsh founded Easy Living Phuket fully understanding market trends and what people wanted. Owning property in Phuket is no longer just a status symbol, with so many different demographics enjoying the initial low-entry prices and long-term annual returns, says Asa. Seeing a steady rise in land prices has made it a race to the finish line for great deals. Phukets land laws protect its national parks and overall skyline with enforced zoning laws and height restrictions, with the hope of keeping Phuket exclusive and one of the safest investments in SE Asia. This year our carefully selected portfolio of turnkey investment properties was a phenomenal success for all of our clients. Weve perfected the buying process with our personal approach and shortlist of properties giving guaranteed annual returns. This personal approach has set us apart from all of our competitors, he explains. Phukets demographic of visitors is forever changing, with people from around the globe arriving daily its been exciting watching all of the different market trends over the years. The rise of new middle classes from China, India, and the Middle East has fuelled the growth of previously unseen tourists, clearly demonstrated by the fact that Phuket is within a 5-hour flight radius from nearly half of the worlds population, Asa concludes. This article was featured in 'Set Sail', the companion guide published for the Thailand Yacht Show & RendezVous 2019, being held at Royal Phuket Marina. The show is open from 2pm to 8pm daily until Sunday (Jan 13), when the show will close at 7pm. The Phuket News and Live 89.5 are proud media partners of the Thailand Yacht Show & RendezVous 2019. Pontiac School District is holding a job fair this weekend for certified teachers and long-term substitute teachers for K-12. LOS ANGELES (AP) Blake Griffin scored 44 points in his return to Staples Center for the first time against his old team and the Detroit Pistons beat the Los Angeles Clippers 109-104 on Saturday to snap a four-game skid. Close This subscription will allow curernt subscribers of The News Guard to access all of our online Subscriber-Only content, including the E Editions area. NOTE: To claim your access to the site, you will need to enter the Last Name and First Name that is tied to your subscription in this format: SMITH, JOHN If you need help with exactly how your specific name needs be entered, please call us at 1-541-994-2178 or email admin@countrymedia.net. President Donald Trump gestures after arriving at McAllen International Airport for a visit to the southern border, Thursday, Jan. 10, in McAllen, Texas. Isabella County Union Township to hold second vote on opting out of recreational marijuana Brunswick Corporation designs, manufactures, and markets recreation products worldwide. It operates through Propulsion; Parts & Accessories; and Boat segments. The Propulsion segment provides outboard, sterndrive, and inboard engines for independent boat builders and governments through marine dealers and distributors, specialty marine retailers, and marine service centers; and propulsion-related controls, rigging, and propellers to original equipment manufacturers and aftermarket retailers, distributors, and distribution businesses. This segment offers its products under the Mercury Marine, Mercury, Mercury MerCruiser, Mariner, Mercury Racing, and Mercury Diesel brands. The Parts & Accessories segment provides engine parts and consumables, electrical products, boat parts and systems, engine oils and lubricants, marine electronics and control systems, instruments, trolling motors, fuel systems, and electrical systems, as well as specialty vehicle, mobile, and transportation aftermarket products for aftermarket retailers, distributors, and distribution businesses, as well for as for the original equipment manufacturers in marine and non-marine markets; and supplies parts and accessories through the distribution business. This segment offers its products under the under the Mercury, Mercury Precision Parts, Quicksilver, and Seachoice brands. The Boat segment provides Sea Ray sport boats and cruisers; Bayliner sport cruisers and runabouts; Boston Whaler fiberglass offshore boats; Lund fiberglass fishing boats; Crestliner, Cypress Cay, Harris, Lowe, Lund, and Princecraft aluminum fishing, utility, pontoon, and deck boats; Heyday tow/wake boats; and Thunder Jet heavy-gauge aluminum boats, as well as shared access boat club and dealer services to the marine industry through dealers and distributors. Brunswick Corporation was founded in 1845 and is headquartered in Mettawa, Illinois. Read More Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sun, January 13, 2019 12:05 885 75e76da2d15e495661b6357e2e69490f 1 News unicef,comic,comics,bullying,Competition,Rizka-Raisah-Fatimah-Ramli Free Seventeen-year-old student Rizka Raisah Fatimah Ramli from Makassar, South Sulawesi, has won the UNICEF and Comics Uniting Nations worldwide comic contest. Her creation Cipta is designed to help keep children and young people safe from violence in and around schools. Main character Cipta is a make-believe superhero who gives children a sketchbook to draw objects that in turn come to life and stop violence and bullying. The comic contest was launched in October 2018, calling on children and young people to create a comic superhero that would defeat The Silence, a supernatural character that uses its powers to stop children from speaking up and taking action against violence in and around schools. UNICEF said that nearly 3,600 submissions were entered from more than 130 countries, and more than 23,000 votes were cast on the contest website to determine the winner. In a text interview with The Jakarta Post on Thursday, Rizka said that she started to draw in elementary school, as her older brother and sisters found joy in reading comic books and playing video games such as Slam Dunk and Lost Saga. I started by copying the styles in the comics or games, and it has been a hobby until now, said the 17-year-old high-schooler, whos also an avid reader of comics. Rizka Raisah Fatimah Ramli from Makassar, South Sulawesi. (UNICEF/File) Read also: Indonesia's 'Nusa V' superhero comic to enter Southeast Asian market Finding the UNICEF contest through Instagram, Rizka said that initially she joined it to gain experience as well as for fun. Relating to the contests theme, she said she had the unfortunate experience of being verbally bullied in the first year of high school. At the time, I had no idea what to do as it also happened to my friends and I thought that it was a normal thing to happen, she said. The character of Cipta was created out of the blue, Rizka said, when the deadline was almost due. Before, there were around three characters, which I made with the help of a classmate. Suddenly I felt the characters were too mainstream and I started from scratch again. The inspiration for Cipta came out of nowhere when I was doodling on a test paper, and my friend helped in creating a rough story, Rizka added. In a statement released by UNICEF, Rizka said she created Cipta to draw attention to the violence and bullying that children in Indonesia and around the world face every day. "Through drawing, I feel that my character is alive and I have control over bullies. I hope I can inspire many people, especially children, to tell their stories and if they cant say it directly, to do so through drawing. As the winner, Rizka will have the opportunity to collaborate with a professional team to produce a full-length comic book featuring Cipta. Her comic book will be presented to world leaders at the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development at the UN in July 2019, as well as distributed to schools and children worldwide. When asked whether being a comic artist is something shed seriously consider in the future, Rizka replied, Honestly, I find making comics is hard, though I did think of becoming one when I was in the craze of reading Bakuman. Even so, it remains one of my aspirations. (wng) In a bid to support local farmers, the Bali provincial administration has issued a regulation that requires the use of local agricultural products in all of the island's hotels, restaurants and catering services. The regulation also obligates supermarkets to provide more local products. Aside from agricultural products, Bali Gubernatorial Regulation No. 99/2018, which was signed by Bali Governor Wayan Koster and enacted on Dec. 28, 2018, stipulates for the compulsory use of local fishery and industry products. "This is a New Year present from me to farmers, fishermen and local industries in Bali, to make them more happy and prosperous," Wayan said during an event disseminating information on the new regulation at Pengotan village in Bangli regency, Bali, on Monday. The regulation stipulates that at least 30 percent of agricultural, livestock and fishery products used by hotels, restaurants and catering services must comprise local products. Hotels and restaurants must also use local products for at least 10 percent of the volume needed for meat processing. The regulation also stipulates that at least 60 percent of agricultural and livestock products offered by supermarkets must come from local farmers. Supermarkets that offer fishery products must have at least 30 percent of their products sourced from local fishermen. The regulation also obliges hotels, restaurants, catering services and supermarkets to work in partnership with farmers, micro, small and medium enterprises, cooperatives and other related organizations. Read also: Why we need to eat seafood and take a nap in Bali The new regulation also states that the price of local agricultural products bought from farmers must be at least 20 percent higher than the farmers' production cost. To support local farmers, the administration also obliges cash transactions only. For noncash transactions, the products must be bought through a provincial administration-owned company (Perusda), which will serve as an agent to connect farmers with hotels, restaurants, catering services, as well as supermarkets. All payments to Perusda should be completed within a month. Wayan emphasized that the regulation was made to support sustainability in local product marketing. "We should all participate in taking real action to implement this regulation," he added. "To those who are doing their business in Bali, please take responsibility to develop Bali, not just develop [business] in Bali," Wayan said. Ida Bagus Purwa Sidemen, the executive director of Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants Association Bali chapter, warmly welcomed the new regulation, saying that most hotels and restaurants across Bali have already used local agricultural products. "All hotels across Bali have for many years mostly used local agricultural products. More than 90 percent of our needs are fulfilled by local products. We only import products that are not available here, such as kiwi fruit," Purwa said. He added that most hotels and restaurants, however, do not buy products directly from farmers and instead procure them through local suppliers who could offer installment plans for payment. "It's not easy to buy products directly from farmers as they can't provide some products at the same time. That's why buying from suppliers is much easier," he added. Purwa assured that all hotels and restaurants across Bali will obey the regulation. "I'm optimistic that hotels and restaurants would not face difficulties in obeying the regulation. We hope the government can implement it [well] to boost the sustainability of local agricultural products," he said. (kes) Portugal wants to exempt British tourists, a major revenue source, from entry visa requirements if Britain crashes out of the European Union without a negotiated deal, Lisbon said Friday. "We are working... on creating obstacle-free corridors that will allow fluidity for British citizens entering the national territory" at airports, Interior Minister Eduardo Cabrita told journalists. He was speaking ahead of a crucial vote by British lawmakers next week on Prime Minister Theresa May's draft "divorce" deal. Some 2.6 million British tourists fly into Portugal every year, and many retire there. The government in Lisbon has urged Brits living in Portugal to register at their town halls before March 29, the day Britain is due to leave the European bloc. Read also: Epiphany in Portugal: pipes, drums -- and cigarettes for the kids Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva has said that British qualifications recognized in Portugal until March 29 will remain valid. The Portuguese plan envisages reinforcing the number of staff at the Portuguese consulate in Britain to answer Brexit-related questions. Back home, agents from the Foreigners and Borders Service will stand ready to assist Brits living there. Further details will be announced next week, said Santos Silva. May faces defeat over her proposed deal, which has aroused fierce opposition from EU supporters and Brexit enthusiasts alike, raising fears Britain could leave the bloc with no agreement in place. Vietnams Bamboo Airways, after repeated delays, will start commercial flights on Jan. 16, the company said in an emailed statement. The carrier set minimum ticket prices at 149,000 dong ($6.40) each. The carrier will initially operate 37 domestic routes, the company said in a separate statement. Bamboo Airways will also start this year international flights to Asian countries, starting with Japan, Korea and Singapore, it said. Hotel and leisure company FLC Group JSC, which owns Bamboo Airways, will be competing in one of the worlds fastest-growing aviation markets against state-owned Vietnam Airlines JSC and budget carrier VietJet Aviation JSC. The International Air Transport Association forecasts Vietnam will be among the worlds top five fastest-growing air travel markets in the next 20 years. The route between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is already the worlds sixth-busiest in terms of passenger numbers last year, according to IATA. Read also: New airline set to join Vietnam's congested skies Bamboo Airways will initially use 20 leased narrow-body and wide-body aircraft, the carrier has said. FLC agreed to buy 24 Airbus SE A321neo planes worth $3.2 billion at list price for Bamboo Airways. In June, it signed a commitment for 20 Boeing Co. twin-aisle 787-9 Dreamliners with a list price of $5.6 billion. Vietnams airports in 2018 handled 106 million passengers, a 12.9 percent increase over the previous year, according to a statement on the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnams website. Vietnamese carriers flew more than 50 million passengers, a 14 percent jump from 2017. But couples whose marriage plans were thwarted by the partial shutdown have gotten a break, thanks to the action of Mayor Muriel Bowser and city council. The city's Marriage Bureau, part of the US capital's federally funded court system, had been deemed "nonessential" and shuttered as part of the thorny standoff between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats. But on Friday, Bowser signed an emergency measure authorizing city officials to validate marriages in the absence of the Marriage Bureau, which closed when the budget standoff began on December 22. "They can shut down the US government, but they cannot shut down love in the District of Columbia," City Council member Brandon Todd said when he introduced the measure. Titled the Let Our Vows Endure Emergency Amendment Act, or LOVE act, the law is valid for 90 days and will spare future brides like Claire O'Rourke from finding themselves in Kafkaesque situations. "Practically, we couldn't sign all the legal certificates during the shutdown without having a marriage license," O'Rourke, a Washingtonian who was preparing to wed fiance Sam Bockenhauer, told AFP. "So we were going to have a wonderful party, of course, but couldn't be legally married in DC until we got our marriage license." Some couples, like Dan Pollock and Danielle Geanacopoulos, had no time to spare. They managed to get their wedding license on December 27, just two days before their scheduled wedding. 'A speed bump' "By the time we figured out we couldn't get a license, we were running out of time before friends and family were coming to Washington to celebrate with us," Geanacopoulos said. "So we focused on the really important thing -- celebrating -- and decided to figure out the rest later." Her mother, Daphne, said she was "delighted." "We had a really great big wedding two weeks ago... (but) it feels wonderful to have it official." For Caitlin Walters, who plans to wed Kirk Kasa on February 2 on the campus of Catholic University, the shutdown was simply "a small speed bump in the road." "Obviously we knew about the shutdown, but we didn't know that it would directly affect our ability to get married in DC legally," said Walters, a New York resident who was determined to get married in the nation's capital. But while some have taken the shutdown in stride, it has brought "chaos" to those in the wedding business. "It's a lot of chaos, it's a lot of uncertainty," said Rachel Rice, a wedding planner who recently had to shift a wedding ceremony from Washington to nearby Virginia. Even if the shutdown were to end next month, Rice said, "some people might say, 'I can't wait to book my venue; I have to book my catering, my photographer.'" On top of that, the approximately 800,000 federal employees sent home or forced to work without pay -- some of them with wedding plans, no doubt -- have just missed their first paycheck and will be forced to scale back their plans. Claire O'Rourke has her own shutdown-related regret. She had hoped to have her official wedding photo taken in the National Portrait Gallery. But like most of the capital's vast Smithsonian system, the popular museum remains closed. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Rizal Harahap and Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Pekanbaru/Medan Mon, January 14, 2019 17:09 884 75e76da2d15e495661b6357e2e6a32d6 1 National hornbill,animal-conservation,IUCN,langur,lutung,hawk-eagle,Riau,North-Sumatra,wildlife Free Authorities in Riau have arrested a man allegedly involved in illegal poaching after he posted a video of himself slaughtering an endangered bird on social media. The Riau Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) joined hands with the Kuantan Singingi (Kuansing) Police to track down and apprehend Arhedi, 29, for allegedly killing a hornbill on Friday evening. Arhedi, who is originally from Lebak, Banten, is a rubber plantation worker in Gunung Toar subdistrict, Kuansing, Riau. The police are still on the hunt for his coworker, OG, who allegedly took down the bird with a slingshot. A video of Arhedi chopping up the hornbill went viral on social media and alerted the police. Riau BKSDA spokeswoman for Dian Indriati said the authorities confiscated what remained of the animal during the arrest. Hornbills are protected under Law no. 5/1990 on the conservation of biological resources and the ecosystem. There are 62 species of hornbills in the world and Indonesia is home to 13. NGO Rangkong Indonesia explains on its website that hornbills are known as "jungle farmers" because they are spreader of seeds, especially big trees. They fly as far as 100 kilometers, making the distribution of various seeds expansive. Three out of 13 hornbill species in Indonesia are endemic: the Sulawesi hornbill, Sulawesi red-knobbed hornbill and Sumba hornbill. The slaughter of the bird was uploaded by a Facebook account owned by OG, also known as Oyon, on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019, Dian said as quoted by kompas.com. Then, we obtained the information that the incident took place in Riau. Kuansing Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Mustofa said after capturing the bird, both men killed it with a machete. Before they cooked it, they took pictures and uploaded them onto social media, he said. Hunters often use social media to show off their catch and also sell protected wildlife. Illegal trading in North Sumatra Recently, the North Sumatra Polices Special Crimes Directorate along with the North Sumatra BKSDA exposed an illegal trade using social media. The police arrested one suspect, Arbain, along with several protected animals that were going to be sold. Sr. Comr. Rony Samtana said the arrest had stemmed from a cyber investigation conducted on Facebook. From the patrol, he said, the police tracked down one account under the name of Keyla Safittrie, who was offering protected animals. It was later discovered that Arbain managed the account. Rony added that during the operation, Arbain offered to sell to an undercover police officer three baby lutungs or langurs. Three lutung species are listed as protected by the government. The police made an arrest on Jan. 9 and found three young hawk-eagles and three young flat-headed cats. Although hawk-eagles are of least concern in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) list, the bird is protected under Indonesian law. The suspect admitted to the police that he had been trading protected animals for six months using a fake Facebook account, Rony said. Arbain reportedly told the police he had sold langurs, flat-headed cats, ferrets, monkeys and squirrels. (spl/evi) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Indonesia Sat, January 12 2019 Indonesia is seeking to send more personnel to the United Nations Peacekeeping Operations as the country is getting closer to achieving its target of having 4,000 peacekeepers by the end of this year. The Indonesian Military (TNI) Peacekeeping Mission Center chief Brig. Gen. Victor H. Simatupang said the UN had just opened a bidding process for an unspecified peacekeeping deployment earlier this week. We just got an offer from the UN to take part in a bidding process for the sending of peacekeepers. But its still in the discussion stage, he told The Jakarta Post on Friday. He said the possibility to bid would be discussed both internally at the TNI and with the Foreign Ministry in the near future. In her annual press statement on Wednesday, Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said Indonesia had added 850 personnel to its UN peacekeeping forces ... Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sun, January 13, 2019 08:55 885 75e76da2d15e495661b6357e2e69138c 4 Business H225M,Airbus-Helicopters,PTDI-aircraft-industry,Air-Force Free The Air Force has ordered eight Airbus H225M helicopters and aircraft maker PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) will have a role in the construction of the double-engine military transportation aircraft. After being handed over to the Air Force, the eight helicopters will join six other H225M that are already in the Air Force fleet for combat and search and rescue roles. Some 88 H225M helicopters are currently in service across the globe. We support Indonesias decision to select our H225M helicopters for their fleet. The H225M is a combat-proven helicopter that is well regarded by military customers worldwide, said Airbus Helicopters global business executive vice president Ben Bridge as quoted by kompas.com on Friday. Indonesia continues to play an important role in Airbus Helicopters global business. With PTDI, our trusted partner, we are ready to support Indonesias fleet. Airbus Helicopters and Indonesia have been in cooperation since 1976 when PTDI accepted a license to produce NBO-105 helicopters. PTDI became a key supplier of the H225Ms rear fuselage and main airframe in 2008, with full production in place in Indonesia since 2011. In 2017, the two companies expanded their cooperation to include support and services for Indonesias military helicopters. (bbn) Eric Heisserer and Stranger Things producer Shawn Levy are developing fantasy series Shadow and Bone. Fantasy novel series Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows, both part of the same overarching fictional universe, are being adapted for an eight-episode series. The Shadow and Bone trilogy follows a young woman with a supernatural power who is fighting against a literal reign of darkness. Read also: J.J. Abrams to helm Hollywood live remake of hit anime Your Name In contrast to its Russian-inspired setting, the two Six of Crows books take after a historical, magical Europe and their stories are told using the perspectives of eight different characters. Eric Heisserer turned Josh Malerman's novel Bird Box into a film script for Netflix and, together with the Stranger Things and Night at the Museum director and producer, he is doing the same for Leigh Bardugo's Grishaverse arcs. Heisserer and Levy were also part of the team behind sci-fi alien contact movie Arrival, and both received Oscar nominations for their work. London rapper Octavian, who on Friday won the prestigious BBC Music Sound of 2019 award, said he hoped his success would inspire other youth who were homeless. "A few years ago I was sleeping between tube stations, the streets and sofa-surfing. Everyone's situation is different," Octavian told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by email. "I hope ... the progression I've had in my career so far gives hope to homeless people that things can change," said the 23-year-old, whose full name is Octavian Oliver Godji. The award has previously been won by artists such as Adele, 50 Cent and Sam Smith. Octavian became homeless at 14, and spent years on the streets and sofa-surfing, he told the BBC, avoiding drugs, unable at times to afford even a bus ticket - but always involved in music. News of his win was welcomed by Centrepoint, a British homelessness charity. "Octavian winning the BBC Music's Sound of 2019 shows that if homeless young people get the support they need they can go on to achieve their potential," Paul Noblet of Centrepoint told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The charity estimates about 103,000 young people asked for help from their local councils last year because they were homeless or at risk of homelessness. Octavian told the BBC that he was often shunned, unable to afford food or clothes, and had fought with his mother, teachers and the authorities. "I was just a bad kid. I didn't know how to harness my emotions," he said, adding that finding his craft had saved him. Read also: Grime star Stormzy announced as Glastonbury's first headline act "It shows me that anything's possible." The artist with Angolan heritage, and who counts Drake among his fans, blended house, grime and dancehall to catch the attention of the judges with his first full-length mixtape Spaceman released last year. "Octavian is not in any genre - he is absolutely in his own lane," said radio DJ Benji B. "He makes music that is unique to him, and that is one of the many things that makes him such a great artist." Octavian is not the first celebrity to have fallen on hard times before making his name: musician Ed Sheeran said he slept outside Buckingham Palace and on London underground trains, while actors Halle Berry and James Bond star Daniel Craig spent time in shelters and on park benches. A lack of affordable housing has led to a growth in homelessness each year in Britain, housing charities say, with 80,000 families in temporary accommodation such as hostels, including more than 120,000 children, government data shows. Centrepoint said the needs of homeless young people differed from those of homeless adults, with thousands sleeping rough or on sofas, on night buses or with strangers. Family breakdowns, violence, poverty and mental health were common issues, the charity said, with young homeless people susceptible to being drawn into gang-related problems or dropping out of education. Britain has pledged to halve rough sleeping by 2022 and end it by 2027, and has invested 1.2 billion pounds ($1.5 billion) to reduce and prevent homelessness. Have you seen the latest exhibition at Museum MACAN yet? As it kicked-off in mid-November 2018 when many of us were preparing for the year-end holiday, weekends in mid-to late January could be the right time to finally pay a visit. Lee Mingwei, one of three contemporary artists exhibiting their works at MACAN, will perform the highly anticipated phase two and three of his large-scale installation Guernica in Sand on Jan. 19. Mingwei told The Jakarta Post that the first phase of Guernica in Sand started on Nov. 17, 2018, and would end on Jan. 19 in the morning. [The installation] is larger than life, meaning larger than the actual Picasso painting the Guernica [from which the installation draws inspiration]. We use about 9 tons of sand and we work with a lot of students and staff members here to create [the sand installation] over the course of 12 days. And if you add up the time, thats about 1,200 hours building the sand painting, Mingwei said. The first phase of 'Guernica in Sand' at Museum MACAN (Museum MACAN/File) Although the sand installation already makes an attractive artwork to observe, Mingwei intentionally keeps it at around 95 percent complete. The remaining 5 percent is left unfinished, marked with a few bags of sand. The Paris-and New York-based artist went on to say that the second phase of the installation would begin at 12 noon on Jan. 19, when he would finish the final 5 percent. At the same time, a visitor will be invited to walk on the sand painting. You could just feel and see the dynamic and tension between this person whos walking on this painting that we created for 1,200 hours, and they who try to finish it. The audience will have the chance to take turns walking on the sand painting. So that is a continuation; the third person, the fourth person, the fifth person [walking on the sand] very similar to the actual bombing of Guernica [a town in the autonomous Basque Country in Spain] in 1937 by German airplanes, Mingwei said, revealing another story behind the installation. He said that the flow of people taking turns to walk on the sand is similar that of the German airplanes that bombed Guernica from sunrise to sunset. The last person to walk on the sand will do so when the sun sets. The third phase, which is the final phase of the installation, starts when the sun sets on Jan. 19. Guernica in Sand would look as if a hurricane just passed at the beginning of the final phase, and then Mingwei along with four audience members and three assistants will brush away the sand using brooms, creating a very different visual to it. Mingwei, who has been exhibiting Guernica in Sands in different cities across the globe since 2006, said he had a different understanding of the work from time to time, and that he could also understand this work through people who had participated in the performance, even though its his own creation. Read also: Museum Macan to mark first anniversary with conceptual performances, interactive exhibitions An equally interesting story is behind Mingweis The Mending Project, which is part of Seven Stories, a project that binds all his seven pieces showcased at Museum MACAN this season. The Mending Project, featuring volunteer menders recruited from a local community who mend visitors clothes on a long table in the museum, began with Mingweis personal experience of 9/11, the terrorist attack on New York, the United States, in 2001. His partners office was located in the World Trade Centers North Tower. When the airplane hit, [] fortunately he wasnt in the office at that time, but I didnt know because the [phone] lines were broken. I thought he was no longer with us, so I went home and took out everything that need to be repaired, Mingwei recalled. He didnt know how long he was repairing things, until he heard the key turn in their apartment and he realized that it was his partner. Mingweis partner stood there as the door opened. He was covered in ash and he had brought with him six strangers who were also covered in ash, blood and torn and burnt clothes and had nowhere to go. The six strangers ended up staying with Mingwei and his partner for two weeks, and about nine years later The Mending Project was made. [] I want people to see the beauty of what we could do for each other as strangers and not constantly think of what happened, what horrible thing happened and blame people. Lets move on and celebrate that were all still here; youre still here to be kind to each other, so let me give you the gift of repairing your clothes. And thats it; its very simple, Mingwei said. While Mingweis Seven Stories presentation alongside Arahmaianis The Past Has Not Passed and On Kawaras One Million Years will be on display until March 10, art enthusiasts might like to come before Jan. 19 to see the first phase of Guernica in Sand prior to its transformation starting at noon the same day. Dolce and Gabbana mixed checks, furry gloves and shimmering dressing gown-style coats on Saturday at Milan Fashion Week, branding it Italian oomph. The Sicilian duo were making their first presentation after the fashion house was forced to apologise to Chinese customers in November 2018 for posting short clips on Instagram showing a Chinese woman eating pizza, spaghetti and a cannoli with chopsticks. The uproar escalated when Stefano Gabbana allegedly used poop emojis to describe China and hurled insults at the country and its people. But the pair steered clear of controversy at their Autumn-Winter 2019-2020 collection named Eleganza, or Elegance in Italian. The backdrop oozed 1930s Berlin decadence with giant red curtains, jazz and a master of ceremonies (shades of Joel Grey!) recreating a Cabaret ambience. But to highlight Italy's mastery of cloth, an atelier was also recreated with tailors and fitters taking measurements and cutting and stitching as the models walked up and down the ramp. Models showcased quirky styles, teaming tailcoats with plaid trousers, matador suits with sparkling bow ties and a ginger velvet suit with black lapels. D&G did not skimp on the lame Hollywood-level glamor incorporating colours such as midnight blue, burgundy and deep purple. Read also: Dolce and Gabbana issues official apology 'We made mistakes' Although there were some Chinese people at the show, Chinese online retailers are boycotting D&G despite a public apology in which Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana capped a 1 minute 30-second mea culpa by saying "sorry" in Mandarin in an attempt to salvage their reputation in the world's most important luxury market. "Our families always taught us to respect different cultures across the world and because of this we want to ask for your forgiveness if we have made mistakes in interpreting yours," Dolce said in Italian. "We want to say sorry to all Chinese people across the world, of which there are many, and we are taking this apology and message very seriously," Gabbana added. The Chinese-subtitled video was posted on Weibo, the popular Chinese Twitter-like social media platform where they have close to one million followers. The controversy marked the latest backpedaling by a foreign company for offending Chinese consumers or authorities. Earlier in 2018, German automaker Mercedes-Benz apologised for "hurting the feelings" of people in China after its Instagram account quoted Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, seen as a separatist by Beijing. And under pressure from Beijing, a growing number of international airlines and companies have edited their websites to refer to the self-ruling democratic island of Taiwan as "Taiwan, China" or "Chinese Taipei". Hotel chain Marriott's website in China was also shut down by the authorities for a week in 2018 after a customer questionnaire listed Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong as separate countries, prompting the hotel chain to apologize and change the wording. Intended as a discussion group, the blog has evolved to be more of a reading list of current issues affecting our county, its government and people. All reasonable comments and submissions welcomed. Email us at: bill.pysson@gmail.com REMEMBER: To view our sister blog for education issues: www.district100watchdog.blogspot.com Man treated after accidental shooting Pike County law enforcement officials say a New Canton man was taken to a Quincy hospital after being shot accidentally early Saturday. Sheriffs deputies were called to a residence on Walnut Street in New Canton about 2 a.m. Saturday. Deputies said they found a 24-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his head. The man, who has not yet been identified, was taken to Blessing Hospital in Quincy. His condition was unavailable Saturday. Morgan County Sheriff ARRESTS, CITATIONS Scott C. Sims, 44, of 1615 Hardin St. was booked into the Morgan County jail at 1:43 a.m. Saturday on a domestic battery charge. Jacksonville Police ARRESTS, CITATIONS Ricky L. Hymes, 53, of 301 Brookside Drive was booked into the Morgan County jail at 3:55 a.m. Saturday on charges of driving under the influence, improper lane usage and operating an uninsured motor vehicle. Compiled by Samantha McDaniel-Ogletree and David C.L. Bauer EDWARDSVILLE Madison Countys Animal Control Department achieved save rates of more than 90 percent for both dogs and cats in November, a big milestone as the department works toward being a no-kill shelter. Animal Control Manager Katherine Conder said 92 percent of the 79 dogs and 96 percent of the 77 cats brought in to Animal Control in November were saved. One of the goals of a no-kill shelter is a save rate of 90 percent or above. Its extremely important, she said, adding that they did not final December statistics. She also said they are starting several new programs, including a foster program for cats and kittens awaiting placement with one of the pet rescue organizations the county works with. We have so many cats and kittens that come in during the spring and summer time, she said. I thought it would be better if the cats were not staying in our facility for long periods of time. She said they would like to start an adoption program, rather than relying solely on animal rescue organizations. We have a lot of people who call us on a regular basis, who say I would like to adopt this dog, or I would like to adopt this cat, so wed like to get that started, she said. Conder said they have also started working with animal rescue agencies throughout the state. Because of the humane societies being so full here, we have to look at other options, she said. It also takes some of the heat off of partners for pets and metro east humane society. We rely on heavily on them to pull animals from us. However, that is potentially controversial, because in the past some County Board members have objected to the expense of Conder traveling to Northern Illinois to drop off an animal. The county wants to be no-kill, she said, adding the cost to transport the animals are offset by reduced food and veterinary care costs. If I can get a rescue in Chicago to take an animal that another rescue here is not interested in, then it cuts our cost down, she said. The majority of our dogs are pit bulls. There are so many its hard to get them placed around here. The County Boards Public Safety Committee continues to work on a new ordinance dealing with the Animal Control Department. One of the issues will be fees. There is a consensus among many board members that the countys fee structure is too low, and encourages too many people and municipalities to dump animals with them. However, that could be controversial as it would increase costs for municipalities, or require them to find alternative ways to deal with cats. It has been noted that the fee charged to municipalities to accept stray cats is less than the food Animal Control would spend to feed the animal, or the cost of euthanizing them if necessary. Becoming a no-kill operation was one of Board Chairman Kurt Prenzlers campaign issues, and Animal Control has had a number of issues in the past few years. For information about the department, visit the Madison County website at www.co.madison.il.us, the departments Facebook page at Madison County Animal Care & Control, email Conder at keconder@co.madison.il.us or call 618 296-4950. Tlaibs colleague, Michigan Democrat Dan Kildee, was on target in calling her comments obviously not helpful and adding, this fuels a narrative the Republicans will use. Instead of mimicking Trump, the Democrats would be better off providing a stark contrast with this improvident president. Be calm when hes crazy, factual when hes fabricating, reasonable when hes irrational. And use those defining differences to challenge him at the ballot box in 2020, a far more sensible way to remove him from power. Nancy Pelosi, the new Democratic speaker, understands the dangers here and is resisting demands from the red-hots in her caucus. Impeachment is a very divisive approach to take, and we shouldnt take it without the facts, she said on MSNBC. Facts is the key word here. Trump is the Prince of Prevarication with 7,645 false or misleading statements by the end of 2018, according to The Washington Post so the Democrats must be the exactly opposite, rooting their decisions in a rigorous devotion to reality. The next step in getting the building ready to house the academy next year is to meet with architects and designers on making the best use of the space to educate students. What are those classroom designs going to look like and what are those commons areas going to be for kids? McDowell said. We are also going to start to do some research when we think about the labs that will be necessary for counseling and mental health education. On the law side with crime scene investigation, what are those spaces and what are those experiences we want for our kids? The total cost will be determined at a later date once the district engages with the architects and designers. We do not have the resources to do what I would call a full scale renovation to make it how we would do it if we did have the money, said GIPS Chief Financial Officer Virgil Harden. We do have the money to make sure they have a very nice, appropriate place in that area so that they are amping that up and doing the academy work that needs to occur. Board President Bonnie Hinkle said the cost of renovating the Wyandotte Learning Center to house the academy is a much better investment than building a new high school for $100 million. There has been a lot of discussion on whether we should have some kind of a policy for TIF housing projects. Were investigating some other cities and what they do, said City Administrator Marlan Ferguson. The council will be provided with a report on what five other Nebraska communities do regarding TIF in comparison to what is done in Grand Island. The communities of Lincoln, Scottsbluff, Norfolk, Hastings and Kearney were surveyed for the report. The results of the survey show that, in general, none of the communities are doing anything significantly different than Grand Island, Nabity said. A list of all of the TIF projects that have been done or are currently pending will also be presented. In 2018, eight TIF projects were approved in Grand Island. No action will be taken at the study session. Ferguson did say the City Council can later decide to implement a policy on using TIF, but he said that should be done with caution. The St. Francis emergency department sees more than 25,000 patients from Central Nebraska and northern Kansas every year. Six facilities in the state, including St. Francis, are verified trauma centers, with only three located west of Lincoln, according to the ACS website. As a Level III Trauma Center we are continually reviewed to ensure the use of the best evidence-based practices for trauma care, said Ed Hannon, St. Francis president. Our health care professionals participate in continuing medical education to learn the most advanced diagnosis and treatments and to offer education to first responders and critical access hospital staff to help raise the level of care offered across the region. The verification program promotes the development of trauma centers that provide a spectrum of care to address the needs of all injured patients, from the prehospital phase through rehabilitation. Nebraska Chamber meeting set for Feb. 7 LINCOLN The Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry will hold its 2019 annual meeting and legislative caucus on Feb. 7 at The Cornhusker Marriott Hotel in Lincoln. Brodyrk Ienn of Osceola has been nominated to the U.S. Naval Academy by Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb. Ienn is one of 32 high school students nominated by Fischer to attend the countrys five military service academies. Andrew Chapter No. 41, Order of the Eastern Star, met Dec. 3 at the Masonic Temple. Joyce Quaring, worthy matron, welcomed everyone with a poem, Everything Is Possible for One Who Believes. Christmas card greetings were shared from the Masonic-Eastern Star Childrens Home and Margaret Mohr. The Nebraska Masonic Home is asking for donations for a nurse call upgrade. Thank-you notes were read for donations made to the Masonic-Eastern Star Home for Childrens Purple Ribbon Club and for childrens Christmas presents. A raffle is planned for a handmade queen-size quilt for the OES Service and Therapy Dog Project. Email Cathy Wagoner by May 8 if interested. Sharlene Coulter will be acting associate grand conductress. Upcoming activities for Jan. 13 include: open installation of 2019 Andrew Chapter officers, practice at 1:30 p.m. at the Masonic Temple, with installation at 2:30; and officers dinner honoring the worthy matron and worthy patron, 6 p.m. at the Saddle Club. Andrew Chapters charter was draped in memory of Beverly Perkins, past grand matron. LINCOLN As populations in many rural Nebraska counties decline, those that are stable or growing share a common element: ethnic diversity. University of Nebraska-Lincoln research recently explored how cultural and economic resources generated by diverse populations can help smaller communities not only survive, but thrive. Investigators identified the most-relevant factors determining quality of life for rural ethnic minorities generally, perceptions of and satisfaction with life, and the degree to which people believe their goals and standards are being met. Through focus groups, interviews and surveys, researchers collected data from ethnic minorities in Madison, Platte and Scotts Bluff counties in Nebraska. There has been little information about which factors non-majority groups consider important, said Maria de Guzman, associate professor and extension specialist in the Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies, and the projects principal investigator. For example, good jobs and education are important to everyone, regardless of ethnicity. But we want to identify additional, specific factors important to people in these ethnic groups in smaller communities. Arriving on campus for the first time as a freshman can be stressful for a multitude of reasons, so keeping yourself busy is key to settling into a healthy routine. In order to get into this new college lifestyle, Virginia Tech provides its students with plenty of opportunities outside the c President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries. As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trump's continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. After this story was published online, Trump said in an interview late Saturday with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that he did not take particular steps to conceal his private meetings with Putin and attacked The Washington Post and its owner Jeff Bezos. He said he talked with Putin about Israel, among other subjects. "Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," he said, without offering specifics. When Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working for Russia, Trump responded, "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked." Former U.S. officials said that Trump's behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Trump's secrecy surrounding Putin "is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous," said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. "It handicaps the U.S. government - the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] - and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump." A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to "improve the relationship with Russia" after the Obama administration "pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement." The Trump administration "has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities," said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 "gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press." Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a "nut job," and said that firing Comey had removed "great pressure" on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the president's interactions with foreign leaders. "Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him," said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trump's meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trump's encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. "It's been several months since Helsinki and we still don't know what went on in that meeting," Engel said. "It's appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head." The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russia's election interference as a "hoax," suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria - a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trump's decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the president's two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putin's interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he "was present for the entirety of the two presidents' official bilateral meeting in Hamburg," but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreter's notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had "pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement" in election interference. "President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past," Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putin's claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Tillerson's account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, "I believe you." A White House spokesperson, responding to this detail from the Hamburg meeting, said: "The President has affirmed that he supports the conclusions in the 2017 Intel Community Assessment, and the President also issued a new executive order in September 2018 to ensure a whole of government effort to address any foreign attempts to interfere in US elections." Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. "We were frustrated because we didn't get a readout," a former senior administration official said. "The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable" with Trump's interactions with Putin, the official said. "God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to." Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trump's conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trump's presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. "There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them," said a former administration official who worked in the White House. "The feedback tended not to be positive." The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. "I recall Fiona reporting that to me," one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson "didn't offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didn't brief senior staff," although he "gave a readout to the press." A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trump's interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trump's meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putin's "powerful" denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clinton's meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. - - - The Washington Post's John Hudson, Josh Dawsey and Julie Tate contributed to this report. Firefighters try to cool down oil storage tanks adjacent to a tank engulfed by fire at the Aden oil refinery in Aden, Yemen, on Jan. 12, 2019. (Reuters/Fawaz Salman) Yemeni Refinery Fire Spreads to Second Storage Tank ADENA fire at a refinery in Yemens southern port city of Aden spread to a second storage tank on Jan. 12, injuring six people, sources at the refinery said. Sources told Reuters that civil defense forces had failed to contain the fire sparked by an explosion on Friday. The cause of the blast is still unknown. Aden is under the control of the internationally recognized government, which is backed by a Saudi-led and Western-backed coalition. That alliance is battling the Iranian-aligned Houthi movement that seized the capital Sanaa in 2014. The United Nations launched peace talks last month to try to end the nearly four-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands of people, devastated the economy, and left millions facing severe hunger. But since then, tensions have resurged. A Houthi drone attack on Thursday on a government military parade in Lahaj, a province next to Aden, killed several people. Saudi state television said on Friday the coalition destroyed a base used by Houthis to direct their unmanned aircraft. The Houthis deny receiving help from Tehran and say they are fighting against corruption. The conflict is widely seen in the region as a proxy war between Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shiite Muslim Iran. A Walmart customer exits from the store on Feb. 19, 2015 in Miami. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Woman Banned From Texas Walmart After Riding Cart While Drinking Wine From Pringles Can, Police Say A woman was banned from a Texas Walmart after she rode around the store in a riding cart while drinking wine from a Pringles can, said police. Police officers were called to the Wichita Falls Walmart on Jan. 11, according to the Times Record News on Jan. 11. Employees told officers that the woman had been riding the cart and drinking for several hours before they called the police, the Times Record News said. Officer Jeff Hughes told the news outlet that police were told by 911 dispatchers that they were looking for a woman with black pants and a blue jacket. The report said she had been riding around in the stores parking lot since 6:30 a.m. local time. Police were called there at 9 a.m. The electric shopping carts are generally reserved for people with disabilities, and officers said she was drinking from a Pringles can. The woman was discovered at a nearby restaurant. She was then told she was banned from the Walmart. Its not clear if she will face any charges. Other details about the incident are not clear. Viral Incidents at Walmart A 17-year-old Walmart employee apparently quit his job over the intercom at a Canada store last month. Attention all shoppers, associates, and management nobody should work hereever, Jackson Racicot said over the speaker at the Walmart in Grande Prairie, Alberta. Racicot then shared the video, where it racked up more than 1,000 shares, comments, and media coverage. Our managers will make promises and never keep them, Racicot said to everyone in the store. Management will try and save money every step of the way including cutting benefits and a full-time associate down to part-time even though he worked 40 plus hours a week. In the comments section of his video, some praised him but others warned him about backlash from potential employers. Pretty sure youre going to go far in life with that level of maturity, one person sarcastically told him in the comments section. Another commenter was more direct with his criticism. Ive been in the workforce for over 50 years. You end up with some employees that are just plain worthless. You cant always tell from the interview whether someone is going to work out, but I know for sure I would not hire this kid. Good luck to him. Im sure there is some company looking for a 17-year-old to be the boss, the commenter said. Added another: I worked for wal-mart (sic) for 13 years this was a very inappropriate way to quit I had some managers that treated me badly but I also had my good ones. 5 Men Wanted for Pretend Fight Officials are searching for five men who started a fake fight at a Walmart in Long Island, ABC7 reported Jan. 11. It happened at the location on Crooked Hill Road in Commack, New York, on Dec. 2. Hundreds of @Walmart shoppers allegedly used as terrified unwitting extras by young men making a social media video. How about the young family that was traumatized in the process? https://t.co/XOKkAQO81o N. J. Burkett (@njburkett7) January 12, 2019 It was the scariest thing that Ive ever experienced, shopper Tim ONeill said. My kids were crying. They still are having nightmares over it. Police said the men were creating a video in the store without a permit. Officials are now offering a $5,000 reward, Newsday reported. According to New York state law, an individual may be charged with unlawful assembly for gathering for the purpose of engaging or preparing to engage with them in tumultuous and violent conduct likely to cause public alarm, or when being present at an assembly, which either has or develops such purpose, he remains there with intent to advance that purpose. Walmart, Target Sued Over Made-in-China Toys The viral video isnt the only bad news that Walmart has received this week. Target and Walmart were sued by the New York Attorney Generals Office for selling Chinese-made toys that had 10 times the legal limit of lead, according to the AFP news agency on Dec. 12. No parent should have to worry that their childs toy may be toxic. As we allege, these companies imported and sold toys with dangerous levels of toxic lead, New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said in a statement. The lawsuit said that the companies sold thousands of Cra-Z-Jewelz jewelry kits in 2015 and 2016 before a recall was issued. Target and LaRose Industries imported the jewelry kits from China from August 2015 until April 2016. Walmart said it removed the toys after the recall was issued. We take our customers safety seriously and require our suppliers to meet all safety standards, the firm said in a statement to AFP. Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) attend the funeral of a local official that the SDF say was assassinated in a Kurdish-held area in the countryside of Deir Ezzor, in the Syrian Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli on Dec. 31, 2018. (Delil Souleiman/AFP/Getty Images) US-backed Syrian Force Declares ISIS Is in Final Moments Fighters from the ISIS terrorist group are living their final moments in the last enclave they hold near the Iraqi border, as the U.S.-backed Syria Democratic Forces (SDF) has engaged those fighters, a spokesman for the SDF says. Mustafa Bali, who is in charge of the SDF media office, said Jan. 13 its forces had ramped up attacks in the last two days and taken control of the area between the ISIS enclave and the Iraqi border, cutting off an escape route. Bali said ISIS fighters realize that this battle is the battle to eliminate them. Meanwhile, coalition spokesman Col. Sean Ryan said, The SDF is making great progress and continues to liberate more territory once held by ISIS, but the fight continues. In December, President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of 2,000 U.S. troops from Syria, citing the defeat of ISIS and how U.S. forces were no longer needed there. A Department of Defense spokesman confirmed Jan. 11 that the coalition has started the withdrawal process. We will be leaving at a proper pace while at the same time continuing to fight ISIS and doing all else that is prudent and necessary! Trump said in a Twitter post on Jan. 7. A victory over the terrorists in the enclave would essentially take down the groups territorial foothold on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River. With the help of the U.S.-led coalition, the SDFa group of militias led by the Kurdish YPGhas driven ISIS out of northern and eastern Syria over the past four years. A November report from the Department of Defense found ISIS has lost all territories it once held in Iraq and controls only 1 percent of the territory it once had in Syria. U.S. armed forces recently killed Jamal al-Badawi, who led a deadly terrorist attack on the USS Cole in the year 2000. Trump announced the news in a Twitter post dated Jan. 6, two days after the U.S. military said it had carried out a strike targeting al-Badawi in Yemen. Our great military has delivered justice for the heroes lost and wounded in the cowardly attack on the USS Cole. We have just killed the leader of that attack, Jamal al-Badawi, Trump said in a Twitter post. Our work against al Qaeda continues. We will never stop in our fight against radical Islamic terrorism. While Turkey aims to pursue the Kurdish forces allied with the United States, the Russia- and Iran-backed Syrian government sees a chance to recover extensive territory. U.S. national security adviser John Bolton last week suggested protection for Washingtons Kurdish allies would be a precondition of the U.S. withdrawal. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Boltons comments a serious mistake. Pentagon Departures Three senior Pentagon officials have resigned following Trumps decision to pull out from Syria. Rear Adm. Kevin Sweeney, the chief of staff to the secretary of defense, resigned Jan. 6 after holding the position for two years. Ive decided the time is right to return to the private sector, Sweeney said in a short statement. He didnt mention the president in his statement and paid a tribute to the men and women of the Department of Defense. Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White also stepped down from her position. Whites resignation at the end of December came amid an internal department investigation into her conduct, after a number of complaints from other staff were filed against her. Sweeneys resignation comes just five days after Jim Mattis left his post as defense secretary on Jan. 1two months earlier than the previously planned departure in Feb. The retired four-star general highlighted policy differences he had with the president in his letter of resignation. He said Trump has the right to have a secretary of defense whose views are better aligned with yours. Reuters contributed to this report Pipes are loaded for stacking at the Nord Stream 2 facility at Mukran on Ruegen Islandon Oct. 19, 2017 in Sassnitz, Germany. (Carsten Koall/Getty Images) US Warns German Companies of Possible Sanctions Over Russian Pipeline BERLINThe United States has warned German companies involved in the Russian-led Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline that they could face sanctions if they stick with the project. U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Germany of being a captive of Moscow because of its reliance on Russian energy and urged it to halt work on the $11 billion gas pipeline. The pipeline, which would carry gas straight to Germany under the Baltic Sea, has also been criticized in some quarters because it would deprive Ukraine of lucrative gas transit fees, potentially making Kiev more vulnerable in the future. U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell addressed the issue in a letter sent to several companies, the U.S. Embassy said Jan. 13. The letter reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector is in danger under CAATSA of U.S. sanctions, the embassy spokesman said, adding that other European states also opposed the planned pipeline. Germany and European allies say Washington is using its Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) to meddle in their foreign and energy policies. Russian gas giant Gazprom is implementing the project jointly with Western partners Uniper, Wintershall, Engie, OMV, and Shell. The letter raised eyebrows within Chancellor Angela Merkels government. One German diplomat said the ambassadors approach didnt follow common diplomatic practice and that Berlin would address the issue in direct talks with officials in Washington. There was no comment Jan. 13 from the German companies involved in the project. A Uniper spokesman declined to comment and Wintershall didnt respond immediately to a request for comment. Germany and Russia have been at odds since Moscow annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014. However, both have a common interest in the Nord Stream 2 project, which is expected to double the capacity of the existing Nord Stream 1 route. The letter was coordinated in Washington by several U.S. government agencies and is not meant to be a threat but a clear message of U.S. policy, the spokesman added. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas on Jan. 10 said that any U.S. sanctions against Nord Stream 2 would be the wrong way to solve the dispute and that questions of European energy policy had to be decided in Europe, not in the United States. By Christina Amann and Tom Kaeckenhoff Steve Buscemis Wife, Jo Andres, Filmmaker and Artist, Dies Age 65: Reports Actor Steve Buscemis wife of 30 years, Jo Andres, died at the age of 65, according to reports. The couple got married in 1987 and share a son, Lucian, who was born in 1990. Steve Buscemis wife, Jo Andres, has died. She was 65. People 2019112 A source close to the family confirmed her death to Fox News, while TMZ reported that her funeral was held at their home in New York City on Jan. 9. Guests reportedly included his Big Lebowski co-star John Turturro. Buscemis brother Michael and son Lucian were also at the funeral, TMZ said. According to the Hollywood Reporter, her cause of death was not disclosed. During the funeral, the FDNY blocked off the street Wednesday as the wicker casket was removed from the home, TMZ said. Buscemi was a volunteer FDNY firefighter during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City. Andres was a filmmaker, artist, and choreographer while Buscemi is best-known for his roles in The Big Lebowski, Boardwalk Empire, Reservoir Dogs, Fargo, and more. Andres got acclaim for her 1996 film Black Kites, which appeared at several film festivals at the time. Black Kites, Andress 1996 award-winning film, aired on PBS, RAI Italian TV and screened in Sundance, Berlin, Toronto, London, and Human Rights Watch Film Festivals. Andres directed music and art videos, as well as her own film performance works, according to her website. It adds: Andres was a dance consultant to the acclaimed Wooster Group. She has been an artist in residence at leading universities, museums, and art colonies, including Yaddo and The Rockefeller Study Center in Bellagio, Italy. Steve Buscemi's wife dead at 65 and funeral held at family home. TMZ 2019112 When he was asked by The Independent in 2009 about his favorite artwork, he replied its probably something by my wife Jo Andres. She paints, she makes films, she has done performance. Andres and Buscemi worked together on Buscemis short film What Happened to Pete in 1992. People magazine, meanwhile, noted that the two were photographed together at the after party for the film Puzzle, which Buscemi produced. Condolences to Steve Buscemi and loved ones on his loss, was in the tweet sent by actor James Woods. This fine family was so supportive of first responders during 9/11 tragedy. Steve Buscemis wife Jo Andres, filmmaker and choreographer, dies age 65 // Condolences to Steve Buscemi and loved ones on his loss. This fine family was so supportive of first responders during 9/11 tragedy. #RIPJoAndres https://t.co/39tpAq5Bvk James Woods (@RealJamesWoods) January 12, 2019 Remembering Celebrities Who Died in 2018 Penny Marshall Penny Marshall, the actress and director famed for her role in Laverne & Shirley, died at age 75. Marshall died at her home in Hollywood Hills, on Dec. 17, after suffering from complications from diabetes, TMZ reported on Dec. 18. George HW Bush Former President George H.W. Bush died on Nov. 30, 2018, a family spokesman confirmed. He was 94. His son, President George W. Bush, released a statement on Twitter, saying, Jeb, Neil, Marvin, Doro, and I are saddened to announce that after 94 remarkable years, our dear dad has died. George H.W. Bush was a man of the highest character and the best dad a son or daughter could ask for. Stephen Hillenburg Stephen Hillenburg, the creator of the Nickelodeon cartoon series SpongeBob SquarePants, died on Nov. 26. He was 57. Hillenburgs cause of death was amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrigs disease, according to reports. In March 2017, he announced his diagnosis. Stephen Hawking Stephen Hawking, who sought to explain some of the most complicated questions of life while he worked under the shadow of a likely premature death, died at 76. He died peacefully at his home in the British university city of Cambridge in the early hours earlier this year. Anthony Bourdain U.S. celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, host of CNNs food-and-travel-focused Parts Unknown television series, died at the age of 61, the network said on June 8. The cause of death was suicide, the network said in a statement. He was found dead in a hotel room in France where he had been working on an upcoming episode of his program, the network said. Avicii Avicii, born Tim Bergling in Sweden, was found dead in Oman. Police said there was no evidence of foul play but the official cause of death was not revealed by officials. His family indicated that he killed himself. Every star director will have a vision of own. Sticking honestly to this vision will work many times and fail at times. Mega Power Star Ramcharans recent release Vinaya Vidheya Rama directed by Boyapati Srinu drawing flak from all quarters is a good example of latter case. In fact, so intense are trolls that exhibitors forced makers to delete a few illogical scenes featuring Charan jumping on the train and reaching the villains venue on Indo-Nepal border riding on a horse. People are making fun of Ram Charan and Boyapati Srinu questioning how they could include scenes that defy logic, science, gravity and relativity theories. Some are making fun of Boyapati comparing him to Newton and naming his techniques as Boyalogy etc. Advertisement Nevertheless, a section are questioning on Tollywood Jakkana Rajamouli, Hot Hunk Rana and Young Rebel Star Prabhas stunts in the so called magnum opus Baahubali which too defied many physics fundamentals. When there is nothing wrong in Rajamouli showing Prabhas using trees like rubber poles to jump into a fort, Boyapati too is right in designing such scenes. If this is the question, here is the answer. When the film is strong on content, viewers accept everything. Boyapati cannot become a Rajamouli just by inspiring or including the shots he should work on bringing the required drama, emotion before breaking the logical barriers. The SpaceX headquarters is shown in Hawthorne, California, U.S. on Sept. 19, 2018. (Mike Blake/Reuters) SpaceX to Cut Workforce as It Prepares to Develop Interplanetary Spacecraft, Space-Based Internet Elon Musks rocket company SpaceX will reduce its workforce by about 10 percent of the companys more than 6,000 employees, it said on Jan. 11. The company said it will part ways with some of its manpower, citing extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead. To continue delivering for our customers and to succeed in developing interplanetary spacecraft and a global space-based Internet, SpaceX must become a leaner company. Either of these developments, even when attempted separately, have bankrupted other organizations, a spokesman said in an email. In June, Elon Musk fired at least seven people in the senior management team leading a SpaceX satellite launch project, Reuters reported in November. The firings were related to disagreements over the pace at which the team was developing and testing its Starlink satellites. SpaceXs Starlink program is competing with OneWeb and Canadas Telesat to be the first to market with a new satellite-based internet service. The management shakeup involved Musk bringing in new managers from SpaceX headquarters in California to replace a number of the managers he fired in Seattle. Last month, SpaceX launched its first U.S. national security space mission when a SpaceX rocket carrying a U.S. military navigation satellite blasted off from Floridas Cape Canaveral. In December, the Wall Street Journal reported that SpaceX was raising $500 million, taking its valuation to $30.5 billion. The Hawthorne, California-based company had earlier outlined plans for a trip to Mars in 2022, to be followed by a manned mission to the red planet by 2024. Another Elon Musk company, electric car maker Tesla Inc, said in June it was cutting 9 percent of its workforce by removing several thousand jobs across the company in cost reduction measures. By Kanishka Singh Watch Next: How They Brainwash You: Government, Media, and Special Interest Group Tactics A false reality is being painted by news outlets, governments, activists, and special interest groups that is warping psychology and concepts. AURORA, Ill.Absolutely stunning was how Jessica Overstreet described Shen Yuns dancers after seeing Shen Yun Performing Arts Global Company on Jan. 12. Despite the several inches of snow and the low temperatures, nearly every seat was filled in the Paramount Theatre that evening for the performance. This is the second consecutive year Shen Yun has made a stop in Aurora, Illinois during its Midwest tour. Currently, New York-based Shen Yun has six dance companies that tour the world simultaneously. Its mission to revitalize traditional Chinese culture through classical Chinese dance. According to the website, classical Chinese dance has helped preserve 5,000 years of Chinese culture. Built on traditional aesthetics, it was once passed down among the people, in imperial courts, and through ancient plays. Over thousands of years, it was constantly refined, eventually developing into the vast and distinctly Chinese dance form we know today. Jessica Overstreet was an amateur dancer for around 20 years. She has had experience in ballet, tap, and classical dance. She was forced to give it up due to an injury around the time of her college years. These days, she does sales and marketing for Overstreet Builders, her familys business. Its been beautiful, theyre absolutely stunning, the former dancer exclaimed. I love the sleeves I just love the flow of everything. I dont know anything about Chinese traditional dancing but it makes me want to be up there, she said. MOverstreet found the dancers technique beautiful. And she was impressed by their synchronicity. Their choreography is really nice. Their feet are pointing where theyre supposed to be pointed, their extensions are gorgeous. Its different than the traditional ballet and everything that I grew up with but Im really enjoying all of it, she said. She said what she found the most inspiring was a dance that told a contemporary story, which depicts the persecution of Falun Dafa practitioners in China. It was difficult to watch and its really sad, she explained. They cant even perform this in their own country right now, its very sad theyre not allowed to express what they want to on stage in China, so were glad to have them here. Falun Dafa is a peaceful meditation practice that has been unjustly persecuted by the communist regime in China for almost 20 years and continues to this day. Being in America it makes me realize all of my freedoms that I have here. It makes me thankful for the country that we live in and very saddened that theres a lot of places of where they are not allowed to express themselves freely, said Overstreet. She said she felt good, seeing the aspect of the divine in the culture played out on stage. It makes us feel that we dont have to do things on our own, she said. Overall, she felt that every aspect of the performance in its entirety played a part in its brilliance. Its all part of the creative aspect of why we come to shows like this. There is still every single person thats involved and it makes that more special, Overstreet said. With reporting by Nancy Ma and Andrew Darin. 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. File photo of Chico Police Department Chief Michael O'Brien and Butte County District Attorney Michael L. Ramsey at a press conference in 2017. (Chico Police Department) Police Suspect Fentanyl After 1 Dead, 12 in Hospital in Mass Overdose in California Police said a mass overdose at a residence in Chico, California, has caused one death and 12 people to be hospitalized, adding that the number of fatalities could still rise. Certainly there is potential for additional fatalities, I want to emphasize that, Chico Police Chief Michael OBrien said at a Jan. 12 press conference, noting that had authorities not intervened, it certainly would have been far worse. He said it is believed the victims may have ingested fentanyla highly dangerous opiate. OBrien said that at around 9 a.m. police received a 911 call, reporting a multi-casualty emergency. Upon arrival, said the chief, Chico police officers found multiple individuals in what appeared to be life-threatening overdose conditions. He said police performed CPR and administered six doses of naloxonea drug that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. CHICO POLICE: Drug overdose suspected as cocktail of "fentanyl, in combination with another substance." This was treated as "mass casualty" incident, with 6 emergency personnel giving CPR to 6 patients at the same time. All OD victims between 19 to 30. pic.twitter.com/CuYEZO7YQf Cecile Juliette KHSL (@CecileJuliette) January 13, 2019 One male adult was pronounced dead at the scene, and 12 others were taken to an area hospital. Eight of the 12 were admitted into the hospital, and four of them were said to be in critical condition. OBrien said the ages of the victims are believed to range from 19 to 30, but noted that this was pending confirmation. Every indication is that this mass overdose incident was caused from the ingestion of some form of fentanyl in combination with another substance, OBrien said, although that is yet to be confirmed. He expects confirmation in the coming days that the substance was, indeed, fentanyl. Hazmat Site Precautions OBrien said that two officers had to be treated at the hospital after they had started to feel some effects after the response. They were treated and released and were in good condition. OBrien said the scene of the overdose is currently being treated as a hazmat site, or a hazardous materials site. He said that police suspect fentanyl, or a fentanyl-similar type of overdose, adding that even trace amounts of the substance can be dangerous. The amount of fentanylthese substances are extraordinarily dangerous and it takes a very minute amount to cause [life-threatening] conditions. Naxolone Saved Lives Chico police have been able to administer naxolone since 2018. This is not the first time that naxolone has saved lives in the city of Chico, OBrien said, adding that the medication could be administered in error and not cause harm to the patient. We do respond to many, many overdoses, and particularly with the opioid crisis that is occurring everywhere in this country to include Chico, California, OBrien said. We wanted to have in the hands of those officers who are often times first on the scene the ability to administer a life-saving drug. We were waiting, and have been waiting, unfortunately, for this to happen in the sense that we knew fentanyl had been moving west, OBrien said. He mentioned that fentanyl hasnt been as much of a problem in Chico compared to other parts of the U.S., where most overdose-related emergencies have been linked to heroin. That is changing, unfortunately, and now weve had this mass casualty incident likely to have been caused by fentanyl. Fentanyl Overdoses In August, President Donald Trump urged the Senate to pass a measure to stop synthetic opioid drugs such as fentanyl from being transported into the United States via the U.S. Postal Service system. It is outrageous that Poisonous Synthetic Heroin Fentanyl comes pouring into the U.S. Postal System from China, he wrote on Aug. 20. The shipment of fentanyl from China to the U.S. is almost a form of warfare, Trump said in August. In China, you have some pretty big companies sending that garbage and killing our people, Trump added. More than 71,500 Americans have died of a drug overdose in 2017, according to data released the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majorityor least 68 percentof those deaths could be attributed to opioids such as fentanyl. Fentanyl was originally developed as a painkiller and anesthetic, but its 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin. [Chinese drug makers] have been using the internet to sell fentanyl and fentanyl analogues to drug traffickers and individual customers in the United States, said Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in a statement on Oct. 17, 2017. Epoch Times Jack Phillips contributed to this report A construction crew works as new sections of the U.S.-Mexico border barrier are installed replacing smaller fences, as seen from Tijuana, Mexico, on Jan. 11, 2019. (Mario Tama/Getty Images) Support for Southern US Border Wall Reaches All-Time High, Poll Shows The percentage of those who support a U.S.Mexico border wall has reached an all-time high, according to a new poll from ABC News and The Washington Post. Results of the national survey posted on Jan. 13 found that 42 percent of Americans now support the border wall. The percentage is the highest in the ABC/Posts polling since President Donald Trump first brought forth the idea as a campaign promise. The number also represents an 8 percent increase from last years poll, which recorded 34 percent support. It also broke the surveys previous high of 37 percent in 2017. The findings come as the partial government shutdown heads into Day 23; it became the longest such shutdown in U.S. history on Jan. 12. Although a majority still oppose the border wall at 54 percent, that opposition has been shrinking. A year ago, opposition stood at 63 percent, while a previous low of 60 percent was recorded two years ago. Trump has requested $5.6 billion in funding for the wall, which the Democrats have staunchly opposed. Democrats havent negotiated any new deal since their $1.3 billion offer for border-security purposes, which doesnt include any funding for a wall. The debate over the border wall has dragged on over the weeks, with Trump describing it as a crisis of the heart and a crisis of the soul in his Jan. 8 national address, while House Speaker Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) have repeatedly called such a proposal expensive and ineffective. It comes after a Jan. 9 Rasmussen Reports poll found that 41 percent of Americans want Congress to do more of what Trump wants. The percentage marks a 12-point increase compared to the same time last year, according to the Rasmussen, one of the most accurate pollsters in predicting the outcome of the 2016 election. At the same time, the number of Americans who want Trump to do more of what Congress wants fell by 8 percent from last year to 48 percent. Twelve percent of the respondents were undecided. Turning to Twitter on Jan. 13, Trump again pushed for the wall and pointed to Democrats to join in the talks. The building of the Wall on the Southern Border will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country! Trump said in a post. Im in the White House, waiting. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking. The ABC/Post poll was conducted by landline and cellular telephone on Jan. 8 to 11, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 788 adults, with a margin of sampling error of 4.5 points. New Support Meanwhile, a Montana lawmaker says that the state should help pay for the southern border wall. Scott Sales, a state Senator and president of the Senate, said that hes going to sponsor a bill to appropriate $8 million in state money to help build the wall. I think this is such a critical issue at a critical time that it behooves us to take a look at maybe prompting Congress to do what they should do, Sales told MTN News. And, in a small token way, providing a little bit of financial resources to get that job done. Sales said that the $8 million Montana would send to the federal government is an equal fraction of $5 billion, accounting for Montanas share of the national economy. He added that he calculated Montanas share of the cost of the wall by dividing the states gross domestic product by the national GDP and multiplying it by $5 billion. No other states have proposed helping fund the wall through state monies but a GoFundMe fundraiser for the wall, collecting funds from private citizens who want to help build the barrier, raised more than $20 million. That money was slated to be refunded after the fundraiser organizer said his team discovered the federal government couldnt accept the money in a timely fashion and that hed formed a nonprofit to use the funds. The South Dakota Senate on Thursday passed a resolution that urges the construction of the barrier in support of Trump. At the same time, a man who came to the United States illegally said he supports President Donald Trumps proposed border wall. Hilario Yanez arrived in the country illegally when he was a child. Hes one of the so-called Dreamers who is protected by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA program. The president is living up to his moral duties, which is to protect this country. He has every right to ask for border security. Every past president has done this, its nothing new, he said during an appearance on Fox News. In an op-ed for Fox, Yanez wrote that hes a supporter of Trump. NTD reporter Zachary Stieber contributed to this report. New Dog Museum Unleashed in New York City NEW YORKIts a museum that invites visitors to come! Sit! And stay. The American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog opens Feb. 8 in midtown Manhattan, returning to New York after three decades on the outskirts of St. Louis. The collection boasts portraits of royal and presidential pets, artifacts that trace canine history as far back as an estimated 30 million-year-old fossil, and devices that match visitors faces with dog breeds and let people try their hand at basic dog training with a virtual puppy. While there wont be actual dogs except for special occasions, the museum hopes to give visitors an understanding of the history of dogs, how they came to be in such different variety, said Executive Director Alan Fausel, a longtime art curator and appraiser seen on PBS Antiques Roadshow. About 150 pieces from the kennel clubs extensive, mostly donated, collection are on view at the museum, which also has a library area for perusing some of the clubs 15,000 books. Fanciers will find images and information on canines from bulldogs to borzois to Bedlington terriers. There are some just-dont-knows, but the collection is focused on purebreds. The kennel club, which runs the nations oldest purebred dog registry, has taken heat over the years from animal-welfare activists who view dog breeding as a beauty contest that fuels puppy mills. The club argues theres value in breeding to hone various traits, from companionability to bomb-sniffing acumen, and hopes the museum helps make the case. I think the best thing to take away is the fact that dogs were meant to have different jobs, Fausel said. Its learning why they were purposely bred for certain jobs, and their activities and their attributes. The exhibition ranges from the scientificsuch as a skeleton of a 19th-century smooth fox terrier that was important to shaping the breedto the whimsical, including one of photographer William Wegmans images of Weimaraners in humanlike situations. Theres also a tiny, elaborate, Edwardian-style dog house for a Chihuahua, and a wall of movie posters celebrating canine stars from Lassie to Beethoven. Other pieces speak to dogs stature in real life. A painting of a fox terrier mournfully resting its head on an empty armchair depicts Caesar, a pet so cherished by Britains King Edward VII that the dog marched prominently in the monarchs 1910 funeral procession. The collection also features paintings of White House dogs: U.S. President George W. Bushs Scottish terriers, Barney and Miss Beazley, and one of President George H.W. Bushs English springer spaniels, Millie. Dogs have enriched our civilization, and woven themselves into our hearts and families through the ages, and I am delighted to see them acknowledged in the museum, then-first lady Barbara Bush wrote in a 1990 letter. The museum opened in the kennel clubs New York headquarters in 1982. Seeking more space and hoping to attract more than its roughly 15,000 annual visitors, the museum moved in 1987 to a historic house owned by St. Louis County. Another planned move, to a new development in a nearby city, didnt materialize. Neither did the hoped-for attendance boost: The museum counted under 10,000 visitors last year, Fausel said. St. Louis County officials didnt return a call Thursday, but Parks Director Gary Bess told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch this week the museums former home will be rented out for events and exhibits. It offered something unmatched in the new locale in a high-end Manhattan office tower: Visitors can no longer bring their own pet pooches. And admission rates are higher: $15 for most adults in New York, compared to $6 in St. Louis County. But the kennel club hopes the new museumin a glassy street-level space at 101 Park Ave., a block from Grand Central Terminalwill boost attendance to 80,000 to 100,000 people this year. By Jennifer Peltz Mass Overdose in California House Leaves 1 Dead, 12 in the Hospital: Police At least one person is dead and 12 others were hospitalized after a suspected mass Fentanyl overdose, said police in Chico, California. Chico Police Chief Michael OBrien got a 911 call from inside the home in the 1100 block of Santana Court at around 9 a.m. on Jan. 12. Upon arrival, Chico police officers found multiple individuals in what appeared to be life-threatening overdose conditions, he told Fox News. Police say they found more than a dozen suspected overdose victims in a Chico, California, home Saturday. Fox News 2019112 The victims were between the ages of 19 and at least 30, he said. One male adult died and 12 others were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. Four of those people admitted to the hospital were listed in critical condition, OBrien said, adding there is potential for additional fatalities, Fox reported. He said the cause of death for the male victim is likely a drug overdose, but he added that it is too early in the investigation. One person was declared dead at the house. Two cops got sick from exposure. The Sacramento Bee 2019112 Every indicationtalking to medical staff, talking to doctorseverything is consistent with a fentanyl or similar-type overdose, OBrien told the Sacramento Bee. That will be confirmed in the coming days with some more sophisticated testing. Officers administered CPR and six doses of Naloxone, an opioid-reversal drug, when they arrived on the scene. The victims, OBrien said, generally all knew each other, according to the Bee. Two officers at the scene also complained about being possibly exposed to the drug while inside the home. They were also treated at the hospital, the chief said, adding they were released and are in good condition. We had four fire engines; all of the Butte EMS were on scene as well. It was a large mass casualty incident for us, Chico Fire Department Chief Steve Standridge told the Mercury News. The drugs are extraordinarily dangerous, OBrien noted, saying that even small amounts can be life-threatening, according to the Bee. Meanwhile, its not clear where the Fentanyl originated and if there are more batches being sold around Chico, OBrien said. The home has been deemed a hazardous materials site, and the Butte Interagency Narcotics Task Force were deployed to the scene, according to officials. We do respond to many, many overdoses, OBrien said. And particularly with the opioid crisis that is occurring everywhere in this country to include Chico, California, we wanted to have in the hands of those officers who are often times first on scene the ability to administer a life-saving drug. Horrific mass overdose kills one, injures 12 in Chico The Mercury News 2019112 OBrien said that many of the overdoses in Chico involve heroin, but not Fentanyl, adding that its worrying to see the powerful drug in the city. We were waiting, and have been waiting unfortunately, for this to happen in the sense that we knew fentanyl had been moving west, OBrien told the Bee, saying that Fentanyl hasnt been a major problem in Chicago. That is changing, unfortunately, He said, and now weve had this mass casualty incident likely to have been caused by fentanyl. That should concern us all, he said. Fentanyl Overdoses In August, President Donald Trump urged the Senate to pass a measure to stop synthetic opioid drugs such as fentanyl from being transported into the United States via the U.S. Postal Service system. It is outrageous that Poisonous Synthetic Heroin Fentanyl comes pouring into the U.S. Postal System from China, he wrote on Aug. 20. The shipment of fentanyl from China to the U.S. is almost a form of warfare, Trump said in August. In China, you have some pretty big companies sending that garbage and killing our people, Trump added. More than 71,500 Americans have died of a drug overdose in 2017, according to data released the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majorityor least 68 percentof those deaths could be attributed to opioids such as fentanyl. Fentanyl was originally developed as a painkiller and anesthetic, but its 50 to 100 times more potent than heroin. [Chinese drug makers] have been using the internet to sell fentanyl and fentanyl analogues to drug traffickers and individual customers in the United States, said Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in a statement on Oct. 17, 2017. Chico is a city located in Northern California. Italian leftist militant Cesare Battisti gestures during an interview with AFP in Cananeia, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, on Oct. 20, 2017. (Miguel Schincariol/AFP/Getty Images) Fugitive Leftist Militant Captured in Bolivia After 3 Decades ROMEItaly sent an aircraft to Bolivia on Jan. 13 to pick up fugitive left-wing militant Cesare Battisti after he was captured there nearly three decades after being convicted of murder in his home country. The development sets the stage for a climactic end to one of Italys longest-running efforts to bring a fugitive to justice. Bolivian police, working with Italian agents on the ground, arrested Battisti, 64, overnight in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Italian police said. He had been living in Brazil for years, but last month Brazils outgoing president signed a decree ordering his extradition, apparently sparking Battistis latest flight. Italian police released a video of Battisti they said was taken hours before his capture, showing him seemingly oblivious to the surveillance cameras tracking him as he walked casually down the street in jeans, a blue T-shirt, and sunglasses. A subsequent image showed Battistis mug shot under the seal of the Bolivian police. Cesare Battistis long flight is over, Justice Minister Alfonso Buonafede declared. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini called him a delinquent who doesnt deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison. Battisti escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while awaiting trial on four counts of murder allegedly committed when he was a member of the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was convicted in absentia in 1990, and is facing a life term for the deaths of two police officers, a jeweller, and a butcher. Battisti has acknowledged membership in the group but has denied killing anyone and has painted himself as a political refugee. Salvini praised Bolivian police and Brazils new government for following through on the fugitives case. Italian leftist militant Cesare Battisti gestures during an interview with AFP in Cananeia, Sao Paulo state, Brazil, on Oct. 20, 2017. (Miguel Schincariol/AFP/Getty Images) Italian Fugitive Captured 3 Decades After Murder Conviction ROMEA left-wing Italian militant who was convicted of murder in his home country nearly three decades ago was arrested in Bolivia, authorities said Sunday, setting the stage for a climactic end to one of Italys longest-running efforts to bring a fugitive to justice. The Italian government sent an aircraft to pick up Cesare Battisti, who was captured by Bolivian police working with Italian agents on the ground in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Italian police said. The 64-year-old had been living in Brazil for years, but Brazils outgoing president signed a decree last month ordering his extradition, apparently leading to Battistis latest effort to elude authorities. Italian police released a video of Battisti they said was taken hours before his capture, showing him seemingly oblivious to surveillance cameras tracking him as he walked casually down the street in jeans, a blue T-shirt and sunglasses. A subsequent image showed Battistis mug shot under the seal of the Bolivian police. Cesare Battistis long flight is over, Justice Minister Alfonso Buonafede declared, adding that he would be taken to Romes Rebibbia prison as soon as he landed in Italy. Battisti was expected to return to Rome aboard the Italian aircraft direct from Santa Cruz in the coming hours, Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said Sunday. He said Italy, and the families of Battistis victims, had waited too long for justice. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini called Battisti a delinquent who doesnt deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison. Battisti escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while awaiting trial on four counts of murder allegedly committed when he was a member of the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was convicted in absentia in 1990 and faces a life term for the deaths of two police officers, a jeweler and a butcher. He has acknowledged membership in the group but has denied killing anyone and has painted himself as a political refugee. After initially fleeing to Mexico, he then went to France, where he joined dozens of left-wing Italian militants who enjoyed official protection from the French government. Like Battisti, they fled during Italys years of lead, a bloody and turbulent era during the 1970s and 1980s when militants on the left and right carried out bombings, assassinations and other violent acts to try to bring down the Italian government. After political winds shifted in France, Battisti fled to Brazil in 2004 to avoid being extradited. He was arrested in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, prompting the Italian government to request that he be handed over. But former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva granted him asylum in 2010. Battisti was eventually released from jail but was arrested again in 2017 after he was caught trying to cross the Brazil-Bolivia border carrying the equivalent of about $7,500 in undeclared cash. He was released after a few days. As a result of that incident, Brazilian Supreme Federal Tribunal Justice Luiz Fux said in December that Interpol had issued a request for Battistis arrest on tax evasion and money laundering charges, leading him to issue a Brazilian warrant. Based on that, outgoing Brazilian President Michel Temer signed the decree ordering the fugitives extradition. Brazils new right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, hailed Battistis arrest, vowed to turn him over to Italy and denounced da Silvas government for having granted the Italian asylum. Finally, there will be justice for the Italian assassin and partner of ideas of one of the most corrupt governments to ever exist, Bolsonaro tweeted in a reference to da Silvas Workers Party. Throughout the day Sunday it was unclear if Battisti would need to be transferred first to Brazilian custody before being extradited. Bolivian government minister Carlos Romero said he would be turned over to Italian authorities in Santa Cruz on the grounds that he had entered the country in an irregular way and was obliged to leave. Citing Bolivias migration regulations, he said Battisti was to be handed over to Italian Interpol agents at the local airport. Salvini praised Bolivian police and Brazils new government for following through on the fugitives case. Italian President Sergio Mattarella said Battisti should be returned to Italy to serve his sentence for the grave crimes that stained Italy and let the same be said for all fugitives abroad. By Nicole Winfield Huawei Sacks Employee Arrested in Poland on Spying Charges HONG KONG/WARSAWChinese telecoms firm Huawei said on Jan. 12 it had sacked an employee arrested in Poland on spying charges in a case that could intensify Western security concerns about the company. Polands internal affairs minister, Joachim Brudzinski, called for the European Union and NATO to work on a joint position over whether to exclude Huawei from their markets following the arrest of the Chinese employee and a former Polish security official on Jan. 11. The two men have heard the charges and could be held for three months. Huawei, the worlds biggest producer of telecommunications equipment, faces intense scrutiny in the West over its relationship with the Chinese regime and U.S.-led allegations that its devices could be used by Beijing for spying. The firm has repeatedly denied the accusations, but several Western countries have restricted Huaweis access to their markets. In August, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a bill that barred the U.S. government from using Huawei equipment and is considering an executive order that would also ban U.S. companies from doing so. Brudzinski said Poland wanted to continue cooperating with China but that a discussion was needed on whether to exclude Huawei from some markets. There are concerns about Huawei within NATO as well. It would make most sense to have a joint stance, among EU member states and NATO members, he told private broadcaster RMF FM. We want relations with China that are good, intensive and attractive for both sides, he added. Seeking to distance itself from the incident, Huawei said in a statement that it had sacked Wang Weijing, whose alleged actions have no relation to the company. In accordance with the terms and conditions of Huaweis labor contract, we have made this decision because the incident has brought Huawei into disrepute, the statement said. A Huawei spokesman, Joe Kelly, declined to give any further details. A spokesman for the Polish security services had told Reuters the allegations related to individual actions, and were not linked directly to Huawei. A deputy digital affairs minister in Poland said, however, that Warsaw was analyzing any involvement by Huawei in building the countrys 5G telecommunications infrastructure, Money.pl portal reported. Any decision by Western governments over whether to exclude Huawei from their markets would have to consider the possible impact on the speed and cost of 5G development, analysts say. My best-case outcome is that Europe uses this window of opportunity and figures out how to have a minimal risk for the best network possible, said Jan-Peter Kleinhans, an IT security expert at Stiftung Neue Verantwortung, a Berlin-based think-tank. A LinkedIn profile for Wang showed he has worked for Huaweis Polish division since 2011 and previously served as an attache to the Chinese consulate in Gdansk from 2006 to 2011. Wang did not immediately respond to a request for comment via the social media site. In a statement on Jan. 12, a spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Poland said the embassy had met with the Polish Ministry for Foreign Affairs over the detention of a Chinese citizen and had requested that the Chinese side is briefed on the matter and consular visits be arranged as soon as possible. By James Pomfret and Anna Koper Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras makes statement to the media after meeting with Greek Defense Minister and coalition partner Panos Kammenos in Athens on Jan. 13, 2019. (Angelos Tzortzinis/AFP/Getty Images) Greeces Tsipras Calls Confidence Vote After Ally Quits Coalition ATHENSGreek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Jan. 13 said he would call a confidence vote in his government after his coalition ally quit, leaving him bereft of a parliamentary majority and raising the possibility of snap elections. Earlier, Greeces right-wing defense minister resigned in protest at a deal ending a long-running dispute with Macedonia over its name, saying he was taking his other six ministers in the Cabinet with him. The crisis left the fate of a 2018 deal changing the name of Macedonia to North Macedonia in limbo. Greek parliamentary endorsement of the name is required for the tiny Balkan nation to join the European Union and NATO. Macedonias parliament has already ratified the accord with a constitutional amendment. Outgoing Defense Minister Panos Kammenoss Independent Greeks party had seven MPs, enough to get Tsiprass administration past the threshold of 150 deputies in the 300-member parliament. Tsiprass Syriza party has 145 seats and also the support of one independent lawmaker. I have taken my decision and have informed the president of parliament that we will immediately move to the process outlined by the constitution for the renewal of the confidence in my government, Tsipras told journalists. The confidence vote is expected to take place later this week; parliamentary speaker Nikos Voutsis proposed Jan. 16. Kammenos said he wouldnt support Tsipras in the vote. A firebrand leftist, Tsipras was elected in 2015 on a platform of anti-austerity but was forced into a third international bailout to bring back Greece from the brink of bankruptcy. The country exited a bailout program in mid-2018. Kammenos, who forged a coalition pact with Tsipras in 2015, never concealed his hostility to the deal with Skopje. Greece has a province named Macedonia and has long demanded that Skopje change its country name to remove what Athens considered to be an implied claim to Greek sovereign territory. Posted Friday, January 11, 2019 5:53 pm After Washington voters soundly rejected a carbon fee initiative in November, legislators in the are trying a new approach to curb climate change with a bevy of smaller reforms. Four environmental reform bills introduced Thursday aim to reduce food waste, tighten emission limits, set stricter fuel standards, and encourage the use of commercial car washes. This is a change from the precedent-setting climate policy strategy of the past. Carbon tax and carbon fee initiatives were soundly rejected by Washington state voters in 2016 and 2018 respectively. But House Environmental Committee Chair Joe Fitzgibbon, D-Burien, said the states commitment to the environment still makes Washington a national leader. Carbon tax was never the silver bullet in climate change its one tool in the toolbox, he said. Its time to take a step back and try it sector by sector. This approach is similar to Governor Jay Inslees most recent climate package, which proposed a wide range of environmental policies, such as Orca conservation and an emphasis on creating jobs in the clean energy industry. This is a sharp contrast to large policy proposals of the past legislative sessions, which included a carbon tax or cap-and-trade system. What used to be a graph on a chart is now ash on the hood of your car from forest fires, Inslee said on Thursday, speaking to reporters at the Associated Press Legislative Preview. Were at a tipping-point moment. Some of the environmental issues, such as salmon recovery and reducing carbon emissions have bipartisan support, but state Democrats and Republicans disagree on where the funding will come from. Senate Minority Leader Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville, anticipates that policies to lower carbon standards will raise taxes. We can get better if we got off the perpetual tax bandwagon, Senator Schoesler said on Thursdays preview, adding that he wants lawmakers to find solutions that dont tax hardworking taxpayers. Jayme Closs Has No Link to Suspected Kidnapper: Granddad MADISON, Wis.The grandfather of a northwestern Wisconsin girl who authorities say was abducted during a home invasion that left her parents dead said on Jan. 12, that the family has no connection to the suspect and doesnt understand why he targeted her, deepening a mystery that has captivated the state for months. Someone blasted open the door of James and Denise Closs home near Barron with a shotgun in October, gunned the couple down and made off with their 13-year-old daughter, Jayme Closs. Jayme had been missing for nearly three months Thursday when she approached a stranger near the small, isolated north woods town of Gordon and pleaded for help. Officers arrested 21-year-old Jake Thomas Patterson minutes later based on Jaymes description of his vehicle. He was jailed on suspicion of kidnapping and homicide. Investigators have said Pattersons goal was to kidnap Jayme, but he appears to have no connection to the family. Jaymes grandfather Robert Naiberg said in a telephone interview Saturday that the only thing the family knows for sure is that no one knew Patterson. He said Jayme told FBI agents she didnt know him at all. He didnt know Jayme, he didnt know Denise or Jim, Naiberg said. (Jayme) dont know him from Adam. (But) he knew what he was doing. We dont know if he was stalking her or what. Did he see her somewhere? Attorneys for Patterson called the affair a very tragic situation and said they were relying on the court system to treat him fairly. Charles Glynn and Richard Jones said in a statement that they await Pattersons initial court appearance and the filing of charges against him on Monday. The news that Jayme was safe brought joy and relief to her hometown of Barron, population 3,300 and about 60 miles from where she was found. The discovery ended an all-out search that gripped the state, with many people fearing the worst the longer she was missing. Jaymes aunt, Jennifer Smith, posted on Facebook Saturday that Jayme was doing well. Jayme had a pretty good night sleep it was great to know she was next to me all night what a great feeling to have her home. As a family we will get through all of the healing process Jayme has. It will be a long road but we are family strong and we love this little girl so much!! Another aunt, Sue Naiberg Allard, posted that Jayme got the most awaited hug ever when he returned home. Jayme told one of the neighbors in Gordon who took her in that she had walked away from a cabin where she had been held captive. She said that this persons name was Jake Patterson, he killed my parents and took me,' said another neighbor, Kristin Kasinskas. She did not talk about why or how. She said she did not know him. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said investigators are trying to figure out what happened to Jayme during her captivity and why she was seized, and gave no details on how she escaped except to say Patterson was not home at the time. He said there is no evidence Patterson knew Jayme or her family or had been in contact with her on social media. I know all of you are searching for the answer why any of this happened, Fitzgerald said. Believe me, so are we. The sheriff said he didnt know whether Jayme had been physically abused. Patterson took measures to avoid leaving evidence at the scene, including shaving his head beforehand, and a shotgun was recovered from the home where Jayme was believed held, Fitzgerald said. Property records show that the cabin belonged to Pattersons father at the time of Jaymes disappearance. The cabin is in Eau Claire Acres, a development about 10 miles outside the tiny town of Gordon, nestled in the dense evergreen forests of northwestern Wisconsin that are popular with vacationers in the summer and snowmobilers and ATV riders in the winter. Law enforcement barricades blocked the road leading to the property Saturday. Naiberg, Jaymes grandfather, said he spent a few hours with her on Friday. No one pressed her to talk, he said, adding that FBI agents and doctors advised them to let her speak when shes ready. He said she was largely silent and did not talk about how Patterson had kept her confined. Patterson, who was unemployed, remained largely an enigma Saturday. He has no criminal record, the sheriff said. He worked for one day in 2016 at the same Jennie-O turkey plant in Barron as Jaymes parents. But the sheriff said it did not appear Patterson interacted with the couple during his brief time there. Over the past few months, detectives pursued thousands of tips, watched dozens of surveillance videos and conducted numerous searches for Jayme, including one that drew 2,000 volunteers but yielded no clues. In November, the sheriff said he kept similar cases in the back of his mind as he worked to find Jayme, including the abduction of Elizabeth Smart, who was 14 when she was taken from her Salt Lake City home in 2002. Smart was rescued nine months later after witnesses recognized her abductors on an Americas Most Wanted episode. Smart said in a telephone interview that Jaymes story is why we can never give up hope on any missing child. By Todd Richmond Newly sworn-in Gov. Ron DeSantis and his wife Casey DeSantis during an event at the Freedom Tower where he named Barbara Lagoa to the Florida Supreme Court, on Jan. 9, 2019 in Miami. (Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Florida Gov. DeSantis Suspends Broward Sheriff for Poor Leadership Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has suspended embattled Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel. The suspension, effectively immediately, was issued via executive order 19-14, on Jan. 11. Sheriff Israel has repeatedly failed and has demonstrated a pattern of poor leadership, DeSantis said in a statement. Israel has faced intense criticism over his handling of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting on Feb. 14, 2018, when 17 people were killed by alleged gunman Nikolas Cruz, including 14 students, in what is considered the worst school shooting in U.S. history. Israel became a lightning rod figure in the aftermath of the horrific tragedy. He gained national notoriety for blaming the National Rifle Association in a post-shooting public relations blitz, and blamed critics for scapegoating him despite his amazing leadership. But as facts of the event began to surface, beginning with Broward Deputy Scott Petersons decision to hide during the shooting, Israels portrayal of his leadership unraveledalthough he maintains he did nothing wrong. In April, the Broward County Sheriffs Deputies Association lodged a no confidence vote against Israel by a margin of 534-94. A week later, the union commissioned a billboard, saying to then-Gov. Rick Scott, Governor Scott: There is no confidence in Sheriff Israel. Andrew Pollack, whose daughter Meadow was slain in the shooting, tweeted Friday morning with advanced knowledge of Israels dismal. I have waited on today for over 9 months @browardsheriff @RonDeSantisFL Tune in to hear the announcement at 3 p.m. #fixit, Pollack wrote. DeSantis, a Republican, was sworn into office Jan. 8 and had hinted at suspending the Broward sheriff. DeSantis pledged to hold public officials accountable during his inauguration speech, saying, If a local official is neglectful of required duties, I will remove the official. Broward is Floridas second-most-populous county next to neighboring Miami-Dade. By law, governors can suspend public officials for neglect of duty, incompetence, and malfeasance. Israel, a Democrat, was serving his second elected term as Browards sheriff. On the campaign trail, DeSantis said that if he were governor during the shooting, he would have already suspended Israel. On Dec. 11, he made it official. He failed to protect Floridians and visitors during the tragic Fort Lauderdale International Airport shooting in 2017. He failed in his duties to keep our families and children safe during the devastating shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 14, 2018. These incidents demonstrate Sheriffs Israels repeated incompetence and neglect of duty, DeSantis said. Israel Will Fight Suspension On Jan. 8, the Miami Herald reported that Israel had informed several confidants that his suspension was coming. Although his attorney, Stuart N. Kaplan, said publicly, The governor has not said anything to us, directly or indirectly, as to whether or not the sheriff is going to be suspended. But Kaplan also said Israel will fight a suspension. He is steadfast in believing he has been elected to serve Broward County and will remain so until such time as theres a new elected sheriff, he said. The Broward Sheriffs Office already has paid Miami super-lawyer Ben Kuehne almost $30,000 in legal fees, according to documents obtained by the Orlando Sentinel. Kuehne previously helped reinstate Miami Lakes Mayor Michael Pizzi after Gov. Rick Scott suspended Pizzi over federal bribery charges, of which he was later acquitted. Kuehne once served on Vice President Al Gores legal team during the 2000 presidential election recount. Israel would have to stand trial before the Florida Senate before being reinstated, though hes not likely to find many allies in the Republican-dominated chamber. Meanwhile, a federal judge ruled Jan. 9 that suspended Broward Supervisor of Elections Brenda Snipes had her constitutional rights violated when Gov. Rick Scott suspended her over the Broward midterm election fiasco that threw three statewide races, including those involving both Scott and DeSantis, into controversy. A similar outcome isnt inconceivable given Israels defense that mistakes were made by his deputies, not him. A 458-page commission report, issued on Jan. 1, outlined numerous failures by the sheriffs office and the Broward public school system but stopped short of recommending Israels suspension, instead leaving the issue to then-Gov.-elect DeSantis to decide. Documented Failures The commission report cites alleged shooter Nikolas Cruzs documented history of problems and failed institutional responses. Prior to the mass shooting, there were 69 incidents on record where Cruz engaged in concerning behavior, talked about guns, threatened someone, or committed violence. The Broward Sheriffs Office received at least 18 calls warning about Cruz from 2008 to 2017, including that he planned to shoot up the school. The FBI was contacted twice in the six months prior to the shooting, with one concerned person alleging that Cruz was capable of murdering teachers and students. But tragically, nothing came of it. Commissioner Ryan Petty, whose daughter was killed in the shooting, said during a December meeting, This was the most preventable school shooting that Ive ever seen data on. This kid (Cruz) was screaming for help by publishing his intentions. The report recommended an investigation of seven Broward deputies who arrived at the shooting and failed to take any meaningful action. Cruz was a former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School who entered school grounds and shot indiscriminately without ever entering a classroom. Scott Peterson, a deputy who was assigned to protect the school for exactly this type of event, was discovered to have fled to the parking lot rather than confront the danger. Body camera footage later showed another deputy casually rummaging through his vehicle during the shooting spree. Cruz blended in with other fleeing students to walk away from the massacre unobstructed. He was finally taken into custody an hour and 16 minutes after the shooting began. The commission cited a potentially devastating policy reversal made by Israel after taking office, when he changed the existing active shooter procedure to deputies may confront a shooter, from deputies shall confront active shooters. That policy isnt shared by many Florida sheriffs, and allowed Broward deputies to avoid what many critics have said is their most basic responsibility. CNNs Jake Tapper asked Israel during an interview Feb. 25, if he would have done anything different to have changed the outcome of the Parkland shooting. Israel responded, If ifs and buts were candy and nuts, O.J. Simpson would still be in the record books. Replacement DeSantis appointed Gregory Tony interim sheriff. Tony, a former sergeant at the Coral Springs Police Department, which borders Parkland, is the first African-American sheriff of Broward County. He was recommended by Andrew Pollack, whose daughter was killed in the attack. Hes a law-and-order-type policeman who wants to do right by the community and keep the community safe, Pollack told Politico. Thomas Boyer and his family attended Shen Yun Performing Arts at The David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center on Jan. 12, 2019. (Wei Yong/Epoch Times) NEW YORKThomas Boyer thought his experience with Shen Yun Performing Arts was magical. He attended the matinee performance on Jan. 12 with his family at The David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. As the chief operating officer at Innovation, a New York-based technology company that creates solutions for pharmacy problems, Boyer leads a busy life. Prior to joining Innovation, he co-founded and served as president of the consulting firm, CL International. He said that being able to watch Shen Yun is an opportunity that should not be passed, even with a busy schedule. Make sure set some time aside and you wont be disappointed, he said. Shen Yun is a premier dance and music performance that showcases Chinas 5,000 semi-divine culture on stage. The company has six equal-sized groups that tour the globe and will perform this year in over 100 cities. The New York-based company has a mission to revive a cultural treasure that was nearly lost under six decades of communist rule. The performance displays the inner spiritual core of Chinas culture, which encompasses the virtues such as benevolence, kindness, and honor. Boyer particularly enjoyed listening to the music, which he said was exhilarating. I think the music is fantastic. But the dancing is more than what you expect, Boyer said. Shen Yun performances are accompanied by a unique orchestra that blends Chinese and Western musical instruments to create a distinct sound. Chinese instruments like the erhu, pipa, and suona are featured in the orchestra. Junyi Tan, one of Shen Yuns composer, said in a previous interview that when composing the music he needs to fully appraise how to best echo the local traits and flavor. Bringing out the quintessence of each of these two great musical traditions, while at the same time presenting a unified theme is one of the distinct features of Shen Yuns compositions, he said. In arranging the music, Im mostly employing Western arrangement techniques. But, at the same time, the composition and the feel of the melody must match the unique attributes of Chinese music. Each composition is carefully tailored to each of Shen Yuns dances, something that Boyer appreciated very much. The synchronization of the music and the performance is very very unusual. Id say its the highest level of performance that Ive seen, Boyer said. With reporting by Wei Yong and Janita Kan. 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. NEW YORKWith a mission to restore 5,000 years of traditional Chinese culture, Shen Yun Performing Arts brings the essence of this ancient civilization to modern audiences across the world. This is what security company CEO Frank Cappuccio loved about the performance. [It was] great to see that [Shen Yun] brought in all of the best of Chinese culture, Cappuccio said after watching the performance at Lincoln Center in New York City on Jan. 12. Shen Yun Performing Arts is currently travelling the world, retelling the true story of China on stage through traditional dance and music. Founded in 2006, the New York-based company has grown over the years to become the premier classical Chinese dance company, with six equally-sized contingents simultaneously touring the world every year. Heaven on Earth For Cappuccio, who owns Cybrarian Corporation, a company that provides security services to governments around the world, the performance was mesmerizing because it showcased traditional Chinese values and virtues. All of the best dynasties, from early China, believed that it was the emperors duty the familys duty, and the childrens duty to bring heaven on earth, he said. I think that was beautiful, the way they brought that out. Certainly, this was heaven on earth. The idea of heaven on earth, Cappucio said, is based upon people living together in harmony, a principle central to traditional Chinese culture. Good family makes a good village, good village makes a good province, good province makes a great country, he said. All of the best rulers of China always insisted upon that. Traditional Chinese culture is rooted in belief in the divine, or heaven. For millennia, Chinese people observed values and virtues that led to living in harmony with each other, the earth, and heaven. These included benevolence and justice, propriety and wisdom, respect for the heavens, and divine retribution. When people lived according to these principles and aimed to improve themselves morally, it was said that they were closer to embodying the will of heaven. Chinese Culture Will Save the World The strength of traditional Chinese culture, Cappucio said, lies not only in its intelligence, technology, and deep philosophical system, but also because it is based on family. The family unit living under the law of heaven was the basic building block of traditional Chinese society. This traditional way of living was preserved uninterrupted up until 1949 when the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) seized power in China. Employing Marxist ideology which glorified struggle against heaven, earth, and your fellow man, the CCP sought to destroy the family unit by preaching that a persons loyalty, above all else, was to the party. Family members were encouraged to spy on each other and report on thoughts and activities deemed unacceptable by the Party. Thus sons were turned against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, and husbands against wives. Shen Yun Performing Arts, however, revives these traditions by telling stories through classical Chinese dance; stories that embody the collective wisdom developed over thousands of years of human experience. The values found in these stories, which have endured for countless generations, should continue to endure today, said Cappucio. I would say that those are the values that we should have, he said. For Cappucio, it is for this reason that Chinese culture will save the world. With reporting by Sherry Dong and Cathy He. 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. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas Donohue speaks during the Indo-Pacific Business Forum at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington on July 30, 2018. (Alex Wong/Getty Images) Business Leaders Condemn Socialist Leanings in US WASHINGTONThe nations largest business organization has slammed socialism and far-left policies that have become popular among members of Democratic Party. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas Donohue raised concerns about the growing disregard of the free enterprise system. Failed ideas like socialism or government-managed economies are steadily creeping into the political mainstream, he said in his annual State of American Business address on Jan. 10. Heres all you need to know, he continued. When a centralized government tries to plan everything for everyone, it provides inferior service for all. Even with its occasional flaws and excesses, no one has ever devised a better system than free enterprise. Founded in 1912, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce represents the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes. The chamber advocates for pro-business policies that create economic growth and jobs such as smart tax policy and regulatory relief. Its members range from mom-and-pop shops and local chambers to industry associations and large corporations. I dont know about you, but Im going to stick with the entrepreneurs, the innovators, and the dreamers, Donohue said. Donohues remarks came in response to growing support for far-left socialist ideas among Democrats. The suddenly prominent socialist Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), for example, drew a lot of attention recently for suggesting tax rates as high as 70 percent to fund the Green New Deal, an ambitious new environmental agenda. The freshly seated Democratic congresswoman told CBS that she supported a progressive tax rate system where a lower income group pays a lower federal income tax rate. But once you get to the tippy tops, on your 10 millionth dollar, sometimes you see tax rates as high as 60 percent or 70 percent, she said. Ocasio-Cortez also compared herself to Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt during the interview. It only has ever been radicals that have changed this country, she said. Abraham Lincoln made the radical decision to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. Franklin Delano Roosevelt made the radical decision to embark on establishing programs like Social Security. If thats what radical means, call me a radical. Threat to Free Enterprise According to critics, the Democratic Party is moving further to the left, supporting proposals like rolling back Trumps tax cuts and more government regulations. Business leaders, however, have rejected this strong government approach, which is anti-free market. They have welcomed the tax cuts and deregulation efforts of the Trump administration. Business confidence and optimism have reached record high levels last year as a result of these pro-business policies. Rising business optimism has also fueled job growth. Job openings surged to record-high levels last year and the unemployment rate fell to 3.7 percent for the first time in nearly 50 years. In 2012, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce called Elizabeth Warren, who was then the Democratic Senate candidate, a threat to free enterprise. Warren came under fire because of her opposition to the Keystone oil pipeline, her support for Obamacare, and her proposal to raise taxes on upper-income earners. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has also received criticism from small business owners recently after proposing a plan to force employers with five or more workers to provide two weeks of paid vacation. New York City also hiked its minimum wage for the third time in three years. New York Citys minimum wage is now at $15 an hour. Some economists, however, claim that government mandated pay hikes create pressure on business owners, leading to increased prices of goods and job losses. During his State of the City Address, de Blasio also announced a new effort to protect renters, going as far as seizing properties from landlords. According to critics, all these proposals represent a significant shift toward socialism and the centralization of power. Optimism Is Consistently High During his address, Donohue also talked about the economic outlook. Our own surveys find that optimism is consistently high, he said. Business owners tell us they have been encouraged by stronger economic growth. We have achieved a growth rate in the last year that many experts claimed was out of reach. And it was driven in no small part by deregulation and tax reform. The chamber is also confident in the U.S. economys resilience and hence rejects any recession fears. Now, there are some who seem determined to talk us into a downturn. But rumblings of a recession just dont match up with reality, Donohue said. Even with all of the challenges in Washington, uncertainties in the world, and fluctuations in the markets, strong economic conditions are expected to hold steady for the foreseeable future. Donohue laid out the business communitys top policy priorities for 2019. Tackling workforce challenges such as the skills gapthe lack of needed skills among the workforcewas labeled by Donohue as a key priority for 2019. He also called on the president and Congress to fix the countrys broken immigration system. Abducted Wisconsin Teen Jayme Closs Was Found By Retired Social Worker Jeanne Nutter was walking her golden retriever with her husband Forrest on Jan. 10 when they came across Jayme Clossthe 13-year-old from Wisconsin who was abducted in October 2018. To Closss luck, Jeanne had experience for the situation: she is a retired social worker. The 13-year-olds parentsDenise Closs, 46, and James Closs, 56were found murdered in their Wisconsin home on Oct. 15. Jayme was believed to be home during the incident but was nowhere to be found during the investigation. Jeanne knew of Jaymes abduction and immediately recognized Jayme when the girl approached them, Forrest told MPR. After Jayme confirmed her identity to the couple, she explained to them that she escaped from her kidnappers home nearby and was afraid that he may come looking for her. I went to her and she just sort of grabbed onto me and she told me who she was. Ive been a social worker my whole life, Jeanne told USA Today. Her child protective instincts took charge and she brought the girl to the home of Kristen Kasinskas, a neighbor of the Nutters. When they arrived, Kasinskas fed Jayme while they waited around half an hour for the police to arrive, Kasinskas told MPR. Once the police arrived and confirmed her identity, they left with Jayme. Later that night, the Barron County Sheriffs Department (BCSD) notified the public of the good news. Giving Thanks to the Dog Jeanne said her golden retriever Henry wanted to go out on a walk and for that, she gives thanks to her goofy dog, she told USA Today. Im just happy that shes safe. I feel like its sort of a miracle that shes still alive. Im glad my dog wanted to go for a walk and we did and there she was. On Jan. 11, a news conference was held by the BCSD where Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald gave a briefing on the case. In the conference uploaded by WEAU, the Fitzgerald said that Jayme was reunited with her aunt at the hospital and was also reunited later that evening with the rest of her family. Another photo from this morning thats been approved for repostingAunt Jennifer reports Jayme is full of big smiles Healing for Jayme Closs 2019112 Withholding Evidence to Save the Case The information given at the conference was limited because the sheriff did not want to put any more pressure on the girl, as well as to not jeopardize the case. We have recovered a gun consistent with what was used at the scene of the initial homicide, said the sheriff. However, we will have to wait for confirmation that it was indeed the same weapon after examination by Wisconsin State Crime Lab. A shotgun was used to murder Denise and James, and used to break through the door to their home. In order to not leave behind any evidence, the suspect, Jake Thomas Patterson, 21, changed his physical appearance, shaving his head. The sheriff also said that Patterson worked in the same Jennie-O turkey plant as Jaymes parents for less than two days over three years ago. On Monday, Jan. 14 at 3:30 p.m., the suspect will make his initial appearance in Barron County Circuit Court to be formally charged with two counts of first degree intentional homicide, and one count of kidnapping, he said. Watch Next: Sex Trafficking and Organ Trade: Abuse of the Adoption System Kidnappers and human traffickers are taking advantage of loopholes in international adoption laws. In this episode we reveal how this corrupt system works. 62-Year-Old Man Shot and Robbed While Opening Doors to Church: Reports Police in Jackson, Mississippi, said a man was shot and killed while opening the doors to a church, according to local reports on Sunday, Jan. 13. The 62-year-old man was found on the ground outside the New Bethany Church, WIS-TV reported. UPDATE: A 62-year-old man was shot and killed while opening the doors to his Jackson church. The suspects stole the victim's truck, a blue 2018 Dodge Ram. The tag number is A110355>>https://bit.ly/2AK4Zy6 WLBT 3 On Your Side 2019113 The suspects robbed the victim and stole his truck, a blue 2018 Dodge Ram with a tag number of A110355. The suspects were seen traveling in a green older pickup truck with a damaged windshield, police stated. Those with information can call Crime Stoppers at 601-355-TIPS(8477). Other details about the case are not clear. #JPD is currently at the scene of a fatal shooting in the 1700 block of Hill Ave. It is confirmed that a male is deceased. At least two suspects were involved and robbery is believed to be the motive. No additional info available. Jackson Police Department (@JacksonMSPolice) January 13, 2019 The Jackson Police Department wrote that its officers are currently at the scene of a fatal shooting in the 1700 block of Hill Ave. It is confirmed that a male is deceased. It added: At least two suspects were involved and robbery is believed to be the motive. No additional info available. BREAKING UPDATE: Police say victim was opening the doors to the church when he was shot and killed. Suspects robbed him and stole his truck in the 1700 of Hill Avenue. Police looking for suspects. pic.twitter.com/r8W6ewT1Td Reggi Marion WLBT (@ReggiMarion) January 13, 2019 Police Chief James Davis is calling on witnesses to come forward. He said, In this community and all over Jackson, we ask that if you see something, say something. Its a senseless crime. It didnt have to happen. So im asking the public to step up, WJTV reported. Crime Decreased in 2017 The FBI said that both violent crime and property crime decreased in 2017 compared to 2016. Overall violent crime decreased 0.2 percent from 2016 to last year, while property crime decreased 3 percent during that time, the agency said in September 2018, releasing data from the previous year. Democratic Lawmakers Head to Puerto Rico for Weekend Trip as Shutdown Continues About 30 Democratic members of Congress spent the weekend at a winter retreat in Puerto Rico with more than 100 lobbyists and corporate executives, undeterred as the ongoing partial shutdownnow in its 23rd daybroke records for being the longest in U.S. history. The lawmakers were attending a Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) Bold PAC winter retreat, where they also planned to see a performance of the Broadway show Hamilton and take part in parties, including one with the shows cast. The Democrats also planned to meet with officials in San Juan to learn more about the recovery efforts in wake of Hurricane Maria. The trip was still filled with free time for the members, who brought along their families, according to a memo obtained by the Washington Examiner. The weekend getaway comes amid the partial government shutdown that has left about 800,000 federal workers with no pay. This years winter retreat promises to be our most widely attended yet with over 220 guests, including 39 members of Congress and CHC Bold PAC supporters expected to attend and participate! the planning memo said. The event reportedly took place at a seaside resort where members dress code was resort casual and rooms cost about $429 per night. The members paid to see Hamilton with their own money, the memo noted. Lin-Manuel Miranda, the creator of the Hamilton show, performed in Puerto Rico to raise money for artists and cultural groups struggling in the wake of Hurricane Maria. The show will stay there for two weeks, according to The Associated Press. In total, some 109 lobbyists and corporate executives are named in the memo, amounting to a rate of about 3.6 lobbyists for each member. Some of the names include major firms such as R.J. Reynolds, Facebook, Comcast, Amazon, PhRMA, Microsoft, Intel, Verizon, and unions such as the National Education Association. Bold PAC didnt respond to an emailed request for a list of Democratic lawmakers who were attending. The Washington Examiner obtained a list containing several names of the congressional attendees, including Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). But a representative in her office told the Examiner that Pelosi didnt make the trip with the PAC. The planned party with the cast is sponsored by Latino Victory, a Democratic political action committee. Democrats are expected to return from the trip on Jan. 14. Bold PAC Chair Rep. Tony Cardenas (D-Calif.) said in a statement that the Democrats made the trip to hear from Commonwealth and local elected officials about the ongoing recovery effortswe will be closely monitoring the situation in Washington. Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017. Meanwhile, on Twitter, President Donald Trump called on Democrats to work on ending the shutdown. The damage done to our Country from a badly broken Border Drugs, Crime and so much that is bad is far greater than a Shutdown, which the Dems can easily fix as soon as they come back to Washington! he wrote on Jan. 13. The damage done to our Country from a badly broken Border Drugs, Crime and so much that is bad is far greater than a Shutdown, which the Dems can easily fix as soon as they come back to Washington! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 Silbanio was blessed with a career he loved. He worked in healthcare for over twenty years, and loved his "work family" at Baylor Scott and White. Yet as hard as Silbanio worked at the hospital, he loved even more spending time tending to his home, his yard, his pool and to planning and going on vacations. In particular, he enjoyed vacations because they were opportunities to introduce his children to different experiences, while spending time together as a family. This past summer, he and Veronica and their boys enjoyed a trip to the Vatican in Italy. And days before his passing, he enjoyed a post-Christmas/New Year's trip to the Smokey Mountains in Tennessee and North Carolina with family and close friends. Those friends have been and grown so close to Silbanio over the years, that all are additional brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews to "Uncle Sab." Silbanio also loved to have guests in his home. As host, he would "DJ" with his favorite "play lists," and swim with, dance and cook for his guests. He took great pride in also handling all daily cooking for his family, and his bride had no qualms letting him show this skill he surpassed her in! Silbanio was known for his ribs, gumbo, and pulled pork and he adored making these in rotation for the masses as he watched and rooted for his beloved Aggies. "We want to get input from all stakeholders," she said. The material will include English, language arts textbooks for kindergarten through eighth grade, algebra 1 and personal finance literacy. Each content area will have three options on Thursday. Guests will rotate through the different vendors, and each vendor has 20 minutes to present. Then, at the end, people will have an opportunity to go back to any presenter to ask questions before submitting their votes. For those who cannot attend Thursday's event, the materials are also available for review online and in the Curriculum and Instruction department in Bryan school district administration building. Janyce Kinley, social studies and world languages coordinator for the district, said it has been nine years since the last English/Language Arts adoption in 2010. "It's fresh and new. The state is really honing in on making certain that we understand that when we teach reading and writing it's in tandem; that it's not in isolation. The materials that are provided really have that information," she said. "It's easier for teachers to do that, so we are excited about that because we continue to focus on literacy. We're excited about these opportunities and want to meet our teachers' needs, and in turn, our students' needs." Posted Friday, January 11, 2019 6:03 pm Sirens CENTRALIA POLICE DEPARTMENT Vehicle Prowls At 10:27 p.m. Wednesday, police responded to the 800 block of West Pear Street after receiving a report of an attempted vehicle prowl. The suspect was spotted before anything was stolen and fled the scene in a pickup truck. At 7:49 a.m. Thursday, a vehicle prowl was reported in the 1100 block of Alder Street. A car stereo amplifier was reported stolen. Vehicle Theft At 5:29 a.m. Thursday, a vehicle theft was reported in the 3000 block of Russell Road. A black 1998 Honda Civic was stolen. Burglary At 8:11 a.m. Thursday, a theft of a gas-powered weed eater and a jump-box were reported in the 1100 block of Alder Street. Business Reports Counterfeit Bill At 9:30 a.m. Thursday, the staff of a business in the 1000 block of Kresky Avenue reported a fraudulent $10 bill. Thefts At 10:23 a.m. Thursday, a theft of a license plate was reported in the 200 block of North Ash Street. The plate was replaced with one from a stolen vehicle. At 1:44 p.m. Thursday, a theft of rental property was reported in the 1400 block of South Gold Street. Residents Alert Police to Convoluted Scam At 1:30 p.m. Thursday, police were notified that, somewhere in the Centralia area, a local resident reported being contacted by a fictitious person, alerting them they had won a new car and cash. The scammer sent the resident a small, locked safe, and demanded $5,000 for the combination to the safe. Unknown Thief Snags Truck, Trailer At 7:35 a.m. Friday, a theft of a truck and a trailer was reported in the 1200 block of Alder Street. Two Arrested, Released for Fighting At 6:42 p.m. Thursday, police responded to the 1200 block of Alder Street and arrested and released a 19-year-old and a 21-year-old Centralia resident on suspicion of fighting in public. CHEHALIS POLICE DEPARTMENT Caller Reports Broken Window At 7:39 a.m. Wednesday, a caller at Ninth Street and Cascade Avenue reported a restaurant had a broken window. Man Seen Exposing Himself in Public At 1 p.m. Wednesday, a caller in the 600 block of Northwest Middle Street reported a man was outside exposing himself. Caller Reports Shoplifters At 2:37 p.m. Wednesday, a caller in the 1700 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue reported a man and a woman were shoplifting power tools at a business. No arrests were reported. Unknown Suspect Breaks Down Door, Enters Property At 3:10 p.m. Wednesday, police were requested in the 700 block of Northwest Ohio Avenue, where someone had apparently kicked in a door and entered the property. Theft At 4:27 p.m. Wednesday, the theft of a sweatshirt was reported in the 100 block of Northeast Hampe Way. Suspect Nabs TVs and Nerf Guns At 7:01 p.m. Wednesday, a caller in the 1600 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue reported a male suspect stole two TVs and two Nerf guns from a business. Police Arrest DUI Suspect At 8:03 p.m. Wednesday, police responded to Riverside Drive and state Route 6 and arrested Ronald J. Sturza, 64 of Chehalis on suspicion of driving under the influence Suspects Leave Without Paying Bill At 8:37 p.m. Wednesday, a caller in the 100 block of Southwest Interstate Avenue reported two women left a business without paying a bill. Caller Reports Two People Going Through Dumpster At 4:36 p.m. Thursday, a caller in the 1300 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue reported a man and a woman looking through items in a businesss dumpster. Suspect Attempts to Break Windshield, Get in Vehicle At 4:53 p.m. Thursday, someone in the 100 block of Northwest Chehalis Avenue reported a man was spotted trying to break a cars windshield to gain entry to the vehicle. Two People Seen in Foot Chase, Shouting At 5:14 p.m. Thursday, someone in the 300 block of Southwest 13th Street reported a woman was chasing a man down Mill Street. A punch was thrown, but dispatch reports dont indicate who tried to strike whom. Car Found With Mysterious Dents At 7:43 p.m. Thursday, a caller in the 1500 block of North National Avenue reported someone had apparently kicked or struck their sons car. There were dents on the cars body. Police Book Assault Suspect At 9:30 p.m. Thursday, police responded to the 700 block of Southwest 19th Street and arrested Bryce L. Quale, 39, of Chehalis on suspicion of fourth-degree assault. Man Booked for Possessing Stolen Vehicle, Meth At 11:26 p.m. Thursday, police responded to the 1600 block of Northwest Louisiana Avenue and arrested Andres Luna-Gonzales, 43 on suspicion of possession of a stolen vehicle and possession of meth. Police were unable to advice Luna-Gonzales city of residence. LEWIS COUNTY SHERIFFS OFFICE Burglary At 8:50 a.m. Wednesday, deputies responded to the 2700 block of North Pearl Street, where someone broke into a shed used to collect donated clothing. LEWIS COUNTY JAIL STATISTICS As of Friday morning, the Lewis County Jail had a total system population of 208 inmates, with 172 in general population and 34 in the work ethic and restitution center. Of general population inmates, 138 were male and 34 were female and of WERC inmates, 29 were male and five were female. A total of 25 inmates were booked through contracts outside Lewis County. By The Chronicle Staff Please call news reporter Cody Neuenschwander with news tips. He can be reached at 807-8208 or cneuenschwander@chronline.com A College Station man was arrested Friday after authorities said he received a delivery containing at least $10,000 worth of LSD tabs. According to College Station police, a law enforcement agency outside of Texas intercepted a package last week that was to be delivered to Edgar Efrain Rivera, 20, of College Station. Authorities suspected the package contained drugs and searched the contents, confirming their belief. A College Station officer worked with these authorities and picked up the package in Texas, then received a search warrant to execute a sting operation against Rivera. On Friday, the officer had the package delivered to Rivera's College Station apartment. Authorities watched him take the package inside and approached him as he walked out a few minutes later. Police said they found the box, which contained $1,000 units of LSD, in Rivera's kitchen freezer. According to a police report, Rivera admitted that he sells the LSD for $10 to $15 per hit, and the package belonged to him. He is charged with dealing 1,000 LSD abuse units, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. He was released from the Brazos County Jail on $12,000 bond. Brazos County court records show Michael Augustus Krause pleaded guilty to one count of intoxication manslaughter and two counts of intoxication assault with a vehicle. Authorities say Krause, then 18, was driving a pickup on Jan. 28, 2017, along Traditions Drive when he lost control of the vehicle, flipped and rolled along the road. The incident killed 21-year-old Robert Lukas Collins of Bryan and injured Krause and two other passengers. A 20-year-old College Station man was arrested Friday after authorities say he was having an ongoing sexual relationship with a 13-year-old girl. According to College Station police, a woman brought the girl to the police department on Jan. 2 to file a report that the child had been sexually assaulted. The girl spoke with police and said she had been in a sexual relationship with Jairo Areceo Balux-Guarchaj for several months. The girl said in early 2018, when she was 12, Balux-Guarchaj approached her on social media and the two began talking. By October, the two began have sexual intercourse, which continued regularly through December. The girl also provided authorities with videos taken of the encounters, which she had saved on her phone. Authorities said the girl's mother told Balux-Guarchaj to stay away from the girl, and that he was aware how old the girl was. Balux-Guarchaj is charged with aggravated sexual assault of a child, a first-degree felony punishable by up to 99 years in prison and $10,000 in fines. Bond has been set at $40,000, though he is also being held at the Brazos County Jail on a U.S. immigration hold. Hot lunch for seniors, 11:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Lincoln Recreation Center. 764-3779. College Station Noon Lions Club, noon. Hilton Hotel. 690-8525. New members welcome. Check website for program: www.csnoonlions.org/. Bryan-College Station Sister Cities, 5:30 p.m. TB&T Community Room at the intersection of Villa Maria and Texas Avenue. Mystery Book Club, 6 to 7 p.m. Barnes & Noble in College Station. Larry J. Ringer Library book club that focuses on mysteries. Discussing The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson. 209-5600. Library Reading Group, 7 to 8 p.m. The Langford, 1851 Carroll Fancher Way, College Station. This group usually meets on the third Monday, but in January, it will meet on the second Monday because of Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. The January title is Lies My Teacher Told Me by James W. Loewen. It is a nonfiction book by a sociologist. For more information about this club, contact Kate Wimer at 209-5600 or kwimer@bryantx.gov. Call 764-3779 or visit the city of College Station's Facebook page for more information about Lincoln Center MLK events. The Brazos Valley Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. will host the annual MLK Freedom March on Jan. 21 at 10 a.m. Hundreds of people of all ages participated in last year's march. Per tradition, this year's march begins at Sadie Thomas Park and ends with a program at Kemp Elementary. Brian E. Francis, the executive director of the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, will be the lead speaker. In Navasota, city officials are encouraging a day of service on Saturday and also will host a march beginning at 10 a.m. Attendees can line up starting at 9 a.m. and on Brosig Avenue. The route will take the parade from Washington Avenue to FM 379, with its conclusion at the Progressive Outreach Center, located at 615 W. Virginia St. A program held at the Progressive Outreach Center will follow. It will include a number of performances and a keynote address by Grimes County Precinct 3 Commissioner Barbara Walker. Navasota Mayor Bert Miller said in a statement that the city's events are designed to encourage service and community action. Click the image to the left and log in to get your exclusive reader perks. JEFFERSON - Howard F. Schrumpf, 92, of Jefferson, went home to meet his savior he loved and served so faithfully on June 12, 2021, at the Valley View Manor Nursing Home of Norwich. Howard was born in Pennsauken, New Jersey, on Jan. 13, 1929, the son of Foster and Myrtle (Walker) Schrumpf. Fo This is the temporary subscription pass for users returning from the Vision Data subscription process. Your subscription will be updated within 24 hours, after your information is verified. Please click the button below to get your pass. Jaimie Nicole Ivancic and Shelby Svensen. Photo: Shutterstock, Tarpon Springs Police Department In a disturbing case, Florida police believe that a 25-year-old man killed his wife last December, then posed as her for a full year to cover up the murder before killing her parents and brother. According to the Tampa Bay Times, the alleged first victim, Jamie Ivancic, 21, last spoke to her sister Karma Stewart over the phone on January 25, 2018. On that FaceTime call, Stewart says Ivancic told her she was planning on taking her two children and leaving her husband Shelby Svensen, who is now 25. After that, Stewart never again heard directly from Ivancic but she, her family, and her sisters friends would receive occasional texts and photos of the couples kids from Ivancics phone number. When Ivanics family would try to speak to her on the phone, they say that Svensen would tell them to call back later because she was busy. Police havent said how long Svensen tricked people into thinking his wife was alive and fine, but Stewart says detectives have told her she was probably one of the last people to speak with her sister. I feel betrayed and that I was played, she said. I didnt expect the worst when I probably should have. Just over a year after that final call, on New Years Day, 2019, a number of Ivancics loved ones were found dead in their Tarpon Springs house: her mother, father, and brother. Svensen was initially a suspect in these three killings only. On January 3, the Pasco County Sheriffs Office caught him driving his wifes stolen SUV in Ohio and arrested him on suspicion of murder; during questioning, he revealed that he had not only killed the family in question, but also his wife. On January 8, detectives announced during a press conference Svensen had been charged with murdering Ivancic, whose body was discovered three days earlier, buried in one of the couples past homes. While Svensen is reportedly awaiting extradition back to Florida, People reports he is currently being held in an Ohio jail on three counts of first-degree murder. At this time, authorities have not released a motive. Automotive News Digest; Week Ending January 12, 2019 - Compiled By Executive Producer Larry Nutson AUTO CENTRAL DETROIT and CHICAGO - January 13, 2019: Every Sunday Larry Nutson, Senior Editor and Chicago Car Guy along with fellow senior editor Thom Cannell from The Auto Channel Michigan Bureau, give you The Auto Channel's "take" on this past week's automotive news, in easy to "catch up" with news nuggets. See Also: links to the past 25 year's millions of (Indexed By Bing) pages of automotive news, automotive stories, articles, reviews, archived news residing in The Auto Channel Automotive News Library. TV viewers, you can now enjoy The Auto Channel TV Network On Amazon TV, Google TV, HULU, ROKU, and Old Fashioned "Free and Clear" Over the air TV in Boston and South Florida as well as local cable systems. * International CES, the annual showcase for the worlds biggest consumer electronics companies, took place this week in Las Vegas. At CES Nissan introduced the long-range version Leaf e+ that the will travel an EPA-estimated 226 miles, and it will have more power than the standard version. Range increases about 40 percent from the regular Leaf, which is rated at 150 miles. This increase comes thanks to a new 62-kilowatt-hour battery pack. The new Leaf e+ goes on sale in Spring 2019 and we expect pricing to be announced at that time. * At CES 2019 the first Mercedes-Benz vehicle from the EQ brand made its U.S. premiere. The EQC symbolizes the beginning of a new mobility era at Daimler as an avant-garde electric luxury vehicle. Powered by two electric motors at the front and rear axles with a combined output of 402 hp, the EQC has a preliminary estimated range of 450 kilometers (279 miles) according to the European cycle NEDC. The EQC will go on sale in the U.S. in 2020. * We also saw a Toyota 18-wheeler powered by a hydrogen fuel-cell, the new Lexus LS500h hybrid flagship sedan and even a drone-like air taxi from Bell, powered by six big rotors that tilt back and forth for vertical takeoffs and cruising. * Harley-Davidson, the Wisconsin motorcycle maker, announced at International CES that the electric LiveWire motorcycle will cost $29,799, plus destination charges. Harley-Davidson will build the LiveWire at its York, Pennsylvania production facility. The LiveWire has a lithium-ion battery and can be charged with a Level 1, Level 2 charger or a Level 3 DC fast charger. * Amidst all the high sales of SUVs, the demise of sedans and the hoopla about autonomous cars, the 2018 sales of muscle cars keeps rocking along. Ford's Mustang remains king and the top seller with 75,842 Mustangs sold in 2018, although a drop of 7.4 percent compared to the previous year. Coming in second is the Dodge Challenger with a sales increase of 3 percent to a total of 66,716. And in third is the Camaro with 50,963 sales and a big decrease of 25 percent. Let's see if 2019 shuffles the deck. * On another note, U.S. customers drove off in 212,000 brand spanking new station wagons last year, 29% more than they did five years earlier, according to new data from Edmunds.com. Station wagons are the fourth fastest growing segment in the U.S. market. * In Detroit ahead of the opening of the 2019 North American International Auto Show, Ford introduced the all-new 2020 Explorer. Now built on new rear-drive architecture the Explorer will have more power, space, towing capacity and technology. There also will be a new ST model as well as a Limited Hybrid. Power will be from a 2.3-L turbo four and a twin-turbo V6. It will be built at Ford's Chicago assembly plant. * The North American International Auto Show begins this weekend with press previews, NACTOY winner announcements, dedicated industry days and a black-tie gala before opening to the public on Saturday, January 19th. The NAIAS is one of the worlds most important motor shows but, as is the case around the world, this show is loosing manufacturer participation at an alarming rate. The automakers are finding traditional shows less cost-effective as venues for product reveals. The NAIAS will move to June in 2020. * Speculation continues in the news media that Ford and VW are planning alliances that will be announced over the next few weeks, or perhaps even months. Electrified vehicles, commercial vehicles, or other global products could be in discussion for shared development. Stay tuned! We may have more news coming form the NAIAS Detroit Auto Show. * Mazda announced that it will showcase the world premiere of the Mazda MX-5 30th Anniversary Edition at the Chicago Auto Show, open to the public Feb. 7-18, 2019. The original Mazda MX-5 debuted at the Chicago Motor Show in 1989 and the nameplate celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. * Notwithstanding the demise of the dramatic ELR plug-in electric sport coupe, it appears Cadillac is being positioned to become GMs lead brand producing full-electric vehicles. Multiple media reports confirm Cadillac will have the first vehicle, due in 2021, on the companys new BEV3 electric vehicle platform. We dont know in what market segment the new vehicle will compete. GM has committed itself to producing 20 EVs by 2023. The vehicle platform is the basis for vehicle underpinnings, including the battery system and other structural and mechanical parts. Watch out Tesla. * The plot thickens in the Nissan management crisis as the companys chief performance officer, Jose Munoz, resigns. Munoz is closely aligned and supportive of Nissans dethroned boss Carlos Ghosn who remains in a Japanese prison after being arrested and charged with multiple crimes involving tax fraud. Arun Bajaj, another Ghosn loyalist, also resigned. Nissan says Mr. Munoz was taking time off to assist the company by concentrating on special tasks arising from recent events. * Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will pay more than $700 million to resolve lawsuits from the U.S. Justice Department and diesel owners over claims it used illegal software to allow 104,000 diesel vehicles to emit excess emissions. FCA will pay a $300 million fine to the U.S. government, recall 104,000 Jeep SUVs and RAM pickups from 2014 to 2016 model years, pay $280 million to settle lawsuits brought by owners and pay $19 million to California to settle regulatory allegations. As a part of the deal owners will each get $2,800. The problem was similar to the VW debacle in that the manufacturer programmed into the engine software a sidestep of government emissions testing. * FOUR WHEELER has selected the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Rubicon as the winner of its 46th annual SUV of the Year award and selected the Ram 1500 Rebel as the winner of its 30th annual Pickup Truck of the Year award. Both FOUR WHEELER awards are invitation-only competitions that are open to all-new or significantly revised SUVs or Pickup trucks, respectively, for the upcoming model year. For 2019, SUV entries were: Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk Elite, Jeep Wrangler Rubicon, Land Rover Range Rover P400e, Land Rover Range Rover Sport HSE P400e, and Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro. Pickup entries included the Chevrolet Silverado Trail Boss, GMC Sierra 1500 AT4, Ram 1500 Rebel, and Toyota Tundra TRD Pro. * The stock market may be unpredictable lately but theres always a bull market going on in the world of classic vehicles, as evidenced by Hagerty magazines 2019 Bull Market list of emerging collectibles. The 2019 Bull Market List includes: 197275 BMW 3.0CSL, 1997-2004 Porsche Boxster, 1984-93 Saleen Mustang, 1996 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport, 2004-2007 Subaru Impreza WRX STI, 1985-1989 Toyota MR2, 2004-2006 Dodge Ram SRT10, 1980-1986 Ford Bronco, 2008-2009 Pontiac G8GXP, and 1994-1996 Buick Roadmaster Estate Wagon. * On the heritage car front, we learned just this week that Wayne Carini, host of the popular Chasing Classic Cars, will be the Grand Marshall of the Concours dElegance of America at St. Johns on July 28th. Carini is one of the best known figures in the classic and collector car world. He fell in love with old cars at age 9 helping his father in the familys restoration shop. The Concours of America is one of the most prestigious shows of its kind in the world. * Via AutoWeek we're sad to report that Joe Gibbs Racing announced that the team's co-founder and co-chairman J.D Gibbs died after complications from a long battle with a degenerative neurological disease. He was 49. Gibbs was the oldest son of team owner Joe Gibbs, who revealed that he was suffering from brain-function problems that doctors couldn't fully explain. At the time, Gibbs was serving as the president of the organization Michelin Media Center NAIAS News Hub For Almost Three Decades; TACH Historical Reflection Of Media Center EDITOR's NOTE: In 1996 The Auto Channel crew used the Michelin Center to post our first almost live coverage of the Detroit Auto Show...as there was no connectivity, we were the only online media outlet who was posting to the web in near real time, we took up our station near a fax machine that provided us with an analog line so we could post our stories...at 5 pm the media center was scheduled to close as the work of the print media was done, but we convinced the Michelin center boss that we were still publishing and we were granted the time to continue to break our technical ice...ah those were the days...now there is great connectivity out the ying yang and many young folks that take for granted the matter of fact access that they have to the web...good for them and good for us...we are still the last to leave the media center to rush over to the Chrysler Fire House (RIP) for a burger served by Dr.Z,...unfortunately just some things never change...Thanks Michelin for changing with the times. In 1997 The Auto Channel was the first to broadcast video from both the Detroit and LA Auto Shows... A media resource powerhouse for 31 years, the Michelin Media Center will again welcome journalists from every corner of the globe to the Grand Riverview Ballroom. Long considered the premier press facility in the automotive world, the Michelin Media Center will be open Monday, Jan. 14 and Tuesday, Jan. 15. Conveniently located near the show floor, AutoMobili-D exposition and the Cobo Atrium Stage, the press center will feature over 1,000 working seats, a computer center, social media feed, catered cafe, coat check and other amenities. A limited number of courtesy computers will be available for use by credentialed media. The 2018 NAIAS drew over 5,000 journalists from 60 countries. Michelin has been the Premier Sponsor of the Michelin Media Center since 1989 when the first NAIAS was held in Detroit. Michelin Media Center Hours of Operation Monday, Jan. 14 7 a.m. 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 15 7 a.m. 7 p.m. DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Strategic Analysis of the Pakistan Automotive Market, Forecast to 2025" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. With an Expected Growth Rate of 7.2%, the Industry is Ripe for New Opportunities, Backed by a New Automotive Policy and Political Stability The aim of this study is to provide an overall perspective on the passenger vehicle market in Pakistan. It discusses the capabilities of vehicle manufacturers, how the market is currently positioned in terms of vehicles sales, who are the leading OEMs and, most importantly, how is the market expected to change in the future. With an extremely low penetration rate of approximately 13 cars per 1000 inhabitants and a rapidly growing urbanization rate of 40.5%, Pakistan has huge potential to grow its automotive market. So far, only three manufacturers- Suzuki, Honda and Toyota-assemble vehicles in the country, and these Japanese OEMs obviously dominate the domestic automotive market. The Pakistan government is keen to incentivize new and existing OEMs to introduce new models to enable end-customers to expand their choices. The presence of only three OEMs gives an opportunity for new OEMs to enter the market and satisfy the unmet need for end-customers. A change in the government's automotive policy is expected to spur local OEM investment in the country in terms of assemblers and thereby contribute to an increase in sales. This is expected to further propel growth in downstream industry activities, especially automotive servicing and parts. End-customers struggle with poor vehicle quality, inferior technology, and outdated model designs offered by the three existing manufacturers. Further, the high cost of financing is detrimental to the purchase of new vehicles as end-customers are hindered from buying new cars, which forces OEMs to continue producing old models because of lack of growth. Companies Profiled Pak-Suzuki Indus Toyota Honda Atlas Topics Covered 1. Executive Summary 2. Research Scope and Methodology 3. Country Overview 4. Manufacturing Overview 5. Sales Overview 6. Mobility Overview 7. Growth Opportunities and Companies to Action 8. Key Conclusions and Future Outlook For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/tfpg28/strategic?w=4 Contacts ResearchAndMarkets.com Laura Wood, Senior Press Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 Related Topics: Automotive Beijing: Telecommunications company Huawei has sacked a Chinese manager for bringing the company into disrepute after he was detained by Polish authorities on spying allegations. Huawei's move to distance the company from the actions of Wang Weijing, its Polish sales manager and a former attache with the Chinese consulate in Gdanks, stands in contrast with its support for chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou on bail in Canada. Meng is the daughter of Huawei founder, Ren Zhengfei. Huawei is the world's second-largest smartphone maker and a private company. It is seeking to convince a growing list of western nations raising security concerns about 5G infrastructure that it is not under the control of the Chinese government or its intelligence service. Kinshasa: Outgoing Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila's ruling coalition won a majority in legislative elections, a coalition official said on Saturday, despite opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi's win in the presidential vote the same day. The result will undercut Tshisekedi's ability to deliver on campaign promises to make a break with the 18-year Kabila era and fuel suspicion that his victory, announced on Thursday, came through a backroom deal that will preserve Kabila's influence over important ministries and the security forces. There are concerns that former Congolese president Joseph Kabila, pictured on December 30, will continue to influence the new government. Credit:AP Kabila is due to step down in the coming days in what was meant to be Congo's first democratic transfer of power in 59 years of independence. But he has signalled he intends to remain involved in politics and might run for president in 2023 when term limits no longer apply. The runner-up in the presidential election, Martin Fayulu, filed a fraud complaint on Saturday with Congo's highest court to challenge the result, a campaign spokeswoman, Eve Bazaiba, told Reuters. The talk of any half-decent Liberal function over the holiday break was the will-she, wont-she suggestion Peta Credlin was lining up for Andrew Broads seat of Mallee, the ultra-safe Nationals electorate in Victoria long considered Coalition heartland. It was, as this column revealed back in December, a suggestion that sat particularly well with Credlins previous employer, former prime minister Tony Abbott. But under a different scenario that was being discussed even before 007 Broads Hong Kong-based implosion, Credlin was rumoured to be eyeing another safe Coalition electorate in Menzies, where Kevin Andrews has been Liberal MP for 27 years. In August, the Liberal Party endorsed all sitting members to go around again at the next federal election - due in May - saving Andrews from a serious challenge by Aiken Chambers barrister (and former Army officer) Keith Wolahan. However, if Andrews was to resign now, so close to the election, the Libs would have no choice but to parachute someone into Menzies, perhaps even Credlin. Police are investigating whether a car with six young people crammed inside ran a red light before a horror crash in the city's south-east, which has left a man fighting for his life. The man was driving a black Toyota Yaris when it collided head-on with a white Volkswagen sedan carrying the young people at the intersection of Springvale Road and Princes Highway in Springvale just before 5am on Monday. There were six people, aged between 16 and 21, inside the Volkswagen at the time of the crash. The driver, who received serious but non-life threatening injuries, was a 20-year-old Cranbourne East man. Friends and family gathered in Carrum Downs early in January for a quiet funeral to say goodbye to Ms Stephens, who they remembered as a woman with a "mad love for horses". Paul Robertson, Ms Stephens' former partner, met her when she was 12 and he was 14, in a horse paddock in Scoresby. It was not long after her family had moved to Australia from England. Nicola Stephens. "She helped out at a local riding school giving pony rides, and I had horses too," Mr Robertson said. "I don't think they paid her, but she just got to hang out and be around the horses which she loved. "Weve been best friends ever since," Mr Robertson said. He and Ms Stephens had been separated for more than a decade, but they had stayed in touch. He last had contact with her three days before she died. Mr Robertson said Ms Stephens was the kind of person who would give someone the shirt off her back. At 16 she began work as a cadet at the Broadmeadows Army Barracks, where she remained for at least four years as a movements clerk, with the responsibility of organising transport and logistics for army vehicles. But horses were always Ms Stephens' true calling, and she returned to them often. After leaving the army she worked hard as a strapper a job involving 3am wake-ups to exercise racehorses at stables around Victoria and eventually Melbourne's major tracks at Flemington and Caulfield. Ms Stephens' life, however, was marred by alcoholism. It was a demon she was trying hard to wrangle in the lead up to her death. Alcohol had been a problem for her pretty much since she got out of the army, Mr Robertson said. But there were periods of hope throughout her struggle with addiction. In the mid 2000s, Ms Stephens met Brian Cox the now-disgraced founder of the Melbourne Alcohol Recovery Centre (MARC) at an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting. Mr Robertson said she eventually worked with Mr Cox at the recovery centre. Using her knack for logistics and office skills, Mr Robertson says she "pretty much ran the business". It was a period of stability in Ms Stephens' life, and she even featured in a 2009 SBS documentary series about Mr Cox's work, called The Last Chance Saloon. "She was one of the stars," Mr Robertson laughs. "My phone was ringing out with people saying, 'Is that Nicky on the TV?'" Ms Stephens' sobriety ebbed and flowed throughout her life, as alcohol pulled her from her work, family and horses. Ive given many people a go horses will bring out the best in you, said Saab Hasan, a horse trainer who runs stables at Flemington racecourse. I wanted to give her a chance to get on the straight and narrow. Nicola Stephens in her younger years. She worked as a strapper across Victoria. Ms Stephens worked for Mr Hasan between 2012 and 2014. He described her as a beautiful girl, but said her drinking eventually cost her the job at the stables. The last few months of Ms Stephens' life were peppered with arrests, court appearances and eventually a short stint in a Victorian women's prison for breach of an apprehended violence order. Mr Robertson spoke to her the night before she was to go to prison, in early October, and said she was optimistic about getting sober while inside. She wasnt too fussed about going in, he said. She was meant to have a job lined up at a local stables in Wangaratta for when she got out. But it is not known if she ever made it to Wangaratta to take up the job. Three weeks after her release, Ms Stephens was dead. Troubled towers Her death came at the beginning of a violent week at Park Towers, where she had lived. The suspicious death highlighted ongoing security concerns of residents. South Melbourne police station is 120 metres from the 1960s-era public housing block, and its officers are in regular attendance. In June last year The Age revealed that police were called to the high-rise estate more than once a day, on average. Ms Stephens' death, a non-fatal stabbing and a non-fatal shooting all occurred a week after the introduction of 24-hour security, raising questions from residents about what more could be done to make it safe. Park Towers housing commission flats in South Melbourne. Credit:Rachael Dexter It is believed a burst water main caused the problem. A car was partly submerged in the sinkhole in Gardenvale Road, Gardenvale about 6.20am Monday. It Credit:Nine News The car was partly submerged in the sinkhole in Gardenvale Road in the bayside suburb of Gardenvale about 6.20am Monday. A driver has escaped unscathed after his car fell into a sinkhole in Melbourne. Aerial footage of the scene captured by Nine shows the white car in the middle of a suburban street being partially swallowed by the sinkhole. Emergency services remain at the scene. The sudden collapse of the ground is a terrifying thought. Yet despite it being the stuff of nightmares, sinkholes are more common than you may think and occur all over the world. Sinkholes often form when water seeps through surface sediment and into the soluble earth beneath. This week, magistrate Dominique Burns joined a short and unenviable list of judicial officers who have been referred to NSW Parliament. The former Newcastle family law barrister, who was appointed as a magistrate in February 2015, was the subject of a complaint to the Judicial Commission over her handling of 17 different cases in the Port Macquarie circuit between June 2016 and February 2017. The complaint, which progressed to a public hearing last year, alleged Ms Burns misused her detention powers, denied procedural fairness, imposed sentences which exceeded the maximum penalty, and improperly encouraged police prosecutors to lay further charges. Magistrate Dominique Burns. Credit:AAP In a report of inquiry revealed by Parliament this week, 16 of the 17 complaints were upheld and Ms Burns was found to have engaged in "serious instances of misbehaviour". After many years on the bench, Justice Margaret Beazley didn't think she would become emotional when she was named NSW's next governor. But she did on Sunday when she reflected on the enormity of her role as the state's 39th governor, pausing briefly after the sight of her family watching on almost brought her to tears. "I am very honoured. In fact, I didn't think I'd be emotional," she said, fighting back tears. "I have done an enormous amount of public speaking over the years for others. Whenever it comes to myself or to my children and indeed, to my parents when they were alive, I've packed it in I'm sorry." Monkeys jump across the trees when you're lying in your bunk, you're just watching monkeys. I went for a walk on the first morning you're not meant to walk by yourself, I didn't know that rule and there was a really big male baboon around 20 metres away from me, standing on the track. I went right, I'm not at the zoo, there's no wire fence and there's no big pit, so what do I do? I turned around and walked away slowly and said, there's a giant baboon on the track, and then these rangers appeared from nowhere with guns, and they ushered us out of the area. So yeah, there's snakes and there's spiders and there's bigger bugs and it's on like Donkey Kong, it's good fun. So you did actually get to see some wildlife while you were there? It is not a backyard in Nunawading, it's not on the Gold Coast, it's full-on Kruger National Park in South Africa, there are monkeys in the trees and everything. We want to know about your time in the jungle. First things first: it IS a jungle, right, not just a backyard in Nunawading? I'm jealous now, now I want to be a celebrity. Yeah, it's really cool. When you get there, they fly you in, right, to Africa, to a beautiful resort for a few days. You've got a chaperone with you, in case you bump into another B-grade celebrity. Anyway, it was beautiful, you go on safari day and night, drink like a crazy person day and night for five days, then they go, "you're going in". You get to a location and they put a sack over your head, they play that kind of let's freak 'em out, divorce 'em from the real world kind of game. Which I didn't expect. So they put the sack on my head, they take the sack off and I see Josh Gibson, and I'm a Hawthorn supporter, so I just go "that's Josh Gibson, I love him!". Then you meet everyone else, you see the size of camp, it's not very big, it's in the jungle, it's kind of real. Then they stop feeding you. So it's not all luxury. There's no luxury! And you're dealing with people you wouldn't normally want to camp with well not all, some are great, some are not everyone can get on with everybody. Then you suddenly detox and start to feel pretty clear. You sleep pretty well and you're dying to get out of there you'd eat anus at the drop of a hat because you're dying to get out of that camp. I took up vaping because it gave me five minutes on a plastic seat outside the camp just talking to a guard. My family would ask me what's wrong when I got out, because I'd gotten used to not saying anything. Just staring at the floor, feeling quite content and thinking about nothing. Did you come out of the jungle a changed man? Purchases made via links on our site may earn us an affiliate commission CLINTON Business owners wake up early to boil enough water to get them through the day before they flip the front door signs to "OPEN." Residents keep their phones close by to ensure theyll see the boil advisory issue before they next need to turn on the tap. School bathroom faucets are taped up so little hands know to use sanitizer instead of soap on the worst water days. To say the word "water" in the Town of Clinton is to draw exasperated sighs and shaking heads in return. Clintons troubled water system hasnt passed state standards due to improper management, leaks, safety hazards, and an inadequate capacity but while politics has been at the fore, residents are the ones bearing the brunt of the crisis. Southern Roots Salon owner Cindy McDonald remembers one day she stood at her water dispenser with a jug propped up to the spout, waiting for it to fill so she could rinse out a clients hair. The woman in her chair had been only a few minutes from the point when the dye was due to be washed out when the town issued an emergency notice to residents not to use the water. Road construction on the main street forced her business closure for several days last year when McDonald says crews turned the antiquated water pipes back on and the pressure caused a rupture. The lines will go down and sometimes they let us know and sometimes they dont, she said. One day I was here over the weekend and I turned the water on and it was almost black. It wasnt brown, it wasnt just dirty looking, it was black. +2 Clinton mayor arrested for 3rd time, now over town's water; her attorney denies any crime Clinton Mayor Lori Ann Bell was arrested for the third time in recent months Wednesday, accused of failing to respond to multiple warnings abo Waitress Jessi Morris said a family member from across town sent her a text saying recently they had been notified not to drink the water or use the ice that day. But Morris, who had signed up for text alerts, said she didn't get the notice herself. She said its common for notifications to go out to some residents but not others, or for the town to fail to alert residents when its safe to drink the water after a notice has been issued. An employee with a school in the area, who didnt want to be named for fear of repercussion, said staff have been forced to make backup plans and divert maintenance workers from their regular duties to pick up truckloads of bottled water from out-of-town. The school serves athletes lukewarm water at games, fearing that ice in the cooler may be contaminated. They keep a local portable toilet companys phone number handy in case the water is shut off while there are hundreds of kids in the classrooms. Its a huge, huge responsibility on our part and a huge liability on us that isnt something weve caused for ourselves, the school employee said. Town of Clinton representatives did not respond to a request for numbers on how many times residents or business owners had called with questions, concerns or complaints about water issues over the last several months. Right now we dont know what to do, Red Boot Deli owner Jennifer Templet said. Clean water is a fundamental human need, its a necessity. Water is my main ingredient and if I dont have water running through my pipes I cant open my doors, I mean its important. Templets restaurant, one of the few in town, is only open 3 hours each weekday for lunch. As boil notices and water service interruptions became more common throughout 2018, she began starting her day earlier and earlier to combat the uncertainty. She pre-boils at least 12 gallons of water each morning so she'll have enough clean water later to make fresh soup and iced tea and to fill buckets to mop the floors at the end of the day. She drives outside of the town limits for ice, so she can be sure shes not serving a possibly contaminated product. I burnt up an eye on my stove boiling all the water so I have an extra burner just in case, and an extra electric stovetop. It takes a toll on my appliances, too, and if I dont have water I cant open my doors so thats a financial hit, Templet said. It would be the same for any other business that serves food. Top stories in Baton Rouge in your inbox Twice daily we'll send you the day's biggest headlines. Sign up today. e-mail address * Sign Up Templet said she contacted the Louisiana Department of Health in December to verify for herself that the water she was serving was safe. She was told during that call about the slew of deficiencies the state had identified in a recent survey. LDH had sent a letter to Clinton Mayor Lori Ann Bell in September saying a recent inspection ended with unsatisfactory results and the state provided a list of more than 20 deficiencies that had to be corrected within 90 days. That deadline came and went in December, passing the same day Templet spoke with an LDH official. (The town) just isnt informative at all, I call them and theyve always been very nice ladies that I talk to, but I never get answers, Templet said. Clinton residents pepper mayor, other town officials over water system, finances CLINTON Townspeople peppered Mayor Lori Ann Bell and other town officials about the condition of the town's water system and finances during Bell was arrested on a count of malfeasance in office Wednesday on the accusation she mishandled the towns water crisis. It marks the third time since October she's been arrested on malfeasance counts, though the prior two instances were unrelated to the water system. The water system's neglect is amplified by the fact the town is currently working without a 2019 budget because officials failed to approve one before the start of the year. When that happens, a town is mandated to only spend 50 percent of the previous year's expenditures until a budget is approved. Bell initially proposed a spending plan ahead of a town meeting Dec. 11, but residents said when they tried to view the document in the weeks prior it wasn't available, and the town's aldermen said they didn't receive the budget until the night of the meeting. Alderman Mark Kemp said the board decided to take no action because it was an incomplete document. Officials did not call a special meeting to address the lack of a 2019 budget before the new year, and the most recent regularly scheduled town meeting was Jan. 8. The town clerk said officials could not address the budget at that meeting because The Advocate failed to publish the proposed spending plan in a timely manner. Clinton's water woes compounding as fines loom, 2019 budget remains unapproved The town of Clinton has two weeks to make serious headway on its troubled water system or it could face fines from the Louisiana Department of However, the town clerk submitted the material to The Advocate more than five hours past the public notice deadline to ensure publication on the date she wanted to run the notice, Dec. 27. Clinton most recently went under a boil advisory Friday due to a water leak at the East Feliciana Parish Jail, according to an email from the clerk's office. The East Feliciana Parish Police Jury voted this week to spend $11,000 to tap into the parish's rural water system to ensure a secondary line at the jail in case Clinton's troubled water system fails. Additionally, Clinton's water operator quit Jan. 3, only weeks before the Jan. 17 deadline by which the town needs to have improved its dozens of water system deficiencies or face fines from LDH. If that deadline passes without improvement, the agency will issue an administrative order that demands an action plan and a deadline to complete remediation work. Many residents arent hopeful that work will be completed in less than a week, but are hoping for a solution that dissolves the worry thats become daily in Clinton. Its sad. Third world countries have to deal with those types of issues and its crazy that were in the United States and were having these issues because of neglect, Templet said. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. What just happened? The age verification law was introduced last year with the Digital Economy Act, and after several delays, it has now been finalized and will come into effect during April. The law fulfills the governments plan of making the UK the safest place to go online, but its raised some serious questions. The law will require any website whose content is more than one-third pornographic to securely verify that visitors are 18 or over. If they choose not to verify or arent thorough enough then the government can force ISPs to block the website and to fine or shut down the company, if possible. While government officials insist that the law will prevent minors from accessing porn and will protect unsuspecting citizens from accessing it accidentally, experts only agree with the latter. With VPNs freely available and capable of circumventing age restrictions, even the governments own commission concludes that it is not guaranteed to succeed. Beyond that, the age verification methods being discussed by the government are all embarrassing or unsafe, which the government doesnt seem to care about. While verification systems must be approved by the British Board for Film Classification, who will have authority over the scheme, the systems are up to the websites to develop and deploy. "There are various proposals for obtaining your 'porn license'," Neil Brown, the MD of law firm decoded.legal told Sky News. "Some involve handing over details online, some may entail installing software on your phone or computer, and others require you to go into a store and prove your age (like buying alcohol). A credit card alone is unlikely to be sufficient." In-person verification systems are expected to deter too many customers to be economically viable, say porn outlets. Providing banking details could work for larger reputable websites like PornHub, but scares customers away from smaller websites they may not trust. Its unclear if age can be verified without determining a users identity. If it cant then that poses a serious problem. If porn websites have databases of verified users then theyll almost certainly be hacked by people with political motives, hoping to get the leg up on their opponents. An average 160 requests to access blocked porn websites were made on parliaments internet network every day in 2017. Seminole, FL (33772) Today Mostly cloudy early. Isolated thunderstorms may develop this afternoon. High 83F. Winds WSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 30%.. Tonight Variable clouds with thunderstorms, especially late. Low 77F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%. Is there a sadder picture than this one? David Carroll holds a T-shirt printed with an image of his murdered stepson, 15-year-old Loindale Johnson. The shirt is stained with the blood of another young murder victim, 12-year-old James Springer III. The boys were shot eight days apart in October, in different sections of the city. Carroll was one of the bystanders who tried to save Springers life. The year 2018 will go down as one of the deadliest for young people in Syracuse. Ten people age 19 or younger were murdered last year. Six of them were 16 or younger. Their assailants were young, too. Five of the accused killers were under 19. Two of them were just 13. This does not diminish the loss of 14 other adults who were victims of homicide in Syracuse last year, or the three people who were killed in Onondaga County outside of city limits. However, the spike in young victims and assailants is a troubling and heartbreaking development. The crisis in youth violence comes at a moment in time when Syracuse has some new eyes on the problem. Mayor Ben Walsh, in office for a year, has brought in a new police chief, Kenton Buckner. Syracuse City School District Superintendent Jaime Alicea has been on the job for less than two years. We are counting on their fresh perspectives to bring new ideas to the fight. Buckner, so far, is saying all the right things. He believes the four legs that provide stability and support for youths are family, church, education and community, and leans heavily on parenting as probably the biggest needle-mover in combating youth crime and violence. Buckner is well aware his department has a strained relationship with the people it serves, leading to a lack of cooperation with police. To rebuild bridges, he is committed to hiring more police officers of color and to having intentional and constructive contact with community members in non-enforcement situations. Walshs view of policing also is shifting. In a candid interview looking back on his first year, the mayor said he initially focused on getting the community to cooperate more with police. Now, he said, Ive started to look inward and started to think about what we are doing or we are not doing as the city or police department that is leading to people not feeling comfortable assisting us. The mayor has come to believe the onus is on us to bridge the trust gap between the community and the police. It will be grinding, difficult, necessary work, and we applaud Walsh and Buckner for undertaking it. City schools also play a critical role. Beyond teaching the ABCs, they are challenged to keep kids in the classroom and off the streets, against the headwinds of poverty and family strife, and also to respond to the trauma of students violent deaths within school communities. Naturally, we look to our police, government and schools to confront youth violence with all the powers at their disposal. But they cant do it alone. As Buckner said, Responsible adults need to take on some of the heavy lifting. Together, what new ideas can we summon? How do we give youths more useful ways to fill their days, build skills and move toward a real future? How do we listen better to the families and neighbors hit hardest by violence? How do we create jobs and economic opportunities that make crime less attractive? These are hard questions. The young murder victims of 2018 prick our communitys collective conscience, and call on us to try to answer them. Syracuse.com editorials Editorials represent the collective opinion of the Advance Media New York editorial board. Our opinions are independent of news coverage. Read our mission statement. Members of the editorial board are Tim Kennedy, Trish LaMonte, Jason Murray and Marie Morelli. To respond to this editorial: Post a comment below, or submit a letter or commentary to letters@syracuse.com. Read our submission guidelines. If you have questions about the Opinions & Editorials section, contact Marie Morelli, editorial/opinion leader, at mmorelli@syracuse.com The stalemate over President Donald Trumps demand for $5 billion for a wall across the U.S.-Mexico border deepened this week. The partial federal government shutdown over funding for the wall entered its third week. The president gave his first nationally televised address Tuesday from the Oval Office to lay out his rationale for the wall. On Thursday, Trump traveled to McAllen, Texas, a border town, to press his case. Democrats in Congress were unmoved. The House of Representatives passed a series of bills to reopen parts of the government, with some support from Republicans, including Rep. John Katko, R-Camillus. The Senate did not act upon them. Meanwhile, roughly 800,000 federal employees did not get a paycheck Friday due to the government shutdown. Many of the workers are considered essential and are working without pay. Cartoons were drawn by Bill Bramhall, Dan Wasserman, Dana Summers, Drew Sheneman, Scott Stantis, Walt Handelsman, David Horsey, Phil Hands and Joel Pett of Tribune Content Agency; Tim Campbell, Mike Lester, Signe Wilkinson and Jeff Danziger of the Washington Post Writers Group; and Tom Toles of Andrews McMeel Syndication. More editorial cartoon galleries This story was produced for syracuse.com by a student enrolled in The Goldring Arts Journalism program at Syracuse University. By Lyle Michael Contributing writer During Mackenzie Bell's third grade year at Manlius Pebble Hill, she choreographed a routine to "She Works Hard for the Money." The steps may now be hazy, but the memory still brings a smile to her face. "I would choreograph most of Donna (Summer)'s routines as a child," Bell said. "I feel I have this strong connection with her thanks to my mother, who is a big fan of her songs." Bell spent all of 2018 performing on Broadway as an ensemble member in "Summer: The Donna Summer Musical," which premiered last April at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on Broadway. Her social media accounts indicate a new adventure for 2019, but Bell said she realized many dreams during her third Broadway performance, starting with "Pippin" in 2005 and "Sunset Boulevard" in 2017. Her role in "Summer" included stage time as American music mogul David Geffen. An all-female ensemble plays the supporting male roles, while the only five males in the show portray the men in Summer's life. "It's a 1970s kind of androgynous vibe, an interesting take on a jukebox musical," said Bell. "It's a show about a powerful woman, women's rights and how Donna fought for equality herself." This is where the vision and craftsmanship of Tony Award-winning director Des McAnuff shows through. Bell was well accustomed to his direction; they also worked together on "Jersey Boys" in 2005). Bell was familiar with choreographer Sergio Trujillo as well, having also worked with him in "Jersey Boys," and the national tour of "Flashdance the Musical" from 2013 to 2015. "The choreography is the best part of "Summer," as it's high energy," said Bell. "It's set in that time of the disco era, yet it's contemporary. It's grounded and cool." A life of dance Bell, a girl who hails from Westcott Street in Syracuse, literally grew up dancing. Days spent at her mother's dance studio led to a major in music theater with a bachelor's degree in fine arts from Elon University in North Carolina; she made her Broadway debut five years later. "I was in the middle of my "Flashdance" tour, and I got a callback for "Pippin," and that was it," Bell said. She left the "Flashdance" tour and started training for the role of a player and as understudy to the three female lead characters, Fastrada, Berthe and Catherine. The dream was happening, and Bell owed it most to one person above all: Linda Bell, her mother and the owner of CNY Dance Studio. View this post on Instagram [?] [?] [?] A post shared by Mackenzie Bell (@mackthebell) on Aug 2, 2017 at 2:59pm PDT It was the training Mackenzie received as a child that gave her the foundation she needed, said Linda, who formerly trained Syracuse University cheerleaders and has been running her studio for 35 years. "I believe any child interested in theatre must have strong training in dance as it is vital in an ensemble," said Linda. Being a part of the ensemble in shows has been a conscious learning experience for Bell, whether it was as a child in "Gypsy" at the Merry-Go-Round Playhouse in Auburn, or her performances in "Sweet Charity" and "Guys & Dolls" at Manlius Pebble Hill. Deborah Pearson, co-founder at Syracuse Children's Theatre, was one of the first to recognize Bell's potential. "I've known Mackenzie since she was eight or nine," said Pearson. "She acted in many shows at the theater and I knew this young lady had it all; acting, singing, dancing. She was ahead of her age, responsible and hardworking." Prof. Michael Schoonmaker, chair of the Television, Radio and Film program at the Newhouse School of Public Communications said Bell's personality was a very shy one back in Edward Smith elementary school on Lancaster Avenue. "I taught Mackenzie in my first kindergarten class," he said. "She was in the beginning of my journey. We knew that if we put on the camera, she would see herself as a performer. And she did." Focus and perseverence Bell was just like any other teenager who came home from school and got to her homework late, but she was always focused. She worked with ardor and persevered to get to where she is. Broadway is no walk in the park, but it's the pure adrenaline that keeps Bell going. For "Summer," the cast performed eight shows a week, every day except Monday. "It is grueling, but I love the buzz," she said last fall. "The rehearsals and the show itself make for great cardio, add to that Pilates, and - would you believe it - my dressing room is on the fifth floor." It's a bonus that Bell can sing, and continuing vocal lessons are imperative in her career as a performer. Bell considered it a privilege to lend her voice to Summer's songs on the Broadway album released for the musical; not to mention an unforgettable experience performing at the 2018 Tony Awards. "Performing (at the Tony Awards) was the highlight of my life so far," she said. In addition to being a perennial student of the arts, Bell is a musical and dance teacher. She trains youngsters at Joffrey Ballet School in New York City during the summer intensive courses and conducts workshops for her current shows. "I taught at my mom's studio before and while I was touring with 'Flashdance,'" she said. "I love teaching and being able to share what I've learned." After a long day, Bell looks forward to getting away from the mania of Manhattan to the quiet of Jersey City, where she recently relocated. Once home, she is greeted by her poodle shih-tzu mix, Sadie, and indulges in some TV time. She finds serenity in her walks with Sadie - and in a juicy piece of steak. "I find walking on Brooklyn Bridge bliss," she said. This feature is coordinated by The Post-Standard/Syracuse.com and InterFaith Works of CNY. Follow this theme and author posted Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. The Rev. Brian Konkol Comedian and author Trevor Noah, host of "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central, will visit Syracuse University on Jan. 27 as a special guest of the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration. Noah will participate in an on-stage conversation, speaking about his acclaimed memoir, "Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood" (Random House, 2016), reflecting on the life and legacy of Dr. King, and discussing this year's event theme of "The Global Impact of Civil Rights." The annual MLK Celebration possesses a significant purpose as we embrace the values of diversity, equity and inclusion. In light of such commitments, we recognize the theological conception of Imago Dei, or "Image of God," which was expressed by King and others to affirm that all people - regardless of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, disability, political affiliation, and religious affirmation - as being accepted and affirmed by the same God who creates and sustains life as we understand it. As stated by Richard W. Wills in "Martin Luther King Jr. and the Image of God" (Oxford University Press, 2011), King's appeal for civil rights was grounded in the conviction that humanity's creation by God was a powerful argument for human equality, and furthermore, served as a trajectory to reshape society and build a "beloved community." These theological roots provided an inclusive reach that continues to transform our world. At a time when our local and global communities are increasingly connected yet ideologically isolated, diverse yet distant, and filled with hope and optimism yet also panic and aggression, on Jan. 27 in the Carrier Dome we will commemorate the life and legacy of a prophet who brought hope and healing to our world. For more information on this event, visit http://mlk.syr.edu. By welcoming Trevor Noah, remembering Dr. King and celebrating our unsung heroes, together we will act to affirm our common humanity and work toward a beloved community. The Rev. Brian E. Konkol, Ph.D., serves as Dean of Hendricks Chapel at Syracuse University, where he guides, nurtures and enhances religious, spiritual, moral and ethical life. SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- A man was shot in the shoulder early this morning while riding in a vehicle near North Geddes Street and Interstate 690. Police said the 20-year-old arrived at Upstate University Hospital in a private vehicle with a gunshot wound to his shoulder. Police arrived at the hospital at 2 a.m. regarding the shooting. The victim told police that he was riding in the vehicle on North Geddes Street near the on-ramp to I-690 when he heard multiple gunshots. One bullet struck him, police said. The injury was not life-threatening. The victim told police he didnt know where the shots came from and couldnt provide suspect information. Police are asking anyone with information to call the department at (315)442-5222 or use the departments SPD tips app. Calls can be confidential, and tips on the app can be anonymous. The supervisors went on to choose Rick Blevins, the Rye Valley District representative, as vice chairman. As part of the board reorganization, County Administrator Michael Carter was reappointed as the supervisors clerk. During citizens time, county businessman Bradley Powers challenged the supervisors to work together in 2019. Lets not divide the county, he said. Powers told the supervisors that theyre doing a wonderful job trying to get things done, but he went on to remind them that transparency is important in public service. He asked that they work together for the betterment of the county. The supervisors adopted their meeting schedule for the year. They will continue to meet on the second Tuesday of each month with their open session beginning at 5 p.m. except for November when the Virginia Association of Counties annual meeting takes place. In November, the supervisors will meet on Wednesday, Nov. 13. Some months, the supervisors meet a second time, often to hold public hearings in conjunction with the planning commission. Those meetings take place on the fourth Thursday at 7 p.m. Do you already have a paid subscription to any of the SWNewsMedia newspapers? If so, you can Activate your Premium online account by clicking here. Activation will allow you to view unlimited online articles each month. To activate your Premium online account, the email address and phone number provided with your paid newspaper subscription needs to match the information you use in setting up your online user account. If you are having trouble or want to confirm what email address and phone number is listed on your subscription account, please call 952-345-6682 or email circulation@swpub.com and we'll be happy to assist. Bay of Plenty Ever thought of joining the civil construction industry? if so then this is your chance to get a foot in the door. We are... View or Apply on GoodWork.co.nz Bay of Plenty We are looking for a storeman with an OSH forklift license. You will need to be physically for as the job is about 70% forklift... View or Apply on GoodWork.co.nz A University of Waikato researcher is proposing new "degrees of murder" which she says will make the criminal justice system more fair. Waikato University senior law lecturer Brenda Midson says the current legislation did not reflect varying degrees of moral blame in New Zealand cases. She says in cases where young defendants who killed, or victims of violence who killed their abuser or those who killed children showed that not all people who killed others were treated the same. "Given that homicide can occur in a really broad range of circumstances, with lots of different degrees of moral blame attaching to different types of killings, all we have in terms of options for courts is to find somebody either guilty of murder or manslaughter, which don't necessarily reflect the degree of moral blame that's involved." Dr Midson, who is also editor of the New Zealand Law Journal, says a murder conviction also carried "a far greater stigma" than a manslaughter conviction. "What happens is that you can have two people that end up with murder convictions for very different degrees of moral blame in the killing or they can end up with very different convictions for a very similar type of killing." She says these differences could be clearly seen in cases of child homicide such as that of the killing of Taupo toddler Moko Rangitoheriri. His killers Tania Shailer and David William Haerewa were originally charged with murder, but the Crown accepted a guilty plea to the lesser charge of manslaughter. "In cases of child homicide, you might have a defendant who beats a child to death and the child dies after a prolonged period of abuse, but it's difficult for the prosecution to prove that that defendant intended to kill the victim so they end up with a manslaughter conviction, which has a connotation of almost-accidental death." She says the degree of moral blame in child killings varies wildly, and legislation should be amended to reflect this spectrum. Her proposal is distinguished from current legislation by introducing a more serious charge of first-degree murder. This would include hate crimes and revenge killings, while second-degree murder covers cases like a coward's punch, or that of Moko's killing. Dr Midson says degrees of murder would make the justice system fairer but Marie Dyhrberg QC, a defence lawyer who has worked well over 50 homicide cases in her career, said the current justice system was fit for purpose. "Many cases are very different and the circumstances will vary. Determining the appropriate sentence for any particular crime, particularly murder and manslaughter, should remain in the hands of judges who are trained and are well-aware of how to keep consistency and fairness for all people." She says the proposal allowed concepts of prejudice and sympathy to influence the jury - something at odds with justice. "That is not the role of the jury, that is the role of the judge, and a jury cannot decide that someone should not be charged with murder because they feel sorry for them or alternatively that they should be convicted of murder because there is some sort of prejudice against a person." There were 686 people killed by homicide between 2007 and 2016 in New Zealand. Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Sponsored By: Arvest Bank The aftershocks of the bad year the U.S. Navy had in 2017 continue to emerge. The latest is the GAO (U.S. government auditors) report on progress in dealing with the many training, maintenance and personnel problems the Navy has been unable to deal with since the 1990s. None of these problems were secrets but the lack of progress in developing and implementing effective solutions was kept quiet by the navy. The progress, or lack of, in dealing with these problems is no longer in the shadows and is now subject to constant attention. That is long overdue and the details are not pretty. What brought all this to light was questioning why during 2017 the U.S. Navy 7th fleet temporarily lost three ships to navigation error damage within an eight-month period and had another similar incident that did not injure anyone or take the ship out of service. One of the damaged ships was back in service by the end of 2017 but the other two are still undergoing repairs. In all these incidents the captains were relieved because of poor training of officers and sailors involved. Two of the incidents involved destroyers colliding with commercial ships at sea, which left 17 sailors dead. The cause was lower readiness levels and overwork (and subsequent crew fatigue). This turned out to be common for ships of the 7th (Pacific) Fleet. The two 7th Fleet destroyers that suffered the fatal collisions had some of the worst readiness and training ratings in the entire fleet. These ratings exist to spotlight ships, and their crews, that need the most attention from senior leadership, especially the fleet commander. There was a new Secretary of Defense in 2017 who was a retired (since 2013) marine general with firsthand experience with what was going wrong in the navy. So this time there was a lot of noise, attention, action and accountability. That soon led to 7th Fleet commander losing his job. Finding and relieving culpable officers is easy compared to dealing with the problems with leadership and training that the three accidents made rather obvious. In 2017 it was no secret that these problems existed throughout the navy but were most acute in the 7th Fleet which has been the busiest for over a decade because it has to deal with growing Chinese naval power and more frequent crises with North Korea. One could say the problem was navy-wide but most intense in the 7th Fleet and not enough of the admirals were willing to speak up and admit to the politicians and voters what was going on and why it was not being addressed. One reason was that the politicians wanted admirals who would keep quiet and those admirals who spoke out got forced into retirement and replaced by younger officers willing to play by the new rules. This is not unique in American history or military history in general. But this occurrence is another aftereffect of the Cold War ending and attitudes changing with regard to responsibility and military readiness. The late 2018 GAO audit found that the bad (willing to let things slide) attitude of Navy leaders had spread and the 2017 accidents were the result of everyone tolerating the lower standards. That has been reversed, at least for the surface warships. But the abuse of waivers (not enforcing standards for many individuals) was still around for amphibious operations and higher level joint operations. It is going to take longer to deal with all the lapses in certified trained and ready standards in the navy. No point of having standards if you let them do more harm than good. The maintenance problems (not enough time or money to get it all done in time) have done enormous damage throughout the fleet. Fixing this requires more money as well as meaning fewer ships available for duty until their maintenance backlogs are tended to. Fixing this permanently requires related problems (shortages of spare parts, poor management) of shipyards be tended to. Those are politically sensitive and difficult to deal with but they are also a major part of the problem. Another poor leadership problem is the increasing problems with overworked sailors. Veteran sailors realize that ten or more years ago you got more (often enough) sleep while at sea. A large part of this problem was self-inflicted. The navy imposed rather than implemented more automation and work practices whose main goal was to reduce crew size. Thats great if it works but a disaster if it doesnt and made worse if senior leadership ignores the problem. Its ignored no more but solutions are difficult to find and implement. Many sailors at sea are getting more sleep and thanks to the Internet that has improved morale. But the sleepless at sea situation is still a problem. Another we dont talk about that problem that is now openly discussed is the years of unrealistic shipbuilding and operation budgets the navy has created and tried, without success to make work. Reality tends to win in the end and the GAO tries to stay on the side of reality (difficult for any government organization to do). The navy has turned underestimating costs and using unrealistic delivery times into a tradition. This has not worked and has become more embarrassing with each passing year. It also causes constant calls for cuts in other areas of the navy budget, like maintenance and training. There are similar problems in naval aviation. Obsessed with maintaining enough aircraft for at least ten large carriers led to serious cuts in money available for upgrading or replacing elderly aircraft. Older jets are more expensive to maintain and more dangerous to fly. There were fewer flight hours and growing problems with recruiting and retaining naval aviators (carrier aircraft pilots). No easy solutions but it is progress that more senior admirals are willing or able to admit there is a problem. Finding and implementing solutions will not be easy. The navy will continue to have a pilot shortage. Another problem with aircraft availability is a shortage of spare parts. More and more aircraft were not able to fly because spare parts were not available when maintainers needed to install them. Stocking fewer parts saved money and the ultimate result was ignored until it couldnt be ignored anymore. That happened in part because the new F-35s were often grounded for lack of spares and that became a media favorite. The Navy hates it when one of their problems becomes a media favorite. Another problem was that the Navy has been getting smaller since the Cold War ended in 1991 and that process continued after 2001 because the increased defense spending went to the Army, SOCOM (Special Operations Command) and marine operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. The navy and air force had to get by on a lot less. For example, the number of ships in the navy went from 333 in 1998 to 277 in 2017. Yet the navy kept the same number of ships (about a hundred) deployed overseas despite there being 17 percent fewer ships. Worse the newer ships, and some of the older ones were experimenting with smaller crews (and more automation). This is still a work in progress but meanwhile, lots of 7th Fleet ships were operating at a wartime tempo. This was wearing down the crews as well as the ships. The ships overseas are also kept busier even though crew sizes have been reduced as well and although the navy knew this was going on not a lot was done to deal with what was obviously a growing problem. For example in the two years before the accidents the number of warships in the 7th fleet not certified as ready for combat increased five-fold (to 37 percent). The reasons why were no secret either. Many sailors were working over 100 hours a week when at sea, compared to the previous normal of 70-81 hours a week. Ships were more frequently unable to go to sea because of deferred (caused by manpower shortages) maintenance. The most serious shortages were in training, which apparently contributed to the three serious accidents and many more events that could have gotten very ugly. Its an old naval tradition to punish (it used to be by hanging) an admiral if you wanted to get the attention, or just motivate, the others. This refers back to British Admiral John Byng, who was executed in 1757 for not trying hard enough to dislodge the French from the island of Minorca. This execution was later described as done to "encourage the others (admirals)." In fact, Byng died because of bad publicity surrounding the earlier execution of a junior officer for the same "offense," while senior officers got less lethal punishment. Byng was the victim of a leadership problem that keeps reoccurring. Nevertheless, navies have always been rather harsher about inadequate leadership. It is an ancient naval tradition that someone must take responsibility and be punished when things go wrong. This attitude developed over the centuries because the seas are an unforgiving environment. Those put in charge of ships have absolute power and absolute responsibility. So, to this day, in most navies, the senior officers can quickly (or, in this case eventually) lose their jobs if things go wrong. Admiral Byngs demise was, historically, not all that unusual. In centuries past, many navy commanders have been executed for not doing all their boss expected of them. But 18th century Britain considered itself to be in a kinder and gentler age, thus the outcry after Byng was executed, instead of simply being dismissed (or exonerated, something his descendants still call for). Now, in the 21st century, the trend continues, as do the punishments. Hanging went out of fashion by the 20th century but getting fired apparently has the same impact. The sailors and junior officers who take a more realistic attitude towards this bad leadership (and suffer the most from it) have been demanding more accountability for over a decade, and not staying in the navy long when senior leadership did not improve. That may change if the complacent and compliant admirals are replaced with competent and accountable ones. This was not just a navy problem, the army, air force and, to a lesser extent, the marines all suffered from it. Unlike combat which is loud, involves real bullets that focus attention and responsibility. In peacetime bureaucratic battles back home are often kept out of sight and boldness by military leaders is less common because the paper bullets are quiet and can kill a career quickly. The damage can be substantial as the 2017 collisions demonstrated. There is no easy fix for this because the military is, by design and necessity subordinate to the elected officials who often do a lot of damage with the best of intentions and little scrutiny from anyone outside the military. Lithuanias Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius is no ordinary diplomat. He is more a diplomatic hitman whose ideological mission is to blow holes in European-Russian relations at every opportunity. One of his recent jobs was to write an op-ed for the Irish Times in which he castigated the European Union for appeasing Russian President Vladimir Putin. Linkevicius used a hoary old historical analogy comparing the EU with British leader Neville Chamberlain and his appeasement in 1938 of Nazi Germanys Hitler. Apart from the ignorant historical waffling, the other curious thing about Linkevicius op-ed piece in Irelands so-called paper of record was the timing. It was published on December 17, three days before EU foreign policy officials were to meet in Brussels on the issue of extending sanctions against Russia. As it turned out, the EU agreed to extend sanctions on Moscow by another six months until July 31, 2019, when the matter will come up for review again. For the past four years, the EU has imposed sanctions on Russia in line with Washington over pejorative claims that Moscow annexed Crimea. This claim is made in spite of the fact that the Crimean people voted in a referendum to secede from Ukraine, which had been taken over by a NATO/EU-backed Neo-Nazi coup, and to join the Russian Federation. EU sanctions have been rolled over every six months for the past four years, each time given impetus by some new dubious issue, such as the shooting down of the Malaysian airliner over Ukraine in July 2014 or the alleged poisoning of former Russian spy Sergei Skripal in England in March 2018. Typical of the Baltic states and their rightwing governments, Linkevicius world view is dominated by an abiding Russophobia. Before becoming Lithuanias foreign minister in 2012, he was the countrys permanent representative to the NATO military alliance. The 58-year-old politicians top concern is to ensure that European states never normalize relations with Russia. He is frequently quoted in Western media or writes op-ed pieces in which he lambasts European calls or inclinations for re-engagement with Moscow. His recent diatribe in the Irish Times was thus his usual run-of-the-mill Russophobia. Given Lithuanias appalling history of collaborating with Nazi Germany, it surely is twisted irony for Linkevicius to level duff analogies about Russia. However, the poison pen of Linkevicius is not just a simple matter of one politician airing his warped view of the world. Linkevicius and his rightwing anti-Russian ilk are appointing themselves as the arbiters of relations between the entire 28-member EU bloc and Russia. In other words, a minority of ideologues who view everything through a prism of Russophobia are trying to dictate to the rest of Europe on how to conduct relations with its biggest and, arguably, most strategically important neighbor, Russia. And that dictated conduct is to be unrelentingly hostile. How democratic of Linkevicius. The Republic of Ireland, like several other EU members, has counted the cost of sanctions on Russia dearly. Between 2014 and 2016, Irish exports to Russia were slashed by half, from 722 to 364 million. The loss was due to Moscow enacting counter-sanctions on EU countries which badly hit Irish agricultural exports of beef, pork and dairy. As with other EU economies, the Irish have been rueing the whole sanctions war with Moscow. Last year, a senior Irish government delegation travelled to Russia in a bid to reset relations. As the Irish Times reported: Trade the target as Ireland seeks a reset in relations with Russia. More recent data shows that trade relations between the Irish republic and Russia have recovered hugely from the low-point in 2016. Total bilateral trade had risen by 40 per cent to 800 million for the year ending 2017, which is almost back to the level it was before the Ukraine conflict started. (Irelands bilateral trade with Lithuania is estimated to be about half that with Russia.) There are plenty of indicators that the Irish economy is still struggling from the 2008 global financial crash. Irelands rural economy is particularly hurting with harrowing cases of farmers going bust and having their dwellings repossessed due to debt arrears. As with many other EU countries, the Irish economy and society cant afford the continuing futile new Cold War with Russia. The premises for the conflict are entirely bogus but the damage is entirely palpable for many ordinary people from loss of jobs and business. The crucial thing about the EU sanctions policy on Russia is that it requires unanimity among the 28 member states for the measures to be extended. If, say Ireland, were to have voted against the renewal of sanctions at the last December 21 European Council meeting, then the EU would be have to revoke its policy against Russia. Given the background trends in the Irish economy and the behind-the-scenes moves by Irish officials to restore trade relations with Moscow, it can be fairly speculated that the Lithuanian foreign minister spotted a possible weak link in the EU chain of sanctions. Linkevicius article in the Irish Times on December 17 was a diplomatic hit job, knowing that the paper is widely read by Irish representatives in the Brussels administration. There was no news value in Linkevicius op-ed piece. It was a pointed sabotage against any notion of normalizing trade ties between the EU and Russia. Historical appeals about appeasing Nazi Germany were grotesque falsification of current events, and a blatant bid at moral blackmailing. The article was headlined: How many wake up calls about Putin do we need? More to the point, the Irish Times should publish an article with headline: How many wake up calls about Russophobia do we need? Heres a prediction. Next time the EU meets to decide on extending sanctions against Russia on July 31, you can bet Linkevicius will dust off another poison pen piece to some paper in a European capital considered to be going soft (that is, coming to its senses) on ending sanctions. Photo: Flickr Missouris new medical marijuana law contains a privacy provision to protect business and medical records related to the new industry. But state officials are using it to deny the public the right to know even the identities of those who have applied to become marijuana growers and distributors. Could there be any worse possible way to start a new industry involving the production and distribution of a previously illicit drug than to shroud it in secrecy? The state should remove this gag order immediately, or the Legislature should approve clarifying language to eliminate confusion over state reporting requirements. Missouri voters in November amended the state Constitution to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. The growing and distribution of the marijuana will be conducted by private entities licensed by the state. Entities that want in on this new market recently started submitting applications to be licensed as growers or distributors. Under the new law, the state is required to safeguard the confidentiality of reports or other information obtained from an applicant or licensee containing any individualized data, information, or records related to the licensee or its operation. The experience didn't just humble me, it scared me. If I -- someone who is black and has read about race and bias for years -- could act like this, what was possible for others who never thought much about these issues? "We all absorb this stuff," says DiAngelo. "Sometimes the thoughts that pass across my mind are shocking to me. I don't think I can be free of it." Creating a new ritual What do we do then? Do we give up fighting intolerance in ourselves and others because we all have it? Perhaps there's another way. Our language and behavior should evolve. We shouldn't talk about racism, for example, as an either/or proposition: Use a slur and you're the Grand Imperial Wizard of the KKK; if you've never used one you're free of intolerance. I'm talking about creating space for people to admit their flaws -- like what I did in Lowe's. We've done it for other issues. People can stand up in 12-step meetings and admit they're addicts but we still see their humanity. We see ourselves in their struggles -- there but for the grace of God go I. I'm not saying create "racist rehab" where people can escape responsibility for cruel actions by simply claiming, "My subconscious made me do it." If you have seen the pitch or the curvature of the roof, having firefighters working on the exterior, on a copper roof a very dangerous operation, Garon said. If you can imagine just peeling back an orange, we had to peel back layers in order to extinguish the smoldering fire. Many passengers battled the snow and navigated icy roads to get to the airport only to have travel plans foiled by fire. A group of eight women were traveling to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic for their 60 is a beach celebration. Friends since kindergarten in Mount Olive, Ill., they were all turning 60 this year including one woman making her way from Chicago. The women got a hotel room near the airport Friday night, only to have their early Saturday morning Frontier flight canceled because of a snowstorm that dumped up to a foot of snow across the St. Louis area. The flight was rescheduled for 11:10 a.m. Sunday. On Sunday, the women arrived in their airport shuttle to firetrucks and smoke. They waited it out at their hotel until the terminal reopened, only to wait in line another hour to check their bags. Their flight was delayed by two hours. Our 60th year is starting off with a bang, said Lynette Senjan of Mount Olive. Leaders plan to announce at the end of this month an initiative to gather at least 160,199 signatures and place on the November 2020 statewide ballot a measure to merge St. Louis and St. Louis County and combine under one megacity the police departments, court systems, roadways and economic development arms of the city, county and all 88 county municipalities. The quick backlash from Missouri mayors shows just how difficult the task will be, and how fervent the opposition already is. Mayors argue that their cities are well-run, their police departments excellent and their residents happy with small-town and suburban St. Louis County. But more than anything, they called the statewide vote an unreasonable, undemocratic attempt to bypass local voters that will ultimately be ineffective. This is a local issue that needs to be decided locally, said Richard Sheets, deputy director and lobbyist for the Missouri Municipal League. If statewide voters can say one particular area would have to take on this form of government, why couldnt you do that to Springfield and Greene County and Jackson County? Its contrary to logic and good government. Having already become a library rat during his time in prison, Woods got to work. He researched the law, which stemmed from Senate Bill 491. He found legal precedent that changes to parole could be applied retroactively, even if a change that reduced a sentence to the underlying crime could not. Woods, a natural entrepreneur, put on his jailhouse lawyer hat and wrote the legal brief that would ultimately set him free. In 2017, just a couple of months after the new law took effect, Woods sent his legal brief to Kansas City attorney Kent Gipson who filed it. In May of that year, Cole County Circuit Court Judge Daniel Green agreed with Woods that the new law entitled him to a parole hearing. That hearing took place a year ago this month. Woods nailed it. Ive grown up so much, he says. In prison, Woods completed a long-term drug treatment program. He committed to his children whom he says he raised in the visitors room that he would be a changed man. I was a drug dealer as a kid, Woods says. Its all I knew. That was a way of life for me. But in prison, something clicked. He became, he says, a new person. Thats what he told the parole board. They believed him and set him free. Nowadays it would be treated as snowmageddon. But the heaviest snowstorm St. Louis has ever recorded did not even make front-page news on March 31, 1890. Squares application reopens a controversy that burned red-hot after Walmart applied for an ILC charter in 2005. Walmart said it was merely trying to cut its card-processing costs, but small banks feared being crushed by a big new competitor. The FDIC placed a moratorium on new ILC applications, which Congress extended until 2013. Now the upstart applicant is not a behemoth retailer but a financial technology company that positions itself as a friend of small business. Square, best known for its small card reader, also has made more than $3.5 billion in business loans, and it would like to fund those loans with bank deposits. Squares application set off alarms at the Independent Community Bankers of America. The trade group, which represents 5,700 banks, argues that Square would gain an unfair advantage by not being supervised by the Federal Reserve, as other bank holding companies are. The National Liberal Party (PNL, opposition, ed. n.) cannot reach a political consensus with the PSD and ALDE (major at rule Social Democrat Party and minor at rule Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, ed. n.) as it has been tabled for the 6-month period of presidency of the EU Council, since this is "anti-European", "against European values", the liberal leader Ludovic Orban said on Sunday at a broadcast by public television TVR1. "There are two forms of consensus, the one that the PSD wants, that is an anti-European consensus. I cannot agree with what they do, let's say in the judiciary, the trampling on the independence of justice, the sickly preoccupation for the convicts or those who are in various trials, the permanent aggression against the independence of justice, the attempt of political control upon everything that means institutional gear at the justice level. We are for the observance of the rule of law and here, if they want a consensus with us, they must walk in the shoes of the European consensus, a European consensus that is observing the European values, is observing the EU Treaty, the Article 2 with the conditions regarding the rule of law, which is the article that is provided in the resolution of the European Parliament, in the CVM report adopted by the European Commission and in general in all of the stances that have existed the long of time on behalf of the European leaders. If they want consensus, well, then, let's have a consensus, let's adopt a simple consensus. What did Iordache promise when being at the Venice Commission - that he would appeal the Venice Commission's experts and the experts of the European Commission to draft the codes and the laws of justice, so that they will be brought to a form compatible with the legislation, to the practices at European level. This is the kind of consensus we wish for, but will they agree with a consensus on such a topic?" Ludovic Orban asked on Sunday, when asked whether on the 6-month term of Romania's presidency to the EU Council's helm a political domestic consensus will exist. The PNL president added that "another consensus" could be in connection with not attacking the EU leaders for a 6-month term, too.Orban said that at the launching event of the Romanian presidency of the EU Council, organsied at the Romanian Athenaeum it was clearly visible that the European leaders have nothing at all against Romania. Romania is a true friend of Israel, said the new ambassador of this state to Romania, David Saranga, adding that his country could rely on our country within the European Union. "We meet today to celebrate the year 2019, a particularly important year marked by the takeover of the presidency of the EU Council by Romania, a very important, remarkable moment from the political viewpoint. (...) For us, Romania is a true friend we could rely on within the EU," Saranga said, attending a New Year's concert organised on Sunday at the Choral Temple in Bucharest by the Bucharest Jews Community (CEB), the Federation of the Jewish Communities in Romania (FCER), together with JDC Romania and the Caritatea (Charity) Foundation. The diplomat made references to the words of Elie Wiesel, according to whom "without memory, there is no culture, no civilisation, no society, no future.""In order to strengthen this strong friendship between Romania and Israel we cannot ignore the past, we must accept it with sincerity and learn from it. (...) Almost half of the Jewish community that ha lived here before the WWII was destroyed. Romania made remarkable efforts as regards the acknowledgment of the past and the assuming of responsibility. In context, I want to thank a close friend of mine and of the Jewish people - ambassador Mihnea Constantinescu, blessed be his memory!" the ambassador said, and the audience kept a moment of silence in memory of the late Romanian diplomat.Saranga said that intolerance and xenophobia are present in Europe."I want to remind you that in some schools the Holocaust in Romania is taught. Likewise, in 2018 the Law for combating anti-Semitism was promulgated, thanks to the Parliament and the president of Romania. Unfortunately, we live in a period in which intolerance and xenophobia are present in Europe. Our duty is to remember the past, and in particular we, as a Jewish people (...) have the responsibility to be a model of tolerance. I want to assure you, I myself - the embassy of the State of Israel and the State of Israel used to be, are and will for ever be alongside you. I wish you a New Year in health, achievements and happiness! A Happy New Year!" the ambassador told the Jewish community.He admitted that Romania has an important part in his heart."Here I started my diplomatic career more than 20 years ago and ever since I remained connected to the Romanian culture, country, language and you. I believe that the fact that my first public appearance here is in the Choral Temple, ahead of you, shows that it is very important to me to having this connection with your community," the diplomat said.Talking about the event at the Choral Temple, the president of the Jewish Communities Federation in Romania (FCER), Aurel Vainer said that this concert is defined to the takeover by our country of the presidency of the EU Council.The event was attended, among others, by former president of Romania Emil Constantinescu and the US ambassador in Bucharest, Hans Klemm. Byrd started professionally touring in 2000. He said that he had always personally seen himself as a folk artist, but that the definition of folk seems to have changed over the years. Its really a style of presentation, he said. Its stripped down. Theres no light show, theres no seven-piece band, theres no performance art that goes along with it. Its just a stripped-down show and it can be so many things. Its almost like folk music doesnt really mean what it used to mean. It really doesnt mean much of anything anymore. Not that Byrd is one for pigeonholing himself into anything. Even though he can usually be found on stage in jeans, boots and a cowboy hat, Byrds musical styling shifts from album to album. He says he struggles to answer when asked about his songwriting process. Thats an almost impossible question to answer because my process is to try different processes all the time, Byrd said. Just keep trying things Ive never done before, pushing different buttons to surprise myself ... I feel like Ive been true to myself throughout my entire career. Ive never made a project I didnt like. Ive never really, intentionally, worked with anybody I didnt like. I dont think Ive ever produced something Im ashamed for somebody to hear. 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The Schramm Education Center, built on the site of the former Aksarben Aquarium within Schramm Park State Recreation Area in Sarpy County, will be an interactive, state-of-the-art nature center featuring the states river, pond and lake systems. It will open this spring. The education center is part of the Venture Parks project, a public-private partnership providing interactive, nature-based learning opportunities for park visitors. The meeting will start at 8 a.m. at Game and Parks headquarters, 2200 N. 33rd St. An 8:30 a.m. public hearing is scheduled for input regarding the listing and delisting of state threatened and endangered species in the Commissions District 8, which is Lancaster County. Also on the agenda are staff recommendations to: Approve an easement request from the Nebraska Department of Transportation for a road-widening and culvert-placing project at Narrows Wildlife Management Area in Webster County. On Wednesday Nebraskas Legislature opened for business, and sessions are scheduled to continue into early June. Among the issues that will be considered is the persistent problem of how to lower property taxes, which are especially burdensome on agricultural interests. Just about everyone agrees that Nebraskas property taxes are high. So far, however, agreement on major tax changes that would significantly lower them has proven impossible. The reason is that tax changes involve money. And this isnt just money from some impersonal state budget. It is money directly from taxpayer pockets, and that makes any proposed changes highly controversial. A further complication is that the state enacts property tax law, but local governments actually collect and use property tax revenues. If the state lowers property taxes, where do local governments get the money to meet the needs of their communities? For some, the easy answer is cut spending. But meaningful property tax reductions without replacement would require massive local spending cuts, and citizens would be unlikely to tolerate them. Good schools, public safety and other necessary services are vital to towns all across Nebraska especially in rural areas. Let schools go downhill, for example, and communities are sure to quickly follow. Several stories in The World-Herald have highlighted cases of abuse by private guardians, including one in Omaha who took more than $350,000 from several wards and another in Gering who embezzled thousands of dollars intended for her elderly, blind and disabled clients. Chaffee said the case of Angel raised a lot of questions about the capacity of State Adult Protective Services workers to check into reports of a vulnerable adult in trouble. Had a public guardian been assigned sooner, she said, a tragedy might have been averted. Multiple reports of concern had been received by Adult Protective Services officials before that office, and Grand Island police, checked on the womans welfare on Jan. 29, 2018, the report says. The concerns came from workers of a contractor, Mosaic, that was hired by the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services to provide day care services for developmentally disabled adults. Adult Protective Services, another wing of HHS, is supposed to check into reports of abuse, neglect and exploitation involving adults. Angel was the name used for the woman in the report, but The World-Herald later identified her, via court records, as Andrea Bartlett of Grand Island. Bartlett died on Feb. 9, 11 days after she was removed from her parents home. Because of the partial federal government shutdown, the ACCESSNebraska customer service center is receiving heavy call volume. The number of calls concerning program benefit balance and availability is effecting DHHS efforts to fast track the recertification process. Those who have concerns about the impact the government shutdown is having on their benefits are being asked to go to the ACCESSNebrsaka web site and utilize the my account option and to download the EBT-EDGE mobile app to monitor their benefits. New applications and recertification can also be processed on-line at ACCESSNebraska. Sperl said the good news is that New Alliance coordinated the last few deliveries of beans to the Bridgeport facility after harvest in order to start splitting peas as quickly as possible. With the pea splitters running, more of those split peas have been put toward PL 480, an international food aid program established through the Agricultural Trade Development Assistance Act. This aid is typically destined for Africa, and 58 kilogram bags are shipped to meet those needs. Some of the production is also going to Section 32 which purchases high-quality food each year to support the following USDA nutrition programs like the National School Lunch Program. And the pet food industry has also taken an increased interest in pulse proteins. The perception is that pulses are healthier, so the pet food industry has become a big player in the pulse market, he said. 2018: The year of the tariffs Tariffs globally have cost hundreds of millions of dollars worth of inefficiencies in the marketplace, Sperl said, with farmers bearing the brunt of that loss in value. Two Lyman residents were killed in a fatal crash near Cheyenne Friday. According to information released by the Wyoming State Patrol, Miguel Cruz, 26, and Selena Cruz, 29, were killed in a crash that occurred at milepost 37 on US 85 north of Cheyenne, Wyoming. Around 4:58 p.m., Wyoming Highway Patrol troopers were dispatched to the area for a two-vehicle collision. A 1996 GMC Yukon was traveling southbound on US 85 when the vehicle crossed the center line and entered the northbound lane colliding head-on with a 2010 Chrysler Town and Country. The driver of the Chrysler has been identified as Miguel Cruz. The passenger has been identified as Selena Cruz. The driver and passenger were both wearing seat belts and succumbed to injuries sustained at the crash. The driver of the GMC has been identified as 44-year-old Cheyenne, Wyoming resident Lila Mikesell. Mikesell was not wearing her seat belt and succumbed to her injuries at the scene of the crash. Reckless driving and impairment are being investigated on the part of Mikesell as contributing factors. Submit Your News We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form SCOTTSBLUFF Friday was the first day that thousands of federal government workers didnt receive a paycheck due to the ongoing shutdown affecting numerous agencies. Until the government reopens, several local businesses have stepped up to help their neighbors Hod Kosman, CEO and president of Platte Valley Companies, said this is the second time his bank has extended credit to federal employees in western Nebraska, eastern Wyoming and northern Colorado. A federal government shutdown in 2013 was more widespread than the current situation, but Platte Valley Banks offered zero interest loans for the duration of the shutdown. Once the government reopens, federal employees will get their back pay and will be able to repay the loan interest free, Kosman said. Right now we just want to keep people whole. I hope this shutdown gets resolved soon, but its out of my hands. First State Bank has also been helping its customers with similar emergencies for more than a decade. Theyve been offering an interest-free loan product to help people with short-term cash flow needs. In a prepared statement, the bank said those loans are also available to federal government workers that are affected by the ongoing shutdown. Ogden jazz icon Joe McQueen may be gone, but his memory and legacy live on. One physical reminder of his life, McQueen's lifelong home at 3158 Grant Ave., has now become available for sale. The house received extensive remodeling, but as investor Richard Casperson has said, "Joe's energy is U nited States President Donald Trump has said he has "no idea" whether he will be able to strike a deal with the Democrats for his border wall and end the longest government partial shutdown in the nation's history. The president did not tip his hand on Saturday on whether he will move ahead with an emergency declaration that could break the impasse, free up money for his wall without congressional approval and kick off legal challenges and a political storm over the use of that extraordinary step. A day earlier, he said he was not ready to do it "right now". Politicians are due back in Washington from their states and congressional districts in the new week. Mr Trump fired off a series of tweets pushing back against the notion that he does not have a strategy to end what became the longest government shutdown in US history when it entered its 22nd day on Saturday. "Elections have consequences!" he declared, meaning the 2016 election in which "I promised safety and security" and, as part of that, a border wall. Mr Trump threatened anew that the shutdown could continue indefinitely as the Democrats, who now control the House, refuse to give him money for the wall. He said that the Democrats "could solve the Shutdown in 15 minutes" and that he was "ready to sign" a deal. The US Capitol Building in Washington, DC / EPA He tweeted: "I am in the White House waiting for Cryin' Chuck and Nancy to call so we can start helping our Country both at the Border and from within." Later on Saturday, he telephoned Fox News Channel's Justice with Judge Jeanine Pirro from the White House. Ms Pirro pressed Mr Trump on why he had yet to declare a national emergency. He said he was giving Congress a chance to "act responsibly". The president is expected in the new week to sign legislation passed by Congress to provide back pay for some 800,000 federal workers who are not being paid during the shutdown. A construction crew works as new sections of the US-Mexico border barrier are installed / Getty Images Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, travelling in Abu Dhabi, claimed that morale is good among US diplomats even as many work without pay. "We're doing our best to make sure it doesn't impact our diplomacy," he said. Almost half of the State Department employees in the US and about one-quarter abroad have been granted a leave of absence during the shutdown. With the exception of certain local employees overseas, the rest are working without pay, such as those tasked with supporting Mr Pompeo's trip, which has thus far taken him to Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Bahrain. An emergency declaration by Mr Trump could break the stalemate by letting him use existing, unspent money to build the US-Mexico border wall, without needing congressional approval. Democrats oppose that step but may be unable to stop it and many Republicans are wary too. Nevertheless the administration has accelerated planning for it. Officials explored diverting money from a range of accounts, including 13.9 billion dollars given to the Army Corps of Engineers after last year's deadly hurricanes and floods, but that option appeared to lose steam following an outcry. Other possibilities included tapping asset forfeiture funds, such as money seized from drug kingpins, according to a congressional Republican. The White House also was eyeing military construction money, another politically difficult choice because it would take away from a backlog of hundreds of projects. T hree German skiers have been killed in an avalanche, bringing severe weather related deaths in Europe to 24. A fourth is missing following an avalanche at the Austrian ski resort of Lech am Arlberg. The bodies of the men were recovered on Saturday evening, a few hours after the wife of one of the men reported them missing. It comes as parts of Europe faces extreme weather with heavy snow hitting several countries. Two workers remove snow after a blizzard in the Austrian Alpine ski resort of Obertauern / REUTERS The three dead men, from the Upper Swabia area of southwestern Germany, were aged 57, 36 and 32. The fourth person, who is 28 and also from southern Germany, was still missing, a police statement said. Heavy snow has hit the Austrian Alps in the past week, raising avalanche warning levels and cutting off local roads. The aftermath of an avalanche that hit the Hotel Saentis in Hundwil, Switzerland / EPA The warning level in the area above 2,000 metres (6,560 feet) on Saturday was 3 on a scale that goes up to 5. Soldiers, firefighters and volunteers in Austria have been attempting to clear roads left cut-off by the sheer amount of snow. While in Munich, a nine-year-old boy was killed after a tree collapsed under the weight of snow. People clear snow from inside the Hotel Saentis in Schwaegalp, Switzerland / AP According to reports, at least one person was dug out of the snow. Images from the scene show the sheer power of the avalanche, completely blanketing the hotel and the surrounding area. In Norways Svaldard islands, more than 200 people have been evacuated due to a storm and a risk of avalanche. While parts of Greece were left blanketed in snow including popular landmark the Acropolis. T he death toll from an explosion at a bakery in Paris has risen to four, according to authorities. The blast occurred on Saturday morning in the Rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondissement of north-central Paris. Dozens of people were injured with 10 of them still in a critical condition. Yesterday, three people were confirmed dead, two firefighters and a Spanish national, however the death toll has since risen. A vehicle is overturned amid debris after the explosion / AFP/Getty Images Firefighters found a body among the rubble. Paris fire department spokesman Eric Moulin told reporters about 30 firefighters were at the site to search for other potential victims, amid a mountain of debris and wrecked cars. Paris authorities said 12 neighbouring buildings that were damaged by the blast apparently due to a gas leak have been evacuated. A general view shows debris and car wreckage following the explosion of a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise / AFP/Getty Images Temporary accommodations were provided for about 40 residents while dozens of others have been housed by family and friends. Firefighters pulled injured victims out of windows and evacuated residents as smoke billowed out of the building after the incident at 9am local time (8am GMT). Firemen work at the site of an explosion in a bakery shop in the 9th District in Paris, France / Reuters Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said that the cause appears to be an accidental gas leak. He said that Paris firefighters were already at the scene to investigate a suspected gas leak at the bakery when the explosion happened. Firefighters intervene after the explosion / AFP/Getty Images An investigation was opened to determine the exact cause of the blast, he said. Fire burns at the site of an explosion at a bakery shop in Paris / AFP/Getty Images Witnesses described the overwhelming sound of the blast and people trapped inside nearby buildings. Several people were injured in the blast / EPA A multimillionaire explorer who was the first to reach the deepest point of the Atlantic Ocean is preparing for his next dive in unmapped depths, thousands of metres below the surface. Victor Vescovo, 53, became the first person to reach the depths of the Puerto Rico Trench last month on a solo mission piloting a $US 32.5 million (25.4 million) submarine almost five miles (8376 metres) below the surface. The trench was previously explored to approximately 8,300 metres by the French submersible Archimede in 1964. It was an extremely exciting, and rewarding, if quite quiet, event, Mr Vescovo said. Explorer Victor Vescovo is on an extreme mission to conquer the deepest points of the world's oceans. / Five Deeps Expedition It was such a great feeling to pilot this craft, that only existed on paper three years ago, to the bottom of such a historic ocean for the first time. With just me in the sub, it was almost peaceful to slowly drift down to the bottom almost soundlessly. I must admit it was quite a relief as well, to prove the submersible could get to that location -- the second deepest of the Five Deeps - without major issues. Mr Vescovo has already climbed to the highest peak of each of the worlds seven continents and trekked to both the north and south poles. The Discovery Channel is following Victor Vescovo around the world as he conquers some of the deepest points of the ocean. / Five Deeps Expedition His next extreme feat is to conquer the deepest points of the ocean. The American private equity investor and co-founder of Insight Equity, is leading the charge of an expedition known as the Five Deeps, in a bid to prove himself as the ultimate explorer. A Discovery Channel documentary about the dives is due to air later this year or early 2020. The next stop for Mr Vescovo and his team will be the Sandwich Trench - the deepest point in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica, about 100 kilometres east of the South Sandwich Islands - an area that has barely been explored. Getting 8,428 metres below the surface is not easy or cheap and it is hoped the dive will grant Mr Vescovo naming rights. His specially built submarine will need to withstand more than 16,000 psi (pounds per square inch) more than 1,000 times the standard atmospheric pressure at sea level. Explorer Victor Viscovo has already conquered the world's highest peaks and the two poles, now he wants to go to the other extreme - the deepest points of the oceans. / Five Deeps Expedition The 11.2-ton Triton submarine, named Limiting Factor, has a 9cm-thick titanium hull built using advanced forging techniques and tested in Russia to conditions equivalent to 13,198 metres, or 20 percent greater than the oceans deepest point. It can descend to 10,950 metres in less than two-and-a-half hours, time he can spend exploring the ocean deep using four cameras I am extremely confident that by the end of the expedition we will have the most capable submarine research system in the world, tested in the most extreme way possible, and ready to undertake extraordinary science all over the world for decades to come, Mr Vescovo said. It is the job of geologist Heather Stewart at the British Geological Survey to find where the deepest point of South Sandwich Trench is. Heather Stewart, a geologist with the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh, was one of the scientists tasked with finding the deepest points for Mr Vescovo's dives. / Five Deeps Expedition Ms Stewart also mapped the Puerto Rico trench for the expedition to ensure Mr Vescovo reached the deepest point. (The Puerto Rico trench) is not the deepest place that I've mapped but its really, really interesting to then send a multi-million pound submarine down, that's something that I've definitely not done before, Ms Stewart said. It was quite a challenge to find where are we going to put Victor so that we know that he's definitely in the deepest point in the Atlantic. Ms Stewart said there was a false impression that a lot is known about the seafloor. When in reality more people have been into space than to what is known as the Hadal zone - the depth of around 6,000 to 11,000 metres She said the South Sandwich Trench is one of the very poorly mapped areas. Theres literally nothing, all the data thats available is derived from satellites and its really poor, she said. To find the deepest point for Mr Vescovo to travel to - a task that can take days - Ms Stewart will be using new, state of the art mapping kit known as an echo sounder, which is mounted to the hull of the teams boat. Next the team will be heading to the Java Trench in the Indian ocean to depths of 7,290 metres, to the Mariana Trench/Challenger Deep in the Pacific Ocean to a depth of 10,925 metres and the Molloy Deep in the Arctic Ocean to 5,573 metres. A disability writer has hit out at the Bird Box challenge, and created her own video to highlight the reality of losing your sight. Sassy Wyatt, 27, uploaded a video after seeing people taking on the Bird Box challenge in which people try to do tasks blindfolded following the success of the Netflix film. In the film Bird Box, the characters wear blindfolds to cover their eyes from the evil that chases them. Ms Wyatt who has her own website Thinking Out Loud told the Standard: I feel there isnt enough education in the world about what it is like to live with blindness. People make snapshot judgements and decisions on a daily basis about me and my life and so I am to challenge those perceptions with humour and tenacity. These YouTubers are not showing a real depiction of what living life with blindness is really like. Videos by mainstream vloggers have proved incredibly popular on the video sharing website with some amassing upwards of two million views. Sassy Wyatt has hit out at those doing the Bird Box challenge / Sassy Wyatt A version by YouTuber Jake Paul was removed by the website after he was pictured driving while wearing a blindfold. Ms Wyatt chose to create her own version with a plot twist at the end. Ms Wyatt decided to create her own video in response to the craze / Sassy Wyatt In her video, she completes tasks such as making tea and brushing her teeth. I chose those specific actions for two main reasons, these are the activities I do on a daily basis without a second thought but when people meet me for the first time they usually ask me Do you have a carer who looks after you? How do you cook food? she says. People are astonished to believe that I can dress myself and use dangerous objects like a kettle or a knife without injuring myself. At one point Ms Wyatt chooses what to wear / Sassy Wyatt Towards the end of the video, Ms Wyatt reveals that she is visually impaired and explains how Bird Box has missed the mark when it comes to educating people about visual impairment. If they were to be more conscious of the tasks they were doing, their actions werent so overplayed and offensive and they took the time to discuss their thoughts and opinions of what it would be like to lose their vision, I may be more inclined to find it fun. These vloggers did this for views, likes and subscribers and nothing else. Ms Wyatt says that vloggers have a responsibility to their audience. Sight loss isnt easy and it takes people time to develop skills such as cooking and crossing a road safely, we adapt and learn new skills and techniques to live full and independent lives. T he Met Office has ruled out snow in the UK this coming week. It comes despite the nation bracing itself for a bitter cold snap, with temperatures set to plunge from mid-week onwards. A whiteout had earlier been considered a possibility, but meteorologist John West told the Standard on Sunday that conditions will be too dry for that to happen. He said: We are not looking at snow in the next five days. It will turn cold from midweek onwards, with temperatures taking a dip by Wednesday and highs of just 5C or 6C. However, Thursday is looking dry, so there are no signs of snow. "It cant be ruled out in the obvious places, like the top of Scotland, but UK-wide its unlikely. On Sunday night, moving into Monday morning, temperatures are set to remain relatively mild - though strong winds will continue. Mr West added: What we are going to see overnight is showers coming down from the north. It will be quite windy, and that will turn into snow over the hills and mountains of Scotland. Elsewhere, though, it will be dry across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It will generally be cloudy, with the north-east of Scotland and north-east of England most prone to overnight frost. The winds will ease out by the morning, but there is a possibility of rain in eastern England as well as London. S ir John Major has said revoking Article 50 is the only sensible course, claiming a no-deal Brexit would be morally reprehensible. Writing in the Sunday Times, the former prime minister accepted that not leaving the EU would be politically uncomfortable. His comments come as Theresa May is preparing to put her Brexit blueprint to a vote in the House of Commons. Sir John, who led the country between 1990 and 1997 backed a second ballot of Britains membership of the European Union. Writing that the divisions between people on both sides of the referendum debate have become "bitter and entrenched", Sir John added: "The cost of a no-deal Brexit to our national wellbeing would be heavy and long-lasting. Theresa May is preparing for a vote on her Brexit deal on Tuesday / EPA "The benefits are close to zero. Every single household - rich or poor - would be worse off for many years to come. "Jumping off a cliff has never had a happy ending." He added that a "new process" of national consultation was needed, adding: "No true democracy should deny a considered choice to its people." Meanwhile, London mayor Sadiq Khan has written in the Observer suggesting that Mrs May should step down and call a general election if she loses next week's vote. London Mayor Sadiq Khan said Mrs May should step down if she loses the vote / Getty Images He wrote: "It's clear that if our government and parliament are incapable of finding a way out of this mess, it should be taken out of the hands of the politicians and returned to the British people to take back control." On the other side of the divide on Britain's departure from the European Union, former Brexit secretary Dominic Raab has said Mrs May's deal "suffocates the opportunities Brexit offers". Dominic Raab pictured outside Parliament last month / EPA He wrote: "If MPs vote the deal down, we should continue to press our EU partners for a deal that respects the referendum. "If EU intransigence persists, we must be willing to leave the EU at the end of March on World Trade Organisation terms. "We'd be in a stronger position, then, to continue the negotiations as an independent third country." L iam Fox has been urged to clarify what the UK's future relationship with Switzerland will be like after Brexit, the chairman of the International Trade Committee has urged. SNP MP Angus MacNeil accused the International Trade Secretary of making "blithe assurances of progress" on the transition of a trade agreement between the two countries. Last month, the Government announced that it had approved an agreement with the Swiss Federal Council allowing businesses to continue trading freely after Brexit. The agreement replicates the existing EU-Switzerland arrangements "as far as possible" and will come into effect at the end of the implementation period in January 2021 - or on March 29 if Britain crashes out of the EU without a deal. International Trade Secretary Liam Fox / PA In a letter to Dr Fox, Mr MacNeil called for clarity on which aspects of the current relationship are replicated in the text and asked whether it would enable UK-based firms to continue trading into Switzerland on the "same basis as they do currently". Commenting on the letter to Dr Fox, Mr MacNeil said: "Switzerland's access to the single market requires it to accept both freedom of movement and a significant proportion of EU law. "It is based not only on a trade agreement eliminating tariffs but also on a myriad of other trade-related agreements. The Secretary of State must clarify which aspects of this arrangement are replicated in this agreement with Switzerland. "Has free movement been accepted as part of the agreement to roll-over? Does the agreement allow UK-based firms to continue trading into Switzerland on the same basis as they do today? And what about all the other 39 or so existing EU trade agreements? "Blithe assurances of progress will simply not suffice as the clock ticks down to Brexit on March 29." A Department for International Trade spokeswoman said: "The UK Government and the Swiss Federal Council have approved the transition of a trade agreement that replicates the existing EU-Switzerland arrangements as far as possible. "This will allow businesses to continue trading freely after the UK leaves the European Union." Tory MP Anna Soubry has accused the Met of ignoring abuse - including racism - hurled at politicians and journalists outside Parliament. Speaking to Good Morning Britain today, after she was called a "Nazi" while carrying out interviews on College Green, she said there was a small group of people "roaming around Westminster intimidating people going about their lawful business". The pro-EU MP added that while she expected a level of criticism and abuse as an MP, she expected authorities to act when it "crossed the line". She told GMB: "It crossed the line in December, it was journalists who were being attacked. T heresa May will warn MPs that trust in politicians will suffer "catastrophic harm" if they fail to deliver Brexit. The Prime Minister is set to issue a desperate final rallying cry for MPs to back her Withdrawal Agreement. Ahead of the critical Commons vote on Tuesday, Mrs May will use a speech to factory workers in Stoke-on-Trent to ask MPs to consider the "consequences" of their actions on the faith of British people in democracy. Mrs May, who has been urged by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to call a general election if her deal is voted down, is expected to say: "Imagine if an anti-devolution House of Commons had said to the people of Scotland or Wales that despite voting in favour of a devolved legislature, Parliament knew better and would overrule them. Or else force them to vote again. Corbyn urges May to call general election if Brexit deal voted down "What if we found ourselves in a situation where Parliament tried to take the UK out of the EU in opposition to a remain vote? "People's faith in the democratic process and their politicians would suffer catastrophic harm. "We all have a duty to implement the result of the referendum." Theresa May leaves a church service near her Maidenhead constituency on Sunday / AFP/Getty Images Mrs May will say that while the two sides in the 2016 referendum disagreed on many things, they were united on one thing - that "what the British people decided, the politicians would implement". The speech will continue: "On the rare occasions when Parliament puts a question to the British people directly we have always understood that their response carries a profound significance. "When the people of Wales voted by a margin of 0.3 per cent, on a turnout of just over 50 per cent, to endorse the creation of the Welsh Assembly, that result was accepted by both sides and the popular legitimacy of that institution has never seriously been questioned. Key Brexit moments of 2018: in pictures 1 /23 Key Brexit moments of 2018: in pictures Prime Minister Theresa May speaks during a Cabinet meeting at Chequers in July PA The Cabinet thrashed out a Brexit blue print PA The away day meeting PA Boris Johnson leaves Carlton House Terrace in Westminster after he resigned as Foreign Secretary PA David Davis pictured after quitting the government, resigning his post as Brexit Secretary AFP/Getty Images New role: Jeremy Hunt was appointed as Foreign Secretary in July Getty Images Dominic Raab took over the role of Brexit Secretary in July AP/Matt Dunham Exotic spresm: Liberal Democrats Leader Sir Vince Cable following his speech at the party conference PA More than half a million protesters descended on London for the People's Vote March in October Sky News Demonstrators called for a People's Vote on Brexit during a march in Liverpool earlier this year Getty Images Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, presented the red Budget Box as he revealed the government's financial plans in October Getty Images It was the last Budget before Brexit AFP/Getty Images Mr McDonnell and Jeremy Corbyn listen as Chancellor Philip Hammond delivers his Budget statement AFP/Getty Images New Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay after Dominic Raab quit the post in November Getty Images Esther McVey also resigned as Work and Pensions Secretary Sir Keir Starmer opened the debate on a motion to hold the Government in contempt of Parliament on December 4 AFP/Getty Images Sir Graham Brady (centre), chairman of the 1922 Committee, announces that Theresa May has survived a confidence vote on December 12 PA Theresa May in Downing Street after winning the confidence vote Jeremy Selwyn The Prime Minister confronts Jean-Claude Juncker at an EU summit in December 'You called me nebulous' Philip Sime/Twitter Jeremy Corbyn was accused of mouthing the words "stupid woman" during the last PMQs of the year Jeremy Corbyn responds in the Commons amid the row PA Jeremy Corbyn denied reports he muttered the words "stupid woman" AFP/Getty Images "Parliament understood this fact when it voted overwhelmingly to trigger Article 50. And both major parties did so too when they stood on election manifestos in 2017 that pledged to honour the result of the referendum." On Sunday, four Brexiteer backbenchers announced they will back the Withdrawal Agreement - despite speculation they could vote against it. In a possible sign that the tide is beginning to turn in favour of Mrs May, Tory MPs Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, Sir Edward Leigh, Andrew Murrison and Caroline Johnson said they would support the government in the meaningful vote on Tuesday. P olice are hunting a male suspect after a woman was sexually assaulted on board a train in east London. The assault happened on a train travelling between Stratford and Ilford. A woman was touched inappropriately below the waist by a man she did not know. It was on a busy service, and the victim moved away. But the man followed her and continued to be inappropriate, British Transport Police said. It happened at about 5.25pm on December 11. The force has now released an image of a man it would like to speak to. Family Separation: Part 2 was written by the team of Barbara Hall and David Grae and was directed by Martha Mitchell. The second half of this two part episode maintained the momentum of the first and found a satisfying conclusion to the situation that has only worsened in real life with a government shutdown creating hardship for many Americans as the real life Barker (Lee Tergesen playing the character) throws a tantrum over his wall. And how great was the surprise cameo of Peter Frampton after watching Elizabeth (Tea Leoni) wear a Peter Frampton concert t-shirt as pajamas from most of the series???The episode picks up right where we left off with Elizabeth being booked. Shes hilarious as she becomes flustered as shes being booked with Father DiNardo (Brian Hutchison) one of the other protestors. It turns out that hes familiar with and a big fan of Henrys (Tim Daly). Hes impressed that Elizabeth has taken such a stand, and once again, this allows the show to comment on current events. She tells him that what she saw in the Detention Center crossed a line that she thought their country would never cross. She tells him that the soul of the country is at stake. Given the religious leanings of the extreme right, I really like how the show is able to pick up these threads and show this strong argument against these Detention Centers.Back in Washington, Russell (Zeljko Ivanek) is freaking out over Elizabeths mug shot and the fact that the border deal is dead and the UN are threatening human rights violation action. Henry staunchly defends Elizabeth, pointing out that shes drawing attention to the issue. Keith Carradine is actually really good in this scene as he stays quiet in the background, but its clear that Dalton is carefully weighing what is being said by both. Henry points out lessons from history where democracy has been eroded by creeping human rights violations like Nazi Germany.Henry and Russell both agree that they shouldnt have a public showdown with Barker because that would help his cause. They will have to let things play out in court. Henry tells them Mike B (Kevin Rahm) will go to defend Elizabeth.Mike B arranges a plea deal for Elizabeth she pleads guilty to a lesser charge, pays a small fine and gets released. She, of course, refuses. Shes concerned with the erosion to Federal power and who thought she wouldnt stand by her own convictions? Even Henry tries to persuade her that she can do more good out of prison and as President because they all think that that is in jeopardy.Elizabeth pleads not guilty to all counts. Judge Collins (Lisa Howard) is still disposed to make it easy on Elizabeth, releasing her on her own recognizance and with no bail. Elizabeth refuses and insists that she will stay in jail until all the detained children are released. Lets pause a moment to consider that if this were reality, Elizabeth would still be in jail. The crowd in the courtroom burst into applause for Elizabeth.The Judge allows Elizabeth to make a statement before being taken back to jail. Elizabeth says, No one should rest until this inhuman practice is stopped. All Arizonians, all Americans should make their voices heard. This is not who we are. I think its telling that they picked Arizona which admittedly has a contentious history with their border but it alone sounds a lot like America. Elizabeths speech gets a standing ovation from the gallery.Russell is still not happy, calling Elizabeth Gandhi and Joan of Arc. He insists that shes flying solo when we should all be rowing together I loved that he immediately says he recognizes hes mixed his metaphor! Hes actually worried that her actions will take down the administration. Jay (Sebastian Arcelus), however insists that Arizonas policy deserves a noisy response and Dalton should get behind Elizabeth. Jay would be the obvious successor to Russells position under a President McCord, but I do hope that they are going to find a way to keep Ivanek on the show if we get to Madam President!Russell agrees that Barker should be on his way to the Hague for human rights violation, but thats not whats best for the country and thats what his job is all about. He tells Jay that the job isnt about whats right, but whats best. And all that changes in a moment when theyre told that a guard (Robert Hneleski) at the Detention Center took a video and talked to the press and of course, its the same guard that Elizabeth took to task in the last episode. The video is horrific and could have been one of the ones leaked of the actual Detention Centers.Dalton calls Barker and tells him that hes willing to make some compromises if Barker ends the separation and releases Elizabeth. After all, Barker has now been shamed in front of the world. Barker, of course, is still a first class ass and an idiot, so he refuses to make a deal.Dalton is done and tells Russell that hes fine with going to war with Barker now. Russell suggests going after Barker personally. Jay hilariously suggests looking at his taxes! In case there was anyone who wasnt getting who Barker is a stand in for even the name! BARK-er and the implications of a barker being a snake oil salesman who gets up on a box and will spout any lies to get the crowd to buy his product but I digressRussell wants to draw blood quickly. Attorney General Nolan (John Bolton) argues that Barker has gone beyond his mandate as Governor. His actions have gone so far as to be a human rights violation. He wants to charge him with kidnapping! Dalton tells him to do it hes done with this bastard!Meanwhile, Jay has gone home with the basket Win (Sam Daly) left for him. Hes in pain, so he decides to try some of the pain medications because his leg is killing him and ends up hilariously stoned. And of course, thats when Elizabeth phones him from prison. With public opinion shifting, she wants him to approach Morejon (Jose Zuniga) again. Jay has an idea and runs it past Kat (Sara Ramirez) first.Sam Daly does an excellent job portraying Win as a shallow and somewhat stupid lobbyist. I find the character incredibly annoying but I loved him in this scene as Jay enlists his help to get Morejon on board. First he makes use of Wins ambush skills. After apologizing for the other night at the bar, Jay commiserates that Morejon is in a tight spot, but hes got a way to help the kids and stay tough on border security. Legalized pot would take away the biggest drug market of the drug cartels. And heres where Daly was really great as we finally see that Win is not a complete idiot. He completely understands what hes lobbying for and has the numbers to persuade Morejon.Jay gets Morejon to sponsor two bills that will hold his base of support in his home state and also broaden the demographic of his support. He urges Morejon to be the first to reach across the aisle to end the family separation. Something we could urge for the actual SenateMeanwhile, the date of the wedding renewal vows has been getting steadily closer. Stevie (Wallis Currie-Wood) in desperation for a band, even approaches Daisy (Patina Miller) to sing with Jay and Blake (Erich Bergen). She tells Stevie that she doesnt have time, but she also tells her to throw around Elizabeths name. It works! Stevie ends up with two bands double booked but it all is ultimately for nothing.Henry comes to see Elizabeth in prison on the day of their renewal vows. He gives her the good news that Morejon is supporting the Bill. However, Barker will still fight it in court, and Elizabeth is worried it will start a Constitutional crisis. However, theres not much she can doHenry points out that they cant get back in time for their vow renewal so hes brought it to her and of course, Father DiNardo will officiate! Alison (Kathrine Herzer) has picked out a dress for her too! Elizabeth apologizes that its not the church wedding Henry always wanted, but he points out that theyre there because shes fighting to keep families together and theres nothing more holy than that.Naturally, Mike B is there with a wedding photographer! Henry and Elizabeth have written their own vows Henry actually reads the letter that he wrote to Elizabeth the night before their first wedding skipping the X-rated stuff because of the kids being there. Stevie interrupts to let them know that the Bill got through with enough votes and that Barker has admitted defeat.The kids are all going to be release and so is Elizabeth with all charges dropped. And of course, all this happens at the exact special time when Henry and Elizabeth knew they wanted to marry each other. In the following montage we see that Daniel and his mother from the previous episode are reunited with Kat watching.We also get some personal background about Kat as she goes to visit her father (Danny Mora). Her parents are split with her Irish mother doing theatre in Florida and her father living in New Mexico. He clearly has an issue with her lifestyle and they have a thorny relationship. However, Kat has come because shes worried about what could happen to her father. I thought that this was a great way to shine light on how the hyperbole in the news is affecting legal immigrants. Miguel has a Green Card and has never worked illegally in the US. Kat is still worried about him and insists that he apply for citizenship. He finally agrees, mainly because of how worried she is.In the final scene, everyone is finally celebrating Elizabeth and Henrys renewal vows with a spectacular cake among other things. Elizabeth takes this moment to tell her team officially that she plans to run for President. She thanks them for everything theyve already done, insisting shed never have gotten this far without them, and doesnt see any way to go on without them. And then her favorite song comes on Baby, I Love Your Way and she rushes out to turn it up only to find the actual Peter Frampton singing on her staircase! What a great reveal and cameo!I really liked this two part episode and it wrapped up in a very satisfying way. What did you think of the episode? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below! PHOENIX The U.S. military's highest priority weather satellite, a spacecraft requested by U.S. Strategic Command to observe clouds and theaters of operations, is on hold after NASA rescinded the contract award. In September the Space Rapid Capabilities Office, working with the NASA Ames Research Center's small spacecraft prototyping office, awarded Sierra Nevada Corp. a $119 million contract to develop a satellite to gather cloud and theater imagery until the service finds a long-term solution to fulfilling its weather requirements. In October, Space Systems Loral protested the award and NASA rescinded it. Now, NASA is closed and the Air Force will discuss what to do next on the program, known as ORS-8, when the government shutdown ends, Ralph Stoffler, Air Force weather director, told SpaceNews. ORS-8 competitors declined to comment on the protest or award, which was made through an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract (IDIQ) vehicle called Small Spacecraft Prototyping Engineering Development and Integration (SSPEDI). However, Dario Zamarian, SSL group president, said by email, "A Maxar Technologies company, SSL is honored to be one of the SSPEDI IDIQ primes and looks forward to supporting the U.S. Air Force's roadmap for space-based weather observing missions. Based on our long history of delivering reliable satellite systems, SSL has assembled a team of experts with strong credentials in meteorological systems." Weather monitoring and forecasting are key to successful military operations but the Air Force has struggled for years to replace aging weather satellites. Now, the service has plans in place to update its constellation, but Stoffler said he will continue to worry until the task is completed. "Theater weather and clouds are the most critical things that I worry about," Stoffler said at the American Meteorological Conference here. "Defense Meteorological Satellite Program is coming to end-of-life and sometime in 2021 the European satellites probably will, too." The U.S. military relies heavily on DMSP-17 launched in 2006 and DMSP-18 launched in 2009, polar-orbiting satellites that cross the equator in the morning to gather global weather data. To keep watch on U.S. Central Command, the military obtains observations from Eumetsat's Meteosat 8, a geostationary weather satellite that is likely to run out of fuel in a couple years. [In Photos: US Air Force Launches DMSP-19 Military Weather Satellite ] Before Meteosat 8 stops working, the Air Force hopes to move a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite into a similar orbit. "We are still working with NOAA about potentially floating one of their old satellites over," Stoffler said. "When the European satellite goes away, that fixes Central Command." It is a temporary fix, though. In the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act, the House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee asked the Air Force Secretary for a plan by March 1 to acquire persistent weather imagery over Central Command without relying on foreign or legacy NOAA spacecraft. As the Air Force sorts out these questions, Stoffler remains enthusiastic about private sector capabilities. "One thing I'm really hanging my hat on is a lot of companies are looking at commercial weather applications," Stoffler said. "Congress plussed us up to buy commercial weather data. We are trying to use that money to help some of them get into that business." Small satellite constellations, for example, may help the Air Force grapple with its long-term need for electro-optical and infrared imagery. "There are a lot of people launching big constellations of small satellites," Stoffler said. "If you put some electro-optical/infrared sensors on some of those satellites, the global coverage you get is phenomenal with a refresh rate that is phenomenal as well. I think that's the future of where we're going." This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. The New Horizons spacecraft, which flew past Pluto in 2015, successfully completed a flyby of "Ultima Thule," an object in the Kuiper belt of bodies beyond Neptune on January 1, 2019. The name Ultima Thule, signifying a distant unknown place, is fitting but it is currently just a nickname pending formal naming. The official names of the body and of the features on its surface will eventually be allocated (this could take years) by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), which celebrates its centenary in 2019. The IAU's achievements during its first few decades include resolving contradictory sets of names given to features on the Moon and Mars by rival astronomers during the previous few centuries. The nomenclature working group's task would then have been largely over, had the space age not dawned allowing space probes to send back images revealing spectacular landscape details on planets and their moons. Map of the Moon by Michael van Langren (1655). (Image credit: Public Domain/Wikipedia) Planetary scientists would find life difficult without names for at least the largest or most prominent features on a body. If there were no names, the only ways to be sure that other investigators could locate the same feature would be by numbering them or specifying map coordinates. Either option would be cumbersome and unmemorable. The rules Building on some of the already entrenched lunar and martian names, the IAU imposed order by establishing themes for the names of features on each body. For example, large craters on Mars are named after deceased scientists and writers associated with Mars (there's an Asimov and a Da Vinci), and craters less than 60km across are named after towns and villages on Earth (there's a Bordeaux and a Cadiz). Apart from craters, most names are in two parts, with a "descriptor term" of Latin origin added to denote the type of feature that has been named. On Mars we find neighbouring valleys called Ares Vallis, Tiu Vallis and Simud Vallis, in which the descriptor term "Vallis" is Latin for valley. This is preceded by the word for "Mars" in a different language in these examples Greek, Old English/Germanic and Sumerian respectively. Among other descriptor terms are Chasma (a deep, elongated depression), Mons (mountain), Planitia (a low lying plain) and Planum (a high plain or plateau). Descriptor terms are chosen to avoid implying that we know how any particular feature formed. For example, there are many scarps on Mercury that are currently interpreted as thrust faults (where one region of a planet's surface has been pushed over another). However, a neutral descriptor term in this case Rupes (Latin for scarp) is used so they would not have to be renamed if we were to realise that we'd been misinterpreting them. Similarly, none of the giant mountains on Mars that are almost certainly volcanoes has volcano as a formal part of its name. The largest volcano on Mars, Olympus Mons, coincides with an ephemeral bright spot that can sometimes be discerned through telescopes. Though this was initially dubbed Nix Olympica (meaning "the snows of Olympus") by the 19th-century observer, Giovanni Schiaparelli, space probes have since shown that the temporary brightness is not snow but clouds that sometimes gather around the summit. The IAU decided to keep the Olympus part of the name, qualified by the more appropriate descriptor Mons (mountain in Latin). Approved names on global topographic map of Mars. (Image credit: USGS) On the Moon, the IAU retained Mare (Latin for sea) as a descriptor term for dark spots, even though it is clear they have never been water-filled as was once thought. However, Michael van Langren's Mare Langrenianum, which he immodestly named after himself on his 1655 map, is now Mare Fecunditatis. Cultural balance The IAU is rightly sensitive to achieving cultural and gender balance. The names of lunar craters that the IAU inherited commemorate famous past scientists, which for historical reasons are dominantly male and Western. In partial compensation, the IAU decided that all features on Venus, whose surface was virtually unknown because of its global cloud cover until we got radar spacecraft into orbit, would be named after females (deceased or mythical). For example, there is a Nightingale Corona, a large oval-shaped feature named after Florence Nightingale. The only non-female exceptions are three features that had already been named after being detected by Earth-based radar. Prior to the first detailed images of Jupiter's moons by Voyager-1 in 1979, the IAU planned to use names from the myths of peoples in Earth's equatorial zone for the moon Io. It would use mythical names from the European temperate zone for Europa, names from near-Eastern mythology for Ganymede and names from far northern cultures for Callisto. A map of part of Io, with names added. (Image credit: USGS) They stuck to the latter three, and so Europa has Annwn Regio (a region named after the Welsh "Otherworld"), and Ganymede and Callisto have craters named Anubis (Egyptian jackal-headed god) and Valhalla (Norse warriors' feast hall). However, because Io was revealed to be undergoing continual volcanic eruptions, the original naming theme was deemed inappropriate and was replaced by the names of fire, sun, thunder/lightning and volcano deities from across the world's cultures. For example, the names Ah Peku, Camaxtli, Emakong, Maui, Shamshu, Tawhaki, and Tien Mu (which occur on the map above) come from fire, thunder or Sun myths of the Mayans, the Aztecs, New Britain, Hawaii, Arabia, the Maoris, and China, respectively. Captain Cook and the Maoris The IAU has struggled to achieve cultural balance for some features. For example, the theme for Rupes on Mercury is "ships of discovery or scientific expeditions." By the nature of world history, there is a preponderance of Western ship names. For example, we find Adventure, Discovery, Endeavour, and Resolution all four ships from Captain Cook's 18th-century voyages to the Southern Ocean and Pacific. Read more: Mysterious red spots on Mercury get names but what are they? Personally, I am content that these were primarily journeys of scientific discovery rather than of conquest or colonisation. Cook's first voyage was undertaken to observe a rare transit of Venus, and his second voyage reached further south than ever before. Endeavour Rupes, the shadowed escarpment in the middle of a 400km wide view of Mercury. (Image credit: NASA/JHUAPL/CIW) That said, it would be nice to redress the balance. In connection with a European planetary mapping project, one of my PhD students and I hope to get at least one of Mercury's as yet unnamed Rupes named after a canoe in which the Maoris arrived in New Zealand. Ultimately, space exploration is for all of humanity. David Rothery, Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates and become part of the discussion on Facebook, Twitter and Google +. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. This version of the article was originally published on Space.com. Georgetown, SC (29440) Today Sunshine and clouds mixed. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High 86F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 63F. Winds light and variable. SPEAK OUT The Tribune invites readers to express their views in the Voice of the People column and in Viewpoint. Letters to the Voice of the People are limited to 200 words. Viewpoint columns should be no more than 700 words. Both Viewpoint and Voice of the People submissions are subject to editing. All submissions must include the writer's full name, which will be printed. Letters, including e-mail, which do not include the writer's street address and telephone number will not be considered for publication. This information is kept confidential but is necessary for verification purposes. Letters may be mailed to the Editorial Department, South Bend Tribune, 635 S. Lafayette Blvd., Suite 138, South Bend IN 46601; emailed to vop@sbtinfo.com, faxed to 574-236-1765, or submitted through our online form here. Due to volume, it is not possible to print all submissions. Except in special circumstances, we do not print poetry or thank-you letters. We do not print letters announcing events to come, extensive quotations from other material, open letters or form letters. People walk in the street as snow falls Saturday on the campus of Notre Dame. PHILIPSBURG:--- The National Institute for Professional Advancement, NIPA, is the latest recipient of a generous donation made by Seven Seas Waters (St. Maarten). The donation was recently made to the institution, following a request made by the school for much-needed assistance. Due to the passing of hurricane Irma in September 2017, many of the schools tools and resources were either damaged, stolen or destroyed, placing students in a position of disadvantage, said NIPA director Sergio Blomont. As such, the school decided it was time to approach the local community for assistance, with an eye on acquiring new tools and resources deemed necessary in providing students with top-notch skills training, he said. These tools and resources will be particularly beneficial to the students currently enrolled in the Social Pedagogical Worker Program, which trains students to care for the elderly and the youth. Seven Seas Water managing director Franklyn Richards recently visited the institute to present a cheque to the school and reiterated the companys ongoing commitment to assist, whenever possible, to the academic and social development of St. Maartens youth. He said that the company strives to give content to its role of good corporate citizen and expressed the hope that the Seven Seas Water donation would significantly help NIPA in realizing its objectives. ~ Police busy with investigations.~ PHILIPSBURG:---- Police and the Public Prosecutor had to rush to Passion Fruit Road in Retreat Estate to investigate the death of a three-year-old boy who was run over by a car. Police Spokesman Ricardo Henson said that the circumstances surrounding the death of the young child are very unclear, thus police including the Public Prosecutor are on the scene conducting the investigation. Henson that there are lots of rumors circulating one being that two groups of young men were having a disagreement. Henson said one of the men in one group took a vehicle and ran it into another group but police cannot determine whether the death of the toddler is intentional. Henson further explained that police are hearing that there was a fight among the two groups of young men while they are also hearing that Sunday morning feud that led to the death of a toddler was about a scooter. Henson also confirmed that three other persons were taken to the St. Maarten Medical Center for treatment while the driver of the vehicle is currently in police custody. Toddler dies in a violent incident Patrol officers, paramedics, Detectives, and Forensic department on Sunday, January 13th at approximately 10.20 a.m. were directed to Passion Fruit road in Retreat Estate to investigate a serious incident in which a toddler and several other persons were injured. On the scene, the investigating officers learned that the driver of a small white private vehicle had driven this vehicle into a group of young men that were at the entrance of a home. Included in this group was the toddler of approximately 3 years. As a result of the action by the driver of the small white vehicle, the toddler died of the injuries he sustained and three other persons were taken to the Sint Maarten Medical center to be treated for injuries they sustained. The scene had been closed off by the investigating officers for the Detectives to speak to potential witnesses and for the Forensic investigators to evidence. It is still very unclear why this incident happened and there are many rumors going around in the community and on Social Media to the cause of the incident. This case at this time is being treated a criminal investigation. Two suspects, in this case, have voluntarily turned themselves in to investigators at the Philipsburg Police Station where they remain in custody pending further investigation. More details to this case at this time are unavailable. As soon as these become available the media will be informed. KPSM Press Release. Garbage Truck worker killed by accident A 59-year-old garbage truck worker lost his life early Sunday morning. Henson said police is also busy investigating the death of a scavenger (garbage truck worker) that lost his life during the early hours on Sunday morning. Henson based on preliminary investigation it is believed that the Haitian national slipped off the garbage truck he was working on and the vehicle ran over him causing him to die on the spot. The accident occurred on Well Road in the vicinity of Peterson Plaza Cole Bay. Garbage collector crushed by vehicle The Police Traffic Department is presently investigating an accident involving a garbage collector who was run over by the garbage truck he worked on. The incident took place on Sunday, January 13th at approximately 04.30 a.m. on the Wellington road in the vicinity of Petersons Plaza. Police patrols who were first on the scene encountered the male victim identified with initials T.M. (59) a Haitian national lying on the street and were not showing any signs of life. The officers started to give the victim CPR until the arrival of the paramedics who took over the treatment. The victim, however, could not be revived and had died of the injuries he sustained. According to a witness, the victim lost his balance when he jumped off the back of the truck at the same time the driver was reversing the vehicle and he was accidentally run over. Dr. Mercuur came to the scene and pronounced the death of the victim. The investigation into this case thus far does not indicate any foul play. KPSM Press Release. Basseterre, St. Kitts:--- Some fifteen nationals of the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis were deported from the United States in 2018, according to statistics obtained from the United States Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). ICE statistics indicate sixteen Kittitians and Nevisians were deported from the US in 2017, nine in 2016, 15 in 2015 and seventeen in 2014. A total of 72 nationals deported in the last five years. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Deputy Director Ronald D. Vitiello announced Friday that in the past fiscal year, which ended in September, ICE has detained a record number of people in the country illegally and that the number of those deported has risen about 13 percent since 2017. The data, which comes from a new agency report, shows that 145,262 of those deported were convicted criminals and that 22,796 had criminal charges pending against them. In addition, 5,872 were reported as known or suspected gang members, and 42 were believed to be terrorists, according to the report. The number of families and unaccompanied children who were deported also increased. ICE said that 2,711 who were traveling in families and 5,571 unaccompanied children were removed from U.S. soil. PHILIPSBURG:--- The Detective Department is presently investigating a case of breaking and entering at the Family Book Store and an attempt at the UTS building in Philipsburg. The arrest of the suspect took place after a security guard on duty in that area saw the suspect as he committed these two acts. After the security guard had seen what had taken place he immediately went to the police station in Philipsburg and informed them what he had seen including a description of the suspect. Immediately a police patrol went into Philipsburg to search for the suspect. Short after in the vicinity of the Roman Catholic Church on Front Street, the patrol saw a man fitting the description of the suspect. The suspect was also sweating quite heavily. During a search of the suspect identified with initials J.E. (23), a sum of money and other evidence were found on the suspect. He was arrested immediately on the spot and taken to the Police Station where he remains in custody for further investigation. The items found on the suspect were also confiscated for further investigation. KPSM Press Release. Colorado: Hundreds of years before John Wayne and Gary Cooper gave us a Hollywood version of the American West, with men as the brute, weather-beaten stewards of the land, female ranchers roamed the frontier. They were the indigenous, Navajo, Cheyenne and other tribes, and Spanish-Mexican rancheras, who tended and tamed vast fields, traversed rugged landscapes with their dogs, hunted and raised livestock. The descendants of European settlers brought with them ideas about the roles of men and women, and for decades, family farms and ranches were handed down to men. Now, as mechanisation and technology transform the ranching industry, making the job of cowboy less about physical strength though female ranchers have that in spades and more about business, animal husbandry and the environment, women have reclaimed their connection to the land. Caitlyn Taussig after a cow kicked a gate, splitting open her forehead, on the family ranch in Kremmling, Colorado. She helps run the ranch with a cadre of cowgirls, including her mother and sister. Credit:New York Times At the same time, the brothers, sons and grandsons who would have historically inherited a family ranch have, in the last decade, opted to pursue less gritty work. As a result, in 2012, 14 per cent of the nations 2.1 million farms had a female proprietor, according to the US Department of Agriculture. That ratio may rise, as over half the farms and ranches in the United States are expected to change hands over the next 20 years. In Los Angeles, the idea recently surfaced of naming the international airport in Obama's honour. The recommendation came from the City Council in West Hollywood, a small but prominent city in the heart of the LA metropolis that recently voted to support the renaming of Los Angeles International Airport for the former president. A section of a Los Angeles freeway has been named after Barack Obama. The former president attended Occidental College in Eagle Rock near the highway. Credit:AP After all, New York renamed its international airport in honour of John F. Kennedy, and Congress added Ronald Reagan to the name of Washington National Airport. So when a constituent suggested the notion of an Obama airport, West Hollywood Council member Lauren Meister said she didn't hesitate. "I said, 'Yeah, sounds like a good idea." Loading Meister said Obama was admired globally and was the perfect image for welcoming visitors to sunny southern California. "Having an airport that (recognises) the first African-American president, someone who won the Nobel Peace Prize, who got us out of the 2008 economic crisis and gave us affordable healthcare should be celebrated," Meister said. She said the resolution is being sent to Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and could go to the airport commission. A spokeswoman for the airport commission said it had no comment. If the airport idea doesn't fly, Obama can still count on LA to have done its part. A stretch of Ventura Freeway, which is State Route 134, was renamed in his honour last year. It's now the President Barack H. Obama Highway. Loading State Senator Anthony Portantino, who pushed through the legislation, said Obama would certainly be familiar with the route: he commuted on it when he attended Occidental College in Los Angeles in the late 1970s. "It's the actual stretch of freeway he used," Portantino said. "There is a proud connection. His early political career was inspired by his days here." Portantino said he raised the nearly $US7000 ($9700) to buy the freeway signs by throwing a fundraiser. The outpouring was so great that he said money was left over, which was donated to the Obama Foundation, the Chicago non-profit that is building the Barack Obama Presidential Centre. As if the freeway wasn't enough, Rodeo Road in central Los Angeles, not to be confused with the famous Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, will be renamed Obama Boulevard. In Chicago, a proposal to rename a crucial freeway after Obama has become enmeshed in local politics. Bill Daley, who is running for mayor, proposed last month to have the Dan Ryan Expressway renamed for his former boss. He was Obama's chief of staff. "Our Chicago expressways are named after towering figures in our history," Daley said in a statement, citing Kennedy, former president Dwight Eisenhower and former Democratic presidential nominee Adlai Stevenson. "We should have one for Obama." Obama began his political career as a community organiser in Chicago and rose to prominence first as a state legislator, then as a US senator from Illinois before seeking the presidency. But Daley's suggestion has run into opposition from the family of Ryan, a local politician for decades, the Chicago Sun-Times reported last month. Obama already has a freeway named after him in Illinois. A section of Interstate 55 near the town of Pontiac is the Barack Obama Presidential Expressway. In New York, an online petition by progressive organisation MoveOn has gathered more than 32,000 signatures calling for renaming part of Fifth Avenue President Barack H. Obama Avenue. Which part? Only the block between 56th and 57th streets, which just happens to be the stretch in front of the Trump Tower. The choice of that particular stretch was no coincidence, said the Los Angeles legal secretary who started the petition after getting the idea from an internet meme. "Honestly, (the idea) is petty and vindictive, but as someone pointed out, so is Trump," said Elizabeth Rowin, who watched the popularity of her idea balloon over about three weeks. As the president who oversaw the commando operation that netted Osama bin Laden, Obama deserves the honor, Rowin said. She plans to deliver the petition to New York City mayor Bill de Blasio and the City Council once she has some more signatures. "I think we could get 100,000," she said. Damascus: A Syrian mother has attempted to burn herself and her children to death at a refugee camp in eastern Syria after she failed to find food for her family for three straight days, a civil defence spokesman says. The remote Rukban refugee camp near the Syria-Jordan border was cut off from humanitarian support for months at a time during 2018. Credit:AP Sundus Fathallah, 28, set herself and her three starving children on fire inside a tent at Rukban refugee camp on Saturday, spokesman Khaled al-Ali told the DPA news agency. Other refugees at the camp put out the fire and took the woman and her children to hospital, the spokesman said on Sunday. The woman and her infant were seriously hurt, while two older children suffered minor injuries. Beirut: Artillery shelling by government forces pounded parts of the north-western Idlib province on Saturday, thwarting an infiltration attempt by militants as tension rises in the region following victories by al-Qaida-linked militants against Turkey-backed opposition fighters, Syria's state news agency reported. The violence came as officials in neighbouring Turkey said efforts are being exerted to maintain stability in Idlib. SANA said the shelling focused on the areas of Zarzour near the border with Turkey and Tamanaa near Maaret al-Numan that was taken this week by al-Qaida- linked militants from Turkey-backed opposition fighters. It reported casualties among the militants. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the government shelled six areas in and near Idlib province. Paris: Police fired water cannon and tear gas to push back "yellow vest" demonstrators from around the Arc de Triomphe monument, in the ninth straight weekend of protests throughout France against President Emmanuel Macron's economic reforms. Paris was rocked early on Saturday when a powerful explosion caused by a gas leak blew apart a bakery and devastated the street it was on, killing three people and injuring dozens as it blasted out windows and overturned nearby cars. Thousands of protesters marched noisily but mostly peacefully through the Grands Boulevards shopping area in northern Paris, close to where the gas explosion killed two firefighters and a Spanish tourist earlier in the day. A police officer aims a flash ball gun during clashes with yellow vest protesters on the famed Champs Elysees avenue in Paris on Saturday. Credit:AP But small groups of demonstrators broke away from the designated route and threw bottles and other projectiles at the police. In one of the most important UK political moments in the post-war era, the House of Commons will vote on Tuesday on the Brexit withdrawal deal. The ballot begins perhaps the most decisive few weeks in modern UK political history as Parliament now takes much more control of the fraught process after a series of dramatic legislative amendments last week. With the scheduled deadline for Britain to leave the EU at the end of March fast approaching, and the exceptionally weak UK government potentially on the verge of collapse, the House of Commons raised the odds last Wednesday by passing what may appear an obscure procedural amendment. In fact, it is a significant political setback for Prime Minister Theresa May inasmuch as she must present a "new" Brexit plan within three days if the vote is lost on Tuesday. Critical days ... Prime Minister Theresa May outside number 10 Downing Street. Credit:Bloomberg Much is likely now to hinge, politically, and for financial markets, on what the scale of May's expected loss on Tuesday will be. At the most catastrophic end of the spectrum for May, some pundits have forecast the government could lose by about 200 votes.Such a bracing defeat could trigger the political end-game for May, who hasn't ruled out resigning if she loses. Even if she decides to stay and fight, there will be new impetus behind a House of Commons vote of "no confidence" in her, new calls for a general election, or possibly a referendum on the Brexit withdrawal deal. Three German skiers have been killed in an avalanche in Austria and a fourth is still missing, police said on Sunday as snowfall set in again in the northern Alps. In France, two ski patrollers were killed when the devices they use to trigger avalanches exploded. The two accidents brought to at least 26 the number of weather-related deaths reported in parts of Europe this month. Sydney schoolboy Max Meyer was killed last week while skiing with his family in Austria. In Austria, the wife of one of the German skiers reported them missing on Saturday. The bodies of the men, aged 57, 36 and 32, were recovered later Saturday evening near the ski resort of Lech. Mainstream parties are shedding votes by the bucketload to populist forces mainly but not exclusively - on the right. Support for non-mainstream tendencies is motivated significantly by anti-immigration sentiments or, put another way, fear of the other. Loading We could describe this as a darkness in the countrys soul. Professor Ian McAllister of the Australian National University, whose 2016 Election Study is the most authoritative survey of voters' attitudes, reports that dissatisfaction with Australian democracy is at four-decade highs. This is partly attributable to disaffection over immigration linked to concerns about job security, income disparities and poverty in which more than 3 million Australian are living below the breadline, according to the Australian Council of Social Service. In the forthcoming election, McAllister has no doubt that immigration will motivate voters. In his analysis of the Brexit vote he told me he had been bowled over by his finding that immigration was 50 times more important than anything else among those voting to leave the European Union. Australias political class should beware this sort of finding. While it would be a mistake to exaggerate the significance of a few attention-seeking louts stirring up trouble on the St Kilda waterfront in Melbourne, what cannot be put aside is contentiousness over the immigration issue. The Hanson phenomenon might have been suppressed or dog-whistled into relative submission during the John Howard-era following his declaration that we will decide who comes to this country and the circumstances in which they come. However, the immigration issue is now back with a vengeance. These days, it is not as though Hanson is without her enablers on the broad right. Talk radio and populist television provide an echo chamber for her crude anti-immigration message. She is nurtured on these outlets. She is rarely challenged in a way that exposes the vacuousness of her remedies. She is not held to account for her more outrageous claims. What distinguishes Australia from other jurisdictions where populist anti-immigrant sentiment is running high is the absence of a charismatic figure to give voice to these sentiments: such as a Donald Trump, or a Viktor Oban in Hungary, or a Matteo Salvini in Italy, or a Nigel Farage in the UK. Loading But this is not to say the emergence of a more marketable standard bearer on the right wont happen given schisms that exist within the conservative movement. Former prime minister Tony Abbott has been a persistent advocate for reduced immigration levels whereas his colleagues in government have been reticent on the issue. What is clear is the Liberal Party is facing one of its most challenging moments since its formation in 1944 out of the embers of the United Australia Party. Insiders talk about an existential threat to its survival. This is probably overstated, but it is also the case that tensions between the party of Robert Menzies moderate and conservative wings are such that, while unlikely at this stage, it would not be surprising if new alignments emerged in the event of an electoral drubbing. Attitudes towards immigration and the continued incarceration indefinitely of asylum seekers on Manus Island and Nauru as hostages to domestic Australian politics would be part of this debate. Prime Minister Scott Morrison initially produced a weak response to the St Kilda protests, out of concern, no doubt, not to antagonise the immigration-sceptic right in advance of elections given the likelihood of preference deals pending to prop up vulnerable Coalition candidates. He stiffened his remarks subsequently when it became clear that his first reaction was inadequate. This was necessary in view of repulsive anti-Semitic elements to the protests. All this should be a reminder to a timid political class that immigration in all its manifestations, including the refugee intake, needs to be assessed holistically rather than in a piecemeal manner. What should be instituted is an extra-parliamentary inquiry into population including optimum levels of immigration and the best means for Australia to honour its refugee resettlement obligations. Canberra construction companies are dumping thousands of tonnes of fill just over the border in NSW to avoid the high cost of disposal in the ACT, according to the Yass council. In December, Yass Valley Council approved the latest project - 90,000 tonnes of Canberra construction fill to be dumped on a property on Kaveneys Road near Hall. A photo from a surveyor's report to council of part of the gully at 354 Kaveneys Road, to be filled with clean fill. The Kaveneys Road area is now the site of at least five similar projects. If that amount had been disposed of in Canberra, it would have cost more than $1 million. Die-hard Harry Potter fans queued for up to 13 hours to snare 700 free tickets on offer to the dress rehearsal for the hottest play in world theatre right now. A social media post from producers at noon on Saturday alerted Potterheads from across Victoria to the chance of a sneak peek at the blockbuster stage show Harry Potter and the Cursed Child over two days later this week, a month before its February 23 premiere. Within hours, a line had formed outside the Princess Theatre on Spring Street. The amount of money the NSW government collects from fees paid by train passengers using stations on Sydney's Airport Line has passed $100 million a year due to soaring patronage. A 16 per cent surge in revenue from the so-called station access fee last financial year takes the total amount reaped by the government over the past four years to $310 million. A one-way train trip between Sydney's CBD and Australia's busiest airport costs an adult passenger $18.70 during peak hours, making it the most expensive journey on the city's rail network. Of that fare, $14.30 comprises the station access fee. The station access fee is $14.30 for adults and $12.80 for children and concession card holders. Credit:Dean Sewell The latest payments to the state are detailed in annual accounts filed with the corporate regulator by the private operator of the nine-kilometre Airport Line. Sandwich-board activist Danny Lim is planning to take legal action against three Sydney police officers after he was arrested and charged for offensive behaviour in Barangaroo on Friday. Hundreds of Sydneysiders took to Sydney Police Station during a protest on Sunday in support of the 74-year-old, who is best known for his social and political messages. The former local councillor was arrested in Exchange Place at Barangaroo about 9.20am due to his sign stating "SMILE CVN'T! WHY CVN'T?", with video of the incident reaching over a million views on Facebook. Mr Lims lawyer, Bryan Wrench, said his client intends to fight the charge as well as action against the specific officers involved. An 18-year-old bus passenger has pleaded guilty to attacking a Sydney driver with a knife in the city's west. Emergency services were called to Blacktown railway station about 1.30pm on Saturday where they found the bus driver - aged in his 30s - with a cut to his ear. A bus driver, who was attacked outside Blacktown Train Station. Credit:Nine News Police alleged passenger Jase McDermott attacked the driver before fleeing on foot. The driver was taken to Westmead Hospital for treatment and McDermott was arrested when he showed up to Blacktown Hospital a short time later. Child protection services failed to act on serious concerns about a baby girl living at a NSW Mid North Coast property where an eight-year-old boy was ultimately found locked in a shed. Police raided the farm in Elands on December 18, 2015, finding a sophisticated underground cannabis-growing set-up and a young boy who had been detained, beaten and malnourished at the hands of his mother's partner. A trapdoor at the Elands property led to three buried shipping containers where a large hydroponic cannabis set-up was discovered and a boy was found locked in a shed. The property was run by a violent enforcer who is now serving two separate jail sentences for cultivating the crop, weapons offences, animal torture and beating other occupants of the home. More than two months before the raid, fears were raised for the man's three-month-old daughter after his then-partner, with whom he fathered the child, was taken to hospital following an alleged assault. The business partner of Liberal candidate for Granville, Tony Issa, did not declare to his employers at Parramatta Council he was taking a stake in a property slated for rezoning, and which his father would later buy and sell on the same day for a $1.25 million profit. Six weeks after losing the seat of Granville at the March 2015 election, Mr Issa started a company with Antony Anisse, then a Liberal Party councillor in Hornsby who worked as a senior property development manager at Parramatta Council. 39 Marion Street, Parramatta and Antony Anisse (top, inset) and Tony Issa (bottom). Their company almost immediately contracted to buy 39 Marion Street Parramatta, in an area that had two weeks earlier been mooted by the council for a large rezoning, and lodged a caveat to protect their interest in the site. But Mr Issa and Mr Anisses company did not end up buying. Instead, their company removed its caveat from the property on the same day a company owned by Mr Anisses father Frank lodged a caveat on the latter. Frank Anisse's company then purchased the property on March 3, 2016 for $1.75 million, and transferred the title the same day to a company owned by developers Charlie Ayoub and Nedale Hamdan for $3 million. The NSW government was warned by its own experts in 2012 that flow rules under its proposed 10-year plan for the Darling River would put threatened species of fish at risk, including the Murray cod, a confidential document has revealed. The advice from Fisheries NSW, obtained by Labor under freedom of information, warned that issues "directly related to water management" were having "negative cumulative impacts" on native fish populations in the river system. Days after a mass fish kill in the Darling River at Menindee, hundreds of carcasses remain, stinking and rotting. Credit:Nick Moir The document emerged on Sunday as Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud warned of more freshwater fish deaths this week, following a mass fish kill in the Darling River that has been branded an "ecological disaster". Mr Littleproud called an emergency meeting of water managers to advise on how river flows could be improved to avert the kind of mass killings seen recently. The "gig economy" might not have as firm a grip on the workforce as it does in the United States or Europe but research suggests that it is on the rise in Australia. However, its not all millennials with side hustles and university students trying to make a quick buck mothers driven out of inhospitable workplaces are now taking their chances on what has been dubbed the "wild west area of the economy. Mothers are some of the most affected by the hardest aspects of the 'gig economy'. Credit:Shutterstock Something of a buzzword of the 2010s, the gig economy is widely characterised by electronically mediated short-term tasks (think Airtasker or Uber), with the broader definitions capturing every type of task-based work, including freelancing and independent contracting. Essentially, the self-employed among us who live task-to-task or gig-to-gig without any of the rights or entitlements contract employees receive. So why are mothers a disproportionate number of who are primary caregivers putting themselves in this precarious position? Dr Meraiah Foley, a New York Times journalist turned academic researcher, conducted the first major study into maternal self-employment in Australia in 2016 and found women with dependent children are the most likely demographic to be self-employed in Australia. 'The book worm' MacKenzie Tuttle, an aspiring novelist, met her husband at D.E. Shaw, a New York hedge fund where Jeff Bezos, a computer scientist by training, had become a senior vice president. She told Vogue that she took the position of administrative assistant to pay the bills while she worked on her novels, but she soon found herself enamored with the laugh of the man who worked in the next office over. As MacKenzie Bezos put it in a 2013 interview with Charlie Rose: "It was love at first listen." Within three months of dating, the two were engaged; they married shortly thereafter at a resort in West Palm Beach, Florida. Jeff Bezos was 30; MacKenzie Bezos was 23. She often described herself as a bookish introvert, especially compared with Jeff Bezos, a swaggering, infinitely expansive businessman whose chief romantic desire, he told Wired in 1999, six years after his wedding, had been to meet someone "resourceful." (That type of attraction seems to be mutual. In 2017, at a Summit panel, Bezos said that one of his wife's sayings is: "I would much rather have a kid with nine fingers than a resourceless kid.") Mackenzie Bezos played an integral role in the early years of Amazon. Credit:David Ryder MacKenzie Bezos' literary ambitions began early. According to interviews and her author biography on Amazon (where she coyly notes that she "lives in Seattle with her husband and four children"), she started writing seriously at age 6, when she finished a 142-page chapter book titled "The Book Worm." It was later destroyed in a flood; Bezos has said that she now meticulously backs up her work. At Princeton, she studied creative writing under Nobel Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison, who hired her as a research assistant for the 1992 novel "Jazz" and introduced her to her high-powered literary agent, Amanda Urban. In Vogue, Morrison hailed Bezos as a rare talent, calling her "one of the best students I've ever had in my creative writing classes." In 2005 she gave Bezos a glowing blurb on her debut novel, "The Testing of Luther Albright," calling it, "a rarity: a sophisticated novel that breaks and swells the heart." Mackenzie Bezos book The Testing of Luther Albright Bezos After graduating from Princeton in 1992, six years after Jeff Bezos graduated from the same university, MacKenzie Bezos took the job that introduced her to the future e-commerce titan. The couple married in 1993 and moved to Seattle in 1994, the same year Amazon was incorporated. Quickly, Bezos' identity became enfolded into her husband's company, even as she sought to make her mark in a publishing industry that he worked tirelessly to upend. Amazon Ambassador MacKenzie Bezos, who first lived with her husband in a rented home in an East Seattle suburb, was heavily involved in the business at the start: In addition to working as an accountant, she helped brainstorm names for the company and even shipped early orders through UPS, according to "The Everything Store." "She was clearly a voice in the room in those early years," Stone said in an interview for this article. In 1999, they moved into a $US10 million mansion in Medina, Washington, and she became pregnant with their first child. As they rapidly accumulated wealth, the Bezos family took pains to preserve the trappings of normalcy. MacKenzie Bezos often drove the four children to school in a Honda, and would then drop Jeff Bezos at the office, Stone wrote. As the company flourished, MacKenzie Bezos stepped back and focused on her family and her literary ambitions. "Business wasn't her passion, and when Amazon took off she wasn't as involved in the day-to-day business," Stone said. She spent a decade on her first novel, often getting up early to write, and signed with her mentor's literary agent, Urban at ICM Partners, who also represents Cormac McCarthy, Haruki Murakami and Kazuo Ishiguro. "The Testing of Luther Albright," which was published by Harper in 2005 and was widely embraced by critics, tells the story of an engineer whose professional and home lives begin to unravel in the 1980s. In a review in The New York Times, Kate Bolick called the novel "quietly absorbing." The Los Angeles Times named it one of the best books of the year, and Publishers Weekly praised Bezos'"subtle imagination and a startling talent for naturalism." Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video In 2013, Bezos published her second novel, "Traps," which follows the journey of woman named Jessica Lessing, a reclusive film star, as she emerges from hiding to confront her father, a con man who has been selling her out to the paparazzi for years. Jessica drives to Las Vegas to meet him, and encounters three other women: a teen mother, a dog-shelter owner and a former military bodyguard, who become her allies. Loading "I would say the biggest theme in the book is the idea that the things that we worry over the most in life, the things that we feel trapped by, the mistakes we've made, the bad luck that we come across, the accidents that happen to us, the paradoxes in the end, oftentimes those things are the things that we'll look back and be the most grateful for," Bezos said of the novel during an interview with Charlie Rose. "They take us where we need to go." Throughout their marriage, Jeff Bezos was an enthusiastic supporter of MacKenzie Bezos' fiction, and would clear his schedule to read drafts of her novels, MacKenzie Bezos told Vogue. In the acknowledgments of "Traps," she called him "my most devoted reader." But Bezos' literary career may have been complicated to some extent by her high-profile husband, who has done more than perhaps any individual in recent history to transform and sometimes destabilise the book-selling business. Many independent booksellers, publishers and agents blame Amazon for building a monopoly that has put independent stores out of business and poses a dire threat to once thriving chains like Barnes & Noble. Even though Amazon splashily introduced its own publishing imprints, Bezos still chose traditional houses for her books: Harper and Knopf. (When asked by an interviewer why Bezos wasn't publishing her books through Amazon's fiction imprints, Jeff Bezos jokingly described his wife as "the fish that got away.") Sales of her books have been modest: The novels have sold a few thousand print copies, according to NPD BookScan, which tracks some 85 per cent of print sales. Some independent booksellers refused to stock Bezos' novels, according to a publishing executive who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Urban, Bezos' literary agent, declined to comment for this article. Nobel Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison praised Mackenzie Bezos's literary work. Credit:AP Billion-dollar divorce The Bezoses were the richest couple in the world; their divorce exists at a level of wealth that is virtually unprecedented. There have been billion-dollar divorces, like that of Steve and Elaine Wynn who owned casinos together, and certainly, technology entrepreneurs have been in and out of divorce court most notably Larry Ellison, a co-founder of Oracle who has been wed and unwed four times. But there has never been a divorce with a couple worth an estimated $US137 billion, as Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos are. Loading Little is known about the couple's financial arrangements. Divorces are governed by state law, and the Bezoses' primary residence and business are in Washington state, a community property state where any income earned or wealth created during the marriage is to be divided equitably between spouses. But some lawyers think it is unlikely that Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos will adhere to that guideline in a predictable manner. If they were to split assets equally, Jeff Bezos could find the 16.1 per cent of Amazon stock he owns halved. "I'd imagine they didn't fight at all over how much wealth each other gets," said William Zabel, a founding partner of the law firm Schulte Roth and Zabel, who has handled many high-profile divorce cases but not worked with the Bezoses. Probably, he said, "they fought about control." Zabel represented Wendi Murdoch and Jane Welch in their separations, and said he thought the Bezoses would almost certainly negotiate a way to split the value of the Amazon shares while allowing Jeff Bezos the leverage he might need. The length of time such an agreement remains in place would be part of the negotiations. MacKenzie Bezos has kept a low profile in recent weeks, and has not been photographed since the divorce was announced. (Jeff Bezos, by contrast, has continued to appear publicly and was pictured this month at a Golden Globes after-party with Lauren Sanchez, a former television anchor he is reportedly seeing.) It is unknown what MacKenzie Bezos will do next, and how the divorce will play out. There will be inevitable questions, for instance, about her plans regarding philanthropy. The Bezoses' charitable contributions have been modest in the past. In 2011, they donated $US15 million to their alma mater to create a center to study the brain. The following year, they gave $US2.5 million to support a same-sex marriage referendum in Washington. In 2017, Jeff Bezos asked his followers on Twitter for ideas about how better to give, and in September he and MacKenzie announced a $US2 billion fund to help homeless families and start a network of Montessori-inspired preschools. But MacKenzie could pave her own philanthropic path, like Laurene Powell Jobs, who started her own foundation, the Emerson Collective. And if MacKenzie Bezos continues to write and publish, perhaps she could find a more receptive audience among independent booksellers. Some publishing executives, who declined to be quoted on the record, spoke gleefully, at least, of the blockbuster potential if she decides to write a memoir. Wealth giant AMP's chairman David Murray has warned of unintended consequences if a "best in show" list for superannuation funds is introduced, saying it could distort funds' investment decisions at the cost of members' retirement savings in the long-term. Presenting a top-10 list of best performing funds to workers when they enter Australia's $2.7 trillion superannuation system was a core recommendation in the Productivity Commission's final report into the sector released last week. A "best in show" list has been proposed to stop new workers from being put into under-performing funds. Credit:Jessica Shapiro About 450,000 people with about $1 billion of super contributions enter the workforce every year, and are currently signed up to their employers' default funds, unless they nominate one themselves. Under the proposal they would choose from the top-10 list rather than going into default funds, which are often under-performing My Super products. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As the MTA continues to tweak the redesigned Staten Island express bus network that launched in late August, a number of additional changes are scheduled to take effect on Sunday. The changes include the introduction of a new route, the SIM11, as well as the redistribution of off-peak and weekend service across multiple routes. Our goal for redesigning the express bus network is to improve service, and were doing that by addressing ridership needs, extending routes and adding more trips so that our buses are going when and where our customers want to travel, said MTA New York City Transit President Andy Byford. Changes include: SIM11: This new route will run from Mill Road/Tysens Lane to and from Midtown Manhattan using Hylan Boulevard, Madison Avenue and Lexington Avenue. This is similar to the former X2. SIM33c: This new off-peak combination Downtown/Midtown service is similar in span and frequency to the previous X10. This will enable the off-peak SIM4c to serve the Richmond Avenue/Lander Avenue and Richmond Avenue/Morani Street stops as the peak period SIM4 does and the previous X17 did. This will provide new off-peak and weekend service to Mariners Harbor. SIM1 and SIM34: Service will be extended to Houston Street. The final stop for Manhattan-bound buses will be 6th Avenue and Houston Street. This is in response to requests for direct service to TriBeCa and SoHo. SIM25: Afternoon and evening service window will be extended to run for a longer period of time, to match the SIM26 and the former X22. SIM4c: Off-peak and weekend service will be extended to Huguenot Avenue/Woodrow Road. This will serve more customers. The route will change to mimic the former X17 route on Richmond Avenue north of Victory Boulevard. SIM6: The line's terminal will be relocated from Sixth Avenue and 57th Street to Lexington Avenue and 57th Street. This will improve reliability by eliminating the need to travel cross-town. SIM3c: The weekday morning window of service will be reduced so that it doesn't overlap with the SIM3. This will save resources, and you will be able to shift to the new SIM33c off-peak service. SIM2: The routes off-peak and weekend service will be discontinued due to very low ridership. This will free resources, according to the MTA, so that the agency can reassign to routes with high demand. SIM4x and SIM8x: The single-stop express bus routes from the Staten Island Mall will begin making an additional stop at Richmond Avenue and Lamberts Lane before proceeding to Manhattan. The MTA will also reimplement the following express bus stops on Sunday: Hylan Blvd/Montreal Avenue (Both Directions) Routes: SIM1, SIM1c, SIM5, SIM6, SIM7, SIM9, SIM10 Hylan Blvd/Cromwell Avenue (Both Directions) Routes: SIM1, SIM1c, SIM7, SIM10, SIM11 Watchogue Road/Willow Road East (Both Directions) Routes: SIM3, SIM3c, SIM34 23 Street/3 Avenue (Both Directions) Routes: SIM3, SIM6, SIM10, SIM11, SIM31 57 Street/Madison Avenue (Northbound Only) Routes: SIM6, SIM8, SIM8x, SIM11, SIM22, SIM25, SIM26, SIM31 In addition to the aforementioned changes, the MTA has unveiled the new schedules that will also take effect on Sunday. These new schedules for the Staten Island express bus network are the results of customer feedback and employee recommendations, so they reflect changes from the people who ride the routes every day and the employees who drive them, said Byford. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Mayor Bill de Blasio lavished praise upon the towering figure of Assemblyman Charles Fall as the first Muslim and the first African-American to serve as a Staten Island representative in Albany during a ceremony at PS 44 in Mariners Harbor. Falls ceremonial inauguration took place at his alma mater on Maple Parkway, before a standing-room only crowd of politicians, community leaders and North Shore residents from all races, religions and ethnicities. A great, great day is happening today here on Staten Island," the mayor said, "to see a young man rise from a neighborhood of his borough and rise up now to representing us in Albany. A young man who has come so far so fast; this is something we should all be very, very proud of. I predict that Charles Fall will be a towering figure in New York politics. The tall mayor jokingly added, I think Charles Fall is someone that Im going to see eye-to-eye with. On a serious note, the mayor said, Charles stood out early, not just because of his height but because of his talent, because of his compassion, because he was so purposeful." In praising Falls political journey, the mayor said, He is a man who epitomizes that vision of a fair and more just society. The mayor paid homage to Falls' immigrant heritage of parents who left West Africa for a better life on Staten Island, raised a son who grew up to work at City Hall and was elected to the state Assembly at the relatively young age of 29. That is the American Dream, right here in front of our eyes, de Blasio said, gesturing to Fall (D-North Shore) and his family. I do think its right to give a special shout out to the African community that one of your own has arrived, the mayor said. In a nod to both freedom of religion and Falls own faith, de Blasio said, Congratulations to the Muslim community. Fall credited his success to his family, PS 44, the voters, fellow politicians and government officials. It is an incredible blessing and honor to represent the North Shore of Staten Island in our state of New York," Fall said. Fall touted his predecessor Matthew Titone, who gave up his North Shore Assembly seat to successfully run for Surrogates Court judge. The last time I was actually on this stage for a major event I was in grade school and, in case youre wondering, I was the same height, Fall said. He described his alma mater as this amazing school, PS 44, where it all started. He added, this school has produced many amazing leaders for our community. Fall vowed to work for adequate medical facilities, better parks, a reliable public transit system, a safe and supportive housing option for those at risk and a public education system that gives all students academic support and resources. Another goal is ensuring that the needs of immigrants and minorities are met. Its time to embark on this mission of bringing Staten Island and New York into the 21st Century, Fall said. Fall said he plans on working with District Attorney Michael E. McMahon in addressing an opioid epidemic thats impacting all communities on Staten Island. Joining Fall in the ceremony was wife, Alesse, and their young daughters Maimouna and Naila. A town hall is in the works for the evening of Jan. 31 at PS 18 in West Brighton, he said. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A 39-year-old man is accused of showing porn, touching and masturbating in front of an underage girl in New Brighton. Rameen Smith, 39, allegedly molested the girl on Jan. 3 at about 4 p.m. at a location in the community, according to the criminal complaint. The girl was under the age of 13. The suspect exposed his genitals, fondled himself, put the girl on his lap and touched the girls buttocks, the complaint alleges. Smith was charged with sexual abuse, forcible touching and endangering the welfare of a child. Bond has been set at $125,000 for Smith, who was arrested on Wednesday, according to public records. He is being held at the Brooklyn Detention Complex and is due back in Criminal Court on Monday, according to public records. Attorney Eric Nelson, who represents the suspect, declined to comment. You are now listening to the sounds of the New Generation. A podcast created for those who desire a new way of gaining information rather than reading a traditional newspaper. In our show we will discuss everything from sports, pop culture, politics, and local news. To stay up to date on our latest episodes every week be sure to follow us on your favorite podcast service. And dont worry, we keep it short. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. This includes cookies from third party social media websites and ad networks. Such third party cookies may track your use on Sharedots sites for better rendering. Our partners use cookies to ensure we show you advertising that is relevant to you. If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on Sharedots website. However, you can change your cookie settings at any time. Learn more Approximately 1000 demonstrators marched in the Saxony town of Riesa in Germany on Saturday to protest against the right-wing political party AfD which is holding its national conference in the town. The largely peaceful demonstration was interspersed with scuffles with the police and right-wing supporters. At least two arrests were made, according to the filmer of this video. Among other issues, the Alternative fur Deutschland party will decide on its European election programme and complete its candidate list for the European elections. Riesa has many years of experience in dealing with neo-Nazi and right-wing activists. Since 2000, the NPD-Verlag Deutsche Stimme and the state office of the NPD have their headquarters there. The United States stepped up its criticism of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro on Saturday with an explicit call for the formation of a new government in the South American country. The U.S. State Department said in a statement that it stood behind the head of Venezuelas opposition-run congress, Juan Guaido, who said on Friday that he was prepared to step into the presidency temporarily to replace Maduro. The statement was the latest in a series of Trump administration attacks on Maduro, whose inauguration to a new term as president on Thursday has been widely denounced as illegitimate. The people of Venezuela deserve to live in freedom in a democratic society governed by the rule of law, State Department spokesman Robert Palladino said. It is time to begin the orderly transition to a new government. We support the National Assemblys call for all Venezuelans to work together, peacefully, to restore constitutional government and build a better future. The United States government will continue to use the full weight of U.S. economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela, he said in the statement, released in Abu Dhabi where Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was visiting as part of a Mideast trip. Pompeo spoke to Guaido last week shortly after the 35-year-old was elected to lead the National Assembly. Pompeo told reporters traveling with him that the events taking place in Venezuela now are incredibly important. The Maduro regime is illegitimate and the United States will continue ... to work diligently to restore a real democracy to that country, he said. We are very hopeful that we can be force for good to allow the region to come together to deliver that. Guaido, speaking to a crowd blocking a Caracas street a day after Maduros inauguration, said he was willing to become interim leader. But he said he would need support from the public, the armed forces and other countries and international groups before trying to form a transitional government to hold new elections to replace Maduro. Guaido asked Venezuelans to mass in a nationwide demonstration on Jan. 23, a historically important date for Venezuelans the day when a mass uprising overthrew dictator Marcos Perez Jimenez in 1958. Matthew Lee is an Associated Press writer. TORONTO Tired but smiling, an 18-year-old Saudi runaway who said she feared death if deported back home arrived Saturday in Canada, which had offered her asylum in a case that attracted global attention after she mounted a social media campaign. This is Rahaf Alqunun, a very brave new Canadian, Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said arm in arm with the Saudi woman in Torontos airport. Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun smiled broadly as she exited an airport arrival door, capping a dramatic week that saw her flee her family while visiting Kuwait and before flying to Bangkok. From there, she barricaded herself in an airport hotel to avoid deportation and tweeted about her situation. On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would accept Alqunun as a refugee. Her situation has highlighted the cause of womens rights in Saudi Arabia, where several women fleeing abuse by their families have been caught trying to seek asylum abroad in recent years and returned home. Freeland said Alqunun preferred not to take questions Saturday. It was a pleasure for me this morning to welcome her to her new home, Freeland said. She is obviously very tired after a long journey and she preferred to go and get settled. But it was Rahafs choice to come out and say hello to Canadians. Alqunun flew to Toronto via Seoul, South Korea, according to Thai immigration Police Chief Surachate Hakparn. Alqunun tweeted two pictures from her plane seat one with what appears to be a glass of wine and her passport and another holding her passport while on the plane with the hashtag I did it and the emojis showing plane, hearts and wine glass. Canadas decision to grant her asylum could further upset the countrys relations with Saudi Arabia. In August, Saudi Arabia expelled Canadas ambassador to the kingdom and withdrew its own ambassador after Canadas Foreign Ministry tweeted support for womens right activists who had been arrested. The Saudis also sold Canadian investments and ordered their citizens studying in Canada to leave. Surachate said her father whose name has not been released denied physically abusing Alqunun or trying to force her into an arranged marriage, which were among the reasons she gave for her flight. He said Alqununs father wanted his daughter back but respected her decision. Rob Gillies is an Associated Press writer. PARIS A powerful explosion apparently caused by a gas leak blew apart a Paris bakery Saturday, killing three people and injuring dozens as it blasted out windows and overturned nearby cars, authorities said. Witnesses described the sound of the explosion as overwhelming. Firefighters pulled injured victims from broken windows and evacuated residents and tourists as a fire raged and smoke billowed over Rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondissement of north-central Paris. Charred debris and broken glass covered the pavement around the apartment building housing the bakery, which resembled a blackened carcass, and people were trapped inside nearby buildings. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner paid tribute to the courage of rescuers, who saved the life of one firefighter who was buried under the rubble for 2 hours. The French Interior Ministry said two firefighters and a female Spanish tourist were killed by the blast and about 10 of the 47 wounded were in critical condition. Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said the cause of the blast appeared to be an accidental gas leak. He said Paris firefighters were already at the scene to investigate a suspected gas leak at the bakery when the explosion happened about 9 a.m. Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo extended a message of affection and solidarity to the victims. She said many residents and tourists had been evacuated from neighboring buildings and hotels and Paris authorities were helping to provide them temporary accommodations. Authorities said around 200 firefighters and police were involved in the operation. A helicopter evacuated the wounded. Silver-helmeted firefighters and red firetrucks filled the street and inspected adjoining courtyards. Pedro Goncalves, an employee at the Hotel Mercure opposite the bakery, said he saw firefighters enter the bakery in the morning but he and his co-workers thought maybe its a joke, a false alarm, and they went back to work. About an hour later, he said a blast rocked the surrounding streets, one so powerful that he felt a whistling in his ears. I heard one big explosion and then a lot of pressure came at me, a lot of black smoke and glass, he said. I had just enough time to get down and cover myself and protect my head. The explosion came as the French capital was on edge and under heavy security for yellow vest protests Saturday against economic inequality. Angela Charlton and Sylvie Corbet are Associated Press writers. KINSHASA, Congo Presidential election runner-up Martin Fayulu on Saturday said he has asked the constitutional court to order a recount in the disputed vote, declaring that you cant manufacture results behind closed doors. He could be risking more than a court refusal. Congos electoral commission president Corneille Nangaa has said there are only two options: The official results are accepted or the vote is annulled keeping President Joseph Kabila in power until another election. They call me the peoples soldier ... and I will not let the people down, Fayulu said. The court filing includes evidence from witnesses at polling stations across the country, he said. Rifle-carrying members of Kabilas Republican Guard deployed outside Fayulus home and the court earlier Saturday. It was an attempt to stop him from filing, Fayulu said, while posting a video of them on Twitter: The fear remains in their camp. Fayulu has accused the declared winner, opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi, of making a backroom deal with Kabila to win power in the mineral-rich nation as the ruling party candidate did poorly. The opposition coalition for Fayulu, a businessman vocal about cleaning up widespread corruption, has said he won 61 percent of the vote, citing figures compiled by the Catholic Churchs 40,000 election observers across the vast Central African country. Those figures show Tshieskedi received 18 percent, the coalition said. The church, the rare authority that many Congolese find trustworthy, has urged the electoral commission to release its detailed vote results for public scrutiny. The commission has said Tshisekedi won with 38 percent while Fayulu received 34 percent. Earlier on Saturday, the commission announced that Kabilas ruling coalition had won an absolute majority of national assembly seats. That majority, which will choose the prime minister and form the next government, sharply reduces the chances of dramatic reforms under Tshisekedi. Congolese now face the extraordinary situation of a presidential vote allegedly rigged in favor of the opposition. This is more than an electoral farce; its a tragedy, the LUCHA activist group tweeted. Saleh Mwanamilongo and Mathilde Boussion are Associated Press writers. CAIRO As violent government protests enter their fourth week, Sudan appears headed toward political paralysis, with drawn-out unrest across much of the country and a fractured opposition without a clear idea of what to do if their wish to see the countrys leader of 29 years go comes true. Even for a country that looks unwieldy when its not tearing itself apart, President Omar el-Bashirs years at the helm have turned Sudan into a cautionary tale from genocide and bloody rebellions to ethnic cleansing, starvation and rampant corruption. But Sudan has been hard to rule long before el-Bashir seized power in a 1989 military coup. Protest leaders say a whole new start is needed if the country is to stand any chance of progressing. There may be very few people out there who still support this regime, the way it governed or its use of an Islamic narrative, said Othman Mirghani, a prominent Sudanese analyst. The conclusion reached by the people is that this regime must be brought down and the search start for a modern Sudanese state based on contemporary values. The military and democratically elected governments have taken turns ruling Sudan since independence in 1956, with coups bringing the generals to power, only to be brought down eventually by popular uprisings. The only exception was in 1986 when the army honored its promise to hand over the reins to an elected government a year after it seized power. The military has been the dominant force in Sudan since independence, analysts and activists say. El-Bashir hails from the military, but he has sidelined the army as the countrys main fighting force, replacing it with loyal paramilitary forces he created. Since the current protests began Dec. 19, the military twice stated its support for the countrys leadership and pledged to protect the peoples achievements. Neither time did it mention el-Bashir by name. Army troops have deployed to protect vital state installations but have not tried to stop protests and, in some cases, appeared to offer a measure of protection for the demonstrators. All that raises the possibility the military could take over again and remove el-Bashir. But many fear the Sudan Rapid Forces, a 70,000-strong, well-armed paramilitary force of tribesmen allied with el-Bashir, could respond by stepping in, whether to protect the president or install someone of their own. Hamza Hendawi is an Associated Press writer. PARIS Thousands of yellow vest protesters marched Saturday through Paris and other French cities for a ninth straight weekend to denounce President Emmanuel Macrons economic policies, clashing repeatedly with police. Sporadic violence broke out during protests in Paris, Bourges, Bordeaux, Rouen, Marseille and Toulouse. Protesters walked peacefully through central Paris from the Finance Ministry in the east of the French capital to the Arc de Triomphe in the west. Scuffles between police and activists then broke out near the monument at the end of the march. Police used tear gas, water cannon and flash-balls to push back some people throwing rocks and other objects at them. French security forces equipped with armored vehicles blocked protesters from going onto nearby Champs-Elysees Avenue. The neighborhood was reopened to car traffic later Saturday evening. The Interior Ministry said more than 100 people were arrested in Paris and other cities, including 82 who were kept in custody, primarily for carrying potential weapons or taking part in violence. The movement demanding wider changes to Frances economy to help struggling workers appeared to gain new momentum this weekend. The French Interior Ministry said about 32,000 people turned out for yellow vest demonstrations across France at midday. Several thousand protesters marched in the central city of Bourges, a provincial capital with a renowned Gothic cathedral and picturesque wood-framed houses. French authorities deployed 80,000 security forces nationwide for the antigovernment protests and Interior Minister Christophe Castaner threatened tough retaliation against any who rioted. Paris police deployed armored vehicles, horses and attack dogs around the city on Saturday. Subway stations and some shops closed, notably around government buildings and the Champs-Elysees. The movement for greater economic equality waned over the holidays but appears to be resurging, despite Macrons promises of billions of euros in tax relief and a bid to address demonstrators concerns that Macron is expected to launch with a letter to the French on Monday. The protests started in November with drivers who opposed fuel tax increases, which is why participants wear the fluorescent vests that French motorists must keep in their vehicles. It has mushroomed into a broader revolt. Sylvie Corbet is an Associated Press writer. Chanting, singing and waving banners, hundreds of educators, parents and students demonstrated outside Oakland City Hall Saturday calling for more state funding for public education. The noon rally was organized by the East Bay Coalition of Public Educators, composed of California Teachers Association union chapters and parents, community groups and students. Teachers from all over the East Bay attended the rally, with some coming from as far away as Santa Rosa. "Are you ready to fight?" Liz Ortega, executive secretary-treasurer of the Alameda Labor Council, asked the crowd, which roared back, "Yes!" Keith Brown, president of the Oakland Education Association, followed her onstage. "Today we unite for Oakland kids, East Bay kids, kids all over California," Brown said. "We are here to advocate closing the Proposition 13 loophole and making a real investment in schools." Brown was referring to an element of Proposition 13 that allows many commercial/industrial properties to avoid assessment when the property is sold. State Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, echoed Brown's call in a speech that met with roars of approval from the lively crowd. "It is morally bankrupt that we do not fund our schools," Skinner said. "Proposition 13 has starved our schools. We have to fix Prop. 13. "We must make education a top priority in the state budget," Skinner added. Assemblyman Rob Bonta told the crowd, "We are going to fight together to get funding for education." Looking out over the audience, he said, "I love the sea of red." In anticipation of one day voting on whether to approve marijuana-based businesses in their city, Martinez city council and planning commission members are scheduled to visit two commercial cannabis dispensaries in Vallejo on Wednesday. Advertised as a joint special City Council-Planning Commission meeting, the two boards are set to visit Vallejo Holistic Health Facility located at 539 Tennessee St. at about 3:30 p.m., and then at about 4:30 p.m. visit Re-Leaf, located at 1 Benicia Road in Vallejo. Martinez is in the process of crafting a "cannabis management program" that would include approving cannabis-related businesses. The initial plan being considered would include approving two retail operators, two deliverers, a manufacturer, a distributor and a testing lab (but no commercial cultivation). The City Council is also scheduled to hold a regular meeting, starting at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 525 Henrietta St. On the regular meeting agenda is formal adoption of an ordinance regulating cultivation of cannabis for personal use. The ordinance would allow marijuana to be grown in greenhouses, where natural light would be plentiful and which may not need a building permit to set up. Antioch police are looking for the suspect in a shooting Saturday afternoon that left a man dead, officers said. Antioch police responded at 1:52 p.m. Saturday to a report of several gunshots heard on Peppertree Way just west of Sycamore Drive, according to a statement from acting Antioch police Sgt. James Colley. Officers arrived to find a man with several gunshot wounds lying in the street. Officers and paramedics worked to provide medical aid; the man was taken to an area hospital, where he died later Saturday. There was no information Saturday night on the identity or age of the victim, and the suspect is described only as an "adult male." The case, Colley said, remained under investigation Saturday night. A six-hour standoff ended peacefully Saturday afternoon after a suspect who asked police for cigarettes accepted a vape pen instead, police said. Juan Roman, 40, of Novato surrendered about 1:30 p.m. and was arrested on suspicion of attempted arson and vandalism, according to Novato police. Officers first responded at 7 a.m. to a 76 gas station convenience store on Ignacio Boulevard, where Roman allegedly poured gas and tried to set a fire. Police believe he was angry that he couldn't get a fuel pump to work at the station, and that he was also upset about family issues, said Novato Police Lt. Sasha D'Amico. Authorities had been alerted and followed Roman as he drove away from the 76 station in his pickup truck to a Safeway fueling station on Nave Drive, less than a mile away. Police then tried to talk him out of his vehicle and called in crisis negotiators and a SWAT team, believing Roman might have a weapon. They also believed that he might have splashed fuel on himself at the 76 station. After six hours, he said he would surrender if negotiators gave him cigarettes, but police decided that wouldn't be a good idea, given the possibility of fuel on his clothing. When they gave him a vape pen instead, he agreed to surrender, D'Amico said. Police did not find a firearm on Roman, or in his vehicle, she said. Video of Roman's surrender can be found on the California Highway Patrol's air operations division Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CHPGoldenGateAirOps/ A valve malfunction led to the release Saturday morning of approximately 2 million gallons of untreated wastewater from a Sonoma Valley County Sanitation District pipeline south of the unincorporated community of Schellville in Sonoma County, the district said. The valve, which failed to fully close, was leaking wastewater for about 24 hours, district officials said Saturday. The sewage went directly into the slough. The problem valve was finally isolated, and the leakage was stopped at 10:45 a.m., the district said. District maintenance crews were working Saturday to repair the valve. The State Office of Emergency Services, San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board and California Department of Fish and Wildlife were notified. Environmental specialists were also dispatched to the leak site, and did not observe any dead or distressed fish or other species Saturday. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Santa Clara County is preparing for inclement weather next week by extending shelter services and warming centers. The National Weather Service has forecast rain from Sunday through Friday, Jan. 18, with overnight lows 40 degrees or lower, and a period of rain for 48 hours of more than could result in flooding. Overnight warming centers with 150 additional beds will be available at seven locations, including the Salvation Army, Project WeHope and the Gilroy National Guard Armory. Help is also available at phone number "211" for health and human services in Santa Clara County and the county homeless helpline at (408) 793-0550. Police in Antioch believe excessive speed and wet conditions most likely led to a crash Friday night that killed two people and injured four others. Officers with the Antioch Police Department responded about7 p.m. Friday to Lone Tree Way and Indian Hill Drive on a report of a vehicle that had crashed into a tree. Responding officers located a vehicle on the south sidewalk of Lone Tree Way that had sustained extensive damage. Officers found one passenger had been ejected from the vehicle during the crash, and five people were still trapped inside. Responding firefighters had to extricate the victims trapped in the vehicle. Four of the victims were transported to local trauma centers with injuries that ranged from moderate to life threatening, and two victims were pronounced deceased at the scene. A local dog group has raised money to reopen the parking lot and restrooms at Fort Funston, a popular dog beach closed since the partial federal government shutdown began last month. The San Francisco Dog Owners Group and the Golden Gate Recreation Area have agreed that a donation from the group will allow for regular trash collection and maintenance of portable toilets, the group announced on Friday. The group approached the park service when it was apparent that park users were undeterred by the closed Fort Funston parking lot and were instead parking and walking along the narrow shoulder of Skyline Boulevard. The services are being paid on a weekly basis, and SFDOG has agreed to cover one month. A crowdfunding page, https://fundly.com/open-ft-funston-during-the-shutdown, had raised more than $3,000 of a $5,000 goal by Saturday morning. San Francisco Dog Owners Group is a nonprofit organization that promotes responsible dog guardianship, offers educational programs for both dog owners and the general public, and works for increased off-leash recreation opportunities for responsible humans and their canine companions. Police are searching for a man suspected of trying to accost a boy in a Millbrae elementary school bathroom on Friday morning. The student, under age 10, was leaving boys bathroom at Green Hills Elementary School about 11:05 a.m. when the suspect tried to grab him by his shoulder and hair, according to the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office. The student ran away and saw the suspect flee the area. The boy didn't immediately report the incident to staff at the school, located at 401 Ludeman Lane. The suspect was described as a white man, about 30 years old with brown curly long hair and a beard. He was wearing a blue tank top, black pants and yellow or tan boots. The suspect also had a tattoo of a snake around his right shoulder area, police said. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Millbrae police at (650) 259 Repairs to a large sinkhole in Milpitas will close all westbound lanes on the Montague Expressway for at least two days, Santa Clara County officials said Saturday afternoon. The sinkhole, which collapsed the roadway about 5 p.m. Friday, measures an estimated 30 feet by 30 feet and is 20 feet deep, county officials said. A damaged storm drainpipe is believed to be the culprit. Two westbound lanes, between Trade Zone Boulevard and the railroad tracks, were initially closed Friday evening. All westbound lanes are now closed in the area to allow repairs to begin, county officials said Saturday. The roads department estimates that the westbound lanes may reopen as early as Monday evening, weather permitting. Westbound traffic will be detoured through Trade Zone Boulevard. "The possible cause of the sinkhole is due to damage to a storm drain pipe that is underneath the roadway and goes across the expressway," said Harry Freitas, director of the county's roads and airports department. Repairing the roadway will include digging out the area, stabilizing the soil underneath, adding rocks and material to build up the hole to the surface, and paving the surface of the roadway, county officials said. Road repair updates are available at https://www.sccgov.org/sites/rda/Pages/roadclosures.aspx Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. MARTINEZ (BCN) In anticipation of one day voting on whether to approve marijuana-based businesses in their city, Martinez city council and planning commission members are scheduled to visit two commercial cannabis dispensaries in Vallejo on Wednesday. Advertised as a joint special City Council-Planning Commission meeting, the two boards are set to visit Vallejo Holistic Health Facility located at 539 Tennessee St. at about 3:30 p.m., and then at about 4:30 p.m. visit Re-Leaf, located at 1 Benicia Road in Vallejo. Martinez is in the process of crafting a "cannabis management program" that would include approving cannabis-related businesses. The initial plan being considered would include approving two retail operators, two deliverers, a manufacturer, a distributor and a testing lab (but no commercial cultivation). The City Council is also scheduled to hold a regular meeting, starting at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 525 Henrietta St. On the regular meeting agenda is formal adoption of an ordinance regulating cultivation of cannabis for personal use. The ordinance would allow marijuana to be grown in greenhouses, where natural light would be plentiful and which may not need a building permit to set up. Copyright 2019 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. WASHINGTON A leading Senate Republican says President Trump isnt giving in on his demands for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, the issue thats caused the partial government shutdown thats now in its fourth week. Sen. Lindsey Graham said he encouraged Trump during a telephone conversation Sunday to reopen government for a period of weeks to try to negotiate a deal with Democrats that would break the impasse. But the South Carolina Republican said Trump wants a deal first. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi also has insisted that Trump end the shutdown first before any negotiating takes place. I tried to see if we could open up the government for a limited period of time to negotiate a deal, Graham said. The president says Lets make a deal, then open up the government. ... Hes not going to give in. The assessment from Graham, who is close to Trump, suggested the shutdown could last for weeks longer, if not months, inflicting additional financial pain on the 800,000 federal workers who have been idled or required to work without pay for the duration. Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del., called Grahams idea for a brief reopening of the government a great place to start. Stop harming our country and our economy and lets make our best efforts because we all agree we need to invest more in border security, Coons said. Graham said he thinks Trump is willing to accept the level of wall funding he is seeking, along with some immigration measures Democrats might find acceptable, such as helping immigrants who were illegally brought to the U.S. as children. But Trump has said that while he is interested in pursuing a broader overhaul of the immigration system, he first wants to hear what the Supreme Court has to say about the group of immigrants known as Dreamers. And Trump appeared to shoot down Grahams suggestion of a wall plus deal, saying Sunday on Twitter that even Democrats dont want to make Dreamers part of the shutdown talks. Graham has been among the most outspoken Republicans pushing Trump to use his authority to declare a national emergency to circumvent Congress and build the wall by tapping unspent money sitting in various government accounts, including for military construction and disaster relief. Democrats oppose such a declaration but may be powerless to stop it. Many Republicans are wary, too, fearing its use by a future Democratic president. We dont want it to come down to a national emergency declaration, said House Republican Whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana. Clearly the presidents got authority under the law, but hes said he doesnt want it to come to that. ... Congress needs to solve this problem. Graham and Coons spoke on Fox News Sunday. Scalise appeared on ABCs This Week. Darlene Superville is an Associated Press writer. 3 1 of 3 Jerry Holt / Minneapolis Star Tribune 2018 Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Courtesy Jennifer Smith Show More Show Less 3 of 3 CHICAGO Katie Beers joy quickly turned to deep concern when she learned 13-year-old Jayme Closs had been found alive in rural Wisconsin nearly three months after police say a man shot and killed her parents then abducted the girl from their home. She is going to have to grieve the loss of her parents and also come to terms with the fact she was abducted, escaped and whatever (other) hell she went through, Beers said. And its not going to be easy. The East Bay Express, an alternative weekly newspaper in the San Francisco Bay Area that gained national acclaim for its 2016 expose of a police sex scandal in Oakland, California, laid off almost its entire editorial staff Friday, the newspapers publisher said. The newspaper plans to rely on freelance writers for the foreseeable future, the publisher, Stephen Buel, said in an interview Saturday. Six employees were laid off, including five in the editorial department. In addition to its coverage of arts and culture, the newspaper was known for local accountability journalism. Three police chiefs were fired within a week when it published its series on the Oakland Police Department, which won a George Polk Award for local reporting. Like weekly newspapers across the country, The Express, which has existed for more than 40 years, had recently been running a deficit as print advertising revenue declined, Robert Gammon, the papers editor, said. Compounding those financial troubles, Buel said, was a recent ruling from a state appellate court that said the paper had illegally denied a former employee overtime. The employee was asking for about $750,000, necessitating the layoffs, he said. The only other alternative that I could really see is shutting down the paper, and no one that I know of is ready to do that, Gammon said. Were still committed to covering our community and producing the very best journalism that we can. The layoffs were not unexpected given the court ruling, said Azucena Rasilla, who was the newspapers associate editor until Friday. We knew that the paper has been having financial issues for a while now, and we also thought eventually were probably going to lose our jobs, she said. Rasilla plans to freelance for now. She said that she was unsure about the future of The Express and that having such a small editorial staff would be unsustainable. Alternative weekly newspapers have struggled in recent years. The Village Voice, the left-leaning independent weekly in New York, ceased publication in August after more than six decades. Nearly all the journalists at LA Weekly were laid off in November 2017, the Los Angeles Times reported. Because weekly newspapers are typically free, they do not have the subscriber base that could make up for lost advertising revenue, said Jason Zaragoza, executive director of the Association of Alternative Newsmedia. Some weeklies, he said, were experimenting with new revenue streams, such as a membership model or event hosting. There has been a steady decline in association membership for about a decade, Zaragoza said. Last year, Pew Research Center reported that the average circulation of the nations 20 largest alt-weeklies had fallen to 55,000 in 2017, down from 87,000 five years before. Alternative weeklies on the East and West coasts had been hit particularly hard by declining advertising revenue, Zaragoza said, and the layoffs at The Express were a blow to Oakland. Its a huge loss for the community, he said. Buel, who bought The Express in 2017 with his wife, said it was not making any money at the time. He became its publisher and considered holding a community fundraiser to generate new revenue. The papers economics have been poor, he said. Buel resigned as publisher in July 2018 after a former co-worker accused him of kissing her inappropriately. A day earlier, he had apologized in a statement after revelations that he had used a racial slur in a staff meeting and had taken down articles he said did not live up to my editorial standards. Buel said Saturday that he was again serving as publisher because there is no alternative given the staffing changes. The Express will begin soliciting donations from people in the community, he said. Im still optimistic about the papers future, and I dont believe that print media is dying, he said. This article originally appeared in The New York Times. While Obama administration official Julian Castro launched his presidential campaign Saturday, California Sen. Kamala Harris merely lurched closer toward her rollout as she continued her presidential non-announcement announcement tour Saturday in San Francisco. On Tuesday, Harris told the gang on ABCs The View that Im not ready to make my announcement to run for president. On Thursday, she told Stephen Colbert on CBS Late Night that I might run. When asked Friday on MSNBCs Morning Joe how close she was to making her decision, Harris said Ill make it soon. But not this soon. Yet her candidacy is such foregone conclusion that on Saturday, San Francisco Mayor London Breed who interviewed Harris for an hour onstage at the Curran theater didnt even bother to ask her if shes running. Instead, Breed continued the shtick. We are all dying to know this important question that everybody is always asking you everywhere, Breed said to start her conversation with Harris. Do you really walk around in those stilettos all the time? Its either these or my Chucks (Taylor shoes), Harris said with a laugh. Then Breed praised Harris, one of her political mentors, saying she looked amazing on the (book) cover ... presidential on the cover. The audience, the friendliest of friendly crowds, roared. Harris is trying to gin up buzz for her candidacy and introduce herself to America by touring TV chat shows and making appearances in liberal media hubs like New York and Los Angeles in support of her memoir, The Truths We Hold, and a childrens book she also just wrote, Superheroes Are Everywhere. The memoir is a mix of tidbits intended to humanize Harris (she teases her husband, Doug, for wearing goggles to chop onions), flash extended riffs on policy (We should also speak truth about the racial disparities in our health care system) and showcase the aphorisms she lives by (If its worth fighting for, its a fight worth having). There will be plenty of time on the campaign to flesh that out. Saturday was all about taking some spring training batting practice with a friendly questioner lobbing softballs and a rapt audience that swooned with Harris from the moment she walked onstage to Tupac Shakurs California Love. Harris, in turn, was looser than her typical appearance on Meet the Press, mimicking TV chef Julia Child and defending her choice of rapper Cardi B on her soon-to-be-released playlist. President Trump wasnt mentioned by name, but was alluded to several times. Harris said the partial government shutdown is the result of the president holding the nation hostage over his vanity project, a wall on the countrys southern border. Harris said the bloodsport of San Francisco politics prepared her for her time as state attorney general and U.S. senator. She recalled packing her ironing board, campaign posters, flyers and duct tape and standing in front of grocery stores during her first campaign. An ironing board makes an incredible standing desk, Harris said. Thats how you campaign in San Francisco. People here are informed and pay attention, she said. When you walk down the street, they will come up and talk with you and challenge you and require you to ask yourself a question: Am I relevant to the lives of other people? Harris said she is grateful that the citys ethos encouraged political experimentation to see what programs would work like her program as district attorney to combat elementary school truancy, an issue not often associated with prosecutors. Too often, she said, politicians are expected to have the plan. And the problem with that is youre supposed to defend the plan no matter how bad the plan is, Harris said. Harris compared the fight for same-sex marriage rights, which began in San Francisco shortly after she took office as district attorney in 2004, to the current political climate. We now are joyous for the wedding bells ringing, Harris said. Lets remember we had to fight for that. It was a long, long time before it happened. But we didnt give up. When we think about this moment in time, and all that is at stake, it causes us to be frustrated, if not dispirited, Harris said. We cannot give up. Lets remember that. Joe Garofoli is The San Francisco Chronicles senior political writer. Email: jgarofoli@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @joegarofoli Newly installed Gov. Gavin Newsom isnt the only family member with an office in the Capitol his wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, is moving in as well, with the title of first partner. Siebel Newsoms focus will be on gender equality and lifting up women and families. She will not be paid but will have an office just down the hall from the governors. Outgoing Gov. Jerry Browns wife, attorney Anne Gust Brown, served as both the first lady and as special counsel, an unpaid job she also held when Brown was attorney general. A mother of four young children, Siebel Newsom is best known as a documentary filmmaker and director of the Representation Project, a nonprofit organization that, according to its website, uses film and media for cultural transformation. And while she has no previous government experience, she was a close adviser to Newsoms gubernatorial campaign. One thing Siebel Newsom wont have to worry about is commuting to Sacramento from the family home in Ross. The Newsoms have decided to move into the governors mansion, located just blocks from the Capitol, so they can best serve the people of California while also maximizing family time together, said Newsom spokesman Nathan Click. They look forward to getting to know their new neighbors and becoming an active part of the larger Sacramento community, Click said. San Francisco Chronicle columnist Phillip Matier appears Sundays 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 pmatier@sfchronicle.com. Twitter: @philmatier Gov. Gavin Newsom wants you to get a community college degree for free. Newsoms first budget proposal calls for the state to waive two years worth of community college fees for first-time students who are enrolled on a full-time basis. His plan would expand the states current program, the California College Promise, which waives a years worth of community college fees for these students. It will be hugely popular with the public. The Public Policy Institute of California has found that 73 percent of California adults support government funding to make community college free. In addition to being excellent politics, two years worth of free community college would be relatively affordable. It would cost the state an additional $40 million on top of the $46 million already allocated by Gov. Jerry Brown for the one-year plan. But would it work? A successful plan would increase the number of California students with either an associates degree or a transfer plan into a four-year college, important metrics for the states long-term economic health. Given Californias high poverty rates, it would increase the number of first-generation college graduates. Finally, it would ideally lower students debt loads. Thats a long to-do list for a single budget item. Realistically, its too long. Without concurrent changes in Californias financial aid system and its other institutions of higher education, free community college wont be the solution it could be. According to Hans Johnson, a senior fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, California ranks in the top five of all states in its share of recent high school graduates who enroll in community college, but near the bottom in its share of those who enroll in a four-year college. Getting students to stay and complete their degrees is a much bigger challenge than getting them to enroll, in my opinion, Johnson said. Californias community college system has already implemented reforms to improve its performance, including an overhaul of its student placement system and improved course and career guidance for incoming students. These changes are expected to improve completion rates for students seeking a two-year degree. But far too many community college students are still struggling to transfer to four-year colleges and earn a bachelors degree. A big part of the problem is access to the California State University and the University of California. In theory, qualified transfer students are guaranteed a slot in these institutions. In practice, only a few campuses have the space to take all applicants who qualify. This creates a natural limit to student access. A low-income transfer student whos relying on her parents for housing in, say, Sacramento, wont be able to accept admission to distant UC Merced. Eventually, the state needs to reconfigure its financial aid policies to better account for the sky-high costs of transportation and housing. California community college graduates Of those enrolling in 2011-12, 48% completed a certificate, a degree or transferred. Type of associate degrees earned in 2016-17 Number of degrees Associate in science for transfer degree 17,956 Associate in arts for transfer degree 21,303 Associate of science degree 34,329 Associate of arts degree 67,208 Total associate degrees 140,796 Source: PPIC, California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office See More Collapse San Franciscos program to waive City College of San Francisco fees for all city residents, Free City, might seem to be a natural model for the state, but its not. City College has emerged victoriously from its long, daunting accreditation fight, but those years of turmoil depressed the colleges enrollment. I dont think thats a good example of what we should expect on the statewide level, Johnson said. Instead, he thinks the state should look at data from Oregon. Our neighbor to the north instituted a fee-free community college program similar to the one Newsom is considering, and Johnson said theres been an increase in student enrollment but no remarkable increase in their degree completion rates. Getting students to enter community college, it seems, is relatively easy. Getting them the education theyre hoping to receive will take more than a fee waiver. This commentary is from The Chronicles editorial board. We invite you to express your views in a letter to the editor. Please submit your letter via our online form: SFChronicle.com/letters. The belief that constitutional democracy is superior to other forms of government rests in part on its capacity to encourage open debate and thus social learning. Social learning is underrated. Citizens can and do learn together and from each other. They pick up tidbits and cues from the public debate and then argue over back fences or kitchen tables, in their houses of worship or at their favorite bars and restaurants. True, this is an idealized view. In the Trump era, many people avoid political talk with neighbors or family members they disagree with for fear of igniting bitter shouting matches. And social learning is problematic when we only hang around with people who reinforce our own views and prejudices, as Bill Bishop suggested in his revelatory book, The Big Sort. Social media pushes us further into ideological silos, something Russian hackers understood in 2016. It ought to be the job of traditional media to help break this cycle. As Matthew Pressman shows in his recent history of journalism, On Press, there was a purpose behind the old ideas of objectivity and fairness. At their best, journalists examine questions of genuine importance and offer citizens a chance to hear competing arguments on various sides of the issues at stake. This task includes pointing out when claims are at odds with the facts. Now only a naive rationalist would claim that politics is purely cerebral. Its also about passion, self-interest and the foibles of would-be political leaders. But for democracy to work well, we need a balance among reason, emotion and interest. When reason is in retreat and when candidates are given strong incentives to stir up ugly passions, we have a problem. This is where we are now, and President Trump is both the product of this crisis and its apotheosis. He brought home just how nonsensical and dishonest our politics have become with his assertion last Thursday about Mexico paying for his border wall: Obviously, I never said this, and I never meant theyre going to write out a check. This was shocking, even from an unrepentant liar. Trump denied ever saying something that, as David Nakamura reported in the Washington Post, he did say at least 212 times during his campaign and dozens more since he took office. This points to the medias major shortcoming in 2016: its continuing commitment to both sides are equally flawed journalism, which led to its failure to portray Trump as the moral aberration he is. As Frank Bruni recently noted in the New York Times (citing the research of Harvard Professor Thomas Patterson), treating Trump and Hillary Clinton identically in terms of their fitness for office was madness. And, as the Posts media critic Margaret Sullivan noted, journalism needs to pull back from a focus on personalities and electability and on blowing gaffes way out of proportion. She endorsed New York University Professor Jay Rosens idea that the press follow a citizens agenda in 2020. Why not more reporting on the problems voters care about and how candidates propose to solve them? There are obvious responses to all this: Many voters knew who Trump was and voted for him anyway because they disliked Clinton even more; the critics just dont like the way the election turned out; and many of our fellow citizens are so stuck in media bubbles that what mainstream journalism does wont matter. But whatever their merits, these assertions come down to a denial of responsibility. The mainstream media still greatly influence how we talk to each other about politics and should take this responsibility seriously. Consider just two examples. A video of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortezs collegiate dancing made for fun stories, but its far less important than the New York Democrats proposal for a 70 percent tax rate on incomes of over $10 million. Coverage of Trumps 2016 attacks on Jeb Bush for his low energy were a successful distraction from a serious conversation about Bushs prophetic assertion that Trump would be a chaos president. None of this takes away from the fact that journalists still provide an abundance of accurate information. This includes, thank goodness, smart and tough coverage of Trump. But Bruni, Sullivan, Patterson and Rosen are right to ask the media to ponder what role it has played in bringing our democracy to its current state. The arbiters of the news should be encouraging better conversations over those back fences and doing a better job of warning us early on about politicians who lie even about their lies. 2019 Washington Post Writers Group Twitter: @EJDionne LOS ANGELES On Californias freeways, in biker bars and during not-infrequent clashes with other outlaw motorcycle clubs, members of the Mongols are easily identified. They are the ones in the leather vests and jackets adorned on the back with the distinctive image of a Genghis Khan figure in sunglasses riding a motorcycle beneath the groups name, spelled out in large block letters. Since the group was formed in the late 1960s, the logo has been a potent element of the Mongols identity, which over the years has included an unmistakable penchant for drug dealing and violence by many members. Only those who have been admitted to the inner ranks of the insular group are allowed to stitch the large patches of the insignia onto their riding apparel. And in the closed-off world of motorcycle clubs, built largely around rivalries and alliances with other groups, the logo is an unmistakable totem. The ability of Mongols leaders to use their image was dealt a blow Friday when a federal jury in Santa Ana decided the club should be stripped of the trademarks it holds on its coveted logo as punishment in a racketeering case. The verdict, however, sets up a First Amendment showdown over the right of the clubs members to express themselves. Last month, at the end of a lengthy trial, the same jury convicted the Mongols motorcycle club of racketeering and conspiracy charges, finding the group shared responsibility for murder, attempted murder and drug crimes committed by individual members. The verdict allowed prosecutors from the U.S. attorneys office to pursue something they had long sought: a court order forcing the Mongols to forfeit the trademarks as part of its sentence. The jury returned last week to hear a day of testimony and arguments from prosecutors and the Mongols defense attorney on the forfeiture issue. The panel had to decide whether the logo was linked closely enough to the crimes for which the Mongols organization had been convicted to warrant forcing the club to forfeit the trademarks to the U.S. government. After two days of deliberating, it decided there was, in fact, a tight nexus between the image and one of the criminal charges the club faced conspiracy to commit racketeering. Calling the verdict the first of its kind in the nation, U.S. Attorney Nicola Hanna said seizing the Mongols trademarks would serve to attack the sources of a criminal enterprises economic power and influence. But the case is not over. U.S. District Judge David Carter declined to immediately order the trademarks forfeited and instead set a hearing for next month to address, among other things, thorny First Amendment issues raised by the verdict. The governments pursuit of the trademarks is a novel legal strategy, based on the idea that control of the trademarks would not only cut off the stream of money that Mongols leaders collect from selling patches and other merchandise to members but would also empower government officials to stop Mongols members from wearing any clothing with the potent Mongol image. An effort to bar Mongols members from displaying the logo, trademark experts and constitutional scholars said, would run the risk of crossing constitutional lines set out by the First Amendment, which protects peoples rights to associate freely and express themselves. Just because youre found to be a criminal, you dont lose your First Amendment rights, said Jeffrey Pearlman, interim director of the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Clinic at the University of Southern Californias Gould School of Law. What the government seems to be trying to do is prevent these people from associating with each other. It is not the first time concerns over the First Amendment have been raised in the governments pursuit of the Mongols. A decade ago, in an earlier case, prosecutors sought authority to seize clothing bearing the Mongols insignia. A member of the club sued, saying his rights under the First Amendment were at risk, and prevailed. The plaintiffs hardship in not being able to express his views and public interest in protecting speech outweigh the governments interest in suppressing an intimidating symbol, the judge in that case wrote. At the forfeiture hearing last week, Joseph Yanny, the Mongols defense attorney, repeatedly told jurors that taking the trademarks from the Mongols would amount to a death penalty for the group. And on Friday, after the verdict, he said in an interview that he would argue to Carter that the jurys decision should be set aside in light of the First Amendment issues. Individual members of the Mongols, he added, are likely to file their own challenges as well. It should be a cold day in hell when the judge signs that order of forfeiture, Yanny said. The Mongols were formed in the 1970s in Montebello (Los Angeles County) by a group of mostly Latino men who reportedly had been rejected for membership by the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. It has expanded over the decades to include several hundred members in chapters across Southern California and elsewhere. The federal government has pursued the Mongols for years, along with several other biker clubs that authorities have identified as outlaw gangs. Despite their claims of being innocent social clubs, the groups, which include the Hells Angels, Vagos and the Outlaws, have long track records of warring with one another and, according to authorities, operate as criminal organizations that subsist on the drug trade. Joel Rubin is a Los Angeles Times writer. SpaceXs long-stated plans to reach the Red Planet could take a big step forward in February with a hopper test of the companys Mars spaceship prototype. During next months test, the prototype will launch and briefly go up in the air before coming back down to Earth, CEO Elon Musk revealed last week. But in line with typical Musk timelines, he gave himself a buffer, tweeting recently that four weeks probably means eight weeks, due to unforeseen issues. The vehicle, called Starship, is being assembled in South Texas, about 23 miles east of Brownsville. It is intended to launch on top of a massive rocket booster called Super Heavy. Starships planned hopper test is similar to those that SpaceX conducted from 2012 to 2014 with its Grasshopper and F9R test rockets, precursors to its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket. The 10-story Grasshopper rocket, which was basically a Falcon 9 first-stage booster with one engine and landing legs, completed eight test flights and landings at the companys McGregor, Texas, facility. After Grasshopper, the Southern California company tested the F9R test vehicle, which had three engines and went as high as 3,200 feet in the air before landing back on Earth. SpaceX has so far successfully landed its first-stage Falcon 9 booster 32 times, either at sea or on the ground. During the last few weeks, Musk has relied on his favorite medium to release more details about Starships development. In late December, Musk tweeted that Starship would have a stainless mirror finish because the spaceships skin would get too hot for paint. Later that day, he said the spaceship would look like liquid silver because a side would be cooled with cryogenic liquid methane. Then last weekend, Musk tweeted an illustration of a bullet-shaped stainless-steel spaceship, saying the Starship test vehicle would look similar when finished, though it would obv(iously) have windows. Starship is intended to carry as many as 100 passengers to the moon and Mars. In September, the company announced that Japanese e-commerce billionaire Yusaku Maezawa would be the first paying customer to travel around the moon on the vehicle. Maezawa has said his flight would occur in 2023. Interactive Vaccine Tracker: Latest developments Detailed information about the coronavirus vaccines as it becomes available. Musk said the first hopper engine to be fired is almost finished assembly in California and predicted that it would probably have a test fire next month. The engines currently on the prototype are a mix of operational parts and Raptor development the liquid methane-fueled rocket engine that will power the vehicle. The company plans to build the Super Heavy booster and Starship spaceship at a 19-acre site at the Port of Los Angeles. Starship development is not the only project SpaceX has planned this year. This summer, the company is set to launch NASA astronauts to the International Space Station in its Crew Dragon capsule, which would mark the first time NASA astronauts have taken off from U.S. soil since the space shuttle program ended in 2011. Samantha Masunaga is a Los Angeles Times writer. When San Francisco learned in November it was getting an unexpected $181 million to spread around, the first instinct of the mayor and the Board of Supervisors was to spend it on homeless initiatives, child care and affordable housing. There was no talk of using it for teacher pay raises. But now, a growing number of city leaders, education officials and labor groups are calling on Mayor London Breed and the board to spend some of the windfall on a teacher salary increase the district began paying before its funding source was secured. Proposition G the June parcel tax that voters approved to fund the raise is entangled in a lawsuit, and the San Francisco Unified School District wants the city to share the windfall to ensure the teacher raise remains in place. The school district gave teachers a 7 percent raise in July and has another 4 percent scheduled increase this summer, despite the fact that the Prop. G funds are unavailable. In a September letter to the district, Breed said the raise was a great concern and questioned the fiscal prudence of increasing wages before the money generated by the measure had even been collected. The district plans to use reserve funds to cover the raise this year, but thats a limited funding stream, and it will run out of money to pay for the raise in a year or so unless the city steps in, officials acknowledged this week. If necessary we can cover the cost for the rest of the year, district spokeswoman Gentle Blythe said. What happens next year is highly dependent on whether additional funds are appropriated by the city. We could get through part of next (school) year, but we would have reached our limit. How to spend the windfall, which comes from excess property tax revenue in a county education fund, has divided the city in recent weeks. Several supervisors and Breed proposed differing visions last month on how to spend the money. Breeds proposal focused on homelessness and housing initiatives, while the supervisors proposal divvied the money among homelessness initiatives, municipal energy independence and child care. Neither proposal mentioned funding for public schools. But at least four supervisors Hillary Ronen, Shamann Walton, Matt Haney and Gordon Mar said adjusting their original proposal to include the school district is a high priority for them. I am completely on board to cover the amount they are short, for the teacher raises, Ronen said. Because if they dont (get the money) it means they will take money away from the classrooms. And as a parent of a child in public schools, I can tell you we cannot afford to take money away from the classrooms. The teacher raise is costing the district $40 million on an annual basis. Currently, there is about $44 million in its rainy day account, with possible surplus city funds to be added. Blythe said the school board could decide to spend it all if necessary. Schools Superintendent Vincent Matthews said last month that $60 million of the windfall should go toward critical education-related purposes, including educator salaries. School funding is a high priority for me, Mar said Friday. But first I want to understand (the districts) rationale behind asking for $60 million. District officials said they knew what they were doing when they starting paying the raises. I think the district knew there was a chance of a lawsuit when it began issuing the raises, but felt it was urgent to get raises to our teachers given the high cost of living in San Francisco, Blythe said. Blythe said that if the reserve fund money runs out, the school board and teachers union will have to figure out what to do next, which could include rescinding the raise. The windfall is from a county education fund that is filled by property taxes. When the revenue in the fund exceeds what is owed to the school district, the city gets to keep the rest. This is the first time thats happened, with a total of $415 million in excess funds available. Most of that money is earmarked for Municipal Transportation, libraries, child care and tree maintenance. The citys public schools get about $35 million for youth services and rainy-day reserves. That leaves $181 million up for grabs. Breed has so far left the schools out of her spending plan, saying the money should help cover homeless services that meet the goals of Proposition C, a November ballot measure passed with 61 percent but is now facing possible legal challenges that could hold up the money for months or even years. Her proposal to spend all the money on homelessness and housing initiatives has widespread support from housing advocates and public housing residents, who said her plan will give much needed relief to the citys homeless and housing crisis. With this funding we need to focus on making a real impact now to address the significant challenges we have around housing and homelessness, Breed said Friday in a statement. There will be opportunities to discuss salary commitments going forward and during the budget process, but right now we need to work on making immediate investments that make a difference for people living on our streets and in the neighborhoods most impacted by homelessness. But those who want to see some of the money go toward public schools said that since both Prop. C and Prop. G passed with nearly 61 percent voter support, the city should use the windfall to fund both initiatives. We have to make sure that we carry out the will of the voters on all ends, said Walton, who supports adding money to schools. Everything that people are discussing is a priority for the city. We all have to come together and have a conversation around what can be shifted to where. The San Francisco Labor Council is also backing the school districts request. We call on city leaders to invest this revenue in the workers who are the backbone of our city government and public education system, Rudy Gonzalez, executive director of the council, said in a statement. The council called on city leaders to spend $60 million on schools, $60 million on recruiting and retaining city workers, and $60 million on homeless services. On Thursday, newly inaugurated Haney held a town hall meeting at the Tenderloin Community School to hear how neighbors wanted the citys money spent including the $181 million windfall. When the crowd of about 70 people were told to discuss in small groups what they felt needed more funding, the room erupted into a chorus of people talking about affordable housing, homeless services and mental health services. A number of people also said they wanted to see more money go toward public schools. We have some really great teachers, and I was glad to support them last year (with Prop. G), said Corrina Rice, as her 7-year-old son, Owen, who goes to Redding Elementary, ate a Rice Krispie treat. I want us to be able to keep the teachers we have. At the end of the two-hour meeting, Haney asked the crowd who planned to come to the City Hall meetings where the supervisors will hash out how the money is spent. Nearly everyone in the room raised their hand. Trisha Thadani and Jill Tucker are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: tthadani@sfchronicle.com, jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @trishathadani, @jilltucker The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa has released a list of 39 clergymen it says have been credibly accused or convicted of sexually abusing about 100 children, calling them the evil actions of priests and bishops. More than half of those on the list released Saturday night at least 23 are deceased, and Robert Vasa, bishop of the diocese, said in the North Coast Catholic newspaper that none of the priests or deacons on the list are still serving in the diocese. The names, which include four clergymen convicted of sexual offenses, were released in the newspaper. Many of them are already well-known through public accusations, admissions or investigations disclosed in the media or on the internet. Included on the list are 14 men who were accused of child sexual abuse in other locations but did not face allegations in the Santa Rosa diocese. Melanie Sakoda, a Bay Area representative of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said the release of the names is helpful despite the passage of time and the death of many on the list. Theres still a value to it, she said. Whether theyre dead or not, their victims may not be. They were a lot younger. A lot of survivors think theyre the only ones whove been abused. When lists come out, they realize theyre not alone. Its a step in the healing process to know that it was not your fault. The release, the latest in the Bay Area, comes amid a wave of similar disclosures across the country after a Pennsylvania grand jury report in August accused the Catholic church of a systemic cover-up of child sex abuse by diocesan leaders in that state and at the Vatican. The Diocese of San Jose in October released the names of 15 priests the church believes to be child sexual abusers. The Monterey Diocese released names of 30 abusers earlier this month. The Oakland Diocese had planned to disclose names by Thanksgiving but pushed the release into this year. The Archdiocese of San Francisco has not announced a decision on releasing names, but officials in November said they would review 4,000-plus personnel files for any cases of abuse. Vasa said in a statement that he was releasing the names to give all victims of clerical sexual abuse the assurance that they have been heard and that the church is very much concerned for their well-being and healing. The document offers scant details, if any, of what each man has been accused of and when and how it occurred. Vasa said thats because many of the cases are decades old. The list includes information on each suspected abusers status but in five cases it was not known if they were working as priests. Gerald Herbert / Associated Press 2012 SNAPs Sakoda said the Santa Rosa Diocese was fairly thorough in its list, including not only priests and listing clergy accused of child sexual abuse outside of the diocese. But she said the list should have included any sexual abuse of adult victims as well as any incidents involving nuns or secular church officials. Sakoda said she hopes the list will become a permanent fixture on the dioceses website, and will be updated and placed in an easy-to-find location. People should be able to find their abusers names, she said. Sakoda also urged any victims who dont see their abusers names on the list to contact SNAP, the state Attorney Generals office or the media to report them. The list can be found in a release from the diocese, prefaced by a statement from Vasa, or in the North Coast Catholic newsletter. The Santa Rosa Diocese covers an area of 11,700 square miles in six counties and includes nearly 180,000 members. Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan Thank you for reading! You have reached your 30-day limit of free access to SentinelSource.com, The Keene Sentinels website. If you would like to read two more articles for free at this time, please register for an account by clicking the sign up button below. We hope you find The Sentinels coverage of the Monadnock Region valuable. We rely on our subscribers to bring you strong local journalism and hope you will consider supporting our work by taking advantage of this special subscription offer here. Are you the sort of person who's eagerly awaiting the time of year when there's more sun in the evening and it isn't dark before happy hour is over? Well then some Washington senators have a bill for you. A group of senators from the Evergreen State have filed a bill to stay on Daylight Saving Time all year round. Again. It's become a routine part of each new year, when Washington lawmakers move to eliminate switching back from Daylight Saving Time. This year's bill is sponsored by Senators Jim Honeyford (R-Sunnyside), Sam Hunt (D-Olympia), and Kevin Van De Wege (D-Sequim). Their bill, SB 5139, would enact permanent Daylight Saving Time within the state. Were it to be enacted, sunrise and sunset would be one hour later in the day during November to March than it is now. Supporters believe that removing the shift would lessen some of the side effects that come with Daylight Saving Time (see the slideshow above). RELATED: Daylight saving time is here to wreak havoc on you, your body, and your schedule "I didn't really realize the problems that it creates," Honeyford told KOMO about a similar bill introduced in 2017. "There's an increased number of accidents, increased suicides, heart attacks. "I think that it was a myth that it was designed for agriculture. I believe that it's outlived it's use." According to Ballotpedia, Washington voters rejected Daylight Saving Time twice once in 1952 and 1954 but in 1960 it passed and the state has had it ever since. RELATED: What you need to know about seasonal affective disorder The case for staying on Daylight Saving, or doing away with it entirely, hasn't found success yet. But many people believe that there's a strong case for it. Click through the slideshow above to see some reasons people love Daylight Saving Time. Sunday's sunset will be at 4:42 p.m. Senate Democrats announced the resignation of State Sen. Kevin Ranker, D-Orcas, from the Senate, effective immediately. Ranker was under investigation by a Senate-hired lawyer for allegations of sexual harassment made by a former aide, Ann Larson, in the 2010 legislative session. He stepped down from a planned leadership position in the State Senate earlier this week. Ranker sent a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee's office late Friday announcing the resignation "with a heavy heart," according to the Associated Press. His resignation was effective immediately. In an email sent to his constituents, Ranker said he was fully cooperating with the investigation. "I am deeply sorry for any stress I caused her and I sincerely apologize," he wrote. "I wish her peace." Larson sent a text to the AP Saturday saying she was glad she could move on. "I hope that by my actions, more people feel safe to report any kind of inappropriate behavior without fear of retaliation," she wrote. Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig said Ranker informed him of the resignation Saturday. "Because this remains an on-going investigation, I will wait to comment further until I have had the opportunity to read the investigator's completed report on the allegations against Sen. Ranker," Billig said in a statement Saturday. Northwest News Network reported that Ranker wrote them in an email acknowledging a relationship with Larson. EARLIER: State Sen. Ranker steps down from chairmanship during investigation "For approximately six weeks during November and December 2008, I had a brief relationship with Ann Larsen [sic]," Ranker emailed to NW News Network. "I exercised extremely poor judgment, recognized my mistake and ultimately reconciled with my wife." Larson told NW News Network that it began as a "friendly flirtation," but then Ranker started "pushing boundaries." Billig said the process to choose a successor will begin "immediately." Senate Democrats said a special meeting of the the 40th Legislative District Democrats is called to nominate three names for consideration by the county legislative authorities within the 40th District. At another meeting, those authorities will choose the person to fill out the term. If there's no agreement within 60 days, Gov. Jay Inslee will appoint a person from the list within 30 days. THE MEN ARE shown with sex toys around their necks, doing skits in blackface, dressed in wigs and women's clothing and consuming copious quantities of alcoholic beverages. Are these the boys-will-be-boys antics of the wildest frat house on some college campus? Nope, it's the American power elite at play, as photographed by Alejandro Tomas over 26 years of attending an annual horse ride called Rancheros Visitadores in the Santa Ynez Valley near Santa Barbara, Calif. Tomas, a senior faculty member at Seattle Central Community College, has assembled a startling photo essay on leisure activities of leading citizens -- including a former president of the United States. The ride of the rich, in early May, is one of several elite gatherings: Best known is the summer Bohemian Grove encampment in Northern California, where Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon once huddled over 1968 presidential plans. Tomas' photo essay begins with solemnity. The Rancheros get a send-off at the 204-year-old Mission Santa Ines, where a Franciscan priest conducts a "Blessing of the Horses" and tells their owners to "ride with God." Leaving the mission, those in the saddle plan their sins. Tomas' shots show prostitutes arranging assignations with Rancheros during the upcoming weeklong ride. The hookers come from as far away as Las Vegas. Liaisons take place away from the Ranchero's three encampments, in nearby towns where some of the locals call them "Los Ranchero Liquidores." Joel Connelly has been a staff columnist for more than 30 years. He comments regularly on politics and public policy. Joel Connelly has been a staff columnist for more than 30 years. He comments regularly on politics and public policy. Of course, no women are permitted on or near the trail ride. The campsites -- set up by a largely Hispanic work force -- are locked from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. But Tomas' pictures show much away-from-camp cavorting. Who goes on the ride? The club is exclusive, white and male, with a membership limited to 600. A couple hundred invited guests and guys from the wait list attend each year. Photos from the 1989 ride show Reagan, an honorary member, on a buckboard beside former Interior Secretary William Clark. Gen. P.X. Kelly, commandant of the Marines, also is pictured. "Ronald Reagan was known as somewhat of a moralist," Tomas explained. Hence, we have a revealing pair of shots from the '89 ride. The Gipper is shown looking on at a male skit. In the skit, a blown-up sex doll has been discreetly clad in a bra and panties. Why do power guys do this? Bohemian Grove does have serious lectures -- former Secretary of State George Schultz doesn't go around in a tutu -- but features endless drinking and men dressed in women's clothes. Rancheros are mostly into male bonding. "I was a little taken aback by many of the attitudes," Tomas said. "Here are men at the highest rungs of power in this country. Quite blatant forms of racism and anti-Semitism and misogyny are on display. ... The festive debauchery represents a cohesion of the power class. They seem to feel stronger by putting down others." The Rancheros have their own pecking order. Just as the Mandalay camp represents the pinnacle of power at Bohemian Grove -- Seattle hotel magnate Edward Carlson was a member -- Campo Adolfo is the place to bed down at the Rancheros' ride. While the designer Adolfo clothed Nancy Reagan, Ronald Reagan slept at Campo Adolfo. Other "prestige" addresses in the Rancheros' 17 camps include Los Borrachos and Los Gringos, where many riders share membership in the Bohemian Grove club. Tomas has not set out to demean individual Rancheros. Still, one shot shows the late businessman Rushton Skakel -- brother of Ethel Kennedy -- with sex toys draped around his neck. Other photos show a rider in blackface and riders wearing women's wigs and clothes. A rodeo competition is held at the 7,312-acre Ranchero- owned ranch where the ride concludes. A plastic shield protects the judging stand from flying alcoholic beverages. A sheet displaying the Star of David, with the words "PS I Love You" drawn on it, gives riders a more tempting target. A United Airlines board member, John Mitchell, started the Rancheros ride in 1930 as a kind of Bohemians-on-horseback experience. Walt Disney was a member. A "donor member" was Jim Hensley, wealthy Phoenix beer distributor and father of Cindy McCain. It is hoped that we're at the end of a second "Gilded Age" in which powerful plutocrats and client politicians have run America. They've come close to running America into the ground. Old boys seek out other old boys, on both coasts. Vice President Dick Cheney and his pals have been known to blow away as many as 750 pheasants during "hunts" at private game farms. Tomas and two eminent sociologists -- G. William Domhoff of the University of California-Santa Cruz and Rhonda Levine of Colgate University -- co-wrote a paper on the Rancheros. They argue that the "special time" each May reaffirms the riders' sense that they are the chosen leaders of American society. "The Rancheros retreat reinforces the imminent morale or esprit de corps of the corporate leaders and the landed elite," the authors report. With millions of excluded Americans ready to curb their power and put a product of Kenya and Kansas into the White House, they'll likely need to drown their sorrows in May. Passing motorists, Metro bus passengers and truck drivers hurled insults and urged a distraught woman to jump from her perch on the railing of the Interstate 5 Ship Canal Bridge Tuesday morning. Police rushed to the scene to try to talk the 26-year-old Tacoma-area woman out of attempting suicide. But as the region's busiest freeway disintegrated into a massive traffic jam, the mood of some commuters grew ugly. "People were yelling, 'Jump, bitch, jump!'" Seattle Police Department spokesman Clem Benton said. "Now who wants to hear that in this type of a situation?" One Seattle radio station appeared to poke fun at the woman's predicament, peppering its live broadcast with splashdown sound effects. Fearful that she would succumb to the taunts, police shut the freeway down in both directions at 8 a.m., snarling thousands of motorists for more than two hours. Traffic was backed up from Northgate to the West Seattle Bridge exit. Side streets quickly became clogged. The woman finally jumped, taking a 160-foot plunge into Lake Union. Surprisingly, she survived the equivalent of a fall from a 16-story building. Last night, she was listed in serious condition at Harborview Medical Center. Yesterday's mob ugliness seemed to have further tarnished Seattle's image as a polite, mellow metropolis, causing some to wonder if the Emerald City is getting meaner. Historians and psychologists drew no conclusions, but pointed to a mainstream culture increasingly inured to violence and crisis. And they said people who cling to the notion that Seattle is somehow "kinder and gentler" than other cities are self-deluded. "This town is not immune to mob psychosis and violence. You go back to lynchings, anti-Chinese riots, anti-radical riots, race riots," said historian Walt Crowley, executive director of HistoryLink.org, an online encyclopedia of local history. Still, he called yesterday's crowd "a rare display of mass incivility." Police were alerted to the drama about 6:20 a.m. when commuters first noticed the woman sitting on the railing on the bridge's southbound side. A car was parked in the emergency lane nearby. She sat facing out, her heels propped on a section of round conduit shackled to the pavement's vertical side. During hours of tense negotiations yesterday, specially trained officers talked to the woman. Included were at least four hostage negotiators and three officers from the department's Crisis Intervention Team. "The first thing (officers) will do in this type of situation is ask, 'What can we do for you? Can we call anyone who can help you?'" Benton said. "We try to take the time to work with people and assist them in any way we can." After talking to the woman, officers asked that one of her friends be brought to the scene. A short time later, Washington State Patrol troopers escorted a South Seattle man to the bridge. "We've had a lot of success in these kinds of situations," Benton said. This time, the strategy failed. Shortly after 10 a.m. the woman stood a final time, then stepped into thin air. She tumbled several times in a fall that seemed to take forever, but lasted only a few seconds. She smacked the water hard, just south of the channel's midpoint -- a few dozen yards from the Pocock Rowing Center dock. It was the first jump off the Ship Canal Bridge this year, authorities said. "She kind of just cannonballed," said Holly Viola of Seattle, who was caught in the traffic jam. "She came up and she was swinging her arms, trying to swim." Harbor Patrol divers were in the water within seconds. She was pulled aboard one of three waiting police boats and delivered to medics. A Harborview Medical Center spokeswoman said the woman, whose name was not released, was conscious last night, with chest and abdominal injuries. KUBE-FM shock jock Rob Tepper, who hosts the morning "T-Man Show," made light of the situation in his repartee with call-in listeners and in-studio colleagues. KUBE general manager Alison Hesse defended Tepper yesterday, saying, "The station did not encourage listeners to heckle (the woman) or participate in anyway." Tepper said later that he didn't encourage the woman to take her own life. "I was shocked to learn people were telling her to jump," he said. Had he known what people were saying, he said, he would have called them "idiots" on the air. Asked about the sound effects, he said: "It was a 'kerplunk.' I'm not claiming this is the most sensitive show in the world. Absolutely not." Police were taken aback by the anger flashed by the crowd, but said only a fraction of the commuters reacted that way. The people who yelled at the woman are unable to relate to another person "as a human being," said Eric Trupin, vice chairman and professor in the University of Washington Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. "If this was a relative or your loved one, you could never conceive of doing something like that," he said. "It's so troubling that the response of motorists and citizens would be so unkind and non-empathic ... treating it like a sporting event." Seattle may have a reputation for niceness, but it's not immune to big-city problems. "It could have happened in New York. It could have happened in Tokyo," said Geoffrey Loftus, a UW psychology professor who co-wrote "Places Rated Almanac," which compared cities on different levels. Basically, it could have happened in any city large enough to have a group of vocal, "extreme" people, he said. The difference between here and New York City, for example, is the amount of attention given to the crowd's meanness. "New York is so vast that an incident like that is a little more lost in the noise of everyday events...," Loftus said. "It would barely make Page 18 of The New York Times." Crowley pointed to popular culture as a possible culprit."I don't know if it's peculiar to Seattle, but certainly our music, our TV, our films, our literature are saturated with selfishness and gratuitous violence and exploitation," he said. "I won't get political on you, but we're not living in times that value empathy, or a sense of community." One reader who learned about the incident on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer's Web site yesterday wanted to send the woman a card. "She needs to know everyone doesn't feel like the jerks on the bus," the reader said. Sgt. L.J. Eddy of the Crisis Intervention Team said it is not uncommon for people to urge someone threatening suicide in a public place to go through with it. "Almost any time there's an opportunity for the public to yell, they'll do it," said Eddy, who was on the bridge yesterday. "It's not the majority of people, but there's always one or two who seem to do it." Those school districts in South Carolina that are struggling to improve academically are most likely located in underprivileged communities. These are communities where support for education is weak, and many people consider improving failing public schools the sole responsibility of the state and school boards. The Williamsburg County School District is an example of what happens to public education when there is community indifference, which allows failing schools to become an issue of insignificance. The results: high numbers of student failures and no one holding leadership accountable. Unchecked leadership is at the root of many underperforming school districts. That wont change unless there is a change in the communitys attitude from indifference to concern. Accepting incompetent leadership and student failure as commonplace is the definition of indifference. How to change a communitys perspective from indifference and replace it with the attitude of concern for improving students success is a serious matter for improving failing public schools. That is a problem only the community can solve. That's not all. The bill further said that "the Secretary may not adjust the status of aliens who have been granted registered provisional immigrant status ... until 6 months after ... [the Secretary submits] a written certification that ... there is in place along the Southern Border no fewer than 700 miles of pedestrian fencing." In other words, Democrats agreed that no illegal immigrants could get a path to citizenship until all 700 miles of border fencing had been fully completed. Every Senate Democrat voted for the Gang of Eight bill including 36 Democratic senators still serving today. President Barack Obama agreed to sign it. Indeed, he praised the bill for including what he called "the most aggressive border security plan in our history" and said that "the Senate bill is consistent with the key principles for commonsense reform that I and many others have repeatedly laid out" (emphasis added). That bears repeating: Obama said building a 700-mile fence on the southern border was consistent with the principles of the Democratic Party. Pelosi supported the Gang of Eight bill, saying at the time that "every piece of this legislation has had bipartisan support" (emphasis added). But now we are shutting down the government over a wall much like the one that Pelosi and Senate Democrats fully supported just five years ago? Conservationist Dana Beach years ago described how to keep development from mauling everything into a mess of sprawl. Dont, he said, talk or write about merely protecting land. Instead, use words to conceptualize protecting special places in South Carolina. The first approach is kind of clinical and vanilla. It outlines what one wants but doesnt link to what someone else might really care about. But the second method connects conservation with a readers innate definition of keeping safe his or her own special place, whether it is a spot on a beach, a pristine stretch of river, a favorite area to see birds, a trail in the mountains. In other words, it allows the reader to be involved in framing the concept of what protection means. In a new book that tells 10 conservation success stories in South Carolina over the past 30 years, Beach and his wife, Virginia, share keys to keeping a lot of the Palmetto States special places safe from threats of sprawl, development and, in one sense, human greed. WASHINGTON Like any plumber, James Lyles, 73, wanted to know what was going on beneath the surface. Two years ago, not long after he had a heart attack, his primary-care physician asked him whether he wanted to take a PSA test - a blood test for a "prostate-specific antigen" that helps physicians diagnose prostate cancer in its early stages. Not seeing a downside, Lyles agreed - and the test showed he did have cancer. Now, in the middle of radiation treatments, he says he is feeling OK. In his view, a $25 blood test helped keep him alive. "It only takes a vial of blood to tell you whether your health is in jeopardy or not," he said. "It's one of the easiest ways of finding out the truth about your body." Unintentionally, Lyles - a black man from suburban Prince George's County, Maryland - had taken a side in a debate over prostate screening. A federal agency said PSA tests for all men were unnecessary in 2012 before changing its mind last year and, in May, saying patients and their doctors should decide whether screening makes sense on a case-by-case basis. African American men are more likely than white men to develop and die of prostate cancer, and there is an ongoing debate about when tests should be given to them. FLORENCE, S.C. The Florence City Council is scheduled to hold the second and final reading of a bill regarding an annexation in the Oakdale area of Florence County on Monday. Bill No. 2018-20 would annex and zone five whole properties and a portion of two other properties in the city. The whole properties are known by tax map numbers 00052-01-001, 00052-01-005, 00052-01-049, 00522-01-027, and 00075-01-022. The properties that will be partially annexed are known by the numbers 00075-01-021 and 00751-01-049. The owners of the properties are the Finklea Law Firm, South Florence Developers, the Palms Course, and R.B. Kennedy Properties. The properties form something of a sideways L in connecting to city limits. The two partial properties form and 00075-01-022 form the top of the L. One portion of the property with the number 00075-01-021 is a 50-foot strip of Lake Oakdale. Later, this property expands into a portion of Lake Oakdale before turning and following the creek bed to the other properties. The other properties are at the bottom of the L. The property with the numbers 00052-01-005 and 00052-01-049 are expected to be developed into small, single family homes. It is not yet known what the plans are for the other two properties. FLORENCE, S.C. South Carolina Sen. Hugh K. Leatherman Sr. and state Reps. Phillip Lowe and Jay Jordan will provide a legislative update at the January meeting of the Florence County Republican Party. The meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. Monday at the Eddie Floyd Conference Center on the Carolinas Hospital System campus. Food from Rogers BBQ will be served. Leatherman, Lowe and Jordan are the Republican members of the Florence County legislative delegation. Leatherman serves as the senator from district 31, which includes a small portion of eastern Darlington County and most of Florence County except small portions of the southwestern part of the county. He has served since 1981. Leatherman serves as chairman of the Senate Finance Committee and previously served as president pro tempore of the Senate. Lowe, who has served since 2007, represents House District 60, which includes portions of western Florence County and southern Darlington County. He serves as chairman of the Law Enforcement Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee. Jordan represents House District 63, which includes West Florence. He won a 2015 special election for the seat and was re-elected in 2016 and 2018. The event is free and open to the public. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Along with expert advice from education sessions, Floyd looks to the tradeshow floor to gather additional valuable insight. With more than 100 exhibitors of farm equipment, supplies and services, the trade show attracts farmers looking to stay updated on the newest technology, products and services as well as simply visit with fellow farmers. Networking with other producers provides valuable insight and fresh perspectives, Floyd said. Ty Woodard raises crops and cattle on his family farm near Mont Clare and has attended the expo every year. Like Floyd, Woodard sees a lot of benefit in the social element of the expo. Since farmers do not have much free time during the year to network with fellow producers, they can take advantage of the time together at the expo. We are able to encourage one another and get ideas from each other, Woodard said. When we are able to get together with other people interested in agriculture, its beneficial in a lot of ways not only for farmers but for the public in general. Events like the Taste of South Carolina, a ticketed event set for 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 23, are designed to introduce people to the wide variety of foods and products grown in South Carolina. Woodard said farmers have a responsibility to not only learn but also educate people who might not have agriculture experience. Through kith and kin UofSC has become Sam Wilsons home away from home For electrical engineering senior and first-generation college student Sam Wilson, family is everything. Both his family back home in North Charleston, South Carolina, and his newfound family here at the university have been an integral support system as he navigates his way to his bachelors degree. And, as a way of saying thank you, Wilson has become a mentor to younger students facing the same challenges. Sam Wilson is a senior at UofSC, majoring in electrical engineering. My family has played a huge role in my success here at USC. Without my parents supporting me financially, physically and emotionally, I would not be in my current position in college, Wilson says. At the same time, the University of South Carolina truly has been a second home for me. The support systems here to help you achieve your goal are as numerous as the inspirational individuals you will connect with. Through the Opportunity Scholars Program at South Carolina, Wilson had access to academic coursework, advisement and support that contributed to a strong foundation for success beginning in his freshman year. He was able to explore opportunities for academic development, mentoring and cultural enrichment. The program provided a home base that helped ease his transition to college and provided peers and mentors he could count on. I remember my freshman year, my mother would call me every morning before class to ask how I was holding up and if I was eating, Wilson says. My oldest sister is like a second mother to me. She frequently checks up on me. She ensures that I am calm, cool and collected while getting though the hardships that come with this journey. Wilson says when he first arrived on campus, he was unsure of himself as he was the type of person who kept to himself in high school and focused on his grades. The thought of making new friends was definitely scary. However, by my second semester in college, I gained multiple mentors and friends and became involved in student organizations. The University of South Carolina truly has been a second home for me. Sam Wilson, electrical engineering senior Wilsons campus involvement includes Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Brothers of Nubian Descent and the Brother to Brother Black Male Initiative. He also serves as a student-mentor for the Multicultural Assistance Peer Program. That program is part of the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and helps first-year multicultural students transition to the university by providing them with a trained mentor for their critical first year. Wilson was drawn to the program, in part, because of its dedication to celebrating the cultural diversity of all students and the way the program works to establish positive academic, social and cultural networks. Participation from student-mentors like Wilson makes the program stronger and more vibrant. The peer program is Wilsons way of paying it forward to incoming students who find themselves in the shoes he once wore. Wilson credits Shay Malone, director of Multicultural Student Affairs, as an important person during his time at South Carolina. She has been a supportive and nurturing figure since my sophomore year, Wilson says. She has always created a safe haven for me and other students when we are stressing or going through problems or issues. Thanks to her being there for me through my worst and best times, I have become a knowledgeable student and a better-prepared adult. Whatever the future holds for Wilson, he is glad his time in college has been a success thanks, in part, to the encouragement and support he received here and from his family. University of South Carolina was the best choice for me financially, academically and personally. I am thankful for that choice every single day. Share this Story! Let friends in your social network know what you are reading about Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh, R-Ballston, takes the oath of office for a second term as her husband, Jim, looks on. The oath was administered by Judge Paul Pelagalli, right, in the Saratoga County Family Court room. Chandigarh, January 13, 2019: The Aam Aadmi Party senior leader and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann on Sunday slammed Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh for turning a deaf ear to the drug issue in state. Mann appealed Capt. if he doesn't listen to the issues raised by opposition party then he must atleast listen to the issues raised by his own party MLAs. In a press statement issued from party headquarters, Mann said that the issue of police and civil officers shielding liquor mafia raised by Zira MLA Kulbir Singh Zira is quite shocking and needs to be taken seriously. Mann said that before Zira another Congress MLA Surjeet Singh Dhiman had raised the issue of drugs being sold by influencial people during Capt. regime. He had accused the drugs mafia is being operated on the tunes of Previous Badal govt. Chief Minister Capt. Amarinder Singh Mann said that AAP has been raising the issue of drugs in state but no action was taken against the drug mafia by state govt. He said after the issue was raised again by Congress MLA Zira now the Chief Minister must take the issue seriously and action must be taken against drug mafia and officers shielfding them. He said that Capt. must fulfill his promise of weeding out drug mafia from state made before 2017 elections while holding Sri Gutka Sahib in his hand. Mann said not 4 but even after 94 weeks of govt. formation, the state is still suffering from drug menace. He said the unemployed youth of state is unable to get out of the clutches of drug. He said MLA Zira has testified that there is no difference of working between previous Badal and Present Capt. govt. New Delhi, Jan 13: Taking on the Congress over the Ram temple issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the opposition party was trying to impede the judicial process for resolution of the matter. He also asked BJP workers to remind the masses about the Congress' stand on the issue. In his concluding address at the BJP national convention here, Modi briefly touched on the Ram temple issue, drawing cheers from thousands of party workers gathered at Ramlila Maidan, but remained confined to targeting the Congress. Cong doesn't want resolution of Ram temple issue "In the Ayodhya issue, the Congress is trying to impede the judicial process through its lawyers. The Congress does not want resolution of the Ayodhya issue," Modi said. "We should not forget its attitude and (also) not let others forget it," he told party workers. He was apparently referring to remarks of senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal who had said that the Supreme Court should hear the matter after conclusion of general elections this year. Sibal is representing one of the litigants in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title dispute case. Modi alleged that the Congress even tried to impeach former chief justice of India, Dipak Misra, to delay the hearing in the case. Earlier this month, the prime minister had said that any decision on passing an executive order on the Ram temple issue cannot be made unless the judicial process is over. Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal His reaction came amid growing clamour by right-wing organisations like RSS and VHP to bring an ordinance to construct the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. The matter is pending in the Supreme Court and is scheduled to come up for hearing on January 29. There are an increasing number of protections in place for consumers things like the ability to opt in and opt out, or needing consent to use their data, she said. Employees, however, have less control over how their employers use their data. Yet plenty of data is at risk. Beyond Social Security numbers and bank account information from direct deposits, data like what movies you watched in a hotel room on a business trip (charged to a corporate credit card) or what vacation days you took could reveal other personal tastes or even religious information to outside parties. Bergman predicts more pressure for employers to provide some of the same options to their workers that customers have, such as being able to request access to information that companies have about them. I think what theyll start to demand is that employers specify a certain duty of care when it comes to dealing with their data, Bergman said. I think it will become part of their marketing pitch, in the same way benefits packages are, as employers start to disclose how they treat employers data, too, and use that as an indicator of the moral and ethical fabric of the company. 4. OFFICE DESIGN: The office phone booth will become a workplace staple. Heres what got almost no attention out of the GM announcement but ought to have. Who will be building those self-driving vehicles? This is really the key to GMs moves: Theres no guarantee that the companies building those cars of the future will be the same car companies we have today. The website CB Insights which follows the technology industry counted 46 different companies engaged in research into self-driving cars and conceded there could be more out there that have escaped its notice. Some of these are car companies, but most arent: They are a diverse group of players, ranging from automotive industry stalwarts to leading technology brands and telecommunications companies. One of the companies considered at the forefront of autonomous vehicle doesnt even have a background in making physical products at all. Its Alphabet, the parent company of Google. If youre the CEO of GM, youre right to be concerned. The history of business is littered with companies that failed to transition from one technology to the next. Kodak once was synonymous with photography. Now most people take pictures with their phones. Kodak is still around, but is not the company it once was. Those phones were taking pictures with, by the way, arent being made by traditional phone companies, either. Everything is changing, both the economy and the geography of the economy. In order for Virginia to maintain its position as a global economic leader, it is important to align our childhood development and educational programs at all levels in a continuum to prepare students with the adaptive learning and decision-making skills as well as the knowledge employers will want by the time they enter the workforce. This is one reason that the Virginia Chamber of Commerces Blueprint Virginia has made early childhood development one of their top priorities with an emphasis on the development of critical and creative thinking skills and improved access to affordable high quality childhood education as centerpieces and is working with the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation to champion a business plan for Virginias early childhood system. We are very fortunate in Virginia to have bipartisan leadership at the executive and legislative levels that understands and values healthy childhood development. As such, we are well positioned to continue to make this a priority. It is important that new initiatives are based on sound scientific data to drive quality and ensure accountability, positioning the Commonwealth as a leader in incorporating the science of early brain development so that every dollar spent offers maximum return to students and taxpayers alike. As our state leaders head back to Richmond for the important work of the General Assembly, we should all be encouraged by this historic opportunity to chart a long-term course for our early childhood development programs. Their success on this important issue will be a big win for Virginia families, business and for our economy in every corner of the Commonwealth. Virginia State Police have identified the man killed in a three-tractor-trailer crash in Pulaski County on Saturday night. Ronald W. Harris, 73, of Gainesville, Georgia, died at the scene of the wreck on Interstate 81, according to a news release. Troopers responded at 8:51 p.m. to a three-vehicle crash at mile marker 90 on southbound I-81, the release stated. Harris was driving a 1991 Oshkosh M1074, a type of military surplus vehicle, when he lost control due to the slick road conditions, police said. The vehicle was then struck by two southbound tractor-trailers. The M1074 and one of the tractor-trailers came to rest in the median, according to the release. The impact of the crash caused the other tractor-trailer to run off the left side of the highway, continue through the median, through the guardrail, cross over northbound lanes of I-81 and strike a fence. The other drivers were transported to a nearby hospital for treatment of injuries that were not life threatening, the release stated. The investigation is ongoing. A unique feature of the house is a series of small windows, that when opened, form a ventilation system. Architectural historian Mike Pulice, who works for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, said there are many prestigious places in Bedford and Three Otters is among the top. The Greek Revival part of it, being one of the examples in Bedford or the surrounding region is what makes it special, he said. He said the house and several important and rare surviving outbuildings generally are well preserved but could use some repair and maintenance. The state and national register listing means all of the buildings are eligible for state and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits, he said. Ideally a new owner would use the tax credits, which can total up to 45 percent of rehabilitation costs, and which require overall preservation of historic character and fabric. Karen Nichols, the great-great granddaughter of Abel Beach Nichols and his wife Clarissa Baldwin Linus, lives down the road from Three Otters in a home built by her parents, Ralph and Nenie Nichols. She is the last Nichols in Bedford now but said there are descendants all over the county. Toyota Motor Corp. has sold enough cars to put one outside every Japanese home. Now it wants to put robots inside. Well-known for its automated assembly lines, Toyota sees a not-so-far-off future in which robots transcend the factory and become commonplace in homes, helping with chores and even offering companionship in an aging society where a quarter of the population is over 65 and millions of seniors live alone. Machines have become much smarter in the last decade or so. Yet, every attempt to build one that can do simple things like load a washing machine or carry groceries encounters the same basic, physical problem: the stronger a robot gets, the heavier and more dangerous it becomes. What Toyota has going for it are $29 billion in cash reserves, a new artificial intelligence research center and a well-respected inventor, Gill Pratt, heading its effort. This is a company with so many resources that you can never ignore them, said Morten Paulsen, a Tokyo-based analyst at CLSA Japan Securities Co., whos covered the robotics industry for decades. Toyota has been experimenting with robots since at least 2004, when it unveiled a trumpet-playing humanoid with artificial lips, lungs and movable fingers that could accompany an actual human orchestra. By the summer of 2017, Lee County residents had been without a hospital for four years, and local officials were under increasing public pressure to find a partner to reopen the building. People living in one of Virginias poorest, most isolated counties had chipped in whatever they could afford to help buy back their hospital building, and they were convinced that they continued to lose family, friends and neighbors for lack of emergency care. The hospital authority had two proposals on the table. One came from Americore Health, a Florida startup that had been wooing Lee County for nearly a year. The company had no expertise in health care, had yet to show details of its promised financial backing, and had missed payroll at a Kentucky hospital it had just acquired. CEO Grant White promised a full-service hospital and a new model of care that could succeed in rural America with a business plan that called for nearly $34 million a year in lab billing. The other proposal came from Mountain States Health Alliance, one of two hospital systems then operating in Virginias coalfields. The other, Wellmont Health Systems, had closed the hospital in 2013. The two systems planned to merge and form Ballad Health. The very mention of the name Wellmont in Lee County raised hackles, and although the merger had yet to go through, for some, the distrust felt for one system morphed into feelings toward the other. Mountain States presented its financials and offered to immediately provide an urgent care facility while it worked to open an emergency room. It agreed to study whether the county could financially support a hospital. The commissioners, in a split vote, went with Americore. They just got desperate. I remember one saying its the only game in town, or the only chance weve got, but really that wasnt true, Chairman Ronnie Montgomery said. If you cant find out anything about anybody, and just to let someone new walk in here and promise you the damn moon, Ive been down that road too many times. If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. When he and two other commissioners saw they would be in the minority, they pressed for performance bonds. They lost that vote, too. Their skepticism was proven just, and on Thursday, the commissioners ratified Montgomerys action of sending Americore notices of default. Americore had failed to get the hospital licensed and opened by the states Dec. 31 deadline. The company had stopped working on the building during the summer when its creditors filed suit in New York and sought to freeze its bank accounts with PNC. The bank in court documents said one account was overdrawn by six figures, so it should be first in line for repayment. In its defense, Americore called the lenders predatory, claiming they violated usury laws and should have known they couldnt all collect from the same daily receipts. By then, Americore was missing payrolls in Kentucky and at a hospital in Pennsylvania, where it would also fall delinquent in utility and tax bills, according to Pennsylvania media. News outlets also reported last week that investigations are underway by the district attorneys office and the federal Bureau of Labor. Grassroots effort Lee County forms Virginias farthest southwest corner. The county seat of Jonesville is closer to eight other state capitals than it is to Richmond and is a four-hour drive from Roanoke. About 25,000 people make their home in the mountains. Its major employers are a Walmart, a federal prison and the local government and, until it closed, the hospital with its 140 jobs. Without a hospital, the county has a hard sell in convincing others to invest in starting businesses there. The first hospital opened more than 70 years ago on a hill over Pennington Gap. Later, the county built a new one with room for 70 inpatients off the main road, and added medical offices. The hospital went through a string of owners. Wellmont bought it in a package deal in 2007 and then six years later, without warning, closed it. In 2013, Lee County was one of 80 communities across the country to have lost their hospital in the previous three years. But the people in Lee County did what few have attempted: They vowed to reopen their hospital. County supervisors created the hospital authority. They held public hearings to convince Virginia to grant them what is called a Certificate of Public Need, and they engaged in difficult negotiations with Wellmont to buy the building for $1.6 million. Wellmont insisted on a stipulation that said Lee Countys hospital authority could not sell or partner with any other health system without giving it the right of first refusal. Wellmont would not relinquish that hold until July 2016. A brand-new business model Grant White and his 13-year-old daughter drove into Pennington Gap in the summer of 2016. White was scouting for failing rural hospitals to purchase. He was living in Florida, where he had moved after losing his job as CEO of a Canadian firm, Quantum International. The company had sold subscription receipts to finance the purchase of a number of U.S. health companies. The deals collapsed in October 2015, and Quantum issued a statement, under Canadian Stock Exchange rules, that it could not cover the return of investors funds. White talked about his passion for rural health care, his investors, his alliance with health care leaders and his strategy for creating a new, profitable model of health care. The authority commissioners were intrigued and in October of that year entered into a letter of intent to lease the building to Americore for 20 years. They gave Americore a few months to present its business and financial plans. That had yet to occur by the summer of 2017. By then, Whites history with Quantum had come to light, as had word that Americore had missed paying Kentucky employees on time. White continued to talk with the authority about his passion for health care and for them. He talked of how on his first visit there with his daughter, a woman stood up and said her best friend had died because it took an hour and 15 minutes to get to an emergency room. That is something that could be easily cured. I know I have a business model that could open that hospital and make it profitable. Im 100 percent sure of that. So I looked at my daughter who was crying over this story, and I said, Im going to get this place reopened, he said in a 2017 interview. His emotion-packed words reflected those of the people in Lee County, who thought White understood their plight. They were also convinced of his sincerity, as Americore had carried the vacant hospitals electricity bill during the year of negotiations. Commissioners voted to sell Americore the building for $2 million, with $500,000 credited for funds already spent, and the balance would be due in three years. The county had placed a $1.6 million lien against the property to regain what it had paid Wellmont, and it agreed to take second position so Americore could gain financing for the project. Secret sauce White has not answered emails and texts seeking an interview since September, and his voicemail does not accept messages. White said in past interviews that he wanted to do health care in a different way that would succeed in rural areas and that would not be reliant on Medicare and Medicaid funding. Asked to explain his business model in a 2017 interview, White said: I cant give you all the secret sauce formula because we are very confident in it. We obviously have acute-care hospitals that are dependent on Medicare and Medicaid, but if that is your sole business model in these locations, youre going to starve. What Im saying is you have significant other service lines were bringing to these locations to utilize excess real estate space, as well as better take advantage of the services the hospital provides. White did provide the authority with an Excel spreadsheet that projected revenues would be $44.3 million by the second year of operations in Lee County. Of that, $33.9 million would come from lab services. Those figures raised concerns with at least one hospital commissioner. Tom Clarke, who runs a Roanoke-based health care company, thought the lab revenue percentages seemed too high for a hospital of that size. Clarke had been reading reports just coming to light of Anthem and other insurers filing suits alleging fraudulent billing schemes against other rural hospitals. Those hospitals had been distressed and were failing before being bought by other Florida developers that then appeared to use the hospitals higher reimbursement rates to bill insurers for high volumes of testing for illicit drugs. Americores proposal also relied heavily on toxicology testing. In a September interview, White said his hospitals were not involved in pass-through billing schemes. We do something called an outreach program, but we dont do it in any way, shape or form like the people you read about in the news, he said. Weve been audited by the payers. We work with the payers to provide a far better service offering than other people. We are not abusing the payer contracts, I guess thats the best way to describe it. White said the labs at Americores hospitals run all of the tests for which they bill. Its pretty clear were not doing the things they are doing. Otherwise we wouldnt be having the other problem, he said. Into default Throughout the fall of 2018, White would tell the authority that his troubles elsewhere wouldnt delay progress in Lee County. Commissioners waited but saw that work had not resumed. They pressed for details as to when equipment would be ordered and installed, when the building would be ready for licensing inspections, when employees would be hired. The authority designated commissioners Howard Elliot and Diana Pope to keep in daily contact with Americore. That didnt work. Meetings were called. White would call in on a conference line. What about the money, Grant? Pope pressed in November. He responded then that they could still get the hospital open on time. Within weeks, it was clear that would not occur. And by years end, equipment and furnishings had been moved out of the building and Americore was not responding to the authority. Montgomery sent letters of default, and negotiations are now underway to determine the value of improvements Americore made to the building. There is a lien for about $1.3 million that will need to be satisfied. The authority does not have funds of its own. It plans to meet Monday to approve a settlement proposal that it will send to the county supervisors. And then it is back to finding a partner. Virginias health commissioner agreed earlier this month to give Lee County four more years to open the hospital. I want to make it clear, in no case do we expect or intend to need the four years, Elliot said. The commissioners think they might have more suitors this time around since Virginia has expanded Medicaid for adults, meaning there will be far fewer patients without insurance. Ballad is required under the terms of the Wellmont-Mountain States merger to provide essential services in Lee County if the authority is unable to open the hospital. The health system said in a statement Friday it is committed to serving the residents of Lee County and is willing to assist Lee County leaders in their efforts to ensure health care access for the people they serve. But there remains the question of whether Lee County would welcome Ballads assistance, as people still harbor ill feelings toward Wellmont. Ballad CEO Alan Levine, who came from Mountain States, said in a recent interview that he doesnt understand the distrust. We were the ones that were the most honest with them when we said you dont have enough population to support a full-service hospital. Thats why these rural hospitals are closing and we didnt close that hospital, by the way, he said. When we made this proposal, we shared the financials, we showed them the needs, we gave them a timeline of when we would get the ER approved by the commonwealth. What I think it was, that may have been one reason they gave you, they had another person at the table saying no, no, no, we can give you a hospital. And if I were them, and I heard that, Id say, that is great. These are not people who understand how it works with this whole lab thing. These are lay people who dont understand the implications of that. If I were in their shoes I may have seen the same. They came in and said you could have a hospital, and you had us saying you cant support a hospital. This story was reported with the support of the Dennis A. Hunt Fund for Health Journalism, a program of the University of Southern California Center for Health Journalism. The business news you need With a weekly newsletter looking back at local history. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. A Salem restaurant has recently re-opened, but it has changed so much that it is almost like an entirely new eatery. Pizza Pasta Pit, which opened many years ago at 1713 Riverview Drive, closed in July and its owners spent the past six months renovating the building from the ground up. The new restaurant, now called Lydia's Italian Kitchen, opened this month and looks practically brand new. Co-owner Billy Newcomb acquired Pizza Pasta Pit about four years ago and said he had always intended to remodel the property and add to its menu. He said the restaurant has kept a lot of its popular pizza recipes, including its gluten-free options. However, Newcomb wanted to make it more than just a pizza shop and transformed it into a more of a full Italian restaurant. Lydia's, which is named after Newcomb's oldest daughter, can seat about 100 people in about 1,500 square feet, making it a little larger than the previous space. The restaurant includes a new dining space that can be used for private gatherings, and several parking spots were added. On the menu, Lydia's still features wood-fired brick-oven pizzas, pastas and sandwiches, and it has also offers several new dishes featuring seafood. The restaurant has a wine and beer license with 11 beers on tap and a brand-new wine list. Newcomb said he hopes that the new spot will cater to a mix of casual family diners and couples on date nights. Lydia's is open every day and its hours and other updates are on its Facebook page. NOTE: Alejandro Escovedos show set for Harvester Performance Center on Sunday night has been reset to May 15. UPDATE: Don Antonio will not be his backing band on the rescheduled show. More than six years have passed since rocker Alejandro Escovedo played in Southwest Virginia. It was 2012 at Kirk Fest, outside the old Kirk Avenue Music Hall (now The Spot on Kirk). He had played the music hall the year before. These days, the guy who booked those shows, Gary Jackson, is general manager at Harvester Performance Center, in Rocky Mount. He booked Escovedo, whose early days in the punk world inform his often Americana-leaning later work, for a Sunday show. Escovedo hits the venue with an Italian band called Don Antonio, with which he collaborated on his latest album, The Crossing, released in September to as much fanfare as he has received in recent years. Don Antonio was supposed to be his backing band for a European tour, but they hit it off so well that he brought the group back to the states, and collaborated on the new album with the bands Antonio Gramentieri, according to Rolling Stone magazine. Officials warned Virginians to brace for icy conditions overnight Sunday and into Monday morning following hundreds of traffic crashes across the state and power outages affecting thousands in the Richmond area. State troopers had responded to 324 traffic crashes and 196 disabled vehicles throughout the state on Sunday, as of 5:30 p.m. The majority of the crashes 107 occurred in the Richmond region. The police are investigating three fatalities, including one officials determined to be related to the weather. Ronald Harris, 73, of Georgia, died after he lost control of his vehicle while traveling on Interstate 81 in Pulaski County on Saturday night. His vehicle was struck by two tractor-trailers. Both of the other drivers were transported to a nearby hospital for non-life-threatening injuries. In Brunswick County, a 16-year-old passenger died after a vehicle driven by another 16-year-old crashed into a tree shortly after 4 a.m. Sunday. The driver was transported to VCU Medical Center with life-threatening injuries. State police determined that alcohol and speed contributed to the crash and that neither teen was wearing a seat belt. After another night in the 20s for Richmond, Wednesday's sun will bump the highs close to normal in the mid 40s. A cold front will pass through, but it will be a dry one. Thursday will remain chilly beneath a mix of sun and clouds and highs in the mid 40s. We could make it back to the 50s on Friday once winds come back in from the south. That will also bring in our next chance for rain. If it comes in early while temperatures are still cold, we could see some snowflakes before a switch to rain. At this time, it doesn't look like a significant snow threat for the area. Weekend forecast A robust low pressure system will track from the Tennessee Valley to the Northeast and deliver quite a bit of rain to Virginia from Saturday night into Sunday. Though Saturday could bring some mild 50s or 60s to the region, a bigger cold snap will move in right on the heels of the low pressure. Wintry weather can't be ruled out next weekend if that moisture mixes with arriving cold air, but uncertainty is high at this point. Beyond that, below normal temperatures are favored for much of the Eastern U.S. during the final two weeks of January. Whether the snow and ice was a hit or a miss for your neighborhood over the weekend, it seems there's still a lot of winter left. Check Richmond.com/weather for John Boyers videos and forecast updates. Contact him at JBoyer@timesdispatch.com. Offensive tweets spur ODU to review Greek community NORFOLK Old Dominion University is reviewing its entire Greek community after members of a sorority were accused of using racist language online and belittling a black member. ODU made the announcement in a letter Friday, with university President John Broderick saying he was repulsed to learn of alleged racist behavior and that it goes against everything for which the Monarch community stands, The Virginian-Pilot reported. The university said the national Alpha Phi organization recently ordered ODUs chapter to cease its activities. Tweets from a former student showed a photo of a 2016 sorority event with a white student holding an award that said blackest white youll ever meet. Another tweet appears to show a white sorority member using a racist slur. The tweets were deleted. Board settles on new name for Washington-Lee High ARLINGTON A school board in Northern Virginia has picked a new name for a school that had been named for Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. Washington-Lee High School will now be known as Washington-Liberty High School. The partial federal government shutdown has become the longest in history, and Fridays missed paycheck for furloughed workers generated another 800,000 sad stories. More than 1,000 federal workers set up GoFundMe pages to help cover bills, while others put their personal belongings on Craigslist to make ends meet. Even federal employees who want to be done with it all and retire cant because theres no one to process the paperwork. Amid all the heartache there was a bright spot for one family with a federal employee in Virginia: As hundreds of thousands of federal workers were lamenting missed checks, Carrie Walls was picking up a big one. Walls won the Virginia Lotterys Ford Expedition Plus $100K, a scratch-off contest. In a picture posted by the states lottery commission, shes seen smiling inside the drivers seat of the new white SUV, holding a Virginia Lottery check almost as wide as the front door. I cried, said Walls, who is from Ashburn, of the moment she knew she won. I couldnt believe it. Walls, an Air Force veteran, had the winning ticket out of 554,000 entries. She bought the scratch-off Dec. 4, two weeks before the shutdown began and her husband, a federal worker, was furloughed. FALLS CHURCH Three weeks into a partial government shutdown that has stalled nine federal departments, Nargess Lakehal-Ayat spends her days at home, fielding questions from her 12-year-old son that shes unable to answer. When are you going back to work? What are we going to do? Then there are the questions the single mother who said she lives paycheck to paycheck cant answer for herself. How is she going to pay her $2,200 mortgage? Or her $356 condominium fee? She has borrowed money from her sister to get by. The language and culture instructor for the State Department doesnt know when her next paycheck will arrive. Thats how Lakehal-Ayat found herself Friday, on the shutdowns 21st day, in a nondescript government building in Falls Church, one of about 200 federal workers who applied to become substitute teachers in the Northern Virginia school district during a hiring event for furloughed workers. Its a very stressful situation. You dont know when its going to stop, when it is going to end, she said. And I didnt want to sit home anymore. A unique feature of the house is a series of small windows, that when opened, form a ventilation system. Architectural Historian Mike Pulice, who works for the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, said there are many prestigious places in Bedford and Three Otters is among the top. The Greek Revival part of it, being one of the examples in Bedford or the surrounding region is what makes it special, he said. He said the house and several important and rare surviving outbuildings generally are well preserved but could use some repair and maintenance. The state and national register listing means all of the buildings are eligible for state and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits, he said. Ideally a new owner would use the tax credits, which can total up to 45 percent of rehabilitation costs, and which require overall preservation of historic character and fabric. Karen Nichols, the great-great granddaughter of Abel Beach Nichols and his wife Clarissa Baldwin Linus, lives down the road from Three Otters in a home built by her parents, Ralph and Nenie Nichols. She is the last Nichols in Bedford now but said there are descendants all over the county. We have taxes coming up. W-2s will be going out. I dont know where theyre going to end up, Kelly said. Its scary. McEachin said he scheduled the forum after receiving persistent complaints from constituents about the quality of service they were experiencing. The majority of complaints his office has received came from the Richmond-Petersburg metro area, McEachin said. In Church Hill, the abrupt closure of the East End post office in 2017 upset residents. Some worried it would remain shuttered permanently before it reopened last May after 13 months of renovations. McEachin was critical of the postal services handling of the situation. Obviously, there are going to be mistakes, but the mistakes shouldnt be at this level and this voluminous, said McEachin, who told residents in attendance Saturday that his office would work with the postal service to address each complaint raised Saturday. Georgina Griffin, who has delivered mail for 13 years, moved from Florida to Richmond last July. She said she noticed a difference in the quality of mail service in the city compared to her last job. Turnover among mail carriers locally contributed to some of the problems voiced Saturday, she said. A man with life-threatening injuries was transported to a hospital Saturday afternoon after he was shot in the 4500 block of Beulah Road, according to the Chesterfield County Police Department. Officers responded at 2:53 p.m. to a report of a shooting at the intersection of Beulah Road and Cinderwood Drive. Police have no description of a suspect. The Chesterfield Police Department is asking anyone with information to contact the department at (804) 748-1251 or Crime Solvers at (804) 748-0660 or through the P3 Tips app. Home decor consignment popup Curtain Call will return to Regency mall for 13 days in March. The popular sale is in its 20th year and accepts new and gently used furniture, rugs, window treatments, lamps, pillows, framed artwork and home accessories for consignment. Consignment sale dates are March 8-10, 13-17, and 20-24. The sale will be located on the upper level near the J.C. Penney store. From March 20 on, items remaining will be discounted, starting at 20 percent to a 50 percent discount on the final day. Angie Furbee, one of the owners of Curtain Call, said approximately 10,000 items were offered at last year's sale, and about 75 percent sold. A percentage of sales proceeds will go to Caritas, which helps people down on their luck. After the sale, unsold pieces will be donated to Caritas and Habitat for Humanity. President Donald Trumps national security team asked the Pentagon last autumn for possible options to strike Iran in response to an attack on an area in Baghdad where the U.S. Embassy is located, according to The Wall Street Journal. The newspaper, citing current and former U.S. officials, reported on January 13 that the National Security Council raised concern at both the Pentagon and the State Department with its request. The request came in response to a September 7, 2018, attack where militants aligned with Iran fired three mortars inside Baghdads Green Zone, where the U.S. Embassy is housed. The shells failed to hit any target and there were no casualties. The Pentagon did as asked, but the newspaper did not say whether the White House was given options for a strike, nor whether Trump directly knew about it. The mortar attack was the first such incident in several years in the Iraqi capital's Green Zone. Tehran called the accusations implicating it in the attacks "astonishing, provocative, and irresponsible. Based on reporting by The Wall Street Journal U.S. President Donald Trump has denied hiding details of conversations with Russian leader Vladimir Putin from administration officials, saying he is "not keeping anything under wraps." Trump made the comments in a telephone interview late on January 12 with Fox News, after The Washington Post reported that the U.S. president "has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details" of his conversations with Putin. Citing current and former U.S. officials, the paper said that on at least one occasion, in Hamburg in 2017, Trump took away his interpreter's notes following talks and instructed that person not to discuss what had transpired with other officials. Trump also said he had "a great conversation" with Putin during their one-on-one, nearly two-hour meeting in Helsinki in July 2018. When asked why not release details of the talks, held behind closed doors, he said: "I would. I don't with care. "I mean, I had a conversation like every president does. You sit with the president of various countries... We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things ... I'm not keeping anything under wraps. I couldn't care less. I mean, it's so ridiculous," the U.S. president said. Trump's relations with Russia before his election in 2016 are the focus of an ongoing criminal inquiry led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller. Investigators are trying to establish whether there was any collusion between Trump's campaign team and Russian officials. The U.S. president has described the inquiry as "a witch hunt." On January 11, The New York Times reported that the FBI had opened a counterintelligence probe in 2017 into whether Trump was working for Russian interests. This alleged investigation was eventually merged into the Mueller investigation. At least three different congressional committees have also been probing various aspects of Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 election. The U.S. intelligence community has concluded that Russia engaged in a campaign of hacking and propaganda to sway voters during the vote, largely aimed at bolstering Trump's chances at the presidency. Russian officials have repeatedly denied any such effort. With reporting by AFP and the BBC Thousands of Serbians joined a sixth antigovernment march on January 12. Opposition parties have organized rallies in Serbia's capital, Belgrade, every Saturday in reaction to the November 23 assault by thugs on Serbian Left party leader Borko Stefanovic. Apart from an investigation into the attack, protesters are also demanding the resignations of President Aleksandar Vucic, Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic, and public radio and television head Dragan Bujosevic. U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer says he will use the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act to force a vote on a resolution disapproving a decision by President Donald Trump to relax sanctions on companies connected to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska. After consultation with the relevant committee ranking members and my colleagues, I have concluded that the Treasury Departments proposal is flawed and fails to sufficiently limit Oleg Deripaskas control and influence of these companies, and the Senate should move to block this misguided effort by the Trump administration and keep these sanctions in place, the Democratic senator from New York said in a statement on January 13. Congress has been reviewing the Trump administrations decision -- announced in December -- to lift sanctions against three companies that Deripaska, who has close ties to the Kremlin, controls: Rusal, EN+, and JSC EuroSibEnergo. Early last year, the Trump administration indicated it was planning to sanction Rusal -- one of the worlds largest aluminum companies -- but that announcement roiled global markets, sending metal prices soaring. The Treasury Department delayed imposing the sanctions several times, amid a reported lobbying campaign by Deripaskas companies. In December, the administration notified Congress it would lift the sanctions. That triggered a clause in Congress that gives lawmakers 30 days to try to reverse the decision by passing a joint resolution of disapproval. In a statement on January 12, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Deripaska remained under sanctions and "his property and interests remain blocked, and any companies he controls are also sanctioned." House Democrats, however, have been publicly angry, with the leader of the chamber, Nancy Pelosi, calling it "one of the worst classified briefings we've received from the Trump administration." "[Mnuchin] answered some questions, but he didnt give testimony. They had an intelligence briefing, which I wont go into, and then they read a document that was unclassified, wasting the time of members of Congress, she said. Deripaska is a billionaire tycoon who made his fortune in aluminum and metals trading. He was barred from entering the United States in the 2000s, on allegations of ties to organized crime. He was also a business partner of Paul Manafort, Trump's campaign chairman during part of the 2016 presidential election. With reporting by The Hill, Reuters, and AP The Supreme Court of Pakistan has suspended the execution of a former police officer who is mentally ill. A two-judge panel is set to hear a petition to save Khizar Hayat's life by his mother on January 14, the court said. Hayat was sentenced to death in 2003 over the shooting of a police officer and was first diagnosed as a schizophrenic in 2008 by prison medical authorities. The man was scheduled to be executed on January 15. Pakistan is a signatory of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, an international convention guaranteeing the dignity of individuals with disabilities. The country lifted a six-year moratorium on the death penalty after Islamist militants killed more than 150 people at a school in the northwestern city of Peshawar in December 2014. Based on reporting by AP and dpa Israel at the weekend carried out an air strike on Iranian weapons in Syria, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said. "Just in the last 36 hours, the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus International Airport," Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting on January 13. Syrian state media had reported that Israeli warplanes fired several missiles toward Damascus late on January 11. Syrian air defenses shot down most of the "hostile" missiles, though one hit a warehouse at Damascus airport, according to the SANA news agency. In televised remarks, Netanyahu said Israel had succeeded in curbing Iran's military entrenchment in Syria by attacking Iranian and Hizballah targets there hundreds of times." "The accumulation of recent attacks shows that we're more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised," he also said. Netanyahu's comments mark a rare public acknowledgement of Israeli activity in Syria. Iran, along with Russia and Lebanons Shiite militant group Hizballah, has given Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government crucial support throughout the war, which began with a government crackdown on protesters in March 2011. The conflict has left more than 400,000 people dead, displaced millions, and devastated many historic sites across the country. Based on reporting by AFP, AP, Reuters, and dpa Thousands of people joined marches across Poland to pay tribute to the mayor of Gdansk, who died on January 14 after being stabbed in the heart at a charity event. Pawel Adamowicz died in the hospital after a long fight by doctors to save him. Thousands marched in Gdansk, the Baltic city Adamowicz ran for two decades. European Council President Donald Tusk flew in to his hometown to attend the march in memory of his friend and former political ally. Thousands more took to the streets of the capital, Warsaw. Adamowicz had been in critical condition for hours after the attack and died on January 14, health officials said. "Despite all our efforts, we failed to save him," said Dr. Tomasz Stefaniak, Gdansk University hospital director. In the January 13 attack, Adamowicz suffered a serious wound to the heart and cuts to abdominal organs and was operated on for five hours. The 27-year-old suspect, who has a criminal record, was detained at the scene. His full identity has thus far been withheld. A video showed the man seizing a microphone at the Light to Heaven charity event and claiming he had been wrongly jailed by the previous government of the center-left Civic Platform party and tortured. "That's why Adamowicz dies," he said, before being detained. A liberal, Adamowicz had been mayor of the Baltic port city for two decades and the opposition Civic Platform supported his reelection last year. He was an outspoken opponent of the ruling right-wing Law and Justice Party and had been an advocate for encouraging migrants to seek refuge in Gdansk. Polish President Andrzej Duda said he would meet with political party leaders on January 14 to organize a march against violence and hatred. Gdansk is home to the shipyard where the Solidarity labor union led by Lech Walesa was founded in 1980 and became a force that eventually helped contribute to the fall of communism. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, BBC, AP, PAP, and TVN24 For the first Majlis podcast of 2019, we decided to take a look at Uzbekistans attempts at domestic reform, specifically the pledge to end forced labor in the country's cotton fields, a decades-old practice. In recent years, as many as 1 million people were conscripted into Uzbekistans cotton fields at harvest time. Wages were miserly and hours were long. Children had been among those sent into the fields, but international criticism and boycotts of Uzbekistans cotton by international clothing makers eventually forced Uzbek authorities to halt child labor at cotton harvest time. Children were replaced with adults, often people from the health-care and education sectors. There were quotas for cotton to be picked, and there were quotas for the number of workers needed in the fields. Provincial and local officials are still tasked with meeting these targets. On this week's Majlis, RFE/RL's media-relations manager, Muhammad Tahir, moderates a discussion that looks at how much progress Uzbek authorities made in 2018 in fulfilling the promise of President Shavkat Mirziyoev to eradicate forced labor from the cotton fields. Joining the talk from Tashkent was Jonas Astrup, chief technical adviser in Uzbekistan for the International Labor Organization. From Germany, Umida Niyazova, director of the Uzbek-German Forum for Human Rights (which is also part of the international coalition called the Cotton Campaign), took part. From RFE/RL headquarters in Prague, Laziz Omilov of RFE/RLs Uzbek Service, known locally as Ozodlik, who runs the special project Pahtagram for Ozodlik, also participated. And I had a couple of comments to throw in also. Listen to the podcast above or subscribe to the Majlis on iTunes. Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos announced his resignation ahead of a parliamentary vote to ratify a deal ending a decades-old name dispute with Macedonia. "The Macedonia issue does not allow me not to sacrifice my post," Kammenos said on January 13 following talks with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. He also said that his right-wing populist Independent Greeks (ANEL) party was quitting the government. Tsipras later said he will ask for a vote of confidence in parliament in the coming week. Kammenos has long opposed the accord signed by the Greek and Macedonian governments in June 2018. The deal would change the name of Greece's northern neighbor to the Republic of North Macedonia. In exchange, Athens would lift its objections to the former Yugoslav republic joining NATO and the European Union. Macedonia's parliament voted on January 11 to ratify changes to the constitution called for in connection with the agreement, which now needs backing from the Greek lawmakers to come into effect. The deal has met with opposition in both countries with critics saying it makes too many concessions to the other side. Athens argues that use of the term "Macedonia" implies territorial claims on Greeces northern province of the same name, and on its ancient Greek heritage. In a parliamentary session on January 11, 81 Macedonian deputies in the 120-seat parliament voted in favor of the proposed changes to the country's constitution, securing the required two-thirds majority. It came after three days of negotiations between Prime Minister Zoran Zaev and lawmakers that opposed the changes. Zaev said on January 12 that the lawmakers had "made history," adding: "I know how difficult that was. ... We are putting the bitterness in the past and we are looking now proudly to the future." Greece's 300-member parliament needs a simple majority for ratification. Tsipras has said that the chamber would be asked to ratify the agreement with Macedonia by the end of the month. His left-wing Syriza party has 145 deputies in the legislature, and the prime minister may need votes from opposition lawmakers to pass the deal. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, and AP The Iranian Foreign Ministry has summoned the Polish envoy in Tehran to protest Poland jointly hosting a global conference with the United States focused on the Middle East, and Iran in particular, local state media reported. A ministry official told Poland's charge d'affaires, Wojciech Unolt, that Iran saw the decision to host the gathering next month as a "hostile act against Iran" and warned that Tehran could resort to unspecified "counteraction" toward Poland, the IRNA news agency reported on January 13. The report said that the Polish diplomat provided explanations about the conference and said it was not anti-Iran." U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on January 11 that the ministerial meeting -- to be held in Warsaw on February 13-14 -- would "focus on Middle East stability and peace and freedom and security here in this region. It will include an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence," said Pompeo, who is on a tour of the Middle East. Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said he hoped the conference would bring the EU and U.S. positions closer. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called the conference a "desperate anti-Iran circus." Relations between Tehran and Washington have worsened following President Donald Trump's decision in May 2018 to withdraw the United States from the 2015 nuclear accord between Iran and six major powers. The Trump administration moved to reimpose sanctions on Tehran, as well. Other partners in the deal, however, have sought to keep the agreement from completely unraveling. With reporting by IRNA, Reuters, and AP Radio Farda broadcaster Babak Ghafooriazar contributed to this report A day after Irans judiciary turned down a request by President Mahmud Ahmadinejad to visit Tehrans Evin prison, the combative president has accused the judiciary of unconstitutional behavior.Ahmadinejad had asked to visit the notorious prison following the imprisonment of his press adviser, Ali Akbar Javanfekr, who was detained in September while the Iranian president was attending the UN General Assembly in New York.The judiciary -- one of the countrys three top political branches, along with the presidency and the parliament -- publicly reacted to the demand by calling the visit inappropriate at a time when the country is facing mounting economic problems exacerbated by Ahmadinejads economic mismanagement and Western sanctions."We must pay attention to major issues," Prosecutor-General Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei said, adding, Visiting a prison in these circumstances is a minor issue."In a sharply worded letter to the head of the judiciary, Javad Larijani, Ahmadinejad struck back by listing a number of articles in Iran's Constitution concerning the responsibilities of the judiciary and the president."I have to remind you that in the constitution, there is nothing that requires asking permission or agreement of the judiciary when it comes to exercising the president's legal duties, he wrote.Iran watchers see the escalating public dispute as further proof of the bitter power struggle ongoing within the Islamic republic, a power struggle that has significantly weakened but which has failed to fully neutralize the Iranian president, whose second and final term ends in 2013.Paris-based political analyst Morteza Kazemian told RFE/RL's Radio Farda that Ahmadinejads letter demonstrates that he will continue to publicly spar with his powerful rivals, who are close to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.In reaction to the humiliation he faced from Mohseni Ejei, Ahmadinejad launched a very harsh attack against the head of the judiciary. It shows that he is determined to make the maximum use of his position with an eye on the future presidential election," Kazemian says. "He is not willing to easily give the presidency to his rivals.In his letter, Ahmadinejad said that his demand to visit Evin -- which Ejei linked to the imprisonment of his aide Javanfekr was aimed at seeing how the nations rights are being preserved, which he would report to the nation and the supreme leader.Ahmadinejad said the jailing of Javanfekr, who was sentenced to six months for publishing materials contrary to Islam and for insulting Khamenei, was unjust, and asked in his letter, How do you know that meeting with [Javanfekr] was on my work agenda?Ahmadinejad's demand to visit the prison -- home to many of Irans political prisoners, including those sentenced for protesting his disputed reelection in 2009 -- has been met with raised eyebrows by many in Irans media and political circles.Journalist Mehdi Mahdaviazad believes the presidents sudden interest in Evin is a politically calculated move. Ahmadinejad has in the past been accused of trying to influence the 2013 presidential vote.Ahmadinejad, with his shrewd moves and games, is every day inciting the centers of power allied with Khamenei," Mahdaviazad says. "His latest game is his alleged interest to visit Evin after [not going during] seven years in power. Yet we know very well that he doesnt care about the prisoners' conditions and democracy.Analysts say this latest move has marginalized Ahmadinejad even further and turned some of his former hard-line backers against him.In an October 22 interview with the daily Etemad, Khameneis representative in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Force (IRGC), Ali Saeedi, is quoted as saying that he regrets his past support for Ahmadinejad.We did not have the prescience to know what was going on in Ahmadinejads mind and what he wanted to do in the future," Saeedi says.He said he personally told the Iranian president that he could have been a hero. MILOVE, Ukraine -- Friendship Of Peoples Street used to be more like a bridge, with the lives of residents in the Ukrainian border town of Milove intersecting with their neighbors just a stone's throw away in Russia's Chertkovo. But today, a lengthy barbed-wire fence bisects the street, and patrols and checkpoints make clear that the relationship is not what it was. Russian border guards built the 3-meter-high barrier four months ago, separating families and neighbors who had crossed freely between the two towns for decades. "See that guy there?" asks Olena with a laugh as she points toward the fence. "He's already standing in Russia." But the resident of Milove, who gave only her first name, is not joking. Her town lies in Luhansk Oblast, which has been riven by a war in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv and separatist forces. The man she points to is in Rostov Oblast, part of Russia, which is backing separatists in Ukraine's Luhansk and Donetsk regions. The once-neighborly relationship turned chilly in 2014, when Russia seized Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and sided with the separatists in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region. The fighting has claimed more than 10,300 lives and prompted the West to impose sanctions against Russia, which denies involvement in the conflict despite a raft of evidence proving otherwise. Milove has largely avoided the violence that has plagued other areas of Luhansk, parts of which are controlled by separatists, but Olena says the fence --erected amid deteriorating relations -- has compounded economic hardships for Milove residents. "Russians bought fruits and vegetables here because they were cheaper and better. Now, small businesses are having a tough time," she says. PHOTO GALLERY: The Last Link Of Luhansk (CLICK TO VIEW) The overpass that straddles the rail line along the boundary between Russia and Ukraine is now a border crossing. At each end of the pass, which is only accessible to locals, guards check documents to determine if they can pass. "I just returned from there," says Ihor, turning back toward the concrete and steel structure. Ihor, a Ukrainian, complains that Kyiv has complicated travel more than Moscow. Ukrainians, he says, are allowed into Russia with local residency permits, whereas Ukraine requires Russians to show their passports to enter. Life in Milove, Ihor adds, nearly came to a halt when Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko temporarily barred Russian male nationals of combat age from entering Ukraine. Poroshenko took the action in November a month after Russia open fire on and seized three Ukrainian naval vessels and their crews on the Black Sea. The group of ships were approaching the Kerch Strait, which separates Russia from the annexed Crimean Peninsula, en route to a Ukrainian port on the Azov Sea. The barring of Russian men was part of the imposition of martial law in 10 Ukrainian regions, including those close to areas controlled by Russia-backed separatists in the east, those abutting the Russia-backed separatist Transdniester region in Moldova, and along the Azov Sea coast. Poroshenko lifted martial law on December 26. "After that order went into effect, a lot fewer people traveled here. And when there was a total ban on men, then very rarely did anybody come," says the 50-year-old Ihor, who's lived his entire life in Milove outside of a few spells when he worked in Russia. The added bureaucracy to cross the border has cut trade, causing a scarcity of some goods and an opportunity for the more entrepreneurial, locals say. Sausage and vodka have become hot contraband items, one resident explains, speaking to RFE/RL on condition of anonymity. "They hide sticks of sausages and bottles of vodka in their sleeves and pockets. They take them to Chertkovo and sell them there. You can make 20 to 25 hryvna (70 to 90 U.S. cents) in profit on each one," he explains. He also says there's a brisk black-market business in the trade of gasoline. Contraband fuel from Russia is cheaper than Ukrainian gas. "Of course, there are those who also sell their produce -- milk, eggs, vegetables, and other stuff. Ours are tastier," he adds with a smile. At a local cafe in Milove, a tune by the Russian-Georgian crooner Valeriy Meladze echoes in the dark bar. Artak, owner of the Anush cafe, says tensions between Moscow and Kyiv have been bad for business. "A lot of people used to come in here. There were a lot of workers, too. And now....You're the first customers today," says Artak to correspondents from RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service. Artak didn't have much to offer, anyway. "There's no coffee or tea," he says. Like others in Milove, Artak says the border fence stuck a dagger in any hopes of reviving struggling local businesses. He says his cafe is caught up in the dispute. "If they had constructed the barrier through my cafe, then the kitchen would have been in Russia," he adds bitterly. Back on the street, Olena says a way of life has been lost forever. "We visited each other, were friends, a lot of us had work there [in Chertkovo]," she says. "Now, it's all in the past." Written by Tony Wesolowsky in Prague based on reporting by Anastasia Magazova and Andriy Dubchak of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service in Milove [br]CRAWLEY [ndash] Naomi "Nemo" Ann Hughes (Meadows), 75, passed away peacefully on June 10, 2021, after a 9-year battle with Alzheimer's. She was born in Eccles, WV, to Wesley and Chessie Meadows on June 2, 1946. She and husband Charles Hughes would have celebrated their 55th wedding anniv Source: January 13, 2019 10:15 IST IMAGE: Congress president Rahul Gandhi addresses a press conference in Dubai. Photograph: Courtesy @INCIndia/Twitter Hours after the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with full force. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has 'tremendous respect' for the leaders of the two parties and 'they have a right to do what they want to do'. "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "The BSP and the SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. He said the Congress party might give a surprise or two in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh 'about what the party is capable of doing and to mobilise people'. Rejecting suggestions that not being part of the SP-BSP alliance was a setback for the Congress, he said, "I won't be disappointed about the BSP-SP alliance as long as the BJP does not come to power." "They have said some wrong things about the Congress, but we accept it. Because that's how we work." Gandhi said it does not matter if his party fights separately or together with the SP and BSP, because the end result would be the same -- 'the BJP won't get their seats'. Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. Asked about his 'misogynist' remarks about Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on which the National Commission for Women has issued a notice to him, Gandhi said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has helped Anil Ambani steal Rs 30,000 crore and the House of the people Lok Sabha is where he should have defended himself but he chose to send another person and that person happened to be a woman. "I would have made a very similar comment if it had been a man. Do not impose your sexism on me. I am very clear that the prime minister should have delivered that defence but he did not have the guts." He said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether Defence Ministry officials objected to the prime minister 'bypassing' the Rafale deal. Sitharaman had spoken on behalf of the Prime Minister and defended the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha, countering questions raised by Congress and other opposition parties. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the United Arab Emirates, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but 'there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions'. He said it is a 'temporary blip' which will be 'taken care of' after the 2019 elections. He alleged that every single institution in the country has been 'destroyed by the government and the idea of the BJP and the RSS is that there should only be one institution in India that is RSS'. "They insert their people in very single institution and pressure every single institution...universities, colleges, the CBI, Election Commission every institution -- not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is 'attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions'. "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on a economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non violence and its peace loving nature when people look at India and see violence they they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like Reserve Bank of India, Election Commission of India, Supreme Court which are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. He said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Asked about special status to Andhra Pradesh, he said, "I have made the commitment to the people of the state that the moment we will form the government in New Delhi will will give special status to the state." He said it is a 'tragedy and shame' that the Prime Minister Modi has not delivered the commitment to the people of the state. Source: Last updated on: January 13, 2019 20:01 IST Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswans estranged daughter Asha on Sunday staged a sit-in here along with Rashtriya Janata Dal women activists to protest her fathers angootha chhap jibe allegedly targeted at party leader Rabri Devi. Paswan had at a press conference on Friday attacked the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal for opposing the National Democratic Alliance-led governments bill to provide 10 per cent reservation for the economically backward in general category. They (RJD) believe in merely raising slogans and making angootha chhap (illiterate person) the chief minister, he had said, without naming anybody. Asha, who is Paswans daughter from his first marriage, had on Saturday demanded an apology from him. His remarks were seen as a reference to the events of 1997 when RJD chief Lalu Prasad had to step down as Bihar chief minister as he faced arrest in the fodder scam cases and his wife, Rabri Devi, who has little formal education, was appointed as his successor. Married to Arun Sadhu, who is the state president of the RJDs SC/ST cell, Asha refrained from storming the headquarters of Paswans Lok Janshakti Party, which she had threatened to do on Saturday. Instead, she staged the sit-in at Gardanibagh, barely a kilometre away from the LJP headquarters. She was joined by women RJD activists, who carried placards and raised slogans demanding that the Union minister apologise and take his words back. Talking to reporters at a different location, Sadhu reiterated that his wife would like to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls from Hajipur seat, which is considered Paswans pocket borough, if the RJD gives her a ticket. Paswan has declared that he will not be contesting from the seat in the upcoming general elections and would take the Rajya Sabha route to enter Parliament. Speculations are rife that one of Paswans close family members may be given the ticket in his place. Ram Vilas Paswan has talked a lot about neeti (policy) and neeyat (intention) and has failed on both counts. Having learnt the ropes under the tutelage of socialists like Lohia, JP and Karpoori Thakur, he ended up sitting in the lap of the BJP-RSS combine, Sadhu said. My fight with him is, however, not personal, but political, he said. I treat him with the same respect which I have for my father. If I meet him on any social occasion, I will greet him by touching his feet, he added. The RJD leader alleged that Paswan and his son, Chirag Paswan, sought votes in the name of Dalits but turned their backs on the depressed classes when it came to fighting for their rights. Chirag, who is an MP from Jamui and heads the LJPs parliamentary board, is Paswans son from his second marriage. Asked if Asha would still contest from Hajipur if the NDA fields Chirag from the seat, Sadhu replied in the affirmative. Relationship does not matter in political battlefield, he said. When reporters approached Chirag at the airport, he said, This is not a political matter but a dispute concerning my family and I have never been comfortable talking about personal matters in public. Many tend to get into a routine of dining at the same few favorites. But with January here in full-force, its time to break out of your comfo By Steven Rogers, 01/13/2019 ADVERTISEMENT FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON THE ALL-NEW GOOGLE NEWS! Reality TV World is now available on the all-new Google News app and website. Click here to visit our Google News page, and then click FOLLOW to add us as a news source! ADVERTISEMENT Steven Rogers is a senior entertainment reporter for Reality TV World and been covering the reality TV genre for two decades. couple Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren Burnham have tied the knot.Arie and Lauren got married in a romantic wedding ceremony in Maui, Hawaii on Saturday, Us Weekly reported.host Chris Harrison officiated the ceremony, which was attended by 100 guests and took place at Haiku Mill in Maui. Haiku Mill is an event venue created from the ruins an abandoned 18th-century sugar mill.couple Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici were among the guests (Arie and Sean became close friends when they both competed for the heart of Emily Maynard on Season 8 of ette in 2012).Lauren wore a sleeveless white gown with embellishments around the waist and Arie wore a black suit, according to a wedding photo published by Us.couple had revealed their wedding date and location in May 2018 -- only two months after Arie proposed to Lauren in March during his season's live After the Final Rose special."We are very excited to tell you guys that we have booked a venue, and we are getting married in Hawaii on January 12, next year," Lauren, 27, said with a big smile during an appearance on The View."It's in Maui, it's at Haiku Mill, which is this beautiful, old world feel, with a lot of vines and greenery," Arie, 37, added. "It's not your typical, beach wedding. It's so pretty... Our plan just came together and we're excited.""It's not on TV. Just, you know, a close group of friends. Probably 100 guests," Arie explained, although he and Lauren had previously discussed possibly getting married on a Bachelor special.Arie and Lauren had both gushed about their upcoming wedding on social media in the days leading up to the event."Life with you is all sunsets and rainbows...i We're getting married tomorrow!," Arie captioned an Instagram photo showing the couple in Hawaii with a rainbow behind them on Friday."Helicopter. [Check] Champagne (sparkling cider) toast at the top of a beautifully romantic mountain top. [Check] Super sexy (ex)Bachelor. [Check] Finally got that one on one date I've always dreamed of," Lauren captioned an Instagram on Thursday showing the couple enjoying a private helicopter ride in Hawaii.Last week, Arie and Lauren -- who is currently four months pregnant with the couple's first child -- revealed the sex of their unborn child."IT'S A GIRL!!!" Arie wrote in an Instagram posting."Tickled PINK... We're having a little girl!!" Lauren added in an Instagram posting of her own.According to couple, who had already previously revealed the baby is due in June, they had hoping for a girl immediately after they discovered Lauren was pregnant."I think, to be honest, in the beginning we were both hoping that we were having a girl," Lauren told Us.However, the couple initially thought they were expecting a baby boy -- and even decided what the boy's name would be -- because an online testing service returned an erroneous result."We actually did the early gender test online, so we took our test at 10 weeks," Lauren told Us. "We got the results back from that, and it was that we were having a boy."But Lauren's doctor still encouraged her to do an ultrasound when her pregnancy was 15 weeks along -- and the ultrasound then revealed the online testing service had been wrong."I was very quiet. The ultrasound tech says, 'Well. I'm about 98 percent.' So I still wasn't convinced after the first time we saw it," Arie told Us. "We went back to the doctor, went back a few other times and just went back for our anatomy scan. It's definitely a girl!"Lauren told Us she's feeling much more confident about becoming a first-time mother now that she'll be parenting a baby girl instead of a boy."I was really nervous to be a boy mom because I just don't know that I can relate as well, being a woman relating to a little boy," she said."I have a little brother, and he's so sweet and I love him to death, but sometimes I don't really understand why he acts that way he does. I'm feeling a lot more confident in being able to be a girl mom first!"Arie said he's also "very excited.""I won't have to worry about putting that little boy into a race car anytime soon," he told Us.Interested in more news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group , We're sorry, this article is not currently available By Steven Rogers, 01/13/2019 ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Steven Rogers is a senior entertainment reporter for Reality TV World and been covering the reality TV genre for two decades. couple Colt Johnson and Larissa Christina Dos Santos Lima have each broken their silence about Colt's decision to file for divorce from Larissa following their violent Thursday night fight that left both parties bloodied and resulted in Larissa later being arrested for domestic violence."I don't understand my soon to be ex wife," Colt wrote on Saturday in the caption of an Instagram photo showing half a dozen cardboard boxes, several garbage bags, and a large plastic storage container piled in the corner of a room."She comes to America with literally nothing. The suitcases she used for travel I provided for her. On her arrival I already had clothes waiting for her to wear and everything she needed to start a basic life in America," he continued in the lengthy caption."Over the course of months I continued to provide for her, gave her shelter, food, and supported her wants and dreams. When she wanted a dress or makeup I bought it for her. When she wanted to take ESL classes I found a class for her and drove her.""When she wanted to go to a gym I took her to every gym in town and eventually she joined two gyms simultaneously. When she needed a doctor, lawyer, therapist I would always do what I could for her.""My sole mission since her arrival was to see that she was happy, taken care for and nurtured. When she wanted to start her business I gave her a thousand dollars just to start. Every time she was in trouble, I was there."Larissa -- who was released from jail on bond on Saturday morning using funds her friend Carmen raised from Larissa's Instagram followers via a GoFundMe account -- then responded to Colt's claims in a subsequent series of Instagram Stories postings.In her postings, Larissa appeared to challenge Colt's claims of his generosity and repeated her prior allegations that Colt had not shared any of the money the couple was paid for filming or made by recording Cameo personalized videos together for their fans."Just a sample of some purchase that they made for me. I do not care because I always shopping at thrift stores. I'm still thankful for everything," Larissa wrote."I'm still thankful for everything, I just wish I could have my own credit card, since I was contributing to the household with the money we got from the show and Cameos."According to a photo Larissa posted showing the couple's Cameo account information, the couple had earned $10,400 by recording 279 personalized videos as of January 4.The rest of the Instagram Stories postings Larissa shared contained screenshots of email receipts for inexpensive clothing and accessories from retailers that appeared to include Fashion Nova and Amazon.com. With the exception of a $14 swimsuit and a red dress that showed a $39-52 price range on Amazon, the clothing items all cost $12 or less.Prior to rebutting Colt's posting, Larissa had also posted an Instagram Story thanking her followers and confirming she had been released from jail."Hello Everyone, I am at my friends house right now, my court day is on Feb 12th," she wrote."Thank you all who donated on my go fund me campaign. I raised the money I need! When I feel better I will make a video to thank you and I will mention every single donor! With this money I will be able to pay back my friend who bailed me out and I will also pay for my attorneys fees," Larissa continued in the lengthy posting."It was extremely important to me because I have no income at this moment, once I can't legally work yet and I can't start my business. I also never had access or any control of the money we made on the show and with the cameos. They did buy to me some girl stuff so I could use on the show.""Also, I want to thank everyone who [took] time to investigate the domestic violence episode and found a 'history of long nails'. The truth will come out. Im in peace."Later on Saturday, Larissa also thanked her followers for helping her "leave this abusive marriage" in an additional Instagram posting."Thanks everyone who made the donation, I will create a video to thank the donors and I will mention everyone's name. This money will be used for my legal fees, for my divorce and my new start , since I am not allowed to work yet," she wrote."Thank you again for helping me to leave this abusive marriage!"Colt filed for divorce from Larissa in Clark County Court on Friday, according to court records obtained by Reality TV World. Colt's filing did not list an attorney and was filed "Pro Se," which means he is currently representing himself in the case.Colt's mom Debbie Johnson -- who ironically, had just publicly gushed about Larissa a few days ago -- is also listed in the court records as having paid the filing's $299.00 court fee.According to Larissa -- who updated her Instagram followers as well as blogger John Yates via text messages on Thursday night in real time as her fight with Colt was transpiring -- the disturbing incident began when she allegedly found email receipts for pornographic videos Colt had purchased.Larissa posted screenshots of one receipt in particular on Instagram, trying to prove Colt had bought a "Jacuzzi Sex" video for $59.99.Colt's alleged purchases sparked an argument, which then escalated into bloody injuries -- including a large gash on Larissa's cheek, scratches on Larissa's torso, blood smears on Larissa's face, and a cut on the inside of Colt's lip -- and Larissa's eventual arrest."Colt called the cops on me we argue," Larissa posted Thursday night on her own Instagram account alongside two photos of her face which had a nasty scratch down her cheek.In an Instagram Stories video, Larissa showed off her injuries and admitted she scratched Colt, but only in alleged self defense."Colt called the cops on me. I am going to be deported. I just scratched him because he was hurting me. As you see, I am really hurt," Larissa said. "But he called the police first."Larissa continued on Instagram Stories, "Colt argued because many vids he tortured me I need one attorney he called the cops. Please help me he will lie."Larissa later deleted most of the material she had posted about her altercation with Colt.Larissa apparently wanted fans to know her side of the story because she also begged John to publicly share information she had provided him with."The cops are here. Please let people know," Larissa apparently told John in a text message.John said Larissa asked him to post their private text messages."I found him buying pornography. John he's pedophile too," Larissa apparently told John in a text. "He cut off my [signal]."John also received a photo from someone claiming to be Colt's friend. The picture showed Colt holding his lip down and showing a bleeding cut on inside his mouth.John then shared a video on Instagram in which Larissa said she was recording herself to prove Colt had sprayed shaving cream all over her arms and clothing.Larissa alleged in the video Colt had sprayed her with the shaving cream in order to provoke a reaction and make her "crazy." She called him "abusive" as Colt stood in a doorway and repeatedly asked his wife to "stop."Larissa eventually told John that she had left her shared home with Colt and found safety at her close friend Carmen's house, where she received medical treatment from an EMT.John revealed Carmen later informed him that Larissa had been arrested.On Friday, TMZ reported, citing law enforcement sources, that police initially visited the couple's Las Vegas home after Larissa called the police around 11PM. However Colt was no longer at the home when they arrived.Officers then reportedly returned to the scene a couple of hours later and spoke with both Colt and Larissa and determined she had a single deep cut and blood spatter on her face.However, Colt reportedly denied being responsible for the scratches on Larissa's torso and claimed to be a nail-biter and showed the officers his fingernails, resulting in the police deciding Colt could not have caused the scratches and they had been self-inflicted by Larissa.Then, after also seeing Larissa already had two previous domestic violence arrests, the officers arrested Larissa.Before her arrest, Larissa actually took to Instagram and wrote, "I was nervous thinking that I would be arrested today because when I tried to call the cops, Colt [took] my phone and called the cops on me. Thank God, this life of abuse and manipulation is over. I received medical help and I am safe at my friends house."In addition to the new altercation, John released some disturbing screenshots of alleged text messages between Colt and Larissa on Instagram. Although it's unclear when the messages were exchanged, they show how unhealthy the couple's relationship is.Colt allegedly told Larissa that she has no control over what he does or whether he cheat on her. Colt also allegedly swore at Larissa and called her a "c-nt" and "piece of sh-t" among other horrible names.As viewers are well aware, Larissa previously accused Colt of cheating on her and flirting with multiple women on social media. Colt subsequently owned up to his mistakes and claimed he was going to try to be a better man and fight for his marriage.Larissa said she will likely be deported back to Brazil because she had already been arrested twice before during her time in the United States.Larissa was taken into custody back in November 2018 for domestic violence after another huge fight with Colt.Larissa had also been arrested in June 2018 for domestic battery under similar circumstances -- an off-screen incident that Colt was shown mentioning in the final minutes of 's sixth-season finale when it aired on December 30.While Larissa was charged in the June 2018 incident, the charge was eventually dismissed in October 2018. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate On a warm Tennessee night 14 years ago, Johnny Michael Allen took a fateful drive. A 43-year-old Nashville real estate agent and youth pastor, Allen was cruising town in his white Ford F-150 pickup. Although divorced, he had a steady girlfriend, Nancy Liker, whom hed originally planned to see that evening, a Friday. A conflict arose, so she canceled, but the next morning she drove to Johnnys house. Not seeing his truck, she left -- meaning she wasnt the one to find his body. At 11 p.m. Friday, Allen had driven past a Sonic Drive-In on Murfreesboro Pike when he spotted Cyntoia Brown. Cyntoia would tell arresting officers that she was 19 years old, so its reasonable to assume she told Allen the same thing. Actually, she was a 16-year-old runaway from Clarksville, Tenn., whod fallen in with a bad crowd. She was living in a motel with a 24-year-old drug dealer who beat her and forced her to have sex with him and others. In the days to come, Cyntoia would provide varied accounts about what happened. Some of it was lies, some was true. A few facts she didnt deviate from: She said Allen took her to the Sonic, then to his home, located about a mile away, where they ate dinner and watched television. She once said Allen talked to her about straightening out her life. On other occasions, she said he propositioned her, and that they agreed on a price -- $150. Shes said they didnt have sex. Another fact never disputed is that when she climbed into Allens pickup, she carried a loaded .40-caliber handgun with her. This was the gun she used to kill him with a single shot to the head. Tried in adult court, she was convicted of murder and robbery and sentenced to 51 years in prison, the mandatory term in Tennessee. Hers was hardly an isolated case. In Tennessee alone, about 100 inmates who committed killings as juveniles are serving 51-year sentences, along with 13 others originally sentenced to mandatory life sentences with no chance of parole. Nationwide, some 10,000 juvenile offenders -- 10,000 children -- are housed in adult prisons or jails. This trend accelerated a generation ago, as politicians sought to counter an expected wave of super predators. Although the social science turned out to be hype, it coincided with a tough approach epitomized by three-strikes-and-youre-out statutes, harsher uniform sentencing, and curbing parole. As prisons filled up, too little money was left for rehabilitation. In time, the pendulum began to shift. As a bipartisan consensus has taken shape, Congress passed -- and President Trump recently signed -- a crime bill reflecting this attitude. The new law, The First Step Act, lowers some of the more draconian mandatory minimums in federal sentencing and designates money for rehabilitation efforts. Even before some of this rethinking was done, Cyntoia Browns case garnered attention. She was so young on the grim night of Aug. 6, 2004, and her life had been such a living hell. Moreover, she blossomed in prison, earning a college degree and becoming a compelling woman who impressed the lawyers and social workers she met even one of the attorneys who kept her behind bars. I served as the prosecutor who argued against her appeal, he wrote recently. But I later got to know Cyntoia personally when I had her in a college class that I taught at the prison where she was incarcerated. We were able to put the past aside and forge a friendship. That former prosecutor, Preston Shipp, was among the chorus of voices who inveighed on Cyntoias Browns behalf. Eventually, those voices were heeded: Last week, outgoing Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam granted her clemency. Brown is scheduled to be released on Aug. 7, 2019 -- 15 years to the day she was arrested. Noting the extraordinary steps shed taken to rebuild her life, Haslam proclaimed, Transformation should be accompanied by hope. His decision was widely, if not universally, hailed. With help from megastars Kim Kardashian, LeBron James, and Rihanna, Brown became an international cause celebre. Two factors played a role. The first was a powerful documentary by crusading University of Southern California journalism professor Daniel H. Birman. This is good. It shows that in a media environment epitomized by snark and partisanship, quality investigative journalism can still move hearts and change minds. The second factor is less uplifting. Her case took on new life amid a #MeToo context in which Johnny Allen was made into the perpetrator, not the victim. In 2004, when she was 16, she shot and killed a man who bought her for sex, wrote Hollywood activist Alyssa Milano in The Washington Post. Later, she would say that she feared both her client and the pimp who sold her. Lets be clear, added the FreeCyntoia Brown webpage, Cyntoia should never have been put in a cage for daring to survive in the first place. Yes, be clear. Yes, Cyntoia Brown had a horrific childhood, but that wasnt Johnny Allens doing. As far as is known, he never hurt her in any way. He seems to have intended to have sexual relations with her, but reconsidered. Well never know for sure. Cyntoia told the arresting officers that she shot Allen because he was acting squirrely and she feared for her life. The physical evidence didnt back this up. Allen appears to have been asleep when he was shot in the back of the head. Neither prosecutors nor the jury believed the self-defense angle. Browns fellow inmates didnt either. One told her the story sounded too perfect. Cyntoia laughed in response, and said she really shot Allen just to see how it feels to kill somebody. She also sent this inmate a written note volunteering that she didnt feel threatened by Allen. A Nashville detective who opposed clemency believes her motive was robbery. She did rob Allen, too, taking cash from his dresser and rifles he stored downstairs. At the stationhouse, she told her foster mother, I killed somebody. I executed him. My point isnt that Cyntoia Brown should stay prison. Or that celebrities are chumps. Its not even that Allen didnt deserve to die. Thats obvious, as Brown herself has acknowledged. My point is that it is not necessary to demonize the murder victim to justify mercy for the killer. This woman, now 30, was dealt a terrible hand in life, and made a tragic mistake. In prison, of all places, she got her act together, creating a purpose-driven life -- that purpose being to help other at-risk girls. If we depend on vilifying the man she killed to justify taking a chance on her, we are dooming thousands of other youthful offenders whose victims were above reproach to their fate. We should show faith in Brown because she represents hope. Cyntoia's story should not demand our attention because she is a rare exception, says Preston Shipp. The opposite is true. She represents many other people who, like her, received harsh sentences as children and underwent a profound and beautiful transformation, yet remain incarcerated. Imprisoning people for decades, even after they have demonstrated rehabilitation, is a failure on the part of society to live up to our best values of redemption and second chances. Amen. DETAILED 1/10 WWE NXT IN LARGO, FLORIDA LIVE REPORT By Chris Hendricks on 2019-01-13 08:13:00 NXT Largo January 10, 2019 Attendance: 177 - Low enough to literally count heads, my friend and I did so while waiting for the show to begin. Mansoor defeated Rick Bugez. Mansoor came out to a strong negative reaction due to his heel antics from past shows but more so due to the small but hot crowd. If you booed loudly at him, he would tell you to shut up in a different funny way. He is quickly becoming one of my favorite heels on the loop and his charisma often overshadows his wrestling ability. He was wearing interesting tights that had the emblem from the flag of Saudi Arabia on the side of the thigh with Arab Aesthetic written on the rear. Rick Bugez then came out looking like a flamboyant Hippie Rick Rude, which is a weird gimmick, but they do sometimes work. This was a solid opening match with good heat from an excited crowd that booed loudly when Mansoor won with a Tornado Reverse DDT from the middle turnbuckle for the pin. Jessie and Katy Catanzaro defeated Aaliyah and Vanessa Borne. Vanessa Borne and Aaliyah had a new Tyler Breeze like gimmick with hand mirrors instead of phone that they used to stare at themselves during their entrance. They utilized them to humiliate their opponents during the match in different funny ways although they were not utilized as foreign objects. Seems like they were trying the gimmick to be a new tag team potentially. Jessie then came out followed Catanzaro who received a very good reaction from the crowd which was reinforced by her amazing performance during the match. She has future babyface superstar written all over her in this match and Jessie seemed to have notably improved her in-ring skills as well. This was a fantastic match with great wrestling, but Catanzaro stole the show with her ability tonight. She did a handstand on the top rope that she then transitioned into a modified Hurancanrana when Aaliyah tried to knock her off the ropes which is something I have never seen before and it was amazing to see live. She tried the same move a little later Borne who blocked it and slammed her down hard but in a seemingly safe fashion. Catanzaro also played the babyface tag partner in distress in a fantastic way due to her incredible selling. Eventually she hit the hot tag to Jesse who did a good job with a strong comeback against Borne and Aaliyah by hitting several strong kicks then a very innovative new finisher I have never seen before which I can best describe as a cartwheel where she puts her head between the legs of her opponent to swing her into a back to belly piledriver position much like Sheamuss White Noise only to then swing her opponent face down onto the mat for an inverted slam. It was cool to see and a move I have not seen before although I am not sure of the origin of it. This led to Jessie getting the pin for the victory. Catanzaros performance convinced me tonight that she has all the tools to succeed, she just needs to find a gimmick which is the only piece I can see that is missing as she just plays a generic babyface now even though it works on the loop. Great match put on by all these female stars. Riddick Moss came out and delivered a good promo that was able to generate a good amount of heat from the smaller yet very active crowd. He kept saying that through his Riddick Regiment he recovered from his injury in record time and that the whole crowd should emulate the regiment to improve their sad lives. At the end of the promo, he kept screaming Riddick Regiment repeatedly which somehow worked in getting heat from the crowd. Jeet Rama then came out which led to a loud Jeet chant which showed that Riddicks promo was effective. Jeet defeated Reddick Moss. Fairly good match that the crowd was into with some solid technical mat wrestling. Jeet started the match hot with some nice Judo throws and hip tosses. While hip tosses may not be the most exciting maneuver in the world, Jeet and Moss made them work in this match as well as a nice Monkey Flip from Jeet. The crowd then really started to get behind Jeet when Riddick was dominating and had a pretty good pop when he surprisingly rolled up Moss for the pin. Moss went insane after the match and beat the living tar out of Jeet which referee Jess (who is surprisingly over amongst the local regulars on the Bay Area Loop) could not stop despite a valiant effort. To stop this insanity, a single male referee came out and said stop which led Moss to immediately do so and leave. The subtle, unintended sexism of how this went down gave my friend and I a great laugh. Putting smiles on faces! Note: I attend a lot of these local Loop shows with my good friend who is a combat veteran and he often provides very insightful commentary like when he told me that a simple wristlock or chokehold was way scarier to him than any flipping or flying maneuver due to his knowledge of combat. He is a fan of the Forgotten Sons for obvious reasons if you know their background. He is also not very politically correct. Jaxson Ryker with the Forgotten Sons defeated Stacey Ervin. Jaxson Ryker came out with the Forgotten Sons to a loud negative reaction from the crowd which made my friend point out to me once again while laughing that, Yeah, lets boo the evil veterans! He then stated, Now, what black babyface with some gay gimmick is going to come out to face these evildoers! Enter Stacey Ervin with his Disco Inferno gimmick that has him wearing tight sparkly pants and pink shaded glasses. This was a funny moment for the both of us because of how well he called it. Regardless, this was a good match and Ervin, despite his gimmick, has made tremendous strides as a wrestler in a short amount of time since he transitioned to wrestling from gymnastics. Ervin hit several incredible high flying moves and an awesome flying splash from the top turnbuckle to the outside on the Sons. This was not enough for a victory when the Sons interfered and distracted Ervin which allowed Ryker to hit an incredibly powerful sit-out chokeslam for the victory. Humberto Carrillo and Raul Mendoza defeated Cezar Bononi and Adrian Jaoude. Carrillo and Mendoza looked incredible as a tag team in this match and the crowd really got behind them by the end of it. Carrillo and Mendoza hit several incredible individual and double team high flying maneuvers throughout the match that excited the crowd. They would go back and forth with Cezar and Jaoude who would often cut-off their high flying with power moves making for a very entertaining match. It ended by Carillo catching fire and hitting several impressive moves and one of the best missile dropkicks I have ever seen. The height he got on it was amazing, and he then immediately followed with a running standing moonsault. Raul Mendoza then hit a 450 Splash for the win. Punishment Martinez defeated Kona Reeves. Kona Reeves came out to some of the loudest boos of the night and his charisma as a heel had really improved over the last year. His Finest gimmick can generate a lot of heat from my fellow Floridians in attendance especially in combination with his Gucci patterned trunks and knee pads. Punishment Martinez then came out which led the crowd to continuously chant Punishment throughout the match. This was another good competitive match that had Martinez sell a good amount of the time with Reeves using cheap tactics to avoid his power moves and strikes. Reeves hit his Samoan Drop finisher only for Martinez to kick out at 2 and then make a comeback that led to him trapping Reeves in a Gogoplata for the submission victory. After the match, Martinez delivered a devastating Chokeslam to Reeves. Candice LaRae defeated Deonna Purrazzo. Another fantastic match with tremendous technical wrestling and psychology. LaRae is a great baby face and Deonna played a great heel throughout the match. She nearly had it won when she put Candice in a Fujiwara Armbar, but Candice was able to get to the ropes. Candice was able to make a comeback and hit an inverted double underhook facebuster, aka the unprettier, for the pin. Matt Riddle, Keith Lee and Ricochet defeated Shane Thorne, Johnny Gargano, and Kassius Ohno. This was another utterly fantastic main event on the Florida Loop and I would say it is one of the best main events I have seen at one of these shows, but I am starting to say that so much, it feels redundant. The crowd was hot for this match and every wrestler did an amazing job even though I feel bad for Thorne who was often the one taking the most brutal punishment like those massive chest chops from Lee. At one point, Gargano got a black hoodie and put it around Thorne to protect him from those chops only to roll him back into the ring where Riddle then Roundhouse kicked him. This was the point where the heels (even though both sides were cheered because of the wrestlers involved) made their comeback because Gargano tricked riddle when he rolled him back in the ring because he tagged himself in right before Thorne was kicked in the head which allowed him to cheap shot Riddle. This led Gargano and Ohno to then hit several big moves on Riddle. Riddle eventually was able to make the hot tag to Ricochet who springboarded into the ring and cleared house with several amazing moves in a row. This led to an amazing series of back and forth maneuvers from each side with the match going totally out of the control, but it somehow worked great with the psychology behind it making sense. Ricochet then cleared house again and won after hitting the CradleShock to a loud pop. Fantastic match that seemed to have a lot of improv and the wrestlers really seemed to be having fun which I believe made the crowd even more into the match. Afterwards Lee did the Chris Farley Fat Guy in a Little Coat routine with Ricochets jacket, which was hilarious but annoying to Ricochet. A show like this is the reason I love professional wrestling. Note: Keith Lee had new entrance music that seemed like to voiced, it was not bad. If you enjoy PWInsider.com you can check out the AD-FREE PWInsider Elite section, which features exclusive audio updates, news, our critically acclaimed podcasts, interviews and more by clicking here! The Junior League of Boston (JL Boston) will hold its second annual Little Black Dress Initiative (LBDI) from February 25 through March 1 to raise awareness about the effects of sexual or domestic violence against women. Advocates will wear the same black outfit for five consecutive days and buttons that read, Ask Me About My Dress, to prompt conversations about these key issues in the communities of Greater Boston. We are honored to launch the LBDI campaign for a second consecutive year as it serves to deepen the impact that our members are already making in Greater Boston communities," said Michelle Lentz, 2018- 2020 JL Boston President. "We are proud to serve as advocates for the issue of sexual and domestic violence against women and girls, bringing broader awareness and working to make a positive change in the lives of those affected. The Junior League of Boston raised over $30,000 in 2018 and aims to raise over $50,000 in 2019. The funds raised from the campaign enable JL Boston to deliver on its mission to develop the potential of women and improve communities through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. The Boston Area Rape Crisis Center (BARCC) and Caties Closet have been chosen as the two community partners and beneficiaries of this years campaign. BARCC works to end sexual violence for all people through healing and social change, and Caties Closet works to improve school attendance by providing clothing and toiletries to children in need, right within their schools. We're so thankful for the Junior League of Boston's commitment to ending sexual violence. For more than 100 years, the determined and altruistic women of JL Boston have put their efforts toward improving the communities around them. For 45 years, BARCC has provided free and confidential services to survivors of sexual violence and their loved ones. Thank you for partnering with us to make Greater Boston a safer and stronger community, shared BARCCs executive director, Gina Scaramella. While raising funds through online donations, participants of LBDI will harness the power of social media by sharing their personal stories, connections, and insights on sexual and domestic violence in the communities of Greater Boston. Join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #LBDIBoston. If you would like to serve as an advocate, please sign-up online (https://members.jlboston.org/?nd=vms_public_form&form_id=47). You dont have to be a Junior League of Boston member to participate. We also invite you to attend the LBDI kickoff event on February 7, 2019. For more information, visit the kickoff events registration page (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/little-black-dress-initiative-kick-off-tickets-53314209235). About the Junior League of Boston: The Junior League of Boston is part of the Association of Junior Leagues International, an organization of 291 Junior League chapters in four countries. The organization is composed of dedicated and creative women from varying backgrounds and interests, who committed to promoting voluntarism, developing tomorrows healthy and confident women and leaders and improving communities through effective action and leadership. To donate to JL Boston and help expand our impact, please visit http://www.jlboston.org. Contact Lindsey Shepardson External Communications Junior League of Boston externalrelations(at)jlboston.org Memor 10 Rugged Mobile Computer We believe Enterprise customers shouldnt compromise on quality or features when choosing a rugged PDA, stated Pietro Todescato, Group Technology Officer of Datalogic. Datalogic, a global leader in the automatic data capture and process automation markets, is proud to announce the Memor 10 rugged mobile computer, one of the few rugged devices validated by the Android Enterprise Recommended program from Google. MEMOR 10 is part of a new family of rugged Android PDA devices from Datalogic. It offers a slim and compact design while delivering the latest 2D bar code imaging technology for high performance scanning. MEMOR 10 combines the durability and the performance of a traditional rugged enterprise device with the styling of a smartphone, and adds the user-friendly experience of Android 8.1 (Oreo) with Google Mobile Services (GMS). Memor 10 device features the Datalogic Wireless Charging System, a ground-breaking new feature for enterprise devices; Datalogic is the first manufacturer to offer this technology in rugged mobile computers and handheld scanners. Based on inductive-charging technology now widespread in numerous consumer electronic products, Datalogics Wireless Charging System eliminates battery contacts and pins, that often get dirty, bent, or broken over time and this removes a key point of failure for devices used in industrial and retail functions. Routine charging system maintenance and cleaning procedures are eliminated which means lower down time, and a lower TCO for Datalogic systems. Datalogics Wireless Charging System is also faster than traditional charging solutions. Battery levels can be safely and rapidly topped-up between shifts, and fully-recharged in the shortest possible time all without over-stressing contacts, pins, and cables. For devices used round the clock, or with only short breaks between shifts, this is a great operational advantage. Memor 10 delivers state of the art Wi-Fi and the latest LTE advanced communications, making it a solid choice for the most popular scanning-enabled applications in Retail, Healthcare, Transportation & Logistics, and Manufacturing. Examples include in Retail: store operations, assisted sales, and managers device; in T&L: courier device for proof of delivery, truck device in 3PL; in Manufacturing: production line and quality control; in Healthcare: bedside care, pharmacy and labs. In addition to the features of the standard model, the Healthcare version of Memor 10 features a disinfectant-ready enclosure to withstand harsh daily cleaning procedures. The back enclosure of the device is manufactured without texture, thereby making the device very easy to clean and the smooth surface does not allow bacteria to lodge on the enclosure. The back hand-strap is also made with healthcare plastic and fully cleanable. The absence of any contacts makes Memor 10 the ideal product for hospital bedside applications. Memor 10 is one of a handful of rugged devices in the industry included in the launch of the Android Enterprise Recommended program, a Google-led initiative that helps businesses confidently select, deploy, and manage Android devices and services in their operations. Google has validated that Memor 10 meets an extensive list of stringent requirements for rugged devices, including regular security updates and version upgrade procedures. Google has now set the bar for all device manufacturers if they want to be recommended by the market leader in mobile operating systems, stated Pietro Todescato, Group Technology Officer of Datalogic. We believe Enterprise customers shouldnt compromise on quality or features when choosing a rugged PDA. Were pleased to recognize the Memor 10 as part of the Android Enterprise Recommended program for rugged launch. Android Enterprise Recommended rugged devices must meet defined technical specifications and extended lifecycle support requirements that customers expect for their deployments, said David Still, Managing Director of Android Enterprise Business. We created the Android Enterprise Recommended program to help businesses choose Android devices and services that meet their needs and make ITs job easier. Were excited that Datalogic is collaborating with us on making this a reality. Datalogic Group Datalogic is a global leader in the automatic data capture and process automation markets, specialized in the designing and production of bar code readers, mobile computers, sensors for detection, measurement and safety, RFID vision and laser marking systems. Datalogic solutions help to increase the efficiency and quality of processes in the Retail, Manufacturing, Transportation & Logistics and Healthcare industries, along the entire value chain. The world's leading players in the four reference industries use Datalogic products, certain of the attention to the customer and of the quality of the products that the Group has been offering for 47 years. Today Datalogic Group, headquartered in Bologna (Italy), employs approximately 3,100 staff worldwide, distributed in 30 countries, with manufacturing and repair facilities in the USA, Brazil, Italy, Slovakia, Hungary and Vietnam. In 2017 Datalogic had a turnover of 606 million Euro and invested over 55 million Euros in Research & Development, with an asset of more than 1,200 patents in multiple jurisdictions. Datalogic S.p.A. is listed in the STAR segment of the Italian Stock Exchange since 2001 as DAL.MI. More information about Datalogic at http://www.datalogic.com. Datalogic and the Datalogic logo are registered trademarks of Datalogic S.p.A. in many countries, including the U.S.A. and the E.U. Memor is a trademark of Datalogic S.p.A. and/or its affiliates. Android is a trademark of Google. Gold Cube - The World's 1st Cash for Gold Machine Coming Together is a Beginning; Keeping together is progress; Working together is success. - Henry Ford Gold Cube announces a new location for its high-tech Cash for Gold terminal. The ATM will be available at Coral Square Mall. The company extends its network, ensuring that Floridians will obtain fair prices when selling or pawning precious metals. The international market for gold, platinum and silver is constantly in high demand. Their intrinsic value makes them highly desirable. In order to determine an items value, its gold, platinum or silver purity must be analyzed. Gold Cube has created a machine of the same name that promises to break the traditional way of trading precious metals. This state-of-the-art kiosk is fully-automated and uses the latest technology to analyze metals. The automated teller machine will help the customers sell or pawn jewelry in a safe environment, without being exposed to merchants who try to lower the price. The ATM accepts a wide variety of coin and jewelry, including necklaces, chains, pendants, bracelets, rings and wedding bands. How It Works Gold Cube uses a very user-friendly touchscreen interface. After scanning the ID card, the customers are allowed to place their precious metal items inside the machine. After the item has been analyzed and evaluated, a monetary value will be offered. The client can accept the offer or have the item returned. In order to provide a fair price, each terminal is connected to a server that constantly monitors the market pricing in the United States, Europe, and China. The automated Cash for Gold machine uses the latest Intels 3D XPoint Optane Memory technology to determine the purity and weight of precious metal. To ensure that each transaction is protected, the kiosk uses a combination of ID card scan, fingerprint scan, digital signature and email confirmation. In 2019, Gold Cube plans to accept cryptocurrency as a payment option. Customers will also have the ability to convert popular cryptocurrencies into cash at Gold Cube ATM locations. About Gold Cube The Melbourne-based company was founded by brothers Nakia and Caleb Geller. Nakia has more than 17 years of experience as a startup entrepreneur, and Caleb has more than nine years of experience in gold buying. To overcome the difficulties associated with the old way of determining the gold items proper value, they came up with a solution: a machine that will fully automate the process. After many months of testing, the worlds first gold-trading kiosk, Gold Cube made its public debut in June 23rd, 2017 at the Merritt Square Mall in Merritt Island, FL. The company has recently announced the opening of one more location in Coral Square Mall. Corporate Contact: Gold Cube 325 5th Ave, Suite 103 Indialantic FL 32903 info(at)thegoldcube(dot)com About Coral Square Mall Coral Square is an enclosed, climate-controlled mall, situated at the intersection of W. Atlantic Boulevard and University Drive in Coral Springs, Florida. It is one of the best shopping places in the whole Miami metropolitan area. Clients are amazed by the wide variety of shops and restaurants. Address 9469 W Atlantic Blvd Coral Springs, FL 33071 800.969.0506 No-fault insurance pays for medical bills No-fault systems will help drivers pay medical bills. Considering the astonishingly-high costs of medical care, it is recommended to purchase this coverage, said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company Lowcostcarinsuranceprice.com has launched a new blog post that explains what is the no-fault car insurance system, why it was introduced on the market and which states use it. The no-fault system provides coverage if the policyholder or his passengers are injured during an accident. The insurer will pay for medical bills, no matter who is responsible for the accident. This type of insurance is more commonly known as personal injury protection or PIP insurance. If the policyholder is found guilty, this policy will also cover the medical costs for the other party. Besides medical bills, other costs are covered. These are presented in the blog post. This system is not available in all states.PIP insurance is available in Florida, Hawaii, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Utah and the jurisdiction of Puerto Rico. The system was introduced on the market with the purpose of lowering the price of auto insurance by taking the small insurance claims out of the courts. In no-fault states, drivers may sue the at-fault drivers only for severe injuries, if they meet several conditions, like exceeding a certain state threshold For more info about this matter, check the blog post. Also, for free online quotes, please visit https://lowcostcarinsuranceprice.com/ Lowcostcarinsuranceprice.com is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. Go Au Pair and 14 other sponsor agencies are defendants in a class action case in Denver, Colorado related to the au pair stipend. Go Au Pair has always remained in compliance with State Department requirements for the program, and is committed to upholding federal regulations. As the Court recognized in a recent order: Plaintiffs do not proffer evidence that defendants actively concealed truthful wage and hour information from class members on class-wide bases. More importantly, the express language of the contracts referenced by plaintiffs disprove the plaintiffs assertions. However, to put an end to this lengthy and burdensome litigation for the benefit of all parties, a settlement has been reached. The parties have submitted a preliminary agreement to the Court, which must be approved by the Court before it becomes effective. The agreement to settle is a very positive and significant step toward reaching a conclusion. Importantly, the settlement agreement specifically states that Go Au Pair and the other sponsors continue to dispute the allegations. And the State Departments formula that sets the minimum weekly stipend remains unchanged. Under the settlement, which is subject to Court approval, the sponsors must pay a total of $65.5 million to resolve the claims. The au pairs lawyers are seeking compensation of approximately $25 million. The settlement also requires that the sponsors clarify in their written materials that the State Department stipend amount is a minimum. This requirement is consistent with Go Au Pairs longstanding business practices. Since its inception, Go Au Pair has included clear statements in its contracts and written materials specifying that the stipend amount is only a minimum, and host families and au pairs are free to agree to a higher amount. Go Au Pair will continue to communicate this message to program participants. Go Au Pair is proud of our commitment to helping au pairs and host families cultivate a rewarding experience. According to participants and the State Department, the au pair program is very successful and popular among both au pairs and host families. Most recently, in 2017 as part of annual audits performed by all agencies, 93% of 1,000+ au pair respondents and 91% of 1,000+ host family respondents reported they would recommend the program to a friend. The graphs below show the high levels of satisfaction reported in survey responses collected from thousands of au pairs and host families over a three-year period. Unlike other studies referencing a few au pairs (e.g. 1 -20 au pairs), these surveys provide a broader and more accurate picture of how participants feel about the au pair program. The State Department provides this information by randomly selecting and consolidating survey results from annual audits conducted by independent auditors for each sponsor. Case: Beltran v. Interexchange, Civil Action No. 14-cv-03074-CMA-KMT. United States District Court, D. Colorado. Visakhapatnam, Jan 13 : The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday questioned J. Srinivas Rao, an accused in the knife attack on YSR Congress Party chief Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. A day after getting the custody of the accused, the NIA officials brought him from Vijayawada to Visakhapatnam and questioned him at the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) training centre in the port city. According to police sources, the 29-year-old accused was questioned for three hours in the presence of his lawyer. He is likely to be taken to Visakhapatnam Airport where the investigators will re-create the crime scene. The NIA may later shift Srinivas Rao to Hyderabad or some other location for further questioning. Jagan, as the YSRCP leader is popularly known, was injured when Srinivas, a worker at the airport canteen, attacked him with a knife used in cockfight. Jagan was attacked as he was waiting to board a flight to Hyderabad. The leader of opposition, who sustained a bleeding cut on his left upper arm, continued his journey and got admitted in a hospital in Hyderabad. After the attack, leaders of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) termed it as a ploy of YSRCP to gain public sympathy. Jagan had refused to record his statement before the Andhra Pradesh Police saying he had no trust in agencies controlled by the state government. YSRCP leaders had approached the Hyderabad High Court seeking a probe into the attack by a central agency. On the directions of the Union Home Ministry, the NIA booked a case on January 1 and took up the investigations. The NIA Special Court in Vijayawada on Friday sent Srinivas Rao to NIA custody for a week. In another development, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday came down heavily on the Centre for handing over the case to the NIA. He said the State would challenge the decision in a court. Naidu vowed to protect the powers of the state. He alleged that this was the best example that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jagan had joined hands. Dumka : Jan 13 (IANS) Top Maoist commander Sahdev Rai was on Sunday killed in a shootout with Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) in Chhatupara forest area in Dumka district of Jharkhand, the paramilitary force said. The fierce gun-battle began at around 6.55 a.m when a group of 15-20 Maoists opened fire on the SSB team, comprising 42 personnel, which was on combing operation in the forest based on specific inputs. The shootout lasted around 90 minutes leading to the death of Rai, who carried a bounty of Rs 10 lakh on his head, SSB Spokesperson Kanishk Chaudhary said. According to the officer, Rai had links with Santhal Pargana Zone -- an infamous Maoist group in the state. "We have seized several arms and ammunition during search operation. No injury occurred on our side," Chaudhary said. Panaji, Jan 13 : Members of the Goa Mining People's Front, a collective of workers, truck and barge operators dependent on the now-banned iron ore mining industry, on Sunday met BJP national President Amit Shah, to lobby for resumption of mining in the coastal state which has been banned by the apex court since February last year. In a statement released to the media after meeting Shah in the national capital, the Front said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief has said that a "solution to the present mining impasse shall be brought about soon by the Central government". South Goa MP Narendra Savoikar, who was also present at the meeting with Shah, said that the delay in finding a resolution to the mining crisis is because the Central government is considering all legal aspects of the cases. "Our President has assured everybody and more particularly the mining dependents that the government has come to a conclusion and will come out with a mechanism," Savoikar said. For the last several months, the Front has been accusing the state BJP-led coalition government as well as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government of doing little to restart mining in the state, which is one of the mainstays of Goa's economy. The meeting with Shah on Sunday, came days after members of the Front laid siege to the private residences of Goa's Members of Parliament. The mining dependents, a significant vote group in the state's hinterland, had been assured by the state BJP leadership that the Central government would pass an ordinance or an amendment to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act in the recently concluded winter session of Parliament in order to resume mining. The mining issue has been hanging fire in Goa, every since the apex court banned extraction and transportation of iron ore from 88 mining leases from March last year, while also directing the state government to re-issue mining leases. Jaipur, Jan 13 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran Gulab Chand Kataria was on Sunday elected as the Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly. A former state Home Minister, Kataria was unanimously chosen to the post after his name was proposed by former Chief Minister and now BJP Vice President Vasundhara Raje. The 74-year-old was also elected as the leader of the BJP Legislature Party while Rajendra Rathore has been chosen as his deputy. Governor Kalyan Singh will administer him oath of office on Monday. Secunderabad, Jan 13 : Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday urged the younger generation to understand "the rich and diverse traditions" ingrained in Indian festivals and called for protecting, promoting and enriching country's "exceptional" culture and folk art forms. Festivals are occasions for social bonding and inculcate a spirit of communal harmony and national integrity, he said after inaugurating the fourth International Kite Festival and Second International Sweet Festival here. He said that the festivals symbolise renewal, rejuvenation and revival of Indian traditions and heritage, and bring in a sense of togetherness, unity, love and brotherhood in today's fast-paced world. Naidu also tried his hand at kite flying for a few moments. The fascination associated with the kite flying transcends age, class and community, he said, adding that kite-making is an art form and it requires skill, precision, devotion and inventiveness. As many as 42 professional kite flyers from abroad and 60 from India participated in the Kite Festival. The Vice President expressed happiness over this year's Kite Festival having adopted the theme of empowerment of girl child -- "Educate girl child and she will save the world". Beijing, Jan 13 : The death toll in the coal mine roof collapse in China's Shaanxi Province has risen to 21 as rescuers found dead bodies of the other two trapped miners on Sunday, authorities said. The accident happened around 4.30 p.m. on Saturday at the Lijiagou coal mine of the Baiji Mining Co. Ltd. in the city of Shenmu, Xinhua news agency reported. At the time of the accident, 87 persons were working underground. 66 of them were lifted to safety. An investigation into the cause of the accident is underway. Jerusalem, Jan 13 : Israel's Prime Minister on Sunday confirmed his troops had bombed a warehouse at the Damascus International Airport recently. The Syrian state-run TV had revealed earlier that the airport located in east Syria was attacked by Israeli warplanes and that a warehouse was damaged, reports Efe news. "Israel Defense Forces have attacked hundreds of Iranian and Hezbollah targets. Just in the past 36 hours, the Air Force attacked Iranian depots full of Iranian weapons in the Damascus International Airport," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The Syrian source reported on Friday that the Syrian forces managed to shoot down at least eight missiles launched by Israeli planes that entered the Syrian airspace from the Israeli-Syrian border. Israel considers Iran as the main threat to its existence and has launched hundreds of air attacks in Syria over the last few years, allegedly targeting positions belonging to Iran or its allies. Lucknow, Jan 13 : Snubbed by the SP and BSP who have joined hands in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday said it will contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state but insisted that its doors were open for secular parties willing to defeat the BJP. A day after arch rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced an alliance, Congress General Secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party not being a part of the alliance was a blessing in disguise as it will get to contest all the seats in the state. "Our party is rather happy... Had there been an alliance we would have to be contend with 25-30 seats. But now we will be contesting in all the seats. We are all prepared and will contest in all the 80 seats," Azad told the media here. "We are ready to contest all the 80 seats but if there are any secular party or parties whom we find competent to join us in our fight against the BJP, we are ready to accommodate them. We welcome such party or parties and we will agree for seat sharing," he said. Talking about the SP-BSP dumping the Congress, Azad said: "The Congress is the only party that can uproot the Modi government and defeat the BJP. We wanted all secular parties to join our fight against the BJP. "But if someone does not want to walk with us, it is their choice, we cannot do anything," he said. On the SP-BSP combine leaving out Amethi and Rae Bareli -- constituencies held by Congress President Rahul Gandhi and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi respectively -- Azad said that both the parties earlier too did not contest on the two seats. "This is not a fight for a state, the fight is for Parliament," said Azad, while remaining evasive about a post-poll alliance. The Congress leader spoke after a meeting at the party's state headquarters here. "We had earlier also said that we are ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we can't force anyone. They have (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so we will continue this fight to defeat the BJP on our own," he said. "For the last 3-4 years we have been talking about secular parties joining hands against the BJP. Some of them like N. Chandrababu Naidu's TDP (Telugu Desam Party) has come on its own. So whether we are talking with some parties for an alliance or not, that is not something to be informed in a press conference," said Azad, on being asked if the Congress was in talks with other parties for stictching a grand alliance in the Lok Sabha polls. The Congress also refused to comment on the Prime Ministerial face, saying the battle was first about defeating the BJP. On Saturday, the BSP and SP, burying a quarter century of animosity, announced they will fight the Lok Sabha polls jointly in Uttar Pradesh -- 38 seats each. Apart from Amethi and Rae Bareli, they are expected to accommodate the RLD in two seats in western Uttar Pradesh. In 2014, the BJP swept 71 of the 80 seats while an ally won two more seats. The Congress won only from Amethi and Rae Bareli while the BSP drew a blank. The Samajwadi Party got five seats. New Delhi, Jan 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the BJP government is committed to ensuring justice to the 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims and asked why the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara was allowed to go to Pakistan during partition when it was close to the border. Addressing a gathering after releasing a Rs 350 commemorative coin to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh here, Modi said his government was pledged to facilitate the smooth entry of Sikhs to Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan through the Kartarpur corridor. "The gurdwara was just a few kilometres away but it was not brought in India. Building the Kartarpur corridor is an honest attempt to recompense that loss. It is an act of repentance for the mistake that happened in August 1947," he said. The Prime Minister also said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government would ensure that justice was provided to "all sisters and mothers" who were victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots that followed the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. "The Central government is working to provide justice to those who have been subjected to injustice since 1984," he said. Modi also said that his government had asked all Indian embassies to celebrate the 352nd 'Prakash Utsav' of Guru Gobind Singh. Calling Guru Gobind Singh a "multi-talented personality", Modi said the Sikh master was not just a warrior but a poet and literary figure whose values could be found in the foundation of new India. New Delhi, Jan 13 : The cultural fabric and ethos of India is being unmade with every passing day, says activist Harsh Mander, fearing that "hatred and bigotry" may become "the new normal". In his latest book "Partitions of the Heart: Unmaking the Idea of India", Mander says that Muslims and Christians are at the risk of being reduced to second class citizens in India. He that the Constitution promises that India would belong to all people who are born into it or who chose it, regardless of their religion, caste or gender. "If this pattern of routinising systematic hate violence is not effectively resisted, the danger is that it will spiral downwards into further and further cycles of grim and deepening strife, which will continue to target innocents and ultimately tear us apart as a people, destroying the idea of a humane, pluralist, inclusive India." He accuses the successive governments of compromising cynically with "secular and egalitarian principles", contending that they failed both their constitutional mandate and the people of India. Mander, who quit the IAS in the wake of post-Godhra riots in Gujarat in 2002, urges his readers to learn from the lessons of the past, saying that it is imperative that people do not allow "hatred and bigotry" to get routinised. "Solidarity with and between religious, ethnic and sexual minorities, oppressed castes and tribal people, women, poor and dispossessed people, immigrants and working class people, and people of colour must be forged and strengthened," he notes in the book, published by Penguin. The 66-year-old activist, who works with survivors of mass violence and hunger as well as homeless persons and street children, further prescribes that public institutions must be protected and public dissent should be seen as the highest public duty. He says that even if dissent is stigmatised as "unpatriotic, attacked and persecuted", citizens of the country should not allow it to be suppressed. India was partitioned in 1947 by its British colonial rulers, leading to the birth of two separate nations, India and Pakistan. Mander's central argument in the book is that another partition is "underway in our hearts and minds". "How much of this culpability lies with ordinary people? What are the responsibilities of a secular government, of a civil society, and of a progressive majority," he asks in the book. Taking stock of whether India has upheld the values it had set out to achieve, the author offers a painful, unsparing insight into the contours of hate and violence. He shares vivid stories from his own work and shows that hate speech, communal propaganda and vigilante violence are "mounting a fearsome climate of dread". He argues that hate can indeed be fought, "but only with solidarity, reconciliation and love, and when all of these are founded on fairness". Birthday wishes Call 281-422-8302 or email david.bloom@baytownsun.com to wish someone a happy birthday. We will print your birthday wish on Page 2 of The Sun. Happy Birthday Wishes RTHK: Obama protege Castro to run for president Julian Castro, the telegenic former mayor of San Antonio, Texas and Obama-era cabinet member, launched his bid to become the nation's first Hispanic president on Saturday, emphasizing a message of hope and diversity at a time when Americans are locked in angry debate over immigration and border security. "I am a candidate for president of the United States," the 44-year-old Castro told a crowd in San Antonio's historic Guadalupe Plaza, during a speech that frequently invoked the immigrant heritage that brought his family to the US from Mexico. Often called a rising star in the Democratic Party, Castro, who was Obama's housing secretary -- and the youngest member of that cabinet -- is expected to be part of a diverse field of candidates eager to challenge President Trump. At a time when the federal government has been partly shut down over Trump's demand for funds to build a wall on the Mexican border, Castro sounded a contrasting message. He said San Antonio, a city that is nearly two thirds Hispanic, "represents America's future: diverse, fast-growing, optimistic." "Yes, we must have border security, but there is a smart and humane way to do it. And there is no way in hell that caging children is keeping us safe," Castro said. "We say no to building a wall and say yes to building community," he added, to roars from the crowd. Trump wants the border wall to block illegal immigrants he has sought to equate with crime, drugs and gangs. "There is a crisis today -- it's a crisis of leadership. Donald Trump has failed to uphold the values of our great nation," Castro said. Urging his supporters to look around the blue-collar neighbourhood where he grew up, Castro said, "there are no frontrunners that are born here, but... with big dreams and hard work, anything is possible in this country." He added that his grandmother Victoria would surely have been amazed when she arrived from Mexico in 1922 -- she went on to work as a maid and a cook -- had she known that one grandchild would end up in Congress and the other as a presidential candidate. Castro's twin brother Joaquin, who introduced him on Saturday, is a congressman. The two rode to the event together on the same bus line that once took them to public school. Julian Castro's strong oratorical skills, experience in the Obama cabinet and as mayor of the nation's seventh largest city, coupled with his charisma, could help propel him into the top tier of Democratic candidates. Castro's national profile rose sharply in 2012 when he became the first Latino to deliver a keynote speech at the Democratic national nominating convention. A Latino candidate would be expected to generate enthusiasm among the country's large and growing population of Hispanic voters, around two thirds of which supported Hillary Clinton in 2016. But he would start out as one of the underdogs in a political showdown that may well feature heavyweights like former vice president Joe Biden, US senators Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris, and perhaps even billionaire businessman Michael Bloomberg. Another Democrat, 37-year-old Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii -- a lifelong surfer -- announced on Friday that she too will seek the party's presidential nomination. Castro is the third candidate with a Latino background to seek the presidency in recent years, after two Republicans -- Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida -- unsuccessfully faced Trump in that party's 2016 primary campaign. (AFP) This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Washington, Jan 13 : US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will meet with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and plans to address the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi during his upcoming visit to Saudi Arabia, Pompeo said on Saturday to CBS News. "I'll say what we have said consistently," Pompeo said of Khashoggi's murder. "America's position both privately and publicly is the same. This was an outrageous act, an unacceptable murder. Those who were responsible will be held accountable by the US." "We're determined to do that. We're determined to get at the facts just as quickly and as comprehensively as we can," he continued in an interview he taped with CBS' "Face the Nation." In December 2018, the Senate passed a resolution condemning Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince for the murder of Khashoggi, reports CNN. The resolution stated that the Senate "believes Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi" and "calls for the government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to ensure appropriate accountability for all those responsible for Jamal Khashoggi's murder." In his CBS interview, Pompeo said the US "value human rights all across the globe," and called the murder of Khashoggi "outrageous." He added that the US will "hold those responsible accountable." "And then we'll talk about all the important things we do with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and all the support they provide to keep Americans in Kansas and Colorado and California and in Washington, DC, safe," Pompeo added. Pompeo previously told Al Arabiya that he would be heading to Saudi Arabia beginning Sunday. When asked if it was a partnership or a friendship with Saudi Arabia, he told Al Arabiya, "Call it what you will. They've been great partners in the missions that we have asked them to assist us with. "We understand that the murder of Jamal Khashoggi was a heinous, terrible act. We want to hold everyone responsible for that accountable," he said. "We intend to do so. We started that already. But this relationship, this mutually beneficial relationship to create stability in the Middle East and to assist the US in executing things that keep the American people safe is very important. And I'm convinced the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will be a great ally in doing so." HONG KONG and SHANGHAI, Jan. 12, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (hereafter "Ping An" or "the Group", HKEx: 2318; SSE: 601318) is delighted to announce that the Ping An Global Voyager Fund, has invested in AI medical solution company Airdoc in its B+ round of funding (Ping An has led the round along with CITIC). This investment aims to boost application of AI healthtech and bring the benefits of quality healthcare services to all. Airdoc is a high-tech company dedicated to improving the efficiency of medical services through artificial intelligence. It develops deep learning techniques based on massive data labeled by medical experts and provides intelligent services to assist doctors and benefit patients. Jonathan Larsen, Chief Innovation Office of Ping An Group, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Global Voyager Fund said: "This is an important investment for Ping An and the Global Voyager Fund. Airdoc brings world class AI-driven medical imaging analytical capabilities in multiple domain areas. There are many applications for their solutions within the Ping An health and financial services ecosystem, in China, regionally and internationally. We are excited to be working with such a high quality team both as an investor and a strategic partner." Dr. Marco Huesch, managing director and Chief Medical Officer Ping An Global Voyager Fund said, "We are excited to partner with Airdoc and proud to co-lead the firm's Series B+ round. Airdoc's market leading medical AI retinal imaging technology offers consumers a fast, convenient and accurate screening service for more than two dozen important diseases, all available at multiple, retail check-up center locations in China." The Ping An Global Voyager Fund, Ping An's $1Bn global corporate venture capital fund, was launched in May 2017 with a mandate to invest in fintech and healthtech businesses to accelerate Ping An's technology transformation. In recent years, Ping An has been building up its expertise in the fintech and healthcare-related areas. The Group invested US$7 billion in R&D in the past decade and expects to invest a total of Rmb100 billion (US$15 billion) in the coming ten years. The core technologies such as AI, blockchain and cloud computing have and will continue to empower the Group's five ecosystems -- financial services, health care, auto services, real estate services and smart city services. Through applying innovative technologies to these ecosystems, Ping An will be able to seamlessly engage with customers to offer simple, professional and relevant financial services to help them better their lives and to help Ping An growth its business. About Ping An Group Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An") is a world-leading technology-powered personal financial services group. With 182 million customers and 513 million Internet users, Ping An is one of the largest financial services companies in the world. Ping An has two over-arching strategies 'pan financial assets' and 'pan healthcare', which focus on the provision of financial and healthcare services through our integrated financial services platform and our five ecosystems in financial services, healthcare, auto services, real estate services and Smart City services. Our aim is to provide customers and internet users with innovative and simple products and services. As China's first joint stock insurance company, Ping An Group is committed to upholding the highest standards of corporate reporting and corporate governance. The company is listed on the stock exchanges in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Ping An ranked 10th in Forbes' 2018 Global 2000, and it ranked 29th in Fortune Magazine's 2018 Global 500 Leading Companies. Ping An also ranked 43rd in 2018 WPP Millward Brown's BrandZTM Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands. For more information, please visit www.pingan.cn About Ping An Global Voyager Fund Ping An Global Voyager Fund is a $1bn Corporate Venture fund, whose role is to make investments in potential partner companies who share our vision of a data economy, can bring strategic value to Ping An Group, and who are interested to work with us in building a large scale franchise in China. The fund seeks to invest in the companies on growth stage in Fintech and Healthtech with a typical size between $10 million and $100 million. About Airdoc Airdoc is a high-tech company dedicated to improving the efficiency of medical services through artificial intelligence. It develops deep learning techniques based on massive data labeled by medical experts and provides intelligent services to assist doctors and benefit patients. Headquartered in Beijing, the company has R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai and Seattle, with team members from front line technology companies such as Microsoft, Google and Samsung. In recent years, there have been many outstanding AI medical enterprises focusing on fundus retinopathy in China, and the advantage of Airdoc is that it can meet the complex needs of various scenes inside and outside the medical system and recognize nearly 30 kinds of common diseases. For enquiries, please contact: Gareth Hewett @ +852 68822027 or [email protected] SOURCE Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. Related Links http://www.pingan.cn WASHINGTON, Jan. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Port Fund today called on the General Manager of the Kuwait Port Authority (KPA), Sheik Yousef Al-Abdullah, to correct misstatements he made in a CNBC Arabia interview aired on Tuesday, January 8, 2019 regarding The Port Fund and its efforts to distribute $496 million to its investors and stakeholders. The General Manager made inaccurate statements that conflict with the official position of the Kuwait Government and the Kuwait Attorney General, who is working to have Dubai promptly release the funds back to Port Link GP and allow it to pay the Kuwait investors and others. Contrary to the KPA General Manager's statement that the KPA's investment in The Port Fund was "lost", other Kuwaiti officials recognize that the funds were never lost or stolen but are currently frozen in an account at Noor Bank in the name of the fund's General Partner, Port Link GP. Equally surprising, the KPA General Manager stated that the name of the account holder at Noor Bank, Port Link GP, was "unknown" to the KPA even though the legal documents governing the Fund, signed by the KPA and all other Fund investors, expressly authorize "Port Link GP" to act as the Fund's General Partner and to conduct its business. Contrary to the KPA General Manager's suggestion, the $496 million wired to Port Link GP's account at Noor Bank clearly belongs to The Port Fund and can be distributed to investors from that account. The KPA General Manager also stated that the KPA did not recognize an $11 million payment previously sent to the KPA from a subsidiary of The Port Fund, suggesting that The Port Fund has not paid any money to the KPA since it invested in The Port Fund, which is factually incorrect. The statements from the KPA General Manager come at a time when senior government officials are working on the release of the funds. The Kuwait Prime Minister sent a letter dated September 18, 2018 to the Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai stating that these funds "are considered public funds and as well belong to investors in the private sector, and since the continued freezing of these funds is very damaging to government entities and other investors, we ask your Highness to direct your entities in charge to release the funds quickly" (emphasis added). The Kuwait Attorney General has twice written to the Dubai Attorney General requesting the release of the funds. Most recently, the Kuwait Attorney General wrote a letter dated December 30, 2018 requesting the Dubai Attorney General "remove the hold [on the funds] and enable the account holder company [Port Link GP] to transfer and distribute the mentioned amount [$496 million]" (emphasis added). "The Port Fund calls on the KPA General Manager to correct these misstatements in order to avoid any further confusion or delay in Dubai's release of the funds, which will only continue to harm the KPA, the Public Institution for Social Security, and other Port Fund investors," said Mark Williams, investment director of the fund. "Kuwait government officials have been working to have Dubai release these funds and incorrect information from the KPA potentially undermines the effort of those officials." Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/807538/Port_Fund_High_Res_Logo.jpg SOURCE The Port Fund Sky News January 13, 2019 Nobel Prize-winning DNA scientist James Watson has been stripped of several honorary titles by the laboratory he once headed over his views about intelligence and race. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory said it was acting in response to remarks he made in a television documentary which aired earlier this month. The 90-year-old geneticist one of three who discovered the DNA double helix had lost his job at the New York laboratory in 2007 for expressing racist views. But in the new PBS film, American Masters: Decoding Watson, he said his views on intelligence and race had not changed since. He had told a magazine in 2007 he was inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa as all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours where all the testing says not really. While Dr Watson also said he hoped everyone was equal, he added: People who have to deal with black employees find this is not true. Read more This article was posted: Saturday, January 12, 2019 at 7:43 pm Print this page. Infowars.com Videos: Comment on this article Ghana hosts ECOWAS Summit this week Ghana will, from today, host the Mid-Year Statutory Meetings of the Economic 14 times this year armed robbers heightened fears of insecurity in Ghana A brutal attack on a vehicle transporting cash to a bank on Monday, June 14, Ghana set for biggest cocoa harvest in a decade Ghana, the worlds no. 2 cocoa grower, is headed for its biggest harvest in at CIMG admits 104 new members The Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG), has admitted 104 new WhatsApp launches privacy campaign after backlash WhatsApp has launched its first major privacy-focused advertising campaign in World Bank introduces strict disbursement rules for Ghana's $200m vaccine loan The World Bank has put in place strict disbursement rules to check any abuse of IGP must step down- Security Analyst Security Analyst Adam Bona is advocating for the replacement of the IGP James B-Heck Africa Sanitation Challenge launched B-HeCK Africa NGOs Alliance has launched their novel sanitation campaign Stock market report for June 15, 2021 SAS Research has provided the following updates on the stock market activities Nato warns of military challenge posed by China Nato leaders meeting for a summit in Brussels have warned of the military CIMG admits 104 new members The Chartered Institute of Marketing, Ghana (CIMG), has admitted 104 new 14 times this year armed robbers heightened fears of insecurity in Ghana A brutal attack on a vehicle transporting cash to a bank on Monday, June 14, Pan-African Parliament: Punches, kicks and death threats Founded with the noble ambition of uniting the continent, a session of the Black Meteors suffer another defeat to South Korea The Black Meteors have suffered another defeat to South Korea in the second 84, of Dannemora, passed away peacefully Tuesday, June 15, with her loving family by her side. Arrangements are incomplete at this time and will be announced when available by the R.W. Walker Funeral Home in Plattsburgh. Flash Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono on Saturday started his five-day visit to Russia, during which he will hold consultations on a peace treaty with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. "The minister has arrived in Moscow," Tass news agency cited a diplomatic source from Japan's embassy in Moscow as saying, without providing further details about the visit. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the two top diplomats will hold talks on Monday. The meeting is mainly dedicated to consultations on the peace treaty, but the ministers will also discuss other aspects of bilateral relations. Russia and Japan have not signed a post-World War II peace treaty due to their rival claims to four Pacific islands, called the Southern Kurils in Russia and the Northern Territories in Japan. The four islands used to belong to Japan, which were seized by the Soviet Union after the war and were incorporated in Russia following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tokyo maintains that Moscow illegally occupied the islands. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is scheduled to visit Russia around Jan. 21 and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Russian media. New Jerseys Democratic leaders want to increase the states minimum wage 69 percent to $15 an hour. They control the government so it will happen soon, its just a question of how. Their effort amounts to an acknowledgement that New Jerseys economy, burdened by the worst business tax and regulatory climate in America, isnt going to be strong enough to meaningfully increase wages on its own anytime soon. The $15 minimum will help many workers, an estimated million or so, about 60 percent of them working full time. It will help them afford to live in very expensive New Jersey and perhaps reduce their reliance on state and federal aid programs. It will also hurt many workers, but exactly how many depends on how businesses adjust, so that cant be realistically estimated. It will also require consumers to pay more to cover the higher costs to businesses. South Jersey is expected to be especially hard hit since it has the states biggest tourism and farming industries. They depend on seasonal workers, many of them foreigners here on work permits to take advantage of earning stronger dollars. The employers are still being worked out and include companies in hospitality, food service, administrative and support services, and more, she said. Preyer said the students will get to try out different career fields so they have an understanding of what will be required of them. Its just as important to know what you dont like as it is to know what you do like, she said. Atlantic Center for Independent Living (Atlantic CIL) has partnered with Atlantic City and Pleasantville school districts this year for the roll-out of the program, which began just last month. Training coordinator Pete Abraldes from Atlantic CIL was in Jonathan Lellis special education class at Atlantic City High School last week to discuss with the students what they aspire to be and how they can get there. He was beginning a lesson on making a vision board to help accomplish a goal. Nothing exists until you put it on paper, Abraldes told the students. He asked them to think about where they want to go and what they want to do after high school. The students yelled out their aspirations: a chef, a car mechanic, an EMT in the Armed Forces. ADVERTISEMENT A leader of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Musiliu Akinsanya, popularly called MC Oluomo, who was stabbed in the neck last Tuesday, is responding well to treatment and may be discharged soon, PREMIUM TIMES learnt. The unionist was stabbed at a rally organised by the Lagos chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ikeja. He was taken to nearby Eko Hospital, after he was injured in the fracas that erupted among rival gangs of the NURTW at the APC rally. But on Saturday, a PREMIUM TIMES reporter who monitored activities at the hospital where Mr Akinsanya was being treated learnt from well-wishers who were at the hospital to visit him that he was out of danger and may be discharged soon. The expression on the faces of many of the visitors, who are mostly members of the Oshodi Chapter of the NURTW, turned from apprehension to relief as they walked out of the hospital. Many of them loudly described how fit he looked. The visitors were allowed into the hospital in small groups by a man that appears to be a lieutenant of the injured NURTW leader, simply identified as Seun. A lady who was among those allowed to see Mr Akinsanya said she was thankful to God that he was okay. When we went up he was looking good, his younger brothers wife was also there with him upstairs, she reported. A man among the visitors spoke excitedly after visiting Mr Akinsanya. He suggested the transport union leader would pay back those who attacked him in the same coin once he returned home. There will be trouble now because the one they thought they have killed did not die. All who did this will be scared now because they have failed in their mission, he said in Yoruba. Police Protection Stationed close to the entrance of the hospital were two police vehicles a van and a Black Maria with at least four armed policemen. Since the incident last Tuesday, the police have arrested 16 persons and have declared Mustapha Adekunle aka Seigo, the alleged mastermind of the attack on Mr Akinsanya, wanted. The NURTW, apart from being a transport union, has also been a major source of armed thugs for major political parties across Nigeria. In Lagos, members of the union are closely linked to the ruling party, APC. ADVERTISEMENT Many people were killed on Saturday night as a truck conveying bags of rice crushed many to death in Iworoko, Ekiti State. The accident happened close to the Ekiti State University. A report by Sahara Reporters states that the truck involved was owned by Dangote industries. The truck was reportedly conveying APC-branded bags of rice and was heading to Ondo from Abuja when the accident happened. A witness told the newspaper that the bags of rice were branded with Senator Tayo Alasoadura for Senate 2019. Mr Alasoadura is a senatorial candidate of the APC in Ondo State. The driver of the truck lost control of the wheels and rammed into the market which was close to the road in Iworoko. Many traders, who were still selling at night, were affected. In fact, it ran into the popular barbers shop close to the road and crushed everyone in the place to death, the witness, Titilayo Ayelola, said. The witness said while many mourned the dead and attempted to rescue survivors, others stole the bags of rice for themselves. Neither the police nor the state government has provided an official casualty figure. Reacting to the accident, Senate President Bukola Saraki on Twitter expressed his deepest condolences to all the families affected by the Iworoko, Ekiti roadside market accident that claimed many lives. As survivors pull together in the wake of this tragedy, I wish them all a speedy recovery and pray for the repose of all departed souls. #EkitiMourns. ADVERTISEMENT A rally organised on Saturday by the All Progressives Congress (APC) at the Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri, ended in crisis. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that supporters of the partys governorship candidate in the state, Hope Uzodinma, and those of his Action Alliance (AA) counterpart, Uche Nwosu, engaged in a fight at the APC women and youths rally. Supporters of Mr Nwosu were chanting victory songs and raising his posters in the air when the clash began. Security operatives, however, intervened, shooting sporadically in the air while warding off the VIP stand where wife of the vice president, Dolapo Osinbajo, who represented wife of President Muhammadu Buhari, Aisha, was seated alongside other dignitaries. NAN reports that at least three persons were injured as the crowd dispersed following the gunshots. Reacting, Gov. Rochas Okorocha alleged that the fight was caused by thugs hired by Mr Uzodinma. He described the relationship between AA and APC in the state as good, but added that Mr Uzodinma would not win the governorship election. He said, Hope Uzodinma can never win the governorship election in the state. The alliance between AA and APC is a perfect one. We are working to deliver President Buhari and Uche Nwosu in the state. Mrs Osinbajo, however, told the crowd to vote for Mr Buhari and APC candidates in the forthcoming elections. Speaking to NAN, a top politician in the state, who pleaded anonymity, asked why the AA governorship candidate should attend a rally organised by the APC. This is a serious anti-party activity, he said. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT Governor Godwin Obaseki was absent at the meeting of South-South governors in Abuja on Sunday. The governors are discussing the fallout of the scheduled trial of Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen. The meeting, which began at 4:00 p.m. and still underway as of 5:49 p.m., is chaired by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State. Governors Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom, Ben Ayade of Cross River and Nyesom Wike of Rivers State are amongst those present. Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta was absent but reportedly sent a representative, although this has not been independently confirmed by PREMIUM TIMES. Of the six governors in the South-South, Mr Obaseki is the only one belonging to the All Progressives Congress (APC), which controls Nigerias political centre. The remaining five governors belong to the Peoples Democratic Party (APC), Nigerias main opposition party. A spokesperson for Mr Obaseki told PREMIUM TIMES the governor was attending a meeting in Lagos. The governors are having an emergency meeting in Abuja, but Governor Obaseki is in Lagos attending to official engagement he had preciously scheduled, spokesperson Crusoe Osagie said. He said the governor did not shun the meeting because he is associated with the APC which is prosecuting the chief justice. Despite the outrage that greeted the planned prosecution, the APC has formally backed the move, saying in a Sunday afternoon statement the Buhari administrations fight against corruption would not tolerate sacred cows. Mr Onnoghen, from Cross River, has been accused of improper declaration of assets, with the Nigerian government filing six charges that it said violated the code of conduct law for public officers. The chief judge strongly denied all allegations against him. He is expected to be arraigned on January 14 in Abuja. A coalition of civic groups has called on the Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE), the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and the Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET) to intervene in the ongoing unrest in the franchise areas of the Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC). The Transparency Advocacy for Development Initiative, alongside other allied civil society groups, made the call during a press briefing on Friday in Abuja, warning that it would embark on protests to the offices of the aforementioned regulators should they fail to take action. We call on every concerned regulator to immediately come out and clear on the needless controversies being stirred ostensibly to cripple the Benin Electricity Distribution Company under its current management, the group said in a statement signed by its convener, Solomon Adodo and shared to journalists shortly after the briefing. If we do not get appropriate feedback within seven days of this notice, we shall be left with no other option but to embark on a peaceful procession to these offices for the sake of sanity in our power sector. Mr Adodo said the call became necessary due to vandalism of critical electricity installations and electricity theft going on in the areas, including media and physical attacks on BEDC. He described such attacks as highly political and fuelled by businessmen bent on taking over the company from its current management at all costs using strong-arm mafia manoeuvres. The call comes two months after PREMIUM TIMES reported how groups of youth stormed the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing in Maitama, Abuja to protest against the renewal of the operational licence of the BEDC, accusing the company of refusing to provide transformers and electrical poles including ancillaries. But the company described the protests as ill-motivated. Days later, its managing director, Funke Osibodu said the protest against the organisation was due to the stoppage of power theft by some people. Mr Adodo said findings by the group revealed that many electricity users have been involved in electricity theft in the area. They deliberately do not want to be metered but intend to be using electricity at no cost, business cannot be carried out in such manner. It urged all consumers within the region to comply with the prevailing laws by promptly paying for electricity consumed so as to avoid electricity theft. Mr Adodo advised that all communities should maintain vigilant, watch over electricity installations in their respective domain, to stall off power facility vandals and saboteurs. On the issue of license revocation, the convener argued that the federal government handed certificates of ownership to the 11 respective DISCOs with clearly stipulated contract terms on a long term basis. Thus the sanctity of contract protects the DISCOs as long term investors. Edo, Ondo, Ekiti, and Delta States are under the franchise areas of the BEDC. The Distribution Company (DISCO) has been embroiled in prolonged run-ins with its users over epileptic power supply among other issues. Sometime last year, many parts of states under the BEDC franchise area were thrown into darkness for three weeks. This followed the breakdown of the 150MVA power transformer that supplies power to these areas. This prompted protests against the activities of the BEDC and calls for revokation of its contract. Weeks after the protests last year, the company assured its customers of its readiness to address power outages in the affected areas. Tayo Adekunle, its spokesperson who gave the assurance said a contingency plan had been adopted to get the affected areas connected. He said the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) was assisting the BEDC to replace some faulty transformers. Both the managing director of Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trading (N-BET), Marilyn Amobi, and Head, Public Affairs Department, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC), Usman Abba Arabi, could not be reached for comments, as at press time. NBET is the manager and administrator of the electricity pool in the Nigerian electricity supply industry (NESI). Owned by the federal government, it distributes and determines the amount of power allotted each DISCO based on the Multi Year Tariff Order (MYTO). ADVERTISEMENT NERC on the other hand is an independent regulatory body with authority for the regulation of the electric power industry in Nigeria. ADVERTISEMENT A former commissioner of works and transport under former Jigawa State governor, Sule Lamido, has defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). Baba Santali served as commissioner for eight years under Mr Lamido after serving under the preceding administration of Saminu Turaki as a special adviser. Mr Santali, like some other former commissioners who served under Mr Lamido, had been invited by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) for questioning over alleged dubious awarding of road contracts in the state. He was considered a super-commissioner in Mr Lamidos government and a member of the kitchen cabinet of the former governor. Mr. Lamido is facing charges of awarding contracts to companies in which he had interest, allegedly using his two sons and others as fronts. Mr Santali announced his defection to APC on Friday. He said he has left the PDP with hundreds of his supporters, including a former Kazaure Local Government chairman, Sule Taki. He was a gubernatorial aspirant and also ran for senatorial ticket for Jigawa North-west district under the PDP but withdrew from the races for still unclear reasons. He told journalists his decision to join the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) was in appreciation of President Muhammadu Buhari and his state governor, Muhammad Badaru, who he said are determined to move the country forward through good leadership. He said even though he just formally decamped to the APC, he had been an ardent supporter of Mr Buhari since 2003. I dumped the PDP and registered with APC simply to join hands with the federal and state governments to make Jigawa State and Nigeria a better place for all, he said. He promised to work for the second term bid of Mr Buhari and Governor Badaru and all other APC candidates in the state. Reacting to the defection, Mr Lamido said those defecting are materially and emotionally poor. Those defectors have served in the administration of former governor Saminu Taruki, they served under my administration and now they have transferred to Mr Badarus administration. Their defection doesnt affect PDP popularity in the state but Im disturbed by the shame they are portraying the state in the eyes of the world, the former governor said. Mr Lamido also said the PDP is determined to reclaim power in the state because people have realised their mistakes by voting APC. ADVERTISEMENT The governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Kwara State, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, on Sunday escaped death as thugs fired gunshots into a rally he was attending, an aide said. Mr Abdulrasaqs media aide, Rafiu Ajakaiye, said the thugs are suspected to be working for the Peoples Democratic Party. In a statement on Sunday, Mr Ajakaye said the attack, which left two persons injured, occurred at Ode Alfa Nda area of the state capital Ilorin. The violence occurred almost simultaneously with similar attacks on APC supporters in Ile Aiyelabegan, a household that is a spit distance from the Agbaji homestead of the Senate President Bukola Saraki, the statement notes. We condemn this brazen resort to violence. This is getting out of hand. Nigerians are urged to prevail on the Senate president to prevail on his party thugs and stalwarts to give peace a chance in Kwara. There is life after politics. We call on all the security agencies to buckle down and tame the monsters who are now terrorising everybody in not just Ilorin but everywhere in Kwara where people express their desire for freedom and life more abundant, Mr Ajakaye was quoted as saying in the statement. This account is a direct opposite of a statement from an aide to Mr Saraki. In that statement, Olu Onemola, Mr Sarakis media aide, said about 11 PDP supporters were injured in an attack by the opposition thugs at the Senate Presidents family residence. Apart from injuries, he alleged that about 50 vehicles was destroyed in the Saturday mayhem. While the police still remain mute on this development, both parties are claiming casualties and accusing each other of the attacks. The APC, however, alleges that the PDP orchestrated its form of violence to lay blame on the opposition. Mr Ajakaye in a separate statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES said hoodlums of PDP extraction now go around the state to cause mayhem wearing APC vests. Some of the vehicles damaged by the PDP thugs at Ile Aiyelabegan, a spit distance from the Senate presidents homestead in Agbaji in Ilorin West. Some of the vehicles damaged by the PDP thugs at Ile Aiyelabegan, a spit distance from the Senate presidents homestead in Agbaji in Ilorin West. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. APC governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq paying a get-well-soon visit to victims of attacks by PDP thugs in Ilorin, capital city of Kwara State. We have information that PDP thugs, true to our predictions since December 2018, have now mass-produced vests and other APC logos with which they are going around Kwara State to destroy things and attack innocent citizens. This is an old tactic for which the PDP and its patrons are known. We recently alerted the people of Kwara to this evil tactic of the PDP. Armed with guns and other deadly weapons, they are wearing the same APC vests and filming themselves as they carried out this act of violence against Kwarans. An example was what they did today (Sunday 13 January) in Surulere area of Ilorin in the state capital. This was the same tactic they deployed in 2003 and other election periods. These are panicky measures adopted by the drowning dynasty which has lost the battle of ideas, the statement notes. Flash U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a telephone conversation Saturday with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Syria issue, according to a statement issued by the State Department. Pompeo and his Turkish counterpart agreed on the importance of continuing U.S.-Turkish consultations as part of the deliberate and coordinated withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria, the statement said. Pompeo reiterated to Cavusoglu the U.S. commitment to addressing Turkish security concerns along the Turkey-Syria border. At the same time, he emphasized the importance that the United State places on the protection of forces that worked with the United States in defeating the Islamic State (IS), referring to the Kurdish militia, known as the People's Protection Units (YPG). The top U.S. diplomat is on an eight-day trip to the Middle East amid rising uncertainty and complexity in the region following the White House's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. Trump's announcement of pulling the 2,000 troops out of Syria has raised expectations that Turkey could launch a military operation targeting the YPG, which Ankara considers a terrorist group with links to Kurdish separatists in Turkey. Cavusoglu said in an interview on Thursday that Turkey would conduct the planned military operation to thwart the threat in northern Syria, even if the United States delays the withdrawal. U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton said Friday that the military environment in northern Syria was "very complex," warning that Turkey should not take any military action that is not fully coordinated through the military to military channels with the United States. Trump said on Monday that U.S. troops would be withdrawn from Syria "at a proper pace," while at the same time continuing the fight against the IS. Currently, there are about 2,000 U.S. troops deployed in Syria. ADVERTISEMENT Four former governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Niger State have defected to the All Progress Congress (APC) along with their supporters. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the defectors were received by Adeniyi Adebayo, Deputy National Chairman, APC South, on behalf of the National Chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomonle, at the launching of the state governorship campaign in Minna on Saturday. They include Ahmed Ibeto, Hanafi Sudan, Ahmed Baka, and Umaru Ahmed popularly known as Dogon Koli. Mr Ibeto, who spoke on behalf of the defectors, gave assurance to work with the party to ensure the victory of APC during the general election. At the occasion, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo expressed optimism that APC would win big at the forthcoming poll. He said work had been completed on the Baro Port project, which would soon be commissioned as part of efforts to boost the economy of the state. I want to tell you that President Muhammadu Buhari is very committed to the well-being of Nigerians. The Lagos to Kano railway project is one of such commitments of this administration to ease movement of our people. The completion of Baro Port shows that this administration means well, he said. Mr Osinbajo, however, described Governor Abubakar Bello as a young and hardworking man who deserves another four years to continue with the infrastructure development of the state. He appealed to the people of the state to support the re-election bid of the governor as well as other candidates of APC. Earlier, Mr Bello expressed confidence that APC would win the forthcoming general election and appealed to the people to come out and vote massively for APC candidates. Rotimi Ameachi, Director General of Buhari Campaign Organisation, urged the electorate not to take the forthcoming general election for granted. He said that the election was between the rich and the poor, describing PDP as a party that stole resources meant for Nigerians for 16 years. Mr Ameachi noted that the present administration had delivered on its 2015 campaign promises to fight corruption, insecurity and ensure economic development. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT Suspected members of the Boko Haram on Sunday attacked Magumeri, a local government headquarters in Borno State. Magumeri is about 50km from Maiduguri, the state capital. According to sketchy reports that filtered into Maiduguri, the attack occurred at the agrarian community at about 6 p.m. Magumeri, a quiet agrarian community, had its first major attack by Boko Haram on November 25, 2017, during which three soldiers were killed while six others got injured. The military had then blamed the November 2017 attack on the collusion of the residents with the insurgents; an allegation that was rebuffed by leaders of the community. ADVERTISEMENT The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen, has refuted media reports that security officers attached to him were withdrawn ahead of his proposed trial. Mr Onnoghens special assistant on media, Awassam Bassey, dismissed the reports in a telephone interview with PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday. Mr Bassey, who said he was with the CJN till late afternoon on Sunday, said Mr Onnoghen attended a public function on Sunday, in company of his usual security aides. I was with him, through this afternoon. We had attended the special Sunday service for the Armed Forces Remembrance Day. His security officers were there. None of them has been changed, or taken away, Mr Bassey said. The spokesperson said the social media has been awash with various information regarding his boss, adding that most are fake news. Mr Onnoghen is billed to appear before the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) on Monday. He was charged with six counts of false asset declaration by the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) on January 10. The charges followed a petition brought against him by a group, the Anti-corruption Research and Data Based Initiative, headed by a member of the ruling All Progressives Congress and former official of the defunct Congress for Progressive Change, Denis Aghanya. In a statement, the CCT said it received the request for the trial of Mr Onnoghen on Friday and had slated Monday to commence with the matter. Various lawyers and the Nigerian Bar Association have condemned the arraignment, describing it as unlawful, politically motivated and a prosecutorial misadventure. The main opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party, has also condemned the trial describing it as a plot by the APC to frustrate the judiciary and rig the forthcoming general elections But the APC has defended the proposed trial, scheduled to start seven days after Mr Aghanyas petition was sent to the CCB. It denied any attempt to stifle the judiciary or rig the general elections, next month. But many activists are unconvinced saying the speedy manner the top official was quickly arraigned is suspicious especially as law enforcement agencies have been largely lethargic in addressing criminal allegations levelled against other notable members of the ruling party. The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus, on Sunday warned President Muhammadu Buhari not to plunge the nation into crisis saying his party is ready to resist him. Mr Secondus statement came on the heels of the upcoming arraignment of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen before the Code of Conduct Tribunal over his failure to declare his assets. The issue is currently generating heated debate in the polity. Mr Secondus at a PDP presidential rally in Jos on Sunday said the party would resist the presidents attempt to attack the judiciary. He said Mr Buhari was planning to rig the 2019 elections by first compromising the judiciary. Thirty days to the election, Buhari and APC want to destroy Nigeria. We (PDP) will not agree. If they want crisis, they will see it, Mr Secondus said. According to Mr Secondus, the last hope for the common man which is the judiciary is under attack. Buhari and his APC are planning to carpet it to dance to their tune. Nigerians must rise up to resist these antics capable of destroying Nigeria, he added. Mr Secondus said the president is desperate for a second term in office and started by attacking politicians, moved to attack the National Assembly and is now laying a siege on the judicial arm of government. He also claimed that the APC led government wanted to kill the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and an opposition senator, Dino Melaye, who is presently detained by the police over criminal allegations. They started killing upon killing. Buhari and APC want to destroy the country. They have started with politicians, then to members of National Assembly and now heading to the judiciary. They want to carpet the judiciary so as to dance to their tune. We must rise up and resist it. This thing didnt happen in Congo or Venezuela. If they want crisis, they will see it. They want to start the rigging from the judiciary but it would not work, he said. Meanwhile, the PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, said the APC had failed in governance. Mr Abubakar had condemned the upcoming arraignment of Mr Onnoghen. He also promised to restructure the country while ensuring peace returns to the troubled state. I want to promise you three things. I will restore peace and unity in Plateau. I will make Plateau the economic nerve and provide jobs. I call on you to vote all PDP candidates. APC is not campaigning because it has already lost the election, Mr Abubakar said. Mr Saraki, who also spoke at the rally, said the PDP remains the only choice in 2019. APC promised you security, you dont have security. APC promised you jobs but we lost jobs. There is hunger everywhere. If you want security, job and food, vote PDP, Mr Saraki, who decamped from the APC in 2018, said. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Buhari administration on Monday claimed credits for the implementation of anti-open grazing law in Benue State, a gesture it slammed Governor Samuel Ortom for failing to appreciate. The comments appeared the first time President Muhammadu Buhari would publicly claim support for the law, which was largely deemed controversial amidst fears it prohibit free movement of a targeted ethnic group within the nations borders. Before now, the overwhelming indications from the Buhari government was that the law should be scrapped and replaced with a universal grazing policy being proposed by the central government at the time. Mansur Dan-Ali, Nigerias defence minister, and Ibrahim Idris, the police inspector general, were amongst the top administration voices who spoke against the law following its passage in November 2017. When attacks against Benue villages by suspected herdsmen were escalated between early and mid-2018, Messrs Dan-Ali and Idris warned of grave consequences if Benue and two other states that had the law in place failed to scrap it. Taraba and Ekiti are the two other states with strict anti-open grazing policies within their jurisdictions. Rather that express support for the law, Mr Buhari has only been on the record urging people of the troubled states to embrace their compatriots, which loosely meant that the nomadic Fulani herders should be accommodated even though they were largely suspected in the herdsmen violence across central Nigeria. But in a statement Sunday, presidential spokesperson Garba Shehu said Mr Buhari should be thanked for the implementation of the law in Benue State. Mr Shehu said Mr Buhari supported Benue grazing laws as a means to end the farmer-herder crises that have plagued the state. The comments came in a reproach to Mr Ortom, whom the presidency said had recently embarked on a hate campaign against Mr Buhari to boost his own reelection chances in the state. The governor allegedly told residents that Mr Buhari was involved in an alleged conspiracy to Islamise Benue, a claim the presidency strongly rejected. If not for President Buharis insistence that the governor be given a chance to effect the law, he would have faced resistance from different sources and found it difficult to implement, Mr Shehu emphasised. Mr Shehu said Mr Ortom had taken the divisive campaign to Benue churches in recent weeks in a desperate move to avoid discussing the acute salaries backlog which workers have been grappling with in the state. While advising Ortom to immediately stop his dubious attacks on President Buhari, the Federal Government calls on the people of Benue State to not fall for Ortoms deception and allow themselves to be hoodwinked by such a negative campaign, the statement added. PREMIUM TIMES could not immediately identify instances of hate speeches against the president by Mr Ortom, or the context under which they were allegedly made. A spokesperson for Mr Ortom did not immediately return requests for comments Sunday afternoon. ADVERTISEMENT The All Progressives Congress (APC) has endorsed the planned arraignment on Monday of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen and accused the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of being sympathetic to corruption for calling against the plan. Mr Onnoghen is scheduled to be arraigned by the Code of Conduct Bureau at the Code of Conduct Tribunal on a six-count charge of alleged false asset declaration. The development followed a petition to the CCB by a group, the Anti-corruption and Research-based Data Initiative (ARDI). Speaking on the development in a statement by its spokesperson, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Saturday, the PDP said it is part of a plot by the APC-led federal government to destabilise the Judiciary so as to rig the 2019 general elections. This is particularly following allegations that the APC seeks a new CJN that will aid its rigging schemes as well as execute the plot to use the court to detain and put opposition members and outspoken members of Civil Society Organisations out of circulation during the general elections, the PDP said. The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and many lawyers in their personal capacities also condemned the decision to put the head of the Nigerian judiciary in the dock. The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), in a statement by its spokesperson, Ikenga Ugochinyere, on Saturday described the planned arraignment of Mr Onnoghen as a plot by the government to force him out of office to help President Muhammadu Buhari manipulate the election tribunal. The six governors from the South-South region have called an emergency meeting to discuss the development. Mr Onnoghen is from Cross River State in the region. The APC spoke for the first time on the development through a statement on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lanre Issa-Onilu, saying the swift reaction by the PDP exposed the opposition party as one with a natural inclination to rise up in defence of cases of alleged corruption. It said it expected the PDP to call for impartial investigations when corruption cases are levelled against public officers, but spinning falsehoods and conspiracies remains the opposition partys favourite past time. The ruling party dismissed as baseless the allegation that the move against Mr Onnoghen is a plot to rig the election and urged Nigerians to disregarded such allegations, as APC is committed to ensuring a free and fair election. Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN) [Photo Credit: The Guardian] The PDPs baseless conspiracy theory on APCs participation in the 2019 general elections should hereby be disregarded. We remain solidly committed to ensuring that the forthcoming elections go on record as one of the freest, most credible and peaceful elections in the country. It emphasised that the fight against corruption remains a cardinal promise by the APC to the electorate. The party assured that the President Buhari administration remains uncompromising in its determination to rid the country of corruption and will not hesitate to investigate and prosecute any public officer if and when such is indicted for corruption. ADVERTISEMENT Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has commended the call by the Borno Elders Forum, on President Muhammadu Buhari, to stop the practice of releasing the so called `repentant Boko Haram members. Mr Abubakar in a statement issued on Saturday in Abuja by his media aide, Paul Ibe, said that he aligned himself with the elders. Mr Abubakar said he was vindicated, because twice in 2018, he gave the same advice to the president. It makes no military or practical sense to release hardened terrorists, who have taken the precious lives of members of the Nigerian Armed Forces, on the flimsy excuse that they have been de-radicalised or repentant. He recalled the statement made by Abba Umar, a Boko Haram commander, who after his arrest, boasted that he would return to join the sect in Sambisa, if he was ever released. The PDP presidential candidate commends the Borno Elders Forum and urges other bodies of elders to learn from their sagacious courage and speak the truth to those in power. Mr Abubakar said that if elected president, there would be no release of any captured terrorist. Instead, they must expect the harshest punishment the law allows. Under Atiku Abubakar, criminals will not profit from their criminality.(NAN) The Nigerian Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI) has announced the sack of its acting Director-General, Solomon Vongfu. NASSI, founded in 1978, is the umbrella body of the countrys micro and small scale industrialists engaged in production, manufacturing, provision of services, entrepreneurship and human resource development, among others. Mr Vongfus sack was announced in a memo issued by the National Executive Council (NEC) of NASSI at the end of its extraordinary meeting in Abuja on Thursday. Later in the day, some members of the National Executive Committee also met at the associations national secretariat in Abuja to ratify the decision of the NEC. A copy of the memo, signed by the National President, Ezekiel Essien; Vice President, Hussaina Ahmed, and Public Relations Officer, Aisha Baffa, was made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN in Abuja. The NEC also announced the dissolution of the associations National Electoral Committee with immediate effect due to insubordination by its members. NAN reports that the NECs move came barely five days to the expiration of the tenure of its current members and conduct of election for their replacement on Wednesday. Although the memo was silent on the reason for the alleged sack of Mr Vongful, a reliable member of the NEC told NAN that it was due to insubordination and financial fraud on his part. When contacted, the embattled acting DG denied the allegations and dismissed the sack as a ploy to thwart his bid for the position of National President in the forthcoming election. Mr Vongful, who was in his office when NAN correspondent visited him on Friday for his own story, said the NECs action fell short of the requirements stipulated in the constitution of NASSI to sack an officer. He said he was not informed of the alleged offence in writing, neither was he summoned to appear before the council or a disciplinary committee to defend himself as stipulated in Section 25 of the associations constitution. The National Executive Committee of NASSI is made up of 126 officers, comprising all 15 members the National Executive Council, and Chairmen, Secretaries and Treasurers of the 36 state branches and the FCT. The people that met to ratify the councils resolutions were not up to 20, in fact roughly 15 in number, meaning they did not form a quorum. The council members present were not up to three, which did not form a quorum because we are 15 members in the council. Besides, the National President was not in attendance and most of the people there were not even state chairmen. So, can they take decision for 37 states and the FCT? From where did they derive the powers to sack me? Did they show you any document to prove that they gave me a letter of sack from the National Executive Council? So, it is just a wasteful venture; they just wasted their time because it does not hold any ground. As you can see, I am still working in my office, he said. Mr Vongful alleged that the action was carried out by desperate elements, who want to capture power by all means. ADVERTISEMENT This is because our election is coming up on Wednesday, January 16, and I am one of the major contenders for the position of National Chairman. They are afraid of losing, he said. NAN reports that NASSIs objectives include the establishment of channels of communication with government, financial institutions, employers and manufacturing organisations to secure loans, property and other forms of support for its members. The association, with over 100,000 members nationwide, has representatives in boards of several relevant governments committees, agencies and parastatals to serve the interests of its members.(NAN) ADVERTISEMENT Obiageli Ezekwesili, the Presidential Candidate of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), says she will make education Nigerias new oil well and gold mine if elected. Ms Ezekwesili made the pledge during her presidential campaign visit to Mohammad Baba, the Hakimi of Ushafa, in Bwari Area Council, FCT, on Sunday. According to her, education will fast-track the quest for all-round development of the country and open doors for various segments of the nation to fully develop. She said the ACPN government under her would equally give priority to agriculture, security, youth and women empowerment to alleviate poverty in the country. I am running so that women, children and young people will prosper and achieve their goals. We will liberate Nigeria, rescue the youths and less privileged from sufferings and set the country on the path of prosperity. Education will become our new oil wells and gold mines through adequate policies, she said. The candidate, however, advised supporters of the party to form a united front to enable the party to attain victory during the general election. Responding, the Hakimi of Ushafa, said Nigeria at the moment needed somebody like Ezekwesili to rescue it from its numerous challenges for better. He noted that women were good managers and had solutions to the problems confronting the country. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT A 35-year-old man, identified as Uwaila, on Sunday shot dead his wife and two sons in Edo State, accusing her of infidelity. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the incident happened at Ovbiogie village in Ovia North East Local Government Area of the state. The Commissioner of Police in the state, Hakeem Odumosun, who visited the scene of the incident, promised that the suspect would be charged to court after the conclusion of investigation.into the case. The suspect was said to have shot through the door into the room where his wife and children ran into for safety and locked themselves in, following an argument. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) also reports that residents of the community wailed almost uncontrollably when officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) came to evacuate the corpses. Narrating what happened, the suspect who was in police custody, said his wife accused him of having girlfriends and threatened to retaliate by going out with other men. Mr Uwaila said he drove out of the house in anger and came back to see that his wife locked herself and his sons inside one of the rooms. The suspect said he shot through the door, adding that in the process, the bullet hit them on the bed. (NAN) Flash The young Saudi woman who has been granted asylum after fleeing from her reported abusive family arrived in Canada's Toronto Saturday morning, local media reported. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun, 18-year-old, was welcomed by Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland at Toronto's Pearson International Airport, CTV said. Qunun arrived in Toronto from Seoul, South Korea, a day after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would accept her as a refugee. Qunun reportedly fled her family while visiting Kuwait and flew to Bangkok, where she was stopped at a Bangkok airport last Saturday by Thai immigration police, who denied her entry and seized her passport. She then barricaded herself in an airport hotel room and launched a social media campaign through her Twitter account that drew global attention to her case. She said her father physically abused her and tried to force her into an arranged marriage. Her father has denied both allegations. On Wednesday, Canada signaled that it would be open to accepting Qunun, who had asked Canada for help via Twitter. Previously, several countries including Canada and Australia were in talks with the United Nations refugee agency in Bangkok on accepting Qunun. The United Nations high commissioner for refugees in a statement welcomed the Canadian government's "quick" decision to grant asylum to Qunun and provide a "long-term solution" for her in Canada as a resettled refugee on Friday. The Canada-Saudi Arabia relations have soured after a diplomatic row which was sparked by the Canadian government's call for the immediate release of Saudi blogger Raif Badawi and his sister Samar via Twitter on Aug. 5, 2018. In response, Saudi Arabia accused Canada of interfering in its internal affairs and expelled the Canadian ambassador to Saudi Arabia and recalled its own ambassador from Ottawa. With about a month to the presidential election, various political parties began their campaign tours to various states. Below are some of the major stories from last week. SUNDAY 1. The campaign team of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar released audio tapes which it described as that of the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi. The tapes which were made available to PREMIUM TIMES by Phrank Shaibu, the special assistant on public communication to the PDP candidate portrays the minister as lacking confidence in the product (Mr Buhari) he was appointed to market. 2. Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State again met with President Muhammadu Buhari alongside his preferred candidate for governor in the 2019 election and candidate of the opposition Allied Peoples Movement, Adekunle Akinlade. The Presidency said the president would only support candidates of the All Progressives Congress. It said Mr Buhari however welcomes endorsements from other parties. 3. Akwa Ibom Governor, Udom Emmanuel, and his estranged benefactor and predecessor, Godswill Akpabio, put aside their political differences and embraced each other in the church, to the admiration of those who witnessed it. Senator Godswill Akpabio and Governor Udom Emmanuel holding hands during a rare encounter at Catholic Church, Uyo Messrs Akpabio and Emmanuel met at the Cardinal Ekanem Seminary, Uyo, during the closing ceremony of the New Year prayer and fasting organised by the Catholic Church, Uyo Diocese. MONDAY 1. The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), a group of opposition political parties, threatened a mass protest on January 15 if the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, is not retired. According to civil service statutes, the occupant of the office of the Inspector General of Police is to resign after spending the mandatory 35 years in service or attaining 60 years of age. Former Inspector-General of Police, Idris Ibrahim Mr Idris is expected to retire from service after reaching the mandatory 35 years in service this month. 2. A Federal High Hourt in Port Harcourt nullified both the direct and indirect primaries conducted by two factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State. The court, presided by Kolawole Omotosho, also restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising any candidates of the APC for the 2019 general elections in the state. Two factions of the party had conducted parallel primaries that produced two sets of candidates. 3. President Muhammadu Buhari said former Lagos State governor and leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, will take full charge of his re-election campaign. President Muhammadu Buhari Mr Buhari said while he will also be involved in the campaigns, he would only do that without allowing governance to suffer. ADVERTISEMENT He said this while inaugurating his presidential campaign council at the International Conference Centre, Abuja. 4. Ahead of the 2019 general election, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has presented the national register of voters to political parties. INEC CHAIRMAN, MAHMOOD YAKUBU The register was presented by the chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, at the quarterly consultative meeting with political parties in Abuja. The commission also revealed the official total number of registered voters is 84 million. 5. A former governor of the old Borno state, Mohammed Goni, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to the governing All Progressives Congress (APC). A former governor of Borno State, Muhammed Goni Mr Goni was governor of old Borno State, that comprised the present Yobe State, from 1979 to 1983. His defection was announced Monday by former Senate leader, Ali Ndume, who led a delegation from the north east to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari. 6. As part of its reforms to ensure a credible 2019 general elections, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says it has abolished the separate incident form. The chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu, disclosed this in Abuja while presenting the national voters register to leaders of the political parties. He said the commission had modified the register of voters for the 2019 general elections accordingly. Consequently, the separate Incident Form used in previous elections which is only completed by the Presiding Officer without the involvement of the voter is now abolished, he said. 7. The family of the National Commissioner in charge of Health and Welfare at the Independent National Electoral Commission, Amina Zakari, rose in stout defence of the election official, saying critics should leave her alone to do her job. A statement by Isah Zakari, a lawyer, faulted some of the claims published in media reports about the INEC official, saying rather than being castigated, Mrs Zakari should be celebrated as an accomplished woman. 8. The Bus Conductors Association of Nigeria (BCAN) expressed its readiness to support President Muhammadu Buhari in the February general election. Israel Adeshola, the BCAN National President, disclosed that the association was convinced beyond doubt that the only way to guarantee better future for the country was through good governance and sincere leadership. 9. The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Abubakar Atiku, promised to complete all abandoned federal projects in Kogi, if elected president in the coming election. Mr Abubakar made the promise on Monday in Lokoja, the state capital while addressing a crowd of party supporters at a rally also promising to create jobs and wealth for the unemployed youth. He said his decision to contest the presidency was focused on ordinary citizens, and described Kogi as a beacon of hope and progress which must be carefully managed. TUESDAY 1. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suspended its deputy national chairman (North), Gamawa Babayo, over allegation of dereliction of duty and anti-party activity. The National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said Mr Babayo was suspended by the National Working Committee (NWC). The committee held an extraordinary session on January 5, where it reviewed the petition against the deputy national chairman. 2. President Muhammadu Buhari has called on Nigerians not to re-elect governors who failed in their first terms, especially those who failed to pay civil servants salaries even after collecting bailouts from the federal government. Mr Buhari, who is also seeking reelection on the platform of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC), said Nigerians votes should go for competence. Mr Buhari, who spoke with the Hausa service of the Voice of America, which was aired Tuesday morning, said he saw no justification in governors collecting bailout funds from the federal government and still failing to pay wages. The president was quoted as saying, I wonder how these governors are able to sleep knowing that they have refused to pay workers their wages. 3. The voter register presented by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to party leaders on Monday showed that Lagos and Kano States have the highest number of registered voters with 6.5 million and 5.4 million respectively. Bayelsa and Ekiti States have the least number of voters with 923,181 and 909,967 respectively. The total number of registered voters stands at 84 million, 15 million more than the figure in 2015 which stood at 68 million. 4. The suspended deputy national chairman (North) of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Babayo Gamawa, joined the governing All Progressives Congress (APC). Mr Gamawa was suspended by the PDP Mondayover allegations of dereliction of duty and anti-party activities. WEDNESDAY 1. The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar reiterated his promise to create more job opportunities for unemployed women and youth in the country, if elected president. He restated the promise on Wednesday in Minna, while addressing party supporters at a rally. He also harped on the need for better infrastructural development in the Niger State. The presidential candidate claimed that over 10 million Nigerians, including women and youth, had lost their jobs in the last three and half years of the All Progressives Congress-led administration. 2. The Senate President said President Muhammadu Buhari lacked integrity and that his government was corrupt. Senate President, Bukola Saraki Speaking in a Channels TV interview Wednesday, in his capacity as the director general of the Atiku Campaign Council, Mr Saraki said the president was tolerating corrupt associates and that had cost him his integrity. THURSDAY 1. The apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohaneze Ndigbo denied endorsing Atiku Abubarkar, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the February 16 presidential election. The Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the organisation, Chuks Ibegbu, disclosed this on Thursday in Enugu at a media briefing to mark the second anniversary of the current executive of the organisation. Mr Ibegbu said the clarification became necessary following misconceptions on the event of November 14, 2018 where some Igbo leaders endorsed the candidacy of Atiku Abubakar for presidency. 2. Magnus Abe of the All Progressives Congress (APC), representing Rivers South-East in the senate urged supporters not to blame the present challenges of the party in the state on Governor Nyesom Wike. Magnus Abe Mr Abe made the call on Thursday while reacting to the recent Federal High Court judgment which nullified the direct and indirect primaries allegedly held by two factions of the party in Rivers. 3. Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) promised to run a youth-driven administration if given the mandate in February 16 election. Mr Abubakar gave the commitment on Thursday at the PDP presidential campaign in Lafia, the Nasarawa State capital. According to the presidential hopeful, the essence of running the youth driven administration was to prepare them to garner experience for effective governance. 4. The speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, challenged northern elders to raise their voices against insecurity in the region just as they did during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. Former Speaker, House of Representative, Yakubu Dogara. Mr Jonathan hails from Bayelsa, South-south Nigeria, while the current president, Muhammadu Buhari is from the north-west. The speaker, who stated this in Lafia, Nasarawa State at the campaign of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday, noted that the elders silence on insecurity in the region could be taken as enabling the poor management of security in the country, especially in the north. He condemned sycophants who elevate some public office holders to the status of god, saying such attitude brings destruction upon the country. FRIDAY 1. The Peoples Democratic Partys (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council in Ekiti State chided the Ekiti State government for denying it the use of the Oluyemi Kayode Stadium, Ado Ekiti, for its campaign rally scheduled for Monday. The campaign council also condemned the attack on traders at Old Garage, Ijoka and Oja Oba areas of Ado Ekiti by thugs allegedly loyal to the state government. The director general of the Campaign Council, Dipo Anisulowo, said in a statement in Ado Ekiti on Thursday that it was sad that the All Progressives Congress government in the state had taken its political intolerance to the level of preventing opposition parties from using facilities belonging to the public. 2. Masked security operatives on Friday stormed the hospital where Dino Melaye, the Senator representing Kogi West, was receiving treatment, and forcibly removed the lawmaker. Mr Melaye was taken from his hospital bed into an unmarked vehicle and drove away, witnesses told PREMIUM TIMES. Dino Melaye lying on the floor The senator was arrested last week after police laid siege on his home in Maitama, Abuja, for eight days. He turned himself in after hiding in the house for days. Mr Melaye has been in the hospital since then. Police spokesperson, Jimoh Moshood, later said that Mr Melaye was moved to a medical facility of the State Services Service (SSS) in Abuja. SATURDAY The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, accused police officers of providing cover for thugs who are attacking his supporters in Kwara State. Mr Saraki also accused the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, of undue interference in the Kwara Police Command. He asked Nigerians to hold the police boss responsible if anything untoward happens to him and family members. ADVERTISEMENT Five out of six governors of Nigerias South-South have come in defence of Chief Justice Walter Onnoghen. The governors at an emergency meeting in Abuja on Sunday said the move to prosecute the top jurist for alleged asset declaration infractions was vindictive and persecutory, and should be condemned by lovers of democracy. The governors consequently prevailed on Mr Onnoghen not to appear when the trial opens at the tribunal on Monday morning. The governors at the meeting were Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa, who chaired it at his guest house in Maitama, Abuja, Nyesom Wike of Rivers, Ben Ayade of Cross River and Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom. The meeting began at about 4:00 p.m. and ended with a communique shortly after 7:30 p.m. The governors declined to take questions from reporters despite earlier promise in the announcement that there would be a press briefing after the closed-door meeting. Governor Ifeanyi Okowa was not present, but his spokesperson told PREMIUM TIMES it was due to flight delays and he had sent a message that the outcome of the meeting would be binding on him. Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State was absent and did not disclose a representation. He is the only governor of the ruling All Progressives Congress from the six-state South-South, the remaining five belong to the Peoples Democratic Party. The governors are the latest to express outrage about the scheduled trial of the Cross River-born Mr Onnoghen, following a petition filed to the Code of Conduct Bureau by a civic group led by a man with previous ties to President Muhammadu Buhari. Details shortly. ADVERTISEMENT At least 15 persons have been confirmed dead in an auto accident that occurred on Saturday night at Iworoko Ekiti, near Ado Ekiti. The News Agency of Nigeria, (NAN) learnt that the crash occurred around 9:00 p.m. on Saturday night when a truck loaded with rice lost control and rammed into a popular market in the town. Witnesses told NAN that the truck crashed into three shops, a commercial bus filled with passengers and traders at the ever-busy market. NAN reports that a huge crowd of sympathisers besieged the scene on Sunday morning while the timely arrival of Ekiti Deputy Governor, Bisi Egbeyemi, prevented some angry youths from a mob action. Among the dead was a mother, her child, a Youth Corps member, traders and some students of the Ekiti State University in the town. Speaking at the scene, the deputy governor commiserated with families who lost their loved ones and the injured receiving treatment at the Ekiti State University Teaching Hospital, (EKSUTH). Mr Egbeyemi appealed for calm, saying the government was deeply touched by the crash and the number of lives lost. The state governor condoles with families of those who have lost dear ones. We pray for their souls to rest in peace. Government will also ensure that those who were wounded have their hospital bills paid for. However, we appeal to our youths to exercise restraint and calm down by not causing trouble. No one wishes for this kind of tragedy to happen. And no amount of anger and violence will bring back those already dead. So let us be calm, he said. NAN reports that Egbeyemi later visited the injured at the emergency ward of EKSUTH where the bodies of the dead were also deposited. He assured the hospital that their bills would be paid by the state government. Meanwhile, Police Public Relations Officer in Ekiti, DSP Caleb Ikechukwu, said he would address the media as soon as full details of the accident was made available to the command. (NAN) It was a black Saturday for the residents of Iworoko Ekiti as a truck conveying bags of rice killed dozens of people. Official casualty from the accident is yet to be announced, but witnesses said at least 45 people may have been killed. The rice being conveyed were bagged with campaign stickers of an All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate in Ondo State, Tayo Alasoadura. Mr Alasoadura is a senator representing Ondo Central at the National Assembly. He is seeking re-election in 2019. Such bags of rice are used as campaign materials. They are given to party supporters and potential voters to secure their support. Eyewitnesses told this newspaper that at least 45 persons including students have been killed in the accident. PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the trailer crushed a loaded vehicle and drove into Iworoko market after its break failed. Iworoko, beside Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, is also home to thousands of students of the nearby Ekiti State University. PREMIUM TIMES is yet to verify the number of students affected in the accident as the spokesman of the university, Ajibade Olubunmi, did not respond to calls at the time of filing this report. Many of the students are, however, believed to have left the community due to the ongoing strike by university lecturers, ASUU. An eyewitness who spoke with our correspondent, Segun Ajayi, said ambulance vehicles have done several trips to take the bodies of the victims as well as the injured to the hospital. It was a terrible one, the ambulance has passed here like five times trying to rescue and dump the body of affected victims in the mortuary, he said. Another eyewitness who simply identified himself as Kunle said the accident happened at about 8 p.m. on Saturday. The trailer was carrying rice meant for distribution voters in next general elections as bags of rice have the picture of Senator Tayo Alasoadura. It was actually break failure. About 45 people have died and still counting, he said. Tayo Alasoadura PREMIUM TIMES learnt that in the early hours of Sunday the deputy governor of Ekiti State, Bisi Egbeyemi, went round Iworoko to assess the roadside market affected by the ugly accident. He also visited the victims receiving treatment at the State Hospital. Mr Alasoadura did not respond to PREMIUM TIMES call and text messages seeking clarification on the incident. While the Ekiti State Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) is yet to release official statement on the accident, Caleb Ikechukwu, Ekiti State Police Public Relations Officer, told our correspodent that: I cannot assert number of persons who died but there were truly casualties REACTIONS The accident has generated many reactions among Nigerians. ADVERTISEMENT Reacting to the accident, Senate President Bukola Saraki on Twitter expressed his deepest condolences to all the families affected by the Iworoko, Ekiti roadside market accident that claimed many lives. As survivors pull together in the wake of this tragedy, I wish them all a speedy recovery and pray for the repose of all departed souls. #EkitiMourns. The former governor of Ekiti State, Ayo Fayose, said: I received the news of the accident at Iworoko Ekiti that took many lives as a shock. We will never witness such a sad occurrence in Ekiti State again. May the good Lord console the victims families and may the souls of the departed rest in peace. I received the news of the accident at Iworoko Ekiti that took many lives as a shock. We will never witness such a sad occurrence in Ekiti State again. May the good Lord console the victims families and may the souls of the departed rest in peace. Peter Ayodele Fayose (@GovAyoFayose) January 13, 2019 A Twitter user @Balatic said: APC has taken vote buying, election madness & hypocrisy to a whole new level. So the accident in #Ekitimourns was caused by a truck transporting APC campaign rice. More than 20 lives lost & pple are not outraged. The legislature must enact a law to ban vote buying of any type. APC has taken vote buying, election madness & hypocrisy to a whole new level. So the accident in #Ekitimourns was caused by a truck transporting APC campaign rice. More than 20 lives lost & pple are not outraged. The legislature must enact a law to ban vote buying of any type C.A. Hills, MBA (Havard via Affidavit) (@Balatic) January 13, 2019 Imagine if they put the effort & spent in packaging these inducements into actual governance. These pple are evil. Last time I said collect (if u must) & vote ur conscience. I was wrong The right thing is: REJECT it even if its from ur candidate! Show you care! #EkitiMourns Another Twitter user, @Sheudam, said: I have seen people politicizing the fatal accident that happened in iworoko because the rice found in the trailer was branded with Sen. Alasoaduras banner. No.. Pls its enough.. The brake failed.. He lost control.. Pray for the family of the deceased.. #EkitiMourns. 1. Nigerian govt disburses $49 million to Yobe, Osun under save one million lives fund Impressed by the outstanding performance of some states under the Saving One Million Lives Programme for Result (SOML-PforR), the federal government has disbursed more funds. Yobe State was awarded the highest amount of the newly disbursed funds as it got $29 million (appox. N10.5 billion) being the highest performing state under SOML- PforR in 2018. This was followed by Osun State which got $20 million (N7.3 billion). SOML- PforR is a flagship of the federal government conceived in 2012 but repackaged in 2015 following a $ 500 million credit from the World Bank. 2. Exercise can help fight off Alzheimer Exercise is a vital element of a healthy lifestyle; it helps maintain heart health, improve mood, and fight weight gain. New research also suggests that it can protect a persons cognitive skills, and a new study uncovers fresh information as to how this can happen. Medical evidence shows that there seems to be a relationship between exercise and the mind as 10 minutes of physical activities only may boost cognitive function in the short-term. Meanwhile, exercising regularly for six months could actually reverse the symptoms of mild cognitive impairment. The researchers came from institutions including the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil and the Taub Institute for Research on Alzheimers Disease and the Aging Brain at Columbia University in New York City, NY. They conducted the new research -the findings of which appear in the journal Nature Medicine in a mouse model, and it suggests that a protein and hormone released during exercise might be the main factor behind slowing cognitive impairment linked to conditions such as Alzheimers disease. 3. Immunisation: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation pledges $75 million to Nigeria The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will commit $75 million to immunisation intervention in Nigeria over the next five years, the philanthropic organisation has pledged. The country director of the foundation, Paul Bassinga, made the pledge in Abuja at the launch of the second National Strategic Health Development Plan (2018-2022) and the roll out of the implementation of the Basic Health Care Provision Funds. The event at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa also featured the disbursement of fund to high performing states under the Save One Million Lives Programme for Results (SOML-PforR). Mr Bassinga said the foundation was impressed with the improvement of immunisation activities in the country and as such will be using the money it pledged to strengthen immunisation, with the expectation that the federal government will honour its commitment to the immunisation basket fund. 4. First Lassa fever conference holds in Abuja The Nigerian government will host the first Lassa Fever International Conference in Abuja to mark the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the disease. ADVERTISEMENT Lassa fever, also known as Lassa hemorrhagic fever (LHF), is a type of viral hemorrhagic fever caused by the Lassa virus. The virus was first isolated 50 years ago in Lassa, a town in Borno State in northeast Nigeria, for which it has been named. The conference, organised by the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) and its partners, will hold January 16 and 17. It aims to increase global health focus on a disease found mostly in West Africa. Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria recorded its highest death toll in 2018 with 146 dead as at December 2. 5. Bill Gates warns that nobody is paying attention to gene editing Bill Gates, a philanthropist and founder of Microsoft Corporation, has warned that nobody is paying attention to gene editing, a new technology that could worsen inequality across the world. He recently described a cutting-edge scientific technique called gene editing as the most important public debate we havent been having widely enough. Gene editing has been used in the US as a one-time treatment for disease, but a Chinese researcher recently said he helped create the first genetically edited babies. Gene editing allows scientists to make powerful, precise changes to a persons DNA, typically to fix a defective gene. 6. Malnutrition: Nigerian government budgets N300 million for ready to use food As part of the efforts to curb child malnutrition in Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari has proposed about N300 million in the 2019 budget for the procurement of Ready to Use Therapeutic Food ( RUTF). According to the budget breakdown, the RUTF will be distributed across the country, while part of the money will also be used to establish Community Management of Acute Malnutrition (CMAM) sites. RUTF are enriched food that requires no preparation and is specifically designed to treat severe acute malnutrition (SAM), mostly in CMAM sites. Malnutrition, which can result in death, stunting, underweight and wasting among children under age five, has remained a serious concern in Nigeria as the statistics continues to rise. 7. Global war against polio eraducation far from over The global war against the eradication of polio is far from over as 29 new cases were reported in 2018. Unfortunately, there were more cases in 2018 than in 2017 (29 versus 22). Afghanistan and Pakistan have never been free of polioin fact they are the only two countries that have never been free of polio. Political violence, rise of insurgencies and war has made it difficult to vaccinate children as families move around to escape fighting, which makes it hard to keep track of children and make sure they get all the doses of the vaccine. 8. Researcher find way of coaxing stem cells to form new bone tissue New research has identified a possible way to manipulate certain stem cells to generate new bone tissue. The results of this investigation could vastly improve the outcome for people with skeletal injuries or conditions such as osteoporosis. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells that have the potential to specialize and undertake any function In a new study from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD, Aaron James and his team have looked into the mechanisms that allow certain types of stem cell, which are known as perivascular stem cells, to form new bone tissue. The researchers conducted their research in a rat model as well as in human cell cultures, and they report their findings in the journal Scientific Reports. 9. Cancer: a new drug sponge may reduce toxic effects of chemotherapy Researchers have developed an innovative, personalized absorber that can catch toxic chemotherapy drugs when they leak out of a treated organ.This could help reduce the adverse side effects of these cancer treatments. A team of researchers from institutions across the United States including the University of California (UC), Berkeley, and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) has recently developed a tiny device akin to a sponge, which is set to absorb chemotherapy agents after they have reached their target. The researchers have reported their experiments and findings in a study paper that has appeared today in the journal ACS Central Science. The aim of the absorber is to minimize the toxic side effects of chemotherapy drugs, which, although they have a potent effect against cancer tumors, also attack healthy organs and tissue and can impair their function. An 18-year-old Saudi woman who fled her family this week saying she feared for her life after renouncing Islam arrived in Torontos international airport on Saturday after Canada granted her asylum. Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland welcomed her as a brave new Canadian. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun grabbed international attention this week after she barricaded herself in a Bangkok airport hotel room to resist being sent home to her family, which denies any abuse. Qunun refused to meet her father and brother, who arrived in Bangkok to try take her back to Saudi Arabia. Qunun arrived at Torontos Pearson International Airport on Saturday morning, smiling and wearing a hoodie emblazoned with the word Canada in red, and a blue (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) UNHCR cap. Freeland, who received Qunun at the airport, told reporters that Qunun is a very brave new Canadian. Rahaf wanted Canadians to see that she has arrived at her new home, Freeland told reporters. But she had a very long and tiring journey and so would prefer not to take questions today. And she is now going to go to her new home. Qunun waved to reporters as she walked out into the international arrivals area but did not speak to the media. After a brief appearance, she was taken back into the airport terminal. Qunun, who had initially intended to seek asylum in Australia, chose Canada instead because Australia took too long assessing whether to grant her asylum. (Australia) takes too long. Thats why I went to Canada, she told Reuters in a direct message before boarding her flight to Toronto. Qunun took a Korean Air flight from Bangkok to Seoul on Friday and then a connecting flight to Toronto. Her case has drawn global attention to Saudi Arabias strict social rules, including a requirement that women have the permission of a male guardian to travel, which rights groups say can trap women and girls as prisoners of abusive families. Qunun arrived in Bangkok a week ago and was initially denied entry. But she soon started posting messages on Twitter from the transit area of Bangkoks Suvarnabhumi airport saying she had escaped Kuwait and her life would be in danger if forced to return to Saudi Arabia. Within hours, a campaign sprang up dubbed #SaveRahaf, spread on Twitter by a loose network of activists. Following a 48-hour stand-off at Bangkok airport, some of it barricaded in a transit lounge hotel room, she was allowed to enter the country and has been processed as a refugee by the UNHCR. (Reuters/NAN) ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has threatened to wield the big stick over charter operations by unauthorised permit holders. The General Manager, Public Relations, NCAA, Sam Adurogboye gave the warning in a statement on Sunday in Lagos. Mr Adurogboye said that any operator caught engaging in such unauthorised services forthwith, would have its Air Operator Certificate (AOC) suspended or revoked. He said: Consequently, the general public is hereby reminded that holders of Air Transport Licence (ATL) and Airline Operating Permit (AOP) with valid AOC are the only authorised operators to carry out Charter Operations. This is in line with the NCAA statutory responsibilities of safeguarding the interest of the general public and that of the investors in the aviation sector. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) 2015 Part 18.2.3.1. states thus: No person shall use any aircraft in Nigeria for hire and reward in public transport category to provide non-scheduled or charter air service unless such a person holds an ATL or AOP issued by the authority. For the purpose of verification and authentication, the list of current holders with appropriate authorisation to carry out charter operations can be found on the NCAA website: www.ncaa.gov.ng. It, therefore, follows that members of the public transacting business with any unauthorised operators will be doing so at high risk as such operations may not have valid insurance cover. The NCAA will continue to ensure strict compliance with safety regulations as violation(s)will be viewed seriously, Mr Adurogboye said. (NAN) PR-Inside.com: 2019-01-13 13:01:31 BEIJING, CHINA / ACCESSWIRE/ January 13, 2019 / Meituan Dianping (HKG: 3690) (the "Company"), China's leading e-commerce platform for services, today captured the 2018-2019 International Innovation Enterprise Brand Award at the Global Top Brands Award Ceremony sponsored by International Data Group (IDG).Meituan received the International Innovation Enterprise Brand Award in recognition of its creative leadership in unmanned distribution robots, according to IDG. The award was presented at the Global Top Brands Award Ceremony at the Wynn Hotel, Las Vegas, on Jan. 9th, 2019. The event was sponsored by IDG. Founded in Boston in 1964, IDG is the world's biggest technology media, research, exhibition and venture Investment Company.Meituan's innovative autonomous delivery technologies were on display in Las Vegas last week at CES 2019 This year marked Meituan's debut at CES, the global stage where next-generation innovations are introduced to the marketplace.Driverless vehicles are just one way that Meituan is transforming the way that Chinese people eat. Meituan, the world's largest on-demand food delivery service provider, built and operates the world's largest on-demand delivery network in terms of the number of deliveries. A pioneer in interactive intelligent delivery in China, Meituan has been investing in big data, AI, and other technologies to explore the use of autonomous driving solutions for driverless delivery.The Meituan Autonomous Delivery (MAD), the Company's innovative and holistic solution to driverless delivery, incorporates an order platform, dispatch system, and road network logistics with big data optimization. The MAD solution uses a variety of intelligent delivery devices, such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and high/low-speed autonomous delivery vehicles and robots, to meet the needs for on-demand delivery in various scenarios such as buildings, business campuses and public roads.About MeituanMeituan Dianping (HKG: 3690) (the "Company") is China's leading e-commerce platform for services. With the mission of "We help people eat better, live better," the Company's platform uses technology to connect consumers and merchants. Service offerings on the platform address people's daily needs for food, and extend further to broad lifestyle and travel services. According to the iResearch Report, Meituan is the world's largest on-demand food delivery service provider and China's largest e-commerce platform for in-store dining services in 2017. It currently operates the world's largest on-demand delivery network in terms of the number of deliveries in 2017. Meituan helps consumers discover merchant information, make informed decisions, complete online and offline transactions and enjoy on-demand delivery. The Company currently owns several household brands in China, including Meituan, China' s leading online marketplace for services by GTV in 2017, Dianping, China' s leading online destination for discovering lifestyle services by MAU in 2017, Meituan Waimai for on-demand delivery services, and Mobike for bike-sharing services. Meituan had 382.3 million Annual Transacting Users and 5.5 million Annual Active Merchants by the end of third quarter 2018. The Company operates in over 2,800 cities and counties in China.For media inquiries, please contact:David LiuMeituanEmai: liuhang10@ meituan.com Edmond LococoICR Inc.Email: edmond.lococo@icrinc.com Tel: +86 (10) 6583 7510SOURCE: Meituan This report focuses on the global Virtual Fitting Room status, future forecast, growth opportunity, key market and key players. The study objectives are to present the Virtual Fitting Room development in United States, Europe and China and offers information on Virtual Fitting Room companies including Zugara, Visualook, Metail, Fitnect, Reactive Reality, Total Immersion, Dressformer, Coitor IT Tech, Virtusize, True Fit Corporation, Sizebay, Imaginate Technologies, ELSE Corp, Fit Analytics Virtual Fitting Room Market PR-Inside.com: 2019-01-13 06:52:24 Press Information Research N Reports 10916, Gold Point Dr, Houston, TX, Pin 77064 Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1 8886316977 email http://www.researchnreports.com # 492 Words 10916, Gold Point Dr,Houston, TX, Pin 77064Sales Manager+1 8886316977 Retailers are looking for ways to improve their experience as part of an OmniChannel strategy that will eliminate buyer discomfort, change the retailer's business model, and provide opportunities to generate revenue with more efficient and cost-effective store operations We are doing. Adoption of smart fitting rooms is a key component of the strategy. Smart Fitting Rooms simplify the customer's purchase decision process in stores and online and create new experiences.For Sample copy of this Report:This market report provides a comprehensive analysis of the virtual fitting room market. The report focuses on the past and present growth of the market globally. Each section of this report also includes professional insights to help you troubleshoot problem areas experienced in supply chain issues. To make the report easier to understand, this study has graphics, charts, and infographics.Companies Profiled in this Report Includes: Zugara, Visualook, Metail, Fitnect, Reactive Reality, Total Immersion, Dressformer, Coitor IT Tech, Virtusize, True Fit Corporation, Sizebay, Imaginate Technologies, ELSE Corp, Fit AnalyticsThis report gives a detailed and comprehensive understanding of Virtual Fitting Room market. With precise data covering all key aspects of the existing market, this report Virtual Fitting Room existing data of leading manufacturers. Understanding of the market condition by compliance of accurate historical data regarding each and every segment for the forecast period is mentioned.Reason to Access the Virtual Fitting Room Market Research Report:Virtual Fitting Room market and its upcoming growth prospects is been mentioned with maximum precision. This study includes an elaborative summary of market which also includes snapshots that offer depth of information of various other segmentations. Through qualitative and quantitative analysis of key factors which are responsible for boosting or hampering the market growth and the promising opportunities in market have been provide. Primary and secondary research is been done in detail which helps the readers have a strong understanding of the complete market for the forecast period.Access Complete Report @:Precisely, the report emphases on the competitive landscape of the Virtual Fitting Room industry and abides the persuasive development policies and plans that will decide the markets trail in the forecast period. An exploration of the major players functioning in the Virtual Fitting Room market is included in the report, segmenting and unfolding them on the constraints of manufacturing procedures and business strategies, information related to product classification and profit margins regarding the same. The cost dynamics of the market are also scrutinized and related to the ample breakdown of the markets competitive landscape which provides a complete generous range of price dynamics in the Virtual Fitting Room industry for the readers to comprehend it clearly.Market segment by Type, the product can be split intoHardwareSoftwareServicesMarket segment by Application, split intoE-commercePhysical StoreGet Discount on This Premium Research now @: This market research report on Insights-As-A-Service Market studied by Application (Revenue Cycle Management, Governance, Risk & Compliance, Customer Life Cycle Management), Type, Deployment Model, Organization Size, Vertical, and Regions. Insights-As-A-Service Market PR-Inside.com: 2019-01-13 06:55:07 Press Information Research N Reports 10916, Gold Point Dr, Houston, TX, Pin 77064 Sunny Denis Sales Manager +1 888-631-6977 email http://www.researchnreports.com # 446 Words 10916, Gold Point Dr,Houston, TX, Pin 77064Sales Manager+1 888-631-6977 Insights as a service is a web based service that assists the business in-house IT architecture. It accumulates data and refines it. As a service, it allows businesses to take advantage of the stored data on demand at the global level. Insights as a service can be considered as a sub segment of predictive analytics. It ensures connectivity with multiple data sources and provides numerous types of data to users such as, publicly available data, competitive data, comparative data, anonymized data.The Global Insights-As-A-Service Market estimated to grow at a CAGR of +23% during forecast period.Insights-As-A-Service market research is an intelligence report with meticulous efforts undertaken to study the right and valuable information. The data which has been looked upon is done considering both, the existing top players and the upcoming competitors. Business strategies of the key players and the new entering market industries are studied in detail. Well explained SWOT analysis, revenue share and contact information are shared in this report analysis.For Sample copy of this Report @: https://www.researchnreports.com/request_sample.php?id=130193 Companies Profiled in this Report includes, Accenture Plc, Capegemini, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, Dell, Microsoft Corporation, Good Data, Zephyr Health, Smartfocus, IBM Corporation, Tata Consultancy Services, InfosysInsights-as-a-service addresses this problem which is a software service that delivers actionable insights. Insights-as-a-Service is generally a cloud-based offering, but in some cases, professional services are also the part of the services offered. Insights-as-a-Service connects to multiple data sources to deliver insights.Various factors are responsible behind the markets growth trail, which are studied at length in the report. In addition, the report lists down the restraints that are posing threat to the Global Insights-As-A-Service market. It also gauges the bargaining power of suppliers and buyers, threat to the new entrants and product substitute, and the degree of competition prevailing in the market.Access Complete Report @: https://www.researchnreports.com/checkout?id=130193 Reason to Access the Insights-As-A-Service Market Research Report:The report is presented in a clear and concise manner so that readers can understand the market structure and dynamics effectively. Recent trends and developments in the Global Insights-As-A-Service market have been analyzed. Opportunities leading to the growth of the market have been analyzed and stated. The report focuses on the global Insights-As-A-Service market, and answers some of the most critical questions stakeholders are currently facing across the globe. Information about the size of the market (by the end of the forecast year), companies that are most likely to scale up their competitive abilities, leading segments, and challenges impeding the growth of the market are given.Get discount on this Premium Report @: https://www.researchnreports.com/ask_for_discount.php?id=130193 Andrew McCarthys FOX News column FBI Russia investigation was always about Trump is only his most recent contribution to our understanding of the greatest scandal in our history the one underlying the presidential election of 2016, from the Clinton campaign to the highest reaches of the Obama administration. He takes the occasion of the New York Times story on the FBIs investigation of President Trump (see my comments here) to recapitulate what we have learned so far. Consider the following excerpt: On Friday night, the New York Times published what was clearly intended to be a blockbuster report that, following the firing of FBI director James Comey on May 9, 2017, the bureau formally opened an investigation of President Trump. But in truth, the only thing the story shows is that the FBI, after over a year of investigation, simply went overt about something that had been true from the first. The investigation commenced during the 2016 campaign by the Obama administration the Justice Department and the FBI was always about Donald Trump. We have to remember: The FBI believed the Steele dossier the collection of faux intelligence reports compiled by former British spy Christopher Steele, who was ultimately working for the Hillary Clinton campaign. The Justice Department on four occasions brought surveillance applications to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC), in which the FBI swore that it believed the dossier allegations. Ostensibly, the surveillance application targeted Carter Page. But Page was just a side issue. The dossier was principally about Trump not Page, not Paul Manafort, Michael Cohen, or other Trump associates referred to by Steele. The dossiers main allegation was that Trump was in an espionage conspiracy with Russia to swing the election to Trump, after which Trump would do Putins bidding from the White House. The FBI and the Obama Justice Department could not verify the dossier, but they undeniably believed it. If you believe the dossier, then of course Trump is the main focus of the probe. After Trump was elected, the FBI realized that Trump was soon going to have access to government intelligence files. If they honestly told the president-elect that they had been investigating his campaign in hope of making a case on him, they had to be concerned that he would shut the investigation down and clean house at the FBI and DOJ. So, they misleadingly told him the investigation was about Russia and a few stray people in his campaign, but they assured him he personally was not under investigation. This was not true. JOHN adds: Andys point is well-taken, but lets not lose sight of the blindingly obvious. The Times reports that senior officials at the FBI say they began investigating whether Donald Trump was a Russian agent because he fired their boss. And the Times thought that story reflected badly on Trump? Technically, Elizabeth Warren is exploring whether to run for president. For all intents and purposes, shes running. Now, shes been joined by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii and former HUD Secretary Julian Castro. Gabbard announced her candidacy yesterday; Castro entered the race today. Gabbard is a bit unorthodox for a Democrat. Her American Conservative Union ratings usually flirt with double digits, which is unusual for a congressional Dem. Her Hawaii colleagues Mazie Hirono and Brian Schatz struggle to exceed zero. Conservative Review once gave Gabbard a rating of 20 percent, the same number it gave Lisa Murkowski. To her credit, Gabbard has called out fellow Democrats, including her Hawaii colleague Sen. Hirono (though not by name), for religious bigotry, citing attacks on judicial nominee Brian Buescher over his involvement with the Knights of Columbus. She also appeared at events sponsored by the American Enterprise Institute to criticize the Obama administrations foreign policy in ways that raised some Democratic eyebrows, as the Washington Post puts it. She even had the audacity to meet with Donald Trump during the transition period. But Gabbard is probably best known for her relationship with Bashar al Assad. In 2017, accompanied by Dennis Kucinich, she met with Assad in Syria without authorization from the State Department. After the meeting, Gabbard reportedly dismissed all of Assads opposition as terrorists. She also said that everywhere she went, on a tour guided by the regime, Syrians supported Assad. Meeting with Assad without authorization from the State Department isnt unprecedented among congressional Democrats. Nancy Pelosi did the same thing during the Bush administration, after which she declared that Assad holds the key to peace in the Middle East. But even Pelosi has had the decency not to repeat this stunt after Assad began systematically butchering his own people during the Syrian civil war. Gabbards willingness to play the stooge for Assad should disqualify her from serious consideration for the presidency. But it will be her deviation from Democratic orthodoxy on other issues that disqualifies her in the minds of Democratic voters. Julian Castro doesnt have to worry about being perceived by the left as unorthodox. Hes a standard issue left-wing Democrat. As HUD Secretary, he duly implemented one of the lefts pet projects Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH). This program is perhaps the lefts most aggressive assault on American liberty, constituting, as it does, an attempt by the federal government to seize control over local zoning for the purpose of moving people from area to area based on their race. What really differentiates Castro from the rest of the prospective field, though, is his ethnicity. Hes Latino. These days, thats a big deal. Conceivably, it may prove a big enough deal to move Castro to the adult table during Democratic presidential debates. But I dont see it carrying him to the nomination. I doubt Castro sees it doing so, either. More likely, he intends to use his presidential campaign to improve his visibility in the hope of being nominated for vice president. Reportedly, he was considered for that role by Hillary Clinton in 2016. Castro has good reason to believe hell be considered even more seriously this time around. Both Paul and Scott have commented on the New York Times leak-story to the effect that after President Trump fired James Comey, the FBI opened an investigation into whether Trump was a Russian agent. You cant make this stuff up! Today the president himself got into the act, denouncing the Times and the miscreants at the FBI: Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin James Comey, a total sleaze! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 Funny thing about James Comey. Everybody wanted him fired, Republican and Democrat alike. After the rigged & botched Crooked Hillary investigation, where she was interviewed on July 4th Weekend, not recorded or sworn in, and where she said she didnt know anything (a lie),. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 .the FBI was in complete turmoil (see N.Y. Post) because of Comeys poor leadership and the way he handled the Clinton mess (not to mention his usurpation of powers from the Justice Department). My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 ..who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller, & the 13 Angry Democrats leaking machines who have NO interest in going after the Real Collusion (and much more) by Crooked Hillary Clinton, her Campaign, and the Democratic National Committee. Just Watch! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 I have been FAR tougher on Russia than Obama, Bush or Clinton. Maybe tougher than any other President. At the same time, & as I have often said, getting along with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. I fully expect that someday we will have good relations with Russia again! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 Lyin James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Peter S and his lover, agent Lisa Page, & more, all disgraced and/or fired and caught in the act. These are just some of the losers that tried to do a number on your President. Part of the Witch Hunt. Remember the insurance policy? This is it! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 I think Trump is correct on all of those particulars. The Associated Press, commenting on Trumps next series of tweets, which related to the partial government shutdown and the wall, seemingly ridiculed the president as tweet[ing] into the void while Congress is away from D.C. I am not sure what into the void is supposed to mean when we are talking about the internet, but Trumps multiple tweets on the border received up to 123,000 likes, 29,000 retweets, and 49,000 comments. Thats some void! I have observed before that when I talk to people who detest the president, the first thing they nearly always mention is his tweets. Caring, as I do, a great deal more about policy than Twitter, I find that bizarre. But the fact is that Trump has fought back against the Deep State and its press lackeys more effectively than any other recent Republicans, and his willingness to take his case directly to the people is a big reason why. Liberals tell us that ordinary citizens have no reason to own firearms. If they had their way, they would ban private gun ownership. Failing that, they would require anyone wanting to buy a firearm to justify the purchase by showing some kind of special need. Kristin Kasiskas is a public school science teacher who lives, with her husband, in northwestern Wisconsin. I dont suppose the Kasiskases would have been able to demonstrate any special need to own firearms, but in rural Wisconsin it would be reasonable to assume that they had a gun or two in the house. You may have heard of Jayme Closs. In October, a man broke into the Closs home, shot Jaymes parents, and kidnapped the 13-year-old girl. For 88 days, her whereabouts were unknown and her survival was doubtful. Then, on Thursday, her abductor, Jake Patterson, who lived in the same part of Wisconsin, left her alone for a while. She escaped and quickly encountered a woman who was walking her dog. That woman, Jeanne Nutter, rushed Jayme to the nearest house and banged on the door. The Kasiskases were at home. What happened next: Kristin Kasiskas told Fox News that she and her husband immediately recognized the 13-year-old Wisconsin girl whose October kidnapping captivated the nation when a neighbor, Jeanne Nutter, frantically knocked on their door at 4 p.m. on Thursday. When our neighbor Jeanne came in with Jayme, she said: Get a gun. We dont know if hes after us, Kasinskas said. So we were armed and ready in case this person showed up. This was no idle precaution. Patterson had shot Jayme Closss parents in cold blood, and Jeanne Nutter and the Kasiskases had every reason to think he may be in hot pursuit. Unarmed, they would have been helpless. Finally, a footnote that reminds us that gender is not, in fact, a social construct: Kasinskas said that three officers initially arrived at her home. They took Closs to safety and told Kristin and her kids to get away from any windows in case the suspected abductor came to their home. My kids and I we went downstairs, she said. My husband was asked to stand guard at one of the doors on the upper floor. [Patterson] was then arrested not that far away from our house. That is what you expectusually, not alwaysnot when college kids are nattering, but when the chips are down. Happily, Mr. Kasinskas stood guard weapon in hand. Chester County Sheriff Carolyn Bunny Welsh (center) joins Marjorie V. Gonzalez (left) and Deborah A. Holmes at the pairs graduation from the Delaware County Community College Police Academy. Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@postregister.com for help creating one. Remember those old paper customs declaration forms we used to scramble to fill out before we got off the plane on the approach to Guam? Read more Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations. Contact Norris Burkes at comment@thechaplain.net, PO Box 247 Elk Grove CA 95759 or leave your best Eastwood impression on voicemail 843-608-9715. Get the SC business stories that matter. Our newsletter catches you up with all the business stories that are shaping Charleston and South Carolina every Monday and Thursday at noon. Get ahead with us - it's free. 9.9k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) refused to stand up for his country by rejecting the idea of subpoenaing the notes from Trumps meeting with Putin. Transcript via Meet The Press: CHUCK TODD: How about, on the Foreign Relations Committee, the Washington Post is reporting that the president, basically, is not sharing what he discusses with Vladimir Putin behind closed doors? Do you think you guys in the Senate ought to, for instance, subpoena a translator, so that you have a real readout of what the president and Vladimir Putin are saying to each other? SEN. TED CRUZ: Advertising You know, I think its premature for that. Ive seen the allegations. I want to find out a little bit more about what happened there. I want to learn more than just the allegations in the press. Listen, I will say, if you compare, objectively, President Trumps policies to Russia, compared to President Obamas policies to Russia, by any measure, President Obama was much easier, was much more gentle, on Russia. You and I both recall Obama leaning over on a hot mic and saying, just before the 2012 election, Tell Vladimir Ill have a lot more flexibility after the election. Now, there, they werent keeping notes. It just happened to be a network had a camera going. If you compare substance, for example, Trump went to NATO and urged the Europeans, Dont let the Russians build a pipeline through Europe. You want to talk about what actually makes a difference, standing up to Russia? That, on policy, was far, far more important than much of the weakness and appeasement we saw under Obama. Video: The Republican playbook is going to be to laughably pretend like Trump is tougher on Russia than Obama while running cover for Trump and blocking any serious investigation in the Senate. With Republicans losing the House, the Russia cover-up for Trump has moved to the Senate. Any Senator who was putting their country first would say that the Senate needs to see those notes and that what the president is doing is suspicious and worthy of investigation. Ted Cruz is selling out his country to protect himself and his corrupt president. Cruzs comments are a reminder that the Russia scandal is more than a Trump scandal. Its a Republican Party scandal. For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group. Follow Jason Easley on Facebook. 4.5k SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising During Donald Trumps 2016 campaign and transition period, he and his associates had over 100 contacts with Russian-linked officials, and lied about and tried to cover up every one of them. This bombshell information comes from a new report from the Moscow Project and Center for American Progress. The original report said there were 100 documented contacts, but the number was increased to 101 this week following new reports that Paul Manafort and Rick Gates shared polling data with Konstantin Kilimnik, who had ties to Russian intelligence. The documented 101 contacts between Trumps campaign and transition teams and Russia linked operatives included at least 28 in-person meetings. It also provides evidence of at least 28 high-ranking Trump campaign officials and advisors who were involved in and/or aware of contacts with Russia-linked operatives during the campaign and transition. Advertising The contact count includes meetings with people who had direct ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Also included were high ranking Russian government officials, bankers, and intelligence operatives. Each meeting, call, message or correspondence was counted as a separate contact in the report. According to the report, this information supports reporting from U.S. intelligence agencies: On January 6, 2017, the U.S. intelligence community issued a report that showed there were two campaigns to elect Donald Trump: one run by Trump and one run by the Russian government. Trump and many of his senior advisors and close associates have repeatedly denied any connections between the two campaigns, despite the fact that they were working towards the same goal, at the same time, and utilizing the same tactics. Of course, for any U.S. presidential campaign to have over 100 Russia contacts is shocking. Just as shocking, the Moscow Project points out that team Trump tried to cover up every single one of those Russia contacts. The report describes over 15 different cases where people in the Trump campaign issued false denials about its contacts with Russia. As every prosecutor knows, such attempts to lie and cover up the truth establish consciousness of guilt. Trump and his people knew what they were doing was wrong, and they knew that if the information became public during the campaign he would probably lose the election. Theres really no reason for a presidential campaign to have contacts with Russia. What was going on? Thats what the FBI wanted to know when they found out about the contacts. As we reported on Friday, they opened up an investigation into Trump shortly after James Comey was fired. They wanted to know if Trump was working as a Russian intelligence asset. We havent seen the results of the FBI investigation yet. We havent seen the information gathered by U.S. intelligence agencies either. And were still waiting for Bob Muellers report on collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia. Despite this, enough information has been made public for us to form some conclusions. First and foremost, we can conclude that Donald Trump received assistance from Russia in his campaign for the presidency. It is likely he would not have been elected president without Russias help. In addition, we have enough information to conclude that Donald Trump is probably guilty of treason and espionage, which are capital offenses. Yesterday counterterrorism expert Malcolm Nance was on MSNBC, explaining that this new reporting from the New York Times establishes that Trump committed treason. I used to say that Trump was treason adjacent, Nance said. Now I say that hes just neck-deep in treachery. There is more than enough evidence of not just collusion but also illegal conspiracy, espionage and treason. It is time for Donald Trump to leave the White House and take up residence in a federal prison, where he belongs. 275 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising John Bolton is the National Security Advisor of the United States of America, and last year he directed Donald Trumps National Security Council to explore options for a preemptive military operation that would attack the country of Iran. The Wall Street Journal reported this shocking new information in its Sunday edition. The National Security Council, led by John Bolton, last year sought options for military strikes in Iran, alarming the Pentagon and State Department. The National Security Council, led by John Bolton, last year sought options for military strikes in Iran, alarming the Pentagon and State Department. https://t.co/LZbeVHo0Cy The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 13, 2019 According to the Journal, Bolton made his request of the Security Council last September, after an Iranian-aligned group fired mortars near the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad. Advertising They reported that Bolton at that time directed the Pentagon to give him military options for striking Iran. Presumably Bolton viewed the mortar strikes as sufficient provocation for a United States attack. He may even have viewed them as an attack on the U.S., such that it would be reasonable and expected that we would retaliate using military force. The mortar attacks, however, did not hit the U.S. embassy or inflict any kind of injury on anybody. According to the Journal, the Pentagon complied with Boltons request, but they dont know if a serious plan for attacking Iran was actually developed. They also dont know if President Trump was aware of Boltons request or the Pentagons response. Garrett Marquis, a spokesman for the National Security Council, responded to The Journal report by saying: We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate, and we will consider a full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests. Since taking office Trump and his administration have taken a very hardline approach to Iran, and as a result tensions between the two countries have increased significantly over the past two years. Last year Trump decided to withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal, which had been the result of years of complex negotiations involving many other countries. All of our international allies strongly advised Trump not to withdraw from the treaty which had placed limits on Irans nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. Since withdrawing from the Iran deal the U.S. has put back in place many severe sanctions on Iran. Other countries in the deal, however, have remained committed to the nuclear pact. A State Department official said in November that military action against Iran could be possible if sanctions against the country were not successful in stopping them from creating nuclear weapons that could be used to attack its enemies in the region such as Israel and Saudi Arabia. Advertising The Congressional Black Caucus on Saturday condemned Rep. Steve King [R-Iowa] for his recent controversial comments regarding race. The group called on Kings fellow Republicans to remove him from his committee assignments. CBC Chairwoman Rep. Karen Bass, D-California, said in a press release: If Republicans really believe these racist statements have no place in our government, then their party must offer more than shallow temporary statements of condemnation. Instead, they must actually condemn Mr. King by removing him from his committee assignments so that he can no longer affect policies that impact the very people he has made it clear he disdains. Advertising Rep. King has been frequently criticized over the past few years for his inflammatory and bigoted comments about race and immigration. He has now come under fire for new comments he made recently that appeared to defend white nationalism. In a New York Times story published on Thursday, Rep. King was quoted as saying: White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilizationhow did that language become offensive? Why did I sit in classes teaching me about the merits of our history and our civilization? In the interview King maintained that he supports immigrants who come to America legally and assimilate into American culture. He said that he believes a white European culture of America is more important than maintaining racial homogeneity. Kings ideology has ostracized him from some in the Republican Party, and on Friday Jeb Bush said that if King lacks the decency to resign, Republicans will need to primary him out of office. Kings views have been embraced by Donald Trump and are reflected in his agenda, however. As PoliticusUSA publisher Jason Easley wrote on Friday: Steve King isnt the ugly outlier of Republican politics. He is the mainstream Trumpian voice of the Trump base. Steve King was Trump before Trump was in US politics. It is funny that Republicans turned a blind eye to Kings racism for years, but now that he has been encouraged by Trump to be overt with his hate, some Republicans have a problem with him. In 2017 Trump invited King to the Oval Office, where he boasted that he had raised more money for the congressmans campaigns than anyone else. King then said: Yes, Mr. President. But I market-tested your immigration policy for 14 years, and that ought to be worth something. Advertising A new Washington Post-ABC News poll shows that most Americans are blaming Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress for the partial government shutdown which is the longest in U.S. history. By nearly a two-to-one margin U.S. voters assign blame to the president and members of his party rather than to congressional Democrats. The poll also found that most voters do not believe Trumps claims that there is an illegal-immigration crisis on the U.S. border with Mexico. Surprisingly, however the poll finds that more Republicans support building a border wall than ever before. GOP support for Trumps pet project increased 16 percent in the past year, from 71 percent to 87 percent. While Republican support increased, it also became stronger, since now 70 percent of the members of the presidents party are saying they strongly support the wall, which reflects an increase of 12 percent since January of last year. Overall, 42 percent of poll respondents now say they support building a wall, which is an increase from 34 percent a year ago. Fifty four percent of poll respondents say they oppose the idea of building a border wall. Advertising With respect to allocating blame for the shutdown, 53 percent of poll respondents said that Trump and congressional Republicans are mainly at fault. Just 29 percent blame the Democrats in Congress. Thirteen percent of participants in the survey said both sides bear equal responsibility for the shutdown. Surprisingly, these numbers are identical to those found in the poll which was taken at the end of the 16-day government shutdown in 2013, when 29 percent blamed President Barack Obama and 53 percent blamed congressional Republicans. There is, as expected, a strong partisan divide in the poll results. Among Democrats, 85 percent say Trump and Republicans are the cause of the shutdown, while 68 percent of Republicans blame congressional Democrats. Independents, however, fix the blame squarely on the president and his party rather than on the Democrats, by a margin of 53 percent to 23 percent. This shows that the political consequences of the shutdown may fall more heavily on Republicans than an Democrats, since independent swing voters often determine the outcome of elections. Women voters assigned blame to Trump and Republicans by a margin of 35 percentage points while men voters blame the president and the GOP by a margin of 13 percentage points. What do these poll results mean? According to the Post: The deep partisan divide over who bears responsibility for the partial shutdown and over the wall itself is likely to have contributed to the length of the standoff. Neither the president nor Democratic congressional leaders have shown any willingness to compromise. Republicans in Congress continue to show support for Trumps positions. Every time the president has met with congressional Democrats the talks have broken down. Their meetings continue to be very contentious. The last time they met at the White House Trump walked out when told by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that she would continue to oppose the wall in border security negotiations, even if the government was reopened. Right now there is still no indication that the shutdown will be resolved any time soon. Most Americans say they are not yet seeing negative effects of the shutdown in their personal lives. Just 18 percent say they have been inconvenienced, including a mere 7 percent who say it has been a major problem for them personally. However, if the shutdown continues for several months, as Trump has threatened, 38 percent of Americans say they would consider that a crisis and 41 percent say it would be a serious problem. This poll shows that Donald Trump owns the shutdown in the eyes of the American people, and it is he and members of his party who will suffer politically the longer it continues. 222 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising By Andy Sullivan, Sarah N. Lynch and Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) Federal law enforcement agencies that keep Americans safe are starting to feel the strain of the U.S. government shutdown, in its 21st day, with agents working for no pay and investigations delayed, law enforcement officials said. Training events have been canceled and travel cut back, with President Donald Trump and Congress unable to end the partial shutdown affecting a quarter of the government in a funding standoff over Trumps proposed U.S.-Mexico border wall. We still have a responsibility for going after those who might be using this time to flood the streets with drugs, a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) field agent told Reuters, asking not to be identified by name. Advertising For us, its even a more important time to try to target as much as we can. We still have a safety obligation to the public with the limited resources, the agent said. Most employees at federal law enforcement agencies from the FBI and DEA to Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Transportation Security Administration have kept working since Trumps demands on the wall triggered the shutdown on Dec. 22. Non-essential personnel across the government have been staying home on furlough, while essential personnel, which includes many in law enforcement, have been working for no pay. On Friday, many of roughly 800,000 shutdown-affected federal workers will miss their first paychecks. The shutdown began after Trump insisted that $5.7 billion for his wall be made a part of any legislation to restore funding for many agencies that expired for unrelated reasons, a demand Democrats oppose. As much as 85 percent of the Justice Departments employees are working, as are nearly 90 percent of the Department of Homeland Securitys employees, said department spokesmen. It really wears on our members, said Nathan Catura, the national president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, which represents some 27,000 federal agents. You feel like a pawn in this big political windstorm. You feel like youre not worth anything, he said. In a memo to U.S. Secret Service agents that was seen by Reuters, service Director R.D. Tex Alles urged employees to keep an eye out for warning signs of trouble. He wrote, A quick internet search will validate that financial stress is often the precursor to greater issues, including depression, anxiety and worse. While the lack of a paycheck is stressing out some agents, the shutdown has had a limited operational impact so far, several law enforcement officials said. Drug seizures are still occurring. Corrections officers are still reporting to work each day and air passengers are not yet facing overly long security lines in airports. But funding that law enforcement agencies draw on for investigations and some other operations is starting to dwindle. Interviews with witnesses in some DEA investigations have been postponed. Furloughs of some FBI analysts has forced agents to pick up the slack by doing their own background checks a process that may slow them down, officials told Reuters. That means FBI agents doing anti-terrorism or white-collar crime investigations must pull together criminal records and other background materials on their own, without the help of analysts who specialize in such work, Catura said. That slows everything down, he said. FBI headquarters is doing all they can to ensure major investigations continue, said Tom OConnor, president of the FBI Agents Association. The group on Thursday sent a petition to the White House and Congress urging them to end the shutdown. FBI operations need funding. Were beginning to raise concerns regarding field operations. Support operations are understaffed, OConnor said. Federal prison workers are also growing frustrated. Prior to the government shutdown, the Bureau of Prisons had to deal with a hiring freeze, followed by 6,000 job cuts. The great majority of our federal law enforcement officers work in middle America, said Eric Young, national president for the Council of Prison Locals for the American Federation of Government Employees union. They are very conservative, and they were supportive of Trump. Some still are, but the great majority of them have been totally disenchanted with what they have seen from this administration, Young said. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch, Andy Sullivan and Mark Hosenball; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and James Dalgleish) 250 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising By David Brunnstrom and David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) A partial U.S. government shutdown over President Donald Trumps demand for $5.7 billion to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border entered its 22nd day on Saturday, making it the longest shuttering of federal agencies in U.S. history, with no end in sight. Trump, holed up in the White House with Congress adjourned for the weekend, warned of a much lengthier impasse and blamed the Democrats. We will be out for a long time unless the Democrats come back from their vacations and get back to work, he tweeted. Advertising Democrats say Trump shut the government in a temper tantrum by refusing to sign bipartisan funding legislation last year that did not include money for his wall. The closure, which began on Dec. 22, broke a decades-old record by a 1995-1996 shutdown under former President Bill Clinton that lasted 21 days. Federal workers affected missed their first paychecks on Friday, heightening concerns about mounting financial pressures on employees, including air traffic controllers and airport security officials who continue to work without pay. Roughly 800,000 federal workers did not receive paychecks that would have gone out on Friday. Some have resorted to selling their possessions or posting appeals on online fundraising sites to help pay their bills. Miami International Airport said it will close one of its terminals early over the next several days due to a possible shortage of security screeners, who have been calling in sick at twice the normal rate. A union that represents thousands of air traffic controllers sued the Federal Aviation Administration on Friday, saying it had violated federal wage law by failing to pay workers. It is at least the third lawsuit filed by unions on behalf of unpaid workers. The head of the U.S. Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting Trump, has warned employees that financial stress can lead to depression and anxiety. Keep an eye out for warning signs of trouble, Director R.D. Tex Alles wrote in a memo seen by Reuters. The Transportation Security Administration, responsible for airport security screening, said its rate of unscheduled absences rose to 5.6 percent on Saturday from 3.3 percent a year ago but that security standards have not been compromised. The Federal Aviation Administration, which oversees air traffic controllers, said on Saturday it had seen no unusual rates of sick leave among its air traffic controllers and no disruptions to air traffic control operations. To support its workforce, TSA said it was processing pay for employees who worked on the first day of the shutdown and announced $500 bonuses for uniformed screening officers. Trump is considering a possible national emergency declaration that would end the shutdown and allow him to obtain his wall funding by circumventing Congress. But on Friday, he said he would not take such a step right now. Democrats should come back to Washington and work to end the Shutdown, while at the same time ending the horrible humanitarian crisis at our Southern Border. I am in the White House waiting for you! he tweeted. Trump also urged his 57.2 million Twitter followers to contact Democratic lawmakers and Tell them to get it done! Democrats, who call a wall an ineffective, outdated answer to a complex problem, have passed several bills in the House of Representatives to reopen the government without funding for Trumps barrier. But the legislation has been ignored by the Republican-controlled Senate. Trump originally pledged Mexico would pay for the wall, which he says is needed to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs. But Mexico has refused. U.S. government departments including the Treasury, Energy, Commerce and State departments, shut down when funding lapsed on Dec. 22. Funding for other portions of the government, including the Department of Defense and Congress, was approved, allowing them to continue regular operations. Trump has repeatedly described the situation at the Mexico border as a humanitarian crisis as speculation has increased this week that he would circumvent Congress to begin building his signature wall a move that would be sure to draw a court challenge from Democrats who say the barrier would be barbaric and ineffective. Instead, the president urged lawmakers to provide him the $5.7 billion he is seeking for border security. A national emergency would allow Trump to divert money from other projects to pay for the wall, which was a central promise of his 2016 campaign. That, in turn, could prompt him to sign bills that restore funding to agencies that have been affected by the shutdown. (Reporting by David Brunnstrom, David Morgan and David Shepardson in Washington; Additional reporting by Ginger Gibson in Washington; Editing by Matthew Lewis) 346 SHARES Facebook Twitter Whatsapp Pinterest Reddit Print Mail Flipboard Advertising By Daniel Wiessner (Reuters) A union that represents thousands of U.S. air traffic controllers filed a lawsuit against the federal government on Friday claiming its failure to pay the workers during an ongoing partial government shutdown could endanger passengers safety. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association said that requiring 16,000 controllers to work without pay violates their constitutional rights and a federal wage law in a lawsuit in federal court in Washington D.C. America wants its air traffic controllers to be laser-focused on landing planes safely and monitoring Americas runways, not distracted by financial issues and anxiety of financial instability, the union said in the lawsuit. Advertising NATCA also moved for a court order requiring the government to restore air traffic controllers pay while the lawsuit is pending. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has funds to pay the workers despite the ongoing shutdown, the union said. The FAA and the U.S. Department of Justice, which defends the federal government in court, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The lawsuit is at least the third filed by a union on behalf of federal employees who have not been paid during the shutdown, which began Dec. 22. The other cases were brought by unions that represent tens of thousands of border patrol and immigration agents, guards at federal prisons, and other workers. The shutdown was triggered by a standoff over funding for President Donald Trumps proposal to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Some 800,000 workers across the government have been furloughed during the shutdown, which will become the longest in U.S. history if it continues into Saturday. But personnel that are deemed essential, including air traffic controllers and law enforcement agents, have been working without pay. In the past, federal employees have been granted back-pay when the government reopened after a shutdown. But courts have ordered the government to pay additional damages to workers in certain cases because they were not paid on time. The case is NATCA v. USA, U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, No. 1:19-cv-00062. (Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and James Dalgleish) After a hectic day of seat changes, all-ins and calls, Timothy Adams could be crowned as the winner of the $50,000 Single-Day High Roller here at the 2019 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure in the Atlantis Resort. Adams defeated Stephen Chidwick heads-up with a joker and took home $372,508 and the famous PokerStars Spade for his efforts today. The tournament attracted 26 entries in total which included eight reentries, creating a total prize pool of $1,274,130. Five players were in the money but eight would be playing on the Final Table which included Alex Foxen, Justin Bonomo, PokerStars Team Pro Igor Kurganov, Matthias Eibinger, Talal Shakerchi, and Dominik Nitsche. Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize 1 Timothy Adams Canada $372,508* 2 Stephen Chidwick United Kingdom $423,822* 3 Alex Foxen United States $207,040 4 Justin Bonomo United States $149,720 5 Igor Kurganov Russia $121,040 6 Matthias Eibinger Austria - 7 Talal Shakerchi United Kingdom - 8 Dominik Nitsche Germany - *reflects a deal Todays Action The tournament was originally billed as a $100,000 Single-Day Super High Roller and slated to start at 12:30 local time according to the latest version of the schedule but that was soon changed as only two players were registered at that time. The high rollers discussed among themselves on how the structure of the tournament should look like and in the end, they came to the agreement to change a few things. The buy-in of the tournament was reduced to $50,000, the level duration was shortened to 20 minutes each, and instead of unlimited reentries, players could only do one single reentry during the first ten levels of the day. Around 3:15 PM, the tournament finally got underway with twelve players in their seats. Steve ODwyer was the first to be eliminated when he shoved his queen-seven on the river of the ace-ten-five-deuce-king board and was called by Foxen who held ace-nine. Kurganov was the second player to be sent back to the registration desk when Nitsche managed to river a flush to take the PokerStars Team Pro out. Today seemed to be a day of double knockouts, Chidwick eliminated Isaac Haxton and Seth Davies in the same hand with ace-ten with the former holding king-queen and the latter had pocket fives. The ten on the flop gave Chidwick the upper hand to take them both out. Davies wouldnt return but Haxton did try again. In Level 10, Shakerchi got his last chips in with queen-jack but got no help of the board against the pocket sevens of Kurganov. Christoph Vogelsang was also eliminated in the same level and had to reenter like Shakerchi. The dubious honor of the last reentry of the day goes to Mikita Badziakouski in a huge hand against Foxen. Badziakouski has called the three-bet of Foxen preflop and check-called on the flop and turn. The river completed the deuce-deuce-eight-six board with the seven of spades to complete the flush draw and now Badziakouski check-tank-called Foxens shove which had him covered. Foxen held the flush indeed which beat the two pair Badziakouski had flopped. Shakerchis second bullet seemed to hold up better than Haxtons as he cracked Haxtons aces with pocket tens on the river. Cary Katz was next to go when his ace-king couldnt beat Foxens queens. Badziakouskis second attempt at winning the tournament was cut short when he ran his ace-deuce into the ace-jack of Vogelsang. But Vogelsangs run didnt last much longer either as Kurganov eliminated him when he defended his big blind when Vogelsang had raised. On the eight-six-trey flop, it all went in as Vogelsang has flopped top pair with ace-eight. Kurganov held ten-deuce and managed to make a straight with the four on the turn and the five on the river. Bryn Kenney shoved and lost it all when he was called by Bonomo who held ace-nine on the ace-ace-trey-jack-ten runout. Daniel Dvoress lost most of his stack in a blind versus blind battle against Kurganov and then lost his last five big blinds to Kurganov. Nick Petrangelo had shoved six big blinds with queen-seven and was trying to beat Bonomos ten-eight but Bonomo managed to turn a pair of eights. At the same exact time, ODwyer was all-in with king-queen and called by Kurganov with ace-queen. They both flopped queens but Kurganovs kicker meant that suddenly there were only eight players left for the final table. Final Table Action Nitsche was first to leave the final table stage when Matthias Eibinger shoved in the small blind and Nitsche called with a stack of only 5,000 fewer chips. Eibinger held ace-queen while Nitsche was sitting with king-nine and the higher hole cards for Eibinger meant the end of Nitsches tournament life. The bubble burst thanks to another double bustout when Shakerchi shoved, as did Foxen with the slightly bigger stack. Chidwick decided to put in all his big chips to also put Eibinger at risk as the last to act. After tanking for just over three minutes, Eibinger called. Shakerchis ace-jack and Eibingers ace-nine couldnt win against Foxens pocket eights or Chidwicks deuces on the nine-five-ten-eight-deuce board. With five players left, Kurganov was eliminated five minutes after the money was reached. Kurganovs ace-king couldnt take down Chidwicks queens even though he had flopped two pair, the queen on the river gave Chidwick a set for Kurganov to go to the payout desk to collect $121,040. The final double bustout happened another five minutes later when Bonomo shoved for less than ten big blinds with king-eight, Foxen jammed almost fifteen big blinds with king-nine, and Chidwick called them both with ace-jack. Chidwick flopped a pair of jacks but then hit runner-runner for the flush to eliminate both of his opponents to suddenly go heads-up against Adams. JokerPoker As soon as Adams and Chidwick were heads-up, Adams looked at Chidwick. Are you thinking, what Im thinking? Chidwick asked Adams and Adams smiled. The floor was called over and they asked if they were allowed to add two jokers to the deck. The floor checked with the tournament director and in the meanwhile, they would continue playing heads-up. When the floor and tournament director returned, the tournament clock was paused and two jokers were added to the deck. This also seemed the perfect opportunity to look at numbers and a deal was agreed upon. Chidwick had a big chip lead so was guaranteed $423,822 while Adams would take $350,978. $21,530 and the trophy would be left to play for. Adams managed to double up immediately with ace-five of clubs against Chidwicks ace-seven and turned a flush. One of the jokers in the deck appeared on the board after about 40 minutes of play and Adams won that hand with another flush. Two hands later, Chidwick doubled with pocket kings against Adams ace-king. And then in the final hand of the night, Chidwick shoved and got snap-called by Adams who held the joker in his hand with a queen. Chidwick had ace-jack and behind by a lot. The board ran out seven-queen-four-ace-six for Adams to be crowned as the winner with a set of queens thanks to the joker! The Final Hand This was the last $50,000 Single-Day High Roller coverage for the PokerNews live reporting team but there is a $25,000 Single-Day High Roller scheduled for tomorrow, Sunday, January 13 from 3 pm local time onwards so make sure to return for more High Roller updates! partypoker Announces Inaugural Player Panel January 12, 2019 Jason Glatzer Over the past couple of years, partypoker has taken many steps to become a site for the players by adding ambassadors and listening to players on poker forums and social media. The online poker room just took another step in involving players by introducing its inaugural Player Panel. The panel's main purpose is to further improve communication between partypoker and the poker community. Some of the issues the panel will be involved in are as followed: Help shape partypokers online and live policies and procedures Adjudicate on high profile fraud or collusion cases Help to develop strategies against the use of third-party software Offer insights on issues related to cash game ecology, fairness, and etiquette Collaborate with partypoker in its ongoing drive to develop and optimize the core poker product Working on broader software enhancements Separately, the panel will also lend their expertise in helping to improve partypokers live poker tour, partypoker LIVE. ElkY: "I am very excited to be actively involved in the renaissance partypoker is bringing to the poker world." The panel includes players and partypoker ambassadors Ike Haxton, Jason Koon, Patrick Leonard, Joao Simao, and Sam Trickett. Ambassadors from ring-fenced French and Spanish market will also be involved with France's Bertrand "ElkY" Grospellier and Bruno Fitoussi. "I am very excited to be actively involved in the renaissance partypoker is bringing to the poker world, live and online, for its players in the EU market," said Grospellier. Simao said: "I have enjoyed had two amazing years with the company, and joining the panel gives me the opportunity to better understand their plans and the way that they work. "Its just amazing. Im very proud to be part of the team and to provide support for players not just within the LATAM region, but throughout the world. It will be my pleasure to improve the poker experience for all partypoker players." Waters: "This elite team will help drive partypoker forward whilst ensuring that the interests of our players are central to our decisions." The panel's experience will also be used to help improve partypoker LIVE, which gained popularity thanks to its big guarantees and the ability to play opening days online. partypoker Managing Director Tom Waters believes this is the right team to be involved in the Player Panel: "We have assembled a highly qualified team that contains some of the most respected and experienced poker players in the world. This elite team will help drive partypoker forward whilst ensuring that the interests of our players are central to our decisions." Interview Ramon Colillas, Winner of the PSPC for $5.1 Million January 12, 2019 Frank Op de Woerd Ramon Colillas won $5.1 million two days ago. He scooped it playing a freeroll after having won a Platinum Pass ending up the leaderboard winner in a local Spanish tournament series with multiple stops, sponsored by PokerStars. When the confetti had dwindled, and dozens of winner photos were taken, it was time for the poker media to ask him some questions. But, soon after the PokerStars tv crew and PokerNews video team had asked their questions, Colillas made it clear that he was tired and done for the day. You can read our full recap of the final table here. You can watch our video interview with Colillas here. Today we got the chance to sit down with him for a little bit of a redo. Now that everything had settled down a little bit and he had grasped the concept of being a millionaire, we asked him some follow-up questions. With a translator on his side - Colillas understands most English but doesn't speak it himself very well - we faced an ever-smiling Colillas. How do you feel now, two nights of sleep after that final hand? Good! I was, of course, very happy right away. But now I understand what's happening; all the pictures, all the news, all the interviews. Now I'm starting to enjoy everything that comes with it. Hand #80: Huge Backdoor Double for Colillas Hand #80: Julien Martini opened with for 1.25 million and Ramon Colillas came along with . The flop nailed Martini, and he bet 1 million. Colillas called, and the turn was a . Martini slid in a big bet of 4.6 million this time, and Colillas called to see the river. Martini shoved all in after Colillas checked and the Spanish player called for his 17,050,000 with his backdoor boat. Player Country Chip Count Trend Ramon Colillas Spain 48,300,000 +23,650,000 Julien Martini France 13,150,000 -23,650,000 Julien Martini (left) and Ramon Colillas heads-up in the PSPC Tell us a little bit about the hand where you made a fullhouse against a flush. Probably the most important hand of your poker career. The hand started as a classic hand with him opening and me defending. I didn't know Julien [Martini]; I didn't know how he played or what kind of strategy he would be playing heads-up. "I knew I had a decent hand but on the turn I realized that I was in trouble." I knew I had a decent hand, but on the turn I realized that I was in trouble. I even contemplated folding as Julien bet almost the size of the pot. So it was tough, and I thought about it for some time. I decided to pay and see if a five would hit. Otherwise, I was probably going to fold if the bet was another sizable one. The five came, and I knew I had him! So I just checked and what happened that happened. It was definitely a key moment. Heads-up there was a massive difference between finishing first and second, $2,126,000, in large part because PokerStars had added $1,000,000 to first. Still, there didn't seem to be talks of a deal. How come? Between the two of us, there was never a deal discussed. When we were three-handed, [eventual third-place finisher Marc] Rivera proposed a deal and Julien said no instantly. He was very firm on that because he had a lot of chips at the time. He was so convinced; I didn't even propose it when we were heads-up. "When we were three-handed, Rivera proposed a deal and Julien said no instantly." If Julien had proposed it, I would've definitely taken a look at the numbers. On the other hand, I've played heads up all my life. It's my habitat; it's what I do for a living every day, especially with shallow stacks. So I was very confident in my game; confident I could turn things around. In the end, I was lucky enough to win. You won your Platinum Pass in a local tour, but payouts of those tournaments don't appear on your Hendonmob profile. Do you think that gave you an advantage, with your competition maybe underestimating you? Yes, that's fair to say. It was a bit of strategy on my part as well. I know that Spanish tournaments don't show up on the Hendonmob. Obviously, when you run deep in a tournament, and I do this as well, you look up other players their Hendonmob profiles. You check out their winnings and everything. And I knew that other players were going to look for me online and they were going to find mixed messages. Also, I play on PokerStars.ES and my nickname there is not public. So I knew I had a bit of an advantage from that perspective with the others being in the dark when it comes to my skill and experience level. What was your regular game exactly before this event? And what are your plans now you have this $5.1 million bankroll boost? Online my game is Spin & Go's, mainly the $100 buy-in. In live events, I've been playing up to 2,000 events. I'm probably going to play the 5,000 events now, probably all of them. That's going to be the big jump; from 2K maximum to playing the EPTs and other 5Ks around Europe. "When I see the $25K events, the fields are really hard with a lot of very good players. I don't think I'm on that level yet." So no high rollers? No, not at this moment. I'm just coming from playing 2K events. I'm going to make the jump to 5Ks, but when I see the $25K events, the fields are really hard with a lot of very good players. I don't think I'm on that level yet. I believe in progression, and I believe that I'll get to that level. But right now, I don't think I'm on that level yet. So for now, I'm going to stay on the 5,000 range. You won a ticket for the WSOP Main Event finishing atop in a different Spanish local tour. What are your plans for the WSOP? My plan is to win it! I have already won two tournaments in Spain, I won this one, and I'm going into the WSOP with the goal of winning it! That's how I play; I go into the tournament focussed on winning it, that's the only thing I think about. On a more serious note; I obviously know that doesn't always happen. But the mindset is always to go for it. I'm thinking about going two or three weeks before the [WSOP] Main Event starts. I'm going to play as much as I can while I'm there. Including the Main Event, I'll be a full month in Vegas or so. PSPC Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize (USD) 1 Ramon Colillas Spain $5,100,000 2 Julien Martini France $2,974,000 3 Marc Rivera Philipines $2,168,000 4 Scott Baumstein United States $1,657,000 5 Jason Koonce United States $1,304,000 6 Marc Perrault Canada $1,012,000 7 Farid Jattin Colombia $746,000 8 Talal Shakerchi United Kingdom $509,000 Ramon Colillas The Stars Group owns a majority shareholding in iBus Media. HONOLULU -- Matt Kuchar kept another clean card and shot a 4-under 66 to take a two-shot lead into the final round of the Sony Open in Hawaii, a chance to win twice in one PGA TOUR season for only the second time in his career. Kuchar ended a four-year drought by winning the Mayakoba Classic in Mexico last fall, and there are a few similarities. He set a personal record for 54 holes in Mayakoba at 193. He went one better at Waialae at 18-under 192. Both courses require keeping the ball in play, and Kuchar has done that well over three rounds. He has made only one bogey through 54 holes, and he only came seriously close to one on Saturday, saving par from the bunker on the par-3 17th. "Good, steady golf," Kuchar said. "It felt easy out there. I didn't find myself in any trouble." Andrew Putnam was two shots behind after a 67. Keith Mitchell had a 63 to pull within four shots, along with Chez Reavie, who fell back with three straight bogeys early on the back nine. Those were the only players within five shots of the lead, and all of them are chasing Kuchar. "I anticipate needing another good score tomorrow," Kuchar said. "I know I can't coast." Kuchar is 2-2 when he has the 54-hole lead going into the final round. The only other time Kuchar won twice in the same season was in 2013, when he won the Match Play Championship in Arizona in February and the Memorial in early June. That put him at No. 4 in the world, the highest he has been in his career. Kuchar was sliding his way out of the top 50 toward the end of last year, when he failed to make a Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup team for the first time since 2009. But he had a good session with his swing coach in Dallas, and it paid off two weeks later on the Gulf side of the Mexican coast. This was more of the same. Putnam, who won for the first time last year in the Barracuda Championship held opposite a World Golf Championship, did his best to stay in reach. They were tied through seven holes until Putnam made bogey on No. 8 and failed to birdie the par-5 ninth, the easiest hole at Waialae. Putnam missed an 8-foot birdie attempt on No. 18. "Didn't feel as easy as the first two days," Putnam said. "Still played a good round. Still got a chance." Bryson DeChambeau had a 63 and led a large pack at 11-under 199, seven shots out of the lead for a slim chance at winning unless the leaders come back to the field. Also tied for fifth were Charles Howell III and 54-year-old Davis Love III, who had one of his better putting rounds. Kuchar was at his best on a number of putts from the 50-foot range. He didn't make any, but he didn't leave himself any work for par. That added to the stress-free feeling of a round, and the overall control he feels in his game. He never looks to be under stress, though Kuchar says looks can be deceiving. "I've got gray hair," he said with a laugh. "Listen, the game of golf is not easy. It's not often you're in full control. Those times you're not in full control, you're faced with a lot of situations where golf is going to find a way to stress you out and test you. I've been through it. But I enjoy the challenge even when you're not playing well of trying to figure out shooting a score. I enjoy that challenge." The next challenge is winning, and it helps to have gone through the experience last November. DIVOTS: Gary Woodland, who didn't shoot worse than 68 last week and still had to settle for runner-up at Kapalua, was among 10 players who missed the 54-hole cut because more than 78 players made it to the weekend. He shot 76. Also missing the 54-hole cut was Steve Stricker, who will stay in Hawaii an extra week for the opening event of the PGA TOUR Champions season. Hours after the 103rd edition of The Pennsylvania Farm Show -- the truly greatest show on earth -- leaves the iconic Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center, Gov. Tom Wolfs inaugural team will be setting up for the Inaugural Ball which will be held there on Tuesday night. Despite the best efforts of the outstanding crews who set up and tear down various events at the complex, theres likely to be some odiferous evidence of the livestock that occupied the building the week before. The governors last ball was held in Hershey, the sweetest town on earth. For those with sensitive olfactory nerves, the aromas may not be as sweet this time. It wont really matter to the Wolf inner circle and hundreds of hangers-on who will celebrate another four years and others who come to pay respect for the office, the peaceful transfer or continuance of power, and all that is good about our commonwealth. It will be a great party. Gov. Wolf and John Fetterman, the lieutenant governor-elect, will have taken their respective oaths of office at the Capitol. The inauguration of the governor and lieutenant governor is steeped in history. A simple 35-word oath of office transfers or, as is the case this time, continues the powers of the office. The oath has been used since the people of Pennsylvania approved the new language in 1966. The date of the inauguration is fixed by the state Constitution, and the time is set by law as well, but the venue remains the personal preference of the officeholder. That wasnt always the case. Back in the late 1950s, when David Lawrence was sworn in, a driving snowstorm raged. It was so miserable for the assembled guests that the new governor talked the legislature into passing a law that required the inauguration to be held indoors. That didnt last long. The Legislature, less than a decade later, reversed course and allowed the governor-elect to pick the location of his or her inauguration. Gov. Wolf will take the oath on the eastern steps of the Capitol. Tom Wolf will be the oldest person to be inaugurated as Pennsylvanias governor. He eclipses the mark set by Gov. David Lawrence who was 69 when he was inaugurated. In those days, governors were not permitted by the constitution to succeed themselves. Wolf was younger than Lawrence at his first inauguration. Theres one interesting twist that occurred at a recent inaugural. Sixteen years ago, the Senate chamber inauguration of Lt. Gov. Catherine Baker Knoll dragged on so long that Gov. Ed Rendells swearing-in was delayed. Because the law specifically requires that the oath of office of the governor be administered at 12:01 p.m., technically the commonwealth was either without a governor for a few minutes or Lt. Gov. Knoll held the office during the breach. After the swearing-in, the governor will give his inaugural address, and each word and nuance will be dissected by the media and those of us in the chattering class. While they are talked about for a day or two, gubernatorial inaugural addresses are generally not long remembered or particularly significant. They dont generally give much in the way of policy initiatives or specific legislative agendas. Theyre much more rhetorical flourishes outlining the goals and ambitions of the incoming administration rather than legislative road maps. The first real look at where the new administration is heading comes three weeks later with the budget address. Thats when the question of which Tom Wolf will be running the state will begin to be answered. Will it be the Tom Wolf who wants to tax everything in sight and spend accordingly, or will it be the more moderate Gov. Wolf who came up with an election-year budget that was passed virtually on time and was actually signed by His Excellency? Some believe that Wolf, unfettered by having to run for re-election, will revert to his tax-and-spend instincts. Others, listening to the less than subtle hints of national ambitions, believe hell take a more centrist approach. One thing youve got to give Wolf credit for is this: He stays on script and sticks to his message. Four years ago, the theme of his inaugural address was jobs that pay, schools that teach and government that works. He and his team made that their mantra and stayed on message throughout the first term. Its not easy to do. Paying attention to the governors inaugural address will give some clear indication of where hes headed. Its certainly what hell be saying for the next four years. PennLive Opinion contributor Charlie Gerow is the CEO of Quantum Communications in Harrisburg. His work appears on Sundays. When you cant breathe, nothing else matters. Patients with asthma need access to quality and affordable healthcare to obtain the medications and treatments necessary to manage their disease and live a healthy life. Medicaid is an especially important program for asthma patients, as half of all kids with asthma in the United States get their health insurance coverage through Medicaid or the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The American Lung Association urges the Pennsylvania General Assemblys newest members to make improving healthcare in the commonwealth a top priority this new session. Pennsylvanias Medical Assistance Program needs to improve its coverage so that people with asthma can breathe easier. Pennsylvania doesnt cover treatments doctors recommend, including providing consistent coverage of long-term controller medications, which includes barriers such as prior authorizations and step therapy limitations. The General Assembly should work to close these gaps during the 2019 legislative session. Learn more about Medicaid coverage in Pennsylvania by visiting Lung.org/asthma-care-coverage. SARAH LAWVER, Director, Advocacy, Pennsylvania American Lung Association, Camp Hill A Lancaster County man who police said sexually assaulted a boy he met while volunteering at an area youth camp used an alias while working for the nonprofit, according to a camp official. And most of that work, she said, took place at an offsite location, where the man fostered some of the camps horses. IdaMay Hornberger shared those details in the hours after the Friday arraignment of Joseph T. Rohrer, who is accused of sexually assaulting the boy sometime before Thanksgiving in his Rapho Township home. In a criminal complaint filed Thursday by Manheim Borough police, officers said Rohrer met the child while volunteering at Hopes Haven Rescue and Youth Camp, a nonprofit organization that works to rehabilitate at-risk youth and horses. Within this mentorship program, we strive to pair a rescue horse with a child of similar background, whether it be abuse, neglect or other form of emotional/physical trauma, the Hopes Haven website reads. But on Friday night, Hornberger said the complaint left out important details, specifically about 48-year-old Rohrers role and history at the camp. When Rohrer came to the camp to seek volunteer work, he was using a fake name, which was used to conduct a preliminary background check, Hornberger said. The check, she said, showed no negative results. He didnt really have much interest at all with people in general, she said. Rohrer, who appeared to have experience with horses, was allowed to foster some of the Bainbridge camps animals at an offsite location, Hornberger said. He visited the camp on a few occasions for open-house events and to help fix things and clean up, Hornberger said, but he was not left alone with children. Hornberger said it is camp policy that no adults be left alone with children. We always have at least three adults, she said. Hornberger said she did not know exactly when Rohrer first started volunteering with the camp or for how long he volunteered. At some point, Rohrer began a relationship with another volunteer, and that volunteer was related to the boy, Hornberger said. According to police, the boy, who was younger than 13, was sexually assaulted by Rohrer in his Rapho Township homes kitchen. Rohrer touched the boy in a sexual manner and made the boy do the same to him, police said. Police said Rohrer was interviewed earlier this month, and he admitted to having sexual contact with the child. Eventually, camp officials became suspicious of Rohrer, and a more in-depth background check was conducted Hornberger said, and that is when they found that he was using an alias. Things were just not jiving, Hornberger said. They also discovered that Rohrer was a registered sex offender, Hornberger said. The Megans Law website shows that Rohrer was convicted of sexual abuse of children and possession of child pornography in 2013 for incidents in 2012. Hornberger said Rohrers involvement with the camp was then immediately terminated. Police said the boy outlined the sexual assault accusations against Rohrer during a recent interview by investigators at the Lancaster County Childrens Alliance. Online court documents show that Rohrer was arraigned Friday afternoon on felony charges of sexual assault by volunteer or employee of a nonprofit and unlawful contact with a minor, as well as misdemeanor charges of indecent assault of a person younger than 13 and indecent exposure. Rohrer is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing at 9:30 a.m. Jan. 23 before Magisterial District Judge Edward A. Tobin. Online court documents show Rohrer remains incarcerated in Lancaster County Prison unable to post $300,000 cash bail. Forecasters at the National Weather Service have confirmed that snow is falling in Pennsylvania, and many areas will continue to see accumulation into Sunday. However, the Harrisburg area likely wont see the bulk of that snowfall until after 10 p.m., said Peter Jung, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. Jung spoke about 5:30 p.m., revealing that areas west of Harrisburg started seeing snowfall earlier in the afternoon, though by that time, it hadnt amounted to much. There is a little bit of slight snow starting to fall, he said, pointing to areas in Blair, Franklin and Cambria counties, including Johnstown and Altoona. We have slightly increased expected totals across the southern part of the Commonwealth. Snow will gradually overspread the region over the next 4-7 hours and continue overnight. This will be the first snow this winter (since 12/1) for many locations across SE PA! #PAwx pic.twitter.com/9a88DkHOyl NWS State College (@NWSStateCollege) January 12, 2019 Jung predicted that much of central Pennsylvania could expect to see snow flurries between 6 and 7 p.m., but the most accumulation likely will take place after 10 p.m. into Sunday. The bulk of the snowfall will probably be overnight, he said. Jung said the Harrisburg area likely will see 2 to 3 inches of snow, but areas south of Dauphin County, including Adams and York counties, could see up to 6 inches. The National Weather Service has issued a winter weather advisory for Dauphin, Lebanon and Lancaster counties, predicting snowfall totals similar to those discussed by Jung. The predicted storm is the first of any significance in central Pennsylvania since mid-November, when Winter Storm Avery brought record accumulation to parts of the state. Jung called that storm unusually early, and said this storm is not likely to produce the same results. After this storm, the area should remain snowfall-free until at least the end of next week, Jung said. It actually looks like it gets fairly dry after this, he said. The National Weather Service forecast for the next few days is below: Sunday - Light snow is expected mainly before 7 a.m. with a high temperature near 32 degrees. Monday - Sunny skies are expected with a high temperature near 35 degrees. Tuesday - Sunny skies are expected with a high temperature near 37 degrees. Wednesday - Mostly sunny skies are expected with a high temperature near 41 degrees. Thursday - Mostly sunny skies are expected with a high temperature near 34 degrees. Friday - A chance of snow showers is expected with cloudy skies and a high temperature near 40 degrees. Multiple crashes have been reported across central Pennsylvania as a winter storm is predicted to bring up to three inches of accumulation in the Harrisburg area. The crashes have resulted in traffic disruption and lane closures, according to PennDOT officials. A number of those crashes, officials said, took place on Interstate-81. A crash on I-81 northbound at Exit 37 (Pa. 233 - Newville) has caused a traffic disruption, according to the 511PA website A crash on I-81 northbound 1.8 miles south of Exit 44 (Pa. 465 - Plainfield) has caused a lane restriction. A crash on I-81 Northbound at Mile Post 10 also has caused a lane restriction, officials said. PennDOT also is reporting a crash on state Route 581 westbound near Exit 4 (Central Boulevard), which has caused a ramp restriction. And they have posted about a crash on U.S. Route 15 southbound at U.S. Route 11/Pa. 581, which has caused a lane restriction. A man who fled a police traffic stop crashed his vehicle Saturday into a pickup truck carrying a family of six people headed to the Pennsylvania Farm Show, according to Harrisburg police. The pickups driver suffered serious life-threatening injuries in the crash, police said. According to a Saturday evening announcement from police, John M. Barber, 28, was pulled over by an officer about 8 a.m that morning near North Sixth and Woodbine streets. Barber was driving a 2018 Honda Civic on an expired registration, police said, adding that Barber gave the officer his drivers license and two registration cards. Major Vehicle Accident With Multiple Injuries https://t.co/kRYiKhETkC Cpt. Gabriel Olivera (@HPDDetectives) January 13, 2019 But when Barber was asked to turn off his vehicle, he fled the traffic stop with an officer hanging onto the doorframe, police said. The officer was able to separate himself from Barbers vehicle without injury, police said. Police then attempted to pursue the vehicle, but a supervisor immediately advised that the pursuit should be called off, according to police. Barber sped away, and, a few minutes later, Dauphin County dispatchers received a report of a two-vehicle crash on Forster Street, police said. Police arrived to find that Barbers vehicle had crashed into a pickup truck after running a red light near North Sixth and Forster streets, according to the announcement. The pickup was occupied by a family of six going to the Pennsylvania Farm Show, police said. Barbers vehicle struck the pickup with such force that it flipped and came to a rest on its roof, police said. Barber suffered serious injuries in the crash and was taken to a hospital, where he also is in police custody, according to the announcement. The pickups driver suffered life-threatening injuries, police said. The passengers, two adults and three children, also were transported to a hospital with moderate injuries, police said. Barber was wanted on a parole warrant for absconding and had drugs in the vehicle, police said. An investigation is ongoing and charges are pending, police said. It was two and a half years ago when three people had been tied up, shot and set on fire in a Franklin County barn. And now, 11 people, some of whom are accused of being members of the Black Guerilla Family gang, have been federally indicted in connection with either the homicides or drug-trafficking activities, according to court documents that were unsealed on Friday. Phillip Jackson, Wendy Chaney and Brandon Cole were killed June 25, 2016, on Welsh Run Road in Montgomery Township near Mercersburg. They were found bound and bleeding in a barn there. Chaney and Cole were dead at the scene, and Jackson was flown to York Hospital, where he died from his injuries, according to investigators at the time. The indictment, filed Dec. 20, came after an investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Washington County Drug Task Force out of Hagerstown, Maryland. According to the indictment, the incident and investigation unfolded like this: Phillip Jackson, who lived at the farm where the three were found, would purchase drugs for both personal use and for distribution from defendants Kevin Coles and Torey White. Coles, White and defendant Devin Dickerson enlisted other people, including Wendy Chaney, to help with their drug-distribution activities. But in June 2016, Chaney was working as an informant for the Washington County Drug Task Force, providing information to the authorities on the drug-trafficking activities of Coles, Dickerson and White. When the three suspected she was an informant, they went to Baltimore to enlist several people, including members of the Black Guerilla Family gang, to help rob Jackson and kill Chaney. On June 25, 2016, defendants Jerell Adgebesan, Kenyatta Corbett, Christopher Johnson and Johnnie Jenkins-Armstrong drove from Baltimore to meet defendant Michael Buck at his Hagerstown home, and Buck went with Corbett to conduct reconnaissance at Jacksons Farm. That same day, White, who was in a romantic relationship with Chaney, enticed her to go to the farm. At the farm, the group subdued Jackson, Chaney and Brandon Cole and bound their hands behind their backs with zip ties. It wasnt clear in the indictment who the accused shooter was, but Adgebesan, Johnson, Jenkins-Armstrong, a person referenced only as D.C. and others used and caused to be used a firearm to shoot the three in the head or back. Cole had a single gunshot wound. Chaney had two, and Jackson, who was alive when police discovered him, had one. All three had been set on fire. The same day, the group went to a convenience store near Hagerstown, and Johnson pistol-whipped and robbed a customer. In July 2016, police arrested Coles and Dickerson for narcotics trafficking offenses. Then in May 2017, Johnson and several others suspected that Adgebesan was cooperating with federal law enforcement over the triple-homicide in Franklin County and tried to find and kill him, leading to more charges in the indictment. A total of 22 counts were filed against the 11 defendants, some related to the murders and others to drug trafficking. 100 years ago Jan. 13, 1919: There are plans to build arches welcoming returning veterans on the courthouse grounds, and to list McLean Countys war dead on the arches. Todays paper carries a list of the dead, as the planning committee has them, and asks for submissions of other names, if any. 75 years ago Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Jan. 13, 1944: The White Room at the ISNU student union will soon reopen for use of students and alumni. Its a historic room, where in 1874 the first college YWCA in the United States was organized. After renovation, the White Room will be open for use by campus religious groups. 50 years ago Jan. 13, 1969: A spectacular night fire destroyed the administration building at Lincoln College. The 68-year-old structure housed an Abraham Lincoln and Civil War memorabilia collection in a vault. Its not known yet if the vault survived, but everything else was lost. 25 years ago Jan. 13, 1994: An ISU alumnus has been lured back to town to become assistant principal at BHS. Ken Kennedy of DeKalb replaces Kevin Sullivan, who left to become principal at Lockport Township High School. He starts Jan. 24. Compiled by Jack Keefe; jkeefe@coldwellhomes.com. WASHINGTON, D.C. On the day Donald Trump used the Oval Office to say the nation is in crisis from people trying to enter the United States illegally, he sent a fundraising letter to supporters asking them to give him $500,000 in one day. This isnt about border security, which is not a crisis. This is not about a costly wall, which no expert says is feasible or will do any good. This is about creating fear and anger. Its about politics. Its about Trumps reelection. If Trump thought this is a national crisis, he would have done something about it during the two years he has been in office. If Trump truly cared about national security, he would not endanger it by not paying air controllers and TSA agents. Most would-be terrorists come by airplane to legal ports. If he cared about border security, he wouldnt deny funds to the Coast Guard, which interdicts huge quantities of illegal drugs before they get to the country. If Trump cared about border security, he would worry about the U.S. border with Canada. More suspected terrorists have tried to cross there than at the border with Mexico. If he cared about security, he wouldnt threaten to take money away from the men and women in the military to use Defense Department dollars to try to build a wall over hundreds of miles of private land. If he cared about border security, he would have spent the $1.6 billion he was given last year for border security. He would have accepted a compromise Republicans and Democrats alike forged before the holidays or one that would have locked in $25 billion over 10 years for border security. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. If he cared about America, he would not have put hundreds of thousands of families in financial jeopardy by refusing to pay federal workers, let alone consultants who wont get back pay. He alone said on TV that he would own a partial shutdown of government. He did it, refusing a bipartisan compromise, because conservative pundits mocked him for not honoring a spur-of-the-moment campaign pledge. If Trump cared about America, he wouldnt have ruined her reputation abroad as a harbor for the homeless and destitute by tear-gassing people seeking legal asylum, by taking children from their parents, by branding whole groups of people as unwanted. If he cared about America, he would have accepted the compromise to let Dreamers undocumented immigrants brought here as children stay in this country. Now they are in limbo, terrified of deportation. If he cared about America, Trump would not have told more than 6,000 documented lies in office, including saying he had already starting building a wall. No, he has not. He has done little to improve border security during two years in office except hire more border guards. He has not put forth any comprehensive immigration reform plan nor encouraged any new legislation from Congress. Despite Trumps claim, there is no uncontrolled illegal migration into this country. The number has steadily declined for decades. What is new and sad is that thousands of women and children trying to escape gangs and poverty in Latin America and South America trying to get to the U.S. are now being held in dreadful conditions in Mexico. Drug cartels transfer most illegal drugs to this country on people admitted through legal ports of entry. A wall would not change that. Most opioid drugs such as fentanyl are coming from China through airports. No wall would change that. The experts consider walls ineffective. They advocate taking advantage of new technology. But thats not what Trump promised his supporters; he promised a concrete wall that would stretch 2,000 miles. So when White House aides said he didnt really mean that, he exploded and said that, yes, that is what he meant. And means. What he wants is a way to save face, a way to keep his supporters addicted to his peculiar brand of outrage, theatrics and resentment. He wants another White House term, even if it comes at the cost of a government shutdown affecting millions and sullying Americas image in the world. There is a word for all this: pathetic. Ann McFeatters is an op-ed columnist for Tribune News Service. Email her at amcfeatters@nationalpress.com. Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 College students and their families may be wondering if the federal government shutdown is affecting financial aid. For now, local experts say, families needn't worry too much. The U.S. Department of Education is fully funded so it is not affected by the shutdown. Additionally, federal financial aid for the 2018-19 school year was fully appropriated months ago and funding for things like Pell Grants is mandatory, according to Josh Norman, associate vice president of enrollment management at Eastern Illinois University. But what about financial aid for next school year? That's where things could get sticky if the shutdown persists, Illinois officials say. The federal student aid office is still up and running, so students can still file their Free Application for Federal Student Aid. However, the student aid office uses other federal departments to verify information submitted in the aid form. For example, eligible males must register for the draft. The government checks with the Selective Service System to confirm the student indeed registered and alerts the school that the application is in good order, enabling the school to dole out aid. But those cross checks are not being done because other parts of the federal government are closed, including parts of the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice. Without those checks being completed, schools cannot award aid. Several Illinois schools said they've received some or even no calls to their financial aid offices complaining that students were unable to complete FAFSAs. Illinois starts accepting the aid forms on Oct. 1, and several officials said the majority of students seeking aid for fall 2019 completed their applications long before the shutdown. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. But those students completing their FAFSAs now could be left in a bind by an ongoing federal shutdown as schools gear up to start distributing financial aid for 2019-20. "About a month from now is when we're going to start to get panicky for those students whose matches are not being done," said Kiely Fletcher, executive director for financial aid at the University of Illinois at Chicago. What also is unclear is whether those federal agencies will redo verifications on those applications once the government reopens, or if that burden will fall to schools and students, Fletcher said. UIC is working with students to send in extra documentation directly such as providing a copy of a permanent resident card rather than relying on the government systems, Fletcher said. But there is no workaround to verifying if a student has registered for the draft, Fletcher said. "We'll have to come up with a Plan B. We do not want to prevent students from receiving their aid," Fletcher said. "We want students to have as much time as possible to make the right choice about where they want to go to college. Any time after the first week of March, that's just not enough time." Bridget Curl, director of financial aid at Illinois State University, said there about 150 students whose applications have been flagged because of incomplete cross checks. But Illinois State has not started awarding aid for 2019-20 yet so the immediate impact is minimal. "At this point, we're not overly concerned. But depending on how long this continues, it could elevate to be a problem," Curl said. One procedure that had been held up by the shutdown was verifying tax information. The FAFSA enables students to retrieve the prior year's tax information through the Internal Revenue Service. That agency, too, is affected by the shutdown. But Wednesday afternoon, the Education Department advised schools they could instead request paper copies of a student's tax returns, bypassing the IRS altogether. "That alleviated a huge issue with the shutdown," Fletcher said. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Hospitals across the country rang in the New Year with a federal mandate to reveal their once-secret master price lists, although it's unclear whether the new requirement will assist many patients or contain ever-rising health care costs. Starting Jan. 1, hospitals must publish online the starting price tags for every service or procedure. These detailed lists, known as chargemasters, include thousands of entries. The 2010 Affordable Care Act required hospitals to make these lists available to the public, but until this week, hospitals were not required to publish them. The new mandate marks an effort by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to improve price transparency in health care. However, health care experts stress that consumers _ even those with high-deductible plans or even no insurance _ should not consider these lists to be realistic price guides. That is because the prices are typically starting points for payment negotiations between hospitals and insurance companies and have little connection to what most patients actually pay. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. The only time that most consumers glimpse chargemaster prices is on hospital bills as amounts they might have owed before insurance negotiated down the price. "It's not a particularly useful datapoint," said Marianne Udow-Phillips, executive director of the Center for Health and Research Transformation in Ann Arbor, Mich. "I don't expect it to have a significant impact, and I don't expect it to be a driver of lowering health care costs." For patients with commercial health plans such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, the price of services and procedures is determined by private negotiations between their insurance company and the hospital. So these patients should check with their insurance company for actual pricing information, including whatever deductibles they must pay before insurance fully kicks in. "If a patient goes online and sees a (chargemaster) price that they can't afford, I'm concerned that some consumers might forego needed care especially if that price is the total cost of service and not what the consumer is expected to pay based on what their insurance plan covers or not," said Mark Fendrick, a University of Michigan professor. Some uninsured patients may indeed be directly billed at chargemaster prices. But hospitals typically give discounts when requested, experts said. "The chargemaster itself is essentially the sticker price that nobody pays," said Jim Lee, vice president of data policy and analytics with the Michigan Health & Hospital Association, an industry group. "It is the starting point or floor for pricing." Love 0 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 State labor investigators report into sexual harassment at the state Capitol gave Oregonians plenty of reason to lose confidence in some of their elected officials. It wasnt just the dumbfounding instances documented in the report in which male legislators inappropriately touched or made suggestive comments to female interns, lobbyists and colleagues. Or the pressure some victims said they felt from human resources and legislative lawyers to keep quiet about any harassment claims. It was also the unsympathetic and even irate reactions by legislative leaders to Sen. Sara Gelser, the lawmaker who went public about repeated harassment by then-Sen. Jeff Kruse. The report offers a highly selective view of all that transpired Bureau of Labor and Industries investigators didnt interview many key players before pushing out the report before Labor Commissioner Brad Avakian left office. But the underlying message is a solid one: The Legislature should not be trusted to make necessary changes without some outside oversight. Thats not an indictment of legislative leaders will to improve both the process through which sex harassment complaints are handled and the culture of the state Capitol as a whole. Gelsers public airing of her allegations against Kruse in 2017 sparked the Oregon Legislatures own #MeToo awakening. Well before the BOLI investigation, Senate President Peter Courtney and House Speaker Tina Kotek ordered their own investigation into Kruses behavior and tasked the Oregon Law Commission with developing recommendations for handling sexual harassment complaints. Both Courtney and Kotek told The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board that they expect the Legislature to adopt many of these changes in the upcoming session and have created a joint committee on Capitol culture to lead the process. And they are planning extensive training for legislators, staff and lobbyists to help cement peoples understanding of appropriate behavior to ensure the culture, not just the process, promotes safety. That said, the degree of difficulty here is incredibly high. While the Legislative Assembly acts as an employer of permanent staffers and interns, legislators are independently elected officials who answer to voters, leaving few options for disciplining a lawmaker. Setting up guard rails for what is and is not acceptable behavior risks becoming overly prescriptive in a workplace where personal relationships are currency. And Courtney, Kotek and others have stumbled in figuring out how to address workplace policies in an apolitical manner a difficult needle to thread in a workplace where politics is the primary reason for people to be there in the first place. And finally, making even modest changes in workplace culture are difficult. This change, however, is monumental. For decades, women in the workplace got the message, formally and informally, to simply ignore, laugh off, or silently endure inappropriate comments, touching and other harassment. In many workplaces, women were expected to simply act professional by disregarding the decidedly unprofessional conduct of men. That the pendulum could swing so swiftly from one side to the other is both energizing and daunting. Courtney and Koteks own actions, as presented in the BOLI report, show just how challenging it is to change culture and mindsets when those leading the change have been part of the culture for so long. While they vehemently dispute investigators conclusions that they knowingly allowed workplace harassment and failed to act appropriately to previous complaints, both conceded to The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board that a revamp of policies is sorely needed. And both reacted in disappointing fashion in separate interactions with Gelser. Gelser, a Democrat like Courtney and Kotek, was berated by Courtney in a restaurant last year after she pressed him on the need for a larger conversation about the Legislatures handling of workplace harassment. And Kotek, according to Gelsers account in the BOLI report, declined to immediately issue a public call for Kruse to resign due to her political read of the situation, telling her that some people consider her unlikable. Both apologized. Fortunately, the Legislature doesnt have to figure out the way forward on its own. While the BOLI complaint, filed by Avakian, engendered a fair amount of acrimony and expense as the agency and Legislature battled over BOLIs authority to investigate it, Avakians departure may mean more cooperation ahead. After new Labor Commissioner Val Hoyle, a former legislator, wisely recused herself from the case, the agency on Friday announced it will work with the Legislature to resolve the complaint through mediation under a third-party. That kind of ongoing partnership that allows an outside eye on the Legislature just might be the kind of culture change that it needs. -Helen Jung for The Oregonian/OregonLive Editorial Board OLYMPIA A state senator who was under investigation following allegations of improper conduct has resigned days ahead of the start of the legislative session. Sen. Kevin Ranker, a Democrat from Orcas Island, sent a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee's office late Friday saying that he was resigning "with a heavy heart." He wrote that his resignation was effective immediately. The 105-day legislative session begins Monday. Ranker has been under investigation since last fall. Tara Parker, an investigator with Ogden Murphy Wallace law firm in Seattle, was hired by the chamber in October to investigate claims made by Ann Larson, who served as Ranker's legislative assistant for a year. Larson says she dealt with sexual harassment and hostile workplace issues while working for him during the 2010 legislative session. Larson has said that she had a brief consensual relationship with Ranker before he was elected to the Legislature, but that when she rebuffed him after he recruited her to the Senate, he became increasingly hostile to her, and she ultimately decided to leave the job. Larson, who is now director of government relations at the state's Department of Enterprise Services, says she also was subjected to hostile encounters involving Ranker once she left to work as a legislative liaison for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. In an email sent to his constituents and others Saturday, Ranker wrote that he has fully cooperated with the investigation. "I am deeply sorry for any stress I caused her and I sincerely apologize," he wrote. "I wish her peace." In a text message to The Associated Press Saturday, Larson wrote that she's glad she can move on. "I hope that by my actions, more people feel safe to report any kind of inappropriate behavior without fear of retaliation," she wrote. Ranker's decision comes days after Senate Democrats announced they were reconfiguring committees based on his decision to step down from his chairmanship of the newly proposed Environment & Tourism Committee, and to leave his leadership position as a vice chair for environment and natural resources on the Ways and Means Committee. Senate Majority Leader Andy Billig issued a written statement Saturday announcing Rankers decision, saying that process to replace him will begin as soon as possible, and that because the investigation into Ranker continues, he wont be able to comment further until he reads the completed report. The investigation into Ranker is the first test of the chambers new workplace policies adopted in the wake of the #MeToo movement. In July, a Senate committee approved revised workplace policies based on recommendations by a bipartisan task force. Under the new policy, once an investigation and any subsequent appeal is completed, a report will be released publicly if there is a finding of a violation of prohibited conduct. The Senate remains committed to creating and fostering a safe, inclusive workplace for everyone, Billig wrote. -- The Associated Press The use of alcohol is being investigated as a contributing factor in a the death of a Grants Pass man who died early Saturday when his vehicle left the road and hit a tree, Oregon State Police reported. Authorities were sent to a location on Oregon 260 in Josephine County to investigate a crash. They found Jason Barker, 38, dead from injuries when his SUV failed to make a curve and left the road. --Tom Hallman Jr. thallman@oregonian.com; 503 21-8224 @thallmanjr In December 2014, a university student from Saudi Arabia was arrested in Monmouth and accused of raping a classmate after giving her marijuana and shots of Jack Daniels. Bail was set at a half-million dollars. The judge ordered the student, Abdulaziz Al Duways, to turn over his passport to the private defense lawyer hired to represent him, according to court records and the Polk County District Attorneys Office. A few days later, an official from the Royal Consulate General of Saudi Arabia in Los Angeles posted bail. Al Duways disappeared. The case preceded a similar one recently reported by The Oregonian/OregonLive involving Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah. The Portland Community College student jumped bail in the hit-and-run death of a 15-year-old Portland girl and apparently fled with the Saudi Arabian governments help, law enforcement officials said. But the two disappearances arent the only ones involving Saudi students facing serious criminal charges in Oregon. The Oregonian/OregonLive has found criminal cases involving at least five Saudi nationals who vanished before they faced trial or completed their jail sentence in Oregon. They include two accused rapists, a pair of suspected hit-and-run drivers and one man with child porn on his computer. The five cases share many similarities: - All were young men studying at a public college or university in Oregon with assistance from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia at the time of their arrest. - In four of the cases, the Saudi government stepped in to help, posting large sums of money for bail and possibly underwriting legal fees. - Three surrendered their passports. - All disappeared while facing charges or jail time. - The same Oregon defense attorney, Ginger Mooney, was hired to represent the four most recent suspects. - Little is known of the whereabouts of the five, though some have been traced back to Saudi Arabia. The new details add to mounting scrutiny of Saudi Arabias conduct abroad after the kingdoms role in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey last fall. Khashoggi, a U.S. resident, was dismembered inside the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, according to Turkish officials. The CIA believes Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman ordered the killing. The additional cases raise new questions about the role the Saudi government may have played in assisting its citizens fleeing prosecution in Oregon or possibly elsewhere in the United States. Most puzzling is how some of the students were able to leave the country and travel internationally after they had surrendered their passports. This is even more evidence that the Saudi government has acted to help its citizens escape justice for crimes committed in Oregon, Sen. Ron Wyden told The Oregonian/OregonLive in response to learning about the new cases. The FBI, State Department and Department of Homeland Security did not comment for this story, citing staff reductions and furloughs during the federal government shutdown. The Justice Department did not respond to a request for comment. Calls and emails to the Saudi Embassy in Washington and Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles went unanswered. In a letter last month, Wyden asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker for explanations about the disappearance of Noorah, the PCC student and most recent case. These are shocking claims in any event, Wyden wrote to Pompeo and Whitaker, but with the barbaric murder of U.S. resident Jamal Khashoggi, they suggest a brazen pattern of disregard for the law and abuse of diplomatic privileges. Cases involve tiny fraction of Saudi students The number of Saudi students in the U.S. has surged since 2005, when the oil-rich nation created a generous scholarship program for those seeking to study abroad. The program covers full tuition, provides a monthly living stipend and offers other perks to those who attend American colleges or universities. More than 44,000 Saudis studied in the U.S. during the 2017-2018 academic year, according to data from the Institute of International Education. About 1,000 of them are at Oregon colleges and universities second in the state only to China, figures show. Theyre extremely serious and dedicated young people, said Christina Luther, the director of Portland State University's Office of International Student and Scholar Services. Luther said Saudi students first started coming to PSU in the 1970s. The majority today focus on business, engineering and architecture. Theyve always been involved in the campus and our community, she said. But a few Saudi students who have come to Oregon struggled to stay on the right side of the law. Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah Portland police say Noorah, then 20, was speeding on Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard when his car fatally struck high schooler Fallon Smart, who was legally crossing the street in August 2016. After Noorahs arrest, the Saudi Consulate retained Mooney to work on his case and cut a $100,000 check to provide him bail, according to court records and prosecutors. He faced charges of first-degree manslaughter, which carries a minimum prison sentence of 10 years, felony hit-and-run and reckless driving. Two weeks before his June 2017 trial, Noorah removed an electronic tracking monitor he was required to wear as a condition of his release, then disappeared, authorities say. Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah was charged in the 2016 fatal hit-and-run death of a Portland teen. He disappeared two weeks before his manslaughter trial. Federal law enforcement believes the Saudi government helped him escape. Officials with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Marshals Service told The Oregonian/OregonLive last month they now believe he left his Southeast Portland neighborhood in a black SUV and later used an illicit passport and private plane likely provided by the Saudi government to flee the country. This past July, more than 13 months after Noorah disappeared, the Saudis contacted Homeland Security to inform the agency he was back in their country. Abdulaziz Al Duways Al Duways, the student accused of rape, arrived at Western Oregon University and moved into a house blocks from campus, records show. He enrolled for winter term in January 2013, majoring in computer science. His troubles began 16 months into his studies. Al Duways was arrested twice in six weeks on suspicion of driving under the influence of intoxicants during the summer of 2014, according to Monmouth Municipal Court records. He faced additional charges for failing to appear in court in both cases, the records show. The next December, a classmate accused Al Duways of raping her at his Stadium Drive North home after giving her marijuana and shots of whiskey, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Polk County. Court records show the woman called 911 during the alleged attack, prompting police to respond. Officers found the woman in Al Duways bed, crying and shaking uncontrollably while hiding her body and face underneath the blanket, the affidavit says. Records show she told police: He said, Tell them Im your girlfriend and he said, Ill give you anything. Ill do anything if you dont tell them. A Western Oregon University classmate accused Abdulaziz Al Duways, pictured, of raping her in 2014. He vanished after the Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles bailed him out of jail. She did not respond to interview requests from The Oregonian/OregonLive. Police arrested Al Duways and he was arraigned on multiple felony counts, including first-degree rape. His bail was set at $500,000, records show. During a hearing, Judge Sally Avera ordered Al Duways passport be turned over to Mooney, his attorney, according to the Polk County District Attorneys Office. On Dec. 29, Ahmed Alzahrani, of the Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles, posted $50,000 for Al Duways release from jail, records show. In Oregon, defendants must post 10 percent of the set bail for release. Al Duways disappeared before his next scheduled court appearance. We had concerns about him returning to Saudi Arabia, said Jayme Kimberly, Polk County chief deputy district attorney. In Oregon, the only crimes for which a judge may deny bail are murder and treason. Waleed Ali Alharthi Three months later, in April 2015, another Saudi student facing criminal charges in the state vanished. Waleed Ali Alharthi was taking English classes at Oregon State University when Benton County sheriffs deputies say they found his laptop computer filled with nearly a dozen pornographic videos involving children in August 2014, according to court records and the university. Alharthi had arrived in Corvallis that March from his home country on a student visa and academic scholarship from the Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission, records show. While under arrest in the back of a deputy cruiser, Alharthi asked to contact the Saudi Consulate, a police report said. He was booked in the Benton County Jail on 10 counts of first-degree encouraging child sex abuse Aug. 7, records show. A judge set his bail at $500,000. Faisal Alsudairy, then with the Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles, signed the $50,000 security deposited for Alharthis bail, records show. Alharthi was required to turn his passport over to Benton Countys trial court administrator, according to court documents. He moved to Portland in September, records show. After months of attending court hearings in Corvallis, Alharthi did not show up to a status check on April 2, 2015. Mooney was his lawyer. She told the court Alharthi had recently moved out of his house in Portland and she feared he may be dead, according to a note taken by a prosecutor at the hearing. An investigator hired by the Benton County District Attorneys Office later learned from Transportation Security Administration officials that Alharthi had boarded a plane in Mexico City bound for Paris a week earlier, court records show. Waleed Ali Alharthi, an Oregon State University student accused of possessing child pornography on his computer, disappeared in March 2015. Mooney declined to comment for this story. Records show the Willamette University law graduate has two decades of experience handling criminal defense, post-conviction and habeas corpus cases in the state. She was a partner at a small firm in Salem when in February 2014 she took on her first criminal case involving a Saudi student in Oregon, records show. Mooney has been hired to handle at least nine criminal cases involving Saudi students across Oregon, including sex abuse and harassment, with most ending with charges dropped or reduced. The rest have disappeared. Allison Martin Rhodes, a lawyer for Mooney, said state ethics rules prohibit her client from talking about any of the cases. Ms. Mooney does not have the consent of her clients to reveal any information, Martin Rhodes said. To the extent information related to these matters might suggest unethical or improper conduct by Ms. Mooney in the representation of these clients, the suggestion is completely unfounded. Ms. Mooney takes her ethical obligations seriously and conducts her practice to the highest standards. Suliman Ali Algwaiz Suliman Ali Algwaiz entered no-contest pleas to third-degree assault, driving under in the influence of intoxicants, and other charges Aug. 4, 2016. Authorities said the Portland State University accounting major was drunk earlier that year when he struck and critically injured a homeless man while driving the wrong way on Southwest Market Street. He kept driving, police said. His college-age sister, also studying in Portland, deposited $31,260 into his inmate account so he could bail himself out, records show. The victim suffered injuries to his legs, pelvis, shoulder, head, ribs and spine, with medical bills topping $120,000, according to a lawsuit filed against Algwaiz that March. Suliman Ali Algwaiz, a Portland State University student, pleaded no contest to third-degree assault, DUII and failure to perform the duties of a driver in August 2016. He was sentenced to 90 days in jail, but vanished before completing his sentence. Algwaiz was sentenced to 90 days in jail, which he was allowed to serve on weekends, court documents show. Sixteen days after Algwaizs plea Aug. 4, Noorah was arrested for the fatal hit-and-run that killed Smart. Algwaiz never completed his sentence. Records show he recovered his passport from the Portland Police Bureaus property and evidence division Sept. 20 and stayed for in the Multnomah County jail for the last time two days later. Then he disappeared. A warrant for his arrest was issued. It remains outstanding. Eight months later, Noorah was gone, too. Ali Hussain Alhamoud The earliest case involved Ali Hussain Alhamoud, whom Mooney didnt represent. A Toledo Police Department investigation said Alhamoud sexually assaulted a young woman on Valentines Day 2012. Federal court records in Oregon show the Saudi government bailed out Alhamoud from the Lincoln County Jail after he was indicted on multiple sex crime charges, including first-degree rape. Alhamoud had been admitted to Oregon State University and was taking non-degree English language classes at the college, the university said. Ali Hussain Alhamoud, who took classes at Oregon State University, was charged with raping a young woman on Valentine's Day 2012. He left the U.S. the same day the Saudi government bailed him out of jail. He boarded a plane in Portland the same day he was released from jail and returned to Saudi Arabia, according to a criminal complaint. Wyden, learning of the new cases from The Oregonian/OregonLive, now says he wants to broaden his initial inquiry and is asking for assistance from the Trump administration. Secretary Pompeo and the Justice Department need to do a thorough investigation to determine the scope of this abuse of our justice system, Wyden said, and start by answering the questions I asked. -- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh; 503-294-7632; skavanaugh@oregonian.com Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox. A bicyclist died Saturday afternoon when he collided with a commercial motor vehicle on U.S. 30 near Scappoose, Oregon State Police reported. Troopers said a vehicle driven by Dustan Thompson, 40, of St. Helens was eastbound on the highway about 1:30 p.m. when a bike ridden by Scott Graser, 54, of Scappoose entered the eastbound right lane and a collision occurred. Graser sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. Thompson was not injured and is cooperating with the investigation, which is continuing. --Tom Hallman Jr. thallman@oregonian.com; 503 221-8224 @thallmanjr Mention the name Ponzi in Oregon and it will probably receive instant recognition as one of the leaders in the Oregon wine industry. It is no surprise that Ponzis Dundee Bistro (100-A S.W. Seventh St., Dundee; 503-554-1650) and wine bar are winners as well. With more than two decades of success hosting locals and the ever-increasing number of wine country visitors, the Bistros kitchen continues to present fresh ideas and casual dishes inspired and executed by executive chef Ryan Clark. The Bistro consistently sources ingredients from neighboring farms, ranches, orchards, fishermen and wild mushroom foragers; the result is a seasonal and fresh menu. Tasty entree options include pastas, a half-chicken, pan-seared scallops and risotto, a 28-day dry-aged ribeye and the chefs specialty hand tossed pizzas (red and white variations). No matter your meal of choice, its best accompanied by one of the local wine offerings; draft Oregon microbrews, direct fair-trade roasted coffee and soda are available, too. Try them out for yourself 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Guests especially enjoy the cozy fireside seating this time of year. Whether your appetite is geared toward wine or youd like to enjoy a pre- or post-dinner drink, a stop at the adjacent Fratelli Ponzi Fine Food & Wine (503-554-1500) is in order. This Italian-inspired wine bar and retail shop allows visitors to explore and taste the carefully curated selection of pinot noir and Italian varietals from Oregon and Italy. Olive oil, coffee, chocolate and other specialty Italian products offer wonderful take-home items or gifts. Small plates (charcuterie and cheese, hummus, etc.), three wine flights daily and wine by the glass make up a comprehensive wine tasting experience and a comfortable place to relax and take in our beautiful wine country. Draft Oregon microbrews and housemade cocktails also are available. For olive oil aficionados, here is where you can buy the Ponzis extra-virgin olive oil direct from their Italian estate in the Le Marche region. Hours are noon to close. Conveniently next to the Ponzi Dundee Bistro is Joys Uptown Style (110 S.W. Seventh St., Dundee; 503-223-3400). Owner Joy Walker not only has an eye for womens fashion, but also has created a fun environment with superb personalized customer service thats sure to please. The ladies in your life will likely agree that it doesnt get much better than wine tasting followed by shopping. Expect to see beautiful casual wear with accessories to match as well as mother-of-the-bride (or groom) dresses and formal attire, with more limited choices. Most ensembles may be ordered in a full spectrum of bright or subdued colors. Store hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily; appointments available by request. The all-new fourth edition of Gerry Franks Oregon guidebook is available through oregonguidebook.com; 503-585-8411; gerry@teleport.com; amazon.com; Macys; and P.O. Box 2225, Salem, OR 97308. A wrong-way driver on Washington Route 14 caused a thee-car pileup Sunday morning under the Interstate 205 overpass, authorities said. The driver left the scene, the Vancouver Fire Department reported, then returned to be transported by paramedics to a local hospital. Washington State Patrol officials later identified him as Sean E. Seager, 35. His Ford Focus station wagon was heading east in the westbound lane when it collided head-on with a Toyota Tacoma pickup, the state patrol reported. The pickup rolled on its top and blocked one lane of the highway and the station wagon blocked the other. Thats when a third vehicle, a Toyota Corolla sedan, hit the pickup. The driver of the pickup was taken to a Portland hospital. The third driver wasnt hurt, the patrol reported. The 6 a.m. crash closed the highway in both directions for about three hours. It reopened by 9 a.m. The wrong-way driver was transported to a local hospital. Cleared: Collision on SR 14 WB at milepost 6.2 near I 205 has all lanes blocked on WB SR 14. WSDOT - Southwest (@wsdot_sw) January 13, 2019 -- Rob Davis rdavis@oregonian.com 503.294.7657; @robwdavis Visit subscription.oregonlive.com/newsletters to get Oregonian/OregonLive journalism delivered to your email inbox. pills spilling out of pill bottle Take a look at your prescription bottles. Most say Store at room temperature or Keep refrigerated. But what happens when drugs are delivered by mail? Were those instructions followed as the medicine wended its way from the pharmacy to your doorstep? Those questions haunt Loretta Boesing, who lives in Park Hills, a small town in the hills of eastern Missouri, where the weather varies dramatically from season to season. Its crazy, Boesing said. We sometimes experience temperatures like they would feel in Arizona. Sometimes we experience temperatures like they would feel up north. In 2012, when son Wesley was 2 years old, he got so sick from the flu that he needed a liver transplant. The transplant surgery went well, but just a few months later, lab tests showed Wesleys body appeared to be rejecting the organ. Boesing felt both devastated and guilty. I feel the extra duty of not just protecting his life, but the life that lives on inside him, she said. Wesley didnt lose his new liver, but during his weeks in the hospital, Boesings mind raced, thinking about what might have gone wrong. She remembered that when his anti-rejection medications were last delivered to their house, the box had been left outside by the garage, where it sat for hours. Temperatures that day were well over 100 degrees, well beyond the safe temperature range listed on the drugs guidelines. At the time, she hadnt worried about it. Even though I see plainly on the bottle that it says, Store at room temperature,' Boesing said, I still thought, Ah, someones making sure its safe.' But after Wesleys setback, Boesing swore off mail-order pharmacy altogether, and this year she started a Facebook group for patients who share her concerns about how extreme temperatures during shipping could affect the prescription drugs that many people receive by mail. As of 2016, prescriptions fulfilled by mail accounted for nearly a quarter of total U.S. spending on prescriptions (before rebates and discounts), according to a report from IQVIAs Institute for Human Data Science. Health insurers typically contract with companies known as pharmacy benefit managers to handle the complex process of getting medicine to patients. PBMs negotiate with drugmakers on prices and rebates, help insurers decide which drugs to cover and handle mail-order shipping. Mail order is a money saver for PBMs, and, in turn, theyve touted the potential advantages for patients such as 90-day refills for the cost of a 30-day copay, and the added convenience, especially for rural or housebound patients. But Boesing wants insurers and their PBMs to reconsider these incentives and their practices in light of temperature concerns. She says they must ensure that their patients have easy access to retail pharmacies unless the mail-order services can prove that drugs are getting to patients at the right temperatures. The three biggest PBMs are Express Scripts, CVS Caremark and OptumRX. They insist theyve got mail-order drug shipment down to a science. Inside an enormous OptumRX warehouse in a Kansas City suburb, lines of orange prescription bottles fly along conveyor belts, while pharmacists scan bar codes and technicians refill bins of pills. Lead pharmacist Alysia Heller explains that this shipping behemoth, which sends out as many as 100,000 prescriptions a day, includes a system to account for weather. If theres an extreme heat situation where a product is going into 100-plus-degree weather, the system will tell the technician to add an extra ice pack, Heller said, because weve monitored the ZIP code and the weather in that area. But at OptumRX and across the industry, that level of temperature-controlled shipping is usually reserved only for a relatively small number of drugs such as certain types of insulin, or hepatitis C drugs that have specific refrigeration requirements. Standard, room-temperature medications (like most drugs for blood pressure or cholesterol, which make up the vast majority of prescriptions shipped) are typically sent in bubble mailers without any temperature monitors. Stephen Eckel, a pharmacy professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, said those practices can lead to some drugs being damaged. A lot of people enjoy the convenience of mail order, but there are some risks theyve got to understand, said Eckel. He said its possible that drugs in liquid form, such as the one Wesley was taking, could potentially be damaged by exposure to extreme heat or cold. He predicts its just a matter of time before mail-order pharmacies will expand their use of temperature controls and add individual temperature monitors to all packages, so customers can see whether their medications got too hot or too cold in transit. But Adam Fein, a consultant on pharmaceutical economics and drug distribution, called the temperature concerns overblown. He pointed out that many states already require insurance companies and/or PBMs to offer access to retail pharmacies if customers prefer. We have literally billions and billions of prescriptions that have been dispensed by mail over many years without evidence of widespread harm, Fein said. The Pharmaceutical Care Management Association is a national trade industry group for PBMs. In response to questions about temperature concerns and the safety of mail-order drugs, the association wrote in a statement: Mail-service pharmacies adhere to all Food and Drug Administration rules, ship those prescription medications that may be adversely affected by extreme heat in refrigerated packaging, and notify patients to make sure those packages have been delivered properly. Some room-temperature drugs are approved to spend up to 24 hours in temperatures from as low as the upper 50s to as high as 104 degrees. But scientists just dont know how a number of medications respond to more extreme temperatures such as they might experience on a freezing porch or in the back of a sweltering truck. A few studies suggest that some inhalers or antibiotics can lose potency over time. Many industry experts think mail-order pharmacy is on the cusp of a boom driven by the development of new specialty drugs, especially biologics. Many of those often come with a hefty price tag and are generally not handled by retail pharmacies. These specialty drugs, many of which are injected, can be more vulnerable to temperature swings. Competition in the mail-order drug industry is heating up, with Amazons acquisition last summer of online pharmacy PillPack, and the announcement in December that Walgreens would work with FedEx to offer next-day medication delivery. Fein said more temperature controls and monitoring would do little more than drive up costs in an industry thats been successful in large part because of its low operating costs. But after collecting more than 76,000 signatures for an online petition on the issue, Loretta Boesing said shes convinced a larger health problem is being shrugged off. In Missouri, the Board of Pharmacy has decided to review its mail-order prescription policies and invited Boesing to testify. Her son still needs prescriptions, but Boesing has stopped using Walgreens Specialty Pharmacy, which was shipping the drugs. She obtained a waiver that lets her fill Wesleys prescriptions at a specialized pharmacy affiliated with a childrens hospital in St. Louis. She makes the two-hour round-trip drive every month to pick up the medicine. After connecting with patients all over the country, she said, her advocacy is no longer just about keeping Wesley safe. I dont want my son to have to receive special treatment, Boesing said. I want everyone to have access to safe medications. This story is part of a partnership that includes KCUR, NPR and Kaiser Health News. KHNs coverage of these topics is supported by Laura and John Arnold Foundationand Heising-Simons Foundation Oral Hygiene Products Market Size, Sales, Revenue, Market Share and Forecast to 2025 | Colgate-Palmolive Company, 3M-ESPE, GC Corporation, P&G, Unilever, SeGo, Lantian, Baicaotang, PERFCT. Oral Hygiene Products Market www.upmarketresearch.com Oral Hygiene Products Industry research report delivers a close watch on leading competitors with strategic analysis, micro and macro market trend and scenarios, pricing analysis and a holistic overview of the market situations in the forecast period. It is a professional and a detailed report focusing on primary and secondary drivers, market share, leading segments and geographical analysis. Further, key players, major collaborations, merger & acquisitions along with trending innovation and business policies are reviewed in the report.Get Free Exclusive PDF Sample Copy of This Report: https://www.upmarketresearch.com/home/requested_sample/47052The report contains basic, secondary and advanced information pertaining to the Oral Hygiene Products Industry global status and trend, market size, share, growth, trends analysis, segment and forecasts from 2018 2023.The scope of the report extends from market scenarios to comparative pricing between major players, cost and profit of the specified market regions. The numerical data is backed up by statistical tools such as SWOT analysis, BCG matrix, SCOT analysis, PESTLE analysis and so on. The statistics are represented in graphical format for a clear understanding on facts and figures.For Any Query Please Visit: https://www.upmarketresearch.com/home/enquiry_before_buying/47052The generated report is firmly based on primary research, interviews with top executives, news sources and information insiders. Secondary research techniques are implemented for better understanding and clarity for data analysis.UpMarketResearch offers a latest published report on Global Oral Hygiene Products Market Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 delivering key insights and providing a competitive advantage to clients through a detailed report. The report contains exclusive content which highly exhibit on current market analysis scenario, upcoming as well as future opportunities, revenue growth, pricing and profitability. The report for Oral Hygiene Products market analysis & forecast 2018-2023 is segmented into Product Segment, Application Segment & Major players.Oral Hygiene Products Market Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 report helps the clients to take business decisions and to understand strategies of major players in the industry. The report also calls for market-driven results deriving feasibility studies for client needs. UpMarketResearch ensures qualified and verifiable aspects of market data operating in the real-time scenario. The analytical studies are conducted ensuring client needs with a thorough understanding of market capacities in the real-time scenario.To Buy This Report Directly and get it in PDF format within 24 hours, please visit: https://www.upmarketresearch.com/buy/oral-hygiene-products-market-researchThe major manufacturers covered in this report Dentsply International Ivoclar Vivadent Danaher Corporation ARM &HAMMER MARVIS Comvita LG household & Health Care Margaret Josefin LUSH Church & DwightOn the basis of product primarily split into Toothbrush Toothpaste Tooth Whiteners OthersOn the basis of the end users/applications Children AdultsGeographically, this report studies the top producers growth opportunity in these key regions, covering North America Europe China Japan India Southeast Asia Other regions (Central & South America, Middle East & Africa)The Report covers in-depth analysis as follows: Chapter 1 Oral Hygiene Products Market Overview Chapter 2 Global Oral Hygiene Products Competition by Manufacturers Chapter 3 Global Oral Hygiene Products Capacity, Production, Revenue (Value) by Region (2013-2018) Chapter 4 Global Oral Hygiene Products Supply (Production), Consumption, Export, Import by Region (2013-2018) Chapter 5 Global Oral Hygiene Products Production, Revenue (Value), Price Trend by Type Chapter 6 Global Oral Hygiene Products Market Analysis by Application Chapter 7 Global Oral Hygiene Products Manufacturers Profiles/Analysis Chapter 8 Oral Hygiene Products Manufacturing Cost Analysis Chapter 9 Industrial Chain, Sourcing Strategy and Downstream Buyers Chapter 10 Marketing Strategy Analysis, Distributors/Traders Chapter 11 Market Effect Factors Analysis Chapter 12 Global Oral Hygiene Products Market Forecast (2018-2025) Chapter 13 Research Findings and Conclusion Chapter 14 AppendixKey Reasons to Purchase: To gain insightful analyses of the market and have a comprehensive understanding of the Global Oral Hygiene Products Industry Analysis and Forecast 2018-2023 and its commercial landscape. Learn about the market strategies that are being adopted by your competitors and leading organizations. To understand the future outlook and prospects for Oral Hygiene Products market analysis and forecast 2018-2023.Customization of the Report:UpMarketResearch provides free customization of reports as per your need. This report can be personalized to meet your requirements. Get in touch with our sales team, who will guarantee you to get a report that suits your necessities.Grab Special Discount : https://www.upmarketresearch.com/home/request_for_discount/47052You can also ask for region wise market research report, as below: Oral Hygiene Products-Global Market Status & Trend Report 2013-2023 Top 20 Countries Data Oral Hygiene Products-North America Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-South America Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-Europe Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-EMEA Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-Asia Pacific Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-China Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-India Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023 Oral Hygiene Products-United States Market Status and Trend Report 2013-2023In this study, the years considered to estimate the market size of Oral Hygiene Products are as follows: History Year: 2013-2017 Base Year: 2017 Estimated Year: 2018 Forecast Year 2018 to 2025About UpMarketResearch:The UpMarketResearch () is a leading distributor of market research report with more than 800+ global clients. As a market research company, we take pride in equipping our clients with insights and data that holds the power to truly make a difference to their business. Our mission is singular and well-defined we want to help our clients envisage their business environment so that they are able to make informed, strategic and therefore successful decisions for themselves.Contact Info:Name: Alex MathewsEmail: alex@upmarketresearch.comOrganization: UpMarketResearchAddress: 500, East E Street, Ontario, CA 91764, United States. Joe Zhou B. G., Opalesque Geneva: One of the many topics discussed during the recent Opalesque Roundtable in Hong Kong was whether globalisation is dead, still alive or just morphing into a different form. China is indeed a key partner in the globalisation theme and would be among the first countries to see any changes in its form. Changes in globalisation have already been announced by Klaus Schwab, founder of the World Economic Forum, who said that Globalisation 4.0 had only just began. Meanwhile, the US and China are working on a new trade deal, with a deadline for an agreement set on March 2. No Cold War "If we look at what has changed and sum it up in one sentence, I would say that what we are looking at and dealing with is the unwinding of globalisation to some extent," says Joe Zhou, CIO at Ortus Capital, during the Roundtable. So he is looking at strategies that can take advantage of the growing economic divergence. If one believes globalisation is dead, then Asia would remain chronically cheap, according to Brian Quartarolo, CIO at Anahata Capital. "There simply won't be a bounce in Asian assets in 2019 unless investors change their view about globalization," he says. "I don't know whether the globalization that has served us so well, particularly here in the regio...................... To view our full article Click here Uddhav Thackeray slams govt says now even Ram Temple promise also a 'jumla' India oi-Madhuri Adnal Mumbai, Jan 13: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday addressed party workers and leaders to set the tone for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. He asked the BJP as to how Ram temple can be built when its allies Nitish Kumar of JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of LJP are opposing it. While addressing Thackeray said,''They say Congress comes in between when Ram Mandir issue comes up. Just because Congress comes in the middle, people punished them by taking away the majority & giving you the power. However, we don't see any Ram Mandir built by you so far.'' Thackeray also slammed the BJP over Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath's remarks on Lord Hanuman, saying that had the caste of any other religion discussed, it would have become a big issue. ''Why is Lord Hanuman's caste being discussed? If any other religions' castes are discussed, it will be made a huge issue, but it's okay to discuss Lord Hanuman's caste. How sad it is,'' he said. Why doesn't the Shiv Sena quit the NDA asks RSS backed paper The Shiv Sena also took a dig at Modi's promise of depositing Rs 15 lakh into every citizen's bank account calling it a 'jumla', asking how people can trust the party if they making the issue of Ram temple a 'jumla' too. "Rs 15 lakh in accounts was a 'jumla' and now even this (Ram Temple) is a jumla? When we went to Ayodhya, people said,"ye to Bal Saheb ka ladka aaya hai, ye to Ram Mandir banake hi jayega". If you're making this issue also a jumla, how can you expect people to trust you?" he asked. Thackeray also criticised the Quota Bill, he said,''If you really want to help financially weaker section, then why don't you exempt those below 8 lakhs per annum income from paying taxes? You have given reservations but have you calculated or considered the actual way of implementing reservations?.'' The Shiv Sena on Saturday targeted the Narendra Modi-government after the reinstated CBI director Alok Verma resigned. The Sena called the ouster of Verma as a panic reaction by the Central government that is facing allegation in the Rafale fighter jet deal. In an editorial titled 'the end of CBI' in party mouthpiece Saamana, the Sena said that the government has set "wrong precedents" by denying Verma an opportunity to defend himself. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 15:17 [IST] This woman is surviving on only tea for the past 30 years and she's healthy India oi-Madhuri Adnal Raipur, Jan 13: Who doesn't love tea? There are many i know who is a chai lover! But to have tea and only tea for breakfast, lunch and dinner probably not a healthy idea. However, there's someone who does that and has been surviving on tea for the past 30 years. This Chhattisgarh's 'Chai Wali Chachi' has been surviving on tea for more than 30 years now. And what's more interesting here is, she is said to be "completely healthy". Living in Baradiya village of Koriya district, Pilli Devi gave up food at the age of 11 and has been surviving on tea ever since. Famous for her unique lifestyle, she is locally known as ''chai wali chachi.'' According to her father Rati Ram, the 44-year-old quit food when she was in the sixth grade. "Our daughter went to participate in a district level tournament from Patna School in Janakpur, Koriya District. When she returned, she suddenly gave up eating food and drinking water." He also added that Pilli Devi initially took biscuits and bread with milk tea, but she gradually switched to black tea, which she consumes once a day after sunset. According to her family members, Pilli Devi rarely steps out of the house. She is absorbed in Lord Shiva's worship throughout the day. Well, whatever it is, that's just too much love for tea, also nothing short of an obsession. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 15:23 [IST] How the Indian Army is helping in the fight against COVID-19 The killing of Kashmirs most dangerous terrorist Zeenat Ul Islam India oi-Vicky Nanjappa Srinagar, Jan 13: He has been part of many lists and was categorised as a Grade A++ terrorist. Zeenat Ul Islam, the dreaded terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, an Al Badr commander was killed by security forces on Saturday. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Katpora area in south Kashmir's Kulgam district last evening after receiving specific information about the presence of militants there, a police official said. As the forces were conducting the searches, the militants fired upon them. The forces retaliated, ensuing an encounter in which two militants were killed, he said. Thwarted thrice by Indian agencies: When the Indian Mujahideen almost returned Arms and ammunition were recovered from the encounter site, the official said, adding that no collateral damage has been reported. One of them was identified as dreaded militant Zeenat-ul-Islam, who was associated with the terror group Al Badr, the official said, adding that the identity of the second militant is being ascertained. Zeenat, considered as an Improvised explosive device (IED) expert, was earlier associated with another militant group Hizbul Mujahideen, the official said. Security forces say that the killing of Islam, who has been giving them the slip for over two years now would greatly weaken the outfit. He was one of the most dangerous terrorists in Kashmir, officials also say. J&K: 260 terrorists gunned down as 100 security personnel made supreme sacrifice Islam went by the alias Usman. He hailed from Shopian in south Kashmir and was responsible for several attacks and also recruitments. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 8:24 [IST] SP-BSP alliance: Strategically a good move but it will face these 5 challenges as well India oi-Shubham Ghosh New Delhi, Jan 12: Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) - the two regional powerhouses in Uttar Pradesh have decided to enter a pre-poll alliance ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha election. The two parties have a mixed bag of experience over allying with each other. While their tie-up in 1993 had ended up in a sour taste in the mouth of BSP chief Mayawati and she vowed not to entertain the SP again, they successfully defeated the BJP in unison in Gorakhpur and Phulpur Lok Sabha by-elections early last year. Now, the two parties have decided to come together to ensure that the BJP did not run away with the prize in the state like it did in high-profile elections in 2014 and 2017. Mayawati rightly deserves a pat on her back for retaking an initiative to join hands with the next-generation leadership of the SP after her "failed experiment" in the 1990s which incidentally was also to stall the saffron brigade's march at the height of the Ayodhya movement. Samajwadi Party, BSP to hold 20 joint rallies in Uttar Pradesh Strategically, the tie-up is the best recipe the two regional parties could up with to ensure that they reverse the shocking trend of 2014 and 2017 when Cyclone BJP had blown away all the Opposition forces. After the success of the by-election experiment last year, it was not surprising that the two parties would join hands for the big one and especially after the thumping the BJP received in three Hindi heartland states last month. Both the BSP and SP have been gainers from the BJP's loss in those states and they will now be energised to replicate the same in their own turf. The SP, BSP and other parties like the Rashtriya Lok Dal can only hope to see a turnaround from their ordeal of 2014 and 2017 if they come together and ensure a transfer of votes. It is their own disunity in those two years that saw the BJP running away as outright winner because the vote-shares could not be translated into seat-shares the way the local parties would have liked. BSP-SP alliance could face these challenges: would not be without its challenges both from within and externally. Will they cannibalise each other's vote bank? A major challenge for the alliance will be the prospect of cannibalising each other's vote bank. A by-election or two is fine but it is a completely different ball game when the national election is concerned. The SP and BSP are more or less parties with a common vote bank. While Mayawati is a Dalit icon, the SP has a strong following among the backward castes. And the top of it, both parties aim to appease the Muslims and other small castes. The quest to build rainbow social coalitions by both parties could lead to a difficulty in laying down the territory of each. Heavyweight leaders do not always gel well - Bihar has shown in recent past Both parties are big forces in UP and their leaderships harbouring strong ambitions. We have seen in the past how Mayawati has revealed through her action to become the prime minister. Electoral results going against her in the last two major elections might have put a check on her but that could be temporary the moment the Dalit icon finds her feet back on the ground. SP leader Akhilesh Yadav is still young in politics but as a youth leader, he has shown how ruthless he can be when wresting the party's control from his father, the shrewd Mulayam Singh Yadav. The BSP and SP have come together to defeat a common enemy today no doubt, but as we have seen in the neighbouring Bihar, it is not very easy for two heavyweight leaders to continue working with each other for long, even against a common foe. Mayawati - A mysterious leader Mayawati as a leader has always been a mystery for her allies. She had left an alliance with the SP in the mid-1990s to join the BJP to become UP's first Dalit chief minister. Recently, she extended support to Congress in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan after initial attacks but again threatened to dump the Grand Old Party-led governments if cases failed against Dalits during the recent Bharat Bandh in April were not withdrawn. It is very difficult to presume which way Mayawati will go and depending on the results of the Lok Sabha election, she might conceive fresh ideas to cater to her own political ambitions. Leaders and candidates will be disgruntled Electorally, the alliance could see a challenge in ticket distribution. Since both the SP and BSP are established players in UP politics, compromising on the number of seats could see both of them left with the tough task of pacifying disgruntled leaders and candidates. That could even see other outfits like Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party led by Akhilesh's uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav reaping a benefit by engineering fissure within the SP. BSP chief Mayawati likely to contest Lok Sabha elections from Nagina constituency The Congress factor: Amid the tie-up, Mayawati has spoken straight that the Congress is not welcome in it. She refused to see any difference between the Congress and BJP and added that alliance with the Congress didn't help them in the past for its votes don't get transferred. The message is clear: The UP heavyweights are not convinced about the Congress's electoral power anymore and consider it more as a baggage even after it won three states recently. This could be an interesting development in the national politics in the days to come for with leaders like Mayawati, Akhilesh and Mamata Banerjee not showing much confidence in Congress president Rahul Gandhi, the Grand Old Party's presence in the anti-BJP front could be under question and that could make the very idea of the pan-India opposition to Prime Minister Narendra Modi scattered and unappealing for the voters. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 9:41 [IST] If vaccines are free, why should private hospitals charge for them: Rahul to PM Modi Will fight with full capacity in UP: Rahul after SP-BSP's snub India oi-Deepika S Dubai, Jan 12: On a day when the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) decided to exclude the Congress from their pre-poll alliance for the Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said he will not be disappointed as long as they manage to overthrow the BJP. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said that the leaders of the two parties "have a right to do what they want to do". "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. BSP, SP to contest on 38 seats, Amethi and Rae Bareli for Congress: Mayawati "Congress party has tremendous to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh... I have tremendous respect for the leaders of BSP and SP, they have a right to do what they want to do," he added. Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. As the announcement came, the Congress prepared to go alone in the elections. However, the possibility of it taking like-minded smaller political groups along could not be ruled out. Perhaps this isn't the last word: Chidambaram on SP-BSP alliance A meeting of senior party leaders, office bearers and district and city unit chiefs has been convened in Lucknow on Sunday to give a final shape to the poll strategy and Rahul Gandhi's tour programme across the state in next few weeks. "The Congress president's state tour will begin later this month. We are requesting him to begin from Lucknow and cover the entire state by next month. We discussed this with leaders of west UP on Friday and others have been called to Lucknow on Sunday," said a senior party leader on condition of anonymity as Congress general secretary (incharge UP) Ghulam Nabi Azad will officially speak on the party's view on the alliance and Rahul Gandhi's proposed tour programmes soon. At G7 summit, PM Modi's call for patent waiver on Covid vaccines gets widespread support Fake: PM Modi did not change attire four times in a day to meet four different leaders PM Modi to deliver Keynote address at the 5th edition of VivaTech 2021 tomorrow Modi releases commemorative coin on Guru Gobind Singh India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Jan 13: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday released a commemorative coin on Guru Gobind Singh to mark the birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh Guru. The Prime Minister will also address a select gathering on the occasion at his residence, a statement from his office said. PM Modi had attended 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh in Patna on January 5, 2017. He had also released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the occasion. Opposition wants a 'majboor' govt, we will provide a 'mazboot' one: PM Modi In his address, the Prime Minister had underlined how Guru Gobind Singh made a unique attempt to unite the country through the Khalsa sect. Later in the day, PM Modi will BJP workers of five districts in Tamil Nadu - Mayiladuthurai, Perambalur, Sivaganga, Theni and Virudhunagar - through video conferencing. Makar Sankranti 2019: History and importance of Makar Sankranti in India India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Jan 13: The vibrant festival of Makar Sankranti 2019 is here. The festival that marks the beginning of a new season or called Maghi in the Hindu calendar, is all about celebrating with your family and friends flying kites and munching on some amazing delicacies. The festival of Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on January 15, 2019. The day is dedicated to Lord Surya where devotees take a dip in the river Ganges. It is also called the festival of harvest where especially farmers celebrate with full pomp and show. Makar Sankranti is celebrated in different parts of the country with great fanfare. History of Makar Sankranti: Marking the onset of summer and the six months long auspicious period for Hindus known as Uttaarayan, this festival is observed according to the solar cycles. The festivities associated with the day is celebrated by different names in different parts of the country - Lohri in North India, Sukarat in Central India, Bihu in Assam, Pongal in Tamil Nadu and Makar Sankranti in Bengal, Bihar, Odisha and the neighbouring regions, and celebrates the harvest season. On the day of Makar Sankranti, various spiritual practices are observed. It is common for people to take a holy dip in rivers and it is generally believed that doing so would absolve them of their past sins. Importance of Makar Sankranti 2019: Thanking the Almighty for a good harvest and seeking his blessings for the future, people prepare and indulge in a lot of delicacies - sticky sweets made of jaggery and sesame, patishaptas, jaggery and rice pudding, among others. People spend the day with each other, singing traditional folk songs and dancing. In the evening, they light a bonfire and prepare sumptuous meals to be enjoyed together. Happy Makar Sankranti 2019! For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 16:34 [IST] Lohri 2019: Date, history and significance of this festival India oi-Madhuri Adnal New Delhi, Jan 13: Lohri 2019, the Punjabi harvest festival, falls on January 13, Sunday, this year. It is a celebration of the winter crop season. Sun deity, surya, is also remembered on this day. In north India, Lohri is as old as that of the story of Indus Valley civilization itself. Lohri is observed just a night before Makar Sankranti, a festival that marks the end of the month with the winter solstice and beginning of longer days. History of Lohri 2019 The origin of Lohri is believed to date back to the Indus Valley Civilisation. Since northern India and Pakistan came under the Indus Valley Civilisation, Lohri is celebrated here with much pomp and show. In other parts of the country, it is observed by different names, like Pongal in Tamil Nadu, Makar Sankranti in Bengal, Bihu in Assam and Tai Pongal in Kerala. Importance and Significance of Lohri 2019 The festival Lohri signifies the harvesting of the Rabi crops. In Punjab and Haryana, harvested fields and front yards are set up on flames as bonfires, around which people gather to meet friends and relatives and sing folk songs. For Punjabis, this is more than just a festival; Lohri celebrates fertility and the joy of family and life. In the morning, children go from door to door singing songs in praise of Dulha Bhatti and are usually offered money and sweets. In the evening, people gather around bonfires, throw sweets, puffed rice, and popcorn into the flames, sing popular folk songs and exchange greetings. Have a blessed lohri 2019! For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 10:05 [IST] Civic polls in Jammu and Kashmir to be held in September this year I speak extempore, I am from a political background: J&K Governor India oi-Oneindia Staff By Anuj Cariappa Jammu, Jan 13: Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik said Indian forces are giving a befitting response to Pakistan which is "frustrated" because it is not able to push "infiltrators". Malik expressed happiness over the successful conduct of Panchayat elections in the state and said despite attempts by Pakistan and terrorists to vitiate the atmosphere here there is complete peace in the valley. "Our forces are responding appropriately to any provocation but the news does not come here. Pakistan is frustrated because it is not able to push infiltrators. It (Pakistan) was against the Panchayat polls and is unhappy over its successful conclusion," Malik told reporters on the sidelines of a function here. Shah Faesal could have served society better as an IAS officer: Satya Pal Malik Speaking on the martyrdom of an Army Major and a Soldier in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosion along the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district on Friday, the governor said such acts demonstrate Pakistan's frustration. "Frustrated Sallahuddin (Supremo of Hizbul Mujahideen in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir) asked terrorists to do something but they failed as the forces with the help of people, who are supporting us, foiled their plans. There is complete peace in the valley," he said. On the resignation of IAS officer Shah Faesal and his plan to join politics, the governor said had Faesal continued in government service it would have been good as he had taken the oath of service. However, the governor wished Faesal well. On the rehabilitation of Kashmiri pandits in the valley, Malik said the government is concerned about them but did not elaborate any further. Earlier in the day, the governor paid rich tributes to Swami Vivekananda on the Hindu monk's 156th birth anniversary at a function organised by Swami Vivekananda Medical Mission Charitable Hospital, Jammu. He asked the people to learn from the teachings of Vivekananda and work for the betterment of society. The country's rich indulge in extravagant weddings without a thought to the poor or any charitable work, Malik said. He also expressed shock over reports of some sadhus committing heinous crimes. "My problem is that I am from a political background and in politics one is free to say anything. But my position does not allow me to speak freely and mostly the governor's read from the written speeches. I do not like that and speak extempore with conviction and experience of about 50 years in politics," he said. J&K Gov briefed about security situation On the day, the governor inaugurated a newly constructed ENT block with an independent 'eye and ENT operation theatre' in the hospital premises. General Secretary of SVMMCH Atma Sarup Gupta said the hospital had treated 72,894 patients last year compared to 61,641 in the year previous to that. He said the hospital has conducted 1,969 surgeries in 2018 against 1,760 in 2017. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 8:58 [IST] Govt to construct 'strategically important' roads along India-China border India pti-PTI New Delhi, Jan 13: The government will construct 44 strategic roads along the border with China and over 2100 km of axial and lateral roads in Punjab and Rajasthan, abutting Pakistan, a CPWD document shows. According to an annual report (2018-19) prepared, and released earlier this month by the Central Public Works Department, the agency has been asked to construct 44 "strategically important" roads along the India-China border to ensure quick mobilisation of troops in case of a conflict. The nearly 4000-km-long Line of Actual Control between India and China touches areas from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh The report comes at a time China is giving a priority to projects along its India borders. In 2017, Indian and Chinese troops engaged in a face-off at the Doklam tri-junction after the neighbouring country had begun building road in the area. The standoff ended on August 28 following a mutual agreement under which China stopped the construction of the road and India withdrew its troops. The report stated that these 44 strategically road along the India-China border will be constructed at a cost of nearly Rs 21,000 crore. "The CPWD has been entrusted with construction of 44 strategically important roads along the Indo-China Border spanning 5 states of J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh," the report stated. "The total Cost of work as per DPRs (Detailed Project Reports) is Rs 21,040 crores (approx.)," the report stated It said the process of approval of DPRs by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is underway. The CPWD report also stated that lateral and axial roads measuring over 2,100 kilometers will be built with a cost of around Rs 5,400 crore in Rajasthan and Punjab along the Indo-Pakistan border. The DPRs for this project are under preparation in CPWD, which is a major construction agency of the central government. "A total of 945 km of lateral roads and 533 km of axial roads lie in Rajasthan (tentative cost Rs 3,700 crores) and 482 km of lateral roads and 219 km of axial roads in Punjab (tentative cost Rs 1,750 crores)," it stated. The road projects will secure the vast and remote border areas of Rajasthan and Punjab, it stated. India's border with Pakistan runs through four states, Jammu and Kashmir (1,225 km, which includes 740 km of Line of Control), Rajasthan (1,037 km), Punjab (553 km) and Gujarat (508 km). PTI Drishyam inspired murder of Congress worker in Indore; 5 including a BJP worker arrested India oi-Vikas SV Bhopal, Jan 13: Inspired by the 2015 Bollywood film ''Drishyam'', five persons, including a BJP leader and his three sons, allegedly murdered a 22-year-old woman Congress worker who had gone missing for the past two years. The killers were inspired by the Hindi film Drishyam, in which the police are misled by a killer who plants a dog's body in a place where the police expect to find human remains. "We used Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature test for interrogation. Police had received information that they had buried something near crime spot. This info was leaked on purpose. Police found remains of a dog after digging the spot," said DIG Indore Harinarayanchari Mishra. "Accused called Municipal Corporation to dig a pit on a plot of land they owned, claiming they need to bury a dog. They burnt victim's body there and threw remains in nearby sewage. 2-3 days after crime, they tried to generate location of victim's phone to create confusion," he added. Indore Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra told reporters that BJP leader Jagdish Karotiya alias Kallu Pahlwan (65), his three sons Ajay (36), Vijay (38), Vinay (31) and their associate Neelesh Kashyap (28) were arrested in connection with the murder of Twinkle Dagre (22), a resident of Banganga area. He said Ms Dagre was allegedly having a relationship with Jagdish Karotiya and this was causing trouble in the latter's family as the woman wanted to stay with him. "Accused mentioned that they had watched Hindi movie 'Drishyam', and inspired from that,spread rumour about burial of a dog. Jagdeesh Karotia had relations with the victim. His name was tattoed on victim's arm. This led to dispute at accused's home and so he planned her murder," the DIG Indore said. The DIG said police recovered a bracelet and other ornaments from the place where the woman's body was burnt, following which the five were arrested. Mishra said a scientific approach was adopted in order to solve the case and Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature (BEOS) test was conducted on Karotiya and his two sons in a Gujarat laboratory. This was the first time the BEOS test was conducted in a criminal incident in Indore, he claimed. BEOS profiling is a non-invasive, neuro-psychological technique of interrogation, sometimes referred to as ''brain fingerprinting'', in which a suspect''s participation in a crime is detected by eliciting electrophysiological impulses. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 17:25 [IST] CVC set to probe corruption allegations against ousted CBI chief, Verma India oi-Vicky Nanjappa New Delhi, Jan 13: The CBI is likely to file a corruption case against Alok Verma, who was removed as the director of the agency by the high powered committee. The Central Vigilance Commission has asked the CBI to hand over documents relating to six cases where Verma has been accused of wrong doing. Sources tell OneIndia that the CVC asked the CBI to submit documents of several cases including documents pertaining to the probe into the leakage of information in the Nirav Modi case. CBI mess to get messier: Two more officers likely to approach SC The CVC would also look into the diluting of the Look out Circular in the IDBI Bank fraud case. Cases relating to the National Rural Health Mission scam would also be looked into, the source said. Last week after being reinstated by the Supreme Court, Verma was removed as the CBI chief by a high powered committee headed by the Prime Minister. In another development, the Delhi High Court while rejecting special director, Rakesh Asthana's petition had directed the CBI to probe corruption allegations against him within 10 days. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 8:35 [IST] Congress to fight all 80 seats in UP alone, says SP-BSP "closed the chapter" India oi-Vikas SV Lucknow, Jan 13: A day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) snubbed the Congress, and forged a pre-poll alliance for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the grand old party on Sunday said it would fight on all the 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh. Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said that they were always open for talks on the alliance, but, he added, "they (SP-BSP) closed this chapter". BSP chief Mayawati and SP president Akhilesh Singh Yadav yesterday announced that their parties would contest 38 seats each in Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming 2019 Lok Sabha elections and leave out two seats - Amethi and Rae Bareily - for the Congress. "We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like Congress emerged the number 1 party in Uttar Pradesh in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, we'll fight on our own and win twice the number of seats in the upcoming elections," senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said at a press conference in Lucknow. Azad said, "We didn't break this alliance", while responding to a question on Congress' alliance with the Samajwadi Party for the 2017 UP assembly elections. [SP-BSP alliance: Strategically a good move but it will face these 5 challenges as well] "We didn't break this alliance, people should know that. We had said earlier too that we're ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we can't force anyone. They've (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so we'll continue this fight for defeating BJP on our own," he added. [Shivpal Yadav dubs SP-BSP tie up 'alliance of thugs', may support Congress] Politically, Uttar Pradesh is a significant state as it sends maximum number of MPs to Parliament. In 2014 general elections, the BJP had won 71 seats in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress had won two seats while SP won five. The BSP drew a blank. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 19:25 [IST] J&K: People joining terror ranks increases, but their shelf life has drastically decreased No avail! Indian security forces foil attempts by Pakistan to revive terror Terror module that received arms dropped off by Pakistan drones busted 30 grenades recovered from forest in Jharkhand India oi-Oneindia Staff By Anuj Cariappa Latehar, Jan 13: Security forces recovered 30 locally manufactured hand grenades and nine kg of explosive substances from a forest in Latehar district, police said. The explosives were recovered from the Kumandih forest during a search operation on Friday, the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Latehar district, Prasant Anand, said. A total of 140 partly-manufactured hand grenades and materials for making grenades were also recovered, the SP said. J&K: Terrorists hurl grenade, fire at security forces Meanwhile, the security forces and the Maoists exchanged gunfire in the forests of Pirtand in Giridih district, the police said. There was no report of any casualty, they said. Acting on a tip-off that Maoists were hiding in the forests, the 154 Battalion of the CRPF and district police forces headed by Superintendent of Police Surendra Jha surrounded the forests and launched a search operation. On sighting the security forces, the Maoists opened fire and fled when police retaliated. J&K: Terrorists hurl grenade at CRPF party, three injured The search operation is still on, a senior police officer said. In another incident in Palamau district, a Maoist was arrested on Saturday, a police officer said. For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Sunday, January 13, 2019, 9:04 [IST] The heavy, wet snow of this weekends storm caused some problems for travelers in the Omaha area and across southeastern Nebraska, but it was just right for the kids. Snow accumulations in the Omaha metro area generally ranged from 2.5 inches to 4.5 inches, but measured as high as 6 inches in Papillion and 5 inches at Offutt Air Force Base, the National Weather Service said. Locations farther south got even more snow as much as 14 inches at Sterling, in southeast Nebraskas Johnson County. Lincoln snow totals ranged from about 4 to 6 inches. Other Nebraska totals reported to the weather service: 13 inches northwest of Nebraska City; 10 inches at Nebraska City; 9 inches at Firth and Dunbar; 8.5 inches at Panama; 8 inches at Cortland, Villisca, Swanton, Fairbury and Palmyra; and 2 inches at the weather service office in Valley. In the Omaha area, the snowfall began Friday evening, but the warmer ground initially melted it, weather service meteorologist David Eastlack said. The rest of the weekend in Omaha should bring somewhat higher temperatures, with Sundays highs reaching the low to mid-30s and Mondays reaching the upper 30s. In 1949, long before he changed the way America watched late-night television, Johnny Carson earned a degree in radio and speech from the University of Nebraska. Some 70 years later, Carsons legacy on campus endures. It seems fitting that the boy whose first gig was a magic show for the Norfolk Kiwanis Club later gave his alma mater an intimate 216-seat black box theater, which was named in his honor. The Johnny Carson Theater is situated on the west side of the Lied Center for Performing Arts. Thanks to his generosity, its just one of many places across campus, including the Johnny Carson School of Theatre and Film and the Johnny Carson Center for Emerging Media Arts, that can proclaim, Heres Johnny! Another pro tip for getting what you want: Dont loudly and publicly take personal responsibility for negative consequences that would result from a breakdown of negotiations. With television cameras running, Trump boasted that everyone should blame him for a shutdown. Polls show this is exactly what the public has done, and Trumps numbers will surely get worse as the effects of the shutdown on families and communities become more dire. The Democratic proposal fund the government while continuing to debate border security and the wall is eminently reasonable. But Trump is scared. He went back on the original deal after the far-right commentariat went ballistic. The president must realize that having failed to get funding for the wall when his party had control of both chambers of Congress, he is less likely to get it following a blue-wave midterm election that gave Democrats the House. But Trump doesnt want Limbaugh, Coulter, et al., wailing to his base that their hero has surrendered to the snowflakes and given up on the wall, which from the beginning was more of a rallying cry than a serious proposal. Trumps approval numbers have always been underwater, but as long as he retains overwhelming support among Republicans, he can expect GOP senators to worry that crossing him would amount to political suicide. SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO With Lin-Manuel Miranda once again as its star, the Broadway hit Hamilton opened for business in Puerto Rico this weekend that business being the bolstering of the hopes and finances of a beleaguered U.S. territory mired in debt and still reeling from the devastation wreaked 16 months ago by Hurricane Maria. The first performance of the Tony-winning musical was Friday night at the Centro de Bellas Artes in the heart of the islands capital city. Here was a show arriving not merely to entertain, but also to serve a humanitarian mission: raising money for the relief effort. But the quest was also to draw the worlds attention to an American outpost that has long felt neglected by the country that owns it, and especially so in the aftermath of a disaster that traumatized the island. China will support countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to set up offshore renminbi markets as part of a string of measures to facilitate cross-border financial innovation. ASEAN insurers are welcome to set up branches and do business in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, which is expected to become a financial cooperation gateway to the region in about five years, according to a plan released Friday by the country's central bank and other 12 departments. Guangxi adjoins the ASEAN region and has close cultural and commercial ties with the association's members. The plan encourages banks in Guangxi to expand law-abiding business in ASEAN markets, and qualified overseas strategic investors to partner with Guangxi financial institutions in equity. Support will be offered to build a bilateral spot commodity trading center and a logistics center, as well as a financial information database. The government will roll out policies to help attract more financial professionals into Guangxi, the plan said. The World-Herald creates lots of important journalism stories, photos, video that is both timely and compelling. But we also know our readers are busy. Here is a convenient roundup of some of our best work from the last several days that's worth checking out. * * * The World-Herald recently looked into the roots of the massive $771 million shortfall in the troubled OPS pension fund, and here's what we found out. OPS's $771 million pension shortfall a product of 'mind-boggling' mistakes, World-Herald investigation shows As the nation fell deep into the Great Recession in 2008, Omahas Warren Buffett urged calm, assuring Americans that blue-chip companies plunging stocks were sure to eventually ride high again. But the trustees and administrator overseeing the Omaha Public Schools pension fund didnt listen to the hometown investment sage. * * * Looking for something new to watch on TV? Here are are the 18 shows most worth checking out through March, followed by a calendar of premiere dates. * * * On the one hand, Louise Vinciquerra, Omaha's "bootlegging queen," is an example of a powerful, courageous woman living at a time when women were often marginalized. On the other, she was a ruthless outlaw. The action-packed story of Omaha's 'bootlegging queen' Omahan Louise Vinciquerra "made her own rules at a time when the rules were very strict for women. She was an awesome and terrible person. * * * They just dont make buildings like this anymore. Its an amazing piece of Omaha history that still can be saved. * * * State Sen. Carol Blood, who introduced the bill, is a vegetarian herself and says she doesnt want to discourage people from eating plant-based foods. Rather, she says, she seeks to protect Nebraskas livestock industry. A similar measure passed in Missouri was immediately challenged in court. UNO expert gives talk about beauty of aging University of Nebraska at Omaha gerontology expert Julie Masters will address the beauty of aging on Jan. 28. Her talk, in Rooms 230 and 231 of the Weitz Community Engagement Center at UNO, starts at 6 p.m. The discussion, part of UNOs Curious People series, will last about an hour. It is free and open to the public. There will be free parking at the center. Masters is chairwoman of UNOs department of gerontology. She teaches on the Omaha and Lincoln campuses. She believes that in the 21st century, a more open view of the aging experience is necessary. She aims to help people see the purpose of aging. Metro hosts open house to show off new campus Metro Community College will show off its South Omaha campus at an open house on Jan. 26. The event will last from 10 a.m. to noon. Visitors can learn about financial aid, scholarships and academic programs. A tour will be included. Attendees will have a chance to win prizes, one of which will be a free class that will provide 4.5 credit hours. How do the finances of OSERS work? OSERS is a defined benefit pension plan, meaning that the district promises vested members a specified monthly payment for life upon retirement, with the payment determined by a formula that takes into account earnings history and years of service. The financial success of the plan for years allowed OSERS to offer more generous benefits than the state teachers plan. Benefits have since been scaled back by the Legislature to more closely conform with the state plan, though those already in the system at the time of the changes continue to receive the enhanced benefits. The average monthly retirement benefit in 2017 was $1,720. All OPS employees pay nearly 10 percent of their gross salary into the fund, a figure which is essentially matched by the district. The state in recent years has also kicked in a small amount, equal to 2 percent of annual payroll. The money in the trust fund currently nearly $1.3 billion is held and invested. The return on those investments, plus the money paid in annually, are supposed to be enough to pay promised benefits into the future. Can OSERS meet its obligations? Kim had opponents for the first time in the World Bank selection process, said Scott Morris, senior fellow at the Center for Global Development and former deputy assistant secretary for development finance and debt at the Treasury Department. I have no reason to think that wont be the case this time, Morris said. This is not 1944, where the U.S. is sort of the acknowledged architect, financier and no question the leading power in this institution. It really is seen as a global institution today, with a global membership, he said. And it becomes more and more frustrating to have this unbroken chain of American presidents, Morris added. Keeping the World Bank presidency in American hands may be even tougher given the Trump administrations rocky relations with some European allies. I think its going to be a fight, said Clay Lowery of Rock Creek Advisors, who served as assistant treasury secretary for international affairs under President George W. Bush. Its going to be a lot harder to get the Europeans to sign off this time. Suh added that the vehicles usefulness wouldnt be limited to emergency situations. For people living with disabilities without access to an ADA ramp, the statement said, an autonomous version of the Elevate could walk to a front door and position itself so that a wheelchair could roll right in. How realistic is the Elevate concept? David Bailey, a professor at Aston Business School in England, told the BBC that although concept cars may not make it to the factory floor, they can help generate valuable new ideas. For most of us, its going to be wheels and roads, but in extreme situations there may be scope for this sort of thing, Bailey said. There may well be applications in terms of emergency services but there are very big technological challenges to make this sort of thing. Hyundais vision is undeniably ambitious. The company said it envisions being able to switch out different Elevate body types for different situations. The vehicle is designed to utilize both mammalian and reptilian walking gaits, giving it the ability to travel in any direction, the company said, noting that the legs fold up into a stowed drive-mode to save power. MaKenzie didn't stop loving school because of the lockdowns, but she did think about them often. About how upsetting it was that they had interrupted her time to learn new words and different ways to add up numbers. About how scared she'd felt when some of the kids wouldn't stop making noise and how her teacher had offered them Smarties if they could just stay quiet for a little longer. She'd also become wary of recess on the playground, where games of tag and climbs across the monkey bars had once been among the highlights of her days. "Until the lockdowns happened," MaKenzie said. "I don't want to be outside because what if someone was shooting and we had to leave and we were too late and everybody got hurt?" No district is exempt from the fallout of lockdowns, regardless of demographics or affluence, location or security. School systems in every state and the District of Columbia had several last school year, The Post's analysis found, and they happened in buildings with as few as four students and as many as 5,000. While various threats, sometimes referencing bombs, accounted for 15 percent of lockdowns, and police manhunts near campuses made up a similar share, at least 61 percent of lockdowns were related to firearms. Target-rich environments, Desler says. No one knows exactly why Omaha had a rash of car thefts in 2016 and 2017, when our city twice cracked the top 20 in most cars stolen per capita in the countrys 100 biggest metro areas. I heard at least three theories: Omahans are too trusting, and thus too many of us leave our cars unlocked. This grows exponentially worse in the winter, when it gets cold out and people start their cars outside and leave them unattended as they warm. In December, one out of every three cars taken had the keys left inside of them or in the ignition, Desler said. Of the first 30 cars stolen in January, 12 had the keys in them. It can be a crime of opportunity, says Ryan Spohn, a University of Nebraska at Omaha criminology professor and director of the Nebraska Center for Justice Research. You see them running on cold days, you can see the exhaust pouring out of a running vehicle from a block away. They really are good targets. Just lock your car, Desler said. You are here: Business China's auto market is expected to advance at a slow pace in 2019 as mild economic expansion might weigh upon big-ticket item consumption. About 28 million cars are likely to be sold in 2019, remaining flat with 2018, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). Commercial vehicles sales might edge up one percent year on year to reach 4.4 million units, while new energy vehicles sales are expected to register a fast clip at 33 percent year on year to reach about 1.6 million. Structural changes of the auto market are likely to pick up, with middle and high-end cars, SUVs, and new energy vehicles posting faster expansion, according to Shi Jianhua, deputy secretary with CAAM. Data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers showed that passenger vehicles sales totaled 22.35 million in 2018, down 5.8 percent year on year, the first negative growth for the market registered in 28 years. Shi said China's auto market still poses ample growth market as car ownership is still low compared with the average global level. You are here: Business China's e-commerce giant Alibaba said it piloted e-commerce programs in more than 600 poor villages last year, turning them into "Taobao Villages." The Taobao Villages are rural e-commerce hubs that feature Alibaba's logistics, service and training to encourage farmers to engage in online sales of farm produce and local specialties. To be nominated as a Taobao Village, Alibaba requires total annual e-commerce transactions of over 10 million yuan (about 1.5 million U.S. dollars) and more than 100 online stores located in the village. The move is part of the company's campaign to contribute to the country's ongoing poverty relief efforts. The national-level impoverished counties in China registered a total sales volume of over 63 billion yuan on Alibaba's e-commerce platforms last year, according to a report released by the company on the sideline of a conference held in Shijiazhuang, capital of northern China's Hebei Province. Alibaba's affiliate Ant Financial Services Group provided over 100 billion yuan in loans to more than two million users in the country's poverty-stricken counties. "More than 1,000 Alibaba employees took part in poverty relief projects and visited over 100 poor counties last year," said Shao Xiaofeng, secretary-general of the Alibaba Poverty Relief Fund. The fund was set up by Alibaba in December 2017 with a commitment to invest 10 billion yuan over the following five years in poverty alleviation programs covering the fields of education, e-commerce, health, empowering women and environmental protection. China is committed to lifting its entire poor rural population out of poverty by 2020. Over 60,000 private enterprises including Alibaba have taken part in the poverty relief campaign, named "10,000 enterprises assisting 10,000 villages," since it began in October 2015. A number of patients and staff were evacuated from a ward at Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore on Sunday, January 14, following a fire. A spokesperson confirmed to the Offaly Express that tlat approximately 4pm on Sunday afternoon, a fire evacuation procedure was activated on a ward. The fire was quickly contained to one room, the spokesperson said. The Hospital Fire Safety Procedure was activated, the Fire Brigade were called to assist and the ward was evacuated. "A possible electrical fault has been identified and the Hospital Maintenance Department will carry out further follow up works," they continued. "There is no smoke damage to this ward. The patients have been accommodated in available ward capacity with staff redeployment," the hospital confirmed. Noreen Hynes, General Manager, Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore commented: "I would like to acknowledge the swift response of the ward staff, the Site Manager, the On call Medical Consultant and his team, reception staff, clerical and support staff on duty. All staff worked together to ensure the safety of their colleagues and patients." Editor's note: The Laba Festival, literally meaning the eighth day of the 12th lunar month, is a traditional Chinese holiday and falls on Jan. 13 this year. It is considered a prelude to the Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New Year. China.org.cn presents a collection of photos to celebrate this special day. But what investigators do know is that there is a vehicle missing from the property. The vehicle A vehicle registered to Peay was reported missing from the property, but has not been located by police as of Wednesday. It is described as a two-door silver Honda Accord that had some mechanical issues. If you see the vehicle anywhere that its not supposed to be or period, we would like for someone to call, Taylor said. Any information that the public can give us on this case, we would love to have. We will being working, obviously, around the clock until, hopefully, we get a break in this case. Motive and possible suspects A motive as to why this crime would occur is a little shaky, Taylor said. We really dont know why someone would (do this). At this point, we dont know that he has any enemies or she has any enemies that would come to this type of conclusion, Taylor said. So we dont know, other than the theft of the vehicle, we dont know a whole lot of what the motive could be at this point. Theres just not a lot in their history that says an obvious motive. I talked with State Representative Pebblin Warren (D-Tuskegee) to see how they handle the holiday for other cities, and the majority of the cities dont celebrate it as a holiday, Taylor said. We can choose Dec. 1 to do something at the library in honor of that day. Parks was arrested Dec. 1, 1955, after refusing to give up her seat on a Montgomery bus to a white passenger. Buston elicited the assistance of Auburn city staff to brainstorm ideas, and the city manager presented each option to the council. One of the staff members suggested the possibly of the new outdoor area that is being developed at the current library to be named after Rosa Parks, Buston said. They had some similar ideas of having a special day on Dec. 1 that celebrates her and has programs about her life and history. Another staff member mentioned naming the greenway currently under development around Sam Harris Park after Parks. Perhaps we could consider a day of service as well," Ward 2 Councilman Kelley Griswold said. "We could dedicate a day where the city kind of pours all of its assets into a single focus area and do that on an annual basis." An educational opportunity Idleburg said the appointment is an example of his commitment to diversity, both in terms of race and gender. He said he believes the office still has work to do in terms of having an agency that reflects the makeup of the overall community. JERUSALEM Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel acknowledged on Sunday that Israeli forces had attacked Iranian weapons warehouses in Syria, after years of ambiguity over involvement in specific attacks on the country. We worked with impressive success to block Irans military entrenchment in Syria, Mr. Netanyahu said at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, adding that the Israeli military had struck Iranian and Hezbollah targets hundreds of times. Just in the last 36 hours, the air force attacked Iranian warehouses with Iranian weapons at the international airport in Damascus, Mr. Netanyahu said. The accumulation of recent attacks proves that we are determined more than ever to take action against Iran in Syria, just as we promised. The rare admission came hours after the Israeli military announced that it had exposed the sixth and final tunnel under its border with Lebanon, which it says the Iranian-backed organization Hezbollah dug, wrapping up a six-week operation to seal the cross-border tunnels. ATHENS Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called on Sunday for a vote of confidence in the Greek government, hours after a junior coalition partner announced that he would quit in protest of a deal to end a dispute with Macedonia over its name. The move threw the country into new political turmoil, fueling speculation about possible snap elections, although Mr. Tsipras said his government aimed to complete its term into October. The coalition partner, Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, who is also the leader of the right-wing Independent Greeks party, announced his resignation following talks at the prime ministers residence. The Macedonia name issue does not allow me not to sacrifice my post, the minister told reporters afterward. ANEL is leaving the government, he said, using the Greek acronym for his party. ROME Italy sent an aircraft to Bolivia on Sunday to pick up the fugitive left-wing militant Cesare Battisti, who was captured there over the weekend, nearly three decades after being convicted of murder. Italy has repeatedly sought the extradition of Mr. Battisti, and the developments set the stage for the climax to one of Italys longest-running efforts to bring a fugitive to justice. Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte of Italy said that a government aircraft was expected to land Sunday afternoon in Bolivia. The Foreign Ministry vowed to have Mr. Battisti extradited as quickly as possible. Interior Minister Matteo Salvini called the fugitive a delinquent who doesnt deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison. KABUL, Afghanistan The 14-year-old boy squatted on his haunches on the floor of the prison and, unbidden, began to chant the verses of a Pashto poem in a high, beautiful voice. It was an a cappella elegy in which a prisoner implores his family not to visit him on the Muslim holiday of Eid. And do not come to us for Eid, for we are not free to welcome you. I dont want you to look at my chest, for there are no buttons on my shirt. Dont come to this asylum, for we are all lunatics in here. The boys name was Muslim, and he was among 47 boys being held in the Badam Bagh juvenile detention center in Kabul as national security threats. Most were charged with planting, carrying or wearing bombs, and many of them, like Muslim, were accused of trying to become suicide bombers. None of Muslims family visited him during Eid last summer. They are angry with me, he said. I dont blame them. Schneider said he favors improving border security. While a barrier may be appropriate along some parts of the Mexican border, it may not be the best solution in other areas. Protecting ports of entry like airports, harbors and established border crossings are also important. He wants to hear from security experts so effective legislation can be crafted. QUITO, Ecuador Ecuadors president has vowed that the deaths of 17 people this past week at a drug rehabilitation clinic that was set ablaze by patients trying to escape would not go unpunished. At least 12 others were injured in the fire on Friday after patients set fire to mattresses in an attempt to flee the clinic in Guayaquil, Ecuadors largest city. My fraternal embrace and endearing solidarity with the relatives of the victims of the fatal fire in Guayaquil, President Lenin Moreno posted on Twitter on Friday. We will not allow the death of innocents to remain unpunished. The clinic did not have the required permits, according to Tania Varela, the chief of police in the area of the city where the fire broke out. Such makeshift treatment centers are common in the Andean country. The Guayaquil Fire Department said there was evidence of negligence at the clinic, and the police were seeking the owners and operators of the clinic. We regret the loss of 17 human lives in this tragedy, and we reject the negligence of the owners, the Fire Department said in a statement. Vice President Otto Sonnenholzner said the government would review the rules governing the operation of such rehabilitation clinics. But Mr. Trumps inner circle has shrunk, and he has fewer advisers around him whom he trusts. His White House chief of staff is still serving in an acting capacity, and the West Wing is depleted by the shutdown. As he himself wrote on Twitter this weekend, Theres almost nobody in the W.H. but me. Mr. Surabian said the rest of the party must recognize the threat and rally behind the president. Republicans need to understand that Democrats in Congress, beholden to the resistance, arent interested in bipartisanship, theyre out for blood, he said. Its a war we can win, he added, but only with fortitude, unity, coherent messaging and a willingness to fight back. Democrats, for their part, say they are out for accountability, not blood, intent on forcing a president who went largely unchecked by a Republican Congress during his first two years in office to come clean on the many scandals that have erupted involving his business, taxes, campaign and administration. They plan to get started in the coming days. On Tuesday, they will grill former Attorney General William P. Barr, who has been nominated by Mr. Trump to assume his old office again, about his approach to the special counsel, Robert S. Mueller III. Mr. Barr wrote a private memo last year criticizing Mr. Muellers investigation, and Democrats will use his confirmation hearings to press him on whether the special counsel will be allowed to finish his work and report it to Congress. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the Democratic minority leader, also plans to force a vote in the Senate this week on the Trump administrations plans to lifts sanctions on the companies of Oleg V. Deripaska, a Russian oligarch close to Mr. Putins government, if he reduces his ownership stakes. Democrats plan to use the issue to argue that Mr. Trump has been soft on Russia. Even committees that are not usually in the investigation business are jumping into the fray. Representative Eliot L. Engel, Democrat of New York and the new chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, told The New Yorker last week that he was eliminating the subcommittee on terrorism in favor of a subcommittee aimed at investigating Mr. Trumps foreign policy. Lost in all this may be any chance of bipartisan policymaking. At stake in the current fight is just $5.7 billion for Mr. Trumps promised border wall, roughly one-eighth of one percent of the total federal budget. If one-eighth of one percent of the total budget can prompt the longest government shutdown in American history, then the potential for further clashes over the remaining 99.87 percent seems considerable. On issues like health care, taxes, climate change, guns and national security, the two sides start this era of divided government far apart. WASHINGTON It was a picture-perfect moment. As the Senate convened for the start of the 116th Congress, Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, fellow progressives and potential rivals for the presidency, shared a brief hug on the Senate floor just minutes after they were both sworn in for their new terms. Then there was Mitt Romney, the former Republican presidential nominee, striding across the floor as a proud new member from Utah. Smiling new and old senators lined up alphabetically to take the oath of office from Vice President Mike Pence as their colleagues applauded on the floor in the midst of a government shutdown. It was a lot to take in. But this being the stodgy Senate, there were no photographers on hand to capture the scene, since they are banned from the chamber. While accredited photographers were granted special access to the House gallery to take colorful shots of Nancy Pelosi returning as speaker, youngsters roaming the floor and the diverse freshman class settling in, the Senate remained a shutter-free zone, as it has been for virtually its entire history. What a loss, thought Senator Roy Blunt, Republican of Missouri, as he surveyed the festivities. I was thinking none of this becomes part of the pictorial history of the country, Mr. Blunt said. MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. From a couch on the back deck of a dockside restaurant, the Beatles playing in the background and a breeze blowing off the water, Joe Cunningham gestured to Shem Creek. This could be the reality here, of oil rigs and oil spills off the beach, Mr. Cunningham said. An oil spill could just decimate the area, and all of a sudden instead of people coming to Charleston, South Carolina, they high-tail it down to Florida or somewhere else. Offshore drilling might not captivate voters in most parts of the country, but it did here. For months, Mr. Cunningham called for the restoration of a federal ban as his Republican opponent, Katie Arrington, talked about immigration and warned that a vote for him would be a vote for Nancy Pelosis San Francisco values. And in November, Mr. Cunningham, 36, defeated Ms. Arrington in a House district that last elected a Democrat four years before he was born. It was one of the biggest upsets of the midterms, and it turned on an ideal issue for a candidate who, before he became a lawyer, was an ocean engineer. I cant imagine how I would go about making this useful, Ms. Stovall said on Sunday. I wouldnt know how to find my procedure. I wouldnt know what services might be rolled up with my procedure. And I would not know the price to me after health insurance. By most accounts, the Trump administration is pursuing a worthy goal, but the execution of its plans leaves much to be desired. After the administration proposed the price-disclosure requirement in April 2018, many hospitals warned of the shortcomings that are now evident. But federal health officials, accustomed to debating issues inside the Washington policy bubble, have still been surprised at the reaction around the country as consumers and local news media try to decipher the data. The administration says it is open to suggestions for 2020 and beyond. The price-disclosure requirement, issued by the Department of Health and Human Services, grows out of one sentence in the Affordable Care Act, which says, Each hospital operating within the United States shall for each year establish (and update) and make public (in accordance with guidelines developed by the secretary) a list of the hospitals standard charges for items and services provided by the hospital. The idea languished for eight years. Under prior guidance from the government, hospitals could meet their obligations by providing charges to patients on request. But the Trump administration wanted to go further. Weve updated our guidelines to specifically require hospitals to post price information on the internet in a machine-readable format, Seema Verma, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said last week. This is a historic change from whats been required in the past. BULGER, Pa. About 150 Jersey cows in the rolling terrain at Rivendale Farms in Bulger, some 25 miles west of Pittsburgh, wear Fitbit-like collars that monitor their movement, eating and rumination patterns. They are milked not by humans but by robotic machines. A nearby greenhouse, about a quarter-acre in size and filled with salad-bowl crops like kale, arugula and baby carrots, is automated. The temperature, humidity and sunlight are controlled by sensors and retractable metallic screens. And soon, small robots may roam the farms eight acres of vegetable crops outdoors to spot disease and pluck weeds. Farming in America is increasingly a high-tech endeavor. Combines guided by GPS, drones, satellite imagery, soil sensors and supercomputers all help the nations food production. Yet that technology is mainly tailored for big industrial farms, where fields stretch as far as the eye can see. Rivendale Farms, which has just completed its first year of full operations, offers a glimpse of technology coming available for smaller farms. But Loujain was not released. I remained silent, hoping my silence might protect her. Around that time, I was struck by a dark trend emerging on social media in Saudi Arabia. Anyone who criticized or made a remark on anything related to Saudi Arabia was labeled a traitor. Saudi Arabia has never been a democracy, but it hadnt been a police state either. I kept my thoughts and my grief private. Between May and September, Loujain was held in solitary confinement. In brief phone calls that she was allowed to make she told us that she was being held in a hotel. Are you at the Ritz-Carlton? I asked. I dont have the Ritz status, but it is a hotel, she laughed. In mid-August, Loujain was transferred to Dhaban prison in Jeddah and my parents were allowed to visit her once a month. My parents saw that she was shaking uncontrollably, unable to hold her grip, to walk or sit normally. My strong, resilient sister blamed it on the air-conditioning and tried to assure my parents that she would be fine. After the killing of Jamal Khashoggi in October, I read reports claiming that several people detained by the Saudi government at the Ritz-Carlton in Riyadh had been tortured. I started getting phone calls and messages from friends and relatives asking if Loujain too had been tortured. I was shocked by the suggestion. I wondered how people could think a woman could be tortured in Saudi Arabia. I believed that social codes of the Saudi society would not allow it. But by late November, several newspapers, Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International reported that both male and female political and human rights activists in Saudi prisons had been tortured. Some reports mentioned sexual assaults. My parents visited Loujain at the Dhaban prison in December. They asked her about the torture reports and she collapsed in tears. She said she had been tortured between May and August, when she was not allowed any visitors. To the Editor: A Forest of Ancient Trees, Poisoned by Rising Seas, by Nathaniel Popkin (Op-Ed, Dec. 27), provided a litany of reasons to be pessimistic about our planets future. Among them: World Wildlife Funds 2018 Living Planet Report, which found a staggering decline in wildlife populations since 1970. At World Wildlife Fund, we agree that this report and others listed by Mr. Popkin point toward a profound global emergency. But the Living Planet Report also comes to an additional conclusion: While time is increasingly short, we can still change course. As we begin a new year, lets all commit to balancing the needs of humanity with the needs of nature. Its an ambitious idea, but one that we can achieve if we set bold goals and deliver on bold solutions, like conserving half of our planet, and changing how we produce and consume the food and energy we need. Carter Roberts Washington The writer is president and chief executive of the World Wildlife Fund in the United States. To the Editor: Re Dont Ignore the Risks of Pot, by Alex Berenson (Op-Ed, Jan. 5): Any potential harm caused by marijuana is far outweighed by the harms of prohibition, stigmatization and criminalization. Instead, a system of robust regulation allows for product safety testing, the enforcement of age limits for purchase and the peaceful resolution of disputes among market participants. Decriminalization turning marijuana possession into a violation, which Mr. Berenson proposes as an alternative to legalization does not do enough to ensure the end of racially biased searches and arrests. More important, decriminalization does not address restitution toward the black and brown communities disproportionately harmed by the war on drugs. Marijuana has been used by various cultures across the globe for millenniums. It was criminalized in the United States not because of public health concerns, but to advance a racist agenda. It is my mandate, as a member of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, to oversee the responsible transition of cannabis-related activity into a legal and regulated industry. As a woman of color, I consider it my duty to make sure that the racist origins of marijuana prohibition are not forgotten. To the Editor: Re I Love My Skin! Black Parents Find Alternatives to Integration (front page, Jan. 8): Critics of the charter school movement often deride it as racist, because it deprives traditional public schools of resources and pulls minority students away from their local communities. But some Afrocentric educators beg to differ, embracing charters as a route to racial community and progress. Thats why we need high-quality research about the new Afrocentric charter schools (along with Afrocentric public and private schools). If the schools benefit students of color, charter opponents will need to rethink their position. And so will those of us who have imagined racial integration as the key to American justice and equality. Jonathan Zimmerman Philadelphia The writer teaches education and history at the University of Pennsylvania. McCarthy, a charge nurse who felt responsible for the well-being of the staff, joined Kifowit in writing a bill that went into effect at the start of this year requiring Illinois hospitals to have violence prevention protocols in place. With a framework built using Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidelines, the law includes better communication between hospitals and law enforcement, as well as specific requirements for inmates seeking medical treatment. It also provides whistle-blower protection for those who report violent incidents and requires specific action by healthcare facilities. by NAT da Polis The is seen as a reaction to the religiosity of the all-powerful president, especially as it is applied in the public administration. According to Turkish writer and theologian Cemil Klc, even if 99 per cent of Turks declare themselves Muslim, this does not mean that religion shapes the life of Turks. Istanbul (AsiaNews) The number of Turks saying they are atheist is rising whilst the number of those say they are Muslim is declining. The is based on the findings of a recent survey by Konda, a Turkish polling agency, reported by German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW), which found that the share of Turks who say they adhere to Islam dropped from 55 per cent to 51 per cent. The survey results suggest that the neo-Ottoman Turkey of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has based his policies on the moralistic principles of Islam, has sparked a flight towards atheism in reaction to the religiosity of the all-powerful president, especially as it is applied in the public administration. The pervasive presence of Islamic conformism in Turkish daily life is felt as an imposition and is starting to annoy many people, especially in large centres, even if still finds a positive echo in Anatolia. Some wonder whether the countrys close association with Islams moralistic dictates, to which Erdogan often appeals, represents the real Turkey. At the same though, it must not be overlooked that republican Turkey was founded on the notion that true a Turk is a Muslim. This is why conservative circles believe that 99 per cent of the Turkish population is made up of Muslims, a figure repeated by the Diyanet, Turkey's official directorate of religious affairs. For Turkish writer and theologian Cemil Klc, even if 99 per cent declare themselves Muslim, this does not mean that religion shapes the life of Turks. Going to the mosque to pray, fasting or for women, wearing the veil, do not mean, according to Klc, that they practise the Islamic faith. What is important is whether they follow the ethical principles of Islam. Based on this, no more than 60 per cent of Turks actually practise Islam. The widespread conformism and political opportunism in today's Turkey, as some Turkey insiders put it, are comparable to what existed in the 7th century under the Umayyad who contrary to what the Quran says, namely that prayer is an act against injustices saw prayer an act of obedience to the sultan. Now it is obedience to Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Finally, Zehra Pala, president of the Association of Turkish Atheists, believes that President Erdogan's insistent pressures on younger people to embrace the moralistic dictates of Islam have achieved the opposite effect, especially among the well-educated people who are taking to the road to flee abroad. Meanwhile, Erdogan gave the green light to the construction of a Syriac Orthodox church in Istanbul. Once completed, it will be the first Christian church built in Turkey since the founding of the republic. Just another example of Turkeys many contradictions, a place in perennial search for an identity. But as the book progresses, Julius doesnt come to subsequent meals because he is riding a camel up a pyramid in Egypt or climbing a mountain in Tibet. In Courtney (1994), parents reluctantly allow their children to go to the pound to adopt a dog but are dismayed when the youngsters return with Courtney, an unloved mongrel, rather than a pedigreed animal. Yet Courtney turns out to be an excellent cook, butler, juggler and violinist. That might have made a decent childrens book, yet Mr. Burningham took the story further. Courtney inexplicably disappears one day, and the family adjusts to life without him. But when, on summer vacation, a boat the children are playing in breaks away from its mooring and drifts out to sea, endangering them, a mysterious something tows them to safety. They never did find out who or what it was that had pulled their boat back to shore, the book concludes. I wonder what it could have been. Leaving such holes for his young readers to fill in on their own was classic Burningham. Vicki Weissman, reviewing another of his books, John Patrick Norman McHennessy: The Boy Who Was Always Late, in 1988 in The New York Times, praised its economy of words. Mr. Burningham, she wrote, has long since grasped that all children need is a trigger and their imaginations will do the rest. John Burningham was born on April 27, 1936, in Farnham, Surrey, southwest of London. He attended various progressive schools, among them Summerhill. In 1954 he registered as a conscientious objector and did two years worth of alternative military service before enrolling in a course in design and illustration at the Central School of Art in London. There he met Helen Oxenbury, whom he would marry. She, too, became a noted writer and illustrator of childrens books. (They did not collaborate on a book until Theres Going to Be a Baby in 2010.) Mr. Burningham designed posters for the transit authority London Transport and other agencies before the publication of his first book. Another early achievement was illustrating the first edition of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car, the Ian Fleming book, in 1964. [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] WASHINGTON Not so long ago, left-wing activists were dismissed as fringe or even kooky when they pressed for proposals to tax the superrich at 70 percent, to produce all of Americas power through renewable resources or to abolish Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Then along came Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her social-media megaphone. In the two months since her election, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has had the uncanny ability for a first-term member of Congress to push the debate inside the Democratic Party sharply to the left, forcing party leaders and 2020 presidential candidates to grapple with issues that some might otherwise prefer to avoid. The potential Democratic field in 2020 is already being quizzed about her (Senator Kamala Harris praised her on The View), emulating her digital tactics (Senator Elizabeth Warren held an Instagram chat in her kitchen that looked much like one of Ms. Ocasio-Cortezs sessions) and embracing some of her causes. Ms. Warren and Senator Cory Booker, among others, have recently endorsed the idea of a Green New Deal, a call to reimagine an environment-first economy that would phase out fossil fuels. Ms. Ocasio-Cortez thrust that issue into the national dialogue after she joined a sit-in protest in the office of then-incoming House speaker, Representative Nancy Pelosi, in one of her first, rebellious acts in Washington. [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] First there was Jersey Shore on MTV, and then Mob Wives on VH1. Now another reality television series, set to debut on Monday, features a blend of both and like its predecessors, it is drawing criticism that it stereotypes Italian-Americans. Bosses arent born, theyre Made in Staten Island, MTV said in promotional materials for the show, Made in Staten Island, which the network described as grittier and edgier than its other reality shows. Made in Staten Island, which tracks young adults trying to avoid mob lifestyles, has drawn the ire of city officials and thousands of people who signed an online petition calling for it to be canceled. The show perpetuates the notion that Staten Island is a cesspool of gangsters, meatheads and low lives and is premised on the idea that kids from Staten Island all grow up surrounded by the mafia, the petition said. [What you need to know to start the day: Get New York Today in your inbox.] The 15 or 20 minutes before the performance ticked by the same way they do on nights when Rome Neal presides over jazz at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. But this time Mr. Neal was directing a reading of a play. It takes aim at the sensation that is the theatrical juggernaut Hamilton and its creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda. So this was different from the jazz nights. There was no music, in contrast to the rap-infused lyrics of Hamilton, one of the biggest critical and commercial successes in Broadway history. The play, The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda, was written by Ishmael Reed, 80, a prolific and often satirical writer who, as a critic reviewing one of his books once said, has made members of every constituency angry during his long career. Mr. Reeds most recent work should prove to be no exception. The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda targets Hamilton, the play, and Hamilton, the best-selling biography by Ron Chernow, which inspired Mr. Miranda. The program handed out at the reading said, The Haunting of Lin-Manuel Miranda was about a playwright who is misled by a historian of white history into believing that Alexander Hamilton was an abolitionist. By the time the Internal Revenue Service caught up to Mr. Rodriguez, he owed $35,000. So far hes paid $10,000 of that, paying a comfortable $250 per month. Grammar quiz As the defense has repeatedly pointed out, Mr. Guzmans formal education did not extend past the second grade, and in fact he has a fair amount of difficulty writing, one of his attorneys, Eduardo Balarezo, told the jury last week. Still, Mr. Guzman is often scrawling notes on a yellow legal pad and providing them to his attorneys. His handwriting is atrocious, according to one member of the defense team. Mr. Rodriguez also had a hard time believing it. He used to read the reports directly in the past, so I dont think he had any problems reading, Mr. Rodriguez said of the spyware reports frequently produced for Mr. Guzman. Mr. Rodriguez added that Mr. Guzman spent a fair amount of time reading those reports. (Then again, Mr. Rodriguez testified that during their first face-to-face encounter, Mr. Guzman told him that he didnt like to write on the computer. He preferred to talk.) The Million-Dollar Gift Anyone who has ever recalled a story among family knows the phenomenon: Someone across the table immediately corrects you and tells it completely differently. The jury was treated to just such a comparison last week. Two brothers have testified in the trial: the elder sibling Jorge Cifuentes Villa testified in December, and Alex Cifuentes Villa began testifying on Thursday. (He will continue Monday.) They told some of the same stories albeit a little differently. Jorge Cifuentess version: Around 2003, he flew to the mountains of Mexico for his first-ever meeting with El Chapo to celebrate the second anniversary of the drug kingpins escape from jail (the first time). The final flight, aboard a rickety airplane (Mr. Guzman was known for using outdated Cessnas), took about 30 to 45 minutes. The flight made Mr. Cifuentes feel awful, he said. I actually had to pray three Our Fathers, he said. Then they landed on an ascending airstrip. The East Bay Express, an alternative weekly newspaper in the Bay Area that gained national acclaim for its 2016 expose of a police sex scandal in Oakland, Calif., laid off almost its entire editorial staff on Friday, the newspapers publisher said. The newspaper plans to rely on freelance writers for the foreseeable future, the publisher, Stephen Buel, said in an interview on Saturday. Six employees were laid off, including five in the editorial department. In addition to its coverage of arts and culture, the newspaper was known for local accountability journalism. Three police chiefs were fired within a week when it published its series on the Oakland Police Department, which won a George Polk Award for local reporting. Like weekly newspapers across the country, The Express, which has existed for more than 40 years, had recently been running a deficit as print advertising revenue declined, Robert Gammon, the papers editor, said. Perils mount for the Trump presidency. The shift of power in Congress and news reports are combining to confront President Trump with the prospect of a protracted and intense political war for survival that may make the still-unresolved partial government shutdown pale by comparison, writes our chief White House correspondent. News reports: A Times report detailed how, after Mr. Trump fired James Comey as F.B.I. director, the bureau became so concerned by the presidents behavior that they took the aggressive step of opening a counterintelligence inquiry into whether he had been working on behalf of Russia. And The Washington Post reported that the president had taken extensive steps to conceal his conversations with Russias President Vladimir Putin over the past two years. The first episode of The Passage, a new horror-thriller beginning Monday on Fox, offers a helpful one-sentence villain bio and mission statement. Hes immune to disease, but hes also a lethal bloodsucking monster who we are all very careful not to call a vampire, announces a scientist (who seems unlikely to survive past mid-season). So: Battle lines drawn. That note of satirical self-awareness pops up now and then in whats otherwise an earnest genre jambalaya: a medical-supernatural-conspiracy shoot em up. Based on a trilogy of novels by Justin Cronin, The Passage posits a scientific cause experimentation with a rare virus from the Bolivian jungle for a paranormal consequence, the creation of beasts (dont call them vampires!) who, if the series lasts and hews to the books, will ravage the planet. Through three episodes, though, the shows main interest doesnt lie in the ghoulish, dream-invading creatures, former death-row inmates who, for now, are safely locked up in a Colorado compound. Nor is it in the variously concerned or hubristic doctors, who were trying to develop a bird-flu vaccine and got something else. (Even though one of them is played by Henry Ian Cusick, always welcome and always the guy who played Desmond in Lost.) This needs context. Twenty-two days into the longest government shutdown ever, President Trump continued to press his case for a border wall. His tweet on Saturday was crammed with statistics that were either exaggerated or omitted important context. Immigrant prison population Mr. Trumps figure for the percentage of unauthorized immigrants in federal prisons is exaggerated. Out of the Bureau of Prisons total inmate population of 183,058 in the first quarter of the 2018 fiscal year, 21 percent were immigrants, both legal and undocumented, according to a government report. At least 13 percent of the total population, or 23,826 inmates, were in the country unlawfully. The immigration status of another 11,698 inmates was under investigation, while 2,608 inmates were lawful immigrants or had received relief from deportation. The most common crimes committed by these immigrants were drug-related offenses (46 percent) and immigration offenses (29 percent). WASHINGTON Senate Democrats intend to force a vote this coming week on the Trump administrations move to lift sanctions against companies controlled by an influential Russian oligarch, intensifying a new line of scrutiny of the administrations handling of Russia policy. Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the minority leader, said on Saturday that the sanctions on the business empire of the oligarch, Oleg V. Deripaska, should remain in place, and that a deal negotiated by the Treasury Department to remove them was flawed and fails to sufficiently limit Mr. Deripaskas control and influence of these companies. Mr. Schumer announced that he intended to use a provision in a 2017 sanctions law to prompt a full Senate vote as soon as Tuesday on a resolution to block the Treasury Departments deal with Mr. Deripaskas companies. But to approve the measure, Democrats would need the support of several Republicans, which would require them to split with President Trump on the issue. The Democratic-controlled House would also have to pass it. "He seems to be sincere about his interest in taking the state to the next level. Aurora will pitch in to do its part for the whole of the state to make sure we progress and are successful in Illinois," Irvin said. Crises offer these would-be authoritarians an escape from constitutional shackles. National emergencies especially wars or major terrorist attacks do three things for such leaders. First, they build public support. Security crises typically produce a rally-round-the-flag effect in which presidential approval soars. Citizens are more likely to tolerate and even support authoritarian power grabs when they fear for their safety. Second, security crises silence opponents, since criticism can be viewed as disloyal or unpatriotic. Finally, security crises loosen normal constitutional constraints. Fearful of putting national security at risk, judges and legislative leaders generally defer to the executive. National emergencies can threaten the constitutional balance even under democratically minded presidents like Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. But they can be fatal under would-be autocrats, for they provide a seemingly legitimate (and often popular) justification for concentrating power and eviscerating rights. Hitlers authoritarian response to the 1933 Reichstag fire is the most prominent example, but there are many others. In Peru, a Maoist insurgency and economic crisis enabled Mr. Fujimori to dissolve the Constitution and Congress in 1992 ; in Russia, a series of deadly apartment bombings in 1999 allegedly by Chechen terrorists triggered a surge of public support for Mr. Putin, who was then the prime minister, which allowed him to crack down on critics and consolidate his power; and in Turkey, a series of terrorist attacks in 2015, along with a failed 2016 coup attempt, allowed Mr. Erdogan to tighten his grip via a two-year state of emergency. Crises present such great opportunities for concentrating power that would-be autocrats often manufacture them. In 1937, President Vargas of Brazil, resisting term limits that would force him to leave office the next year, used the discovery of a communist plot (the so-called Cohen Plan, later revealed to be a fabrication) to dissolve the Constitution and establish a dictatorship. Similarly, President Marcos of the Philippines did not want to step aside when his second term expired in 1973. But he needed a reason to subvert constitutional checks. An opportunity arrived in 1972 , when a series of explosions rocked Manila. Following an apparent assassination attempt on his defense secretary, Marcos, blaming communist terrorists, declared martial law and established a dictatorship. This crisis, too, was largely fabricated: The bombings are believed to have been carried out by government forces and the assassination attempt was staged. The communist menace that Marcos used to justify martial law amounted to several dozen insurgents. Although President Trump operates in a different political environment, his behavior, particularly since the November midterm elections, betrays similar autocratic instincts. The president manifestly lacks the patience or negotiating skills needed to deal with divided government. His response to Democratic control of the House of Representatives has been a refusal to compromise and, more dangerously, a refusal to lose. Unlike Presidents Clinton and Bush, who conceded defeat when it became clear that their initiatives lacked legislative support, Mr. Trump has refused to accept the failure of his border wall project. Unable to obtain the necessary votes in Congress, the president recklessly forced a government shutdown. When that didnt get him his wall, he moved to circumvent Congress altogether by inventing if not yet declaring a national emergency. In his Oval Office speech on Tuesday, he used the word crisis six times in eight minutes. That is how autocrats respond to legislative opposition. Following in the tradition of Vargas and Marcos, Mr. Trump fabricated a security threat to make the case for bypassing Congress. Talk about a master class in How They Do Things in Albany. To keep a legislative pay increase but lose new restrictions on lawmakers outside income, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie is piggybacking onto a lawsuit by a conservative legal group that is seeking to overturn the raise. In case you havent been following at home: During budget negotiations last year, the New York Legislature created a committee composed of current and former state and New York City comptrollers to determine whether members of the Assembly and State Senate deserved a raise, their first in 21 years. In December, the committee recommended a $50,500 raise, to $130,000 by 2021, along with a provision that lawmakers outside income could not exceed 15 percent of their pay an important ethical reform to avoid conflicts of interest. Mr. Heastie, and other legislators who objected to the outside income limits, immediately said the committee whose recommendations automatically became law on Jan. 1 had no legal right to do anything but decide on pay. Within days of the committees decision, the Government Justice Center, an Albany-based nonprofit, sued to overturn it, saying that only the Legislature could set pay, and that the panel had overstepped its statutory mandate by imposing outside pay limits. The Bongo family became immensely wealthy as many in the country suffered, with social indicators like health and living standards often not much better than far poorer African neighbors a juxtaposition frequently observed by citizens here. Image Ali Bongo greeted supporters in Libreville on Thursday after he was declared the winner of a bitter presidential election in Gabon. Credit... Issouf Sanogo/Agence France-Presse Getty Images We are ready to die, said Steve Mboumba, an unemployed man, vowing to oppose Mr. Bongos victory, near Mr. Mamboundous headquarters in the impoverished Awendje district. We are suffering too much. Standing nearby, Patrick Pambo said, This is no more than a military coup detat. He added: They have trampled democracy. These results are false. Adelie Mengue said, This is an electoral holdup, a masquerade. No scenes of joy or acclamation greeted the announcement of Mr. Bongos victory in the capitals largely deserted streets. Masked troops were brandishing weapons in the backs of trucks. In a few places, crowds of angry citizens gathered, and one group attacked two men it accused of supporting Mr. Bongo, dousing one man with gasoline and ripping off the clothes of the other. Everywhere, residents accused France of installing Mr. Bongo, 50, and meddling in Gabons affairs over the years. Successive French governments supported the elder Mr. Bongo, coming to his aid with troops after protests in 1990, and his funeral was attended by the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy. A former French president recently accused another of having been financed by the long-serving Gabonese ruler. But French officials were at pains throughout the campaign to deny that France had a candidate in the race here. Earlier Thursday, troops using tear gas and rubber bullets dispersed a large crowd of demonstrators near where the electoral commission met. Mr. Mamboundou, the most populist of the top three candidates, was slightly wounded in the confrontation, his supporters said. Soon after, cars could be seen burning on one of the capitals main highways. LIBREVILLE, Gabon The face of the late rulers son, Ali Ben Bongo, is plastered everywhere here on posters and banners every 20 yards outside the airport, on giant flickering television screens by the seaside road and hanging in enlarged photographs down the sides of dilapidated seven-story buildings. Sundays presidential election in this Central African nation notwithstanding, weary citizens say, the message of the posters seems clear: El Hadj Omar Bongo Ondimba, the crafty autocrat who ruled for 41 years, may be dead, but his reign is not necessarily over, thanks to his son. Not physically a candidate for the first time in decades, the elder Mr. Bongo, who died in June, still dominates a noisy campaign many here said they had hoped would be a turning point after years of autocracy. Anger over the dead leaders continued shadowy presence is easily encountered in the disheveled streets behind Mr. Bongos hulking modernistic palaces, built with the immense oil wealth of Gabon, sub-Saharan Africas fourth largest producer and a tiny country that punches well beyond its weight as a result. Yet analysts note that, for all his harsh words, Mr. Ahmadinejad has sent a surprising number of positive signals to the United States in recent years. He sent a letter to President Bush in 2006 and a letter to Mr. Obama congratulating him on his election victory, and he has traveled four times to New York since he took office to take part in United Nations meetings. Generally speaking, Iran favors ties with the United States because falling oil prices have hurt its economy dramatically, said Saeed Leylaz, an economist and political analyst in Tehran. The United States needs to take the first major step. Otherwise Iran cannot go any farther. But he cautioned that the United States hold direct talks only with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Irans supreme religious leader. There is no question that a new dynamic is afoot, one that seems likely to become even more complicated after Tuesdays election in Israel is settled. If the government that emerges is even more determined to end the Iranian nuclear program by any means necessary, Mr. Obama may find himself trying to negotiate with one of Americas most determined adversaries while restraining one of its closest allies. I could draw you a scenario in which this new combination of players leads to the first real talks with Iran in three decades, one of the key players on the issue for President Obama said last week, speaking on condition of anonymity because the new administration had not even named its team, much less its strategy. And I could draw you one in which the first big foreign crisis of the Obama presidency is a really nasty confrontation, either because the Israelis strike or because we wont let them. In public, Mr. Obama is talking only about the first possibility. On Monday evening, he talked about looking at areas where we can have constructive dialogue, where we can engage directly with them, and said he was looking for diplomatic overtures. But he cautioned that theres been a lot of mistrust built up over the years, and that after 30 years of a deep freeze, openings are not going to happen overnight. To protect his right flank, Mr. Obama quickly added the caveat that Iran should know that we find the funding of terrorist organizations unacceptable and that a nuclear Iran could set off a nuclear arms race in the region that would be profoundly destabilizing. Thank you for reading The Cascadia Advocate, the Northwest Progressive Institutes journal of world, national, and local politics. Founded in March of 2004, The Cascadia Advocate has been helping people throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond make sense of current events with rigorous analysis and thought-provoking commentary for more than fifteen years. The Cascadia Advocate is funded by readers like you and trusted sponsors. We dont run ads or publish content in exchange for money. Help us keep The Cascadia Advocate editorially independent and freely available to all by becoming a member of the Northwest Progressive Institute today. Or make a donation to sustain our essential research and advocacy journalism. Your contribution will allow us to continue bringing you features like Last Week In Congress, live coverage of events like Netroots Nation or the Democratic National Convention, and reviews of books and documentary films. Become an NPI member Make a one-time donation Many of us have seen late-night television comedy hosts poking fun at the lack of U.S. citizenship and history knowledge during man-on-the-street routines. It's really no laughing matter. Too many American citizens aren't in tune with even the most basic knowledge of U.S. government, citizenship and the Constitution. Even more woefully inadequate is the knowledge and interest of schoolchildren, young adults and citizens at-large in U.S. and world history. It's why we firmly support a pending bill in the Indiana Legislature to require all Indiana high school students to pass the U.S. citizenship test already administered to immigrants who seek to become Americans. It seems shortsighted to require immigrants to master a basic knowledge of the workings of our government without forging the same requirement for our youth as they take crucial next steps to adulthood. There should be no birthright rendering any American exempt from learning the core structure and values of our nation. Marc Chase Editor Marc Chase is a veteran investigative reporter, columnist and editor of more than two decades. He currently leads The Times news staff as local news editor. He can be reached at 219-933-3327. Follow Marc Chase Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today With her long hair tied into 42 bundled locks, a nose-crinkling grin formed on 11-year-old Addison Matoski's face. Many middle-schoolers particularly girls would have been horrified by the hair stylists' scissors as one by one, Addison's plethora of pony tails were sheared from her head. Addison just smiled, in spite of any peer chiding some of her family members feared she might face by altering her appearance in such a fashion. "I can always grow it back," Addison explained as stylists at Valparaiso's Glamore Salon and Spa clipped her beautiful brownish-blond locks. "So many other kids lose their hair and can't grow it back. It's why I'm doing this today." Just a couple of days prior to the momentous haircut, Addison had convinced her parents to let her donate her locks to Children With Hair Loss, a nonprofit organization that uses donated human hair to fashion free wigs for children who suffer hair loss from various illnesses and conditions, including cancer treatment. That she went through the act with a brave smile speaks volumes to her character and provides hope of the giving spirit thriving in some Region youth. Not many folks tear up as they witness a haircut. Shooting ourselves in the foot: In this era of nearly full employment, entry-level jobs are going unfilled in agriculture, hospitality and elder health care. These are the very positions new immigrants have traditionally filled. Even President Donald Trumps enterprises have been identified as employing undocumented individuals. It may be hypocritical on his companies part, but they have basically no other choice and neither do we as a society. Indiana in particular is aging and many current workers are retiring. Who but migrants will fill these basic jobs? In short, we need hard working immigrants for the comfort and safety of the rest of us. Short-term solutions, long-term problem: Despite all the heated rhetoric, everyone is in favor of border security and a sensibly managed immigration policy. The devil is, of course, in the details. One major dispute is over building a wall, a seemingly easy (though expensive) solution. The Chinese tried it many centuries ago. But it is not likely that a wall will stop people who have crossed large stretches of desert and forded streams and rivers. If the last barrier is a wall, they will find a way over, under or through it. A more sensible solution would seem to be an advanced electronic warning system on and under the ground and drones and other aircraft above combined with a highly mobile border patrol able to act on short notice. No option will catch everybody, but a 21st century approach seems more sensible than building the American version of the Great Wall of China. INDIANAPOLIS When Gov. Eric Holcomb addresses Hoosiers in his annual State of the State address next Tuesday, you will be looking at one of the strongest chief executives in Indiana history. Indiana has a constitutionally weak governor. This stemmed back to our territorial days when Gov. William Henry Harrison and others wielded such power that it stirred great resentment. When the state's 1851 constitution was drawn, the milquetoast governor was created, with no ability to form a cabinet (secretary of state, auditor, treasurer, attorney general and superintendent are elected) or propose budgets. Much of the gubernatorial power seen in other states shifted to the judiciary and the General Assembly. The early governors could not seek re-election, though one, Gov. Henry Schricker, served two non-consecutive terms. Gradually, the Hoosier governorship has been strengthened. During the Civil War, Gov. Oliver P. Morton took command of the state's militia and suspended a Copperhead General Assembly in 1862 after Democrats threatened to bolt the Union. Morton also took control of state finances during the war. Beginning in 1972, governors could serve consecutive terms. In 2017, the General Assembly passed and Holcomb signed legislation allowing the superintendent of public instruction to become a gubernatorial appointee. Governors now propose budgets, as Holcomb did this past week. MERRILLVILLE The Merrillville Police Department has reached its largest staffing level since its founding in 1971. The department has 60 officers for the first time following the hiring of Patrolman Terrence Bronowski, of Merrillville. We've come a long way since I've been here, Clerk-Treasurer Eugene Guernsey, a former Merrillville officer, said after swearing in Bronowski. Guernsey retired from the Merrillville Police Department in 2001. He said the force had around 30 officers at that time. Town Council President Richard Hardaway agreed the department has made strides over the years. Keep up the good work, Hardaway said to Police Chief Joseph Petruch. Merrillville was one of six Northwest Indiana communities in Indiana's 20 Safest Cities of 2018 ranking on safewise.com. The professional review website focusing on safety used 2016 Federal Bureau of Investigations crime statistics and population data to create the ranking. Remembering Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. HAMMOND Mayor Thomas M. McDermott Jr., The Ministerial Alliance of Hammond and Vicinity Inc. and Hammonds Department of Planning & Development invite the public to attend a candlelight march to commemorate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on Jan. 21. Participants are to meet in the Hammond City Hall parking lot located at 5925 Calumet Avenue to line up at 6:30 a.m. The group will walk to the Hammond Civic Center, 5825 S. Sohl Ave., beginning promptly at 6:45 a.m. Please bring your own flashlights or candles. A community commemoration will be held at the Hammond Civic Center immediately following the march. The annual Legacy Awards will be presented at this ceremony. Call 219-853-6358, ext. 2, or visit www.gohammond.com for more information. Stained glass classes CHESTERTON Judy Gregurich and Mark Montgomery will be hosting stained glass classes from 7 to 9 p.m. Jan. 22. In Beginning Stained Glass Class, students will learn the art of copper foil stained glass, originally invented by Louis Tiffany. Tools and supplies are included. Limit four students. The cost for class is $260, with Chesterton Art Center members receiving a $30 discount. Cleanup work at the East Chicago Superfund site and in the Robertsdale neighborhood in Hammond and Whiting around the former Federated Metals plant already was suspended for the winter. It currently is expected to resume this spring, if the shutdown is over by then. It is unclear what impact the shutdown will have on the Department of Justice's proposed consent decree requiring U.S. Steel to pay about $600,000 in civil penalties and $630,000 in damages to several agencies for its response to a 2017 chemical spill. Congress annually is required to pass a dozen appropriation bills to fund every federal government's agency and service. Legislators voted last September to provide revenues for the Department of Defense, Energy, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Veterans Affairs, Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Their offices in Northwest Indiana remain open and their benefits will flow for the foreseeable future. Haves and have nots Legislators have yet to appropriate money to a significant fraction of the government including the Department of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, the National Park Service, the EPA, State Department, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. HAMMOND After more than five years of investigation and 26 months after he was indicted, Portage Mayor James Snyder will get his day in court Monday. When it's done, a jury will decide whether Snyder took a loan from former co-defendant John Cortina or if that $12,000 was "juice money," as Cortina called it in undercover recordings, to have Snyder put him on the city's towing list. Cortina, 79, owner of Kustom Auto Body, pleaded guilty Friday to paying Snyder the bribe. Jurors also have to decide if Snyder took another $13,000 in bribes in exchange for city contracts and whether he schemed to defraud the Internal Revenue Service by manipulating his private mortgage company books. His public corruption trial, which is estimated to last four weeks, is set to begin at 10 a.m. Monday in front of U.S. Federal Court Judge Joseph Van Bokkelen. Jury selection should begin about 11:30 a.m. Van Bokkelen said Friday during a status hearing, he anticipates the jury to be selected by the end of Monday's court session and opening statements to begin at 9 a.m. Tuesday, followed by calling the first witnesses. Both defense and prosecuting attorneys estimated their opening statements would take one hour. He told me it was self-defense, Jackson said. I asked him, 'Did you shoot a little boy?' And he said he never saw a little boy. He said they tried to attack him. Jackson said he doesn't believe he should have been penalized for trying to do the right thing. I feel like I did the right thing as a public servant, Jackson said. I was trying to help him turn himself in and make sure he has his rights with a lawyer. I didn't do anything illegal. I was trying to help a friend. Jackson said he was treated unfairly when he was interrogated and booked on Oct. 16. He alleged he was told to strip off his clothes while being transported and was escorted into the Hobart County Jail with just underwear and socks on. He said he is currently speaking with an attorney about filing a lawsuit against the case detectives. I have a voicemail from a lawyer we were contacting that day, Jackson said. If I didn't have that, I think I would've gone down for something I didn't do. Jackson was removed from the city's payroll in October pending the final disposition in the case, though they allowed him to complete the first segment of training, according to Gary officials. Many of our cadets have told us that when they got their first job, they were fast-tracked into a team leader role because of what they learned with us, she said, beaming. Cadet 2nd Lt. Lucas Vanderwoude, of Lansing, is one example. When he interviewed for his first job, CAP helped him write his resume and helped him to be polished," Buckner said. Because of this, he was offered more money and a higher position. Cadets laud the training, experience they get Vanderwoude joined CAP almost five years ago when he was in seventh grade at Heritage Middle School, where the squadron holds its Wednesday meetings. I saw the kids in the hallway wearing the uniforms, and I thought it looked cool, he said. I spoke with Mr. Zalud, who is the network guy at school and he said I should come to a meeting. Im now a junior in high school, and I made it up to first in the officer rank, and Im also the cadet commander of the squadron. As such, Vanderwoude said he is to demonstrate the core values of CAP integrity, excellence, volunteer service and respect. Several dozen protesters gathered in Richmond Saturday calling for a revival of parole in Virginia. Community Reporter Erica Welch is the special sections editor for The News-Review, mother of two and a native of Roseburg. She is an alumni of RHS, UCC and Western Oregon University. Contact her at ewelch@nrtoday.com or 541-957-4218. Groene again will sit on the tax-writing Revenue Committee due to his Education chairmanship. Brewer will join Groene on Education. Williams will sit on Health and Human Services and Hughes on Transportation and Telecommunications. A broad scope indeed. If committee chairs can influence which bills reach the floor, they also can fight so their districts or regions arent rolled over by superior numbers in their committees or on the floor. And its no secret that Omaha and Lincoln have the raw numbers to work their will and often seem to think Nebraska stops at their city limits. We can be excessively parochial, too. But sensitivity to Nebraskans legitimate challenges must flow in both directions. We must work with them, but they also must work with us. We need the largest possible megaphones to ensure theyre listening. They, in this case, includes our governor. Especially on property tax reform. Its been much too easy, since Nebraska adopted income and sales taxes and state school aid at the same time in 1967, for state leaders to get away repeatedly with excuses that the governor and Legislature have nothing to do with high property taxes and its all the fault of local governments. The Sony Xperia XZ4 is set to be released at MWC next month. The company's Vice President of Marketing, however, has alluded to the fact that the company may not launch an XZ4 Compact. Also, new information claims the XZ4 will not feature a 3.5mm headphone jack after all. 4 Reviews , News , CPU , GPU , Articles , Columns , Other "or" search relation. 5G , Accessory , Alder Lake , AMD , Android , Apple , ARM , Audio , Business , Camera , Cannon Lake , Cezanne (Zen 3) , Charts , Chinese Tech , Chromebook , Coffee Lake , Comet Lake , Console , Convertible / 2-in-1 , Cryptocurrency , Cyberlaw , Deal , Desktop , Exclusive , Fail , Foldable , Gadget , Galaxy Note , Galaxy S , Gamecheck , Gaming , Geforce , Google Pixel , GPU , How To , Ice Lake , Intel Evo / Project Athena , Internet of Things (IoT) , iOS , iPad Pro , iPhone , Jasper Lake , Lakefield , Laptop , Launch , Linux / Unix , Lucienne (Zen 2) , MacBook , Mini PC , Monitor , MSI , OnePlus , Opinion , Phablet , Radeon , Renoir , Review Snippet , Rocket Lake , Rumor , Ryzen (Zen) , Science , Security , Smart Home , Smartphone , Smartwatch , Software , Storage , Tablet , ThinkPad , Thunderbolt , Tiger Lake , Touchscreen , Ultrabook , Virtual Reality (VR) / Augmented Reality (AR) , Wearable , Windows , Workstation , XPS , Zen 3 (Vermeer) Ticker Sonys upcoming Xperia XZ4 may just be the company's most promising flagship release in recent history. The company is set to cram in a number of features into the flagship, including a triple rear camera setup, and a novel 21:9 display aspect ratio. Weve been very excited about the launch of the phone but new information manages to douse the flames of our expectations, if only by a bit. According to Sony, there will likely be no Xperia XZ4 Compact. The companys VP of marketing, Don Mesa, in an interview with Digital Trends, claimed that the company could finally be ditching the Xperia Compact phones, citing that users want more surface area for their content. While that isnt exactly falseor phones wouldnt have seen a big jump in display sizes over the past three yearsthe Xperia Compact phones filled a niche in the market: for people who wanted a premium phone in a relatively small package. The Xperia XZ Compact phones may not have been the best flagships on the market, but they were the only flagships with display sizes under 5.5-inch. It will be sad to see Sony discontinue the line. WILLIAMSPORT Hundreds of Lycoming County residents will step up to serve as volunteers on the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday on January 21, 2019. Volunteers will pack nutritious meal kits, joining hundreds of thousands of Americans across the country in volunteer service. STEP AmeriCorps has planned a day of service in partnership with the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, Lycoming College, Pennsylvania College of Technology, and the Beloved Community Council that will leverage the strength of volunteers to help tackle local problems and advance Dr. Kings dream of opportunity for all. The meal kits, being packed at the Lycoming College Recreation Center, will be given to area families who struggle with hunger through the Food Banks partner agencies and programs. Refreshments and child care will be provided. WHO: Anyone who wants to join! WHAT: More Than a Meal Packing Event WHERE: Lycoming College Recreation Center, Lycoming College, 700 College Place, Williamsport WHEN: Monday, January 21, 2019 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. HOW TO SIGN UP: Head to the Events tab at https://www.facebook.com/STEPAmeriCorps/, call 570.601.9677, or email esgale@stepcorp.org. The Day of Service is part of Dream Week, a series of events in Williamsport centered around MLK Day. On Saturday, January 19, 2019 a Peace Walk will commence at 10 a.m. at the First United Methodist Church fountain, 604 Market Street, with a musical celebration to honor Richard C. James at 10:45 -11:30 a.m. at First UM Church. On Sunday, January 20, from 3 to 5:20 p.m. an Alternatives to Violence Workshop will be held at Christ Episcopal Church, 426 Mulberry Street. The packing event occurs on MLK Day itself; on Tuesday, January 22, a Trust Across Generations round-table discussion will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at City Alliance Church, 420 Elmira Street. The week will conclude with An Evening with Damon Young at Lycoming Colleges Clark Chapel, 700 College Place, at 7 p.m. Coretta Scott King said, The greatest birthday gift my husband could receive is if people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds celebrated the holiday by performing individual acts of kindness through service to others. This January, STEP AmeriCorps and its partners urge everyone to meet a tangible local need hunger and fulfill the spiritual need of building community and bridging barriers with fellow participants. ### The MLK Day of Service is led by the Corporation for National and Community Service, a federal agency that engages millions of Americans in service through its AmeriCorps and Senior Corps programs and leads the nations volunteer efforts. For more information, visit nationalservice.gov. About the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to reduce hunger in 27 counties across Pennsylvania. By working with more than 1,000 local agencies and partner programs, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank serves more than 140,000 people in need every month. For more information on the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and its mission to reduce hunger in Pennsylvania, visit centralpafoodbank.org or call 717.564.1700. About STEP, Inc. STEP, Inc. is one of 1,100 Community Action Agencies nationwide, and a member of the Community Action Association of Pennsylvania. Founded in 1966 and formally known as the Lycoming-Clinton Counties Commission for Community Action (STEP), Inc., the agency recently celebrated 50 years of partnerships and service to the community. The mission of STEP, Inc. is to engage diverse individuals, families, and communities in the pursuit of social and economic success. STEP, Inc.s mission is accomplished through five Pathways to Success: Early Learning, Housing Options, Workforce Development, Community Collaboration, and Independent Living. The following Pennsylvania State Police in Montoursville reports of Lycoming County incidents are compiled from faxed reports received since January 6, 2019: Harassment Physical Contact - 1/10/19 at 7:07 a.m. at Fairfield Road, Fairfield Township. Erik Scott, 28, of Williamsport, was cited for harassment after he allegedly hit a female victim with a closed fist causing swelling to the victim's face. Theft - 1/7/19 at 5:07 p.m. at Hazel Drive, Loyalsock Township. Someone allegedly entered a residence and stole money. Harassment Physical Contact - 1/4/19 at 8:45 a.m. at Wolfe Run Road, Cogan House Township. PSP investigated an incident of harassment and determined that Michael Houseknecht, 22, of Trout Run, and a woman engaged in a verbal argument. Houseknecht allegedly engaged in unwanted physical contact with the victim. He was cited. Stalking/Harassment Follows Person - 1/3/19 at 3:30 p.m. at Route 87, Upper Fairfield Township. A 59-year-old man of Montoursville parked his vehicle in a way that would not let the female victim's vehicle leave freely. The man, who was arrested, has persistently contacted the victim and caused her to feel distressed, police said. Police did not name the arrestee in their report. Theft - 12/31/18 at 1:10 p.m. at TGI Friday's, 1840 E. Third Street, Loyalsock Township. A man stole $20 from the restaurant but returned the money prior to PSP's arrival. Criminal Mischief - Between 12/30/18 and 12/31/18 at 2000 block of Sheridan Street, Loyalsock Township. PSP responded to a call for a report of a vehicle receiving spray paint on the body. Someone over the evening of 12/30/18 to 12/31/18 used orange spray paint to make X's and O's on the rear fender of a 2013 Mazda CX7. Anyone with information is asked to call PSP at 570 368-5700. DUI on View Alcohol - 12/29/18 at 2:58 a.m. at South Lycoming Mall Road/Lycoming Mall Drive, Muncy Township. While on patrol, Trooper Erik Bartlett conducted a traffic stop on a 40-year-old man of Montoursville for several traffic violations. During the traffic stop it was determined the driver was DUI and placed under arrest. Police did not name the arrestee in their report. Harassment Physical Contact - 12/27/18 at 10:30 p.m. at 100 block of Village Road, Muncy Township. Police said Brenda Dodson, 32, of Pennsdale, entered into a domestic dispute with a female victim. Dodson allegedly pushed the victim and pulled her hair. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Jon E. Kemp. Theft - 12/25/18 Between 12 and 3 p.m. at Leader Drive, Loyalsock Township. A magenta Amazon Fire tablet was removed from a room. DUI on View Alcohol - 12/23/18 at 2:19 a.m. at 1 block of Maynard Street, City of Williamsport. Police conducted a traffic stop on a 27-year-old man of Wellsboro after observing several traffic violations. The man was placed into custody for displaying signs of alcohol impairment. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Christian D. Frey. Criminal Mischief - 12/16/18 to 12/17/18 at 2400 block of Ritchey Street, Loyalsock Township. On 12/17/18 PSP responded to a report of a damaged vehicle mirror in Loyalsock Township. Sometime between 12/16/18 and 12/17/18 someone struck the driver side mirror of a 2005 Toyota Rav 4 with an unknown object. DUI on View Alcohol - 12/15/18 at 1:58 a.m. at Muncy Creek Boulevard/Route 405, Muncy Creek Township. Paul Sturgess, 50, of Barrie, ON, was stopped for a traffic violation. Upon further investigation it was determined he was under the influence of alcohol. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Jon E. Kemp. DUI Crash Alcohol - 12/15/18 at 4:34 a.m. at 277 Montgomery Street, Montgomery Borough. Police responded to a crash on Montgomery Street. Upon investigation, they determined that Brianna Doebler, 24, of Montgomery, was under the influence of alcohol. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Jon E. Kemp. Burglary Residential Force - Between 12/13/18 at 3 p.m. and 12/19/18 at 6 p.m. at Rakestraw Road, Fairfield Township. An unknown actor gained access to a detached garage by forced entry, damaging a door knob. The actor then fled in an unknown direction by unknown means. Theft by Deception - Between 12/13/18 and 12/16/18 at Horn Hill Road, Wolf Township. An unknown actor(s) used a victim's Amazon Prime account to purchase $175 in Playstation digital store gift cards. Anyone with information may contact PSP at 570 368-5700. DUI Crash Alcohol - 12/13/18 at 2:50 a.m. at Northway Road/Northway Road Extension, Loyalsock Township. Police investigated a crash and determined that Dillon Gray, 24, of Williamsport, was under the influence of alcohol. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Gary A. Whiteman. Public Drunkenness - 11/23/18 at 7:33 p.m. at E. Third Street, Loyalsock Township. Police said Sheldon Brown, 60, of Williamsport, was visibly intoxicated in public and urinated in public. He was charged at the office of District Magistrate Gary A. Whiteman. Drug Sale - 11/22/18 at 5:17 a.m. at 100 block of Boak Avenue, Wolf Township. PSP conducted an investigation of narcotics activity in Wolf Township. During the investigation Austin Sanner, 19, of Hughesville, was found to be in possession of narcotics and related packaging materials that he related were for sale. Charges were filed at the office of District Magistrate Jon E. Kemp. Possession of Drug Paraphernalia - 11/21/18 at 9 a.m. at Shultz Lane, Jordan Township. PSP was conducting a follow up investigation. While on the scene, they seized drug paraphernalia. The 26-year-old man of Benton was charged. Police did not name the man in their report. Assault Bodily Injury No Weapon - 11/5/18 at 1:35 p.m. at Loyalsock Drive, Loyalsock Township. This incident occurred as one juvenile was verbally harassing another juvenile over the course of several weeks. On 11/5/18, the juvenile being made fun of struck the other juvenile with a closed fist and attempted to strike him several more times. Both juveniles are being charged. DUI on View Alcohol - 11/4/18 at 2:24 a.m. at Euclid Avenue/Arlington Street, Duboistown Borough. This incident occurred during a traffic stop. The operator, a 21-year-old man of Williamsport, was determined to be DUI. He was arrested for DUI. Police did not name the man in their report. DUI on View Alcohol - 10/22/18 at 7:52 p.m. at US 15 North/Route 14 in Lewis Township. The incident occurred as a witness called in to report an observed erratic driver. Upon further investigation it was believed the operator may be impaired. The operator, a 52-year-old man of Cogan Station, was transported to UPMC Susquehanna Williamsport by ambulance where a drug recognition expert conducted an evaluation. The expert determined the man to be under the influence of alcohol and he was arrested for DUI. Police did not name the man in their report. *Correction: Darlene Opalko was incorrectly named in a DUI listing in the Pennsylvania State Police incident round-up. (2/27/2020) MONTOURSVILLE The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and PennDOTs Regional Driver Safety Task Force recently invited high school students to showcase their artistic talents by entering a Winter Maintenance Poster Contest, aimed at promoting safe winter driving in the region. High Schools from Union, Snyder and Bradford County were invited to participate. Students were instructed to incorporate the theme of Know Before You Go into their original art which encourages motorist to check weather and road conditions on 511PA.com before heading out this winter. 511PA is also available through a smartphone application for iPhone and Android devices, by calling 5-1-1, or by following regional twitter alerts accessible on the 511PA website. PennDOT District 3 Executive Sandra Tosca presented a certificate of appreciation to this years winner, Canton Jr/Sr High School seventh grade student Cohen Landis. Cohens poster incorporated a snow-covered roadway with a red pick-up truck seemingly losing control on a curve. After receiving his award, Cohen noted I am very honored to have won this contest. Having a fun hands-on activity was a great way to show what we learned in class, referring to a classroom discussion on careers. Canton Jr/Sr High School teacher Maureen Martz encouraged her student to participate in the contest. I choose to do this project because I am very interested in getting my students exposure to things going on in their community Martz commented. A six foot by three-foot banner of the winning design was featured during the awards ceremony and will remain on display at the Bradford County Maintenance Office in Towanda as well as in the school. According to preliminary 2017-2018 PennDOT data, there were 12,439 total winter weather crashes last winter resulting in 45 fatalities and 4,951 injuries. Three of the fatalities and 40 of the injuries occurred in Bradford County. The Winter Maintenance Poster Contest will be held again next year, and organizers expect to invite high school students from all nine counties in the district to participate. For more information on winter driving, visit penndot.gov/safety and join the conversation on social media using #PAWinter. Caleb Slinkard was hired as the editor of the Norman Transcript in August of 2015. He is a graduate of Texas A&M University-Commerce and previously was in charge of several newspapers in northeast Texas. Follow Caleb Slinkard Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today And a court fight is virtually a certainty. Trump has consulted with White House lawyers and allies about using emergency powers to take action on his own, and over the objections of Congress, to construct the wall. Bypassing Congress constitutional control of the nations purse strings would lead to certain legal challenges and likely bipartisan charges of executive overreach. But as he left to visit McAllen, Texas, and the Rio Grande on Thursday to highlight what he continues to term a crisis of drugs and crime along the border, Trump said his lawyers had told him his declaration of a national emergency, should he opt to declare one, would withstand legal scrutiny 100 percent. This from a man who has shown repeatedly he tends to play fast and loose with the facts. At the same time, The AP reported that legal experts say Trump likely cannot waive eminent domain, which required the government to demonstrate a public use for the land and provide landowners with compensation, by declaring a national emergency. Last March, Congress funded 33 miles of walls and fencing in Texas. The government has laid out plans that would cut across private land in the Rio Grande Valley. Many who own that land have hired lawyers who are preparing to fight the government if it moves to seize their land through eminent domain. More than 1,000 students in Iowa and Nebraska will get student-loan debt relief from the Career Education Corp. That companys college brands have included for-profit schools such as Brooks Institute, Brown College, Missouri College, Harrington College of Design, Sanford-Brown and Le Cordon Bleu. The Illinois-based CEC currently offers mainly online courses through American InterContinental University and Colorado Technical University. This applies only to institutional debt owed by students that is, loans made by CEC and not to federal student loans. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} In Iowa, 715 students will get relief totaling about $1.4 million, and in Nebraska, 370 students will see relief of about $665,400. Nationwide, more than 179,500 students will see relief totaling about $494 million. The settlement was made by CEC with 49 state attorneys general, including those in Nebraska and Iowa. The state attorneys essentially accused CEC of misleading students about the worth of CEC credits and degrees. The average individual debt relief nationwide is about $2,750, the Iowa Attorney Generals Office said. CEC has also agreed to pay $5 million to the states. Iowas share will be about $264,000 and Nebraskas share will be $75,000. For a guy getting paid $440,000 a year to tout the attractions of New Orleans to out-of-towners, Stephen Perry is clearly conflicted about the condition of our fair city and has little but disdain for the people who are running it. The president and CEO of New Orleans & Company, formerly known as the Convention and Visitors Bureau, Perry recently unleashed some harsh criticism of the place he is well-remunerated to extol. Among other things, Perry suggested that the municipal authorities were incapable of collecting garbage or making the streets safe in the French Quarter, the citys prime tourist destination. "Here at the end of the day for us, we're trying not to embarrass anybody right now, Perry said, but we are about to have to start doing that. Theres a tourism-marketing slogan New Orleans didnt try in its first 300 years. Why the rush to name a New Orleans police chief? What has Perry all riled up is Mayor LaToya Cantrells emerging campaign to redirect a share of the $200 million in annual tax revenues now going to New Orleans and Company, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corp., the convention center and the Superdome to instead be used to help rebuild the citys crumbling infrastructure, especially its outdated drainage, water and sewerage systems. She estimates it will take an additional $80 million to $100 million a year to do the trick. We sit and look at this and were truly incredulous because the argument is (to take this money) from a high-performing, organically created private sector enterprise, Perry told The Lens editor Charles Maldonado, to give it to the people who have been managing the Sewerage & Water Board, who have been the stewards of everything from flooding and drainage management, who have given us the modern-day NOPD. Who ... I could just go on and on. And then he did. "Because, take the French Quarter. You got a city that takes a 13-by-eight-block area that is arguably the single most valuable neighborhood commercially in the entire United States, Perry said. They cant clean it, they cant pick up the garbage, they cant make it safe. Thirteen-by-eight blocks. So you can understand our skepticism about saying, All right, lets diminish the size of the economy and give a little more to them to continue performing so badly. Action New Orleans, a political action committee formed last year to promote Cantrells political agenda, called Perrys statements unhinged. He attacked local law enforcement, the group said. He attacked the French Quarter community. And he made bizarre threats to embarrass people. A lot of locals would share Perrys frustration with the status and the management of New Orleans, but his ad hominem response generates a lot more heat than light. Residents also want to see all these things fixed without property taxes, assessments and various fees going so high that we cant live here. Is there a place for honest debate about how to deal with the citys obvious needs without devolving into a turf war? We dont want to kill off or cripple the tourism events the conventions, the Super Bowls, the Final Fours that bring outside dollars into the city, creating jobs and livelihoods. But by Perrys own logic, the citys services and infrastructure could deteriorate to the point that no amount of catchy ads and slogans will convince people to come here. Mass shootings and boil-water advisories are not good for business. To the tourism and hospitality industrys credit, representatives did pitch a plan to raise $81 million in one-time money for repairs and upgrades to drainage and other city infrastructure. Cantrell said it wasnt enough. To the mayors credit, she does seem open to negotiating. Im not saying that we want it all, she has said. All Im saying is that we need a little bit more of what we generate. And I dont believe its pie-in-the-sky. I believe we can do it. If there were ever a place where government and private industry need to come together to pursue and protect common goals, this is it. New Orleans cant survive, let alone thrive, without a healthy tourism industry. And the tourism industry isnt going to last long here if the city is either underwater or out of it. Searching for motives in the NOPD chiefs disappearance Business leaders and residents have every right to demand better services and greater accountability from the city. City officials have a responsibility to question whether tourism subsidies and tax dollars are being properly used. What we dont need is a mud-slinging fight between the city and its biggest private employer, especially not until we get the drainage situation figured out. Tim Morris is a columnist on the Latitude team at NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune. Latitude is a place to share opinions about the challenges facing Louisiana. Follow @LatitudeNOLA on Facebook and Twitter. Write to Tim at tmorris@nola.com. Nearly $20 million is likely to be returned to donors after a crowdfunding campaign failed to meet its fundraising goal for President Donald Trumps proposed border wall, CNN reports. The report says triple amputee Air Force veteran and motivational speaker, Brian Kolfage, started the campaign with the intention to raise $1 billion to fund a wall along the countrys southwest border. As of Saturday night (Jan. 12), donors from the across the country had given $20,377,000 to the campaign. However, GoFundMe tells CNN that since the campaign was far from reaching its goal, the crowdfunding platform intends to refund it all. The company noted that when the effort first began, the campaign organizer specifically stated on the campaign page, If we dont reach our goal or come significantly close we will refund every single penny.'" The report says Kolfage has since set up a 501(c)(4) non-profit Florida Corporation named We Build the Wall, Inc. and is now asking donors to redirect their donations there. Read CNNs full report. A man was found shot dead Saturday (Jan. 12) in a yard in St. Rose, the St. Charles Parish Sheriffs Office said. Deputies found the body of the man, who they believe is in his 50s, shortly after 4:30 p.m. in the 100 block of Second Street (map), according to a news release. Deputies arrested the person suspected of shooting the man shortly afterward, the sheriffs office said. The office did not release the identity of the suspected shooter. St. Charles Sheriff Greg Champagne said there is currently no perceived threat to the community, though the investigation remains active and ongoing. If anyone has information regarding the incident, they are urged to contact St. Charles Parish Sheriffs Office Detective Jenni Barrette at 985-783-1135 or 985-783-6807. WASHINGTON New Jersey will be able to seek federal funding for its 300-mile Coastal Heritage Trail under legislation signed into law by President Donald Trump. The measure, one of the last sponsored by Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-2nd Dist., before he retired, renews federal support for the automobile route established in 1988. It is under the auspices of the National Park Service. The route runs from Perth Amboy to Cape May in the South and across to Carneys Point, passing national wildlife refuges, lighthouses, a Civil War fort and several places where migratory birds settle. Federal authorization had expired in 2011, but the law will both make the trail eligible for federal dollars through 2025 and develop a plan to attract funds from local, national and private sources. Trump issued a statement without fanfare about the bill, one of several pieces of legislation he signed into law. The heritage trail bill was one of several measures cleared in the closing days of the 115th Congress. Separately, the House on Friday passed legislation sponsored by Rep. Chris Smith, R-4th Dist., to elevate the position of the U.S. State Departments anti-Semitism special envoy to the rank of ambassador and require that the post be filled quickly if vacant. Anti-Semitic hatred is hardwired into the ideology of violent Islamist and white supremacist groups," Smith said. "But this evil goes beyond those perpetrators. Politicians, entertainers, and public intellectuals across the philosophical spectrum have exhibited anti-Semitism. Strong American leadership is essential to battle this bigotry. Smiths bill, which passed the House in the last Congress only to stall in the Senate, comes a time of increased anti-Semitic activity in the U.S. as well. Eleven worshippers were gunned down at a Pittsburgh synagogue during Sabbath prayers in October. In addition, Republicans during the midterms attacked Jewish financier George Soros, falsely accusing him of paying demonstrators opposed to the nomination of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh and funding a caravan of Central American migrants heading north in search of asylum. Soros, a supporter of progressive causes, also had a pipe bomb addressed to him. He was one of several Jews mentioned in Trumps closing 2016 campaign ad as "people that dont have your good in mind. Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. WASHINGTON Majorities of Americans blamed President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans for the longest government shutdown in U.S. history, as the deadlock entered its fourth week with no end in sight. In an ABC News/Washington Post poll, 53 percent of Americans said Trump and the GOP was responsible for the partial shutdown, while 29 percent named congressional Democrats and 18 percent said both. In a CNN poll, they blamed Trump over congressional Democrats, 55 percent to 32 percent, with 9 percent saying both sides were responsible. In addition, Trumps call for southern border wall was rejected by majorities in both polls 56 percent to 39 percent in the CNN survey and 54 percent to 42 percent in the ABC/Post poll. The polls followed Trumps nationally televised address to the country on border security. The shutdown was the third during his administration. A majority in the CNN survey, 52 percent, rejected Trumps assertion that immigration across the southern border was a crisis, with 45 percent siding with the president. And by 66 percent to 31 percent, Americans in the ABC/Post poll said Trump should not declare a national emergency and divert defense spending in order to pay for the border wall. The shutdown has left more than 800,000 federal employees either working without pay or furloughed. The remainder of the government was funded through Sept. 30 under earlier legislation signed into law by Trump. Americans who rely on government aid are in danger of losing that help if the shutdown continues, though New Jersey officials have announced they will pay Februarys food stamp benefits later this month. Small businesses cant get loans and the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau wont approve new breweries. The Food and Drug Administration has cut back on food inspections. Rep. Jeff Van Drew, D-2nd Dist., has introduced legislation to pay employees at the Coast Guard and Federal Aviation Administration, who have been working without pay. Air traffic controllers, who are not receiving their salaries, are phoning in sick in larger numbers. Trump, who said last month that he would be proud to shut down the government for border security, tried to divert the blame in a series of tweets Sunday. The damage done to our Country from a badly broken Border - Drugs, Crime and so much that is bad - is far greater than a Shutdown, which the Dems can easily fix as soon as they come back to Washington! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 Im in the White House, waiting. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 The building of the Wall on the Southern Border will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 13, 2019 About one-fourth of the government shut down Dec. 22 after Trump refused to sign legislation keeping those federal agencies open unless the spending bill also included more than $5 billion in taxpayer funds for a southern border wall that he promised Mexico would pay for. Trump never made such demands for wall funding during the two years Republicans controlled both houses of Congress, nor did he consider the southern border an emergency when Republicans had majorities on Capitol Hill. A question I wish someone would ask the president: if $5.7 billion for the wall is important enough to shut down the gov't, why didn't you have this fight in the 2 years when your party controlled Congress? Why did you ask for only $1.6 billion last year? Tom Malinowski (@Malinowski) January 12, 2019 Senate Republicans, who in December unanimously passed a spending bill without wall funding, have refused to vote on almost virtually identical legislation that the new House Democratic majority approved when it came into power earlier this month. The #TrumpShutdown is now officially the longest government shutdown in US history. The longer this continues, the more American lives will be hurt. McConnell must bring bipartisan legislation that already passed the House to the Senate floor for a vote to reopen the government. pic.twitter.com/2LwxlcHlVd Sen. Cory Booker (@SenBooker) January 12, 2019 The ABC/Post poll of 788 adults was conducted Jan. 8-11 with a margin of error of 4.5 percentage points. The CNN survey of 848 adults was conducted Jan. 10-11 with a margin of error of 4.1 percentage points. Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook. As the Legislature investigates the Murphy administration's mishandling of Katie Brennan's rape charge, and the rest of us wonder how her alleged rapist got a job and a fat raise, a broader issue is brewing. Is the mistreatment of women a common occurrence in Murphy world? Last week, Jonathan Berkon, an attorney for Phil Murphy's campaign, testified that there were several complaints about the campaign atmosphere, although he did not specify if all were from women or related to gender hostility. But at least three women have now complained in the press. Others might want to come forward. Those who have spoken might want to say more. Yet strict non-disclosure agreements that Murphy made hundreds of volunteers and paid staffers sign now may prohibit them from speaking to the press about any aspect of their work. At the very least, they create a chilling effect: If you can't afford a lawyer, you'd be scared of getting sued. Women likely also fear the impact that speaking out might have on their government careers. Only three have taken the risk. The first was Brennan, a top Murphy housing official, who testified that she was raped by Al Alvarez after a campaign gathering, that she told several senior Murphy staffers, and yet nothing was done. She was then left out of meetings after objecting to the hiring of her alleged rapist for a senior post in the administration, she says. Not only was Alvarez promoted, he reportedly got a $30,000 raise. The second woman, Allison Kopicki, a senior economic development official, says she was also sidelined in the Murphy administration after complaining about the behavior of a male campaign staffer. She was excluded from meetings about an economic development plan she helped craft, Kopicki says, as retaliation after she raised concerns that Joe Kelley created a hostile work environment for women while he was deputy campaign manager. Like Alvarez, Kelley got a big promotion. He is now Murphy's deputy chief of staff, defended as "an integral member of our state's economic development team" by the governor's spokesman. This was after he threw a chair while a female subordinate was in the room. The third woman, Julia Fahl, was that woman in the room. Now the mayor of Lambertville, Fahl said she admires Murphy, looks forward to working with him and is "confident that the toxic workplace issues I experienced firsthand on the campaign will be addressed." But while Murphy insists his campaign took the work environment seriously, he also appeared dismissive. "If that's how she felt, those are her feelings and I respect her," the governor initially said of Fahl, while on a trip to Germany with Kelley, the chair-hurler he promoted. Then Murphy added, "I did not see it that way. Every campaign is an intense experience. You never have enough space. You're on top of each other." How, exactly, would this lead a man to throw a chair? A campaign is not special. Working in a hospital emergency room is an intense experience. Imagine if your surgeon flew into a rage and hurled furniture. It doesn't inspire confidence. Now imagine a female resident was suddenly sidelined after complaining about it, while he got a big promotion. It's not ok in government either. You wonder: Are women who speak up seen as having betrayed the club? Meanwhile, the men are rewarded. And why is there a gag order, preventing women from talking about bad behavior on the Murphy campaign? As a show of good faith, Murphy should release women in writing from their strict non-disclosure agreements, so they are free to discuss their work environment. If it wasn't toxic, they will surely say so. There's a place for confidentiality, when it comes to strategy or policy. But it can't be used to silence people. If Murphy refuses to lift the gag order, that can only lead us to conclude that he has something to hide. * This editorial was updated to reflect that several people complained about the campaign atmosphere, according to Berkon's testimony. A previous version incorrectly said there were no such complaints. Bookmark NJ.com/Opinion. Follow on Twitter @NJ_Opinion and find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. When a little boy throws a temper tantrum, the last thing you should do is yield to his demands. The next time he screams for a lollipop, your problem will only have grown. But what if the child is president of the United States? It changes things. Democrats can't send Donald Trump to his room for a time out. They can't force him to end this shutdown. They have to search for a more clever answer. The path Democrats have chosen would make perfect sense in normal times. They are refusing to yield an inch, giving him nothing for his pointless wall. The polls are moving in their direction, and the hope is that the growing pressure will force Trump to face the fact that he can't have his lollipop. "We feel we have a strong hand," says Rep. Tom Malinowski, a freshman Democrat in the 7th district. "This is not about border security. It's about how we resolve disputes in Washington. We have an overwhelming interest in not letting the president get his way by shutting down the government. And I think that position will prevail." In normal times, it would. But Trump has an advantage in this fight: He's a heartless scoundrel who doesn't give a damn about the families of the 800,000 federal workers who can't pay their rent, or the Native Americans who can't get health care, or the 38 million people who will soon lose food stamps. Trump cares about Trump, as we have learned over and over. Why would Democrats think he's going to change that now? If you look into the crystal ball, the best guess is that Trump will declare a state of emergency, or plunder disaster aid, to build his wall, and then reopen government and declare victory. Democrats will file suit to block him, but Trump will win something either way. If he prevails in court, which many experts believe he will, he'll have his wall. If he loses, he'll have the issue to inflame his base in 2020. In a tweet two days after Christmas, Trump seemed to relish that prospect, even as he noted that he lacked the votes in the Senate to win this fight through the normal rules of politics. "They may have the 10 Senate votes, but we have the issue, Border Security. 2020!" Bring it on, say most Democrats. "He made the mid-terms about fear of immigration, and I don't think that worked out well for him," Malinowski says. "I don't think it's going to help the president to run the same play that failed in the mid-terms." Maybe. But I have two big concerns, one on politics and one on policy. Mike DuHaime, a Republican consultant with wide national experience, notes that the big Democratic gains in the mid-terms came in blue states like California and New Jersey, where Malinowski was one of four Democrats to take Republican seats. To win a presidential election, Duhaime says, Democrats will need to win swing states like Florida and Ohio, where Republicans made solid gains in 2018. "It's an electoral college map," DuHaime says. "So, it doesn't matter that Malinowski won. Trump supporters hear border security, get rid of cop killers, get rid of drug dealers. They see Trump as taking a stand against bad guys. Whereas Trump haters see it as a wall that says we hate everyone who is not American. So, it mobilizes both sides." Maybe I'm traumatized by the 2016 vote, but that scares me, a little. The bigger concern, though, is that a crisis like this is also an opportunity, one that Democrats could try to use as leverage to protect the Dreamers from deportation, and scale back the other cruelties, like Trump's separation of parents and children seeking asylum, and his aggressive deportation of people with no criminal records. I get it, Trump would probably reject a deal that included funding for his wall, along with a dose of humanity. He rejected an offer like that last year, one that Sen. Robert Menendez helped negotiate. And Vice President Mike Pence rejected that kind of trade just last week. But Trump changes his mind like a nervous high school kid changes outfits before a prom. The wall is his obsession, his white whale. Any deal that gives him that has a chance. Speaker Nancy Pelosi was asked Thursday if she'd take a deal like that, one that included funding for the wall. "We have always stood ready to discuss comprehensive immigration reform, and of course, the Dreamers," she said. Malinowski, despite his anguish over appeasing a spoiled child, is ready to go along, if the reforms were ambitious enough. Protecting the 800,000 Dreamers facing deportation, he said, would not be enough. "It's been raised by one or two people in our very large caucus, and almost unanimously and passionately shot down by everyone," he said. "A true compromise involves pain for all sides, and relief for the Dreamers is not painful for Donald Trump. He was for it last year, and only stopped because he decided to hold them hostage for the wall. "If we were to give him that, it would be the last deal on any immigration issue we'd see for the duration of this administration. The Dreamers don't even want that." I'm rooting for that grand bargain, but I'm not banking on it. More likely, we'll wind up in precisely this same spot in 2020. Here's hoping that next time, Trump's venom doesn't sell so well in Florida and the Rust Belt. More: Tom Moran columns Tom Moran may be reached at tmoran@starledger.com or call (973) 836-4909. Follow him on Twitter @tomamoran. Find NJ.com Opinion on Facebook. To the left of the Central Avenue entrance to Ss. Joseph and Michael Roman Catholic Church in Union City is the huge bell that fell when the church caught fire and its bell tower collapsed on March 4, 2017. Now that the church has reopened after restoration and renovation, the bell tower that has been under construction in Kentucky is to be brought to Union City this week for installation. The entire renovation has cost $5 million and a lot of sweat and tears, according to the Rev. Aro Nathan, pastor. Nathan recalls that tragic Friday night in Lent nearly two years ago. After praying the Stations of the Cross and closing the church around 10 oclock, he was roused from his sleep by a commotion of fire trucks around 1 in the morning. An apartment building a block away caught fire when two men were playing with matches; a year-old baby succumbed in the fire that spread quickly with embers landing on the church building in the frigid cold. At 5 a.m., Cardinal Joseph Tobin, archbishop of Newark, called to say he would be by later. Neighbors displaced from their homes were given shelter in the public school across from the church. After the cardinal comforted the people and surveyed the damage, he made a promise to Nathan: I wont abandon you. He kept his word. There are two huge photos of Tobin, one on each side of the church entrance thanking him. He returned to bless the new altar and preside over the Dec. 15, 2018, rededication. A new roof was installed. The inside of the church was entirely gutted and repainted, adding a new tile floor, new blond benches that are slanted with a large baptismal font at the entrance. The original stained glass windows reflect the German origins of the parish, which was founded as St. Josephs in 1889 to accommodate the overflow from the huge Passionist St. Michaels Monastery nearby. When the Passionists closed St. Michaels in 1982, St. Joseph took on St. Michaels name as well. Fred Reich, 43, the parish secretary born in Union City, reflects the past and present of the parish. His father is German and his mother Puerto Rican. While there are a smattering of German- and Italian-American parishioners today, most of the 1,500 registered families are Hispanic and about 600 attend all the weekend Masses. Collections are down since the fire because people worshipped next door in the Veterans Memorial Public School and some may have gone to other churches in town. Reich also noted that they lost income from baptisms, weddings and funerals. The parish is hosting a car raffle to raise funds and sells food after the Sunday Masses, which often brings in about $400 a weekend. Steven Barreiro, 30, of North Bergen considers Ss. Joseph and Michael my go-to parish. He celebrated his communion and confirmation there, but it was his aunt who got him to come back. Now he volunteers and maintains the new website, which the archdiocese mandated, and plans upcoming events like the Feast of St. Michael in September. While the parish is still getting back on its feet, Nathan offered special thanks to Union City Mayor Brian Stack for giving the public school to the parish for the duration. For more than 80 years, this parish hosted the Veronicas Veil Lenten play, which I attended as a grammar school boy, and attracted thousands from all over every Lent until its last show in 1999. While Nathan is optimistic now, he had many sleepless nights when it was not certain the church would reopen, despite the cardinals assurances. Parishioners wanted to re-open, but the archdiocese assembled a team of chancery officials to evaluate the prospects and Nathan said the vote was close to reopen. Today, it is embarking on an evangelization program and knocking on doors to get more people into the pews, Nathan said. Finishing touches are being put on new bathrooms, a new confessional and the church vestibule. With the worst over, Nathan said he is sleeping better and looks forward to building community. People love to come to church, he said. The restored church is bright, big and airy -- and welcoming, as is Nathan. People come for blessings for life, he noted, adding that the people are not rich but wanted their church back. And now they have it. The Rev. Alexander Santora is the pastor of Our Lady of Grace and St. Joseph, 400 Willow Ave., Hoboken, 07030, FAX: 201-659-5833; Email: padrealex@yahoo.com; Twitter: @padrehoboken. Details ... Ss. Joseph and Michael Church is located at 1314 Central Ave, Union City, NJ 07087. Saturday vigil Masses are at 5:30 p.m. in English and 7 p.m. in Spanish. Sunday Masses are at 9:30 a.m. in English and 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. in Spanish. For information, call (201) 865-2325 or go to http://www.stsjosephandmichael.org. By Tom Deignan Last July, the remains of 26 year-old Montclair resident Scott Michael Johnson - who died in the 9/11 terror attacks were officially identified by the New York City Medical Examiners office. The one-time financial analyst for the firm of Keefe, Bruyette, & Woods was the 1,642nd victim of over 2,700 whose DNA was officially matched to remains from that awful day. That same week, U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., was one of several lawmakers who called on spy agencies to declassify all documents related to 9/11. In other words, all these years later, we still lack certain basic information about the events of that bright September morning, when a new world order and the defining struggle of the 21st Century - was born. All of which makes the events of 30 years ago the eventful year of 1989, when the Berlin Wall fell, marking the beginning of the end of the Cold War seem like ancient history. Pundits and historians have certainly moved on, anointing various conflicts with Islamists, Putins Russia, or China Americas new cold war. And yet, many of the crises dominating todays headlines refugees, terrorism, right-wing neo-nationalism actually have their roots in the old Cold War. Consider: We may not yet know the full, declassified story of, say, the Saudis and 9/11. But we know very well the central role the Cold War played in the rise of al Qaeda. The Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, compelling the U.S. to align itself with the mujahideen resistance, one of whose leaders was Osama bin Laden. The rest, sadly, is history. And the 9/11 attacks have not stopped killing: Just over a month ago, retired New Jersey State Trooper Robert Nagle died from cancer he contracted while assisting with the World Trade Center recovery operation. So, before we embark on any new cold wars, we would be wise to reexamine the far-reaching consequences - intended and unintended of the old Cold War. Nothing, for example, has raised Americas collective blood pressure more in recent weeks than Central American immigration - the separation of children from parents, the caravan, MS-13, the deaths of migrant children. But its important to remember that, during the Cold War, America played an outsize role in this part of the world. El Salvador. Guatemala. Nicaragua. Billions of dollars in weapons and thousands of lives were lost in the struggle between American- and Soviet-aligned forces, sowing chaos in a region already scarred by decades of instability. (America has) played a major part in creating the problem of what has become of Central America, writes Lauren Markham in her new book The Far Away Brothers, about two Salvadoran twins who fled a violence-wracked village for Oakland. Not even the notorious assassination of El Salvadoran Archbishop (and now saint) Oscar Romero in February 1980, or the rape and murder of three American nuns and a Catholic aid worker later that year, could disrupt Americas commitment to the anti-communist forces linked to those atrocities. President Reagans foreign policy team "made El Salvador a test case, the sliver of land where the cold war would finally be won, writes Ellen Markey in her recent book A Radical Faith: The Assassination of Sister Maura. The long shadow of the Cold War also falls across the Trumpian nationalism garnering so much attention in the U.S. and Europe. The rise of reactionary strongman political figures has raised sobering questions about the durability of democracy itself - especially in former Cold War battlegrounds. Is Poland retreating from Democracy? The New Yorker asked recently, of the birthplace of the famed Solidarity movement, and Cold War giant Pope John II. The magazine profiled the rise of Jarosaw Kaczynski, the leader of the Law and Justice party, whose supporters often lament Polands struggles to emerge from the Soviet Unions shadow, a reaction, as Timothy Garton Ash wrote recently in The New York Review of Books, to thirty years of life-changing transition from communism. Poland is just one of many European nations struggling not unlike the U.S. to reconcile cultural change and tradition, diversity and patriotism. Angry Europeans from Poland to Slovenia, from Italy to Germany, denounce refugees as Islamic invaders. Once-fringe political candidates deftly move to the mainstream by exploiting fear and proclaiming it is time, once and for all, to preserve ... security and Christian culture, as hard-line Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban proclaimed last May. The irony, of course, is that these calls for a defense of Christian Europe come with rhetoric and policy proposals that are, by any measure, deeply un-Christian. We end up with a conflict, as Washington Monthly bluntly put it, between Liberalism and White Supremacy. What did they call this struggle? The new Cold War. A bigger question is this: What did we really learn from the old Cold War? If nothing else, that these overarching ideological wars very quickly become very messy, and even when they end, they are far from over. From lower Manhattan to Beijing, we may be embarking on new Cold Wars. But three decades on, the embers of 1989 still smolder. Tom Deignan has written about history for the New York Times, Washington Post and National Catholic Reporter. He lives in Woodbridge and contributes regularly to The Star-Ledger. LOS INDIOS, Texas Photographer Andre Malok and I were three days into traveling the banks of the Rio Grande before we saw any sort of wall along the Mexican border. We finally saw one in McAllen. So did half the TV crews in Texas. It was Thursday, the day President Trump came to this border town to give a speech on his current tiff with Congress over $5 billion in funding for a border wall or fence or whatever. The day before, Andre and I had driven along 150 miles of border without seeing any barriers at all on the river banks. Theres just a relatively narrow, relatively shallow river with easy access in many spots. But theres one heck of a barrier in the booming border city of McAllen. Its both a wall and a fence. The 12-foot metal fence is perched on a 20-foot concrete wall. That short stretch of wall became the center of controversy when CNNs Jim Acosta posed before it on Thursday and announced we're not seeing any kind of imminent danger, there are no migrants trying to rush toward this fence here in the McAllen, Texas, area no sign of the national emergency that the president has been talking about. As a matter of fact, it's pretty tranquil down here. That got him into a Twitter feud with Donald Trump Jr., who responded that the reason things were tranquil is because walls work. They certainly do in that spot. Its virtually impenetrable, so any illegal crossers have to find a spot on either side of the wall. And they work in a lot of other places as well, said one border-town mayor who was among the local officials attending the meeting with Trump. We ran into Los Indios Mayor Rick Cavazos on Friday as we headed eastward toward the Gulf. As we were driving along in a rural area, we saw a wall like the one wed seen in McAllen. When we pulled over to check it out, we saw the mayor being interviewed by a local paper. He offered to talk to us as well. Cavazos, a tall Texan of Mexican descent who wears a cowboy hat, described the briefing that Trump gave to him and others at the Border Patrol station in McAllen the day before. The president told them the disputed $5 billion would not be used merely for a wall, he said. We were told its a more comprehensive border security package that will cover things like additional personnel, port-of-entry improvements, technology, et cetera, he said. Cavazos, who is a retired Border Patrol agent, said that made sense to him. As a small-town mayor, Cavazos wants peace and quiet in his town. The wall provides that, he said. It creates a containment area away from the neighborhoods where his towns 1,100 residents live, he said. Prior to the wall, he said, there was a very dangerous situation with people running through the neighbors back yards, possibly carrying drugs, and you had high-speed pursuits. When the wall was installed a few years ago, all that ended, he said. For a community leader like myself, its important to keep that activity away from the community and closer to the river, Cavazos said. Everybody wants to feel safe and secure in their community. The critics of the wall say it just pushes the activities to the undefended sections. But thats the point, the mayor said. If they cant cross the river near his town, the migrants and smugglers will go to unpopulated places where the Border Patrol can deal with them, he said. When he used to work as an agent out west, Cavazos said, the wall pushed the coyotes and smugglers all the way out to the rugged Big Bend area of Texas. There they might have to hike two days to meet up with their contacts in the U.S Out west, he said, the wall can be built right on the border because its on dry land. The situation in the East is a bit more complicated. Because the Rio Grande has so many twists and turns in it, the wall has to be built back a bit from the border. But what about the people who want to access that land? There are gates that are open to anyone who has a legitimate reason to get down to the river. That reason can be nothing more than a desire to go fishing, he said. The wall is not the answer to the immigration problem, he said. It really is a tool in the toolbox the Border Patrol can use, Cavazos said that tool has been used successfully in the past, He termed it unfortunate that border security got so politicized. Trump of course politicized it by campaigning on a promise to have the Mexicans pay for the wall. But Cavazos also noted that many of the Democrats now opposing the walls extension supported the 2006 Secure Fence Act that funded the construction of the wall in Los Indios. A lot of these folks who are making it political are the ones who voted for the act in 2006, he said. If you just step back from the politics, he said, that $5 billion would represent not a break with the past but a continuation of a policy thats been proven successful. What about critics of the wall who argue that it represents a massive intrusion on the natural environment? Its not a pretty sight, he said, pointing at the wall. But the real problem is there is no will in congress to reform the immigration problem. Theres just no will. No theres not. But there is a wall. And it works for Los Indios. ADD - DRONES NEEDED HERE: Meanwhile there are plenty of initiatives that really would work. We learned of one when Andre sent a drone up to shoot the river at a notorious trouble spot where migrants hide in the reeds on the river bank. As he was finishing up, a Border Patrol truck pulled up. We thought the agent was going to yell at us, but instead he asked Where can I get one of those? From the government if the two parties ever get their acts together. Newark police arrested a city man on weapons charges Sunday after an early-morning chase, authorities said. Officers near Broadway and Herbert Place heard shots fired shortly after midnight and then spotted a man with a gun in his waistband, Newark police said in a statement. The man allegedly ran, ignoring officers commands and tossing his gun after he was told to stop. The cops eventually arrested 18-year-old Ahmaad Qualls near Riverside Avenue, less than a mile away. The release said officers recovered a 9mm handgun and charged Qualls with unlawfully possessing a weapon and two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon. The latter charge stemmed from a large gun magazine loaded with hollow-point bullets, police said. Qualls also faces resisting and obstruction charges. No injuries were reported. In the statement, Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said officers showed admirable restraint during Qualls' arrest. Blake Nelson can be reached at bnelson@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at@BCunninghamN. In what is being labeled as a call to action, a "rally in response to the violence taking place all across Jersey City'' will be held tomorrow at 4 p.m. outside City Hall in Jersey City. The rally is being sponsored by Students Demand Action Jersey City. The Associated PressAnnette Squetimkin-Anquoe, a member of the Colville Indian tribe and the Chief Traditional Health Officer at the Urban Indian Health Institute in Seattle, holds a booklet with a cover that reads "Passport to Tradition" during a talking circle meeting to discuss the practice of traditional Indian medicine with employees of the Seattle Indian Health Board. President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries. As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trump's continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. After this story was published online, Trump said in an interview late Saturday with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that he did not take particular steps to conceal his private meetings with Putin and attacked The Washington Post and its owner Jeff Bezos. He said he talked with Putin about Israel, among other subjects. "Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," he said, without offering specifics. When Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working for Russia, Trump responded, "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked." Former U.S. officials said that Trump's behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Trump's secrecy surrounding Putin "is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous," said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. "It handicaps the U.S. government - the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] - and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump." A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to "improve the relationship with Russia" after the Obama administration "pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement." The Trump administration "has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities," said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 "gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press." Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a "nut job," and said that firing Comey had removed "great pressure" on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the president's interactions with foreign leaders. "Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him," said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trump's meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trump's encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. "It's been several months since Helsinki and we still don't know what went on in that meeting," Engel said. "It's appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head." The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russia's election interference as a "hoax," suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria - a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trump's decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the president's two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putin's interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he "was present for the entirety of the two presidents' official bilateral meeting in Hamburg," but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreter's notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had "pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement" in election interference. "President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past," Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putin's claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Tillerson's account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, "I believe you." A White House spokesperson, responding to this detail from the Hamburg meeting, said: "The President has affirmed that he supports the conclusions in the 2017 Intel Community Assessment, and the President also issued a new executive order in September 2018 to ensure a whole of government effort to address any foreign attempts to interfere in US elections." Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. "We were frustrated because we didn't get a readout," a former senior administration official said. "The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable" with Trump's interactions with Putin, the official said. "God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to." Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trump's conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trump's presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. "There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them," said a former administration official who worked in the White House. "The feedback tended not to be positive." The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. "I recall Fiona reporting that to me," one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson "didn't offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didn't brief senior staff," although he "gave a readout to the press." A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trump's interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trump's meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putin's "powerful" denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clinton's meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. The Washington Post's John Hudson, Josh Dawsey and Julie Tate contributed to this report. Niagara Falls, NY (14301) Today Sunny to partly cloudy. High 71F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Clear to partly cloudy. Low 48F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. As seatbelts, car seats and other auto safety features have become common, the fatality rate for young people from car crashes has dropped significantly over the years. The doctors who treat children and adolescents who have been victims of gunfire, as well as those who work to keep young people safe, want to see a similar decline in deaths and injuries from firearms. In 2014, the rate at which young people died from firearms injuries and car crashes was about the same: 1.76 per 100,000 died because of guns vs. 1.75 from car accidents. Since then, both rates have begun to rise. The things weve done for cars, the fact that you have to be safe when youre in your car I think we can apply that same template to firearm safety, said Dr. Kirsten Bechtel, co-medical director of the Injury Prevention, Community Outreach and Research Program at Yale New Haven Hospital. A basic way to do that is by reducing access to firearms to people who wont safely use a firearm. Its all about safety, she said. When it comes to guns, the goal should be to store them safely and to keep them away from people who should not have them, she said. Since 2011, 85 youths under 18 have been treated for gunshot wounds at Yale New Haven Hospital. Seven of those victims died, but that number doesnt include victims who died before they could be brought to the hospital. Not all gunshot victims treated at Yale New Haven come from the city. As a Level 1 trauma center, patients suffering severe gunshot wounds may be taken to the hospital from other parts of the state, even from as far as Waterbury, Dodington said. In 2018, nine of 78 gunshot victims treated at the hospital were under 18, with one dying of his wounds. That was Ethan Song, the 15-year-old boy from Guilford who died Jan. 31, 2018. The Waterbury states attorney ruled he accidentally shot himself at a friends house. According to Dr. James Dodington, also co-medical director of the hospitals Injury Prevention, Community Outreach and Research Program, the majority of those patients do fall between the ages of 18 and 35, with very few fatalities among victims under 18. Theyre very small numbers in the grand scheme of things, Dodington said of younger victims. Connecticut is a very low-risk state for children dying of firearms, and almost none of them is a victim of homicide. Thankfully, we see very few firearms-related injuries in New Haven and the state of Connecticut in our system, Dodington said. On July 16, 2017, however, a 14-year-old New Haven boy, Tyrick Keyes, was shot on Bassett Street. His killer has not been found. At Bridgeport Hospital, there were 35 shooting victims under 18 between 2014 and 2018, one of whom died, according to Dr. Justin Cahill, quality officer for the hospitals Department of Emergency Medicine. Those under 18 totaled about 11 percent of all shooting victims seen at Bridgeport Hospital during those five years, Cahill said. The one fatality was 12-year-old Clinton Howell, who was shot in the chest Dec. 18, 2018, on Willow Street in Bridgeport. Police said the target of the shooting was his cousin. Tajay Chambers, 18, was charged with murder with special circumstances in Clintons slaying. Probably weekly at least well see a gunshot, not always of a young person, Cahill said. Its pretty rare that well see someone as young as this 12-year-old. The Bridgeport area also is served by St. Vincents Medical Center, which in 2018 treated nine gunshot victims between 15 and 18 years old, with no fatalities, according to spokeswoman Danielle Swift. All the doctors said the medical treatment needed is just part of the difficulty when a young person suffers a firearm injury. When its a child, dealing with that emotionally with the parents involved and other family members, its always an emotionally charged situation, Cahill said. Gunshot injuries create more than physical wounds too. When you get shot, youre at high risk for PTSD, substance abuse, Bechtel said. She pointed to statistics saying that as many as 30 percent of those injured by gunshots suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder or depression six months after the event. Other problems include a risk of dropping out of school, problems with authority and in social relationships and a higher rate of suicide attempts. Nationally, according to a 2017 article in the journal Pediatrics, about 1,300 youths up to age 17 are killed and almost 5,800 are treated for firearms injuries each year. The study showed that in 2007, two trends reversed course. Based on data from 17 states, because national statistics are not available, the article stated: Child firearm homicide rates increased significantly from 2002 to 2007, increasing 17% and exhibited a significant decline from 2007 to 2014, decreasing 36%. Child firearm suicide rates, on the other hand, showed a significant downward trend between 2002 and 2007, decreasing 23% but then a significant upward trend between 2007 and 2014, increasing 60% to the highest rate seen over the period examined. Unintentional firearm deaths exhibited a significant overall decrease between 2002 and 2014. According to the paper, while the overall rate of death by firearm was 1.76 per 100,000 youths, it was 1.5 per 100,000 for whites, 4.1 for blacks, 1.15 for Hispanics, 2.15 for American Indians and 0.39 for Asians. Boys were more than four times as likely to die from firearms as girls 2.84 per 100,000 vs. 0.64, according to the report. The rate for nonfatal firearms injuries was 7.86 per 100,000, 71 percent of them the result of assault, with the rest being accidental. Young people suffering firearms injuries is far more of an American problem than it is for the rest of the world. According to the Pediatrics article, 91 percent of all firearms deaths of children 14 and younger in high-income countries occur in the United States. Approximately 19 children a day die or are medically treated in [a hospital emergency department] for a gunshot wound in the United States, the article stated. The majority of these children are boys 13 to 17 years old, African American in the case of firearm homicide, and white and American Indian in the case of firearm suicide. Younger victims are most often innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire, it said. In Connecticut, we have very few people who die because of unintentional injury, Bechtel said. We see very few kids die by suicide compared to the rest of the nation. On the other hand, according to Dodington, the majority of intentional violent injury are in New Haven, Bridgeport and Hartford. So we are working with our hospital and community to improve the care of victims of violence. We want to improve not only your care, but we want to coordinate with our community partners to prevent reinjury. Young people who are victims of shootings are at high risk for being injured again, Dodington said, so Yale New Haven is working with community partners to prevent firearms injuries from occurring. Yale New Haven as of 2019 has founded and begun to staff the first hospital-based violence intervention program in the state, Dodington said. Our goal is to serve victims of violence and give the best kind of clinical care and follow-up. You need both hospitals and community partners to join together to prevent violence. Dodington said doctors need to interface with schools, youth services [to] both track and intervene [with] those who are both victims of violence and those who might be at risk of violence or violent involvement. Bechtel said intervening before violence occurs is key. Just like with any injury, you have to kind of walk backwards to understand how an adolescent or a child got access to a gun, she said. The overarching goal is, we just want to interrupt somebody who is not supposed to access a gun from accessing a gun, she said. While accidental injuries by firearms are rare in Connecticut, in the wake of Ethan Songs death, the firearm-access laws will get even stricter here, Dodington said. The General Assembly will be taking up a bill known as Ethans Law, sponsored by state Rep. Sean Scanlon, D-Guilford, and promoted by Ethans parents, Kristin and Mike Song, which would place responsibility for an accidental firearm injury on the gun owner, whether the owner knew the weapon was loaded or not. Both Bechtel and Dodington are members of the National Network of Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Programs, which promotes programs such as National ASK Day, when parents are encouraged to ask others if they have an unlocked gun in their home, as well as gun buybacks. ASK Day and gun buybacks Kristin Song wants to establish Jan. 31, the anniversary of Ethans death, as an ASK Day (ASK stands for Asking Saves Kids) because people who are not gun enthusiasts themselves may forget that they have a gun in the house that once belonged to a grandparent, for example. She also has been organizing a gun-buyback day for June 22 in Guilford, at which quick-access gun safes will be given out to those who bring in unused guns. Our goal is to raise $15,000, she said. Weve raised $1,500 so far and we havent publicized it yet. She said with digital-access locks, you can open them as quick as your iPhone, and theyre much safer than safes that require keys, which children and teenagers can find. We met with some of the community leaders from Hartford and New Haven and were going to try to help them with a bigger rollout, Song said. She said street outreach workers, such as Leonard Jahad in New Haven are a vital part of the effort to keep young people from using firearms to settle disputes. If theres gang violence or a shooting they go out and they mediate, even going to the hospital to calm the families down, she said. They know all the players. They have street credibility They are incredible; they really risk their lives every time they go out. Jahad has formed a nonprofit, Connecticut Violence Intervention Program Inc., which has bid for the citys $174,000 Street Outreach Worker Program. He previously worked for the Family Alliance, which has undergone leadership changes and was not automatically given the contract for the Street Outreach Worker Program after 10 years, according to the New Haven Independent. The contract will be awarded later this month, according to city Youth Services Director Jason Bartlett. Few want violence Jahad said most shootings result from a beef based on someone feeling disrespected. People usually carry guns because they feel vulnerable, so we try to reduce vulnerability. Someone might think that because of a past grievance he has to defend himself. But the other person may have changed their life. Theyve changed but the other person doesnt know that, so theyll pick up a gun for protection, Jahad said. Even if its a current beef, well go to both sides and say, How bad do you want this beef to stop, 1 to 10? and theyll always say a 10, he said. Jahad will use basic restorative practice, asking, What happened? Who was affected by it? And what can we do to fix it? He might suggest a week for the two sides to cool off. And Jahad will maintain the connection. Even if we hand them off to the counselor, well meet them there, give them a ride home and get something to eat on the way home. When there is a shooting, the police or a social worker will notify Jahad or one of the other outreach workers, who will go to the hospital. If family or friends are down there well de-escalate them, he said. The outreach workers basically know everyone in New Haven. Youth Stat in the schools Another program that seeks to prevent gun violence is Youth Stat, a school-based collaboration between Bartletts office and the Board of Education. Its goal is to identify those who might commit violence and those who might be victims of violence and we try to prevent that from happening, Bartlett said. Weve created a whole program of different interventions, including employment and vocational training, mental health services and providing for basic needs, such as clothing, food and money for utilities. At this point, Youth Stat is really a community tool for that collaboration, Bartlett said. In New Haven, we uniquely identify on a regular basis kids who are at highest risk, because they are involved with a gang, are chronically absent from school, have been suspended or expelled or are failing academically. Four years ago I can name five different youth gangs that exist in the city that dont exist today, Bartlett said. We actually stopped something. We can quantify it. What we need to do is expand it deeper into the middle schools. edward.stannard@hearstmediact.com; 203-680-9382. ANSONIA The citys school board overspent its 2017-18 budget by $225,694, according to an independent audit which chided members for not following accounting principles and failing to share information with the city. Carol Merlone, the longtime superintendent of schools, announced last week that she is retiring as of June 30 and is considering entering politics. Moments before her announcement, the school board authorized Merlone to seek $20,000 to begin securing funding for a new $37 million middle school to be built on Ansonia High Schools Pulaski Highway property. The school board has also proposed a $37.8 million budget approximately $6 million more than current funding. Approving it would require the Board of Aldermen to pass a 7-mill increase in Ansonias tax rate. All this comes as lawyers for the city of Ansonia and the city and state boards of education met Friday with a judge to discuss the possible settlement of lawsuit over the Aldermens removal of $600,000 from the schools 2017-18 budget. On Tuesday night, John Accavallo, a principle with MAWC, a certified public accounting and consulting firm, advised the aldermen that the school board overspent its 2017-18 budget by $225,694, primarily because of underestimated insurance costs. Over budget That expenditure went beyond the boards original $31.86 million budget as well as the $31.26 million budget effective after the aldermen pulled out $600,000. The bottom line is, they went over budget, said John P. Marini, the citys corporation counsel. These are unauthorized costs that have to be approved by the aldermen. This is a management problem, and under the law the school board members can be held personally liable. Chris Phipps, who sits on the school boards Finance Committee, disagreed. The law requires it be willful and malicious before such a finding is ordered, he said about personal liability. This wasnt malicious or willful. We got hit with a large bill after the end of the fiscal year. Phipps said the board is due approximately $181,000 from its insurance program. But it wasnt just the overspending Accavallo saw. He said the audit uncovered three other deficiencies in the school boards management. The audit found a deficiency in the citys grant and capital project fund that involved failing to record two entries totaling nearly $1.2 million in the accounts payable section of the grant fund and capital project fund. The school board now has to write a corrective action plan, to which the city can respond. It will be sent to the state Office of Policy Management for review, Accavallo said. Adding up errors The audit found four deficiencies in the school boards reporting procedures: The Board of Education spent more than allowed by its budget. While litigation is pending, the auditor recommended the school board issue purchase orders only to the extent of the appropriate budgeted amounts. If more monies are needed, the audit advises that the school board either transfer them from unexpended accounts or seek an increase from the Board of Aldermen. The school lunch program understated the amount of cash and accounts payable at the end of the June 30, 2018 fiscal year. Accavallo said checks totaling $102,565 were written, held and not paid out until July or August when the fiscal year ended June 30. We recommend that once checks are written and signed they be mailed immediately, the audit report states. The school lunch program does not timely repay the Board of Education for wages and payroll taxes incurred. The auditor said the Board of Education pays the initial expenses and is then reimbursed. Accavallo suggested the school lunch program only keep two and a half months of operating expenses in its cash accounts. Having more than that is unnecessary because the program gets reimbursed from federal and state governments, he said. The Board of Educations detail ledger and the citys general ledger did not reconcile until Dec. 30 for the fiscal year ending June 30. Adjustments were needed in the amount of $97,526 to record claims incurred but not reported for self-insurance and to reclassify $108,492 in insurance expenditures that were improperly classified a a liability. At one point the $108,492 was deleted from the budget and then discovered by the city. That angered Domenic Filipone, a 3rd Ward alderman. I work for a bank, Filipone said. If I were to delete a transaction Id be fired immediately. However Richard Bshara, the retiring city finance director, who caught error believes it was just an error... there wasnt anything malicious. Once the $600,000 was removed in March from the school boards budget, communication abruptly stopped. Accavallo recommended both the city and the school board form subcommittees to share budgetary information. Were willing to do that, said William Nimons, the school board chairman. But at our convenience not theirs. As for the School Boards requested $6 million increase in their 2019-20 budget, which, if approved, would be included in every school board budget going forward, Marini called it unprecedented...particularly when the auditor has shown they cant manage their budget. Mayor David Cassetti, who is opposed to raising taxes, said, its not going to happen. This request of a 20 percent increase is irrational and financially irresponsible, added Lorie Vaccaro, the Board of Alderman president. The city and the Board of Education have to face reality and work together. Taxpayers want a reasonable, well thought-out and affordable budget. A Danbury police officer was fired after allegedly beating a pedestrian on a city street. In East Haven, an officer lost her job over a domestic dispute. But the terminations turned out to be temporary. Both officers were reinstated last year by the state Board of Mediation and Arbitration, a six member panel empowered to resolve labor disputes. In fact, seven police officers fired by Connecticut municipalities over the last two years were reinstated by the mediation board, a Hearst Connecticut Media review of the cases shows. The board ruled in favor of police unions and officers in 12 cases and ruled in favor of a city or town in nine cases. One case was settled, another was tabled and a third was sent to state Superior Court for further arbitration. Some municipal officials say the mediation process is tilted in favor of unions and costs taxpayers large payouts for back wages, litigation and other expenses. They also say there should be a way to overturn rulings at the local level. "Its not an effective system," said Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton. "It takes years and costs hundreds of thousands of dollars," Boughton said of the system. "Its a very broken process." In addition to ordering Danbury and East Haven to rehire officers, the mediation board reinstated five Bridgeport school cops laid off to save the Board of Education money. In each case, the arbitrators ruled the municipality violated a union contract and ordered the communities to reinstate the officers and pay lost wages. "That sounds about right," said Av Harris, legislative liaison and a spokesman for Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim, referring to the mediation boards record. Still, Harris said despite losing a case, the city views the process as a necessary way to resolve labor disputes. "Across the board these cases go one way or the other," Harris said. "Its truly a neutral board; they listen to both sides." Bad cops? Danbury officer Daniel Sellner was fired in January 2014 after city officials determined, based on a store video of the incident, that he used unreasonable force while arresting a youth on Main Street. Although the officer said the youth fell while in handcuffs, the city maintained Sellner pushed him to the ground and told the mediation board he had a history of excessive behavior. The police union argued there wasnt clear evidence of unreasonable force in the video and complained that investigating officers never interviewed Sellner about the arrest. The mediation board concluded Danbury did not have "just cause" to terminate Sellner and the citys investigation was not "fair or objective." The East Haven case involved Detective Monique Cobert, the towns first African-American officer, who was terminated in 2017 over a domestic incident that involved a fight with her husband. The town maintained Cobert violated department policies regarding "good conduct" and displayed "dishonest" behavior. The mediation board found "no just cause" under the union contract to warrant the termination and ordered Cobert reinstated. The five Bridgeport special police officers were not accused of misconduct. Their termination was the result of a cost savings move by the Board of Education. The mediation board found the city had signed a memorandum of understanding with the union in which officers agreed to accept lower wage increases in exchange for a no layoff guarantee. In other cases, a Shelton police officers suspension for running into a concrete truck was reversed. An East Hartford officer accused of violating department rules by working a private event where alcohol was served also won reversal of his discipline. In another case, a New Milford officers demotion over a medical training dispute was reversed. Not happy The Connecticut Conference of Municipalities recently released a report on unfunded state mandates that focused in part on binding arbitration for labor disputes. "When local leaders are required to make the tough decisions to pay for these mandates, the property tax burden is borne by residents and businesses," said Joe Delong, CCMs executive director. CCM proposed changing state law so local governing or legislative bodies can reject arbitrated decisions by a two-thirds vote. "This forces local governments to increase property taxes to cover the costs of these mandates, reduce or eliminate local services, or cancel or limit needed infrastructure improvements," DeLong said. The mediation board is split into two, three-member panels to hear cases. The governor appoints the members, with two representing labor, two representing management and two representing the general public. Towns and cities must abide by mediation board decisions; they can appeal to a state Superior Court, but that effort is rarely successful. Dennis Murphy, a professional arbitrator and the mediation boards vice chairman, said the board is fair and impartial. "We call them as we see them," Murphy said. Murphy said most of the decisions are unanimous, which means the labor, neutral and management representatives agreed. "Ive been there two years," Murphy said, referring to his time on the board. "It goes both ways. Its 50/50." Murphy said the idea of a two-thirds override at the local level would throw cases into the political world. "Its not an unfunded mandate," Murphy said. "Its a very economic process. If you violated the contract, you violated the contract." Override Boughton said the system is not working and public trust in police and municipal decisions is at stake. "It erodes trust and for people to have confidence," Boughton said. "They didnt quarrel with the behavior [in the Danbury case]," Boughton added, referring to the arbitrators. "They ruled on the punishment, Boughton said. We disagree. The arbitrator did not understand that our code of conduct is not part of the contract." Boughton said the ability to override decisions is needed. "It would make sense," Boughton said. "I need to be able to manage my department and actions that didnt meet that standard. But we will follow the ruling and the officer will go back to the academy." Boughton added: This took three years and hundreds of thousands of dollars. But its a choice you have to make." Former state Sen. Len Suzio, a Meriden Republican who lost his seat last fall, said there is a sense among municipal officials that the mediation board favors unions. "When I was on the Board of Education, I cant tell how you how many contracts would go to arbitration and the board favored the union," Suzio said. "I remember when Al Gore talked about reinventing government," Suzio added. "I think that is where we are right now. The only time you get change is when the status quo cannot be sustained." bcummings@ctpost.com "I would urge him to open up the government for a short period of time, like three weeks, before he pulls the plug," Graham said on "Fox News Sunday." "See if we can get a deal. If we can't at the end of three weeks, all bets are off. See if he can do it by himself through the emergency powers." Yes, I am an opinionated woman. And ever since the first time I was called a name by a reader who disagreed with my column, Ive been proud of my profession. Turns out, Im in good company. Opinionated Women in the Land of Steady Habits is a recently published compendium of columns by 63 women writing for daily newspapers in Connecticut through the years. Three of my columns are in the book, and its not because the editor, James Herbert Smith, is my husband. The day Smiths first daughter was born in 1969, he became a feminist. In my mind and heart that day I pledged that no boy, no man, was going to stand in the way of my daughters ambitions and desires, and American society would have to change to accommodate a new generation of girls who could become the women they wanted to be, he wrote in the introduction to Opinionated. A national award-winning journalist for more than four decades, he is now retired and this is his fifth published book. It took a long time for American society to change. Not long ago, women who wanted to be journalists typically landed in the features department of newspapers. This used to be considered the soft news in newspapers, such as recipes or plays. The hard news of politics and crime were for men. But some strong women made their mark. In 1831 in the Hartford Courant, Lydia Huntley Sigourney wrote an impassioned plea to beautify schoolhouses: Why need the structure where the young are initiated into those virtues which make life beautiful, be divorced from taste or devoid of comfort? Hers is the earliest voice in Opinionated. She became a successful poet and a street in Hartford was named for her. For most women in the early feminism days of the 1970s it was difficult to find female opinionator role models in daily newspapers. Think about it the first female columnist in the Colonies wasnt even a woman! In 1722 The New-England Courant published 14 letters by a widow with a gift for satire called Silence Dogood. She was developing a following (and a few marriage proposals) until the publisher, James Franklin, discovered Silence Dogood was the pen name of his 16-year-old brother, Benjamin, an apprentice in the shop. Upon discovery, Ben Franklin bolted for Philadelphia. Silence is an antithesis to the women in the book who were not only finding their voices, but also daring to influence opinion. The vitals "Opinionated Women in the Land of Steady Habits" Edited by James Herbert Smith Published by Elm Grove Press, Old Mystic 452 pages, $18.95 Available at Hickory Stick Bookshop in Washington, Conn.; Bank Square Books in Mystic; Elm Grove Press, Amazon or for a signed copy email jhsmithy34@gmail.com See More Collapse Irene Driscoll, who I know, was on the leading edge. Her 1974 column, Her Sex Still a Quiet Issue, takes on reactions to the possibility of the first female governor elected in her own right. Although she downplays its significance, it has not gone unnoticed that Ella Grasso, Democratic candidate for governor, is a woman, Irene begins. She scolds for the attention placed on Grassos clothing style when no similar critique of (Bob) Steeles style of dress has cropped up. His polyester suits and white shoes escaped all but the most fleeting commentary. Would a male columnist draw attention to the unequal treatment of candidates for the states highest office? Lets just say it is harder to notice an inequality when youre in the majority. It was important for women to attain positions throughout the newspaper and to add their voices. After the riveting Watergate reporting by Woodward and Bernstein that toppled a presidency, women were just as inspired as were men to pursue the ideals of journalism. In 1978 I started on my path as a correspondent in the Hartford Courants Groton bureau, earning a whopping 35 cents an inch for a story and $3 to cover a meeting. I wrote long and went to lots of meetings. When I had my first page-one byline, on the Eastern and Western Mashantucket Pequots, I was hooked. But it would take many years to move from writing objective news to writing opinion. Barbara C. White, the editor of the Record-Journal in Meriden, encouraged me in 1992 to write restaurant reviews, which was great fun but harder than you would think. Although Mrs. White wrote exquisite reviews, her columns in the Opinionated book are on other matters. She writes of lesbian and gay friends, of the need for open government and of her brothers addiction to cigarettes. That column begins this way: He came for the flavor; last week he died for the taste. While the #MeToo movement has empowered women to speak up about sexual abuse, female columnists grappled with the issue earlier. Bethe Dufresne, with whom I worked at The Day in New London, wrote in 2006 of a Coast Guard Academy cadets court martial for extorting sexual favors. There are so many sad things about this trial but the saddest of all, to me, is that it seemed to send a message that women want the freedom to act as recklessly as men, yet at the same time be protected from our own unique consequences. Dont get me wrong: We women have every right, or at least the same right, to get drunk, have casual sex or make complete fools of ourselves, and none of this entitles men to do with us as they please. Some of the many columns in Opinionated Women are shocking such as the mother arrested for enjoying breastfeeding her baby others are humorous or touching or provocative. Many are by writers at Hearst Connecticut newspapers, such as Jane Stern, Mary Ellen Fillo, Linda Tuccio-Koonz, Angela Carella and the late Lisa Chedekel. With our rising voices, comes the criticism and name calling. We have to be able to take it. Feminazi is the epithet that made me take a deep breath and stand taller. The American society of equality Smith envisioned for his first daughter is getting closer. To the upcoming opinionated women we say: Stand on our shoulders. Jacqueline Smith is an editorial page editor with Hearst Connecticut Newspapers. Email her at jsmith@hearstmediact.com. Palestinian officials are ramping up expectations for their cause at the United Nations, even as they struggle to hold their ground elsewhere and the Trump administration completes a peace plan they've had little say in. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas plans to visit New York next week as his government takes over leadership of the G-77, a symbolically important bloc of developing nations that his government can use to try to pressure Israel. Yet the leverage at the U.N. is a rare bright spot in the authority's decades-long effort to secure an independent Palestinian state: The U.S. is putting the finishing touches on its long-promised Middle East peace plan, the Trump administration has been slashing aid to Palestinians and countries including Brazil and India are increasingly reaching out to Israel. "It's a very weak hand, but it's the only hand they have," said Ilan Goldenberg, who heads the Mideast program at the Center for a New American Security and was involved in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations during the Obama administration. "The UN channel is very limited right now, but they put a lot of emphasis in the last few years on the UN channel to get international pressure on Israel." The strategy has had some success, with the U.N. General Assembly recognizing the Palestinian Authority as a non-member state in 2012 and Palestinians gaining membership in groups such as UNESCO and the International Criminal Court. Former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley struggled in her efforts to turn monthly meetings on the Middle East away from condemnation of Israel and more toward criticizing Iran. "The problems of the Middle East are numerous, and yet we spend a vastly disproportionate amount of time on just one of them," Haley said, referring to Israel in one of her last sessions of the Security Council on Dec. 18. "And the U.N. has shown itself to be hopelessly biased" against the Jewish state, she said. While resolutions at the General Assembly are nonbinding, the Palestinians will try to use their leadership role on the G-77 to introduce proposals that sharpen the language against Israeli policies and embarrass the U.S., said Brett Schaefer, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation who focuses on the U.N. "They will leverage this position to cause as much pain as possible to the U.S. and Israel," said Schaefer. He said that the Palestinians will try to focus on their opposition to Israel as the "Palestinian issue recedes as the preeminent subject concerning Arab countries." Those nations are increasingly preoccupied with their jousting with Iran for regional supremacy. The Palestinians say that chairing the G-77 is an imprimatur that brings them one step closer to their goal. "Leading this organization brings more support to our status as an independent Palestinian state," Abbas adviser Nabil Shaath said in an interview. While Israel said this week that it foiled a Palestinian effort this month to seek full UN membership, Shaath pledged to "submit drafts until we get accepted." That remains a long shot because the U.S. holds veto power as a permanent member of the Security Council. In this month's maneuvering, Abbas' government saw an opportunity to bolster its case when South Africa and Indonesia, both seen as friendly to its cause, took rotating seats on the Security Council. But an effort to force a showdown Security Council vote on full U.N. membership stalled as Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon worked behind the scenes to head it off. At the same time, Israel has worked to bolster ties with Middle East countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt, and with key developing nations including India and Brazil, that are increasingly interested in closer economic and military ties. Brazil's new government indicated it plans to shift its voting patterns at the U.N. in Israel's favor. An early sign of this came in December, when Brazil sided with Israel and the U.S. by voting to support a draft resolution in the General Assembly condemning Hamas, a move that Eduardo Bolsonaro, the new president's son, said broke with his country's historical voting pattern. "It was the first time that Brazil voted in favor of Israel against the terrorist groups," the younger Bolsonaro, a lawmaker in Brazil, said on Twitter. Goldenberg of the Center for a New American Security said the Palestinian push at the U.N. is cyclical. When peace negotiations stall, they typically accelerate their efforts there to put pressure on Israel and to show the public at home that they're not sitting still, he said. But in an "America First" era that's seen countries from Brazil to Turkey raising questions about traditional alliances, the Palestinian focus on multilateral institutions may be out of sync with the times. Palestinian officials - and many U.S. allies - were outraged when President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital and announced plans to move the U.S. embassy there from Tel Aviv. Abbas's government has since refused to take part in the administration's Middle East peace plan. Since then, delays to the U.S. plan have had more to do with outside events: the Saudi killing of critic Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey and snap elections called by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for April. Sensing that even other Middle East governments are less concerned about the Palestinian cause, the U.S. is preparing to move forward. This week, U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Michael Pompeo have been blanketing the Middle East, separately visiting at least 10 countries to shore up ties. Not on their list: any meetings with Palestinian officials. In her parting comments on the issue as U.N. Ambassador, Haley said the organization's "obsession" with criticizing Israel could backfire on the Palestinians -- sending them the message that "they just might be able to achieve their goals by relying on the UN, rather than through direct negotiations." That, she said, "is the path to endless stalemate." The Empty Bowls Project is an international program that aims to end hunger. It was started by John Hartom, a ceramics teacher from Detroit and his wife, Lisa Blackburn, in 1990. Hartom asked his students to make bowls for a luncheon that raised money for the needy. Empty Bowl events have since been held across the U.S. and in places like Canada, Germany and Hong Kong. New Milfords event benefits Loaves and Fishes. NEW MILFORD A boat fire Friday morning spread to a nearby shed and did some slight damage to the nearby house on the property, fire officials said Saturday. Around 10:30 p.m., Brookfield Volunteer Fire Company responded to Carmen Hill Road in New Milford to provide mutual aid to Water Witch Hose Co. #2. A Brookfield fire engine, tanker and paramedic ambulance responded. As each of my kids got to be a teenager, I sat down with them and had the talk and it wasnt about sex, it was about how you deal with police on the street, Preckwinkle said. Youre always respectful. You never argue. You keep your hands where they can see them. If they take you to the police station, call me. Every black and brown parent I know has had that conversation with their kids. White parents dont have those conversations. Frankfurt: The US ambassador to Germany has warned of sanctions against firms linked to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia, the American embassy in Berlin confirmed on Sunday. A letter envoy Richard Grenell sent to several businesses "reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector... is in danger under CAATSA of US sanctions," an embassy spokesman told AFP. The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) adopted in 2017 targets Iran, Russia and North Korea. Close Donald Trump ally Grenell's letter "is not meant to be a threat, but a clear message of US policy," the spokesman said. "The only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies," he said. Construction has already begun on Nord Stream 2, set to double the capacity of an existing pipeline across the Baltic Sea. Firms including Germany's Wintershall and Uniper, Dutch-British Shell, France's Engie and Austria's OMV are involved in the project. Read | Amid government shutdown, Donald Trump urges Democrats to visit White House Combined with the planned TurkStream pipeline across the Black Sea, Nord Stream 2 would do away with the need to transport natural gas to Europe via Ukraine -- robbing the country of a factor shielding it from Russian aggression, Grenell said. The two countries are in conflict over the eastern part of Ukraine and the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula by Russia in 2014. "Firms supporting the construction of the two pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe," Grenell wrote. Washington's fears about the pipeline are shared by a number of eastern European Union countries including Poland, and the European Parliament last month passed a resolution condemning the construction. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel, backed by France and Austria, has so far insisted it is a "purely economic project" that will ensure cheaper, more reliable gas supply. Read | Amid rift with United States, Iran President Hassan Rouhani threatens to cut off Gulf oil The veteran leader -- a key player in Moscow-Kiev peace talks -- says Ukrainian interests will be protected as some Russian gas will still be transported via the country once Nord Stream 2 is online. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also weighed in on the transatlantic row last week, saying "European energy policy should be decided in Europe, not in the United States". For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Over 600 people were evacuated Saturday from the Islamic State group's remaining holdout in eastern Syria, a monitor said, as US-backed fighters prepare for a final assault on the area. "More than 600 people, mainly women and children, were evacuated on 25 buses sent" by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said that several dozen jihadist fighters were among those evacuated to areas held by the Kurdish-Arab alliance. The SDF, backed by air strikes from a US-led coalition, in September launched an offensive to oust IS from the rump of the once-sprawling "caliphate" it proclaimed in 2014. ALSO READ | Amid government shutdown, Trump urges Democrats to visit White House Abdel Rahman said some 16,000 people, including 760 IS fighters, have fled the area since the start of December. But "this is the first time that buses have been provided by the SDF and coalition", he said, suggesting a potential deal had been struck between the warring sides. The United Nations said Friday that overall some 25,000 people have fled the violence over the last six months as the die-hard jihadists have battled to defend their dwindling bastions. An estimated 2,000 civilians remain trapped in the area around the town of Hajin, the UN said. The US-led coalition on Saturday fired over 20 missiles against jihadist positions, the Observatory said. The monitor said some 300 SDF combattants had deployed near the village of Sousa in preparations for a final assault. Earlier, Donald Trump surprised the world and his country as well when he suddenly announced that the US is pulling out its troops from Syria. "In Syria, Erdogan said he wants to knock out ISIS, whatever's left, the remnants of ISIS. And Saudi Arabia just came out and said they are going to pay for some economic development. Which is great, that means we don't have to pay. We are spread out all over the world. We are in countries most people haven't even heard about. Frankly, it's ridiculous," Trump added. Trump's sudden decision sparked turmoil in his administration, prompting the resignation of Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, as well as of Brett McGurk, the special envoy to the anti-IS coalition. Brett McGurk, the US envoy to the global coalition fighting the Islamic State group, resigned in protest over President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to withdraw US troops from Syria, a US official said, joining Defence Secretary Jim Mattis in an administration exodus of experienced national security figures. ALSO READ | Young Saudi woman who fled her family welcomed in Canada McGurk had said it would be "reckless" to consider IS defeated and therefore would be unwise to bring American forces home. McGurk decided to speed up his original plan to leave his post in mid-February. Appointed to the post by President Barack Obama in 2015 and retained by Trump, McGurk said in his resignation letter that the militants were on the run, but not yet defeated, and that the premature pullout of American forces from Syria would create the conditions that gave rise to IS. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: A group of students from India was denied entry into a local club in Kaunas city of Lithuania on Saturday due to their Asian ethnicity and colour of skin. Lakshya Tanwar, 27, had gone to a local club named Dejavu in the Kaunas with five other friends. However, when they reached the club, the bouncers there didnt let them in but allowed other white people of European ethnicity in front of them. When asked why they were not being allowed inside while others were going in without being asked a single question, the club asked them to leave the place while one of its employee murmured something very offensive. The incident took place on Saturday night when Tanwar, along with his friends Abhishek Purushothum and Dixit Salecha from India, Denisse Garcia from Venezuela, Ana Rocio Malacon and Irene Sierra from Mexico went to the Devazu club in Kaunas. They all are the students of Rennes School of Business in France and were in Lithuania as part of an exchange program with Vytautas Magnus University in Kaunas. Also Read | RACISM is still very much alive, South Africa teacher splits children by race, suspended It was a weekend and we went to this club. Dezavu. However, we were not allowed to go inside. The guard standing at the entry gate stopped us but allowed other people of white skin. We knew it was clear racism from that hateful look on their faces until one of them murmured something very offensive, Tanwar told News Nation. I know what he said. Though he said it in a very low pitch, I could hear that. I felt anguished, in fact, we all did. There were two other Mexican friends as well. They were of the near same tone, he added. Racism in Lithuania is nothing new and the Baltic state of Europe is known for its negative attitude and action towards people from other races, especially Asians (Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Indians). Muslims, refugees and Chechens are regarded with disfavour in most parts of the country. Also Read | Shilpa Shetty racially 'abused' at Sydney airport, hits back at officials Although the Lithuania Government has made efforts to end racism and brought a law, they are not just enough and people from India and other parts of the world continue to face the hatred in the name of their ethnic origin, religion and nationality. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: Days after he walked out of a meeting with Congressional leaders when they shot down his border wall funding proposal, US President Donald Trump on Saturday urged the opposition Democrats to visit the White House for talks to end the government shutdown which is now in its record 22nd day. "I am in the White House waiting for you!" Trump told the Democrats through his Twitter account and threatened that the shutdown could continue for a long time if there is no agreement. "Democrats should come back to Washington and work to end the shutdown, while at the same time ending the horrible humanitarian crisis at our Southern Border," the president tweeted. The partial government shutdown on Saturday entered its 22nd day, surpassing the previous record of 21 days. The longest ever shutdown has been due to the stalemate between the ruling Republicans and the Democrats on funding construction of a wall along the US-Mexico border. Trump has sought USD 5.7 billion in funding from the Congress to construct a concrete wall or a physical steel barrier so as to prevent flow of illegal immigrants and smuggling of drugs. Read | US government shutdown becomes longest in history The opposition Democrats have said that under no circumstances can they approve such a proposal. Trump has said that in the absence of Congressional approval of his wall proposal, he will not sign any budgetary legislation. This has resulted in a partial government shutdown wherein more 800,000 federal government employees have been left without work and have not received their salaries. Trump has promised that he will ensure that these employees get their salaries but functioning of several important wings of the US government has come to a standstill. "We have a massive Humanitarian Crisis at our Southern Border. We will be out for a long time unless the Democrats come back from their 'vacations' and get back to work. I am in the White House ready to sign!" Trump tweeted. "I do have a plan on the shutdown. But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised safety and security for the American people. Part of that promise was a Wall at the Southern Border. Elections have consequences!" Trump asserted, indicating that he will not budge from his stand on the border wall. The Democrats, he said, could solve the shutdown in 15 minutes. "Call your Dem Senator or Congresswoman/man. Tell them to get it done! Humanitarian Crisis," he urged his 57.2 million Twitter followers. Referring to official statistics, Trump said 23 per cent of federal prison inmates are illegal immigrants. Read | US to make major changes in H-1B visa programme to attract talented professionals: Trump "Border arrests are up 240 per cent. In the Great State of Texas, between 2011 and 2018, there were a total of 292,000 crimes by illegal aliens, 539 murders, 32,000 assaults, 3,426 sexual assaults and 3,000 weapons charges. Democrats come back!" he said. He refuted media reports that there is chaos in the White House. "I just watched a Fake reporter from the Amazon Washington Post say the White House is 'chaotic, there does not seem to be a strategy for this Shutdown. There is no plan'. The Fakes always like talking Chaos, there is NONE. In fact, there's almost nobody in the White House but me," Trump said. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Beijing: Chinese telecom giant Huawei on Saturday sacked a Chinese executive who was arrested on spying charges in Poland, saying his actions have no relation to the company and the incident has harmed its reputation. Poland's counterespionage agency arrested Huawei executive Wang Weijing along with a former Polish security official on Friday on charges of spying for China. Huawei, the world's biggest producer of telecom equipment, in a statement on Saturday, distanced itself from the incident and terminated the employment of the executive. "In accordance with the terms and conditions of Huawei's labour contract, we have made this decision because the incident in question has brought Huawei into disrepute," state-run China Daily quoted the statement by Huawei. ALSO READ | Honor View 20 with 48 MP to launch on January 29, know its specs Huawei said in a statement that its employee's alleged actions have no relation to the company. "Huawei complies with all applicable laws and regulations in the countries where it operates, and we require every employee to abide by the laws and regulations in the countries where they are based," the statement said. Earlier, the Chinese Foreign Ministry in a statement had said that it was paying close attention to the detention of Wang in Poland. The Chinese embassy in Warsaw held an immediate meeting with the Polish Foreign Ministry, asking the Polish side to notify China of details of the case as soon as possible and arrange an early consular visit. Foreign Ministry said the "The case should be properly handled in a just way according to law, and the legitimate rights and interests, safety and humanitarian treatment of Wang should be guaranteed." Huawei was caught in a major controversy recently after the arrest of its chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, who is also the daughter of the company's founder, in Canada last month. Meng was accused of breaking US sanctions on Iran. She has been released on bail but faces a legal fight over extradition to the US, where she could be jailed for up to 30 years if found guilty. Huawei has repeatedly said it's unaware of any wrongdoing by Meng. Meng's arrest triggered tensions between the US and China, which have been trying to resolve their trade war. ALSO READ | Xiaomi Mi TV 4X Pro 55-Inch, Mi TV 4A Pro 43-Inch launched in India The development came in the backdrop of the US exerting pressure on its allies to blacklist the company over security concerns. The US, New Zealand and Australia have barred the company from involvement in their national 5G networks. New Delhi: The Central government will construct 44 strategic roads along the border with China to ensure quick mobilisation of troops in case of a conflict, according to an annual report (2018-19) prepared, and released earlier this month by the Central Public Works Department (CPWD). The nearly 4,000-km-long Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China touches areas from Jammu and Kashmir to Arunachal Pradesh. The report comes at a time China is giving a priority to projects along its India borders. According to the CPWD report, these 44 strategically roads along the India-China border will be constructed at a cost of nearly Rs 21,000 crore. "The CPWD has been entrusted with construction of 44 strategically important roads along the Indo-China Border spanning 5 states of J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh," the report stated. "The total Cost of work as per DPRs (Detailed Project Reports) is Rs 21,040 crores (approx.)," the report stated In 2017, Indian and Chinese troops engaged in a 73-day long face-off at the Doklam tri-junction after the neighbouring country had begun building road in the area. The face-off began on June 16, 2017, when a large construction party of the Chinese Army entered the area with road construction equipment and tried to build a road in Southern Doklam region to Jampheri ridge. Initially, the Bhutanese patrol initially confronted them but they turned the patrol away. Indian soldiers from Doka La, an Army post overlooking the area, sought to dissuade the Chinese personnel from their attempt to alter the status quo. The Chinese did not agree, leading to a face-off between soldiers of the two sides. Besides, the strategic roads, the CPWD report also stated that lateral and axial roads measuring over 2,100 kilometers will be built with a cost of around Rs 5,400 crore in Rajasthan and Punjab along the Indo-Pakistan border. "A total of 945 km of lateral roads and 533 km of axial roads lie in Rajasthan (tentative cost Rs 3,700 crores) and 482 km of lateral roads and 219 km of axial roads in Punjab (tentative cost Rs 1,750 crores)," it stated. The road projects will secure the vast and remote border areas of Rajasthan and Punjab, it stated. (With PTI inputs) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. He was dedicated to what he did while he was in the Army, Tello said. Hes gonna be missed. He was one of my soldiers. And I know all the guys that served with him. It was a shock to everybody. New Delhi: Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswans estranged daughter Asha today staged dharna against her own father at Gardanibagh along with some RJD women activists. This came after Ram Vilas Paswans 'angootha chhap' jibe allegedly targeting RJD leader Rabri Devi. On Friday, Paswan launched a blistering attack against the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) for opposing the NDA-led government's bill to provide 10 per cent reservation for the economically backward in general category. "They (RJD) believe in merely raising slogans and making 'angootha chhap' (illiterate person) the chief minister," he had said, without naming anybody. Soon after this remark, Asha, who is Paswan's daughter from his first marriage, had on Saturday demanded an apology from him. Married to Arun Sadhu, who is the state president of the RJDs SC/ST cell, Asha refrained from storming the headquarters of Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) here, which she had threatened to do on Saturday. Instead, she staged the sit-in at Gardanibagh, barely a kilometer away from the LJP headquarters. The remark of Ram Vilas was seen as a reference to the event that unfolded after RJD national president Lalu Prasad Yadav stepped down from his position as the chief minister of Bihar in 1997 after he faced arrest in the fodder scam and Rabri Devi who has little formal education, was appointed as his successor. Asha, along with some RJD women activists carried placards and raised slogans demanding that the Union minister "apologise" and "take his words back". Talking to reporters at a different location, Sadhu reiterated that his wife would like to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls from Hajipur seat, which is considered Paswan's pocket borough, "if the RJD gives her a ticket". Paswan has declared that he will not be contesting from the seat in the upcoming general elections and would take the Rajya Sabha route to enter Parliament. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release a commemorative coin on Guru Gobind Singh on Sunday to mark the birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh Guru. The Prime Minister will also address a select gathering on the occasion at his residence, 7, Lok Kalyan Marg, a statement from his office said. In his monthly radio programme, Mann ki Baat, the prime minister on December 30, 2018, invoked the Sikh guru and said that Guru Gobind Singh Ji believed that the biggest service is to alleviate human sufferings. He lauded Guru Gobind Singh Ji for his heroism, sacrifice and devotion towards humanity and encouraged the citizens of the country to follow his path. On January 5, 2017, Prime Minister Modi had attended the 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh in Patna. He had also released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the occasion. In his address, the Prime Minister had underlined how Guru Gobind Singh made a unique attempt to unite the country through the Khalsa sect and the five Panch Pyaras belonged to different parts of India. He said that Guru Gobind Singh Ji has put knowledge at the core of his teachings. Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi releases commemorative coin to mark birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also present. pic.twitter.com/CRTntukN9f ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2019 I bow to Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji on his Jayanti. -- pic.twitter.com/Pt4k2BgLDS Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 13, 2019 Read More | PM Modi renames three islands of Andaman and Nicobar, pays tribute to Subhas Chandra Bose The Tenth Guru of Sikhs i.e. Guru Gobind Singh has been a source of inspiration for many through his teachings and ideals. Earlier also PM has attended 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji Maharaj in Patna on January 5, 2017 where he released a commemorative postage stamp to mark the occasion. Watch: Releasing a commemorative coin in honour of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. https://t.co/roj8OyZmOQ Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 13, 2019 Earlier in 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi recalled how Guru Gobind Singhs message that people should consider entire mankind as one - no one is superior or inferior, no one is touchable or untouchable is still relevant, at the Ludhiana National MSME Awards ceremony on October 18. In his Independence Day address from the Red Fort in the national capital in 2016, the Prime Minister had brought to the fore the saga of sacrifice for the country which has been the tradition of Sikh gurus. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modis supporters going an extra mile to make sure the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wins the upcoming Lok Sabha elections is quite a common thing now, but a Gujarat couple has gone to the next level by asking wedding guests to vote for the BJP in the upcoming polls and a monetary contribution for the saffron cause through the party app. At a first glance, the card looks like any regular invite with a symbol of Lord Ganesha, the names of the bride and the groom and their families and the important dates of the ceremonies preceding the wedding, but as one looks to the bottom the card, one sees the gift they have sought. Yuvraj and Sakshi both from Surat say the only gift they expect from their guests is that they vote for the BJP in the upcoming elections and a monetary contribution for the saffron cause on the party app. On turning the page, one even finds a detailed analysis of the Rafale deal, with a trendy headline, Keep calm and trust NAMO. The text defends the Modi governments version of the deal and gives reasons for Reliance Defence being chosen for the offset contract, the cancellation of an earlier deal fixed by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA), and why a joint parliamentary committee cannot be allowed to conduct an investigation into the matter. Read More | PM Modi's followers ask guests not to gift in wedding but instead vote for BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha Elections This is not the first time that a wedding card of this sort has gone viral on social networking sites. Earlier in the year, another Surat-based couple --- Dhaval and Jaya --- sought a similar gift in their wedding invite. Another die-hard fan of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Mangalore also made a similar appeal to his guests. Some of the wedding cards also feature the list of achievements by the Narendra Modi government over the last five years. @narendramodi Sir. With my wedding invitation card, I am trying to explains the lot of achievement, schemes by Modi Govt. & Urging all invitees get the use. Hand to hand helping them to get the max.benefit . I believe "We have to take care of Modi, Modi will take care of nation. pic.twitter.com/tZcgdX7uUw Bhushan Branson (@mf5245pd) January 3, 2019 Earlier, Prime Minister Modi took to Twitter to share one such incident where one of his supporters put the Swachh Bharat logo on wedding cards. These incidents came on the heels of the BJP's massive defeat in recently concluded Assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana and Mizoram. However, PM Modi's popularity has increased by leaps and bounds over the last few years and supporters are leaving no stone unturned to make him return to power in 2019. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Mumbai: Hitting out at BJP chief Amit Shah for his remarks that the saffron party will thrash former allies if a pre-poll alliance did not materialise ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said one who will trounce the Sena was yet to be born. In a veiled warning to the Sena, Shah had recently said that if an alliance happened, the BJP will ensure victory for its allies, but if it did not, the party will thrash its former allies in the coming Lok Sabha polls. Criticising the remarks, Thackeray, whose party is an ally of the ruling BJP at the Centre and in Maharashtra, said, I have heard words like patak denge from someone. One who will trounce the Shiv Sena is yet to be born. Also Read | News Nation Opinion Poll: BJP ahead in Himachal, may give tough fight to Congress in Punjab with Akalis He was speaking at a public rally in Mumbais Worli area. Taking a swipe at the Modi wave before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, he said, The Sena has seen enough waves in its journey. Unlike the BJP, he said, the Sena has raised the Ram temple construction issue before the polls to expose those who used the issue as a poll plank. I raise the Ram Mandir issue during elections only to expose others who always use it as an election plank, the Sena chief said. Just tell us how the Congress is hindering the temple construction. The Congress was shown its place in 2014 for its deeds. The party could not even get the post of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Thackeray said. Also Read | Dont impose your sexism on me, says Rahul Gandhi on mahila' remark row He also asked the BJP how it could build the Ram temple when it has allies like Nitish Kumar of the JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of the LJP opposing it. The BJP should come clean on it, he added. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Justice AK Sikri on Sunday withdrew his consent to a government offer to nominate him for president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). Sources close to the second senior-most judge after the Chief Justice of India told news agency PTI that the consent was withdrawn Sunday evening when the judge wrote to the government. "The government had approached him for the assignment last month. He gave his consent. The job required attending two to three hearing per year and came without emoluments," the sources said. The Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal was established and operates under a Statute agreed by Commonwealth governments in 1995. It was formed to meet the requirements of the Agreed Memorandum on the Commonwealth Secretariat (1964) which was revised by governments in 2005. The CSAT has a full complement of eight members comprising the President and seven other members. The members are selected by commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country. The members are appointed on a four-year term which may be renewed only once. Justice Sikri was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikajurn Kharge which decided to remove Alok Verma from the post of CBI director. While Modi and Justice Sikri voted against Verma, Kharge filed a dissent note and contested the CVC report. He had also argued that Verma be given an opportunity to present his case before the selection committee. Verma was transferred as Director General, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards on Thursday. On Friday, Verma refused to take up the new job and resigned from the Indian Police Service (IPS). Justice Sikri is set to retire from the Supreme Court on March 6. Reacting to the issue, Congress president Rahul Gandhi tweeted: When the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns. This PM will stop at nothing, stoop to anything & destroy everything, to cover up the #RafaleScam. Hes driven by fear. Its this fear that is making him corrupt & destroy key institutions. When the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns. This PM will stop at nothing, stoop to anything & destroy everything, to cover up the #RafaleScam. Hes driven by fear. Its this fear that is making him corrupt & destroy key institutions.https://t.co/IfYHf2EMGd Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) January 13, 2019 Born on March 7, 1954, Sikri was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge on April 12, 2013. He earlier served as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. (With PTI inputs) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Two militants, including the one of the dreaded and oldest terrorist Zeenat-ul-Islam, were killed on Saturday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, police said. A resident of Sugan Zanipura area of south Kashmirs Shopian district, Islam was associated with the terror group Al Badr and was an expert at handling Improvised explosive device (IED). He joined Lashkar-eToiba (LeT), a militant outfit operated from Pakistan in November 2015 and later switched to Al-Badr, according to reports. Zeenat was one of three terrorists surviving from Armys list of 12 most wanted terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir. ALSO READ | Jammu and Kashmir: Two terrorists killed in Kulgam encounter Zeenat was earlier associated with Hizbul Mujahideen, the official said. Islam had three other siblings and his father is a farmer. Zeenat ul Islam worked with his father and got married before joining LeT. He completed his Bachelors of Arts from a local college. He was imprisoned for three years and was released in 2011. Zeenat Ul Islam had been giving a slip to security forces for over two years now. His killing will greatly weaken the outfit, according to reports. Al Badr was allegedly formed by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in June 1998. Prior to the group's separation from Hizbul Mujahideen, they participated in the fighting in Afghanistan in 1990 as part of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hizb-l-Islami (HIG) alongside other anti-Soviet Afghan Mujahadeen. In a statement, the J&K police had said as the searches were going on, the search party was fired upon by the terrorists. The fire was retaliated leading to a gunfight. "In the ensuing encounter, two terrorists were killed and the bodies were recovered from the site of encounter. The police added that there was no collateral damage took place during the encounter. The Police have registered a case and initiated an investigation into the matter. "Incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, were recovered from the site of encounter. Citizens are requested not to venture inside the encounter zone since such an area can prove dangerous due to stray explosive material. People are requested to cooperate with police till the area is completely sanitized and cleared of all the explosive materials if any," the statement added. ALSO READ | Snowfall in Kashmir, flight operations hit at Srinagar airport Following the gunfight, authorities have snapped internet services in the Kulgam district. The second terrorist who was killed has been identified as Shakeel Ahmad Dar alias Faisal of Chilipora, Shopian. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Gulab Chand Kataria on Sunday was unanimously chosen as the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Rajasthan Assembly. The development came after a meeting of BJP MLAs at a party office in Jaipur this morning. Union HRD minister and party's poll in-charge in the state Prakash Javadekar, national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi, party's state president Madan Lal Saini were present in the meeting. The 74-year-old was also elected the leader of the BJP legislature party while seven-time MLA Rajendra Rathore was chosen as his deputy. Former chief minister Vasundhara Raje proposed the name of Kataria as the leader of BJP legislature party, which was seconded by the party MLAs unanimously. Read | Gopal Bhargava elected Leader of Opposition in Madhya Pradesh Assembly Speaking to the reporters, BJP national general secretary Arun Singh said there was only one proposal for the post, adding that Rathore was chosen as the deputy leader by Kataria. Kataria, who will also be the pro-tem speaker to conduct the first meeting of the newly elected assembly, is an eight-time MLA and was the home minister in the former Vasundhara Raje government. Kataria was first elected as MLA in 1977, then in 1980. He has won all assembly elections since 1993, remaining a member of the house. Governor Kalyan Singh will administer him to take the oath of office on Monday. Rathore has earlier served as the parliamentary affairs minister in the state. Read | News Nation Opinion Poll: BJP ahead in Himachal, may give tough fight to Congress in Punjab with Akalis Last week, the BJP elected former Cabinet minister Gopal Bhargava the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Madhya Pradesh Assembly. On the other hand, former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has been assigned with the works related to the preparation and campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha Election 2019. He has been also included in the national Sankalp Patra committee. (With inputs from agencies) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: A day after the official announcement of the pre-poll alliance between Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party (SP) and Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) for 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday said that it will go alone and contest all the 80 seats in the state. Addressing a press conference at party headquarters in Lucknow, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the Congress party was ready to go with every party against the BJP but after the SP-BSP announced their alliance sans the Grand Old Party, they closed this chapter (of the alliance). We didn't break this alliance, the public should know that. We had earlier also said that we're ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat BJP. But we can't force anyone. They've (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so we'll continue this fight for defeating BJP on our own, Azad said. Citing the Congress partys performance in the 2009 Lok Sabha performance when it emerged the number one party in the state, Azad said that they will fight on all the 80 seats on their own. We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in upcoming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like Congress emerged no. 1 party in Uttar Pradesh in 2009 Lok Sabha elections, we'll fight on our own and win twice those no. of seats in upcoming elections, he added. Earlier on Saturday, Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati had made a formal announcement of their coalition for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Although the SP-BSP alliance decided not to field their candidates against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi and Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli, they kept the Congress party out of their alliance. We won't gain anything by including Congress in our alliance. Both BSP and SP have experienced in the past that Congress's vote is not transferrable, Mayawati said, adding that they are leaving two seats for the Congress party without including them in the grand coalition. Reacting to the SP-BSP alliance, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that nobody should make the dangerous mistake to ignore the Grand Old Party even if the party was going through the tough phase. Nobody should underestimate the Congress with its reach, presence and support base in Uttar Pradesh. Congress is an established party in the state... We may have fallen in difficult times but ignoring us will be a dangerous mistake," Singhvi said. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi: The Rajasthan police on Friday night arrested an Army jawan, identified as Somveer Singh, posted in Jaisalmer district of the state after it was found that he was allegedly honey trapped by a Pakistani-based ISI operative. The jawan is accused of passing vital information to the Pakistani agent, named as Anika Chopra, who he met on Facebook. Reports suggest that Chopra had not only honey-trapped Singh, who is newly married, but also other soldiers. But Singh claims he did not know of Chopras antecedents till the blackmail began. Reports claimed as many as 50 Jawans are under scanner of intelligence agencies after Singhs arrest. Jaipur's additional DGP Umesh Mishra alerted security forces to be cautious of such attempts by Pakistan. According to news agency ANI, Singh was in touch with the suspected ISI spy on Facebook. The Army is providing all assistance to the civilian authorities in the investigation related to the Army jawan who was arrested by Rajasthan Police, defence PRO Colonel Sambit Ghosh told ANI. The army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to probe if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel to get information from them, the agency reported. Sources told ThePrint.in, the woman had claimed to be a captain in the Medical Corps of the Indian Army. According to News18, Singh even sent the agent pictures of tanks, revealed the timing of field firing and information to his friend. Sources in military intelligence said Singh had started accepting money in lieu of information, but added that so far only a trail of Rs 5,000 had been established. Honey-trapping is a very old form of espionage, but has become big cause for concern in the age of social media. In September 2018, a BSF jawan was arrested from Noida for spying by Uttar Pradeshs anti-terror squad. During interrogation Constable Achuytanand Mishra revealed that he was honey-trapped by an agent of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence over Facebook. He was posted at the BSF Composite hospital in Delhi. Mishra was in touch with the girl, who posed as a defence reporter, on the social media since January 2016. Similarly, last year in October, an Indian Army soldier was arrested on the charges of espionage in Meerut cantonment, news agency ANI has reported. The jawan was deployed at Indian Armys Signal Regiment in the cantonment. Investigative agencies said that the jawan, who had been deployed at the regiment two years ago, had shared sensitive information to Pakistan-based intelligence operatives through social media. (With agency inputs) For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Delhi: Veteran actor Kishore Pradhan, who has worked in several Hindi and Marathi films, breathed his last at the age of 86. The actor was known for his work in both films as well as theatre. Kishore is best remembered for his role in Jab We Met and Lage Raho Munna Bhai. His scene with Kareena Kapoor in Jab We Met at a small town railway station is among the most entertaining in the film. Talking about Pradhan, Marathi actor Subodh Bhave, told Indian Express, We worked together in Subh Lagna Savdhaan, but after the films release, I couldnt keep in touch with Kishore Kaka, as he was not keeping well, and I was out shooting for my film. I dont know the exact reason of his death yet. His family is grieving and busy with preparations for his funeral. Marathi writer and poet, Chandrashekhar Gokhale, also paid his last respects to the actor on Facebook, remembering Kishore Pradhans talent of mimicking Johny Walker and Jagdip. Subh Lagna Savdhaan was Kishores last film. He was earlier seen in Lalbaug Parel and Shivaji Raje Bhonsle Boltoy. He also acted in more than 100 Marathi theatre plays, and about 18 English plays. For all the Latest Entertainment News, Bollywood News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. During the investigation, Lee will have to live away from the parish, but the archdiocese did not specify where he would be living. Lee has the option of living with family or friends. He wont be allowed to perform any religious duties such as a baptism during the investigation. A group of diverse but like-minded individuals, the members of ARC have come together in their common desire to fight hatred, bigotry, intolerance and violence because of the harm these antisocial behaviors cause to our society. In that effort, we will not use or sanction the use of illegal actions (such as violence or intimidation) in pursuit of our desired aims and if we learn of anyone who does use these unethical methods we will report those individuals to the authorities. Instead, we will use the guarantees found in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that ensure freedom of legal speech and expression. New Delhi: In a scathing attack on Narendra Modi over several issues ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Congress president Rahul Gandhi asked why did the prime minister remove Alok Verma twice from the post of CBI director. Rahul Gandhi alleged that Verma was removed as he was about to begin a probe inquiry into the Rafale fighter jets deal. "You tell me what was the urgency in removing the CBI chief twice. What was the reason that the PM was writing at 1:30 in the night to have Verma removed. The Supreme Court ordered that Alok Verma be reinstated. And then within hours, the PM again goes for his head," Gandhi told News18 India in Dubai. Barely two days after the Supreme Court reinstated him, Verma was on Thursday removed as CBI director by a high-powered committee headed by Modi on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty, in an unprecedented action in the central probe agency's 55-year history. Verma, a 1979-batch IPS officer, had resumed duty on Wednesday, a day after the apex court paved his return with some riders and asked the three-member panel that selects the CBI chief to decide on his continuance in a week in the light of charges against him in the report of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). Verma's two-year tenure as director of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is due to end on January 31. There were eight charges against Verma in the CVC report presented before the Committee that also comprised leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Justice AK Sikri, appointed by Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi as his nominee. Also Read | Rahul Gandhi's interview | Congress president dares PM Modi to face questions on Rafale While Modi and Justice Sikri voted against Verma, Kharge filed a dissent note and contested the CVC report. He had also argued that Verma be given an opportunity to present his case before the selection committee. Verma was transferred as Director General, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards on Thursday. On Friday, Verma refused to take up the new job and resigned from the Indian Police Service (IPS). In his resignation letter, Verma said: "Natural justice was scuttled and the entire process was turned upside down in ensuring that the undersigned is removed from the post of the director." "Sushma Swaraj, Nitin Gadkari and Arun Jaitley have not been asking for Verma's removal. It is only Narendra Modi who has been pushing for Alok Verma's removal," alleges Gandhi. Speaking on the Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party alliance for the Lok Sabha elections 2019, Gandhi said his party will fight polls in the Uttar Pradesh with full force. "It was a political decision and we respect it. I respect Mayawati ji and I also respect Akhilesh and Mulayam Singh Yadav ji. But now even the Congress will have to do its work and we will fight with full zeal and vigour. The Congress won't back down and will fight with all its might," Gandhi said. Addressing a press conference in Dubai on Saturday, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has a tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." Also Read | Rahul Gandhi reacts to SP-BSP alliance, says has 'tremendous respect' "The BSP and the SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. Gandhi also targeted Modi on the controversial Rafale fighter jets deal. "The prime minister doesnt want to face questions on corruption, but I answer. The truth is that corruption is happening right now," he said. Responding to the allegations that he was spoiling the image of the country, Gandhi said: "Our foundation is so strong that no one can tarnish the image. I have to answer if I am being asked questions. (With PTI inputs) New Delhi: A Day after Bahujan Samaj Party and Samajwadi Party announced their alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls 2019, Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia president Shivpal Singh Yadav today said that his party is ready to form an alliance with the Congress in Uttar Pradesh. There have been no talks with the Congress about the alliance yet. Congress is also a secular party and if it approaches us to defeat BJP, we will lend our support, Shivpal Yadav said. Talking to news agency ANI, Yadav termed BSP-SP alliance as Thugbandhan (alliance among thugs). This alliance is a Thugbandhan and is for money. It is possible money have been taken before forging this alliance, he added. Yadav also showed interest in forming an alliance with any secular party including the Congress to oust BJP out of power in 2019 polls. No alliance can defeat the BJP without the support of the PSPL, Bahujan Mukti Party and our other alliances. We are ready to form an alliance with other secular parties to keep the BJP out of power, he said. The Congress party, on the other hand, said it would go it alone on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming general election after they were left out from the SP-BSP alliance. Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad, however, said his party would accommodate any secular force that can take on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha polls. The meeting of the Congress was held a day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, sharing 38 seats each and leaving two seats for the smaller parties, besides leaving Rae Bareli and Amethi for United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi respectively. Speaking to reporters here, Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh and defeat the BJP." He also expressed hope that the Grand Old Party would double the tally of 21 seats it had secured in the state in the 2009 general election. (With Agency Inputs) New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convenor Arvind Kejriwal will not be contesting from Varanasi in the coming Lok Sabha elections. The party said it will field a strong candidate for the seat. "Kejriwal will not contest the Lok Sabha polls, as he wants to give special focus to his state. The AAP will contest on all the Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, and Goa. The party will contest on some seats in UP, and final modalities will be worked out by February. Apart from Varanasi, the party will contest from seats in eastern and western UP, where the organisation is strong," AAP spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh told news agency PTI. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi won the Varanasi Lok Sabha seat by defeating Kejriwal by a massive margin of 3.37 lakh votes. Modi polled more than 5,16,500 votes -- about half of the total votes. Kejriwal managed to secure more than 2 lakh votes and was far ahead of other contestants including Ajay Rai of the Congress, Vijay Prakash Jaiswal of the BSP and Kailash Chaurasia of the SP. Singh said in Delhi his party is working on education, health, farmers, power and providing drinking water. "If we foray into national politics, then our issues will be education for all, free education to economically weaker sections of the society, ending unemployment and implementing the recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission," Singh said. On a recent statement made by Kejriwal to not vote for the Congress in the coming Lok Sabha elections, Singh said: "Kejriwal was quoted out of context. He had said in a meeting in the national capital that if you want to defeat the BJP, then do not waste your vote by casting it in favour of the Congress. His statement was in the context of Delhi, from where the AAP is contesting on all the seats." (With PTI inputs) New Delhi: The West Bengal students who are preparing for NIOS 3RD DELED examination, we have some important news for you. The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) has released the date sheet for re-conduct of the 3rd Semester exam for West Bengal state. The 3rd-semester timetable is available on the official website of the institute. The exams for Paper 506 and 507 will be held on February 03, 2019. For the convenience of the students, we have mentioned the steps via which the candidates can get access to the time table: Visit the official website of the institute i.e. www.dled.ac.in. Choose the option Date sheet for re-conduct of 3rd Examination (506-507) in West Bengal Date sheet will display on the screen Earlier, the question paper for D.EL.ED examination (paper 506 and 507) was leaked, due to which the exams got postponed. The candidates must note that they will not have to pay any fee for the rescheduled examinations. According to the date sheet released by the board, the course code 506 and 507 will be conducted on the same day i.e., February 03. Course Code 506 (Understanding Children in inclusive context) will commence in the morning session and the timing of the exam is 09:30 am to 12:30 pm. In the afternoon session, 507 (Community & Elementary Education) exam will be held. And the timing for the exam is 02:00 pm to 05:00 pm. The National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) will release the hall ticket a week before the examination. The officials will release the hall ticket on the official website www.nios.ac.in or dled.nios.ac.in. Delhi: Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) has released the call letter for CRP SPL- VIII - online main examination for specialist officer on its official on January 12, Saturday. Candidates can download the call letter for IBPS main examination 2019 from January 12 to 27. The IBPS main examination for CRP SPL VIII will be held on January 27, 2019. Candidates can visit the official website ibps.in to check and download the admit card. Here are the steps to download the admit card: Step 1: Visit the official website - ibps.in Step 2: Click on download call letter of online main exam link on the homepage Step 3: Enter registration number and roll number Step 4: Admit card will appear on the screen Step 5: Download the admit card Step 6: Take a print out for further reference. IBPS had declared the prelims result for CRP SPL VIII on January 10, 2019. The prelims exams were held on December 29 and 30. About IBPS: Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS) is a recruitment body that was started with an aim to encourage recruitment and placement of young graduates in public sector banks in India. Paris: Europe is giving US-led calls for a boycott of Huawei 5G telecoms equipment a mixed reception, with some governments untroubled by spy suspicions against the Chinese giant, but others backing a ban. In the latest setback for Huawei, Poland said Friday it had arrested a Chinese telecoms executive suspected of spying for China, with local media identifying him as a Huawei director. On Saturday Huawei said it had fired the employee arrested in Poland, telling AFP his alleged actions have no relation to the company. Huawei had already seen the arrest of the daughter of the firms founder in Canada and US efforts to blacklist the company internationally over security concerns. Several Asian and Pacific countries have followed Washingtons call for a Huawei ban, but the picture in Europe is more nuanced, not least because Huaweis 5G capabilities are so attractive. They are well ahead of Swedens Ericsson, Finlands Nokia and South Koreas Samsung, analysts say. Fifth generation (5G) technology represents a quantum leap in wireless communication speed, and will be key to developing the internet of things, including self-driving cars. That is why Europe wants to deploy it as quickly as possible. Operators have looked at alternatives but have realised that Huawei is currently more innovative and probably better for 5G, said Dexter Thillien, an analyst at Fitch Solutions. Read More | Huawei sacks Chinese executive arrested in Poland on spying charges Huawei has faced increasing scrutiny over its alleged links to Chinese intelligence services, prompting not just the US but also Australia and Japan to block it from building their 5G internet networks. But in Europe, Portugals main operator MEO signed a deal with Huawei in December during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping, praising the Chinese companys know how, competence, talent and capacity to develop technology and invest in our country. By contrast Norway, whose current networks are for the most part made up of Huawei equipment, is thinking of ways to reduce its vulnerability, according to the Nordic countrys transport and communications minister quoted in the local pressespecially towards countries with whom Oslo has no security cooperation, an implicit reference to China. Britains Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson meanwhile said he had grave, very deep concerns about Huawei providing the 5G network in Britain. The Czech cybersecurity agency said that Chinese laws force private companies with their headquarters in China to cooperate with intelligence services, which could make them a threat if involved with a countrys key technology. Germany is under pressure from Washington to follow suit, news magazine Der Spiegel reported. Also Read | Huawei raps staff for sending tweet via iPhone But the countrys IT watchdog says it had seen no evidence Huawei could use its equipment to spy for Beijing. Meanwhile, telecom operators across Europe, under heavy pressure to roll out 5G quickly, seem to be playing down security fears because using Huawei makes business sense to them. Huawei is much more expensive today than its competitors but its also much better, said a spokesperson at a European operator who asked not to be named because of the sensitive nature of the matter. The quality of Huaweis equipment is really ahead of its European competitors, he added. Furthermore, everywhere in Europe, operators are the target of huge controls in that area and Huaweis equipment has never been found to be at fault. To add to the confusion, large operators could reject Huawei equipment in some of their markets, but not in others. Historic French operator Orange has said that it wont use Huawei networks in France, but could very well do so in Spain and Poland. Germanys Deutsche Telekom announced a deal with Huawei for its future 5G network in Poland, but hasnt said what it will do in Germany itself. Also Read | Meanwhile, Huawei is making great efforts to prove its good faith. It has opened test labs for its equipment in Germany and the UK in cooperation with the governments there, and is to launch another in Brussels by the end of the first quarter. The stakes are high: Europe is a crucial market for Huawei, whose combined sales for Europe, the Middle East and Africa accounted for 27 percent of overall group sales in 2017, mostly thanks to spending by European operators. Huawei rotating chairman Guo Ping in late December complained that his company was being subjected to incredibly unfair treatment. Huawei has never and will never present a security threat, Guo wrote in a New Years message to staff. Some analysts doubt that even a widespread ban on Chinese telecoms networks equipment could possibly guarantee watertight security. In Paris alone, there are more than a million Huawei smartphones. If you want to listen in, thats how many opportunities you have, said a sector specialist. For all the Latest Business News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Please purchase a subscription read this premium content. If you have a subscription, please sign up for a digital website account or log in. Brazil has been struck by a 'rain' of arachnids in something out of an arachnophobe's worst nightmare. Photos and videos taken by residents in the southern state of Minas Gerais show hordes of spiders covering the sky. Joao Pedro Martinelli Fonseca, who recorded footage of them, told local media he was "stunned and scared" by the sight. His grandmother Jercina Martinelli, told local paper Terra Do Mandu "there were many more webs and spiders than you can see in the video. We've seen this before, always at dusk on days when it's been really hot". However experts say this is typical behaviour in the region during hot and humid weather. Adalberto dos Santos, an arachnology professor at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, told The Guardian the spiders are from the species parawixia bistriata, a rare 'social' spider. Working together as a community, they build giant webs invisible to humans as large as four metres wide and three metres thick between trees and bushes. There they wait for prey, including insects and small birds, which they consume at dawn. Profdos Santos says the spiders aren't harmful to humans as their bite only causes discomfort. However they are useful as they eat pests like flies and mosquitoes. "They benefit us far more than they harm us," he told The Guardian. Newshub. It's not virtuous to speak ill of the dead, but the late supermarket chain Dominick's served one disappointing fried chicken. It looked so tempting, too, at 7 p.m. after a kale salad lunch, the chicken's gnarled skin aglow, an iridescent gold beneath the heat lamp. Sadly, it was never as good as it looked. The breading was too crunchy (yes, this is possible) and tasted too much of fried flour, which nulled the rest of the chicken void. The current darling of Chicago supermarkets, Mariano's, fries up a chicken that's maybe a notch above Dominick's. Its exterior has a battered quality, like a fry shell heading toward tempura, but it's overseasoned to the point of saliva-sapping. Yes, let's temper our expectations for supermarket fried chicken. But there's one exception: Jewel-Osco. Its fried chicken is pretty darn great. It's fried beautifully to an equilibrium of crisp and crunch, the skin light and airy but with substantial texture. The twice-dredged breading clings well to the meat. Some batches can be a touch too salty, but the best fried chicken is correctly seasoned plus a pinch more, and, on average, Jewel-Osco nails it. The chicken also retains a juiciness that made me wonder if it was brined. It's not: It's pressure-fried in canola oil, each cut of the chicken's cook time measured to the second. Jewel-Osco spokesman Anthony Suggs spilled more details: He said the supermarket has been using the same recipe for at least 16 years, and that the 178 stores in the Chicago area and northwest Indiana combined sell more than 360,000 pieces of fried chicken every week. I should admit to having one batch of bad Jewel-Osco fried chicken. I remember the day with clarity: Feb. 1, 2011. Twenty-one inches of snow was about to blanket Chicago, Lake Shore Drive was about to turn into a car cemetery, and I was preparing to hunker down for the "snowpocalypse." I headed to my neighborhood Jewel-Osco to stock up and, regrettably, bought the last batch of fried chicken before they closed store. It was dry and terrible. I sat in my apartment seething. But a week later, not wanting to give up on the relationship, I went back and ordered a batch, this time straight from the fryer. Giving it a second chance was a fruitful decision. Now here's a fried chicken that's not only satisfactory for a chain deli counter but worthy enough to become my default quick chicken fix. Better than KFC. Better than Popeye's. Eight-piece fried chicken is between $5.99-$6.99, depending on location. On Mondays, it's $1 off. kpang@tribune.com Twitter @pang Hamilton has set itself a goal to be the first New Zealand city to eradicate a disease that's killing our bees. The Waikato Domestic Beekeepers Association (WDBA) has begun testing for the lethal American Foulbrood (AFB) - and wants beekeepers in other regions to get involved. Honey bees are integral to our survival. Without them, humanity would struggle to survive. They're part of the family for Hamilton beekeepers too, with one pair doing all they can to keep the fatal bacterial disease AFB out of the hives. "All we have to do is get a sample of bees, we crush them up, we test them and we can very quickly get a result back on whether the colony they come from has American Foulbrood or not," says honeybee scientist Mark Goodwin. He says crushing them is never easy - but the real heartbreak is when a hive is infected. "When I was at university I got my first two beehives, I thought 'this is fun' and they both got AFB and I had to burn them and it was devastating of course," he says. "You do get attached to them. I shouldn't, I'm a scientist. I shouldn't get attached to them but I do." WDBA committee member Teresa Gibbison says it's a grim process that she hopes she never has to do. "You shut the hive up and pour petrol into them so the fumes kill them. I think I would be crying through the whole thing to be honest," she says. "Your bees actually become part of your family so you actually really do care about them." That's why they want to make Hamilton the first city to be completely AFB free. There are 1500 registered bee hives in Hamilton but there could be many more. The WDBA has collected samples from about five percent so far. "If we can test all of the hives... then as well as Hamilton being AFB free we can expand it to the Waikato and eventually, hopefully New Zealand," Ms Gibbison says. Mr Goodwin says ten years ago there were about 300,000 hives in New Zealand. Now, there's three times that. "Most beekeepers who are beekeeping now weren't five years ago and that's a lot of commercial beekeepers as well so that's a little bit scary," he says. "Especially around AFB, if you're not good at identifying it then it is a risk." The WDBA is asking anybody who owns a hive in the area to contact them, so they can secure not only the bee's future but ours as well. Newshub. A New Zealand man has been sent to prison for attempting to rape a woman at Melbourne Airport. Greyson Murphy was waiting to board his flight back to Christchurch when he attacked an airline hostess in an airport bathroom, reported Daily Mail. He later told Australian Federal Police (AFP) he had intended to undress and rape the woman. "I was in the girl's toilet and I grabbed a girl and another girl grabbed her off me," he said. Murphy spent two weeks at a mental health facility after a similar incident in Bali previously, Daily Mail reported. An airport worker had noticed him watching the women's toilets at Melbourne Airport, and saw his shoes underneath a cubicle when she entered the bathroom. Murphy attempted to grab a JetStar employee as she washed her hands, when the other woman stepped in to help. AFP was called shortly afterwards and he was arrested and taken to Broadmeadows police station where he admitted trying to rape the woman. Murphy faced up to 15 years in prison but his lawyer argued in court that his sentence should be discounted due to mental illness. The judge convicted and sentenced him to three years in jail with a non-parole period of two years after accepting he suffered from a mental health disorder. Murphy may face deportation from Australia after he has completed his prison sentence. Newshub. Twelve years on from Hanover Finance funds being frozen, its former co-owners can sun themselves on a slice of Fijian paradise. Mark Hotchin and Eric Watson have bought a share in a property on the exclusive Vomo Island, NZME reports. The Island is reputed to be among one of the more beautiful Fijian islands and is where Hotchin held his 50th birthday in 2009. It was held in the same week investors in Hanover Finance sweated about whether they would get back any of the $500 million invested in the company. When the company collapsed during the Global Financial Crisis, 16,500 investors lost over $500 million. In 2013 the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) decided not to prosecute the owners and directors of Hanover Finance. The SFO said its inquiry raised serious questions over the way Hanover was run. Hotchin has built up a property portfolio with real estate in many of New Zealands most exclusive areas, NZME reports. Mr Watson has been ordered to pay 25,259,986.49 (NZ$49,4363,19.56) plus costs after a court case in the UK. The businessman was taken to court by Sir Owen Glenn and Kea Investments Ltd over a joint European property venture called Spartan Capital. The court found Mr Watson had "planned and orchestrated" a deceit using "fraudulent misrepresentations" to get Kea to enter into agreements. As a result, Kea invested 129 million into Spartan Capital - money Mr Glenn wanted back from Mr Watson. Newshub Clayton F. Mallory Jr., 83, entered eternal life on Monday, June 14, 2021 at his home surrounded by his loving family. He retired from Speed Cement Plant after 43 years of service, a member of the Speed Church, Sellersburg Masonic Lodge and was a Purdue Master Gardener. Clayton was preceded Recent demographic data from the U.S. Census and the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia has shined a light, yet again, on the changing face of the Old Dominion and the social, political and economic changes that continue to gather steam. Between 2010, when the last U.S. Census was held, and 2018, demographers estimate the commonwealths population grew by 6.5 percent to more than 8.5 million residents. The growth took place in the regions you would expect: Northern Virginia, the Capital region and Tidewater. Some small cities outside the so-called Golden Crescent have gained in population Lynchburg, Charlottesville, Harrisonburg and Roanoke but for the most part rural Virginia has continued to experience population loss. Danville, though, continues to lose residents, though the pace of the outflow is slowing. Some counties, of course, have remained steady or even seen population gains, but not at the pace of those in more urban areas; other counties, particularly those in more isolated regions of the state such as Far Southwest and Southside, have lost residents. These numbers show a continuance of the decades-long population trend in Virginia that has reshaped the commonwealth in every way imaginable, and its a trend that wont be stopping anytime soon. My mother came from a long line of educators. She followed the same career path, working for more than three decades as a school teacher in North Carolina. Education was important to her, so she was determined to make it important to my brother and me. And even though or perhaps because my father hadnt gone to college, he was equally convinced that it was our ticket to a better life. Dinner table discussions at our house didnt center on whether wed continue our education after high school that was a given but rather where and when. We were fortunate. Post-secondary education is extremely valuable, for a whole host of reasons. Yet too few high school graduates in our area take advantage of it. First there are the financial benefits. A two-year associate degree will earn you a 20 percent higher annual income, on average, than that of a high school graduate. A bachelors degree increases the differential to more than 60 percent. With four years of college under your belt, you can make hundreds of thousands of dollars more over the course of your lifetime. Trumps insistence on a border wall to stop the illegal flow became a political issue in Congress, but the public wants changes in the laws that will curtail growing pressure on the southern border by caravan refugees from Central America. Providing funds for a physical barrier on the Mexican border is a major contest between the president and Congress after Democrats gained control in the House in 2018. Its unclear whether the public supports the president or Democrats on this issue. U.S. troops abroad. The costly invasions and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq soured the public on the wisdom of sending U.S. forces abroad to enforce peace in dangerous places. The public generally accepts the idea that America should not be the worlds policeman because of its costs and paucity of benefits. Small American forces remain in Afghanistan and Iraq, but the president wants to reduce and eventually withdraw them. Syria is the latest issue because Trump asserted that he would withdraw them quickly. Secretary of Defense James Mattis resigned over that abrupt decision, and Secretary of state Mike Pompeo is in the Middle East reassuring allies that the withdrawal will be gradual. Still, the public appears to support the presidents desire to scale back our military presence abroad. Ive gotten so many phone calls and emails and texts and posts and the restaurant community reaching out to me, said Sorkin. Our customers stopped in to see how we were doing. Its been a rough week in a lot of ways, but its also been heartwarming. It just reminds us why we do this. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account to continue reading. To subscribe, click here. Already a subscriber? Click here. 2019 sees the City of Painesville welcoming Tom Hummel as their Fire Department's new Chief. Hummel took over for Mark Mlachak who retired December 31st of 2018. Madison Township Replacement levy for police could go on May ballot Madison Township trustees hoping to put replacement levy for Police Department on May ballot featured Geauga County Fairmount Center for the Arts hosts 'Winter Warm Up' day activities for community A 48-year-old man identified as the gunman in the ambush killing of a 22-year-old Davis police officer left a note in his apartment saying that police had hit him with ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking. The note was released by Davis police a few hours after Kevin Douglas Limbaugh of Davis was identified as the man who shot and killed Officer Natalie Corona on Thursday while the rookie officer was responding to a routine collision in downtown Davis, according to the Yolo County Sheriffs Office. Hours after the shooting, Limbaugh killed himself with a single gunshot to the head as police closed in, said Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel. The note was found during a search by police of Limbaughs apartment. The Davis Police department has been hitting me with ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking, read the note, which was typed on a computer. I notified the press, internal affairs, and even the FBI about it. I am highly sensitive to its affect (sic) on my inner ear. I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I cant live this way anymore. According to Lt. Paul Doroshov of the Davis police, theres no way to tell exactly when the note was typed. There have been a lot of rumors as to why this happened, why he did what he did, and were hoping this sheds some light, Doroshov said. As for the placement of the note, which was found face-up on Limbaughs bed, I really cant speculate as to why it was there like that. The killing of Corona, and the shooting spree that followed it, was not Limbaughs first brush with the law. In September, Limbaugh was arrested at his Davis home the same place where he shot himself on a felony charge of battery with serious bodily injury, according to Yolo County Superior Court records. The charge was reduced to a misdemeanor in October after a plea deal in which Limbaugh pleaded no contest. The deal resulted in an eight-day jail sentence and probation. Limbaugh was also ordered to surrender a black .223-caliber Bushmaster semiautomatic assault rifle, according to court records. Before the September incident, Limbaugh had no arrest record in Davis. Court records show that Limbaugh did not report having any other registered weapons. Pytel said Friday he did not know whether the two semiautomatic handguns believed to have been used in Coronas slaying were obtained legally. Records show that Limbaugh was a resident of Woodland (Yolo County) in 2004-05. He also had lived in Florida, New Mexico and Michigan. The shooting occurred Thursday night, when Limbaugh rode up on a bicycle and opened fire. Corona fell to the ground after she was struck by the first bullet, but Limbaugh continued to fire, hitting her several times, including once in the neck, Pytel said. Limbaugh then reloaded his handgun and continued shooting striking a passing bus, the backpack of a woman and the boot of a firefighter before going back to his home near Fifth and E streets. He was identified as the suspect when authorities discovered a backpack he left at the scene. Officers later surrounded the home and ordered Limbaugh to come outside. Wearing a bulletproof vest, he came outside, yelled something at the officers and then went back into the house again. He emerged a second time this time with a gun before retreating indoors. No shots were fired by the officers, Pytel said. Officers sent a robot into the house after hearing a single gunshot. Limbaugh was found to have shot himself in the head, police reported. It does not appear that Limbaugh and Corona had ever crossed paths before the shooting, Pytel said. On Friday, the chief met with the departments officers and to tell them about the timeline of the shooting and Coronas injuries in advance of the public announcement, said Amy Juarez, a police spokeswoman. The chief also offered grief counseling for members of his department. We were all just in shock, Juarez said. We see it every day on the news, on our surrounding agencies social media about officer killings, and its heartbreaking every time. But you never think its going to be your department. A memorial service for Corona is expected to be held in about 10 days, Juarez added. Meanwhile, Davis is trying to find a way to make sense of the senseless killing. It was the first on-duty officer death there in nearly 60 years. Stephanie Teague, 38, who organized a candlelight vigil for Corona on Saturday evening at Central Park, said the entire town has been stepping forward to help. Businesses and residents are donating food and supplies to family members. Many families have donated dozens of candles to be used at the vigil and volunteered to clean up after the event. I want this to be a time of mourning, a time for people to band together and be a community and grieve together, Teague said. Thursday night is hard to forget for Mayor Brett Lee. He was in a meeting when he received a text message that an active shooter was loose downtown. After the lockdown ended, he raced over to the Police Department and waited with officers and City Council members for news about Corona and the suspect. We need to be supportive of our first responders, of the Police Department and the Fire Department, who on a daily basis are asked to step into situations that are challenging to their lives, Lee said. Any town in America can experience this. Coronas death is one of several recent, high-profile killings of law enforcement officers. Less than three weeks ago, Cpl. Ronil Singh was fatally shot in Newman (Stanislaus County) during a traffic stop. Officer Chateri Payne, 22, was shot and killed Wednesday in Shreveport, La. Of course, this is really surprising, said Teague, the vigil organizer. Obviously, you dont think this is going to happen. But to a certain extent, this is the world we live in. Davis is not immune to the rest of the world. Sarah Ravani is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sravani@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @SarRavani Steven G. de Polo / Getty Image Two teenagers were killed Friday evening and four others were injured when their vehicle crashed into a tree in Antioch, authorities said. The collision occurred about 7 p.m. at the intersection of Lone Tree Way and Indian Hill Drive, said Sgt. Matthew Harger, a spokesman for Antioch police. Help support your local hometown newspaper/website. Independent local news reporting matters. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription, for as little as $3, so we can continue to provide independent local reporting on our communities. School one of 45 in country to be handed Olympic recognition A NEWBURY school is taking part in a nationwide Olympic initiative to inspire young people to live a healthier, active lifestyle. Park House School has been selected to be a Get Set Beacon organisation, which promotes Olympic ideals through sporting events for the community over the academic year. Pupils and Park House staff are already planning to hold three sporting events for local schools to take part in. Headteacher Derek Peaple said: Were very proud and pleased that Park House School is one of just 45 schools and youth organisations nationally to be chosen as a beacon. The school will receive funding from the Get Set initiative to support the events. Get Set is the British Olympic Association and British Paralympic Associations youth engagement programme that grew from the London Olympics of 2012. Its aims are to help young people live a fit and healthy lifestyle and to realise their sporting potential. The schools Get Set Beacon mark follows Park House becoming the only educational institution to have been awarded the Inspired by 2012 mark by the Cabinet Office. Data shows 64 per cent of pupils across district's primary schools achieved the expected standard in key subjects PUPILS across West Berkshire primary schools are performing better than the national average in two key subject areas. Data released by the Government in December shows that 64 per cent of pupils at state-funded primary schools across the district achieved the expected standard across reading, writing and mathematics at the end of the last academic year. Four primary schools across the district out of a total of 63 achieved 100 per cent in the three subjects. They were Enborne Primary, The Ilsleys Primary, Purley Primary and St Pauls Catholic Primary in Tilehurst. In reading and writing, West Berkshire pupils fared better than the national average, while childrens performance in mathematics was in line with the national standard across England. Despite the encouraging findings, more than a third of pupils at state-funded primary schools in West Berkshire failed to meet the expected standard in reading, writing and maths at the end of key stage two last term. Two thirds of pupils at all four of the districts academies funded directly by the Department of Education as opposed to the local education authority did not reach the expected grades in the three subjects. A quarter of year six pupils (25 per cent) at Lambourn Primary School achieved the expected standard in 2018, scoring well-below average across the three subjects. The school became an academy in September 2018 when it joined Excalibur Academies Trust. A statement from Excalibur said the body was working closely with the headteacher and the schools teaching staff and as a result, the school was already seeing positive changes. It added: Specialist leaders in education and other experienced educationalists are also in the school weekly supporting teachers and helping to ensure that every child achieves their potential. We have long-term plans in place to continue to support the school and we are confident that, as part of Excalibur Academies Trust, the pupils of Lambourn School have a very bright future. In the data, schools were also ranked according to the amount of progress pupils had made at the end of Key Stage 2. Pupils at Shaw-cum-Donnington Primary made the least progress in 2018. Along with Lambourn Primary, it was the only West Berkshire state-funded primary school to score well-below average across reading, writing and mathematics. Factors denoting the size of Year 6 classes and the number of pupils for whom English is a second language both of which could impact on how schools are ranked were not included in the data. West Berkshire Councils portfolio holder for education and young people Lynne Doherty (Con, Northcroft) said the data painted an encouraging picture of childrens education across the district. Mrs Doherty said: Making sure children fulfil their potential is a priority for us, so it is encouraging to see that overall, our schools are performing above the national average. Importantly, these results show were equipping our pupils for their next chapter of learning with more pupils leaving school ready for secondary education. There is a lot to be proud of particularly in reading and writing but we cant be complacent. We remain focused on education and delivering the best outcomes for children and young people in West Berkshire. Newburyport - Paul James Matthews, 95, a resident of Newburyport, died Monday morning June 14, 2021 at Port Healthcare Center in Newburyport. He was born on January 26, 1926, in Newburyport, Mass., to the late James and Mary Matthews. Paul was raised in Newburyport and was a graduate of Newb What to Know Polls conducted around the midterm elections suggest more voters are choosing climate change as their top priority. A corps of young people are demanding action from politicians. Even among Republican millennials, a third say the Earth is warming because of human activity. Going into the midterm elections, few candidates made the warming planet a keystone of their campaigns despite devastating fires and storms that scientists say have been worsened by carbon pollution. Climate change has typically been low on voters lists of priorities. But as a new Congress comes into power in January, that indifference could be changing. Surveys conducted for the midterms found that between 7 and 9 percent of the electorate named climate change or the environment as the top issue facing the country. Typically, the number lags around 2 percent, environmentalists say. Thats a green wave, said Nathaniel Stinnett, the founder of the Environmental Voter Project, a three-year-old organization that is dedicated to getting environmentalists to vote. Americans continue to voice more concern about health care, immigration, the economy and jobs, and depending on the poll, gun policy or federal taxes and spending. But with a record 113 million people voting in this years elections where Democrats retook control of the House, that could mean that up to 9 million named the environment their primary concern. Thats an enormously powerful constituency and I think youre going to see more and more politicians trying to appeal to these environmental voters, especially among those running in the [2020] Democratic presidential primary, Stinnett said. The surveys -- one around Election Day called AP VoteCast and two conducted for NPR and PBS NewsHour by the Marist Poll, in October and after the election -- are just one indication that climate change is taking on urgency with voters, particularly young voters. Also pointing to the increased seriousness with which the issue is being treated: differences between millennials and older Americans, demands from newly elected politicians and worry about the damage that climate change is already doing to communities from Miami to Los Angeles. A confluence of factors is driving the new attention to the devastation threatening the environment. Repeated natural disasters have brought havoc to parts of the United States, from deadly fires in California to destructive hurricanes sweeping over Puerto Rico, Florida, Texas and the Carolinas. Warnings about the worlds need to curb the use of fossil fuels come as younger people more convinced of the scientific consensus on climate change become old enough to vote. Going into the New Year, there will be more pressure on Congress to tackle the greenhouse gases that are raising temperatures. Heres a breakdown of the polls. AP VoteCast found that more of the electorate, 26 percent, choose health care as the number one issue facing the country than any other issue while 7 percent picked the environment. The Marist Poll in October recorded 7 percent of registered voters choosing climate change as the most important factor in deciding their vote and earlier this month, 9 percent saying that it should be Congress' top priority. Economy and jobs was the most important for the most voters, with 20 percent in October and 17 percent this month. Stinnett said that how much change was occuring would become clearer as more data becomes available about voters and the midterm elections. if("undefined"==typeof window.datawrapper)window.datawrapper={};window.datawrapper["j6PVO"]={},window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].embedDeltas={"100":555,"200":410,"300":381,"400":352,"500":352,"700":323,"800":323,"900":323,"1000":323},window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].iframe=document.getElementById("datawrapper-chart-j6PVO"),window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].iframe.style.height=window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].embedDeltas[Math.min(1e3,Math.max(100*Math.floor(window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].iframe.offsetWidth/100),100))]+"px",window.addEventListener("message",function(a){if("undefined"!=typeof a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var b in a.data["datawrapper-height"])if("j6PVO"==b)window.datawrapper["j6PVO"].iframe.style.height=a.data["datawrapper-height"][b]+"px"}); Youth Demand Action on the Environment Young people are particularly engaged in confronting climate change, a crisis that has gathered momentum throughout their lives and which threatens to leave the Earth a much less hospitable place in the coming years. A pre-election survey from Tufts University that focused on young people and politics found that 59 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds support or are an active part of the environmental movement, up from 42 percent in 2016. Numbers were even higher among Democrats, and particularly those who said they were likely to vote, according to the September poll by the universitys CIRCLE, or The Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement. The polls director, Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg, said political engagement was more common among young people now than two years ago, with triple the number saying they attend marches and demonstrations up from 5 percent to 15 percent. Part of the change can be traced to the activism of students from Parkland, Florida, which encouraged other young people to be a part of political causes, including the environmental movement, she said. It wasnt drowned out by gun violence, for example, which is a big player this year, but just as many people if not more young people said, Its a really important issue that Im actively engaged in, she said. The Sunrise Movement is a corps of young people working to make climate change an urgent priority across the country. As they prepared to launch, a core challenge was how to make climate change an urgent priority in the United States. They helped Democrats to take the House and now are determined to keep the issue at the top of lawmakers agendas. In November, 150 members of the Sunrise Movement and Justice Democrats held a sit-in at House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosis office on Capitol Hill to demand action on climate change. They were joined by newly elected Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, who has been pushing for a Green New Deal to promote green energy and jobs and cut carbon emissions. "She was elected as part of the movement, she intends to govern as part of the movement," Corbin Trent, a spokesman for Ocasio-Cortez, said at the time. She thinks there is no other priority that we should be focused on and supports the Sunrise Movements call for Democrats to create a plan to transition the economy to a zero carbon economy so we have that ready to go when we take back the presidency in 2020." The activists were criticized for targeting Democrats, who support taking on climate change, but they say they know that if they do not push Democrats they will not get the action they need. We targeted the Democrats because we believe in them, said a spokesman for the group, Stephen OHanlon. We dont think were going to get anywhere by calling on Donald Trump to stand up to fossil fuel lobbyists. They believe that as young people they have leverage over Democrats because it was young people turning out in record numbers that helped Democrats win the House majority. If Democrats are to win the presidency and the Senate in 2020, they will need young people again to turn out in record numbers, OHanlon said. [[C, 503157721, 620, 413]] So many politicians and especially establishment politicians think about the range of political options as whats currently politically possible and oftentimes with climate and a lot of other issues too thats just radically from what we need to give our generation a livable future, he said. And we made the choice when we launched to push for solutions that are actually in line with what we need. Generational Divide in GOP Republicans have been the most resistant to believing that climate change presents a critical danger. A Pew Research Center poll done before the midterms found that 72 percent of registered voters supporting Democrats thought climate change was a very big problem compared to only 11 percent of those backing Republicans. But other Pew surveys found wide differences within the GOP. About a third of Republican millennials say the Earth is warming because of human activity, double the share of Baby Boomers and older, according to a May survey. Forty-five percent of millennials say they are seeing some effects of global climate change in their communities, compared with a third of older Republicans. But they also are in agreement with older party members that policies aimed at reducing climate change effects would make no difference. Sara Blazevic, a co-founder and managing director of the Sunrise Movement, said the organization was made up of young people angry and frustrated after having watched a lifetime of political inaction, of witnessing hurricanes and other disasters getting worse but the environmental movement stagnating. Looking at some of the data a few years back we called this the urgency gap, she said. Because there actually are a super majority of Americans who understand that climate change is happening, is real, believe that its happening already because they can see with their own eyes and want something to be done about it. Other Pew research ranks the publics policy priorities for the president and Congress. Protecting the environment has risen from 44 percent in January 2010 to 62 percent at the beginning of this year. Dealing with climate change similarly rose from 28 percent to 46 percent. In December, nearly 200 countries met in Poland for the U.N.s 24th annual climate change conference and agreed to rules for curbing greenhouse emissions, but delayed a decision on creating a market in carbon credits. The meeting follows a series of reports, among them the National Climate Assessment and one from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, warning of irreversible environmental damage absent quick action to rein in carbon emissions. Environment Gains Prominence in the Midterms During the midterm elections, ads highlighting global warming began appearing in races across the country, a phenomenon that was new. The League of Conservation Voters through its Victory Fund was among environmental groups that spent heavily to elect green candidates, in its case $80 million. Pete Maysmith, its senior vice president of campaigns, said that the more environmental issues were localized, the more voters responded. So were talking about environmental issues that are directly impacting peoples lives, and doing that in the context of the election, he said. It motivates them and it impacts their vote choice. In southern New Jersey, the organization matched environmental concerns with what it knew would be the top issue of the elections, health care, then targeted what it viewed as an important bloc of swing voters, suburban women. In a tight race, Democrat Andy Kim, a former national security aide in the Obama administration, defeated two-term Republican Rep. Tom MacArthur, who had tried to repeal the Affordable Care Act. When you pair the issue of pollution, whether its water or air pollution so youre talking about healthy drinking water, youre talking about concerns around asthma and other illnesses, other disease and then link that into the health care debate, that again is a very powerful motivator, he said. The League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund and the Environmental Defense Fund Action connected the health impact of MacArthurs record of gutting environmental protections and allowing more toxic pollution into our air to his efforts to eliminate protections for people with pre-existing conditions, according to post-election analysis. In another race in California, the League teamed up with Michael Bloombergs Independence USA PAC to defeat 30-year congressman, Dana Rohrabacher. One ad juxtaposed Rohrabachers statement that global warming is a fraud with black smoke and wildfires in the background. Democrat Harley Rouda, who called out Republican leaders for denying the threat of man-made climate change, ousted Rohrabacher Maysmiths colleague, Tiernan Sittenfeld, the senior vice president of government affairs, said of the 62 new members of the House of Representatives, 55 of them have committed to trying to bring about 100 percent clean energy by 2050. She said the organization was looking at opportunities for a green infrastructure package from the Democrat-dominated House and oversight as the Trump administration tries to roll back public health and environmental protections. Its especially exciting because there are so many of these new members for whom the environment and addressing the climate crisis is really an enormous priority and central to who they are and in many case part of why they decided to run, she said. The AP VoteCast survey replaced exit polling that The Associated Press had participated in with the television networks. It was conducted for the AP and Fox News by the non-partisan research organization NORC at the University of Chicago. The AP VoteCast also found that significant numbers were concerned about the effects of climate: 70 percent of all voters were very or somewhat concerned versus 29 percent who were not too or not at all concerned. Democrats were more worried than Republicans. This years exit polling, which NBC and other networks continued separately, did not ask voters across the country to rate the environment among their top issues, but it did ask voters in Florida about climate change as it had done in 2016 and in both years, 66 percent said climate change was a serious problem. Over the last decade, the environment has historically ranked low among voters priorities. Polling that the Environmental Voter Project did of likely voters in the 2016 presidential election found that only 2 percent listed the environment as their top priority, with another 2 percent setting it as their second highest priority. 'Politicians Go Where the Votes Are' This is why its so hard to get politicians to lead on climate and lead on environmental issues, Stinnett said. Because politicians go where the votes are, thats what they do. Politicians are in the business of winning elections and if voters dont deeply care about a set of issues, its really hard to get politicians to care about those issues. The Environmental Voter Project targets environmentalists who dont vote or who seldom vote to convince them to change their behavior. It focuses on the 18- to 24-year-olds and to a lesser extent 25- to 29-year-olds who are disproportionately likely to care deeply about environmental issues. Blacks and Hispanics and those who make less than $50,000 a year and who have a higher chance of being victims of environmental racism are also in their sights. Stinnett estimates that the non-profit has turned more than 100,000 non-voting environmentalists into consistent voters since it started. It began in Massachusetts, in 2017 moved into Georgia, Colorado, Florida, Nevada and Pennsylvania and expects to expand further into about 20 states where it has identified large populations of non voting environmentalists. It does not spend money on changing minds, just getting people to the polls. Politicians care about winning elections and so theyre going to follow the voters, Stinnett said. I think this change will happen very quickly once environmentalists start voting. I just cant tell you when that number in the electorate will get big enough that it forces change. But its getting bigger, its definitely getting bigger. This electorate might not force change as quickly as we want it to, but somethings happening, something is absolutely happening and politicians are beginning to pay attention, Stinnett said. What to Know New radio transmissions have been released by North Andover Police detailing how authorities dealt with the Sept. 13 gas explosions. Police responded to more than a dozen fires and reports of natural gas odors while keeping their cool and rescuing residents. The explosions in North Andover, Andover and Lawrence killed a teenager and displaced thousands of people in Merrimack Valley. Months after natural gas explosions rocked three Massachusetts communities, audio transmissions from one police department calling for backup have been released. North Andover police hopped from fire to fire, gas leak to gas leak, in a bewildering game of Whack-a-Mole in the first hour of fires and explosions in the Merrimack Valley last September, according to the new police radio transmissions the town released. Police, including Chief Charles Gray, responded to more than a dozen fires and reports of natural gas odors, keeping their cool but trying to piece together what was happening while rescuing and directing residents. One officer reported responding to a restaurant where flames were flying from the frying vat. They shut everything off, but they still have flames coming from the frialator, the officer said. Two dispatchers, a sergeant and a communications staffer, relayed messages, directed officers and Chief Charles Gray to address the ongoing stream of calls from residents and trying to get the towns emergency manager on the phone. Thirty East Water, 30 East Water, another potential fire in the basement. Will you respond 151 Waverly, 1-5-1 Waverly? Fire Department for fire in the basement, smoke in the basement. Control, Ive got another fire: 226 Main, basement. Saywer and Mifflin, heavy smell of gas. People are evacuating and moving up the street. The calls came in one after another. The audio, posted to YouTube by the town of North Andover, paints a portrait of a small department with its hands full, calling in all hands and attending to every report, but nervous about what may happen next. Sarge, Im getting calls from the city, too, Gray said, referring to Lawrence. Theyve got, like, nine fires going. Theyre looking for some help. I know were tied up, so keep me posted with what weve got. Gray made those radio calls to dispatch while responding to fires himself. If 305 can hear me, Ive got a handicapped woman on the second floor of this fire on Main, Gray said. He entered the building to get the woman and didnt answer calls from dispatch for several harrowing minutes. A short time later, he was back on the radio, sending an order to alert everyone in town. Put a reverse 911 out that if anyone smells gas to get out, he said. Any available cruisers, get on their PA systems and drive through the neighborhoods and tell people to get out if they smell gas. The explosions on Sept. 13 in North Andover, Andover and Lawrence killed one young man and displaced thousands of people in the three towns. Gas was shut off to the area for days, and to homes that caught fire for weeks, or in some cases, months. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the explosions, and U.S. Sens. Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren have promised hearings on a whistleblower brought to you exclusively by NBC10 Boston, who said he warned Columbia Gas that cutting corners and staff would lead to disaster. What to Know A Muslim family says staff at Inova Fair Oaks told them they looked "scary" and threatened to throw them out. Inova said it is reviewing its anti-discrimination policy with staff members. The incident was especially hurtful because the infant's grandparents once volunteered as chaplains for the same hospital system. A Muslim family went to a hospital in Northern Virginia to celebrate a joyous occasion: the birth of a newborn baby. But they say hospital staff humiliated them by telling them they looked "scary," and threatened to kick them out. Visiting hours were nearly over when the Zahr family went to Inova Fair Oaks Hospital in Fairfax, Virginia, in early December. They wanted to visit Ahmed Zahr's newborn baby. When they got up to the third-floor birthing center, they were confronted by a security guard, Arwa Zahr, the newborn's aunt, said in an exclusive interview with News4. "He screams and he says, 'You're not allowed to be here!' And then he said, 'You know, you look scary,'" she recalled. "I was shocked, like, 'Did he say that?'" The Zahrs believe the guard was objecting to the full black veils Arwa Zahr and her mother wore, showing only their eyes. The family was ordered to go back downstairs. When the newborn's father learned what happened, he told the guard he had been disrespectful. The guard summoned the shift supervisor, whom the family identified as the head nurse, and things got worse, the family said. "We tried to explain to [the supervisor] our side of the story. He looked at my mother as she was trying to explain what happened, and he told her, 'Close your mouth or Ill kick you out,'" Ahmed Zahr recalled. The family said that wasn't all. "Hes telling them, 'Nobody wants you here. The nurses don't want you. The doctors don't want you here,'" Ahmed Zahr said. As he continued to defend his family, the supervisor called the police. "It was surprising to me. First of all, we werent threatening in any way. No one had done anything," Ahmed Zahr said. The family spoke with Fairfax County officers, who they described as calm and helpful, and then left the hospital. Then, they registered formal complaints with Inova. The incident was especially hurtful because the infant's grandparents, Dr. Nabil Zahr and Karima Zohdi, once volunteered as chaplains at Inova Fairfax Hospital, another hospital in the Inova system. They founded and run The Palm Tree School, a private school in Fairfax that provides Islamic studies as well as the standard curriculum. Ahmed Zahr said his family had never encountered such abuse. "Just to be treated like that just because of the way you're dressed," he said. "We're been living here for, you know, 20-plus years. I haven't witnessed discrimination to this extent." Inova said all patients "have the right to a respectful, safe environment, free from all forms of discrimination." They said they reviewed their anti-discrimination policy at all daily safety meetings. The hospital group said Inova is reviewing the family's concerns, and that they offered to meet with the Zahrs. The family said they're not interested in meeting until Inova says what action they've taken related to their specific case, and what any investigation they conducted found. In the meantime, the Zahr family calls the day they visited the hospital for the birth of a baby "The Day of Mortification." They didn't get to meet Ahmed Zahr's first child, a baby girl, that day. Here's the full statement Inova sent News4: Inova respects and values our diverse patient community and believes that all patients have the right to a respectful, safe environment, free from all forms of discrimination. We hold our team members and contractors to the highest ethical standards, supported by a strict zero-tolerance policy against discrimination of any kind. We are reviewing the familys concerns and we continue to look for opportunities to better manage these situations in the future. Inovas senior leadership values our longstanding relationship with the family and has extended an invitation to meet in person. All employees are aware of our anti-discrimination policy and are required to complete ethics and compliance training annually. Following this incident, as part of staff awareness, the policy was reviewed at all of our daily safety meetings. We understand how important visitors are to our patients and their care. However, certain units in the hospital require family visitation hours to assure that all patients have a quiet, healing environment. What to Know Jayme Closs, 13, went missing on Oct. 15 when police discovered someone had broken into her family's Wisconsin home and killed her parents Jayme was found Thursday, walking along a rural road roughly 60 miles north of where she disappeared three months earlier Jake Thomas Patterson, 21, was arrested on two counts of first-degree intentional homicide and one count of kidnapping, authorities sai Thirteen-year-old Jayme Closs escaped the man who killed her parents and held her against her will in a remote part of Wisconsin, then gave police a description of his car that enabled deputies to quickly take him into custody, authorities said at an emotional news conference Friday. Jake Thomas Patterson, a 21-year-old from Gordon, Wisconsin, was arrested Thursday - the same day Jayme was discovered walking down a road roughly 60 miles north of where she disappeared, authorities said. Jayme had been missing for 88 days, since her parents were fatally shot at their home outside Barron, Wisconsin, in October. Patterson was being held on two counts of first-degree intentional homicide in the shooting deaths of James and Denise Closs and one count of kidnapping, officials said. He is expected to appear in court Monday. Authorities said Jayme gave deputies a description of Patterson's vehicle, enabling them to locate and arrest him minutes later. "Jayme is the hero in this case, there's no question," Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said. Police said Patterson was not home when Closs escaped and appeared to be "looking for her when law enforcement found him." "That is the will of a kid to survive, its the unthinkable," Fitzgerald said. "Its amazing the will of that 13-year-old girl to escape." Fitzgerald said Jayme was inside her family's home when her parents were killed and that Patterson planned his actions, then "took many proactive steps" to hide Jayme and himself from law enforcement and the public. Among those steps, Fitzgerald said, Patterson shaved his head to avoid leaving any hair behind. The area where Jayme was allegedly held was remote and heavily wooded with few houses, officials said. "We also do not believe at this time that the suspect had any contact with the family. We do believe Jayme was the only target," Fitzgerald continued, adding that Patterson "had zero criminal history locally and zero criminal history in Wisconsin." Closs discovery and Pattersons arrest brought to an end what he said was a long and difficult search for the girl, whose disappearance, coupled with her parents death, rocked their community. She was discovered by a social worker walking her dog heard her cries for help and recognized her. Jeanne Nutter told The Associated Press on Friday that she was walking her dog at around 4 p.m. along a rural road near Gordon when a disheveled teenage girl approached her and called out for help. Jayme told Nutter her name and said she had walked away from a cabin where she'd been held captive, a cabin not far from Nutter's own home. "I was terrified, but I didn't want to show her that," Nutter told the AP. "She just yelled please help me I don't know where I am. I'm lost." Nutter said she didn't want to bring Jayme to her nearby home because it was too close to where she'd been found, and she didn't want them to be alone. She said: "My only thought was to get her to a safe place." The two went elsewhere in the neighborhood, to the home of Peter and Kristin Kasinskas. Jayme was skinny and dirty, wearing shoes too big for her feet, but appeared outwardly OK, the neighbors said. "I honestly still think I'm dreaming right now. It was like I was seeing a ghost," Peter Kasinskas told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "My jaw just went to the floor." "We've seen her face a lot so I knew it was her the second she walked in the door," Kasinskas' wife Kristin said. "She seemed kind of in shock and kind of timid but she did talk to us a little bit and she came in and sat down in our living room and was able to have a conversation with us," Kristin Kasinskas said in a phone interview on NBC's "Today" show. "She didn't give us a ton of details," she added. "I'd asked her if she knew where Gordon, Wisconsin, was; she did not. She did not know where Gordon was and she did not know where she was at the time." Kristin Kasinskas said Jayme told the couple the name of the person she believed had taken her. "I recognized the name when I was told it but not somebody I knew well by any means," Kristin Kasinskas said. "She kind of talked about being locked when this person had to leave but she did not go into any detail about how she got away." "We kind of just talked with her, nothing too specific. She didnt express like any fear," she continued. "She didnt say she was afraid the person was coming after her but she did say that somebody took her, she did say that somebody killed her parents. She told us a vehicle to be watching out for." Jayme went missing on Oct. 15 after police discovered someone had broken into the family's home outside Barron and fatally shot her parents, James and Denise Closs. Jayme was nowhere to be found, with the Barron County Sheriff's Department at the time describing her as likely abducted. Kristin Kasinskas heard a knock on her door Thursday afternoon, according to the Star Tribune. It was Nutter, her neighbor, with Jayme alongside. In the 20 minutes Jayme was in their home, Kristin and Peter Kasinskas tried to make her feel more comfortable, they said. They offered her water and food, but she declined both. Jayme was quiet, her emotions "pretty flat," Peter Kasinskas said. Kristin Kasinskas told NBC affiliate KARE Jayme looked thinner than in her missing persons photograph, "a little unkempt, but okay over all." Jayme told the couple she didn't know where she was or anything about Gordon. From what she told them, they believe she was there for most of her disappearance. Gordon lies about 40 miles south of Lake Superior and about 65 miles north of Barron, Jayme's hometown. The town is home to about 645 people in a heavily forested region where logging is the top industry. Sue Allard, Jayme's aunt, told the Star Tribune that she could barely express her joy after learning the news Thursday night. "Praise the Lord," Allard said between sobs. "It's the news we've been waiting on for three months. I can't wait to get my arms around her. I just can't wait." "When you actually hear it, its just unbelievable," Jayme's uncle Jeff Closs said via phone interview. "Were all just so grateful and happy. Hopefully shes okay, we dont really know what shape shes in. We dont really know a lot, all we know is shes alive." Detectives pursued thousands of tips, watched dozens of surveillance videos and conducted numerous searches in the effort to find Jayme. Some tips led officials to recruit 2,000 volunteers for a massive ground search on Oct. 23 but it yielded no clues. Fitzgerald said in November that he kept similar cases in the back of his mind as he worked to find Jayme, including the abduction of Elizabeth Smart, who was taken from her Salt Lake City home in 2002, when she was 14 years old. She was rescued nine months later with the help of two witnesses who recognized her abductors from an "America's Most Wanted" episode. "I have a gut feeling she's (Jayme's) still alive," Fitzgerald said at the time. He was right. "I figured that if they hadnt found her by now, that the person that did this didnt want her dead, so I had hope, every day," Jayme's aunt Kelly Englehardt said. "Every day there was hope." "It's what we've prayed for every single day for the last 87 days," Englehardt added. Barron Mayor Ron Fladten said Thursday night he was overjoyed at learning the news. "There was a lot of discouragement because this took quite a while to play out," Fladten said. "A lot of people have been praying daily, as I have. It's just a great result we got tonight. It's unbelievable. It's like taking a big black cloud in the sky and getting rid of it and the sun comes out again." He acknowledged that Jayme may not be the same person she was before she disappeared. "I hope that she's in good shape," the mayor said. "She's no doubt been through just a terrible ordeal. I think everybody wishes her a good recovery and a happy life going into the future." Jayme was hospitalized for observation overnight, authorities said, but was doing well and was cleared from the hospital by Friday morning. She was undergoing a "reunification process" Friday, which includes medical and mental evaluations, as well as questioning by detectives and the FBI, and reuniting with family members. Authorities said they hoped to have her back in Barron County by Friday morning or early afternoon. The notification that Jayme had been found came just four hours after Fitzgerald had taken to Twitter to debunk a report that she had been found alive near Walworth County. Douglas County, where Jayme was found, is hundreds of miles northwest of Walworth County. Here are some of the top stories from last week: 8 South Florida Restaurants Among Yelp's Top 100 Places to Eat Yelp has released its annual Top 100 Places to Eat in the U.S. list, and eight South Florida restaurants were featured on the list. Specializing in everything from Caribbean cuisine to sliders and sandwiches and even guava goat cheese balls. Take a look at the top eateries that call South Florida home. Floridas Best-Paying Jobs, How Businesses Are Trying to Fill Spots NBC 6 Responds reviewed census data to find the five fields that earn the most in the Sunshine State. Those top paying careers can offer more than just a good paycheck. For more information, click here. NBC6 Responds reviewed census data to find the five fields that earn the most in the sunshine state. Those top paying careers can offer more than just a good paycheck. SunPass Customers Targeted in Fake Unpaid Toll Collection A SunPass scam is targeting consumers with emails pretending to collect unpaid tolls by threatening possible court action, according to the Florida Department of Transportation. "Please be aware that FTE does not send toll invoices through email. Official toll invoices are sent only through U.S. mail," FDOT said in a statement. The only way to make an official toll payment is through the SunPass website, which displays the warning on its homepage. An email being sent out advising of a summons to appear in court is fake, according to state officials. Florida Residents Can Go To Universal Orlando for Less Than $54 a Day Universal Orlando is offering a promotion to Florida residents that will allow them to visit the theme parks for less than $54 dollars per day. Florida residents can take advantage of the 2-park, 3-day ticket for $159.99. For more information, click here. He has survived eight years of war and billions of dollars in money and weapons aimed at toppling him. Now Syrian President Bashar Assad is poised to be readmitted to the fold of Arab nations, a feat once deemed unthinkable as he forcefully crushed the uprising against his family's rule. Gulf Arab nations, once the main backers of rebels trying to oust Assad, are lining up to reopen their embassies in Syria, worried about leaving the country at the heart of the Arab world to regional rivals Iran and Turkey and missing out on lucrative post-war reconstructive projects. Key border crossings with neighbors, shuttered for years by the war, have reopened, and Arab commercial airlines are reportedly considering resuming flights to Damascus. And as President Donald Trump plans to pull out America's 2,000 soldiers from northeastern Syria, government troops are primed to retake the area they abandoned in 2012 at the height of the war. This would be a significant step toward restoring Assad's control over all of Syria, leaving only the northwest in the hands of rebels, most of them jihadis. It can seem like a mind-boggling reversal for a leader whose military once seemed dangerously close to collapse. But Russia's military intervention, which began in 2015, steadily reversed Assad's losses, allowing his troops, aided by Iranian-backed fighters, to recapture cities like Homs and Aleppo, key to his rule. Assad rules over a country in ruins, with close to half a million people killed and half the population displaced. Major fighting may still lie ahead. But many see the war nearing its end, and the 53-year-old leader is sitting more comfortably than he has in the past eight years. "Rehabilitation by Arab states is inevitable," said Faysal Itani, a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. A key motive for Sunni Muslim Gulf countries is to blunt the involvement of their Shiite-led foe, Iran, which saw its influence expand rapidly in the chaos of Syria's war. "Saudi Arabia tried briefly to help overthrow him when he seemed most vulnerable using proxy militants," Itani said. "With his regime likely to survive, however, Saudi Arabia would prefer to try and exercise influence over Assad to balance against Iran while avoiding escalation with Iran itself." After Assad led a crackdown on protesters in 2011, Syria was cast out as a pariah by much of the Arab and Western world. It lost its seat at the Arab League and was hit by crippling sanctions by the international community, as the U.S. and European diplomats closed their diplomatic missions. But Syria's isolation was never complete. China, Russia, Brazil, India and South Africa maintained diplomatic ties. In the Arab world, Lebanon, Iraq and Algeria never broke ranks with Syria. Propped up by Russia, China and Iran, Assad never really felt the pinch politically. A Saudi attempt to patch up relations with Assad would be a public acknowledgement of the kingdom's failure to oust him. At the same time, the involvement of Gulf Arab governments and private companies is crucial for any serious reconstruction effort in Syria. Reconstruction costs are estimated between $200 and $350 billion. Last month, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, himself an international outcast, flew to Damascus on a Russian jet, becoming the first Arab leader to visit Syria since 2011. The visit was largely seen as a precursor for similar steps by other Arab leaders. On Dec. 27, the United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus with a public ceremony, in the most significant Arab overture yet toward the Assad government, almost certainly coordinated with Saudi Arabia. The Bahrain Embassy followed the next day. The debate now appears to be about when, not whether, to re-admit Syria to the Arab League. At a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri said Syria's return to the League is connected to developments on the political track to end the crisis. Some officials in Lebanon insist Syria should be invited to an Arab economic summit the country is hosting next week, although final decision rests with the League. "It could happen slower or faster, but if Assad is going to stay where he is, then obviously countries in the region are going to try to make the best of that situation," said Aron Lund, a fellow with The Century Foundation. "American politicians can sit in splendid isolation on the other side of an ocean and pretend Syria isn't what it is," he said. "But King Abdullah of Jordan can't." The Arab overtures come amid a shifting landscape in the Western world. The planned U.S. pullout from Syria is part of Trump's "America First" policy. He has repeatedly said he was not interested in removing Assad from power or keeping American troops involved in "endless wars" in the region, most recently describing Syria as "sand and death." Right-wing parties and populist movements on the rise in Europe are also on friendly terms with Assad, seeing him as a secular bulwark against Islamic extremists. Even Turkey, whose president in 2012 famously vowed to pray at Omayyad Mosque in Damascus after Assad's ouster, has signaled it would consider working with Assad again if he wins in free and fair elections. For Syrians who rose up against Assad's rule, it can seem like the country is right back where it started eight years ago, only with half a million dead and cities in ruins. Analysts believe Syria under Assad will likely continue to face conflicts and sputter on in limbo for years to come, with only a partial recovery. But he will likely cling to power and do business with anyone who will do business with him. "I don't imagine Assad's Syria becoming a fine upstanding member of the international community, but nor do I think it will languish in isolation," Itani said. A Missouri poacher has been ordered to repeatedly watch the movie "Bambi" as part of his sentence in a scheme to illegally kill hundreds of deer. David Berry Jr. was ordered to watch the Disney classic at least once a month during his year-long jail sentence in what conservation agents have called one of the largest deer poaching cases in state history, the Springfield News-Leader reports. "The deer were trophy bucks taken illegally, mostly at night, for their heads, leaving the bodies of the deer to waste," said Don Trotter, the prosecuting attorney in Lawrence County. Berry, his father, two brothers and another man who helped them had their hunting, fishing and trapping privileges revoked temporarily or permanently. The men have paid a combined $51,000 in fines and court costs but the judge ordered a special addition to Berry's sentence for illegally taking wildlife. Court records show he was ordered by Lawrence County Judge Robert George to "view the Walt Disney movie Bambi, with the first viewing being on or before December 23, 2018, and at least one such viewing each month thereafter" while at the county jail. Berry was also sentenced to 120 days in jail in nearby Barton County for a firearms probation violation. His father, David Berry Sr., and his brother, Kyle Berry, were arrested in August after a nearly nine-month investigation that also involved cases in Kansas, Nebraska and Canada. The Missouri Department of Conservation said information from the investigation led to 14 Missouri residents facing more than 230 charges in 11 counties. Investigators say David Berry Sr.'s other son, Eric Berry, was later caught with another person spotlighting deer, where poachers use light at night to make deer pause and easier to hunt. The investigation into the Berrys began in late 2015, when the conservation agency received an anonymous tip about deer poaching in Lawrence County. Max Glauben was 17 and had already lost his mother, father and brother at the hands of the Nazis when U.S. troops rescued him while he was on a death march from one German concentration camp to another. The recollections of the Dallas resident who as a Jew in Poland survived the Warsaw Ghetto and Nazi concentration camps are now being preserved in a way that will allow generations to come to ask his image questions. Glauben, who turns 91 on Monday, is the latest Holocaust survivor recorded in such a way by the University of Southern California Shoah Foundation. The Los Angeles-based foundation has recorded 18 interactive testimonies with Holocaust survivors over the last several years, and executive director Stephen Smith says they're in a "race against time" as they work to add more, seeking both a diversity in experiences and testimonies in a variety of languages. "I thought that my knowledge could cure the hatred and the bigotry and the killings in this world if somebody can listen to my story, my testimony, and be educated even after I'm gone," Glauben said. Smith says that while the foundation founded in 1994 by film director Steven Spielberg has about 55,000 audiovisual testimonies about genocides in dozens of languages the majority from the Holocaust the interactive technology stands out for allowing museumgoers to have a dialogue with survivors. "It's your questions that are being answered," Smith said, adding that the replies, especially on weighty issues like forgiveness can be especially poignant. He says, "You actually see sometimes them struggling to know what to answer." So far, the foundation has Holocaust survivors speaking in English, Hebrew and Spanish, and the group hopes to get people speaking in even more languages. "It's so powerful when it's in your mother tongue and you're looking the person in the eye and you are hearing nuanced language coming back that's your own language," Smith said. For more than a year now, the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center has featured the survivors' images in a special theater . Museum CEO Susan Abrams says that when visitors interact with the images , the impact is often obvious: "People get teary; people laugh." "Our audience comes to feel that they know these survivors somewhat intimately because they're having small group conversation, and in that moment, pretty much everything else fades away," Abrams said. The Illinois museum is one of four currently featuring the images. Other museums are in Houston , Indiana and New York . The Holocaust museum in Dallas will start showing them starting in September, after it opens in a new location and with a new name the Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum. The Dallas museum currently brings in survivors to talk to students and has found that's often the most meaningful part of their visit, according to President and CEO Mary Pat Higgins. This technology ensures that can continue, she said. "Our survivors are aging, and so in 20 years we won't have any survivors who are still able to do that themselves," she said. Smith said the images can appear on a flat screen or be projected in a way that appears to be three-dimensional. Like Illinois, Dallas is building a special theater so the image will appear three-dimensional on a stage. Smith said the technology involved is simpler than many people think. "It's actually video that responds to human voice commands," he said. "And all that's happening is rather than you watching a linear testimony, all the bits of the testimony are broken up, and then when you ask it a question it finds that piece of video and plays it for you." JT Buzanga, assistant curator at the Holocaust Museum Houston, said the uniqueness of the interactive testimonies gives visitors a reason to return. "It's something that makes the connection that people want to remember and want to come back," Buzanga said. Glauben, who has made it his mission to tell people about the Holocaust, helped found the Dallas museum. He says that after he lost his family, he told himself he would "do anything possible to educate the people and let them know what kind of tragedy this was." One person was killed and three were injured Saturday in a three-vehicle crash in Palmdale in which one vehicle rolled down an embankment onto railroad tracks, authorities said. The crash was reported at 2:44 p.m. at Pearblossom Highway and Small Road, the California Highway Patrol said. One victim was dead at the scene, Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Ron Singleton said. A 60-year-old man and a 60-year-old woman were in "moderate condition," and taken to a trauma center, he said. A 19-year-old man was taken to a hospital with minor injuries. A sedan rolled down the embankment onto the tracks reportedly used by Metrolink, the CHP said. The other vehicles involved were a red Toyota Tacoma pickup truck and a white Chevrolet Suburban, the CHP said. As a result of the crash, Metrolink's Antelope Valley train 265 from Los Angeles to Lancaster was held at Vincent Grade/Acton while the car was removed from the tracks, Metrolink spokesman Scott Johnson said. The car was removed about 4:15 p.m. and the train resumed service after a 25-minute delay, Johnson said. HAPPY HARBINGERS? They can arrive in many forms, from a chill wind revealing that snow is on the way to a briny breeze promising the Pacific Ocean is just over the next hill. And as for springtime? It's a season with a multitude of harbingers, but surely one of the most spectacular, and easiest to keep close, is the flower. For while snow melts and briny breezes are rather hard to bottle, a gorgeous, petal-perfect grower, in a vase or planter, can bring months or even years of pleasure. How pleasurable it is, then, to spend the days just ahead of spring's start reveling in one of the most exquisite and unusual and iconic of all flowers, the... ORCHID: That's just what will happen, from March 15 through 17, when oodles of orchid aficionados arrive in the American Riviera. Their goal? To spend one, two, or three days at the 74th annual Santa Barbara International Orchid Show, a spectacular that isn't simply big in the orchid-cherishing world, but on the calendar of flower-oriented affairs, too. No wonder, for this happening, which can follow its esteemed roots back to 1945, includes 50-plus exhibitors, and vendors, too, hailing from California and well beyond. Those pros'll be talking all things orchids, and showing them, too, so you can expect to see an enormous array of orchids, including "... thousands of blooming orchid plants for sale." THE EARL WARREN SHOWGROUNDS... is the location, and while Saturday and Sunday will be in full bustle, Friday night, or "Orchids After Dark 2019," is your chance to "See the Show without the crowds!" Whenever you go, look for some of the biggest and most fascinating names in the orchidverse to be there, including Ecuagenera, which will have "fascinating species from the South America region," and Seed Engei of Japan. Other names on the roster include Orchids of Los Osos, Orchid Society of Santa Barbara, and lots more. Tickets? Open your petals and peek at this site, now. A male was killed Saturday when his vehicle crashed into a utility pole in Redondo beach and burst into flames, authorities said. The crash was reported at 7:05 a.m. in the 1600 block of Aviation Boulevard, Redondo Beach police Sgt. Paul Ribitzki said. "The vehicle was engulfed in flames and it's excess fuel ignited and flowed down the decline of Aviation Boulevard for approximately 100 feet," Ribitzki said. Redondo Beach firefighters responded to put out the flames and render aid to the patient but he was pronounced dead at the scene, the sergeant said. The patient's age and identity were not available. Southern California Edison crews responded to the scene to reroute power and repair the damaged pole, he said. Aviation Boulevard was shut down from 7:05 a.m. to about 3 p.m. between Artesia Boulevard and Grant Avenue for the investigation, Ribitzki said. Anyone who saw the crash was asked to call Traffic Investigator Clint Daniel at (310) 379-2477, Extension 2721. The man found dead at the West Hollywood apartment of prominent Democratic donor Ed Buck was identified by NBC4 as 55-year-old Timothy Dean of West Hollywood Wednesday. Dean was found dead early Monday at the apartment in the 1200 block of Laurel Avenue, where another man was found dead in 2017 of what authorities deemed a drug overdose. Deputies from the sheriff's West Hollywood Station responded about 1:05 a.m. Monday to the apartment regarding a person not breathing. The caller performed CPR and called 911, and Los Angeles County Fire Department personnel pronounced the man dead at the scene, according to Deputy Charles Moore of the Sheriff's Information Bureau. Homicide detectives were sent to the scene to investigate. The man's cause of death was under investigation by the county coroner's office, Moore said. Buck made headlines when the body of 26-year-old Gemmel Moore was found at the same apartment on July 27, 2017. The coroner's office ruled Moore's death an accidental methamphetamine overdose, to the dismay of his family. Buck was present at the location when both deaths occurred, according to the sheriff's department. "The deaths of Gemmel Moore and the young man who died Monday are beyond tragic, however, because they're both black gay men justice is not prevailing," according to a statement issued by David Johns, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Black Justice Coalition. Johns called it "public knowledge that Ed Buck was allegedly giving young black gay men harmful drugs long before this second young man died in his home," and added that it was also his hope "that these tragic events encourage conversation about the fact that the lives of black gay men are not disposable." Johns also said that any violence against black people "must be confronted with the full might of justice at our disposal." "This is especially true at a time where the nation's commander in chief is using identity politics to divide and score political points," Johns' statement continued. There was no immediate response to a message left after the close of business hours with the District Attorney's Office seeking a response to Johns' statement. Buck has been a prominent donor to Democratic candidates and office holders. Community activist Jasmyne Cannick, who worked closely with Moore's family, has called for Buck's arrest, prosecution and conviction and the Los Angeles LGBT Center issued a statement calling on the sheriff's department "to fully investigate this tragedy and aggressively seek justice wherever the investigation might lead." "The reports we have heard provide more questions than answers," according to the statement. "The fact is two black men have died at Mr. Buck's home in less than two years. "While much is still to be learned, it appears this tragedy is linked to substance use." The statement went on to note that "LGBT people and other marginalized groups are at elevated risk for impacts that result from the current epidemic uses of opioids, methamphetamine and other dangerous drugs." The center, which offers free or low-cost addiction recovery services as well as free fentanyl testing strips to those who request them, urged anyone in need to email recovery@lalgbtcenter.org or call (323) 993-7448. The sheriff's department said the District Attorney's Office will be closely involved in reviewing the latest case, as it was in the Moore case, which will also be the subject of "a secondary review" by sheriff's homicide detectives. Buck's attorney, Seymour Amster, has denied that Buck had any involvement in either death. Los Angeles County prosecutors last July 26 declined to pursue criminal charges against Buck stemming from Moore's death. According to a charge-evaluation worksheet prepared by the District Attorney's Office, the evidence was "insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that (Buck) is responsible for the death of Gemmel Moore. Likewise, the admissible evidence is insufficient to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that suspect Buck furnished drugs to Gemmel Moore or that suspect Buck possessed drugs." In ruling Moore's death an accident, the coroner's office noted that there was drug paraphernalia found in the home, along with sex toys and clear plastic bags containing what was suspected to be methamphetamine, according to a coroner's report obtained by the Los Angeles Times. According to the newspaper, the report also noted that somebody at the scene "is suspected to be known to exchange drugs for sex," but the name was redacted. The report said Moore was found naked on a living room mattress with a "male pornography movie playing on the television," according to The Times. With the death ruled accidental, however, no arrests were made and no charges were filed. Amster has said Buck and Moore were good friends, and told The Times that Buck did not witness Moore injecting drugs the night he died. Moore's mother, LaTisha Nixon, continued to push the sheriff's department to investigate her son's death. She noted that her son had been living with her in Texas, but Buck bought him a plane ticket to return to Los Angeles, which he did the day he died. According to The Times, Moore had previously been homeless and worked as an escort. Buck, who is white has been active in LGBTQ political circles and also once ran for a seat on the West Hollywood City Council. UPDATE: Authorities have identified the suspect in custody in connection with the abduction of Jayme Closs and the fatal shooting of her parents. Read more here. A Wisconsin teenager missing for nearly three months after her parents were killed in the family home was found alive barely an hour's drive away, by a woman who stumbled across the 13-year-old girl and pounded on her neighbors' door shouting: "This is Jayme Closs! Call 911!" Jayme was skinny and dirty, wearing shoes too big for her feet, but appeared outwardly OK when she was discovered Thursday afternoon near the small town of Gordon, the neighbors said. "I honestly still think I'm dreaming right now. It was like I was seeing a ghost," Peter Kasinskas told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "My jaw just went to the floor." Authorities said a suspect was in custody, but otherwise didn't give any additional details ahead of a planned Friday news conference in Barron, in northwestern Wisconsin. Jayme went missing on Oct. 15 after police discovered someone had broken into the family's home outside Barron and fatally shot her parents, James and Denise Closs. Jayme was nowhere to be found, with the Barron County Sheriff's Department describing her as likely abducted. Detectives pursued thousands of tips, watched dozens of surveillance videos and conducted numerous searches in the effort to find Jayme. Some tips led officials to recruit 2,000 volunteers for a massive ground search on Oct. 23 but it yielded no clues. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said in November that he kept similar cases in the back of his mind as he worked to find Jayme, including the abduction of Elizabeth Smart, who was taken from her Salt Lake City home in 2002, when she was 14 years old. She was rescued nine months later with the help of two witnesses who recognized her abductors from an "America's Most Wanted" episode. "I have a gut feeling she's (Jayme's) still alive," Fitzgerald said at the time. He was right. The Star Tribune reported that Town of Gordon resident Kristin Kasinskas heard a knock on her door Thursday afternoon. It was her neighbor, who had been out walking her dog when Jayme approached her asking for help. The woman, who declined to be identified, said she was pretty sure who the girl was, but any doubt was erased when Jayme gave her name. During the 20 minutes Jayme was in their home, Kasinskas and her husband, Peter, tried to make her feel more comfortable, they said. They offered her water and food, but she declined both. Jayme was quiet, her emotions "pretty flat," Peter Kasinskas said. Kristin Kasinskas told NBC affiliate KARE Jayme looked thinner than in her missing persons photograph, "a little unkempt, but okay over all." Jayme told the couple she didn't know where she was or anything about Gordon. From what she told them, they believe she was there for most of her disappearance. Gordon is about 40 miles south of Lake Superior and about 65 miles north of Barron, Jayme's hometown. The town is home to about 645 people in a heavily forested region where logging is the top industry. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office confirmed on its website that Jayme was found in the town at 4:43 p.m. Thursday, and that a suspect was taken into custody 11 minutes later. The Associated Press couldn't confirm the Kasinskases' account; the sheriff's office's non-emergency line rang unanswered Thursday night and Sheriff Thomas Dalbec didn't respond to an email. Sue Allard, Jayme's aunt, told the Star Tribune that she could barely express her joy after learning the news Thursday night. "Praise the Lord," Allard said between sobs. "It's the news we've been waiting on for three months. I can't wait to get my arms around her. I just can't wait." Barron Mayor Ron Fladten said Thursday night he was overjoyed at learning she is alive. "There was a lot of discouragement because this took quite a while to play out," Fladten said. "A lot of people have been praying daily, as I have. It's just a great result we got tonight. It's unbelievable. It's like taking a big black cloud in the sky and getting rid of it and the sun comes out again." He acknowledged that Jayme may not be the same person she was before she disappeared. "I hope that she's in good shape," the mayor said. "She's no doubt been through just a terrible ordeal. I think everybody wishes her a good recovery and a happy life going into the future." The notification that Jayme had been found came just four hours after Fitzgerald had taken to Twitter to debunk a report that she had been found alive near Walworth County. Douglas County, where Jayme was found, is hundreds of miles northwest of Walworth County. Associated Press writer Amy Forliti contributed to this report. A humanitarian effort to find, exhume and identify migrants who died on U.S. soil continues with no real end in sight. The Corpus Christi Caller-Times reports a volunteer team of forensic anthropology students and faculty from Texas State University in San Marcos and the University of Indianapolis this month launched the fourth collaborative exhumation project at Sacred Heart Burial Park in Falfurrias since 2013. They're referred to as the "long-term dead." They were buried and forgotten by those who found them, but missed and sought after by families who stayed south of the border when their loved ones left home in search of a better life, said Kate Spradley, associate professor of anthropology at Texas State University. Their bodies can be found in the cemeteries of small, cash-strapped counties that are not equipped to deal with a global migrant crisis, she said. Although federal authorities largely fail to count border crossers when their remains are recovered by local authorities, 376 deaths along the U.S.-Mexico border, including several children, were recorded for 2018 in a report from the Missing Migrant Project. The International Organization for Migration's initiative tracks the deaths of migrants worldwide. Within the U.S., the majority of migrant deaths occur in Texas, Spradley said. For the fiscal year 2017, 104 of 294 deaths recorded by U.S. Border Patrol for all nine Southwest Border Sectors happened in the Rio Grande Valley. It's unclear how many have been buried without state-mandated DNA sampling, which is their only real shot at being identified and repatriated. The exhumed remains are transported to Texas State University for processing, analysis, long-term curation and identification. Texas State undergraduate and graduate students help process and analyze them. The project is overseen by the International Consortium of Forensic Identification, whose members include Krista Latham of UIndy, Lori Baker of Baylor University, and Kate Spradley of Texas State University. This is the fourth and, hopefully, last session at the Falfurrias cemetery, said Latham, who is an associate professor of biology and anthropology at the University of Indianapolis. Then, it's on to the next site. Initially, burial markers narrowed the focus of the excavations. Now, they're relying on geophysical and pedestrian surveying to clear the cemetery of any remaining bodies. Since 2013, Texas State University's Operation Identification has collected 270 bodies through exhumations, as well as direct transfers from county officials. They've surveyed cemeteries in seven of Texas' 254 counties as part of the Cemetery Survey Project. The project seeks to answer the following questions: How many migrants have died crossing the Texas/Mexico border? How many have been identified, per county, per year? Where are they buried? What are the county protocols regarding unidentified deceased persons? The Indianapolis students regularly report their experiences on a blog: Beyond Borders. Students and faculty from the university travel to South Texas on their own dime twice a year. The exposure to the archaeological expertise is not the only takeaway for them, Latham said. "I think it introduces students to the issues in a way that reading about it doesn't quite grasp," Latham said. "Being a part of this pushes them more to social justice issues, which is what we need. We need people working for the rights of marginalized populations." The cemetery will be thoroughly surveyed before moving onto to the next county, Spradley said. "We don't want to leave anyone behind," she said. The Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State is part of the Forensic Border Coalition, which is comprised of forensic scientists, scholars and human rights organizations. Its mission is to support families of missing migrants who are searching for loved ones, as well as address issues related to identifying human remains found near the U.S.-Mexico border. Coalition participants include the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, the Colibri Center for Human Rights, the Houston Migrant Rights Collective, the South Texas Human Rights Center, the University of Houston Clear Lake Anthropology program and Texas State's Department of Geography. Station Houston, one of the city's most prominent startup hubs, has reincorporated as a nonprofit, the latest reboot in Houston's continuing quest to find the right formula to create a vibrant technology and innovation scene. The Houston Chronicle reports Station Houston, founded just over two years ago as a for-profit company, says becoming a nonprofit will allow it to attract more funding from grants and foundations to augment what it earns from charging fees to big corporations, such as energy companies, seeking introductions to new technologies. The change, executives said, will provide more money to invest in programs that spur local entrepreneurs and turn innovative ideas into successful businesses. But technology analysts say that Station Houston risks losing the edge that makes innovation happen. In general, for-profit organizations thrive if they can cultivate startups that attract investment then get bought by bigger companies or become publicly traded. Nonprofits, however, could rely on fundraising to survive even if their startups don't succeed. "An active startup ecosystem is not looking for grant dollars," said Marc Nathan, who publishes the Texas-Squared Startup Newsletter and previously worked with Houston entrepreneurs. "They're not begging. They're earning their money through making successful companies." Houston, as it seeks to diversify its oil-dependent economy, has aspired in recent years to build a technology cluster. But like many cities outside established tech centers such as Silicon Valley, Boston and Austin, progress has not come easily. An earlier tech accelerator program focused on energy software shuttered in 2016, and about half the startups affiliated with it left the city. The acceleration program of the Houston Technology Center was closed after the tech center was folded into a new organization called Houston Exponential in 2017 to centralize and coordinate efforts to promote Houston's technology sector, include raising an investment fund to help attract venture capital for local startups. Houston Exponential has raised half of its $50 million goal for the fund. But the tech community keeps trying. Newer organizations are trying to make Houston a hotbed for esports or medical technologies. And Rice University last year announced an innovation district in the former Sears building in Midtown, in which Station Houston is a partner to provide programming for entrepreneurs. Gaby Rowe, CEO of Station Houston, said that becoming a nonprofit will help the organization extend and broaden its reach, including a new initiative, called Station 3.0, that includes a stronger focus on industrial and business-to-business entrepreneurs to take advantage of Houston's strengths as a global corporate center and a new in-house business accelerator program concentrating on energy, industrial and transportation startups. Its new accelerator program will focus on energy, industrial and transportation startups. The three-month program, with three weeks at Station Houston and nine weeks remote, will culminate with a pitch competition. It will not take equity in startups. Rowe said the accelerator is, essentially, a condensed time frame of the coursework already offered by Station Houston. It's ideal for companies needing a shorter time frame or for those based outside of Houston that want access to the city's large industrial corporations. Station Houston is also in talks with nationally recognized accelerators that could operate from within Station. "We want everybody to be able to be part of the Station community," said Rowe, who has been CEO for five months, "so we can grow with the (innovation) ecosystem and help the ecosystem grow." Other tech development programs, including the 1871 startup hub in Chicago and the MassChallenge accelerator based in Boston, have succeeded as nonprofits, said Rowe. They have managed to maintain the drive needed to get startups to the next levels of funding, product development and commercialization. The transition to a nonprofit received unanimous support from Station Houston board members. Rowe said that Station has created measures to keep the organization aligned with its profit-making roots and to calm any concerns that becoming a nonprofit would lead the organization to rely on fundraising rather than the success of its entrepreneurs. Investors voiced support for the nonprofit model. "For Station Houston to continue to make an even larger impact on the innovation climate in this city," said investor Harvin Moore, principal at advisory and investment firm Frontera Technology Ventures, "a nonprofit format makes sense to get to that next level." But Ed Egan, the former director for Rice University's McNair Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation, disagreed. He had previously praised Station Houston for boosting venture capital investment in the city's startups. When Station Houston debuted in 2016, Houston ranked 39th among U.S. cities in venture capital activity. The city climbed to 29th during the first half of 2018, in large part because of Station Houston, said Egan, now a professor at the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University. But he expects such advances will be lost. Startups in for-profit entrepreneurial accelerators, hubs and incubators tend to raise more venture capital money than startups in similar nonprofit organizations. Ten of the country's top 12 accelerator programs -- defined by the number of startups they assist and the amount of money those startups raise -- are for-profit, he added. "By becoming a nonprofit, they are saying that they can't compete," Egan said. "We don't want people who can't compete running Houston's ecosystem." Other academics who study innovation and entrepreneurship say that the right model for a tech development program often depends on the goals. For-profit accelerator programs, which typically take small ownership stakes in the startups they accept, are probably better at finding the most promising companies and helping them attract venture capital. Nonprofits tend to do better at promoting the broader innovation ecosystem, rather than specific companies, some academics said. "There are trade-offs in each one," said Jorge Guzman, who teaches entrepreneurship strategy at Columbia Business School. SJ Maxted, director of strategic initiatives for The Engine, which helps develop advanced technology startups in the Boston area, doesn't think for-profit or nonprofit status is the most critical element. Every entrepreneurial community needs both. "Both models serve very important roles," she said. "You can't have an ecosystem that has all for-profit, and you can't have an ecosystem that's all nonprofit. So you have to have a mix." Prosecutors say a Texas man faces up to five years in prison for cyberstalking a California woman he once dated online and posting nude photos of her that were viewed more than 1 million times. Lubbock County jail records show 22-year-old Isaiah Alexander Allen of Lubbock was being held Saturday pending federal sentencing. Allen was indicted Nov. 14 and pleaded guilty this month to cyberstalking in a plea agreement over harassment since September 2017. Investigators say Allen met the woman at an online gaming site but they never met in person and she voluntarily gave him nude photos before breaking up with him. Prosecutors say Allen also posted a screen shot with personal data about the woman, including phone and other identifying numbers. Allen could also be fined up to $250,000. After tapping out a small fire in a Dallas condo Friday night, firefighters found the body of a 73-year-old woman in a guest bedroom. According to Dallas Fire-Rescue, firefighters were called to a condominium complex on the 5200 block of Keller Springs Road in North Dallas to put out a small fire. When firefighters arrived, they found the fire burning between the kitchen and a guest bedroom. After putting the fire out, firefighters found the woman dead inside the guest bedroom. Officials identified the woman who died as Lynn Tessa Blank, no word on how she dies or the cause of the fire. Firefighters from several towns battled a blaze at a power plant in Plainfield on Sunday morning. They responded to Plainfield Renewable Energy on Millbrook Road just after 6:30 a.m., according to the Plainfield Fire Company. Arriving crews found a fire had broken out in racks of combustible material inside the building, fire officials said. Plainfield Renewable Energy is a wood-burning electrical generation plant and has been in operation since 2013, according to fire officials. One employee at the facility was treated at the scene for injuries, but refused to go to the hospital, fire officials said. No firefighters were injured. The fire was brought under control a little more than an hour later. Firefighters from Plainfield, Moosup, Central Village, Jewett City, and Canterbury helped fight the fire. Two people were killed in a crash on I-395 in Norwich on Saturday night. State police responded to the crash in the area between exits 14-18 around 6:30 p.m. Saturday night. The highway was shut down in both directions for most of the night. Two cars crashed head on, according to Deputy Chief B.J. Herz of the Yantic Engine Co. 1. A woman in the second car was critically injured, Herz said. Riding the momentum from November's elections, Democratic leaders in the states are wasting no time delivering on their biggest campaign promise to expand access to health care and make it more affordable. The first full week of state legislative sessions and swearings-in for governors saw a flurry of proposals. In his initial actions, newly elected California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans to expand Medicaid to those in the country illegally up to age 26, implement a mandate that everyone buys insurance or face a fine, and consolidate the state's prescription drug purchases in the hope that it will dramatically lower costs. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee proposed a public health insurance option for people who are not covered by Medicaid or private employers and have trouble affording policies on the private market. Democrats in several states where they now control the legislature and governor's office, including New Mexico, are considering ways that people who are uninsured but make too much to qualify for Medicaid or other subsidized coverage can buy Medicaid policies. And in the nation's most populous city, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a publicly run plan to link the uninsured, who already receive treatment in city hospitals, with primary care. It's all in keeping with the main theme Democratic candidates promoted on the campaign trail in 2018. They touted the benefits of former President Barack Obama's health overhaul such as protections for people with pre-existing conditions, allowing young adults to remain on their parents' health insurance policies and expanded coverage options for lower-income Americans. At the same time, they painted Republicans as seeking to eliminate or greatly reduce health care options and protections. "Once you give something to somebody, it's pretty hard to take it away, and I think we see that with how the support for the (Affordable Care Act) has grown over the last two years," said Washington House Rep. Eileen Cody, who is leading the state's public option proposal. The actions also represent a pushback to steps taken by the Trump administration and congressional Republicans to undermine the Affordable Care Act. The GOP tax law stripped away the individual mandate, which was intended to stabilize insurance markets by encouraging younger and healthier people to buy policies. And last summer, the Trump administration said it would freeze payments under an "Obamacare" program that protects insurers with sicker patients from financial losses. That move is expected to contribute to higher premiums. The Democratic proposals fall short of providing universal health care, a goal of many Democrats but also an elusive one because of its cost. In recent years, California, Colorado and Vermont have all considered and then abandoned attempts to create state-run health care systems. Still, many Democrats are eager to take steps that get them closer to that. "This is not just a moral right," Inslee said in announcing his public option proposal this past week. "It is an economic wisdom, and this is very possible." Some lawmakers in Colorado, where Democrats now control the legislature and the governor's office, are proposing a state-run health insurance plan similar to that announced by Inlsee. It would reach those who don't qualify for federal assistance or who live in rural areas with few health care choices. Both states plan to rely on their agencies that administer Medicaid, the state-federal program that provides health coverage for roughly one-in-five Americans. Republicans are skeptical about whether the states can afford it, since they already pick up a portion of Medicaid costs. "This is about having the government competing in the private market. Medicare-for-all will be priced out," Washington state Rep. Joe Schmick said. Taking incremental steps to increase coverage options and make health care more affordable may be a smarter strategy than pursuing a costly and complicated all-or-nothing proposal for universal coverage, said Katherine Hempstead, senior policy adviser at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "Everybody wants to pay less for health care," she said. Democrats now have more leverage to experiment. Campaign messaging around health care helped them flip seven governor's seats to bolster their numbers to 23 across the country and win back several state legislative chambers. They gained full control of state government in several states, including New York and Nevada. That power will allow them to consider health care expansions that Republicans have resisted. In Nevada, for example, the state's Democratically controlled legislature passed a bill in 2017 that would have let anyone in the state buy into a Medicaid insurance plan, similar to the option being pushed in New Mexico. But former Gov. Brian Sandoval, a Republican, vetoed it. The new governor, Democrat Steve Sisolak, is forming a committee to look at health care options, including the possibility of requiring everyone to have insurance. In addition to the California proposal, that mandate already is in place in Massachusetts and New Jersey, with Vermont following in 2020. It's a similar dynamic in New Mexico, where Democratic lawmakers have talked for years about allowing people, including non-citizens, to buy into Medicaid if they cannot afford insurance any other way. Colin Baillio, policy director for the advocacy group Health Action New Mexico, said a bill is being drafted with the goal of getting it adopted this year and implemented for 2020. The optimism comes because the new governor, Michelle Lujan Grisham, is a Democrat. "Folks are going to need to have health care one way or another," he said. "We think health coverage is a good investment for our state." The government shutdown is wreaking havoc on many Americans: Hundreds of thousands of federal employees don't know when they'll see their next paycheck, and low-income people who rely on the federal safety net worry about whether they'll make ends meet should the stalemate in Washington carry on another month. But if you're a sportsman looking to hunt game, a gas company planning to drill offshore or a taxpayer awaiting your refund, you're in luck: This shutdown won't affect your plans. All administrations get some leeway to choose which services to freeze and which to maintain when a budget standoff in Washington forces some agencies to shutter. But in the selective reopening of offices, experts say they see a willingness to cut corners, scrap prior plans and wade into legally dubious territory to mitigate the pain. Some noted the choices seem targeted at shielding the Republican-leaning voters whom Trump and his party need to stick with them. The cumulative effect is a government shutdown now officially the longest in U.S. history that some Americans may find financially destabilizing and others may hardly notice. Russell T. Vought, deputy director of the Office of Management and Budget, said the overarching message from Trump has been "to make this shutdown as painless as possible, consistent with the law." "We have built on past efforts within this administration not to have the shutdown be used to be weaponized against the American people," he said. Others say such a strategy suggests a lack of urgency and a willingness to let the political impasse in Washington drag on indefinitely. "The strategy seems to be to keep the shutdown in place, not worry about the effect on employees and furloughed people and contractors, but where the public might be annoyed, give a little," said Alice Rivlin, who led OMB during the 21-day shutdown in 1996, the previous record holder for the longest in history. That's a clear difference between then and now, Rivlin said. "We weren't trying to make it better. We were trying to emphasize the pain so it would be over," she said. "We wanted it to end. I'm not convinced the Trump administration does." The Trump administration earlier this week announced that the IRS will issue tax refunds during the shutdown, circumventing a 2011 decision barring the agency from distributing refunds until the Treasury Department is funded. The National Treasury Employees Union filed a lawsuit, arguing its workers are being unconstitutionally forced to return to work without pay. Some agencies are finding creative ways to fund services they want to restore. The administration has emphasized continued use of public lands in general, and particularly for hunters and oil and gas developers, angering environmental groups. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, using funds leftover from 2018, this week announced it will direct dozens of wildlife refuges to return staffers to work, ensuring planned activities on those lands, including organized hunts, continue. Barbara Wainman, a spokeswoman for the agency, said most refuges have remained accessible to hunters throughout the shutdown, and the decision to staff them was made based on three criteria: resource management, high visitation and previously scheduled programming, which includes organized hunts and school field trips. Wainman said 17 of the 38 refuges have scheduled hunts that would have been canceled without the restaffing effort. The IRS is using user fees to restore the income verification program, used by mortgage lenders to confirm the income of a borrower and considered a critical tool for the banking industry. After national parks were left open but unstaffed, causing damage to delicate ecosystems, the National Park Service announced it would take "an extraordinary step" and use visitation fees to staff some of the major parks. And despite the shutdown, the Bureau of Land Management is continuing work related to drilling efforts in Alaska. Trump has refused to sign spending bills for nine of the 15 Cabinet-level departments until Congress approves his request for $5.7 billion in funding to build a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Democrats have refused. The president initially said he would be "proud" to own the partial shutdown, but he quickly shifted blame onto Democratic leaders and has flirted with taking some extraordinary measures to find money for the wall. Although most Republicans have stood by the president, others have expressed discomfort with the strategy. The focus on services that reach rural voters, influential industries and voters' pocketbooks is intended to protect Republicans from blowback, said Barry Anderson, who served as assistant director of the Office of Management and Budget from 1988 to 1998. During the 1996 shutdown, Anderson said, he and others met each day to review which offices and services should be deemed essential. He said tax refunds never made the cut. "A government agency may employ services in advance of appropriations only when there's a reasonable connection between the functions being performed and the safety of human life or protection of property," he said. "How does issuing tax refunds fall under either of those categories? It's not a human life or property issue. I don't know the proper word: surprised, aghast, flabbergasted. "This," he said, "is to keep Republican senators' phones silent." OMB has held regular conference calls with agencies and is fielding a high volume of requests for services they'd like to resume. In addition, OMB officials are intentionally working to legally reopen as much of the government as possible, according to a senior administration official, adding that agencies are permitted to update their lapse plans as the shutdown progresses. The official was not authorized to discuss the internal discussions publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Across the government, agencies are scrambling. The Food and Drug Administration has scaled back on food inspections. The Department of Agriculture recently announced that the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which provides food aid to nearly 40 million low-income Americans, will continue to operate through February because of a loophole in the short-term spending bill, which expired Dec. 22. But should the shutdown stretch into March, the department's reserves for the program, $3 billion, won't cover a month of benefits for all who need them. Other feeding programs, such as school lunch, food distribution and WIC, which provides nutrition aid to pregnant women, mothers and babies, are also in jeopardy should the shutdown last until March. Hundreds of federal contracts for low-income Americans receiving housing assistance are expiring. The Department of Housing and Urban Development is unable to renew them and has instead directed private owners to dip into their reserves to cover shortfalls. As time goes on, more and more programs will become vital, said Linda Bilmes, a public policy professor at the Harvard Kennedy School, and the meaning of what's essential will shift. "Even apart from the fact that there may be particular instances of things that are being manipulated for political purposes," she said, "there are also realities that government agencies are facing as they reassess what is absolutely essential to do now that we're here, with no immediate end in sight." A man who shot and killed a rookie police officer in Northern California before taking his own life during a standoff with police was a 48-year-old convict who had been ordered to surrender a semi-automatic rifle. Kevin Douglas Limbaugh's name was released Saturday as authorities continued to investigate his motive for the attack. The Sacramento Bee reports that court documents show Limbaugh was charged and convicted in a battery case last fall, and he agreed in November to surrender the weapon. The case stemmed from Limbaugh getting arrested in September for assaulting someone at Cache Creek Casino, Yolo County Sheriff's Sgt. Matthew Davis said. Yolo County Sheriff's Office Authorities have not determined where Limbaugh obtained the two semi-automatic handguns he was believed to have used in the Thursday night attack that killed 22-year-old Officer Natalie Corona in the college town of Davis. Police said a gunman on a bicycle ambushed the officer, shooting her from the shadows as she investigated a car accident, then reloaded and narrowly avoided wounding others before walking home. At his house a few blocks away, he casually chatted with his roommate as if nothing happened and even went outside to watch as police from around the region began rushing to the shooting scene, Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel said Friday. The gunman left behind a backpack that helped police track him to the house. The chief said as police began to surround it, he stepped outside wearing a bulletproof vest. Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel speaks at a news conference about 22-year-old Natalie Corona, the officer who was shot and killed by a suspect who opened fire as she was investigating a three-car crash. "He shouted some stuff, went back in and came back out with a firearm, then went back inside, pushed a couch in front of the door and officers heard a gunshot," Pytel said. Police eventually sent a robotic camera in and found the shooter had shot himself in the head. Police found the handguns in the home. Police said Limbaugh left a note on his bed, face up that they believe he wrote. It may not answer motive, but the one paragraph note may at least offer some insight into the suspected killer's state of mind. KCRA "The Davis Police Department has been hitting me with ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking," the note read. "I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I cant live this way anymore." The note is signed, "Citizen Kevin Limbaugh." The shooting devastated the Davis Police Department, which has about 60 sworn officers and about 30 other employees. Corona was the first officer in the department to die in the line of duty since 1959. She had only been patrolling solo for about two weeks, the chief said. A candlelight vigil for the slain officer was scheduled Saturday night. Father of fallen Davis police officer remembers his daughter as someone who always wanted to be an officer. The 22-year-old was shot and killed Thursday evening while responding to a traffic accident. Jodi Hernandez reports. Corona's father, Jose Merced Corona, spent 26 years as a Colusa County Sheriff's sergeant before retiring and getting elected to the county's Board of Supervisors last November. Her mother is a first-grade teacher, and two cousins are also in law enforcement. Corona was the second officer killed in California in the past two and a half weeks. Cpl. Ronil Singh, 33, of the Newman Police Department was shot to death Dec. 26 after he stopped a suspected drunk driver. A dedicated toll-free number to access unemployment benefits has been set up for federal workers in California affected by the ongoing government shutdown, state officials said Friday. Gov. Gavin Newsom pledged this week to give furloughed workers - or those required to work without pay -- quick access to benefits. The California Employment Development Department is encouraging the federal employees to file an unemployment claim by calling the agency at (855) 327-7056, weekdays between 8 a.m. and noon. The workers may also apply online. "As the government shutdown enters its third week with no prospect of resolution or payment of salaries to affected federal employees, many workers find themselves in acute financial distress," said Labor and Workforce Development Agency Secretary Julie A. Su. Unemployment benefits amounts range from $40 to $450 per person and are available for up to 26 weeks. Federal workers who receive a retroactive paycheck after the shutdown ends will be required to repay the benefits received. Information on benefits for those affected by the shutdown can be found on EDD's Frequently Asked Questions page. The department estimates there are about 245,000 federal workers in California, including full-time, part-time and seasonal workers. As of Dec. 29, the first week of the shutdown, 779 federal workers in the state filed for unemployment benefits, according to EDD. The Diocese of Santa Rosa on Saturday released a list of priests and bishops who have been accused of sexual abuse and misconduct. In a news release, Bishop Robert F. Vasa said he wants to express "sincere sorrow that so many have been subjected to the evil actions of priests and bishops." His primary goal in releasing the names is to give victims of sexual abuse the assurance that they have been heard in the church, he said. "It is my deepest prayer and hope that this release of names in a consolidated fashion says to any of you who are victims, we have heard you, we believe you, we affirm you in your trauma and we want to help with a healing process," Vasa said. The majority of the accusations occured decades ago, the bishop said, but some incidents occured as late as 2006 and 2008. The list of names is divided into four sets: (1) indicates the names that have previously been released in Janurary 2004; (2) are priests whose names have become a part of public record; (3) designates accusations that have been deemed credible and well founded by the Diocesan Review Board; and (4) are names of the accused who had varying degress of connection to the Diocese of Santa Rosa and who had accusations against them from other places. The Diocese of Santa says it will hold a press conference on Monday at 10:00 am at the Diocesan Chancery, 985 Airway Crt. to respond to any questions regarding the releasing the names of accused priests and deacons who served in Santa Rosa. See the Diocese's list below: The man who shot and killed a rookie California police officer left a letter on the bed in the home where he lived claiming police bombarded him with ultrasonic waves, officials said. Police in the college town of Davis near Sacramento on Saturday made public the one-paragraph letter they said was written by Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48. He killed himself Thursday after fatally shooting Officer Natalie Corona. Police spokesman Lt. Paul Doroshov said the paper was found face up on the gunman's bed. "The Davis Police department has been hitting me with ultra sonic (sic) waves meant to keep dogs from barking," the letter said. "I notified the press, internal affairs, and even the FBI about it. I am highly sensitive to its affect (sic) on my inner ear. I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I can't live this way anymore." KCRA The handwritten note was signed "Citizen Kevin Limbaugh." Also recovered as evidence from the man's home were two unregistered guns. Davis police did not immediately respond Sunday to a telephone message seeking comment on whether Limbaugh had reported his claims to officials. Investigators have not identified a motive for the ambush shooting of the 22-year-old officer as she investigated a car accident. The Sacramento Bee reported that court documents show Limbaugh was charged and convicted in a battery case last fall, and he agreed in November to surrender the weapon. The case stemmed from Limbaugh getting arrested in September for assaulting someone at Cache Creek Casino, Yolo County Sheriff's Sgt. Matthew Davis said. Yolo County Sheriff's Office Authorities have not determined where Limbaugh obtained the two semi-automatic handguns he was believed to have used in the Thursday night attack that killed Corona. Police said a gunman on a bicycle ambushed the officer, shooting her from the shadows as she investigated a car accident, then reloaded and narrowly avoided wounding others before walking home. At his house a few blocks away, he casually chatted with his roommate as if nothing happened and even went outside to watch as police from around the region began rushing to the shooting scene, Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel said Friday. The gunman left behind a backpack that helped police track him to the house. The chief said as police began to surround it, he stepped outside wearing a bulletproof vest. "He shouted some stuff, went back in and came back out with a firearm, then went back inside, pushed a couch in front of the door and officers heard a gunshot," Pytel said. Police eventually sent a robotic camera in and found the gunman had shot himself in the head. Police found the handguns in the home. Davis Police Department The shooting devastated the Davis Police Department, which has about 60 sworn officers and about 30 other employees. Corona was the first officer in the department to die in the line of duty since 1959. She had only been patrolling solo for about two weeks, the chief said. A candlelight vigil for the slain officer was held Saturday night. (Natural News) Ever since Starbucks Coffee Company decided it would be a good idea to turn all of its stores into public restrooms for homeless people and junkies, used needles and other dangerous drug paraphernalia are becoming problematic at many locations so much so that Starbucks is now considering installing drug needle disposal boxes in store restrooms in an attempt to protect both employees and patrons from contracting deadly diseases like hepatitis and HIV. More than 3,700 people, believe it or not, have already signed a petition at Coworker.org calling on Starbucks to do something about the problem, including many Starbucks partners (the company name for Starbucks employees) who say they have to take antiviral drugs regularly in order to protect themselves while on the job. Reports indicate that the Seattle-based corporation is already beginning to install the syringe disposal boxes at some of the more high-risk Starbucks locations, including in Lynnwood, Washington, where employees who spoke with Business Insider on the condition of anonymity explained the horrors they find in their stores on an almost daily basis. My coworkers and I had all experienced needles left behind in the bathroom, store, and even in our drive-thru, one partner who signed the petition stated. My primary fear when I worked there would be taking out the bathroom garbages. I was terrified that if I went to take the bag out, I would get poked by a needle I didnt know was there. This is what happens when political correctness trumps reason and common sense All of this insanity started last spring after a pair of black men cried racism upon being told that they couldnt use the restroom at a Philadelphia Starbucks location unless they purchased drinks. The incident gained national attention, and in typical Leftist, virtue-signaling fashion, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz caved to the politically-correct pressure to do something by announcing that all Starbucks restrooms would, from then on, be open to the public. That decision has since turned into an absolute nightmare for Starbucks, which has now earned the reputation of being Americas public toilet dirty drug syringes and all. In other words, by pandering to phony Leftist outrage, Starbucks has now turned its stores into dangerous drug dens that put both employees and customers at risk of serious harm. But rather than reverse course by reverting back to being a respectable business rather than a chain of homeless shelters, Starbucks is doubling down on its horrible decision by pandering even more to the vagrants that are tainting its property. Instead of taking out the trash, so to speak, Starbucks has decided to give that trash a home all in the name of tolerance and acceptance, of course. I think the bathroom policy has definitely changed the stores environment, revealed on Starbucks manager at a Southern California location to Business Insider about Starbucks open borders policy. Its great that Starbucks wants to try and include everyone, but that means that they include absolutely everyone. This same manager added that his employees have actually had to shut down the location he manages on several occasions after finding drugs, needles, and even blood inside the store. In one instance, a worker cleaning the restroom was pricked by a used needle, potentially exposing this individual to disease. According to Starbucks representative Reggie Borges, employees are always permitted to remove themselves from any situation that they deem dangerous and alert their manager. He added in a statement that Starbucks is constantly evaluating our processes and listening to partner feedback of ways we can be better. For more outrageous news, be sure to check out Stupid.news. Sources for this article include: NaturalNews.com BusinessInsider.com (Natural News) Do you eat canned foods, chicken, seafood, or dairy products? Anything coming out of a U.S. factory during this government shutdown now has an even higher chance of being contaminated with feces, E. coli, Salmonella, pathogens and parasites more so than even before this crisis. Even infant formula is considered to be at high risk during the government shutdown, while the already dysfunctional Food and Drug Administration (FDA) functions on a skeleton crew for domestic inspections, since they think international food inspections are more important, for some unknown reason. Over two hundred million Americans eat U.S.-processed junk science food daily and wonder how they get so deathly sick with allergies, skin disorders, depression, anxiety, bacterial infections, viral infections, cancer, heart disease, chronic inflammation, and of course, dementia. They just cant figure it out, and neither can their quack M.D.s, who just dish out chemical pills for their toxic food syndrome (TFS) symptoms. Now, health matters will quickly escalate, while the demented Democratic leaders live in denial about border security and deny Trump the funds for a wall. Holding the American people and their health hostage are the head Democratic-Socialists (Communists) who have their own insidious agenda. Meanwhile, the already corrupt FDA all but shuts down, leaving meat and dairy industries, that already look like concentration camps for animals, with no inspections. One third of all U.S. food processing plants considered high risk facilities by the FDA The FDA Commissioner, Dr. Scott Gottlieb, says 31 percent of our inventory of domestic inspections are considered high risk. Thats more than 50 of the plants and factories in the U.S. that have been termed Confined Animal Feeding Operations by health enthusiasts who know better than to buy and consume meat or dairy thats not organic. About 50 million Americans are sickened by food-borne illnesses every year. More than 3,000 of those folks will die from infections from consuming animal feces, viruses, bacteria, parasites and pathogens. At least 125,000 of those consumers will be hospitalized for it. Expect those numbers to skyrocket during this shutdown, while the FDA does a more pathetic job than they already do. The FDA Commissioner has already admitted there are important safety functions theyre not taking care of right now. Theyre basically functioning with a skelelton crew thats in damage control until the furloughed workers return. Currently, deadly threats to public health are going undetected. FDA approvals of useless experimental chemical drugs and tobacco products will continue during government shutdown No, that headline is not a typo. The FDAs most important work will continue during the shutdown because its paid for by user fees. Instead of inspecting Americas food supply for deadly E. coli and Salmonella, they will be spending the money they have on keeping the flow of drugs and tobacco constant. All this while the FDAs 5,000 food inspectors are sitting on their hands, waiting for Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer to decide that U.S. National Security is important. Meanwhile, illegal immigrants are adding to the health chaos by flooding our country with more diseases, parasites, and pathogens, just to add to the food crisis. The most urgent inspections, says the FDA Commissioner, once the government is reopened, would be at facilities where there are already major safety issues, like factories that breed salmonella and listeria, and have other horrific hygiene issues that also contaminate food (think of cheese, eggs, meat, and milk here). The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has expressed alarm about exactly why the FDA has put more priority on import screening than domestic inspections, and wants a published list of which critical inspections have been suspended. Tune into FoodSupply.news for more information about the virtually useless FDA and the filthy, inhumane CAFOs across America that spread disease, even when the FDA is functioning at full capacity. Sources for this article include: FoxNews.com ZeroHedge.com NaturalNews.com FoodSupply.news CafoTheBook.org (Natural News) The economic illiteracy of newly-elected California governor Gavin Newsom was on full display right after his inauguration ceremony. As his first act as governor, Newsom signed a series of executive orders that fine California citizens without healthcare coverage, while financially catering to illegal immigrants and demanding federal assistance for healthcare coverage for illegal immigrants. California governor Gavin Newsom is committed to pillaging Californias hard-working population with higher taxes, while providing illegal immigrants the funds they need for unnecessary healthcare spending. California will become the first state to cover undocumented adults under age 26 with the states Medicaid program. The executive order foments a clause from the Affordable Care Act, expanding benefits to young illegals. This act alone will drive up costs of health services, taxing citizens first from their paycheck and secondly when they require healthcare. Newsoms new executive orders are part of his first year California for All plan, which includes steps toward universal healthcare coverage, even for illegal immigrants. The executive order boosts pricing and purchasing benefits for prescription drugs for illegals a benefit that will extend to 13 million Californians, up from two million previously. Financial subsidies from the Affordable Care Act will be expanded to individuals earning up to $72,840, up from the previous cap of $48,000. The state funds will also cover subsidies for families of four earning up to $150,600, up from $98,000 previously. California governor brings back Obamacare fines for California citizens The executive order also mandates Obama-era fines on individuals who cannot afford or do not want to purchase health insurance plans. This is one way the California governor plans to pay for illegals access to more prescription drugs and doctor visits. To pay for increased financial help for families, the budget proposes fighting back against the federal governments attempts to destroy the Affordable Care Act by reinstating the individual mandate at the state level, Newsoms office said. If California cannot recoup the money through fines, they will attempt to take the money from the rest of the countrys taxpayers. Newsom has already sent a letter to President Trump and congressional leaders, demanding that federal laws be amended to enable California to apply for and receive Transformational Cost and Universal Coverage Waivers. In other words, Californias illegal immigrant population is entitled to the taxpayer funds from every other state. Newsoms letter says this will empower California to truly innovate and to begin trans-formative reforms that provide the path to a single-payer health care system. What a con artist! In his inaugural address, Newsom proclaimed, We will use both our market power and our moral power to demand fairer prices for prescription drugs. All the executive orders he dished out on day one do not tap into Californias market power. Instead, the orders rely on the power of the state, mandates, demands, and the pillaging of the countrys resources in order to cater to illegal immigration. Newsoms glamorized theft programs assert no moral power as he laughably postulates. Extending the border wall up the east and north sides of California The President should do whatever it takes to protect the country from governors like Newsom, who looks to pillage the countrys resources all for the benefit of illegal immigrants. Perhaps the border wall should extend, not along the southern California border, but along its eastern and northern borders, to protect the rest of the U.S. from the states plunders, including its drugs, disease, crime, corruption, mandates, growing illegal immigration problem, and continual financial doom. Hopefully California will declare secession from the Union soon, so California can finally be cut off from the rest of the countrys funds. Sources include: PJMedia.com Libtards.News NaturalNews.com (Natural News) A recent study published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution warned that a technique called climate geoengineering, which was conceptualized to counter the effects of global warming, may do more harm than good. A team of researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey explained that climate geoengineering involves spraying a sulfuric acid cloud in the upper atmosphere in hopes of cooling down the global temperature. As part of research, the scientists conceptualized a scenario where airplanes would spray five million tons of sulfur dioxide once a year into the upper atmosphere at the Equator from 2020 to 2070. The scientists noted that the amount was the annual equivalent of about one quarter of the sulfur dioxide produced during the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines. The experts inferred that the activity would result in an even sulfuric acid cloud distribution between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. The scientists also estimated that the activity might cool down the planets temperature by about one degree Celsius, which was quite similar to the global warming levels since the start of the Industrial Revolution in the mid-1800s. However, the research team warned that suddenly halting the climate geoengineering technique may lead to rapid global warming that would be 10 times faster than if the technique was not employed at all. Rapid warming after stopping geoengineering would be a huge threat to the natural environment and biodiversity. If geoengineering ever stopped abruptly, it would be devastating, so you would have to be sure that it could be stopped gradually, and it is easy to think of scenarios that would prevent that. Imagine large droughts or floods around the world that could be blamed on geoengineering, and demands that it stop, study co-author Professor Alan Robock told Science Daily online. The experts also cautioned that while national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges may serve as animal sanctuaries, the rapid increase in global temperatures may force them to move to different locations to cope with the changes. However, the scientists concluded that the animals might not find enough food and water supplies no matter how fast they move. (Related: Were doing it to ourselves: Human activity found to impact weather, weather outcomes.) The research team added that suddenly stopping the climate intervention may result in a devastating El Nino, which would increase the sea surface temperatures in the tropical Pacific Ocean and would cause a subsequent drought in the Amazon. The researchers highlighted the need to further investigate the potential effects of climate geoengineering on certain organisms if begun and then abruptly stopped. More faulty geoengineering strategies to watch out for An article posted on the Daily Mail website also included a list of other potentially devastating geoengineering techniques. These include: Afforestation Experts noted that this technique would irrigate deserts, including those located in Australia and North Africa, to plant millions of trees that could absorb carbon dioxide. However, the scientists cautioned that this might only contribute to global warming as increased vegetation would absorb sunlight that the deserts reflect back into space. Experts noted that this technique would irrigate deserts, including those located in Australia and North Africa, to plant millions of trees that could absorb carbon dioxide. However, the scientists cautioned that this might only contribute to global warming as increased vegetation would absorb sunlight that the deserts reflect back into space. Artificial ocean upwelling According to scientists, this technique would employ long pipes to pump cold, nutrient-rich water upward to cool ocean-surface waters. The experts warned that this method could cause oceans to rebalance their heat levels and trigger rapid climate change once stopped. According to scientists, this technique would employ long pipes to pump cold, nutrient-rich water upward to cool ocean-surface waters. The experts warned that this method could cause oceans to rebalance their heat levels and trigger rapid climate change once stopped. Ocean alkalinization The process would provide vast lime deposits into the ocean to chemically increase carbon dioxide absorption. However, the researchers inferred that this would do little to reduce global temperatures. The process would provide vast lime deposits into the ocean to chemically increase carbon dioxide absorption. However, the researchers inferred that this would do little to reduce global temperatures. Ocean iron fertilization This method is similar to alkalinization, but would use iron to bolster the growth of photosynthetic organisms that can absorb carbon dioxide. Like alkalinization, this process would also do little to curb global temperatures. This method is similar to alkalinization, but would use iron to bolster the growth of photosynthetic organisms that can absorb carbon dioxide. Like alkalinization, this process would also do little to curb global temperatures. Solar radiation management This technique would reduce the amount of sunlight that the planet receives by spraying reflective sulphate-based aerosols into the atmosphere. However, the scientists cautioned that carbon dioxide would continue to build up in the atmosphere. Log on to ClimateScienceNews.com to see what else scientists are dreaming up to try out on our planet. Sources include: ScienceDaily.com DailyMail.co.uk Science.news (Natural News) A study has shown that the Chinese herb XingPiJieYu (XPJY) helps mitigate the effects of chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) and alleviates depression-like symptoms in animal models. To test this, researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing examined sixty rats with CUS and found that rats given XingPiJieYu performed faster in the Morris Water Maze test. Rats given the herbal medicine also fared better in a spatial exploration test. Study data also revealed that the medicinal herb helped improve the signaling pathway in the hippocampus. The medicinal herb also appeared to inhibit weight loss in rats, the researchers added. It indicated both sertraline and XPJY can achieve improvement with regards to rats memory capability, while the efficacy of the XPJY 1.4g group was more significant. Th[ese] results show XPJY increased the ability of spatial learning memory better than sertraline. The experimental results are consistent with actual situation[s]. The primary findings of the present study show that CUS causes cognitive decline and depression-like symptoms whereas XPJY showed ameliorating potential against detrimental effect[s] of CUS, the researchers wrote. The finding were published in the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Drug-based treatment may do more harm than good The researchers pointed out that drug-based treatment can lead to various adverse health conditions. According to researchers, certain medications such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) were associated with increased odds of developing a plethora of adverse health conditions. For instance, a study published in The American Journal of Psychiatry found that SSRIs were tied to a nearly five-fold increased risk of suicide among elderly patients with depression aged 66 years and older. The risk was seen during the first month of therapy compared with other antidepressant treatments, researchers said. Another study demonstrated that antidepressants may negatively impact bone health. A meta-analysis published in the Journal of Osteoporosis showed that the use of SSRIs resulted in lower bone mineral density in patients with depression. These results suggest that clinicians should consider giving bone density tests to people taking the medication, the study authors concluded. The treatment was also tied to a significantly increased risk of mania among patients, according to a study published in BMJ Open. Although our findings do not demonstrate any causal link between antidepressant therapy and bipolar disorder, the association of antidepressant therapy with mania in people being treated for depression reinforces the importance of considering risk factors for mania or hypomania in people who present with an episode of depression, the researchers said. Data on major depression among adults Data from the World Health Organization (WHO) shows that more than 300 million people around the world suffer from depression. Depression is also recognized as the leading cause of disability worldwide. In fact, the disease is associated with 3.7 percent of all disability-adjusted life years and up to 8.3 percent of all years lived with disability in American adults. The disease also appears to be more prevalent in women compared with men, according to the WHO data. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, depression is one of the most common mental health issue in the U.S. A 2012 Healthline survey confirmed this, showing that the disease affects one in 10 Americans. The poll also revealed that more than 80 percent of people showing depressive symptoms do not receive specific treatment. The number of patients diagnosed with the mental illness increased by about 20 percent per year, survey data showed. The survey also revealed that depression is more prevalent in seven U.S. states, including Oklahoma, Arkansas and West Virginia as well Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Alabama. Survey data shows that recently divorced and unemployed individuals are at an increased risk of developing depression. Sources include: PreventDisease.com AJP.PsychiatryOnline.org NIMH.NIH.gov Healthline.com WHO.int Hindawi.com THE Deputy Minister for Information, Media and Broadcasting Services, Energy Mutodi has said that Zimbabweans should brace for a surge in prices after the government hiked fuel prices on Saturday night. Mutodi also warned Zimbabweans not to go into the streets in protest against the fuel price increases as the government will not hesitate to use force to put down such kind of demonstrations. Wrote Mutodi: New fuel prices will stamp out arbitrage in the fuel sector and normalize fuel supply but Zimbabweans must brace for commodity price volatility emanating from the fuel price shock. Volatility will be temporary before goods prices normalise. Faced with high fuel costs, clever people know what to do and here are some tips: Avoid fuel guzzler, reduce fleet, cancel unnecessary trips and use bicycles where possible to save BIG. Do not protest in the street you can lose a limp in skirmishes. Mutodis threats dovetail with what President Mnangagwa said Saturday evening. Announcing the new high fuel prices at State House, President Mnangagwa warned: Government is aware of attempts by certain elements bent on taking advantage of the current fuel shortages to cause and sponsor unrest and instability in the country. Such politically motivated activities will not be tolerated. To curb continued misuse of fuel in the country, Government, through relevant Departments which include its security structures, have started on a comprehensive audit of all fuel draw-downs with a view to establishing points of leakages. Zimbabweans reacted with outrage Sunday to a sharp rise in fuel prices announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in a move to improve supplies as the country struggles with its worst gasoline shortages in a decade. After years of international isolation, Zimbabwes economy has been in decline for more than a decade with cash shortages, high unemployment and a recent scarcity of basic staples like bread and cooking oil. In a televised address late Saturday, Mnangagwa said prices of petrol and diesel would more than double to tackle a shortfall caused by increased demand and rampant illegal trading. Mnangagwa, who took over from longtime leader Robert Mugabe and won a disputed election last July, also announced a package of measures to help state workers after strikes by doctors and teachers over poor pay. He said from midnight Saturday, petrol prices would rise from $1.24 a litre to $3.31 (2.89 euros) and diesel from $1.36 a litre to $3.11. But many Zimbabweans criticised the move, worrying a knock-on spike in other costs would worsen an already difficult economic situation and trigger protests and strikes. I am not a politician and neither am I an economist but you dont need a rocket scientist to tell you that we are now headed for the worst following the fuel price madness, said William Masuku, 32, a car dealer in Bulawayo, the countrys second largest city. Victor Nyoni, head of a local business body, said the fuel prices would push up the cost of other goods. Businesses are likely to pass on the higher transport costs to the consumer. Government against the people The presidents announcement came after fuel shortages which began in October last year worsened in recent weeks with motorists sometimes spending nights in fuel pump queues that stretch for kilometres. The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) said the government had demonstrated a lack of empathy for the already-overburdened poor. The government has officially declared its anti-worker, anti-poor and anti-people ideological position, it said. Workers salaries have been reduced to nothing and our suffering elevated to another level. Nelson Chamisa, who heads the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said the situation was descending into a humanitarian crisis. Evan Mawarire, a cleric and activist who led the 2016 anti-government protests that shut down major cities, said: You have cornered us and you leave us no choice. Its time to mobilise every person who truly loves Zimbabwe. Those in government may not admit it but they know in their hearts that they have failed, said Edmore Phiri, a tired-looking motorist who had just spent a second night in a petrol queue in Avondale suburb. We are not going anywhere with these piecemeal solutions that are not solutions. You cant have a country where people sleep in cars for days for a commodity that should be readily available. Mnangagwa, who has pledged to revive the moribund economy, blamed the shortfall on increased fuel usage compounded by rampant illegal currency and fuel trading activities. The government claims fuel prices were lower than in other regional countries, saying some foreigners were taking advantage and buying fuel in bulk for resale elsewhere. Mnangagwa said the new measures were aimed at curbing a burgeoning speculative parallel market in which fuel was being sold at five times the official price. Its going to reduce demand for fuel because its now a bit expensive and that will deal with speculative demand if it was there, said economist Godfrey Mugano. Mnangagwa also warned the government would deal harshly with those bent on taking advantage of the current fuel shortages to cause and sponsor unrest and instability in the country. Government doctors went on a 40-day strike in early December, demanding salaries in US dollars and improved working conditions, while teachers unions called a strike this week for better pay but their calls went largely unheeded. Although Mnangagwa announced a package of measures to cushion government workers, he gave few details. Despite the price hike, diplomats and tourists would be able to access cheaper fuel at certain pumping stations. The intention is to create a constant supply of fuel for diplomats and tourists to manage the countrys image, said Mugano. Those designated fuel stations will be able to restock easily from the sales they make in US dollars. Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News Zanu-PFs socio-political bankruptcy has finally come out openly for all to see now. The economic lunacy that this government has created and is all out to perpetuate at all cost, renders the regime unacceptably incapable to continue. What next drastic decision will ZanuPF resort to after trampling on all peoples rights, stole elections and rendered the once economic jewel of Africa ruins is any ones guess. Out of the blue they, through the finance ministry announced the 2% tax on electronic transactions. This is while they had failed dismally to solve currency and cash shortages they created in the first instance. We saw the economic erosion that it caused, the subsequent panic among the people and the disastrous outcome as evidenced by the over 40 days strike of the doctors. ZanuPF led government takes the Zimbabwean people as toys and thinks citizens are.as naive as themselves. The military backed junta is mistakingly taking the peoples patience for gullibility and docility. The peace loving desperate Zimbabweans are taken for granted by a regime whose only preoccupation is amassing and consolidating political power while they have absolutely no clue running a pro people socio economic setup. During the day they denied earlier speculations about fuel increases. Their own ministers dismissed the news only for their power drunk leader to confirm that very news. So is there any un true rumour? As to what informs the ridiculous increases the marauding Zanu PF can never tell except flimsy excuses from economically illiterate junta officials who even are failing to make the fuel available in the country. Zimbabweans from all walks of life must join ZAPU as we call on the Mnangagwa regime to resign for its dismal failure since the November.2017 coup and for the brutal economic attacks on the struggling masses which are inhuman. We know that they are enforced militarily. As Zimbabweans we cannot forever live in fear for it only is to our own peril. Mnangagwa is failing day by day despite numerous promises of economic prosperity under the military junta. He must resign together with his cheer leaders in cabinet and the toothless and helpless parliament. Zimbabwe has seen enough of.their failure and our country cannot afford another day with such mediocrity. Iphithule Maphosa ZAPU National Spokesperson Breaking News via Email Loading... Related Zimbabwe Latest News Good news, Texas lawmakers! You will have an extra $9 billion to work with over the next two years. This is according to state Comptroller Glenn Hegar, whose office has forecast 8 percent growth in tax collections, largely from robust sales tax. That puts the budget for the next two years at $119 billion, which is about $9 billion more than previously expected. Some of these additional funds will cover a shortfall at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission and some will defray the cost of rebuilding from Hurricane Harvey, which punished the Texas coast in 2017 and led to catastrophic flooding in Houston. There is no shortage of holes these dollars can help fill. Even with the rosy outlook, Hegar warns of potential economic storm clouds, citing uncertainty in the U.S. and global economies and Texas vulnerability as the top export state in the nation during a time of ongoing trade wars. Oil and gas prices are soft. The stock market is volatile. But the obvious takeaway from this forecast is that Texas lawmakers have no excuses for not funding public education. The budget is billions more than expected. The rainy day fund is at $15.4 billion. To be clear: Its paramount public education funding is tied to dedicated funding sources. It cant come permanently from the states rainy day fund, or from extra money announced at the beginning of the legislative session. It merits sustainable funding. There are a variety of ideas for such dedicated funding sources, although Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and other state officials have yet to choose a path forward. Abbott has instead mostly focused on property tax relief, proposing an annual cap of 2.5 percent increases for school districts. The state would then make up the funding difference. Such a cap is far too low. A Hearst analysis has found this could cost the state $3 billion a year by 2023, but the analysis also found local school districts would have collected $43 billion less in revenue over a nine-year period, had Abbotts plan taken effect in 2008. So, on one hand, the state would increase spending. But on the other hand, local school districts would also be out billions. Clearly, this is not a winning formula and should not be pursued. State funding for education has diminished in recent years. It is projected to be 38 percent in 2019, and as the governors office has previously noted, it will likely fall below 30 percent by 2023. Its little wonder, then, that local school districts have become the driving forces behind property tax bills. Its clear: Texas economic future depends on a skilled workforce. That means a workforce whose members had sterling educations. And sterling means an education in which students learned the reading, writing and math basics and found themselves well prepared to education beyond high school whether these be community colleges to earn certificates or vocational training or to four-year universities. The states future economy, the experts say, will need this level of educated workers. This Legislature has to step up. The state can do better, and the recent comptrollers forecast only underscores this point. The rainy day fund is overflowing. Sales tax dollars are strong. There are no excuses for lawmakers to yet again fail on this issue. As Texas kicks off another legislative session, the Legislature is under the microscope in a way this state hasnt experienced in years. Whether you pore over November election data or simply listen to the chatter around the state capitol, the conclusion is clear: next year, state legislators are likely to face the most competitive elections theyve seen in a decade, and those elections will be shaped by policy decisions they make this year. School finance is arguably the top issue of the session. Voters should watch to see whether a years worth of school finance hearings results in more funding for schools to improve student success. Voters will also be watching to see how much progress Texas makes on other critical childrens issues, including improving student mental health, foster care, health care, and early childhood programs. Lawmakers actions or inaction on these issues will help determine whether kids are growing up healthy, staying safe, and walking into the classroom each day ready to learn. Were glad state leaders have talked about addressing student mental health this session. Concerns about several issues have put it squarely on their agenda: school safety, the high suicide attempt rate among Texas high school students, the trauma of Hurricane Harvey, and links between student mental health, behavior, and school success. TEA has a commendable proposal to help school districts address student mental health. The Legislature should add more funding to it and designate the money for strategies proven to make schools safer and more supportive. Weve praised the governor, Legislature, and the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services for improving Child Protective Services the last two years, but the momentum must continue. The Legislature now has to ensure that when children are removed from their families and placed in foster care they are not only safe but also healing from trauma, thriving in school, and on track to become successful adults. Additionally, the Legislature should prepare for implementation of the new federal Family First Act so Texas can leverage future funding opportunities to help more kids stay safely with their families rather than entering foster care. Some Texas leaders say they want to focus on improving access to health care, which has emerged as a top priority for voters. That would be a welcome change after years of inaction and dire consequences. Texas has the nations highest rates of uninsured adults and kids. Many Texas communities have disturbing rates of pregnancy complications and maternal and infant mortality. And flaws in our Medicaid Managed Care system make it harder for some kids with disabilities or in foster care to get the medical care they urgently need. There are large and small steps legislators can take on each of these issues. For years, many state leaders on both sides of the aisle have recognized the importance of kids entering kindergarten with the skills they need to succeed instead of starting behind their classmates and struggling to catch up. Yet, except for offering one-time pre-k grants following the 2015 session, legislators have largely failed to support children in their most critical early years. After cutting nearly $150 million in pre-k funds last session, the Legislature should now follow the State Board of Educations recommendation to fund full-day, voluntary pre-k as part of a new school finance plan rather than continuing to fund just half-day pre-k. Following the closure of 18 Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) programs for toddlers with disabilities amid state funding cuts over the last eight years, the Legislature should also provide the ECI funding that state officials recently requested. And, after the Austin American-Statesman investigation into the tragic consequences of inadequate state oversight of child care, legislators should ensure more working Texas parents not just the wealthier ones can enroll their kids in child care that is safe and provides the engaging learning environment children need to get ready for school. The progress Texas makes on these issues in 2019 will gives voters a window into state leaders values, their compassion for our kids, and their commitment to shaping a brighter future for Texas. We are calling on state leaders to work together to better protect and support Texas children. Voters will be paying close attention to see if legislators follow through. Stephanie Rubin is the CEO of Texans Care for Children. One man is hospitalized after San Antonio police say he was shot for refusing demands of two masked assailants late Saturday on the Northwest Side. Officers responded to the Oak Hills Terrace Townhomes in the 6400 block of Wurzbach Road about 11:15 p.m. to find a victim who had been shot in the leg. Prompted by a Facebook post, Selena Mitchell and her mother, Clara, spent Saturday afternoon touring the eclectic Olaju African Market Creative Arts Festival. The pair, entered the Brick gallery, at the Blue Star Arts Complex, marveling at the fashions and wares at the cultural-exchange market, designed to entertain and educate guests about the African continent. Spotlights lit vibrant prints of young African women and men in pensive poses. Racks, filled with an array of clothes, lined the space beneath pink chandeliers, The two guests browsed through gowns behind twin mannequins clad in rose gold metallic corsets and arm bands. Their ties to Africa inspired the pair to attend the event. Selena Mitchell, 25, had studied college classes in Ghana; her mother, Clara, 58, had done missionary work in Botswana and South Africa. I didnt know that San Antonio had African events, Selena Mitchell said. For that reason, this spoke to me. The market was one of more than 170 events of DreamWeek, a 16-day summit that advances the teachings of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., in and around downtown. The festival, sponsored by the Olaju Art Group, featured music, vendors, contemporary art, fashion and food. Olaju is a Yoruba word from West Africa that translates to one who is enlightened. The featured exhibition, Process and Patterns, showcased a collection of works by batik artist Tunde Odunlade. Batik, a technique practiced for centuries, involves blocking out areas of cloth with hot wax and dying the cloth. Sandi Smith visited all of the vendors, buying scented chakra scrubs, earrings and spices. She said the cultural arts aspect drew her to the festival. Because Im a creative person, I really appreciate how much work goes into making something and the labor of it, Smith, 63, said. I really like to see stuff like that. Before guests arrived, the events featured artist, Paakow Essandoh, founder and CEO of MIZIZI arranged jerseys with titles such as Black Lives Matter, and Wakanda, the fictional land of Black Panther of Marvel cinematic and comic fame. MIZIZI means roots in Swahili. The clothing line includes a jersey, which range from $30 to $80, for each African country. We are the way that people express their cultural identity through African street wear, Essandoh, 23, said. The fact that we have a good product that is able to evoke emotions out of people and make them proud of where they are from is a good feeling. Obafemi Ogunleye founded the art group in 2015 after he observed a lack of appreciation and recognition for contemporary art from West Africa, especially Nigeria. Ogunleye, a first generation Nigerian-American, said the festival promoted cultural education of West Africa and the work of emerging artists. Born in Houston, he lived and worked in Nigeria for two years to understand his heritage. The main thing is opening our eyes to engaging with arts in different ways and arts that we are not used to seeing, Ogunleye, 29, said. Unyime Udosen and her husband, Akan, own U4U Designs in Austin that features clothing made in Nigeria from her designs. She shared information with guests about her garb including head wraps, hand bags and the Apuk, a short gown for women. When people hear about Africa they hear about the poor, she said. Im about empowering and educating. All of the women I work with are masters in their fields. Her husband, Akan, 49, said the festival was an opportunity to share facts about their homeland. Years ago, peoples impression of Africa was things like Tarzan, he said, and they didnt know there were 50 countries in the continent. Its always good to introduce Africa in a different light. Vincent T. Davis is a reporter in the Greater San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | vtdavis@express-news.net | Twitter: @vincentdavis A grassroots Democratic group that helped power the upset victory of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., has identified a Texas Democrat as its first target ahead of the 2020 congressional primaries - but as of now, Ocasio-Cortez herself is staying neutral. Justice Democrats, a political committee founded after the 2016 election to reshape the Democratic Party through primary challenges, is now working to recruit a challenger to Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, a seven-term congressman from a strongly Democratic district who's one of the few anti-abortion-rights voices in the party's House conference. In a statement, the group compared Texas's 28th Congressional District, which gave the president just 38.5 percent of the vote in 2016, to other districts where left-leaning candidates have unseated incumbents. It is launching a "primary Cuellar fund" to encourage any potential canddiate that there will be resources if he or she jumps into the race. "There's an Ocasio-Cortez and [Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna] Pressley in blue districts across America, tired of seeing long-standing incumbents serve corporate interests, work with Trump's agenda, and works against the progressive movement," said Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of Justice Democrats. "These grassroots leaders just need a little bit of encouragement and support." Cuellar's office did not respond to a question from The Washington Post, but he has long been seen as a target for the party's left wing as it works to build its bench. Last year, after a left-wing primary challenger to Rep. Daniel Lipinski, D-Ill., was narrowly defeated, Cuellar told The Post that he would hold his seat in any primary. "They came after me twice, and I beat 'em," Cuellar said. "LBJ used to say: What's the difference between a cannibal and a liberal Democrat? Cannibals don't eat their own." The Justice Democrats campaign to oust "corporate Democrats" was restarted after the 2018 elections, with Ocasio-Cortez, one of her party's biggest stars, as its de facto spokesman. In a mid-November call with activists, Ocasio-Cortez said that they could "save this country" by either shaming incumbents out of accepting "money from oil and gas companies," or by ousting them at the polls. "We've got to primary folks," said Saikat Chakrabarti, who would become the congresswoman's chief of staff. But Ocasio-Cortez is not intervening in the "primary Cuellar" campaign right now. In her first days in office, the congresswoman has publicly criticized a House rule that required offsets for any spending increases, while privately working to get appointed to at least one committee with jurisdiction over taxes or health care. While she was not appointed to the Ways and Means committee after a left-wing campaign on her behalf, Ocasio-Cortez is expected to get a seat on the Financial Services Committee. She is not part of Justice Democrats' primary recruitment push. "We're not active in their process," said Ocasio-Cortez's spokesman, Corbin Trent, a co-founder of Justice Democrats. "We're focused on getting up and going." Cuellar himself first arrived in Congress via a primary challenge, ousting a more liberal colleague in 2004 to win his seat. He defeated that colleague in a 2006 re-match, and has been politically safe ever since. Left-wing campaign groups, which had their greatest success last year in deep blue districts, have pointed to the heavy Democratic advantage in Cuellar's seat as evidence that anyone who unseated the congressman would be elected in November. Cuellar also rankled Democrats last year by helping raise money for Rep. John Carter, R-Texas, who narrowly defeated a strong Democratic challenger in the Austin exurbs. "South Texas is in a special position to lead the nation on immigration, renewable-energy, and healthcare, yet Henry Cuellar has failed to do this by instead voting with Donald Trump nearly 70 percent of the time," said Danny Diaz, an activist in the district who co-founded a voter turnout group, Cambio (Change) Texas. The Gulf Coast has become home of one the largest producers of a common chemical after Shell recently fired up its fourth alpha olefins unit at its chemical plant in Geismar, La. The multibillion-dollar expansion adds 425,000 metric tons per year in capacity for manufacturing alpha olefins, which are key ingredients in consumer goods such as laundry detergents, motor oils and hand soaps. The new unit brings total alpha olefin production at Geismar to more than 1.3 million metric tons per a year, making it the largest alpha olefins producing site in the world, the company said. The project represents a major expansion of Shells petrochemical business in the region and will support the Deer Park refining and chemical plant in Greater Houston. The new unit is part of Shells push to integrate the refining and chemicals side of its business. The company said the Geismar site is supported with ethylene feedstock from Shells nearby Norco, La., and Deer Park manufacturing sites. Ethylene, processed from the natural gas liquid ethane, is the feedstock for most plastics, including the most common one, polyethylene. Ethylene also is used as a feedstock for alpha olefins. Shell previously had sold much of the U.S. ethylene it produced, but the addition of the alpha olefins unit provided the company with another way to earn profits off its abundant supplies of ethylene, said Steve Zinger, vice president of chemicals at the analyst research firm Wood Mackenzie This is one way they could consume some of that ethylene and convert it to a usable product that could be sold, Zinger said. Zinger added that the alpha olefins in Louisiana could also feed into the new plastic chemicals complex Shell is building in Pennsylvania. Alpha olefins are used in the production of polyethylene products. The company is building an ethane cracker, which processes ethane into ethylene, which will be the feedstock for on-site production of polyethylene. The Geismar chemical site near the Mississippi River is used in the production of stronger and lighter polyethylene plastic for packaging and bottles, as well as engine and industrial oils and drilling fluids, according to the company. The alpha olefins unit started in December. This is a key growth project for Shells global chemicals business, said Graham vant Hoff, executive vice president for Shells global chemicals business. Geismar will continue to play a leading role in providing the materials for products that an increasing number of people need and enjoy. Shell announced its final investment decision in the project in November 2015 and construction began in 2016. The project included repurposing an idled tank farm, significantly expanding rail in the plant, and building a new water cooling tower. The project took 3,570 metric tons of steel, 18,290 meters of concrete and 85 linear kilometers of pipe to build, according to a Shell announcement. Shells chemical business is already considering another expansion for the Geismar plant, according media reports. Shell is reportedly in the early evaluation stage of a $1.2 billion expansion of a project that would add a world scale monoethylene glycol unit to the Geismar site, the Advocate newspaper of Baton Rouge, La., reported. Monoethylene glycol is used in polyester, polyethylene terephthalate resins and engine coolants. Dozens of petrochemical projects have come online in recent years thanks to the shale boom providing cheap and abundant supplies of natural gas, which is a feedstock for chemicals used in a variety of plastics and consumer goods. Since 2010, the American Chemistry Council estimates that $202 billion in capital investments were announced in the U.S. chemical and petrochemical industries, with about $170 billion targeted for the Gulf Coast. Wood Mackenzie estimates that U.S. production of ethylene and polyethylene will double between 2015 to 2025, Zinger said. marissa.luck@chron.com twitter.com/marissaluck7 Photo: CTV An endangered group of orcas has had its first good news in a long time a new baby, although it has an uphill battle to survive. The Southern Resident pod was down to just 74 members when a newborn was spotted next to the whale known as L-77, or Matia. The tiny new calf was seen Thursday in aerial footage captured by the Washington-based Center for Whale Research. Its sex is currently unknown. The birth is good news for the ailing population, but no new calves have survived for the past three years, and the population has been plagued by unusual deaths. Approximately 40 per cent of newborn calves do not survive their first few years, but we hope that this one makes it to maturity, especially if it is female, the Center for Whale Research said in a statement to CTV News. Declining stocks of chinook salmon are a big threat to the group, with two extremely skinny adults not expected to survive until the summer. In September, a young orca called J-50 died of starvation despite efforts by scientists to administer medication and save her, and two months earlier, a female orca carried her dead calf around at the surface for 17 days, capturing headlines around the world. Canada and the United States have both launched efforts to save the population, including designating protected habitats. The orcas spend their summers between the waters off southern B.C. and northern Washington State, and head further south in winters. Since 1976, their population has wavered between 70 and 99 animals. -With files from CTV Vancouver Photos provided by Warmowski Photography Miss Morgan County 2018 Savanna Long will compete this week in Springfield for the title of Miss Illinois County Fair queen. Long will be among 71 contestants in the pageant, which runs Thursday through Sunday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Springfield. Long will compete at 1 p.m. Saturday in the first of two preliminary groups that day to determine who advances to Sundays finals. The second preliminary group will compete at 7 p.m. Saturday. The $15 admission grants access to both preliminary rounds. Major changes take effect at Superior Court; new year brings new clerk of court, 2 judges Photo: alzheimersociety I stumbled across an inspiring story this week, about an 81-year-old who was diagnosed with Alzheimers about three years ago. Alzheimers is a scary diagnosis for many, including myself. You may do everything possible to keep your brain in tip-top condition. No matter what you do there is no guarantee you will live out your life, dementia free. I am using Alzheimers and dementia interchangeably, but let me clarify the difference between the two. Dementia is the general term for a decline in mental ability that is severe enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimers disease is one form of dementia. According to the Canadian Alzheimer Society: Over half a million Canadians are currently living with dementia. There are about 25,000 new cases in Canada every year. The number of those affected is expected to increase to about 937,000 by 2031. It isnt what happens to you that makes your life good or bad. Satisfaction levels come from how you respond to the things that happen to you. Rather than accepting his fate and waiting for his world to disappear, Ron Robert chose to do everything he could to strengthen his brain and slow the progress of the disease. He got physically fitter and then to keep his brain active, he decided to go back to school. Robert enrolled in political science and disability studies classes at Kings University College in London, Ont. There are three major benefits of his decision to become a student again. Going to college regularly to attend classes has a physical benefit. What is good for your body is good for your brain. Going back to school benefits you mentally. Learning keeps your brain engaged. Interacting with faculty and fellow students has a social benefit. Social interaction boosts your happiness. Studies indicate it may also reduce your risk of developing dementia. This research is far from conclusive, but early results are promising. The result for this octogenarian has been an improvement in long-term memory. He struggles occasionally with disorientation, but his fellow students and college employees are quick to help. Mental illness is surrounded by stigma. It makes people who have never been around it, very uncomfortable. It is natural to be nervous around things you arent familiar with. Robert is desensitizing people by giving them a chance to interact with him. In my opinion, this is the best way to banish stigma. This story has made me stop and think about how I would feel if I received a similar diagnosis. Would I be as proactive? I hope so. Robert is a role model for all of us. In a CTV news interview,Robert said, Well, its not an end its just a new beginning. Its something youve got to work at. And actually, its a good thing because I was getting quite bored being retired! So this is all a new challenge for me. Now, thats an example I want to copy. January is Alzheimers Awareness month in Canada.Take time to find out more about this disease and how to keep your brain healthy. Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription, or activate your access, to continue reading. San Antonio police had their suspicions when they were called to investigate the reported kidnapping of 8-month-old King Jay Davila on Jan. 4 at a West Side gas station. "Right from the very beginning there were questions as to whether this was a legitimate kidnapping or not," said San Antonio Police Chief William McManus. Photo: RCMP The owner of a runaway sailboat has recovered the vessel after it was found stuck under a dock in the north end of Kelowna last week. On Friday, Kelowna RCMP reached out to the public after the 21-foot boat was found wedged under the dock of a home on the 800 block of Manhattan Drive on Tuesday. Police and fire crews were able to get the boat unstuck, something the owner, Jeff Bryde, says he wasn't able to do on his own. I took my shoes off and pulled up my pants and went in the water, and I was trying like heck, said Bryde, after he found the boat Tuesday. I was in the water for about half an hour, and I would have stayed in longer, but I thought, 'Oh god, I don't want to get frostbitten.' By the time I came out of the water my feet were just numb. The boat, which Bryde has owned since 1987, had been tied to a buoy off Manhattan Point, but it came loose sometime between Sunday and Tuesday. Bryde has since notified the RCMP that the boat belongs to him. He says there doesn't appear to be too much damage, save for a hole in the mast that he hopes he can fix. Now that I'm retired I want to be able to enjoy the lake and stuff like that, because that's something I enjoy doing sailing, fishing or just relaxing, Bryde said. A 19th annual Speak Up and Speak Out community forum Jan. 12 in Council Chambers at Lorain City Hall included discussion about the city's public concerns by Mayor Chase Ritenauer, Police Chief Cel Rivera and Lorain City Schools CEO David Hardy Jr. The forum was presented by the the Lorain County Section National Council of Negro Women, Lorain NAACP and the Lorain Negro Business & Professional Womens Clubs Inc. After 25 years at Arby's in Millcreek, Utah, 94-year-old Dorothy Bale has no plans to retire from the job she started when she was 69. Juul ended 2018 with a 76 percent share of the U.S. market, according to the latest Nielsen data, collected for the most part from convenience stores. Juul calls the marketing initiative an adult education campaign that features testimonials from former smokers. It said the ads already have appeared in print, online and on radio. Part of the campaign is designed to tap down accusations by Gottlieb, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams and anti-tobacco advocacy groups that Juul is trying to make its products attractive to young people. We want adult smokers to hear directly from former adult smokers that Juul Labs provides a true alternative to combustible cigarettes and is showing unprecedented success, with studies showing 40 to 56 percent of adult smokers fully switching within 90 days of use, the company said in a blog posting. Each story strictly adheres to our marketing code, which ensures that we carefully target adult smokers and forego paid promotion on social media platforms, Juul said. January 13, 2019 The Trump-Russia Scam - How Obama Enabled The FBI To Spy On Trump Despite the loss of major narratives, the war of the deep state against U.S. President Trump continues unabated. The main of tool in this war are allegations of relations between Trump and anything Russia. The war runs along several parallel paths. The narrative war in the media is most visible one. When any of the fake stories about Trump and Russia gets debunked and disposed, new ones are created or others intensified. In parallel to these propaganda efforts the deep state created an investigation that Trump has no way to escape from. Enabled by one of the Obama administrations last acts the investigation is using signal intelligence to entrap and flip the people surrounding Trump (see section three below). The big price will be Trump himself. Here we take a look at what transpired during the last weeks. One major anti-Trump narrative was that 'Russian influence' helped to put him into office. This was based on the alleged nefarious influence a Russian clickbait company, the Internet Research Agency (IRA) in St. Peterburg, had on the U.S. electorate. That explanation never made sense. Little of the IRA activities had to do with the election. It used sockpuppets on Facebook and Twitter to attract people to websites filled with puppy pictures or similar nonsense. The IRA would then sell advertisement and promotions on these sites. This was obvious for anyone following the factual content of the news instead of the 'opinions' a whole bunch of anti-Trump 'experts' and the media formed around them. That the Mueller investigation finally indicted several of the IRA's officers over minor financial transactions was seen as a confirmation of the political aspects of the IRA activities. But nearly all the reporting left out that Mueller confirmed the commercial intent behind the IRA and its activities. There is nothing political in the accusations. Indeed point 95 of the Mueller indictment of the IRA says: Defendants and their co-conspirators also used the accounts to receive money from real U.S. persons in exchange for posting promotions and advertisements on the ORGANIZATION-controlled social media pages. Defendants and their co-conspirators typically charged certain U.S. merchants and U.S. social media sites between 25 and 50 U.S. dollars per post for promotional content on their popular false U.S. persona accounts, including Being Patriotic, Defend the 2nd, and Blacktivist. Part of the false narrative of a political influence campaign was the claim that the $100,000 the IRA spent for advertisement to promote its clickbait webpages through Facebook ads somehow moved people to vote for Trump. But 56% of the IRA ads ran after the election, 25% of all its ads were never seen by anyone. How a few $10,000 for ads only few saw moved an election that was fought with several billions spent by each candidate's campaign was left unexplained. This week, only fifteen month after this site came to the conclusion that IRA was a commercial clickbait business, the Washington Post finally admitted that the alleged political targeting of voters by the IRA never happened: [T]he common understanding is that Russias interference efforts included sophisticated targeting of specific voting groups on Facebook, which could have made the difference in states that Trump narrowly won on his way to an electoral-vote victory. That understanding about Russias sophisticated targeting, though, is not supported by the evidence if its not flat-out wrong. ... Most of the ads purchased by the Russians didnt specify a geographic target smaller than the United States on the whole, according to a Post review of the ads released by the House Intelligence Committee. Those that did target specific states heavily targeted those that werent really considered targets of the 2016 election, such as Missouri and Maryland. And of those ads that did target specific states, most happened well before or well after the final weeks of the campaign. All the claims that some Russian sockpuppets influenced the 2016 elections were and are nonsense.The IRA sockpuppets never had any political intent. Likewise the allegations that Russian intelligence hacked the DNC and Clinton crony Podesta's email are mere assertions for which no hard evidence was ever provided. The only known fact is that the emails and papers were real, and that there content revealed the shoddiness of Hillary Clinton, the DNC, and her campaign. Now, as the 'Russian influence' narrative is dying down, the anti-Trump - anti-Russian campaign is moving to new grounds. Last week the New York Times claimed that Paul Manafort, who for some time ran the Trump election campaign, gave public and internal polling data to the Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska: Manafort Accused of Sharing Trump Polling Data With Russian Associate. A day after that sensational claim made a large splash throughout U.S. media the New York Times recanted: Kenneth P. Vogel @kenvogel - 18:39 utc - 9 Jan 2019 CORRECTION: PAUL MANAFORT asked KONSTANTIN KILIMNIK to pass TRUMP polling to the Ukrainian oligarchs SERHIY LYOVOCHKIN & RINAT AKHMETOV, & not to OLEG DERIPASKA, as originally reported. We have corrected the story & I deleted a tweet repeating the error. Duh. Manafort gave polling data to his Ukrainian fixer Konstantin Kilimnik with the request to pass it along to Ukrainian oligarchs for who he had worked before joining the Trump campaign. Kilimnik had long worked for the International Republican Institute office in Moscow. The IRI is a CIA offshot under Republican Party tutelage that is used to influence politics abroad. Its long time head was the deceased hawkish Senator John McCain. While he worked with Kilimnik in the Ukraine, Manafort concentrated on moving the Ukraine towards the European Union and away from Russia. His and Kilimnik efforts were always opposed to Russian interests. But the NYT and others falsely try to pass them off as the opposite with the sole purpose of feeding the anti-Trump/anti-Russia campaign. Another anti-Trump/anti-Russian propaganda effort is a new sensational NYT piece on obvious misbehavior in the upper rows of the FBI: In the days after President Trump fired James B. Comey as F.B.I. director, law enforcement officials became so concerned by the presidents behavior that they began investigating whether he had been working on behalf of Russia against American interests, according to former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation. The inquiry carried explosive implications. Counterintelligence investigators had to consider whether the presidents own actions constituted a possible threat to national security. Agents also sought to determine whether Mr. Trump was knowingly working for Russia or had unwittingly fallen under Moscows influence. The NYT lets it seem as if the decision to launch a counter-intelligence investigation related to Trump was as based on some reasonable suspicion the FBI had. It was not. This was an act of revenge by the upper anti-Trump echelons in the FBI with which they attempted to undermine Trump's presidency. Note what the claimed suspicion was based on: Mr. Trump had caught the attention of F.B.I. counterintelligence agents when he called on Russia during a campaign news conference in July 2016 to hack into the emails of his opponent, Hillary Clinton. Mr. Trump had refused to criticize Russia on the campaign trail, praising President Vladimir V. Putin. And investigators had watched with alarm as the Republican Party softened its convention platform on the Ukraine crisis in a way that seemed to benefit Russia. Other factors fueled the F.B.I.s concerns, according to the people familiar with the inquiry. Christopher Steele, a former British spy who worked as an F.B.I. informant, had compiled memos in mid-2016 containing unsubstantiated claims that Russian officials tried to obtain influence over Mr. Trump by preparing to blackmail and bribe him. Trump made a joke during the election campaign asking Russia to release the 30,000 emails Hillary Clinton had deleted from her illegal private email server. There is no requirement, as far as I know, for any candidate to criticize this or that country. How can not following the non existing requirement to criticize Russia be suspicious? The Republican Party did not soften its convention platform on Ukraine. It rejected an amendment that would have further sharpened it. Overall the Republican platform was more hawkish than the Democratic one. The Steele dossier was of course from A to Z made up nonsense paid for by the Hillary Clinton campaign. It is non sensible to claim that these were reasonable suspicions sufficient to open a counter-intelligence investigation. The hasty FBI move to launch a counter-intelligence operation obviously had a different motive and aim. After Trump fired FBI director Comey, the FBI was led by Andrew McCabe, later also fired for leaking to the media and lying about it. His legal council was Lisa Page who exchange tons of anti-Trump SMS messages with her lover, the FBI agent Peter Strozk. These are the people who initiated the counter-intelligence investigation: Strzok and Page sent other text messages that raise the possibility they were discussing opening up a counterintelligence investigation against Trump before Comeys firing. And we need to open the case weve been waiting on now while Andy is acting, Strzok wrote to Page on the day of Comeys ouster. Andy is Andrew McCabe, who served as deputy FBI director. Page gave some indication in her congressional testimony in July 2018 that the text message was a reference to an investigation separate from the obstruction probe that has already been reported. Normally the FBI needs to clear such counter-intelligence investigations with the Justice Department. In this case it did not do so at all: In the case of the investigation into Trump, the FBIs decision to open a file on the president so quickly after Comeys firing in May 2017 was a source of concern for some officials at the Justice Department because the FBI acted without first consulting leadership at the department. But those worries were allayed when, days later, special counsel Robert S. Mueller III was appointed to oversee the Russia probe ... After Comey was fired, the FBI made a very hasty move, without reasonable suspicion and without informing the Justice Department, to launch a counter-intelligence operation involving the sitting president and his administration. What was the real purpose of this move? Initiating a counter-intelligence investigation, for which there was no basis, gave the FBI, and later the Mueller investigation, unfettered access to NSA 'signals intelligence' that could then possibly be used to incriminate Trump or his associates. It was the Obama administration which had given the FBI access to this tool: The Hoarse Whisperer @HoarseWisperer - 4:05 utc - 12 Jan 2019 On his way out the door, we all were wallowing in our winter of discontent, Obama signed an executive order... ... The order revised the rules around intelligence sharing among our intel community. Specifically, it made the firehose of raw intelligence collected by the NSA directly accessible to the FBI and CIA. Instead of having to ask for intel and getting what they filtered down the FBI and CIA could directly access the unfiltered SigInt or signals intelligence. Intercepted phone calls, emails, raw intel from human sources. Everything our vast intelligence vacuum hoovers up, available directly... but only for counterintel and foreign intel purposes. The NSA can sit on virtually every communication into and out of the U.S. that takes place over networks. Obama made it possible for the FBI to directly access everything they had on Trump, et al. Obama supercharged the FBIs ability to investigate Trump. The Obama administration enacted the changed executive order EO 12333 in early January 2017, shortly before Trump took over: Previously, the N.S.A. filtered information before sharing intercepted communications with another agency, like the C.I.A. or the intelligence branches of the F.B.I. and the Drug Enforcement Administration. The N.S.A.s analysts passed on only information they deemed pertinent, screening out the identities of innocent people and irrelevant personal information. Now, other intelligence agencies will be able to search directly through raw repositories of communications intercepted by the N.S.A. and then apply such rules for minimizing privacy intrusions. ... [T]he 12333 sharing procedures allow analysts, including those at the F.B.I., to search the raw data using an Americans identifying information only for the purpose of foreign intelligence or counterintelligence investigations, not for ordinary criminal cases. And they may do so only if one of several other conditions are met, such as a finding that the American is an agent of a foreign power. However, under the rules, if analysts stumble across evidence that an American has committed any crime, they will send it to the Justice Department. At that time Peter Lee, aka Chinahand, already had the suspicion that Obama was behind the FBI campaign against Trump. With the changes in EO 12333 Obama gave the FBI the ability to launch a world wide snooping operation against the incoming Trump administration under the guise of a 'counter-intelligence' operation. The hasty FBI move after Comey was fired activated this instrument. The Mueller investigation has since used it extensively. 'Crimes' revealed through the snooping operation are turned over to the Justice Department. The NYT claim that the counter-intelligence investigation was initiated because of reasonable suspicion of Russian influence over Trump is nonsense. It was initiated to get access to a set of tools that would allow unlimited access to communication of Trump and anyone related to him. It was Obama who on his way out of the door gave the FBI these capabilities. There are signs that the unlimited access the FBI and Mueller investigation have to signal intelligence is used to create prosecutions via 'parallel construction': The Hoarse Whisperer @HoarseWisperer - 18:50 utc - 12 Jan 2019 An active counterintel investigation means the Trump Administrations crimes were only as secure as the weakest link in their weakest moment. We got hints of this early. Our intelligence folks picked up signals intelligence or SigInt from Russians talking to Russians. Those signals arent the kind of evidence that finds its way into a courtroom. In fact, its important that it doesnt. It would burn sources and methods. It lays out the crimes and the players though... and then prosecutors find ways to make triable cases other ways. The public sees cases for specific charges carrying significant prison time without ever knowing that the NSA and prosecutors knew so much more than they ever revealed. Now, apply those principles to the cases weve seen Mueller bring forward so far. Mike Flynn: pleaded out to a minor charge, rolled over in full and then produced five rounds of documents. Likely: Flynn was confronted with the intel they had on him and knew he was cooked. They knew the crimes. They heard and saw everything. Thered be no escape. By flipping and pleading out Flynn, all of that secret intel stays secret. Our intelligence efforts are protected. And Flynn goes down. And he cooks a bunch of other gooses. Hes savvy enough to know that once they have the intel, all thats left to do is make the case. ... The 'crime' that di Flynn in was misremembering a phone call he had with the Russian ambassador. Similar happened with Rick Gates, Paul Manaforts righthand man and a member of Trumps transition team. Then it happened to Paul Manafort himself and to George Papadopoulos. The Mueller investigation, thanks to the snooping Obama and the FBI enabled, knows the content of every phonecall, chat and email any member of the Trump administration made and make to someone abroad (and likely also within the U.S.). It invites people as witnesses and asks them about the content of a specific calls they made. If they misremember or lie - bang - Mueller has the transcript ready. A crime has been created and an indictment for lying to the FBI will follow. This is what happened to Flynn and the others the Mueller investigation entrapped and convicted. Because of the counter-intelligence investigation the anti-Trump gang in the FBI hastened to initiate, the investigators got hands on signal intelligence - phone calls, chats and emails - that allowed them to indict minor people for petty crimes and to flip them to talk to the investigation. The aim, in the end, was and is to build a prosecution case against President Trump for whatever minor and petty half-backed illegal doing there may be. To make such a prosecution and an indictment publicly palpable the media is assigned with launching story after story about nefarious relations between Trump and anything Russia. As we have seen above with the IRA story, the retracted NYT's Manafort bang, and the NYT's false claims about the motive of the FBI's counter-intelligence investigation, none of these stories hold up to diligent scrutiny. Today's Washington Post adds another example of no-beef stories that insinuate mystic 'Russian influence' over Trump: Trump has concealed details of his face-to-face encounters with Putin from senior officials in administration. The first graph claims: President Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. The rest of the story largely refutes the claim made in its headline and very first sentence: Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. ... Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin .. ... In an email, Tillerson said that he was present for the entirety of the two presidents official bilateral meeting in Hamburg,... After Trump had a first White House meeting with the Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov in Washington, lots of leaks about the talk appeared in the DC media. Trump was accused of giving information about an ISIS plot to the Russians that was allegedly secret. It was not. Since then Trump clamped down on the number of participants, briefings and readouts for such talks. That is simply a necessary and laudable behavior. Now the media try to construct that into 'Trump is concealing details' about talks with Russia even when the U.S. Secretary of State and others are present in these. Ever since Trump won the Republican primaries, the Clinton campaign, the Obama administration and the U.S. and British intelligence services prepared to prevent a successful Trump presidency. The Steele dossier, created by 'former' British intelligence agents and paid for by the Clinton campaign, was the basis for an FBI investigation that was seen as an insurance against a Trump win. Any possible Russia relations Trump might have came under scrutiny. This prevented him from fulfilling his campaign promise of coming to better relations with Russia. Shortly before Obama left the office he created the tool the FBI needed to put its investigation on steroids. When Trump fired Comey for his handling of the Clinton email affair, the FBI put that tool into action. With unfettered access to signal intelligence the Mueller investigation was able to entrap a number of Trump related people and to flip them to its side. It will use any information they give up to find some angle under which Trump can be prosecuted and eventually impeached. Even if nothing comes off this investigations, the media reports and slander all this created may well be enough to prevent an election of Trump for a second term. I very much dislike most of Trump's domestic and foreign policy. But he was duly elected under the existing rules. The campaign the media and the intelligence services have since run against him undermines the will of the people. Unfortunately I see no way that Trump could escape from the hold it has gained over him. Exposing it as much as possible might well be his best defense. Posted by b on January 13, 2019 at 18:15 UTC | Permalink Comments January 13, 2019 The Moon of Alabama Week In Review - Open Thread 2019-03 Last week's posts on Moon of Alabama: We had the suspicion that Bolton was freelancing with the conditions and time table he set for a U.S. move out of Syria. A later Wall Street Journal piece confirmed that. It included this great line: Nothing has changed, one defense official said. We dont take orders from Bolton. January 12 - NYT Laments U.S. Disengagement Even As There Is None The piece is an attempt to stay up-to-date on the various Trump-Russia narratives. It is a quite long read. For the gist read the intro, section 3 and the conclusions. Use as open thread ... Posted by b on January 13, 2019 at 18:35 UTC | Permalink Comments next page Photo: The Canadian Press Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner TJ Watt is seen next to a bigleaf maple tree. Conservationists in British Columbia are pushing for protections on an area of old-growth forests they describe as "Canada's most magnificent." The grove is located on Crown land in the San Juan River Valley near Port Renfrew on southern Vancouver Island in the unceded territory of the Pacheedaht First Nation band. The 13-hectare grove of immense old-growth Sitka spruce and big-leaf maples draped in hanging mosses and ferns was first located in October and explored again in late December, said Ken Wu, executive director of the Endangered Ecosystems Alliance. "It is probably the most spectacular and beautiful old growth forest I've ever seen and I've explored a lot of old growth forests," Wu said. "(The trees) look shaggy because they've got all this hanging mosses and ferns on their branches. So they look like ancient prehistoric creatures." Most of the grove is unprotected, with a small portion about four hectares off-limits to loggers through the provincial government's old-growth management area, he said. Some of the trees in this grove are near-record sized, including a Sitka spruce with a diameter of 3.1 metres that would rank among the top 10 in the province, Wu said. A massive maple that conservationists have nicknamed the "Woolly Giant" may have the longest horizontal branch of any tree in British Columbia, measuring 23.1 metres, he said. "It's covered in thick mats of hanging mosses and ferns, resembling a prehistoric monster." Wu said conservationists are calling this area of old-growth forests, "The 'Mossome' Grove," which is short for mossy and awesome. "It includes lots of the tall, straight Sitka spruce like Roman pillars and they're very impressive giants along with ancient moss covered shaggy, big-leaf maples," he said. It's hard to say how old these trees are, Wu said. "These are great growing conditions," he said. "The trees can be as young as 400 years old but I would estimate around the 800-year-old range for the big spruce." Ancient Forest Alliance and other conservation groups are asking the provincial government to save not just this newly found old-growth forest but others too, he said. This forest can be saved from logging if the provincial government simply extends its existing old growth management area, which currently protects about two hectares of this grove, he said. The B.C. Ministry of Forests said in a statement that the grove is contained in a woodlot operated by Pacheedaht Forestry Ltd., and there is no imminent logging planned. "The Ancient Forest Alliance supplied the ministry with an updated map of the grove area yesterday, so ministry staff are currently reviewing the map to determine what protections exist in the area," it said. Under the Vancouver Island Land Use Plan, over 13 per cent of Vancouver Island will never be logged, including 520,000 hectares of old growth forests, the statement said. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Submit The US ambassador to Germany has warned of sanctions against firms linked to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia, the American embassy in Berlin confirmed January 13. A letter envoy Richard Grenell sent to several businesses "reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector... is in danger under CAATSA of US sanctions," an embassy spokesman told AFP. The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) adopted in 2017 targets Iran, Russia and North Korea. Close Donald Trump ally Grenell's letter "is not meant to be a threat, but a clear message of US policy," the spokesman said. "The only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies," he said. Construction has already begun on Nord Stream 2, set to double the capacity of an existing pipeline across the Baltic Sea. Firms including Germany's Wintershall and Uniper, Dutch-British Shell, France's Engie and Austria's OMV are involved in the project. Combined with the planned TurkStream pipeline across the Black Sea, Nord Stream 2 would do away with the need to transport natural gas to Europe via Ukraine -- robbing the country of a factor shielding it from Russian aggression, Grenell said. The two countries are in conflict over the eastern part of Ukraine and the annexation of the Crimean peninsula by Russia in 2014. "Firms supporting the construction of the two pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe," Grenell wrote. Washington's fears about the pipeline are shared by a number of eastern European Union countries including Poland, and the European Parliament last month passed a resolution condemning the construction. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel, backed by France and Austria, has so far insisted it is a "purely economic project" that will ensure cheaper, more reliable gas supply. The veteran leader -- a key player in Moscow-Kiev peace talks -- says Ukrainian interests will be protected as some Russian gas will still be transported via the country once Nord Stream 2 is online. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also weighed in on the transatlantic row last week, saying "European energy policy should be decided in Europe, not in the United States. An 18-year-old Saudi woman who fled her family this week saying she feared for her life arrived in Toronto's international airport on January 13 after being granted asylum in Canada, where Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland welcomed her as a brave new Canadian. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun grabbed international attention this week after she barricaded herself in a Bangkok airport hotel room to resist being sent home to her family, which denies any abuse. Qunun refused to meet her father and brother, who arrived in Bangkok to try to take her back to Saudi Arabia. Qunun arrived at Toronto's Pearson International Airport on January 12 morning, wearing a hoodie emblazoned with the word Canada in red, and a blue cap with the logo of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which has granted her refugee status. In her last tweet before leaving for Toronto, Qunun said, "I did it," and posted pictures from inside an airplane. Freeland, who received Qunun at the airport, told reporters that Qunun is "a very brave new Canadian." "Rahaf wanted Canadians to see that she has arrived at her new home," Freeland told reporters. "But she had a very long and tiring journey and so would prefer not to take questions today. And she is now going to go to her new home." A smiling Qunun waved to reporters as she walked out into the international arrivals area but did not speak to the media. After a brief appearance, she was taken back into the airport terminal. Canada's decision to grant asylum to Qunun comes at a delicate time. Relations between Ottawa and Riyadh have been tense after Canada demanded the immediate release of jailed rights activists last year, infuriating Saudi Arabia who retaliated by freezing new trade with Ottawa. Qunun, who had initially intended to seek asylum in Australia, chose Canada instead because Australia took too long assessing whether to grant her asylum. "(Australia) takes too long. That's why I went to Canada," she told Reuters in a direct message before boarding her flight to Toronto. Qunun took a Korean Air flight from Bangkok to Seoul on January 11 and then a connecting flight to Toronto. Her case has drawn global attention to Saudi Arabia's strict social rules, including a requirement that women have the permission of a male "guardian" to travel, which rights groups say can trap women and girls as prisoners of abusive families. Qunun arrived in Bangkok a week ago and was initially denied entry. But she soon started posting messages on Twitter from the transit area of Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport saying she had "escaped Kuwait" and her life would be in danger if forced to return to Saudi Arabia. Within hours, a campaign sprang up dubbed #SaveRahaf, spread on Twitter by a loose network of activists. Following a 48-hour stand-off at Bangkok airport, some of it barricaded in a transit lounge hotel room, she was allowed to enter the country and was processed as a refugee by the UNHCR. Saudi Arabia plans to set up a $10 billion oil refinery in Pakistan's deepwater port of Gwadar, the Saudi energy minister said on January 12, speaking at the Indian Ocean port that is being developed with the help of China. Pakistan wants to attract investment and other financial support to tackle a soaring current account deficit caused partly by rising oil prices. Last year, Saudi Arabia offered Pakistan a $6 billion package that included help to finance crude imports. "Saudi Arabia wants to make Pakistan's economic development stable through establishing an oil refinery and partnership with Pakistan in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor," Saudi Energy Khalid al-Falih told reporters in Gwadar. He said Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman would visit Pakistan in February to sign the agreement. The minister added that Saudi Arabia would also invest in other sectors. Beijing has pledged $60 billion as part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that involves building power stations, major highways, new and upgraded railways and higher capacity ports, to help turn Pakistan into a major overland route linking western China to the world. "With setting up of an oil refinery in Gwadar, Saudi Arabia will become an important partner in CPEC," Pakistan Petroleum Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan said. The Saudi news agency SPA earlier reported that Falih met Pakistan's petroleum minister and Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi in Gwadar to discuss cooperation in refining, petrochemicals, mining and renewable energy. It said Falih would finalise arrangements ahead of signing memorandums of understanding. Since the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan came to power in August, Pakistan has secured economic assistance packages from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and China. In November, Pakistan extended talks with the International Monetary Fund as it seeks its 13th bailout since the late 1980s to deal with a looming balance of payments crisis. The Pakistani prime minister's office had said on January 10 that Islamabad expected to sign investment agreements with Saudi Arabia and the UAE in coming weeks. Greece's right-wing defence minister resigned on January 13 in protest at a deal ending a long running dispute with Macedonia over its name, clouding the future of the coalition government months before national elections. Panos Kammenos, whose Independent Greeks party props up the government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, has long opposed the accord with neighbouring Macedonia signed by their governments last year. "The Macedonia name issue... doesn't allow me not to sacrifice the minister's chair," Kammenos said after meeting Tsipras on January 13 morning. He said he would also pull six other ministers from his party out of the government. The impact of the resignation on the governing coalition was not immediately clear. Parliamentary elections are due in Greece by October. Tsipras's coalition has 153 seats in the 300-strong parliament, 145 of them from his leftist Syriza party. Kammenos, who forged a coalition pact with Tsipras in 2015, has never hid his hostility to the deal with Skopje, which renames the tiny Balkan country Republic of North Macedonia. Greece has a province called Macedonia and long demanded Skopje change its country name to remove what Athens considered to be an implied claim to Greek sovereign territory. The Asian rout | The continents 128 billionaires lost $144 billion in 2018. The top three losers were from China, with Wanda Groups Wang Jianlin losing $11.1 billion this year. Close to 40 percent of the Asians under the index, lost their billionaire status as of December 7. (Image: Reuters) China will reduce restrictions on foreign investment and address difficulties facing foreign companies investing in the country, the commerce minister said, according to a transcript of an interview he gave to state media. Commerce Minister Zhong Shan said China would allow full foreign ownership of companies in more areas of the economy and would reduce the number of industries in which foreign investment was restricted or barred, according to the transcript posted on the Ministry of Commerces website on Sunday. The comments appeared to be largely reiterations of past pledges by Chinese officials for further market opening. Foreign direct investment (FDI) into China rose by 3 percent year-on-year to $135 billion in 2018, Zhong said. That would mark a slowdown from growth rates of 7.9 percent in 2017 and 4.1 percent in 2016. But Zhong said China had maintained stable FDI growth against a gloomy global climate, noting that total FDI around the world had slumped by 41 percent in the first half of last year. China has been pushing to broaden opportunities for private firms and foreign investors to stimulate an economy that is slowing on the back of weakening domestic demand and a trade war with the United States. Zhong said properly handling trade frictions with the United States was a major task for the ministry in 2019. The ministry would conscientiously implement the consensus to work toward a resolution of the trade row reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. counterpart Donald Trump in Argentina late last year, he added. The two sides held three days of trade talks at a vice-ministerial level in Beijing last week. Zhong said the Commerce Ministry would push for the introduction of a foreign investment law as soon as possible, improve the handling of complaints from foreign firms, and encourage foreign investment in manufacturing and high tech. The ministry would also encourage foreigners to invest in central and western China, he said. Bank of China's New York branch will enable Chinese firms to receive payment in yuan rather than dollars from their sales on US e-commerce platforms this year, the official Xinhua news agency reported on January 13. Pledging to introduce more services for small and medium-sized enterprises engaged in cross-border trade between the United States and China, executives from the branch said payment in yuan would be possible by tapping new functions of e-MPay, a cross-border payment system launched by the branch in 2016. The branch is developing a system using an existing platform to "facilitate trade finance for e-commerce players," said Xu Chen, president and chief executive officer of Bank of China USA, Xinhua reported, without providing further details. The system will adhere to US anti-money laundering rules through artificial intelligence and cyber security technologies, Xu added. Bank of China has run into problems with overseas anti-money laundering regulations in the past. In February 2017, it agreed to pay a 600,000 euro ($688,000) fine to settle a case involving its Milan branch. Prosecutors had alleged more than 4.5 billion euros was smuggled to China from Italy between 2006 and 2010. A unit of fellow state-owned bank Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) last year settled money laundering charges in the United States. ($1 = 0.8721 euros) Answer: Johnson & Johnson. Australia was the first country in the world to take regulatory action to ensure the removal of the DePuy ASR hip replacements from the market. DePuy is a division of US drug and medical devices giant Johnson & Johnson. The Australian data showed a 5.16 percent revision rate or repeat surgery at two years for DePuy's ASR hip implant, much higher than the 1 percent expected rate a year. This was possible, thanks to their robust National Joint Replacement Registry (NJRR) that spotted and warned of an unacceptably high need for repeat joint replacement in patients who had received an ASR hip, as early as 2007. In 1999, the Australian government funded the establishment of the NJRR. The NJRR is a clinical registry that collects information from orthopaedic surgeons about joint replacement procedures performed in the country. It was established in recognition of the need to actively monitor the safety and performance of medical devices once they are available in the Australian health system. An important function of the NJRR is to monitor the lifespan of implants to determine whether there is an early and unexpected failure rate for a specific type of prosthesis relative to other similar devices. Australian health regulator Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) makes extensive use of the data collected by the NJRR in its monitoring programs and has established an expert advisory group, the Orthopaedic Expert Working Group (OEWG). OEWG reviews the data coming from the NJRR and advices the TGA on the need for any regulatory action relating to a specific device. This model, in which a comprehensive registry is managed by the professional body Australian Orthopaedic Association (AOA) is linked directly to the regulator with the power to act on the data coming from the registry, is regarded as a world's best practice model of post-market monitoring of medical devices. To be sure it is not just Australia, UK and US have similar models to monitor medical devices. They make it mandatory for hospitals and independent surgeons to provide data to registries. The patient's consent data is also taken before taking the data. What's the status in India In India, it is strange that out of the 4,700 ASR surgeries performed in the country, just 1,080 patients could be traced. The status of remaining patients remains untraceable. This could well be in the case of other implants as well. There is a joint replacement registry started by the professional body -- the Indian Society of Hip and Knee Surgeons (ISHKS) in 2006. The primary goal of the registry is to give a warning sign of any implant failure at the early stage which will reduce the burden of revision and catastrophic complications. The another goal of registry is to provide feedback to participating surgeons regarding behaviour and revision rate of any implants which will substantially help the surgeon in his clinical practice. The registry has set a goal to capture more than 90 percent of the data. It was agreed that orthopedic surgeons will provide data on voluntary basis. But, it fell short, well below the expectations. By March 2018, 261 surgeons were providing data, while ISHKS itself has more than 600 member surgeons. There are more than 1,000 surgeons in India doing joint replacements. "As it is voluntary, not many surgeons are willing to provide data," Dr JA Pachore told Moneycontrol. Pachore is a leading orthopedic surgeon, was also the founding member of ISHKS. It is estimated that close to two lakh knee replacements and 30,000-40,000 hip replacements are done in India, annually. In 2017, the ISHKS registry only received data related to 30,000 surgeries. Pachore says that they are willing to work with the government to take this registry forward. Given the rising osteoarthritis problem due to genetic and lifestyle changes, the hip and knee replacements are expected to more than double in next five years. The rise of joint replacements also mean that there will be a huge spike in the number of revision surgeries, which are even more complex. There are two reasons for higher revision rates. One is the faulty implant and second is the way the procedure is performed. A high incidence of revision surgeries coming from a particular surgeon or hospital, indicates there is something wrong. A robust registry can spot such things. "That is also the reason why some surgeons are unwilling to part data, as they fear loss of reputation," Pachore said. "So it is important for the government to get involved and make it mandatory for surgeons to report data," Pachore added. The government has re-promulgated the ordinance banning the practice of instant triple talaq. Under the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2019, issued on January 12, divorcing through instant triple talaq will be illegal, void and would attract a jail term of three years for the husband. A Bill to convert the earlier ordinance, issued in September, 2018, was cleared by Lok Sabha in December and was pending in Rajya Sabha. Since the Bill could not get the parliamentary approval, the fresh ordinance was issued. The Union Cabinet had last week approved reissuance of the ordinance. Seeking to allay fears that the proposed law could be misused, the government has included certain safeguards in it such as adding a provision of bail for the accused before trial These amendments were cleared by the Cabinet on August 29, 2018. While the ordinance makes it a "non-bailable" offence, an accused can approach a magistrate even before trial to seek bail. In a non-bailable offence, bail cannot be granted by police at the police station itself. A provision has been added to allow the magistrate to grant bail "after hearing the wife", the government had said. The magistrate would ensure that bail is granted only after the husband agrees to grant compensation to the wife as provided in the bill The police would lodge an FIR only if approached by the victim (wife), her blood relations or people who become her relatives by virtue of her marriage. Neighbours and others cannot lodge a complaint under the ordinance. The offence of instant triple talaq will be "compoundable". A magistrate can use his powers to settle the dispute between a husband and his wife. This will happen only when the wife approaches the court Under a compoundable offence, both parties have the liberty of withdrawing the case. The proposed law would only be applicable on instant triple talaq or 'talaq-e-biddat' and it would give power to the victim to approach a magistrate seeking "subsistence allowance" for herself and minor children. A woman can also seek the custody of her minor children from the magistrate who will take a final call on the issue. Rahul Gandhi Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on January 12 said his party will fight the elections in the state with full force. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. He said the Congress party might give a surprise or two in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh "about what the party is capable of doing and to mobilise people." Rejecting suggestions that not being part of the SP-BSP alliance was a setback for the Congress, he said, "I won't be disappointed about the BSP-SP alliance as long as the BJP does not come to power." "They have said some wrong things about the Congress, but we accept it. Because that's how we work." Gandhi said it does not matter if his party fights separately or together with the SP and BSP, because the end result would be the same the BJP won't get their seats Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. Asked about his "misogynist" remarks about Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on which the NCW has issued a notice to him, Gandhi said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has helped Anil Ambani steal Rs 30,000 crore and the House of the people Lok Sabha is where he should have defended himself but he chose to send another person and that person happened to be a woman. "I would have made a very similar comment if it had been a man. Do not impose your sexism on me. I am very clear that the prime minister should have delivered that defence but he did not have the guts." He said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether Defence Ministry officials objected to the Prime Minister "bypassing" the Rafale deal. Sitharaman had spoken on behalf of the Prime Minister and defended the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha, countering questions raised by Congress and other opposition parties. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. He alleged that every single institution in the country has been "destroyed by the government and the idea of the BJP and the RSS is that there should only be one institution in India that is RSS". "They insert their people in very single institution and pressure every single institution...universities, colleges, the CBI, Election Commission every institution." "RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is because there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on a economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non violence and its peace loving nature when people look at India and see violence they they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court which are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. He said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Asked about special status to Andhra Pradesh, he said, "I have made the commitment to the people of the state that the moment we will form the government in New Delhi will will give special status to the state." He said it is a "tragedy and shame" that the Prime Minister Modi has not delivered the commitment to the people of the state. If help is needed, the North Okanagan Valley Gleaners are ready, willing and able to do what they can. Last year, the Vernon-based group produced some seven million meals that were shipped around the world. Brad Egerton, with the Gleaners, said 1.2-million pounds of vegetables were donated by local farmers along with 150,000 pounds of apples. The fruit and veggies are processed, dried, packaged and shipped to wherever they're needed. On Saturday, dozens of volunteers were bagging up 1.2 million meals to send to an aid group in North Korea. They also recently sent one million meals to Guatemala, to an area that was struck by a volcano. The Gleaners know no political or religious boundaries. Whoever asks, as long as they are reputable, and we can help them out, we want to help them out, said Egerton. It's not a matter of what the political environment is, it's the fact there are children in need. And it's all done free of charge. The food, equipment and even a massive warehouse in Lavington where the food is processed are donated to the group so they can bless others. The Gleaners also operate a furniture store in Vernon, with proceeds going back into the organization. Along with the food, the Gleaners also collect and donate used medical equipment, which not only helps struggling nations, but the environment by keeping material out of local landfills. Over the last six years we are at over $30-million in medical supplies that have been shipped, said Egerton, adding the Gleaners make sure the equipment is clean and in good working order before it is shipped out. More information on the NOVG can be found online. assam, sarbananda sonowal Congress leader Debabrata Saikia on January 12 asked Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal to quit the BJP and form a new government with his party's support, while the AGP said it may restore its alliance with the saffron party if the Citizenship Amendment Bill is scrapped. Saikia, the leader of Opposition in Assam Assembly, talking to a local TV news channel here said, "In view of the current situation in the state following the Citizenship Amendment Bill giving rise to protests here, Sarbananda Sonowal should leave BJP and come out with even just 40 of his MLAs." "We will have Sonowal only as the chief minister of Assam again. We have 25 legislators in the 126-member House. We can take support from AGP and other parties to form the new state government," said the Congress leader. The current 14th Assembly has 61 BJP, 25 Congress, 14 Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), 13 AIUDF, 12 Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF) and one independent MLA. Meanwhile, the AGP, which had snapped ties with the two-and-a-half-year-old Sonowal government on January 7 over the Centre introducing and passing the Bill in Lok Sabha, indicated before reporters in Golaghat that it may restore its ties with BJP in the state. Asked if his party would renew its alliance with the saffron party, AGP president Atul Bora said, "If the government scraps the bill giving rise to the need to discuss the issue in our party forum and depending on the need of the political situation...we may reconsider our alliance with BJP". "Cannot say anything now till the Bill is dropped. We will observe their activities and as of now take a wait and watch stand". No 8 | India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj | @SushmaSwaraj | 11.8 million followers (Image: Reuters) External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on January 13 met Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rasit Meredow on the sidelines of the India-Central Asia Dialogue and discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across sectors. Swaraj arrived in the ancient city of Samarkand on January 12 on a two-day visit to Uzbekistan to attend the first India-Central Asia Dialogue, which focussed on a plethora of regional issues including enhancing connectivity to war-ravaged Afghanistan. EAM @SushmaSwaraj met the Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rasit Meredow on the sidelines of the India-Central Asia Dialogue in #Samarkand. Discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across sectors. pic.twitter.com/p3vhPBtYWO Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) January 13, 2019 "EAM @SushmaSwaraj met the Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rasit Meredow on the sidelines of the India-Central Asia Dialogue in #Samarkand. Discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across sectors," MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. India enjoys close, friendly and historical ties with Turkmenistan and the two countries are part of the ambitious TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- PakistanIndia) pipeline project. Turkmenistan, which sits on the world's fourth-largest gas reserves, started building its section of the pipeline in December 2015. The TAPI pipeline will have a capacity to carry 90 million standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) gas for 30 years. The project will bring clean fuel to the growing economies of India and Pakistan. It will provide energy-hungry India gas to run its power plants. Under the pipeline project, Pakistan and India will be provided 1.325 bcfd gas each and Afghanistan will be getting a share of 0.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) gas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Turkmenistan in July 2015 during which a number of documents were signed between the two sides. It was a historic visit given that an Indian Prime Minister had visited Turkmenistan after 20 years. Thejo Engineering: Porinju Veliyath-owned Equity Intelligence India bought 50,000 shares of Thejo Engineering at an average price of Rs 675.11. On the other hand, India Opportunities Fund sold 1,71,400 shares of Thejo Engineering at an average price of Rs 679.81. live bse live nse live Volume Todays L/H More Porinju Veliyath, managing director and portfolio manager, Equity Intelligence India, in a letter to investors last week said that he made a mistake by investing in LEEL Electricals Ltd (formerly Lloyd Electric & Engineering). The stock lost more than 80 percent of value since 2018 till date. The stock fell from Rs 287.60 recorded on December 29, 2017 to Rs 47.65 on 11 January 2019. According to September shareholding data, EQ India Fund & PMS clients of Equity Intelligence India Pvt Ltd held 8.38 percent stake. The firm held 7.9 percent stake in the quarter ended June. Moneycontrol has reviewed a copy of the letter. In a rare admission, the Kochi-based investor, in a letter to investors said: "Our investment in LEEL has witnessed a significant capital erosion and I admit that in hindsight it looks a mistake. My assumption that siphoning off in a changing regulatory environment would be difficult appears faulty." "LEEL share price is nearly 80 percent low from the cost in most of the accounts. While we cannot rule out a possibility of eventual recovery in the share price, the damage has already been done. Rare but costly misjudgments like LEEL resulting in permanent loss of capital are humbling and thought-provoking for us in our pursuit to create wealth for our investors through long term value investing," he said. However, he further added that "such flawed investments though big enough to be a drag on our investment journey, I am confident, would not deter us from creating wealth going forward. 5 reasons for investing in LEEL as highlighted in the letter: The company had received Rs 1,550 crore cash from the sale of Consumer Durable (CD) division to Havells and was trading at Rs 1,000 crore market cap (Now Rs 200 crore). The company had a good long-term operating track record in air conditioning and white goods space, having successfully created and divested the "Lloyd" brand of appliances. The company had just sold the brand "Lloyd" along with associated intangible assets and had retained the operating assets including 8 manufacturing facilities in India and abroad and was set to continue its business of being an OEM supplier to other major manufacturers. Post demonetisation and implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), corporate governance standards, law enforcement and business culture in India was improving and it was getting tougher to siphon off from public listed companies. Also subsequent to the Companies Act 2013, and various SEBI initiatives, the minority shareholder rights were getting stronger. Under these circumstances, the likelihood of LEEL promoters siphoning off the cash received from the sale of CD division was low. Given the opportunities that the space in which LEEL operates and being cash rich, the most logical path for the promoters who have been in the business for around three decades, would have been to take the company to higher orbits and thereby creating wealth for all the stakeholders involved. What really happened? Porinju in the letter said that his firm had accumulated nearly 5.4 percent of the company by October 2017. The company reported Rs 946.43 crore profit from the sale of CD division in Q218 results in November 2017, in line with the investment thesis. Strong Quarterly Results: Q318 results published in February 2018 also confirmed the same Rs 946.43 crore profit figure and we continued to buy LEEL. By end of February 2018, we held nearly 8 percent of the companys equity. Management change with the demise of promoter: Meanwhile, in December 2017, the promoter of the company Brij Raj Punj passed away and his son, Bharat Punj took over the reins of the company. Throughout our interactions with Bharat Punj and other senior management in various occasions, they sounded optimistic about the business and future of the company, in line with our investment rationale. Company wrote back the profit from the sale of CD division: On May 30, 2018, to the shock of minority shareholders, the company arbitrarily wrote back the profit from the sale of CD division in FY18 annual results to Rs 663 crore, triggering a selloff in the stock. Diversion of funds to promoters: The company also diverted nearly Rs 340 crore to promoter entities including the listed debt-laden entity Fedders Electric Ltd. as capex and loans for buying land and factories of their own plants. The stock fell from Rs 215 to Rs 127 in five days and the liquidity in the counter dried up. Exploring legal remedies: A complaint was filed with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), seeking a forensic audit of books of accounts of LEEL Electricals, without which the suspected fraudulent actions of the promoters and senior management to siphon off companys wealth for personal enrichment cannot be proven legally. Management exits -- a cause of concern: In the two months after a complaint was filed with SEBI, there has been several high levels exits from the company including many from senior management like the group CFO, Company Secretary, and VP Finance, Operations Director etc. Fall in value: Value of LEEL, in most of the accounts, have fallen below 3 percent of the account NAV. Attempting to liquidate the investment at a time without liquidity in the counter will only lower the realisable value and this would not make any material positive impact to NAVs. Bikaner: Union minister BJP senior leader Sushma Swaraj during a party meeting, in Bikaner, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2018. (PTI Photo) (PTI12_2_2018_000148B) India on January 13 said it was committed to the economic reconstruction of Afghanistan and to promote an inclusive "Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled" peace and reconciliation process in the war-torn country. India's position was enunciated by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the historic India-Central Asia Dialogue, with the participation of Afghanistan, which focussed on a plethora of regional issues including enhancing connectivity to the country ravaged by terrorism. "I would like to specifically point out that our region is facing serious challenges posed by terrorism. India, Central Asia and Afghanistan are societies which are tolerant and plural. The ideology of hate which the terrorists would like to spread has no place in our societies," Swaraj said while addressing the first session of the dialogue. "We also need to ask that who these terrorists are, who funds them, how do they find sustenance, who protects and sponsors them," she said. "No business development, no investment can take place in a country suffering from terrorism. To promote business development in our region, we agreed to fight the scourge of terrorism together," Swaraj said, adding that terrorism seriously erodes all avenues of development which a country can have. Development partnership has emerged as an important component of India's engagement with Afghanistan. The minister offered to extend this partnership to Central Asia as well, where India can bring countries closer by taking up concrete projects under lines of credit and buyers' credit, and by sharing its expertise. She said more efficient connectivity will lead to the full realisation of the growth potential of the region. "We are geographically close and, in terms of air connectivity, only about three hours away," she said adding the time has come to develop more efficient transit routes, as well as to better utilise existing opportunities and find innovative solutions. India has proposed the setting up of the 'India-Central Asia Development Group' to take forward this development partnership between India and Central Asian countries. The group will come up with concrete proposals, Swaraj said. She mentioned the joint efforts of India, Iran and Afghanistan that have led to the development of the Chabahar port in Iran as a viable route to connect to Afghanistan and potentially to Central Asia. "Chabahar provides a shining example of what strong partnership can achieve to overcome any obstacles," she said. India has already sent a very substantial quantity of wheat to Afghanistan using the Chabahar port. Last month, an Indian company opened its office and took over operations at the Shaheed Beheshti port at Chabahar, she said. India is also looking to develop the Chabahar-Zahedan railway link which would bring it close to the Zaranj-Delaram road link which India has already built in Afghanistan. India has also put forward several proposals towards enhancing cultural cooperation and training programmes for capacity building for candidates from Central Asia. Swaraj said "India supports the people and government of Afghanistan in their efforts to build a united, sovereign, democratic, peaceful, stable, prosperous and inclusive nation. India supports all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan which are inclusive and Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled". These efforts should preserve the gains of the last 18 years. The violence and terror imposed on Afghan people should end. It should strengthen unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, she said. India is extending development assistance to Afghanistan of over USD 3 billion, focused on reconstruction, infrastructure development, capacity building, human resources development and connectivity. Under the 'New Development Partnership' launched in September 2017, new projects are being taken up including Shahtoot Dam drinking water project for Kabul city, low-cost housing in Nangarhar province, 116 High Impact Community Development Projects and a host of other infrastructure development projects. Over 3,500 Afghan nationals are trained and receive education in India every year, she said. Bound together by shared history and cultural linkages, India and the Central Asian states look forward to the dialogue as an important initiative to enhance their cooperation in wide-ranging spheres including exploring ways to substantially enhance India's economic involvement in business and development sector of Central Asia, the MEA had said. Swaraj arrived in the ancient city of Samarkand on January 12 on a two-day visit to attend the first-ever India-Central Asia Dialogue. The MEA earlier said that the first-ever India-Central Asia Dialogue, with Afghan participation, "will take India's outreach to the region to a new high." Foreign ministers of Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan and the First Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan are also participating in the dialogue. India will host the next India-Central Asia Dialogue with the participation of Afghanistan at the foreign ministers' level in 2020. A customs duty exemption on select electric vehicle parts is a step that would incentivise the purchase of EVs. This, the FM said, has been done to facilitate a shift from fossil fuels to environment friendly fuels. (Image: PTI) The World Bank has committed to provide India funds worth $300 million to aid its energy efficiency programme, sources told Moneycontrol. The move will help the government set up the requisite infrastructure to push forward its ambition of expanding electric mobility in the country. In a meeting held in December 2018, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) informed the Committee of Secretaries that the World Bank would route the aid to India through Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL), a government-owned public sector unit, people aware of the development said. EESL did not respond to Moneycontrols request for comment at the time of publishing. The story will be updated as and when a response is received. The proposal was announced at a meeting attended by officials including cabinet secretary PK Sinha, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, Secretary of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change CK Mishra, and the Secretary the of Department of Heavy Industries AR Singh, among others. The aid received from the World Bank will supplement the funds that the Centre proposes to raise by levying a one-time fee from conventional fuel based vehicle buyers in a bid to provide financial assistance to the e-mobility programme. The MNRE proposed during the meeting to charge a nominal (one-time) fee of around Rs 500 from two-wheeler buyers, Rs 1,000 from three-wheeler buyers and Rs 12,000 from four-wheeler buyers, to generate an extra-budgetary fund of Rs 7,500 crore per annum, a source said. Also read: Centre may soon cut tax on hybrid cars to 35 percent While, over 40 million passenger cars were manufactured in 2017-18, over 2.41 crore two and three wheelers were manufactured during the same period. Apart from this, the meeting of Committee of Secretaries also decided to slash the existing tax rate on the raw material required for the manufacture of electric vehicles. The Department of Revenue (Finance Ministry) has been asked to consider lowering the tax rate and duties on raw material required for manufacturing of electric vehicles, said another source aware of the matter. Moneycontrol had earlier reported that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways had proposed to lower the cess on hybrid cars in a bid to promote the sale of fuel-efficient cars. According to the minutes of a previous inter-ministerial meeting, the transport ministry had proposed to reduce cess on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) to 25 percent, taking the effective tax rate (inclusive of GST) to 35 percent. The move would help to build a positive environment for electric vehicles, the minutes read. At present, hybrid cars are taxed at 43 percent (including cess) as compared to electric cars that are taxed at 12 percent. Incumbent internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles also come under the 43 percent tax bracket. High taxation rates were seen as a big deterrent in the field of hybrid cars, which were being taxed at 30.3 percent before GST was implemented. According to sources, the government has noted that due to the lack of proper infrastructure and higher cost incidence, electric vehicles are beyond the purchase preference of potential buyers. Latest calculations by the government have also projected a mere 5 percent penetration of electric vehicles in India over the next five year. This will create significant gap between the governments double-digit target and the actual number of electric vehicles on Indian roads. India plans to convert approximately 30 to 40 percent of its vehicular count into electric by 2030. Also read: Conventional cars to attract surcharge up to Rs 12k to promote electric vehicles The minutes of the meeting show that the Committee has agreed to adopt a three-pronged approach to drive demand for EVs, increase supply volumes and create a positive ecosystem for EVs. In its last meeting, the Committee also decided to focus on indigenous manufacturing of electric vehicles. It will lay the impetus on sourcing developing an indigenous supply chain that includes giga-factories and also facilities where lithium-ion batteries can be recycled," sources said. The term 'gigafactory' was first coined by EV pioneer Elon Musk, who owns Tesla, the world's biggest carmaker which has a portfolio of only EVs. 'Gigafactory,' a term popularised by Musk, refers to a huge battery manufacturing centre where the Li-ion batteries that go under the hoods of EVs are crafted. The PMO first mooted the idea of manufacturing EVs domestically, so that they would be outside the ambit of import duties, thereby, significantly lowering their price tags. The Centre noted that the need of the hour was to reduce the cost of EVs, rather than simply provide subsidies to manufacturers. While all of this is being planned for the passenger segment, the Committee decided to promote electric buses through operating expenditure (OPEX) model. The leasing of electric buses should be done on OPEX model only in public-private partnership. There was also a proposal of implying accelerated depreciation on EVs, sources said. The OPEX model uses operating expenditures as a parameter to decide on the payment mechanism. Sources said that government has decided to give subsidies to electric buses under the OPEX model. It is expected to spread the cash payout over a period of time, thereby avoiding a situation where large sums of money would be offloaded to e-bus owners upfront. India has seen a major shift towards electric vehicles over the last few years. Policy makers have shown strong intent in formulating various policies to push electric mobility in the country. Wall Street analysts have given iShares Latin America 40 ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares Latin America 40 ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. 1 hour ago | June 16th | 2021 8:30 AM The Essentials to Consider When Designing and Equipping Your Restaurant The following excerpt is from The Staff of Entrepreneur Media's book Start Your Own Restaurant and More. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code SIDEHUSTLE2021 through 6/20/21.The two key parts One example of that in Carroll County was drug court, which gave criminal offenders with addiction issues an opportunity to choose treatment over incarceration. Anecdotally, the program has proven successful for those who complete it. But there are fewer people entering drug court. At the programs height in fiscal year 2016, there were 40 participants. That number has dropped each year and, through early November of 2018, just 20 people had entered drug court in fiscal year 2019. According to States Attorney Brian DeLeonardo, thats because too many people are dying from fentanyl before those individuals even end up in the court system, where drug court may be an option. Barber explains that residents of highly developed countries are happy because their qualify of life is better they expect to live longer without fear of extreme poverty. Because of that, they tend to have less need for religion. He expounds a bit on what Batavick had touched on: societies with a welfare state that redistribute income have less chance of falling into poverty and therefore, have less need of religion as a salve. Meanwhile, the U.S., which Barber writes still has gaps in government safety nets, remains more religious than Europe despite similar levels of economic development. The University of Maines Lobster Institute says such a find is a one-in-30-million chance, even more unusual than blue and live red lobsters, which are also quite rare. However, there are lobsters that are more elusive: a split-colored lobsters, with half the body being orange and half brown, and crystal or albino lobsters, which are only found in one in 100 million. KALAMAZOO, MI The back room of Bells Eccentric Cafe buzzed with chatter and laughter as participants in Bells Seventh Annual Snow Jog carb-loaded with beer and granola bars before setting off on a leisure race through downtown Kalamazoo. After a countdown to to 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 12, around 300 Snow Jog participants in teams of two began their journey through downtown Kalamazoo to complete challenges at 11 different locations. With maps in hand, some pairs opted to walk, while others jogged between challenges that included giant corn hole, bowling and an antler ring toss. The jog is part of Kalamazoo Beer Week, a week coordinated by Discover Kalamazoo to help promote Kalamazoos craft beer scene. The week officially began Friday, Jan 11 and runs through Sunday Jan. 20. Tickets for this years Snow Jog sold out online in only 15 minutes when they went on sale in early December, event manager for Bells Eccentric Cafe Liz Glaab said. People get really excited and just love to come out, dress up, and have a good time, Glaab said. The annual Kalamazoo Beer Week favorite also benefits Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes. Jogger Norman Maples said he, his wife and their group of friends look forward to the jog every year. He said he likes that, while the jog is a lot of fun, it also brings the community together helps support downtown businesses. Theres a lot of fellowship, a lot of friendship," Maples said. We kind of look at this like: we train for this all year long and its kind of a mission trip for us. Were here to help others. We like to see others getting along, and this collaboration that Bells has put together is just good fortune for all of us. Before the jog, the teams were instructed to return to the Eccentric Cafe by 1:30 p.m. and to "have fun, be safe and drink responsibly. If they completed five of the 11 challenges at the different locations, the joggers won prizes and were entered into a drawing. VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI A 73-year-old woman and a six-year-old girl died Saturday afternoon in a head-on crash, according to the Van Buren County Sheriffs Office. The victims names have been withheld by police and the investigation is ongoing, according to a news release issued by the sheriffs office. The 73-year-old woman from Paw Paw was pronounced dead at the scene. The six-year-old girl from Coloma, Michigan was transported to a local hospital but later succumbed to her injuries, the release reads. The victims were traveling in separate vehicles at the time of the crash. Alcohol is believed to be a factor and the incident will be forwarded to the Van Buren County prosecutors office for review. Deputies responded at around 2:35 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 12, to a two-car crash in the 60000 block of Red Arrow Highway in Van Buren Countys Hartford Township. An off-duty patrol sergeant witnessed the crash and called for backup while assisting the injured parties. Van Buren County Sheriffs investigators believe that the 23-year-old male from Benton Harbor driving a white 2007 Chevy Equinox was traveling eastbound on Red Arrow Highway with two passengers, a one-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl, the release reads. Investigators believe the Chevy Equinox crossed the center lane and struck a black 2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by a 73-year-old woman who was traveling with a 57-year-old female passenger. The impact killed the 73-year-old woman and injured each person in both vehicles. The six-year-old girl was taken to Lakeland Medical Center in Watervliet where she was later pronounced dead. The 23-year-old driver of the Chevy Equinox was in critical condition and was taken to Lakeland Medical Center in St. Joseph. The drivers one-year-old passenger was taken to Bronson Methodist Hospital in critical condition. The 57-year-old female passenger in the Jeep Grand Cherokee was taken to Bronson Methodist Hospital in critical condition. Michigan State Police, Hartford fire and Pride Care EMS assisted deputies on scene. This story will be updated with more information when it becomes available. JACKSON, MI - Experience seeing the stars from closer than just a backyard. The Ella Sharp Museum has received a $60,000 grant from the Hurst Foundation to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Peter F. Hurst Planetarium. The grant will support new programming such as public lectures, opportunities to view the night sky via telescope and new exhibits. A new astronomy club will also be created. A Launch Party to help celebrate the revitalization is set for 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17, at the planetarium, 3225 Fourth St. The event features tours and more. This generous award helps us make the planetarium into a science destination in Southcentral Michigan and develop exciting programming at the intersection of science, art and history, said Diane Gutenkauf, Ella Sharp Museum executive director. The planetarium is focusing on an upcoming lunar eclipse and the science behind it. Showings of the video presentation Eclipse! will take place at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 13, and 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17. A viewing of the actual eclipse at the planetarium is from 9 p.m. to midnight on Sunday, Jan. 20. Tickets are $6 for adults and $4 for children and members. Three programs are scheduled for the planetarium from Feb. 17 to March 21. The family showing of Perseus and Andromeda is at 1:30 p.m. on Sundays. General audience shows for The Sun, Our Living Star are at 2:30 p.m. Sunday and 6:30 p.m. Thursday. Shows at the planetarium are in video presentation format and last up to an hour. Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for children. We want to make it a bigger scientific destination for the local community, said Erik Lyman, Ella Sharp Museum communications coordinator. Theres nothing else like this in Jackson, or even surrounding communities with a domed planetarium. We have state of the art software that can explore every corner of the universe. The planetarium is named after its benefactor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter F. Hurst, who agreed to underwrite part of the project that included a $200,000 planetarium in 1967. Hurst, a German immigrant who founded Jacksons Aeroquip Corp., served as the museums president during the 1960s. He died five months before it opened and was dedicated to him two months later. His son, Tony, now guides the Hurst Foundation. GRAND RAPIDS, MI Fewer residents in West Michigan and the Detroit region lack health insurance, according to a new report that takes a comprehensive look health care trends in the region. Substantial insurance changes were cited Friday, Jan 11 during the 10th annual health care forecast, Health Check 2019, at Grand Valley State Universitys Pew Campus in Grand Rapids. This report is intended to serve as a tool to assist in shaping the policy and supporting decision making for identification of priority issues and planning health care workforce preparation, services, and delivery systems, according to Jean Nagelkerk, GVSU Vice Provost for Health. Access to Health Care We are really starting to see the effects of the Medicaid expansion in Michigan, said Kevin Callison, an assistant professor at Tulane University, who prepared the report with Grand Valleys assistant professor of economics Sebastian Linde. It is clear that Medicaid expansion is reducing the uninsured rate and improving access to care. The share of the adult population lacking health insurance in West Michigan fell from 12.3 percent in 2011 to 7.3 percent in 2016, according to the report. In the Detroit region, the rate dropped from nearly 17 percent in 2011 to 8.6 percent in 2016. Health Check specifically analyzes health care trends in Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, and Allegan counties with comparisons to the Detroit region that comprises Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties and the U.S. Likely as a result of increased insurance coverage, the share of people reporting that they are unable to access health care due to cost has fallen in both West Michigan and the Detroit region, according to the analysis. Access to a routine source of care has increased. Callison, who works in the department of Global Health Management and Policy and the School of Public Health at Tulane, said the change in access to health care is one of the most notable takeaways from this years report. Rates of uninsurance throughout much of the U.S. reportedly have fallen since the implementation of the Affordable Care Act and reductions have been significantly larger in states that have expanded eligibility for Medicaid. Michigans Medicaid expansion began in April 2014. As of December 2018, there were 680,874 people enrolled in Healthy Michigan. During the 2018 session, the legislature approved a Medicaid work requirement. Trends in Health Behaviors The study found that changes related to health behaviors over the past several years has been minimal, based on the latest data from the Michigan Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. People who are obese and/or smokers are at an increased risk for many serious diseases and health conditions. The trends have been fairly stable for obesity in both the KOMA (Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon, and Allegan) and Detroit region, said Linde, noting that if your Body Mass Index is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obese range. For both regions, Linde said the percentage of the population thats obese has hovered around 30 or so percent from 2011 to 2016. He said for Michigan as a whole, 32.5 percent of the population is obese. The national average is 29.09 percent, highlighting the fact there is still plenty of room for improvement when it comes to dealing with the adverse effects of obesity in this state, he said. There is a divide between West Michigan and the Detroit region when it comes to smoking. Smoking rates appear to have fallen from approximately 20 percent of West Michigans adult population in 2013 to 16 percent as of 2016, according to the report. While in Detroit, smoking rates have consistently been around 23 percent. That figure is about 20.4 percent for Michigan, which is considerably higher than the national rate of 17.1 percent in 2017, said Linde, citing it as another area the state can improve. Major Medical Conditions Expenditures & Utilization The report examines the average annual expenditures for those diagnosed with at least one of six chronic conditions: coronary artery disease, diabetes, depression, asthma, high cholesterol or hyperlipidemia, and low back pain. For the first time since tracking these conditions, expenditures for nearly all conditions decreased from 2016 to 2017 in West Michigan. For example, Callison said theyve documented large expenditure increases for coronary artery disease over the years, but it declined 13 percent in 2017 to $25,329. From 2016, coronary artery disease expenditures in West Michigan were approaching $30,000 per person diagnosed with the condition, he said, explaining they couldnt conclude a specific reason for the decline. The average expenditure for each of the six conditions studied was higher in the Detroit region than in West Michigan and year-over-year increases tended to be greater. Health Education and Jobs Nagelkerk points out that this years Health Check documents that growth in West Michigan health care jobs has outpaced job growth in other industries and that the regional health care industry has grown at a faster pace than that of the state and nation. Over a third of our students (approximately 9,000) are in a health or health related program, said Nagelkerk, who told the health forum audience GVSU is the No. 1 provider of health professionals in West Michigan. Our students will be the practitioners that feel the need for the health care systems to do the work that they need to do and provide the safe quality care that each of us need. The entire report which examines multiple, health-related aspects of West Michigans environment, is available on the Grand Valley website. The health care study is a partnership among Grand Valley, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Blue Care Network, and Priority Health. Following the presentation there was a panel discussion with Spectrum Health President & CEO Tina Freese Decker; Robert Casalou, president & CEO of Mercy Health & Saint Joseph Mercy Health System; and Dr. Rakesh Pai, president of Metro Health University of Michigans Medical Group & Chief Population Health Officer. FLINT, MI - Eager residents formed a line that stretched to the door of the Flint Farmers' Market in order to meet newly elected Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Saturday, Jan. 12. The governor is stopping and meeting residents in various Michigan cities as part of a Whitmer Winter Warm-Up," an event celebrating her inauguration with fun, food, face painting and photo opportunities. Whitmer was joined by Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist II and Flint Mayor Karen Weaver. Residents, politicians, pastors and business owners were among those who packed the farmers market to greet Whitmer. After enjoying refreshments and photos with the governor and mayor, attendees were given a childrens book, book marks and DVDs as they exited. The governor said she wanted the event to be welcoming, casual and family friendly. "Im really looking at this part of the inauguration as the celebration, Whitmer said. One of the hardest things Ive had to do is earn back the trust of the people. Im working closely with Mayor Karen Weaver and my partners in the legislature...to set priorities from education to ensuring clean drinking water. The large turnout was a surprise to U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint, who said the support shows that Flint residents can relate to the new governor. This shows the people of Flint want to be close to those that they elect, Kildee said. Especially for the people of this area, to have the governor be someone they can talk to and have some trust in, its been a long time since people here have felt that way. Whitmer said she is working closely with Weaver to ensure that Flint is supported during its recovery from the water crisis. Her visit to Flint shows residents that the governor is interested in the city, said state Rep. Sheldon Neeley. Its great to see a lot of Flint people out through the honeymoon of the election period, Neeley said. There is a feeling of hope in the air of the city with the new governor. Im so happy to welcome her into the city of Flint and Im so grateful that she has not abandoned us." Residents who voted for Whitmer, like 82-year-old Collette Hall, were excited to meet the new governor. Other residents are excited for change, such as 66-year-old Diane Labree, who said her experience meeting the governor was wonderful. I am so proud of the job that I know that she and the lieutenant governor will do, Labree said. Im so excited for the future. FLINT, MI Children attending Eagles Nest Academy in Flint will be required to use clear backpacks beginning this week after police say a 10-year-old student brought a loaded handgun into the school building. The school will provide the clear backpacks to students. The charter school announced the decision Friday evening in a statement attributed to Eagles Nest Academy leadership on social media after holding assemblies with second-through-sixth grade students about school safety and weapons as well as speaking up about potentially harmful situations. We will continue to have assemblies about school safety and the idea that it is OK to say, specifically its OK to come and share information with the adults about things that could be harmful, reads the Jan. 11 statement. Officers with the Flint Police Department responded shortly before 10:30 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 10 to the school, 5101 Cloverlawn Drive, for a report of a weapons violation. Flint police Detective Sgt. Tyrone Booth told reporters at a press conference Thursday afternoon that the student made some other students aware he was in possession of a firearm." School officials immediately placed the building into lockdown mode that lasted around 45 minutes. Another student got involved (and) was able to retrieve the firearm and take it to the main office school building, Booth commented. Were grateful that it occurred in that manner and something didnt go wrong with having done that. Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton confirmed Sunday, Jan. 13 that the 10-year-old has been charged as a juvenile with carrying a concealed weapon, felonious assault, and bringing a weapon into a gun-free zone. The student was lodged in the Genesee Valley Regional Center. The gun was stolen, Leyton said, but its still unknown where the weapon came from. At a Thursday, Jan. 10 press conference, Booth said a felonious assault charge was being sought due to the conversations between the student that brought the gun to school and another student. He commended school officials for their swift reaction to the situation and the student who made others aware of the situation. It ... can be a dangerous situation getting involved, but a courageous student who knew that something wasnt right stepped in and made adults in the building aware of that and also removing something that can potentially cause great harm, said Booth. The statement from Eagles Nest Academy leadership further asks parents to have conversations with students in kindergarten and first grade over the weekend and to check their childs belongings and coats prior to leaving home. GENESEE COUNTY, MI The final day has arrived for Lowes stores in Burton and Flint Township. Lowes announced in early November 2018 that the company would close more than 50 underperforming stores in the United States and Canada including the Genesee County locations at 4274 E. Court St. in Burton and 2100 T A Mansour Blvd. in Flint Township -- the only two Michigan closures on the list. Signs plastered on the Burton Lowes near Courtland Center mall have included information about slashed prices as well as a countdown to the closure, with one reading Sunday, Jan. 13 Today is the Final Day! An employee confirmed the Flint Township Lowes is also set to close Sunday. While decisions that impact our associates are never easy, the store closures are a necessary step in our strategic reassessment as we focus on building a stronger business, said Marvin R. Ellison, Lowes president and CEO, in a Nov. 5 statement announcing the companys move. We believe our people are the foundation of our business and essential to our future growth, and we are making every effort to transition impacted associates to nearby Lowes stores. A majority of the closures included sites located than 10 miles or less apart. Most employees at the U.S. stores would be extended opportunities to transition to a similar role at a nearby Lowes store, the statement said. Rumors have floated around in recent weeks on social media regarding a Costco store possibly moving into the Burton Lowes. City and company officials have offered no confirmation to that end at this point. "It's a great chance to see a lot of Maryland," Jennifer Kottra said. "It will be a good experience to see the different kinds of riding. We can get ideas that we can use in our barn." 'At the Limits of What I Can Do:' Marine Corps Commandant Makes Plea for Funding Gen. David Berger told Congress that the service has trimmed assets and people and needs full funding to ensure readiness. The U.S. Air Force is currently coordinating its budget for fiscal 2020 as the Defense Department has solidified a top-line figure. Acting Deputy Defense Secretary David Norquist said Wednesday that the Pentagon has negotiated its figure but did not disclose the amount, according to Defense News. Estimates have fluctuated in recent months on how much the DoD needs in its total budget -- from $700 billion to $750 billion -- to cover future defense spending. A year after the National Defense Strategy trickled down through the ranks, the services each have had the opportunity to flesh out their most important priorities for the pending budget cycle, experts tell Military.com. The Air Force's outline shows how the service sees its mission going forward. "The balance in different airframes are going to reveal a little something about what missions and capabilities the Air Force is prioritizing," said Susanna Blume, a senior fellow in the defense program at the Center for a New American Security. She served previously as deputy chief of staff for programs and plans for Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work. Related content: "I think the announcement to pursue 386 squadrons was interesting, but [their initial] analysis didn't tell you where the rubber meets the road -- which of these mission sets, which of these capabilities, are more important -- so I think that the budget may be very revealing there," Blume said, referring to the service's goal of increasing its capabilities with 74 additional squadrons over the next decade. Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Dave Deptula, dean of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, said existing programs need to be seen through, which calls for more spending. "Accordingly, Air Force priorities should be long-range stealthy sensor-shooters (B-21); stealthy air dominance (F-35); modern tankers to sustain multiple operations in multiple locations (KC-46); Space Force enhancement of all types; and improving readiness to conduct major regional conflict against peer adversaries," Deptula said in an email. "Bureaucratic politics always comes into play in the Pentagon, and there are those always in search of ways to gain budget efficiencies regardless of warfighting effectiveness," said Deptula, who served as the Air Force's first deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. He said Congress also needs to back these critical programs so they don't fall by the wayside. "Hopefully, informed wisdom from Congress will shift monies for those false efficiencies into systems that will actually make a difference in future conflicts," Deptula said. But it may not go smoothly, especially in the era of Space Force, Blume added, saying, "Everything that's going on in terms of Space Force, it's a fairly tough environment." In December, news surfaced that the Pentagon is weighing inserting the Trump administration's proposed Space Force under the Department of the Air Force. Whether that could take a chunk out of the service's next budget has not been clarified. Blume said what the Air Force puts money toward in terms of new potential programs -- such as F-15X -- will show whether the service is serious about taking on new strategies. Speaking on background, an Air Force spokeswoman described the Air Forces pending fiscal 2020 budget as National Defense Strategy-driven." "The budget will align to meet that strategy," she said. The following is a list of ideas service officials are weighing and their progress: Light Attack The service was supposed to publish a final request for proposal (RFP) last month for a light attack aircraft, but it never happened. A draft RFP was issued in August: The service began alerting defense firms hoping to compete for the light attack aircraft program that it would start soliciting bids in December. But an Air Force spokeswoman on Wednesday said results from last year's experiment to produce more concrete findings on how a light attack airframe fit into the service's mission plan are still being analyzed. The service held a series of light attack experimental fly-offs and maneuvers at Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico. The Air Force in 2016 announced plans to hold the flight demonstrations with a handful of aircraft to test whether lighter, inexpensive and off-the-shelf aircraft might be suitable in ongoing wars such as Afghanistan. In November 2017, key lawmakers agreed to provide the Air Force $400 million to continue experimenting with the planes. The Senate Armed Services Committee, in its fiscal 2019 proposal, then added $350 million to procure a future light attack aircraft. The second phase of the experiment was canceled in July following a fatal crash. Air Force officials have said the most viable aircraft for the mission are the Textron Aviation AT-6 Wolverine and Sierra Nevada/Embraer A-29 Super Tucano. F-15X The Pentagon is considering an advanced "F-15X" fourth-plus generation fighter for its inventory. Bloomberg Government reported last month that top leadership will ask for more than $1 billion to buy roughly a dozen aircraft. The request would mark the inclusion of a new F-15 in the Air Force inventory for the first time in more than 20 years. If purchased, the new aircraft would replace the F-15C/D models. Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson said in September she would rather see more fifth-generation planes, such as an increased buy of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, before the service considered another fourth-generation model. "In any of the fights that we have been asked to plan for, more fifth-gen aircraft make a huge difference, and we think that getting to 50-50 [fourth- and fifth-gen aircraft] means not buying new fourth-gen aircraft. It means continuing to increase the fifth generation," she told Defense News. But according to Bloomberg, the Air Force isn't pushing the F-15X concept. Before he became acting Defense Secretary, then-Deputy Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan and other top leaders floated the new F-15X proposal. Others have touted the proposal, which would produce a fighter equipped with better avionics and radars and would carry more than two dozen air-to-air missiles. "If I was king for a day, I would buy some of those new, fourth-gen-plus airplanes, and I think they would be great for air defense alert," retired Gen. Herbert "Hawk" Carlisle told Military.com in September. "I think they'd be great for surge capacity to go if we had a [larger-scale operation], and they would certainly be more than capable to rotate through the current missions that we have downrange," said Carlisle, the former Air Combat Command commander. More 'System-of-Systems' The Air Force in recent months has switched from talking about a single platform concept -- of any kind of weapon, equipment or aircraft -- that could be a game changer in future wars. The service's strategy speaks more broadly to how it is developing its next best weapon: In this case, a "family of systems" that link, connect and share with one another to read the battlespace in real time. And it wants more. In June, the service announced it would house its next-generation Advanced Battle Management System at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. The network, which fuses the data from hundreds of sensors to provide situational awareness for combatant commanders across the globe, will function "as [a] decentralized system that draws on all domains," Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said last summer. It's one example for how the service is looking for more networked solutions. Another is incorporating automation and artificial intelligence into these types of networks. "What all the services are heavily leveraging -- and looking at industry as well for support -- is how do I take that very human-centric methodology that we have today and use artificial intelligence that uses automation, that uses some of the tools that are available, to be able to do that kind of analysis?" Goldfein said during an Air Force Association breakfast in 2017. Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. Stephen "Seve" Wilson agreed. "How can we do things where I can take advantage of autonomous systems that can sense and report back," he said last spring. "We're now looking at how we do that, how do we rapidly experiment and prototype with capabilities using those attributes moving forward." -- Oriana Pawlyk can be reached at oriana.pawlyk@military.com. Follow her on Twitter at @Oriana0214. A public hearing to consider the possible parole of Derrick Hampton, #224610 A public hearing to consider the possible parole of Derrick Hampton, #224610 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Chris Gautz, Public Information Officer 517-335-2316 The Michigan Parole Board will hold a public hearing on Monday, January 28, 2019 to consider the possible parole of Derrick Hampton, #224610. It will be held at 11:00 a.m. at the Handlon Michigan Training Center; Richard A. Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia, Michigan. Derrick Hampton is serving a Life sentence for the crime of Murder 2nd Degree. He was sentenced on May 27, 1992 out of Wayne County. Jerome L. Warfield, Member of the Michigan Parole Board, will conduct the hearing under the provisions of the Lifer Law, MCLA 791.234. Capacity at the public hearing venue is limited; admittance will be on a first come, first serve basis. Care for our students, and their physical and mental safety, is our highest priority. We take these reports very seriously and are working collaboratively with the HCPSS Office of Transportation to thoroughly review this matter, Lidgard said. Miami, FL (33127) Today Partly cloudy early then heavy thunderstorms this afternoon. High around 85F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%.. Tonight Thunderstorms likely this evening. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms overnight. Low near 75F. Winds NE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. SCHOOL DISTRICT 270 OFFICIAL SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SUMMARY SPECIAL MEETING OF THE SCHOOL BOARD JULY 16, 2018 A special meeting of the Board of Education of Independent School District 270 was conducted on Monday, July 16, 2018, in the Boardroom of Eisenhower Community Center. The meeting was called to order at 6:36 p.m. School Board members present: Chair Wendy Donovan, Vice Chair Kris Newcomer, Treasurer Steve Adams, Directors Jen Bouchard, Dave Larson, and Chris LaTondresse. Member absent: Director Fartun Ahmed Staff members present: Superintendent Rhoda Mhiripiri-Reed and Board Clerk/Director of Business Services John Toop. Staff members absent: None Newcomer moved, Larson seconded, to approve the agenda as amended (addition of Conference Attendance Request to Consent). Carried. Larson moved, Bouchard seconded, to approve the Consent Calendar as presented: a) MinutesSpecial Meeting Conducted on June 19, 2018; and b) Conference Attendance Request. Carried. Pursuant to the dissolution of TIES, School Boards of their member districts need to ratify and approve the TIES Reorganization and Definitive Agreements to be entered into on July 27, 2018. Ivar Nelson, Director of Technology, highlighted the agreement, as well the ownership/sale of the building/property on which the TIES buildings resides. Newcomer moved, Bouchard seconded, to approve the Resolution Ratifying and Approving TIES Reorganization and Definitive Agreements. Those voting in favor thereof: Adams, Bouchard, Larson, Newcomer, LaTondresse, Donovan. Those opposed: None. Carried. John Toop explained that the District had engaged Kinect Energy to develop an RFP for installing rooftop solar arrays on various District buildings. It is their recommendation that Borrego Solar be selected to install rooftop solar arrays, with an energy savings in excess of $1,000,000. Larson moved, LaTondresse seconded, to approve the Solar Power Services Agreement with Borrego Solar to install rooftop solar arrays on District buildings. Carried. The Board has been involved in negotiations with the owner of the property located at 5300 Glenwood Avenue, Golden Valley, Minnesota. Toop stated that negotiations have resulted in an agreed-upon purchase price of $3,787,500, contingent upon items being satisfied in the purchase agreement. Adams moved, LaTondresse seconded, to approve the Purchase Agreement between Hopkins School District 270 and Glenwood Valley Equities, LLC, for the property located at 5300 Glenwood Avenue in Golden Valley, Minnesota, contingent upon all terms and conditions in the purchase agreement being acceptable to Hopkins School District 270. Carried. Newcomer moved, Larson seconded, to adjourn the meeting at 6:57 p.m. Carried. As per M.S. 123B.09 Subd. 10, section 331A.01, subdivision 10, this is only a summary. For a complete copy of the meeting minutes, visit http://www.hopkinsschools.org/about-us/school-board/board-meeting-minutes or request a copy by emailing bobbi.mclaird@hopkinsschools.org Published in the Hopkins-Minnetonka Sun Sailor September 20, 2018 857077 Ad details SCHOOL DISTRICT 270 OFFICIAL SCHOOL BOARD MINUTES SUMMARY SPECIAL MEETING OF THE SCHOOL BOARD JULY 16, 2018 A special meeting of the Board of Education of Independent School District 270 was conducted on Monday, July 16, 2018, in the Boardroom of Eisenhower Community Center. The meeting was called to order at 6:36 p.m. School Board members present: Chair Wendy Donovan, Vice Chair Kris Newcomer, Treasurer Steve Adams, Directors Jen Bouchard, Dave Larson, and Chris LaTondresse. Member absent: Director Fartun Ahmed Staff members present: Superintendent Rhoda Mhiripiri-Reed and Board Clerk/Director of Business Services John Toop. Staff members absent: None Newcomer moved, Larson seconded, to approve the agenda as amended (addition of Conference Attendance Request to Consent). Carried. Larson moved, Bouchard seconded, to approve the Consent Calendar as presented: a) MinutesSpecial Meeting Conducted on June 19, 2018; and b) Conference Attendance Request. Carried. Pursuant to the dissolution of TIES, School Boards of their member districts need to ratify and approve the TIES Reorganization and Definitive Agreements to be entered into on July 27, 2018. Ivar Nelson, Director of Technology, highlighted the agreement, as well the ownership/sale of the building/property on which the TIES buildings resides. Newcomer moved, Bouchard seconded, to approve the Resolution Ratifying and Approving TIES Reorganization and Definitive Agreements. Those voting in favor thereof: Adams, Bouchard, Larson, Newcomer, LaTondresse, Donovan. Those opposed: None. Carried. John Toop explained that the District had engaged Kinect Energy to develop an RFP for installing rooftop solar arrays on various District buildings. It is their recommendation that Borrego Solar be selected to install rooftop solar arrays, with an energy savings in excess of $1,000,000. Larson moved, LaTondresse seconded, to approve the Solar Power Services Agreement with Borrego Solar to install rooftop solar arrays on District buildings. Carried. The Board has been involved in negotiations with the owner of the property located at 5300 Glenwood Avenue, Golden Valley, Minnesota. Toop stated that negotiations have resulted in an agreed-upon purchase price of $3,787,500, contingent upon items being satisfied in the purchase agreement. Adams moved, LaTondresse seconded, to approve the Purchase Agreement between Hopkins School District 270 and Glenwood Valley Equities, LLC, for the property located at 5300 Glenwood Avenue in Golden Valley, Minnesota, contingent upon all terms and conditions in the purchase agreement being acceptable to Hopkins School District 270. Carried. Newcomer moved, Larson seconded, to adjourn the meeting at 6:57 p.m. Carried. As per M.S. 123B.09 Subd. 10, section 331A.01, subdivision 10, this is only a summary. For a complete copy of the meeting minutes, visit http://www.hopkinsschools.org/ about-us/school-board/boardmeeting-minutes or request a copy by emailing bobbi.mclaird@ hopkinsschools.org Published in the Hopkins-Minnetonka Sun Sailor September 20, 2018 857077 Services for Bonita Deweese will be held on Monday, June 14, 2021, at 15th Avenue Baptist Church, at 10:30 am. Visitation will be Sunday, 4-6 p.m., at Webb Funeral Home. View the obituary at www.jamesfwebb.com. A cannon retrieved by state underwater archaeologists from the Queen Annes Revenge shipwreck in Beaufort inlet is hoisted aboard a research vessel during a previous dive expedition. A videographer has filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court regarding a lower federal courts decision that favored the State of North Carolina over alleged copyright infringement of the states use of his videos and photos from dive expeditions and research. (Cheryl Burke photo) Joan Mason takes notes as Tom Barratt, coordinator of the Crawford County Civil War Roundtable, leads a discussion of the continuing search for Confederate gold and the related conspiracy theories that have been inspired by it last week at First Presbyterian Church. Note: We have changed our commenting system. If you do not have an mdjonline.com account, you will need to create one in order to comment. Submit A Press Release $25.00 / for 2 days Ensure your press release runs prominently on our website and in our E-mail Newsletter. Gauranteed placement on these platforms is $25. Note: All submissions will go through our editorial approval process before being posted. Circle Drive in Beaufort is the closest intersection to the proposed roundabout at highways 101 and 70 business. Town commissioners want to hear more from residents and relay that input to N.C. Department of Transportation before plans are finalized. (Dylan Ray photo) An assistant chief probation officer at Lynn District Court who was indicted earlier this month on a sexual exploitation charge will appear in federal court Monday. Federal court records show 46-year-old Brian Orlandella of Beverly is scheduled to appear in Boston federal court for arraignment after a grand jury indicted him on one count each of sexual exploitation of a child and transfer of obscene material to a minor. The indictments were handed up on Jan. 3, one month after Orlandella was arrested. Orlandella, who was placed on leave from his job after his Dec. 3 arrest, is accused of sending sexual images to a young girl in Texas. According to federal court records, the mother of a 13-year-old girl living in Texas contacted police there about messages she discovered on her daughters cell phone. Investigators said the messages were discovered in May after the mother checked her daughters Kik messaging account. Authorities tracked the messages back to Orlandella, according to federal records. Orlandella allegedly had the girl, who at one point says she is young, send nude pictures and videos through the messaging service. "She told him she was 14-years-old, and he acknowledged that he is much older than she is," the U.S. Attorney's Office said. Orlandella sent sexually explicit photos to the teen, authorities said. Investigators traced the Kik account's IP address to Orlandella's home in Beverly. A search warrant was executed at his home on Dec. 3. Orlandella admitted he had a Kik account. Investigators showed him images sent to the girl that showed a bathroom. Orlandella said it was his bathroom, federal records said. When he was asked whether it could be someone else in the screenshots, he said it would be doubtful, records said. Investigators seized phones during the search. Records show Orlandella was released on a $50,000 unsecured bond along with several conditions sometime after he first appeared in federal court last month. FALL RIVER - A city man was found stabbed to death in his car late Saturday night. Joseph Reading, 39, is the victim of the homicide, which is being investigated by the Fall River Police, the Massachusetts State Police and the Bristol County District Attorney's office, according to New England Cable News. Police were initially called to a car crash near the intersection of Church and Hall Streets at about 11:45 p.m. When they arrived, they found Reading in the drivers seat. He was unconscious and bleeding from stab wounds, according to WPRI, News 12. He was brought to St. Anne's Hospital, in Fall River, by ambulance and was later pronounced dead, New England Cable News said. Reading is believed to have been involved in a fight while at a gathering a short distance away on Hall Street, the station said. As regular readers know, the Blue Cube Jazz series had to relocate last year when its home, Patrick's in Chicopee, closed. Luckily, the series found a new venue at Collegian Court in the same city. But even better than that, the annual Bobby Wright Jazz fundraiser will also be able to continue as Collegian Court has agreed to hold the benefit there. For the past two years, the fundraiser has been held at Patrick's, so this was happy news for Blue Cube Jazz and fundraiser organizers. The benefit will be held on Jan. 27 at Collegian Court from 3 to 7 p.m., headed up by Tommy Tisdell, the force behind the event. Bobby Wright was a renowned jazz musician who played the trumpet, the drums and sang. Each year, local jazz musicians come to sit in on the jam session and have the opportunity to pay tribute to his talent and memory. The money raised, as in the past, will go to a Holyoke Community College student of jazz. More that $10,000 has been awarded in scholarships since the original jam began in 2004. While I'm on the subject of Blue Cube Jazz, I might as well give you what's coming up the rest of this month, after the series took a break over the holidays. On Jan. 18, the series will feature vocalist Carol Hahn, followed by the Ed Brainerd Jazz Ensemble with vocalist Leslie Alexandra, guitarist Bobby Ferrier, bassist Steve Bulmer and drummer Clark Seibold on Jan. 25. Collegian Court is at 89 Park St. Scouting Report The Wildcat O'Halloran Band will return to the Theodores' stage on Jan. 25. Wildcat and his band have been bringing the boogie and blues to audiences in Western Massachusetts for more than 20 years, opening for just about every major blues artist to visit Massachusetts, from Gregg Allman to John Lee Hooker to The Stray Cats. The band has and has served as the backup band for Bo Diddley and James Cotton. Theodores' is at 201 Worthington St. in Springfield. Whiskey Park will once again bring their classic rock, soul, blues and country sound to 7B's Bar & Grill on Jan. 19. The venue is at 1152 Southampton Rd. in Westfield. Amber Belle will hold a song release party at Luthier's Co-op in Easthampton on Jan. 24. She recently recorded her first two songs and will celebrate the occasion at the event. The Bottoms will join her on stage for the party. Luthier's Co-op is at 108 Cottage St. Do you have a cool event coming up at a local club or bar? Send the information along to me at least two weeks in advance to and I'll try to get it in this space. A 28-year-old man accused of breaking into a Boston apartment Saturday tried to shoot a man living there, but the gun malfunctioned, according to police. Boston police officers were called to the Neponset Avenue area in Hyde Park around 3:20 p.m. for a report of a suspicious vehicle parked in the middle of the street. A man, later identified as Thiago Oliveira of Hyde Park, stood next to the vehicle. When police arrived, Oliveira got into the vehicle and drove off, according to police. Officers soon discovered that the door of a nearby residence appeared to have been kicked open, police said. Officers spoke with the occupant of the apartment, an adult male, and learned that Oliveira, who was known to him had forced his way into the apartment and threatened him with a silver and black firearm. Police said Oliveira tried to shoot the victim several times, but the gun malfunctioned. As police investigated the home invasion and searched for Oliveira, they received a call. A person found a gun, believed to have been discarded by Oliveira, in the area of 1114 River St., less than a mile away from the original scene. Officers secured the loaded gun, which matched the description of the weapon given to them by the victim. Officers ascertained that the suspect was presently on probation and, consequently, wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet on his person, police said. Police tracked Oliveira. He returned to Neponset Street a few hours later. He was then arrested. Oliveira was charged with armed home invasion, assault with intent to murder, unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition and several motor vehicle violations. What do you get when you cross a snowman and a vampire? Frostbite. What do snowmen eat for breakfast? Frosted Flakes. Where do snowmen go to dance? Snowballs. Where does a snowman keep his money? In a snow bank. What do snowmen like to do on a snow day? Chill out. How do you keep your feet from getting cold in the snow? Dont go around BRRRfooted. What do snowmen call their sons and daughters? Their chill-dren. What do you call a snowman with six-pack abs? An abdominal snowman. What do you call an Eskimo cow? An Eskimoo. How does one snowman greet another snowman? Ice to meet you. Scenes were shot inside a brick silo off of Clay Street. Councilman Danny Turner, who helped secure several of the settings, described the inside of the silo as spacious, with moss just like carpet on the ground. The silo is so big that you could turn a car in there. They needed props for that, Anderson said, so he supplied an old wood chair and rope, and he [an actor] tied the guy up with that in the silo. Filming also was done behind the Henry hotel on Broad Street; a car chase was filmed on Depot Street; and fight and party scenes were filmed at Hugos Restaurant on East Church Street. Library patron Patrick Wright ended up in the background of one of the scenes in the Martinsville Library. I saw a lady [actress] there with a baby. The camera was mostly on her or the kid or both, he said. It was in between the reference desk and the computers. After Anderson saw the films they shot being played back, it was amazing how much different it looks than the everyday Martinsville, he said. It was interesting, to say the least, said City Archivist Desmond Kendricks, who took pictures of the filming. Cape Coral residents will get a say in whether they would like to vote for city officials on the same ballot that offers county, state and federal races. Cape Coral City Council on Monday will consider an ordinance that will change the dates of primary and general city elections from odd-numbered back to even-numbered years to coincide with the mid-term and presidential elections. The public hearing on the matter will be held after the meetings 4:30 p.m. starting time. The ordinance was originally set for consideration in December, but Council voted to push it back to the new year following a very close election that required recounts in several state races. The ordinance would take effect for the 2020 presidential election in Council Districts 2, 3, 5 and 7. It would also provide for a one-time, one-year extension of terms of all current council members and the mayor in order to accommodate the change. State law precludes a shortening of terms. Beginning in November 2022 would be elections for Districts 1, 4, and 6, and the mayor. Councilmember David Stokes, who brought forward the ordinance, has cited the lack of voter participation and an apparent interest in residents to change to even-numbered years to make the change. Included in the agenda packet was an online and print poll conducted by the Cape Coral Breeze which showed that about three-fourths of those responding favored a move back to even-numbered-year elections, which the city did previously until 2007. A former supervisor of elections required the move from the crowded even year, fall election ballots, for the countys municipalities. Some cities opted for an even year spring cycle. Others, like the Cape, moved to the odd year cycle in the fall. Stokes also showed data that showed voter turnout in the 2017 mayoral election was 18.28 percent with the 2015 results even more meager, at 13 percent, while the 2016 General Election had a turnout of 78.52 percent and the 2018 gubernatorial and mid-term election had a 62 percent turnout. No city officials could be reached for comment Thursday afternoon after the Council agenda was posted online by city staff, however included in the agenda packet was a letter from city Business Manager Jay Murphy to Tommy Doyle, Lee Supervisor of Lee County Elections. The letter said the change would increase participation in local elections and reduce the citys every two year average election cost from $464,000 to a bare fraction of that. By extrapolating this data, we could anticipate a measurable increase in voter participation and a reduction in the two-year average election costs from $464,000 to a de minimis amount associated with translation fees for any referendums, Murphy wrote. Doyle said he supported the proposal, even though he had concern over the potential for overly-lengthy ballots and voter fatigue. In other business at Mondays 4:30 p.m. meeting, the Charter Review Commission will give its recommendations to City Council, which includes moving the election to even-numbered years and removing the power of veto for the mayor on line items in the budget. It also recommends a ban on mayors or council members, from contracting with the city until one year after their active terms and to change the number of signatures from 15 percent to 10 percent of the total number of electors for initiative and referendum petitions. City Manager John Szerlag will also ask the City Council for guidance regarding the sale of beer, wine or wine smoothies at Sun Splash Waterpark as a way to generate additional revenue. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., during a campaign rally for Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., in Milwaukee on Oct. 22, 2018. MUST CREDIT: Bloomberg photo by Daniel Acker. In this Jan. 9, 2019, photo, President Donald Trump arrives with Vice President Mike Pence to attend a Senate Republican policy lunch on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci) CONTRIBUTEDThis map provides a look at overdoses in the City of Lockport and the Town of Lockport in 2018. A green dot is someone who overdosed and survived while a red dot is a fatal overdose. Virginia Kropf/contributorHon. Supreme Court Judge Paul Wojtaszek administers the oath of office to Sen. Rob Ortt, who is beginning his third term in office, at the VFW Post in Medina on Saturday afternoon. San Antonio police are trying to piece together why a woman was shot as she was walking outside her East Side home Friday night. The unidentified woman in her 40s was walking her dog near her home about 11:15 p.m. in the 100 block of Vista Road when police say a grey vehicle pulled up and someone opened fire on the woman. Seattle Riding the momentum from November's elections, states' Democratic leaders are wasting no time delivering on their biggest campaign promise to expand access to health care and make it more affordable. The first full week of state legislative sessions and swearings-in for governors saw a flurry of proposals. In his initial actions, newly elected California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans to expand Medicaid to those in the country illegally up to age 26, implement a mandate that everyone buy insurance or face a fine, and consolidate the state's prescription drug purchases in the hope that it will dramatically lower costs. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee proposed a public health insurance option for people who are not covered by Medicaid or private employers and have trouble affording policies on the private market. Democrats in several states where they now control the legislature and governor's office, including New Mexico, are considering ways that people who are uninsured but make too much to qualify for Medicaid or other subsidized coverage can buy Medicaid policies. And in the nation's most populous city, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a publicly run plan to link the uninsured, who already receive treatment in city hospitals, with primary care. It's all in keeping with the main theme Democratic candidates promoted on the campaign trail in 2018. They touted the benefits of former President Barack Obama's health overhaul such as protections for people with pre-existing conditions, allowing young adults to remain on their parents' health insurance policies and expanded coverage options for lower-income Americans. At the same time, they painted Republicans as seeking to eliminate or greatly reduce health care options and protections. "Once you give something to somebody, it's pretty hard to take it away, and I think we see that with how the support for the (Affordable Care Act) has grown over the last two years," said Washington House Rep. Eileen Cody, who is leading the state's public option proposal. The actions also represent a pushback to steps taken by the Trump administration and congressional Republicans to undermine the Affordable Care Act. The GOP tax law stripped away the individual mandate, which was intended to stabilize insurance markets by encouraging younger and healthier people to buy policies. And last summer, the Trump administration said it would freeze payments under an "Obamacare" program that protects insurers with sicker patients from financial losses. That move is expected to contribute to higher premiums. The Democratic proposals fall short of providing universal health care, a goal of many Democrats but also an elusive one because of its cost. In recent years, California, Colorado and Vermont have all considered and then abandoned attempts to create state-run health care systems. Still, many Democrats are eager to take steps that get them closer to that. "This is not just a moral right," Inslee said in announcing his public option proposal this past week. "It is an economic wisdom, and this is very possible." Some lawmakers in Colorado, where Democrats now control the legislature and the governor's office, are proposing a state-run health insurance plan similar to that announced by Inlsee. It would reach those who don't qualify for federal assistance or who live in rural areas with few health care choices. Both states plan to rely on their agencies that administer Medicaid, the state-federal program that provides health coverage for roughly one-in-five Americans. Republicans are skeptical about whether the states can afford it, since they already pick up a portion of Medicaid costs. "This is about having the government competing in the private market. Medicare-for-all will be priced out," Washington state Rep. Joe Schmick said. Taking incremental steps to increase coverage options and make health care more affordable may be a smarter strategy than pursuing a costly and complicated all-or-nothing proposal for universal coverage, said Katherine Hempstead, senior policy adviser at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "Everybody wants to pay less for health care," she said. Democrats now have more leverage to experiment. Campaign messaging around health care helped them flip seven governor's seats to bolster their numbers to 23 across the country and win back several state legislative chambers. They gained full control of state government in several states, including New York and Nevada. That power will allow them to consider health care expansions that Republicans have resisted. In Nevada, for example, the state's Democratically controlled legislature passed a bill in 2017 that would have let anyone in the state buy into a Medicaid insurance plan, similar to the option being pushed in New Mexico. But former Gov. Brian Sandoval, a Republican, vetoed it. The new governor, Democrat Steve Sisolak, is forming a committee to look at health care options, including the possibility of requiring everyone to have insurance. In addition to the California proposal, that mandate already is in place in Massachusetts and New Jersey, with Vermont following in 2020. It's a similar dynamic in New Mexico, where Democratic lawmakers have talked for years about allowing people, including non-citizens, to buy into Medicaid if they cannot afford insurance any other way. Colin Baillio, policy director for the advocacy group Health Action New Mexico, said a bill is being drafted with the goal of getting it adopted this year and implemented for 2020. Carleton S. Coon Jr., a career Foreign Service officer who balanced professional and family diplomacy as ambassador to Nepal while his wife served as ambassador to neighboring Bangladesh, died Dec. 3 at a hospital in Warrenton, Virginia. He was 91. The cause was biliary sepsis, said his wife, Jane Abell Coon, who also was a career Foreign Service officer. For three years beginning in 1981, the two diplomats served respectively in Kathmandu and Dhaka. "Can a good marriage withstand having two ambassadors in the family?" the New York Times facetiously asked in a 1981 story on their appointments. "Yes, it thrived," said Coon's daughter Ellen Coon. "They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary last year." In deference to State Department traditions for female Foreign Service officers, Jane Abell Coon retired after 17 years in the government when she married Coon, a widowed father of six, in 1968. It was a tradition that did not apply to male Foreign Service officers. However, the protocol already had been breached at least once. In 1967, Carol Laise, then the ambassador to Nepal, married Ellsworth Bunker, an ambassador at large who later became ambassador to South Vietnam. At their wedding in Nepal, they received a congratulatory telegram from President Lyndon Johnson, which would have made it exceedingly difficult for a State Department bureaucrat to have insisted that Carol Laise Bunker leave the Foreign Service. For nine years, Jane Coon helped raise her stepchildren. The experience, she said, "had its moments." Resuming her professional life in 1976 after the State Department became less hostile to the idea of dual diplomatic spouses, she was a deputy assistant secretary before her appointment as ambassador to Bangladesh. As ambassadors, the Coons were only 90 minutes apart by airplane. "That's better than you can do between New York and Washington," Mrs. Coon told People magazine at the time. They visited each other regularly. Children came over for Christmas. There were exploratory family treks in the Nepalese mountains. "The way we live these days is an abnormal way to run a marriage," Coon told People, "but now at least when I see her, I see her. ... After all, it's nice to be an ambassador after 30 years of understudying the role." Carlton Coon retired from the Foreign Service in 1985, and his wife retired the next year. Carleton Stevens Coon Jr. was born in Paris on April 27, 1927. His father, a celebrated anthropologist, was on an expedition in Morocco at the time. The younger Coon graduated from the private Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusettts, served in the Army at the end of World War II and graduated from Harvard in 1949. After joining Foreign Service that same year, he went on to serve in Germany, Syria, India, Iran and Morocco. As director of North African affairs, he had oversight of U.S. relations with the Libyan strongman Moammar Gaddafi. His first wife, Janet Wulsin, died in 1967. Their son William P. Coon died in 1996. In addition to Jane Coon of Woodville, Virginia, survivors include his five children, Howard W. Coon of Castleton, Virginia, Katharine A. Coon of Takoma Park, Maryland, Ellen J. Coon of New York, and Elizabeth Gaskill and Richard G. Coon, both of Chico, California; 13 grandchildren; and 12 great-grandchildren. A 27-year-old man has been arrested for having sex with a 16-year-old whom he had a relationship with, according to Laredo police. READ MORE: Eldery woman accused of stealing identity of Laredoan that died in 2003 On Thursday, Ray Quintana was served with warrants that charged him with sexual assault of a child. He remains behind bars at the Webb County Jail, according to custody records. Authorities said CPS reported the alleged sexual assault on Nov. 14 in the 1500 block of North Arkansas Avenue. LPD's special investigations unit took over the case. Detectives interviewed the suspect, who was identified as Quintana. He told investigators that he was in a relationship with the teen for about two months prior to the report of the sexual assault. An investigation and the forensic interview yielded enough probable cause to obtain warrants for his arrest, according to police. READ MORE: Death toll in Mexico border shootings rises to 30 No further details on the allegations were available. Two Laredo beauty queens will be representing Laredo at the national Miss Celebrations USA Beauty Pageant in Orlando, Florida. Selena Hernandez and Yareli Quiroga were crowned at the Laredo Miss Celebrations USA pageant in April 2018. Hernandez, South Texas Miss Celebrations USA Supreme Beauty Queen and Miss Celebrations USA National Miss Christmas, is the daughter of Angel and Ariana Hernandez. She is a student at Laredo School of Contemporary Dance. She loves to donate to her community in any way she can, especially to those in need. Quiroga, Petite Miss Celebrations USA, South Texas, is the daughter of Manuela Navarro. She is a student at Avanti modeling agency and was recently awarded Model of the Year. Yareli enjoys attending events were she can assist people with disabilities and donating to people in need. The Miss Celebrations USA pageantry strives to embody the words "beauty by action." By giving back to the community and donating their time, talents and energy, the pageant queens will grow in poise, confidence and self-esteem, a news release states. "These activities help to build strong leadership skills while instilling strong values and helps develop an understanding that beauty is really defined by wherein we put our minds, hands," the release adds. Miss Celebrations USA will be held in Laredo on May 4. Miss Celebrations USA is currently accepting applications for their Cinco De Mayo Pageant, which will be held in the ballroom of the Embassy Suites hotel. The Cinco De Mayo Pageant contestants are required to bring 10 non-perishable food items, which will be donated to the South Texas Food Bank. Several groups from Austin, San Antonio and Laredo rallied Saturday outside CoreCivic Laredo Processing Center, calling for the release of an asylum-seeking mother so that she can protect her daughter. READ MORE: Anonymous tip ends in arrest of man and woman on drug charges The mother, Melvin Griselda Cruz-Lopez, a native of El Salvador, says she suspects that her 6-year-old daughter in Chicago is being abused, and she fears for the safety of her young one, according to Grassroots Leadership, an immigrants rights group. Cruz-Lopez has been arrested at least twice by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for illegally entering the U.S., ICE said in a news release, according to the Austin American-Statesman. In November 2017, she was deported from the U.S. to El Salvador. Two months later, in late January 2018, she was arrested again near Hidalgo for entering the U.S. illegally, ICE said. She has remained in custody since then. Cruz-Lopez says she fled El Salvador to escape gang violence and death threats. In November, she was transferred from the T. Don Hutto Residential Center in Taylor, Texas to the Laredo Processing Center off Saunders Street. EN ESPANOL: Piden liberar a madre de familia Cruz-Lopez had lived in the U.S. for more than a decade before she was first deported. She said she was on her way to work one day when ICE arrested her for being in the country illegally. She suspects that her ex-partner reported her to ICE. The organizations that rallied outside the processing center in Laredo on Saturday included immigration advocacy groups Grassroots Leadership, Laredo Immigrant Alliance and Austin Democratic Socialists of America Immigrant Rights Committee. Sofia Casini, immigrant rights organizer for Grassroots Leadership, said, "Griselda can and should be released at any time." "ICE has the power to release her and (U.S. Congressman Henry) Cuellar has the power to intervene," she said. "She's a mother on humanitarian grounds and they could release her at any time. There's no reason to be kept here." Advocates had hoped to call on ICE to release her immediately in order for the mother and daughter to be reunited. Cruz-Lopez wrote in a letter to her daughter, "My daughter Samantha, maybe today you don't understand what happened and why you can't see me, but only God knows. I have cried countless tears because I haven't seen or held you in almost a year. Don't forget me, daughter. You are my biggest concern. I want to be with you quickly and soon we will be." READ MORE: Left-wing group creates fund to oust Henry Cuellar According to the Austin American-Statesman, an immigration judge issued a removal order for Cruz-Lopez on Oct. 5. She remains in ICE custody pending an appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals, ICE told the American-Statesman. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa has released a list of 39 clergymen it says have been credibly accused or convicted of sexually abusing about 100 children, calling them the evil actions of priests and bishops. More than half of those on the list released Saturday night at least 23 are deceased, and Robert Vasa, bishop of the diocese, said in the North Coast Catholic newspaper that none of the priests or deacons on the list are still serving in the diocese. The names, which include four clergymen convicted of sexual offenses, were released in the newspaper. Many of them are already well-known through public accusations, admissions or investigations disclosed in the media or on the internet. Included on the list are 14 men who were accused of child sexual abuse in other locations but did not face allegations in the Santa Rosa diocese. Melanie Sakoda, a Bay Area representative of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, said the release of the names is helpful despite the passage of time and the death of many on the list. Theres still a value to it, she said. Whether theyre dead or not, their victims may not be. They were a lot younger. A lot of survivors think theyre the only ones whove been abused. When lists come out, they realize theyre not alone. Its a step in the healing process to know that it was not your fault. The release, the latest in the Bay Area, comes amid a wave of similar disclosures across the country after a Pennsylvania grand jury report in August accused the Catholic church of a systemic cover-up of child sex abuse by diocesan leaders in that state and at the Vatican. The Diocese of San Jose in October released the names of 15 priests the church believes to be child sexual abusers. The Monterey Diocese released names of 30 abusers earlier this month. The Oakland Diocese had planned to disclose names by Thanksgiving but pushed the release into this year. The Archdiocese of San Francisco has not announced a decision on releasing names, but officials in November said they would review 4,000-plus personnel files for any cases of abuse. Vasa said in a statement that he was releasing the names to give all victims of clerical sexual abuse the assurance that they have been heard and that the church is very much concerned for their well-being and healing. The document offers scant details, if any, of what each man has been accused of and when and how it occurred. Vasa said thats because many of the cases are decades old. The list includes information on each suspected abusers status but in five cases it was not known if they were working as priests. SNAPs Sakoda said the Santa Rosa Diocese was fairly thorough in its list, including not only priests and listing clergy accused of child sexual abuse outside of the diocese. But she said the list should have included any sexual abuse of adult victims as well as any incidents involving nuns or secular church officials. Sakoda said she hopes the list will become a permanent fixture on the dioceses website, and will be updated and placed in an easy-to-find location. Childhood sexual assault suspects named The Roman Catholic Diocese of Santa Rosa released a list of 39 clergy who were convicted of or credibly accused of sexual assault against children: http://bit.ly/santarosadiocese See More Collapse People should be able to find their abusers names, she said. Sakoda also urged any victims who dont see their abusers names on the list to contact SNAP, the state Attorney Generals office or the media to report them. The list can be found in a release from the diocese, prefaced by a statement from Vasa, or in the North Coast Catholic newsletter. The Santa Rosa Diocese covers an area of 11,700 square miles in six counties and includes nearly 180,000 members. Michael Cabanatuan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ctuan IF this doesnt work, then Im afraid we might have to resort to conscription. Im talking about the Department of Educations Teacher Supply Action Plan launched just a couple of months ago and apparently getting the same reception that a Kitchener recruitment poster - finger pointed aggressively at the viewer saying Your Country Needs You - would in the Ireland of today. Theres a woeful shortage of teachers in the island of scholars: theres an even more woeful shortage of saints but thats a different matter entirely. The thing is if we dont replenish the dwindling ranks of the teaching profession soon, well relapse into the state we were in when only a few hedge schools stood between us and civilisation. There are some basic reasons why few young people want to train as teachers anymore and why those who are already trained are fleeing the country in droves for greener grass elsewhere. Teachers are simply not being paid enough after six years of intensive study, while security of tenure is every bit as elusive as it was when the hedge schoolmaster had to scatter his classroom and head for the hills at the hint of a military manoeuvre. Actually, the hedge schoolmaster had it a lot better than some of his successors today who cant afford to put a roof over their heads at all. There is also, of course, the issue of the continuing pay disparity between those who will join the ranks of the profession this year after six years at college and those who signed up nine years ago after three to five years of study. The Department seems unwilling to bridge the gap, for fear of breaking the country. The public who profess to value education highly couldnt really give a toss so long as their offspring acquire the points for the most prestigious college places available. As for job security, the best the Department can offer young teachers is a Contract of Indefinite Duration after a couple of years in the job, which I believe is like a red rag to a bank manager when a teacher goes looking for a mortgage. I cant even imagine what life must be like on a CID. Id be living on my nerves. The Teacher Supply Action Plan was launched like a damp squib in a Halloween mist. The latest phase is titled Teaching Transforms, appealing to the altruistic nature of young people to consider how they might transform the minds and lives of future generations. Not a word about transforming the lot of the poor teacher and making the profession more remuneratively attractive as is done in Finland. Teachers are not happy campers today. Anytime they try to take action to improve their lot, they are accused of undermining the children of the nation and making them suffer. The Department likes that line too. As far as teachers are concerned, the basic tenets of the social contract and just labour laws dont apply anymore presumably because of deep seated summer holiday envy among the general populace. Despite all that, there are many dedicated members of the profession and many more who are very happy with their pay and conditions. But even they must be pissed off at the sight of their younger colleagues being taken for a ride. Most of them regard Teaching Transforms as a bit of a joke especially when it baldly states There has never been a better time to go into teaching . . . . to help shape Irelands future. Sorry, there was a better time. When anyone asked me as a child what I wanted to be when I grew up, without hesitation Id reply a teacher. It wasnt for any altruistic reasons now, mind you. It was purely materialistic. The pay was very attractive, the holidays even more so and the status almost unimaginable. Id be up there with the parish priest and Id never have to worry about a dowry. As it transpired, the dream was never realised. Like many others at the time, after getting the much coveted call to training, I was turned away from Mary I after failing the singing test in which I memorably performed the Solfa scale without once changing pitch. I suppose I could have become a nun and got in without opening my mouth at all, but I just became a bit bolshie instead, and now it makes my blood boil to see young people being lured into a profession where the State wants to capitalise on their idealism but wont even recompense them properly for their efforts. VICKY Phelan has chastised Taoiseach Leo Varadkar over the governments response to cervical cancer patients needs since she exposed the CervicalCheck scandal last year. Ms Phelan was speaking a year after she was given a terminal cancer diagnosis after previously receiving a false negative smear test result. According to a report by the Irish Examiner, she described the Taoiseach as all talk and no action over the handling of the crisis. And she said he doesnt inspire me with confidence. Ms Phelan, 43, made the comments about the Taoiseach in an interview prior to being awarded the Fitzgerald Bible Bruff Award for 2018. She later received a standing ovation from those gathered, for her public speech at the Thomas Fitzgerald Centre in Bruff. The award represents the legacy of former US President John F Kennedy as inspiring others to seek justice by taking responsibility for political and social action. Ms Phelan did praise Minister for Health, Simon Harris, for his efforts to improve screening standards and provide better treatment for cervical cancer patients. At least you know that there is a willingness there, where there isn't in other (government) parts, she added hinting her disappointment with others at the Cabinet table. I wouldnt have that same confidence in the Taoiseach, put it that way. He doesnt inspire me with confidence, Ms Phelan continued. "I think he is very much all talk and no action, and I just don't get (the) sense, that he thinks this is as important as what it is really, when you consider half the population in the country are women, and every woman in this country has to have a smear, she added. In response, a spokesman for Mr Varadkar said: The Taoiseach has the highest regard for Vicky Phelan. When they met last year he was impressed by her courage, and by her commitment to the CervicalCheck programme. Her input and advice continues to guide the Governments response. The Taoiseach and Government are very much guided and act on the advice of Minister Harris when it comes to CervicalCheck as he is the line Minister dealing with it. The Taoiseach, like Vicky, has said he wants something good to come out of this controversy. That means implementing the Scally Report in full and working to ensure that Cervical Cancer becomes a rare disease through the expansion of the HPV vaccine to boys, and improving screening by becoming one of the first countries in the world to bring in the new smear test. The Taoiseach and Minister Harris working together have ensured both these things will happen this year. NEWCASTLE West councillors have signed up to a voluntary ban on posters for the local elections to be held next May. And unlike in previous elections, this voluntary ban will not be confined to towns and villages but will extend right throughout the Newcastle West Municipal District. Now, Cllr Michael Collins, who proposed the ban, is hoping that the councils Environment SPC and the full council will adopt the same approach. Limerick, he said, should lead the way on this. We dont need to be putting our mug-shots up on poles. Election posters are costly and a blight on the countryside and also a safety hazard, Cllr Collins said, proposing what he called a complete but voluntary ban on posters. But the main impetus behind the proposal, he told his fellow councillors was plastics. There is a huge emphasis on plastics at the moment, he said, reminding them of government proposals to reduce one-off plastic usage. Plastic, he continued, was affecting marine and bird life as fish and birds ingest plastic and it was making its way into the food chain and being ingested by humans. And when posters were taken down, Cllr Collins added. the plastic cables remained on the poles, some for as long as 20 years. I think we would do our communities a big service by having the ban, he said, adding that it would also help Tidy Towns committees preparing for the competition. I think this local authority should take the lead in banning posters as well, he continued, asking that the motion go forward to the full council. Seconding the proposal, Cllr Francis Foley said the reaction to the ban in towns and villages at the last election had been very positive. People commended us for taking a stand, he said. Lets be honest, they look desperate and there could be 12 or 13 candidates, Cllr Liam Galvin said, also supporting the proposal. The only problem he foresaw was that while the six sitting councillors could agree on a ban, what about other candidates?; Cllr Collins agreed a candidate could not be stopped from putting up a poster. But he said: Let us take a lead, let us be environmentally conscious and support the government in getting rid of one-off plastics. You will be accused of trying to corner the market, Cllr John Sheahan told him. But the motion was agreed. Cllr Jerome Scanlan undertook to raise it at the February meeting of the Environment Policy Committee which he chairs and it will also go be forwarded for debate by the full council. CHRISTMAS doesnt end in the parish of Killeedy until after St Itas Day, which is celebrated each year on January 15. And next Tuesday will see hundreds of locals and visitors gather to mark the day in the traditional way, paying rounds at St Itas cemetery and celebrating with the community. Almost 1,450 years after her death, St Ita and the story of St Ita are still remembered with great affection in the parish which bears her name, Cill Ide. According to legend, Ita's name was originally Dorothea or Deirdre. She was a member of the Deise tribe in Waterfrod. But she refused her fathers wish that she marry a local chieftain, as she believed that she had a calling from God and wanted to become a nun. To convince her father to change his mind, she prayed and fasted for three days and three nights and at the end, her father Cennfoelad relented. Bishop Declan, later St Declan, of Ardmore conferred the veil on her and at the age of 16, Ita set off on her journey. Legend has it that Ita was led to Killeedy by three heavenly lights. The first was at the top of the Galtee mountains, the second on the Mullaghareirk mountains and the third at Cluain Creadhail, which is nowadays Killeedy. Ita was welcomed to Killeedy by the local chieftain of the Ui Conaill Gabhra tribe and established a community there, which was involved in fostering and in care of the young, the sick and the poor. Sometimes called the white sun of the women of Munster or the Brigid of Munster, St Ita won for herself the reputation as Foster Mother of the Saints of Ireland. St Brendan the Navigator is said to have spent five years in Killeedy. Each year, on January 15, visits are made to St Itas cemetery where the remains of her church are to be found and where it is said, she is buried. There, the rounds are made. Next Tuesday, there will be Mass in Raheenagh at 11am with Evening Mass in Ashford at 7.30pm. This will be followed with a parish social at 8pm in Raheenagh Hall where there will be a sit-down meal followed by dancing to Mike Condon and his band. A BREACH of the 2007 Health Act which was identified at St Catherines Nursing Home in Newcastle West was rectified within 24 hours, the homes general manager, Jim Canny, has emphasised. Mr Canny, a former executive at Vistakon and a vice-president of its parent company, Johnson and Johnson, was speaking to the Limerick Leader following the publication last week of the latest inspection report by HIQA. The breach, he explained, centred around two beds which were not registered as is required under the 2007 Act. It involved two people who preferred to stay in an independent living apartment rather than in the nursing home proper, he said. They didnt want to leave, he said. We told HIQA and they approved those two beds there and then. The breach, according to Mr Canny, was one of a number of legacy issues which he began working on last year when he took up his role as general manager. With a new management set-up in place, a root and branch analysis was carried out which identified these legacy issues as fixable. Since then they had worked hard and continue to work hard on those issues, he said. The latest HIQA report recognised the amount of progress we have made and we were satisfied with it given the amount we had to do. He was particularly pleased that residents rated the quality of care at the home as excellent and were happy with the activities available to them. Last weeks report was based on an inspection which was carried out in October and was undertaken to assess whether the changes that had been implemented were effective in improving regulatory compliance and ensuring the welfare of residents. A number of the non-compliances identified on the previous inspection had been addressed or progress was made towards addressing them, inspectors said but they highlighted a number of areas where there was non-compliance. Some staff members had not been updated on fire training or on handling, the report said. When this was put to him, Mr Canny said the summer period had made it difficult to train everybody but all staff had now been updated on fire procedures and 99% on handling. On the issue of training in general, he also pointed out that St Catherines had initiated an accredited training programme in Newcastle West which was providing qualification to FETAC Level 5 for staff members and potential staff members and there had been a fantastic response from the community to this. The HIQA report highlighted some gaps in CVs and references for some staff, Mr Canny acknowledged, but since October these had been substantially resolved. An annual staff review, which was a requirement in law, had not taken place, the report also pointed out, but this had since happened, Mr Canny said. Everyone has a job description. Everyone knows their responsibility. There is a strong induction programme and on the job training, he pointed out. Criticism on decor had also been addressed, Mr Canny said. Since last spring, the outside and inside had been painted, he said. Up to seven shower-rooms had now been upgraded although a number remained to be refurbished: the day-rooms had been transformed and redecorated with new lights, new televisions etc and problems with viewing television raised by some residents had been resolved. The HIQA report also highlighted non-compliance on infection control. This had been addressed, Mr Canny said through segregation and by placing locks on sluice rooms. Residents who spoke to the inspectors complimented the home baking, spoke of their privacy being protected and having choice about when they get up in the morning, retire at night and where to eat their meals. Residents also said there had been great improvements in the availability of activities since the new activity staff started and particularly enjoyed the music sessions, exercises and Bingo. Some residents said the availability of regular physiotherapy was very important to them. BEEF farming is no longer a sustainable business, said a spokesperson for the Limerick branch of the new Beef Plan Movement. There are numerous reasons for this, most of which can be laid at the meat factory gates and the retail sector, said the spokesperson. The main one being the price paid to the farmer at the factory gate and by extension the large percentage taken by the retail sector. If any business is to be sustainable it has to achieve a cost of production plus a profit margin. This is not happening with beef production. Some beef farmers have decided enough is enough and have closed the farm gates, said the spokesperson. The Limerick branch of the Beef Plan Movement will hold its inaugural meeting in County Limerick in Kilmallock Mart on Tuesday, January 22, at 8pm. As of the week ending December 30, the national average final price paid to farmers by 24 of the Department of Agriculture approved meat factories for an R3 steer was 3.89/kg, as published by the department. This price is inclusive of all so-called bonuses paid and has been little different for the preceding number of weeks, said the spokesperson. Teagasc figures suggest this price is well below cost of production and more so in 2018 due to higher input costs. Profit margins are non existent. This decimation of beef farmers cannot be allowed to continue if the industry is to survive. There are several other issues - thirty month age restriction, 90-day residency on last farm and four farm movements in animals lifetime imposed by meat factories, just to mention but a few, he added. The most recent one being the carcass classification scandal. The Beef Forum set up by the Minister for Agriculture has also failed to deliver any meaningful solutions for beef and suckler farmers on these issues. If all stakeholders came together in a meaningful way it could be mutually beneficial to all but there has to be a much more equitable distribution of the cake. It is to this end the Beef Plan Movement was initiated, said the spokesperson. The Beef Plan is an initiative developed by a working group of Irish beef farmers. The plan currently contains 86 points to address the difficulties on Irish farms today. The spin-off from beef farming throughout rural Ireland is also affected. Farmers must come together to face this challenge. Over dependence on RDP payments to keep the balance sheet balanced is not a safe place to be for any genre of farmer, moreover in light of what is unfolding in the EU at the minute. This will be a continual trend if not addressed. The Beef Plan 2018 - 2025 is designed to help beef farmers.The main co-ordinator, Eamon Corley has set up a working group to promote the initiative. More help is required. Mr Corley wishes to include all sectors of the Irish farming diaspora. Meetings are currently running around Ireland to explain the plan and help improve it. The organisers want to engage with over 40,000 farmers. Dairy farmers have a vested interested in this plan also as a significant number of cattle slaughtered every week are from the dairy herd. Dairy and suckler farmers choosing to sell their stock at the marts will get a decent price for them if the beef finisher gets a proper price at the meat factory. We encourage all farmers to get behind this movement in the hope that beef farmers would not just exist but flourish into the future and enhance the rural community as we used to know it, they concluded. Farmers wishing to support this initiative should make contact with any member of the Limerick committee listed below to register your support or alternatively they can do so at the meeting in Kilmallock Mart on January 22 at 8pm. David Murphy 087 6142761, Paddy O Sullivan 087 8199720, Sean O'Connell 087 1960644, Aidan Quinn 086 8664079, John Moloney 087 9380346, Donal Egan 087 1166720, Patrick Collopy 087 0686075. See beefplan.ie for more information. FIANNA Fails general election strategy in Limerick County has been blown wide open as Cllr Eddie Ryan is back in the race. The shock move comes just weeks after he revealed to the Leader that he would not be putting his name forward for the convention. Fianna Fail have already had some 37 selection conventions and I contend that my stand on the Pro Life campaign was a barrier to me being selected to run, alongside Niall Collins, said Cllr Ryan in November. The Galbally man accused Fianna Fail headquarters of playing ducks and drakes and showing him a lack of respect. Now he is back in the race alongside sitting TD Niall Collins and Aidan Gleeson, who has nailed his colours to the mast. There is a two candidate Dail strategy in Limerick County but three into two doesnt go. Cllr Ryans change of heart followed an article in this newspaper. It came about from a lot of different people who contacted me after the story. They said, This isnt on; Its not fair; This isnt good enough. Whether I liked it or not they said they were nominating me what could I say? said Cllr Ryan. He says he has received around 60 nominations and the backing of two cumanns. Five nominations or one cumann is required to make it to the selection convention. It is as simple as this the nominations are closed and there are three nominated, Niall Collins, Aidan Gleeson and myself. We are where we are now, there is going to be a convention and there is going to be a vote. I am back in this race by popular demand and I am in it to win it, declared Cllr Ryan. He said he was asked by Fianna Fail headquarters back in May 2017 if he would be interested in running for the Dail if a general election was called. I agreed and said I would be happy to run for Fianna Fail in a general election alongside Niall Collins. I expected that a convention would take place possibly August/September 2017. I sent an email around December 5, 2017 asking for an update on the date for the convention and received no reply, said Cllr Ryan. Since then, he says, he has heard nothing from party headquarters. I still think my Pro Life stance is why they didnt want me. We couldnt have a convention in 17 or 18 months but in 17 or 18 days, when I was out of the race, they set the train in motion by sending out the nomination papers. It is now out of their hands, it is in the hands of the membership and the membership will decide. I am looking forward to meeting them, putting my case to the Fianna Fail members and telling them I am the best man for this job, said Cllr Ryan. No date has been set for the convention. Aidan Gleeson, former Limerick IFA chairman and current Ballyhoura Development chair, also aims to convince supporters on the ground that he is the best man for the job. I was asked to consider putting my name forward for Fianna Fail. I spoke to a lot of people including Cllr Ryan and he confirmed to me that he had no interest in the position. Having consulted further on the matter, spoken to my family and thought the thing out thoroughly, I made up my mind to go forward. I now stand by that decision and will be a candidate at the Fianna Fail general election selection convention, said Mr Gleeson. The Ballyorgan man says the focus should be on addressing the issues faced by rural communities. A two speed economy has been allowed to develop, and the people living outside of Dublin, who depend on their own initiative to survive and who support local businesses, are forgotten. Rather than putting obstacles in the way of people participating in a national recovery we should be giving them the tools they need to build thriving communities, said Mr Gleeson. BUSINESSES have been further targeted following a spree of anti-social behaviour in a County Limerick village that saw youths recording themselves smashing windows and then posting it to social media channel Snapchat. Businesses in Annacotty are apprehensive to speak out in fear that they will become further targets after a video highlighting the groups antics was circulated on social media. The Limerick Leader understands that since the video was filmed in the early hours of January 1, there have been further incidents of anti-social behaviour in the area. On January 2, a fracas broke out in the village after a group who were acting anti-socially were confronted for their behaviour. The group is understood to have been urinating in public and throwing cans around the street. Three juveniles were picked up on public order offences by gardai from the Castleconnell Garda Station in connection with the incident. They will be referred to the Garda Juvenile Liaison Office. The prior weekend, a man in his late teens was brought to University Hospital Limerick after he suffered an apparent stab wound during a separate incident at a take-away in the Annacotty area. Investigations are ongoing. No further incidents have come to the attention of gardai since, the Limerick Leader understands. In the original Snapchat video, hooded members of a group can be seen attempting to smash car windows, as well as the front windows of a local business in Annacotty. The incident was one in a series of escalating anti-social behaviour in the area, which have left many residents and businesses rattled. It is understood the parents of a number of youths involved in the incident have made financial reparations for the damage caused. Gardai have also identified a suspect involved with the incident who may be referred to a juvenile liaison officer. To actually post it up on Snapchat, its just unbelievable, Fine Gael senator Maria Byrne said. It beggars belief that they would be that bold about it. Theres a fear factor there. There are people of all ages living out there and the last thing you want is to be set upon by a group. It is understood the parents of a number of youths involved in the Snapchat incident have made financial reparations for the damage caused. Gardai have also identified a suspect involved with the incident who may be referred to a juvenile liaison officer. An Annacotty community watch group and a business watch group are also to begin patrolling the area, it is understood. Separately, the nearby village of Castleconnell also recently experienced an increase in residential burglaries in recent months, with one neighbourhood experiencing 20 break-ins in a month. There have been numerous calls to open a full-time garda station in Castletroy, to serve Monaleen, Annacotty, Castleconnell and the surrounding areas. Meanwhile, a permanent garda sergeant took up a full-time position at the Castleconnell Garda Station on January 7. Sergeant Mairead Reidy joins four part-time officers at the station, providing cover along with Henry Street Garda Station to Annacotty, Castletroy, Castleconnell and the surrounding areas. The announcement of Sergeant Reidy has been welcomed by Fine Gael Senators Maria Byrne and Kieran ODonnell. This is a full-time appointment so it will complement the four gardai who currently serve Castleconnell, Senator Byrne said. I would urge everybody to immediately report any incidents of crime and anti-social behaviour to either Castleconnell 061-377105 or Henry Street 061-212400 garda stations, Senator ODonnell said. Fianna Fail General Election candidate for Sligo-Leitrim, Shane Ellis, has called on the government to set out a timeline for the upgrade of the N4/M4 road between Mullingar and Sligo. A commitment to upgrade the N4 from Collooney to Castlebaldwin and Mullingar to Longford road was contained in the much hyped National Development Plan. Project Ireland 2040 was launched to much fanfare early last year but there has been very little movement on key infrastructure projects. The Dublin to Sligo road has long been a major issue. There is motorway and dual carriage way from Dublin to Mullingar, but once you travel any further west than Westmeath, the road is reduced to one lane for the most part, said Ellis. A high quality road network is essential for attracting investment and business; however the roads across Sligo, Leitrim and north Roscommon leave much to be desired. The government committed to upgrading large sections of the N4 in the NDP. While I welcome this, I believe it needs to go further. We need a motorway, or at a minimum a dual carriageway, to link the North West to Dublin to help the region maximise its potential. Anything less is just tokenism. Its now almost a year since this promise was made. I am calling the government to set out a clear time line for the development of an improved road network for the North West. Until this is prioritised, counties like Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon will be unable to meet their true potential, concluded Ellis. Overcrowding at Naas Hospital during 2018 was at the highest level since 2011, when the highest number patients were admitted through through accident and emergency without a bed being immediately available. A total of 3,754 patients had no bed available when they were admitted last year. This was more than the 2017 figure of 3,361. The figures were compiled by the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation, which monitors overcrowding levels in public hospitals across Ireland. Just over 4,400 were admitted during 2011 with no bed the highest number since the INMO began compiling statistics thirteen years ago. Nationally some 108,000 patients had no bed during last year, comfortably exceeding the 100,000 ceiling for the first time And this represents a 9% increase on 2017. The INMO has pointed out that the overcrowding figure for 2006 was 55,720. Naas was not among the five worst hit hospitals in the country but Tullamore and Tallaght were. The INMO has blamed the problem on low capacity and understaffing and has asked the government to work with it to develop real proposals that will resolve the recruitment and retention crisis in nursing. Nurses have already voted for strike action with meetings taking place today and tomorrow to fix dates for industrial action. INMO general secretary Phil Ni Sheaghdha stressed that 2018 was the worst year on record and negative records were set throughout last year. The health service does not have enough beds to support our population. More beds means more nurses but the HSE simply cant hire enough on these wages. Its beyond time for the HSE to actively engage with the INMO to resolve the crisis in Irish nursing and midwifery. Patients should be focused on recovering but instead have to worry about waiting times, understaffing and a lack of beds, she said. SEE ALSO: Abortion services have not been introduced at Naas hospital New foodie businesses, an international embroidery competition and hi tech spaces for businesses and local jobs are all taking off at Mountmellick Development Association HQ in Irishtown. The centre has announced its plans for 2019, including the 'Webmill' coworking space set to open this Spring. It is now taking bookings for small businesses or commuters to take up some of the 35 desks. They list the pluses it offers besides the break from a daily long commute, include broadband, meeting rooms, free parking and a restaurant and creche on site. The professional kitchens at the MDA have welcomed two new fledgling businesses, Be Healthy Catering, and Sweet Bakery who will be selling fresh bread and cakes this January. The centre also plans to establish a business centre in 2019. The Beale Centre of Excellence will open later this year, backed by Enterprise Ireland. Tusla has also opened Mountmellick Youth & Family Resource Centre in the MDA in late 2018. The centre is also home to Mountmellick Museum, and its embroidery which has fans around the world, particularly in Australia. They expect more tourists to visit it in 2019. We have established ties with tour operators who will bring tourists to our Museum and to Mountmellick, the MDA announced this week. The third annual Mountmellick Embroidery Competition is underway at the museum, with entries expected to come in from around the world. A missing Hackettstown girl bound for Nevada has been found out of state, police said. Police Sgt. Darren Tynan said 16-year-old Jasmyne Delvecchio was found sometime Sunday afternoon at a location out of state, but declined to elaborate. She was last seen this past Friday at home. Police believed the girl initially was headed to Las Vegas. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Police in the Lehigh Valley wants residents to know about two types of scams they may encounter. Bethlehem police said Friday several phone calls had been made to residents by someone purporting to be us. The number the call is originating from is 610-862-4025, the police department wrote in a Facebook post. Upon calling the number back you receive an answering message with a computerized female voice. This is not a number associated with our Police Department. Anyone who is contacted by someone claiming to be a Bethlehem police officer, and who thinks it may be a scam, is urged to call the department via the non-emergency number at 610-865-7187. The other type of scam people may encounter seeks to exploit the partial shutdown of the federal government, according to Pennsylvania State Police. These scams may appear as phone or email solicitations, email links or attachments or pop-up internet pages. Residents should note that due to the shutdown, the Federal Trade Commission customer complaint system is non-operational, leaving a gap between victim reporting and consumer alerts, state police wrote in an alert, shared by Bethlehem-based Troop M. Please be aware of Federal Shutdown Scams. pic.twitter.com/LBqJTidNos Troop M - CSO/PIO Office (@PSPTroopMPIO) January 11, 2019 The government shutdown scammers may: Claim to need personal bank information in relation to federal benefits like Medicare. Offer pre-approved loans or grants in exchange for the victim's banking information. Offer side jobs to furloughed workers that require an application fee. Spoof real-looking bank emails to trick victims into downloading malware. State police say to never provide anyone with personal information such as your Social Security number, date of birth, credit card number, bank account or address. Above all, use common sense, state police say in the scam alert. If something does not seem right, it probably is not right. Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KurtBresswein and Facebook. Findlehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. - Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna, a governorship aspirant of the PDP, donates Marcopolo bus to President Muhammadu Buhari - Gwamna says Buhari has endeared himself to those who love Nigeria with the way he handles the country's affairs - The politician says Nigeria's current international rating has improved because of Buhari's method of governance A governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Gombe, Jamilu Isyaku Gwamna, has boosted the 2019 campaign of President Muhammadu Buhari and the APC flag bearer in the state with the donation of a Marcopolo bus. The Nigerian Tribune reports that Gwamna, who said on Sunday, January 13, that the donation followed his promise to ensure that President Buhari and Alhaji Inuwa Yahaya win in the forthcoming polls. The aspirant, who defected to the APC after the primary election of the PDP in the state, praised Buhari for fighting corruption, managing the resources of Nigeria and repositioning the country on the diplomatic map. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda I am donating this bus not because I want anything back but because I have a special interest in the wellbeing of Nigerians and to also show to the world that I am a man of my word. I promised to work for President Buhari and Alhaji Inuwa; this is the fulfilment of that promise and there is no going back. APC is our party and victory must be collectively sought. I am only contributing my quota for a cause I strongly believe is in the interest of Nigerians and Gombe state. The present APC administration has taken the fight against corruption to the looters, saved over $43 billion as foreign reserve and that is being projected to hit $60 billion in 2019 because the President is honest. In the face of the forthcoming elections, one would have expected the reserve to drop as usual, but there is a change in that regard. PAY ATTENTION: Download our mobile app to enjoy the latest news updates Today, our rating at the international level in terms of diplomatic relationship has tremendously improved because of the transparency of the president and the APC led-administration. This is why I am supporting the president and there is no going back, he said. Legit.ng earlier reported that Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said if elected president, his administration will not release the so-called repentant Boko Haram insurgents because they may return to target Nigerian military personnel. The presidential aspirant in a statement on Saturday, January 12, by Paul Ibe, his media aide, said it made no military or practical sense to release hardened terrorists who had killed members of the military. He commended the Borno Elders Forum for calling on President Buhari to stop the practice of releasing the so-called repentant insurgents. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng. We have upgraded to serve you better. Buhari, Atiku, Sowore, Ezekwesili? Who will win if election is held today? | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng - The PDP's flag bearer, Atiku Abubakar, has asked Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra to quit supporting President Muhammadu Buhari - In a recent statement, Atiku claimed that Governor Obiano's campaign for President Buhari is contrary to the collective interest of Igbos - Atiku alleged that the president has continued to exclude the southeast from the nationwide railway connection, security architecture and political appointments Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has, through the director-general of Atiku-Obi campaign organization, Harry Oranezi, warned the governor of Anambra state, Willie Obiano, to stop campaigning for President Muhammadu Buhari. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the warning came following recent comments credited to Obiano wherein he stated that Buhari had done well for the southeast and south-south geopolitical zones for commencing work on the second Niger Bridge. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda The governor had reportedly hailed President Buhari for completing the Zik mausoleum in Onitsha, otherwise known as Zik Place, awarded 22 years ago, but abandoned by successive administrations. But Atiku in a statement said that Obianos support for Buhari ran counter to the collective and corporate interests of the Igbo. The statement read: Obiano support for Buhari is in utter disregard to his (Buharis) penchant to marginalise and discriminate against the people of the South-East and Anambra State in particular. Buhari has continued to maintain studied silence over the massacre of innocent South Easterners in the North, strategic exclusion of Southeast in rail connection, security architecture of the country and sundry appointments. The Igbos shall not be deceived by the actions and utterances of persons who want to achieve ill-conceived objectives." Obiano had expressed satisfaction with the standard and pace of work on the Second Niger Bridge as he also thanked the Buhari administration for completing the Zik Mausoleum. The Mausoleum is located at the popular Borome in Onitsha, the commercial nerve of Anambra, and home of the first President of Federal Republic of Nigeria. Obiano spoke during some visits to the mausoleum and the Second Niger Bridge. He said the completion of the mausoleum by the Buhari administration was an immeasurable honour to Anambra people and the entire southeast people. Obiano said that previous administrations paid lip services to the project, resulting to its abandonment for more than 20 years. The governor also appealed to the Federal Government to step up action in the procurement of necessary facilities for the library section. He said it would be nice to have everything in place before the proposed visit of the president to Anambra for the inauguration of the mausoleum. Obiano said: President Buhari is determined to keep to his promises on the Ziks mausoleum. The project is an honour to Zik of Africa, who played major roles in shaping the nation. This project started 23 years ago and we must thank President Buhari for keeping to his words." The governor was visibly happy with the extent of work done so far at the site of the second Niger Bridge. He said he was confident that the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari would deliver on the job as scheduled. He noted that the bridge, when completed, would not only boost the economic activities of the southeast and south-south but that of the whole country. I have no choice than to praise President Muhammadu Buhari for his determination in the implementation of other federal government projects in the state and other states in the region, he said. The project director, Julius Berger Construction Company, Fredrick Wieser, explained that the construction would be in three phases. PAY ATTENTION: Get the Latest Nigerian News Anywhere 24/7. Spend less on the Internet! Wieser noted that the federal government has already made advance payment of 15 per cent which amounted to N30 billion as mobilisation fee. According to him, the bridge will be 1.6 km, while the access road from Asaba axis will be 3.3 km and 7km from Anambra respectively. Right now, we are doing foundation work in the river which will be 50 metres deep. The piling work in the river will be 15 metres above water level to allow free flow of ships, he said. He, however, pointed out that with the determination of the present administration, the project would be delivered on or before February 28, 2022. Meanwhile, Legit.ng had reported that Obiano had commended President Buhari over the level of work on the second Niger bridge just as he expressed satisfaction with the standard and progress relating to the project. The governor was said to be impressed with the extent of work done so far on the bridge. Obiano expressed confidence that the federal government under President Muhammadu Buhari would deliver on the job as scheduled. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: Same great journalism, upgraded for better service! Buhari, Atiku, Sowore, Ezekwesili? Who will win if election is held today? | Legit TV Source: Legit The Nigerian Army on Sunday, January 13 said it had uncovered Boko Haram logistics supply syndicates among loggers and charcoal dealers in Borno. Brigadier-General Bulama Biu, the Acting General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Division, made the disclosure in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri. READ ALSO: Breaking: 3 reportedly injured as crisis erupts at APC rally in Owerri Biu was reacting to the ban imposed on the supply of firewood and charcoal in Borno. He disclosed that intelligence report indicated that some dealers in Maiduguri were hiding under the guise of firewood trade to aid the insurgents. Some of them are errand boys of the Boko Haram insurgents, they hide food items, drugs, petrol and other items beneath their trucks, and supplied them to the terrorists. We also found out that some of them are running businesses on behalf of the Boko Haram insurgents. They go deep into the forest where ordinary people could not venture; to cut down trees, burn and produce charcoal. This could not be possible except they are in agreement with the insurgents. We arrested some of them and they made quite revealing testimonies, we shall fish them out to put an end to their nefarious activities, he said. Biu explained that the ban was temporarily designed to checkmate activities of criminal elements among the dealers and not to make life difficult for firewood and charcoal users. He stated that the military had allowed suppliers from other states such as Oyo, Kano, Katsina, Niger and Kaduna to supply their goods under strict supervision of the command. Biu called on the people to support the military and other security agencies to end insurgency as well as protect lives and property. On his part, Malam Maidugu Ali, the chairman, Borno chapter of the Firewood Sellers Association of Nigeria, expressed dismay over the development. He expressed the associations shock at the allegation by the military authorities. Ali said the union had engaged members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) to support the military in the screening of its members before allowing them entry into Maiduguri. He also that the union had adopted measures to screen vehicles conveying firewood or charcoal to Maiduguri, to check suspicious activities among its members. Maidugu disclosed that more than 60 members of the association were killed by the Boko Haram insurgents in the past 10 years. Three years ago; we also recorded an incident when the insurgents hijacked one of our trucks and used it for suicide bomb attack, both the driver and his boy were killed during the incident. We are also victims of insurgency; we are strict in the registration of new members, any prospective person must produce two sureties before he was enrolled and engage in firewood trade, he said. Maidugu noted that the measure was to monitor its members and guard against any infiltration by the Boko Haram insurgents. He reiterated the readiness of the association to support the military in the counter insurgency campaign and peace restoration process in the state. PAY ATTENTION: Install our latest app for Android, read best news on Nigerias #1 news app Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Femi Adesina, the special adviser to the president on media and publicity, said only God can say when Leah Sharibu will be released by Boko Haram. The presidents spokesman said Buhari saw nothing wrong in paying terrorists ransom, adding that if need be, he would pay ransom to secure the release of persons in captivity. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: We have updated to serve you better! Exclusive: Freed Dapchi Girl Recounts Her Ordeal with Boko Haram (Nigeria Breaking News) - on Legit TV: Source: Legit.ng - Veteran actor, Dele Odule recently spoke against actors who flaunt their wealth on Instagram - In a recent interview, he stated that those who flaunt their wealth on social media are misleading the younger generations - He added that some actors who worship their material wealth have no business being in the industry Veteran actor, Dele Odule has shared his two cents about actors who flaunt their material wealth on social media. In a recent interview, the middle-aged actor stated that actors who flaunt their material wealth on Instagram are misleading the younger generations. He added that actors who attach so much to material wealth have no business being in the industry and are not in the business because they have a passion for it but rather are searching for ways to make ends meet. READ ALSO: Chioma allegedly calls Davido an idiot for lying to fans about their breakup When asked about such actors, he said: "People like that are not in the business because they have passion for it. They are just looking for where to make ends meet. A trained actor will never run after material wealth. I am not saying that acting cannot open doors; it actually does. However, a true actor will take material things as secondary; the priority is to get your message across to the viewers. The problem we are facing is that the industry is not sanitised. If there was a standard, many of those people you see who are all about flaunting material things on social media wouldnt be in the industry. What is the essence of going on social media to flaunt cars and other items? You would see many actresses dancing around on social media; even when they get pregnant, they flaunt it. Buying a car shouldnt be a big deal but they make it seem as if it is. Speaking on the effect of such lifestyle, Odule, added that the behaviour of flaunting personal possessions is corrupting the younger generations who are gradually developing a negative impression about the industry. "They are passing a wrong message to the young ones out there who will have a warped impression of the industry he said. In what appears to be a shade at some actors who follow politicians for monetary gains, Dele said: "Somebody who is serious-minded and creative would not run after any politician. That is not to say that actors dont have the constitutional right to follow whoever they like." Meanwhile, Yoruba actor, Gbega Akintunde popularly known as Burger, has passed on. According to actor, Kunle Afod who broke the news, Burger died after complaining of malaria. Did you know? NAIJ.com (naija.ng) is now-> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better. PAY ATTENTION: Read best news on Nigeria's #1 news app Nigeria Celebrities: How Much Do They Spend On Luxury Life? on Legit TV: Source: Legit.ng If there were ever a search for the most staunch Buhari supporter, then a certain Alege Taofik will easily make the mark. Taofik and his woman are set to walk down the aisle early 2019 and like most couples, recently released their pre-wedding photos and its theme has a lot of people talking on social media. The couple who wanted to reflect their deep love for All Progressives Congress (APC), posed in APC coloured outfits and campaign posters for their pre-wedding shoot and everyone can agree that it is really unconventional. We have heard of couples copying movie themes or coming up with creative ways to tell their love story but Alege and his bride-to-be might just be the first to use their pre-wedding photos as campaign for the political party they believe in. READ ALSO: Chioma allegedly calls Davido an idiot for lying to fans over their breakup Their interesting shoot had both of them holding their expression of marriage form as opposed to an expression of interest form had it been a campaign for a political office. They also used the main agenda of the Buhari administration, stating that their decision to start a family is 'next level'. Here are photos below: Beautiful APC themed pre-wedding photos of cute Nigerian couple Source: Instagram Beautiful APC themed pre-wedding photos of cute Nigerian couple Source: Instagram READ ALSO: No more wearing of underwear - Actress Lizzy Gold speaks on pant stealing Beautiful APC themed pre-wedding photos of cute Nigerian couple Source: Instagram Definitely adorable! Meanwhile, a plagiarised manifesto was published on the official website of the ruling APC. The ruling party, however, said its website was hacked, and had taken it down for maintenance. Did you know? NAIJ.com (naija.ng) is now-> Legit.ng We have updated to serve you better. PAY ATTENTION: Read best news on Nigeria's #1 news app APC Is The Worst Party in Nigeria, I Regret Being a Member on Legit TV: Source: Legit Governors from the south-south region of the country have summoned an emergency meeting over the reported plans by the federal government to remove Walter Onnoghen as the chief justice of Nigeria (CJN). The meeting of the governors on the platform of the south-south governors forum is also expected to discuss other issues including the security of the Niger Delta, during and after the election; the issue of derivation; in addition to the recent development involving the chief justice of the federation, The Cable reports. READ ALSO: CJN saga: Don't plunge Nigeria into crisis - Atiku tells Buhari Governor Seriake Dickson in a statement by his special adviser on media relations, Fidelis Soriwei, on Saturday, January 12, said he is yet to be updated about the complete details at the Supreme Court concerning the CJN, but warned that the action against the CJN was a dangerous escalation coming a few weeks to the general elections. The governor said the south-south governors forum would make public its position on the issue after the meeting to convey the position of the zone to the Nigerian public. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda Legit.ng had earlier reported that federal government allegedly asked the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen, to immediately vacate his office as head of the nations judiciary over issues bordering on non-declaration of assets. According to Vanguard, the federal government will arraign the CJN before the Justice Danladi Yakubu led- Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) in Abuja on Monday, January 14. The newspaper reports that the CJN is facing charges of failures to declare his assets as required by law and for operating Bank Domiciliary Foreign Currency Accounts. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: We have updated to serve you better! Top 5 the Richest People of Nigeria: The Luxury of Corruption - On Legit TV Source: Legit.ng News - 18 prominent members of the PDP renounce membership of their party at an APC rally in Bauchi state - Uba Nana, the APC chairman in the state handed over the defectors to the national chairman of party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole - Speaking on behalf of the defectors, former governor of Bauchi, Isa Yuguda, assures the APC that they would ensure the success of the party during the forthcoming elections The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bauchi on Saturday, January 12, received no fewer than 18 prominent members of the PeoplesDemocratic Party (PDP) who had defected to the ruling party. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the event was part of activities marking the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to the state. Alhaji Uba Nana, APC chairman in the state handed over the defectors to the national chairman of APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole. READ ALSO: UPDATE: CCT confirms CJN will be arraigned on Monday over non-declaration of assets Nana commended the defectors for taking the right decision at the appropriate time, urging them to contribute their quota to the development of the state and the party. Receiving the defectors, national chairman of APC, Oshiomhole, presented the broom to them as logo and identity of the ruling party. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda Speaking on behalf of the defectors, one of them, former governor of Bauchi, Alhaji Isa Yuguda, assured that they would ensure the success of the party during the forthcoming elections. He urged the leadership of the party to pardon their shortcomings. NAN reports that among the defectors were former Governor Isa Yuguda, former deputy governor Abdulmalik Mahmood, as well as senators Abubakar Maikafi and Babayo Gamawa, among others. Meanwhile, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has warned President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling All Progressives Congress not to throw Nigeria into an avoidable crisis over their desperation to sack the chief justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen. Atiku gave the warning in a statement issued by his special assistant on public communication, Phrank Shaibu, on Saturday, January 12, Punch reports The presidential candidate alleged that the plot to sack Onnoghen was a preemptive move because the Buhari government knows it is facing imminent defeat, and also bearing in mind that the courts play an important role in the final outcome of elections. Atiku reminded the ruling party that irrespective of what President Buhari is being told by his advisers or the buttons they are pressing to forcefully remove Onnoghen, the principle of separation of powers remains sacrosanct in a democracy. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng. We have upgraded to serve you better. Nigeria Latest News: Buhari vs Atiku - 2019 Elections | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng - Some former governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have decamped to the ruling APC - The former aspirants gave assurance to work with the party to ensure the victory of APC during the general election - According to the former aspirants, APC would win big at the forthcoming poll Four former governorship aspirants of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Niger state have have defected to the All Progress Congress (APC) along with their supporters. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) report that the decampees were received by Adeniyi Adebayo, deputy national chairman, APC south, on behalf of the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomonle at the launching of the state governorship campaign in Minna on Saturday, January 12. They include Ahmed Ibeto, Alhaji Hanafi Sudan, Ahmed Baka, Mr Umaru Ahmed popularly known as Dogon Koli. READ ALSO: NAIJ.com upgrades to Legit.ng: a letter from our Editor-in-Chief Bayo Olupohunda Ibeto, who spoke on behalf of the decampees, gave assurance to work with the party to ensure the victory of APC during the general election. At the occasion, Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, expressed optimism that APC would win big at the forthcoming poll. He said work had been completed on the Baro Port project, which would soon be commissioned as part of effort to boost the economy of the state. I want to tell you that President Muhammadu Buhari is very committed to the well-being of Nigerians. The Lagos to Kano railway project is one of such commitments of this administration to ease movement of our people. The completion of Baro Port shows that this administration mean well, he said. Osinbajo, however described Gov. Abubakar Bello asa young and hardworking man who deserves another four years to continue with the infrastructure development of the state. READ ALSO: They want Onnoghen out to rig 2019 election - Edwin Clark He appealed to the people of the state to support the re-election bid of the governor as well as other candidates of APC. Earlier, Bello expressed confidence that APC would win the forthcoming general election and appealed to the people to come out and vote massively for APC candidates. Rotimi Ameachi, director general of Buhari Campaign Organisation, urged the electorate not to take the forthcoming general election for granted. He said that the election was between the rich and the poor, describing PDP as a party that stole resources meant for Nigerians for 16 years. Ameachi noted that the present administration had delivered on its 2015 campaign promises to fight corruption, insecurity and ensure economic development. Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Atiku Abubakar, the flag bearer of the Peoples Democratic party (PDP), has said that the opposition will do its utmost to prevent the APC from rigging or manipulating the forthcoming presidential poll. PAY ATTENTION: Read best news on Nigeria's #1 news app During his recent campaign rally in Jos, Plateau state capital, Atiku alleged that the APC has already resolved to rig the presidential election which is why it is not campaigning across the country unlike the PDP. He also promised residents and indigenes that the PDP will put an end to the violence and crises ravaging the state if he is elected elected. NAIJ.com (naija.ng) -> Legit.ng: Same great journalism, upgraded for better service! We are honestly tired of Buhari and Atiku | Legit TV Source: Legit.ng New Delhi, January 13: The Indian Army on Sunday confirmed the arrest of its jawan by Rajasthan Police on January 4, alleged for espionage and sharing confidential information related to the army with a Pakistani ISI woman in Jaisalmer. The senior official of the Indian Army also informed that all assistance to civilian authorities in the investigation is being provided. Informing about the development, Defence PRO Col Sambit Ghosh said that the 22-year-old jawan was apprehended and interrogated by intelligence agencies for over four months after he was found to be in touch with Pakistani ISI operatives on social media. The spokesperson also said that fill co-operation with Rajasthan police and investigative agencies are being made. Suspected Pakistani Spy Arrested by Indian Army Near LAC in Arunachal Pradesh. Earlier, the state police presented the jawan before the metropolitan magistrate court which sent him to police remand till January 19. Identified as Sombeer, the jawan was posted at 75 armed battalion in Jaisalmer district and was in contact with a woman, suspected to be an ISI agent. Based on the intelligence inputs, he was arrested by the special branch of Rajasthan police. According to the police, the jawan was honey-trapped by suspected ISI agent, Chadam, who created an account on social media through which sharing of strategic information related to the Indian army were done. Adding more, police informed that the accused shared the secrets in the lure of money and had been arrested under relevant sections of Officials Secret Act, 1923. To investigate the matter, a joint interrogation team of state and military intelligence was constituted, which interrogated the accused based on the initial inputs they had. Police had confirmed that the whole incident of conversations and sharing of secrets data started via Facebook, when the resident of Maharajpur town of Rohtak district in Haryana received a friend request from Pakistani agent. They soon started chatting through text messages, phone calls, and video calls. Police claim that information related to strategic places in the bordering area was shared with the woman. This is not the first case of Indian jawans being honey-trapped by women ISI agents. Earlier too, several soldiers and officials have reportedly been honey-trapped similarly. (The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 13, 2019 12:27 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com). Snow is forecast to arrive in the Baltimore area Saturday afternoon, and meteorologists have revised their predictions upward. They now expect 4 to 8 inches in central Maryland. (Ulysses Munoz / Baltimore Sun video) Snow is forecast to arrive in the Baltimore area Saturday afternoon, and meteorologists have revised their predictions upward. They now expect 4 to 8 inches in central Maryland. (Ulysses Munoz / Baltimore Sun video) A filmmaker who often visits Yellowstone Park wrote to KULR-8, expressing his concerns about wolves being killed in Cooke City by Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks. He said he is worried the organization could be influenced by a minority of quote "wolf killing locals." "We know there's a local population a very small population of people that have killed wolves, and bait wolves and try and create this controversy so that was our concern and the residents rely on tourism dollars let's face it," said Pittsburgh filmmaker David Rohm. KULR-8 reached out to Bob Gibson with Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks for more information on the wolves in Cooke City. Gibson tells us a couple weeks ago a wolf was legally shot near Cooke City as a part of the hunting season. Soon after, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks received reports that the wolf shot, along with several other wolves in the area were being baited into Cooke City and becoming habituated. Other reports expressed concern that the wolves were becoming dangerous. Gibson said a biologist and game warden went to investigate these concerns. He said at this point they have found no reason to believe there's any danger to people in the area. Gibson said reports like the one KULR-8 received, have come from wolf advocate groups who think because they are monitoring the situation, means they are there to kill the wolves. He said this is not the case, and they will continue to monitor the situation and consider several alternatives. "One of the options is the person or people who are responsible for habituating the wildlife get to be arrested, I mean it's illegal. A last resort is they would be removed, they wouldn't necessarily be lethally removed, but we are a long way from making that decision yet," said Gibson. At this time, Montana Fish, Wildlife, and Parks has taken no action to arrest or fine anyone in the area for feeding or illegally hunting the wolves. The Santo Domingo beach of Montesinos is once again full of trash, the majority of which is plastic dragged out to sea due to recent heavy rain in the Dominican Republic. In July, hundreds of tons of trash were found in this same area. Sanitation workers have picked up more than a thousand tons of trash in the last month. To combat the problem, the Ministry of Public Works is considering fining people who litter. CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - A former Cheyenne teacher has been sentenced to at least 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a student whom he later adopted. The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports that Joseph Meza was sentenced Friday after the judge heard statements from the victim and Meza's family. According to court testimony, Meza had sex with the girl between October 2015 and May 2016 when she was between 15 and 16. Meza pleaded guilty in September to one count of sexual abuse of a minor, shortly after his trial got underway. In exchange, prosecutors dropped seven other counts. The deal was reached after about three hours of testimony from the girl and her mother. The girl read messages she and Meza exchanged, many of about having sex or meeting for sex. ___ Information from: Wyoming Tribune Eagle, http://www.wyomingnews.com (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.) A company in East China has turned the cockroach, generally considered a pest, into an environmentally-friendly creature to deal with kitchen waste. The agricultural technology company said 50 tons of waste can be "processed" by some 1 billion cockroaches at the plant on a daily basis. The plant uses American cockroaches because they are bigger and consume more. Cockroaches can live up to eleven months on average, and then when they die, their bodies will be used as feed for chickens. According to studies done under the supervision of the Chinese government, chickens fed with cockroach powder can survive without antibiotics. The fat content of their meat is lower than rabbit meat and their selenium content is almost twice as high as meat from ordinary chickens. The company plans to expand their factory, building three more plants, which could house four-billion cockroaches, which could then consume 200 tons of waste every day. In 2015, President Barack Obama ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to review the use of solitary confinement in federal prisons. The subsequent report was definitive: juveniles should not be placed in restrictive housing. The report acknowledged that in very rare situations, a juvenile may be separated from others as a temporary response to behavior that poses a serious and immediate risk of physical harm to any person. But the report made clear that even in such cases, the placement should be brief, designed as a cool down period, and done only in consultation with a mental health professional. "We are going to be running at just about full capacity again this year after the pandemic last year," said Director of Idaho Falls Parks and Recreation PJ Holm. Read more A total of 475 passengers and crew members aboard the Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas cruise ship became sick with a gastrointestinal illness, according to the cruise line. If you're interested in submitting a Letter to the Editor, click here. Submit Gloria Yoder lives in Flat Rock, Illinois. She likes to cook, bake, garden and being a mom! Readers can send her mail at P.O. Box 157, Middletown, Ohio 45042. For more recipes and information about the Amish lifestyle go to amish365.com. Police data on OpenBaltimore show the business was robbed at gunpoint on Nov. 13, with police receiving multiple calls for shots fired. Details of that incident werent immediately available, but City Councilman Zeke Cohen posted on Facebook at the time that the robbery suspect had fired shots and no one was injured. WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 18: Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI) speaks at a press conference on House Resolution 922 outside the U.S. Capitol July 18, 2018 in Washington, DC. Gabbard and Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) spoke on reclaiming "Congress's constitutional right to declare war" and efforts to define presidential wars not declared by Congress as impeachable "high crimes and misdemeanors." (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images) Georgia Democratic Gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams takes the stage to declare victory in the primary during an election night event on May 22, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia. NORTHWOOD, Iowa A single-vehicle crash in Worth County sends one person to the hospital. The county sheriffs office says it happened around 5 am Saturday when a deputy saw a vehicle speeding over the viaduct on 8th Street N in Northwood. As they deputy started to pursue, the vehicle ran through the four-way stop light at the intersection of 8th Street and Central Avenue and hit a power pole and a tree. The driver, Ruei Gatkuoth of Albert Lea, MN, was taken to the hospital by ambulance. This crash is still under investigation. The Northwood Volunteer Fire and Rescue Company, Iowa State Patrol, and Mason City Ambulance assisted at the scene. The occupants of the home were not home at the time and, when they returned, they confirmed all family members were accounted for, according to officials. GARNER, Iowa A string of Hancock County burglaries has sent two Forest City men to prison. Authorities say Christopher Michael Hoeft, 39, and Kristen James Nelson, 34, repeatedly broke into storage units in the 100 block of Industrial Drive in January 2018 and stole thousands of dollars in private property. Kristen Nelson Kristen Nelson Nelson pleaded guilty to two counts of 3rd degree burglary, two counts of 2nd degree theft, and one count of possession of a controlled substance-3rd of subsequent offense. Hes been sentenced to a total of 15 years in prison. Hoeft entered a guilty plea to three counts of 3rd degree burglary and one count of 2nd degree theft. Hes received a 10 year prison sentence. Both men must also pay $8,133.16 in restitution to their victims. Hoeft and Nelson were originally accused of over a dozen crimes but those additional charges were dismissed as part of their plea bargains. CHARLES CITY, Iowa To beat the cold, game enthusiasts in Charles City and around the area came together on Saturday to play their favorite video and board games. Today Im just out playing some board games, hanging with friends, you know just having a good time, said Chris Summers. He is talking about Game Jam 6, an event in Charles City that allowed gamers to get out and socialize with others for a day full of fun. Summers wasnt alone as dozens gathered inside the Charles City Public Librarys Zastrow Room. Some were simply there to play games and have fun while others such as Seth Sauceda and Owen Riker, made the trip all the way from Ames to earn a little extra cash. A little bit of money, the duo said. Its mostly for enjoyment though, said Riker. Sauceda had already won $20 from placing well in previous games, but Caleb Williams, the director of Game Jam 6 says making money is not what the big takeaway is supposed to be. I guess the original point was that I lived in a small town like this and I couldnt find enough people to play, said Williams. I started travelling to others (tournaments) and Im like, well this is a lot of fun but I dont want to travel two hours or an hour every time, so Ill post my own. That was the whole point; so I could have people to play games with. Mission accomplished for Williams as the event has seen substantial growth since it began in 2015. Its been a blast getting to hang out with people, meet new people, that sort of thing, Summers concluded. For those interested in participating at these events in the future, you can like the groups Facebook page for upcoming dates. NORTHWOOD, Iowa A Worth County woman is pleading not guilty to meth and pot charges. Theresa Mae Book, 33 of Northwood, was arrested in August 2018 after law enforcement searched her apartment in the 900 block of 9th Avenue N. Investigators say they found pipes used for smoking methamphetamine and marijuana and baggies containing both drugs. Book has entered a not guilty plea to a controlled substance violation and possession of marijuana-2nd offense. Her trial is due to start on February 20. AUSTIN, Minn. - On Saturday, United Way of Mower County hosted a preschool showcase at Austin High School. Parents got to visit with various preschool options in the area. Parent Jaimie Timm is getting ready to send her oldest child to preschool. She thinks there's a lot to consider when picking the right fit for her family. "I'm looking for something that's a little less technology focused and that emphasizes a little bit more on curriculum. Our kids are expected to do so much in school these days and she's only four," she says. Translators were available for families whose first language isn't English, and high schoolers worked at the fair to earn volunteer hours for scholarships. There is a broad disconnect between Washington and the rest of the country over interest in the Russia investigation led by special counsel Robert Mueller, Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz said Sunday. "There is an incredible divide between Washington and the rest of the country when it comes to Bob Mueller and the Russia investigation," Cruz said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "The mainstream media, Washington, is obsessed with it. And when you get outside the Beltway, I don't find anybody concerned with this at all." Continents and regions Eastern Europe Europe Government and public administration Government organizations - US Investigations Political Figures - US Politics Russia Russia meddling investigation Ted Cruz US Congress US Senate Cruz said people he spoke with in Texas were concerned about economic issues and border security, not about the ongoing probes and allegations about Russian interference in the 2016 election. Cruz's comment came in response to a question about the revelation that after President Donald Trump fired FBI Director James Comey in spring 2017, the FBI opened an investigation into whether the President had been working on Russia's behalf. Cruz said that as a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee he would consider any evidence produced but did not know details about the probe. "I don't know the details of the specifics there," Cruz said. "I know what was reported publicly in the media, and I sit on the Senate Judiciary Committee, so we will consider any allegations that come forward." Then again, if youd rather celebrate Mr. E.A. Poes Jan. 19 birthday where he lived (as opposed to where he remains forevermore), stop by Baltimores Poe house, 203 N. Amity St., for a 2 p.m. performance by actor Stephen Mead of either The Raven or The Tell Tale Heart (as an audience member, youll get to vote on which you prefer; seats are limited, so get there early). And if youre among the first 25 people to arrive, you get a free calendar! The house opens at 11 a.m.; admission is $6-$8, free for kids under 12. Following that, its PoeZella, a display of Poe-related photographs courtesy of the Baltimore Camera Club, a meet-and-greet with Poe Baltimore feature artist Crystal Micriotti and another performance of Poes work by Mead. 5:30 p.m.-8 p.m. at Zella's Pizza, 1145 Hollins St. poeinbaltimore.org. PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Portland police have renewed an effort to equip officers with body-worn cameras. The Oregonian/OregonLive reported that the police bureau has assigned a civilian program manager to lead a team drafting policies about how the cameras are used and how footage is retained and released. The manager, Tammy Mayer, held the first of 18 community meetings Friday. Officials hope to have officers wearing the cameras by October 2020 following a six-month pilot project later this year. A federal judge nearly four years ago urged the city to begin using body-worn cameras, and the bureau set aside more than $800,000 for the cameras and began a similar public-input process. But in 2017 Mayor Ted Wheeler expressed a reluctance to move forward without more information about how the program would work. The Police Executive Research Forum said more than half of all medium-to-large police departments in the United States now use or are testing body-worn cameras. Beaverton and Portland State University officers already wear cameras. Oregon State Police, Hillsboro and the Washington County Sheriff's Office are launching body camera programs. EUGENE, Ore. -- Oregon State Police identified the person shot and killed in an officer-involved shooting at Cascade Middle School as Charles Frederick Landeros. The 30-year-old was a former University of Oregon student and an activist. KEZI 9 News interviewed Landeros in October of 2017, when they and others held a student protest that interrupted what was supposed to be President Michael Schill's annual address at the University of Oregon. Landeros was killed during a shooting Friday morning. Eugene Police said they were called out to Cascade Middle School at around 10:30 a.m. for a custody dispute with Landeros. They began escorting Landeros back to their truck, when police said Landeros pulled out a gun and, after a struggle, was shot by police. An eyewitness to the shooting said Landeros was shot in front of their daughter. The Interagency Deadly Force Investigation team is reviewing what happened. Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner commented on the investigation Saturday. He wrote on Twitter: There are so many details to investigate when an officer is involved in a shooting. Oregon Law under Senate Bill 111 establishes a deadly force protocol for each county. Its important that the investigation occurs outside of the involved agency. Chris Skinner (@EPDChiefSkinner) January 12, 2019 One of the groups Landeros belonged is speaking out this weekend. The Civil Liberties Defense Center wrote a post on Facebook Saturday evening, saying Landeros leaves behind two daughters, a partner, younger brother, and numerous other family members and friends. Click here to see the full post. This group defines itself as a center that supports movements that seek to dismantle political and economic structures at the root of social inequality and environmental destruction. A disadvantage of the cash method is that it might overstate the health of a government that is cash-rich, but has large amounts of future payables or liabilities that far exceed the cash on hand, Curry said in announcing her research. She highlighted the city of York as an example where misguided spending choices have negatively influenced property taxes. In August 2018, York officials discovered the city had unknowingly spent down its reserve funds on a $9 million ball field complex. Addressing the situation required tax increases, along with a freeze in infrastructure and personnel spending. Unfortunately, most local governments in Nebraska use accounting methods that are not standardized, which can make financial documents harder to read, and could even convince local officials they have more room to spend than they really do, Curry said. Curry noted that school districts which consume the largest share of Nebraskas property tax revenues report their finances to the Nebraska Department of Education with cash basis accounting. Drawing conclusions from the Platte Institute report, we recommend that Nebraska lawmakers consider adopting a uniform approach to financial reporting that is GAAP-compliant. Spending decisions really do affect what Nebraskans pay in property taxes. Although most of the debate so far has focused on shifting the tax burden, its time for Nebraska governments to ease the burden by getting a handle on their spending. SCOTTSBLUFF Carlos Urreas dry bean breeding program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Panhandle Research and Extension Center at Scottsbluff has made progress in the past year in bringing three new varieties of dry edible beans to farmers in western Nebraska and elsewhere. Panhandle Pride, a new Great Northern variety, is expected to be commercially available for the 2019 growing season, after foundation seed has been grown in Idaho and Wyoming, according to Urrea, the Dry Bean Breeding Specialist at the Panhandle Center. Meanwhile, seed numbers are being increased in two other new bean lines the first an upright Great Northern line (NE1-17-10) with enhanced disease resistance to common bacterial blight and bean rust, and the second a semi-upright, slow-darkening pinto line (NE2-17-18) with enhanced disease resistance. Urrea is hopeful that these two additional lines could be commercially available as soon as the 2020 growing season. Panhandle Pride was developed by UNLs dry bean breeding program and released in 2015. Foundation seed increases have been carried out by UNLs Husker Genetics Foundation Seed Program in collaboration with the North Dakota Seed Foundation Program at Burlington, Wyo., and Kimberly, Idaho. HAY SPRINGS A father-son grower team from Hay Springs have been recognized for achieving one of the highest 2018 wheat yields in the country. Vern and Brock Terrell were named winners of the National Wheat Foundations 2018 National Wheat Yield Contest. They also won an all-expenses paid trip to Orlando, Florida, to attend the 2019 Commodity Classic, courtesy of the National Wheat Foundation and WestBred wheat. The Terrells took fourth place nationally in the Winter Wheat Irrigated category with WestBred variety WB4303, to which they attribute their award-winning yield of 106.72 Bu/A, yielding 188.43 percent above the county average of both dryland and irrigated winter wheats. Vern said they had planted about 280 acres of four different varieties of seed wheat, with about 60 acres one fourth of their total production planted with WB4303. With the exceptionally wet summer this year, worries about irrigated wheat going down were a concern. Vern said that he didnt have that problem with WB4303. It stood up, and we never had an issue with that at all, Vern said. Its a good all-around wheat for an irrigated situation. She will also serve on the Armed Services Committee; Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation; and the Committee on Rules and Administration. As I begin my second term in the U.S. Senate, Im excited to continue my committee work, Fischer said. Whether its modernizing our countrys nuclear enterprise, investing in roads and broadband infrastructure, or opening up new possibilities for our ag producers, there are a number of opportunities to achieve meaningful results for Nebraskans. I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle and the respective committee chairmen to make a positive difference in peoples lives. Poster contest to highlight Nebraska agriculture LINCOLN The Nebraska Department of Agriculture is asking students to show how colorful the states agricultural industry is by entering NDAs annual poster contest. The contest, in its 16th year, is open to all Nebraska students in first through sixth grades. ROGUE RIVER, Ore. -- Saturday marks the 22nd day of the partial government shutdown, making it the longest Government Shutdown in history. 800,000 people have been working without pay or furloughed. One family wants to help southern Oregon federal employees who might be struggling during the shutdown. Jenn and David Whitehead hope the region will come together to help their fellow Oregonians through their GoFundMe page, Shutdown Help for Federal Employees. "If I found myself in the situation, fortunately I'm not, it would be tough. So we thought how can we help? Thats when we decide to just do a GoFundMe page," David Whitehead added. Oregon is home to nearly 28,000 federal workers. According to the Employment Department, more than 9,500 are furloughed or working without pay. There is no end to the partial government shutdown in sight. "For us, it wasn't about whether this was border patrol or border control or building the wall. It was about Americans helping Americans and the act of kindness, said Jenn Whitehead. The goal right now is set at $10,000. There will be a screening process to make sure those who apply for help are in fact government employees. The amount that's given to each person will be based on need. "We're all in this together. These are our neighbors, our friends. We run into them in the store that are federal employees. They buy stuff locally that may not be able to now because they don't get a paycheck and that's tough. That would be tough," said the Whiteheads. If youd like to donate or apply for some help, head to the GoFundMe page here. CHICO -- California authorities believe the powerful opioid fentanyl is responsible for a mass overdose event that left one person dead and hospitalized over a dozen others. Chico police responded to a call at a home on Santana Court early Saturday morning. When they arrived they found one man dead and had to transport 12 people to the hospital. Jesse Alexander Chico Fire Department's Division Chief says, "We had a mass casualty event also known as an mci. At one point we had six CPR's in progress." In addition to that, two Chico police officers were taken to the hospital after they said they started to feel sick. It has not been confirmed, but police say signs point to poisoning from fentanyl, an opioid often mixed with heroin or cocaine. Mike O'Brien Chico Police Chief says, "So every indication is that this is a mass overdose incident was caused from the ingestion of some form of fentanyl in combination with another substance, although that is yet to be confirmed." First responders administered naloxone and performed CPR for multiple individuals on site, a task which took almost every ambulance in the city of Chico. Alexander says, "So at that point we ended up having six fire units and eight medic units committed to this incident at one time, so pretty much stripping very much stripping the entire city of all the apparatus we had." Friends and family members of the people inside the home all eagerly waited behind police caution tape for any word on their loved ones. Of the twelve individuals in the home, four remain in critical condition, and eight were treated and remain at the hospital. For now the home is being treated as a hazmat zone, but police say there is no immediate risk to neighbors. O'Brien says, "It's not a danger to the public at this time, but i do want to emphasize that but certainly in the processing of that scene we need to do that very carefully, because it definitely is a hazmat site at this point." For first responders, this incident was like nothing they've ever experienced. Alexander says, "For a single-family residence to get this many individuals, especially all at one time, to walk in and have six CPR's in progress, that's a pretty big deal and no I have not experienced that many cardiac events all at the same time." As of about 10 pm last night, nine people were still in the hospital, four in critical condition, two in serious condition, and three in fair condition. The two police officers were treated and released, officials say they are in good health. KCTV5.com is now with you on the go! Get the latest news updates and video, StormTrack5 weather forecast, weather radar, special investigative reports, sports headlines and much more from KCTV5 News. >> Click/tap here to download our free mobile app. << Copyright 2019 KCTV (Meredith Corp.) All rights reserved. The Kansas City Police Department is investigating if impairment was a factor in a head-on, wrong-way, rollover crash that happened this morning. One driver died and the other has minor injuries. A Navy SEAL will be arraigned in San Diego on Friday after being charged with alleged violations of military law during his deployment to the Iraqi city of Mosul in 2017. Sudanese police fired tear gas Sunday at crowds of anti-government protesters in Khartoum and the western war-torn region of Darfur after organisers called for nationwide rallies against President Omar al-Bashir. The demonstrations in Darfur were the first of their kind since unrest erupted last month over a government decision to triple the price of bread. The protests have since swiftly escalated into nationwide rallies widely seen as the biggest threat to Bashirs rule in his three decades in power. Protesters who took to the streets in the capitals Bahari district chanting peace, peace and revolution is the peoples choice were quickly confronted by riot police, witnesses told AFP. Authorities say the protests have left 24 people dead, while Human Rights Watch has put the death toll at 40, including children and medical staff. Protest organisers have called for near daily demonstrations across the country against Bashir this week, calling it a Week of Uprising. In Khartoum on Sunday protesters were seen carrying the Sudanese flag as others held banners bearing the words peace, justice, freedom, which has become a key slogan in the rallies. Witnesses told AFP that police were pursuing protesters down Baharis streets and alleys. Its like a cat and mouse game, a witness said. Police arrested several protesters, witnesses said, as footage of the rally which could not be independently verified spread on social media networks. Protests in Darfur Protests broke out in Darfur after calls for rallies there by the Sudanese Professionals Association, which has spearheaded the demonstrations. Police fired tear gas at demonstrators who took to the streets of El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state and in Niyala, the capital of South Darfur state, witnesses said. Darfur, a region the size of France, has been torn by violence since 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing it of economic and political marginalisation. Bashir, who seized power in an Islamist-backed coup in 1989, has been charged by the Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) with genocide and war crimes allegedly committed in Darfur. Anti-government demonstrations first erupted on December 19 in towns and villages before later spreading to Khartoum. Rights groups say more than 1,000 people have been arrested since the protests began, including opposition leaders, activists and journalists as well as demonstrators. The crackdown has drawn international criticism, with countries like Britain, Norway, Canada and the United States warning Khartoum that its actions could have an impact on its relations with their governments. Although the unrest was triggered by the rise in the price of bread, Sudan has faced a mounting economic crisis over the past year, led by an acute shortage of foreign currency. Repeated shortages of food and fuel have been reported in several cities, including Khartoum, while the cost of food and medicine has more than doubled. Bashir and other officials have blamed Washington for Sudans economic woes. The US imposed a trade embargo on Khartoum in 1997 that was lifted only in October 2017. It restricted Sudan from conducting international business and financial transactions. The foreign currency shortages began with the 2011 secession of South Sudan, which took with it the bulk of oil revenues. But critics of Bashir say his governments mismanagement of key sectors and its huge spending on fighting ethnic minority rebellions in Darfur and areas near the South Sudan border have been stoking economic trouble for years. At this point, the move feels almost inevitable. The conversation will continue, however, during the public comment portion of the city council meeting on Jan. 22 and at the rallies today. As of Friday, neither group had a permit for its gathering, though one of the leaders of the Heirs group said they would get one if the weather doesnt interfere with their plans. No doubt some will criticize the protesters for not seeking to obtain a permit before their rally, and will suggest it is, then, a lawless gathering. But City Manager Lee Garrity told the Journal that because of potential high emotions over the statue, the city wont crack down on demonstrators on either side of the issue just because they dont have a permit. That leeway is appropriate, as long as nothing violent occurs. Public safety is the most urgent concern. RALEIGH Over the past eight years, conservative lawmakers have done much to constrain the excesses, expenses, and abuses of governmental power in North Carolina. They have cut taxes, controlled spending, slashed regulations, and increased the cost-effectiveness of services by introducing more choice and competition. As the size, scope, and cost of government contracted, freedom expanded. Not only have North Carolinians regained more ability to make their own decisions a worthy goal in itself but also the expansion of freedom has made our state a more attractive place to live, work, invest and create jobs. In the midst of many accomplishments, however, are some missed opportunities. One of them is North Carolinas failure to reform eminent domain, the power governments enjoy to condemn and purchase private property for public use. In the aftermath of the 2005 decision in Kelo v. City of New London case, in which the Supreme Court declared it consistent with the property-rights protections of the U.S. Constitution to permit eminent-domain abuses, most states decided to limit or block their governments from condemning land merely to convey it from one private owner to another, as New London had done with Susette Kelos little pink house. The Three-Fifths Compromise was an amoral decision that enshrined slavery into the Constitution by counting three out of every five slaves as a person for census purposes. Without the compromise, the delegates were at an intractable impasse that made it impossible to move forward. In August 1863, with the Emancipation Proclamation in his desk drawer, Abraham Lincoln wrote the following to Horace Greeley: My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery. If I could save the Union without freeing any slave I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing all the slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leaving others alone I would also do that. It is in the aftermath of Woodrow Wilsons moral claims to make the world safe for democracy that the immorality of the Sedition and Espionage Acts, along with Red Summer, could be seen in full context. Whether it was the quest to form a more perfect union, Lincolns goal to save it, or Wilsons vision to extend it, amorality runs a parallel course with the American narrative. GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS: The House has passed the Clarity on Small Business Participation in Category Management Act (H.R. 226), sponsored by Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez, D-N.Y., to change the categories included in Small Business Administration annual reports on small business contracting goals. Velazquez said the change would particularly help minority-, women-, and veteran-owned small businesses in their efforts to remain competitive in the federal contracting marketplace. The vote, on Jan. 9, was 414 yeas to 11 nays. OBAMACARE LITIGATION: The House has agreed to a title of a bill (H. Res. 6), sponsored by Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md. The title would authorize House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to intervene, on behalf of the House, in an effort to uphold the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in the case of Texas v. United States, which concerns the constitutionality of the ACA. A supporter, Rep. Donna Shalala, D-Fla., said the title would allow the House to defend the valuable protections in the Affordable Care Act that this case threatens to take away. An opponent, Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., said it would be a partisan, money-wasting effort by Democrats that went against the desire of many states to have the Affordable Care Act repealed. The vote, on Jan. 9, was 235 yeas to 192 nays. The federal government shutdown became the longest in history over the weekend, and Fridays missed paycheck for furloughed workers generated another 800,000 sad stories. There are unpaid prison guards feeding New Years Day steak dinners to convicted felons. More than 1,000 federal workers set up GoFundMe pages to help cover bills, while others put their personal belongings on Craigslist to make ends meet. Even federal employees who want to be done with it all and retire cant because theres no one to process the paperwork. But amid all the heartache there was a bright spot for one family of a federal worker: As hundreds of thousands of federal workers were lamenting their missed checks, Carrie Walls was picking one up. Walls won the Virginia Lotterys Ford Expedition Plus $100K, a scratch-off contest. In a picture posted by the states lottery commission, shes seen smiling inside the drivers seat of the new white SUV, holding a Virginia Lottery check almost as wide as the front door. I cried, said Walls, who is from Ashburn, Va., of the moment she knew she was a winner. I couldnt believe it. [A hospital worker won the Powerball. Her prize: $758.7 million and police outside her house.] A tweet from the city of Winston-Salem indicated more than 100 roads were blocked by fallen trees in the city. One victim was homeowner Gary Hicks, who said a tree fell about 7 a.m. on a corner of his Wicklow Drive home in the Town and Country neighborhood of Winston-Salem. Beyond the damage to his home, the downed tree affected power lines into the neighborhood for most of the day. My wife and I were awakened by a loud crash, Hicks said. A tree we had been watching for the last 20 years had decided to take a bite out of the side of our house. I just thought it was just another big limb falling on the roof. Ive had so many fall on there Ive become immune to them. I was surprised the whole tree had gone down. Duke Energy Corp. reported that as of 7:30 a.m., 18,023 of its customers were without electricity in Forsyth, according to its website. Guilford County had 2,431 outages. Forsyth was by far the hardest county hit by the ice storm in the utilitys western network compared to Rockingham County (5,484), Stokes County (5,149), Wilkes County (689), Yadkin County (489), Surry County (227), Davie County (146) and Davidson County (27). When RockinghamNow asked if the business uses jamming equipment, the sole worker there said, I cant tell you what were using in here, and shut her office door, declining to give her name or title, or to share the business owners name. Further explaining how a jammer could handicap vehicles, Levitan said, When you listen to the radio, youre tuned in to a certain frequency. There are a couple thousand channels allocated to different things like cell phones and key fobs. Generally, these signals are very sensitive. These (jamming) devices create static so these radio waves are interrupted. Zapped, 1 car at a time Jennifer W. Griffin of Eden said she has dealt with the car-crippling issue four times since fall after parking near Lucky Day. El Parral is a Wednesday night dining tradition for Griffin, and on repeated visits, shes seen her key fob and car locks malfunction. And whatever the disruptive signal is, it blitzed her entire family over the holidays, one car at a time, Griffin said. Indeed, just before Christmas, Griffins mother, Martha J. Wright, had to resort to a towing service when she was unable to start her Cadillac in the El Parral lot. Her body appeared to have been in the woods for at least two days. Nixons body was delivered to the medical examiners office naked under the blue tarp with which she was concealed with two brown shirts lying on top of her body. A toxicology report revealed elevated levels of ethanol in her brain tissue, consistent with possible intoxication around the time of death, the report said. Nixon also had amounts of Alprazolam which is used to treat anxiety and panic disorder and hydrocodone used to treat pain in her system, according to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Raleigh. Nixon had regular and active prescriptions for both drugs that had been filled within the past month, reports show, although her medication bottles were not located at her home. The toxicology report also noted the presence of Diltiazem which can treat high blood pressure and chest pain and Metoprolol which can treat high blood pressure, chest pain and heart failure. Her autopsy report noted that Nixon had hypertensive cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that resulted in multiple hospital and emergency department visits in the years leading up to her death. Were following several leads, tracking down all the videos we can from stores along the route that the car was taken. Police said the two persons of interest were seen at the location where the car was found abandoned between 3 and 5 p.m. Friday. A man and woman were observed operating a silver color, early 2000s model Pontiac Grand Am, two-door car. (Tuttle) was a very neat person, Boyette said Saturday. There were a couple things out of place that didnt fit his norm. On Sunday, police said there was evidence of a violent crime found both at the victims residence and in his car. Boyette said besides King police, the Winston Salem Police Department and the State Bureau of Investigation are assisting with the case, including the use of cadaver dogs. Weve had helicopters search the area all the way to where the vehicle was located, Boyette said. We have searched along both sides of the road from his home to the site where his car was found. We have searched pathways and avenues along the way, including barns and places hidden from helicopter view. So it really shouldnt come as any surprise that citizens of Winston-Salem began looking anew at our own Confederate monument. Times and minds gradually changed when people began recognizing it for what it really is: an inflammatory relic put up in the Jim Crow era next to the county courthouse by the United Daughters of the Confederacy to remind the black population to know their place. Why else invite Alfred Moore Waddell, a former Confederate cavalry officer, white supremacist and an infamous leader of the Wilmington massacre in 1898, to serve as keynote speaker at the dedication. The Wilmington insurrection is regarded as the nations only successful coup detat. White Democrats killed many local blacks and forced black Republican city officials to flee. The Democrats then took over control of Wilmington city government. If youre still in doubt, note that Waddell had this to say about his actions: How many negroes we killed in my county, God only knows. But this we do know. We choked the Cape Fear with their corpses. Moving forward, not back Cottage industry Interest in hospital price comparisons in recent years also has led to a cottage industry of websites. Comparison sites include ahrq.gov, BetterDoctor.com, healthgrades.com, drscore.com, and other academic or commercially driven websites. HB 834 also included providing consumers with more clarity on hospitals debt-collection efforts. Some analysts say they believe most consumers still arent willing to travel longer distances for cheaper procedures the way they do for lower airfares. They believe consumers conducting online cost comparisons are a growing, but still small percentage. Analysts say one key to getting consumers to visit those websites is the growth in employers offering, and employees choosing, high-deductible health insurance plans. The goal is having lower premium costs coming out of their paychecks, but at the risk of having to pay more for individual medical procedures. Money talks, said David Meyer, a senior partner with Keystone Planning Group of Durham. When people have to pay more out of pocket, they change behavior. That is what the employers and insurers are counting on. The business news you need With a weekly newsletter looking back at local history. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Betty Ellzey, left, talks with Deidre Morrison in Ellzeys office at Shepherd University. Ellzey, a professor at the university, is the director of The Rude Mechanicals Medieval & Renaissance Players, and Morrison is a longtime contributor to the troupe. Both are thinking about the coming auditions that include original student-written plays this week. Tricia Ballard, left, school counselor at Tomahawk Intermediate School, and Lisa Henry, executive director of the Berkeley County BackPack Program, want families to know that help with food is available. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form Lowell Gibson, 76, of Bentonville, AR, died on June 12, 2021. Born November 10, 1944, he is son of the late Hugh and Opal Gibson. Lowell is survived by his wife, Sandra, children, grandchildren, and siblings. For service information and to share memories and condolences, please visit www.rol Mike has reported on the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem's wildlife, wildlands and the agencies that manage them since 2012. A native Minnesotan, he arrived in the West to study environmental journalism at the University of Colorado. Extinguishing the Fire and Posters on Parade to Be Displayed at School of Art Extinguishing the Fire by Tom Rice BLOOMINGTON, Ill. Illinois Wesleyan Universitys School of Art will open its first exhibitions of 2019 with the installation Extinguishing the Fire by Tom Rice and Posters on Parade by Delicious Design League starting Monday, Jan. 14. Rices Extinguishing the Fire is one of several pieces concerned with capturing the beauty of nature as well as the harmful effects of human activity on the environment. A multimedia artist experienced in painting, drawing and video performance, Rice often uses thin plastic as a primary material in his artwork to highlight how environmentally harmful practices are present in all corners of everyday life. Posters on Parade by Delicious Design League Extinguishing the Fire focuses primarily on the effects of the desire for profit by one industry, and the effect oil and natural gas extraction and consumption has upon the natural environment, says Rice, an advocate for environmental protections. The work questions whether it is possible to retreat from an industry that is woven into every aspect of our existence and is the very foundation of our economy. Rice will discuss his work at a public reception Tuesday, Feb. 5 at 1:15 p.m. in the Ames School of Art. This event is free and open to the public. Extinguishing the Fire will be on display at the Merwin Gallery until April 3. Additionally, the Wakeley Gallery will feature a poster collection by Delicious Design League (DDL), a team of multimedia artists and designers. DDL has worked with Facebook, Netflix, Nike and other well-known clients to design colorful and eye-catching logos, promotional material, websites and more. The team also creates custom prints and sells a wide range of posters. Their collection Posters on Parade will be on display until Feb. 21. By Rachel McCarthy 21 American satellite-based global aircraft tracking and surveillance system operator Aireon has announced a successful eighth and final launch and deployment of the Iridium NEXT satellite constellation hosting the Aireon space-based Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) payloads. The launch took place with the lift off of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California and placed the final 10 Iridium NEXT satellites into low earth orbit (LEO). The launch brought the total number of Aireon payloads in orbit to 75 (66 operational payloads and 9 spares), completing the historic launch program and passing one of the last remaining milestones before Aireon ushers in what it says will be a new era of global air traffic surveillance and aircraft tracking. Aireon is the worlds first 100% global air traffic surveillance system and the company claims it is revolutionising the way the world travels with space-based technology. Unlike existing aircraft surveillance and tracking infrastructure, the Aireon system uses space-based ADS-B technology, which enables the automatic and real-time collection of aircraft position data. The Aireon technology gives air traffic controllers and airlines a complete and comprehensive view of the entire sky, like never before. With this upgraded insight into the worlds flight paths, including those in remote and oceanic airspace, Aireon says the entire industry will experience significant direct and indirect benefits such as, increased safety, more efficient flight routes, more accurate arrival and departure predictions, faster emergency response times, reduced aircraft separation, a decrease in CO 2 emissions and more. Today we passed a major milestone on our journey to revolutionise air traffic surveillance and are just weeks away from a fully operational system, said Don Thoma, chief executive of Aireon. Now that the launches are complete, final integration and testing of the recently launched payloads can commence, after which the worlds first, real-time, truly global view of air traffic will be a reality. Its difficult to contain the excitement until we are formally operational, especially since from a performance standpoint, our technology has far exceeded expectations. Many think this is the end of a journey, being the last Iridium NEXT launch, but for us, this is the beginning of a new way air traffic will be managed. Aireon says the system has out-performed all predictions and is processing more than 13 billion ADS-B messages per month, with that number expected to grow upon full deployment. Air traffic controllers rely on the best and most accurate surveillance data possible to separate aircraft, which is often achieved through multiple redundant layers. Aireons data will provide air traffic controllers with a fully redundant data feed that covers the entire airspace, increasing the availability and reliability of a critical component in air traffic management, with a positive impact on safety and efficiency. This will in turn, help improve flight optimisation by eliminating gaps in fleet data reports, and ultimately enhance the overall safety, accuracy and efficiency of worldwide air travel. Aireons space-based ADS-B network is just what the aviation industry needs, said Marion Blakey, former administrator at the US Federal Aviation Administration. During my time at the FAA, extensive work was done to promote ADS-B technology for global air traffic management efforts. Todays successful launch is not only a victory for Aireon but for the aviation industry, as we are now one step closer to having a clear, accurate and complete picture of the worlds airspace, including over the oceans and remote areas. A total of 81 Iridium NEXT satellites have been built, all of which have the Aireon payload onboard. There are now 75 satellites deployed, with nine serving as on-orbit spares and the remaining six as ground spares. The Australian Cyber Security Growth Network, a government body, has issued a document on what it claims are "key perceptions" about the Australian encryption law officially known as the Assistance and Access Bill 2018 among industry stakeholders. But the document is based on a survey carried out by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute which sought the views of 512 stakeholders and ended up obtaining responses from only 63. When iTWire asked AustCyber strategy chief Belinda Newham at the time of release of the document 20 December 2018 how the findings of the survey could be taken seriously, given the number of respondents was so low, she did not provide a direct answer. She provided links to the document and also the survey which was carried out by ASPI's International Cyber Policy Centre. AustCyber chief executive Michelle Price, in a foreword to the survey, appeared to play down the poor response, writing that "while the survey involved a comparatively small sample size, the results are compelling". "We continue to be focused on achieving our mission. We are resolute: Australia's cuber security sector has great potential and is critical to the nation's economic prosperity and security. We will continue to promote this domestically and internationally," she added. The AustCyber document claims that it will deliver material "that inform stakeholders on the facts, and where we see the need for clarification or further industry consultation on economic related issues". It also claims that some of the public and political discourse on the law "is conflicting and has created further confusion among the sector and its broader stakeholders". iTWire asked the head of the Communications Alliance, John Stanton, to provide his views on the AustCyber document. He found a number of inconsistencies which have been elaborated on here. CA has been a leading voice in the debate that took place in the run-up to the passage of the bill. The encryption law was passed on 6 December without any amendments to the version submitted to Parliament on 20 September. About 50 pages of amendments were handed out in Parliament early on 6 December before debate on the bill began in the Senate. But it was finally passed without amendments as the House of Representatives had already risen for the year by the time the amendments were taken up in the Senate. Labor leader Bill Shorten agreed to this compromise on the proviso that the amendments would be passed during the first sitting of 2019. The government has said it would consider the amendments, but has made no commitment that it would accept all of them. For the love of my people and a desire for our safety: A response to the Ithaca Coalition for Unity and Cooperation in the Middle East (ICUCME) Like the Ithaca Times? Please help support local journalism by whitelisting this site in your ad blocker. Thank you! Vicky Phelan has strongly criticised the Taoiseach over the governments response to the needs of cervical cancer patients since her exposing of the CervicalCheck scandal last year. Ms Phelan, who was speaking exactly one year on from when she was given a terminal cancer diagnosis after previously receiving a false negative smear test result, described Leo Varadkar as all talk and no action over the handling of the crisis. Ms Phelan, 43, was speaking Saturday night prior to been awarded the Fitzgerald Bible Bruff Award for 2018, where she also received a standing ovation from those gathered at the Thomas Fitzgerald Centre in Bruff, Co Limerick. The award represents the legacy of former US President John F Kennedy as inspiring others to seek justice by taking responsibility for political and social action. Previous winners who have given major contributions to Ireland are Philomena Lee, Sr Stanislavsky Kennedy and Michael OMuircheartaigh. Ms Phelan did praise Minister for Health, Simon Harris, for his efforts to improve screening standards and provide better treatment for cervical cancer patients. At least you know that there is a willingness there, where there isn't in other (government) parts, she added hinting her disappointment with others at the cabinet table. I wouldnt have that same confidence in the Taoiseach, put it that way. He doesnt inspire me with confidence, Ms Phelan continued. "I think he is very much all talk and no action, and I just don't get (the) sense, that he thinks this is as important as what it is really, when you consider half the population in the country are women, and every woman in this country has to have a smear, she added. In response, a spokesman for Mr Varadkar said: The Taoiseach has the highest regard for Vicky Phelan. When they met last year he was impressed by her courage, and by her commitment to the CervicalCheck programme. Her input and advice continues to guide the Governments response. Leo Varadker with Simon Harris The Taoiseach and Government are very much guided and act on the advice of Minister Harris when it comes to CervicalCheck as he is the line Minister dealing with it. The Taoiseach, like Vicky, has said he wants something good to come out of this controversy. "That means implementing the Scally Report in full and working to ensure that Cervical Cancer becomes a rare disease through the expansion of the HPV vaccine to boys, and improving screening by becoming one of the first countries in the World to bring in the new smear test. The Taoiseach and Minister Harris working together have ensured both these things will happen this year. On January 12 last year Ms Phelan was given between six and twelve months to live with no hope of a cure for her cervical cancer, having previously received a false negative smear test result. After declining a palliative treatment plan she discovered a so-called wonderdrug Pembrolizumab (Pembro) through her own research. Since then she has also successfully campaigned for the drug to be made available to all suffering with cervical cancer. Speaking Saturday night, on the first anniversary of her terminal diagnosis, the mother of two said her tumours had shrunk by 60% which she attributes to Pembro. Celebrating the milestone with her husband Jim, and children Amelia (12) and Darragh (7), she punched the air and said: Im actually after outliving my prognosis. Humbled at receiving the Fitzgerald Bible Bruff Award, she added that her wish for the new year is to improve outcomes for people with terminal illness. Thats not necessarily just cancer. But, cancer, unfortunately, is the one that is killing everybody in this country. The numbers are really creeping up, we are now at one in three; it was one in four. Ms Phelan said she will continue to put pressure on the government to achieve her aims in fighting for others in similar situations. Fianna Fail is planning to reintroduce a Bill to the Seanad which aims to protect and give official recognition to the National Anthem. The Protection of Copyright and Related Rights Amendment Bill was first introduced in 2016 but lapsed with the dissolution of the Dail and Seanad. It seeks to protect Amhran na bhFiann from being used in advertising and will be brought by Senator Mark Daly to this year's first Seanad sitting on January 22. A public consultation convened by the Seanad Public Consultation Committee in 2017 and 2017 found favourable public support for the anthem and that protocols in relation to its use should be introduced, Senator Daly said. As report rapporteur, I was happy to see the public engagement and the desire to protect the Anthem as much as possible from any use in commercial advertising. The National Anthem belongs to all Irish people, it is a key symbol of our identity yet it lacks protection. I first introduced this Bill in 2014 due to the lapse in copyright. I was contacted by constituents, unhappy with the idea of the Anthem being used for advertising purposes. "Following this, I worked with members of all Parties and the Seanad Public Consultation Committee and we published this report in June 2018. One of the findings through our work on this report was that there is a need to formally adopt the Anthem in the Irish language as this has never been done by the State. "However, it was also brought to our attention that there was no official version of the anthem that could be performed by members of the Deaf Community through Irish Sign Language. "The Deaf Community themselves have undergone a very thorough consultative process and have composed the official Irish Sign Language National Anthem which is provided for in this Bill," he said. Senator Daly said it was "very fitting" that the Bill is progressed as this year marks the 110th Anniversary of the Anthem being written by Peadar Kearney Whether youve been following it or not, Brexit will make an impact on your daily life, writes Political Correspondent Fiachra O Cionnaith Deal. No deal. Article 50 extension. Second referendum. Backstop. Norway-Plus. Canada-Style. Whatever your view on Brexit, one point everyone can agree on is that the deepening diplomatic war is full of jargon. However, that doesnt mean you should ignore it. Over the next two months, the Dail, Westminster and Brussels will be dominated by increasingly panicked last-ditch attempts to find a breakthrough to the long-running stand-off. When Leinster House and the Seanad re-open after their winter hibernation this week, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar will repeat his January 3 press conference warning that they must clear the decks for Brexit protection plans. While the Oireachtas business will continue in relative normality in January and February, March will be set aside to ensure 45 new laws and amendments bundled into four pieces of lengthy primary legislation are passed before the March 29 Brexit divorce date. Similarly in Britain, MPs will this week face the mother of all Brexit bloodbaths, with the existing Brexit deal almost certain to be voted down by Westminster on Tuesday. The situation will force prime minister Theresa May to publish a Plan B by Friday that is almost certain to be rejected by the EU, or face the unenviable prospect of crashing out with no deal, or being bounced into an election or second referendum. The pressure is also being felt in Brussels, not only by negotiators but also MEPs, who are all too conscious of the May elections coming quickly into view, and do not want any awkward Brexit questions putting a smudge on their shiny CVs when they go to the polls. This three-pronged pressure means that for the next 74 days leading up to Britains departure from the EU, your TV, radio and favourite websites will be flooded with serious people in suits talking about the minuscule details of the most complex crisis in EU history. But despite the clutter of comments, most of those speaking wont make it the least bit clearer what Brexit will mean for the one person who matters most: you. Whatever happens come March 29, when all the jargon is pushed to one side, Brexit is set to have a major impact on your personal finances, housing plans, working life and even your weekly shopping. If the existing EU-UK deal is somehow dragged over the line either in tomorrows Westminster vote or at a later date, food supplies and access to medicines will be largely unaffected, as will travelling to and from Northern Ireland, flying through British airspace and the work of road hauliers being sent to the continent. However, in a worst-case crash-out scenario, ordinary Irish people risk becoming collateral damage, with concerns medicines will have to be stockpiled, thousands of farming and fishing jobs at risk, up to 390m potentially wiped from the tourism economy and claims Ireland could have a 3.6bn Brexit-shaped hole in its budget. There are likely to be some benefits to Ireland in a no-deal crisis, with floods of new jobs potentially being created as a knock-on effect of major companies fleeing the City of London to set up shop in the Dublin-based IFSC. However, these benefits are at real risk of being overshadowed by serious concerns that such a sudden influx of people will further deepen Irelands existing housing, homelessness and rental crises which are already spinning out of control. The long-winded Brexit debates over the past two and a half years may have bored half the country to tears and made the other half break down and cry. But, beneath the layers upon layers of jargon lie serious ways it will affect your daily life in a matter of weeks whether you have been studiously avoiding anything to do with the crisis since June 2016 or not. Food Food and drink exports to the UK are worth 4.5bn a year. We import about 4bn worth, so the stakes are very high. Deal: If there is a deal, relatively little will change in terms of the existing food supplies between between Ireland and Britain. While some tariffs may be imposed due to Britains departure from the EU, meaning there will be a slight increase in the cost of some UK-based products, it is widely expected those products will continue to be available in Ireland. No deal: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar quipped in recent days that nobody will go hungry in Ireland in a no-deal Brexit, while Boris Johnson similarly joked at a Dublin Business and Leadership conference last week that the only food limits in Britain will be rationed Mars bars. However, it is not that simple. While Britain will undoubtedly be worse off than Ireland when it comes to food access in a no deal scenario because Ireland exports more to Britain than it receives, daily food products from Britain are likely to at least temporarily disappear from Irish store shelves. Priti Patels famine threat wont happen, but do expect less choices than normal on your weekly shopping list. Housing crisis An influx in people and businesses fleeing Brexit risks deepening Ireland and Dublins housing crisis. Deal: In any Brexit situation, it is accepted thousands of extra people will come to Ireland and particularly Dublin due to firms fleeing Brexit. That will force house prices and rental costs up even further and risks a rise in homelessness due to increasing demand. Provided there is some form of deal, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy have been at pains to stress Ireland can cope with any increase in housing demand. This is because in a deal scenario the Government believes its existing Rebuilding Ireland plan will ensure the housing market can handle what is coming. However, the opposition insists the plan is already out of date and that the problem is being ignored. No deal: A no-deal scenario could potentially lead to bedlam, with the number of firms already planning to re-locate to Dublin expected to surge dramatically - pushing an already suspect Brexit housing plan to its absolute limit. Speaking at an Oireachtas housing committee meeting in November, Department of Housing principal officer Damian Allen said despite Government plans, a hard Brexit poses genuine homelessness concerns. Noting the fact there is likely to be a surge in firms and people fleeing Britain to Ireland, Mr Allen said affordable house prices could rise dramatically due to growing demand and that very significant net migration increases could cause a separate housing crisis. The view was repeated by the ESRI and the Nevin Institute, both of which have warned the Governments Rebuilding Ireland housing programme has not been Brexit-proofed and will be obsolete if any hard Brexit hits. Medicines Brexit risks seriously disrupting access to vital medicines for hospitals, GPs and vulnerable patients. Deal: If a Brexit deal is agreed, existing drugs links between Ireland and Britain will continue, meaning there will be no cut-off either short-term or prolonged when it comes to accessing medicines needed to treat vulnerable patients. In addition, the Department of Health, the Health Products Regulatory Authority and cross-border groups have insisted they are in regular contact with their counterparts in Britain to ensure people are not affected. Similarly, the HPRA and its regulatory counterpart in Britain have already examined a joint labelling system for drugs in Ireland and Britain in the event of a deal Brexit. No deal: If Britain crashes out of the EU at the end of March with no deal, access to drugs becomes far more complex, with potentially serious implications for the general public. Drugs manufactured in Britain risk being unavailable in Ireland for either a short or medium-term period, while existing licenses for the UK and Ireland due to the comparatively small market base in this country will be obsolete. During a visit to Rome last July, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar admitted medicines will have to be stockpiled by hospitals to ensure seriously ill patients can still be treated. However, in recent weeks senior Irish officials have declined to say which specific drugs or conditions could be affected. Going to Northern Ireland as a member of the public A no deal doomsday scenario will cause havoc to shoppers, families and tourists alike. Deal: Thousands of people living in the Republic regularly cross the border to shop in Newry and other nearby border towns to take advantage of deals. Similarly, thousands more travel over the border to experience geographically close sites such as the Giants Causeway or to visit friends and family. If a deal is accepted, ordinary punters will still be able to hunt for a deal in the north even though the new customs arrangements could limit the deals available, while tourism and family visits are unlikely to be drastically affected. No deal: If a no deal scenario occurs, all of this will change. The likely imposition of customs checks on the border will significantly increase the amount of time it takes to travel to the North. Similarly, there is a real risk of full-scale passport checkpoints which will further delay matters on both roads and Irish Rail with the latter group confirming last summer that it is already planning for passport checks on trains. And while you will still be able to travel to Northern Ireland in the hunt for deals, the ease of doing which helped make the trend so popular is likely to come to a shuddering halt. Going to Northern Ireland as a business Any suggestion of a return to border checks or a hard border could wipe millions of euro off company budgets. Deal Since the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, the number of firms in the Republic conducting business in the North has surged due to the peace process. Currently 99 substantial businesses operate on both sides of the border in addition to more than 7,000 small ad hoc deals every year interactions worth almost 4bn a year to both economies. If a Brexit deal is dragged over the line the positive business steps will continue as the frictionless border will allow the easy passage between both jurisdictions to remain. No deal The threat of a return to a hard border in a no-deal Brexit, and at a minimum customs checks and tariffs on goods, will badly damage the current multibillion-euro arrangement. In addition to the potential new difficulty in operating on both sides of the border, tariffs imposed on items that may be needed for construction firms to operate could cause difficulties. Ongoing trade may also suffer, all of which will inevitably have a real impact on employment levels among affected companies. The rights of British people living in Ireland and Irish people living in Britain The rights of people in both countries are set to be protected whatever happens. Deal: If the UK-EU Brexit deal is accepted, London, Dublin and Brussels have all confirmed there will be no changes to the citizenship or working rights of people living in different countries within Britain and the EU. In simple terms, this means if you are an Irish person living or working in Britain you will not be asked to leave. Similarly, if you are a British person living or working in Ireland you will also have your rights protected. No deal: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, Tanaiste Simon Coveney, British prime minister Theresa May and senior EU officials have all insisted the same guarantees outlined in any deal will apply even if British crashes out of the EU without an agreement in place though it may be trickier to implement in practice. The risk of violence if a hard border returns A worst-case scenario Brexit risks dragging Ireland back to the dark days of the Troubles. Deal: Should the existing Brexit deal be accepted by Westminster this week, there will be no threat of a hard border and therefore the potential risk of a slow-step return to violence in Northern Ireland will reduce dramatically. In addition, the backstop will be protected, meaning the subtle political nuances surrounding identity in Northern Ireland can continue to be implemented. While calls for a united Ireland referendum are likely to increase, the lack of a hard border or physical infrastructure on the border means it is highly unlikely violence will be sparked. No deal This is one of the most serious problems posed by Brexit. Officially and even unofficially, Irish officials have insisted the Government is not preparing in any way for the return of a hard border and the potential security risks this will bring. However, if a hard border is reintroduced, there are genuine fears it will lead to a rise in potential violence in Northern Ireland. And while British police said last week they will send officers to the north to help address any outbreaks of violence if this is needed, such a move would inevitably throw yet more petrol onto the flames. The economy Any Brexit will hit public finances, but a hard Brexit risks throwing us back into a recession. Deal: There is no getting around the facts Brexit will damage the Irish economy. Even in a best-case scenario of the existing EU-UK deal being implemented, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council has warned Irelands GDP will drop by at least 4%, affecting businesses, jobs and the money in your pocket in equal measure. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe have stressed last Octobers budget and the 500m rainy day fund is Brexit-focussed and that the fact Irelands economy is now running a surplus will protect us from the coming storm - a view disputed by the opposition. No deal: If a 4% dip in the economy frightens you, try 8% and a 3.6bn hole in our economic plans. During the same Oireachtas finance committee meeting last November where the 4% best case scenario situation was outlined, the Irish Fiscal Advisory Councils official Martina Lawless also said a crash-out no deal will see GDP plummet by 8%. An ESRI report last month similarly said a doomsday Brexit scenario could create a massive 3.6bn hole in Irelands economic plans which risks sinking the country. While Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin has demanded an emergency budget to be considered for this spring to cope with any expected fallout, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar remains insistent this is not necessary. Farmers and the fishing community Thousands of jobs risk being lost from the vital sectors. Deal: While Brexit will affect all aspects of Irish life, the farming and fishing industries are by far the most vulnerable due to long-standing connections with the British market. Agriculture Minister Michael Creed has said even in a best case scenario Brexit deal, thousands of jobs could be lost from the sectors due in part to tariffs on goods being sent to Britain. While this will be off-set by continued land bridge access to continental European markets through Britain, job losses are expected. No deal: The no-deal situation is potentially disastrous for two of the stalwarts of the Irish economy. If Britain crashes out of the EU in just two months time without a deal, up to 40% of the beef industry could be at risk because of its export focus on Britain. Similarly, Mr Creed said up to 4,000 jobs could be lost in the 10,000-strong fishing industry if Britain claws back complete control of its fishing water rights. While the Government is seeking alternative beef markets to Britain and hopes to find a resolution to the fishing crisis with Mr Creed indicating last week a potential EU cash injection for beef farmers may be offered there is no way of ignoring the seriousness of the situation. Road hauliers and importers/exporters Forget the British lorry convoy PR exercise last week hauliers, exporters and importers have a Brexit target on their backs. Deal: In its 100-plus page Brexit contingency planning document published last month, the Government said a Brexit deal situation will allow Irish hauliers to continue to travel through the British land-bridge to continental Europe. The land bridge which is effectively just a fast-track drive through Britain is a crucial part of the Irish import and export market. However, questions have been raised over the impact increased customs checks will have on the sector, even if everything goes to plan. No deal: If you tend to lose your cool in a normal traffic jam, you may want to look away now. Despite the mainly British PR about how a no deal Brexit will not necessarily bring lorries and trucks carrying goods to a grinding halt, the Irish Freight Association and the Irish Road Haulage Association have specifically warned of this exact scenario. Among the PR put out in recent weeks has been the British governments claim that checks on hauliers trucks and lorries will take less than 40 seconds and offer little to no disruption. Frankly, no one believes a word of it, with both Irish organisations ridiculing the prediction as being completely unrealistic and their counterparts in Britain saying Theresa Mays PR focussed lorry convoy test run last Monday designed to show how speedily trucks will still roll was pointless as it took place outside of rush hour traffic. What does this mean for you and accessing the goods, and markets, you need? In simple traffic terms, gridlock, not green light. I work in a vulnerable Irish business, what will happen? Depending on who you ask, the Government is either ready to bail out at-risk firms or is sleepwalking into a crisis. Deal: A Brexit deal will undoubtedly impact on the economy, with border companies, those in the south east who are dependent on Rosslare, and agri-food firms in Cork and Kerry flagged by Government and independent groups as the most at-risk. However, the Government is of the view that an existing Brexit business preparedness fund involving grants and other supports will be enough to prevent major fallout in the majority of cases an issue ministers have spent months emphasising to firms. No deal: This is where the Government promises get tricky. While ministers are at pains to stress the supports and grants which are already available through the Department of Business, they will be stretched to the absolute limit in a worst case scenario no-deal Brexit. Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told the Dail last December officials have contacted the EU about relaxing existing State aid rules, a complicated way of saying they have asked Brussels for hundreds of millions of euro more in funds to shore up firms. However, after receiving a written parliamentary question response on the matter last week, Fianna Fail business spokesperson Billy Kelleher said little progress has been made on the issue to date just two months out from the Brexit divorce date. I work for a multinational firm in Ireland, what might happen? Multinational firms special relationship with Ireland, or at least our English-speaking workforce and corporate tax rate, is expected to only grow due to Brexit. Deal: Love them or loathe them, there is no escaping the current importance of multinational firms to the economy. With Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and other heavy-hitters locating their European bases in Ireland, in part because of our corporate tax policy, keeping the companies happy during Brexit will be key. While the current question marks over what will happen with Brexit have led to legitimate concerns being raised due to the increased difficulties in accessing the British market, it is widely expected Ireland will remain central to multinational firms plans. No deal: One of the few upshots of a no-deal situation for Ireland will be the likely surge in multinationals coming to this country from Britain. While the UK government has signalled it may try and make itself more attractive to firms by cutting its own corporate tax rate, the fact that a no deal situation will see the country completely cut off from Europe is almost certain to be a deciding factor. With English-speaking Ireland still in the EU, and provided our controversial corporate tax rate remains in place, there is a strong belief that more multinational firms not fewer will be based in this country post-Brexit. British businesses fleeing London and coming to Ireland Banks, financial services and other businesses are already planning to come to Ireland regardless of the Brexit outcome. Deal: Even if the existing Brexit deal is somehow passed through Westminster on Tuesday, firms currently based in Londons financial hub are planning to relocate to Ireland. To date, four leading banks and financial services have agreed to move to Dublin. They include Lloyds moving its EU headquarters from London to Dublin; JP Morgan agreeing to transfer hundreds of positions from London to Dublin, Frankfurt and Luxembourg; and Barclays moving 150 jobs to the Irish capital from London to set up a new EU headquarters. Bank of America is also moving its headquarters from London to Dublin No deal: Irelands and particularly Dublins close proximity to London means this trend will only grow if Britain crashes out without a deal. Although it brings its own problems namely where on earth to house thousands of new workers suddenly flowing into the capital the Government will at least be privately rubbing its hands at the opportunity for Dublin to benefit from the City of Londons financial woes in a doomsday Brexit. The International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) is already a major business hotspot, and is set to grow significantly even if the worst happens on the political scene. Tourist industry The Brexit crisis could cost the tourism industry a whopping 390m. Deal: In a best case Brexit deal scenario, British tourists are predicted to continue coming to Ireland but in smaller numbers However, both Tourism Ireland and Failte Ireland are fearful a drop of up to 20% in British tourists over the coming years could still happen due to the deteriorating relationship between the two countries. To combat the possible problems, Irish tourism bodies are continuing to push advertising campaigns both in Britain and potentially more crucially in other European countries and North America to help protect the sector from any fallout. No deal: Nice holiday? Feeling relaxed? Great, now just the bill, sir. Asked about the consequences of a no deal by politicians at an Oireachtas tourism committee meeting in November, Failte Irelands chief executive Paul Kelly didnt pull his punches, saying a crash out Brexit could cost the Irish tourism sector up to 390m. Mr Kelly said the figure - which is 130m more than what the Tourism Industry Council officially predicts is based on a 20% drop in British tourism, with fears the scenario could be as damaging and more long-term than the 2010 ash cloud crisis and the 2001 foot and mouth disease scare. And he was not alone in his concerns, with Tourism Ireland chief executive Niall Gibbons telling the same committee rural Ireland will be affected more than anywhere with the West, South-West and border areas expected to be worst hit. Flying to the UK and Europe Trips to Britain and continental Europe are facing into short-term Brexit turbulence. Deal: If, like just about everyone in Ireland, you want to get away from all this Brexit talk with a nice, stress-free holiday abroad, you might want to cross your fingers for a deal. Under existing open sky rules, there is no hindrance to British, EU and Irish planes flying through each others airspace, a situation a deal would maintain in a move that would benefit everyone involved. No deal: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar caused uproar in Derrynane, west Kerry, last July when he said British planes will not be able to use EU airspace in a hard Brexit, but he had a point. Unfortunately, the flip side of the issue is that Irish planes will not be able to use British airspace either. Since the controversial remark, EU, Irish and British officials have moved to address the problem, with the EU no deal Brexit contingency plans published in December saying British planes will be allowed access to EU airspace on a point-to-point basis. This means they can travel to one destination and back to Britain, but cannot travel on from the EU destination to a third country. The offer is based on an equivalent agreement being reached for EU planes flying to or through British airspace. But at the very least, it means there is the risk of more potential Brexit turbulence for Irish passengers just trying to get away from it all. Theres no escape from Brexit, basically. Real-time social media posts from local businesses and organizations across Northern Virginia, powered by Friends2Follow. To add your business to the stream, email cfields@insidenova.com or click on the green button below. Research led by U.C. Berkeley engineer Anil Aswani has learned that advances in Artificial Intelligence in devices such as activity trackers, smartphones and smartwatches are threatening the privacy of people's health data. (berkeley.edu photo) The United States government shutdown, which started on December 21 midnight has entered its 23rd day, making it the longest government shutdown the super power has ever seen. The shutdown has taken place due to U.S Presidents refusal to approve a budget that doesnt include USD 5 billion for building a wall along the U.S-Mexico border. The current shutdown has even surpassed the previous record- a 21 day shutdown that took place under Bill Clinton in 1995-1996. Photo: Reuters/A demonstrator holds a sign, signifying hundreds of thousands of federal employees who wont be receiving their paychecks as a result of the partial government shutdown Here are the key takeaways from this shutdown: 1) 4,00,000 non-critical employees of almost nine agencies have been affected by the shutdown. These agencies include homeland security, justice, agriculture, treasury, transportation, commerce, environmental protection agency, housing and urban development and interior maintenance. 2) Donald Trump has said that there is no sign of the shutdown ending until the bill gets approved- blaming the Democrats for not steering the bill approval. Theyre the ones that are holding it up, he said during a telephone interview with Fox News on Saturday night. It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done, and everybody can go back to work. 3) International media reported that on August 23, 2018, the U.S. Senate approved an $850 billion spending bill for Fiscal Year 2019. Later on September 18, the Congress passed a short-term spending bill that funded the departments of Defense, Labor, Education, and Health and Human Services. Photo: Reuters/ U.S President Donald Trump 4) On December 11, 2018 the Democrats met with President Donald Trump to negotiate key budget points in order to avoid a shutdown. According to the Democrats the wall is ineffective and therefore, offered $1.3 billion to continue current border security funding. It doesnt allocate money for a steel barrier wall. They argue that a huge sum like that can be better used for technology development and improving security at the border. 5) Due to this, federal workers including air traffic controllers, prison guards and FBI agents have missed their first salaries of the year. Reuters reported that some have resorted to selling their possessions or posting appeals on online fundraising sites to help pay their bills. 6) Miami international airport will reportedly close one of its terminals in the coming few days due to a shortage of security screeners, who have been falling sick. Pittsburgh International Airport said it would provide free meals on Friday to federal airport workers. Throughout American history, U.S shutdowns have been a symbol of dysfunction within the government. Photo: Reuters/U.S. Internal Revenue Services (IRS) employee holds signs in front of the Federal building at a rally against the ongoing U.S. federal government shutdown 7) Even though federal workers have been paid back in the past shutdowns once the government resumed operations, an unknown number of contractors are unlikely to receive compensation. Democrats alleged that the President threw a temper tantrum and walked out of the negotiation meeting. 8) ABC News reported that while Trump alleged that he has support of the federal workers, not everybody agrees. The National Air Traffic Controllers are even suing the Trump administration- the third union to do so. The suit, filed Friday in federal court by the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, alleges the government unlawfully deprived thousands of its members of pay without due process. 9) Many Republicans are even calling out that Trump might use Emergency Declaration funds to end the shutdown. But on Saturday, he told Fox News Jeanine Pirro that he would rather Democrats take action, adding that he was waiting at the White House ready to cut a deal. I want to give them a chance to see if they can act responsibly, he added. 10) Trump has tweeted that the situation taking place at the U.S-Mexico border is a humanitarian crisis and that he promised safety and security for the American people. Trump originally promised Mexico would pay for the wall, which he says is needed to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs. But Mexico has refused. Democrats should come back to Washington and work to end the Shutdown, while at the same time ending the horrible humanitarian crisis at our Southern Border. I am in the White House waiting for you! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 Meanwhile, Trumps proposed border wall was a key election pledge that he had made in 2016. Reuters reported that a national emergency would allow Trump to divert money from other projects to pay for the wall. This could prompt him to sign bills that restore funding to agencies that have been affected by the shutdown. remaining of Thank you for Reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Why is Washington still at a standstill over border security and government funding? After trying to negotiate a bipartisan deal for weeks, President Donald Trump asked Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Chuck Schumer if they would follow through on border security funding if the rest of the government was reopened, and they said, no. As President Trump clearly laid out to the American people last week from the Oval Office, the crisis at our southern border is undeniable. Thats why I supported his requested $5.7 billion in funding to secure our border and build the wall. I have visited our southern border to get a first-hand look and meet with Border Patrol agents to hear their needs and concerns. Ive seen the serious vulnerabilities, and I share President Trumps commitment to securing our border. Its a national security crisis. Therein lies the problemalthough you wouldnt know it from the comments of the four young people profiled in the Today Show segment. When asked what set Gen Z apart from other generations, one of the four quickly declared, I think its internet engagement. Another glibly chimed in with this: We were born with it, so we dont really know a world without it, really. Really. The report mentioned digital fluency and the ability to multi-task as redeeming traits of Gen Z. Other young people appearing in the segment mentioned global connectedness and the ability to interact with hundreds of people. Political awareness and the dissemination of social causes were also part of the discussion. These are all worthwhile traits, but the lack of focus and short attention spans that frame internet engagement and social media were also discussed. These traits, notably, mark Gen Z as shallow and too willing to follow the pack. This comes at the expense of true analysis and deep intellectual consideration that are associated with the higher order thinking skills that educators so often mention. The new head of Venezuelas congress was pulled from his vehicle and briefly detained by police. The confusing incident is bound to ramp up tensions between the opposition and government following President Nicolas Maduros swearing in for a controversial second term this month. It came a day after the US-backed Juan Guaido assuming the presidency as a way out of the countrys deepening crisis. A video circulating on social media purports to show the moment in which Mr Guaido is intercepted on his way to an anti-government Citizens Meeting in the port city of La Guaira. Expand Close Juan Guaido has said the people of Venezuela need to take to the streets (AP Photo/Fernando Llano) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Juan Guaido has said the people of Venezuela need to take to the streets (AP Photo/Fernando Llano) In the video shot on a mobile phone by a motorist stuck in traffic, several men in ski masks and carrying assault weapons are seen struggling to shut the door on someone being pushed into a vehicle before racing down a road. While it was not possible to identify Mr Guaido in the 33-second video, his wife said on Twitter that he had been detained by a commando unit of the feared SEBIN intelligence police. As news of his detention spread, he was then released. I thank everyone for the quick response in the face of abuse against my husband by the dictatorship, Fabiana Rosales said in a message posted on Twitter. The dictatorship will not be able to bend his fighting spirit. Adding to the confusion, the government tried to shift the blame to Mr Guaidos allies, with communications minister Jorge Rodriguez saying that the media show had perhaps been orchestrated to provoke an international uproar. But he acknowledged that police officers had taken part in the arrest and said they would be disciplined. We want to inform the people of Venezuela that the officials who took that upon themselves are being dismissed, Mr Rodriguez said on state TV. Expand Close Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro came out onto the streets as he was sworn-in for a second term in Caracas last week (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Supporters of President Nicolas Maduro came out onto the streets as he was sworn-in for a second term in Caracas last week (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos) At the rally after the incident, Mr Guaido told The Associated Press that the SEBIN agents informed him they were carrying out orders from above when they arrested him. We are survivors, he told the crowd of a few hundred waving Venezuelan flags. Mr Guaido has been leading an increasingly tense stand-off with Mr Maduro seeking to oust him from power, winning the support of some powerful international allies like US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who spoke to him by phone shortly after the 35-year-old assumed the presidency of the opposition-controlled National Assembly. At a rally on Friday he said he was prepared to take over as Venezuelas interim president and call for new elections, a move the US and regional governments support. But for such a strategy to succeed, he said Venezuelans must take to the streets to express their discontent with Mr Maduros wrecking of what was once Latin Americas wealthiest nation. To that end, he called for nationwide demonstrations on January 23 to coincide with the anniversary of the 1958 ousting of military dictator Marcos Perez Jimenez. The US secretary of state will ask Saudi Arabias crown prince to ensure that the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi are held accountable. Mike Pompeo will meet Mohammed bin Salman when he travels to Saudi Arabia as part of his Middle East tour. The relationship between Riyadh and Washington remains tense following the October assassination of Washington Post columnist Mr Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Expand Close Jamal Khashoggi was killed in Saudi Arabias Turkey consulate (Johnny Green/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jamal Khashoggi was killed in Saudi Arabias Turkey consulate (Johnny Green/PA) Members of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmans entourage have been implicated in the killing and US members of Congress have demanded America pull back its support of the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Mr Pompeo said: We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring that the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi. Well continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable certainly by the Saudis, but by the United States as well, where appropriate. Mr Pompeo has also said that an ongoing boycott of Qatar by four of Americas allies in the Middle East has dragged on too long though he gave no sign of any coming breakthrough in the dispute. Stopping off in the small, energy-rich nation on the tour, he made a repeated point to say that great things were happening between Qatar and the United States. Were all more powerful when were working together, Mr Pompeo said. Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful. Mr Pompeo said he signed a memorandum of understanding with Qatar regarding the expansion and renovation of al-Udeid Air Base, which hosts the forward headquarters of the US militarys Central Command and some 10,000 American troops. However, comments by Mr Pompeo and Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani gave no sense of any movement in the ongoing diplomatic crisis with Doha. Expand Close Mike Pompeo at a joint press conference with Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mike Pompeo at a joint press conference with Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP) Later, speaking to a US embassy staff member in Qatar who said her job was moving to the UAE due to the boycotts effects, Mr Pompeo was even more frank. Its on everyones mind and not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday and I regret that, he said. Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates began a boycott of Qatar in June 2017, alleging Qatar funds extremist groups and has too-cosy ties to Iran. Qatar has long denied funding extremists, but Doha shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Tehran that gives its citizens the highest per-capita income in the world. It restored diplomatic relations with Iran after the crisis erupted, marking a setback for Saudi Arabia, which views the Shiite power Iran as its main regional rival. The president is expected to sign legislation to provide back pay for some 800,000 federal workers (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) President Donald Trump has said he has no idea whether he can get a deal with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for his border wall as the partial US government shutdown slipped into the record books. The president did not tip his hand on Saturday on whether he will move ahead with an emergency declaration that could break the impasse, free up money for his wall without congressional approval and kick off legal challenges and a political storm over the use of that extraordinary step. A day earlier, he said he was not ready to do it right now. Politicians are due back in Washington from their states and congressional districts in the new week. Mr Trump fired off a series of tweets pushing back against the notion that he does not have a strategy to end what became the longest government shutdown in US history when it entered its 22nd day on Saturday. Elections have consequences! he declared, meaning the 2016 election in which I promised safety and security and, as part of that, a border wall. Mr Trump threatened anew that the shutdown could continue indefinitely as the Democrats, who now control the House, refuse to give him money for the wall. Later on Saturday, he telephoned Fox News Channels Justice with Judge Jeanine Pirro from the White House. Ms Pirro pressed Mr Trump on why he had yet to declare a national emergency. He said he was giving Congress a chance to act responsibly. The president is expected in the new week to sign legislation passed by Congress to provide back pay for some 800,000 federal workers who are not being paid during the shutdown. Friday was payday for many but not for the nearly million federal workers because of the #TrumpShutdown. All they want is to get back to work earning an honest living to provide for their families. #EndTheShutdown Nancy Pelosi (@TeamPelosi) January 12, 2019 Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, travelling in Abu Dhabi, claimed that morale is good among US diplomats even as many work without pay. Were doing our best to make sure it doesnt impact our diplomacy, he said. Almost half of the State Department employees in the US and about one-quarter abroad have been granted a leave of absence during the shutdown. With the exception of certain local employees overseas, the rest are working without pay, such as those tasked with supporting Mr Pompeos trip, which has thus far taken him to Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Bahrain. Expand Close Snow falls on the White House as a winter storm arrives in the region during the longest government shutdown in US history (Alex Brandon/AP) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Snow falls on the White House as a winter storm arrives in the region during the longest government shutdown in US history (Alex Brandon/AP) An emergency declaration by Mr Trump could break the stalemate by letting him use existing, unspent money to build the US-Mexico border wall, without needing congressional approval. Democrats oppose that step but may be unable to stop it and many Republicans are wary too. Nevertheless the administration has accelerated planning for it. Officials explored diverting money from a range of accounts, including 13.9 billion dollars given to the Army Corps of Engineers after last years deadly hurricanes and floods, but that option appeared to lose steam following an outcry. Other possibilities included tapping asset forfeiture funds, such as money seized from drug kingpins, according to a congressional Republican. The White House also was eyeing military construction money, another politically difficult choice because it would take away from a backlog of hundreds of projects. Donald Trump has said he has been tough on Russia (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) US President Donald Trump has avoided giving a direct answer when asked if he currently is or has ever worked for Russia. A published report shows federal law enforcement officials were so concerned about Mr Trumps behaviour after he fired James Comey from the FBI that they began investigating whether he had been working for the US adversary against American interests. Mr Trump said it was the most insulting question he had ever been asked. The New York Times report cited unnamed former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation. Mr Trump responded to the report during an interview broadcast on the Fox News Channel after host Jeanine Pirro, who is also a personal friend of the president, asked whether he is currently or has ever worked for Russia. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked, Mr Trump said. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written, and if you read the article youll see that they found absolutely nothing. Mr Trump never answered Ms Pirros question directly, but went on to say that no president has taken a harder stance against Russia than he has. Expand Close Donald Trump walks past Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Argentina (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Donald Trump walks past Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Argentina (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) If you ask the folks in Russia, Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any other probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents. The New York Times reported that FBI agents and some top officials became suspicious of Mr Trumps ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign but did not open an investigation at that time because they were not sure how to approach such a sensitive and important probe, according to the unnamed officials. But Mr Trumps behaviour in the days around Mr Comeys May 2017 firing as FBI director, specifically two instances in which he seemed to tie Mr Comeys ousting to the Russia investigation, helped trigger the counter-intelligence part of the investigation, according to the newspaper. In the inquiry, counter-intelligence investigators sought to evaluate whether Mr Trump was a potential threat to national security. They also sought to determine whether Mr Trump was deliberately working for Russia or had unintentionally been influenced by Moscow. Mr Trump tweeted early on Saturday that the report showed that the FBI leadership opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof after he had fired Mr Comey. Robert Mueller took over the investigation when he was appointed special counsel soon after Mr Comeys firing. The overall investigation is looking into Russian election interference and whether Mr Trumps campaign co-ordinated with the Russians, as well as possible obstruction of justice by Mr Trump. Mr Trumps lawyer Rudy Giuliani told the New York Times he had no knowledge of the inquiry but said that since it was opened a year-and-a-half ago and they had not heard anything, apparently they found nothing. Mr Trump has also repeatedly and vociferously denied collusion with the Russians. Joan Fanshawe, who has died aged 98, was on duty as a WAAF plotter in the operations room at RAF Uxbridge when Winston Churchill visited at the height of the Battle of Britain. The weather was fine on September 15, 1940 when the British prime minister decided to visit the Air Officer Commanding No 11 Group, Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park, at his headquarters. Shortly after his arrival, the Luftwaffe launched the first of a series of major attacks against targets in London during the day. Joan was one of 10 WAAFs surrounding the plotting table in the underground operations room, when soon after 11am the first reports of an enemy raid were received. Using a stick like a croupier's rake, she plotted movements in the Calais-Dover sector, which proved to be the main axis of the attack. Park skilfully deployed his squadrons and they inflicted significant damage on the bomber force. Churchill, monitoring the movements on the plotting table with Park from the controller's balcony, expressed his delight at the results. Shortly before 2pm, a much bigger raid was detected by the early warning radar system. Park launched his squadrons and soon had 250 fighters in the air, but they were still outnumbered two to one. Park and Churchill watched as the WAAF plotters moved the blocks to show details of the attacking force approaching London. Seeing that every squadron in 11 Group was in the air, Churchill turned to Park to ask what reserves were available. Park gave his now-famous reply - that all his squadrons were airborne. Although the claims of successes against Luftwaffe forces were exaggerated, the day was a clear victory for the RAF, and September 15 has subsequently been commemorated as "Battle of Britain Day". Joan remembered the day as special, but noted in her diary that she was "rather annoyed" that Churchill's visit had extended her shift by an hour. The daughter of a clergyman, Joan Margaret Moxon was born in Leicester on September 5, 1920. She attended Hastings and St Leonards Ladies' College, where she was deputy head girl, and then studied at the London School of Economics. On the outbreak of war, she joined the Civil Defence. After reading an ad for girls with "good educational qualifications" to join the special duties branch of the WAAF, she enlisted - insisting that since her father had no sons to volunteer, she would instead. She began her training in the summer of 1940 and by the end of July, she and 13 others had been sent to the operations room at Uxbridge. In January 1942 she was posted to the RAF fighter airfield at Kenley, where she worked as a supervisor in the control room. She was commissioned in November and moved to Tangmere near Chichester, where she became an assistant controller. In addition to her duties with the fighter squadrons, she used a confidential telephone line to a top-secret cottage to coordinate the carrying of agents to France by Lysander aircraft. In February 1943 she was sad to leave Tangmere for the fighter airfield at Debden, Essex, but she did not realise at the time how this move would shape the rest of her life. In September, visiting friends of her father, she met their son, Lieutenant Tom Fanshawe DSC, RNR, on leave from his frigate HMS Rother. They quickly established a close relationship before Fanshawe returned to duty on the Atlantic Convoys. Joan returned to Tangmere at the end of 1943, by which time preparation for D-Day was well advanced. The couple's plans to marry in June had to be postponed as Fanshawe took command of the corvette Clover, which formed part of the vanguard of naval ships to sail for the Normandy beaches. On the afternoon of June 5, after watching the convoys building up in Portsmouth, she attended a conference of commanders, when she learnt that the invasion was to take place the next day. She recorded in her diary: "At last it has come! I am so terribly thrilled to be here helping to get fighter cover into the air to protect Tommy escorting the invasion troops." They were married on August 14 and Joan Fanshawe spent the rest of the war serving on fighter stations, before leaving the WAAF as a section officer. Her husband was granted a permanent commission and she began a long life as a naval officer's wife, in Italy, Bahrain and South Africa. Joan Fanshawe was an accomplished church organist and played at her church at Stroud in Hampshire and two other rural churches. In the last 10 years, she became something of a celebrity as one of the last of the Battle of Britain WAAF plotters. She gave a reading at the Westminster Abbey Battle of Britain Day service in 2015 and was an honoured guest at the RAF's Centenary celebrations in 2018. That year she also attended the premiere of the documentary Spitfire, in which she appeared. Joan Fanshawe possessed a great spirit and sense of adventure. To celebrate her 97th birthday, she flew in an aerobatic aircraft from Goodwood. After her husband's death in 2000, she made regular trips to New Zealand to visit her two daughters, and it was there that she fell ill, while helping to bake a Christmas cake. Joan Fanshawe died on December 21 and is survived by her son and the two daughters. Telegraph Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021] Guards in some of America's most dangerous prisons are warning that escapes and riots could be coming if the partial government shutdown continues to drag on with no end in sight. Many of those deemed "essential" to government work, such as prison officials, are having to work without pay, leaving some worried that gaps could become rife if guards are pushed away by the instability, or call in sick. The shutdown, sparked by the struggle over border wall funding between President Donald Trump and Democrats in congress, is already into its 21st day. Jose Rojas, a 24-year-veteran of the Prison Bureau, is worried that a lengthy government shutdown could exasperate an already delicate situation at the Coleman Federal Correctional Complex where he works in central Florida. "You're going to have riots. You're going to have predatory inmates pick on the weaker inmates. You're going to have rape. You're going to have violence toward the staff. You're going to have escapes," Mr Rojas says, describing what he sees as a possibility if the government shutdown lasts for months and drives guards away. "They don't realise what's happening right now," he says of the politicians in Washington arguing over the border wall. He mentions the deadly gangs that are penned up in the US jails. "We have a lot of MS-13, Latin Kings - we have the worst of the worst. If we don't have anyone to watch the inmates, we're going to have riots, we're going to have escapes." With childcare costs, medical bills and mortgages to pay, many workers have been told to plead with creditors and landlords for respite as they wait for the shutdown to end. While some workers have been simply granted leave of absence, essential workers have been instructed to come to work - even though they will not get paid, or face potential professional repercussions if they do not. To make up for the lost income, some are being forced to work extra hours moonlighting odd jobs to keep food on the table. For Mr Rojas, it is driving his car for Uber. The fact politicians in Washington are willing to risk prison guards' safety by adding extra stress on top of an already dangerous and demanding job has left many frustrated, with the shutdown approaching the longest in history. Mr Rojas's experience and perspective is not unique for the contingent of prison guards and workers who are in charge of making sure violent offenders - including the types of criminals with gangs like MS-13 that Mr Trump so frequently cites as a reason for the border wall - stay locked up and away from the general population. "We are 100pc the front line for the individuals who are incarcerated and the public. If it weren't for us, those people wouldn't stay in prison," says Roger Ware, a prison worker in West Virginia and an official in the prison officers union. Mr Ware has begun working in construction at weekends to help pay his mortgage, keep food on the table for his five children, and to make sure he and his wife - who also works at the US penitentiary in Hazelton - can just afford the gas to make the daily 120-mile round trip trek to the prison job where they are not getting paid and have no idea when they will. The US federal government shut down after Mr Trump decided that he would not sign government funding bills that do not include $5.7bn (5bn) to erect a physical barrier on the US-Mexico border that he says is essential to keeping the US safe. Democrats have rejected that request, offering $1.3bn (1.13bn) in funding for border security but refusing to spend money on a wall that critics say would have limited impact on immigration and smuggling issues that the president says shows it is necessary. Last Wednesday, any ongoing talks between the president and Democrats appeared to break down when Mr Trump abruptly walked out of a meeting in the White House after Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi refused to promise to negotiate funding a wall. Meanwhile, federal workers including those in US prisons have been told to reach out to their creditors to tell them of their situations and hope that they will be given some relief. Some banks have offered zero-interest loans to help those workers get by, but that appears to be the exception to the rule. Justin Tarovisky, a union official in West Virginia, says instructions to federal workers to ask for charity from landlords and banks are a "slap in the face", especially considering the conditions he and his colleagues face on a daily basis. "When I leave the prison, when I leave those walls behind me, I gotta go and I gotta pay my bills. I gotta pay for daycare. I gotta pay for gas. I gotta pay for my cellphone," Mr Tarovisky says. "When you're being told that you are not going to be paid, that's a slap in the face of the hard-working blue collar workers, federal workers, who go inside these walls to keep America safe." Independent Israeli soldiers stand around the opening of a hole that leads to a tunnel (Sebastian Scheiner/AP) Israeli troops have discovered the sixth and final tunnel dug by Hezbollah militants for cross-border attacks, officials said. The final tunnel was the largest one discovered so far, running hundreds of metres from under a Lebanese home and deep into Israeli territory, military spokesman Lt Col Jonathan Conricus said. Israel launched Operation Northern Shield early last month to detect and destroy what it called a vast network of Hezbollah tunnels aimed at helping militants sneak across the border to carry out attacks. 180ft deep underground 2,624ft dug under #Lebanon Dozens of yards dug into Israel This #Hezbollah attack tunnel was dug from the Lebanese village of Ramyeh into Israel & will be neutralized soon. We have now exposed all attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israel. pic.twitter.com/AU0zNbmCCM Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) January 13, 2019 Lt Gen Conricus said the latest tunnel originated from the Lebanese border town of Ramyeh. It was 55 metres deep and ran 800 metres inside Lebanese territory and also dozens of metres into Israel, he said. It included stairs, a rail system and a wide a passageway that allowed for the movement of equipment and a large number of forces. The tunnel would be destroyed in the coming days, Lt Gen Conricus said, adding that while more tunnels still existed on the Lebanese side of the border, this effectively marked the end of the ambitious military operation. We have achieved the goal that we set out to achieve a month and a half ago, he said. According to our intelligence, there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels into Israel. Israel and the United Nations say the tunnels violate a ceasefire resolution that ended a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. Lt Gen Conricus says the UN peacekeeping mission, known as Unifil, had been updated on the latest development. The powerful Shiite militant Hezbollah, which acts independently in Lebanon, has yet to comment on the Israeli discoveries. Israel has long called for a crackdown on the Iran-backed Hezbollah, a heavily armed mini-army that is believed to possess an arsenal of some 150,000 rockets that can reach nearly all of Israel. In recent years, Hezbollah has been bogged down in fighting in Syria on behalf of Syrian President Bashar Assads government. But with that civil war winding down, Israeli security officials fear Hezbollah is refocusing its attention on Israel. In the wake of its discoveries, Israel has asked the international community to impose tough sanctions on Hezbollah and begin to act against its state-within-a-state operation in Lebanon. The military said its forces would stay deployed along the border area to monitor for any other possible underground activity, and said it holds the Lebanese government responsible for everything happening in its territory. The parliamentary heads of two of Finland's largest parties have called for action after investigations against 19 foreign-born men on suspicion of sexual abuse of minors. The issue has boosted the support of the anti-immigration, populist The Finns Party, whose popularity jumped two points to over 10 percent in the latest poll published by the national broadcaster YLE ahead of a parliamentary election on April 14. Police have said there were foreign-born men among the 16 investigated for rape or other sexual abuses of adolescent girls in the town of Oulu over the last two months. On Sunday, police in Helsinki said they had arrested three foreign-born men on similar charges. Antti Kaikkonen, parliamentary head of the coalition-leading Centre Party, called for a meeting of all the parliamentary party heads, tweeting: "Everyone who comes to Finland has to follow the local laws." Antti Lindtman, parliamentary head of the main opposition party, the Social Democrats, said: "The question is, are there measures we could take now - even during this term - to prevent cowardly crimes like these? Yes, there are." Prime Minister Juha Sipila tweeted that the government would discuss the "inhuman and reprehensible events" twice next week. The topic is shocking for many in Finland, which sees itself as one of the safest and happiest countries on earth. A citizens' initiative to withdraw asylum from people convicted of a sex crime has doubled its signatures in just a few days and reached 25,000 on Sunday - half the total needed to force parliament to consider the issue. The country of 5.5 million people has historically had very few immigrants. But the issue has become more fraught since the European refugee crisis of 2015, which caused the number of asylum seekers to almost quadruple to 28,208 in 2016. Statistics Finland says around 1,200 cases of sexual abuse of minors are reported to the police each year, and that foreigners were involved in 18 percent of the cases that came to trial last year. Lindtman proposed toughening the penalties for sex crimes against minors and withdrawing asylum from people convicted of serious violent or sexual crimes. In this frame grab taken by a video released by the Italian Police, Sunday, Jan. 13, 2019, Italian fugitive communist militant Cesare Battisti walks in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. (Italian Police Via AP) An Italian militant who was convicted of murder in his home country nearly three decades ago has been arrested in Bolivia. The Italian government sent an aircraft to pick up Cesare Battisti, who was captured by Bolivian police working with Italian agents on the ground in Santa Cruz de La Sierra, Italian police said. The 64-year-old had been living in Brazil for years, but Brazil's outgoing president signed a decree last month ordering his extradition, apparently leading to Battisti's latest effort to elude authorities. Italian police released a video of Battisti they said was taken hours before his capture, showing him seemingly oblivious to surveillance cameras tracking him as he walked casually down the street in jeans, a blue T-shirt and sunglasses. A subsequent image showed Battisti's mug shot under the seal of the Bolivian police. Expand Close In this April 12, 2012 file photo, Italian Cesare Battisti attends the presentation of his book about his experience in prison in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo, File) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp In this April 12, 2012 file photo, Italian Cesare Battisti attends the presentation of his book about his experience in prison in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo, File) "Cesare Battisti's long flight is over," justice minister Alfonso Buonafede declared, adding that he would be taken to Rome's Rebibbia prison as soon as he landed in Italy. Battisti was expected to return to Rome aboard the Italian aircraft direct from Santa Cruz "in the coming hours" Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said on Sunday. He said Italy, and the families of Battisti's victims, had waited too long for justice. Italian interior minister Matteo Salvini called Battisti a "delinquent who doesn't deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison". Battisti escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while awaiting trial on four counts of murder allegedly committed when he was a member of the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was convicted in absentia in 1990 and faces a life term for the deaths of two police officers, a jeweller and a butcher. He has acknowledged membership in the group but has denied killing anyone and has painted himself as a political refugee. After initially fleeing to Mexico, he then went to France, where he joined dozens of Italian militants who enjoyed official protection from the French government. Expand Close A Bolivian officer from Interpol stands at the entry of the headquarters where former Italian communist militant Cesare Battisti is held after being arrested, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp A Bolivian officer from Interpol stands at the entry of the headquarters where former Italian communist militant Cesare Battisti is held after being arrested, in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, January 13, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer Like Battisti, they fled during Italy's "years of lead", a bloody and turbulent era during the 1970s and 1980s when militants carried out bombings, assassinations and other violent acts to try to bring down the Italian government. After political winds shifted in France, Battisti fled to Brazil in 2004 to avoid being extradited. He was arrested in Rio de Janeiro in 2007, prompting the Italian government to request that he be handed over. But former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva granted him asylum in 2010. Battisti was eventually released from jail but was arrested again in 2017 after he was caught trying to cross the Brazil-Bolivia border carrying undeclared cash. He was released after a few days. As a result of that incident, Brazilian Supreme Federal Tribunal Justice Luiz Fux said in December that Interpol had issued a request for Battisti's arrest on tax evasion and money laundering charges, leading him to issue a Brazilian warrant. Based on that, outgoing Brazilian President Michel Temer signed the decree ordering the fugitive's extradition. Ireland has been directing significant aid to Ethiopia for 25 years, with our involvement likely to increase under the upcoming state aid plan due to be published later this year. Irish links run deep in the vast country, with several NGOs working in areas such as education, agriculture, sanitation provision and health education. The diplomatic ties also run deep, with six diplomats linked to the Irish embassy in the capital, Addis Ababa, led by ambassador Sonja Hyland. But the country continues to struggle with many of the same problems that first triggered the flow of Irish taxpayers' money into it. Ethiopia is battling climate change issues, migration and internal displacement of its citizens forced from their homes by local conflict and a conflux of education issues including a lack of schooling for girls. Poverty remains rampant despite the fast-growing economy, and drought and food insecurity still blight some regions with crippling effect. Leo Varadkar spent three days touring the country in a bid to get to grips with the challenges that it faces. Some of the aid programmes in Addis Ababa highlight the complexities of improving life for people in Ethiopia. Tucked away beside a monastery, a Trocaire project looks to educate women in vocations such as embroidery and pottery. The women are equipped with health education and business training to help them pursue a small enterprise on their own. However, in addition to training women - most of whom have never worked outside the home - the charity has learnt that it must bring the men along. Female empowerment for the women who come to the centre to train is found not only in their new skills but also in their friendships. There are regular group sessions in which issues such as leadership are discussed in small rooms where the walls are adorned with images of female Ethiopian leaders such as Eleni Zaude Gabre-Madhin, who was among the founders of the Ethiopian stock exchange. But the local culture also proves a stumbling block - as well as the men often resisting the idea that a woman should work outside the home, there are some myths that must be overcome. These include the idea that the holy water in the monastery will provide a more effective cure for HIV than medication. Women who opt to train in pottery may also find themselves battling an old lore that people involved in pottery have an 'evil eye', leading to the marginalisation of those who practise the craft. Across town a Goal ChildSpace project looks to bring hundreds of street children through a programme to help them re-socialise and learn how to become self-sufficient through entrepreneurship or to help them reunite with their families. There are 600,000 children living on the streets of Ethiopia in dangerous and damaging conditions, many attracted to the capital. Both initiatives are funded in part by Irish State aid. In addition to complex domestic problems, Ethiopia is battling a refugee crisis of its own, with almost one million refugees registered with the government, though the true number is not known. The Irish delegation visited a camp in the northern region of Tigray on the final day of its trip. While most Ethiopian refugees have fled from South Sudan, the reopening of the border between Eritrea and Ethiopia has led to a surge of people flooding over. Many hope to travel to Europe where they believe a better life awaits but for some the camp has been their home for a decade. The Taoiseach spoke to several families, mostly women who had travelled with their children to the relative safety of the camp. One woman was hoping to go on to Luxembourg, while others who met the delegation were happy to find a home in the 'second country' of Ethiopia where they share the language with the people of the Tigray region. There are more than 12,000 people in the camp. Despite the challenges facing Ethiopia, locals say they have more reason to hope at the moment after Abiy Ahmed was voted in as prime minister last year. A young and reforming politician, he has pledged to overhaul the economy and has brought peace by ending the border dispute with Eritrea. Many of his moves have been progressive, including selecting a gender-balanced cabinet and ending a state of emergency in the country. He has welcomed back exiled opposition leaders and appointed them to significant roles, and has also vowed to tackle corruption, with several high-profile people arrested. The government has pledged to end the culture of surveillance embedded in the country which to date has run on the 'one to five' system where one household would be responsible for monitoring five others. The Irish contingent noticed the difference; locals say they feel more freedom to discuss politics, even with their extended family. The prime minister has promised free and fair elections in 2020. But his election has not come without concern - he is the country's first Oromo leader, shifting power from the Tigray region where it has resided for generations. There is also the fear that his promises are so sweeping that failure to deliver on them may see the fragile peace in the country upset. But for the moment Ethiopia looks to be on the cusp of radical change and the visit by the Taoiseach has reaffirmed Ireland's interest in it. The relationship is changing; as well as direct state aid there is a need to bolster economic activity in the country and to ensure that Europe's relationship with Ethiopia is not lost to Chinese intervention. At the close of his visit, Mr Varadkar declared the need for Europe to "get Africa right" in order to tackle the problems created by migration at the root. But he could have left in no doubt that there is no simple solution - and finding the political will in Europe may prove difficult. 'How many Cork people does it take to found a movement to break the political cartel?" enquired Peadar Toibin, the Independent ex-Sinn Fein TD, on Twitter last Thursday evening, after his political meeting. "About 350 apparently!!!" was his triumphant answer. It mightn't seem remarkable that he could attract 350 anti-abortion republicans to a meeting in a smart hotel in the rebel county, yet it was held in Ballincurrig, a 15-minute drive from Cork city, Toibin has never been one of the Sinn Fein celebs, he has no organisational backing and it was, after all, mid-January. But it was far more significant than that. When he joined the party in 1997 after the IRA ceasefire he must have seemed like a real catch. A devout Catholic, a committed republican, a fluent Irish speaker and lover of Irish culture with strong roots in respectable Co Meath, he had a degree in economics from UCD, a postgraduate degree from the Smurfit School of Business and was on his way to being a successful management consultant. It would become clear, though, that he was handicapped by a conscience. While his contemporary Mary Lou McDonald had the necessary moral lobotomy that made her toe the Sinn Fein party line at all times, Toibin showed worrying signs of thinking for himself. This would bring on a dramatic clash when, for cynical political reasons, Sinn Fein changed abruptly from being socially conservative to "progressive". Against party orders, in 2013 Toibin refused to endorse the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill and was suspended for six months. In October 2014, as senior Shinners - who had been extremely vocal in their merciless condemnations of clerical failings over child abuse - lined up to smear Mairia Cahill and cover up IRA covers-up of similar crimes, Toibin contradicted colleagues by saying on the radio that he believed that "in the IRA modus operandi of the time" sex abusers had been moved. "Let's make sure that issues of abuse don't happen like they did in the past, where they were dealt with internally in organisations, whether it be the church or whether it be in the IRA," he said. This being suspect behaviour, he was not one of the favoured when it came to dishing out the spoils after the 2016 General Election and was appointed to one of the three committees to which Sinn Fein could appoint chairs. (That the other two were yesterday's man Caoimhghin O Caolain, whom Gerry Adams had ousted as leader in 2011 - the year Toibin won a seat in Meath West - and newcomer Kathleen Funchion, indicated that Sinn Fein regarded them as a bit of a dumping ground.) I watched a session of Toibin's committee a year or so ago because a friend was up before it, and was surprised to see a member of Sinn Fein who appeared intelligent, open-minded, anxious to learn about the operation of a cultural institution and concerned with practical ways of helping it do its job. Then last year, in the middle of the furore after Barry McElduff had appeared to ridicule the victims of the Kingsmill massacre, Toibin called the atrocity "a shocking, despicable, shameful, morally wrong act to select individuals on the basis, non-combatants, on the basis of their religion and to kill them as a result". (Of course the use of the word 'non-combatant' suggests he still excuses the murder of members of the security forces, which means that there are many Irish people who could and should never vote for him, but it's still a long way away from the normal Sinn Fein line of defending every atrocity as someone else's fault.) And then came Sinn Fein's refusal to allow its elected representatives to vote on grounds of conscience in favour of retaining Article 8, Carol Nolan's resignation, Toibin's suspension and his plans to travel the length an breadth of the island to find those who agree with him not just about abortion but about the centralising of political parties and their failure to listen to the grassroots. He also made it clear that while his party would be socially conservative ("Ireland's sick and tired of a focus on the 'culture wars' and issues like 'gender-fluid toilets'", he told the Irish Sun), it would be centre-left on economic policy, opposed to a federal Europe or European army and focused on correcting the imbalance in growth between Dublin and the countryside. By yesterday, when he gave an interview to The Journal, he had recruited nine elected councillors from Fianna Fail, Sinn Fein and the SDLP, had more than 8,000 followers on Twitter and a lively Facebook account, had held 11 public meetings North and South with 20 more organised, and had 1,400 members of a political party he hasn't yet named because he's determined to ensure there will be no unforeseen problems with electoral registration and internet domains. Some of his ex-colleagues are hurt, angry and not talking to him, he says in a tone of sorrow rather than anger which must make them even more furious. The boys in the Sinn Fein backroom in Belfast must be looking with horror at this upstart having the nerve to challenge them head-on in the occupied Six Counties as well as the Free State. They must be nostalgic for the good old days when he could have been - if not knee-capped - intimidated out of his seat and even out of the country. This party may go the way of so many others, but Micheal Martin and Colum Eastwood must be really shocked at this challenge at a moment when they seemed finally about to merge their parties. Leo Varadkar shouldn't be smiling either. And the DUP might now lose its anti-abortion Catholic members. "People have said to me, 'well what if you lose your job over this'," Toibin has said. "And I said, it is not the end of the world if I lose my job, but if abortion comes in for the child, it is the end of the world." That level of principle at a time when politicians are held in such low esteem should scare the bejaysus out of the political establishment North and South. You go away for a while, these days, and when you come back there's the inevitable question: "Did ye see yer man on the telly the other night?" No, I didn't, and I don't want to. That's one of the joys of going away - relief from the incessant media-led arguments. But last week it was unavoidable, the thing about the guy that politicians listen to and take seriously - Conor Skehan - announcing that current levels of homelessness are "normal". And in no time at all there was another question. "Did ye see yer wan last night?" Don't tell me, she was on the telly, yeah? "No, she was streaming, online. She's going on about refugees, now." Aw, please, give me a break. It gets very intense these days, doesn't it? He said this and she said that, and someone else says something annoying and - like hounds catching a new scent - we wheel off in another direction, barking, yapping. Yer man and yer wan - Conor Skehan and Gemma O'Doherty - are prominent in the never-ending debates about how we live now. Dr Conor Skehan, former head of the Housing Agency, is a well-connected academic. Politicians take what he says seriously. So, what he says can have an influence on how a lot of people live. Skehan is a significant indicator of how the governing class is thinking. Gemma O'Doherty has for a long time been prominent in online dissent. She's a significant indicator of what's currently on the agenda within the ranks of the unorganised dissenters (as opposed to the politically organised left). So, wearily, I looked up the two yappers. Skehan was on Claire Byrne Live, on RTE. He complained that politicians are "goaded by people involved in advocacy" on homelessness. They press emotional buttons, forcing the politicians to react as though something out of the ordinary is happening, requiring urgent action. Having 10,000 homeless people is "normal", Skehan said. "It's normal in the sense that human beings go through many different issues and emotional upheavals in their lives." Just one of those things, really. When Claire Byrne mentioned 10,000 homeless, Skehan was in like a shot: "As opposed to 35,000 in Denmark". And he said "Aw!" and let his jaw drop. I think he was imitating the shock of people less knowledgeable than he, as he confronts them with reality. Homelessness, he told us, is a terrible human tragedy, but it's normal. It follows that it would be abnormal to take any urgent action. Calm down, you "advocacy" types. The media got a council official to disagree that homelessness is normal, and - having achieved "balance" - moved on. The Claire Byrne Live show has high ratings. And to many watching it would seem impressive that we have only 10,000 homeless. After all, Denmark - with a population of only one million more - has 35,000. Trouble is, go online and you'll find the Danish figure is 6,635. Countries use different ways of measuring homelessness and direct comparisons are dodgy. Lord knows where Dr Skehan got his 35,000 figure. All reasoning counts for nothing in the face of Skehan's hammer-blow assertion that Denmark has 350pc more homelessness than we have. Normal? Even in the bad old days of the Fifties we didn't have thousands of people homeless, families living in a single B&B room, kids doing homework, adults doing housework, all eating and sleeping in the same small room. It wasn't normal then and it's not normal now. Never did we impose this on families for months and years on end. Never did we jack up prices and rents to ensure that not even those with jobs that are reasonably paid could be sure of a roof over their heads. But, Skehan reflects the thinking of those who govern. Only the "goading" of those using emotional "advocacy" forces the elite to intervene in this "normal" course of events. It's normal, it seems, to have 10,000 people living in extreme conditions. It's normal to see kids have their childhood stolen by a ferocious free market. It's normal that the financial welfare of landlords, investors, land hoarders, builders, shareholders and vultures should come before the welfare of the people. The online media is supposed to offer a fresh, corporate-free alternative. For years, Gemma O'Doherty was the poster girl for the new media. I found her Mary Boyle documentary unconvincing, but thousands say otherwise. I know the Fr Niall Molloy case, which she's "investigated". I reported on the original trial of Richard Flynn in June 1986, and the coroner's inquest six weeks later. And I've followed events since. The trial was a disgrace, the judge was factually wrong in his assessment of evidence. The inquest, on the other hand, was impeccably conducted by Coroner Brian Mahon. O'Doherty's theory that there was a conspiracy between police and Fianna Fail seems to me to be nonsense. This is about real people, grieving families coping with a failure of the State, trying to meet their obligations to a dead man they loved. It's not a game of Cluedo. Having failed to become president, O'Doherty seems to have left her "investigations" behind, along with her corruption campaign, to warn us that "globalists" are set on destroying Ireland. She warns of jihadists, and says "we're going to make Ireland Irish again", and, she says - oh, Christ, the usual oul s**te. Fact: top migrants here? The Poles; they do good work. Want to kick them out? Leave the EU. Next largest, the Brits; they're good neighbours. Want to kick them out? Want them to kick out the Irish? I watched O'Doherty and others get upset online about how Ireland is unrecognisable. "It's not Ireland anymore," all the "migrants from Africa and the Third World". Two percent Asian; 1.4pc black. Some people, God love them, they can't take such overwhelming change. Fact: we live in a world dreadfully disrupted by war, global warming and economic devastation. A dozen years ago there were 8m refugees; a decade later that had doubled. Now, some 60m refugees seek to escape death or gross exploitation. Two-thirds are internally displaced, about 21m spill out across nearby countries - some try to get to Europe, a relative handful make it to Ireland, and we welcome them. We are not the 19th Century Brits, who shrugged at the famines, while the Irish ate grass. If our compassion and solidarity stops at the shores of Ireland, we are nothing more than Farage in a leprechaun hat. In the online world, people have an inalienable right to be small-minded prats. In the mainstream media, not so much. Before an election, there's a 24-hour broadcast moratorium, to prevent uncheckable last-minute claims. In these times, when the logic of an argument can be killed by hammer-blow statistics, and it has become normal for politicians to use hammer-blow "facts", we need less live broadcasting. And "balance" - a corrective report at some other time - is not enough. Record live shows two hours early, "as live"; fact-check them before broadcast; and inform viewers accordingly at the end of each show. It would be more useful; and everyone would watch to the end. Mind you, sometimes it seems like the debate - both media and online - goes on as though detached from the reality it's supposed to be about. As though winning the argument is all that matters. Outside the river is the same muddy brown expanse, sweeping clumps of vegetation past Kinshasa and Brazzaville and onwards through the Democratic Republic of the Congo towards the distant Atlantic. I am staying in a hotel next to an army base. Scanning from the river to the street below my window, a distance of about 100 metres, I see troops in red berets lounging in the shade of a tree. I have passed them most evenings coming back from the day's reporting. They are polite, not the drunken and dangerous soldiery I have encountered in this country before. But this is the diplomatic district; a better class of soldier is deployed here. I first saw the river back in 1991 during an attempted coup against the then dictator Mobutu Sese Seko - and had to flee across to Brazzaville to escape the violence in Kinshasa. An abiding memory of that day: I was part of a crowd of several hundred attempting to board the ferry for the other side. A severely disabled woman, one of the many who tried to exist by begging on the streets of Kinshasa, attempted to make her way towards the front of the crowd. As she crawled forwards, a solder appeared with a whip and set about beating her. Nobody paid the slightest attention. This was Kinshasa in the time of Mobutu, the most venal dictator in African history. From top to bottom, the state was riddled with corruption and the casual brutality that it inflicted upon the weak. We made it across the river to safety. Congo endured another six years of Mobutu's rule before the dictatorship collapsed in chaos and war. British and French marines arrived on the river to evacuate their citizens. Outside my window this morning, the same river but a different crisis, sort of. Congo is waking up to the reality that an election - which was meant to be about change for its 80m citizens - has delivered a president, Felix Tshisekedi, whose legitimacy is being called into question from the outset. Let us simply say of Mr Tshisekedi that so far in his political life he has not earned a reputation for being notably efficient or charismatic. He is the son of a legendary political figure and inherited the leadership of his party.Suspicion is general that he was allowed to win through manipulation of the results at the behest of the incumbent president Joseph Kabila. Kabila has been in power for 18 years and only very reluctantly agreed to hold elections after a campaign of domestic and international pressure. His own party's candidate polled so poorly it appears he had little choice but to accept that an opposition leader would win. There were two of them up for election - Mr Tshisekedi and Martin Fayulu, a former oil company executive with a reputation for honesty and competence. He was also backed by two determined opponents of President Kabila. The hugely influential Catholic church had 40,000 observers around the country - and it concluded Mr Fayulu had won handsomely. There will be days of legal wrangling ahead as Mr Fayulu takes his case to the constitutional court. I met him the other night. He was interrogating a sheaf of results, a polite man with the air of a mathematics professor overwhelmed by an avalanche of exam papers overdue for correction. He was angry - and it was not the confected anger of the career politician seeking to gain a public relations edge. Mr Fayulu came from outside the political system here and he seemed genuinely baffled at the outcome. He has little faith that the court will change the result. Already it feels as if the world has moved on. In the eyes of the diplomatic community it is simple: there was an election; it did not descend into chaos; there was almost certainly a fix - but at least it is an opposition leader who becomes president and not Kabila's own party man; there is calm on the streets. Given the option, foreign powers will always go for stability. Or what they perceive to be stability. But in places like the DR Congo stability is usually bought at the expense of meaningful change and often stores up problems for the future. The old regime is very much in control here still, controlling the army, the police, the intelligence services and the civil service. What chance the radical reforms, the rooting out of corruption and cronyism that might give the millions living with desperate poverty a fair shot in life? Looking out at the river this morning I think of the roots of all of this. From its inception as a state, the Congo has been cursed by the venality and brutality of its rulers. When our own Roger Casement came in the late 19th Century he exposed the horrors of Belgian King Leopold's exploitation of a territory he had made his private state. Independence in 1960 saw the assassination of the country's first prime minister, Patrice Lumumba, after a plot involving Belgian and US interests who thought him a Soviet stooge. He was not, but his anti-colonial rhetoric alarmed the Belgians who retained wide commercial interests in the country. The DR Congo is one of the most mineral rich countries in the world. A secessionist war strangled the country at birth. The United Nations sent peacekeepers - among them around 6,000 Irish troops who served between 1960-64. It was our nation's first peacekeeping deployment and a statement that Ireland would play its part in trying to create a safer world. Twenty-six Irishmen lost their lives in the Congo. UN troops are still dying here in the cause of an elusive peace. I was never convinced these elections would mark the turning of a decisive page. The rot is too old and too deep. My sense is that things will muddle on. The 4.5m people displaced by war will not regain their old lives. There is an Ebola crisis in the north east that shows no sign of abating. The wealth of the country will not be used for the benefit of the masses. Yes, the country had a largely peaceful election. It came about because civil society refused to allow President Kabila to cling to power himself. The new man may yet surprise us all - but the longer term hope lies in the countless thousands who organised and campaigned for democracy. They haven't gone away. In the early 20th Century a renowned Irishman spoke of a country "where all your rights become only an accumulated wrong; where men must beg with bated breath for leave to subsist in their own land to garner the fruits of their own labours." The Congo campaigner Roger Casement was by then speaking of his own country but his words apply to the DR Congo now. The real danger would if the majority here came to see democracy as an exercise which delivered nothing but the same accumulated wrong. Fergal Keane is a BBC special correspondent and Africa editor For the entire history of the State, it has been illegal for Irish women to end unwanted pregnancies without travelling to another jurisdiction. As of January 1, any woman in an early enough stage of pregnancy can have an abortion in Ireland for any reason. One would imagine that the novelty of this change would be sufficiently great to overcome any early hiccups in the roll out of services. Not so. Any woman may now be free to have an abortion, but the fact that she may, at certain points, have to pass a protest by pro-life campaigners, has itself been sufficient to cause consternation. The Together For Yes campaign was quickly out of the starting blocks to dub the protests "deplorable" and "despicable", and to call on the Minister for Health to "urgently" create protest-free exclusion zones around abortion facilities. The call did not fall on deaf ears. Simon Harris is moving ahead swiftly with legislation to criminalise anti-abortion protest. To put this in context, Britain passed abortion legislation in 1967, some 52 years ago, and to date only one exclusion zone has ever been put in place, at the Marie Stopes clinic in Ealing, West London, and that by the local council rather than central government. Abortion has been on the statute books in Ireland for just 13 days, and already steps are being taken to legislate for a blanket ban against protest. Is it unreasonable to suggest that this is too soon to assess the need for such exclusion zones, or to explore alternatives to an outright ban? Protests may fizzle out. Evidence from other countries suggests that a small scale presence can be maintained outside abortion clinics for decades, but we might still ultimately decide that this is a small price to pay for living in a free society which allows both legal and safe abortion and legal and safe protest. Irish women going to England all these years certainly thought the protests there were worth enduring. Using the law so soon does feel like taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut. The argument is that women should be free to access services to which they're entitled without harassment or intimidation, and there's no quarrel with that; but it would be hard to argue that things have already reached the stage in Ireland, within days, where the situation has got out of hand. The protesters who gathered last week outside Our Lady of Lourdes hospital in Drogheda, Co Louth, after unconfirmed reports that an abortion was to be carried out there, did not even hand out leaflets, much less attempt to interfere with anyone going in and out. There are already laws in place to deal with situations where legitimate protest breaches the public peace, or otherwise causes alarm or distress to targeted individuals. The 1994 Criminal Justice Act gives the gardai considerable powers to move on people who are causing a nuisance. In the UK last September, Home Secretary Sajid Javid ruled out extending exclusion zones around abortion clinics for that very reason, because the laws were already in place to deal with the situation. Why this sudden demand for urgent action here? Because of their size, protests at GPs' surgeries are certainly problematic, raising concerns about patient confidentiality; the rise in the number of GPs signing up to offer abortion pills since the New Year means that the opportunity for mischief by protesters is potentially growing by the week. There are also certain activities, such as the blocking of footpaths or entrances, which most reasonable people would regard as wrong. But at large hospitals, people come and go constantly for all sorts of reasons, patients and visitors and staff alike, so it would be hard to argue, as the Taoiseach seemed to do last week, that women are being "impeded when they're trying to access a medical service". How is such an impediment to be defined? Lawyers 4 Choice argue that the Criminal Justice Act doesn't go far enough, and specifically want to ban behaviour which is "hurtful", but that opens up a whole new can of worms. No doubt it doesn't make a woman feel good to arrive at hospital for a termination to find people holding placards with pictures of dead babies, with slogans such as "Warning - Killing In Progress"; but protest cannot be criminalised because it hurts people's feelings. Hurt feelings are an individual problem. The State's responsibility is to ensure that you can access legal services, not to make you feel better about yourself at the time or afterwards. Unless and until women are being specifically targeted - as was allegedly happening in Ealing - draconian new measures would surely be premature and disproportionate. More troubling still is what precedent it would set. When former Tanaiste Joan Burton was trapped in her car in Jobstown in 2014 by angry water charges protesters, no one seriously suggested that the right to protest be removed, and that was directed against a specific individual, restricting her freedom of movement for some hours. All sides agreed that Burton was "entitled to be there", just as women seeking abortions are entitled to be where they are; but counsel for Paul Murphy TD, who was found not guilty on a charge of false imprisonment, told the court that protest is a "highly protected form of legitimate political and social activity protected in all modern democracies as an essential right". Indeed, he pointed out: "The role of the gardai... includes the protection of the right to protest and those exercising that right." He quoted from a famous legal ruling in the UK, where non-violent protesters from the Women's Peace Camp were excluded from land near a US nuclear base after the Ministry of Defence passed new bye laws to remove them on grounds of public order and safety. The Court of Appeal found in the women's favour, concluding: "Rights worth having are unruly things. Demonstrations and protests are liable to be a nuisance. They are liable to be inconvenient and tiresome or at least perceived as such by others who are out of sympathy with them. Sometimes they are wrongheaded and misconceived." That did not mean the right to protest could be ditched without "pressing social need, sufficient to justify an interference with freedom of expression". It's worrying to see many of those who defended what happened in Jobstown now urge the full force of the State to be deployed against a different group of protesters, simply because they don't agree with their cause. The double standard is staggering. In 2013, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) co-signed a letter to the UN Human Rights Council which declared: "Although our individual domestic experiences stem from diverse political contexts and legal systems, we are united by our conviction that public protest is an essential component of any vibrant democracy." Yet the same ICCL came out this week to demand that the right to protest be removed "immediately" around abortion facilities. Are rights now dependent on liking the persons seeking them? Exclusion zones exist in parts of Australia, the US and Canada, where they have been deemed by the courts to represent a "reasonable impairment" on the constitutional right to protest. It may be that we come to the same conclusion, but two weeks is too soon to make such a huge judgement call. Paul Murphy put it best when previously criticising moves by Charlie Flanagan, then Minister for Justice, to outlaw the filming of gardai on duty: "Using isolated incidents of abuse to push for legislation... represents a very cynical exploitation of that abuse in order to undermine civil liberties." Are pro-lifers wrong to suspect the same thing is happening again? Before spending much of the last week in London, I had hoped to get a better understanding of the political dynamics driving the Brexit process in Britain. That hope proved forlorn. The visit's main takeaway, after talking to a range of people involved with Brexit, is that there is just as much chaos in both the main political parties as there appears to be from afar. While nobody I spoke to believed that the terms of the divorce due to be voted on in Westminster on Tuesday will be passed, nor could anyone make a convincing case for how events in the coming weeks will unfold. The prime minister, Theresa May, has no tactical game plan, never mind a strategic masterplan. The cabinet is divided. There is talk about parliament "taking control", but it is even more divided than the cabinet on what course of action to take. The reality is that Britain is in the rare, if not unprecedented, position for a mature democracy in that nobody is in control. Brexit has become a runaway train. Despite almost 1,000 days having passed since the Brexit referendum and exactly 75 days until Britain is scheduled to leave the EU, the range of possible outcomes remains very wide. The most immediate and important issue - for Ireland as well as for Britain - is whether there will be a no-deal exit. There are those who are sure that will not happen, mainly on the basis that only a small minority in the British parliament favours such an outcome. Avoiding that outcome would be very much in Ireland's interests, yet even a positive outcome now comes with its own significant dangers. There is no little trepidation about how those who voted in favour of Brexit or who believe that the referendum result must be respected whatever the economic costs would react to any course of action that would stop departure on March 29. There is a lot of talk to the effect that delaying or cancelling the departure from the EU could trigger an unprecedented backlash. Whether this is correct or not, there is no denying the depth of feeling for millions of Britons on the issues. Over the past week alone, there has been a heightening of tensions, with MPs on both sides of the debate talking of increased harassment and threats. While some in the media like to see right-wing extremists under every bed and think that a return to 1930s' fascism is always just around the corner, a more sober person I spoke to last week who has an insight into intelligence matters confirmed that the security services are genuinely concerned about the threat of violence and terrorist acts from extremist elements. Nor can the danger that Ireland gets the blame be denied or downplayed. The backstop designed to ensure that there is never any change to border arrangements on this island is routinely written of in pro-Brexit newspapers as the "hated" and "despised" backstop. Hostility towards Ireland has increased. It would increase further if Brexit does not happen on March 29. That is not a comforting thought, not least for the hundreds of thousands of Irish people living in Britain. Brexit was always going to be a lose-lose proposition for all involved. But the dynamics that have taken hold are making it more so almost by the day. The prospect of a no-deal exit in 75 days remains the most likely outcome in my view. And there are people closely involved in the Brexit process in London who are extremely worried that a crash-out could happen. Neither of the two main party leaders wants to be the focus of the odium that would result if she or he changed tack to allow that to happen. Nor is there any certainty that a referendum would bring Britain back from the brink. A Survation poll last week asked how people would vote in a referendum held tomorrow on leaving or staying in the EU, with 51pc backing staying and 49pc supporting leaving. Despite the near endless talk of Brexit, public opinion has barely changed since the question was put in the June 2016 referendum. Another much discussed aspect of the Brexit fiasco is that the UK's membership will lapse in 75 days unless somebody changes tack. No-deal is the default position. Inertia, one of the most powerful and underrated forces in human affairs, usually works against change. In the case of Brexit, it works in favour of the biggest possible change. Another factor driving Britain towards a no-deal exit is that many politicians, people and organisations simply do not believe that it would be so bad, and that even includes some internationally focused businesses, according to one very well informed person I spoke to (the advanced manufacturing sector is different in that it appears to be uniformly fearful of disrupted trade flows). Though nobody can know for sure how big an economic shock would result from a no-deal exit, or how long it would last, there is substantial planning for that eventuality going on in London. What does this all mean for Ireland? Even if one believes that the risk of no deal is low, there needs to be more planning for it because the short-term impact could be huge. The value of Ireland's imports and exports as a percentage of GDP was 3.3 times greater than Britain's in 2017. Put another way, Britain is much more self-sufficient than Ireland. As such, it is perfectly possible that the Irish economy could suffer a much bigger hit than Britain in the event of no deal. Not enough work has been done here between the Government and those involved in the supply and purchasing of medicines for a worst case scenario. On food, there is still too much complacency. Ireland is a massive net importer of staples. The value of potato imports exceeded exports by a factor of 25 in 2017. Forty times more flour products are bought into the country than shipped abroad. Because almost everyone consumes bread and/or potatoes in any given day, the effect of soaring prices or outright supply disruptions would be very widely felt. Ireland is one of the least self-sufficient countries in Europe when it comes to energy, importing almost all the oil, gas and coal that keeps the country's lights on. That point was made in London last week when discussing Britain's energy trade (it is more or less self-sufficient thanks to its North Sea fields, so no-deal planners there are not concerned about that issue). It is to be hoped that the British will arrive at an outcome that avoids the worst. But hopes that sense would prevail in British politics have been dashed time and again over the 1,000 days. If in the coming weeks, the default outcome looms larger, Leo Varadkar will have the biggest call of his political life to make. He took a huge risk in November 2017 by putting the backstop on the negotiating table. If he has to back down to avoid a no-deal outcome and its huge consequences for the people of this country, that is what he should do. Theresa May's 'smooth and orderly Brexit' is emerging from the Westminster fog looking more like a British constitutional crisis. The withdrawal agreement - needed in order to ease the transition to non-member status for the UK - was meant to have been signed and ratified last October after 18 months of negotiation. Instead the minority government lost two important votes last week and was found in contempt of parliament before the holidays. The vote on the UK's withdrawal agreement with the EU-27 will finally be taken on Tuesday - and a heavy government defeat is predicted. There are just three possible outcomes: the deal is agreed as negotiated (but there is no parliamentary majority); there is a no-deal crash-out at the end of March (most MPs are against this); or a deferral of the exit date, a course which would require an initiative by the government, which it is refusing to contemplate. The government has lost its authority and in normal circumstances there would be a general election. But May is planning to persist and Jeremy Corbyn's opposition cannot muster the votes to sack the government. If parliament will not agree the May deal, and cannot replace the government, it cannot prevent a self-implementing exit just over 10 weeks away, without any withdrawal agreement and ensuring guaranteed chaos. A no-deal Brexit will happen, with no transition period, on March 29 no matter how many resolutions to the contrary are carried by MPs. They can avoid no-deal only by voting for May's deal or by somehow engineering a deferral of the exit date. How a rebel parliament could do this without the cooperation of the executive is uncharted constitutional territory. The UK can defer a March exit either by revoking the Article 50 resignation letter (since the European Court has ruled that it has the unilateral right to do so, in effect cancelling Brexit altogether), or by seeking an extension of the two-year notice period provided in that article and now almost exhausted. To revoke the Article 50 notification - the simplest and cleanest means of avoiding no-deal - would keep the UK in the EU indefinitely in defiance of the 2016 referendum verdict. It would be hugely divisive but would see the UK retain all its current membership perks - a cut-price budget contribution, exemption from the Schengen passport-free travel arrangements and from the common currency and various opt-outs from social and justice policy rules. The UK would re-attain the status quo ante as if the Article 50 resignation had never been submitted, including the entitlement to quit all over again whenever it chose. An extension of the exit date beyond March 29, as distinct from a revocation, could be defended as just another delay in delivering what people voted for. But each of the 27 member states would have a veto on extension, which would be for a period measured in months and would need to be grounded in a convincing purpose like a second referendum rather than some nebulous re-opening of negotiations on the withdrawal agreement. The EU will not, it would appear, countenance any re-opening. That book has been closed after what the EU see as substantial concessions to May in the deal which parliament is set to reject. The December judgment by the ECJ, in restoring to the departing member state the unilateral entitlement to withdraw its Article 50 notification without any impairment of its previous position, provides the UK with a valuable option which the framers of Article 50 may not have intended. The perceived value of the option will rise weekly as the clock ticks, unless one of the alternative routes is chosen. Should the UK seek instead an extension to the exit date for the explicit purpose of a second referendum, the EU-27 might feel honour-bound to concede it. An extension sought to prolong the can-kicking could see member states object as a unit or could see individual states deploy their vetoes. The Spanish would like Gibraltar, the Greeks the Elgin marbles, and every other member state could make demands - how about indemnities for the extra costs already incurred? The shenanigans in Westminster have provided free schedule-filling material for the 24-hour news channels and endless copy for the print titles. But there has been precious little consideration of how this constitutional cul-de-sac has been arrived at. The ultimate source is the resort, in June 2016, to the device of a 'consultative' referendum in an uncodified constitutional order supposedly built on parliamentary sovereignty. Add an unclear binary choice (where the 'Leave' option was ambiguous by design) to a minority government and the shambles is complete. If there is to be a second referendum it may well be the last until the United Kingdom makes itself a present of a codified constitution. While Ireland's 1937 Constitution has not aged well (it is one of the oldest codified constitutions still operative in Europe) it is a model of clarity on the matter of referendums - when to have them, and how to interpret the result, the two missing ingredients in the UK. Referendums in Ireland are for one purpose only, the specific amendment of the Constitution, and there is no requirement for interpretation, the endless divination of the 'will of the people' still droning on in the UK. The Irish Constitution has either been altered or it has not, the moment the returning officer sits down. The 2016 vote was only the third national referendum in British history. The first, in 1975 on Europe, and the second in 2011 on the voting system, produced large majorities for no change. But 2016 produced a narrow majority for a very major change, but entirely unspecified. All three were called to resolve political problems for the government in office and the first to require change, in 2016, duly came unstuck. To her credit, Margaret Thatcher foresaw the difficulties, or at least some of them, as leader of the Conservative opposition in 1975, and opposed the introduction of the referendum device on principle and never resorted to it in 11 years in Downing Street, her late-career scepticism about the EU notwithstanding. The UK has burdened itself with an impossible trinity - an uncodified constitution, parliamentary sovereignty, and 'consultative' referendums. While acceptance of the May deal does not currently command a Commons majority, it could eventually succeed for the want of a tolerable alternative. It is a terrible deal for the UK though, delivering a short reprieve while seeking a brand-new trading relationship with the EU and the rest of the world. A foretaste of what lies in store was offered last week by the European Commission, which queried whether the IAG group (which owns British Airways, Iberia and Aer Lingus) could continue to be classed as a European airline without divesting some of its non-EU shareholders. Every protectionist interest in Europe, and they are legion, will seek to screw the Brits in the free-for-all of the trade talks to come. And there will be equally challenging trade talks with China and Donald Trump's USA, to be conducted in competition with the EU-27 as the re-set clock ticks down to a reincarnated cliff-edge at the end of 2020. In comparison to an immediate no-deal, May's deal is just a nightmare postponed. Her name was Dawn Croke. She has been called a tragic young mum, a beauty queen, a hero, and she was all those things. But remember that her name was Dawn Croke. And it is scant consolation today for her family or her two young children, for those who loved her, or for the community in which she was embedded and to whom she contributed so much, that Dawn Croke is a hero. But in times to come, whenever they remember her name, her heroism will console them. Dawn Croke is not here to tell us about that crucial moment when she acted, but many everyday heroes like her will tell you that they just did what anyone would have done. They saw someone in trouble, something that needed to happen, and they just did it. As if possessed by some force outside of them, possessed by some kind of grace perhaps. It seems that it was not out of character for Dawn Croke to have moved, in that moment, to save that six-year-old's life as the 4X4 moved towards them in that schoolyard in Dungloe in Co Donegal. The way her community is remembering Dawn, it seems that she was one of those people whose instinct was to do the right thing: duty, contribution, usefulness. RECOGNISING THE SYMPTOMS: Signs of meningitis include a rash that doesnt fade when a glass is rolled over it A spike in meningitis cases leading to three deaths is causing concern and unease among parents. The HSE announced that there have been 11 cases of meningococcal disease reported since the last week of 2018, more than double the five cases for the same time period last year. While meningococcal disease incidence generally increases in winter, the recent increase is cause for concern. In 2018, a total of 89 meningococcal cases were reported compared to 76 in 2017, so the potentially fatal disease is continuing to rise in Ireland. The latest meningococcal cases occurred in Dublin and other regions, and affected all age groups, from infants to elderly. The disease and deaths have been caused by multiple strains of meningococcal bacteria, the HSE has confirmed. So what can be done to reduce the risks of contracting meningitis? The HSE said parents should ensure that their children have received all their vaccines on time. A vaccine that protects against meningococcal C disease (MenC vaccine) is given at six months and at 13 months; and meningococcal B vaccine (MenB vaccine) is given at two, four, and 12 months of age. In addition, adolescents are routinely offered the MenC vaccine in the first year of secondary school. Older teenagers and young adults up to 23 who never received a MenC vaccine are recommended to get the vaccine. Other vaccines that protect against other forms of meningitis and septicaemia are included in the routine child vaccination programme (Hib vaccine) and pneumococcal vaccine (PCV). While all children should get their vaccines in accordance with the national schedule, children who have missed vaccines can obtain them from their GPs. However, as the MenB vaccine was only introduced in recent years to cover babies born from October 1, 2016, parents of young children not eligible for it are understandably worried. In the past few days, GPs across the country have been inundated with calls from parents about vaccinating their children privately with the MenB vaccine, which can cost between 300-450. Not cheap. This has led to renewed calls and petitions for the HSE to fund the vaccine for older children not eligible for the current programme. Last Friday, the National Association of General Practitioners (NAGP) called for a national Meningitis B catch-up vaccination programme for children born before October 2016, up to the age of 18 years. Dr Maitiu O Tuathail, president of the NAGP, said many parents say they cannot afford the cost of vaccinating their children privately. "We are calling on the Minister for Health, Simon Harris, to immediately address this inexcusable inequality. We cannot allow it to continue. We need to provide protection to all of our children equally. "The children of Ireland deserve equality in terms of vaccination coverage, this is currently not the case." However, the Department of Health and HSE had rejected calls for a catch-up programme. The HSE said of the three patients who died, two different meningococcal strain types were identified, neither of which were MenB. It added that most cases of MenB are seen in children under one year of age. The department said that the National Immunisation Advisory Committee, an expert group that advises on what vaccines should be publicly funded based on the best medical evidence available, has not recommended a MenB vaccine catch-up programme for children born before October 1, 2016. The HSE also notes a drop in the uptake of meningococcal vaccines among children in Ireland in recent years. In Q2 2018, the uptake of MenC (first dose) for babies at 12 months was 90pc; the uptake for two doses of MenB at 12 months was 93pc, and the uptake of MenC at 24 months was 88pc. Among adolescents (first year in secondary school), the uptake of MenC vaccine during the 2016-2017 academic year was 83.9pc While these figures seem high, an uptake of 95pc is required to provide "herd immunity", to reduce the chances of infection, and protect those who are too young to be vaccinated, were not eligible for free vaccination, or cannot get vaccinated for medical reasons. In the meantime, the HSE wants the public to be alert to the signs and symptoms of meningococcal disease. This is so immediate medical attention can be sought if someone has symptoms that could be caused by this disease. "If anyone has any concerns about meningitis they should ring their GP in the first instance," said Dr Suzanne Cotter, specialist in Public Health Medicine, at the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre. "Meningitis and septicaemia often happen together and symptoms can appear in any order. Some may not appear at all. Early symptoms can include; fever, headache, vomiting, diarrhoea, muscle pain, stomach cramps, fever with cold hands and feet and a rash, but do not wait for the rash to appear. "If someone is ill and getting worse, get medical help immediately." The plan for a direct listing will make Slack the second big technology company after Spotify Technology. Slack Technologies Inc is seriously considering making its stock exchange debut through a direct listing, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier in the day that Slack, which operates a popular workplace instant-messaging and collaboration app, is likely to debut in the second quarter and currently expects to do so via a direct listing. The plan for a direct listing will make Slack the second big technology company after Spotify Technology SA to bypass a traditional IPO process in going public. Slacks direct listing is an inherently less expensive way of going public, but what it really comes down to is speed, said Daniel Lugasi, a portfolio manager at Florida-based VL Capital Management. Slack declined to comment on reports of direct listing. The company is an internet-based platform that allows teams and businesses to communicate with each other. Its closest competitor is Microsoft Teams, a free chat add-on for Microsofts Office365 users. Slack has raised around USD 1.2 billion in 11 funding rounds, and has 36 investors, according to data provider Crunchbase. It counts SoftBank, T. Rowe Price, Sands Capital Ventures, General Atlantic as its investors. Venture capital firms that have invested in Slack are looking for an exit and with the rapid growth of Microsoft Teams, they want out fast. The direct listing provides the VCs with a quick exit and we believe this is the mitigating factor behind (Slack seeking a direct listing), Lugasi said. Reuters reported in December that Slack had hired investment bank Goldman Sachs Group Inc to lead its initial public offering as an underwriter. (Source) MOURNING: The funeral Mass of teacher Dawn Croke, who died when she was struck by a pick-up truck, will be held tomorrow A town in Co Donegal will come to a standstill tomorrow for the funeral of one its best-loved young citizens. Teacher Dawn Croke, who was in her 30s, died when she was struck by a pick-up truck in the grounds of St Crona's National School in Dungloe on Thursday evening at around 6.30pm. The popular PE and resource teacher at Rosses Community School was killed instantly. The six-year-old daughter of Ms Croke's partner, Patrick McHugh, was injured by the runaway vehicle, but was saved by the quick-thinking action of brave Ms Croke who pushed her out of the way. Gardai are investigating what exactly caused the Ford Ranger to move forward and cause the tragedy. The town in West Donegal has been in mourning since the freak accident. Ms Croke, who comes from a very well-known and respected family from Quay Road in the town, will be laid to rest following her funeral Mass at 11am at St Crona's Church, with burial afterwards in Maghery cemetery. A huge crowd is expected at the funeral, with guards of honour from both Rosses Community School and the Mary from Dungloe International Festival. Dawn was the 2008 Dungloe entry for the Mary from Dungloe event, an honour she was very proud of, according to friends. Huge numbers of people have been attending her wake at her parents' home since 10am yesterday. Rosses Community School, the school in which Ms Croke was so highly thought of, will remain closed tomorrow. Dawn is survived by her father Tony, also a teacher at Rosses Community School, and her mother Anne, brothers and sister as well as her own two little boys Jason and Calum. A statement issued on behalf of Rosses Community school said: "Our school wish to send our love and support to the family, school and local community at this sad time. "We, the school community, remember with love and fondness our colleague Dawn. We pray for the family and friends at this sad time." Local TD Pat 'The Cope' Gallagher is a personal friend of the Croke family and in December welcomed Dawn and her pupils for a visit to Dail Eireann. He said: "I wish to express my deepest sympathies and my profound personal sadness to her parents, her sons, her siblings, to her work colleagues and her wider circle of family and friends. "There is a deep sense of shock and disbelief within our community that such a freak and tragic accident occurred. It is truly shocking." The ledger was seized two years ago during a raid by CAB. (Stock picture) A secret coded ledger concealed in a hot press has revealed how one of Ireland's biggest cross-border crime gangs turned over a staggering 100m in seven years. The ledger, seized two years ago during a raid by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), was only recently "decoded" by analysts who believe the encrypted entries represent thousands of cash transactions. Informed sources said the total value of the transactions was 100m over seven years. The enormous profits earned by just one criminal gang has alarmed senior officers and comes as security experts warn that a hard Brexit risks increasing cross-border crime. Noel Cunningham, president of the Association of Garda Superintendents, has previously warned more than 200 border crossings would become "crime corridors" in the event of a hard Brexit. The CAB raided several premises linked to the crime gang last week. Sources said the raids were not linked to Brexit but they will be seen as a pre-emptive strike on the cross-border gangs that trade in everything from smuggled alcohol, cigarettes, fuel and even Viagra, the erectile dysfunction drug. The CAB has been investigating the crime gang for several years. But the "huge scale" of the gang's operations and the vast sums of money it was dealing in only became clear when analysts 'cracked' the coded entries. "Literally, the scale of the operation was enormous," said a source. The CAB believes that the gang has been investing the massive profits in development sites in Ireland and in the UK, and suspects that it has purchased an entire "ghost estate" in the Border region. Read More The empty housing estate was identified by the CAB as part of a portfolio of distressed properties it believes the gang has purchased over the past seven to eight years. Senior sources said the housing estate is "small" and "unfinished" and is close to the Border and they believe it was purchased with the intention of completing the development before selling on the units for a significant profit. While the impact of a hard Brexit on crime remains a serious concern in Government, the implications for the country's health service are also a worry. The Sunday Independent has learned that the availability of vital cancer drugs and other life-saving medicines could be impacted by a no-deal Brexit. The Government is working around-the-clock to ensure Irish patients are not affected by delays in receiving medicine in the event of Britain crashing out of the EU. However, Ireland imports a huge range of pharmaceutical drugs from Britain and the Government is most concerned over the availability of what are known as 'just in time' medicines. These drugs are manufactured on demand due to their cost, have a short shelf-life and cannot be stockpiled. Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald has defended the attendance of two senior party members at the inauguration of controversial Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro. Ms McDonald said Mr Maduros election was open and democratic before drawing comparisons between poverty levels in Ireland and Venezuela. More than 80pc of Venezuelans live below the poverty line. The EU has said Mr Maduros re-election lacked credibility and the US said it was a sham election. Sinn Fein MLA Conor Murphy and general secretary Dawn Doyle attend events in Venezuela related to Mr Maduros re-election. "Yes, we had representatives in Venezuela for the inauguration of the democratically elected president,Ms McDonald said. Politics increasingly is reflective of the fact that we live in a global village. We were there as part of a delegation, we were there because we were invited and Im very glad that two Sinn Fein representatives were in attendance, she added. Ms McDonald said it was for the people of Venezuela to decide who they want to be their president. "There are people in this country who would not endorse Leo Varadkar on the basis that they have endured poverty...we also have to accepted that he is the Taoiseach." In this democracy you would have people who are very critical of Government of the basis that they are experiencing poverty and that they are having a hard time, she added. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said the Sinn Fein Leaders comparison of Mr Maduro and the Taoiseach was breathtaking brassneckery. Police have confirmed that two men have died in separate mountain falls in Co Down this afternoon. Earlier on Sunday, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) issued a warning to members of the public to take care in the Mourne Mountains due to strong winds. The PSNI responded to three separate incidents on the mountains. Inspector Frances McCullough said one man had been rescued. Police received a request for assistance after a male was reported to have fallen while walking on Wee Binnian shortly before midday and received a further request for assistance after a male was reported to have fallen while walking on Slieve Commedagh shortly before 1pm," she said. Police and other emergency services responded but unfortunately both men died at the scene." Inspector McCullough said the deaths are not being treated as suspicious. A third male was also rescued from the Mountains with a suspected broken ankle following a fall close to the Saddle at around 2.30pm," she said. South Down MP Chris Hazzard expressed his condolences following news of the deaths. The tragic news that two men died today while walking in the Mournes will have shocked the entire local community," the Sinn Fein MP said. Id like to commend Mountain Rescue and the emergency services who responded to todays incidents and who also rescued a third walker who got into difficulties elsewhere in the Mournes. My thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of those who tragically died in these incidents in the Mournes today. SDLP MLA Colin McGrath has an office at the foot of the Mournes and said the area had suffered "two tragedies in one day". "Such an event is chilling and shows the power of nature and how it can strike without notice as has happened with these winds today," the South Down MLA said. "My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those that have died and those involved in the operations to assist those caught in these tragedies." The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure Gardai in Terenure are investigating an incident at a filling station in which a driver demolished a petrol pump before leaving the scene. At 1am this morning a vehicle drove into the Circle K filling station on Fortfield Road in Terenure and crashed into the petrol pump, tearing it from its moorings and leaving it on its side on the ground. The driver then left the scene without stopping. A fuel spillage occurred as a result of the incident. The scene was sealed off by gardai pending a technical examination and for safety reasons. The mangled pump could be seen this morning lying where it fell. Expand Close The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure Green absorbent material was used to contain the fuel spill and gardai were still at the scene. A man in his 20s was arrested in a follow-up operation. Expand Close The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The petrol station on Fortfield Road in Terenure Gardai are expected to view CCTV footage from the filling station to establish the sequence of events. This weekend marks the 18th anniversary of the disappearance of Trevor Deely who went missing in Dublin in the early hours of December 8, 2000. An employee of Bank of Ireland Asset Management, he had been at his office Christmas party before he disappeared. A six-week search for his remains last year ended without success. It was initiated after gardai received information that his body had been concealed near wasteland at Chapelizod in the city. Trevor Deely's case is only one of a number of high-profile cases of long-term missing persons which has mystified the public for decades. Twenty-five years ago, Annie McCarrick disappeared without a trace while she was living here as a student. The 26-year-old from Long Island in New York was last seen in Johnnie Fox's pub in Glencullen, Co Wicklow, on March 26, 1993. She had been living in Sandymount, Dublin at the time. Her disappearance has become one of the most high-profile unsolved crimes in the history of the State. She was one of a number of women who disappeared, presumed murdered, in the Leinster area in the 1990s. Their disappearances were grouped together under Operation Trace; a high-profile inquiry established to determine if all, or any, of the cases were linked in any way. In 1998, Fiona Sinnott, a mother-of-one from Co Wexford, went missing after a night out. The 19-year-old had been looking forward to celebrating her daughter's first birthday. On the night of her disappearance on February 8, she had been socialising with friends and her former partner at Butler's pub in Broadway, Co Wexford. Her disappearance was initially treated as a missing-person case until after a review it was upgraded to a full murder inquiry in 2005. This year would mark her 40th birthday. That same year, 18-year-old student Deirdre Jacob disappeared as she was walking from Newbridge in Co Kildare to her home about 1.5km away. Earlier this year, detectives investigating the teenager's disappearance upgraded the case to a murder investigation following new information. Over the past 20 years, her parents Michael and Bernie have issued a number of appeals for anyone with information to come forward. Michael Jacob told Review that while a significant amount of information on the case had been built up over the years, there were a number of gaps in it. "Nothing is too small - fragments of information would make a difference," he said. Fiona Pender's disappearance is another in a group of similar cases in which young women disappeared with no sign of them or their remains ever emerging. Fiona, from Tullamore, Co Offaly, was 25 when she vanished on August 23, 1996. She was pregnant at the time. Her mother Josephine Pender, a staunch campaigner, passed away after a lengthy battle with illness two years ago, shortly after the 21st anniversary of her daughter's disappearance. The disappearance of 21-year-old Jo Jo Dullard in November 1995 as she was making her way from Dublin back home to Callan in Co Kilkenny has baffled investigators for years. She had stopped to make a call to a friend from a phone box in Moone, Co Kildare and was never heard from again. Earlier this year her sister, Mary Phelan, who had devoted her life to finding Jo Jo, passed away after a short illness. She campaigned tirelessly for information over the years, bringing her case to the Government and meeting people including Bertie Ahern, Hillary Clinton during a visit to America, and officers from the FBI who were expert in missing persons cases. Ciara Breen (17) left the terraced house she shared with her mother in Dundalk in February 1997. She never made it back home. Gardai still believe there are people in the town with information that could be beneficial to them in their investigations. This summer, her mother Bernadette passed away without any answers as to what happened to her daughter. Retired detective inspector Pat Marry, who once led the investigation, said: "I would have loved to have been able to bring Ciara home to Bernadette so she could have buried her only child and to give Bernadette peace of mind." Images of the missing remain frozen in time. Photographs capture them smiling into the camera at a happy time in their life. For their families, the agonising wait for news and for justice continues. CRIME CALL: Gardai and NCA officers at the house in Tamworth A 51-year-old man has been charged with firearms offences after being arrested at Birmingham Airport yesterday. Thomas Kavanagh, of Tamworth, was detained as he arrived at Birmingham Airport. The arrest was made as part of a joint operation between the Gardai and Britain's National Crime Agency. The man's son, aged in his 20s, was also arrested but this morning was released under investigation. NCA officers, supported by colleagues from An Garda Siochana and Staffordshire Police, conducted a number of searches and recovered a combination torch and stun gun which is illegal to own and possess in the UK. The man was remanded in custody overnight and will appear at North Staffordshire Magistrates court tomorrow. Using the Internet handle r00taccess, the student, identified as Johannes S., said Islam is filth: we dont live in the 6th century They said he had described himself as frustrated about the utterances of politicians, but right-wing material was not initially found in a search of his home. A 20-year-old student who disclosed the private data of nearly 1,000 politicians and others in one of Germanys biggest data breaches had expressed rightwing and anti-Muslim views on the Internet, German media reported on Friday. Using the Internet handle r00taccess, the student, identified as Johannes S., said Islam is filth: we dont live in the 6th century and discussed the return of Adolf Hitlers Nazi party, weekly news magazine Der Spiegel reported on Friday. German officials this week said the student, who lived with his parents in the central state of Hesse, had confessed to the breach. They said he had described himself as frustrated about the utterances of politicians, but right-wing material was not initially found in a search of his home. However investigators have now found that he engaged in repeated right-wing posts on the Internet and was part of a right-leaning community of hack-tivists, Spiegel reported. No comment was immediately available from the German interior ministry. The Frankfurt prosecutors office, which is handling the case, could not be reached. Spiegel said the suspect claimed in another posting that the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party would not be able to rid Germany of migrants, and it would take the ultranationalist National Democratic Party (NPD) to clean up properly. Germanys Constitutional Court in 2017 ruled that the NPD resembled Hitlers Nazi party, but ruled against banning it because it was too weak to endanger democracy. Spiegel said authorities had opened three investigations of the student in recent years on suspicion that he was trying to illegally obtain data and falsify evidence, cases that were still pending in the courts. A 19-year-old witness interviewed in the case, Jan Schuerlein, told broadcaster ARD that he helped lead authorities to the suspect because he had posted on the Internet about an earlier police raid. By pinpointing the date, authorities were able to identify the suspect. He is definitely a little oriented to the right, but not right-wing extremist, Schuerlein told ARD. But he had a big problem with the migrants and migrant policy. Schuerlein said the suspect also had a negative view of Islam and viewed all Muslims as terrorists. (Source) During the first episode of RTEs new drama series Resistance, one heartbreaking scene particularly moved viewers, and that was the moment Ursula Sweeney, played by Simone Kirby, was forced to say goodbye to her sleeping son Tomas by a Catholic nun at an orphanage, having just been informed that he would be adopted by a couple in Boston. Ursula, a code-breaker in Dublin Castle during the War of Independence, had to give her child up as she was pregnant and unmarried when her fiance was killed at war. During filming of the series, written by Colin Teevan and directed by Caterhine Morshead, the shocking, tragic story of the burial of possibly hundreds of babies and children in a mass grave on the site of a former Bon Secours Mother and Baby home in Tuam, Co Galway, broke. So, that scene and that storyline had an even weightier resonance for Simone, fellow cast, and crew. This happened to so many women and its not all that long ago, Simone tells Independent.ie. When the story broke of the Tuam babies that really brought it home to us because we had started filming before that story broke and then we heard all that, and we were really shocked, and it made us feel this story was even more important. On set on the day that scene was filmed things were uncharacteristically quiet. On such a serious shoot the forced adoption storyline is just one of several weighty plot strands playing out at the height of the War of Independence cast and crew had great crack, but that day was sombre. And as the mother of a boy very similar in age and looks to Tomas (played by Dylan Heath), Simone did not have to do much digging to embody her character. The kid who played my son was incredible, she says of Dylan. He was the sweetest, sweetest kid. He was so cute and he was initially quite shy so a lot of those first scenes I did with him he was just like that. Expand Close Fiery women: Simone Kirby as Ursula and Natasha O'Keeffe as Agnes in Resistance / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Fiery women: Simone Kirby as Ursula and Natasha O'Keeffe as Agnes in Resistance She adds, He was so, so, cute so actually it didnt take much for him to break my heart. I have a boy who looks like him and he was four at the time, my son, so he was a little bit younger but theyre both blonde and theyre similar kids so that I suppose helps as well. While Ursula is a fictional character among a mix of fictional and real figures, her plight is loosely based on a true story. Teevan, who also penned this series precursor, Rebellion, drew from the life of Josephine ODonoghue. Expand Close Period of glamour: Natasha O'Keeffe (left) with Simone Kirby in RTE's Resistance / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Period of glamour: Natasha O'Keeffe (left) with Simone Kirby in RTE's Resistance Her husband died and she had a custody battle and lost her eldest son who was sent to live with her in-laws in Wales. She was fighting to try to get him back. She was working in Cork in Victoria Barracks and the IRA helped her to get her son back in exchange for her helping them with information, explains Simone. There were a lot of women who were spies and were helping the IRA in different roles so [the story] is loosely based on her but on other women as well. Of understanding Ursulas willingness to partake in espionage, she adds, When it comes to your children its kind of a no-brainer. Youd do anything. Expand Close Natasha O'Keefee with Kate Phillips, Aimee-Ffion Edwards and Helen McCrory in Peaky Blinders / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Natasha O'Keefee with Kate Phillips, Aimee-Ffion Edwards and Helen McCrory in Peaky Blinders Resistance boasts several interesting women among its protagonists. Natasha OKeeffe plays Ursulas lawyer sister while Aoife Duffin plays a journalist for Sinn Feins propaganda department. However, Teevan has said the women will become sidelined somewhat as the drama continues, much as they did at the time. With Aoife Duffins storyline, shes such a sparky character, but shes surrounded by men who probably wont listen to her really, says Simone. And Natasha, who plays my sister, as a lawyer, where is she going to end up? We know that in the 1930s and 40s in Ireland, if you were a school teacher, for example, and you got married, you had to give it up. However, at the time the action is set, in November 1920, there were women who were free to pursue professional careers. The Marriage Bar, which prevented women in the Civil Service and many private companies, from working after they married, was not introduced until the following decade. Despite the weighty themes and absolutely freezing November weather (theres no warmth in those womens clothes and those tiny shoes - I dont know how my grandmother survived at all), Simone says the cast, particularly herself, OKeeffe, and Brian Gleeson, kept things light-hearted behind the scenes. In an interview with the Irish Independent last week Natasha described Simone as great crack and a piss-taker. Simone insists she has no idea what she means. Read More Growing up in Ennis, Co Clare, the opportunities for budding actress Simone were slim. There was no theatre in the town when she was a child (Glor opened in 2001) and she does not come from an acting family but she always had the bug and was eventually drawn to Galway for its arts scene; Galway was such a hub of theatre and music and in the mid 90s it was a brilliant place to be so I made a beeline for Galway when I finished school. Expand Close Actress Simone Kirby and Barry Ward dance in a scene from Jimmys Hall / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Actress Simone Kirby and Barry Ward dance in a scene from Jimmys Hall She studied Arts for just one year before dropping out and joining Galway Youth Theatre, progressing to the Gaiety School of Acting, followed by a move to London, where she is still based, with her husband, the actor and writer Fergal McElherron. A prolific theatre actress she has performed with The Old Vic, Shakespeares Globe, The Irish Rep in New York as well as The Abbey and The Gate amongst others in Ireland. In recent years, however, she has taken a step back from theatre, although Fergal is still heavily involved, to spend time with their son and focus on TV and film projects which demand less time and commitment. Off the stage, she is probably most familiar to Irish households for her TV roles in RTE series Pure Mule and Single-Handed and, more recently, Clean Break, Love/Hate and BBC hit Peaky Blinders. She is also gearing up to appear in several episodes of Silent Witness. Expand Close Simone Kirby arriving on the red carpet for the IFTA Awards 2017 at the Mansion House, Dublin. Photo by Michael Chester / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Simone Kirby arriving on the red carpet for the IFTA Awards 2017 at the Mansion House, Dublin. Photo by Michael Chester Her critically acclaimed big screen breakthrough, as the lead in Ken Loachs Jimmys Hall in 2014, led to roles in the BBCs Mothers Day, The Flag, England is Mine and an IFTA-nominated turn in Notes on Blindness. She was a very new, breastfeeding mother when Loach was casting his period drama, so she had to travel to Ireland with the baby, without Fergal who was working at Shakespeares Globe. Thankfully her mother stepped in to help her care for him for the ten week shoot. Simone broached the subject of breastfeeding and its demands to Loach during their initial meeting but he was unperturbed. Ken Loach and Rebecca OBrien, who produced it, they were brilliant, they knew what was involved. When I first met him my son was only 16 weeks old and I was really upfront with him and I told him and it didnt faze him at all, and he gave me the job. They were really helpful, so they made it possible. This experience was echoed on the set of Resistance for Natasha OKeeffe. Her baby was just three months old during the shoot, but a female director, female producer, and largely female team on the project made it possible. You just need that kind of support. Theres no reason why it shouldnt be able to work and it does work if people understand your situation and are willing to sort of help out a little bit, says Simone of working motherhood. But it doesnt require much really, just someone to support you like Natashas husband supported her, or my mother supported me. Among Simones other credits are two big budget Disney ventures, Alice Through the Looking Glass, and the upcoming big screen adaptation of Irish author Eoin Colfers Artemis Fowl, although she describes herself as such a small cog in the wheel. She is a bigger presence in Lee Cronins upcoming creepy debut, the Sundance-bound The Hole in the Ground, which also stars the brilliant Seana Kerslake. The heart-pounding trailer (see above) landed this week and has critics feeling more than a little excited. Simone will also appear opposite Barry Keoghan and Cosmo Landis in Calm with Horses, Nick Rowlands adaptation of Colin Barretts collection of short stories. This year will also see Simone return to theatre for the first time since the birth of her son, and come full circle back to her native Ennis, in a play written by Fergal, with Rough Magic and Glor, in Ennis, co-producing. Resistance continues on RTE One tonight at 9.30pm. Holly Carpenter with Trent Whiddon during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars , dancing a Salsa to Neon Lights By Demi Lovato. Photo: Kyran O'Brien Cliona Hagan and Robert Rowinski during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Quickstep to Country Girl (Shake It For Me )by Luke Bryan. Photo: Kyran O'Brien A fusion of line dancing and the quickstep had country singer Cliona Hagan hot on the heels of Love/Hate star Johnny Wards jive last week, as she topped the leader board among the girls on Dancing with the Stars tonight. Cliona impressed the judges and bagged straight sevens. Expand Close Holly Carpenter with Trent Whiddon during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars , dancing a Salsa to Neon Lights By Demi Lovato. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Holly Carpenter with Trent Whiddon during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars , dancing a Salsa to Neon Lights By Demi Lovato. Photo: Kyran O'Brien A strained tendon in her foot or her partner Robert Rowinskis trouble understanding her Northern accent didnt perturb the Tyrone beauty who revealed she had helped choreograph the country elements into her dance. "For week one to come out and dance the hardest ballroom dance was fantastic, said judge Julian Benson. I love people who push things beyond the bar. The fusion between the quickstep and country - very very clever, well done Robert. Holly Carpenter salsa-ed her way on to the show in sparkly fashion. Expand Close Eilish OCarroll and Ryan Mc Shane during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Tango toI Cant Tell A Waltz From A Tango by Alma Logan. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Eilish OCarroll and Ryan Mc Shane during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Tango toI Cant Tell A Waltz From A Tango by Alma Logan. Photo: Kyran O'Brien The former Miss Ireland was praised for her natural hip action from the judges, with Julian going as far as to say her latin number was Hollylicious and hinted at an inner diva inside the model (27). A change of partner after professional dancer Curtis Pritchard was injured didnt seem to hold the beauty queen back either as she took to the floor. She said he had given her some tough love before the show started when she was feeling nervous yesterday. Im delighted I can tell him now I was in the middle of the board, she said. Expand Close Demi Isaac Oviawe with Kai Widdrington during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Cha Cha to Cut To The Feeling by Carly Rae Jepsen. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Demi Isaac Oviawe with Kai Widdrington during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Cha Cha to Cut To The Feeling by Carly Rae Jepsen. Photo: Kyran O'Brien I would have been disappointed to have to ring him and tell him I messed up. It was a promising performance according to Loraine Barry which notched up 16 points in total. Known to most viewers as Niamh Brennan from Fair City, Clelia Murphy was nervous about following in Johnnys footsteps and taking on the jive. She split the judging panel with her chairography at the bus stop at the start of the number to Tell Her About It by Billy Joel. Expand Close Mairead Ronan and John Nolan during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Waltz to You Light Up My Life by Whitney Houston. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mairead Ronan and John Nolan during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Waltz to You Light Up My Life by Whitney Houston. Photo: Kyran O'Brien Brian thought maybe a bus strike had been called she was sitting so long at the start. Meanwhile Julian and Loraine loved the cute moment between herself and partner Vitali Lozmin. However Clelia was just worried her fishnet tights would snag on the bench she was perched on. She fared well despite the bus dispute and racked up 19 points. Meanwhile, Mrs Browns Boys star Eilish OCarroll left the curlers at home and, in the words of Brian Redmond, proved she could tell her waltz from a tango. Expand Close Clelia Murphy and Vitali Lozmin during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Jive to Tell Her About It by Billy Joel. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Clelia Murphy and Vitali Lozmin during the Second live show of Dancing With The Stars, dancing a Jive to Tell Her About It by Billy Joel. Photo: Kyran O'Brien Dancing to the tune of the song Cant tell a waltz from a tango the 66-year-old had the audience on their feet for what Loraine called an inspirational turn on the dancefloor. Eilish said that brother Brendan was cheering her on from Florida. There was a test on the 1916 Rising this morning for Young Offenders actress Demi Isaac Oviawe but it was far from her mind as her cha-cha-cha with Kai Widdrington was examined by the judges. However there was disappointment in store with the scores, with the Cork star landing bottom of the leader board with ten points. Emotions were running high for the 18-year-old, who said she was thinking about her family during the performance. Waltzing to You Light Up My Life to Whitney Houston, Mairead Ronan impressed Brian Redmond with her foot placement so much so he said it looked like she was one-legged when she stood side-on. Expand Close Judges Brian Redmond Lorraine Barry and Julian Benson during the second live show of Dancing With The Stars. Photo: Kyran O'Brien / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Judges Brian Redmond Lorraine Barry and Julian Benson during the second live show of Dancing With The Stars. Photo: Kyran O'Brien Mairead, who welcomed baby Bonnie last year, revealed that five months today she was giving birth to her third child in the Rotunda. Joking that the pressure was on, as partner John Nolan had made the final with comedian Deirdre OKane last year, Mairead said her biggest issue was not getting enough sleep. Everyone has their struggles, she said. Mine is just the lack of sleep. And while the girls certainly brought the glam, the boys were back and made sure they werent going to be missed in loud suits and a Mambo No. 5 routine. Next week the show enters the business-end of the competition with the first elimination. Comedy duo Stan Laurel (1890 - 1965) and Oliver Hardy (1892 - 1957) perform the sketch 'A Spot Of Trouble' on stage during their tour of the UK, 25th February 1952. A comedy? A tragedy? Or perhaps simply a really beautiful love story? Stan & Ollie, a new film about comic legends Laurel and Hardy, details a vulnerability and devotion between two best friends that even made the movie's director cry when he first read the script. But despite the obvious love between the comedy duo, John C Reilly, who plays Oliver Hardy in the movie, wants people to stop using the word 'bromance' when describing loving relationships between two male friends. "I don't like that word 'bromance'," he tells the Sunday Independent. "It's a thing that people say to make friendship and love between men sound silly or it is as if it's in need of some special word." With co-star Steve Coogan, Reilly is sitting in Dublin's Olympia Theatre, where Laurel and Hardy once performed. He says: "Men can love each other. It's fine. It's not sexual if they love each other. It doesn't need to be called 'bromance'." On the moment in the film when Laurel tells Hardy he loves him, Coogan says: "I like that line because it's utterly free of ambiguity. There's nothing hidden. There are no agendas or ulterior meanings. It's just a straightforward, simple line about what he feels towards Oliver." Discussing the fact that Hardy broke a promise to his wife, Ida, to make his health a priority and never work as part of the double act again, Reilly adds: "He is saying, what can I do? I am helpless to this fact." Before the closing credits, an 'end card' describes how Laurel continued writing comedy material for years after Hardy died - despite the fact that none of it would ever be preformed. Director John S Baird says: "To me, that's love. Because the man was heart-broken." "It was like half of him had died," Coogan adds. Speaking about his own life-long lessons in relationships, the Alan Partridge star, who once famously dated Courtney Love, said: "I am not particularly a paragon of virtue in terms of love but what I do think is that, you know, it's the old Beatles song: Love is All You Need." Drawing on the work of influential psychologist Alfred Adler, Coogan adds: "At the end of his life - from all his experimenting with the human condition and human behaviour - he just came to the simple conclusion that people should be a bit nicer to each other, and that sounds simplistic but I think it would cure a lot of ills." "What it comes down to," says Reilly, "is that love is something you get if you risk heartbreak, and that vulnerability begets love. Expand Close Comedy duo Stan Laurel (1890 - 1965) and Oliver Hardy (1892 - 1957) perform the sketch 'A Spot Of Trouble' on stage during their tour of the UK, 25th February 1952. / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Comedy duo Stan Laurel (1890 - 1965) and Oliver Hardy (1892 - 1957) perform the sketch 'A Spot Of Trouble' on stage during their tour of the UK, 25th February 1952. "If we are brave enough to fail in front of each other then that engenders that kind of trust - and from that trust you get this kind of chemistry and love and, yeah, that's a risky endeavour." Stan Laurel and Oliver Hardy became Hollywood legends early in the 20th Century and remain the defining slapstick duo. Stan & Ollie sheds light on what happened after their career faltered and the pair set out to win back audiences with a 1953 tour of the UK and Ireland. We first see them at the height of their fame in 1937, preparing to shoot a dance routine for their latest movie, Way Out West. But unhappy with their lot, Stan is moaning to Ollie about their pay in comparison to other screen comedians such as Charlie Chaplin. He wants to end their contract at the studio, but an easy-going Ollie isn't convinced. Ollie stays, Stan leaves, but they can never reignite their on-screen magic as separate acts. By 1953 they are back together and find themselves washed-up in England, at the start of a largely unheralded UK tour. Thus begins the blame game and the fights, flanked by their two loyal wives, until love - and Hardy's quickly deteriorating health - make them see sense. Comic gold in parts, tragic in others, the warm-hearted biopic has proved a massive success with critics. The film has already picked up three Bafta nominations, and Reilly was nominated at the Golden Globes and Critics' Choice Awards for his performance. The movie has also been tipped ahead of this year's Oscar nominations. But neither actor is keen on winning over the other. As Reilly explains: "I have to say - any time someone singles out me over Steve or him over me, or gives one of us a nomination over the other, it makes me feel like you are missing the point." 'Stan and Ollie' is out in cinemas nationwide now. BBC Four will air four new programmes across February celebrating British diversity and voices that are less known and often unheard. The new commissions, including one produced in collaboration with Sir Lenny Henry, form part of a season exploring the communities which shaped modern British history. One of the programmes, A Very British History, will explore key moments in the 20th century for minority communities across Britain, focusing on the Jewish community in Leeds, Afro-Caribbeans in Birmingham and Romany Gypsies in the Home Counties. Expand Close Sir Lenny Henrys company co-produced Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle (Steve Parsons) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Sir Lenny Henrys company co-produced Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle (Steve Parsons) The BBC has also commissioned Soon Gone: A Windrush Chronicle, a collaboration with Sir Lennys production company Douglas Road and the Young Vic Theatre. Eight 15-minute monologues set in the front room of an Afro-Caribbean household will tell the story of a family from their arrival in England in the 1940s to the present day. Other programmes include Windrush: Movement Of The People, a contemporary dance piece by the Phoenix Dance Theatre, and Don McCullin: Looking For England, which will follow the 83-year-old photographer as he documents the nation. Expand Close Photographer Don McCullin will be the focus on a new documentary (Yui Mok/PA) / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Photographer Don McCullin will be the focus on a new documentary (Yui Mok/PA) BBC Four channel editor Cassian Harrison said: BBC Four is a unique proposition within British TV and were always proud to celebrate voices and stories that are less known and often unheard. This season of programming will take viewers into a whole series of hidden corners of our nation and its story. Its a treat to be working with both established voices such as Sir Lenny Henry and Don McCullin and introducing a new generation of talent to our screens. News outlets want readers to look at the alert, understand what was happened, put their phones back in their pockets and get on with their day When your phone buzzes with a push notification from a news app, what do you do? Read and instantly forget? Open the report and read with interest? Or pass it off as more noise from a constantly-buzzing device? Media outlets have been trying for some time to figure out how best to use push notifications to serve and retain readers. According to a new report, digital newsrooms are beginning to treat push notifications as a platform that's every bit as important as other brand and distribution channels, like homepages and email newsletters. The annual study from the Tow Centre for Digital Journalism at Columbia University monitored two weeks of push notifications from 30 US news outlets. This was followed up with a detailed case study of one of the biggest stories in American politics: coverage of US President Donald Trump's family-separation policy. The topline stats show that pushes are on the up. The weekly average across all outlets increased year on year by 16pc to 26 per app per week in 2018. The Wall Street Journal was the most prolific pusher, averaging 71.5 alerts per week. And pushes are getting longer as well as more numerous: the average number of characters per news alert has increased year on year by over 30pc. The big news from the previous year's report was the rise of emojis in push notifications. And this less starchy approach is continuing. Newsrooms are taking a less formal, more conversational voice in their alerts. Language no longer needs to be short and direct. Adjectives have increased. And the content of news alerts is changing too. Notifications increasingly feature analysis and first-hand accounts. "You could be forgiven for thinking that alerts haven't evolved a great deal because in terms of appearance they really haven't," says Pete Brown, the report's author. "But the thinking around them has come on in leaps and bounds. "I love that publishers are using them to show readers stuff they think want to see as well as stuff they think they need to see," Brown says. "Push is now being treated as a platform in its own right. At The New York Times they say push deserves to have all of the intention and critical thinking as the front page of the newspaper and the homepage." How does the changing approach to push notifications relate to the rise of paywalls and subscription business models? After all, traditional business models are in decline, display advertising in its current guise isn't going to keep the lights on and social platforms aren't going to prop up the publishing business model. So how is sending out potentially spammy messages to users going to help? "Getting people to pay for journalism is not easy," Brown says. "What news organisations have figured out is that developing strong relationships with their audiences is absolutely key to converting them into paying supporters. "Push alerts play a vital role in that because they provide one of the most direct routes to readers. They're a vital conduit for establishing and developing that relationship between news organisation and reader. It's an incredible intimate relationship. "News alerts sit alongside messages from their friends and family on a reader's home screen. They allow news outlets to go directly to their audiences, to give them information they both want and need, and, crucially, they are uninhibited by the whims of opaque algorithms dictating whether or not they get seen." So, not only do news alerts need to impart information, they also need to be on-brand. As a result, crafting the perfect push has become a hot topic. "Many outlets have Slack channels and the like where numerous people workshop language for their alerts," Brown says. "For a lot of publishers, speed is less important than you might expect. Mobile editors will say they'd rather spend time crafting the best alert they can and be a few minutes slower than their rivals because, unlike news junkies and their bosses, most news consumers are not getting alerts from multiple apps and comparing the times they arrived. "They just want a good, engaging, interesting alert about something that interests them." More progressive mobile editors are conscious that alerts can interrupt readers' busy lives, and just want to give them the news at the lock-screen level. Whether they open the story or not is immaterial. "They want their readers to be able to look at the alert, understand what was happened, put their phones back in their pockets and get on with their day," says Brown. "It's the sort of water cooler approach wherein an alert alone provides enough news for the reader to be able to start a conversation. Some will even tell you that if readers have to click through to the full story in order to understand it, then they've failed at their job." But there's a downside. The technical limitations of iOS and Android dictate the use of push notifications. "Apple and Google really hold all of the cards in this respect," Brown says. "Even when publishers aren't being forced to adapt to the ever-changing algorithms, they remain subservient to the tech giants in other ways. "A lot of publishers would be making more use of photos in their alerts if Apple didn't insist on making them so small and useless." The research also features some cautionary tales. CNN Moneystream, which sent out the most pushes a year ago, has become an automated feed of news due to layoffs, and Millenial news outlet Mic also changed tack on pushes. It had been trying to include videos in news alerts, which would be watched on the lock screen without ever needing to open Mic's app. But the audience didn't get it. "That suggests they were just unable to break that habit of tapping on alerts," Brown says. "I think those norms and habits will only change when Apple and Google make changes at the level of the operating system that force people to adapt." Last year, the residential and commercial vacancy rate in Limerick city centre was 8pc and 46pc Limerick's economic resurgence in recent years has been nothing short of inspiring. The city that was once plagued by bad press and a "last out, turn off the lights" mentality around the time of the Dell layoffs in 2009 has undergone an 'ugly duckling' transformation and has now positioned itself as an attractive European destination in which to live, work and invest. How did all this come about? Collaborative leadership - basically management speak for being better than the sum of one's parts - is at the root of this startling metamorphosis. The Limerick 2030 development plan sparked the regeneration of the city by bringing together expertise from the local council, educational institutions and the business community. The creation of the Limerick Twenty Thirty DAC (Designated Activity Company) was also crucial. This company, wholly owned by Limerick City and County Council (LCCC), has achieved notable successes like the Troy Studios development and has also secured European Investment Bank funding of 85m for the city centre Opera development. Despite all these advances, Limerick is no different from other urban centres in that it still faces challenges in relation to housing supply. While I remain unconvinced of the ambitious 50pc increase in population projected by the National Planning Framework, it's something of a no-brainer that building in Limerick (along with Dublin, Cork, Galway and Waterford) will need to be "ramped up" as per the Taoiseach's suggestion on the Late Late before Christmas. Just like all other Irish cities, Limerick has a shortage of suitable urban accommodation. This shortage is unlikely to be addressed by property developers anytime soon given their claims of poor margins due to high construction costs. In such a climate other cities could do worse than study Limerick's recent decision to assess how an upgrade of existing infrastructure might improve supply. In 2018, the residential and commercial vacancy rate in Limerick City Centre was 8pc and 46pc respectively. The issue with vacant units becomes even more apparent when broken down by floor level. As Europe's most westerly Georgian city, many buildings in Limerick's historic quarter have proven notoriously difficult and expensive to renovate. Other Irish cities face similar issues. The national policy response to this was the 'Living Cities Initiative', introduced in 2013 to provide tax incentives for individuals to refurbish buildings in our city centres. One has to ask why only 113 individuals nationwide (as of June 2018) had seen fit to avail of this scheme. The scheme will run until 2020 so, while it may still be early days to say that the die is cast in terms of overall success, it is clear that the Government must provide greater incentives if it wishes to successfully address the factors that discourage this type of development (ie costs, planning restrictions and time). To LCCC's credit, it has tried to prime innovation by securing funding of 2.7m under the Urban Regeneration Development Fund to renovate housing in the Georgian part of the city. This will provide a template for the refurbishment of Georgian buildings by investigating whether laneway access points that allow for individual development of a building's 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors represent a viable solution. If successful, the transition of units from commercial to residential will be streamlined thus reducing costs, time, and ultimately increasing occupancy. Limerick, in terms of its scale and infrastructure, provides an optimal platform for this type of bottom-up policy approach. In addition, LCCC currently has the most comprehensive data on city centre vacancy of any local authority. Vacant unit development is only one of several housing challenges that are in the process of being addressed in a dynamic fashion at local level. It is important to emphasise however that there is no one silver bullet solution to the challenge of revitalising our urban centres. In order for cities to thrive, a collaborative and transparent approach to policy development must become the norm. Laois-born TV 'supervet' Prof Noel Fitzpatrick's UK-based specialist veterinary surgery and animal cancer treatment business suffered a small reduction in its turnover in its last financial year "due to being unable to meet all demand for its services due to an unexpected reduction in the number of senior clinicians". Asked whether this was due to European senior vets leaving Britain because of Brexit, a spokeswoman for Prof Fitzpatrick declined to comment. About a quarter of all vets in the UK are EU nationals, and fewer want to work there, according to journal Vet Record. According to company filings, Fitzpatrick Referrals employed 146 clinical staff last year, a slight increase from 137 in 2017. Company filings do not state how many are senior clinicians, however. His firm booked a 10.5m (11.9m) turnover, which was down 4pc on the previous year. It recorded a small loss of 27,000, down substantially from a 453,000 profit the previous year. Accordingly, Ballyfin native Prof Fitzpatrick reduced his own salary from 190,000 to 77,480. The firm had retained earnings of 1.39m, while the total assets of the business are valued at just under 12m. It has bank borrowings of 5.46m, used mainly to expand his surgery and facilities, up from 3.7m in 2017. They involve both a charge over a surgery building, as well as a personal guarantee by him, the accounts state. However, the firm's research and development spending is relatively small, at just 122,000 for its last financial, and 111,000 the previous year, which is less than one per cent of its turnover. In late 2017, Prof Fitzpatrick's pioneering bionic surgery techniques were called on by Meghan Markle after one of her dogs broke two of its legs in an accident. He was subsequently a guest at her wedding to Britain's Prince Harry last year. Query: I'm in my early 30s and have ongoing back problems and so need to go to a physiotherapist regularly. However, the cost is adding up. I don't have private health insurance, but figure it would be wise for me to buy it. Is there an affordable plan which offers good cover for physio care - and would I be covered for my physio trips immediately? Aoife, Dublin 14 Answer: Irish Life Health would be a good option, as it is the only provider which offers the Back Up Programme - a programme designed to help people with back pain. You are assigned a case manager, who clinically assesses your problem and develops a treatment plan. This may simply be an exercise programme, or it could involve physiotherapy. Members can receive up to eight physiotherapy sessions for a once-off fee of 50, if medically necessary. This can be used twice per policy year as long as there is a four-month gap in between each use. Some good options from Irish Life Health would be any of its 4D Health plans which range from 1 to 5 (that is 4D Health 1 to 4D Health 5). If it is within your budget, Irish Life Health's Best Ultimate 2 has excellent physio cover also. Laya Healthcare has a physio-line which gives access to a physiotherapist for expert advice. Simply Connect, 360 Care Select and 360 Care are all good options from Laya. PMI 07 10 and PMI 02 10 are two VHI plans which have very strong physiotherapy cover. Heart condition options Query: I'm a 35-year-old man and about a year ago I had a major health scare as a result of a heart condition which had never been detected before. I regularly need hospital treatment now as a result. I took out private health insurance a few years ago, but it's a very basic plan with a high excess. Can you recommend a reasonably-priced plan that has either no excess - or a low excess, which covers most public hospitals and some private hospitals, and which would suit someone who has a heart condition? John, Co Kildare Answer: As you already have health insurance, you are on the health insurance ladder and therefore avoiding any lifetime community rating loading for being over 35. (Lifetime community rating is a system where those aged 35 and upwards may pay more for their premiums if they did not have private health insurance before May 1, 2015). A good affordable plan which fully covers listed cardiac procedures in the high-tech hospitals is Laya Healthcare's Essential Health 300. VHI's One Plan 250 and Irish Life Health's Benefit plan are also affordable options which cover all public and private hospitals. It's important to note that you may have to serve a two-year upgrade waiting period. This applies when you are increasing any element of cover that relates to a pre-existing medical condition. If you are in and out of hospitals as an outpatient (treatment which doesn't require an overnight stay), it would be worthwhile considering a corporate plan which will help toward the costs of these visits. The most competitive corporate plans available at the moment are Laya Healthcare's Simply Connect, VHI's PMI 07 10 and Irish Life Health's 4D Health 2. Cover for couple in mid-50s Query: My wife and I are in our mid-50s. Our private health insurance plan has quite a high excess of 500 - and excludes cover for the likes of the Blackrock Clinic and the Mater Private. At this stage in our lives, we would like to upgrade our cover to a plan which covers both the Blackrock Clinic and Mater Private - and which has a zero, or low, excess. What are the best plans with a zero or low excess and do any of these cover the Blackrock Clinic and Mater Private? Declan, Co Dublin Answer: Cover for hi-tech hospitals falls under four categories. These are day cases, cardiac procedures, listed specialised procedures and inpatient stays (that is, overnight stays in hospital) for other procedures. If you are paying 1,200 or more per year, you should at a minimum have full cover for day cases, cardiac and listed specialised procedures. To have full cover for inpatient stays for anything else, you need to be on the highest level of cover available. These plans are extremely expensive, with the most expensive plan on the market costing over 8,000 per member per year. There is no need to pay these type of premiums - I would strongly recommend anybody paying over 1,800 a year to review their cover. The Beacon Hospital is covered as if it were a private hospital on a number plans, as is Blackrock Clinic. Blackrock Clinic has an excellent facility called cover-check available on its website which will tell you what accommodation you are covered for there - and if there are any shortfalls in cover. While this is a great and very helpful tool, it is extremely important to ring your broker or insurer before arranging any procedures. You will have to confirm that your procedure code and consultant are fully covered by your insurer. It's also a good idea to confirm waiting periods to make sure there are no surprises. If you have a shortfall on cover for the Mater Private, the maximum it charges is 260 a night. This is capped at 10 nights a calendar year for oncology treatment. If you want a plan which will cover private hospitals without an excess and give certain cover for high-tech hospitals, consider Irish Life Health's 4D Health 5 or Best Ultimate 2, Laya Healthcare's 360 Care Select or 360 Care and VHI's Company Plan Extra Level 2 or PMI 42 15. Breast cancer diagnosis Query: I've just been diagnosed with breast cancer and have been told that I will need a mastectomy. I have no private health insurance. Do I need to get private health insurance to help me cover the cost of this surgery? Gemma, Limerick City Answer: When you are diagnosed with a serious illness such as cancer, you will be treated as priority regardless of whether or not you have private health insurance. The advantages of health insurance is it gives you control over your treatment plan, you can select the hospital you would like to attend and the type of room you would like to be in, and it would also allow you to choose your own consultant. If you were to take out private health insurance now, unfortunately this procedure wouldn't be covered as it would be deemed as a pre-existing condition. When you are taking out private health insurance for the first time, there is a 26-week waiting period for any new conditions that may arise, a five-year waiting period for anything pre-existing, and a 52-week waiting period for maternity. The waiting periods for day-to-day expenses vary depending on age and which provider you choose. If you wanted to fund yourself as a private patient, this is also an option. The cost of getting a mastectomy in a private hospital as a private patient can be anything up to 10,000. It could cost 400 for the initial consultation, 4,500 for the procedure, 1,000 for the anaesthetist and 2,500 for a two-night stay in a private hospital. If you are in the public system, a hospital and consultant will be assigned to you. Public patients are charged a statutory fee of 80 per night. This charge can accumulate to a maximum of 800 in a 12-month period. Insurance companies are not happy about the rate of progress the Government is making in reforming the judicial and injury claims assessment process. Two years after the publication of the first Cost of Insurance Working Group Report, many of the recommended measures have not been introduced. In fact, if you follow what the insurance industry is saying, not a lot has been done at all. And Insurance Ireland chief executive Kevin Thompson is right in much of what he says about the pace of change. Solid recommendations in the report around a dedicated Garda unit for tackling insurance fraud and the introduction of a personal injuries assessment board, have not yet come to pass. The insurance industry has come out of its corner fighting at the start of 2019 and it has put the Government on the back foot. So much so, that in desperation to cover up for the slow rate of progress, the Government has ended up pointing to recent insurance premium cuts as a sign of progress. Insurance premiums have come down by an average of 23pc since their peak in July 2016. For some people, premiums are still rising, but as reflected in a single figure, they have come down. It isn't at all clear how that drop in any way reflects government action other than to force insurers to share and publish data claim settlement costs. A helpful initiative, but just the beginning of the process. Between 2013 and 2016 premiums rose by an average 70pc. At the time insurers said the higher cost of claims, fraud and higher court awards were forcing them to put up premiums in what had become an unprofitable business. If we accept all of those reasons for why premiums rose by 70pc, then why have they dropped at all? Let's face it, very little has changed, so why or how can insurance companies cut premiums? One obvious conclusion is that they put up premiums during those years by more than they needed to in order to achieve big profits. If the sector is right, and not a lot of progress has been made in tackling the underlying causes behind the original hikes, then insurers should not be able to, for financial reasons, cut premiums at all. Why did premiums go up by that extra 23pc that has been sliced off prices in recent years? Meanwhile, the Government appears all over the place in trying to point to lower prices as an indication that it is doing a great job. Surely it should look to introduce all of the ideas in the original report as soon as possible and see where premiums end up? Junior minister Michael D'Arcy told RTE on Thursday that the Garda Commissioner Drew Harris is not supportive of the idea of insurance companies financing a new anti-insurance fraud unit. Mr D'Arcy said he agrees with Mr Harris. I think they are right that we should not have private sector interests with a vested interest funding units of the police force. But why doesn't the government just go ahead and finance the new unit anyway? The cost is relatively modest and could make a significant difference to many people who are paying excessive premiums because of insurance fraud. There is an obvious case for tackling insurance fraud with a dedicated unit. It shouldn't be beyond the financial capability of the State to fund it. High insurance costs are eroding living standards, business competitiveness and impact on whether people can take up jobs in rural Ireland where public transport is minimal. If we accept that insurance companies needed to rebuild their balance sheets by hiking up premiums a few years ago, we have to ask how they can cut premiums by 23pc while claiming that nothing substantial has changed. Take an insurance premium that was 500 in 2013. It went up to 850 by 2016 (increase of 70pc). It has since come down by 23pc, so it now costs 655. Somebody is still doing pretty well. Bank boards learn lessons of inexperience during the crash I had the pleasure of interviewing Paddy Power Betfair chairman Gary McGann at the Pendulum Summit in Dublin during the week. Mr McGann was in a very open mood and answered a range of questions including his reflections on his role as a non-executive director of Anglo Irish Bank. As far as he was concerned, the experience was one he would rather forget but he said he had learned a lot from it. Interestingly, he suggested that despite the Anglo board of the time being made up of high-achieving Irish corporate blue bloods like himself, they were not necessarily experienced enough, in the banking sector, as a group, to do the job better. It was an argument based on the idea that despite their business experience, they lacked the expertise, collectively as a board, to really see the risks that were being taken. McGann does not believe bank boards should be made up exclusively of former bankers, but the mix around the boardroom table should be more heavily weighted towards ex-bankers with industry experience. If he is right, then how do the boards of AIB, Bank of Ireland and Permanent TSB stack up now? Have these lessons been learned? It would appear they have. AIB has a board of 11. Excluding the two executives on the board, there are nine non-execs. Six of the nine have a career background in banking or financial services. The other three consist of the chief executive of Eir, a marketing executive from Boots and a former Intel executive. At Bank of Ireland there are nine non-executive directors. Six of the nine have had careers in banking, financial services or bank regulation. The others have varied backgrounds in things like health insurance, electricity supply, consumer foods and betting. Over at PTSB they have eight non-executive directors with five having had careers directly in banking and financial services. The others have had careers in law, consultancy and the civil service. It looks like the McGann analysis has been taken on board. The breakdown of boards supports that and the similarities of the backgrounds of the three bank boards is quite striking. But is McGann right when he suggested that it took a level of industry expertise to fully and collectively grasp the risks involved at Anglo and the weaknesses involved in its business model? Professor Morgan Kelly of UCD was the person who truly called out that the banks could go bust. He is a professor of economics, but was certainly no career banker. He specialises in economic history and two of his academic papers in 2010 were on The Little Ice Age and Living Standards and Mortality Since the Middle Ages, both with his colleague Cormac O'Grada. Sometimes you don't have to be a banker. Sometimes if it looks too good to be true, it's because it is. The company said it will part ways with some of its manpower, citing extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead. SpaceXs Starlink program is competing with OneWeb and Canadas Telesat to be the first to market with a new satellite-based internet service. (Photo: AFP) Elon Musks rocket company SpaceX will reduce its workforce by about 10 percent of the companys more than 6,000 employees, it said on Friday. The company said it will part ways with some of its manpower, citing extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead. To continue delivering for our customers and to succeed in developing interplanetary spacecraft and a global space-based Internet, SpaceX must become a leaner company. Either of these developments, even when attempted separately, have bankrupted other organisations, a spokesman said in an email. In June, Elon Musk fired at least seven people in the senior management team leading a SpaceX satellite launch project, Reuters reported in November. The firings were related to disagreements over the pace at which the team was developing and testing its Starlink satellites. SpaceXs Starlink program is competing with OneWeb and Canadas Telesat to be the first to market with a new satellite-based internet service. The management shakeup involved Musk bringing in new managers from SpaceX headquarters in California to replace a number of the managers he fired in Seattle. Last month, SpaceX launched its first US national security space mission, when a SpaceX rocket carrying a US military navigation satellite blasted off from Floridas Cape Canaveral. In December, the Wall Street Journal reported that SpaceX was raising USD 500 million, taking its valuation to USD 30.5 billion. The Hawthorne, California-based company had earlier outlined plans for a trip to Mars in 2022, to be followed by a manned mission to the red planet by 2024. Another Elon Musk company, electric car maker Tesla Inc, said in June it was cutting 9 percent of its workforce by removing several thousand jobs across the company in cost reduction measures. (Source) A ban on old dirty diesels coming in from the UK in being examined The Department of Finance is "examining options" in relation to a ban on old dirty diesels coming in from the UK, the Sunday Independent can reveal. The Government faced a public call from Nissan Ireland to do something about the enormous level of used cars coming in from the UK each year. Nissan said the solution to Ireland's emissions problems was "staring the Government in the face". A spokesman for the department said that it had "recognised that the large-scale importation of used diesel cars from the UK over the past number of years was undesirable from a public health perspective and an Exchequer perspective". Iseq heavyweight Ryanair in one of the firms which saw big falls in its cash balances largely due to share buyback schemes. Photo: REUTERS The combined cash on the books of Ireland's 20 largest listed companies fell by more than a billion euro over the past year, while debt rose by more than 2bn. Housebuilders Cairn Homes and Glenveagh Properties were some of the biggest spenders last year. Cairn's most recently reported cash balance was down 32pc to 46.4m compared to where it stood in 2017. Glenveagh's cash fell 54pc to 163m. The cash held by the 20 biggest listed companies was 8.3bn, double what it was 10 years ago in 2008 for the then 20 biggest firms on the Irish Stock Exchange. Nevertheless, Iseq heavyweights Ryanair and CRH saw big falls in their cash balances - down 32pc to 2.8bn and more than 12pc to 1.8bn respectively - largely due to major share buyback schemes. But other well-known companies such as Kingspan, Total Produce and Aryzta also saw cash reserves fall in 2018, according to the latest data from Bloomberg. Simultaneously, combined debt at the top 20 largest Iseq companies rose with CRH adding almost 2bn alone as it continued a global acquisitions spree. Ryanair, by contrast, reduced its debt by almost 500m in the past year. Kingspan also saw a 36pc jump in debt to 663m, the figures showed. Irish cannabidiol producer Celtic Wind Crops plans to drastically increase its headcount ahead of expansion into the US and Scandinavian regions. The food supplements company, which was co-founded by former Kerry Group sales director Joe Gavin, expects to hire up to 250 staff by 2023. The business also expects to more than quadruple sales this year, placing them comfortably within double-digit millions, according to Gavin. CBD oil is one of the 104 chemical compounds found in the cannabis plant, cannabis sativa. It is a popular supplement used in the treatment of pain relief, anxiety, depression, acne, and cancer-related symptoms. It differs from marijuana in that it does not produce TCH, which triggers the psychoactive effects associated with smoking weed. "In 2016, we launched two little bottles of CBD oil and it just went interstellar overnight," he told the Sunday Independent. "The conversation around CBD oil had just begun in the US, and we were able to produce it naturally here in Ireland, despite others saying that we couldn't." Gavin said that he will employ between 200 and 250 people at its base in Dundalk over the next four years. It already boasts 2,500 acres of land on which to grow its product in the Cooley Mountains in Co Louth. Gavin also plans the opening of a manufacturing base in Northern Ireland to mitigate against potential levies and delays to the delivery of its stock in the UK. Celtic is already in 60pc of Irish pharmacies and is in every health food shop in the country. Last year, it also agreed a lucrative deal with Lloyds Pharmacies in the UK. "We did three times our 2017 sales last year, so our sales are growing three to four times year on year," he said. "We expect to do four times that in 2019." Gavin also said that Celtic, which has become an Enterprise Ireland client, was speaking to two sizeable food supplement distributors in the US, and in a number of Scandinavian countries. Accounts has said it might continue to offer deposit banking services here. Photo: Philip Toscano/PA With Britain's Brexit deadline fast approaching, the Irish arm of South African bank Investec has left open the possibility that it could change its mind about handing back deposits to its Irish customers. Last year the bank informed its almost 10,000 Irish retail and corporate deposit customers that, because it operates its deposit business here under a UK banking licence, it will no longer be able to hold a deposit book in Ireland. The bank wrote to all of its Irish depositors last week confirming that all deposits held in their Investec account - along with any performance return - will be transferred to them on March 8. But in the letter to the bank's Irish depositers - seen by the Sunday Independent - the South African bank said that should the EU and UK agree and put in place "transitional arrangements" prior to February 22, the bank might continue to offer deposit banking services here. It said it will write to customers again to outline how this could change the situation regarding their deposit account. Investec's corporate-finance, wealth-management, treasury, foreign-exchange and other specialist banking services will not be impacted by Brexit. The remaining 15 lambs (2pc of all lambs born) from the 2018 lambing season were sold on December 19. It is policy at Lyons Farm, not to carry lambs into the new year and even though some of these lambs were well below the cut-off weight, they still returned an average sale price of just over 99. These lambs had an average kill out percentage of 47.5pc off redstart. Ewes are currently grazing redstart having been scanned on December 27. The first group of 90 were housed yesterday (January 7) to facilitate a late pregnancy feeding trial, but the remainder will remain outdoors for another few weeks. This year, we have moved away from mid-pregnancy shearing to allow us to keep ewes out later over winter, reducing the labour associated with feeding. During my recent trip to New Zealand, I noted a lot of very late (by Irish standards) pregnancy shearing taking place, four to five weeks pre-lambing, and obviously no housing was taking place. The motivation for this practice is to increase lamb vigour, and there did not seem to be issues with the ewes subsequently. However, our recent experience at Lyons would suggest that even eight or nine weeks' wool regrowth might not be sufficient, depending on prevailing weather at the time of turnout. The weather in the regions where I witnessed this late pregnancy shearing was a lot more benign than in many parts of Ireland during February and March. I think this highlights the importance of not just blindly adopting a practice from different regions of the world, without fully understanding them in the first instance. Scanning results The scanning results were quite good, though I suspect some readers may be of the opinion that there are too many triplets in the flock this year. Overall, ewe lambs have a scanned litter size of 1.43 per ewe lamb joined. Fifteen per cent of ewe lambs did not conceive over a 24-day breeding period, while 11pc of ewe lambs joined have scanned with triplets (six ewe lambs in total). The hoggets within the flock have a scanned litter size of 2.04 per ewe joined. Four per cent of the hoggets are empty after a 35-day breeding season- with 14pc, 55pc and 26pc with singles, twins and triplets respectively. The mature ewes within the flock have a scanned litter size of 2.22 per ewe joined. Five per cent were empty after a 35-day breeding season, with 12pc, 42pc and 40pc of singles, twins and triplets respectively. All animals at Lyons are recorded using the Kingswood Sheep software package, and this makes analysing flock performance reasonably straightforward. Our experience suggests there is a considerable workload in getting the set-up correct, but once this is achieved, there are significant gains to be made from utilising the data to monitor flock and individual animal performance. The genetics within the flock at Lyons are of the high prolificacy variety and many farmers would not favour such high litter sizes. The major concern for many is how to deal with triplets? Farms with high numbers of triplets routinely have a plan in place to deal with them and they do not present a major burden. It is where numbers are small and there is no plan in place, or in a particular year where numbers are higher than normal, that issues arise. Good birth-weights, low mortality figures and acceptable lamb growth rates are all achievable with appropriate management and planning. This is something I will cover in more detail in the coming months. The breeding season at Lyons is also shorter than most other midseason lambing flocks. This, I think, is responsible for our higher than targeted barren rate of 4.5pc (we would target 2pc). I am confident we could reduce this percentage if we extended the breeding season, but at the moment this is not part of our plans at Lyons. This short breeding season is also facilitated by using synchronised mating. Associate Professor Tommy Boland is a lecturer in sheep production at Lyons Farm, University College Dublin. Email: tommy.boland@ucd.ie Twitter: @Pallastb Liam Condon has come a long way since his teenage years spent doing "back-breaking work" picking vegetables on a neighbours' farm on the Navan Road in Dublin 7. Now the head of crop sciences at Bayer, the 50-year-old - who attended DCU, as well as university in Berlin - can speak six languages including German, Chinese and Japanese. Although his background is in general pharmaceuticals, he has been a member of the board of management of Bayer AG since 2016 and was one of the key figures who spearheaded the company's 56bn takeover of biotech giant Monsanto. However, the sealing of the monumental business deal has been overshadowed by controversy. In August a Californian jury ordered Monsanto to pay $289m in damages to school grounds-keeper Dewayne Johnson, who claimed that glyphosate in its Roundup product caused his terminal cancer. The jury stated that Monsanto had failed to warn consumers of the cancer risks posed by its weed killers. Johnson's lawyers used evidence from the World Health Organisation's (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which stated that glyphosate is "probably carcinogenic to humans". Monsanto is appealing the ruling but is now facing a string of similar cases triggered by the California ruling. Mr Condon tells the Farming Independent that he is confident that the appeals process will be successful and that Roundup will remain "as widely available as it is today" as he claims it is imperative to food sustainability and the daily work of farmers. "Roundup has been on the market for over 40 years and approved by over 160 authorities around the world. Every regulatory authority has looked at this again and again and they have all come to the conclusion that it is safe and effective, every one of them," he says. "There's no doubts around the safety of the product if every regulatory agency says this is safe. We are completely behind the product, and farmers around the world tell us they absolutely need this and we have to make sure it stays available to farmers." Mr Condon says that IARC is one of four arms of the WHO that examine cancer risks and was the only one of the four that stated that Roundup probably causes cancer. "IARC basically put glyphosate in to the same category as hot drinks, red meat, aloe vera so a lot of stuff that you would say is consumed or used on a daily basis by an average person without anybody screaming for the products to be banned," he says. Mr Condon claims that products like glyphosate only improve the quality of food and says work needs to be done to improve the communication around their benefits. "There is a perception if you leave nature alone it will look after itself and food will be abundant and it doesn't need innovation or technology and we definitely don't need chemicals," he says. "The reality since the dawn of mankind man has constantly intervened and food available today is only available because farmers have developed things forward. "It comes down to beliefs that nature is always good and any fiddling around with nature is always bad, but innovation or technology is always built on what is happening anyway and it's basically copied and applied in a resource-efficient way." While Mr Condon feels that sustainability is often a "buzz-word", he thinks it is key to proving to consumers that farmers can be part of the solution to the environmental challenge and not part of the problem. "Most people nowadays are not involved in farming anymore. The reason everyone can follow their dream and do whatever job they want today and not have to constantly search for food is because farmers are so successful and productive," he says. "Most people have no real clue what agriculture is all about and what challenges farmers face. There is very little appreciation that farmers actually create, and that's a real challenge that needs to be addressed. "I spent quite a few summers on a farm and it was backbreaking work, so I have lots of respect for farmers. We know food is going to be there every day because we can rely on farmers, and that part gets lost in translation. "If people don't understand the challenges that farmers are facing - and we are talking about innovation and technology - and the average person on the street can't see the benefit for farmers, then that innovation and technology is going to be rejected. "We need to go back to basics and explain what modern agriculture is all about and how farmers work to make sure that sustainability is actually lived and not just a buzzword." With the right approach, Mr Condon believes that the Irish agri-food industry could be "carbon neutral if not carbon negative" and feels that technology and innovation can play a huge part in making that a reality. "Things like no-till farming is enabled by glyphosate of all things and it keeps the carbon in the ground and doesn't release it through tillage in the atmosphere," he adds. "Things like that can have a tremendous impact on carbon emissions and reducing the amount of tractors that need to go out in to the field if there's less tillage. "High-tech irrigation systems that are available today can be used to minimise the amount of water that's required. This allows farmers to be extremely precise in the amount of inputs they use - and it doesn't get spoken about often enough." While Mr Condon thinks Ireland is more self-critical in terms of its climate performance due to the pressure of its "green island image", he does feel that the agri-food sector has more to do in order to reach climate targets. "I think it has done a good job but there's a lot more that could be done," he says. "The better the image of sustainability in Ireland, the better the chance of exports for Irish food so there is an opportunity there to not just advertise the green Ireland but to make sure that the way food is produced is really sustainable. "It's about showing that it's not just propaganda and advertising but it's based on the reality on how food is produced." A conversation with one of Europe's leading agri-business figures cannot be completed without discussing Brexit, which Mr Condon feels is a debate that is "being completely blown out of proportion", saying it is "phenomenal how much energy is being put in to debating Brexit". "From our business point of view there won't be any supply issues, we've got alternative place scenarios no matter what happens," he says. "With a hard Brexit, though, the connectivity to the UK will be very bumpy, not only for farmers but the entire industry for quite some time." A more pressing issue for Bayer is its announcement in November that it would cut 12,000 jobs out of over 118,000 worldwide in a restructuring strategy. "It's not a knee-jerk reaction, it will be very well planned and structured," says Mr Condon. "In Germany there is a significant older population who are looking at early retirement and there will be incentives for those people who are leaving the company, and some roles will not be replaced." Drone technology is revolutionising crop protection and management for small and medium sized farmers in Asia, and Europe won't be far behind. Liam Condon points out that a huge amount of small and medium-sized farmers are using drone technology, which has changed the way they work. "What we have seen in Asia-Pacific is a huge uptake of farmers using drones. The farmer gets a kit where all they do is press start and stop and they don't need to do anything," he says. "The drone flies around the field by the maps and then through sensors it sees where there is potential fungal disease, and in that specific part of the field it will spray an application of fungicide, or where there are weeds, and will spray only that part of the field that is affected," he says. Mr Condon explains that the technology is working out much more labour- and cost-efficient than the previous manual methods of spraying using a backpack. "The drone does the job for them and it's a super example of how technology can help make work easier and more precise and definitely more cost-efficient for farmers," he says. While not all farmers in rural areas may be able to use drones due to poor internet access, Mr Condon says this doesn't mean they are excluded from using agri-tech. "We have smallholder farmers who are basically the poorest of the poor with very little access to technology and even they use digital platforms to help them improve how they farm. Farmers get information on their phone through SMS," he says. "If it can work for them, it can work for farmers in Ireland and Europe." Around 60 million farmers worldwide are paying to use a field mapping service which aims to move away from the standardised method of planting crops. Liam Condon says that the digital platform, which is called Climate Field View was launched by Bayer's subsidiary The Climate Corporation in the US and will soon launch in Europe. "The system tracks in real time the fertility of the field and how much fertility they are pulling in from a part of the field and documents all of this," he explains. "It gives them immediate recommendations for the next planting season and tells farmers which part of the field was lacking nutrition because the yield was pretty weak. It also shows which parts are more fertile and which parts are more susceptible to disease. It gives the farmer the chance to optimise everything that's happening in the field." Mr Condon says the system, which costs $1,000 a year to use, "pays back multiple times" as farmers are not wasting valuable resources or over-using seed. "In the past there has been a standardised approach of every field being treated more or less equally, but today we can see even within a field that there is tremendous variation," he says. "Planting the same amount of seeds in every part of the field doesn't make sense it would be wasting, good precious resources. "The maps visualise that for farmers. Green equals good and red equals bad. It tells them what needs to be done in a particular area." Former British prime minister John Major has said revoking Article 50 is the "only sensible course" but accepted this would be "politically uncomfortable". Mr Major, who was Prime Minister between 1990 and 1997, wrote in the Sunday Times of his support for a second ballot of Britain's membership of the European Union, adding the British Government allowing a no-deal Brexit would be "morally reprehensible". Theresa May is preparing to put her Brexit blueprint to a vote in the House of Commons next week with former Brexit minister Dominic Raab saying Britain should be prepared to leave with no arrangement in place. Writing that the divisions between people on both sides of the referendum debate have become "bitter and entrenched", Mr Major added: "The cost of a no-deal Brexit to our national wellbeing would be heavy and long-lasting. "The benefits are close to zero. Every single household - rich or poor - would be worse off for many years to come. "Jumping off a cliff has never had a happy ending." He added that a "new process" of national consultation was needed, adding: "No true democracy should deny a considered choice to its people." Meanwhile, London mayor Sadiq Khan has written in the Observer suggesting that Mrs May should step down and call a general election if she loses next week's vote. He wrote: "It's clear that if our government and parliament are incapable of finding a way out of this mess, it should be taken out of the hands of the politicians and returned to the British people to take back control." On the other side of the divide on Britain's departure from the European Union, Mr Raab has said Mrs May's deal "suffocates the opportunities Brexit offers". He wrote: "If MPs vote the deal down, we should continue to press our EU partners for a deal that respects the referendum. "If EU intransigence persists, we must be willing to leave the EU at the end of March on World Trade Organisation terms. "We'd be in a stronger position, then, to continue the negotiations as an independent third country." An 800-year-old monastery in Italys Apennine mountains has become the latest battleground in a bitter war of ideas. The imposing buildings of Trisulti to the east of Rome have been leased by the Dignitatis Humanae Institute, a think tank led by Benjamin Harnwell, a British former political aide linked to the US right-wing ideologue Steve Bannon. It is part of a Europe-wide effort to legitimise far-right and xenophobic forces; to teach a new generation how to deliver hate and demagogy into the mainstream. And they are hijacking Christianity to do it. Bannons relevance is usually overplayed by many commentators (he still counts for very little in Europe), but the creation and aims of this monastery-based Academy for the Judeo-Christian West are symptomatic of a wider trend. Support has come from Cardinal Burke, an ultra-conservative US figure who represents a group of ultra-Catholic and traditionalist anti-Popes which is close to some influential conservative voices in the Vatican. They are challenging Pope Franciss progressive agenda and his pro-immigrant and refugee policies. And they now have obvious bedfellows in Italys government. The bellicose far-right and xenophobic interior minister Matteo Salvini responded to papal concerns over the fate of migrants at sea with typical disdain, declaring: The Church is ... against us. I was expecting this. And this is a man who has sworn on the bible at a party rally and clutches a rosary. Organisations such as Dignitatis Humanae criticise the Pope in the name of an old-fashioned idea of Christendom. There is a twisted nostalgia for an old-style Catholic life, and for the protection of the Judeo-Christian roots of western civilisation. This has become a natural point of contact between a particular brand of Catholicism, the contemporary far-right and US white nationalists. They share a desire to attack Islam and to forge a narrative around an invasion of migrants from Islamic countries. Cardinal Burke has offered dark warnings about the rise of Sharia law. He also claimed that countries such as Italy face the risk of a Muslim majority population in the near future if birth rates and immigration trends are not reversed. On a similar note, Harnwell has railed against politicians from traditional Christian democratic parties for failing to follow his own troubling conclusion that Muslims are members of a religion which is innately ... aggressive. Conservative thinking in the church is moving further to the right. And the presence of the liberal Pope Francis is radicalising and accelerating this process. People like Burke and Harnwell are not ashamed to be associated with extremists such as Bannon or Salvini. In doing so, they in effect legitimise and defend far-right groups and racist doctrines. Harnwell has even tried to reject the idea of a rise in the far right by imagining that the passing of time and the evolution of ideas are some kind of inconvenience. He has argued that decades of liberal and progressive politics since the Second World War have simply reframed the debate, so what we have now, what we would call far right, its really basically just centre, centre right. There is nothing completely new in this story. Historically an ultra-conservative wing of the church has often had ties with extremism on the right. Fascistic movements such as Spains Falangism, and the interwar Iron Guard in Romania or Belgian Rexism were, for example, influenced by authoritarian forms of Catholic or Orthodox Christianity. Let us not forget that the Vatican maintained a notable silence on its connections with Mussolini. After 1945 some fascists enjoyed the support of certain Catholic circles (and the Red Cross) and were helped, through the so-called ratlines, to reach the safer South America and Francos dictatorship in Spain. In places like France, part of the clergy was discredited, as it was mostly silent on some of the Vichy governments fascistic or antisemitic policies. In Italy, when a group of nostalgic fascists managed to steal Il Duces corpse from a cemetery in April 1946, they moved it to a monastery where it was hidden by two priests. From the end of the 1970s, there was also the rapprochement of a strand of Catholic fundamentalism with Jean-Marie Le Pens far-right party, the Front National now led by his daughter Marine. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Today, especially in eastern Europe, this Catholic fundamentalism is fully mixed with anti-Muslim feeling. At times there is also disguised antisemitism, racism and a narrow anti-EU nationalism. Radio Maryja, the controversial Polish religious broadcaster, has been a key example of this trend since the 1990s. Similarly, Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban is presented as a Christian bastion against the Islamisation of the European continent. Extremists such as Mario Borghezio, a vocal European MP from Salvinis Lega party, was recorded advising French identitary activists from Bloc Identitaire and Nissa Rebela how to infiltrate into society and assemblies by using a regionalist or Catholic camouflage. There are many in church circles and the Vatican who are trying to challenge Salvini for his political uses of Catholic symbols. However, the activities of Radio Maryja, Cardinal Burke and the new Academy in the Trisulti monastery persist in seeking to popularise a far-right agenda and normalise extremist beliefs. They are using Christianity as a Trojan horse to attract conservative voters who are opposed to the progressive and pro-immigration stance of Catholicism under Pope Francis. Andrea Mammone is a historian at Royal Holloway, University of London, and currently a visiting fellow in the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies at the European University Institute It is going to be a pretty important week in UK politics, for the vote on Brexit in the Commons must rank towards the top end of the political league. But on a long view, is it or indeed the whole Brexit decision that huge? Is the division in the country that stark, when compared with clashes of the past? Is the economic disruption the UK potentially faces greater than in, say, the early 1980s? Conventional wisdom says that this is the most important decision the UK will make since it joined the Common Market in the first place. But Im not sure. For some perspective I have been reading William Keegans new book Nine Crises Fifty years of covering the British economy from devaluation to Brexit. Bill Keegan, who I should acknowledge is a friend, has written about his experiences as a financial and economic journalist for a variety of newspapers, including the Financial Times and The Observer. It is essentially about how it felt to be writing about big economic events at the time. The CVC finding is that it could not look into these allegations for want of time, and that further inquiry is needed. There is a circus of the highest order going on in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the countrys premier investigating agency. The top two officers of the agency were openly at war with each other, and in a midnight drama, director Alok Verma was issued orders to proceed on leave, as was his warring deputy, Rakesh Asthana. The director was then reinstated in his job by the Supreme Court (SC) on January 10. Within 24 hours, the high-level committee that appointed him, comprising PM Narendra Modi, the then Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice A.K. Sikri, and the leader of the Congress (the largest Opposition party) in Parliament, Mallikarjun Kharge, met and removed him, in a 2-1 decision, with Mr Kharge dissenting. Within the 24 hours that he was reinstated, Mr Verma transferred about dozen officers. He was shunted out to the post of director-general fire services, but he chose to resign, requesting the government to consider him deemed superannuated with immediate effect. M. Nageshwar Rao has reassumed his post as interim director. In all probability, those transferred by Mr Verma will be brought back. In this sordid spectacle, played out in full public view, one thing has emerged quite clearly: The CBIs public image has hit rock-bottom. I hold no brief for either Mr Verma or Mr Asthana. But, as a former bureaucrat, I believe that any public servant has the right to prove his innocence, and not be punished on the basis of unsubstantiated allegations. This is an important principle, irrespective of which government is in power, because if it is ignored, then any allegation would suffice to transfer or remove any bureaucrat at the will of the political powers that be. It is true that, in this case, the Central Vigilance Agency (CVC) had gone into the allegations against Mr Verma and submitted a report, on the basis of which the high-level committee that appointed him found sufficient reason to transfer Mr Verma to the relatively inconsequential task of tending to fire services. But, what was the nature of the accusations brought against Mr Verma in the CVC report? Again, purely from the point of view of a bureaucrat, the CVC report presents grave problems. It lists a menu of allegations, none of them fully substantiated or proven, and some found to be incorrect. How could this then be the basis for the high-powered committee to remove Mr Verma from a post to which he had been reinstated by the SC only 24 hours ago? Let us examine what exactly is the content of the CVCs findings. The first charge is that Mr Verma took a bribe to influence investigation. The CVC finding is that no direct proof for this is forthcoming, and the evidence, if any, is circumstantial, and needs further investigation. A second charge is that Mr Verma attempted to call off the raids in Patna in the Lalu Yadav investigations. The CVC finding is that the charge is not substantiated. A third charge is that Mr Verma delayed finalising investigation in a bank fraud in order to favour the prime accused. The CVC finding is that the charge is incorrect. A fourth charge is that he placed a CBI officer of his choice to monitor the bank fraud case in which his relative was allegedly involved. The CVC finding is that the charge is not substantiated. A fifth charge is that Mr Verma did not share with other agencies intelligence inputs on two industrialists. The CVC finding is that the charge is not substantiated. A sixth charge is that Mr Verma is linked to bribes in regard to inquiries on land acquisition matters in Haryana. The CVC finding is that it could not look into these allegations for want of time, and that further inquiry is needed. A seventh charge is that Mr Verma failed to act in a gold smuggling case at the Delhi airport. The CVC finding is that the charge is only partially substantiated, and that the matter needs re-investigation. An eighth charge is that Mr Verma helped cattle smugglers. The CVC finding is that the charge is not substantiated. A ninth charge is that Mr Verma unduly interfered in a CBI case against an Enforcement Directorate officer. The CVC finding is that the charge is only partially substantiated, and needs further investigation. There are only two matters in which the charge is, as per the CVC, substantiated. The first is that Mr Verma did not include the name of a suspect as an accused in the FIR in the IRCTC case relating to Lalu Yadav. The second is that he tried to induct two officers about whom internal inquiries had raised integrity issues. But even these findings are based on circumstantial evidence. In summary then, of the 11 allegations levelled, as many as six are unsubstantiated or require more investigation and one is found to be incorrect, and four only show the possibility of wrongdoing on the basis of circumstantial evidence, or need further investigation. Is such a CVC report sufficient ground for the removal of an officer, who, in any case, had some 20 days left to retire? Surely investigation against him, where the CVC had so recommended, could have been initiated without needing to remove him from a post on the basis of largely unsubstantiated allegations, especially since that post has a mandatory two-year tenure. And, while the correct procedure was followed, as per the SCs directive, for the high-level committee to decide on the removal or transfer of Mr Verma, is it asking for too much if this very committee could have also given Mr Verma a chance to present his point of view, before deciding that he needs to be shunted off to look after fire services? Such questions have no partisan political provenance. They pertain to the fundamental need to protect the independence and impartiality of the bureaucracy, and keep it insulated from unwarranted political interference, the very reason why certain posts were given a mandatory two-year tenure. Otherwise, all bureaucrats will work under the fear of unproven allegations, severely impairing both their functioning and effectiveness. The CBI has made a circus of itself, and no one knows when and how the curtain will finally come down on this unseemly spectacle. But it is incumbent on all of us to understand the full implications of what is unfolding before our eyes. Violent clashes between hundreds of Arab Christians and police erupted in Haifa on Friday after a protest over a piece of art showing a crucified Ronald McDonald titled McJesus. Authorities said three police officers needed medical treatment after being wounded in the head with protesters hurling stones after being blocked from breaking into the Haifa Museum of Art to remove the artwork. The work which has been on display in Haifa for months as part of an exhibition called Sacred Goods was created by Finnish artist Jani Leinon. Footage from the protest showed scuffles as police used tear gas and stun grenades to clear the demonstrators. The demonstration came after a firebomb was thrown at the museum overnight Thursday. Culture Minister Miri Regev wrote to the director general of Haifa Museums on Thursday calling for the piece of art to be removed from display. In the letter, Ms Regev said she had received many complaints of serious offence caused to the Christian communitys feelings because of the artwork. Ms Regev said contempt for symbols sacred to religions and many believers around the world as an act of artistic protest is illegitimate and cannot be displayed in a cultural institution supported by state funds. She said official support for the museum could be damaged by the exhibit. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty According to the Haifa police, a few hundred demonstrators tried to forcibly enter the Haifa Museum of Art during the protest. After the protest, the Haifa Museum announced that director Nissim Tal has agreed to put a sign warning of potentially offensive content at the entrance to the exhibit. The museum condemned the firebombing incident and argued debate over art should not descend into violence. A discourse about art, however complex it may be, must not spill over into violent territory and must be respected even in charged situations, it said. It said the work was part of an exhibit on consumerism that references mega-corporations cynical use of religious symbols. Mr Leinon responded to the protest by explaining his work critiques the way Ronald McDonald has become a pop culture symbol evocative of religious worship. A 32-year-old resident of the city has been arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer. Israeli troops discovered the sixth and final tunnel dug by Hezbollah militants for cross-border attacks, the military announced on Sunday, saying it was wrapping up its operation along the Lebanese border. Military spokesperson Lt Col Jonathan Conricus said the final tunnel was the largest one discovered so far, running hundreds of metres (yards) from under a Lebanese home and deep into Israeli territory. Israel launched Operation Northern Shield early last month to detect and destroy what it called a vast network of Hezbollah tunnels aimed for militants to sneak across the border and carry out attacks. Mr Conricus said the latest tunnel originated from the Lebanese border town of Ramyeh. He said it was 55m deep and ran 800m inside Lebanese territory and also dozens of metres into Israel. It included stairs, a rail system and a wide a passageway that allowed for the movement of equipment and a large number of forces. The tunnel would be destroyed in the coming days, Mr Conricus said, adding that while more tunnels still existed on the Lebanese side of the border, this effectively marked the end of the ambitious military operation. We have achieved the goal that we set out to achieve a month and a half ago, he said. According to our intelligence, there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels into Israel. Israel and the United Nations say the tunnels violate a cease-fire resolution that ended a devastating war between Israel and Hezbollah in 2006. Mr Conricus says the UN peacekeeping mission, United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (Unifil), had been updated on the latest development. In the wake of its discoveries, Israel has asked the international community to impose tough sanctions on Hezbollah and begin to act against its state-within-a-state operation in Lebanon. The military said its forces would stay deployed along the border area to monitor for any other possible underground activity, and said it holds the Lebanese government responsible for everything happening in its territory. The powerful Shia militant group Hezbollah, which acts independently in Lebanon, has yet to comment on the Israeli discoveries. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Israel has long called for a crackdown on the Iran-backed Hezbollah, a heavily armed mini-army that is believed to possess an arsenal of some 150,000 rockets that can reach nearly all of Israel. In recent years, Hezbollah has been bogged down in fighting in Syria on behalf of President Bashar al-Assads government. But with that civil war winding down, Israeli security officials fear Hezbollah is refocusing its attention on Israel. News of the operations conclusion comes in the final week of Israels outgoing military chief Lt Gen Gadi Eisenkots four-year tenure. The latest discovery, coupled with a weekend strike attributed to Israel against suspected Iranian and Hezbollah sites near the Damascus International airport, was perceived in Israeli media as Eisenkots parting shot as he left office. Metula residents react to Israel tunnel operation He gave a series on interviews over the weekend summarising his term and focusing on shifting the Israeli militarys attention towards Iran directly instead of just engaging its lesser proxies, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza. In a New York Times interview published on Friday Eisenkot said that Israel has struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit as part of a shadow showdown with Qassim Soleimani, the commander of Irans elite Quds Force. Eisenkot also revealed that the government approved his shift in strategy in January 2017, stepping up airstrikes in Syria. In 2018 alone, he said Israels air force dropped 2,000 bombs in Syria. Associated Press Angered by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's announcement that Poland will host an international conference on Iran in mid-February, Iranian authorities on Sunday summoned Warsaw's top diplomat in the country and called off a Polish film festival. The moves followed a tweet by Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif who denounced the upcoming summit as America's anti-Iran "circus." Mr Pompeo is currently on a Middle East tour, bringing the Trump administration's anti-Iran message to the region. He told Fox News before departing from Cairo on Friday that an international conference on Iran and the Middle East will take place in Poland on 13 and 14 February. The official IRNA news agency said Iran conveyed its protest over this to Poland's Charge d'Affaires Wojciech Unolt, demanding that Poland not side with this "hostile move" by the United States against Tehran. The statement quoted an unnamed Iranian official as saying that if the summit goes ahead, Iran will resort to unspecified "counter-action" towards Poland, without elaborating. Separately, Iran's culture ministry in a statement said it was suspending "Poland's Film Week," supposed to be held in Tehran in late January, until Warsaw mends its ways and starts applying "appropriate behaviour" towards Tehran. Poland's Foreign Ministry in Warsaw could not immediately be reached for comment on Sunday morning. However, Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz said Saturday he hoped the conference will provide a new platform for international dialogue and allow the US and European Union to find a closer position on Iran. Footage of Nazanian Zagahri-Ratcliffe's arrest aired on Iranian state TV documentary Mr Czaputowicz said Poland supported the EU's efforts to preserve its nuclear agreement with Iran, but warned the deal alone would not keep Iran from "destabilising" the region. After Mr Pompeo's announcement, Mr Zarif said Friday on Twitter that the conference would bring shame on the Polish government and invoked how during World War II Iran saved Polish lives. Iran hosted tens of thousands of Polish war refugees who were brought to the country after surviving work camps in the Soviet Union and before they migrated to then-emerging Israel, New Zealand and some African countries. Scores stayed on after the war, choosing to reside in Iran. Mr Zarif tweeted: "Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus." Tehran and Warsaw have had good relations. The balance of trade between the two nations was $230 million in 2017, up from $80 million in 2015 when Iran and world powers agreed to a landmark nuclear deal that curbed Tehran's nuclear programme in return for lifting harsh economic sanctions. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Under President Donald Trump, the US pulled out of that accord in May 2018 and imposed new and tougher sanctions on Iran last autumn. On Sunday, Mr Pompeo was in Saudi Arabia, Iran's regional arch-rival, where he is expected to call for increasing pressure on Tehran and promote a US-backed initiative to form what some have termed an "Arab NATO" that would bring the region together in a military alliance to counter threats from Iran. AP Police used tear gas and water cannon on yellow vest protesters in central Paris during the ninth straight weekend of anti-government protests. Violence flared at the end of the mostly-peaceful march near Arc de Triomphe on Saturday as activists hurled bottles and other objects at the security forces. By Saturday evening more than 100 people had been arrested, mostly for carrying potential weapons or assaults, according to the Interior Ministry. Officials said around 32,000 people were involved in the protests across the country, including the cities of Bordeaux, Rouen, Marseilles and Toulouse. Around 6,000 of those marched in Bourges, the city at the centre of France, despite a ban on protests in the historic centre. The French authorities deployed around 80,000 security forces nationwide, having warned of bringing in tougher punishments for anyone involved in rioting. In Paris the authorities used armoured vehicles to block protesters from heading to the Champs-Elysees, the famous avenue of luxury shops and restaurants that was hit by rioting during past protests. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Horses and attack dogs were also stationed around the city while Subway stations and some shops closed, notably around government buildings and the Champs-Elysees, the sparkling avenue whose luxury boutiques have been hit by repeated rioting in past protests. Tear gas and water cannon were also used in Lyon, le Mans, Caen and Bordeaux. The yellow vest, or gilets jaunes, movement began in November as a protest against increases in fuel tax but has since grown into a wider revolt against president Emmanuel Macrons economic policies. Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Show all 22 1 /22 Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A barricade is seen during a "Yellow vest" protest against higher fuel prices in Paris REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A woman wears a Yellow vest (Gilet jaune) reading "Macron resign" with a French flag on the Champs Elysees in Paris, on November 24, 2018 during a protest against rising oil prices and living costs. - Police fired tear gas and water cannon on November 24 in central Paris against "yellow vest" protesters demanding French President roll back tax hikes on motor fuel. AFP/Getty Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Riot police vehicles stand on the Champs Elysees in Paris, on November 24, 2018 during a protest of Yellow vests (Gilet jaune) against rising oil prices and living costs. - Police fired tear gas and water cannon on November 24 in central Paris against "yellow vest" protesters demanding French President roll back tax hikes on motor fuel. AFP/Getty Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Protesters wearing yellow vests, a symbol of a French drivers' protest against higher fuel prices, build a barricade during clashes on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France, REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A protestor throws flares on the Champs Elysees, in Paris on November 24, 2018 during a national rally initiated by the Yellow vests (gilets jaunes in french) to protest against rising oil prices and living costs. - Security forces in Paris fired tear gas and water cannon on November 24 to disperse protesters who tried to break through a police cordon on the Champs-Elysees. Several thousand demonstrators, wearing high-visibility yellow jackets, had gathered on the avenue as part of protests which began on November 17, 2018 AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A protester wearing yellow vest, a symbol of a French drivers' protest against higher fuel prices, gestures during riots on the Champs-Elysees in Paris REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A truck burns during a "Yellow vest" protest against higher fuel prices during clashes on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A protester wearing yellow vest, a symbol of a French drivers' protest against higher fuel prices, talks to the police officer during clashes on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A man kneels on the street during a "Yellow vest" protest against higher fuel prices in Paris, France REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A huge explosion is seen on the famed Champs-Elysees avenue, after protesters, called the yellow jackets, set on fire a construction trailer during clashes with riot police as they protest against the fuel taxes, in Paris, France, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2018. French police fired tear gas and water cannons to disperse demonstrators in Paris Saturday, as thousands gathered in the capital and staged road blockades across the nation to vent anger against rising fuel taxes and Emmanuel Macron's presidenc AP Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A protester wearing French flag attends a "Yellow vest" protest against higher fuel prices on the Champs-Elysees in Paris, France REUTERS Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests Protesters clash with riot police as they deploy tear gas during a demonstration of Yellow vests (Gilets jaunes) on the Champs Elysees in Paris AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests A protester wrapped in a French flag faces riot police during a demonstration on the Champs Elysees in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests A protester dressed in hivis vest holds a french flag as she stands on a red light at the Champs Elysee, in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests A demonstrator holds a flare on the Champs Elysees in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police A protester gestures on the Champs Elysee as protests against rising fuel prices bring Paris to a standstill. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests Demonstrators hold barriers on the Champs Elysees in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests Protesters demonstrate surrounded by tear gas on the Champs Elysees in Paris, on November 24, 2018. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests A protester wears a Yellow vest (Gilet jaune) reading "The richer always richer" during a demonstration on the Champs Elysees in Paris, on November 24, 2018. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests Demonstrators pulls out barriers as on the Champs Elysees in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Paris fuel protests: Demonstrators clash with police Paris Protests Riot police face Yellow vests (Gilets jaunes) protestors demonstrating near the ARc de Triomphe on the Champs Elysees in Paris. AFP/Getty Images Mr Macron has promised billions of euros in tax relief and a national debate to address demonstrators concerns. He is expected to set forward his latest proposals in a letter to the French on Monday. Additional reporting by Associated Press A teacher and mother-of-two was killed in a car crash after pushing a six-year-old girl to safety just before she was hit. Dawn Croke, who was in her early 30s, was declared dead at the scene on the grounds of St Crona's National School in County Donegal, Ireland, on Thursday evening. Ms Croke was with her partner Paddy McHugh and his six-year-old daughter on the school grounds when a white Range Rover drove towards the group. It is understood that the teacher managed to push the child away from the moving car but but took the brunt of the impact herself. Ms Croke was killed instantly, while the the six-year-old girl was left injured and taken to Letterkenny University Hospital. Police said an investigation into the circumstances of the incident is ongoing. The driver of the car was not injured, according to Ireland's Garda police force. Ms Croke was a teacher at the Rosses Community School in County Donegal, which was closed on Friday following the teacher's death. A statement by the school read: "Our school wish to send our love and support to the family, school and local community at this sad time. "We, the school community, remember with love and fondness our colleague Dawn. We pray for the family and friends at this sad time." World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty A spokesperson from the Garda said: "Gardai are investigating a fatal traffic collision at Chapel Road, Dungloe, County Donegal at 6.30pm on 10 January. "A woman in her 30s was fatally injured when she was struck by a car. "A six-year-old girl was also injured and has been taken to University Hospital Letterkenny. "The driver of the car was not injured." Rescue workers have discovered the body of a woman in the rubble of the Paris bakery where an explosion took place on Saturday morning, bringing the death toll to four. Two firefighters and a tourist from Spain were killed in the blast on Rue de Trevise in the 9th arrondissement, believed to have been caused by a gas leak. Dozens of other people were injured in the explosion and the French authorities say nine of them remain in a critical condition in hospital. One woman was declared missing on Saturday, but it is not yet known whether the body found today is that of the same person. Paris fire department spokesman Eric Moulin told reporters on Sunday around 30 firefighters were still at the site searching for other potential victims, amid a mountain of debris around the Hubert bakery at 6 Rue de Trevise. He also named the two firefighters who lost their lives as 28-year-old Simon Cartannaz and 27-year-old Nathanael Josselin. According to city officials, 12 neighbouring buildings damaged by the blast were all evacuated. Temporary accommodations has been provided for about 40 residents while dozens of others have been housed by family and friends. A gas leak was reported at the bakery early Saturday and firefighters had arrived to inspect the building before the explosion occurred around 9am. Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz has said the blast appeared to be accidental, but an investigation to find the precise cause was still underway. We are at the beginning of the investigation, everything will be made to establish the exact origin of the explosion as soon as possible. Flowers laid outside Paris fire station in the 9th arrondissement (AFP/Getty) (AFP/Getty Images) Spanish foreign minister Josep Borrell revealed a Spanish woman was also killed in the blast, and the El Pais newspaper reported the woman was a 38-year-old tourist who had been staying with her husband and three children in a hotel near the bakery. Pedro Goncalves, an employee at the Hotel Mercure opposite the bakery, said he saw firefighters enter the bakery in the morning but he and his co-workers thought maybe its a joke, a false alarm and they went back to work. About an hour later, he said a blast rocked the surrounding streets. In the middle of nothing, I heard one big explosion and then a lot of pressure came at me [and] a lot of black smoke and glass, he said. And I had just enough time to get down and cover myself and protect my head. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Mr Goncalves said he felt a lot of things fall on me and that he was struck by shattered glass. He had a few cuts on his head, and spots of blood on his sweater and shirt. Thank God Im OK, he said, saying that the blast was so powerful that he heard whistling in his ears in the aftermath. The hotel worker said that he ran for the exit and then went to check on the hotels clients, adding that some of them had head injuries and were bleeding. Mr Goncalves said that the hotel was destroyed in the blast. Authorities said around 200 firefighters and police were involved in the operation in the 9th arrondissement. Additional reporting by agencies Denmark's prime minister Lars Lkke Rasmussen was among hundreds of mourners at the funeral of a 24-year-old tourist murdered while hiking in Morocco. Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, from Denmark, was killed alongside Maren Ueland, 28, from Norway, while camping in the Atlas Mountains on 17 December. Their mutilated bodies were found by other tourists the next day, with Danish officials suggesting the killing was as an "act of terror" linked to Isis. The four main suspects reportedly pledged allegiance to Isis in a video made three days before the murders. The 45-minute funeral for Ms Jespersen was held on Saturday at the Fonnesbk Church in Ikast, in Denmark's Mid Jutland region. Family and friends follow the coffin during the funeral of Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen at Fonnesbaek Church in Ikast, Denmark (Denmark OUTBO AMSTRUP/AFP/Getty Images) According to Danish newspaper BT, 400 people attended the funeral and an extra room was opened to accommodate all of the guests. Prime minister Lars Lkke Rasmussen said: "Though the pain is unbearable, we must not succumb. "We must remember who we are, what we are Rasmussenmade of, and what we stand for." Earlier this month, Mr Rasmussen told reporters that the murder of Ms Jespersen and Ms Ueland can be considered politically motivated and thus an act of terror. Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, right, attends the funeral of Danish student Louisa Vesterager Jespersen in Ikast, Denmark (Bo Amstrup/Ritzau Scanpix via AP) Moroccan authorities have arrested 22 people in connection with the killing, including four main suspects believed to have been inspired by Isis and a Swiss-Spanish national who was allegedly associated with the murderers. However, police spokesman Boubker Sabik has described the killers as lone wolves and claimed the crime was not coordinated with Islamic State. But he also accused the Swiss-Spanish man arrested over the murders of "involvement in recruiting Moroccan and sub-Saharan nationals to carry out terrorist plots in Morocco against foreign targets and security forces in order to take hold of their service weapons. Despite producing a large contingent of Isis recruits, there has been little terrorist activity in Morocco since a 2011 bombing in Marrakech killed seven people, most of them European tourists. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events The remains of Ms Jespersen and Ms Ueland were found by French tourists in a tent at a campsite near Mount Toubkal, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountains. They were reportedly on a month-long hiking trip. Ms Ueland's funeral will be held in Norway on 21 January. Additional reporting by Reuters The day before Deb Haaland was sworn in last week as a freshman lawmaker in the most diverse US House of Representatives class in history, she said the weight of being one of the first two Native American women to serve in congress had not yet fully hit her. Haaland, 58, had just conducted a brief staff meeting and was sitting in her new office on Capitol Hill as staffers got phones working and solved logistical problems like wrestling a printer through a narrow doorway. The first-time elected official represents New Mexicos First Congressional District and is a member of the states Laguna Pueblo tribe. Congress has never heard a voice like mine, the Democrat said. As the first Native American woman in congress, I know that there will be an expectation on me by tribes across the country to be somebody that can move their issues forward, Haaland said. Thats absolutely something I feel optimistic that I will be able to do. She said there is an epidemic of missing and murdered indigenous women, and Haaland would like congress to hold additional oversight hearings on the issue and make sure tribal justice systems have the resources they need to conduct proper investigations. Recommended Politician wears Native American dress for historic political ceremony Also at the top of her list is combating climate change, which threatens fragile tribal lands. If youre not scared to death right now about climate change, youre not reading the news, she said. Haaland is one of a record-breaking 102 women who will serve in the 435-seat House during the 2019-2020 session. There are many firsts among them. Haaland and Sharice Davids of Kansas, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, are the first Native American women. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan are the first Muslim women. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Jahana Hayes of Connecticut are the first black women to represent their states. All are Democrats. Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Show all 16 1 /16 Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen US Representative Deb Haaland hugs fellow representative Sharice Davids after they were sworn in as the first two first Native American women in the House of Representatives Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland, wearing traditional Native American attire, rides in an Uber to the US Capitol to be sworn in Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland prays with her family in her office before being sworn in Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland talks to her mother Mary before being sworn in Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland takes the oath of office Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland is joined by fellow representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez after they were sworn to the US House of Representatives Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland, her sister Zoe and their mother Mary, make their way through the underground passageways of the US Capitol after she was sworn in Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland and her family pose for a ceremonial photograph with Speaker Nancy Pelosi Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland laughs after the ceremony Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland works in her office Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland speaks at a reception hosted by the Congressional Native American Caucus after being sworn in Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland was joined by actor Mark Ruffalo at the reception Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids were honoured by Ho-Chunk tribal drummers at the reception hosted Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland resting at the end of a reception Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen US Representatives Deb Haaland and Hakeem Jeffries leave the reception Reuters Deb Haaland: one of the first two Native American congresswomen Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids wait in a car to go to back to Capitol Hill to vote after they became the first Native American women in the US House of Representatives Reuters When Haaland was born in 1960, Native Americans did not have the right to vote in New Mexico despite being granted full US citizenship by the federal government in 1924. They got it in 1962, making the southwestern state the last in the nation to extend it. The first two Native American women to ever be elected to congress shared an embrace on the House floor after being sworn in . On 3 January, Haaland welcomed her new constituents to an open house at her congressional office before being sworn in on the House floor. She wore traditional tribal garments to the ceremony, including a pomegranate blossom necklace of silver and turquoise, signifying protection and strength, made by a Laguna artist. After raising her hand to take the oath of office with her peers, the consequence of the milestone sunk in. Overcome with emotion, Haaland turned to embrace Davids, borrowing the edge of her new colleagues scarf to dab away her tears. Reporting by Amanda Becker Reuters At least 21 people have been killed after a roof collapsed at a coal mine in northern China, according to reports. Sixty-six other people were rescued after the accident on Saturday at the Lijiagou mine near the city of Shenmu in Shaanxi province. The cause of the collapse at the site, run by the Baiji Mining Company, is under investigation, according to the official Xinhua news agency. Deadly mining accidents are common in China, however the number of fatalities reported in caveins, explosions and other disasters in Chinese coal mines has fallen sharply over the past decade. According to Chinas National Coal Mine Safety Administration, there were 375 deaths in coal mines in 2017, a fall of 28.7 per cent from the previous year. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty But despite improvements, the organisation said the situation of coal mine safety production is still grim, following a coal mine safety conference last January. In October last year at least 21 people were killed at the Lognyun mine in Shandong province after a rock burst blocked a tunnel and trapped workers inside. Only one miner was rescued alive. In December seven miners were killed and three others injured in an accident at a mine in Chongqing municipality. Additional reporting by AP Donald Trump is losing the battle to avoid blame for the government shutdown according to the latest polls, as he seeks funds to build his promised wall on the US-Mexico border. More than half of Americans now say that the president and Republicans are responsible for the closure, which has reached a record 23 days, but the key takeaway for Mr Trump will be that public support for the wall has increased since January 2018. Fifty-three per cent of the public blamed the White House and Mr Trumps party for the shutdown, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released on Sunday, 29 per cent blamed the Democrats and 13 per cent a combination of the two. A separate CNN said that 55 per cent people blamed Mr Trump for the stoppage, with 32 per cent blaming the Democrats and 9 per cent blaming both. As for the wall, which was one of the central promises of Mr Trumps presidential campaign that is now at the heart of the shutdown, both polls showed an increase in support since this time last year. The ABC poll said support had increased from 34 to 42 per cent, while the CNN poll had it going up from 35 to 39 per cent. Those numbers are deeply entrenched along party lines, with the ABC poll showing 87 per cent of Republicans now supporting a wall, having jumped 16 percentage points in a year. CNN have Republican support at 81 per cent. Both polls have nine in 10 Democrats opposing the wall. Recommended Trump denies working for Russia and lashes out over media reports Mr Trump is likely to seize on the polling about the wall, having spent the past week including an address to the nation from the Oval Office trying to convince the public that there is an immigration crisis on the southern border, with criminals and drugs pouring into the country. Democrats have accused the president of misinformation and malice over his stance. Mr Trump has reportedly told advisers he sees the shutdown as a win for him. But as the pressure increases on the president to find a solution to the shutdown, his frustration is clear. Democrats have stood firm in saying they will not sign off the presidents request for $5.7bn (4.4bn) in wall funding as part of any legislation to open the government, offering $1.3bn in general border security funding and accusing Mr Trump of throwing a temper tantrum about the wall. The president has sought to portray an immigration crisis at the border, but according to the two polls less than half of Americans believe that there actually is such a crisis, with the CNN poll of 848 adults saying 52 per cent of people do not believe the president. The ABC News involved 788 adults. Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Show all 23 1 /23 Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Joe Biden The former vice president - poised to be a frontrunner - has announced his run. He recently faced scrutiny for inappropriate touching of women, but was thought to deal with the criticism well AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Bernie Sanders The 2016 runner-up has announced that he will be running again in 2020 Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Hillary Clinton The 2016 Democratic presidential candidate and former Secretary of State says she is still considering whether she will run again. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Pete Buttigieg The Indiana mayor and war veteran will be running for president. If elected, he would be the first openly LGBT+ president in American history. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Kamala Harris The former California attorney general will be running for president in 2020. Introduced to the national stage during Jeff Sessions testimony, she has endorsed Medicare-for-all and proposed a major tax-credit for the middle class. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Elizabeth Warren The Massachusetts Senator has formally launched her bid for president in 2020. A progressive Democrat, she is a major supporter of regulating Wall Street. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Beto ORourke The former Texas congressman told Oprah Winfrey that he has been thinking about running for presidency, but stopped short of formally announcing his bid to run in 2020. AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Wayne Messam Mayor of the city of Miramar in the Miami metropolitan area, Wayne Messam has announced his bid. He intends to run on a progressive platform against the "broken" federal government. He favours gun regulations and was a signatory to a letter from some 400 mayors condemning President Trump's withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord. Vice News Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Kirsten Gillibrand The New York Senator formally announced her presidential bid in January, saying that healthcare should be a right, not a privilege. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Cory Booker The New Jersey Senator has announced that he will be running for the presidency in 2020. If he secures the nomination he said finding a female vice president would be a priority. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? John Delaney The Maryland congressman was the first to launch his bid for presidency, making the announcement in 2017. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Julian Castro The former San Antonio mayor announced his candidacy in January and said that his running has a special meaning for the Latino community in the US. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Tulsi Gabbard The Hawaii congresswoman announced her candidacy in January, but is likely to face tough questions on her past comments on LGBT+ rights and her stance on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Andrew Yang The entrepreneur has announced his presidential candidacy, and has pledged that he would introduce a universal basic income of $1,000 a month to every American over the age of 18. AFP/Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Marianne Williamson The author and spiritual advisor has announced her intention to run for president. She had previously run for congress as an independent in 2014 but was unsuccessful. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? John Kerry The former secretary of state has said he is still thinking about whether to run. Getty Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Michael Bloomberg The entrepreneur and former New York mayor with a net worth of around $50bn has said he will decide by the end of February whether to seek the presidency. AFP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Howard Schultz Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has not yet ruled out running for president in 2020, despite criticism that his bid could help re-elect Mr Trump by dividing the Democrat vote. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Eric Holder The former attorney general has said he will decide in the next month or so whether to run as a 2020 presidential candidate. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Eric Swalwell The California congressman said he is ready to do this and will decide before April whether to run. MSNBC Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Terry McAuliffe The former Virginia governor, who worked to elect Democratic governors during 2018 midterms, said there was a 50 per cent chance he would run. AP Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Sherrod Brown The Ohio senator is still undecided about whether to run for president in 2020. Who could be running against Trump in 2020? Mitch Landrieu The former New Orleans mayor said he doesnt think he will run for president, but never say never. AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin Mr Trump said in a Fox News Channel interview late on Saturday that he had no idea whether he could get a deal with house speaker Nancy Pelosi, who called the border wall immoral. He said he was still considering whether to officially declare a national emergency on the border, which would give him powers to direct funds to the wall without congressional approval. Senior Senate Republican Lindsey Graham, a close ally of Mr Trump, said the president was not giving in on his demands for a wall. Mr Graham said he encouraged Mr Trump during a telephone conversation on Sunday to reopen government for a period of weeks to try to negotiate a deal with Democrats that would break the impasse. I tried to see if we could open up the government for a limited period of time to negotiate a deal, the South Carolina Republican said. The president says, Lets make a deal, then open up the government. Nancy Pelosi says even if you opened up the government I wouldnt fund a wall. What is he supposed to do? Just give in. Hes not going to give in, Mr Graham said. On Sunday, the Virginia Democratic senator Mark Warner told CNNs State of the Union: More border security? Lets have at it. But while were opening the debate, lets open the government. The assessment from Mr Graham suggested the shutdown could last for weeks longer, inflicting additional financial pain on the 800,000 federal workers who have been idled or required to work without pay for the duration. Unscheduled absences among federal airport security screeners jumped on Sunday. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), the agency responsible for airport security screening, said unscheduled absences among its employees rose to 7.7 per cent from 5.6 per cent on Saturday. The rate is more than double the 3.2 per cent rate experienced a year ago. Mr Graham said he thinks Mr Trump is willing to accept the level of wall funding he is seeking, along with some immigration measures Democrats might find acceptable, such as helping immigrants who were illegally brought to the US as children under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca). The programme, which began under Barack Obama is something Mr Trump has ended, leading to legal challenges. Mr Trump has said that while he is interested in pursuing a broader overhaul of the immigration system, he first wants to hear what the Supreme Court has to say about the group of immigrants known as Dreamers. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events The Dreamers issue was at the heart of a shutdown last year in which Mr Trumps demands for wall spending also stopped a deal. Democrats are reluctant to tie the Daca issue to handing over wall funding. Sitting in the White House over the weekend, Mr Trump has tried to push blame onto the Democrats claiming they are on holiday. In fact congress was not sitting for the weekend, with many members leaving Washington on Friday ahead of a snow storm. Im in the White House, waiting, the president wrote on Twitter. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking! As for a national emergency declaration, which could include taking money from disaster relief funds to construct the wall, Democrats oppose it. Many Republicans are wary, too, fearing its use by a future Democratic president. Mr Trump has spoken about the declaration a number of times, but says he will not do it right now. We dont want it to come down to a national emergency declaration, said House Republican whip Steve Scalise of Louisiana. Clearly the presidents got authority under the law, but hes said he doesnt want it to come to that. He wants congress to solve this problem. Congress needs to solve this problem. Despite assertions from the president and others about his absolute right to declare an emergency, it would bring a number of legal challenges. Gandhi said he has 'tremendous respect' for leaders of the 2 parties and 'they have a right to do what they want to do'. 'BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity,' Rahul Gandhi said. (Photo: ANI) New Delhi/Dubai: Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with "full capacity" and stick to its ideology. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has a tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. Once arch-rivals, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced on Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The parties, however, said they would not field candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by the Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. Replying to a question, he said, "RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is that there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on an economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by PM Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of the informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non-violence and its peace-loving nature when people look at India and see violence they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court who are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. Gandhi said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST and bring investments from the Middle East and other parts of the world. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Donald Trump has denied working for Russia and concealing his conversations with President Vladimir Putin from US officials. In an interview with Fox News, Mr Trump claimed he was tougher on Russia that any recent US president and lashed out at the idea of collusion with the country as a hoax and a witch hunt. A number of senior Democrats have said that the reports raise serious questions about the presidents relationship with the Russian leader. The presidents latest Russia-related tirade follows a report in The New York Times that the FBI opened a counterintelligence investigation in 2017 into whether the US president was actively working for Moscow. The investigation was said to have been launched after Mr Trump fired then-FBI director James Comey out of concern the presidents actions may have presented a threat to national security. And according to The Washington Post, Mr Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to hide details of his conversations with Mr Putin, including removing notes from his interpreter. As part of an astonishing outburst over the reports, the president urged prosecutors to look into the finances of his former lawyer Michael Cohens father-in-law. Mr Trump said his former fixer, who provided prosecutors with information about the Trump campaign before he was found guilty of financial crimes, should give information on his father-in-law. Thats the one people want to look at. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked, Mr Trump said of the story about the FBIs national security probe. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written Obviously nothing was found. Mr Comey was leading an investigation into Russias alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election at the time. US intelligence agencies have said Moscow tried to tip the election towards Mr Trump, something Russia has denied. The New York Times reported the counterintelligence probe was sparked in part by growing alarm about Trumps behaviour, including comments he made suggesting he fired Mr Comey over the Russia investigation, which is now being led by special counsel Robert Mueller. If you ask the folks in Russia Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, Mr Trump said. And probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents. Mr Trumps claim was disputed by Virginia Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the chambers intelligence committee. He told CNN that almost all the sanctions on Russia arose not in the White House but in congress, due to concerns by members of both parties about Moscows election meddling and other actions. Mr Warner accused the White House of being very slow to put in place the penalties. Unnamed US officials revealed to The Washington Post that there are no detailed records from any of Mr Trumps five face-to-face meetings with Vladimir Putin over the past two years. Im not keeping anything under wraps, the president insisted. I couldnt care less. I mean its so ridiculous, these people make it up. The Washington Post thats basically the lobbyist for Amazon. The DC-based paper is owned by Jeff Bezos, the founder of the online marketplace giant. He added: Im going through all this nonsense its all nonsense, but I have to be careful because these are dirty players. You got the Mueller investigation, you got all this nonsense and theres no collusion, no nothing. Senior Democrats said the report underscored the need for legislation to protect Mr Muellers probe. When he takes the interpreters notes and wants to destroy them so no one can see what was said ... it raises serious questions about the relationship between this president and Putin, Dick Durbin, the Senate minority whip, said on ABCs This Week. I do think its curious that throughout that whole summer when these investigations started, you had Vladimir Putins policies almost being parroted by Donald Trump, Mr Warner told CNNs State of the Union. I would need a firm commitment that he will not allow any interference in the Mueller investigation, Senator Chris Coons, a Democratic member of the judiciary committee, said on Fox News Sunday. The Republican head of the Senate Judiciary Committee said he plans to ask the FBI about the probe report, suggesting the agency may have gone too far. I am going to ask the FBI director was there a counterintelligence investigation opened up regarding the president as being a potential agent of the Russians? I find it astonishing, Senator Lindsey Graham also told Fox News. If this really did happen, congress needs to know about it, he added. How could the FBI do that? What kinds of checks and balances are there? White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders responded to the story about Mr Trumps conversations with Mr Putin by saying: The liberal media has wasted two years trying to manufacture a fake collusion scandal instead of reporting the fact that ... President Trump has actually been tough on Russia. Bizarrely, Mr Trump also told Fox News he hadnt left the White House for months, even though he went to Texas on Thursday to make the case for his border wall and also travelled to Iraq in December. On the planned border wall along the southern border with Mexico the cause of the ongoing government shutdown after Mr Trumps request for $5.7bn in funds to build it the president said he could still declare a national emergency over what he has called an immigration crisis. That would allow Mr Trump to appropriate funds for the wall without congressional approval. Democrats have offered $1.3bn in general border security funding, but no direct money for the wall. They have accused Mr Trump of throwing a temper tantrum over the wall and called on him to open the government. I have the absolute right to call a national emergency. Id rather see the Democrats come back from their vacation and act, Mr Trump said. Over a period of several hours, Mr Trump also addressed a whole series of topics on Twitter in an angry thread on Saturday, attacking Mr Comey, Hillary Clinton, illegal immigrants, the Democrats and US news organisations. An 18-year-old woman has been killed and five others injured after shots were fired outside a hotel in downtown Phoenix, Arizona, according to authorities. The shooting happened at the Payless Inn near 25th and Van Buren streets shortly before 11.30am local time, according to Phoenix police spokesman Sergeant Armando Carbajal. Two adult males arrived at the hotel and got into an argument with a group on the second floor, Mr Carbajal said. One of the men then pulled out a handgun and fired multiple shots, the officer said. The suspect is believed to be among the injured. Recommended Footage shows migrant children thrown over Arizona border fence Those involved were were transported to the hospital, where the teenager was pronounced dead. Three victims are in extremely critical condition, according to the police. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Mr Carbajal described the victims as three males and three females ranging from 18 to 41 years old. Police are still searching for the other man who arrived with the shooter, according to police. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events However, investigators do not believe he is a threat to the local community. Police said streets in the area have been closed as they investigate the scene. A suspected fentanyl overdose in California left one person dead and 14 in hospital including two police officers who responded to the emergency. The victims, believed to be aged between 19 and 30, were found in a life-threatening condition at a house in the city of Chico on Saturday morning and treated with the antidote naloxone. One man was pronounced dead at the scene, four were taken to hospital in critical condition and another eight were also admitted for treatment. Two police officers were also taken to hospital as a precaution after reporting feeling some ill effects, but were later released. Chico chief of police Michael OBrien said that investigators were attempting to trace the source of the drugs involved in what he described as a mass casualty incident involving police, firefighters and ambulance staff. Every indication is that this mass overdose was caused by the ingestion of some form of fentanyl in combination with another substance, though that has yet to be confirmed, he said during a press conference. These substances are extremely dangerous and it takes a small amount. There is potential for further fatalities, I want to emphasise that. It certainly would have been far worse without the response of police and firefighters and the care received by hospital staff. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Fentanyl can be up to 100 times stronger than heroin and accounted for nearly 30,000 deaths in the US in 2017. Chico police officers began carrying naloxone in 2018 following warnings of an opioid crisis across the country. We have unfortunately been waiting for this to happen in the sense we knew fentanyl has been moving west, said Mr OBrien. Most of what we have had so far has been heroin-related. This is not the first time naloxone has saved lives in the city of Chico. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The house in Santana Court was declared a hazmat (hazardous material) site and the road was sealed off until around 11pm local time on Saturday as the investigation continued. Mr OBrien said police were investigating any previous incidents at the address and said the victims were friends and acquaintances. At least 17 people died and 12 others were injured when a fire broke out at a drug rehabilitation clinic in Guayaquil, the largest city in Ecuador. Police officials said the fire started when clinic patients set mattresses ablaze in an attempt to escape from the facility. The treatment centre had lacked necessary safety permits, according to Tania Varela, police chief for the Guayaquil district where the incident took place. The fire department said there was evidence of negligence at the clinic, and police are now seeking the arrest of the owners and operators. We regret the loss of 17 human lives in this tragedy, and we reject the negligence of the owners, the Guayaquil fire department stated. Makeshift treatment centres are common across Ecuador, and the deadly fire has provoked questions about how such clinics can be properly regulated. Ecuadors President Lenin Moreno vowed the deaths would not go unpunished. He tweeted: My fraternal embrace and endearing solidarity with the relatives of the victims of the fatal fire in Guayaquil. Those responsible have already been arrested. We will not allow the death of innocents to remain unpunished. The government is with you! World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty Vice President Otto Sonnenholzner said the government would review the rules governing the operation of the rehabilitation clinics. Provincial governor Raul Ledesma Huerta said officials would give the families of the victims all the support needed. Additional reporting by Reuters David Miliband is the most popular choice as next Labour leader, among members of the public who knew who they would choose, a new poll shows. A survey by BMG Research found that while more than a third of people did not know who to pick (36 per cent), of those who did, 10 per cent would opt for the elder Miliband brother to succeed Jeremy Corbyn. Despite three years in office, the poll also found few of Mr Corbyns front bench have managed to break through to the wider public consciousness, with both Mr Miliband and Yvette Cooper scoring more highly than big hitters like John McDonnell, Sir Keir Starmer, Angela Rayner and Emily Thornberry. Ms Cooper, the chair of the home affairs committee, was next with 6 per cent, followed by Sir Keir, the shadow Brexit secretary, and Chuka Umunna on 4 per cent, and shadow chancellor John McDonnell on 3 per cent. Nearly a third (32 per cent) of people said they had never heard of any of these senior Labour figures. When pollsters asked more than 1,500 people which of the Labour politicians they had heard of, 74 per cent of voters said Mr Miliband and half said Ms Cooper. Mr McDonnell, a close ally of the Labour leader, had 45 per cent, while pro-EU campaigner Mr Umunna secured 39 per cent of votes and Ms Thornberry, the shadow foreign secretary, was on 34 per cent. Rising stars in the shadow cabinet such as Rebecca Long-Bailey and Ms Rayner fared worse, with 10 per cent and 18 per cent respectively. Senior figures such as deputy leader Tom Watson and Sir Keir were only recognised by around a third of people. Mr Miliband was foreign secretary during Gordon Browns premiership and was a candidate in the 2010 leadership election, losing out to his younger brother Ed. Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Show all 24 1 /24 Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn addresses a pre-conference rally at Pier Head in Liverpool on Saturday Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Deputy leader Tom Watson cycles at the party conference as part of the Labour Cycles scheme PA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn and Deputy Leader Tom Watson sit together on stage on Sunday Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell speaks at a fringe event at the party conference on Sunday REUTERS Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Delegates are welcomed to the conference at the Arena and Convention Centre in Liverpool Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell speaks at a fringe event at the party conference Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn and Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry attend a vigil in Liverpool for those who are affected by the war in Yemen PA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Anti-Brexit supporters demonstrate outside the conference in Liverpool on Sunday Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Anti-Brexit supporters demonstrate outside the conference in Liverpool on Sunday PA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Mayor of London Sadiq Khan arrive at the conference on Sunday EPA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell speaks at a fringe event at the party conference EPA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Delegates at the Arena and Convention Centre in Liverpool, where the conference is being held PA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Badges worn by a delegate at the conference on Sunday EPA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Shadow Home Secretary Diane Abbott speaks at a fringe event at the party conference EPA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Anti-Brexit supporters demonstrate outside the conference in Liverpool on Sunday Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Deputy leader Tom Watson poses for a selfie on Sunday AFP/Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn listens to a speech on Sunday Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures General Secretary of the Labour Party is welcomed to the stage by leader Jeremy Corbyn on Sunday Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures An anti-Brexit protester Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn speaks at a vigil in Liverpool for those who are affected by the war in Yemen PA Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures An anti-Brexit protester AFP/Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Anti-Brexit supporters demonstrate outside the conference in Liverpool on Sunday AFP/Getty Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Leader Jeremy Corbyn and Deputy Leader Tom Watson sit together on stage on Sunday Reuters Labour Party conference 2018: in pictures Anti-Brexit supporters demonstrate outside the conference in Liverpool on Sunday Reuters After resigning as an MP, he moved to head up the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in New York, but there have been persistent rumours that he could return to frontline politics. Speculation was fuelled by a series of public interventions over Brexit last year, including an article in December in which he branded Mr Corbyns policy as confusion at best and a fantasy at worst. Source Note: BMG Research interviewed a representative sample of 1,514 GB adults online between 8th & 11th January. Data are weighted. BMG are members of the British Polling Council and abide by their rules. Labour is braced to call a confidence vote in the government within days if Theresa May's Brexit deal is voted down, Jeremy Corbyn has signalled. The Labour leader refused to commit to the exact timing of the challenge except that it would be "soon", as part of his party's efforts to force a snap general election. Mr Corbyn also dashed hopes that he was coming round to supporting a Final Say referendum, saying he would prefer to get a "negotiated deal now" than to pursue a fresh public vote. The prime minister is facing a historic defeat on her Brexit deal on Tuesday, with some estimates suggesting she could lose by around 200 votes. Officially, Labour is waiting for the best moment, but party whips have reportedly told MPs to prepare for a no-confidence motion to be tabled immediately if the deal is rejected, suggesting it could be done on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. Mr Corbyn told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: "We will table a motion of no confidence in the government at a time of our choosing. But it's going to be soon, don't worry about it." Pressed on the timing, he said: "You will see what happens." It comes after Mr Corbyn used a speech in Yorkshire to appeal to rival parties to back Labour's confidence motion, admitting his party would need the support of Tory rebels to win. If the prime minister loses the vote, she will be forced to return to the Commons within three days with a plan B, which would be the window for Labour to intervene. However if the party fails to trigger a general election, Mr Corbyn would be under pressure to back a second referendum, a strategy that is popular with many Labour members. Asked about the prospect, he said: "My own view is that I'd rather get a negotiated deal now, if we can, to stop the danger of a no-deal exit from the EU on March 29 - which would be catastrophic for industry, catastrophic for trade and the long-term effects of that would be huge." Mr Corbyn also gave a strong signal that Brexit could be delayed, saying there would need to be time for the negotiations with Europe if Labour secured a general election. He said: "Clearly if Theresa May's deal is voted down, clearly if a general election takes place and a Labour government comes in - an election would take place February, March time. "Clearly there's only a few weeks between that and the leave date, there would have to be time for those negotiations." Mr Corbyn was asked multiple times whether Labour would put campaigning for Brexit in its manifesto for a snap election but he refused to answer. He also threw his support behind John Bercow, who has been accused of a Brexit bias for allowing a controversial bid to give Ms May a three-day deadline to bring back her plan B. Mr Corbyn: "I think John Bercow has been a good Speaker and the attacks on him are really unfair and unwarranted." Asked if Mr Bercow is trying to stop Brexit, Mr Corbyn replied: "No. What I think he's trying to do is ensure parliament has an absolute say in it. "He is religiously fair in his chairing of the parliamentary procedures - he shuts me up as much as he shuts anybody else up." Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Show all 11 1 /11 Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray (left) and a pro-Brexit protester argue as they demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A pro-Brexit protester argues Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround the pro-Brexit protester after he confronted Steve Bray, a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer as he argues with a remain supporter, Steve Bray, outside Parliament PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament MPs in Parliament are to vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal next week after her December vote was called off in the face of a major defeat Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police look on as anti-Brexit protesters demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament. Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police hold back a leave supporter PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A police officer speaks with anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround a pro-Brexit protester after he confronted a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Conservative MP David Davies, wearing a gopro camera, speaks to anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Earlier, shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey said the odds of Labour tabling confidence motion would "increase dramatically" if the prime minister's Brexit deal falls. "Ultimately the decision rests with Jeremy and it's up to him to determine when we do put forward that vote of no confidence, but it's certainly a case of when, not if," she told Ridge On Sunday. Labour MP John Mann confirmed he would vote for Mrs May's deal and said he expected some of his colleagues from Leave-backing constituencies would support it too. However he added: "I'd be surprised if it's anything like enough to get this deal through, but things could change." Giving the British public a Final Say on Brexit through a new referendum is the most popular path if Theresa Mays deal is rejected by MPs, a new poll has revealed. An exclusive survey for The Independent shows that a fresh vote received more support than any of the four other options put to the public, including allowing the prime minister to go back to Brussels or a no-deal Brexit. The survey by poling organisation BMG Research also suggests that more people oppose Ms Mays deal than back it, although the prime minister can take some comfort in the data showing a softening of opposition. It comes amid growing speculation that the UK will have to delay Brexit to plot a fresh course, with some MPs and ministers pushing for the Commons to hold indicative votes on every possible option to test which carries majority support. More than 1.1 million people have backed The Independents campaign for a Final Say vote on Britains exit from the EU since it was launched in June, with hundreds of thousands of supporters attending a rally in London. Recommended Article 50 set to be extended even if May wins crucial Brexit vote As Ms May braces for a historic defeat on her deal on Tuesday, new polling shows that the public is riven with the same deep divisions held by MPs. Some 46 per cent favoured a second referendum when BMG asked more than 1,500 respondents for their views on different outcomes should Ms May lose the vote. It found 28 per cent were against and 26 per cent did not know. Remaining in the EU was backed by 45 per cent, while 39 per cent of people said they opposed reversing Brexit and 16 per cent said they did not know. Forty-five per cent supported further negotiation with the EU, while 34 per cent were against going back to Brussels for fresh talks. More than a fifth (21 per cent) did not know. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events Some 40 per cent would opt for Norway-style deal which allows access to the single market but 36 per cent dismissed the option and 24 per cent were unsure. Leaving the EU without a deal was the least popular option as it was preferred by only 35 per cent, while 45 per cent opposed it and 21 per cent said they did not know. It comes as the prime minister has been reaching out to Labour MPs and trade unions in a last-ditch bid to get her deal through parliament. Government insiders are expecting Brussels to offer Ms May some extra help by Monday, which they hope will ease fears from wavering MPs over the Irish backstop. However, she is unlikely to secure a legally binding guarantee that the UK can independently decide to the leave the backstop, which Brexiteers and her DUP allies want. BBC analysis estimates Ms May could lose the meaningful vote by 228 votes next week, after which she would have to come back to parliament within three days with a plan B. Opposition to Ms Mays deal has weakened among the public, as the BMG research shows 37 per cent think MPs should reject the deal, compared with 43 per cent in December. When asked if parliament should vote to accept the terms of the deal, 29 per cent said they should, up from 26 per cent last month. More than 30 per cent said they were unsure in both instances. The poll put Labour and the Conservatives neck and neck on 36 per cent of the vote, with the Liberal Democrats on 12 points, Ukip on 6 per cent and the Greens on 5 points, once dont-knows were excluded. The Independent revealed on Friday that Ms Mays chances of delivering Brexit on 29 March are fading fast after senior ministers privately admitted more time is needed, even if her deal wins the backing of parliament. On Saturday, transport secretary Chris Grayling was accused of engaging in gutter politics when he warned that blocking Brexit could lead to a surge in far-right extremism. Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Show all 11 1 /11 Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray (left) and a pro-Brexit protester argue as they demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A pro-Brexit protester argues Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround the pro-Brexit protester after he confronted Steve Bray, a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer as he argues with a remain supporter, Steve Bray, outside Parliament PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament MPs in Parliament are to vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal next week after her December vote was called off in the face of a major defeat Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police look on as anti-Brexit protesters demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament. Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police hold back a leave supporter PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A police officer speaks with anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround a pro-Brexit protester after he confronted a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Conservative MP David Davies, wearing a gopro camera, speaks to anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images He urged MPs to back the Ms Mays deal, claiming reversing the decision to leave the European Union would open the door to extremist populist political forces and lead to divisions not seen since the English Civil War. Meanwhile, two of the biggest donors to the Leave campaign said they believed Brexit would eventually be abandoned by the government. Billionaire businessman Peter Hargreaves, who handed more than 3m to the exit campaign, said: I have totally given up. I am totally in despair, I dont think Brexit will happen at all. Source Note: BMG Research interviewed a representative sample of 1,514 GB adults online between 8 and 11 January. Data are weighted. BMG are members of the British Polling Council and abide by their rules. Chris Grayling has said a small number of military staff have been sent to Whitehall departments to help them prepare for a no-deal Brexit. The transport secretary, whose department faces major pressures in the event of a chaotic exit, said he speaks quite regularly to Gavin Williamson, the defence secretary, over plans to mitigate a disorderly exit from the European Union. Mr Grayling also insisted recent lorry trials near Dover to prepare for potential travel chaos went fine, despite widespread mockery as only 89 lorries turned up out of the 150 invited. His intervention comes as reports emerged that military planners have been deployed to the Department for Transport, the Home Office and the Foreign Office to prevent chaos at Britains borders in a no-deal scenario. Theresa May has warned that the UK faces crashing out of the EU without a deal if MPs reject her Brexit blueprint on Tuesday a vote she is widely expected to lose. Asked if he had held discussions with the defence secretary, Mr Grayling told Sky News Sophy Ridge on Sunday: We discuss as cabinet colleagues what we would do in no-deal planning terms. I dont have the military actively involved in no-deal planning beyond the secondment of a small number of staff from the MoD, as is happening across Whitehall. Our focus on no-deal planning has been to have all the aviation agreements we need in place, making sure that we take a look at the possibility of disruption in Kent. We dont want a repeat of what happened in 2015 when the whole of Kent was ground to halt by troubles in the Channel ports. He refused to be pushed on the governments Brexit plan B, saying: The important thing is to say to fellow MPs those concerns are out there and the big concerns are: are we going to leave? Are we going to deliver Brexit? Are we going to somehow try and reverse Brexit? Is parliament going to force us to reverse Brexit? What we have is a sensible compromise deal. Its not giving everybody everything what they want, but it was never going to this was a 52-48 result. Mr Grayling has been under pressure over his departments no-deal plans after it was revealed he had handed a 13.8m contract to Seaborne Freight, a firm that had never previously operated a ferry service. New contracts, published quietly on Christmas Eve, reveal Whitehall officials warned that a situation of extreme urgency exists in roll-on roll-off ferry capacity if the UK leaves the EU without a deal. Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Show all 11 1 /11 Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray (left) and a pro-Brexit protester argue as they demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A pro-Brexit protester argues Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround the pro-Brexit protester after he confronted Steve Bray, a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer as he argues with a remain supporter, Steve Bray, outside Parliament PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament MPs in Parliament are to vote on Theresa May's Brexit deal next week after her December vote was called off in the face of a major defeat Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A leave supporter is spoken to by a police officer PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police look on as anti-Brexit protesters demonstrate outside the Houses of Parliament. Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police hold back a leave supporter PA Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament A police officer speaks with anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Police surround a pro-Brexit protester after he confronted a pro-European protester Getty Images Police separate clashing Brexit protesters outside Parliament Conservative MP David Davies, wearing a gopro camera, speaks to anti-Brexit protester Steve Bray Getty Images Shadow transport secretary Andy McDonald branded the contract unsuitable and called for it to be immediately revoked. In a letter to Mr Grayling, seen by The Independent, he said: Despite your claims in the chamber due diligence has not, in any way, shape or form, occurred satisfactorily. Yellow vest activist James Goddard joined his supporters in a pub after being released by police following his arrest. The pro-Brexit campaigner was detained in London on Saturday on suspicion of a public order offence but later bailed without charge until early February. A police spokeswoman said the arrest was related to incidents that took place in Westminster on 7 January the same day pro-Remain MP Anna Soubry was called a Nazi while giving live interviews outside parliament. Mr Goddards supporters claimed he was about to hand himself in at Holborn police station at midday when he was arrested just shortly before outside St James Park underground station. He joined cheering protesters for a pint at the Queens Head pub in Holborn after his release on Saturday. The activists arrest came during a day of mass rallies across the capital after a number of recent pro-Brexit protests in London, including demonstrations outside parliament. A cross-party group of MPs signed a formal letter to Metropolitan Police commissioner Cressida Dick after Ms Soubry was harangued by a group of men as she made her way back to parliament on Monday. The politicians expressed their serious concerns about the deteriorating public order and security situation outside parliament. Mr Goddard, a leading member of the UK yellow vests named after the gilet jaunes protesters in France previously vowed the groups activities would continue after Facebook and PayPal suspended his accounts. They had me removed but I most certainly havent gone, he wrote on a new fundraising page set up on the DonorBox website on Wednesday. A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman told The Independent on Saturday: We can confirm that a man in his 30s was arrested at 11.42am on Saturday, 12 January, outside St James Park Tube station, on suspicion of a public order offence. Detectives have admitted they are unable to find out whether speedboat killer Jack Shepherd has fled abroad. Police have no way of checking if the 31-year-old has absconded overseas because there is no single database recording details of when a British citizen enters and leaves the country, they told The Telegraph. Shepherd, originally from Exeter, in Devon, is on the run after being convicted, in his absence, of killing Charlotte Brown, 24, on their first date in a speedboat crash on the River Thames. He was sentenced to six years in jail after skipping bail during his trial in July. Despite Shepherd still being on the run, his lawyers lodged appeals against his manslaughter conviction and sentence with the Court of Appeal. Recommended International manhunt launched for speedboat owner who killed date Justice secretary David Gauke last week called for a review into a loophole which lets Shepherd claim legal aid, paid for by the public purse, to challenge his prison sentence despite being a fugitive. Shepherd and Ms Brown met on a website and were on their first date when he tried to impress her with a ride on his speedboat in December 2015. The pair had been for dinner in The Shard in London, where they drank two bottles of wine before getting a taxi back to Shepherds houseboat near Hammersmith Bridge and boarding his speedboat. Charlotte Brown, 24, was killed in a speedboat crash on the River Thames while on a date with Shepherd (Metropolitan Police) During the trial, the Old Bailey heard that despite knowing they were both drunk, Shepherd waited for the highest tide to enable the fastest speeds possible, late at night in full darkness and winter weather conditions. Shepherd admitted driving at full throttle, above the speed limit and in an erratic manner towards Westminster, after making no effort to give Ms Brown a life jacket or make her aware there were any on board. Witnesses saw the speedboat driving erratically and at speed before it hit partially submerged debris and capsized near Wandsworth Bridge shortly before midnight. The jury were told Shepherd bought his speedboat to pull women (PA) Shepherd was heard shouting for help before being found clinging to the upturned speedboat and treated for hypothermia, while Ms Brown was pulled from the water around half an hour after the crash and never recovered consciousness. A warrant remains out for Shepherds arrest. Investigators said he was last seen in Devon in March and urged anyone with information of his whereabouts to get in touch. Support free-thinking journalism and attend Independent events A barman who said he was glassed by Shepherd in March 2018 more than two years after he killed Ms Brown also fears he will never get justice. Shepherd allegedly launched an attack on David Beech at the White Hart Hotel in Dartmoor, near his mothers home, on 16 March. The attack on Mr Beech was captured on CCTV and immediately reported to Devon and Cornwall Police. Officers arrested Shepherd and charged him with wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm. However, Shepherd failed to appear at Newton Abbot Magistrates Court in June and a warrant for his arrest was issued. The actor is busy promoting Cheat India, a film that has also marked his interest in producing and is his first home production. The actor might once have been famous for lip locking on screen, but now, he is all set for the release of a film that has a wise message, especially for youngsters. The actor is busy promoting Cheat India, a film that has also marked his interest in producing and is his first home production. Though the actor has made a name for himself on his own, he was once known to be a favourite with the Bhatt camp, since it was his 2004 film, Murder, produced under the Bhatt banner, Vishesh Films, that catapulted him to fame. In fact, many of his hit films like Gangster (2006) Raaz The Mystery Continues (2009) and Murder 2 (2011) were birthed under the same banner. The actor acknowledges the role played by the Bhatts in his career, but says that he has done a lot by himself too. I do not blame people for saying I belong to the Bhatt camp as I began my career from the Bhatt production house and I have done a lot of films with them. But you need to take a step ahead. I have done a couple of films outside the Bhatt banner. To begin with, it was Dirty Picture and many more, he points out. But when asked if hell be a part of the Mahesh Bhatt directed film, Sadak 2, Emraan says, No, I am not doing Sadak 2. But its not that I will not work with them again. We are very much on talking terms. I will definitely be working with them in the future. Given his relationship with the Bhatts and the fact that he has never hesitated to work with up and coming talent, one wonders when the actor will share screen space with the immensely talented Alia Bhatt. To this Emraan says, Casting is the prerogative of the director of any project. I never interfere in casting. I only care about the film and my character. I would love to work with Alia. She is a fantastic talent. Working with Alia will depend on the script and the content. Since I am related to her, if I work opposite her, I will have to play her brother in the film. The refugee crisis played a significant role in the debate leading up to the EU referendum. Nigel Farages controversial Breaking Point poster of asylum seekers queueing on the Croatia-Slovenia border stoked immigration fears felt by many on the Leave side, and there is little doubt many will have voted to leave the EU in the belief that it would lead to fewer people coming to Britain to ask for asylum. But the reality is quite different. In actual fact, there is strong reason to believe that leaving the EU is likely to result in a rise in refugees in the UK. When Britain leaves the EU it will almost certainly withdraw from the blocs common European asylum system (CEAS). Within this system is the Dublin regulation, which allows countries to remove asylum seekers to the member state to which they arrived first. The UK currently makes around 600 such removals each year but after withdrawing from the agreement this will no longer be possible. James Watson is undoubtedly one of the worlds greatest living scientists. Awarded a Nobel Prize for his work unravelling the double-helix structure of DNA while still a young man, the geneticist went on to be a leading light in the molecular biology revolution that followed. He has led major research institutions and spearheaded the Human Genome Project, which successfully mapped the spread of human DNA for the first time. Sadly, in recent years his achievements have been overshadowed by a series of controversial remarks made in public and to the press that have been viewed as racist, sexist and homophobic. The conversation about Dr Watson has been rekindled by a new warts-and-all documentary on PBS examining his incredible life, while also challenging him on some of his most controversial statements. Chicago-native Dr Watson has always been a divisive figure. While the pair later became friends, the renowned biologist E.O. Wilson once described him as "the most unpleasant human being I had ever met". Recommended DNA pioneer James Watson has final honours stripped amid racism row There is no doubt the scientist delights in provocation and spectacle. In 2014 he became the first Nobel laureate to auction off his medal, citing hard times after being shunned by the scientific community. He suggested he would use the money to buy a David Hockney painting. But what has particularly grated on critics is that not only are his statements offensive, they come from a man who despite being devoted to science appears happy to make profoundly unscientific pronouncements. Race and intelligence The greatest upset came when Dr Watson told an interviewer from the Sunday Times in 2007 he was inherently gloomy about the prospect of Africa because all our social policies are based on the fact that their intelligence is the same as ours where all the testing says not really. He added that while he would like everyone to be equal, people who have to deal with black employees find this is not true". These remarks, which have been universally derided as based on incredibly shaky scientific foundations, led to a forced retirement for Dr Watson from his chancellor role at Cold Spring Harbour Laboratory. In the new documentary on PBS celebrating his life, an interviewer asks the 90-year-old scientist if, given the backlash he suffered after his comments about race and intelligence, his views had changed. His answer leaves no room for uncertainty: No, not at all, he says. Theres a difference on the average between blacks and whites on IQ tests. I would say the difference is genetic. Dr James Watson with the original DNA model ahead of a press conference at the Science museum in London in 2005 (AFP/ODD ANDERSEN) Skin colour and libido More controversy came when Dr Watson suggested a link between skin colour and libido in 2000, suggesting the skin pigment melanin boosts sex drive. "That's why you have Latin lovers," he said. "You've never heard of an English lover. Only an English patient." Anti-Semitism In another interview in 2007, this time with the magazine Esquire, Dr Watson said that some anti-Semitism is justified. Just like some anti-Irish feeling is justified. If you cant be criticised, thats very dangerous. You lose the concept of a free society, he said. In the same interview he praised Ashkenazi Jews, suggesting they are more intelligent than other ethnic groups. Science news in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Science news in pictures Science news in pictures Pluto has 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen Pluto has a 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen that is doing strange things to its surface, Nasa has found. The mysterious core seems to be the cause of features on its surface that have fascinated scientists since they were spotted by Nasa's New Horizons mission. "Before New Horizons, everyone thought Pluto was going to be a netball - completely flat, almost no diversity," said Tanguy Bertrand, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center and the lead author on the new study. "But it's completely different. It has a lot of different landscapes and we are trying to understand what's going on there." Getty Science news in pictures Over 400 species discovered this year by Natural History Museum The ancient invertabrate worm-like species rhenopyrgus viviani (pictured) is one of over 400 species previously unknown to science that were discovered by experts at the Natural History Museum this year PA Science news in pictures Jackdaws can identify 'dangerous' humans Jackdaws can identify dangerous humans from listening to each others warning calls, scientists say. The highly social birds will also remember that person if they come near their nests again, according to researchers from the University of Exeter. In the study, a person unknown to the wild jackdaws approached their nest. At the same time scientists played a recording of a warning call (threatening) or contact calls (non-threatening). The next time jackdaws saw this same person, the birds that had previously heard the warning call were defensive and returned to their nests more than twice as quickly on average. Getty Science news in pictures Turtle embryos influence sex by shaking The sex of the turtle is determined by the temperatures at which they are incubated. Warm temperatures favour females. But by wiggling around the egg, embryos can find the Goldilocks Zone which means they are able to shield themselves against extreme thermal conditions and produce a balanced sex ratio, according to the new study published in Current Biology journal Ye et al/Current Biology Science news in pictures Elephant poaching rates drop in Africa African elephant poaching rates have dropped by 60 per cent in six years, an international study has found. It is thought the decline could be associated with the ivory trade ban introduced in China in 2017. Reuters Science news in pictures Ancient four-legged whale discovered in Peru Scientists have identified a four-legged creature with webbed feet to be an ancestor of the whale. Fossils unearthed in Peru have led scientists to conclude that the enormous creatures that traverse the planets oceans today are descended from small hoofed ancestors that lived in south Asia 50 million years ago A. Gennari Science news in pictures Animal with transient anus discovered A scientist has stumbled upon a creature with a transient anus that appears only when it is needed, before vanishing completely. Dr Sidney Tamm of the Marine Biological Laboratory could not initially find any trace of an anus on the species. However, as the animal gets full, a pore opens up to dispose of waste Steven G Johnson Science news in pictures Giant bee spotted Feared extinct, the Wallace's Giant bee has been spotted for the first time in nearly 40 years. An international team of conservationists spotted the bee, that is four times the size of a typical honeybee, on an expedition to a group of Indonesian Islands Clay Bolt Science news in pictures New mammal species found inside crocodile Fossilised bones digested by crocodiles have revealed the existence of three new mammal species that roamed the Cayman Islands 300 years ago. The bones belonged to two large rodent species and a small shrew-like animal New Mexico Museum of Natural History Science news in pictures Fabric that changes according to temperature created Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold Faye Levine, University of Maryland Science news in pictures Baby mice tears could be used in pest control A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males Getty Science news in pictures Final warning to limit "climate catastrophe" The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase Getty Science news in pictures Nobel prize for evolution chemists The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies Getty/AFP Science news in pictures Nobel prize for laser physicists The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his "optical tweezers" which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers Reuters/AP Science news in pictures Discovery of a new species of dinosaur The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means "a giant thunderclap at dawn" Viktor Radermacher / SWNS Science news in pictures Birth of a planet Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever. This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star. ESO/A. Muller et al Science news in pictures New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the interstitium. These compartments are found beneath the skin, as well as lining the gut, lungs, blood vessels and muscles, and join together to form a network supported by a mesh of strong, flexible proteins Getty Science news in pictures Previously unknown society lived in Amazon rainforest before Europeans arrived, say archaeologists Working in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, a team led by archaeologists at the University of Exeter unearthed hundreds of villages hidden in the depths of the rainforest. These excavations included evidence of fortifications and mysterious earthworks called geoglyphs Jose Iriarte Science news in pictures One in 10 people have traces of cocaine or heroin on fingerprints, study finds More than one in 10 people were found to have traces of class A drugs on their fingers by scientists developing a new fingerprint-based drug test. Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly. Getty Science news in pictures Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter's great red spot The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image's colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth. Pictures by: Tom Momary Women Over the years Dr Watson has often made comments that have been branded as sexist. He has said that female scientists wont be taken seriously if they had children, implied women are not good at maths and said that while having more women around in science makes things more fun for the men, they are probably less effective. He has also remarked in relation to future genetic innovations that people say it would be terrible if we made all girls pretty. I think it would be great. Rosalind Franklin Dr Watsons incredibly popular account of the discovery that made him famous, The Double Helix, brought him many accolades. However, it has also drawn criticism for its descriptions of Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray diffraction images of DNA are now regarded as a crucial contribution to the double helix discovery. In the book he describes Franklins appearance unfavourably, explaining that she did not emphasise her feminine qualities. He has since questioned her intelligence and speculated that she may have had Aspergers syndrome. The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA by James Watson Fat people While giving a lecture at the University of California, Berkeley, in 2000, Dr Watson suggested to the audience that thinner people were more ambitious. "Whenever you interview fat people, you feel bad, because you know you're not going to hire them," he said. Selecting based on a gay gene The geneticist has been ardent in his view that, if scientific expertise allows it, people should be allowed to choose traits in their unborn children. Working for Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, an institution historically associated with the eugenics movement, this has understandably ruffled a few feathers. Most controversial was an interview he gave to the Sunday Telegraph in which he said: If you could find the gene which determines sexuality and a woman decides she doesn't want a homosexual child, well, let her. Its my conviction that nothing enduring can be built on violence Mahatma Gandhi Violence in the name of religion has been an enduring feature of religious history and life, from ancient times to the modern day. But does religion cause violence, or is it simply exploited by those who use violence to achieve their own, often political, ends? It is a confusing picture. The latest report by the thinktank Theos shows that 61 per cent of the UK public think the teachings of religions are essentially peaceful, but 70 per cent also think that most of the wars in world history have been caused by religion. The two opinions are not necessarily contradictory but the picture is complex. To add to the confusion, the popular science author Steven Pinker argues that violence has declined over time and we are far less likely to die violently in the western world than any previous generation, yet the latest surveys show that violent crime is increasing. Stabbings in London in 2018 are at a record high and concern about violence in the USA, particularly among young people, is also at record levels. A loud bang startles Anna P Timofeyeva awake. She reaches for the light, but the electricity has gone out. In the dark, she and her husband quickly dress their two-year-old son and prepare to flee. We understood something was wrong, she says. But when they open the front door of their apartment they stop short. From the doorstep of the familys seventh-floor apartment, she says, they could look directly down on a heap of rubble far below, all that was left of 25 neighbouring apartments. The explosion that collapsed Timofeyevas highrise building in the city of Magnitogorsk in southern Russia on New Years Eve killed 39 people and initially stirred fears of terrorism. But authorities have since blamed an even greater danger to the average Russian: crumbling infrastructure, including Soviet-era apartment blocks. Hundreds of rescue workers search through shards of concrete for survivors of the building collapse (AP) For a decade or more, as oil revenues have swelled its coffers, the Kremlin has poured resources into its armed forces, developing new weapons, upgrading its nuclear stockpile and overhauling and professionalising its army, navy and military intelligence agency. The results whether military interventions in Syria and Ukraine or meddling in politics in Europe or the United States have buttressed president Vladimir Putins drive to restore Russia to major-power status. Recommended At least four dead and dozens missing after Russian building collapse Yet, the apartment collapse and an earlier, highly unpopular cut in state pensions serve as a reminder of the lingering hardships that ordinary Russians are asked to endure, particularly those who live in the countrys hinterlands. In the case of the accident in Magnitogorsk, what was said to be a natural gas explosion sheared off a section of the building, flattening dozens of apartments but leaving Timofeyevas unscathed. We were lucky, she says. Most Magnitogorsk residents live in tenement-style concrete highrises (Alamy) Others were not, and 4 January was a day of funerals in Magnitogorsk, a sprawling industrial city built around a gigantic steel factory where housing, as in much of Russia, has long been a pressing problem. Magnitogorsk which means magnetic mountain and is named for nearby iron-ore deposits so massive they are said to distort compass readings is a city whose very name has long been redolent of the hardships of Russias industrial backwaters. It was conjured from the empty steppe by decree of Josef Stalin and intended as a model communist city, populated by enthusiastic volunteers known as shock workers. Its roughly 415,000 residents today earn average monthly wages of 280. Magnitogorsk remained the quintessential emblem of the grand transformation, author Stephen Kotkin writes in Magnetic Mountain, a history of the city. Here, building communism became a reality one could participate in first hand. The Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works became the pride of the Soviet Union, while the workers lived in mud huts in the early years, and scarce and shoddy housing ever since. One park has a monument in the shape of a tent, commemorating a common early living arrangement. Inscribed into the pedestal are lines by a local poet, Boris Ruchyov: We lived in tents with small windows, washed in the rain and dried in the sun. Another monument, called Rear to the Front, depicts a worker handing a sword to a soldier, illustrating the citys role in supplying steel to the military industry. Russia today spends about 5 per cent of its gross domestic product on the army, more than any other European nation. But living space has always been tight in Magnitogorsk. In the 1930s, the average inhabitant got 1.9 square metres, or about 20 square feet, often either a corner of a room or space for a cot in an open-plan wooden barracks. Today, most residents live in tenement-style concrete highrises like the one that collapsed last month on Karl Marx Street. Built in 1973 and housing about 1,300 people, it was of a type of mass-produced, utilitarian housing seen throughout the former Eastern Bloc. The accident killed 39 people (Tass) (Valery Sherdyukov/TASS) But even after the disaster, older residents still sang the praises of the chunky structure, having moved there from barracks or communal apartments. Far from demanding a new and safer building, many of them spent the week pleading with authorities to let them stay in the part of it that remained standing. The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Show all 5 1 /5 The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Driving force: prototype autonomous cars in a sunny Soviet 2017 The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Face time: live video communication, as imagined in 1960 The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Lines man: the "International Metro" across the north of Eurasia The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Water way: connecting the Arctic Ocean with the Caspian Sea The world today, according to the Soviet Union in 1960 Polar express: high-speed atomic-powered trains across the Bering Strait Whats not to like about this building? says Klavdia G Kiselyova, 78, who moved in when the highrise opened. Standing on her stoop bundled in furs and watching dump trucks cart away debris, she muses aloud. Its an amazing house. Judging by a sign on an entryway near the collapse, it looks as if they are getting their way. Dear Residents! it reads. An inspection found residing in apartments in entryway 10 is allowed. The collapse had occurred in entryway seven. Yet, others were more sceptical about moving back in. Yulia V Skalvysh, an accountant at the steel mill, says she was told she would have to return to her two-room apartment a few yards away from the collapse. Authorities were apparently unconcerned about a crack in the tiled wall of her kitchen that she says is growing longer each day. They say, Its safe, you can return, but I dont want to, she says. I want to live in safety. For some, the close call reinforced their belief in God. Vera D Saravarova, 59, who lived next door to an apartment that collapsed into the void, attributes her survival to having remained in church the day before for the entire two-hour sermon, even though she had wanted to duck out. Russian Orthodox churches have no pews, she says, and her feet were beginning to hurt. But a friend told her, You have to stay until the priests wrap it up, and she did. It was a miracle, she says. We were protected by God. People gather to commemorate victims of the explosion (Reuters) (REUTERS) Several residents praise Putin for visiting within a day of the catastrophe, and they direct their anger at local authorities. Vladimir Y Vorontsov, 71, a retired steelworker whose son died, shows up seething for a meeting with the Chelyabinsk region governor. My son was crushed to death, and these clowns are still sitting here, he says of the bureaucrats. They receive money and do nothing. Authorities are to pay compensation of 1 million rubles, or about 11,700, to the families of those who died. Renters who lost apartments will get 50,000 rubles to compensate for personal items. By weeks end, heartbroken families and friends began to lay loved ones to rest in Magnitogorsks Left Bank Cemetery, where the headstones are heaped in snow. Beside three fresh graves cut into the frozen earth, an undertaker opens a folding table and pours vodka into plastic cups for a farewell toast. A hearse arrives carrying the Kramarenko family husband, wife and one-year-old daughter on their final journey. Crows flap about in the frost-covered birch trees. Gripped by grief, relatives place their hands on the coffins the childs draped in pink cloth as a funeral director, Nadezhda Monzhorova, recites a farewell. How can we say they are not with us? she says. They remain in their relatives, in their friends, in their deeds and in our hearts. New York Times Every year the technology industry gathers in Las Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), an event that often sets the agenda for the coming 12 months. This is what CES 2019 taught us. The dawn of 5G The first 5G networks are expected to begin rolling out this year, and so the next-generation connectivity technology was being mentioned everywhere at CES. Intel, Qualcomm and Samsung all spoke about harnessing the technology to not just offer faster mobile internet speeds, but also to connect more devices and appliances to each other and be able to handle more data in the process. Experts at the show also commented on the higher capacity of 5G networks being able to support the software needed to power networks of driverless cars and robots. The halls of this year's CES hinted at a world where homes, cars and even entire cities are connected to one another, with people able to use these connections to complete tasks every day. Such blanket coverage of the technology is also likely to spark more manufacturers into creating 5G-enabled devices. The debate over the meaning of artificial intelligence The most prominent trend of the last two years in the tech industry was once again one of the most commonly used phrases at CES this year. Alongside gadget makers such as LG, Samsung and Sony, firms such as farming vehicle manufacturer John Deere were at the show with devices they say are powered by AI. But the idea of artificial intelligence is losing its shine in the eyes of some experts, with some warning the phrase was at risk of becoming an over-used buzzword by some firms as a way to gain attention rather than using it to try to drive forward innovation. It is an issue many will remain on the lookout for as 2019 continues. Moving beyond smartphones The end of 2018 was notable in the smartphone industry for the obvious signs of saturation and stagnation most notably in the form of a warning from Apple at the start of the year about falling iPhone sales in China hitting its revenue. Other companies now appear to be looking at ways to innovate beyond smartphones too the most striking example of this was Samsung's surprise unveiling of three new robots during CES. The three bots, which can help with care, in retail spaces and as a mobile air quality monitor and purifier, give the Korean firm another market to look into alongside their hugely successful smartphone, TV and home appliance businesses. Recommended Virtual reality game to help diagnose early stages of dementia Virtual reality is not dead yet Virtual reality has struggled to maintain excitement levels among consumers since the current generation of headsets first appeared in 2015. Cost of set-up and the level of immersion it requires to actually play has weakened demand for systems, leading to questions about whether it can stay a viable business. However, two of the biggest names in VR are far from ready to give in and are still innovating. At CES, HTC introduced a new version of their Vive system that can track eye movement, enabling users to navigate without any controllers. While Facebook-owned Oculus also showed off its latest headset, the Quest. Both systems are making VR more accessible and could perhaps turn more people on to the technology. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The growth of pet tech It is not just humans who are benefiting from shows like CES now cats, dogs and other pets were widely catered for at this year's show too. For felines, there was a cat treadmill and an automated, self-cleaning litter tray. While there was a smart toilet for dogs too. Called the Inubox, the device, which is designed for dog owners who do not have outside space, cleans itself and washes away waste after use. Press Association There is perhaps nothing quite as exquisitely painful emotionally speaking as unrequited teenage love. It feels like it at the time anyway. In my last year of secondary school, I and three friends (one of whom I was completely and utterly in love with) managed to blag a grant to undertake a geography project in the Lake District. The basic premise was that we would spend five days in Cumbria documenting evidence of glaciation. Two 16-year-old girls and two 16-year-old boys heading off on a post-exam holiday sounds like a recipe for drunkenness and sex. In fact, it was nothing of the sort. While the geographical studiousness of the trip was limited, the whole thing was more Swallows and Amazons than Mills & Boon. With the backdrop of a partial government shutdown stretching into day 21, it's unsurprising that U.S. businesses would put getting federal workers back on the job at the top of their wish list for 2019. In his annual "State of American Business" address Thursday Tom Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a powerful business advocacy group in Washington, D.C., ticked off a succinct but pointed plan for helping U.S. businesses thrive in the new year. The address, timed to coincide with the President's annual State of the Union address on January 29, is meant to serve as something of a wish list for U.S. businesses large and small. Among other things, this year, Donohue pointed to improving trade ties with foreign allies, providing clarity on U.S. immigration laws, and getting the U.S. government back into the business of governing. (The President and Congress are at an impasse over $5.7 billion in funding for a border wall with Mexico.) "Governing by crisis is no way to do the nation's business," said Donohue. "Because dysfunction saps confidence, threatens growth, and consequently poses a threat to opportunity in this country." Reopening the government, however, is just one key policy priority businesses will be watching in 2019. Here are four others, according to Donohue: 1. Trade Small businesses make up 49 out of every 50 U.S. companies that sell products overseas, many of which would go out of business without trade, said Donohue. He called on the administration to lift the tariffs imposed in 2018 on steel, aluminum, and Chinese goods. "Tariffs are taxes paid for by American families and American businesses--not by foreigners," he said, proposing that the administration continues to work with allies on trade deals instead of undermining its own economy. As way of example, he heralded the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, as a "good deal" that "must be approved" by Congress. Donohue also noted that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce supports the Trump administration's efforts to resolve its trade issues with China, but stressed that it opposes the ongoing trade war waged through swelling tariffs. "You can keep adding tariffs but we keep paying for them," Donahue added later at a press conference. "It would be great if when we added tariffs they paid for them--it would give us a lot more leverage." 2. Immigration As the unemployment rate hovers around a record-low 3.9 percent, many jobs remain vacant across the country. U.S. companies are unable to fill them because "they can't find the workers they need, when and where they need them," Donohue said. "Our nation must continue to attract and welcome industrious and innovative people from all over the world, and finally fix our broken immigration system," he added. Donohue urged the President and Congress to work together to reach a deal that both secures the border and gives protection and legal status to immigrants under the Temporary Protected Status program, which grants protection from deportation to nationals of designated countries, as well as to Dreamers--a name used to describe undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. 3. Data Privacy After last year's high-profile hacks and data privacy scandals, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pushing for a new federal data privacy law to protect consumer privacy with enough wiggle room to promote tech innovation. Currently, states have implemented a patchwork of different laws governing privacy issues, with California adopting the most stringent privacy laws currently on the books in the U.S. in June of last year. Donohue says the business group is leading a multi-industry effort to have "one good rule, not 50 separate ones." 4. Infrastructure Donohue urged the government to pass a "significant" infrastructure package in 2019, suggesting that rebuilding the nation's outdated highways, bridges, ports, and waterways would also bring more jobs to the country. He conceded, however, that the challenge lies in finding a way to pay for it sustainably. Raising federal fuel taxes could be a "big part of the solution," Donohue suggested, an idea the U.S. Chamber of Commerce previously floated in 2018. He added that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is offering up to $25,000 in cash prizes to whoever comes up with the "best, most viable idea" for a long-term funding source for infrastructure projects. (The Center Square) Like many other service-sector industries, rideshare companies such as Lyft and Uber are looking to pick up where pre-pandemic business left off, and part of that means continued expansion into downstate Illinois communities. Thomas alleged that the government has brought the Bill without proper homework and demanded that the Bill should be sent to a JPC. A file photo of BJP supporters celebrating the passage of the Bill for 10 per cent EWS quota in Parliament. The 10 per cent quota for economically weaker sections (EWS) from the general category in educational institutions and government jobs came as a bolt from the blue for most Opposition parties. The Narendra Modi government which was cornered over a range of issues, including agrarian distress and lack of jobs that also contributed the ruling BJPs loss in three key Hindi heartland states in the recent Assembly elections, suddenly spun out a political googly which was difficult for almost any party to oppose. Thus, except a few parties like the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), almost everybody voted in favour of the Bill, albeit, making some subdued noises like asking for the legislation to be sent to a joint select committee for further scrutiny. While in Lok Sabha three members Asaduddin Oaisi of the AIMIM, and E.T. Mohd Basheer and P.K. Kunjhalikutty of the Muslim League voted against the Bill, in Rajya Sabha a total of seven members walked out during voting. The Congress, which is the largest Opposition party in Parliament, said that though it is in favour of any legislation on reservation, it wants that no decision is taken in haste. Without interfering with the constitutional mandate of reservation given to dalits, adivasis and backward classes in any manner, we have always supported that those who are genuinely poor and who are not covered under these sections may also be given the benefit of opportunities and reservation, both in education and employment, Congress chief Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala had said. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, senior Congress leader K.V. Thomas said that his party is not against the concept of 10 per cent quota Bill and supports it, but the way it has been brought raises several questions on the sincerity of the government. He alleged that the government has brought the Bill without proper homework and demanded that the Bill should be sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee. Arguing for his party strongly in the Rajya Sabha, former law minister and senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal said that there would be three hurdles that the Bill would have to pass. First, is the complete non-application of the mind on the part of the government in introducing this Bill; second, is the constitutionality of this Bill; third, is the implementation of this Bill. Sibal also argued that the Bill will fail the test of constitutionality because the Mandal Commission provision of 10 per cent reservation for the economically weaker category was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. Citing the Indra Sawhney verdict, he stated, If a nine-judge Bench held it unconstitutional, how can you amend the Constitution? Though both Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party welcomed the legislation, BSP chief Mayawati claimed that the government was trying to do a stunt ahead of the coming general elections. The BSPs demand to provide reservation to the economically backward sections in general category is approved by the Cabinet in an immature way and without preparation. Our party, however, welcomes the decision though it appears to be an election stunt and political gimmick of the BJP ahead of Lok Sabha polls, Ms Mayawati said in a statement. In fact except Lalu Prasads RJD, almost parties of the socialist stock supported the Bill. The RJD, which staged a walk out when the Bill was tabled in the Upper House, said that it is opposed to a binary being created between Upper Castes and Lower Castes. RJDs Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha said that the BJP should be blamed for creating any backward-forward binary. I agree there are poor among upper castes, but their poverty does not arise out of their birth in that caste, he said. Sources, however, said that the RJD allies in the Opposition Grand Alliance like Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) and the Congress are wary of the partys stand thinking that its position will affect the electoral prospects among upper caste voters. Asked about allies discomfort, Mr Jha said: We are not concerned with that. We have taken a stand. International Falls, MN (56649) Today Mainly sunny to start, then a few afternoon clouds. High 84F. Winds S at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight A few clouds. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 61F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation2@journalnet.com for help creating one. We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@idahopress.com for help creating one. As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content. When you click get started below it will walk you through creating an online account to attach your print subscription number to. After your account is created it will ask you to either add a subscription for online access or click on the print subscriber button. Click the print subscriber button header and it will open a dropdown, now click on get started. The page will reload and you will be prompted to enter an account number and a zip code. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO USE THE NUMBER OFF OF THE MOST RECENT ISSUE OR ANYTHING AFTER JANUARY 28, 2019 TO GAIN ACCESS! OLD ACCOUNT NUMBERS WILL NOT WORK The account number and zip code are easily available on your most recent issue of the High Plains Journal or Midwest Ag Journal in the address fields as is shown here. Sometimes the account number has extra zero's in front of it, just ignore those. A free chance to win $1 million or more in lottery Free tickets to sporting events A paid day off work I'm anti-vax and think incentives are a distraction Vote View Results Regarding Do House Republicans support socialized medicine? (Editorial/Outlook, Monday): In response to the question, What would one call a health care proposal that treats everyone equally, and ensures that no one pays more or less than the next person? In one word: Fair. Ron Spiker, The Woodlands Lawful guns Regarding Gun laws (Editorial/Outlook, Tuesday): The editorial calls for Congress and Texas to pass stricter gun-purchase laws while discussing the horrible shooting death of 7-year-old Jazmine Barnes. One of the two men charged in her shooting had already served time for illegally having a gun. The vast majority of shootings committed each year are not by responsible gun owners. Stricter laws on gun purchases will not have any effect on irresponsible people who have no respect for life or our existing gun laws. Larry Tidwell, Baytown The real threat Regarding Trumps fear (Editorial, Wednesday): I agree with your position on Trump and him utilizing fear to get Americans to act. Its the exact same tactic he used in his presidential campaign demonizing immigrants and Democrats to strike fear into the hearts of voters on the fence and further urge all conservatives to vote. The difference in this situation is that the challenge at the border isnt actually a crisis. His attempt to spike a reaction from uneducated listeners during his Tuesday address was obvious. He doesnt hold as much leverage as he did during the election because of the lack of urgency and the lower chance of the outcome affecting the daily lives of Americans. Trump had a Republican Congress in his first two years in office and nothing got done regarding the wall because there isnt a real reason to compel representatives to speed up the process and get a quick win for the GOP. After pushing so hard, Trump might completely miss his chance to get anything done at the border. With him stating that he might declare a national emergency, Trump has the potential to become the real threat to Americans after all. Grant Perry, Houston Eagle Scout congrats Regarding Soaring to a new height (City/State, Monday): Congratulations to Dameion Crook, Eric Sims and Shane Bennett for earning their Eagle Scout pins. I doubt these young men fully appreciate what this accomplishment will mean throughout their future personal and business life. I doubt they fully realize the admiration earned by attaining such a rank. Congratulations also to LaKenya Shaw for rescuing two young children and giving them opportunities they would otherwise never experienced. Tip Smith, Nacogdoches Land of milk and honey and cotton Regarding Couple struggles with acceptance in new home after millionaire paid Jews to move to Alabama (Belief, Jan. 6): I appreciate you including stories of this nature in your paper. I have always liked learning about other religions and cultures. Reading about the experiences and challenges facing Jewish communities around the United States taught me about things I did not realize were happening. It was also sad to me that there are people who are still going through such hard times solely because of their religion. Hopefully, the Priddles will be able to find happiness in their new hometown. Sebastian Triola, 7th grader, Klein ISD It has been four months since dozens of unmarked graves containing the skeletal remains of African-Americans as young as 14 and as old as 70 were unearthed at a construction site in Sugar Land. Its been four months since the discovery shone a light on a shameful chapter of history in our own backyard. Four months for public officials to do the right thing and look for a way to honor, or at least recognize, the 95 souls buried in pinewood coffins on the land of the old Imperial State Prison Farm. Where is the outcry? Where are the chorus of proposals for museums or monuments, the calls for some kind of reparation? Where is the apology to the thousands of African-Americans who, like those found on the grounds of a new Fort Bend ISD school, toiled under the searing Texas sun as part of a Jim Crow-era convict-leasing system that author Douglas Blackmon has called slavery by another name? The convict-leasing system, which operated in the years following the Civil War to the early 1900s, exploited a clause in the Thirteenth Amendment that outlawed slavery except as punishment for a crime. Southern states seized on that phrase to target and arrest black men for petty crimes and trumped-up charges such as vagrancy and flirting with white women, and contract them out for hard labor. They were free people, sold to the highest bidder and forced to work on plantations, railroads and mines long after the Civil War had ended. They chopped sugar cane in conditions so brutal that Sugar Land became known as the Hellhole on the Brazos. They rebuilt our state and much of the South, and died by the thousands in Texas without so much as a decent burial. For more than a century, they were mostly forgotten gone without mention in most history books, their stories and sacrifices buried like their bodies. It is time to rectify that. It is time to listen to people like Reginald Moore, a historian and prison reform advocate, who has been telling folks for nearly two decades that the bodies of black slaves and prisoners were buried in Sugar Land. Moore has served as unofficial caretaker of the Old Imperial Farm Cemetery, which is owned by the city of Sugar Land, and is the resting place for 31 former convicts and guards. He warned Fort Bend officials not to build on the vacant land nearby because he believed more graves would be found at the former sugar plantation later used as a state-run prison. He was right. Now, city and state officials need to heed Moores other pleas. For years, he has lobbied them to acknowledge this part of Texas history, to issue an apology and create a memorial to those ensnared in convict-leasing. The national attention sparked by the recent discovery has prompted some action. The Fort Bend school district says its a teachable moment, to be used in classrooms. City officials say they are talking with Moore about reinterring the remains and have had a very preliminary discussion about memorialization. The city also has a link on the history section of its website leading to a Rice University collection of historical research about convict-leasing an archive amassed by Moore. A good start, but not enough. We cannot keep turning a blind eye to the terrible legacy of slavery. We cannot pretend that human bondage ended with the Emancipation Proclamation or when union soldiers arrived in Galveston two and a half years later to let Texas slaves know the war had ended. The systematic control of black bodies continued long after. In the words of writer James Baldwin, The story of the Negro in America is the story of America It is not a very pretty story. The story will never change if we keep omitting the ugly parts. Thats where the lessons are. We must face the pain caused by bigotry. We must pay tribute to those whose freedom was snatched away to build our cities, farms and rails. A memorial is but a token to ask for untold sweat and sorrow. In the midst of the Jim Crow era a century ago, leaders in Houstons African American community worried that the story of their people would be forgotten over time if left to white historians to document it. So they did it themselves. The result of their efforts, Red Book Houston, was published in 1915 and chronicles African American life in a fast-growing Southern city at the turn of the 19th century. Now, with different forces threatening to erase the legacy of black culture in Houstons Third Ward, community leaders there are working to revive the Red Book effort, with a modern twist. Its our vision to mobilize community tradition bearers and storytellers to videotape and document the stories of residents and collect artifacts, photographs and documents to preserve a record of the rich contributions of African Americans in the Emancipation Park Third Ward neighborhood, said Carl Davis, who is spearheading the effort on behalf of the Emancipation Economic Development Council. The Red Book project is part of a broader campaign by EEDC and other community groups aimed at preserving and revitalizing Third Wards cultural history even as a surge of development projects rapidly reshape the neighborhood. The wave of gentrification threatens to overtake the culture fabric of this historic neighborhood and displace long-term residents, the EEDC wrote in its project mission statement. Efforts to preserve the culture, traditions, and character of the Emancipation Park neighborhood of Third Ward must be accelerated. At a kickoff celebration Saturday night at the Emancipation Park Cultural Center, organizers urged longtime residents to come forward with stories, photographs and artifacts. For the past decade, developers have been scooping up land in Third Ward, replacing row houses with townhomes and luring young professionals who enjoy the neighborhoods proximity to downtown, the Museum District and the Texas Medical Center. Surging home values are driving up property taxes, threatening to force longtime residents to relocate. With each new development a city-subsidized H-E-B is set to open this year civic leaders grow more concerned that the history and culture of their neighborhood will be forgotten. Assata Richards, director of the Sankofa Research Institute at the University of Houston and chairwoman of the EEDC, urged those in attendance Saturday to spend less time thinking about what they dont want to happen in Third Ward, and more time focused on what they do want. Were not in a fight against gentrification, said Richards, a third-generation Third Ward resident. Were in a fight to preserve, protect and revitalize the historic Third Ward. When we do that, then gentrification ceases. As part of the revived Red Book project, organizers plan to create a coffee table book documenting the people, businesses and institutions that shaped Third Ward over the past century. They also plan to create an online repository of Third Ward family histories and hope to work with the Harris County Historic Commission to erect historic markers throughout the community. The goal, Richards said, is to ensure that even as new money flows into Third Ward, the community will remain a vibrant, majority-African American community. Our history gives us a blueprint for our future, Richards said. But we must create that blueprint ourselves. mike.hixenbaugh@chron.com Twitter.com/Mike_Hixenbaugh President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries. As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Now Playing: President Trump in a tweet took another aim at James Comey on Saturday. Video: GeoBeats Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trump's continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. After this story was published online, Trump said in an interview late Saturday with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that he did not take particular steps to conceal his private meetings with Putin and attacked The Washington Post and its owner Jeff Bezos. He said he talked with Putin about Israel, among other subjects. "Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," he said, without offering specifics. When Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working for Russia, Trump responded, "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked." Former U.S. officials said that Trump's behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Trump's secrecy surrounding Putin "is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous," said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. "It handicaps the U.S. government - the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] - and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump." A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to "improve the relationship with Russia" after the Obama administration "pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement." The Trump administration "has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities," said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 "gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press." Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a "nut job," and said that firing Comey had removed "great pressure" on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the president's interactions with foreign leaders. "Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him," said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trump's meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trump's encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. "It's been several months since Helsinki and we still don't know what went on in that meeting," Engel said. "It's appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head." The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russia's election interference as a "hoax," suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria - a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trump's decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the president's two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putin's interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he "was present for the entirety of the two presidents' official bilateral meeting in Hamburg," but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreter's notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had "pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement" in election interference. "President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past," Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putin's claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Tillerson's account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, "I believe you." A White House spokesperson, responding to this detail from the Hamburg meeting, said: "The President has affirmed that he supports the conclusions in the 2017 Intel Community Assessment, and the President also issued a new executive order in September 2018 to ensure a whole of government effort to address any foreign attempts to interfere in US elections." Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. "We were frustrated because we didn't get a readout," a former senior administration official said. "The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable" with Trump's interactions with Putin, the official said. "God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to." Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trump's conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trump's presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. "There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them," said a former administration official who worked in the White House. "The feedback tended not to be positive." The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. "I recall Fiona reporting that to me," one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson "didn't offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didn't brief senior staff," although he "gave a readout to the press." A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trump's interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trump's meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putin's "powerful" denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clinton's meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. - - - The Washington Post's John Hudson, Josh Dawsey and Julie Tate contributed to this report. SUGAR LAND - The handful of headstones offer little information: a name, a date and a prison number. Some don't even have that. In one corner of the plot, Taylor L. Odom's gravestone includes his prison number, 54714; his date of death, July 31, 1927; and the cause, drowned while attempting to escape. Of the roughly 30 marked graves, this one catches Reginald Moore's eye whenever he comes to the Old Imperial Farm Cemetery, where he serves as guardian, a volunteer position appointed by the Texas Historical Commission. Many of the men buried inside the fenced-in cemetery were likely prisoners forced to work the land. Their lives were part of a history when Sugar Land was the heart of a statewide convict leasing system that served as a sort of reincarnation of slavery after its demise. For more than a decade, Moore has highlighted this history, including the convict leasing that allowed private companies to control and profit from convict labor. His efforts to memorialize not only the cemetery, but the history that he believes has yet to be fully uncovered, have not always been well-received. Now the cemetery land is in a sort of limbo. The state sold off portions of the prison land over time. Today the city owns it. Sugar Land had hoped to develop the land around it into a park, but a 2013 bond proposal to do so failed. Moore and others are certain there's more beneath the surface - more bodies, more artifacts. And should the city decide to develop the land, an issue it promises to revisit in the next year or two, it would be legally required to survey the land before development. Convict leasing For now, Moore checks up on it. He has a key that gets him past two sets of metal fences that enclose the cemetery. And the city has mowed the grass and maintained the property, having bought the land from Newland Communities in 2011. Working with the state historical commission, the city expects a marker to be placed at the site soon. "Frankly," city spokesman Doug Adolph acknowledged, "it's taken longer than we anticipated." He says the city is committed to honoring the history there. He points to not only the continued cemetery maintenance but to the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Sugar Land, which was built inside what was once the Main Unit, known as Two Camp, where the prison's black inmates were held. "That was a significant investment from the city to make that happen," Adolph said. Moore is grateful that the city allows his group, the Texas Slave Descendants Society, to host events there. But he still would like to see a museum that honors the history of the men involved in the convict leasing system. The same constitutional amendment that ended slavery also allowed forced labor to continue, if used as punishment. Many historians have argued that because so many of the men who were imprisoned, often on trumped-up charges, were African-American, and because some of the same plantations that had depended on slaves benefited from convict leasing contracts, the practice of convict leasing was in some ways an extension of slavery. "These people were enslaved twice," Moore said. City officials said they'd be willing to consider a museum if Moore, a retired longshoreman, could come up with the funding. Adolph noted that Moore does not live in Sugar Land and added, "Sometimes it's easier to spend other people's money." Moore lives in Houston, a short drive from the cemetery. When he worked for a few years as a correctional officer in Richmond, he recalls driving daily through Sugar Land. His time as an officer led him to the cemetery. And in many ways, the experience haunts him. A product of Houston's Third Ward and later Clayton Homes after his father was imprisoned, he says, "I had seen some things." He thought working in the prison might give him a chance to help people. "I thought that's what it was - a place for rehabilitation," he recalled. That was not his experience. Though the prisoners had been integrated, he said he was one of only a few black employees when he was hired in 1985, almost the opposite of what he saw in the prison population. He said he watched as white officers on horseback surveyed fields of black prisoners picking cotton. "It reminded me of an old oppressive plantation," he said. Indeed, the prisoners were laboring on the same lands where the area's sugar plantations once were, just as convicts had in the years following slavery's end. "As early as the 1870s, convict labor was used to cultivate the land," explained Chris Florance, director of public information and education for the Texas Historical Commission. Two sugar-cane plantation owners whose names are sprinkled over city landmarks today, Littleberry Ambrose Ellis and Edward H. Cunningham, leased convict labor from the state to work the land under the new post-emancipation arrangement. It was Ellis who built the Imperial Mill in 1883. Back under state control Conditions for working the land were so bad that Sugar Land earned the nickname, "Hell-hole on the Brazos." Accounts describe prisoners laboring in wet fields of sugar cane, often succumbing to epidemics in the swampy, mosquito-laden landscape. The state ended convict leasing after exposes on the inmates' terrible treatment and pressure from people who thought the system should more directly benefit the state. But companies' existing contracts were honored until they expired. Around that time, the Imperial Sugar Co. bought the Ellis plantation, according to Florance, and then sold it to the state in 1908. With convict labor coming back under state control, the state established the Imperial State Prison Farm on the land where 400 convicts raised sugar cane, cotton and corn. It's on those grounds, later called the Central State Prison Farm before being shut down in 2011, that the cemetery sits, many of the grave-markers bearing dates after the state disallowed companies from leasing convict labor. Because Cunningham and Ellis were some of the first to successfully rely on convict leasing, Moore sees Sugar Land as central to a much bigger story about race in Texas - one he thinks many are hesitant to have told. "Cunningham and Ellis were the first ones to make it extremely profitable," said W. Caleb McDaniel, an associate professor of history at Rice University. "Nobody had really turned it into a big engine for economic gain until the Sugar Land experiment." And that, he said, laid the groundwork for industrial sugar production by Imperial. The Imperial plant was the epicenter of Sugar Land for nearly a century and a half, employing nearly all who lived there, and now is the site of a major redevelopment. Sandra Rogers, the curator of collections at the Texas Prison Museum, thinks the cemetery should be left alone. "Really there's no point if there's nothing getting built on top of this," said Rogers, who helped the city prepare its application for the historical commission for the cemetery. There are 16 prison cemeteries across the state, each protected like the Old Imperial Farm location. She said more archaeological work could just lead to more trouble, like people going out with shovels and metal detectors. Buried elsewhere? However, Moore would like to see more action both in researching and remembering. He has written and appealed to city and county officials, museums, colleges, the state historical commission and board of education. "Reggie has an extremely good point and I don't think anybody is listening," said Kenneth Brown, a professor of anthropology with the University of Houston. When Moore approached him roughly a year and a half ago, Brown saw an opportunity to launch an applied archaeology program at the UH Sugar Land branch that could help do some of the work Moore was interested in. Brown even believed there might be neglected sites associated with the old prison farm on the campus itself. "I don't think it was looked for well if it was looked for," he said. Moore knows there is more to discover. The cemetery, with only a few graves, is mostly white men. Because the prison system was segregated well into the 20th century, he suspects that the black inmates were buried elsewhere, perhaps not in a formal cemetery. If their bodies were found, the land couldn't be developed until the city exhumed them and placed them in a perpetual care cemetery. "That's extremely expensive," said Brown, "so one of the things that happens is that people don't really look for them." But Moore is looking. Asking. His four years as a correctional officer motivate him as he looks at over the headstones of his little cemetery, wondering what else is beneath the surface. STRATFORD The Shakespeare theater burned to the ground early Sunday morning, shocking the community and leaving crews to spend hours trying to extinguish the remaining flames. The building where many famous theater stars performed was an integral part of the community. Mayor Laura Hoydick said Sunday that the loss of the building is devastating for the entire community. Those memories in that structure deserved better than to be destroyed by fire, Hoydick said Sunday afternoon after visiting the site. Fire Marshal Brian Lampart said no one has been injured and the building was unoccupied. It will likely be some time before the blazes cause and origin are identified, Lampart said. Unfortunately, this ones going to be a slow process because of the amount of damage, Lampart said. Were trying to filter through whats pertinent and whats not. Lampart said dispatchers got several calls around 1 a.m. about a fire on the property. When our units arrived, they found a heavy volume of fire in the building, Lampart said. More than 50 firefighters responded every one of Stratfords units, as well as crews from Bridgeport and Milford. Fairfield, Shelton and Bridgeport crews also covered the Stratford firehouses, Lampart said. The fire destroyed the building, leaving a massive pile of rubble, charred steel and wood that was still smoldering Sunday afternoon as dozens of residents came by the scene to survey the damage. Its a loss. Stratford will never be the same, Marie Schiller said while standing on Shore Road and recalling how her three children went on field trips to the theater years ago. I feel like Im at a funeral. As crews hosed down hotspots Sunday afternoon, a backhoe was leveling a wall that was still partially standing to give investigators better access. Now Playing: Sunday, January 13 - The blaze rises in the early morning at the site of the Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford, Conn. Video: Joseph Kryszczynski Jr/JO3YK The unstable wall separating what was the stage from the backstage area of the theater was an area of interest. We need to get under that, Lampart said. We dont want to do that with it standing. Its a slow, methodical process. In addition to Stratford fire officials, investigators from the state fire marshals office were at the scene as well. Winter fires in abandoned buildings are often started by people seeking shelter from the elements. Lampart said Sunday afternoon it was too early to speculate on the fires cause, but thats certainly something that were going to be looking at. Shakespeare theater through the years 1950: Lawrence Langner comes up with idea for the theater and eventually enlists the help of Lincoln Kirstein and philanthropist Joseph Verner Reed to build it. 1955: The theater opens. 1960s and 1970s: High school students travel from around the country to see productions at the theater. 1973: Joseph Verner Reed dies and money for the theater dies with him. 1982: The final season of shows is held in the building. Shows included "King Henry IV," "Twelfth Night" and "Hamlet" with Christopher Walken and Anne Baxter. 1983: State takes over the theater. 2005: Ownership of the theater passes to Stratford. 2014: A committee picks the Elm Street Theatre Company to restore the theater. 2015: Town Council picks the Stratford Stage Group to build a luxury hotel on the property and get the theater running again. 2016: Town ends negotiations with the Stratford Stage Group. April 2017: The town plans to hire an architect to prevent building from falling into disrepair. 2017: Contractors bid to mothball the building. See More Collapse The mayor asked residents not to draw conclusions yet. We want answers, and theres a lot of conjecture on social media, I would just caution people to wait it out and lets find out what happened, Hoydick said. A press conference has been scheduled for 1 p.m. at Town Hall Monday for officials to discuss the fire. The mayor said the property will also be a topic of discussion at the Town Council meeting Monday night. Several of the councils members visited the site Sunday, Hoydick said. The theater was well-known in the local and wider theater community, with famous actors and actresses, including Katharine Hepburn, Christopher Plummer and Christopher Walken having performed on the stage. On Sunday morning, Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, tweeted the fire was heartbreaking. Lawrence Langner, co-founder of The Theatre Guild and the Westport Country Playhouse, developed the idea for the theater in 1950. It was built with the help of Lincoln Kirstein and philanthropist Joseph Verner Reed. The theater opened in 1955 with American Shakespeare Festival Theatres production of Julius Caesar. During the 1960s and 1970s, high school students across the country visited the theater for shows. But after Reed died in 1973, the money to keep the theater going was gone and the building struggled to stay open. The American Shakespeare Festival Theatre held its final full season in the building in 1982, but other companies held shows there in the 1980s. The state took over the theater in 1983. Stratford has owned the building since 2005. The town has floated various plans for the theater over the years and most recently planned to mothball the building. Shows were still held on the grounds of the property over the years. Staff writer Ethan Fry contributed to this report. Whether you're a diehard Eminem fan or, like Gucci Mane, can't imagine bumping the Detroit rapper's bars in your car, chances are you've heard Slim drop a shoutout to his daughter on wax. Mentioned in more than 20 tracks from 2002's "My Dad's Gone Crazy" to 2017's "Castle" off of Em's recently-dropped album Revival, there's no denying that Hailie Mathers is both a grounding force and an inspiration to her famous father. Now a 23-year-old recent college graduate of Michigan State University, Mathers is testing out life in the public eye by flexing her tousled curls and toned physique amongst the thousands of other aspiring social media influencers crowding the 'Gram. While Em was notorious for guarding his daughter's privacy during the early aughts, Mathers broke the mold by creating her own Instagram account back in 2016. Seemingly overnight, the 23-year-old's follower count ballooned past the one-million mark and caught the attention of celeb-sponsored brands always searching for the next big endorsement deal. Despite the fact that Slim spits bars on "Castle" about the regret he carries for unwittingly pushing his celebrity status onto his daughter ("I've said your name but always tried to hide your face/This game is crazy, I wanted to claim my love for you, but dang I never knew it'd be like this, if I did I wouldn't have done it/You ain't asked for none of this shit, now you're being punished?) it seems that the former psychology major is enjoying showing off her life (and her curves) to her waiting followers. Curious to see the young woman that caught Machine Gun Kelly's eye when she was just 16 years old? Peep the Instagram gallery below to see just how stunning Hailie Scott Mathers is today. Smooth With a face this fresh who needs a filter? HBD Pictured here, Hailie celebrates her 21st birthday with her longtime boyfriend Evan McClintock while rocking a skin-tight, underboob-friendly dress. Good Morning Who wakes up and looks this good on a Monday morning? Six Pack Rocking a semi-translucent cut-out top, Mathers flaunts her time spent in the gym by showing off her chiseled six-pack abs. #TBT Looking stunning in a black bikini, Mathers waxes lyrical about a past trip to Australia. Lollapalooza Even after days spent soaking up the hot Chicago sun, Mathers still looks gorgeous in full festival attire. Pose With her accentuated high cheekbones and stone-faced gaze, you can definitely see the Mathers family resemblance in this pre-party shot. Little Green Dress Recently celebrating her 23rd birthday with friends and family, Mathers stuns in a tight-fitting little green dress. All Natural Mathers can pull off the fresh-faced, natural beauty look just as effortlessly as she can rock a full face of glam makeup and bodycon outfits. Nothing To Hide In skin-tight leggings and a crop top, Mathers shows her 1.4 million followers that she has nothing to hide - no waist trainers, Spanx, or Photoshop effects in sight. People have been seriously preparing for the apocalypse over the past few years. The concern prompted many retailers to prepare emergency food products with long shelf life in the case that an apocalypse does strike. Costco, who's known for selling bulk items, began selling a 26-lbs tub of mac & cheese a few years ago. However, only recently did they sell out of the product. Monica Schipper/Getty Images Costco's rolled out a few products that were specifically made in the case doomsday comes. Earlier this week, they announced that their 26-lbs tubs of mac & cheese that have a storage life of 20 years is officially sold out. It's interesting because they've had the item on their shelves for a few years at this point. The product details reveal that the cheese and pasta are sealed in separate Metalite pouches with oxygen absorbers to to protect the quality and ensure a long shelf life. In the past few years, the company garnered a lot of attention for selling these emergency food kits. On their website, they're selling products, ranging from $1000 to $6000, which are meant to keep a family of four fed for about a year. A Costco rep previously told Detroit Free Press that the idea of having these kits "came about making a great starter kit for a family who wanted to prepare for any kind of disaster. This is a great value with shipping included." [Via] Click here to find out where to get a COVID-19 vaccine or test. To find out how many local residents have been vaccinated for COVID-19, click here. Use the map to find numbers for individual counties. Find detailed statistics about COVID-19 tests, cases and deaths by county and for the state as a whole on the Indiana State Department of Health's online dashboard. Lima, OH (45805) Today Mostly sunny. High 77F. Winds N at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Mainly clear. Low 54F. Winds SE at 3 to 6 mph. You know what to expect when people want to wave something about in a flirty Restoration comedy. Fan? Check. Snuff box? Check. Dagger. Wait, what? The Double Dealer is a young writers comedy that springily reinvents the rules. Restoration comedies are often tales of love and money, set in a contemporary London so precisely plotted that you could follow the action on Google Maps. But William Congreves second play, written in 1694 when he was just 24, tests the rules of this wig-and-wink genre. Everything is questioned, compacted, almost abstracted. Instead of fashionable London, were in the country, at Lord Touchwoods house. Selina Cadells production wittily places it near what was then the village of Richmond, close to the Orange Tree Theatre all the text discloses is that St Albans is the nearest point of interest. Time is confined as tight as place: the scheming Maskwell plans to steal his friend Mellefonts bride and prospects, but needs to wrap it up quick, before anyone realises whats happening: three hours tops. In Congreves final play, The Way of the World, you can calculate each characters bank balance to the nearest farthing. Here, people are vague about money, and the servants who eyeroll around most plots are barely present. Working out a plan of the Touchwood manor would send you cross-eyed the play gabbles about corridors, galleries, wardrobes and antechambers until it evokes a kind of Escher twistiness. Nobody comes, nobody goes its as if theres no exit to a wider world. Its a young writers play that tests the rules of this wig-and-wink genre And then theres the dagger. The fan is the Restoration prop of choice, as Propwatch has noted suited to a vigorous flutter or a rap on the knuckles if moved to extreme emotion. But a dagger? At the pointy end of the plot, its brandished by Lady Touchwood, who refuses to behave as if shes in a comedy. Originally played by Elizabeth Barry, the strongest tragic actor of her day, Lady T is obsessed by Mellefont, her nephew by marriage, and is having an affair with his fake friend Maskwell. Shes playing a dangerous game, partly because theres nothing playful about her shes tempestuously serious, and ultimately doesnt care if she destroys her marriage and her reputation. When she leaps through her bedroom, blade out, its clear that the rules of comedy are tottering. Cadells production like her Love for Love at the RSC in 2015 plays up the glorious phrasing and gestures to the self-conscious theatricality of 17th-century theatre. On the tiny stage in the round, her actors wink and banter with us, a conspiracy of familiarity that can go a bit panto. The splendid Zoe Waites doubles the role of Lady Touchwood with Cynthia, Mellefonts grave, wise intended which deflates the climactic dagger scene with giggles when one of her characters supposedly eavesdrops on the other. Like much in this comedy, the dagger feels unsettlingly out of place all the more reason not to blunt it. Above: Zoe Waites as Touchwood with Edward MacLiams Maskwell. Photo by Robert Day. Follow David on Twitter: @mrdavidjays Copyright 2018 at Sun Newspapers. Digital dissemination of this content without prior written consent is a violation of federal law and may be subject to legal action. Russia woes came back to rile President Donald Trump over the weekend as he seeks to deal with a government shutdown thats become the longest in US history. A new report said Trump has kept details of his one-on-one interactions with Russian president Vladimir Putin hidden even from his senior officials. Frustrated by the lack of complete readouts of the interaction two of them, including one in Helsinki in July 2018, had lasted hours state and national security officials have sought to get more out of the interpreters who attended them, according to a report by The Washington Post. The president pushed back against the report in an interview with Fox News saying details of the meeting (are) up for grabs, and wondered why no one asks about his meeting with other world leaders. I meet with Modi, Trump said, referring to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I meet with in Japan, I meet with (Prime Minister Shinzo) Abe. I meet with all of them, but nobody says anything. He has met the two leaders several time bilaterally, and once trilaterally, on the sideline of the G-20 summit in Argentina last December. The US president also lashed out at a report by The New York Times on Friday that said that after Trump fired the FBIs then-director James Comey, in May 2017, the agency had launched an investigation if the president was working for the Russians or was under their influence. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked, he said in the telephone interview when the anchor asked about the report, which he had already criticized and pushed back against in a a series of tweets on Saturday. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written. Russian interference in the 2016 elections to tilt the scale for Trump has dogged him even before he started took the oath of office, and he continues to battle it on a regular basis as revelations have flowed from indictments and court filings from Special Counsel Robert Muller and other investigations, such as the case involving Michael Cohen, the presidents one-time personal lawyer and fixer. These new reports came amidst the a partial shutdown of the federal government that entered 23rd day Sunday, and is now the longest in US history, impacting an estimated 800,000 employees, who have either being furloughed on leave without pay or as working without pay. US Congress passed a bill Thursday to compensate them when the government reopens, but there was worries now that could take a while. Some officials have flagged the possibility of it lasting into February now, as both sides remained rooted into their respective positions, with continuous resolve. President Trump continues to portray he wants to negotiate through tweets starting, as he did Sunday morning, Im in the White House, waiting , or variations of it but there have been no public discussions with Democrats since he broke up the last round abruptly saying bye-bye. He has sought $5.7 billion for a wall along the border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration he is now calling it a steel barrier but Democrats have refused calling the wall/barrier immoral and have said they are prepared to grant him $1.3 billion for border security, but not any structure. Lawmakers on both sides are trying to work on compromise packages, in the meantime, to end the stalemate and open the government but without any success yet. An 18-year-old Saudi woman who fled her familythis week saying she feared for her life arrived in Torontos international airport on Saturday after being granted asylum in Canada, where foreign minister Chrystia Freeland welcomed her as a brave new Canadian. Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun grabbed international attention this week after she barricaded herself in a Bangkok airport hotel room to resist being sent home to her family, which denies any abuse. Qunun refused to meet her father and brother, who arrived in Bangkok to try to take her back to Saudi Arabia. Qunun arrived at Torontos Pearson International Airport on Saturday morning, wearing a hoodie emblazoned with the word Canada in red, and a blue cap with the logo of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), which has granted her refugee status. In her last tweet before leaving for Toronto, Qunun said, I did it, and posted pictures from inside an airplane. Read | Saudi teen is refugee, UN confirms, asks Australia to resettle Freeland, who received Qunun at the airport, told reporters that Qunun is a very brave new Canadian. Rahaf wanted Canadians to see that she has arrived at her new home, Freeland told reporters. But she had a very long and tiring journey and so would prefer not to take questions today. And she is now going to go to her new home. A smiling Qunun waved to reporters as she walked out into the international arrivals area but did not speak to the media. After a brief appearance, she was taken back into the airport terminal. Canadas decision to grant asylum to Qunun comes at a delicate time. Relations between Ottawa and Riyadh have been tense after Canada demanded the immediate release of jailed rights activists last year, infuriating Saudi Arabia who retaliated by freezing new trade with Ottawa. Qunun, who had initially intended to seek asylum in Australia, chose Canada instead because Australia took too long assessing whether to grant her asylum. (Australia) takes too long. Thats why I went to Canada, she told Reuters in a direct message before boarding her flight to Toronto. Qunun took a Korean Air flight from Bangkok to Seoul on Friday and then a connecting flight to Toronto. Also Read | Twitter campaign makes fight of Saudi teen seeking asylum a global cause Her case has drawn global attention to Saudi Arabias strict social rules, including a requirement that women have the permission of a male guardian to travel, which rights groups say can trap women and girls as prisoners of abusive families. Qunun arrived in Bangkok a week ago and was initially denied entry. But she soon started posting messages on Twitter from the transit area of Bangkoks Suvarnabhumi airport saying she had escaped Kuwait and her life would be in danger if forced to return to Saudi Arabia. Within hours, a campaign sprang up dubbed #SaveRahaf, spread on Twitter by a loose network of activists. Following a 48-hour stand-off at Bangkok airport, some of it barricaded in a transit lounge hotel room, she was allowed to enter the country and was processed as a refugee by the UNHCR. Saudi Arabias public prosecutor is investigating allegations that several prominent womens rights activists have been tortured in jail, according to three people familiar with the matter. The torture, including electric shocks and floggings, allegedly occurred over the summer at a secret detention facility in an unknown location, according to four people. The prosecutors office entered the picture after the governments Human Rights Commission conducted its own investigation, first reported by the Wall Street Journal. Prosecutors visited the activists in prison to take their testimony about physical and verbal abuse, as well as sexual harassment they say theyve endured since they were detained in May, people said. The Saudi governments Center for International Communication didnt respond to a request for comment. In November, the media ministry had called the allegations -- reported at the time by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch -- baseless and simply wrong. Crackdown on Dissent While Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is opening Saudi Arabia to foreign investment and has loosened social restrictions to grant women more rights, hes also cracked down on dissent, imprisoning dozens of critics across the political spectrum. The campaign turned deadly on October 2 with the murder of government critic Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. Khashoggis killing created an international uproar, though the government has vehemently denied that the prince played a role. The feminist activists, including Loujain Al Hathloul, Aziza Alyousef and Eman Alnafjan, had fought for years for Saudi womens rights, including the right to drive. They were arrested in May along with several male supporters shortly before the government lifted its longstanding ban on women driving. Authorities accused them of collaborating with unspecified foreign entities hostile to the kingdom, and local newspapers called them traitors. Waterboarding In an opinion piece in The New York Times on Sunday, Alia Al Hathloul confirmed that a prosecutor had visited her sister in jail to take testimony. Separately, Loujain Al Hathloul told her parents she had been held in solitary confinement, beaten, waterboarded, given electric shocks, sexually harassed and threatened with rape and murder, her sister wrote. My parents then saw that her thighs were blackened by bruises. After the killing of Mr. Khashoggi, Saudi Arabia argued that occasionally officials make mistakes and misuse their power, she added. Yet we are still waiting for justice. In an interview with Bloomberg in October, Prince Mohammed said Saudi authorities had videos and recordings that showed the activists were working with foreign intelligence agencies and being paid money to leak. He invited reporters to visit the prosecutors office to review the evidence against them but authorities havent granted multiple requests for access. Last month, one of the male detainees -- an 80-year-old lawyer who had previously represented Al-Hathloul -- was freed, giving hope to some Saudi activists that the government could release others. Comedian Kapil Sharma is finally back in his old groove. Saturdays episode of The Kapil Sharma Show reminded viewers of all the fun he and his team of actors used to have on the show in the first season. Kapil welcomed actors Vicky Kaushal and Yami Gautam on the show in the latest episode. They were there to promote their latest film, Uri. Irrespective of the serious tone of their film, Vicky and Yami had great fun and rolled with laughter through the show. Vicky Kaushal and Yami Gautam dance as Kapil Sharma sings in the latest episode of The Kapil Sharma Show. Here are the five best moments from the episode: 1. Kapil recalls his time in Amsterdam During his recent hiatus from television, Kapil spent a few days in Amsterdam. On Saturdays episode, he recounted a funny story from when he was refused entry in a movie theatre in Amsterdam, which was screening Vicky and Ranbir Kapoors film, Sanju. He said that him and his friend had bought the tickets and arrived early for the show. They decided to grab a snack but got a little late for the movie, which had started by then. The two were refused entry into the movie theatre for coming late but Kapils friend had an idea. They found a picture of Ranbir and Kapil together and told the security personnel that Kapil was the films producer. He then let them in. 2. Vicky indulges his female fans in their weird requests Kapil called a few of Vickys young female fans on stage and asked them what they wanted to say or do with Vicky. All of them had the weirdest requests. One wanted to put Vickys head in her lap while Kapil sang a lullaby, another wanted him to give her a head massage, one wanted to share a coconut with him and one asked him to pick her up and leave her on the other side of the stage. Vicky indulged all of them in their requests. 3. Kapil asks Yami why she didnt come to his wedding reception The comedian roasted Yami for not coming to his recent wedding reception. She said that she couldnt come because she was promoting her film Uri. Vicky called her out for lying, saying that he too was a part of the film but he made it. She gave him a whack and explained that one of them had to be working so it was decided that she should be the one. 4. Kapil roasts Chandan and his Daimumma Kapil roasted his favorite target on show, Chandan Prabhakar, yet again. He shared a mean joke about how Chandan would oil himself up while he robbed people so no one would be able to get a hold of him. Having had enough of his mean jibes, Chandan asked him why he was so concerned with how he oils his body. Aap kya meri daimumma ho?, he said and made everyone laugh. He perhaps wanted to say daiamma but it was already to late. Kapil and Vicky teased him for it through the rest of his bit. 5. Kiku Sharda cracks more lame puns Kiku Sharda returned as Baccha Yadav on the show to crack more of his bad jokes. He asked Yami how she is and she replies she is fine. He said he was asking if she was sweet, salty or sour. When asked why he was asking all this, he said because she is yummy. He cracked a few for Vicky as well. He also what it would be called if he made friends with two men. Vicky Do Nar, he said. He asked Vicky what his future generations will be called. Vicky Pedia. Do what you must with that information. Follow @htshowbiz for more The Borivli national park has strengthened efforts for its ambitious captive breeding programme for rusty-spotted cats the worlds smallest wild cats. In order to train its forest staff, Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) has invited Neville Buck, head of the small carnivore section at the Aspinall Foundation, Port Lympne Wild Animal Park in Kent, United Kingdom, to conduct a training programme for staff from January 28 to 30. Our attempt is to update this breeding programme to international standards and follow Central Zoo Authority guidelines, said Anwar Ahmed, director and chief conservator of forest, SGNP (see box). Endemic to India, Sri Lanka and areas along the Indo-Nepal border, the rusty-spotted cats are the smallest wild cat species in the world protected under schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. SGNP currently has seven rusty spotted cats four male and three female kept together in captivity next to the tiger enclosure. Of the seven, three (two females and a male) are two-month-old kittens rescued in December after they were abandoned by their mother at a farm near a village in Mawal area, Pune, and brought to SGNP. The remaining cats are much older, with three males aged 10 and one female aged 11. These cats have a lifespan of 12 to 14 years. While all the cubs are healthy, the male kitten has a complication related to loss of vision and in coordination due to a nervine disorder, said Dr Shailesh Pethe, veterinarian, SGNP. This fresh exercise to improve captive breeding efforts will surely help not only for small cats but tiger, leopard and lion breeding in the future as Buck has expertise in this, said Pethe. This is not the first time experts from abroad have come to the park to assist the forest department in their captive breeding programme. Experts from Stuttgart, Germany, had visited the park in 2014 and had suggested that inbreeding practices should be avoided and ensuring the cats were happy was of prime importance. However, no major results were seen at the time. This is probably the first such programme in the country and we need to have patience to see it through, said Ahmed. Makar Sankranti is a Hindu festival that shall be celebrated on January 14, 2019. Makar (Capricorn) is a Hindu zodiac sign and Sankranti means to change direction. The festival has different names in different states, even though it is celebrated on the same day. It is referred to as Pedda Panduga in Andhra Pradesh, Makar Sankranti in Karnataka, Magh Bihu in Assam, Magha Mela in parts of central and north India and Pongal in Tamil Nadu. B083F2SCK9 Here are a few wishes and messages which you can share with friends and family to wish them on this auspicious day: Makar Sankranti Messages: Wishing you and your family loads of happiness and sweet surprises this Makar Sankranti! May your life is blessed with love. May your life be blessed with Lakshmi May your life be blessed with happiness. Happy Makar Sankranti! Makar Sankranti quotes: A beautiful, bright and delighted day, sun entered makar to intense the ray. crop harvested to cheer the smiles, come together and enjoy the life. Kites flying high to touch the happiness, til mangled with sweet to spread sweetness. Time to enjoy the moment with full intensity Very happy prosperous Makar Sankranti Makar Sankranti wishes: Our thoughts hold the power to build, bend or break our circumstances. Best wishes of Makar Sankranti Warm wishes for you and your family for Makar Sankranti. B075GWM96G Sending my heartfelt wishes to you and your family for a happy and blessed Makar Sankranti! The harvest festival is here. May you have a wonderful Makar Sankranti. Happy Makar Sankranti! Warm wishes for a Makar Sankranti filled with sweet moments you will cherish forever! Happy Makar Sankranti! Wishing that the rising sun of Makar Sankranti fills your life with bright and happy moments. May the light of the sun fill your life with rays of joys on the auspicious occasion of Makar Sankranti! May the sun radiate peace, prosperity, and happiness in your life on Makar Sankranti and always. Happy Makar Sankranti! Hope you always soar high just like the colourful kites that dot the sky! Happy Makar Sankranti! At Hindustan Times, we help you stay up-to-date with latest trends and products. Hindustan Times has affiliate partnership, so we may get a part of the revenue when you make a purchase. Makar Sankranti photos: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will address party workers and leaders today to set the tone for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Thackerays speech at the conclave of the Senas Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti (SLS) Mahasangh is expected to give an indication of his partys position on an alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and will also give a direction to party workers. The SLS is a key Sena body, which turns 45 this year, and the conclave is aimed to mobilise the office-bearers of the Mahasangh before the general elections. The SLS has 350 units with members in Central government organisations, Central government undertakings, state government bodies, nationalised banks, insurance sector, oil companies, and railways port, among others. The SLS started as a movement to seek employment for the sons of the soil in the state, but it also aides the Sena in electioneering before polls. Thackeray is expected to address around 10,000 people of the Mahasangh today on the way forward for the party, according to Gajanan Kirtikar, president of the SLS Mahasangh. Those affiliated with the SLS spread the word about the party and its work, strengthen our election machinery, they visit peoples houses to understand their issues and challenges. Uddhavjis address to them is crucial this year as it is an election year. He is expected to give us a guideline to go about our planning, Kirtikar, who is also a member of parliament from Mumbai North West constituency, said. Anil Desai, Sena secretary and general secretary of SLS Mahasangh, said the Mahasangh has been instrumental in Senas political success. During elections, all these white collar workers go to the every corner of Maharashtra and carry out tasks assigned to them. They keep a low profile and work for the party. It has been helping the Shiv Sena in elections a lot, Desai said. He added that the SLS conducts surveys to understand the pulse of the people on the ground and then reports are submitted to Thackeray. Kirtikar said Thackeray is expected to reiterate the partys stand to go solo in the upcoming elections. Desai said, He will speak on the current political scenario. The recent happenings in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and what the BJP government is doing. A senior Sena leader said, He is unlikely to speak about the alliance. He will speak about it at an appropriate time. Sena criticises Modi govt over Alok Verma episode The Shiv Sena on Saturday targeted the Narendra Modi-government after the reinstated CBI director Alok Verma resigned. The Sena called the ouster of Verma as a panic reaction by the Central government that is facing allegation in the Rafale fighter jet deal. In an editorial titled the end of CBI in party mouthpiece Saamana, the Sena said that the government has set wrong precedents by denying Verma an opportunity to defend himself. Verma was reinstated on January 8 by the Supreme Court after he was divested of his powers and sent on administrative leave over corruption allegations three months back. Verma resigned a day after he was transferred from the position of CBI chief to director general, fire services, Civil Defence and Home Guards under the home ministry. Did the fear in the mind of some (people) that Verma would make a case against the government in the Rafale deal led to his immediate ouster? Sena asked. Stung by the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Partys (BSP) alliance in Uttar Pradesh that excluded the Congress, the grand old party today blamed the alliance for not taking all secular parties together and announced that it would contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like Congress emerged the number 1 party in Uttar Pradesh in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, well fight on our own and win twice the number of seats in the upcoming elections, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said at a press conference in Lucknow. The Congress had won two seats in Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections while SP won five. The BSP drew a blank. Watch: Congress says will fight from 80 seats of UP in 2019 elections On Saturday, BSP chief Mayawati and SP president Akhilesh Singh Yadav announced that their parties would contest 38 seats each and leave out two seats Amethi and Rae Bareily for the Congress. The remaining two seats would be left for other allies. Mayawati said her party never gained from an alliance with the Congress and held it responsible for the plight of backward castes. Referring to the Congress 2017 alliance with the SP for the UP assembly elections, Azad said, We didnt break this alliance, people should know that. We had said earlier too that were ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we cant force anyone. Theyve (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so well continue this fight for defeating BJP on our own. Azad asked partymen to stop infighting and gear up for polls. Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said in Dubai that his party would fight the elections in the state alone with its full capacity. BSP and SP made a political decision. Its on us on how to strengthen the Congress in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity, he said at a press conference. Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday taunted BJP chief Amit Shah saying no one can thrash his party even as he demanded that the Income Tax (IT) exemption limit be hiked to Rs 8 lakh on the lines of the reservation quota for the economically weaker sections (EWS). Thackeray, who was addressing the conclave of the Senas Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti (SLS) Mahasangh, said it was a paradox that the income limit for reservation has been set at Rs 8 lakh by the Modi government but the tax exemption slab stood at Rs 2.5 lakh. Modi should raise this exemption limit to Rs 8 lakh to give relief to the middle class. I have asked Sena MPs to raise this demand, he sai. Responding to BJP president Amit Shah, who had remarked last week that allies who dont join the alliance for the Lok Sabha polls will get thrashed, Thackeray said, The one who will thrash Sena has still not taken birth in this world. Those who tried to mess with us in the past have already seen the result. He also hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said it was imperative to have a strong country instead of having just a strong government. In his address at the BJPs national executive meet on Saturday, the PM had said that the country would prefer a stronger, a majboot sarkar instead of a majboor sarkar. Thackeray was also caustic in his criticism of the central government on the Ram temple issue, especially on Prime Minister Modis statement that he would wait for the Supreme Courts verdict. Why is the BJP seeking votes in the name of the Ram temple when the matter is still in court? Was there not a court case when the Babri Masjid was demolished? he asked. He asserted that he had taken up the Ram temple issue ahead of the forthcoming elections to expose the BJP. He also slammed the BJP for unfairly blaming the Congress for creating hurdles in the construction of the Ram temple. Why blame the Congress when the BJPs own allies like Nitish Kumar and Ram Vilas Paswan are opposed to the temple? he said. He said that the Congress was thrown out of power due to this issue and the BJP with its clear majority can easily build the temple. The Sena has continued its acerbic criticism of ally BJP ahead of the 2019 polls even as the party has held informal seat sharing talks with the latter. Both the saffron parties are currently unsure whether the talks will lead to a pact with Thackeray refusing to tone down his criticism. Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav met Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati in Lucknow on Sunday to congratulate her on stitching an alliance with the Samajwadi Party for the coming Lok Sabha elections. He is likely to meet SP chief Akhilesh Yadav later. Tejashwi met Mayawati at her residence on Sunday night and discussed the present political situation in the country. Laluji wanted grand alliance in Uttar Pradesh and Mayawatiji and Akhilesh Yadav to contest election together, he told reporters outside Lucknow airport before his meeting with the BSP chief. After meeting with Mayawati, Tejashwi Yadav also claimed that the BJP will be whitewashed in UP and Bihar Theres atmosphere today where they want to scrap Baba Sahebs constitution and implement Nagpur laws. People have welcomed step taken by Mayawati ji and Akhilesh ji. The BJP will be whitewashed in UP and Bihar. They wont win even 1 seat in UP, SP-BSP alliance will win all seats, said Tejashwi Yadav. Tejashwi, who is Bihars leader of opposition, also alleged that his father and RJD chief Lalu Yadav was behind bars because he did not surrender before PM Narendra Modi. Read | Congress to contest all 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh in 2019 Lok Saha polls At the same time, he said: I dont have any grudge against Modi ji. It is a fight for ideology. He also alleged that there was undeclared emergency in the country and efforts were being made to abolish reservation system. Cases were filed against me when I was just 14-15 year old and did not even have moustaches. My uncle Nitish Kumar ( Bihar CM) was also behind lodging of these cases, he said. Soon after the formal announcement of the BSP-SP alliance on Saturday, Tejashwi had welcomed the new combination calling it a formidable alliance, which would pave the way for complete rout of the BJP in Uttar Pradesh where the saffron party is in power. Out of total 80 seats, the BJP had won 71 while its ally Apna Dal bagged two seats in the 2014 parliamentary election. Referring to the SP-BSP alliance, Tejashwi had underlined that the alliance was first envisaged by his father, after the regional parties in Bihar and UP had suffered electoral setback in 2014 polls due to various factors including PM Narendra Modis soaring popularity in the Hindi hinterland. Also Read | SP-BSP poll alliance: RLD likely to wait and watch before making any move According to sources, the RJD chief, jailed in Ranchi after being convicted in fodder scam cases but currently undergoing treatment at RIMS, Ranchi, is happy with the SP-BSP alliance. Both Lalu and Tejashwi feel it would bolster the partys traditional vote bank among backward classes and minorities in both UP and Bihar and help in fighting the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which is banking heavily on religious polarisation, the sources added. The RJDs first family shares familial ties with the Samajwadi Partys first family. RJD chiefs youngest daughter Raj Lakhsmi is married to Mulayams grandnephew Tej Pratap Singh Yadav, who is a Samajwadi Party MP from Mainpuri constituency. The Congress on Sunday announced its decision to contest all 80 Uttar Pradesh seats in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and said it was willing to accommodate secular forces, a day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) said they were tying up in the state without the Rahul Gandhi-led party in the fold. SP president Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati on Saturday declared an alliance for the general elections, in which each will contest 38 seats in Uttar Pradesh, leaving two for smaller allies, and staying away from the Gandhi family bastions of Amethi and Rae Bareli. Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party was ready to take on board any secular force that was capable of challenging the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He said the Congress president will hold at least 13 election campaign rallies in the state. We wanted the Congress to be a part of the grand alliance [against the BJP] in Uttar Pradesh. But if someone does not want to walk along, nothing can be done, Azad told reporters after a meeting of Congress leaders to discuss the partys strategy following the SP-BSP combines announcement. The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh and defeat the BJP, he said. If any party is willing to accompany the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will definitely be accommodated, Azad added. In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the SP won five seats, while the BSP failed to win any. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) got 71 seats and its ally Apna Dal two seats out of the total 80. Also read: SP-BSP alliance will put up a strong fight in Lok Sabha polls, says BJP ally Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party The Congress won Rae Bareli and Amethi held by United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. In the 2017 assembly polls, SP and BSP got 22% votes each while the BJP got 42.6% votes, winning 312 of the total 403 seats. The SP and BSP chose not to include the Congress in their battle against the BJP, saying that there is no real gain in aligning with the party. Congress party rule hasnt benefitted anyone. Theres no real vote transfer from Congress and hence no real gain from aligning with Congress. We wont ally with any party which will hurt our political ambitions, Mayawati said. A day after his joint news conference with Mayawati, Yadav said the alliance has unnerved the BJP so much that the partys demoralised and desperate leaders and workers now want to join the SP and BSP. Responding to questions over being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, Azad said: The Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the party would have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contesting on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Azad accused the BJP of dividing the country for power and said that the saffron party failed to fulfil its poll promises. The coming Lok Sabha election is a battle to unite India and safeguard the democratic values, he said. Reacting to the Congresss announcement, UP BJP spokesperson Chandramohan said: The fear of the BJP and Modiji is making the opposition nervous. Be it Congress or the rest, they are really worried and we understand their desperation. Shortly after the Congress press conference in Lucknow, Shivpal Singh Yadav said his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSPL) was ready to form an alliance with the Congress in Uttar Pradesh. Shivpal Yadav has parted ways with the Akhilesh Yadav-led SP, forming his own political outfit. No alliance can defeat the BJP without support from the PSPL, the Bahujan Mukti Party and our other allies. We are ready to form an alliance with other secular parties to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections and oust it from power at the Centre, Yadav told ANI. SK Dwivedi, a former professor at Lucknow University, said: SP, BSP and Congress should have come together for larger impact of alliance. As the SP-BSP alliance and Congress will contest the poll separately, the non-BJP votes will be divided and may not have the desired impact. (With inputs from agencies) Congress leaders sought Pakistans help to remove the Prime Minister, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while moving a political resolution on the second day of the Bharatiya Janata Partys (BJP) two-day national council meeting. She did not elaborate. A comical alliance, mahagathbandhan of desperate, contradictory and opportunistic political formations is being attempted to take on the Prime Minister, BJP and NDA, the resolution said. It added that the alliance has neither an agenda on what it will do for India and its people, nor a leader, and that the glue holding it together is a shared hatred for Narendra Modi. The BJP said the India of 2019 is not the India of the 1990s where the longevity of the Union Government comprising these desperate and opportunistic elements ranged from four months to one year. Read | Oppn wants a majboor govt, we will provide a mazboot one: PM Modi The choice today is between stability and instability: effective governance or desperate mal-governance; a well-respected leader like Narendra Modi being opposed by an opportunistic alliance whose leader is unknown, read the resolution. The party appealed to people, especially first-time voters, to participate in the coming elections with full enthusiasm and support the vision of Modi to make India a great country. The resolution said the crackdown on corruption has been one of the biggest changes under the Modi government. The previous Congress-led UPA government set new records in terms of corruption scandals, the resolution added, and in comparison, there is not one allegation of corruption against Narendra Modi government. That is why in a desperate attempt to put at least one blemish on the clean governance provided by Narendra Modi, the Congress Party concocted the lies about Rafale. The falsehood propagated by the Congress party in this connection was also repudiated by the Government of France, the resolution said. Sitharaman asked BJP workers to create awareness about the governments achievements, especially that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has provided a corruption-free five years and that no major terror attack has taken place during this period. Sitharaman added that under Modis leadership, the defence forces conducted surgical strikes across the border and instead of commending them, the opposition wanted proof. We showed them the proof. And it was the same opposition some leaders of the Congress who went to Pakistan seeking help to remove Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This is the kind of dirty politics that the Congress plays. The resolution listed out several welfare programmes of the Modi government and said all this indicates the fulfilment of the promises made by the party and Prime Minister. Swachh Bharat became a mass movement under the Modi government, it said. Also Read | Very dangerous mistake to ignore us: Congress on proposed Akhilesh Yadav-Mayawati alliance The resolution also spoke about the constitutional status given to the National Commission of Backward Classes and the 10% reservation to economically weaker sections. It pointed out that the last has been achieved without affecting the existing reservations for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward classes. The speed and scale with which transformative changes are happening in railways, expansion of airports and air services, National Highways and rural roads and other infrastructural projects is also creating large scale employment opportunities, reads the resolution, adding that the PM has focused upon programmes to create employment opportunities in rural and urban areas. It claimed that 152.6 million small and very small businesses have got Rs 7.29 lakh crore as loans out which nearly 50% of beneficiaries have taken loans for the first time. This by itself created employment opportunities for millions, it said. Analysts have previously questioned some of these claims, pointing out that there is no record of such job creation and that the average loan amount, based on these numbers, works out to under Rs 50,000. The resolution also said the average speed of rural road construction has gone up from 69 km per day in 2013-14 to 134 km per day in 2017-18 with the expenditure on road construction increasing from Rs 32,483 in 2013-14 to Rs 1,16,324 in 2017-18. From the fragile five, India is the sixth largest economy in the world today, the BJP resolution said. Also Read | Very dangerous mistake to ignore us: Congress on proposed Akhilesh Yadav-Mayawati alliance The resolution also said demonetisation targeted the age-old problem of black money. The government took courageous decision such as the de-registration of 3.26 lakh shell companies, the resolution said, adding that the number of income tax payers who filed return in 2013-14 doubled from 38.2 million to 68.6 million in 2017-18. Income Tax collections, which were only Rs 6.38 lakh crore in 2013-14 increased to Rs 10.02 lakh crore in 2017-18. Reacting to the resolution, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari said, 2019 is not a battle between a majboor sarkar (helpless government) and a majboot sarkar (strong government). It is a fight between dictatorship and democracy. It is a struggle between bhashan (speech) and prashasan (administration) and it is going to be a test between jumlas qua an impeccable track record of service, which Congress has delivered over the years. Stung by the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Partys (BSP) alliance that excluded the Congress, the grand old party today blamed the alliance for not taking all secular parties together and announced that it would contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh. We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in upcoming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like Congress emerged number 1 party in Uttar Pradesh in 2009 Lok Sabha elections, well fight on our own and win twice those number of seats in upcoming elections, senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad who is in charge of U.P. said at a press conference in Lucknow. The Congress had won two seats in Uttar Pradesh in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections while the SP won five. On Saturday, BSP chief Mayawati and SP president Akhilesh Singh Yadav announced their parties would contest 38 seats each and leave out two seats Amethi and Rae Bareily - for the Congress. Mayawati said her party never gained from an alliance with the Congress and held it responsible for the plight of backward castes. Referring to the Congress 2017 alliance with the SP for the U.P. assembly elections, Azad said, We didnt break this alliance, public should know that. We had earlier also said that were ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat BJP. But we cant force anyone. Theyve (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so well continue this fight for defeating BJP on our own. Azad asked partymen to stop infighting and gear up for polls. Hours after the SP and the BSP announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said in Dubai his party would fight the elections in the state alone with its full capacity. BSP and SP have made a political decision. Its on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity, he said at a press conference. Every couple of months Surveer Singh, who fled religious persecution in Afghanistan, is torn between identity and livelihood. And his dilemma between fulfilling requirements for citizenship of his natural homeland, India, and holding on to a stable job refuses to end even after 27 years. The 33-year-old, who, along with his family of four, lives in Amritsar, says he is struggling to stay afloat as every other month he has to visit government offices and cut through red tape to continue living in his natural homeland. Surveer Singhs family had been living in Afghanistans restive Nangarhar province before his parents decided to move to India in 1992, when a wave of Hindus and Sikhs left Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the USSR and the arrival of Mujahideens. Being the sole bread-winner of the family, Surveer Singh, who earns his livelihood doing odd jobs, says though his family migrated to India at the same time, every person in his family has their visas and refugee certificates issued on different dates. As their citizenship application is caught in a bureaucratic maze, they need to visit government offices on a regular basis to maintain their papers. They have pleaded with several political leaders for getting the Indian citizenship but all they have got is assurances, he says. Since the papers expire every 12 months, I have to visit New Delhi once in two or three months along with one of my family members for renewals, Surveer Singh said, adding that he is sick of his shaky status in India. It is already very difficult to find a job as no one wants to employ refugees. Even if one secures a job, often low-paying ones, the need to visit New Delhi every other month frustrates employers who then look for staffers who need leave less, he said. The plight of immigrants from Pakistan and Afghanistan seeking to renew long-term visas and refugee certificates does not end here. They also have to find two Indian citizens who are ready to become their guarantors. After hearing that we are from Afghanistan, no one readies to become our guarantor. We continue to be nowhere people, he says. However, the Narendra Modi governments push for the Citizenship Amendment Bill has rekindled hopes of Surveer Singh and thousands of other refugees from Pakistan and Afghanistan. The proposed legislation seeks to amend the Citizenship Act of 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to people from minority communities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians -- from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan after six years of residence in India instead of 12 even if they dont possess any proper document. I request the government to pass the Bill as soon as possible, Surveer Singh said. Like him, Saran Singh said he wants a dignified life. The 50-year-old, who left his properties worth crores of rupees in Pakistan and reached Punjab in 1999 along with his family, says they were treated as second-class citizens in Pakistan. He lived in Pakistans Khyber Agency where militancy and religious persecution are rampant. He said militants would often coerce him and his family to convert to Islam if they want to be alive. So many women were kidnapped and forcibly converted to Islam. Also read: BJP leaders and migrants hopeful that Citizenship Bill will become law No one wants to marry our daughters and sons as people become suspicious once they get to know that we are from Pakistan. People say since you do not have the Indian citizenship, what would happen if the government decides to deport you? What would happen to the marriage? said Saran. We escaped religious persecution in Pakistan and reached India, our natural homeland, but here we are entangled in red tape and bureaucratic hurdle. Sometimes officials ask us to renew our Pakistani passports for which we have to risk our lives to visit Pakistan and get the papers issued, Saran said. When we were living in Pakistan, locals would say you are not Pakistanis as you are Hindus and Sikhs, and you must go to your country. While living in India, people say you are from Pakistan, Saran said. He requested the government to give them citizenship as soon as possible as the pain of living in India as refugees has been taking a huge toll on their lives. We have been facing a lot of hardships in our daily lives as one needs Aadhaar and voter identity cards for any work, Saran said. In the absence of papers, many refugees are even unable to educate their children, he claimed. The condition of refugees living in Punjab is worse as compared to those living in New Delhi as every time they apply for citizenship, their file gets stuck on the way and never reaches the capital. Also read: Citizenship Bill plunges Assam into political uncertainty ahead of Lok Sabha polls One of the biggest hurdles for the Pakistani refugees seeking the Indian citizenship is lack of paperwork. The government asks them to establish that their grandparents or parents were born in undivided India, Saran said. Finding proof that our grandparents or parents lived in undivided India is like finding a needle in haystack, he said. From a vibrant population of 2.20 lakh in Afghanistan, the number of Hindus and Sikhs have now come down to 5,000 now, according to estimates of India security agencies. The refugees have now pinned their hope on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, whose approval in pending in Rajya Sabha. They say the opposition parties should not protest against the bill and ensure its safe passage on humanitarian grounds. It is our last hope of leading a dignified life, one of them says. Justice AK Sikri withdrew his consent for a place on the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT) on Sunday, hours after a media report over his nomination to the London-based body sparked a political row. Justice Sikri voted with the government in a three-member committee to remove Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) chief Alok Verma last week. Second in seniority after Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi, justice Sikri was scheduled to join CSAT after his retirement on March 6, news website ThePrint reported. The decision to nominate him as president/member in the international body, which is the final arbiter of disputes between 53 member-countries, was taken by the Union government last month, it said. Reacting to the report, which came days after Verma was removed in a 2-1 vote by the selection committee, Congress treasurer Ahmed Patel tweeted: The government has a lot of explaining to do. Watch: Alok Verma removed as CBI chief A person familiar with the developments said that justice Sikri has conveyed the withdrawal of his consent for the job to the government on Sunday evening. Justice Sikris consent for the CSAT position by the government was taken in the first week of December, when even the judgment in the Alok Verma case was not pronounced. Moreover, justice Sikri did not know until today about the nomination. And the CSAT position is honorary and is not based out of London entirely, as the name suggests, the person said on condition of anonymity. The selection committee, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also had leader of the largest Opposition party in the Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Justice Sikri, who was nominated by CJI Gogoi after he recused himself following the apex courts judgment reinstating Verma as the chief of the investigating agency. Congress leader Kharge wrote a dissenting note while voting against Vermas removal, saying there were no grounds to penalise him. Verma quit on Friday without spending even a day at work as director general of fire services, civil defence and home guards, using his resignation letter to complain that he had been denied natural justice by the high-level panel that removed him based on a report by the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC). Hours after the report on justice Sikris nomination to CSAT, political leaders and law experts questioned the move by the government. With Judges, post retirement, accepting positions as governors of states and other plum positions, their neutrality is now becoming seriously questionable. Did this influence the Honble Justice Sikri decision making in the Alok Verma case? Karnataka Congress chief Dinesh Gundu Rao tweeted. Eminent lawyer Indira Jaising said: Justice Sikri should have disclosed this before he sat on the committee as the nominee of the Chief Justice of India, the decision is vitiated for this reason also, and the post requires high moral character? Where is the constitutional morality? According to the websites report, Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad wrote to CJI Gogoi last month, apprising him of the external affairs ministrys decision to nominate justice Sikri to the post and seeking his consent. CJI Gogoi replied to the government in the affirmative after checking with justice Sikri, the report added. To be sure, last May, justice Sikri had led a Supreme Court bench that ordered an immediate floor test in Karnataka after the assembly election resulted in a fractured mandate, cancelling the 15-day window given by the governor to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The BJP, the single-largest party, had staked claim to form the government in the state. The day-old BS Yeddyurappa government later resigned in the absence of a majority, paving the way for a Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) coalition to come to power. Infighting in the countrys premier investigating agency came into public focus last year after Verma and CBI special director Rakesh Asthana engaged in an unprecedented feud in which they traded allegations of corruption against each other. The two were divested of their responsibilities later. Verma was stripped of his powers as CBI director and sent on forced leave by the government later on October 23, reinstated conditionally by the Supreme Court on January 9 this year, and two days later ousted from the agency and reassigned to the new job by the three-member committee. He later resigned from the new post, weeks before his tenure was set to end on January 31. The Modi governments Citizenship Amendment Bill, which seeks to give citizenship rights to non-Muslims from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, has plunged Assam into turmoil, creating an unprecedented common ground for bitter political rivals, the Congress and the Asam Gana Parishad (AGP), leaders of both parties said. The open overtures from the Congress, including from former chief minister Tarun Gogoi, on at least two occasions, suggest possibilities of potential new political fronts in the future. At present, however, the common ground, leaders of both parties said, is limited to resisting the bill. Given Assams political equations, the Congress and the regionalist AGP, once a political giant, have been bitter foes but the citizenship bill has found them speaking in a similar voice. The Congress has even said the AGP should join forces with it. Ripun Bora, the chief of Assams Congress unit, said he doesnt rule out a political understanding in the future. Bora, also a Rajya Sabha MP, said: Depending on the situation and the cause of Assam we can have political talks with them (AGP). In politics nothing is impossible, in politics everything can happen, politics is the compulsion of the situation, if situation demands then we will think it out, he added in an interview. Depending on the situation and depending on the cause of Assam, we can have talks with them (AGP)..., we can work together. Asked about the possibility of the two parties coming together, AGP leader Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, a former chief minister and the architect of the 1985 Assam Accord, said: The only common ground now is that the citizenship bill violates clause 6 of the Assam Accord and is against the popular wishes of Assamese people. He said all future course of action will be decided by his partys central committee, which he has urged to be convened immediately. The widely cited Clause 6 of the accord states that the identity of Assamese people will be accorded constitutional safeguard. Mahanta said he had floated the idea that the strategy now ought to be that all organisations and parties should come on a common platform that should be led by the All Assam Students Union (AASU). AASU is an influential mass students body that has a unit in every educational institution, from schools to colleges, across Assam. Bora, an economist by training, was once part of AASU , the same outfit that led a six-year anti-foreigners agitation in the 1980s and which gave birth to the AGP. He joined the Congress soon after that period and is a former state minister. Foreigners in Assam is commonly used to refer to immigrants from Bangladesh. Asked if this is the first instance of the Congress willing to work together with AGP, Bora added: There is no political talks at all present. Yes, this is not a political alliance but (willingness to work) on one particular issue. We are different in our approach, they are regional (party), our approach is national, so that difference is there. On November 26, 2018, former Congress chief minister Tarun Gogoi, in a televised press conference , made an explicit overture to the AGP. I want the AGP to live on. I want that both of us should fight the BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) together. At the time, the AGP was part of the present BJP-led Assam government, which it quit following the BJPs formal push to the bill in Parliament. The AGP has 14 seats in the 126-member state assembly. The BJP has 62 and its partner, the Bodoland Peoples Front 12. Of the 14 Lok Sabha seats in Assam, the BJP has seven. The party was looking to make gains in Assam and the other Northeastern states in the 2019 elections, party president Amit Shah has said repeatedly, including in a late 2017 interview to HT. The push for the citizenship bill could hurt those ambitions, analysts say. The popular Assamese sentiment is that unabated immigration from Bangladesh threatens local culture and language a classic identity-based battle against settlers from that country. The Assam agitation led to the signing of the Assam Accord between the AASU and the central government. Anybody residing in Assam prior to March 25 1971, regardless of religion or language, qualifies to be a citizen of India, according to that accord. Clause 6 says constitutional safeguards to the people of Assam. What does this mean...reservation of seats in assembly, parliament, acquiring property, land etc. This clause will be applicable only to people who came prior to 1971, so now the Hindu Bengalis they (BJP) want to give citizenship who came after 1971, these people wont get these facilities and benefits. They will only get voting rights. So what is the motive? Bora asked. Not everyone is convinced the AGP will partner with the Congress. A lot of speculation is going on about this. According to me, it is unlikely that AGP and Congress could come together in the near-term as the AGP may lose credibility because it has always stood for an ideology that has been the opposite of the Congress, said Prof Naba Jyoti Bora, a political analyst who teaches in Pandu College here. The professor also said that the citizenship bill will hit the BJP in some pockets and gain them votes too but the net impact isnt clear at this stage. A class 8 student delivered a child at a tribal residential school hostel in Odishas Kandhamal district on Sunday months after she was allegedly raped, a police officer said. Officials said an alleged attempt of the school authorities, who could not be immediately reached, to hush up the matter failed after they were forced to rush the girl to a nearby hospital after she delivered the baby in a toilet at the hostel. Residents gathered outside the school and blocked a national highway after learning about the delivery. The blockade was removed after police detained a man for allegedly sexually assaulting the girl. The girl was raped eight months ago when she had gone to her village. She did not report the ordeal due to fear and shame. The main accused has been arrested, said Kandhamal police superintendent Pratik Singh. The condition of the girl and her baby was reported to be stable. Authorities dismissed six hostel employees for their failure to report the matter. The school headmistress was also questioned at a local police station. The alleged sexual abuse has come to light over a year after the headmaster of a girls school in tribal-dominated Koraput district was in October 2017 arrested for allegedly raping and impregnating a class 9 student. A cook at a residential school in Malkangiri district was arrested three months earlier in July 2017 over allegations of impregnating an 11-year-old girl after sexually abusing her repeatedly. State SC and ST development minister Ramesh Majhi said: The government is concerned over the safety and security of girl students and stern action will be taken against those found guilty. In 2015, over 20 cases of teen pregnancies were reported in tribal schools across the state, according to officials. When tribal girls are not safe at a girls hostel, why the government has established such residential schools? said local BJP leader Netra Manseth. A day after two militants were killed in Kulgam, protesters clashed with security forces Sunday during the funeral of one of the militants in Jammu and Kashmirs Shopian district. Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umer condemned the clash in which seven civilians were injured. Stone-pelting youngsters clashed with the security forces in Sugan village, from which hailed al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam who was killed in a gunfight with the security forces along with his accomplice Shakeel Ahmad Dar. The security forces on Sunday fired in the air to disperse the protesters who resorted to violence while marching to attend the funeral of the militant commander, a police officer said. Police said the injured protesters, including one who suffered a bullet wound, is critical in a hospital. Mehbooba said in a statement: Reports of aerial firing ... are very unfortunate and disturbing. Such interference in the religious affairs is undesirable and may backfire, leading to further anger and alienation. Use of brutal force on the martyrs funeral is not only un-Islamic and undemocratic but contrary to human values, tweeted Umer. Meanwhile, police revealed that Zeenat was carrying a ~12 lakh reward on his head. Zeenat had a long history of terror crimes since 2006. It added he was earlier affiliated with the Hizbul Mujahideen. Zeenat allegedly helped militants as an over ground worker before his arrest in 2008. He got married upon his release in 2010 before joining LeT in 2015. He then switched to the HM. Zeenat is believed to have been behind a 2017 ambush in which three soldiers were killed. (With inputs from agencies) The 1983 murder case of Dr Sudarshan Kumar Trehan, a renowned doctor of Patti in Tarn Taran, was hushed up due to a police-politician nexus that helped one of the accused, Virsa Singh Valtoha (who went on to become a two-time Akali MLA) hoodwink the law enforcement agencies for decades, an HT investigation has revealed. Dr Trehan was murdered in his Patti clinic on September 30, 1983. An FIR in the murder case was registered against unidentified persons the same day. A year later, police took on remand Hardev Singh, who was then lodged in the Nabha jail in other criminal cases. During interrogation, Hardev confessed that he, along with Baldev Singh and Valtoha, were behind Trehans murder. On the basis of his confession, Valtoha was named as an accused. Although Valtoha was arrested from the Golden Temple during Operation Bluestar in 1984 and was detained in the Jodhpur and Tihar jails, the police in the Dr Trehan murder case surprisingly told the court that he was absconding and they could not arrest him despite their all-out efforts. A document dated November 7, 1984, that the Patti police submitted seeking arrest warrants against Valtoha, says he is absconding to evade arrest. The police on the basis of false submissions got Valtohas arrest warrants issued and later the court ordered them to comply with Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to set in motion legal procedure before declaring an absconding accused a proclaimed offender. Surprisingly, posters were posted at Valtohas residence and an announcement was made at his village asking him to surrender in the court knowing fully well that he was lodged in jail. The whole process was a mockery of justice as the accused was in jail. These actions of police helped him get bail, said advocate RS Bains of the Punjab Human Rights Organisation which has submitted a complaint to the inspector general of police (border range Amritsar) SPS Parmar in the case. As if all this was not enough, the challan was never presented in the case against Valtoha and the case files went missing from the Patti police station. No inquiry was conducted in this regard too. As per the procedure, the munshi, the station house officer and the gazetted police official concerned have to submit quarterly reports regarding files and case property of cases. Surprisingly, no official pointed out the disappearance of murder case file, advocate Bains said. A copy of the FIR (number 346) dated September 9,1983, under Sections 302, 307, 452 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code mentions Valtoha to be a proclaimed offender. While Valtoha managed to get bail in the case in February 1991 from district sessions judge JS Sidhu, no supplementary challan was ever submitted, case file records procured from the court reveal. On the other hand, police and intelligence agencies cleared Valtohas applications for passport, arms licence and security. In fact, the court in its orders while acquitting Hardev Singh and Baldev Singh (who got their trial separated) in the case in November 1990, said, According to the prosecution version, Dr Trehan was administering glucose to Sukhjinder Kaur but she has not been cited as witness, not to speak of producing her as a witness. Because when Dr Trehan was attending on her, she must have also witnessed the occurrence. Advocate Bains demanded that Valtohas election to the state assembly twice based on the fraudulent documents should be held null and void to preserve the sanctity of such an institution. He also demanded action against the police officials involved in irregularities leading to non-presentation of the charge sheet against Valtoha in the court. Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) president K Chandrasekhar Rao returned as chief minister last December powered by a slew of welfare schemes implemented during his first stint. The same schemes are, however, expected to create a huge burden on the state exchequer as they have raised expectations that they will either be upgraded or extended to more people. For instance, there is a proposal to hike the amount of financial assistance being provided to nearly 57 lakh farmers under the Rythu Bandhu scheme, which earned the TRS much goodwill in the December 7 assembly elections. Such a move will likely increase the governments annual burden to Rs 15,000 crore from Rs 12,000 crore, according to official estimates. Likewise, the CM has promised to double pension for senior citizens, the differently abled, widows and single women, the schemes having been a big factor in the TRS poll victory. Not just that, he has promised to reduce the age limit for old-age pension from 60 to 57 years. This will likely increase the annual expenditure on pensions from Rs 11,600 crore to nearly Rs 25,000 crore. The TRS also promised to waive crop loans up to Rs 1 lakh. During KCRs earlier stint, such waivers cost the government about Rs 17,000 crore. The estimate is that this time, too, the waivers will cost the exchequer the same amount, if not more. The quantum of outstanding loans is being assessed, a senior government official said, declining to be named. Several ongoing welfare schemes will continue, KCR has said. These include the Kalyan Lakshmi and Shadi Mubarak schemes that have a total annual allocation of Rs 1,450 crore in the 2018-19 budget; the sheep distribution scheme that costs Rs 5,000 crore; the Rs 600-crore KCR Kits scheme, under which essentials are provided to a mother and her new born; and Rythu Bima (life insurance for farmers) that requires Rs 976 crore. The government will also have to fulfil its promise of constructing two-bedroom houses for the poor at a cost of Rs 17,660 crore, apart from completing the Rs 80,000 crore Kaleshwaram lift irrigation scheme and the Rs 40,000 crore Mission Bhagiratha scheme to provide drinking water to every household. The TRS has also promised unemployment allowance from the next financial year. Other promises include filling up around 70,000 vacancies in government jobs and raising the retirement age of employees from 58 to 61 years. The government is also expected to hike salaries as per the recommendation of the pay revision commission, but how much it will cost has yet to be ascertained. Financial experts much fiscal prudence will be required to implement all these schemes. According to the first full-fledged budget of the state government presented in March 2015, the estimated revenue surplus is only Rs 531 crore. Yet, the government started implementing its welfare schemes. According to E Revathi, a professor of economics at the Centre for Economic and Social Studies, KCR could implement the schemes without much difficulty because revenues from Hyderabad and its surrounding districts of Ranga Reddy and Medak could be spent within Telangana. In the combined Andhra Pradesh, the revenues from Hyderabad were being siphoned off to other regions, she said. As per the Telangana State Economic Survey, Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy and Medak accounted for about 45% of the Gross State Domestic Product, which has been growing at an average of 9%. Telanganas GSDP at current prices increased from Rs 5,05,849 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 7,32,657 crore in 2017-18. There has been a consistent growth in state revenues, particularly from excise due to huge increase in liquor sales, stamps and registration due to a spurt in real estate activity and share in the GST. This enabled the TRS government to spend on welfare schemes and also infrastructure projects, K Muthyam Reddy, retired professor in economics from Osmania University, said. Reddy, however, added that the state government had borrowed indiscriminately to take up flagship schemes like Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya, as well as the irrigation projects. According to budgetary figures, outstanding borrowings went up from Rs 70,000 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 1.7 lakh crore in 2017-18. Debt servicing on the loans shot up from Rs 7,557.50 crore in 2015-16 to Rs 11,138.60 crore in 2017-18. It is expected to go up to Rs 22,280 crore by the next assembly elections. The financial adviser to the Telangana government, G R Reddy, said the successful implementation of welfare schemes was a fact and people were getting benefits. How the government could implement has been reflected in the governments budget documents. There is no secret about it, he said, refusing to elaborate further. Telangana Congress spokesman Syed Nizamuddin said the TRS government would need about Rs 2.5 lakh crore per year. With the present revenue from all sources being less than Rs 1.5 lakh per annum, clarity was needed on how the huge deficit of over Rs 1 lakh crore would be covered, he said. Will the TRS government borrow more funds to run the state? Will it increase taxes? he asked, and demanded that the government bring out a white paper. Releasing a commemorative coin to mark the birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised the issue of Kartarpur corridor during his speech on Sunday. He said that the followers of Guru Nanak wont have to look through a telescope for a darshan of Gurdwara Darbar Sahib. Through Kartarpur corridor, Sikh devotees will be able to make visa-free pilgrimage to Darbar Sahib in Narowal, Pakistan, on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, he said. At the same time he said that the Kartarpur corridor was an atonement for the mistake made in August 1947 at the time of Partition. The gurdwara was just a few kilometres away but it was not brought in India. Building the Kartarpur corridor is an attempt to recompense that loss. It is an act of repentance for the mistake that happened in August 1947, he said. Releasing the Rs 350 commemorative coin in honour of Guru Gobind Singh, the PM said that the verses of the Guru were an inspiration and the simple expression of our lives. Just like him (Guru Gobind Singh, his poetry is also multi-faceted and covers many difference subjects, the PM said. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was also present at the release of the commemorative coin on Sunday. Modi also said that the BJP government would ensure that justice was provided to all sisters and mothers who were victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu and Union ministers Hardeep Singh Puri and Harsimrat Kaur Badal had attended the foundation stone laying ceremony of the corridor in Kartarpur. The event had also raised a controversy when photographs of Navjot Singh Sidhu posing with Khalistani leader Gopal Singh Chawla had gone viral. Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh had refused to attend the ceremony in Punjab citing terrorist attacks by Pakistan-backed militants in India. The government is set to clear the construction of 44 strategically important roads along the India-China border as New Delhi has sharpened its focus on ramping up border infrastructure to counter Beijing, according to the Central Public Works Department (CPWD)s 2018-19 annual report. The roads in Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh are expected to be built at cost of around Rs 21,040 crore, the report adds. The detailed project reports (DPRs) for the roads, which are aimed at swifter mobilisation of troops, have been submitted to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-headed Cabinet Committee on Security for approval. The construction work is expected to be split between the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and the CPWD, two government officials said on condition of anonymity. BRO and CPWD are currently engaged in the construction of 73 strategic roads measuring 4,643 km along the India-China border. The BRO, which comes under the defence ministry, is constructing 61 of these roads. The CPWD is building the remaining 12. All efforts to improve infrastructure along the border are most welcome. These projects will be helpful for both military and civilian purposes, said Lieutenant General SL Narasimhan (retd), who commanded a corps in the North-East and is currently a National Security Advisory Board member. Twenty-two foot tracks measuring 750 km are also in the works to support the movement of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel in forward areas of Arunachal Pradesh, the report said. They are likely to cost 1,275 crore. Projects along the India-China border form the bulk of the CPWDs work. The CPWD is also set to execute projects along the border with Pakistan. It will construct axial and lateral roads measuring around 2,200 km along the India-Pakistan border in Punjab and Rajasthan at a cost of Rs 5,450 crore, the report said. To secure the vast and remote border areas of Rajasthan and Punjab, the DPRs of constructing lateral and axial roads along the Indo-Pak Border are under preparation in CPWD. The CPWD is also eyeing the construction of permanent integrated buildings at 96 ITBP border outposts. These buildings in high-altitude areas will have thermal insulation and renewable energy technologies. The report said the preparation of DPRs for the Rs 2,500-crore project was in full swing. Developing border infrastructure in the North east has been among the governments top priorities. Modi had on December 25 inaugurated the Bogibeel Bridge in Assam to improve road and rail connectivity in the region, especially to Arunachal Pradesh. The bridge facilitates the movement of troops in a strategically sensitive region. The government has focused on building infrastructure in the North-East as part of its Act East policy to develop the region and use it as a link to parts of South and South East Asia. Hitting out at BJP chief Amit Shah for his remarks that the saffron party will thrash former allies if a pre-poll alliance did not materialise ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday said one who will trounce the Sena was yet to be born. In a veiled warning to the Sena, Shah had recently said that if an alliance happened, the BJP will ensure victory for its allies, but if it did not, the party will thrash its former allies in the coming Lok Sabha polls. Criticising the remarks, Thackeray, whose party is an ally of the ruling BJP at the Centre and in Maharashtra, said, I have heard words like patak denge from someone. One who will trounce the Shiv Sena is yet to be born. He was speaking at a public rally in the Worli area in Mumbai. Taking a swipe at the Modi wave before the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, he said, The Sena has seen enough waves in its journey. Unlike the BJP, he said, the Sena has raised the Ram temple construction issue before the polls to expose those who used the issue as a poll plank. I raise the Ram mandir issue during elections only to expose others who always use it as an election plank, the Sena chief said. Just tell us how the Congress is hindering the temple construction. The Congress was shown its place in 2014 for its deeds. The party could not even get the post of Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Thackeray said. He also asked the BJP how could it build the Ram temple when it has allies like Nitish Kumar of the JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of the LJP opposing it and the BJP should come clean on it. Rs 1 5 lakh in accounts was a jumla and now even this (Ram Temple) is a jumla? When we went to Ayodhya, people said,ye to Bal Saheb ka ladka aaya hai, ye to Ram Mandir banake hi jayega. If youre making this issue also a jumla, how can you expect people to trust you? Reacting to Thackerays statement, BJP leader Ram Madhav said, Weve repeatedly shown our commitment to the construction of RamTemple. Our government is doing everything possible to make sure legal process moves quickly. Congress is trying to stall the judicial process. A joint team of Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir police have arrested an alleged Hizbul Mujahideen militant and apprehended a juvenile in Jammu and Kashmirs Shopian district. Police said the two militants were in touch with Naveed Babu, a policeman-turned-militant who heads the outfit as its area commander. The duo was allegedly trying to establish a contact in Delhi NCR for a regular supply of weapons here, police said. Kifayatullah Bukhari, 22, a resident of Shopian and his accomplice were picked up from near Narwaw village, said deputy commissioner of police (special cell) Pramod Kushwah. A pistol and 14 cartridges were seized from them, Kushwah said. A case has been filed and the state police are probing into the matter. With the arrest of a local Bharatiya Janata Party functionary, his three sons and a fifth person in Indore, the police claim to have solved the murder of a 22-year-old woman Congress worker who has been missing for the past two years . The killers were inspired by the Hindi film Drishyam, in which the police are misled by a killer who plants a dogs body in a place where the police expect to find human remains, the police said. Deputy inspector general of police (Indore) Harinarayanchari Mishra said the police had arrested BJP functionary Jagdish Karotia (65), his sons Ajay (36), Vijay (38) and Vinay (31) and their friend Neelesh Kashyap (28) for the murder of Twinkle Dagre (20). The accused strangled Dagre to death and then burnt her body to destroy the evidence. Dagre was murdered because she had been pressuring Jagdish to marry her and live with her after they had an affair. This was not acceptable to Jadgish and his family. DIG Mishra said the clues they found over the months were so contradictory that they had to take recourse to the Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature (BEOS) test of three of the accused and also the Dagres parents before they could arrive at the truth. This is the first time that BEOS test, which is done only in a lab in Ahmedabad, has been used to solve a murder case in Madhya Pradesh, the DIG said. BEOS is a technique by which a suspects participation in a crime is detected by eliciting electrophysiological impulses from the brain during questioning. The official said on the day of the murder, October 16, 2016, all the accused took Dagre to show her a plot of land which Jagdish had promised to buy in her name. They killed Dagre there, and stuffed the body in their SUV and took it to a secluded place and burnt it. The Karotias knew that they would be suspects when the victim was found missing and to mislead the police, they also dug a grave nearby and buried a dogs body there. Then they anonymously tipped off the police saying that something suspicious had happened there on the night of the murder and that the Karotias were behind it. But when the police dug the spot, they found the dogs body. There were several other reasons why the police were misled, the DIG said. Twinkle had left her house in a huff on 16th morning and she had sent text messages to Jagdish complaining about her parents. Also she had registered a case of beating against her father, and also registered four other complaints against him, so it appeared that the deceased had a grudge against her parents and not the Karotias, the official said. Again to mislead the police, Ajay Karotia took the deceaseds mobile to Barwaha and activated it. Barwaha was chosen because the deceased had been engaged to a boy from Barwaha and police wasted quite some time investigating the fiancee. A 28-year-old woman allegedly killed herself in east Delhis Mansarovar Park on Thursday, leaving behind a suicide note in which she has accused her husbands friend of allegedly stalking, blackmailing and seeking sexual favours from her for the past two years. The man, who was named in the suicide note, has been arrested, police said. Deputy commissioner of police (Shahdara) Meghna Yadav confirmed the incident and said, A case of abetment to suicide under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered at the MS Park police station. We have arrested the friend of womans husband. He runs a sweet shop. In her one-page note written in English, the woman said she was depressed because her husbands friend had been asking her to have an extramarital affair with him, a police officer associated with the case said. She has written that the man was threatening to defame her by sending her objectionable pictures and videos to her husband. He also threatened that he would upload them on social media if she refused to fulfil her demands. DCP Yadav said the incident came to their notice at around 8am on Thursday when the womans husband, who works in a call centre in west Delhis Karol Bagh, returned home and found his wife hanging in the bedroom at their flat. A police team reached there and rushed her to a nearby hospital where she was declared brought dead. The police questioned her husband and he told them that his wife lately seemed to be tense and that she had stopped interacting with family as well. The man told the police that he had asked her several times if something was worrying her, but she never mentioned the problem. We then scanned the bedroom and found a suicide note. The man confirmed that the handwriting in the note was his wifes. We have yet to send the note to a forensic lab to ascertain the handwriting, said the officer, adding the couple had been married for seven years. The note contained allegations of stalking and blackmailing against the husbands friend. When the police asked the husband if he was aware of these allegations, he said his wife never discussed the matter with him. We have seized the mobile phones and other electronic items from the house of the accused. We have sent them to the forensic lab to see if they contain the pictures mentioned in the suicide note, said DCP Yadav. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday criticised the Opposition efforts to stitch a grand alliance against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and pitched for his partys re-election in the coming parliamentary election, saying opportunistic alliance and dynastic parties sought to build their own empire while the ruling party wanted to empower people. While interacting through video conference with the BJP booth-level workers of Tamil Nadus Mayiladuthurai, Sivaganga and Theni districts, Modi said that the oppositions grand alliance was a short-term effort formed just for their benefits. Opposition parties are a confused lot as we have not given them any opportunity to say that our government is not working... They have made an opportunistic alliance with the parties which were opposed to each other in the past and still perhaps do, he said. Modis comments came a day after the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party announced their alliance for the coming Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh in a bid to counter the saffron party. Billing BJP as a party which recognised the cultural diversity of the country, the PM lauded party workers and exuded confidence they will again ensure its victory in the coming elections. A BJP worker is driven not by any self-interest but national interest, he said, adding only in the saffron party can a person born in socially backward and economically poor family think of reaching the top. In the BJP one only needs hard work, not big wallets, high birth or loyalty to one family. We are proud that a party with two MPs (to start off with) is ruling so many states and is running the government at the Centre, Modi said. If Modi is so bad, government is not working and if the people dislike the BJP then why build these alliance... The truth is they know it is a working government, that the poor, the youth, the farmers and the women of India have a strong bond with the BJP. Reacting to the PMs charges, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee President Su Thirunavukkarasar said, including Shiv Sena, many of their allies have broken their ties with BJP.... The Asom Gana Parishads (AGP) withdrawal of support BJP-led government in Assam last week in protest against the Bill has triggered political uncertainty and fuelled speculations about new political equations. The BJP on Sunday played down an offer from the Congress to support Assam chief minister Sarbanabda Sonowal if he forms a breakaway government in the light of a massive public opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The Congress sees an opportunity for a comeback in the current political turbulence and has urged Sonowal to quit the saffron party along with MLAs loyal to him. Its an old offer. Sonowal himself and many BJP MLAs have said in the past that they will never support any cause which is detrimental to Assam or Assamese people. Since a large section in Assam is opposed to the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, Sonowal along with his supporters should quit the BJP, said senior Congress leader Debabrata Saikia. We are willing to support a Sonowal-led government, from within or outside, if the chief minister takes up our offer, Saikia, who is leader of opposition in the Assam assembly, added. The BJP has 62 seats in the 126-member assembly while coalition partner Bodo Peoples Front has 12. The AGP has 14 MLAs, the Congress 24 and All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) has 13. The ruling party insists that Sonowal ditching the BJP is unthinkable. Saikias offer is completely hypothetical. Sonowal is a mass leader who knows that the Bill is going to benefit the people of Assam in the long run. He is not hungry for power and theres no question of him leaving BJP to join hands with Congress, said BJPs Assam unit chief Ranjit Dass. The Bill which seeks to grant citizenship to Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Christians, Jains and Buddhists from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan, was passed in the Lok Sabha last week and is expected to come up for voting in Rajya Sabha in the next session beginning on January 31. Fears of threat to indigenous populations from immigrants from Bangladesh due to passage of the Bill has led to protests in all seven states in the region and some BJP allies have threatened to follow the AGP if the amendment is passed in Rajya Sabha. Amid the turbulence, the AGP on Saturday gave indications of joining hands with the BJP again if the saffron party withdraws the Bill in the interest of Assam. It seems highly improbable that the BJP would backtrack on its support to the Bill now. But if they do, we may reconsider our earlier stance. Otherwise theres no question to supporting them again, said AGP president Atul Bora. The former minister in the Sonowal cabinet denied speculations that AGP might form an alliance with the Congress or AIUDF. Bora also refused to comment on whether his party will contest Lok Sabha polls alone or join an alliance. We are not thinking on those lines at all at the moment. Our aim now is to join forces with the people of Assam and those groups who are opposing the Bill, he said. The BJP said it is open to welcoming AGP if the regional party gives up its opposition to the Bill. Both BJP and AGP are united in our opposition to the Congress. Our party is committed to passing the CAB in parliament. But if AGP wants to join us again, without any pre-conditions, we will welcome them, said Dass. In another development, opposition by tribal groups in the state to the Centres move to grant scheduled tribe (ST) status to six more communities has turned a volatile situation even more fraught. On Friday, the Coordination Committee of Tribal Organisations in Assam (CCTOA) had called a 12-hour shutdown across the state in protest against the Centres move to give ST status to Tai Ahoms, Muttocks, Morans, Adivasis, Koch Rajbongshis and Chutias. Police have finally admitted that the file of the case involving the infamous 1983 murder of prominent doctor Sudarshan Kumar Trehan has gone missing. Dr Trehan was murdered in his clinic in Patti town of Tarn Taran on September 30, 1983. Virsa Singh Valtoha, who went on to become MLA twice on Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) ticket, was named as one of the accused in the case that was never brought to its logical conclusion by police. Inspector general of police, Amritsar range, SPS Parmar said he had marked an inquiry to Tarn Taran senior superintendent of police Darshan Singh Mann in December seeking a report from hhim. The SSP has informed me that the case file is missing from the Patti police station, Parmar said. I have given instructions to the SSP to reconstruct the case file of the FIR number 346 from the VRK (vernacular record keeping) branch where case dairies, files of absconders and proclaimed offenders, cancelled/untraced cases are maintained. In addition to getting the file reconstructed, the SSP has also been asked to submit a report into the role of the police officials responsible for its disappearance and not reporting the matter all these years, the IGP added. An investigation by HT and the Punjab Human Rights Organisation has exposed the hushing up of Dr Trehans murder all these years due to the police-politician nexus that helped Valtoha hide the fact that he was never acquitted in the case. An FIR in the case was registered against unidentified persons on the day of the murder. A year later, police took on remand Hardev Singh, who was then lodged in the Nabha jail in other criminal cases. During interrogation, Hardev confessed that he along with Valtoha and Baldev Singh were behind Trehans murder. On the basis of his confession, Valtoha was named as an accused. Although Valtoha was arrested from the Golden Temple during the Operation Bluestar in 1984 and was detained in the Jodhpur and Tihar jails, the police in the Dr Trehan murder case surprisingly told the court that he was absconding and they could not arrest him despite their all-out efforts. The police on the basis of false submissions got Valtohas arrest warrants issued and later the court ordered them to comply with Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to set in motion legal procedure before declaring an absconding accused a proclaimed offender. Valtoha got bail in the case in February 1991 but the police never presented a supplementary charge sheet (challan) against him. IGP Parmar said the connivance of police officials who never bothered to report the case and conduct an inquiry into disappearance of the file cannot be ruled out. The PHRO under Justice Ajit Singh Bains (retd) in its complaint to the IGP had raised points regarding issuance of clearance reports from the Patti police station for Valtohas applications for passport, arms licence and security besides the posts he held during the Akali regime Parmar said they will also look into the lapses on the part of the police officials who as per the procedure have to submit quarterly reports regarding files and case property. Will seek CBI inquiry against Valtoha As the murder case against former SAD MLA Virsa Singh Valtoha is under the spotlight again, Punjab Congress general secretary Tejpreet Singh Peter Sandhu has said that he will file a public interest litigation in the court seeking an inquiry by the Central Bureau of investigation (CBI) against him. I have requested SAD president Sukhbir Badal to remove Valtoha from all posts. I also request the BJP-led union government to get the case investigated by the CBI, he said. Indias first super-fast bullet train, which will connect Mumbai and Ahmedabad, will consume 40% more electricity than what the entire Delhi Metro network requires, according to an estimate by the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), which is executing the project. NHSRCL said the project, once operational, will require 1,100 million units of electricity per year to power the train and the stations it will stop at. In comparison, Delhi Metro, which runs on eight lines spanning 350 kilometres serving 236 stations and connects the capital with satellite towns like Gurugram and Noida, consumes 850 million units per annum. Officials said this difference in consumption is because bullet trains need to attain a certain speed much higher than what a metro train is capable of and because metro trains deploy regenerative braking, a technology that recovers some energy while stopping and converts it back into usable electricity. According to NHSRCL, approximately 350 kilometres of transmission lines and high voltage cabling would be constructed in Gujarat and Maharashtra for the bullet train, for which the foundation stone was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe in September 2017. The introduction of the countrys first bullet train, known as the Shinkansen in Japan and expected to be operational in 2022, will mark Indias shift to an era of high-speed trains capable of hitting speeds of up to 350 kilometres per hour. Train 18, which will connect New Delhi and Varanasi, hit a top speed of 180 kilometres per hour during a test run in December, and is billed as Indias fastest train. NHSRCL has already tied up with power generating companies, which will supply the 1,100 million required per year to power the inaugural bullet train. Power requirement will grow as the number of train services increases in 2033, 2043, and 2053. After finalizing the alignment in October 2017, we appointed consultant to decide the power requirement for the project. After a detailed study, we have finalized the locations of substations and how much power will be required at how many locations. We have also tied up with power distribution companies so that they can start work on the transmission lines, NHSRCL managing director Achal Khare said in an interview in November. The official added that the consumption estimates are in line with what similar networks elsewhere consume. According to NHSRCL, traction power requirements are assessed by electrical works contractors that carry out power system simulation studies. The maximum projected train traffic and time table is simulated using software and the electric power requirement at each power substation, location and spacing of substations is assessed. The power requirements of all the 29 substations and locations were finalised by January 2018 and the power utility companies in Gujarat and Maharashtra were approached. The joint surveys with power utility companies were completed by April 2018. The utility companies are now going ahead with related works, said a spokesperson for NHSRCL. As part of a green energy initiative, the MumbaiAhmedabad bullet train corridor will tap solar energy at the rolling stock depots in Sabarmati and Thane, the High-Speed Rail Training Institute in Vadodara, and Sabarmati HSR Complex. Power requirement is not an issue in India today, because installed capacity is almost double the peak demand. The good thing is Railways is going for solar, which will take care of lighting of stations, said SR Sethi, a former member of Delhi Vidyut Board. Of the 508.17-km-long bullet train corridor, 155.76 km will be in Maharashtra, 348.04 km in Gujarat and 4.3 km in Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The Narendra Modi government has set the ambitious deadline of completing the project by August 15, 2022, when India marks 75 years of Independence. Land acquisition process for ambitious bullet train project might be going at a slow pace but the National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL), which is executing the project between Mumbai and Ahmadabad, has finalised the electricity requirement for the project. Though he was not acquitted in the high-profile 1983 murder of a doctor in Patti in the Majha hinterland, once a militancy hotbed, Virsa Singh Valtoha became an Akali MLA twice. Police files on the case are also missing, investigations by the Hindustan Times have revealed. Dr Sudarshan Kumar Trehan was shot dead in his clinic on September 30, 1983, by militants while treating a patient. Two men, Baldev Singh and Hardev Singh, who were arrested on November 15, 1984; said Valtoha was also involved. However, the matter was hushed up. No charge sheet was presented formally by the police accusing Valtoha of murder, as is evident from the file records procured by the Hindustan Times. It is yet to be understood how Valtoha, despite the murder case, managed to avoid rigorous checks and police scrutiny and was appointed to the Subordinate Service Selection Board, Punjab, before being selected chief parliamentary secretary, Punjab, by the Akali government, apart from being an MLA twice. In a complaint on Thursday to SPS Parmar, inspector general of police, border range, Amritsar; the Punjab Human Rights Organisation (PHRO) under justice Ajit Singh Bains (retd) has demanded a fresh probe in the murder case and the disappearance of the police files of the case (FIR No. 346 dated September 30,1983) registered under section 302, 307, 452, 34 of the Indian Penal Code at the Patti police station in Amritsar, Punjab. PHRO also questioned how a murder accused such as Valtoha could manage to get a passport and state protection, with gunmen. When contacted, Parmar said he had marked an urgent inquiry to the SSP Tarn Taran and asked for a report to be filed immediately. Interestingly, Hindustan Times investigations also revealed that the FIR register still mentions Valtoha as a proclaimed offender even though he managed to get bail in this case in February 1991 from then district sessions judge JS Sidhu. Baldev Singh and Hardev Singh were acquitted by the court in November 1990 as they delinked their case from Valtoha. In prison after Operation Blue Star, he was not allowed to come to court because of section 268 CrPC,which prohibits a person from being removed from prison. When contacted, Valotha said he had a copy of the bail order but not the acquittal orders in the case, claiming at the same time that he had been acquitted. I have not asked for records of my acquittal in various cases nor deemed it necessary to do so. He said the police and prosecution were at fault for not maintaining records related to the case. Alleging that Valtoha had been given political patronage, the PHRO wanted the role of Patti police officials probed for issuing security clearance reports in Valtohas favour when he was appointed to various prestigious posts in the Akali government. Valtoha had also declared before the Election Commission that there were no pending criminal cases against him. What the election office says Dr S Karuna Raju, the chief electoral officer, has said that misrepresentation of information before the Election Commission regarding criminal cases against a candidate will be dealt with according to rules. Timeline: * September 30, 1983: Dr Sudarshan Trehan shot dead. *November 15, 1984: Baldev Singh and Hardev Singh arrested. Virsa Singh Valtoha is named in the case after they confess to his involvement. *November 6, 1990: Baldev Singh and Hardev Singh were acquitted by the court in November 1990 as they delinked their case from Valtoha. In prison after Operation Blue Star, Valtoha was not allowed to come to court. *February 1991 Valtoha, though declared a proclaimed offender on January 4, 1985, gets bail in this case. * Police did not file a charge sheet formally accusing Valtoha in the case. *Meanwhile, case files disappear from the police station. WHO IS VALTOHA? Former extremist turned politician, Virsa Singh Valtoha of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) faced multiple cases including those pertaining to murder, robbery and terrorism, including the murder of Harbans Singh Manchanda, the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee president, in March 1984. Around a dozen government, police, and judicial officers in Jammu & Kashmir are seeking (or considering) voluntary retirement to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha or assembly elections. On Wednesday, Shah Faesal , who topped the Indian Administrative Services exam in 2010, resigned from the service, and is expected to join a political party and contest the elections. On Friday, Principal and Sessions Judge, Anantnag, Syed Towqeer wrote to the Registrar General of the Jammu & Kashmir High Court seeking voluntary retirement. Although he has cited personal reasons, HT learns that he may contest the assembly elections from South Kashmirs Kokernag assembly seat and will be joining the National Conference in coming days. I have still service up to 2024 but I want to leave due to personnel reasons. Once free I can do anything which suits me, Touqeer said. National Conference provisional president Nasir Aslam Wani said that party will welcome all people from different walks of life who have clean image to join them. We will be glad to have them. Not only bureaucrats, doctors members of civil society should join politics and contribute to their society, he said. Another senior judge who hails from north Kashmir and is currently living in Srinagar is also contemplating a career in politics and may contest from Baramulla constituency on a National Conference ticket, a National Conference local leader said. The judge is yet to get an assurance from top NC leadership on whether he will be the partys candidate from Baramulla. A senior NC leader confirmed on condition of anonymity that the party is looking for a candidate who can win the Baramulla assembly seat for the party. The last time the NC won Baramulla was in 1996. Last month, former SSP Srinagar Riyaz Bedar who hails from north Kashmirs Pattan but is settled in Srinagar joined the National Conference. Bedar will be contesting elections from Pattan against former minister and senior Peoples Conference leader Imran Reza Ansari. There has also been speculation that another bureaucrat Asghar Ali has sought retirement as he too wants to enter politics. I have not sought voluntary retirement yet. There are rumors about many bureaucrats. I will talk to you at an appropriate time, Ali said. Last month former Inspector General of Police (Crime) Raja Ajaz Ali who joined the PDP ahead of the 2014 elections and contested assembly polls from Uri resigned from the party and joined the Peoples Conference of Sajjad Lone. He is likely to contest assembly polls from Uri assembly constituency or could be the Lok Sabha candidate of the party from Baramulla. Raja Ajaz Ali stood second in the assembly elections and secured more than 18,000 votes. Last week, Bashir Ahmad Ronyal and Mehboob Iqbal, both former senior bureaucrats who joined the PDP before the 2014 polls and contested elections from Banihal and Baderwah respectively, resigned from the party. While Ronyal will be contesting elections as an independent candidate from Banihal, Iqbal who joined National Conference last week could be a candidate from Baderwah. Shah Faesal who resigned on Wednesday said that he wouldnt join any political party now, but would contest the upcoming elections in the state. There has been speculation that that he will be joining the NC and contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections on a party ticket from Baramulla . His entry into politics has been welcomed by the NC, and the PDP. The PDP youth president, Waheed ur Rehman Parra said that many people, especially young people, will be joining the party in coming weeks. A close confidant of Sajjad Lone also confirmed on condition of anonymity that some bureaucrats could join the Peoples Conference. Amid a row over the removal of CBI director Alok Verma, Congress Sunday sought immediate removal of the chief vigilance commissioner, alleging that he had acted like a puppet in the hands of the government. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi at a press conference at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi, said, the CVC (central vigilance commissioner) should be sacked or tender his resignation, but the CVC must go. There was no immediate reaction from the Central Vigilance Commission or the government. The Congress also alleged that CVC K V Chowdary is being made to act like a puppet to avoid any probe into the Rafale case. The CVC has been acting like an ambassador, messenger of the government, and lobbying for Asthana (CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana). The CVC has forgotten that he is supposed to do vigilance for public good, and not be a vigilant puppet into the hands of political masters, Singhvi alleged. Read: Sacked CBI chief Alok Verma resigns, says natural justice was scuttled The senior Congress leader said, he was putting forth the views of his party, based on objectives facts that has emerged in the press in connection with the CBI controversy. The data and fact in writing demand an immediate action, and that action must start with the removal and sacking of the CVC, he said The sequence of events indicate that the CVC acted like a hatchet man of the government, Singhvi alleged. Singhvi on Saturday had alleged that the government stood exposed after Justice (retd) A K Patnaik claimed that he had not seen the commissions recommendations against Verma and not accorded his assent. He said the Selection Committee removed Verma based on Asthanas charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was dismissed by the Delhi High Court. Also read: Interim CBI chief Nageswara Rao cancels transfer orders by Alok Verma (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.) Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwals office on Wednesday received an anonymous e-mail that threatened that the CMs daughter will be kidnapped and harmed, following which the Delhi Police reportedly provided a security cover to her. A constable has been temporarily deployed for the security of Kejriwals daughter and will shadow her whenever she goes out, a senior police official, on condition of anonymity, said. A Delhi Police spokesperson, who asked not to be named, confirmed that threat emails had been received and said that the matter is being probed by the cyber cell unit of Delhi Polices special cell. No case had been registered in connection to the case till Saturday evening. Kejriwals daughter works in a multinational company in Gurugram. A senior police officer said that the chief ministers office received two-three emails on January 9 (Wednesday). The anonymous sender of the emails threatened to kidnap Kejriwals daughter. In the email, the unknown sender has claimed that they will harm the chief ministers daughter and have challenged him to do whatever he can do to protect her, the officer said. Media advisor to the chief minister, Nagendra Sharma, said the Delhi government forwarded the threat emails to Delhi Police commissioner Amulya Patnaik, three days ago. The Delhi government has not been given any information (regarding the development in the matter) so far by the police, he added. Also read | Very dangerous: Arvind Kejriwal sees a conspiracy in 10% quota move Another police officer, privy to the matter, said that the police commissioner held a meeting with the top brass of the department and sought immediate action on the e-mails and asked them to review the threat perception of Kejriwals family members, his daughter in particular. Since the CMs official residence is in Civil Lines, the local police was asked to immediately approach Kejriwals office and provide security to his daughter. Despite the threat e-mails, Kejriwal or his family members did not ask for any security cover themselves. The constable assigned for Kejriwals daughters security accompanied her to her office in Gurugram on Friday. He went to the CMs house on Saturday as well, the officer said. The police commissioners office forwarded the emails to the cyber cell and asked the officials to ascertain the identity of the person who sent the emails and take necessary legal action. Cyber cell experts are trying to identify the Internet Protocol address of the system through which the threat emails were sent, police said. If Bollywood was unanimous that Tiger Shroff is the real deal with his unbelievable dance moves and gravity-defying stunts, now he has found himself a fan in Hollywood as well. After Tiger Shroff shared a tribute video for idol Hrithik Roshan, himself an accomplished dancer, on the actors 45th birthday, accolades for the Baaghi star have been flowing in. Among those impressed by his performance is Hollywood star Gwyneth Paltrow. The Oscar-winner wrote on the video, So good. The video has Tiger recreating Hrithiks iconic Ek Pal Ka Jeena song from Kaho Naa...Pyaar Hai. Watch Tiger Shroffs tribute video for Hrithik Roshan While Tiger is yet to reply to Paltrows comment, fans have latched on to her role as Pepper Potts in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the events of Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame trailer. While many wanted to know if Tony Stark returns to Earth in Avengers: Endgame, others had funny one-liners, Kyunki Tony mar Gaya but Tiger Zinda hai. Some had a word of advice for her as well, Please focus on saving Tony Stark. Paltrow recently returned from an extended honeymoon to the Maldives. She spent her Christmas holidays with husband, film producer Brad Falchuk, ex-husband Chris Martin, his girlfriend Dakota Johnson and their children on what she called a big family honeymoon in the Maldives. It was a very modern honeymoon, Paltrow said. We had a great time. On the work front, Tiger Shroff will next be seen in Student of the Year 2 and an untitled YRF film alongside his idol Hrithik Roshan tentatively titled Hrithik vs Tiger. Actor Vicky Kaushal, who is playing the role of an Indian commando in the recently released Uri - The Surgical Strike, has said the entire film team is going through a surreal feeling that audience has accepted their war-drama film with open arms. Vicky was interacting with media after success of Uri... along with his co-stars Mohit Raina and Yami Gautam on Saturday in Mumbai. The movie is based on the 2016 Indian Armys surgical strikes inside Pakistan as a retaliation for the Uri terrorist attack. The film has managed to collect Rs 8.20 crore at the box-office after first day of its release, sources said. #2019 begins with a bang... #UriTheSurgicalStrike embarks on a flying start... Should witness growth on Day 2 and Day 3... Fri 8.20 cr. India biz. #Uri taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) January 12, 2019 Till the film is released, you dont have an idea if it is going to work. But since yesterday, the kind of reaction we have received is really overwhelming. Its a surreal feeling that audience has accepted our film with open arms, said Vicky. Vicky also praised his co-actors and director Aditya Dhar for being part of the film. I am really happy for the actors and director of the film because it is Adtiyas (Dhar) first film as a director, he said. In todays age, it is very difficult for a debutant director to get backing from producers for the story and then get a huge release for his film. Ultimately, when audience appreciates the film then, its really special thing for the entire team, said Vicky. On Friday, makers of Uri... hosted a special screening for the Army personnel. It feels really great when Army men appreciate your film because we have made this film to pay tribute for their work said Vicky. Yesterday, we hosted the screening for Sikh Regiment. Interestingly, they trained all actors who are playing the role of commando in the film so, it was a special moment for us because during the training, they used to scold us. But yesterday, they were appreciating our performance, he said. Asked if his team would like to host a special screening for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, Definitely.. we would love to, but I dont think he will have the time. The film stars Vicky Kaushal, Yami Gautam, Kirti Kulhari, Mohit Raina and Paresh Rawal in key roles. It is produced by RSVP movies and directed by Aditya. (This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.) Follow @htshowbiz for more At the end of every year and the beginning of a new one, we commit to bettering ourselves by eating right, exercising more, getting more sleep, taking care of one self in every way, but can we effortlessly bring about the changes we would love to live with into our homes? Simply put, our homes are a reflection of our state of minds. Its where we eat, sleep, relax, bathe, and even work. This New Year 2019, take a cue from these home decor trends by Ms. Punam Kalra, Creative Director, IM, The Centre for Applied Arts and Ms. Ruchita Bansal, Creative Director & Founder, Izhaar to spruce up your home and invite more positivity into your lives: 1) Pantone Colour: Living Coral is the Pantone Colour of the year. Representing the fusion of modern life, Living Coral is a nurturing colour that appears in our natural surroundings and at the same time, displays a lively presence within social media. 2) Green and Yellow: Our design experts feel that both these colours that exude happiness, cheer and enthusiasm will be the focus in the home decor scene this year. Additionally, take a pledge to avoid excessive use of plastic and keep in touch with everything natural. 3) Geometric Patterns: Strong geometries with subtle or bold colours would be quite the trend. These can be used very selectively in lounges, study, and personal office spaces in fabrics, tile or rugs. Layer them, pair them, matched or mismatched, pattern on pattern is a fresh spin on a more old-world style. 4) Shibori: The Japanese technique of pleat and bind and dye is one of the most ancient dyeing techniques. While modern Shibori is done with lots of colours and different fabrics, traditional Japanese Shibori on cotton was mainly done with indigo. The contrast of the blue and white is familiar, yet fresh variations tend to make bold statements. Its a colour that easily combines with many other and can match almost any style from minimalist to glam. Speaking of minimalism, Marie Kondo, celebrity tidying consultant, internationally best-selling author, and star of Netflixs new series Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, has been spreading joy through the KonMari method around the world. For Marie, tidying up is like magic and we couldnt agree more! Tidying up eventually helps us break the clutter, in turn freeing our minds to think clearly, and use our creative sensibilities optimally. 5) Floral Patterns: This decorating trend has always been around and also welcoming in the upcoming year. However, previous year was dedicated to bold florals, upcoming year will see floral patterns in a new light. Decor experts expect to find exaggerated proportions and contrasting colours used for this timeless decor pattern. 6) Terrazzo: The biggest interior design trend of 2019 is terrazzo. With this entire Memphis Milano 80s craze happening, we are seeing people buying terrazzo coffee tables, side tables, and tile floors. Were even seeing the terrazzo tile motif used on wallpaper and carpets. Its a trend from the past that is coming back with a modern twist. 7) Classic Kitchen: In 2019, modern kitchen designs will be about going to back to basics. Kitchens are being pared down to allow raw materials to shine on their own. Follow more stories on Facebook and Twitter Jaipur : It all began with texting hello and hi on a social media application between Army Jawan Sombir and an alleged Pakistani agent who introduced herself as a young student from Jammu. Late, she sent intimate messages to lure the soldier into sharing confidential information about the Army, including pictures of tanks, armoured vehicles, weapons, and location of army companies. This was revealed by the investigating team on Saturday a day after the arrest was made. Sombir was produced before a local court here on Saturday morning. The court has granted us custody till January, 18, said Superintendent of police (DySP), Hari Charan Meena. The accused has been arrested under multiple Sections of the Official Secrets Act, 1923. His arrest was made possible only after the army intelligence found his activities increasingly suspicious. The initial investigation indicated that the accused was not only involved in espionage activities but he was also being paid for sharing strategic information. We have clues that a few months ago, Sombir was paid Rs 5,000 for spying. And that money was transferred into the account of accuseds brother in order to evade suspicion. Subsequently Sombir transferred money into his e-wallet, an official part of the investigating team told TOI, adding that the accused was effectively honey trapped and demanded a second round of money transfer. How Sombir got in touch with Pak agent? Almost seven months ago, an ISI agent befriended him though social networking platform with an ID as Anika Chopra. The usual online conversation between the two graduated into video chatting and sharing of some sexual messages. Later on, the agent must have allured Sombit to reveal strategic information for rewards, the officer said. The police suspect the social media account of Anika Chopra was a fake one and originated in Karachi city of Pakistan. The accused was sharing highly intimate messages with Anika, the official said, adding that a resident of Haryana, Sombit had joined army in 2016. We have seized his mobile and digging into the call records see how much information was sent across the border. Though, he has admitted sharing crucial information with her , the official said. The police said that till 2017, the ISI used locals to spy on the army deployment, The network was decimated in 2018, hence they begun preying on new army recruits, an official said. Source : TOI We could not find those products in North Carolina, so we had to outsource from Green Roads, Porter said. Not only do owners Janey and James Porter want to eventually obtain products solely from North Carolina, but they also want to provide a family friendly environment to their customers. Their 10-year-old daughter, Deanna, suffers from autism, social anxiety, kidney failure and joint pain. She used to take over 15 medications daily. Janey Porter researched and found that many of Deannas medications had negative side effects on her kidneys and liver. We started looking for natural ways to help with her inflammation and joint pain. We started her on some [CBD oil] drops and she is down to five medicines a day, Janey Porter said. Although using CBD has been helpful for Deanna, purchasing CBD hasnt been a friendly experience or appropriate setting for the Porters. You had to go in these buildings with tinted windows that sold all these other products that I didnt want my child to see, like bongs, Janey Porter said. A bong is an apparatus used for smoking tobacco or marijuana. ****************** MID-MONTH MADNESS WINNERS GRAND PRIZE WINNER - Roxanne Cruz BLOG WINNER: Melanie Backus Individual Winners: Nancy: Amazon Gift Card: Connie Ruggles Contest #2 (not sure of prize): Marilyn Ridgeway Naomi: Ebook of Love Coward and swag: Darla Fillmore Catherine: Reader's choice of Destiny Series book: Deb Allard Vicki: Anonymous Bride: Darla Fillmore Mutiny of the Heart: Marilyn Ridgeway Linda: Ebook of Gold Rush Bride Hannah: Avis Powers Ebook of Gold Rush Bride Hannah: Nancy Costello ***************** GIVEAWAY RULES Winners must leave their email address and will be notified by email and the winne r s name will be anno unced in the days comments. No one under 18 can enter our giveaways. No purchase is necessary. All winners have one week to claim their prize. USA shipping only. Offer void where prohibited. Odds of winning vary due to the number of entrants. Uniontown, PA (15401) Today Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds. High 73F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 47F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Tim Rowland timr@herald-mail.com Prior to 1990 there were few concerns about opioid addiction, because they were generally prescribed only to ease the suffering of the terminally ill. For Big Pharma, this was something of a problem and an opportunity. The problem was that the people who were paying good money for the medication didnt have long to live. Big Pharma needed a clientele that wouldnt up and die on them. The obvious answer was that not everyone who is in pain is going to die. Opioids operated out of the spotlight for so long because, considering the weeks or months cancer patients had to live, no one bothered to concern themselves with side effects. Addiction, at that point, was the least of the patients troubles. So there was no body of evidence to prepare doctors for what was about to happen next. The marketing divisions of the pharmaceutical companies saw a potential gold mine if physicians could be convinced to use opioids not just for terminal illnesses, but to ease the pain of any sort of injury or wound. Doctors were assured that opioids were nonaddictive, which was bad enough. But knowing that doctors might soon come to suspect the truth, the pharmaceutical companies cooked up an even more insidious story: Opioids might lead to something called pseudoaddiction, which resembled real addiction but was in fact a condition all its own best treated with more opioids. More pills led to more addictions, which led to more pills, which was great news in the bowels of the drug companies, where it was money that mattered, not lives. A federal report released a week before Christmas showed how blatant and how mind-bending Big Pharmas behavior had become. In one 10-month period, to take just one example, a drugmaker shipped 3 million hydrocodone pills to a single pharmacy in southern West Virginia in the town of Kermit, population 400. The company could hardly plead ignorance. Its own warehouse in Ohio raised a warning flag, but a corporate investigation found its shipments reasonable. Big Pharmas only regret, most likely, is that the people whom theyd gotten hooked on pills eventually discovered that heroin was both cheaper and more potent. The drug that had the scourge of the ghettos a half century ago was now mowing down rows of rural whites. In just 10 years, overdose deaths spiked from fewer than 40,000 to 72,000 in 2017. The good news, now, is that there is treatment. The bad news is that, according to The New York Times, half of the rehab facilities in the country do not offer their patients that treatment because it involves medication. The reasoning sounds dimly plausible. If medication is the problem, medication cant be the solution. So they continue on the patently ineffective treatment tradition of prayer and group hugs. Yet even addicts themselves quoted in the Times story said that taking a pill in order to feel normal felt like cheating, and the prospect of a lifetime of medication seemed daunting. So then is a person on blood pressure medicine supposed to feel as if hes cheating by using a daily dose of medicine to stay alive? Bottom line, we pay lip service to the reality that addiction is just like any other illness, but we still dont act like it. Medication as a treatment is not foolproof, but it is significant. Studies indicate it lowers overdose deaths by half or more. That would mean, in rough terms, that it is about 30 percent to 40 percent more effective than programs that preach total abstinence, with no cheating. Based on the science, why wouldnt every treatment center in the land use every available tool? The answer brings us full circle. Some of these treatments can be expensive, costing patients anywhere from $50 to $1,000 a month. Aside from the fact that the cost can be out of reach for addicts whose lives have been left in both physical and economic shambles by opioids, a dark irony comes into focus: Big Pharma, which made tremendous sums of money while getting people addicted to opioids, now stands to make tremendous sums of money providing the antidote. You know that has to stick in the craw of many treatment professionals. Because the opioid pushers are wearing business suits instead of hoodies, they will not go to jail. But here would be a fit punishment: As communities such as Hagerstown line up to sue the industry, a good settlement, perhaps an apt settlement, would be a requirement that the offending pharmaceutical companies provide a lifetime of medication free of charge to anyone who needs it for the treatment of addiction. This segment of corporate America profited wildly by getting people hooked on drugs. It should not be able to profit wildly off these poor souls a second time. Staff reports The Herald-Mail Economic development team could ease way in city To the editor: I read with interest the recent coverage of the issue of contractors who say they feel intimidated and fearful of retaliation by City of Hagerstown staff. What I didnt read and I apologize if I missed it was the role of the economic development department in getting things done. Economic development staffers have a role to play, not in strong-arming inspectors to approve items that shouldnt be approved, but to help streamline the process. They can do that by looking at how other Maryland jurisdictions have done that. They can then lobby the council to get those changes enacted locally. Nor would it hurt for the contractors and developers to know they have an economic development ear at City Hall. Not someone who would always agree with them, but who would give them a fair hearing. Think about it. Bob Maginnis Waynesboro, Pa. Border wall dispute a distraction? To the editor: President Trumps fabrication of a border crisis brings to mind a remark attributed to Adolf Hitlers No. 2 man, Hermann Goering, who was quoted in 1946 during the Nuremberg trials: Naturally, the common people dont want war. ... But, after all, it is the leaders of a country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along. ... All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. Presumably it is not a war that President Trump desires. But I strongly suspect that his concoction of a border crisis is calculated as an attempt to divert attention away from his immoral and allegedly illegal behavior before and during his term of office. Bill Soulis Hagerstown US outlook might brighten in 2020 To the editor: In the 2020 United States Senate elections (if we get to them), 12 Senate seats held by Democrats and 22 Senate seats held by Republicans will be contested (the two Senate seats held by independents Angus King of Maine and Bernie Sanders of Vermont will not be contested in 2020). Marylands two Senate seats, both held by Democrats, will not be contested. Pennsylvanias two Senate seats, one held by a Democrat and one held by a Republican, will not be contested. One of West Virginias two Senate seats, held by Republican Shelley Moore Capito, will be contested. Currently there are 53 Republican senators, 45 Democratic senators, and two independent senators. It is probable that the Democrats will control both the Senate and the House of Representatives after the 2020 elections. It is unlikely that President Trump will be re-elected and it is too early to predict if a Democrat or a Republican will be elected president, but it is probable that the Electoral College votes from Maryland and Pennsylvania will go to the Democratic nominee. If God does bless America, the future outlook for our country will be brighter than it looks now. Daniel Moeller Rohrersville LLOYD 'PETE' WATERS The Herald-Mail You know the further I travel down this road of life, the more things seem puzzling to me, and, I suppose reading might just lead to my downfall one day. A few weeks ago, I came across some interesting columns that just made me pause, shiver and think a little, and that can be a dangerous pastime for an old Dargan boy and sinner. The first column came from a Detroit Free Press article written by Bill Laitner. His story was about one Maison Hullibarger, a young man of 18, who was by all accounts a straight-A student, a good athlete and fine young man at his school. Maison committed suicide on Dec. 4, and his parents had made funeral arrangements with the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic church in Temperance, Mich. Father Don LaCuesta would conduct the Requiem Mass. Jeff and Linda Hullibarger, Maisons parents, shared stories with the priest about their son and they were hoping as most parents, that Maison would be remembered in Father LaCuestas homily as a young man who had many positive assets, traits and achievements. Instead, according to Laitners article, Father LaCuesta focused his remarks on Maisons act of suicide as that of a sinner. He would go on to mention suicide throughout the homily. Maisons father actually asked the priest to stop saying those things about his son, but the man dressed in the funeral robe continued. Suicide was once considered an unforgivable sin by the Catholic Church, and catholic burials and masses would not be held for individuals who had committed suicide. According to Laitner, the Churchs current policy is that suicide can be forgiven when occasioned by extreme stress. Many other religions today also choose to take a dim view on the act of suicide. As I remember those stories told of the Christ, it seemed to me like he came down to earth to forgive the sinner. This Savior also seemed to suggest, by his actions, deeds and crucifixion, that harlots thieves, murderers and all sinners were deserving of forgiveness. That gift of forgiveness was available for everyone. Suicide is a very difficult subject for most to understand or discuss, but to ridicule and criticize a troubled young mans actions at his funeral in front of his parents and friends seems, well, a little cruel to me. Im curious. Is cruelty a sin? To ignore a potential serious illness and other possible contributing factors to this young mans death was totally insensitive. The Archdiocese of Detroit seemed to agree with this opinion and issued a statement which included the following remark: After some reflection, the presider agrees that the family was not served as they should have been served. For the foreseeable future, he will not be preaching at funerals and he will have his other homilies reviewed by a priest mentor. A sad story for all involved. After leaving the Detroit Free Press, I made my way to the Huffington Post in Greenville, S.C., as to read another interesting story of religious note penned by Carol Kuruvilla. In this article, Carol shares the story of Pastor John Gray, the shepherd of Greenvilles Relentless Church. Gray was once an associate pastor of the Houston Lakewood Church, which is operated by evangelist Joel Osteen before moving to South Carolina. Gray, as a gift to his wife on their eighth wedding anniversary, decided to give her a Lamborghini Urus, a luxury SUV that cost at least around $200,000. As I read this story, I thought for some reason about how many dusty miles those Apostles must have walked in their sandals to deliver salvation. They even had to borrow a donkey on Palm Sunday. According to Gray, the money for his gift did not come from church funds but other money he had made elsewhere. I suppose this information must have been a huge relief for his congregation. He defended the purchase of the car for his wife as an honest expression of a husbands feelings on a special occasion. The Dargan boy and his best gal celebrated our 50th anniversary at the Berkeley Springs Brewery in Coolfont deep in the woods of West Virginia with a homemade brew, some root beer and a few sandwiches and all was good. Love whispered to us through the trees; we were happy. I suspect at the end of the day, people are going to be people, and do some pretty crazy things; the Dargan boy included. But for those folks preaching the gospel according to the Good Book, it might be wise for them to ask this one simple question before approaching the pulpit. What would Jesus do? And let the rest of us know the answer. Amen. Jennifer Fitch waynesboro@herald-mail.com HARRISBURG, Pa. Eleven people have been indicted for the June 25, 2016, shooting deaths of three people near Mercersburg. Those charged are Kevin Coles, Devin Dickerson, Torey White, Christopher Johnson, Jerell Adgebesan, Kenyatta Corbett, Michael Buck, Nicholas Preddy, Johnnie Jenkins-Armstrong, Terrance Lawson and Tyrone Armstrong, according to a copy of the Dec. 20 indictment obtained by Herald-Mail Media. Some are charged directly with the homicides, while others are charged with helping the alleged perpetrators avoid being apprehended by authorities. Prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania allege gang members sought to kill Wendy Chaney, a Washington County drug informant. The group allegedly tied the 39-year-old womans hands with plastic zip ties, then shot her and set her body on fire. The indictment alleges they did the same to Brandon Cole, 47, and Phillip M. Jackson, 36, at the Welsh Run Road farm where the victims were found. Jackson, who was described as a drug customer, died in a hospital one day after the shootings. Chaney and Cole were pronounced dead at the scene. The indictments allege the Black Guerilla Family, a prison and street gang, as well as drug-trafficking activities had links to the triple homicide. Two defendants were allegedly surveilling Jacksons farm prior to the killings. Johnson and others are accused in court documents of later conspiring to kill Adgebesan to prevent his cooperation with authorities. He was restrained in Baltimore on May 9, 2017, but escaped those restraints. A grand jury charged Coles, Dickerson, White, Johnson, Adgebesan, Corbett, Buck and Jenkins-Armstrong with three counts of homicide, two counts of conspiracy, one count of robbing Phillip Jackson, and three counts of using a firearm in a crime of violence. The indictment alleges Adgebesan and Corbett traveled from Hagerstown to Baltimore to enlist Black Guerilla Family gang members to prepare for, plan and execute the robbery of Phillip Jackson and the murder of Wendy Chaney. White lured Chaney to the farm in Montgomery Township, Pa., the indictment states. Both Coles and White had dated Chaney prior to her death, the indictment state. Johnson was charged with illegally transporting a firearm as a convicted felon and armed robbery. Earlier, he was separately charged related to pistol-whipping and robbing a man outside a Hagerstown Sheetz store the same day as the triple homicide. Corbett and Adgebesan were charged with several counts related to possession with the intent to deliver 1,000 grams of heroin. They are accused of distributing heroin in Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania. Coles and Dickerson were charged with several counts of possession with the intent to deliver more than 100 grams of heroin as part of an operation distributing heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine in Maryland and Pennsylvania. The indictment says that Coles and Dickerson used force, violence and intimidation to maintain order and loyalty among members of the conspiracy and drug customers. As an example, Coles thought an associate had cheated him on a drug debt. Coles assaulted her in (an) apartment, zip-tied her hands behind her back, put a gun to the back of her head and told her he was going to kill her, the indictment states. Johnson, Preddy, Jenkins-Armstrong, Lawson and Armstrong were charged with conspiring to kill someone to prevent his testimony, which references Adgebesan. Preddy, Lawson and Armstrong were charged with assisting Johnson, Jenkins-Armstrong and others from being apprehended in the triple homicide. All told, there are 22 criminal counts contained in the indictment. Julie E. Greene julieg@herald-mail.com Washington County isnt the only Tri-State jurisdiction grappling with the shortage of volunteer firefighters. While several townships and boroughs in Franklin County, Pa., have an all-volunteer force, Berkeley County, W.Va., is getting ready to bolster its paid firefighting numbers in a matter of weeks. Berkeley County already had nine full-time firefighters and a pool of about 20 part-timers to draw from, said Eddie Gochenour, the countys director of homeland security and emergency management. Thanks to a federal Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant and county funds, the county is preparing to hire nine more full-time firefighters. Gochenour said they are aiming to hire at least seven of those firefighters by mid-February to help Baker Heights Volunteer Fire Department have three paid firefighters around the clock. We should be able to respond immediately on any fire emergency within the Baker Heights fire district, Fire Chief Martin Roberts said. The company failed to get out of the station at all on about 200 of more than 1,000 emergency calls last year, Roberts said. Those failed calls were nights and weekends when the two paid firefighters the county was already supplying werent on duty. Firetruck drivers moved out of the area, people are working longer hours and volunteers have children involved in sports, Roberts said of some reasons there are fewer volunteers available. There havent been enough new people coming in to offset those who arent able to help as much as they used to, he said. Berkeley County is now paying $884,473 a year for the nine full-time firefighters and pool of part-timers, County Administrator Alan Davis said. That includes pay, benefits and overtime. Baker Heights, South Berkeley, Bedington and Hedgesville each use two of those full-time firefighters, while Back Creek Valley had one because it didnt have as many emergency calls, Gochenour said. The SAFER grant and matching funds add up to $715,294 a year to provide Baker Heights seven more full-time firefighters. The county is picking up the cost of the two additional full-timers to help the other companies. The number of emergency calls has been increasing as the population has grown, to a point where the volunteers couldnt keep up, Gochenour said. This is not just a local problem. Its not even a Tri-State problem. Its a national problem, Gochenour said. Franklin County Emergency Services Alliance President Shawn Corwell said the boroughs of Chambersburg and Waynesboro have paid and volunteer firefighters. But most of the boroughs and townships in the county have all-volunteer forces. Local governments, a grant and private donations are paying for a $30,000 study to examine how many volunteers there are, how more can be recruited, and look into revenue sources and expenses for the fire departments, Corwell said. Hiring a consultant to begin the study could happen in early February, he said. The study could take nine months to a year. The study also will look at response times, compare fire and EMS pay to others in the region, determine trends regarding what areas emergency calls are coming from, and look at the hours needed for training and fundraising. Corwell said he wasnt aware of any similar studies that have been done before on a countywide level in Franklin County. There is no consistency regarding funding amounts the different townships provide for firefighting, he said. One may provide more than another. As far as recruiting, Corwell said Greene Township north of Chambersburg has been using billboards, including electronic ones; visiting schools and colleges; and promoting the need for more volunteers at fire prevention events and carnivals. Were appreciative of all the volunteers. We certainly need them and they do a great job here in the county. Were looking to see how to do things better, he said. Julie E. Greene julieg@herald-mail.com Community Rescue Service benched its equipment vehicle at the end of the year as the nonprofit tries to be more efficient and responsible with its staffing and financing, Assistant Chief Robert Buck said. More emergency-service companies in the community now have an equipment vehicle known as a rescue squad or carry similar tools to that carried on the vehicle, and CRS call volume for the vehicle has decreased, Buck said. A rescue squad is a big toolbox on wheels, carrying equipment and tools firefighters need at auto crashes and fires, Funkstown Volunteer Fire Co. President Gary Farrell said. Equipment on such vehicles includes generators, lights, absorbent for fuel spills and the jaws of life to help extricate people who are entrapped after a crash. With CRS no longer running its equipment vehicle, Farrell said there is more pressure for Funkstown to staff its squad on emergency calls. But Buck said more companies have an equipment vehicle or are carrying the tools on other vehicles, such as Hagerstown Fire carrying them on ladder trucks. Of CRS 15,148 dispatched calls in 2018, 240 or approximately 1.6 percent were for its equipment vehicle. Standard practice called for an ambulance crew and a shift officer to staff the equipment vehicle when it was dispatched, Buck said. That meant there was one less ambulance available for calls when the equipment vehicle responded, he confirmed. CRS plans to sell its equipment vehicle, which was kept at the companys main station off Eastern Boulevard. The Herald-Mail ANNAPOLIS Something old, something new, something borrowed. Well have to wait and see about the blue. Local legislators already filed legislative proposals for the Maryland General Assemblys new legislative session, now less than a week old. Many more are in the works. Some are new, some are repeats and some were borrowed from legislators now departed from the General Assembly. Wivell, R-Washington, already filed a bill that stalled at the end of last years session that would require a time limit for surface-mining companies to replace damaged water supplies for properties within a mines or quarrys zone of dewatering influence. The companies already are required to replace them, but Wivells bill sets a deadline. Wivell said last week he also plans to bring back his Truth in Speed Cameras Act, which would require local governments that use speed cameras in school zones to also post real-time displays of the drivers speed. We should really be very truthful about the cameras and post the actual speed that people are traveling, just like we do when you enter a work zone, he said. But Wivell said he might pare the bill down a little from last years version to reduce opposition. Hed also like to see counties get back some of the revenues from emissions testing as a way to set their plan from the highway-user revenue being taken from them, he said. Highway-user revenue includes gasoline taxes, registration and titling fees and taxes, plus other fees associated with transportation. The portion distributed among local governments for their transportation projects was dramatically diminished during former Gov. Martin OMalleys administration. Wivell said hes waiting for more information on how much money emissions-testing facilities generate beyond their operating expenses to file a bill. Hes also thinking of offering legislation to require the state to report the number of abortions performed within Maryland to the national Centers for Disease Control. You know, the CDC has a number, but nobody knows where it comes from, he said. Del. Mike McKay McKay, R-Washington/Allegany, already filed bills to modify the requirement that potential corrections officers take polygraph tests and to add prison chaplains to the corrections officers retirement system. He also plans to bring back his legislation for an Im alive today application for parents convicted of opioid possession. The mobile application will let them check in with departments of social services to let them know theyre caring for their children. McKay said Frostburg State University is on board to develop the application, and talks are underway with IBM to help. Del. Paul Corderman In addition to legislation regarding inmates from other jurisdictions who are released in Washington County after serving time at the prisons south of Hagerstown, Corderman, R-Washington, is considering a measure to dispose of prescription drugs of hospice patients after they die. My understanding is that hospice cant dispose of the medication, that the family has to dispose of the medication, he said. And a lot of times we see, unfortunately, a lot of these medications are opioids painkillers, things of that nature, which I understand are for those that are dying. But then they fall into the hands of people that have addiction issues, he said. His goal is to give hospice services authority to dispose of the medications, he said. Sens. George Edwards, Andrew Serafini Edwards, R-Washington/Allegany/Garrett, is looking at measures to expend economic-development incentives in Western Maryland, and Serafini, R-Washington, filed a plethora of tax-related bills, and brought back a measure that failed last year despite widespread support. The bill, initially requested by Washington County Sheriff Doug Mullendore, would prohibit medical marijuana in local correctional facilities. The bill passed in the Senate by a vote of 40 to 5, but died in the House Health and Government Operations Committee and did not get a vote in the full House. Serafini also brought back a bill championed last year by former Sen. Steve Waugh, R-Calvert/St. Marys, to exempt the sale of materials, parts or equipment used to repair, maintain or upgrade aircraft or the avionics systems installed on aircraft from the states sales and use tax. Del. Neil Parrott Look for Parrott, R-Washington, to bring back some of his prior bills, as well. He plans to bring back bills to require voter IDs at polling places and to prohibit the state from applying for a federal waiver of the time limit on the receipt of benefits under the food stamp program by an able-bodied adult without dependents who doesnt meet work requirements. That exemption already applies in Washington County. Hes also working on two relief bills for retired state workers who could lose their prescription-drug benefits next year, and a bill that would limit government seizure of private property. And hes working with other House Republicans on bills to require single-member districts for House members. He and several of the other local lawmakers already signed on as co-sponsors to Gov. Larry Hogans bills to change the method of redrawing the boundaries for legislative and congressional districts. Parrott said he wants to bring back former Del. Bill Foldens Move Over bill, which would reserve the left lane for passing in interstates with three lanes unless theyre crowded. He also said Thursday that drafting has begun on several bills requested by local agencies, including: Special-events permits for wineries Safety zones for archery hunting Returning a portion of the marriage ceremony fee to the Washington County Historical Society Recodifying Washington County laws Authority for the county government to prohibit abandoning trailers on public rights of way Alexis Fitzpatrick afitzpatrick@herald-mail.com The upcoming school year will look similar to the current calendar for Washington County Public Schools students, starting Sept. 3 and ending June 15. On Tuesday, the school board approved the 2019-20 calendar proposed by the advisory calendar committee by a 6-0 vote with the student member concurring. Board member Jacqueline Fischer was absent. The calendar, just like the 2018-19 school year, features a two-day school week for staff members and students the week of Thanksgiving. It also includes seven days for winter break, one more than this school year, along with New Years Day off. Barring any makeup days due to inclement weather, spring break will be three days long April 9, 10 and 13. June 2 to 5 have been designated for evening graduations. Four inclement-weather days were built into the calendar. According to a note at the bottom of the calendar, additional makeup days could include, but are not limited to, Nov. 27, Jan. 31, Feb. 17, April 9 and April 13. Although unlikely, the note also said the school year might be extended through June 22, 2020, and other modifications to the school calendar might be necessary for students and teachers. The board decided to hold off on voting on the proposed 2020-21 calendar after Deputy Superintendent April Bishop said that, due to the late start of Sept. 8, only one makeup day was built in. She said the advisory committee has looked at an alternative calendar, should anything change at the state level regarding requirements. Board Vice President Stan Stouffer said the Maryland Association of Boards of Education was working on a bill that would return scheduling authority back to the local school districts instead of the governors executive order to start school after Labor Day. The BOE will look at the 2020-21 calendar again in April. She began her job on Jan. 1 at the peak of COVID-19s winter spike and has guided Kyrene Sch President Donald Trump may be the only person in Washington who thinks he is winning the shutdown. Well, maybe the staffer who came up with the brilliant idea of taking construction money for real emergencies to pay for Trumps phony emergency think hes winning too. Back on Earth, polling continues to show the shutdown is a loser with voters, and Trump is to blame. A new NPR/Ipsos polls tells us: Three-quarters of Americans say the government shutdown, now tied for the longest in U.S. history, is embarrassing for the country, including a majority of Republicans [and] about 7 in 10 in the NPR/Ipsos poll also say the government shutdown is going to hurt the country, that it will hurt the economy and that Congress should pass a bill to reopen the government now while budget talks continue. Contrary to Trumps strategy, Just 3 in 10 believe the government should remain closed until there is funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Many doctors are now using technology that enables them to view precise medication costs in real time before leaving the exam room. One of the jobs of a local school system is to prepare students for the work force and anticipate the needs of local employers. Its a responsibility that Bristol Virginia school officials are taking seriously. Even before work has begun on the medical cannabis facility that won state approval to open at the vacant Bristol Mall, school officials and the School Board are moving ahead with new classes that would train students to work at the business. It will grow cannabis indoors, harvest the cannabidiol and the THC-A oil and dispense those products to state residents registered with the Board of Pharmacy for disease treatment. The new classes would be cybersecurity specifically for food and agriculture and medical science and expand the greenhouse plant production and management. The classes must now be approved by the state. One school leader told the School Board last week that there is high interest in Richmond in the local cybersecurity class as it relates to food and agriculture. If approved, the Bristol, Virginia, school system would be one of the first in the state to offer it. Although the news last Tuesday was not unexpected, the delivery was a bit startling. A consultant giving an update on the citys problematic landfill told Bristol Virginia City Council that in his nearly 30 years of experience across the country, he has never seen a landfill that operated under more dire financial circumstances. The study was paid for by the state after the Auditor of Public Accounts deemed Bristol the most financially distressed locality in Virginia last year. City Manager Randy Eads said many people think the citys decision to pursue The Falls development, which saddled the city with tremendous debt, was its biggest mistake. But he said the decision by previous leaders to establish the landfill at the old quarry cost the city $85 million, far more than The Falls. The landfill requires $2.2 million each year just to pay the service on its debt, and no payments have been made on the principal debt, the consultant said. Adding to the problems is that though costs far exceeded revenue, there were no rate increases between 1998 and 2009, and tipping fees for commercial customers were artificially low. And no money was set aside to pay for state-mandated post-closure costs. A thorn goes to previous city councils and officials for not raising rates and fees over time and for failing to address the problems that have existed for so many years. Rather than continue to delay dealing with the problem, current city officials are going to tackle it during the upcoming budget process. Theyve wrestled with serious financial issues already with success. In 2017 and 2018, city leaders refinanced debt associated with The Falls, established funding for capital projects and eliminated short-term borrowing to pay the bills. Those actions were the reason that late last year the state lifted the citys designation as the most financially distressed locality. Their hard work and desire to confront the problems head-on deserve a rose. BRISTOL, Tenn. A post is all that remains after local police said this weekend that vandals had destroyed the Bristol Sessions historical marker along State Street in downtown Bristol. Capt. Charlie Thomas of the Bristol Tennessee Police Department said the marker, which had been installed in 2009, was damaged on the night of Jan. 8. Officials discovered it was destroyed the next morning, he said. Vandals apparently broke the sign off the post and stole it, Thomas said. The city estimates it will cost about $2,000 to replace the missing marker. Five individuals are believed to have vandalized the Tennessee Historical Commissions marker, according to Tim Buchanan, a historian with the Bristol Historical Association. Video cameras caught the incident, but low light has hampered the identification of the vandals, he added. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Bristol, Tennessee, police. Other nearby historic markers at the corner of State Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard did not appear to be damaged, Buchanan said. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} ABINGDON, Va. Freezing cold temperatures didnt frighten the dozens of people who jumped in South Holston Lake on Saturday. Travis Richards wearing only a pair of swimming trunks braved the chilly waters as he led the crowd into the lake. The temperature just after noon Saturday hovered at about 32 degrees. Earlier in the morning, some moderate snow had fallen at Sportsmans Marina, where the annual Polar Bear Plunge was held. The snow briefly stuck to surfaces but melted by the time people began to arrive at the lakeside marina. The water temperature was in the mid-40s. Richards, owner of Sportsmans Marina, said the polar plunge began as a joke back in 2008. As a way to gather friends during the winter months, when not as many people visit the lake, the marina decided to host its first plunge. Its grown every year and so has the amount of money raised each January. Participants make donations of $10 or $15 or $20 to make the plunge. Richards has also offered a discount on gas for his marina members who donate $100 to charity as part of the Polar Bear Plunge. Support Local Journalism Your subscription makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} This years event drew the biggest crowd yet, Richards said. A story in the Bristol Herald Courier and word-of-mouth led many to show up. Twenty-six people took the plunge while more than 60 people watched from the shore. Richards said the event raised more than $3,000 for St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital. Saturdays plunge included the first Speedo challenge. I want to formally challenge the following people: Bart Long of Bart Long Auctions, $500; Trace Bratton of Bill Gatton Honda, $250; J.W. Kiser of New Peoples Bank, $250; Jimmie Hess of Conway and Hess Attorneys at Law, $250; and Leon Punk Vandyke of Lakeside Ready Mix, $250, Richards previously told the newspaper. Last year, Long told Richards he would donate $500 if Richards would take the plunge in a Speedo. He did, launching the annual Speedo challenge. Only Hess took on the challenge on Saturday, showing up in bright pink underwear. But those who didnt wear a Speedo did make a monetary donation, Richards said. Participants, many donning shorts and shirts, ran down the boat ramp at Sportsmans Marina on Saturday, spending a few frigid seconds in South Holston Lake. A bonfire awaited them as they ran back out of the water. A pair of drones captured the event on camera as spectators, most wearing winter gear, watched. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Support local journalism We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story. Education & Special Projects / Royse City Reporter Hojun Choi is a native of Houston and a graduate of University of Texas at Austin, where he studied journalism and worked as a reporter at The Daily Texan. To reach him outside of business hours, email HChoiReporter@gmail.com. You have permission to edit this image. Edit Close Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email customercare@heraldandnews.com for help creating one. Editor: I am amazed at how Ms. Finfrocks blind faith in the Trump narrative of a Benachrichtigung aktivieren Durfen wir Sie in Ihrem Browser uber die wichtigsten Nachrichten des Handelsblatts informieren? Sie erhalten 2-5 Meldungen pro Tag. Fast geschafft Erlauben Sie handelsblatt.com Ihnen Benachrichtigungen zu schicken. Dies konnen Sie in der Meldung Ihres Browsers bestatigen. Published on 2019/01/13 | Source Some 200 people braved subzero temperatures in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul on Wednesday to mark the 27th anniversary of protests for women forced into sexual slavery by Imperial Japan. Advertisement The protesters along with some surviving victims are still demanding that Japan officially admit responsibility. But they are also calling on the Korean government to put more efforts into resolving the issue of wartime sex slavery through diplomatic channels. Out of 240 registered victims in Korea, only 25 are still alive. Eight victims died last year alone, but the issue continues to flare up as Tokyo's efforts to settle the matter without admitting full responsibility keep exacerbating the problem. Published on 2019/01/13 | Source A Chinese man live-streams from Dongdaemun Market in Seoul last Wednesday. Dongdaemun Market in Seoul is brimming with Chinese live-streamers who document available cheap clothes and accessories on the hoof. Advertisement Market traders say that no fewer than 600 Chinese live-streamers operate in APM Place, DDP Mall and other large stores in the market frequented by Chinese shoppers. One store owner at APM Place said, "Out of every 10 Chinese customers, five to six live-stream". Live-streaming became popular in China after the Taobao Live platform affiliated with Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba was launched in 2016. Taobao Live is a combination of e-commerce and web broadcaster. The live-streamers start their webcasts when the market opens at around 8 p.m. and end at 3 a.m., three to four hours earlier than Korean stall keepers. The timing is designed to coincide with the hours when Chinese people finish work and come home. One Chinese exchange student identified only by his surname Wang was busy Monday night live-streaming with his older sister who models the accessories and clothes. "I earn about 5,000 yuan a night visiting five stores", Wang said. Dongdaemun market was hit hard by a Chinese boycott in 2017, and revenues dropped 30 to 40 percent compared to the previous year, according to a spokesman for the market traders association. But then the Chinese live-streamers started popping up, and now their numbers have swelled to the hundreds. The spokesman said they generated an estimated W150 billion to W160 billion in revenues last year (US$1=W1,120). An owner of an accessory wholesale store said, "The entire market is benefiting from the publicity generated by the Chinese live-streaming merchants. It seems like sales have returned to between 60 to 70 percent of what they were in 2016". But not everyone welcomes them. Some store owners complain that they are a nuisance, especially when dozens of them flock to a particular part of the market and get in the way of other customers. Lee Sung-wook, who sells children's clothes, said, "They talk very loudly while broadcasting or sit down anywhere they please and get in the way. They crowd my small store and often generate only a small number of orders". Another store owner said, "Some do their broadcast for more than 30 minutes but buy only six pieces of clothing in the end, so I only let them in when I have products left that I need to get rid of". By Vasia Orion | Published on 2019/01/12 The Dramaland choo choo is just blasting through goodies this week, as we have a ton of new promotional bits for shows airing soon, as well as some exciting casting news and fresh dramas on the horizon. We also get to meet the feisty lawyers of "Legal High" in brand new images and video. Advertisement Legally Kooky This week marks our first look into the Korean remake of hit Japanese series "Legal High", and I'm definitely not disappointed with what we get. The drama has released stills of Jin Goo, as well as a poster, and its first teaser just seals the deal of how wacky this is looking like. I'm imagining a more animated, more cynical series along the lines of "Miss Hammurabi", but I'm ready for anything. It's fun so far, and that's always encouraging. Packed Promotional Hype Updates galore this week, including some for soon-to-air dramas, so be sure to check out their profiles for more! "Possessed" gets a heap of goodies, including a fun new teaser, while "Spring Turns to Spring" gets the friendship sparking in its own teaser and poster. "Romance is a Bonus Book" has a lot of new stuff too, including some cute couple stills. Meanwhile, "Touch Your Heart" is busy with its own promotion, which includes a new teaser. Upcoming Drama Goodies "The Light in Your Eyes" gets a lovely poster, and "The Item" has new stills of its three leads. The casting news is generous, including a drama announcement and role considerations. Lee Junho and Yoo Jae-myung confirm tvN's "Confession - Drama", "Special Labor Inspector, Mr. Jo" has three new members, while "Ugeumchi" changes its name to "The Nokdu Flower", and has its three leads. Ji Jin-hee will lead "Designated Survivor: 60 Days", and "Kill It" gets Jang Ki-yong and Nana, while new drama "Chocolate" is courting Yoon Kye-sang and Ha Ji-won. Followed Dramas I'm dividing my time between "Memories of the Alhambra" and "Children of Nobody" at the moment, and my endless options leave me a bit daunted. I think I need some post-holiday rest before sorting my watch list, because I currently feel like Lee Seung-joon looks in the "Rude Miss Young-ae Season 17" posters. Written by: Orion from 'Orion's Ramblings' Published on 2019/01/13 | Source The growth in household debt in Korea compared to GDP is the second fastest in the world combined with the highest burden of debt redemption compared to income. Advertisement According to the Bank of International Settlements on Sunday, Korea's household debt-to-GDP ratio stood at 96 percent as of the second quarter of last year, seventh out of 43 countries. But in terms of growth speed, the country was in second place with a 0.8 percentage point increase from the previous quarter, after China's one percentage point. The government began clamping down on rampant housing loans in August of 2017 but to little avail. The debt-service ratio, the proportion of disposable income required to meet debt payments, reached 12.4 percent in the second quarter last year, putting Korea at No. 6 globally, while the growth rate was the highest in the world at 0.2 percentage points on-quarter. Canada was the only other country whose DSR increased. By Panos Kotzathanasis | Published on 2019/01/12 My exploration of Bae Chang-ho's cinema continues with a rather different film, since it takes place in the Joseon era, and focuses not on narrative, but on visuals, in a rather arthouse approach. Let us take things from the beginning though. Advertisement The story is based on an actual person with the same name, who is considered the most famous gisaeng of the Joseon Dynasty, and has featured in popular culture a number of times. The story begins before she becomes a gisaeng, when she is just the beautiful daughter of an important family, and is about to marry. Just before the ceremony, though, a local cobbler who has been stealing her shoes to draw her attention is arrested, punished, and soon commits suicide. Shuttered by this event, Jin-ie abandons her former life and becomes a gisaeng, changing her name to Myong-wol. Soon after, she begins a relationship with a wealthy man, Kyong-dok, who soon abandons her, though, to go to Seoul. Myong-wol then decides to roam the world, but her path is full of hardships, that not even the relationship with another man, Yi-saeng, a noble man whose reputation was ruined, tones down. As time passes, her downward spiral continues. Bae Chang-ho directs a naturalistic film, which moves quite slowly, in order to allow the spectator to enjoy Jeon Il-seong's impressive cinematography, who presents a number of rural and bucolic setting of extreme beauty, through a plethora of long shots. This tactic extends to the set design, costumes, music, and in general the depiction of the era, which is as realistic as possible. Most of all, it extends to the presentation of Jin-ie, with Chang-ho frequently using close up shots of Jang Mi-hee's impeccable face, again allowing the spectator to enjoy the beauty on screen. The style of the film follows the rules of the art-house, with Kim Hyun-I's editing implementing a rather slow pace, through a number of lengthy scenes, while the dialogue is scarce, with the actors mostly presenting their feelings and psychological status through their eyes and body stance. Of course, the social commentary could not be missing from a Bae Chang-ho movie, and the Korean director does not fail to presents a rather harsh one about the role of woman in Joseon society, with the fact that "this is a man's world" being depicted quite eloquently. In rather melodramatic fashion, Bae highlights the fact that women had no claim on their fate whatsoever, and more particularly in Jin-ie's case, even beauty can prove a curse. One could say also that her downwards spiral towards the complete lack of dignity is instigated by her will to escape her fate, in another comment about the dead-end women constantly experienced during the era. "Hwang Jin-ie" is one of the least approachable films of Bae Chang-ho, particularly due to its art-house aesthetics and the very thin narrative. At the same time, it is one of the most visually impressive, and that is where its true value lies. Review by Panos Kotzathanasis Facebook "Hwang Jin-ie" is directed by Bae Chang-ho, and features Jang Mi-hee, Ahn Sung-ki, Shin Il-ryong and Jun Moo-song. Haiti - News : Zapping... $1.5 billion investment in Haiti The 3 companies making the biggest investments in Haiti in the last 12 years are European. In total, they invested more than $1.5 billion during this period. These companies: Digicel (Ireland) more than $1 billion since 2006 (purchase of Voila, ACN and the construction of the Marriott Hotel); the oil operator Rubis (France) more than 300 million (purchase of Dinasa) and brewer Heineken (Netherlands) more than 200 million (purchase of the National Brewery of Haiti, BRANA). The Mayor of Cite Soleil kept his promise The Mayor of Cite Soleil, Jean Hislain Frederic has kept his promise to the 14 scholars of Quisqueya University, giving a check of a 1.4 million Gourdes (1,487,890) Gourdes to the administrator of this University. "Haiti's vote against Venezuela is fratricidal and ungrateful" "Haiti's vote against the Republic of Venezuela is a fratricidal and ungrateful vote. It is an act that recalls Cain and Judas. Haiti, in this shameful situation must feel uncomfortable and can not, in any case benefit. The crime is shame and not the scaffold," said former Environment Minister Pierre Simon Georges. Vocational Training Center for Persons with Disabilities Gerald Oriol Jr., the Secretary of State for the Integration of People with Disabilities, visited the site under development of the "Hope Center for Rehabilitation and Technological Adaptation" (HCRAT). It should be remembered that HCRAT, located in Delams, promotes and encourages people with disabilities to reach their potential through vocational training. "Chamber of Deputies : Between Propaganda and Realities" The Chamber of Deputies has just published to the Editions C3, the report to date, the activities and acts of the Lower House under the title "Chamber of Deputies: Between Propaganda and Realities", informs Gary Bodeau 2010 Earthquake : UN commemorates its dead On the occasion of the 9th anniversary of the 7.0 earthquake, which hit Haiti hard on January 12, 2010, United Nations personnel commemorate the families, friends and colleagues who lost their lives in the service of peace. HL/ HaitiLibre This is how we start the process to overthrow a government around the world. The USA/Americans do not recognize the legitimacy of the government and so decide to over throw them for their own good. They then ultimately end up attacking in the name of USA and her righteousness as the only God Given Good on Earth and kill a bunch of people, as they stuff Democracy up their asses They did the same in Syria, Ukraine, Libya and many more and look how well that they have all turned out. They did not turn out as anything but death and disaster Actions Against Venezuelas Corrupt Regime: Press Statement by Michael R. Pompeo our Secretary of State in Washington, DC on January 10, 2019 The United States condemns Maduros illegitimate usurpation of power today following the unfree and unfair elections he imposed on the Venezuelan people on May 20, 2018. The United States remains steadfast in its support of the Venezuelan people and will continue to use the full weight of U.S. economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of Venezuelan democracy. Today, we reiterate our support for Venezuelas National Assembly, the only legitimate branch of government duly elected by the Venezuelan people. It is time for Venezuela to begin a transitional process that can restore the constitutional, democratic order by holding free and fair elections that respect the will of the Venezuelan people. To advance this goal, the United States has taken aggressive action against the Maduro regime and its enablers. Most recently, on January 8, the United States imposed sanctions on seven individuals and 23 entities involved in a corruption scheme to exploit Venezuelas currency exchange practices. By rigging the system in their favor, these individuals and entities stole more than $2.4 billion as the Venezuelan people starved. We applaud the initiative by the new National Assembly leadership to work with the international community to recover these and other stolen funds and to use them to relieve the suffering of Venezuelas people. The United States will continue to play an active role towards this end. We also have implemented and will continue to impose visa revocations and other restrictions for current and former Venezuelan government officials and their family members believed to be responsible for or complicit in human rights abuses, acts of public corruption, and the undermining of democratic governance. We will not allow them to act without consequence or enjoy their ill-gotten gains in the United States and urge other countries to act likewise. It is time for Venezuelan leaders to make a choice. We urge those who support this regime, from every day employees getting by on food subsidies to the Venezuelan security forces sworn to support the constitution, to stop enabling repression and corruption and to work with the National Assembly and its duly elected leader, Juan Guaido, in accordance with your constitution on a peaceful return to democracy. The Venezuelan people and the international community will remember and judge your actions. Now is the time to convince the Maduro dictatorship that the moment has arrived for democracy to return to Venezuela. Five Cybersecurity Predictions for 2019 This story has been published on: 2019-01-13. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. Passwords were leaking, new sophisticated malware attacks were spreading, data was breached, and governments around the world once again overturned privacy rules. NordVPNs Digital Privacy Expert Daniel Markuson says that 2019 will keep getting worse.The year 2018 not only (yet again) shocked the world by highlighting systemic cybersecurity issues. Multiple governments adopted new rules and laws, which are making a global impact now and will echo for years to come, says Daniel Markuson, Digital Privacy Expert at NordVPN. Still, 2019 can bring some hope for the future but only if governments and corporations understand the importance of digital privacy and security.Based on the outcomes from 2018, NordVPNs expert lists five significant trends that will shape cybersecurity and digital privacy in 2019:1. Identity theft, phishing scams, and personal data loss will hit a new high."From Facebook and Google to Quora and Marriott, this years data breaches have affected more than 1 billion people around the globe. Add that to the existing pool of leaked data, and hackers will have an invaluable resource for tailoring a phishing scam or taking over your Facebook or Netflix account. Without a doubt, it will be used in 2019."2. Some governments will lean towards higher data security standards."The GDPR in the EU established a new set of game rules by regulating the way corporations protect the data of their customers. It is still early to tell whether the new regulations have made a positive impact, but they have brought a shift towards more responsible use of private data. In 2019, some non-EU countries will likely follow the example and introduce a similar set of laws for data protection as well. This year, all eyes will be on the US, where California has set a high bar by passing the Consumer Privacy Act. However, it is still unclear if other states will follow. We really hope they do!"3. Use of encrypted communications will face new challenges."In December, Australia passed the Assistance and Access (A&A) bill, also known as anti-encryption law all despite an uproar within the society. The bill requires tech companies to create backdoor access to the encrypted communications of their users. It would be used by law enforcement agencies to intercept and read the content of the private messages. Despite the opposition to the law, similar ideas have been floated in multiple countries including the US. Having in mind the everlasting itch to spy on their citizens, it wouldnt be a shocking surprise if other members of the 14-eyes countries would follow this example in 2019."4. Tech companies will look for new ways to win the trust of their potential customers."A lot of data has been stolen this year. Despite the companies size and significance, despite the self-proclaimed "best security practices," despite the risk of being fined under the GDPR. Its no surprise that ensuring customers trust will become more critical than ever. Companies will learn (although slowly) from their mistakes and invest in penetration testing, security audits, AI, and implementing zero-trust policies to prove that they are making an effort to protect their clients."5. Cloud security will become a bigger issue."As people change locations and devices, cloud computing becomes inevitable both for private users and corporations. At the same time, it becomes a bigger security problem. GoDaddy, Los Angeles 211 center, Viacom, and just recently the United Nations had their data records harvested from cloud storage. The biggest issue is still simple configuration errors and user neglect. Nevertheless, as we can expect more leaks and breaches here, new cloud security measures and services will come out in 2019."About NordVPNNordVPN is the worlds most advanced VPN service provider that is more security oriented than most VPN services. It offers double VPN encryption, ad blocking & Onion Over VPN. The product is very user-friendly, offers one of the best prices on the market, has over 5,000 servers worldwide and is P2P-friendly. One of the key features of NordVPN is zero log policy. For more information: nordvpn.com.Related Link: A mid-level restaurant, like Chilis, Red Robin or Panera. Light industry to keep jobs in the area. More retail so we don't have to go to Tucson. Better and more mass transit options. All of the above. Vote View Results It's still early in the year, but we are already getting an action-packed week in our trending chart including a new leader and 3 new phones in the top 10. The Redmi Note 7 debuted on Thursday and it wasted no time climbing to the top and dethroning its stablemate - the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro had to settle for second this time around. In third and fourth we have a couple of new phones that are yet to even become official. The Samsung Galaxy M30 and Xiaomi Mi 9 are already getting people excited and their specs pages are among the most searched on our website. In sixth we find the upcoming Xioami Redmi 7, which has pushed its Pocophone F1 stablemate down to seventh. That pushed the Samsung GAlaxy A7 (2018) down to fifth, just ahead of the final new name of the chart - Huawei Y9 (2019). The duo of phones with punch holes in their displays - Samsung Galaxy A8s and Huawei nova 4 - takes the following two spots. Finally we have the Xiaomi Pocophone F1 and Samsung Galaxy S8, which took the last two spots on our trending chart. This week we say goodbye to Xiaomi Mi Play, Honor View 20 and the Apple iPhone 6s, which didn't make the cut this time around. Perhaps we'll see the first two make a return at one point or another, but the 2015 Apple flagship may have made its final cameo. The Google Pixel Stand accessory was announced back in October along with the Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3 XL. It was Google's first wireless fast charger, designed specifically with the Pixel 3 phones in mind. At $79 it was definitely one of the most expensive chargers on the market, but it came with a few cool features that promised to make it all worthwhile. The Pixel Stand featured a custom UI that would be displayed on the phone's screen when it was placed on the Pixel Stand, which kept the clock always on, along with displaying Google Assistant, your schedule, any song that could be playing or even your photos with the Live Albums feature. A special alarm feature also gradually lit up the display as it was time to wake up. Apart from that, the Pixel Stand also claimed support for fast charging, which alleviated some concerns of using a wireless charger. The charging speeds in our testing were actually quite close to that of just plugging in the supplied fast charger directly. All of this sounds pretty great. Except, it rarely works as promised. Starting from November, the same month the charger went on sale, we started seeing reports of people complaining about the charger having issues. The issues ran the gamut of notifications not showing up on the screen, the Live Photos mode not working, and the charger not fast charging. A quick search reveals dozens of threads on reddit as well as other forums from users, with other users chiming in replies that they too are suffering the exact same issues with no solution. It seems Google was aware of some of these issues, as in November it issued a statement that it is working on fix. This was specifically regarding the notification issue mentioned earlier. However, that was two months ago and users issues persist. But it's one thing to watch other people from the sidelines having issues and another to experience them yourself. After working normally for the first month or so, my personal Pixel Stand has now also starting acting up. The main issue for me is that the fast charging feature is unreliable. Putting the phone on the charger should initiate fast charging immediately. However, in several cases the fast charging is never enabled. You can confirm this for yourself because the phone shows on screen if it is charging slowly or rapidly. Sometimes the phone starts charging rapidly, only to fall back to slow charging after a while. Sometimes it keeps going back and forth after spending several minutes in each mode. This is by far the most common complaint for other Pixel Stand owners as well. It's hard to troubleshoot since there really isn't much you can do with either the hardware or the software. You also can't test it with other phones, either since the Pixel 3 phones are the only ones that support fast charging with this charger. For the record, the charger will still charge other devices that support the Qi standard (my iPhone XR has been charging happily on it for weeks now) but the charging speed is slow, as it has always been for other devices. All this brings us back to the price. At $79, this thing isn't cheap and while the extra features it offered over other chargers weren't much, at least it was something. But most of them seem to be having issues and on any given day of the week either could show up to pay you a visit. I still think the Pixel Stand is a pretty cool accessory. But it's about time Google does something about all the issues. It's a $79 accessory meant for phones that cost upwards of $799. There really shouldn't be any room for issues of such magnitude languishing around for so long. Note: The Pixel 3 XL and the Pixel Stand app were on their latest version at the time of writing. Mark Weber Human trafficking, also known as modern slavery, is an egregious crime against humanity. Modern slavery is a complicated web that uses illegal and legal entities to support its work. The International Labour Organization estimates there are 40.3 million victims of human trafficking globally through forced labor, sex trafficking, child marriage and debt bondage that crosses international borders, cultures and industries. It is estimated to be a $150 billion illegal enterprise that is being fought with only $150 million in NGO funding. The financial opportunities are second only to drug trafficking as the most profitable form of transnational crime. The numbers are staggering. At YWCA Greenwich, we have served trafficking victims in our Domestic Abuse Services Department. Human traffickers use force, fraud or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. Victims come from every nationality and socioeconomic status. While not always the case, poverty and immigration status play an important role in the vulnerability of a person who is trying desperately to build a better life. Traffickers convince victims to leave their homes and countries with the promise of good paying jobs or fulfillment of a debt. The reality is that victims are often faced with threats, physical harm, substandard living conditions and no means of escape from their abusers and the nightmare situations they find themselves in. Here at MSPS, we are able to use experiential, inclusive and collaborative practices to guide teaching and learning, said Catina Chestnut, associate director/principal of the school. We rely on teachers input in decision making for every aspect of our organization. The school also has two active book clubs, will implement a mentoring program in the coming weeks and organized a Home School Connect Team to identify opportunities for families to express their ideas, questions and concerns. They also plan to develop an active PTA. Art, music and physical education are offered, as well as theater and dance. UNCG is actually known for our College of Visual and Performing Arts, and we prepare teachers in all of these arts areas and P.E. and health, OConnor said. In order to bring our student teachers up here to learn how to teach, they have to have somebody to learn from, and so we will have a full-time dance and theater teacher, in addition to our full-time art, music and P.E. teachers. Technology was also added, with all students and teachers having iPads for use during the instructional day. Our goal is to continue to improve students academic progress by following our guiding principles collaborative, inclusive, experiential, reflective and interdisciplinary, Chestnut said. When RockinghamNow asked if the business uses jamming equipment, the sole worker there said, I cant tell you what were using in here, and shut her office door, declining to give her name or title, or to share the business owners name. Further explaining how a jammer could handicap vehicles, Levitan said, When you listen to the radio, youre tuned in to a certain frequency. There are a couple thousand channels allocated to different things like cell phones and key fobs. Generally, these signals are very sensitive. These (jamming) devices create static so these radio waves are interrupted. Zapped, one car at a time Jennifer W. Griffin of Eden said she has grappled with the car crippling issue four times since the fall after parking near Lucky Day. El Parral is a Wednesday night dining tradition for Griffin, and on repeated visits shes seen her key fob and car locks malfunction. And whatever the disruptive signal is, it blitzed her entire family over the holidays, one car at a time, Griffin said. Indeed, just before Christmas, Griffins mother Martha J. Wright had to resort to a towing service when she was unable to start her Cadillac in the El Parral lot. But after a promising start, the stores revenues didnt kept pace with expenses. The co-op officially will close it doors on Jan. 25. The stores demise also will deal a serious a blow to the shopping center. What went wrong? Some cite a lack of effective marketing and advertising. The co-op struggled to achieve the right balance of healthy foods and popular ones. Others say competition from more traditional grocers hurt, including a Walmart off U.S. 29, even though they were not as conveniently located. The co-op did make changes. It hired a consultant. It ran promotions and sponsored community activities. Last spring it brought aboard an experienced new general manager, Mike Sakellaridis, who had run a grocery co-op near San Francisco for eight years. But only a week after Sakellaridis had taken the job, a tornado left the store without power for a week, saddling it with lost sales and inventory. Its hard to be sure why such a spirited grass-roots effort didnt succeed. What is unmistakable is the lesson in all of this that people working together can create change from the bottom up. And that they can apply similar approaches to other needs and initiatives. Probably none of them will be consoled by moral victories. For now. I am not saying that people should be encouraged to own lions and tigers. The way to improve their care is via education, not banning owning these animals. Generally speaking, most veterinarians in North Carolina were opposed to the proposed 2015 law you cited, primarily because it necessitated that all exotics would have to spayed or neutered. This is feasible in a wolf or a lion, but I have a client with a pair of camels. Spaying one would be quite difficult and dangerous to the animal. And in reptiles and birds the ovaries and testicles are attached to a trivial structure called the aorta. Spaying would usually be fatal. Florida has very good and useful laws controlling the ownership of exotics, classifying each animal by its inherent danger, and requiring owners to show they have enough experience in caring for such animals. Possibly if legislators consulted veterinarians in this state something similar could be passed. What happened at the Conservators Center was tragic, but it is not a reason to close it or ban ownership of exotic animals. Educating owners on how they care for their pets is the job of all pet stores, and veterinarians and owners should seek this information before they own. This certainly applies to exotics, but also should apply to all animals, including your dog and cat. Having a pet is not a right, but it is an opportunity to have a relationship with a pet, even it is a snake or a tarantula (both of which I have owned). Finally, we should be responsible pet owners and citizens of this Earth, because we are the ones who control the fate of wildlife in our backyards and across the planet. Paul S. Bencuya DVM MS, lives in Greensboro. Neither argument can withstand close scrutiny, which is why the powers-that-be keep trying to change the subject as quickly as they can. This strategy isnt going to work in the long run. It would be wiser to prepare for a future in which North Carolina public schools are organized differently, with multiple districts co-existing in at least a dozen or so of our counties. I believe this future is inevitable. The efficiency argument for big districts just doesnt comport with the available evidence. While consolidating sparsely populated rural districts into larger entities probably did exploit economies of scale to reduce operating cost per pupil, there is very little evidence of such benefits when school districts run into the tens of thousands of students. Moreover, even if construction costs and other expenses are lower at large enrollment scales, the purpose of public schools is to educate students, not merely to house them. While the empirical literature is mixed on the subject of optimal district size, there is a compelling body of evidence suggesting that competition is good for school quality that the more options families have within a given geographic area, the better those options tend to be. Even in the midst of the holiday season, the response was furious, by phone and letter and on social media. More readers took issue with the decision to publish the letter, which they labeled as racist, than the points it attempted to make. I am appalled that this article made it into the News & Record, a reader emailed. Not all opinions need to be given a platform. Another offensively stupid neo-Confederate gives outsiders pause when considering if Greensboro has brought itself out of the dark ages, fumed Rocky Moss ... from Los Angeles. I can only assume that you are the one that saw this article and approved it to be hosted on the N&R site as some sort of platform-worthy opinion that does nothing other than roll around in the dirt of its own banality, Phillip Durham wrote. I would sincerely like to hear from you as to why you think this is the case. Why would I publish such a letter? Foremost, I published the letter because our intent in the letters columns isnt merely to publish views we agree with. Thats obvious in letters that routinely take us to task for our editorial stances or leftist agenda or what is perceived as our bias against President Donald Trump. Announcements High Point University has organized almost 35 service projects for its Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service on Jan. 21 at various times and locations in High Point. Community members may sign up to participate at www.highpoint.edu/servicelearning/mlk-day-of-service/. Registration closes Friday, Jan. 18. *** Greensboro Colleges drama department will perform Starting Here, Starting Now, from Feb. 1-2 at Mitchells Grove United Methodist Church, 3511 Martin Luther King Drive in High Point. A meal catered by Snyder Farm Restaurant will be offered at 6 p.m. with the play following at 7 p.m. Tickets are $20. To purchase tickets, call 336-882-6657 or email Tickets@MitchellsGroveUMC.com. All proceeds from the event will go to the church budget and to missions. *** The Archdale Public Library will offer a six-week program, Eating Rainbows, from 3 to 4 p.m. Thursdays, beginning Feb. 7. The program, part of UNC-Greensboros Recipe for Success initiative to develop kitchen skills and learn about nutrition, is for children ages 7 and older. Georgias President Salome Zurabishvili will pay her first working visit to Brussels to the EU and NATO [headquarters], InterPressNews reported. I have already announced it, but I will reiterate that I will pay my first visit to Brussels to the EU and NATO," Zurabishvili said. US Ambassador Richard Grenells letter to German companies, threatening them with "a significant risk of sanctions" over their involvement in the Nord Stream 2 has puzzled the countrys Foreign Ministry, the newspaper Bild reports. This move does not reportedly adhere to diplomatic practices. However, an official statement on the matter has not been made yet. Local firms involved in the project to build a gas pipeline from Russia to Europe that will divert gas flows away from Ukraine to Germany through the Baltic Sea, reportedly received the letters, picturing a grim future for them if they didnt leave the project. "We emphasize that companies involved in Russian energy exports are taking part in something that could prompt a significant risk of sanctions", the message reads, as cited by the paper. He accused these companies of impacting European energy security, as the US has persistently tried to sway Germany and other stakeholders away from this venture. "As a result, firms supporting the construction of both pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe, the letter said, Sputnik reports. He also supported the European Parliament resolution, condemning the project. However, the US Embassy in Berlin defended the letters, saying: "The letter should not be seen as a threat, but as a clear message of US policy". Its not the first time, Grenell has warned German businesses against cooperating with Russia. Earlier this year he told German newspaper Handelsblatt that firms participating in the construction are "always in danger because sanctions are always possible"; he also expressed his belief that looming sanctions would force these companies to voluntarily pull out of the project. This statement came amid reports that the White House would primarily levy sanctions on the highly specialised companies laying the Nord Stream 2 pipeline on behalf of the operating company, Nord Stream 2 AG. These two contractors are Swiss-based Allseas Group and Italian-based Saipem. In his vigorous criticism, Grenell echoed US President Donald Trump who has previously slammed Nord Stream 2 as "unfortunate" for Germans but vowed not to be hard on investors in the pipeline. At CES 2019, Harley-Davidson announced pricing and pre-order availability for LiveWire, its first electric production motorcycle. (Earlier post.) The 2020 LiveWire is now available for US dealer pre-order at h-d.com/LiveWire with an MSRP of $29,799. Deliveries are expected this fall; select global markets will be announced at a later date. The company also displayed two new concept electric two-wheelers: one designed for the city, the other with off-roading in mind. Harley concepts for city (top) and off-roading (bottom). The first of a new electric portfolio of motorcycles that provides an all new two-wheel experience, LiveWire delivers thrilling acceleration, agile handling, premium materials and finishes, and a full suite of electronic rider aids and interfaces for a completely connected experience. The performance of the LiveWire motorcyclethe first of a new electric portfolio of motorcycleswill satisfy seasoned motorcyclists, while its clutch-free design also makes the experience for new riders easier than ever, the company said. Harley-Davidson also debuted two additional, electrified future concepts that further explore the potential of urban mobility. In keeping with LiveWire, both concepts bring Harley-Davidsons expertise in expressive two-wheeled experiences and push boundaries in design and technology. These motorcycles are a significant part of the More Roads to Harley-Davidson plan to accelerate building the next generation of riders through new products in additional motorcycle segments, broader access and a commitment to strengthen dealers globally. Innovation that moves the body and soul has always been at the heart of our brand, and this next chapter in our history is about creating products and opportunities for existing and aspiring riders of all ages and walks of life. Our vision for the future is all encompassing. For all ages, from urban professional to exurban retiree, and from commute-minded to thrill-seeking, we are creating the products and opportunities for existing and aspiring riders to feel the transformative power of the two-wheeled riding experience. These two concepts are further statements towards that our commitment to lead in the electric mobility space that begins this fall with the production 2020 LiveWire. Matt Levatich, Harley-Davidsons President and CEO LiveWire features include: Acceleration from 0 to 60 mph in under 3.5 seconds. The instant torque provided by the H-D Revelation electric powertrain can produce 100 percent of its rated torque the instant the throttle is twisted, and 100 percent of that torque is always available. Electric power requires no clutch and no gear shifting, greatly simplifying operation for new riders. All riders will appreciate the braking effect of the power regeneration mode as it adds charge to the battery, especially in stop-and-go urban traffic. An onboard Level 1 charger can connect to any standard household outlet and get a full charge overnight. LiveWire also supports Level 3 DC Fast Charging. The LiveWire motorcycle is equipped with H-D Connect, which pairs motorcycle riders with their bikes through an LTE-enabled Telematics Control Unit coupled with connectivity and cloud services using the latest version of the Harley-Davidson App. This technology makes the LiveWire motorcycle the first North American mass-market cellular-connected electric motorcycle. With H-D Connect, data is collected and transferred to the app to provide information to the riders smartphone about motorcycle status. Information available through H-D Connect includes battery charge status and available range from any location where a sufficient cellular signal is available. This allows the rider to remotely check the charge status including charge level and time to completion. Riders will be able to locate a charging station with ease thanks to an integrated location finder built into the H-D App. H-D Connect indicates the location of the parked LiveWire motorcycle and alerts can be sent to the riders smartphone if the bike is tampered with or moved. GPS-enabled stolen-vehicle tracking provides peace of mind that the motorcycles location can be tracked. Reminders about upcoming vehicle service requirements, automated service reminders and other vehicle care notifications. Able to travel an estimated 110 miles of urban roads on a single charge. The LiveWire motorcycle chassis is designed to deliver agile handling for confident control on urban streets and a thrilling ride on curving backroads. The H-D Revelation powertrain sits low in the motorcycle to lower the center of gravity and help the motorcycle handle well at all speeds and make it easier to balance when stopped. The motorcycle also features advanced technology including standard cornering-enhanced Anti-lock Braking System and Traction Control. The systems are fully electronic and utilize the latest inertial measurement unit and ABS sensor technology. The H-D Revelation electric powertrain produces minimal vibration, heat, and noise, all of which enhance rider comfort. The LiveWire model is designed to produce a new signature Harley-Davidson sound as it accelerates and gains speed. In an interview with Fox News, US President Donald Trump said he had never tried to conceal anything about his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The statement came in response to the recent Washington Post article, which says that the US leader has gone to what it described as "extraordinary lengths" to keep the details of those meetings secret. The paper cited current and former US administration officials as saying that in one of such instances, Trump confiscated his interpreters notes and prohibited him from discussing the details with other officials in his administration. Commenting on the report, the US president said: "Im not keeping anything under wraps." "We had a great conversation. We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things," he went on, adding that his one-on-one meetings with Putin were just the same as with any other leader, TASS reports. Trump also reiterated that he had been tougher to Russia than any of his predecessors. Note: We've recently updated our online systems. If you can't login please try resetting your password. You must login with an email address. If you don't have an email associated with your account email circulation@skagitpublishing.com for help creating one. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Turkey Gathers Military Vehicles Near Syrian Border Reports Sputnik News 16:30 12.01.2019(updated 16:31 12.01.2019) ANKARA (Sputnik) Turkey continues to concentrate military vehicles near the Syrian border, Anadolu news agency reported on Saturday. According to the Anadolu news agency, a new group of armored vehicles and other military vehicles have arrived in the province of Hatay bordering Syria. On Friday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar reiterated that the country was preparing for this military operation, claiming that it would be launched "at the right time." In early December, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey was ready to launch a military operation against Kurdish fighters on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River as well as in Syria's Manbij, located near the Turkish border if the United States did not remove the militia from there. After a phone conversation with US President Donald Trump on December 14, Erdogan said that the start of the operation would be postponed. After the same phone call, Trump announced that US troops would be withdrawn from Syria. Sputnik US Team to Visit Turkey to 'Express Specific Concerns' Over S-400 Deal - Reports Sputnik News 18:45 12.01.2019 Washington has been pressuring Ankara to abandon its purchase of Russian S-400 air defence systems for months, promising to sell it the Patriot missile system instead, and threatening to block the delivery of the F-35 fifth-gen fighter jets if Turkey goes forward with its deal with Russia. The US technical team being dispatched to Turkey will arrive in the country on January 15 for two days of talks, Hurriyet has reported. According to the newspaper, the US team will "express specific concerns" to its Turkish counterparts, particularly as it concerns the "flight safety of F-35 aircraft," with Ankara presently remaining undeterred from its plans to buy four battalion sets of S-400s worth $2.5 billion from Russia. Last week, Turkish Defence Industry chief Ismail Demir said he would welcome US officials to pay a visit and explain precisely what risks the S-400 could pose to the F-35. "We have constantly been hearing about the potential harms and problems over the stealth fighter qualification of the F-35s in the event of its deployment to a place close to the S-400s. We have never had a team visiting us to clarify what the technical risks are. We have told them several times to come and explain all their concerns if they think these are serious ones," Demir said. The US has spent months lobbying Turkey to pull out of the S-400 deal with Russia. Last month, the State Department approved the sale of $3.5 billion-worth of Patriot missile systems to the country. Ankara responded by saying that it would consider the Patriots, but that it would not affect the S-400 contract. On Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reiterated that it would be "impossible" to consider the Patriots if it meant abandoning the S-400 deal. US officials have characterised the possible deployment of S-400s in areas where F-35s are set to operate as a "threat," presumably because the system would allow Turkey to test just how formidable the F-35's stealth systems are when matched up against the Russian air defence system. Moscow and Ankara penned a $2.5 billion contract on four battalion sets of S-400s in December 2017, with the first of the systems expected to arrive this year. Designed to stop enemy aircraft, drones, cruise and ballistic missiles, the S-400s is the most advanced mobile air defence system in Moscow's arsenal, and is fielded by Russia, Belarus and China. Late last year, Moscow and New Delhi signed a $5 billion contract on ten battalion sets of S-400s for India. Sputnik Turkey deploys further military reinforcements to Syrian border Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 05:37PM The Turkish military has sent new reinforcements to the country's areas on the border with Syria's militant-held province of Idlib as Ankara is preparing for a military operation against US-backed Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in the wake of US President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw American troops from the war-torn country. Turkey's private Demiroren news agency reported that battle tanks and armored vehicles were loaded onto trucks on Saturday, and dispatched to the southern Turkish province of Hatay. The development came on the same day that Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar and top-brass military officials, namely Chief of General Staff General Yasar Guler and Land Forces Commander General Umit Dundar, in addition to Head of Turkey's National Intelligence Organization Hakan Fidan, held a meeting in Hatay and exchanged viewpoints on the latest developments in Syria's Idlib. "All efforts are being made to maintain ceasefire, stability under Sochi agreement. Our close cooperation with Russia continues in this manner," Akar said. On September 17, 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan met in Russia's coastal city of Sochi, and agreed to divide Idlib into a demilitarized zone between militant-held and government-controlled areas. Also on Saturday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu held a telephone conversation with his US counterpart Mike Pompeo, and the pair discussed latest developments in Syria. On Thursday, Cavusoglu said his country would launch an offensive against YPG forces, in case the US delayed the planned withdrawal of its troops from Syria. "If the (pullout) is put off with ridiculous excuses like Turks are massacring Kurds, which do not reflect the reality, we will implement this decision," Cavusoglu told Turkish-language NTV television news network in an exclusive interview. The top Turkish diplomat then underlined that the Ankara government would go ahead with its incursion plan. Cavusoglu said Ankara would fight the YPG whether or not US soldiers pulled out of Syria. Trump said last month that he was bringing home the American troops deployed in Syria - some 2,000 - alleging they had succeeded in their mission to defeat the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group. His abrupt move sparked concern among officials in Washington, prompting Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to step down in protest. Some commanders in the so-called Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which has the YPG as its backbone, have described Washington's move as "a stab in the back." Turkey considers the YPG a terrorist organization and an extension of the outlawed the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has been fighting for an autonomous region inside Turkey since 1984. The Turkish military, with support from allied militants of the so-called Free Syrian Army, has launched two cross-border operations in northern Syria, dubbed "Euphrates Shield" and "Olive Branch," against the YPG and Daesh. Israeli jetfighters target Damascus airport IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Jan 12, IRNA -- The Zionist regime of Israel's warplanes have targeted Damascus International Airport with missiles, Syrian media reported. According to Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA), a military source affirmed that the Syrian Air Defense intercepted on Friday night hostile missiles launched by the Israeli warplanes and downed most of them. 'Israeli warplanes coming from Al-Jalil area launched many missiles towards Damascus area and our Air Defense intercepted them and downed most of them," the source was quoted as saying. He added that an ammunition warehouse in Damascus airport was damaged. 9376**1771 US Withdrawal From Syria Concerns Minorities By Nisan Ahmado January 11, 2019 Minorities in northeastern Syria are concerned the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country without putting in place a sustainable alternative would lead to a security vacuum that could be filled by remnants of extremist groups, including the Islamic State (IS) in the country. The Free Yezidi Foundation, a Netherlands-based group advocating for justice for Yazidis a religious minority in Iraq and Syria warned in an official statement the Yazidis would face an "existential threat" from several militant groups hostile to them and other religious and ethnic minorities in the country after the departure of U.S. troops. "Any premature withdrawal of the United States forces from Syria not only endangers religious minorities in Iraq and Syria, it vastly increases the likelihood of a resurgent Daesh militant power. This is an existential threat to minorities like the Yazidis," the Free Yezidi Foundation said in a statement, using an Arabic acronym for the Islamic Static terror group. Potential for Turkish incursion Pari Ibrahim, the founder and executive director of the foundation, told VOA that minority groups, including Yazidis, are concerned about a potential Turkish military incursion into northeastern Syria, and also in the last pockets held by IS that still are being cleared by U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). "The coalition, and not only the U.S., can combat this by making sure that SDF remains a multi-ethnic, multicultural force that will protect that part of Syria, prevent [the] rise of extremism, and absolutely ensure no jihadist forces or their allies can be bombing in the area," Ibrahim said, making a reference to Turkey and its anticipated military operation, including a potential aerial campaign. Christian Suryanis, an ethnic religion whose members live in northeastern Syria, Damascus and Aleppo, also have voiced concerns and urged the international community to protect Christians and prevent them from being displaced from their homes. "A state of chaos and vacuum would occur in the area after the U.S. withdrawal, therefore, there is a need for long-term security arrangements that secure a free and democratic state for all in northeastern Syria," the group said in a statement last week. Christian Suryanis speak the Syriac language. Syria is home to several ethnic and religious minority groups. There is no recent official census on the exact number of minorities in the country. The last Syrian government census was in 1985. According to estimates from Minority Rights Group International, a U.K.-based human rights group serving minorities around the world, Sunni Muslims make up 75 percent of the Syrian population, followed by 10 percent Christians, and the remaining groups are other religious minorities, including Druze, Ismailis, Shiites, Sufis, Alawites and Yazidis. Beginning of withdrawal The warnings from minority groups in Syria come at a time when the U.S.-led coalition in Syria on Thursday officially began the removal of equipment from the country. The coalition "has begun the process of our deliberate withdrawal from Syria," said Col. Sean Ryan, a spokesman for the U.S. coalition fighting IS. "Out of concern for operational security, we will not discuss specific timelines, locations or troop movements," Ryan said. There are roughly 2,000 U.S. military personnel in Syria. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported the equipment withdrawal began late Thursday, when about 10 armored vehicles and other equipment were pulled from a U.S. base in Rmeilan in Hassakeh province. Turkey's offensive Minority groups also are concerned about the prospect of a possible Turkish military incursion into Syria. In December 2018, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced his country's intention to plan a military operation against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), which are among the SDF. Erdogan later delayed the planned offensive, citing talks with U.S. officials, including President Donald Trump, following the U.S. decision to withdraw its troops from Syria. Turkey views the YPG as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a U.S.- and EU-designated terror group, but Washington differs with Ankara and considers the YPG a crucial ally in the fight against IS. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, during his weeklong trip to Middle East, assured allies Thursday that despite the U.S. decision to withdraw its forces from Syria, it remains committed to fighting IS and preventing the group from growing. "We are going to do it in a way in one particular place Syria differently," Pompeo said. "The United States' decision President Trump's decision to withdraw our troops has been made. We will do that." VOA's national security correspondent Jeff Seldin contributed to this report from Washington. Syria shoots downs 'most of Israeli missiles' fired towards Damascus: State media Iran Press TV Fri Jan 11, 2019 11:18PM Syrian air defenses have managed to destroy most of the missiles fired by Israeli warplanes toward the capital Damascus, Syrian state media say. "The results of the aggression so far were limited to a strike on one of the warehouses at Damascus airport," the Arab country's SANA news agency reported, quoting an unnamed military source as saying. The source further said that the aggression occurred at 11:15 p.m. local time on Friday, adding, "Eight enemy targets spotted in the skies of Damascus exploded." According to the military source, the Syrian air defenses were "immediately" engaged overnight after a number of Israeli fighter jets came "from the direction of the Galilee (and) fired several missiles towards the vicinity of Damascus." SANA further quoted an unnamed Ministry of Transport official as saying that the Damascus International Airport traffic was normal and that it was not affected by the Israeli aggression. The Israeli regime launches airstrikes on the Syrian territory from time to time, aggressive moves usually viewed as attempts to prop up terrorist groups that have been suffering defeats at the hands of Syrian government forces. In October, Moscow equipped Damascus with the advanced S-300 surface-to-air missiles, days after Israeli fighter jets attacked Syrian targets using a Russian surveillance plane flying nearby as a shield and hence misleading the Syrian air defenses to shoot it down. Since then Israel has been very careful with its operation over Syria. It is not yet clear whether the S-300s were among the air defense systems used in the Friday night counterattacks. Russian Ambassador to North Korea Alexander Matzegora met with the DPRKs Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Choe Son Hui, who oversees denuclearization issues and relations with the United States, the Russian Embassy in Pyongyang wrote on Facebook page, TASS reports. At the talks "the sides exchanged vital information, including in the light of the outcome of the recent visit of Chairman of the DPRKs State Council Kim Jong-un to the Chinese Peoples Republic." According to the diplomatic mission, the meeting discussed immediate prospects of "work of negotiation formats aimed at searching for the best ways to resolve the nuclear problem of the Korean Peninsula" Russia May Set Up Red Sea Naval Base After Deal on Port Calls - Senior Sudan MP Sputnik News 16:18 12.01.2019 KHARTOUM (Sputnik) - A deal between Sudan and Russia on navy port visits could morph into permanent Russian military presence on the Red Sea coast, the head of Sudan's parliamentary defense committee told Sputnik. "The date of the requested port call is being discussed. It will be approved if the two countries make an agreement. This deal will pave the way for more agreements and greater cooperation possibly a Russian base on the Red Sea," Maj. Gen. Al-Hadi Adam said. A Russian port visit, he added, could give the Sudanese Navy first-hand experience of Russia's cutting-edge military equipment and help train its naval forces, boosting strategic ties between the two nations. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has recently approved a draft deal with Sudan to ease port visit regulations for both navies. A decree to this effect is available on Russia's official legal news website. The draft agreement includes security provisions for seamen who will be allowed to go ashore unarmed. Navy ships carrying weapons of mass destruction, nuclear fuel, biological weapons, radioactive substances, toxins or drugs will be banned from entering ports. Sputnik Report: Former WADA Chief Downplays Russia Missing Lab Deadline January 12, 2019 The former head of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is downplaying the fact that Russia missed the latest deadline to allow international inspectors access to a Moscow laboratory. Dick Pound told the AFP news agency on January 11 that he opposed any move to impose new sanctions against Russia. Inspectors from WADA traveled to Russia this week, and on January 10, began to access data at a tainted testing center. It was the second attempt after an earlier visit in December. Moscow missed the December 31 deadline to give WADA full access to lab data. Russian sport has been under a cloud for years, after revelations of a state-sponsored doping effort involving hundreds of athletes during the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Critics of WADA have called for Russia to be punished again for missing the deadline. Pound said he didn't think it was a major issue. "It's not the end of the world," he was quoted as saying. "I think it's more important to concentrate on the information and test it to make sure that it's complete and it's not been altered and then to see if there are cases of anti-doping that need to be followed up by disciplinary process," he said. In September, WADA called for lifting sanctions against Russia and its own national anti-doping agency, RUSADA, citing improvements. Pound defended that decision. Travis Tygart, the head of the U.S. anti-doping agency, has described Russia missing the December 31 deadline as a "total joke and an embarrassment for WADA and the global anti-doping system." Based on reporting by AFP Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-doping- inspections-chief/29705783.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. Tehran calls on Paris to 'stop repeating irresponsible claims' on Iran's missile program Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 12:57AM Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi has criticized the French Foreign Ministry's provocative comments about Iran's ballistic missile program, urging Paris to avoid repeating such "irresponsible and incorrect" claims regarding the Islamic Republic's defensive programs. "It is expected from France to stop echoing incorrect claims made by those who are against the JCPOA," the senior diplomat further said, referring to Iran's nuclear deal with world powers in 2015, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, and in a clear reference to the United States that unilaterally withdrew from the landmark accord last year. The Iranian diplomat made the remarks on Friday, hours after French Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll called on Tehran to "immediately cease all ballistic missile-related activities designed to carry nuclear weapons, including tests using ballistic missile technology." "Contrary to the French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman's claim, Iran's missile program has neither been established for non-conventional purposes, nor the country's natural right to strengthen its scientific and defensive capabilities as developed in the form of missile program is in violation of [UN Security Council] Resolution 2231," said Qassemi. The statement from the French ministry came just a day after Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Iran's domestically-manufactured rockets would carry two new satellites into orbit in the coming weeks. Earlier this month, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed that Iran's planned launch of space rockets and missiles breaches Resolution 2231 that endorsed the JCPOA. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif dismissed Pompeo's claim, saying Washington has already violated that resolution and thus cannot "lecture" Tehran on it. "We strongly believe that any attempt to induce and impose a wrong interpretation of Resolution 2231 regarding Iran's missile program is an irresponsible act," Qassemi further said, stressing that in any part of the resolution the Islamic Republic has not been prevented from developing defensive and conventional missile program and those with scientific application. He also reiterated that Iran's home-grown missile program is defensive, national and conventional, adding that it is not only legitimate but also "the Iranian nation's natural right." Since its JCPOA exit in May, the administration of US President Donald Trump has unleashed its "toughest ever" sanctions against Iran. It has also warned of severe penalties for companies that evade the bans and engage in business dealings with the Islamic Republic. Fateh-class submarine to join Iran navy ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency Sat / 12 January 2019 / 15:28 Tehran (ISNA) Fateh- class submarine will join Iran navy fleet on January 29, Iranian Navy Commander, Rear Admiral Hossein Khanzadi announced on Saturday. Regarding Iran's naval squadron deployment to Atlantic Ocean, the commander said, "The mission will soon begin". He also insisted, "No matter which ocean is determined for our navy to be present at, as all nations can be present at international waters and any country that has such naval power can do this". Commenting on Damavand destroyer's latest condition, Khanzadi added, "We visited the renovation process of Damavand destroyer and we hope the destroyer to launch into the waters within three months". End Item Resolution 2231 not banned Iran on conventional missile program: Spox IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Jan 12, IRNA -- Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi on Friday described the efforts to impose false interpretations of Resolution 2231 on Iran's missile program as irresponsible, saying that the resolution has never banned Iran's conventional and defensive missile program. He made the remarks in reaction to French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman's remarks about Iran's missile program, adding that France is expected to avoid repeating wrong claims of the opponents of the JCPOA. 'Unlike French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman's claims, Iran's missile program was not based for non-conventional purposes, as it is natural right of Iran to invigorate its scientific and defense capabilities in the context of missile program, which in no way contravenes Resolution 2231,' he said. "No part of the resolution has banned Iran on a conventional and defense missile program," he said, reiterating that Iran's defensive missile program is both legal and its natural right. French Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll made the remarks to comments by President Hassan Rouhani on Thursday, who said two satellites would be sent into space using Iran-made missiles. France recalls that the Iranian missile program does not conform with UN Security Council Resolution 2231, she claimed. 8072**1771 India to continue Iran oil imports IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency New Delhi, Jan 12, IRNA -- Despite US anti-Iran sanctions, New Delhi will continue importing Iranian oil, India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesman as saying. 'We have had several rounds of meeting with Iran and several other stakeholders. I can tell you that India continues to import oil from Iran, Raveesh Kumar said. He added 'we have got a waiver in this regard and we will continue to be engaged with all the stakeholders as far as matters related to India's energy security are concerned.' Kumar's remarks have been made two days after US threats as regard imposing more serious sanctions against Iran. Earlier, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had urged various countries to reduce Iran oil imports. US President Trump announced on May 8, 2018 the withdrawal from the JCPOA, which was condemned by other parties to the 2015 agreement and their emphasis to stay in the landmark international deal. On November 2018, US granted exemption to eight countries including India to import Iran oil. Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu earlier said "India will not violate any international law and within the framework of international law, we would like to work with Iran in a manner that we can deal with Rupee trade wherein both countries can trade the items of mutual interest.' Meanwhile, Indian Government has agreed with Iran's request to open a branch of Pasargad Bank in Mumbai. According to the leading newspaper 'Times of India' , 'Iran's Bank Pasargad will open its branch within the next three months'. 9376**1424 First Orders of 2019: Xi Warns PLA be Ready for 'Hardship, Crisis and Battle' Sputnik News 02:20 13.01.2019 During his first official address of the new year to the nation's military forces, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday ordered the People's Liberation Army (PLA), the country's armed forces, to prepare for battle. "All military units must correctly understand major national security and development trends, and strengthen their sense of unexpected hardship, crisis and battle," Xi said on state-owned Chinese television. In addition, the leader approved the first military command of 2019, involving more complex training and exercises, according to the South China Morning Post (SCMP). China's armed forces must "prepare for a comprehensive military struggle from a new starting point," Xi said, adding that "preparation for war and combat must be deepened to ensure an efficient response in times of emergency." Following the ascension of Xi to the presidency of the Central Military Commission (CMC), a national defense organization of the Communist Party of China, he has consistently urged the PLA to enhance combat readiness. Earlier this week, the PLA Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, noted in an article that "there was no time for slacking in war preparation," leading Beijing watchers to note the leader's more strident rhetorical tone. According to Shanghai-based military expert Ni Lexiong, Xi's "high-profile gestures" may be intended to serve as warnings to Taiwan. China considers self-governing Taiwan to be part of its territory and claims sovereignty over the island. Taiwan, however, still bears the name of the pre-communist-era Republic of China, a political group whose territorial control was confined to the island at the conclusion of a civil war in 1949, when the People's Republic of China was established in Beijing on the mainland. "[They] show how seriously Xi is taking China's military training and its preparations for war, while also flexing its strength," Ni asserted, cited by SCMP. The new military commands signed by Xi focus on improving combat readiness, troop inspections and resistance exercises, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. "China is increasing its military training so that it has the best solutions for the worst outcomes, either related to the US or across the [Taiwan] strait," Yue Gang, a retired PLA colonel, told SCMP, suggesting that Xi's desire to enhance military readiness may also be due to political tension between the US and China. "Over the coming year, the US might use Taiwan and the South China Sea as bargaining chips to get what it wants from China with regards to the trade war," Yue suggested. "And there is always the possibility of increased independence calls from Taiwan," he added. Sputnik Xi calls for "greater strategic achievements" in Party governance People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:08, January 12, 2019 BEIJING, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Friday called for efforts to advance Party building, and demanded "greater strategic achievements" in full and strict governance over the Party. Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks at the third plenary session of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the CPC. He called for consolidating and developing a "sweeping victory" in the fight against corruption. Efforts should be made to make sure officials don't dare to, are unable to and have no desire to commit corruption, to improve Party and state oversight systems, and to ensure the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress and major decisions of the CPC Central Committee are resolutely implemented, so as to greet the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) with great achievements, Xi said. Members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning and Han Zheng attended the meeting. The meeting was presided over by Zhao Leji, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CCDI. Noting achievements in Party building since the 19th CPC National Congress that included the "sweeping victory" in fighting corruption, Xi said the Party is now "radiating with more vitality in the new era." He summed up some of the invaluable experience in disciplinary inspection and supervision over the past 40 years of reform and opening-up. The authority of the CPC Central Committee and its centralized, unified leadership must be firmly upheld, and the governance over the Party must precede the governance of the country and it must be strict, Xi said. The people-centered approach must be upheld, Xi continued, adding that it was also necessary for cadres to continue innovating, keep working hard, and fight against inaction and corruption. SIX TASKS Xi called for continuous efforts to advance full and strict governance over the Party as this year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the PRC and is key in finishing building a moderately prosperous society in all respects to achieve the first centenary goal. He laid out six tasks: -- The spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress needs to be further implemented. -- The Party's political work must be strengthened to ensure unity of the whole Party and strict implementation of its orders. -- Excellent conduct must be encouraged to ensure joint efforts for building a moderately prosperous society. -- Fight corruption with strong resolve to consolidate and develop the "sweeping victory." -- Improve the supervision systems and strengthen the sense of responsibility. -- Address corruption and malpractices that occur on people's doorsteps to safeguard the people's immediate interests. HEALTHY COMRADESHIP Xi urged officials to correctly uphold the authority of the CPC Central Committee, and firmly resist illicit intervention and profit-seeking by central-level leaders' family members, their work staff, and people who claim to have connections with them. He stressed maintaining healthy comradeship within the Party and enforcing the system of democratic centralism. Officials should also take the lead in establishing a healthy working relationship and not use public resources as a tool of building clout or underhand connections to seek illicit gains. Those who play a key role in this regard, Xi said, are members of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and the CPC Central Committee. Xi also stressed building an "iron army" of disciplinary inspection and supervision officials who are loyal, clean and have strong sense of responsibility and removing the "bad apples" from them. Presiding over the meeting, Zhao called on Party organizations at all levels to unify their thinking and action with the spirit of Xi's speech. On behalf of the CCDI standing committee, Zhao delivered a work report titled "faithfully fulfil the obligations stipulated in the CPC Constitution and the Constitution of the country, and strive for high-quality development of disciplinary inspection and supervision work in the new era." FIGHT NOT END "Although China's campaign against corruption has made sweeping victory, it is not the time to lie back," said Xin Ming, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee. Last year, the list of "tigers" -- referring to senior officials taken down on corruption charges -- continued to expand. Fifty-one officials at or above the provincial/ministerial level were among a total of 621,000 people punished by CCDI and the National Supervisory Commission. And increasing attention was paid to minor offenses of officials. About 1.1 million officials were interviewed and cautioned for slight violations, about 63.6 percent of the total cases disciplinary inspectors handled in 2018. Last year, 1,335 fugitives were sent back to China. Among them, 307 were former Party members and officials, mostly involved in graft cases. "The tough stance against corruption should not and will not ease," Xin, the professor, said. Control Over Russia's Only Space Telescope Lost - Scientists Sputnik News 10:58 12.01.2019(updated 12:27 12.01.2019) The connection with Russia's only space telescope, Spektr-R, is partially lost; the device isn't accepting commands from the Earth, Nikolai Kardashev, the head of the Astro Space Centre at the PN Lebedev Physics Institute told Sputnik. "We're trying to fix the problem [], there are different communications systems; some of them work, some do not work. We still receive some signals. Such failures have occurred earlier. It can return to normal," the scientist explained. According to Nikolai Kardashev, scientists continue to receive data from the orbital telescope, despite its failure to respond to remote commands. Specialists from the company which build the device are working on restoring two-way communications. Meanwhile, the head of the project told Sputnik that the Russian Spektr-R space telescope project will be terminated if control over the vehicle is not restored. "If the satellite is not controlled, that will mean termination of the RadioAstron project," Yury Kovalev said. He added that the next attempt to restore control over the space telescope would take place on Sunday. Sputnik China declares Chang'e-4 mission complete success People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 10:03, January 12, 2019 BEIJING, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- China announced Friday that the Chang'e-4 mission, which realized the first-ever soft-landing on the far side of the moon, was a complete success. With the assistance of the relay satellite Queqiao (Magpie Bridge), the rover Yutu-2 (Jade Rabbit-2) and the lander of the Chang'e-4 probe took photos of each other. The scientific instruments aboard the probe worked well, and the images taken by the probe and detection data have been sent back to ground control, said the China National Space Administration (CNSA). At 4:47 p.m. Beijing Time on Friday, the images of the lander and rover appeared on a large screen at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center, showing the Chinese national flag on both the lander and the rover with landscape dotted with craters in the background. A congratulatory message sent by the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, the State Council and the Central Military Commission hailed the Chang'e-4 mission as a remarkable achievement in China's space program, which marks an important stride toward China being a strong country in space exploration. The Chang'e-4 probe touched down on the Von Karman Crater in the South Pole-Aitken (SPA) Basin on the far side of the moon on Jan. 3, with the rover driving onto the lunar surface late that night. The lander, the rover and the relay satellite are in good condition. After the lander and the rover photograph each other, the probe will start scientific detection, the CNSA said. Named after Chinese moon goddess "Chang'e," China's lunar exploration program, which began in 2004, includes orbiting and landing on the moon and bringing samples back to Earth. The program has achieved five continuous successes, said CNSA, referring to Chang'e-1, Chang'e-2, Chang'e-3, a test craft for Chang'e-5 and Chang'e-4. THRILLING EXPLORATION One of the images published by CNSA earlier on Friday is a 360-degree panorama, which was pieced together from 80 photos taken by a camera on the lander. "From the panorama, we could see the probe was surrounded by many small craters. It was really thrilling," said Li Chunlai, deputy director of the National Astronomical Observatories of China and commander-in-chief of the ground application system of Chang'e-4. "The rugged terrain will pose great challenges for planning the route of the rover," Li said. "Compared with the landing site of the Chang'e-3, which was sent to the Sinus Iridum, or the Bay of Rainbows, on the moon's near side, fewer rocks can be found in the area surrounding Chang'e-4, indicating the landing area of Chang'e-4 might be older." The CNSA also released a video of the landing process of the Chang'e-4, which was produced by processing more than 4,700 pictures taken by a camera on the probe. The video, lasting about 12 minutes, showed that the probe adjusted its altitude, hovered and avoided obstacles during the descent. As a result of the tidal locking effect, the moon's revolution cycle is the same as its rotation cycle, and it always faces Earth with the same side. Many lunar orbiters had shown that the moon's two sides are very different: the near side is relatively flat, while the far side is thickly dotted with impact craters. "We hope Chang'e-4 could carry out unprecedented and more challenging tasks," said Wu Weiren, chief designer of China's lunar exploration program. "The far side of the moon has unique features, and has never been explored on site, so Chang'e-4 might bring us breakthrough findings," said Zou Yongliao, director of the lunar and deep space exploration division of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The scientific tasks of the Chang'e-4 mission include low-frequency radio astronomical observation, surveying the terrain and landforms, detecting the mineral composition and shallow lunar surface structure, and measuring neutron radiation and neutral atoms. INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION The Chang'e-4 mission embodies China's hope to combine human wisdom in space exploration, with four payloads developed by the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Saudi Arabia. The radioisotope heat source, a collaboration between Chinese and Russian scientists, will support the probe through the lunar night, when the temperature falls to about minus 180 degrees Celsius. The ground station that China built in Argentina has played an important role in the monitoring and control of the mission, and ground stations run by the European Space Agency will also offer support. The scientists of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter of NASA have also cooperated with Chang'e-4 mission team to study the landing of the Chang'e-4 probe, according to the CNSA. "International cooperation is the future of lunar exploration. The participating countries will share the costs, risks and achievements, and learn from each other. We hope to have more international cooperation," said Wu Weiren. GOING DEEPER INTO SPACE China is becoming a major player in lunar exploration and contributing to scientific discovery. The next step of its lunar program is to launch the Chang'e-5 probe to collect 2 kg of samples and bring them back to Earth. As China's moon exploration progresses, its space experts are considering going deeper into the solar system -- to Mars, asteroids and Jupiter -- as well as a manned lunar mission. China plans to launch a probe in 2020 that will orbit, land and rove on Mars the following year. "Exploring the unknown is human nature. The moon is a mysterious world to us. We have a responsibility to explore and to understand it. Exploration of the moon will also deepen our understanding of Earth and ourselves," Wu said. Washingtons relationship with Saudi Arabia is fundamental to the stability and security of the region, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said, Gulf News reported. The relationship must go forward. We have to have good relations with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and this administration intends to do so, Pompeo said in an interview with Al Arabiya. DR Congo Opposition Candidate Fayulu Challenges Election Results in Court By VOA News January 12, 2019 Democratic Republic of Congo presidential runner-up Martin Fayulu has challenged the outcome of the country's election in court, claiming he defeated opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi by a wide margin. Fayulu's opposition coalition said Friday he captured 61 percent of the vote, citing figures from the Catholic Church, which placed 40,000 election observers across the Central African country. The coalition said Tshisekedi won 18 percent of the vote. By law, only the electoral commission can announce election results in Congo. Fayulu, who has members of the Republican Guard deployed outside his home, called for a manual recount of the election. On Thursday, the United States demanded the Democratic Republic of Congo release "accurate" election results and warned of sanctions against anyone who tries to undermine Congo's democracy. Election commission head Corneille Nangaa told reporters in Kinshasa that results of the Dec. 30 presidential vote may be delayed because of a slow vote-counting process. Nangaa said only about 20 percent of ballots have been collected from polling stations across the vast central African country, which lacks a well-developed road network. He also said the system of manually collecting and compiling vote totals is not helping the process. The electoral commission had planned to use the internet to collect vote totals. But it gave up those plans after the opposition alleged the system was vulnerable to fraud. Election results are due to be published by Sunday, with the new president set to be inaugurated on Jan. 15. Pre-election polls indicated that Fayulu was the favorite to replace outgoing President Joseph Kabila. Kabila backed another candidate, his former interior minister, Emmanuel Shadary. Congo has never seen a peaceful transfer of power since winning independence from Belgium in 1960. Last week's election was originally scheduled for 2016 but was delayed as Kabila stayed in office past the end of his mandate, sparking protests that were crushed by security forces, leaving dozens dead. Pentagon: US Is Withdrawing Troops From Syria By Jeff Seldin January 12, 2019 The U.S. said late Friday that it is implementing the orderly withdrawal of forces from northeast Syria that are involved in the fight against the Islamic State terrorist group. Pentagon spokesman Commander Sean Robertson said in a statement that Operation Inherent Resolve is implementing the withdrawal within a framework coordinated across the U.S. Government. Robertson added: "The withdrawal is based on operational conditions on the ground, including conversation with our allies and partners, and is not [to] be subject to an arbitrary timeline. The United States will continue to provide support to the Coalition's operation in Syria while withdrawing troops in a deliberate and coordinated manner in order to ensure the safety and protection of US forces. . . For purposes of operational security, we will not discuss specific troop movements or timelines." Earlier Friday, the U.S. denied that it was withdrawing troops from Syria. "Equipment, not troops," a defense official told VOA, describing the initial stages of the pull-out. The Pentagon first gave word of the start of the withdrawal late Thursday. In a statement, it said the U.S.-led Operation Inherent Resolve "has begun the process of our deliberate withdrawal from Syria." "Out of concern for operational security, we will not discuss specific timelines, locations or troops movements," the statement added. Witnesses on the ground told the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights they saw 10 armored vehicles, and other equipment, roll out from a U.S. base in Rmeilan in Hassakeh province and head toward neighboring Iraq. But shortly after, other witnesses on the ground in Syria reported seeing an influx of Western troops and equipment to parts of Aleppo province in northern Syria. As part of the influx, they described seeing "a column of about 150 vehicles carrying armored vehicles, military, and logistical equipment," the observatory said. The reports could not be independently confirmed. But another source close to Kurdish military officials in Syria told VOA it appeared the U.S. military is in the process of relocating equipment and personnel within Syria. No troop timeline The U.S. decision to withdraw its forces from Syria, first announced by President Donald Trump last month, has caused confusion among U.S. allies and partners in the fight against Islamic State militants. Initial indications from the White House were that U.S. forces would be withdrawn from Syria in 30 days. But that time frame has since been extended several times. Most recently, both the Pentagon and U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton have said there is no deadline for U.S. troops in Syria to return home. The U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are still fighting the last remnants of the Islamic State's self-declared caliphate in Syria, having pushed IS fighters out of their strong-hold of Hajin, in Syria's Middle Euphrates River valley, and liberating a couple of other nearby towns in the past couple of weeks. Safety for Kurds But even as the SDF advance, there are growing concerns about their safety. Much of the force is made up of Kurdish fighters, who are also part of the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units or YPG, which has been linked to the PKK, a Kurdish terror group that has waged a decades-long insurgency in southeastern Turkey. Turkey's Defense Minister Hulusi Akar visited Turkish troops along the Syrian border Friday, and vowed to eliminate the Kurdish forces in Syria. "When the time and place comes, the terrorists here will be buried in the ditches they have dug, as was done in previous operations," Akar told the Turkish troops. "Important preparations and planning have been made in connection with this," he added. "Our preparations are continuing intensively." But U.S. National Security Advisor John Bolton said Friday during a radio interview that talks are ongoing between the U.S. military and Turkey regarding the Kurdish forces that have battled IS. "What we're still pursuing in these military to military conversations are assurances and protocols and procedures so that everybody feels comfortable with how this is going to happen," said Bolton. "We're hoping those discussions, which will continue next week, will produce results that are acceptable on both sides." Earlier this week, Bolton called security assurances for the U.S.-backed Kurdish forces a necessary condition for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria. The comments angered Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who then refused to meet with Bolton during a visit to Turkey. Fern Robinson contributed to this report. Is Haiti better prepared for disasters, 9 years on from the 2010 earthquake? 12 January 2019 - Half a capital city destroyed, 220,000 reported dead and 1 million residents displaced. This was the toll of the 2010 Haiti earthquake, which struck on 12 January, 9 years ago. Staff at the UN Mission in Haiti were also affected, and there were 102 UN casualties, including the Secretary-General's Special Envoy, Hedi Annabi and his deputy, Luiz Carlos da Costa. It was the "biggest single loss of life in the history of UN Peacekeeping," the then-President of the UN Staff Union, Stephen Kisambira, said at the time. One of the survivors was Sophie Boutaud de la Combe, today the head of communications for the UN Mission for Justice in Haiti (MINUJUSTH), who was seven months pregnant at the time and just a few days away from home leave. She had been in the headquarters of MINUJUSTH's predecessor, the UN Stabilisitation Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), when the quake hit. The building completely collapsed, but Ms. Boutaud de la Combe managed to escape through a collapsed wall. For many hours, she and her surviving colleagues searched through the rubble, looking for anyone still trapped under the building. Two days later, she reluctantly left Haiti, a situation she describes as "a trauma," her instinct being to help the UN and the people of Haiti. She eventually returned to the country in 2013, happy to be able to play a part in the rebuilding of the country, and honour her lost colleagues with her work. 9 years after the earthquake, the situation in Haiti is very different. The government, says Ms. Boutaud de la Combe, is now much better prepared for similar natural disasters. "A few months ago there was an earthquake in the north of the country. The state was prepared and they sent their people to support those affected, without MINUJUSTH involvement. It was not a major earthquake, but now the population knows how to react. And most importantly, we hear regularly how important it is to build better, to build strongly in case an earthquake would hit, not to endanger the people." Ensuring Venezuela's Constitutional Order and Safety of Elected Officials Press Statement Robert Palladino Deputy Spokesperson Washington, DC January 12, 2019 We stand with the Venezuelan people, and we praise the fierce commitment to democratic principles of the elected members of the Venezuelan National Assembly. We commend the courage of the National Assembly's leadership, particularly its president, Juan Guaido, and his decision to invoke the authorities of the Venezuelan Constitution. We call on all Venezuelans to uphold and respect the role of the National Assembly, as established in the Venezuelan Constitution of 1999, and, in particular, for the security forces and the armed forces to respect all protections the constitution affords to Guaido and the other members of the National Assembly, especially their safety and welfare. The people of Venezuela deserve to live in freedom in a democratic society governed by the rule of law. It is time to begin the orderly transition to a new government. We support the National Assembly's call for all Venezuelans to work together, peacefully, to restore constitutional government and build a better future. The United States government will continue to use the full weight of U.S. economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela. Bolton Says US Not Recognizing President Maduro's 'Illegitimate Claim to Power' Sputnik News 05:35 12.01.2019(updated 07:44 12.01.2019) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The United States does not recognize the legitimacy of powers of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was inaugurated earlier this week, US National Security Adviser John Bolton said. "The United States does not recognize Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro's illegitimate claim to power. His 'election' in May 2018 was viewed internationally as not free, fair or credible," Bolton said in a statement issued by the White House press service on Friday. "We hold the illegitimate Maduro regime directly responsible for the safety of all Venezuelans who cry out demanding to freely choose their leaders. We will continue to use the full weight of United States economic and diplomatic power to press for the restoration of a Venezuelan democracy that reverses the current constitutional crisis," Bolton pointed out. Maduro was sworn in for his second term, which will last through 2025, on Thursday following his victory in the presidential election last May. The United States has repeatedly criticized his policies, while the Venezuelan president has suggested that Bolton was preparing a plan to overthrow and kill him. Sputnik Venezuelan National Assembly Head Intending to Use Military to Get Into Power Sputnik News 06:55 12.01.2019 BUENOS AIRES (Sputnik) - Juan Guaido, the head of the Venezuelan opposition-led National Assembly, said he intended to use the support of the military and the international community to take over presidential power. On Thursday, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was inaugurated for his second term which will last through 2025. On Friday, Guaido said he was ready to assume presidency on an interim basis, claiming that the Venezuelan constitution allowed him to call a snap election. Meanwhile, Luis Almagro, the secretary general of the Organization of American States (OAS), welcomed Guaido taking over presidential powers, like it was a fait accompli, and expressed his support to the opposition figure. "It should be the Venezuelan government, the armed forces and the international community that will bring us to the mandate [for power], which we will not avoid and we will use it," Guaido said at a rally in Caracas. The opposition figure also announced mass protests on January 23, the anniversary of the removal from power of Marcos Perez Jimenez, the late Venezuelan president who was deposed as a result of the 1958 coup. Maduro's re-election in the May 20 vote and his subsequent inauguration have been met with criticism among Venezuela's neighbours. The Lima Group members, excluding Mexico, have refused to recognize the results of the presidential election which saw Maduro securing the second term. The OAS has said it does not recognize Maduro's powers. Meanwhile, Paraguay cut off diplomatic ties with Venezuela and the United States said it did not recognize Maduro's "illegitimate claim to power." Sputnik US Navy Sends Warship Toward Syria Amid Expected US Withdrawal - Reports Sputnik News 15:24 12.01.2019(updated 15:35 12.01.2019) Earlier, a US official indicated that the country had begun pulling military hardware out of Syria, but that troops were not being withdrawn "at this stage". The US has sent the USS Kearsarge, an amphibious assault ship currently deployed in the Mediterranean, toward Syria, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed defence officials. The massive, Wasp-class vessel, capable of carrying over 1,800 troops and/or dozens of armoured vehicles in its 13,600 square-foot well deck, was sent toward Syria along with other US Navy vessels to support the expected withdrawal, according to the newspaper. The naval group will be complemented by hundreds of US Marines, along with armed helicopters, to protect troops while they leave the country, according to the WSJ's sources. "Nothing has changed. We don't take orders from Bolton," one of the officials said, in apparent reference to earlier reports that Trump's National Security Adviser John Bolton has been discussing possible plans to keep a presence in Syria 'to counter Iran' in spite of the president's orders. Earlier, a US official speaking to the news agency AFP said that the Pentagon had begun withdrawing 'non-essential equipment' from the war-torn country, but that military personnel remain deployed. President Trump announced that the US would withdraw its estimated 2,000 US troops from Syria on December 19, saying their mission of defeating Daesh (ISIS)* had been completed and that bringing US military personnel home from wars in the Middle East would fulfil a campaign promise. Trump's decision was criticised by members of his staff, even prompting Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis to tender his resignation. Brett McGurk, the president's special envoy for the US coalition in Syria, and Dana White, a Defence Department spokeswoman, also resigned. Washington officials continue to clash over the withdrawal's timetable. The US-led coalition launched a campaign of airstrikes in Syria in September 2014, claiming its goal was to defeat Daesh. The coalition never received authorisation to operate on Syrian territory from Damascus or the UN Security Council. As the campaign progressed, the US set up a ground base in southern Syria near the border with Jordan and Iraq, where it engaged in the retraining of anti-government militants. It has also deployed forces in northern Syria, in areas controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces, a mostly-Kurdish force which is in de facto control of northeastern Syria. On the campaign trail in 2016, Donald Trump repeatedly questioned the logic (accepted by both his Republican and Democratic opponents) of fighting both Daesh and the Syrian government. *A terrorist group outlawed in Russia and many other countries. Sputnik Macedonia to Become NATO Member Soon, Then Join EU - Prime Minister Sputnik News 16:29 12.01.2019 BELGRADE (Sputnik) - Macedonia will soon become a member of NATO and then accede to the European Union, Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev said Saturday. "Lawmakers of the Assembly [parliament] of the Republic of Macedonia gave us the opportunity to enter the open doors of the largest western associations in the world by a 2/3 majority of votes following the will and strategic interests of citizens Now, our accession to NATO, which is underway already, will continue with increased pace and a clear outcome. We also expect negotiations on joining the European Union to start," Zaev said. On Friday, 81 out of 120 members of the parliament supported the amendments needed to rename Macedonia to the Republic of North Macedonia, which is expected to open the way for the country's accession to NATO and the European Union. On September 30, Macedonia held a referendum on its renaming after Greek and Macedonian foreign ministers signed a relevant agreement in June. While over 90 percent voted in favor of the deal, only a third of eligible electors took part in the referendum. Sputnik Pompeo: Venezuela's Maduro Gov't 'Illegitimate,' US to Restore 'Democracy There' Sputnik News 16:37 12.01.2019(updated 17:12 12.01.2019) Earlier this week, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was sworn in for second pesidential term for the period from 2019 until 2025. "The Maduro regime is illegitimate and the United States will continue to work diligently to restore a real democracy to that country," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in the statement, released in Abu Dhabi. "We are very hopeful that we can be force for good to allow the region to come together to deliver that." According to the senior official, the US will continue to use the full weight of US economic and diplomatic power to press for the "restoration of democracy in Venezuela." Maduro has faced criticism from a number of states after his re-election in May, with some countries claiming that the vote was illegitimate, something vehemently denied by Caracas. Earlier in January, the Peruvian Foreign Ministry said following the meeting of the Lima Group foreign ministers that the union did not recognize the legitimacy of Maduro's new presidential term that will begin on January 10 and urged him to call a new presidential election. The Venezuelan Foreign Ministry then delivered protest notes to the diplomatic representatives of the Lima group countries. Sputnik US Pullout From Syria Not to Alter Capacity to Perform Military Actions - Pompeo Sputnik News 21:24 12.01.2019(updated 21:44 12.01.2019) MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The withdrawal of troops from Syria is only a "tactical change" that will not alter US capacity to perform necessary military actions, US State Secretary Mike Pompeo said on Saturday. "It is our mission. The tools we will use are broad. The fact that a couple thousand uniformed personnel in Syria will be withdrawing is a tactical change. It doesn't materially alter our capacity to continue to perform the military actions that we need to perform," Pompeo told reporters in Abu Dhabi. Pompeo arrived in Abu Dhabi on Friday as part of his regional tour aimed at reassuring Washington's Middle Eastern allies of its continued commitment to the complete dismantlement of Daesh* and containing Iran following the pullout of US troops from Syria, according to US officials. In December, US President Donald Trump declared victory over the Daesh and said he would withdraw some 2,000 US troops currently deployed in the Middle Eastern country. Washington, however, said that it would not disclose a timeline for withdrawing its troops, and pledged that the US-led international coalition's fight against terrorism would continue. Fox News reported on Friday citing a US defense official that the US-led coalition in Syria had started the process of withdrawing troops from the region. *Daesh (ISIL/ISIS/Islamic State), a terrorist group banned in Russia Sputnik The first session of the new National Assembly will start at 10 a.m. on January 14, News.am reports. According to the regulations, the first session will be held by the eldest deputy 74-year-old Knyaz Hasanov. The President of Armenia and Catholicos of All Armenian Karekin II will address the deputies. The MPs will take the oath, and the speaker will announce the total number of deputies and the entire list of deputies. Election of the speaker, deputy speakers, creation of standing committees and election of their heads is on the agenda. The deputies will also discuss the approval of the governments action plan. As suggested by the government, the agenda also includes discussion of the draft law on changing the structure of the government. The first meeting ends with a closing remarks by the Speaker of the National Assembly and the announcement of the date of the next meeting. Thousands Rally In Serbia Against Vucic For Sixth Week January 12, 2019 Thousands of people have gathered in Belgrade for the sixth week of street protests against Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, whom they accuse of stifling media freedoms and suppressing the opposition. As they marched through central Belgrade on January 12, the protesters shouted slogans such as "Betrayal, betrayal!" And "Vucic is a thief." Some carried banners reading "Rise Serbia" or "It's started." Smaller protests were held in the cities of Novi Sad, Kraguejevac, Kursumlija, Krusevac, Uzice, and Pozega, RTS state television reported. Demonstrations first started after thugs beat up opposition politician Borko Stefanovic in November, prompting calls for more democracy and an end to political violence in Serbia. An umbrella group of opposition parties called the Alliance for Serbia blamed Vucic's Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) for the attack on Stefanovic. Authorities deny involvement. Critics say Vucic has fostered an atmosphere of fear and hate speech against opponents, while seeking to tighten his rule. They accuse the SNS of being corrupt. Vucic denies the allegations. Officially, the president in Serbia plays a largely ceremonial role, but Vucic's SNS has dominated the legislature since 2012. Vucic was elected to a five-year term as president in 2017 after holding the post of prime minister. A former nationalist, Vucic is now guiding Serbia toward membership in the European Union. He has also sought to maintain ties with traditional ally Russia and to develop relations with China. Vucic has said he will not give in to opposition demands for electoral reform and increased media freedom regardless of the number of protesters on the streets, although he has suggested he might call a snap vote to demonstrate his party's strength. Based on reporting by AP, dpa, and AFP Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/thousands -rally-in-serbia-against-vucic-for -sixth-week/29706476.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. Renewed clashes erupt in Hudaydah despite ceasefire between warring parties Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:13AM Fresh clashes have erupted between Yemeni Houthi Ansarullah fighters and militants loyal to the country's Saudi-backed former regime in Hudaydah despite a UN-brokered truce in the vital Red Sea port city. An AFP correspondent reported artillery and machine-gun exchanges in Hudaydah's south early on Saturday, adding that they abated later in the day. The renewed fighting came amid a Hudaydah ceasefire, which was reached between Yemen's warring parties in Sweden in December. They agreed to the withdrawal of their forces and deployment of UN monitors to the port, the entry point for most of Yemen's vital aid and commercial goods. On Friday, UN aid coordinator Lise Grande visited Hudaydah, a lifeline for millions of Yemenis, and held talks with local officials. Grande is in Hudaydah to "see the humanitarian situation... and ensure the arrival of aid through the port," said Jaber al-Razahi, the head of Yemen's National Authority for the Administration and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Saudi Arabia and allies, which waged a war on Yemen in March 2015, regularly violate the Hudaydah truce and conduct deadly airstrikes on the port city and elsewhere in the war-torn country. On Thursday, the Houthis launched a retaliatory drone attack on a military parade by Saudi-backed militants in the southern Lahij Province, killing several elements. Separately on Friday, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, the head of Yemen's Supreme Revolutionary Committee, blamed the occupying Saudi mercenaries for a recent fire at an oil refinery in the southern port city of Aden. In a post on his Twitter account, he accused the aggressors of targeting the people of Aden and the port's refineries. He further stressed that the Yemeni army and allied fighters from Popular Committees have been working to defeat the US-Saudi-backed forces and restore security and stability in the country. "We do not list vital Yemeni institutions and infrastructure as targets for their attacks," al-Houthi said. "This is what the army and Popular Committees are entrusted to do by the Yemeni People." An explosion sparked fire at an oil refinery in Aden's Buraika neighborhood on Friday. There were no reports of casualties. Saudi Arabia and its regional allies, including the UAE, launched the devastating military campaign against Yemen to bring the Riyadh-backed former government back to power. The invaders have, however, failed to achieve their objective in the face of Yemenis' resistance. Protesters raise pressure on Bashir to step down as unrest continue Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:26AM Sudanese riot police have fired tear gas at angry protesters who called for an end to President Omar al-Bashir's 30-year old rule over the county. Police on Friday used rubber bullets, tear gas, and live ammunition to disperse protesters who were peacefully protesting in the capital Khartoum on Friday. Hundreds of protesters emerged from a mosque in the Jabra district of southern Khartoum after midday prayers, calling for "the fall of the regime." At least three people were killed and several others injured in protests earlier on Thursday, after police opened fire on them, according to Sudan's top human rights body. Sudan's National Human Rights Commission condemned on Friday the killing "by bullets" of protesters, calling upon the government to investigate the use of lethal force and bring the criminals to court. "We condemn using bullets against citizens," said the commission in a statement. "We are also deeply sorry about the killing of citizens by bullets." This was the first time a state body acknowledged that live ammunition had been used against protesters, since a wave of protests started last month over price hikes. A group of doctors from the main hospital in Khartoum said separately that police had fired tear gas at the facility and there was also "shooting inside the hospital." Images on social media also show riot police entered the hospital and shot live bullets at people. Videos showed tear gas billowing in rooms in at least two hospitals. Demonstrations have quickly rocked cities across the country and turned into demands for Bashirs' resignation, after he talked about an alleged improvement of ties with Israel under the pretext that it would help stabilize Sudan. Sudan has forged close relations with Saudi Arabia in recent years, reportedly sending troops to Yemen to help the kingdom's invasion of the impoverished nation. NATO member Romania cancels $1.83bn Dutch warship purchase over political dispute Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:33AM Romania's defense ministry has cancelled a $1.83 billion deal for purchase of four Dutch warships after a dispute over which bid best suits the NATO member's interests. The ministry announced on Friday that it had informed military prosecutors there were "reasonable suspicions" regarding the legitimacy of the procedure for the military acquisition, noting that it could damage the country's national security, AP reported. The Romanian government did not elaborate on the circumstance of suspending the military purchase in its late Friday announcement, which came a day before the winner was scheduled to be declared. According to local press reports, the procurement of four multi-task corvette vessels has led to political tensions with Romania's ruling Social Democratic Party, which favored an offer from Dutch ship maker, the Damen Group. Romania's Army Chief of Staff Nicolae Ciuca, however, considered the military contract too expensive amid reports that France's Naval Group offered a better deal for the warships. This is while the NATO member has committed to upgrading its military forces and equipment within the next decade under intense pressure from Washington, which has threatened to quit the alliance unless its European members took measures to make greater contributions through a more rigorous military buildup across the board. The development came after Croatia, another east European NATO member, cancelled the purchase of 12 used F-16 jet fighters from the Israeli regime on Thursday following US refusal to approve the third-party sale. "Israel has officially informed us that it cannot get an approval from the United States for delivery of the planes to Croatia," Croatia's Defense Minister Damir Krsticevic announced in a Thursday press conference in the capital Zagreb following a meeting with a visiting Israeli delegation. According to Croatian media reports, the problem came up because the war planes had been refitted with Israeli technology, depriving American weapons makers the opportunity to update and service the decades-old fighter jets. The US reportedly insisted that the Israeli regime must strip the jets of the upgrades it had made -- including electronic and radar systems prior to transferring the aircraft. DR Congo presidential runner-up appeals against result Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 04:19PM Martin Fayulu, the runner-up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's presidential election, has filed an appeal against the result of the election. On Thursday, the country's electoral commission declared Felix Tshisekedi as the winner of the December 30 election. On Friday, Fayulu's legal team appealed to the Constitutional Court to annul the announced result. "The request seeks the annulment of the result declaring Felix Tshisekedi president," Fayulu's lawyer Feli Ekombe told reporters on Saturday. The presidential election, which was intended to be Congo's first democratic transfer of power in six decades, is now threatening to reawaken violence in the huge and tumultuous nation, where millions have died during civil wars since the 1990s. Despite pre-election polls predicting a landslide victory for Fayulu, the national election board (CENI) declared Tshisekedi as the winner of the vote. Fayulu's supporters, who took part in a protest rally in Kinshasa on Friday to contest the election result, claim the businessman-turned-politician won the vote. The tally by Fayulu's camp showed that he won 62 percent of the votes, with Tshisekedi taking only 19 percent of the ballots. Fayulu's supporters say authorities rigged the result in a deal to protect members of President Joseph Kabila's outgoing administration and maintain his influence over security forces. The influential Catholic Church has also rejected the official result based on tallies by its 40,000-strong observer team. France and former colonial power Belgium also expressed doubts. Russia and China, however, called on foreign countries to stay out of the dispute. Fayulu urges supporters to 'rise up' Fayulu has asked his supporters to take action and defend his votes in the presidential election. "When you know you are in the right, you are not allowed to remain home," Fayulu said, urging supporters to "rise up." Fayulu's camp has asked the CENI electoral authority to publish results from every polling station. Kabila, who took over from his assassinated father Laurent in 2001, is stepping down after 18 years in office. He has promised DR Congo's first orderly transfer of power since it gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Colombian protesters urge chief prosecutor to step down over corruption scandal Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 05:19PM Thousands of Colombians have taken to the streets in several major cities across the South American country, demanding the resignation of Attorney General Nestor Humberto Martinez, who is accused of not probing graft cases he was aware of. The protest rallies were held on Friday as angry demonstrators marched on prosecutors' offices in the capital Bogota, Cali, Barranquilla, Bucaramanga and other cities, according to a report by Colombian broadcaster Caracol. In the capital, protesters convened outside Martinez's office, carrying flashlights to "shine a light" on what they called Colombia's corrupt institutions. Martinez, 64, has been accused of withholding information about the country's links to Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, which is widely implicated in a far-reaching corruption scandal, described as one of the biggest transnational corruption scandals in Latin America's recent history. "The behavior of prosecutor Martinez ... is destroying trust in state institutions," said Pedro Pablo Salaz, one of the organizers of a rally in the northern city of Tunja. Odebrecht is currently under investigation by the attorney general's office for purportedly offering bribes as much as $800 million to politicians in 10 different countries across Latin America in return for receiving contracts, as the colossal company has admitted. Martinez, who is currently in charge of investigating Odebrecht's activities in his country, previously worked as a legal adviser to the Brazilian conglomerate. Furthermore, suspicions of a purported cover-up increased after two key witnesses, one of them an internal auditor, in the case died in suspicious circumstances. Five killed in attack on police station in Afghanistan's Herat Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 06:46PM At least five people have been killed and four others injured during clashes between police and gunmen who stormed a police station in Afghanistan's western province of Herat. The spokesman for the provincial governor, Jailani Farhad, said two gunmen attacked the building on Saturday and killed three policemen, one civilian and a child. He added that four policemen were also wounded before the attackers were killed. Members of the Afghan National Security Forces seized a vehicle packed with explosives from the site of the raid. Interior Ministry's spokesman Najib Danish said that police special forces were deployed to the area. No group has claimed responsibility for the assault yet but the Taliban have carried out similar attacks in the past few years. On Thursday, Taliban militants killed at least 32 members of security forces and pro-government militias during a series of coordinated attacks on checkpoints in four Afghan provinces. Officials said the attacks took place in the northern provinces of Kunduz, Baghlan, and Takhar, and in the western province of Badghis. The attacks happened a few days after at least 21 Afghan security forces were killed as Taliban militants stormed security checkpoints in Badghis, in one of the deadliest attacks to hit the area in months. Local officials said two security posts in different parts of the province, which borders Turkmenistan, had been stormed by the militants. The attacks took place despite stepped up efforts by the Kabul government to convince the Taliban to end more than 17 years of militancy amid Washington's failures on the battleground. Representatives from the Taliban, the US, and regional countries met for the fourth time in December in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi for talks to end the war in Afghanistan, but the militant group's representatives refused to talk to the Afghan negotiating team. The US State Department's special envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad, said he held "productive" meetings in Abu Dhabi with Afghan and international partners "to promote intra-Afghan dialogue towards ending the conflict." Egyptian security forces kill six militants in Sohag province: Ministry Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 06:49PM Egyptian security forces have killed six militants of a terror outfit in the African country's south, the interior ministry says. The deadly clashes occurred in early hours of Saturday after security police forces raided a militant hideout in an area on the edge of the southern province of Sohag, some 460 kilometers south of the capital Cairo, said a statement released by the Ministry of Interior of Egypt. It added that "six terrorist elements" had been killed in exchange of fire between the two sides around and inside the hideout, located in a gorge in one of the mountainous areas along the western Assiut-Sohag desert highway. The ministry further said that "terrorists" were found in possession of ammunition, weapons, and an improvised explosive device. It added that the Saturday raid was a "a continuation of the ministry's efforts in confronting terrorist organizations which aim to undermine peace and security and chasing elements which aim to execute hostile operations in the country." Over the past few years, terrorists have been carrying out anti-government activities and fatal attacks, taking advantage of the turmoil in Egypt that erupted after the country's first democratically-elected president, Mohamed Morsi, was ousted in a military coup in July 2013. The ministry did not mention the name of the terror group, whose hideout was raided on Saturday, but the Velayat Sinai terror outfit, which pledged allegiance to the Takfiri Daesh terror group in 2014, has claimed responsibility for most of the assaults across Egypt, particularly those in the Sinai region, where the group is based. The terror group, previously known as Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, has mainly attacked security forces in the restive region of Sinai Peninsula since its inception in 2013. The terrorists have so far killed hundreds of members of security forces. Earlier this month, a bomb blast claimed the life of a police officer and inflicted wounds on two others outside a church in Nasr City on the edge of Cairo. The deadly explosion took place when security personnel were trying to defuse an explosive device. Yemen rejects claims on Ansarullah attack to Aden refinery IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency Tehran, Jan 12, IRNA -- Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, President of the Revolutionary Committee rejected claims as regard Ansarullah attack on Aden refinery. Saudi coalition was responsible for fire in this refinery, Yemeni TV Channel 'Al-Masirah' quoted Ali al-Houthi as saying. Yemeni army, security and popular committee forces are trying to establish peace and stability in Yemen by fighting aggressors and do not attack installations, he said. Attack is what US-Saudi-Emirati coalition does, he added. Meanwhile, Yemeni Armed Forces spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Saree rejected Saudi media allegations on Ansarullah attack, saying the air force have conducted no operation over the past 24 hours. Yemeni local officials announced that one of the refinery tanks fired due to massive explosion. In the meantime, an unknown source told Al-Masirah that explosion happened in an oil pipeline and then advanced to Aden refinery. Saudi Arabia and its regional allies attacked Yemen in March 2015 to bring back to power the deposed president of Yemen Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi. Since then, the invaders have committed horrible war crimes against Yemeni civilians. 9376**2050 NYT: FBI Investigated Whether Trump Was Working For Russia By RFE/RL January 12, 2019 The New York Times is reporting that the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation opened a counterintelligence probe in 2017 into whether President Donald Trump was working for Russian interests. The newspaper, citing unnamed former law enforcement officials and others, reported on January 11 that the counterintelligence investigation was initially separate from an ongoing criminal investigation. The criminal probe had focused on interactions between Russian officials and Trump associates, and was originally in the summer of 2016, during the presidential election campaign. The probe later expanded into whether Trump committed a felony crime of obstruction of justice when he fired FBI Director James Comey in May 2017. Special Counsel Robert Mueller took over the FBI probe after Comey's firing. According to the Times, FBI officials also opened a counterintelligence investigation around the time of Comey's firing, after officials were alarmed by comments Trump made suggesting Comey's firing was due to the original Russia investigation. A counterintelligence investigation typically concerns national security matters, as opposed to criminal matters. According to the paper, both lines of inquiry are now under Mueller's purview. Mueller's probe has brought indictments against 34 people including Trump's former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort; Trump's first national security adviser, Michael Flynn, as well as a series of Russian intelligence officers and Kremlin-connected officials. Trump and his allies have repeatedly criticized Mueller's investigation, calling it a "witch hunt" and questioning the political motivations of his investigators. Recent news reports and court filings suggest that Mueller may be nearing the end of his investigation, at which point he is supposed to turn over a confidential final report to the Justice Department. At least three different congressional committees, including the Senate Intelligence Committee, have also been probing various aspects of Russia's alleged interference in the 2016 election. The U.S. intelligence community has concluded that Russia engaged in a campaign of hacking and propaganda to sway voters during the 2016 election, largely aimed at bolstering Trump's chances at the presidency. Russian officials have repeatedly denied any such effort. With reporting by The New York Times Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/nyt-fbi-russia- trump-investigation/29705785.html Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. Moscows Lyublinsky Court has rejected a libel lawsuit filed by Head of Russia's National Guard Viktor Zolotov against opposition politician and blogger Alexey Navalny, the court said on its website on Sunday, TASS reports. In December 2018, the court said the document contained discrepancies contradicting Russias Civic Procedural Code and obliged Zolotov to refile the lawsuit in a correct form by January 9. However, the complainant failed to meet the courts demand. Later, Zolotovs lawyer Shota Gorgadze said he would not represent his clients interests. Russias National Guard (Rosgvardiya) chief filed a one-million-ruble ($15,000) lawsuit against Navalny demanding the protection of honor, dignity and reputation. Gorgadze explained that Zolotov wanted Navalnys statements concerning his client declared as slanderous and having nothing to do with the reality. In particular, this concerns private property information and claims that the National Guards chiefs were involved in corrupt food procurement schemes, the lawyer said. Poland arrests Huawei employee, fmr. Polish security official on spying charges Iran Press TV Sat Jan 12, 2019 10:35AM Poland has detained an employee of the Chinese electronics giant Huawei along with a former Polish security official on suspected spying charges, in what appears to be an extension of US-fueled security fears about the telecom company. Polish security services spokesman Stanislaw Zaryn announced the arrest on Friday, stating that the country's Internal Security Agency (ISA) had arrested the Chinese citizen and a former security official on January 8. The men were likely to remain in custody for at least three months, he added. Despite widespread western press reports tying the arrests to Huawei's involvement in espionage activities on behalf of Beijing, the Polish spokesman was cited in a Reuters report as insisting that the spying charges were related to individual actions and not directly connected with the international Chinese corporation. "This matter has to do with his actions, it doesn't have anything to do with the company he works for," Zaryn said of the Chinese detainee as quoted in the report. The report further cited "a person with knowledge of the matter" as identifying the detained Huawei employee as Wang Weijing, adding that he had been arrested but not charged. It also pointed to Wang's LinkedIn profile, which confirmed he had worked for Huawei's Polish division since 2011 and previously served as attache to the Chinese General Consul in the city of Gdansk from 2006-2011. Polish public TV channel TVP also identified the Polish detainee as a former ISA officer, adding that the country's security services had searched the offices of his current employer, telecom firm Orange Polska. It further reported that Huawei's local offices were also searched. China's foreign ministry reacted to the arrests by stating that it was "greatly concerned" by the move, calling on Polish authorities to handle the case "justly." Huawei Technologies, the world's largest maker of telecommunications equipment, faces intense scrutiny in the West over its relationship with the Chinese government and US-led allegations that its equipment could be used by Beijing for spying. Even though no evidence of spying activities has been produced publicly and the company has repeatedly denied such claims, the allegations have led several Western governments to restrict Huawei's access to their national markets. US-allied countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Japan have also followed Washington's efforts against Huawei, citing security concerns. Norway also announced on Wednesday that it was considering whether to join other Western governments in excluding Huawei from building part of the European country's new 5G telecom network. The development came after Canadian authorities arrested Huawei's finance chief Meng Wanzhou last month at the behest of American authorities and as part of a purported probe into alleged violations of US trade sanctions, which has nothing to do with claims of spying concerns. Canada's arrest of Wanzhou has triggered major tensions with China amid Washington and Beijing broader trade war. The European Commission's spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic said it was following reports about the arrests and would reach out to the Polish authorities for further information. Western security concerns about Huawei, and fellow Chinese telecom equipment firm ZTE Corp, revolve around China's National Intelligence Law that went into effect in 2017. The law established that Chinese "organizations and citizens shall, in accordance with the law, support, cooperate with, and collaborate in national intelligence work." This law, Western governments argue, means that Huawei could be asked by the Chinese government to incorporate "backdoors" into their equipment that would allow Beijing access, for spying or sabotage purposes. Ward Luthi will share his love of outdoors with slide show at library Turkey will support Turkish exporters with TL 3.1 billion ($570 million) in 2019, the nation's trade minister announced on Friday. "We designed all of our export support to develop fields which contribute to Turkey's export potential," Ruhsar Pekcan said in a press release, Daily Sabah reports. She stressed the support would accelerate the country's exports by encouraging value-added exports. In 2018, despite global trade wars, an economic slowdown and increased geopolitical risks, Turkey hit $168.1 billion in exports, a historic high, she said. Exports were up 7.1 percent year-on-year in 2018, supporting the decrease in the foreign trade deficit by 28.4 percent to $55 billion. Imports also decreased by 4.6 percent to $223.1 billion. Both export and import figures were also lower than the $170 billion export and $236 billion import goals set in the government's New Economic Program (NEP), announced in late September by Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak. Recent foreign trade deficit figures mark a significant improvement compared to the figures for 2017: $76.8 billion. The year-end foreign trade deficit expectation put forward in the NEP was $66 billion. The export-import coverage ratio increased by 8.2 percentage points compared to 2017 and rose to 75.3 percent. The overall foreign trade volume slightly rose by 0.1 percent to $391.2 billion. According to NEP, Turkey eyes to hit $182 billion by the end of 2019. Speaking on how the ministry supported 12,555 firms in 2018, Pekcan said: "Technology, branding and design, which were our priorities, took the biggest share of our budget with TL 861 million [$159 million] in 2018." Some 600 firms' technology, branding and design activities were supported in 2018, and in the new era more firms will be supported, Pekcan underlined. Some 8,700 firms were supported with TL 520 million ($96 million) for international fairs in 2018, while TL 120 million ($22 million) in support was used for exporting firms' ads, branding, office, shop and warehouse expenses, she added. In 2018, the ministry also spent TL 80 million ($14.8 million) on market research, e-commerce website memberships, procurement committees, and acquisition financing. In addition, she stated that last year firms' mandatory documents and competition projects were also supported with TL 80 million ($14.8 million). Samsung Galaxy M10, Galaxy M20, Galaxy M30 roundup: All that we know so far News oi-Abhinaya Prabhu Samsung Galaxy M series roundup Samsung is expected to unveil three new smartphones in India under the Galaxy M series later this month. These phones are expected to be budget and mid-range offerings that are meant to compete against the likes of the affordable Chinese brands. There are claims that these devices will replace the existing affordable phones belonging to the Galaxy On series and Galaxy J series. The Samsung Galaxy M series has been spotted on the popular benchmarking platform Geekbench revealing some of the key specifications of the device. Also, we have come across leaks and speculations revealing what we can expect from these smartphones. Here is a roundup of the upcoming Samsung Galaxy M series smartphones. Samsung Galaxy M10 Samsung Galaxy M10, which is expected to be the low-end device in the lineup could be nearing its launch in India. The support page for this smartphone has gone live on the official Samsung India website hinting at an imminent launch. Recently, the Galaxy M10 was spotted at the FCC database revealing the key specifications. Going by the previous reports, the smartphone is expected to feature a 6.02-inch display with an Infinity-V cutout. Under its hood, there are claims that it will make use of an Exynos 7870 SoC paired with 3GB RAM and 16GB/32GB storage space. The other aspects of this smartphone include a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP selfie camera, Android 8.1 Oreo topped with Samsung Experience UI, a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and a 3400mAh battery. Samsung Galaxy M20 As per a leaked benchmark listing, the Galaxy M20 is believed to feature an Infinity Display panel with an Infinity-U notch for the first time. The other goodies include 3GB RAM and 32GB/64GB storage space. The listing also hinted at the use of the Exynos 7885 SoC from the company. Samsung Galaxy M30 Going by a report that surfaced online a few days back, the Samsung Galaxy M30 is expected to sport a triple camera setup at its rear similar to that on the company's Galaxy A7. The triple camera module is likely to comprise a 13MP primary sensor and two 5MP sensors. One of the 5MP sensor is believed to be an ultra-wide sensor while the other one is said to be used for depth sensing. But the other details about the cameras are yet to be revealed. The smartphone is speculated to feature a large 6.38-inch FHD+ display with an Infinity-U notch. Similar to the Galaxy M20, this one is also believed to get the power from a capacious 5000mAh battery, which should let it last for at least two days. The other aspects of the upcoming Samsung smartphone include Android 8.1 Oreo, 4GB RAM and 128GB storage space.s Expected price in India One of the recent reports revealed the alleged pricing of the Galaxy M10 and Galaxy M20 smartphones. Going by the same, the Galaxy M10 is said to be priced under Rs. 10,000. And, the Galaxy M20 is likely to cost under Rs. 15,000. While there is no word regarding the cost of the Galaxy M30, it is likely to be priced under Rs. 20,000. However, we need to wait for an official confirmation from Samsung. Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Gillette, WY (82718) Today Sunny. Gusty winds diminishing during the afternoon. High 86F. Winds N at 20 to 30 mph. Higher wind gusts possible.. Tonight A few passing clouds. Low 56F. Winds E at 10 to 20 mph. Georgian president Salome Zurabishvili not ready for launching diplomatic dialogue with Russia - GeorgianJournal Over the past two decades, three high-ranking US officials have gone to Cairo to lay out their vision for the US foreign policy in the Middle East. Each time, they have criticised their predecessors and each time nothing good has come out of it. As Al-Jazeera writes in the article What three Cairo speeches tell us about US foreign policy, in June 2005, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice delivered a speech at the American University of Cairo two years after the US invasion of Iraq. The toppling of Saddam Hussein had left a crack in the edifice of Arab authoritarianism and then-President George W Bush was claiming to be the torchbearer of freedom and democracy in the region. Hence, in her speech, Rice spoke at length about "freedom" and "democracy" in the Middle East and bashed six decades of US support for "stability at the expense of democracy". But by then, the Bush administration had already shipped back home hundreds of bodies of US soldiers killed in the ensuing security vacuum in Iraq; many more were to come. Exactly four years later in June 2009, President Barack Obama made a very different speech at an event co-hosted by al-Azhar and Cairo Universities in what was then dubbed by his critics an "apology tour" for US misbehaviour under the Bush administration. He spoke of historical tension between the US and the Islamic world which he would seek to resolve through a "new beginning" in relations. Obama had two goals in mind: to disengage from the Sunni-Shiite tensions by extending a hand to Tehran and to reach a peace deal between Palestinians and Israelis - two rather contradictory objectives. As Iranian power grew in the region after the Iraq invasion, Israel and Saudi Arabia had become increasingly focussed on deterring it; hence, neither was interested in reaching a deal with the Palestinians until the US prioritised pushing back Iranian influence. Obama not only failed to achieve these two goals, but he also opted for overusing US drones to bomb targets across the Islamic world, killing hundreds of innocent civilians and doing away with his "new beginning" promises. A decade later, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also made his way to Cairo and delivered a key foreign policy speech. He declared that "the age of self-inflicted American shame is over", criticising Obama's legacy in the Middle East and laying out contradictory policies. In fact, a closer look at what he said reveals that several policies the Trump administration is pursuing are no different than those of the Obama doctrine. For example, Pompeo chastised Obama for disengaging in Iraq, arguing that "when America retreats, chaos follows". Yet this is exactly what is currently unfolding in Syria, following Trump's hasty decision to pull out US troops from the country's northeast region. He also praised the Trump administration's policies to draw down forces "when the job is complete", pointing out that the US forces in Iraq have gone down from 166,000 to 5,000 and skipping the fact that the withdrawal was a decision taken by Obama. Pompeo also laid out another extension of the Obama doctrine: confronting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) by using drones and local partners on the ground and empowering allies to protect their borders. Ironically, the objective of defeating terrorism is likely to be hindered by two decisions taken by the Trump administration. One is the withdrawal from Syria which will leave the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) preoccupied with a potential Turkish incursion and distracted from their campaign against the ISIL. The other is the decision to confront Iran diplomatically, which has caused US forces to be on alert and switch focus away from combating the ISIL in Iraq. Pompeo made sure to emphasise the Trump administration's anti-Iran policies, saying, "The nations of the Middle East will never enjoy security, achieve economic stability, or advance the dreams of its people of Iran's revolutionary regime persists on its current course." However, deterring Iran in the Trump era merely means imposing tough sanctions on the regime without much of the international community being on board. It also means that Washington and Tehran will continue sharing influence in both Iraq and Lebanon. Trump's secretary of state also talked about "strengthening long-term alliances and building new partnerships". Yet many US allies in the region feel unsettled about the current administration's commitment to regional alliances. Kurdish forces in both Iraq and Syria were left by the Trump administration to their own devices and are currently engaging Moscow and potentially Tehran as a result of US reluctance to follow up on commitments. Some Arab regimes are also on the fence about joining the anti-Iran axis with Israel and appearing to endorse the Trump administration's gradual dissolution of the Palestinian cause. While parts of Pompeo's appear contradictory to outside observers, it is possible that his intended audience was his boss at the Oval Office. Unable to make his case in private, Pompeo probably wanted to send a public message to Trump that withdrawing from Syria is an Obama-like move, knowing that the president hates nothing more than being compared with his predecessor. Whatever Pompeo's true intentions, his speech reaffirmed a worrying reality: Never in recent history has the US foreign policy been so hijacked by domestic politics and internal tensions within the presidential administration. Now that James Mattis is no longer serving as Pentagon chief, Pompeo and National Security Adviser John Bolton will be the ones competing for the attention of their boss and seeking to shape US foreign policy in the Middle East according to their convictions. We have reached a surreal moment in US politics in which Bolton, a champion of the Iraq war, is considered the only voice of reason left to salvage US policy in Syria. Bolton and Pompeo's job will be a hard one to do, as both have lost their credibility in the Middle East. Moving forward, no regional leader or policymaker will believe that they speak on Trump's behalf. What they were preaching about Syria for most of 2018 was momentously discredited by the president's recent remarks that the US has no business staying in Syria. The fact is that Trump has never been more isolated at home and abroad and a damage control speech in Cairo by his secretary of state is not enough to save the US president from himself. Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Galveston, TX (77553) Today Mainly sunny to start, then a few afternoon clouds. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High 92F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 81F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Situation concerning convict videobloger Mehman Huseynov has been discussed in Azerbaijan and abroad for the past three weeks. On December 26 of last year, he was accused of assaulting officer during routine inspection of the prison. At the same time, two months remain until the end of the term of Huseynovs imprisonment (he was sentenced to two years in 2017), and criminal case under article 315.2 (resistance or use of violence dangerous to life or health against representative of law) of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code may lead to him getting additional 5 to 7 years in prison. Mehman Huseynov denies all charges against him. In protest, at the end of December of last year, he announced his hunger strike, which was supported by active information campaign of the opposition on social networks. Either these illegal charges will be dropped, or I will starve to death, Huseynov said. Campaign was aimed at attracting public and international attention in order to exert pressure on official Baku. As for hunger strike, it turns out that blogger wasn't really planning to put his health at serious risk. There are many inconsistencies with this hunger strike story. Officials claim that despite all the hype in the media and social networks, hunger strike actually lasted only one day. Head of the PR department of the prison Mehman Sadigov said: He announced hunger strike, but started eating in the morning. He even signed a document that proves it. He eats food, bread, drinks water, meets with his lawler, talks to his family by phone. There are no problems. As you know, if someone has health problems, doctor immediately intervenes. However, this was not necessary because there was no real hunger strike." It should also be noted that the photo, distributed by human rights activists almost a week after hunger strike announcement, shows that Mehman Huseynov doesnt look exhausted. On January 11, blogger appealed to the media: "A message was posted on social networks recently, stating that I was allegedly in critical condition and was immediately taken to medical institution. This information caused serious concern of my father and loved ones. I believe that everyone should be personally responsible for their actions and things they write... I would like to bring to attention of people who love me, that I fine, I eat and try to get into better condition after hunger strike. I expect that this case will be reviewed fairly." That's why it's so strange to see reports from social networks and media, funded by Western liberal elite, that say that as of right now Huseynov "has been starving for Baku prison two weeks." Although, considering what kind of source of funding such media projects have, everythings gets clear. So who is Mehman Huseynov? His activity boils down to reporting on everyday topics, topics of the day - improperly laid asphalt, illegal tree cutting, demolition of dilapidated houses in poor neighborhoods of the capital and dissatisfaction of residents with officials. The latter was done without any evidences, just like other professional investigative bloggers do. Mehman Huseynovs blog, which has 330,000 subscribers, is currently being maintained on by his elder brother Emin, who lives in Paris. It's no coincidence that French Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately responded to this situation (so far this is the only reaction of foreign ministry of any country on this issue), even before investigation ended, expressing concern and hope for blogger's release. Before moving to France, Emin Huseynov headed non-governmental organization called the Reporters' Freedom and Safety Institute, funded by the Soros Open Society Institute and Western governments. For many years, he had access to all embassies until law enforcement officers started to investigate his activities five years ago. Emin Huseynov was accused of tax evasion, after which he hid from the police at the Swiss Embassy for several months. Authorities gave him the opportunity to leave the country after Switzerland paid off his debts. Perhaps after his release, Mehman Huseynov will join his older brother, leaving for France, since French Foreign Ministry already said it's willing to provide him "political asylum". One way or another, this blogger's story showed interesting trends in the information field of Azerbaijan. First of all, it became clear that social networks in the country became a space of absolute freedom of speech. On the Internet, users have opportunity to freely express their dissatisfaction and criticize authorities in any form. Government may not be happy with this, but it doesn't take any restrictive administrative steps. In a truly authoritarian state - and that's how Azerbaijan's critics in the West or pseudoliberal opposition within the country see it - no criticizm would be allowed. Second of all, current "fake news" trend also affected Azerbaijan. Anti-government sentiments were fueled by fake information about alleged "critical" state of the blogger. And it's hard for bureaucratic state structures to keep up with dynamics of social networks. Third of all, Azerbaijani segment of social networks shows desire of users to see reality only in "black and white". Alternative information gets accepted easier than reports of government agencies. Various conspiracy theories appear. This phenomenon is also observed in Western democracies - mainstream media and state press services are successfully discredited by right-wing populists. Fourth of all, there are clear attempts to "demonize" Azerbaijan's government. No government is perfect, and that's also true for Azerbaijan. However, those who insist on the theory of "cruelty of the state machine" either have no idea of what truly cruel authorities are or deliberately distort facts. Have any questions? Please give us a call at 907-352-2250 For his part, President Trump had two years during which his own party controlled both chambers of Congress to secure funding for his wall. It is disingenuous for the president to now suddenly declare an emergency on the southern border when he had two years in office to address it. Decades of lax immigration enforcement coupled with monetary and other inducements have encouraged millions of foreign nationals to risk their lives to enter the U.S., only to face deportation when they do. Most of these migrants do not pose any threat to U.S. citizens, although they are still in violation of our immigration laws. But Trump is right that drug mules, gang members, traffickers and even murderers are sometimes among them. For example, one of the men accused of abducting, robbing and slashing the throat of artist and former University of Mary Washington graduate student Kenneth Moore last January is a Guatemalan national residing in the U.S. illegally. And hes not the only one. In March 2018, four MS-13 gang members, two from El Salvador on immigration detainers, were charged with abducting a 25-year-old man in front of his Woodbridge home as he was leaving for work, shooting him multiple times, putting his body in the trunk of his car and setting it on fire. EVERY citizen of the commonwealth should have an equal voice in the election of those who govern and enact laws that affect their lives. That principle undergirds our democracy. I dont believe anyone would disagree with it. But statements of principle are operationalized by human beings. And this is where it can get dicey. If self-interest can alter an outcome, the result may not represent our finest hour. And that is where we find ourselves in the establishment of electoral districts in Virginia. For all time, the majority political party, be it Democrat or Republican, has determined the shape of our electoral maps, working its will as the redistricting process unfolded. Over the years, there have been occasional strange-lookingsome might say contortedelectoral districts. Both parties have owned some of these anomalies. They occur when logic leaves the building. Its fair game to make the rules once you have become the majority party, but one might argue that its not fair game to make the rules that create the majority party. Allowing non-logical criteria to enter the equation when the majority party is being created can only bring a sense of distrust and cynicism from our citizens. PRESIDENT Donald Trumps relatively subdued Oval Office speech on border security included one combative note: a challenge to the suggestion made by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi that his proposed wall on the border with Mexico was immoral. Some have suggested a barrier is immoral, the president said. Then why do wealthy politicians build walls, fences and gates around their homes? They dont build walls because they hate the people on the outside, but because they love the people on the inside. The only thing that is immoral is the politicians to do nothing and continue to allow more innocent people to be so horribly victimized. Even though Trump didnt mention Pelosi by name, it seemed obvious that he was referring to her. The previous week she said that a wall is an immorality between countries, adding: Its an old way of thinking. It isnt cost-effective. This isnt a new position for her. In a Meet the Press interview in April 2017, she said: The wall is, in my view, immoral, expensive, unwise. Even if it would have required some extemporizing, you might have thought that Pelosi would have responded to Trumps point about the morality of the wall when she and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer delivered their televised response to the president. Turner said House Bill 2386 would help ensure that donations enhance the curriculum and provide more accountability on how institutions spend their money. Speaking with delegates and senators, some faculty members also expressed their concerns over Title IX policies. Some have questions about legislation sponsored by Del. Joseph Lindsey, DNorfolk, pertaining to accusations of sexual violence on campus. Lindsey has introduced two bills (HB 1830 and HB 1831) that would allow students to have attorneys present at any campus disciplinary hearing or sexual assault hearing. Another higher education issue is a bill proposed by Del. Lashrecse Aird, DPetersburg, that would prohibit public colleges and universities from asking student applicants about their criminal history. Under HB 2471, schools could not deny admission to any applicant on the basis of any criminal history information. Your criminal history should not be deterring you from being able to pursue education. And in my bill, theres a line that says this is really about the application, Aird said. If they do get admitted and lets say, for some instance, you have a student that wants to live in on-campus housing, the institution can then request their criminal history. Other crews will be dedicated overnight to improving conditions and removing snow from intersections, turn lanes, crossovers and shoulders along I-95, primary and high-volume secondary roads. Work will continue to make initial passes into subdivisions and along lower-volume secondary roads to create an 8 ft. to 10 ft. path into residential areas for emergency access. These initial passes may not reach each street in a neighborhood. When conditions have improved on priority routes, VDOT crews will return to plow all state-maintained roads in these areas. If additional snow accumulates on Interstate 95 and primary roads, crews will be diverted to make repeated passes on these priority routes to keep them clear. VDOT's goal is to have all roads passable 48 hours after the storms end. With snowfall ending late Sunday, this means VDOT will strive to have all roads plowed and passable by Tuesday evening. Shoveling a driveway? Remember to shovel to the right while facing the street. This will reduce the amount of double work that may be required after a snowplow makes a pass along your street. If possible, please park vehicles in driveways. This will assist snow plow drivers as they seek to remove as much snow as possible from roads and cul-de-sacs. Stafford County Schools Superintendent Scott Kizner said recently that principals and student groups have expressed support for his proposed policy on the treatment of transgender students. But the School Board is in no rush to vote on the controversial matter and may host a public forum to provide more information to the community. The policy, which would be the first of its kind in Virginia, would let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms in alignment with their gender identities. Kizner has cautioned against holding a public hearing with the sole aim of soliciting opinions of the proposal, saying it would be remarkably unfair to make transgender students and their families defend something that they live with, they love and they respect. School Board member Jamie Decatur suggested hosting a public forum or community event that would be more of an informative discussion, as opposed to each side of the debate repeatedly stating their case. Kizner endorsed that concept and said the system could potentially invite legal and medical professionals to speak on the topic. No one was waiting outside, Reynolds said Wednesday, speaking by phone from somewhere on the West Virginia Turnpike, on his way home from Utah. I took Frank out of the car. He smelled a familiar smell and started pulling me straight to this door hed never been to before. [The Millers] opened the door and he just went crazy. Perryns great-aunt, Rebecca Patrick of Fredericksburg, witnessed the boys reunion with his pet. Its nice to know that as Perryn begins his treatments so far from home, he has Frank with him for comfort and support, she said. Perryns cancer diagnosis is the second crisis his family has had to weather in the past few months. In September, their home in North Carolina was destroyed by Hurricane Florence. His father, Jake, is a veteran Marine Raider now retired on disability. His mother, Jaimee, is a special education registrar. Both parents will be taking extended leave from their jobs to care for Perryn in Utah. A friend set up a GoFundMe account to help them pay for Perryns medical bills. What do you think it means to be Fredericksburg? The city is preparing to develop a brand image that's more than just a new city seal or logo. It will begin by developing a brand strategy that presents all that Fredericksburg has to offer, from its thriving restaurant, retail and cultural scene to its reputation as a great place to live, work, play and raise a family. City officials decided to take this step because it hasn't had a unified brand, and a variety of images have been created over time, said Sonja Wise, the city's new spokeswoman. They range from the city's official seal, which features two feathers from the badge of the Prince of Wales to memorialize Prince Frederick, for whom the City of Fredericksburg was named; to a stylized silhouette of the downtown skyline that's the Department of Economic Development and Tourism's logo. "We wanted to have some uniformity across the board," Wise said. "The idea is to have one brand." Consider this bill, shared with The Free LanceStar. A 70-year-old retired employee from the Spotsylvania County school system recently had an endoscopy, a procedure in which a scope is put down a patients throat to determine whats going on inside. The total amount billed by the hospital was $11,642.68. She has Medicare and a supplemental insurance, and the total paid by her plan was $666.82. Her financial responsibility was $118.82. Theres no place on the chargemasters where she could have plugged in the details of her procedure and her insurance to determine what her actual out-of-pocket expense would be. But, hopefully, there will be in the months or years to come, Mary Washington Healthcare officials said. They believe the federal government wants the data online so it can develop a tool that will allow consumers to find out, before a surgery, what the procedure will cost. Until that level of searching is available, simply comparing random hospital charges can be misleading. You get to come to your own conclusions based on whats there [on the list] and that can be dangerous, Ogle said. The assumption you make may not be correct. CALL FOR QUOTES By The Daily Progress A Louisa County man was found guilty of first-degree murder late Friday. A jury convicted Clifford Peter Wood III of first-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of murder, and recommended the maximum sentence under the law of life plus three years. We argued to the jury that the defendant shot and killed Sean Houchens in cold blood and they agree, Louisa Commonwealths Attorney Rusty E. McGuire said in a news release. On Sept. 1, 2017, Wood was agitated with his mistresses and sent intimidating text messages about men at their residence, according to the release. He went to the residence at 1:40 a.m. and confronted the victim, 32-year-old Sean Houchens. [Wood] immediately pulled out his Glock .45 and shot Sean Houchens four times, McGuire said in the release. He fled the scene and threw his phone and the Glock into a cornfield in Hanover County. Wood abandoned his car at a hotel in Doswell and fled to Tennessee. He ultimately was found in Northern Virginia on Sept. 11, 2017. The release said the defense argued that Wood shot the victim in self-defense. Wood is scheduled to be sentenced on March 25. Send news tips to news@dailyprogress.com, call (434) 978-7264, tweet us @DailyProgress or send us a Facebook message here. We welcome your letters and columns! Use the button below to send us your thoughts. Remember: Letters must include your real name, town of residence and daytime phone number, which we use for verification. We do not accept anonymous letters or letters written under a pseudonym. Letters should be no more than about 400 words. Those of no more than 200 to 300 words are more likely to be published. Submit More information Enacted in 2007, the citys Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance, or APFO, is a legislative method that ties public infrastructure to growth for proposed development. Frederick County and several other municipalities have similar ordinances. The ordinance's purpose is to ensure that development projects are not completed until facilities that serve it are in place or ensured. It tests a developments projected impact to water line capacity, sewer line capacity, schools, roads, water treatment capacity, and sewer basin treatment capacity. For each of the facilities, the APFO establishes tests to determine whether they are adequate to serve the proposed project. If not, the developer must make efforts to obtain adequacy, which they can accomplish in a variety of ways according to the details of the ordinance. For schools, the citys ordinance, unlike the countys, contains an option that allows the developer to pay a fee and move forward if the tests fail by less than 120 percent. Or, the developer can wait until the project fails a test three times which will take at least three years as the test is given annually in October and move forward with the development as proposed. In 2016, the option to pay the mitigation fee, or school construction fee, was set to expire, but the aldermen opted to remove the expiration date. In October, the planned Caidlyn and Summers Farm developments became the first city projects to move forward after failing schools tests three times. The projects, which are set to bring about 460 new homes to respective lots on the citys west side, are now in the planning stages but still a couple of years away from groundbreaking. Welcome Guest! You are here: Home Haj 2019 Rajasthan Haj Qurrah 2019 Results Out Today, Check Your Name Now Rajasthan has been allocated a final quota of 5,254 pilgrims. But, number of applications received by the Rajasthan State Haj Committee is 10,750 Jaipur: The Rajasthan State Haj Committee is holding today i.e. Sunday January 13, 2019 the Haj 2019 Qurrah or draw of lots to finalise the list of pilgrims who will embark on Haj journey this year. The Rajasthan State Haj Committee will hold Haj 2019 Qurrah today at the state headquarters Haj House, Ramgarhmode in Jaipur today afternoon. The Haj 2019 Qurrah of Rajasthan will then be displayed on the official website. The Rajasthan State Haj Committee has scheduled the Qurrah date today on Ssundya January 13, 2019 after the approval by the concerned ministry and Haj Committee of India, Rajasthan State Haj Committee officials said. Rajasthan has been allocated a final quota of 5,254 pilgrims. But, number of applications received by the Rajasthan State Haj Committee is 10,750. As per the Haj Committee data, there are 484 applicants in the 70+category in the state. On the other hand, some female Haj aspirants fall under without Mehram category. All the 484 70+ pilgrims and females without Meham would be selected directly without Qurrah. Steps to Check your name in Haj 2019 Final List using Cover No. Pilgrims can donwload Rajasthan Haj Mitr App to check the Haj 2019 Qurrah results from Google Play Store or the link given on the Rajasthan Haj Committee website. Alternatively, they can follow the steps given below to check if their name is in the Final or Waiting List released by the Rajasthan State Haj Committee. Go to Haj Committee of India website by clicking here hajcommittee.gov.in. Brwose to the bottom of home page and look for the area similar to the one shown below. Enter your Cover No in the box. Your Cover No should start with your state code. Click on the Down Arraow from 'Select State' menu and select your state. Enter Passport No in the box. Click on "Load" button. Your application status shoul appear on the computer or mobile phone screen. The Haj Qurrah process starts district wise including Gwalior, Jaipur, Bikaner, Pali, Balotra and others. The Haj Committee after completing Qurrah will release the Haj 2019 waiting list on February 05, 2019. The pilgrims whose names are in the Haj 2019 waiting list will be given a chance against cancellation of pilgrims who are unable to make the payment or cancel their Haj travel due to some other reason. The Hajj 2019 Flight Schedule from all embarkation points will be released by the Haj Committee of India only after the process of the Haj Qurrah is completed by all states. However, according to Haj Action Plan 2019, the first outbound flight for Haj 2019 will depart from India on July 01, 2019. The last outbound Haj 2019 flight will be on August 03, 2019. The first inbound Haj flight from Saudi Arabia to India will be on August 14, 2019. Meanwhile, reports coming from Kerala State Haj Committee, Andhra Pradesh Haj Committee, Gujarat State Haj Committee, Karnataka Haj Committee and other states said they will complete the Haj Qurrah in the next few days - possibly before the end of the January second week. Maharashtra State Haj Committee and Jammu & Kashmir Haj Committee conducted the Haj 2019 Qurrah respectively on Monday January 07 and January 08. UP State Haj Committee conducted the Haj Qurah on Friday January 11, 2019. Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Union Minister of Minorities, has requested the Saudi government to increase India's quota by 20,000. However a final decision on this is yet to be taken. All the states including Maharashtra will be allotted more seats if this additional quota is granted to the country. Coinciding with Eid al Adha, Haj is the annual ritual to commemorate the sacrifices made by Prophet Ibrahim, his wife Hager and their son Prophet Ismael. The likely date of Wuqoof e Arafat - the key ritual of the Hajj, is August 09 or 10. As the Islamic calendar is based on sighting of moon, the final date will be decided once the new moon of the month of Dhul Hijjah is sighted. For all the latest News, Opinions and Views, download ummid.com App . Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. WALHALLA, SC (FOX CAROLINA) - The Oconee County Sheriff's Office says they are looking for a suspect during the investigation of a shooting that happened this afternoon on Timber Ridge Lane near Shiloh Road in Seneca. Please either update your browser to a recent version or update your Flash plugin. (CNN) -- The man accused of kidnapping Jayme Closs shaved his head to avoid leaving any evidence during the attack that left her parents dead, police said. Jake Patterson, 21, allegedly shot and killed Jayme's parents. Their bodies were found October 15 after a mysterious 911 call led deputies to their home in Barron, Wisconsin. The 13-year-old was missing when police arrived, leading to an intense manhunt that ended when she was found Thursday about 70 miles from her home. In anticipation of the crime, the suspect cut his hair so he wouldn't leave behind physical evidence in Closs' home, Barron County Sheriff Christopher Fitzgerald said. Family of Jayme Closs shares first photo of her after she was reunited with her aunt and dog "I can tell you that the subject planned his actions and took many proactive steps to hide his identity from law enforcement and the general public," Fitzgerald said. It appears Patterson went to Jayme's home with the intention of taking her, he said. But while she was his intended target, "nothing in this case shows the suspect knew anyone at the Closs home or at any time had contact with anyone in the Closs family," Fitzgerald said. Investigators are working to establish a connection between the two, but don't believe they had interactions on social media. Patterson briefly worked at the Jennie-O Turkey Store, but it appears he did not have any contact with Jayme's parents, who also worked there. Authorities are also trying to determine whether he worked at another job in the area. Here's what we know about him: Patterson is a 21-year-old from Gordon, Wisconsin, about 70 miles north of Barron, not far from where Jayme lived with her parents. Patterson was taken into custody Thursday after the girl gave investigators a description of his vehicle, according to Douglas County Sheriff Tom Dalbec. A short time later, a patrol officer found a vehicle that matched the description and pulled it over. Patterson was arrested down the road from his home outside Gordon. He did not appear to be looking for Jayme, Dalbec said. He's being held in the Barron County Jail. He faces two counts of first-degree intentional homicide in the killings of Jayme's parents, James and Denise Closs, and one count of kidnapping, Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald told reporters. Patterson "planned his actions and took many proactive steps to hide his identity from law enforcement and the general public," Fitzgerald said. Fitzgerald said investigators believe Jayme was Patterson's target and that the suspect had no earlier contact with her family. Patterson had "zero" criminal history locally or in Wisconsin, Fitzgerald said. Authorities are not looking for any additional suspects. He's unemployed, Fitzgerald said, and lives in a remote area outside Gordon. MOBILE, Ala. -- Searchers are not giving up hope as they continue to scour Mobile Bay for any signs of the two fishermen who disappeared on Tuesday. Multiple agencies and the United Cajun Navy were out on the water on Saturday, less than 24 hours after the Coast Guard stopped its search. Eighty-three-year-old fisherman Floyd Nelson and his deckhand, 49-year-old David Stegman, are both unaccounted for. We still be on scene until we find someone or recover, said Capt. John Richardson from the Mobile County Sheriffs Office. We do not abandon the people at a time like this. The fishermans boat was found capsized on Thursday in the water north of Gaillard Island, without any trace of either men. "It's a routine event for them. As I said Mr. Nelson is almost 84 years old and Ive known him my entire career. He's a very good fishermen a mentor to other fishermen. So this is not a new environment for them so it looks like some unexpected weather may have gotten to them, said Colonel Scott Bannon, director of Alabama Marine Resources Division. While the Coast Guard was involved they searched more than 2,000 square miles. On Saturday, rescuers from multiple agencies, including Daphne Search and Rescue, used sonar in hopes of locating the missing men. We're getting back in the water again today, in partnership with Daphne Search and Rescue running sonar and dragging chains seeing if we can locate anything, said Jacques Michel with the United Cajun Navy. For searchers, the longer this takes the prospects of finding them alive is getting slimmer. Without flotation devices, without good communication, it's very hard for rescue and recovery to work, Michel said. BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Officials have released the name of an Alabama police sergeant killed in an early morning shooting. Birmingham police officials identified the officer as 44-year-old Sgt. Wytasha Carter. Local news media report Carter had served with the Birmingham Police Department since 2011. He was promoted to sergeant in February 2018. Another officer was critically wounded Sunday in a shooting that happened as police questioned two people suspected of trying to break into cars. Officials say they have the two suspects in custody, one of whom was shot and is receiving medical treatment. Police haven't released the names of the wounded officer or the suspects. Carter began his law enforcement career in 2002 as a correctional officer with the Shelby County Sheriff's Office and worked for two other police departments before Birmingham. FOLEY, Ala. -- Here' an update to a story we've been following out of Baldwin County. Saturday the school system told FOX10 News the threat made to Foley High School over the recent holiday break never mentioned the words "shoot up the school," as was first relayed by the school system. A school system official on Saturday emailed that correction to news media. He wrote that the the student who was arrested didn't write those words. The Baldwin County schools superintendent says that even though the threat didn't say anything about shooting up the school, the fact that a threat was made is inexcusable, according to the spokesman. Here is the message emailed to news media Saturday afternoon: There are two "stages" or "actions" to engage your 4wd. First the hubs need to be locked, connecting the wheels to the actual axle. Second, the transfer case must be engaged or connected. Option 1 - If you have the switch on the dash, then you should just have to turn the switch and it will automatically lock the hubs and engage the transfer case Option 2 - If you have the switch on the dash, but are concerned that there is an issue with your hubs not locking when you activate the 4wd switch on the dash, you can manually engage the hubs by turning the handle/lever located in the hub to point to "locked" This will lock in your hubs and it is safe to drive on any road surface or conditions for as long as you desire, with the hubs locked in, HOWEVER the dash switch must be turned to 4wd to actually engage the transfer case and put the vehicle into 4wd. The 4wd should only be turned on or engaged when operating the vehicle in a low traction situation, such as a snow or ice covered roadway, loose gravel, dirt or sand road. The important thing to remember about using 4wd is that it should always ONLY be engaged in or on roads with poor traction. The wheels must be able to "slip" a little. I know the idea of 4wd is more traction, however when you engage 4wd the front axle connects the 2 front wheels/tires as one and they turn at the same rate, however when you turn, the wheel on the outside of the turn needs to be able to complete more tire rotations than the tire on the inside of the turn. So the tire must be able to "slip" a little to compensate for the difference in the number of tire rotations. Option 3 - if you had the basic completely manual 4wd, the hubs need to be locked manually, and as above the vehicle can be driven as long as one wants with the hubs locked or engaged. In order to actually engage or activate the 4wd on a vehicle with a manual transfer case, the floor mounted lever must be moved to the selected position 2wd Neutral 4wd high 4wd low. Again, same caution as above, only operate in 4wd on a surface with poor traction, for the same reasons listed above. Welcome Guest! You are here: Home Education & Career JEE Main January 2019 Answer Keys to be released before Friday Talking to media, NTA sources said that the JEE Main 2019 Answer Keys will be released in the next 5-6 days New Delhi: The National Testing Agency (NTA) is set to release on its website jeemain.nic.in the JEE Main January 2019 Answer Key in the next few days - most likely before Friday. Talking to media, NTA sources said that the JEE Main 2019 Answer Keys will be released in the next 5-6 days. However, some media reports have claimed that the 2019 JEE Main Answer Key can be released on Wednesday January 16, 2019. JEE Main 2019 was conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) at 467 Centres in 258 Cities, including 09 outside India. JEE (Main) 2019 Examination Paper 1 was conducted completely on Computer Based Test (CBT) for the first time. The last session of JEE Main 2019 exam was held on January 12, 2019. A total of 9,29,198 sudents have registered for JEE Main 2019 BE/BTech whereas 1,80,052 students have opted for B Arch/B Planning. JEE Main Paper-1 (B.E. /B. Tech.) is being held in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode only. JEE Main Paper-2 (B. Arch/B.Planning): Mathematics-(Part I) and Aptitude Test-(Part II) is being held in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode and Drawing Test (Part III) in Pen & Paper (offline) mode. How to download JEE Main 2019 Answer Key Click here to go to JEE Main website: jeemain.nic.in. On the home page click on the green bar marked with "Download Answer Key". On the new page which gets open, enter your Application No and Captcha code. Click on Search. Your Application No, JEE Main Exam January 2019 Answer Keys will be downloaded. Take a printout. After appearing for JEE Main Paper 1 Computer Based Test (CBT), most of the students said Mathematics paper was tough and lenghty, some other students found some questions of Physics and Chemistry papers tricky. The Chemistry paper was very easy, Physics was moderate to easy while Mathematics paper was too tough. I also found varieties of questions", a student said. Another student, Rohit Sharma, said, I found Mathematics tough and lengthy. Some questions were too tricky." Students also said that some questions in Chemistry paper were directly taken from NCERT Class 11 and Class 12 books and they were easy. In a breather for the National Testing Agency (NTA) which took over from the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) the responsibility to conduct the important exam, most students said they were comfortable with the computer based test. There is also no report of technical glitches from any centre so far. To conduct a smooth and trouble free examination, the NTA had announced that there will be no dress code for the students. The NTA was criticised after some students wearing Hijab were not allowed to appear for the NTA UGC NET December 2018 online exam. The Nationa Testing Agency (NTA) is running since September 2018 online Mock Test of JEE Main and UGC NET. Since the exams are being conducted in online mode for the first time, the Mock Tests at more that 4000 centres across India are provided to sudents so that they become familiar with the exam pattern. For all the latest News, Opinions and Views, download ummid.com App . Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. When I first learned about dividends, I became enamored with them. I had no idea that some companies actually paid you cash to own them. I figured I couldn't lose if I focused on buying stocks that sported dividend yields of 10%, 12%, or more. Experience soon taught me that a high yield is actually a warning sign that the underlying business is in trouble. Many of the "no-brainer" stocks that I bought stopped paying their dividends, and their share prices got walloped. It was a double-whammy that I will never forget. While I no longer invest for income, I do think that there are a few high-yield stocks on the market that could be worth owning. Here's why I could see myself buying Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE:BIP), STORE Capital (NYSE:STOR), and Crown Castle International (NYSE:CCI) one day. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners Check out the latest Brookfield Infrastructure Partners earnings call transcript. With a dividend yield of 5.6%, Brookfield Infrastructure Partners easily qualifies as a high-yield stock. Brookfield is structured as a limited partnership, and it focuses on buying one-of-a-kind infrastructure assets that produce predictable cash flow. These assets include things like shipping ports, railroads, toll roads, pipelines, data centers, communications towers, and more. The company aims to buy these assets at a value, and then pass along the income back to its investors in the form of a growing distribution. A look at the company's long-term track record proves that its business model works well: While Brookfield has been a monster winner over the long-term, 2018 was a challenging year for the business. Some of its assets experienced headwinds, and the company also sold a sizable electric transmission business in Chile in 2017 for a cool $1.3 billion. These factors pulled down its growth rates while management worked to redeploy that capital. The company has since closed on a number of acquisitions that will replace that lost revenue and profits. However, those numbers haven't shown up in the company's financials yet. That's expected to change in 2019, as management is calling for funds from operations (FFO) growth of about 20% once all of its projects are completed. That should easily allow it to meet its target of hiking its payout to investors by at least 5% annually. Overall, Brookfield is a terrific company that pays a huge yield and is currently trading on sale. That's a combination that any income-seeking investor should like. STORE Capital Check out the latest STORE Capital earnings call transcript. The "STORE" in STORE Capital stands for Single Tenant Operational Real Estate. True to its name, STORE focuses its capital on buying freestanding retail buildings that are leased out to a single occupant. This business model may make you roll your eyes in today's e-commerce-driven world, but STORE takes a number of precautions to insulate itself from the threat. First, STORE primarily focuses on service businesses that are naturally resistant to online competition (fitness centers, auto repair shops, movie theaters, etc.). Second, the company makes all of its tenants sign long-term, triple-net leases. This offloads all of a building's operational expenses to the tenant, and keeps them in the building for a long time (the current average contract length is 14 years). Finally, STORE requires its customers to provide regular financial updates and continually prove that they are financially viable. This allows STORE to take action before its customers go belly up. When these factors are added together, it is no wonder that the company has maintained an occupancy rate above 99% for years. That's why I have high confidence that the company's massive dividend yield of 4.3% will continue to be paid, and can continue to grow from here. It is also worth mentioning that I'm not alone in my affinity for STORE Capital; a certain folksy billionaire from Omaha actually took a 10% position in the business. Crown Castle International Check out the latest Crown Castle International earnings call transcript. The explosion in smartphone popularity over the last decade has caused the demand for cell towers to skyrocket. However, finding great cell tower locations isn't easy, as there is only so much real estate available and most people don't want a cell tower in their backyard. One way that the big carriers have solved this dilemma is by partnering with real estate companies that specialize in owning and operating cell towers. Crown Castle is one of the biggest players in the industry, and is a natural partner for the biggest carriers: It owns a huge network of 40,000 cell towers, 65,000 small cell towers, and 65,000 miles of fiber optic cable that are spread across the U.S. By plugging into this network carriers can gain easy access to great locations without any of the hassles. A wonderful feature of Crown Castle's business model is that it builds price increases into the contracts that its customers sign. When combined with new tower construction and occasional acquisition, Crown Castle has driven consistent revenue and profit growth for years, and has generated exceptional returns for investors. I think that two massive tech trends should help the company drive continued growth in the years ahead. The first is the internet of things, which promises to bring billions of new devices online over the next couple of years. The second is the upcoming rollout of 5G networks, which should help keep cell towers in demand. All told, I think that Crown Castle can continue to post double-digit profit growth for years to come. Adding a monster dividend yield of 4.2% to the picture only acts as icing on the cake. Update February 20, 2019: Xiaomi has opened registrations for global beta testing of Android Pie for Redmi Note 5 Pro, Redmi Note 6 Pro and Redmi S2 (Y2) smartphones on its forum. Registration is open till March 15th (Beijing Time) and ROM will roll out staring March 19th so we can expect open beta starting March-end or early April. Earlier: Xiaomi has a good reputation when it comes to providing software (MIUI) support to devices, but the story changes when it comes to providing Android updates. Xiaomi hadnt updated their 2016 bestseller Redmi Note 3 (codename Kenzo) to Android Nougat which was released by tech-giant Google 5-6 months after the launch of the Redmi Note 3 and the similar story goes for 2017 bestseller Redmi Note 4 (codename Mido), but now Xiaomi seems to be changing their strategy regarding Android updates. Xiaomi had already updated their entire lineup of devices (launched in 2018 in India) to Android Oreo including Redmi Note 5 Pro, Redmi Note 5 and Redmi 5. Back in October 2018, the company had released a list of smartphone eligible for Android 9.0 (Pie) update and now the company has updated the list. As per the updated list on MIUI China forum, Xiaomi is aiming to roll out Android Pie based MIUI China Beta ROM for Redmi Note 5 (called Redmi Note 5 Pro in India), Redmi 6 Pro, Redmi S2 (called Redmi Y2 in India) and Mi 6X in Q1 2019. The company hasnt shared any information regarding MIUI Global ROM but now there are good chances that the company will also update MIUI Global ROM to Android 9.0 (Pie) for the above-mentioned smartphones. Apart from these phones, we can also expect Redmi Note 6 Pro to get Android Pie update sometime later. Xiaomi has already announced their plans to drop MIUI support for few smartphones including Redmi Note 3 and Mi 5, the company has recently started MIUI 11 development. Source 1, 2 Unlimited website access 24/7 Unlimited e-Edition access 24/7 The best local, regional and national news in sports, politics, business and more! With a Digital Only subscription, you'll receive unlimited access to our website and e-edition. Our digital products are available 24/7 and are accessible anywhere, anytime. ADEN (Reuters) - A fire at a refinery in Yemen's southern port city of Aden spread to a second storage tank on Saturday, injuring six people, sources at the refinery said. They told Reuters that civil defence forces had failed to contain the fire sparked by an explosion on Friday. The cause of the blast is still unknown. ADEN (Reuters) - A fire at a refinery in Yemen's southern port city of Aden spread to a second storage tank on Saturday, injuring six people, sources at the refinery said. They told Reuters that civil defence forces had failed to contain the fire sparked by an explosion on Friday. The cause of the blast is still unknown. Aden is under the control of the internationally recognised government, which is backed by a Saudi-led and Western-backed coalition and which is battling the Iranian-aligned Houthi movement that seized the capital Sanaa in 2014. The United Nations launched peace talks last month to try to end the nearly four-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands of people, devastated the economy and left millions facing severe hunger. But tensions have resurged since then. A Houthi drone attack on Thursday on a government military parade in Lahaj, a province next to Aden, killed several people. Saudi state television said on Friday the coalition destroyed a base used by Houthis to direct their unmanned aircraft. The Houthis deny receiving help from Tehran and say they are fighting against corruption. The conflict is widely seen in the region as a proxy war between Sunni Muslim Saudi Arabia and Shi'ite Muslim Iran. (Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari; Editing by Edmund Blair) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Siyabonga Sishi and Alexander Winning DURBAN/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's ruling party said on Saturday the central bank should broaden its focus to include boosting employment and economic growth, a move that will worry investors already concerned about the direction of economic policy. By Siyabonga Sishi and Alexander Winning DURBAN/JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's ruling party said on Saturday the central bank should broaden its focus to include boosting employment and economic growth, a move that will worry investors already concerned about the direction of economic policy. The African National Congress (ANC), which has governed South Africa since the end of apartheid in 1994 but has seen its majority wane, is trying to woo voters in the lead-up to a parliamentary election expected to take place in May. The party led by President Cyril Ramaphosa wants to counter growing support for the radical leftist Economic Freedom Fighters, which wants the government to have a greater say in how the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is managed. The SARB's mandate now focuses on price stability, but the ANC said in its 2019 election manifesto released on Saturday that monetary policy should also "take into account other objectives such as employment creation and economic growth". Past attempts to alter the SARB's mandate have caused the rand to weaken. The economy has only recently climbed out of recession triggered in part by investor worries about policies such as the ANC's plans to make the SARB fully state-owned and allow land expropriation without compensation. "The ANC believes the South African Reserve Bank must pursue a flexible monetary policy regime, aligned with the objectives of the second phase of transition," the manifesto said, promising renewed efforts to tackle unemployment and racial inequalities. Enoch Godongwana, the chairman of the ANC's economic transformation committee, denied that the ANC was preparing to change the mandate of the SARB. He told Reuters the manifesto merely reflected an intention for more coordination between monetary and fiscal authorities, adding "the independence of the Reserve Bank is sacrosanct". The central bank guards its independence and has opposed attempts to alter its mandate, which is enshrined in the constitution. The bank did not respond to a request for comment. ANC DIVISIONS The ANC is divided into two broad factions with divergent views on how the economy should be managed. One supports Ramaphosa's drive to boost private investment, while another loyal to his predecessor Jacob Zuma backs a strong state role. Towards the end of Zuma's nine years in power, South Africa's anti-graft watchdog tried unsuccessfully to make the central bank promote economic growth rather than price stability. In September, the ANC hastily retracted a statement calling on the SARB to do more to help the poor after an intervention by Godongwana, a member of Ramaphosa's faction. Peter Attard Montalto, head of capital markets research at Intellidex, said the manifesto comments were a concern although he did not expect the SARB's mandate to change in the short term. "The fact the manifesto specifically links the monetary policy committee's actions to the 'second phase of transition' is an explicit benchmarking of monetary policy against political aims," he said. "It sets the SARB up for criticism in future as counter-revolutionaries and can further fuel the nationalisation debate," he added. (Editing by Mark Heinrich and Edmund Blair) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Lesley Wroughton ABU DHABI (Reuters) - U.S. By Lesley Wroughton ABU DHABI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Saturday he was optimistic that a "good outcome" could be reached between Turkey and Syrian Kurdish groups, after speaking to the Turkish foreign minister. "We recognize the Turkish people's right to defend their country from terrorists, but we also know that those ... who are not terrorists and fighting alongside us for all this time deserve to be protected," Pompeo told reporters. "There are many details to be worked out but I am optimistic we can achieve a good outcome," he said. Relations between the two NATO allies have been strained over U.S. backing for the Kurdish YPG, which Turkey views as an extension of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) waging a decades-long insurgency on Turkish soil. Pompeo said his phone call with Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu involved several elements of U.S.-Turkey relations, including Syria and the detention of Americans in Turkey. He said the U.S. envoy for Syria, Jim Jeffrey, had traveled to northeast Syria this week and would soon go to Ankara for talks, including on moving forward a UN-led political process to end the eight-year long conflict in Syria. He suggested that talks between Damascus and the Syrian Kurds could be part of a broader political solution in Syria. "We hope we can turn the corner here," Pompeo added. Kurdish-led groups who control swathes of northern Syria fear an attack from Turkey in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw troops from their region. Turkey sees the Kurdish YPG militia close to its border as a security threat. Trump's decision to withdraw the troops hinges on Turkey's cooperation to secure the northern border. But Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to crush the Kurdish groups that have been effective in defeating Islamic State in Syria. Speaking in Abu Dhabi as part of a regional tour, Pompeo said the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria was a "tactical change" but the mission to destroy Islamic State and counter Iran's influence remained the same. In a speech in Cairo on Thursday, Pompeo vowed that the United States would "expel every last Iranian boot" from Syria, where Tehran is supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. "It's an ambitious objective, but it is ours, and it is our mission," he added. The speech sought to lay out the Trump administration's strategy for the Middle East and criticized former U.S. President Barack Obama, without naming him, for "fundamental misunderstandings" about the Middle East. Pompeo said on Saturday the speech had not taken aim at individuals but rather the ideas of the previous administration, adding that the Obama-era policies opened the way for Islamic State and the spread of Iran's influence in the region. (Reporting by Lesley Wroughton; Writing by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. WARSAW (Reuters) - One miner died and six were injured on Saturday after a tremor struck KGHM's copper mine Rudna, southwest Poland, around 700 metres underground, the company's spokeswoman said. 'The rescue operation has ended WARSAW (Reuters) - One miner died and six were injured on Saturday after a tremor struck KGHM's copper mine Rudna, southwest Poland, around 700 metres underground, the company's spokeswoman said. "The rescue operation has ended. Six people were injured and the seventh miner unfortunately died," Anna Osadczuk said. (Reporting by Anna Koper; Editing by Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Eighty-one deputies in the 120-seat parliament voted in favour. Representatives of the opposition Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE), who opposed the agreement with Greece, boycotted the vote. Skopje: Macedonia's parliament on Friday passed an amendment to the constitution to rename the country Republic of North Macedonia, as agreed with Greece to put an end to a 27-year dispute. Eighty-one deputies in the 120-seat parliament voted in favour. Representatives of the opposition Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization-Democratic Party for Macedonian National Unity (VMRO-DPMNE), who opposed the agreement with Greece, boycotted the vote. The countries struck the deal on the new name in June, but Macedonia will start using it only after the parliament in Athens also ratifies the agreement. Greece blocked its neighbour's aspirations to EU and NATO membership over the use of 'Macedonia', which it said implied territorial claims by to a Greek province of the same name. At the start of the parliamentary session, Prime Minister Zoran Zaev told deputies the name change would "open the doors to the future, Macedonia's European future", and to joining the North Atlantic alliance. Several hundred people have protested against the deal in front of parliament over the past three days. By Pervez Bari Bhopal: The Social Democratic Party of India, (SDPI), has described the 106th Indian National Science Congress, held at Phagwara in Jalandhar, Punjab recently, as the theatre of the absurd. It can also be correctly The Social Democratic Party of India, (SDPI), has described the 106th Indian National Science Congress, held at Phagwara in Jalandhar, Punjab recently, as the theatre of the absurd. It can also be correctly said Indian Science Circus, the party said. SDPI national general secretary Abdul Majeed in a statement said that Indian Science Congress is nothing but a Mela (fair) if not a Circus as a Scientist noted. It is high time it is closed and a new organisation purely Scientific is formed with least interference from Government. Abdul Majeed said the atrocious claim made by Andhra University VC Nageswara Rao at the Indian National Science Congress that the Kauravas of Mahabharata were born out of stem cell research and test tube fertilisation process and that Raavana had more than 24 types of aircraft, the Pushpaka Vimana just one among them, has left the scientific community stunned. Support TwoCircles Abdul Majeed sad that in one fell swoop, AUs VC, Mr. Nageswara Rao has outdone Narendra Modi who once claimed that India was advanced in years of yore that Indian scientists transplanted an elephants head on a human body which happens to be lord Ganesh worshipped by Hindus. He has also pulled ahead of Home Minister and physics Lecturer Rajnath Singh who is also renowned for such preposterous statements as: Heisenberg Uncertainty principle is based on Vedas. So, VC Nageswara Rao is in good company! He has hailed the joint letter signed by 37 distinguished science academics and communicators who were appalled by such statements against the unscientific claims made at the Indian Science Congress this year. The letter was sent to the general president of the Indian Science Congress Association expressing their deep shock and agony that false claims, based on confusing episodes in mythology as science. They lamented that scientific presentations made to the Children Science Congress wherein such claims tarnish the image of Indian science globally, and also undermine the credibility of the genuine contributions of the great science personalities of yore, that too, in front of young and impressionable minds. He said that a Vice Chancellor talking like this in a Science Congress is absolutely ludicrous. Who let this clown mix mythology with Science? There are lots of great Scientists in India and allowing this type of non-scientific nonsense is just horrible. The problem is with people like the AUs VC who hold positions of responsibility and influence, but whose beliefs are blinded with their passion for upholding Hindu mythology and asserting the fantastical bits as highly advanced scientific achievements of the ancients. The pity is that the numbers of such naive, irrational and unintelligent individuals seem to growing rapidly. He said if this opinion had been expressed by a peon of the Andhra University, it would have been lamentable but perhaps excusable. If the VC of a university holds and expresses such an opinion-and that too at the meeting of a science conferencethere is no hope for higher education, no hope for science or technology in India. It raises serious questionswho appointed him as the VC? On what basis are VCs appointed at a University? Abdul Majeed suggested he Indian Science Congress should seriously evaluate the speakers who it invites to speak at its meetings. It should not become a laughing stock of Indian academia. Pity the students of Andhra University who will have his signature on their diplomas. ATHENS (Reuters) - A Greek prosecutor on Saturday ordered an investigation into alleged threats to lawmakers over a name deal with Greece's neighbour Macedonia, a judicial source said. Macedonia's parliament on Friday passed an amendment to the constitution to rename the country Republic of North Macedonia, in line with an agreement with Greece to put an end to a 27-year-old dispute. Many Greeks are irked that their Balkan neighbour is assuming a name linked to Greek heritage and identical to a northern region of Greece. ATHENS (Reuters) - A Greek prosecutor on Saturday ordered an investigation into alleged threats to lawmakers over a name deal with Greece's neighbour Macedonia, a judicial source said. Macedonia's parliament on Friday passed an amendment to the constitution to rename the country Republic of North Macedonia, in line with an agreement with Greece to put an end to a 27-year-old dispute. Many Greeks are irked that their Balkan neighbour is assuming a name linked to Greek heritage and identical to a northern region of Greece. The countries struck the deal in June, but Macedonia will start using the new name only after the parliament in Athens also ratifies the agreement. A vote is expected later this month. The order for a preliminary investigation came after two Greek news websites reported that lawmakers had received threatening text messages to vote against the deal, the source said. The probe will seek to determine whether there has been a violation of personal data and inducement to commit a crime, the source added. The Macedonia accord has strained relations between Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his junior coalition partner Panos Kammenos. Kammenos, defence minister and head of the right-wing Independent Greeks (ANEL) has vowed to reject the deal but at least one of his deputies has said publicly he will support it. It is unclear how other ANEL lawmakers will vote. The left-right governing coalition has a razor-thin majority with 153 seats in the 300 member parliament. Seven of those seats belong to ANEL. The main opposition New Democracy party has said it will block the deal. The government hopes the deal will pass with the support of centre-left and independent lawmakers. (Reporting by Constantinos Georgizas and Angeliki Koutantou. Editing by Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Jim Forsyth and Ginger Gibson SAN ANTONIO, Texas/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Texas Democrat Julian Castro, a former San Antonio mayor who went on to be the top U.S. By Jim Forsyth and Ginger Gibson SAN ANTONIO, Texas/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Texas Democrat Julian Castro, a former San Antonio mayor who went on to be the top U.S. housing official, formally announced his White House bid on Saturday, making him the first Hispanic in what looks to be a crowded field of candidates vying to challenge President Donald Trump in the November 2020 election. Castro, 44, the grandson of a Mexican immigrant who would be the first Hispanic elected president, served as secretary of Housing and Urban Development under former President Barack Obama and has long been viewed as a rising star in the party. He will seek to position himself as a political outsider with liberal credentials. When my grandmother got here almost a hundred years ago, Im sure she never could have imagined that just two generations later, one of her grandsons would be serving as a member of the United States Congress and the other would be standing with you here today to say these words: I am a candidate for President of the United States of America, Castro said in a statement announcing his campaign. One of Castro's first stops as a candidate will take place on Monday in Puerto Rico, where he will attend an event hosted by the liberal Latino Victory Fund. He made his announcement at Plaza Guadalupe, a landmark in San Antonio's sprawling west side Mexican American barrio, a neighborhood of neat, brightly painted wood framed homes, many on tiny lots and festooned with white plaster Catholic statues. Since announcing formation of an exploratory committee in December, Castro has begun to stake out positions on policy debates that will dominate the nominating contests that kick off early next year. Castro has endorsed the "Medicare for all" proposal, which would in effect create a national health care plan by allowing anyone to join the public health care system. That policy point is likely to divide Democrats in the primary, with more moderate candidates favoring a less drastic approach. Castro, whose grandmother was born in Mexico, has sought to use his family's personal story to criticize Trump's border policies. Castro is the second candidate to formally launch a campaign. Former U.S. Representative John Delaney has been running for more than a year, and U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has formed an exploratory committee and has begun holding campaign events in Iowa and New Hampshire, the states with the earliest contests. More than a dozen potential Democratic candidates are exploring a possible run for president in 2020. Moderates and progressives in the party have been debating about how to best challenge Trump, the likely Republican nominee. Some Democrats believe an establishment figure who can appeal to centrist voters is the way to win back the White House. Others contend a fresh face is needed to energize the party's increasingly left-leaning base. Castro, who was considered on the short list to be Hillary Clinton's running mate in the 2016 election, will try to leverage his Obama administration experience while making the case he is still a political newcomer. Castro would be the first identical twin elected president. His brother, Joaquin Castro, is a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas. Joaquin Castro's position on the House Intelligence Committee has made him a frequent public critic of the president. (Reporting by Ginger Gibson; Editing by Colleen Jenkins and David Gregorio; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Stanis Bujakera KINSHASA (Reuters) - Outgoing Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila's ruling coalition won a majority in legislative elections, a coalition official said on Saturday, despite opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi's win in the presidential vote the same day. By Stanis Bujakera KINSHASA (Reuters) - Outgoing Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila's ruling coalition won a majority in legislative elections, a coalition official said on Saturday, despite opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi's win in the presidential vote the same day. The result will undercut Tshisekedi's ability to deliver on campaign promises to make a break with the 18-year Kabila era and fuel suspicion that his victory, announced on Thursday, came through a backroom deal that will preserve Kabila's influence over important ministries and the security forces. Kabila is due to step down in the coming days in what was meant to be Congo's first democratic transfer of power in 59 years of independence. But he has signalled he intends to remain involved in politics and might run for president in 2023 when term limits no longer apply. The runner-up in the presidential election, Martin Fayulu, filed a fraud complaint on Saturday with Congo's highest court to challenge the result, a campaign spokeswoman, Eve Bazaiba, told Reuters. Fayulu says he won in a landslide in the Dec. 30 ballot with more than 60 percent of votes and accuses Tshisekedi of striking a deal with Kabila to be declared the winner. Tshisekedi's camp denies that there was any deal with Kabila and says meetings it held with the president's representatives after the election were meant solely to ensure a peaceful transfer of power. The disputed outcome threatens to reawaken violence in the huge and tumultuous central African country where millions have died during civil wars since the 1990s. In a tweet before filing the complaint, Fayulu wrote that the election commission CENI's results "were invented out of whole cloth. I demand a hand recount of all votes for the three elections (presidential, national legislative and provincial)". The court has eight days to rule, but Fayulu has already said he does not expect a favourable judgment since the court is made up of Kabila appointees. Earlier in the day, about 50 Republican Guard soldiers and police officers surrounded Fayulu's residence, sending dozens of his supporters, who had been chanting against Kabila and Tshisekedi, fleeing inside, a Reuters witness said. Fayulu's supporters have demonstrated in several cities since the results were announced. Protests in the western city of Kikwit on Thursday turned violent, killing at least four demonstrators and two police officers. LITTLE ROOM FOR MANOEUVRE The parliamentary majority retained by the handful of parties in Kabila's coalition will curtail Tshisekedi's room for manoeuvre. Under the constitution, the majority enjoys significant powers and the president must appoint his prime minister from its ranks. The prime minister, in turn, must countersign presidential orders appointing or dismissing military chiefs, judges and heads of state-owned enterprises. Adam Chalwe, a national secretary for Kabila's PPRD party, the biggest within the FCC coalition, told Reuters that results from the individual races announced by CENI on Saturday morning showed FCC candidates taking more than 300 out of 500 seats in the National Assembly. Reuters was not immediately able to confirm that independently. Parties in the FCC coalition accounted for about 350 seats in the previous legislature. The coalition's presidential candidate, Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, finished a distant third with 24 percent of the vote. Pre-election polling had shown the FCC lagging behind opposition parties in legislative races. Jean Jacques Mamba, a spokesman for the Movement for the Liberation of Congo (MLC) party that backs Fayulu and which polls had shown leading the legislative race, said it had won 22 seats, instead of the 40-50 it had expected. He accused CENI of rigging the vote using electronic voting machines. CENI officials could not be immediately reached for comment. (Additional reporting by Giulia Paravicini; additional reporting and writing by Aaron Ross, Editing by Ros Russell) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. tech2 News Staff A twitter user has uploaded what appears to be an image of two nearly bezel-less phones. Could this be the new OnePlus 7? Only the top half of the two phones is visible and the bezels are almost invisible. The iPhone XS bezels look humongous in comparison. One phone lacks any form of notch while another phone has a waterdrop notch, as seen on the OnePlus 6T. Were guessing that the notch-less phone incorporates some sort of manual or mechanical slider mechanism for the front selfie camera and sensors. Given that the OnePlus 6T had a very fast, if unsafe face unlock option and a slow-to-the-point-of-frustrating in-display fingerprint scanner, were wondering how OnePlus will deal with biometrics on a bezel-less, notch-less phone. The only thing we know about the upcoming OnePlus 7 for sure is that it will arrive with Qualcomms flagship Snapdragon 855 chip. OnePlus CEO Pete Lau confirmed as much at the Snapdragon Tech Summit in December 2018. He also hinted at the arrival of a 5G phone later this year, though it was never confirmed whether this would be the OnePlus 7 or an entirely new device. Rahul Gandhi said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether Defence Ministry officials objected to the prime minister 'bypassing' the Rafale deal. Dubai: Hours after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with full force. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Rahul said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology. BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. He further said the Congress might give a surprise or two in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh "about what the party is capable of doing and to mobilise people." Rejecting suggestions that not being part of the SP-BSP alliance was a setback for the Congress, he said, "I won't be disappointed about the BSP-SP alliance as long as the BJP does not come to power." "They have said some wrong things about the Congress, but we accept it. Because that's how we work, Rahul said. The Congress chief also said it does not matter if his party fights separately or together with the SP and BSP, because the end result would be the same "the BJP won't get their seats". Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls on Saturday, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. Asked about his "misogynist" remarks about Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on which the National Commission for Women (NCW) has issued a notice to him, Rahul said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has helped Anil Ambani steal Rs 30,000 crore and the House of the people Lok Sabha is where he should have defended himself, but he chose to send another person and that person happened to be a woman. I would have made a very similar comment if it had been a man. Do not impose your sexism on me. I am very clear that the prime minister should have delivered that defence, but he did not have the guts." He said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether Defence Ministry officials objected to the prime minister "bypassing" the Rafale deal. Sitharaman had spoken on behalf of the prime minister and defended the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha, countering questions raised by Congress and other Opposition parties. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Rahul said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. He alleged that every single institution in the country has been "destroyed by the government and the idea of the BJP and the RSS is that there should only be one institution in India that is RSS". "They insert their people in very single institution and pressure every single institution...universities, colleges, the CBI, Election Commission every institution. RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is because there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on a economic path," he said. Rahul further said: "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non violence and its peace loving nature when people look at India and see violence they they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court which are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. He said if the Congress come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Rahul said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Asked about special status to Andhra Pradesh, he said, "I have made the commitment to the people of the state that the moment we will form the government in New Delhi will will give special status to the state." He also said it is a "tragedy and shame" that the prime minister has not delivered the commitment to the people of the state. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday said his party was ready to fight the Lok Sabha elections alone but hoped there would be a rethink on the SP-BSP alliance for Uttar Pradesh. Varanasi: Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram on Saturday said his party was ready to fight the Lok Sabha elections alone but hoped there would be a rethink on the SP-BSP alliance for Uttar Pradesh. The Congress cannot be underestimated in Uttar Pradesh and will fight on its own strength if required, the former Union minister said after SP and BSP parties announced a seat-sharing pact, keeping the Congress out. But he hoped that the agreement between Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati was not the final word. As the elections approach, a truly broad-based alliance will be formed in Uttar Pradesh, Chidambaram said on the sidelines of a party event. Chidambaram said the goal was to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party and expressed hope that all secular, liberal parties would come together to fight the elections. Earlier on Saturday, the SP and BSP announced an alliance in Lucknow, under which they will fight 38 Lok Sabha seats each out of the 80 in the state. They left Amethi and Raebareli the two seats from where Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi contested last time for the Congress. Two other seats will be shared with smaller allies, the SP and the BSP announced. Chidambaram was in Varanasi to seek suggestions from the people on what to include in the Congress manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. Asking a gathering of about 200 people to speak their minds, Chidambaram said his party was not the BJP and in Congress people from all walks of life are heard. The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the demolition of some temples to make way for the Vishwanath temple corridor in Varanasi were among the issues discussed. During the interaction, GST took centre stage. Many claimed the faulty implementation of GST had ruined small and medium scale businesses. Some hoped GST would be withdrawn "as it was imposing double tax." The issue of demolishing temples for the Vishwanath temple corridor and the cleaning of Ganga was discussed. One Kamla Tripathi said, "The BJP ahead of 2014 elections promised to clean the river by 2019. What does the Congress plan to do for the river?" He said removing dams would help the free flow of the river. Another local said there was a tremendous job crisis and hoped the manufacturing sector would be revived. One Onkar Mishra said banks were acting like money lenders and businesses were suffering. "Banaras Hindu University needs to be freed from the clutches of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Three vice chancellors have been made vice chancellors," said former official of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) V Pandey. The Congress' remarks came in response to Modi's assertion that the opposition parties were coming together as they wanted to form a majboor government to promote nepotism and corruption, whereas the saffron party wanted a majboot dispensation for all-round development of the country. New Delhi: Hitting back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks that people have to choose between a majboor (helpless) and a majboot (strong) government in the upcoming general election, the Congress on Saturday said the 2019 Lok Sabha polls would be a fight between dictatorship and democracy. On Modi's attack on states ruled by opposition parties for withdrawing the general consent to the CBI and his remarks that he had not resorted to such a measure when he was targeted by central agencies under the UPA rule, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari retorted, saying investigating bodies were not used as a political tool under his party's rule to target rivals. Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh have withdrawn the general consent to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in these states. Tewari said that while Modi spoke on a host of issues during his speech, including launching several attacks on the Congress, he skipped key "achievements" like demonetisation, the employment he had promised to generate and the agrarian distress across the country. "Lok Sabha 2019 will not be a battle between a majboor sarkar and a majboot sarkar, it is a fight between dictatorship and democracy. It is a battle between bhaashan (speeches) and prashaasan (administration) and it is going to be a test of 'jumla' versus impeccable track record of service which the Congress has delivered for years," he said. The Congress leader's remarks came in response to Modi's assertion at the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national convention that the opposition parties were coming together as they wanted to form a majboor government to promote nepotism and corruption, whereas the saffron party wanted a majboot dispensation for all-round development of the country. Tewari accused the government of systematic weakening of the country's institutions. Targeting the government over the state of internal security, he said Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had stated that there was no big terror attack during the BJP rule. "If this was to be true, then what was the Uri attack, where 19 soldiers were killed in a terror strike, and the Pathankot terror strike?" Tewari asked. Both the terror attacks had taken place in 2016. The Congress leader said the situation in the Kashmir Valley was bad and wondered what was the progress of the Naga Peace Accord, signed between the Centre and the Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Isak-Muivah) in 2015. "What is the government's policy towards Pakistan? Why is it so that our trusted friend Russia has been selling arms to Pakistan? The way American President Donald Trump has been mocking you and India's diplomacy...why is there no response from the government or the BJP?" he asked. Last week, Trump took a jibe at Modi for funding a "library" in Afghanistan, saying it was of no use in the war-torn country, as he criticised India and others for not doing enough for the land-locked nation's security. Farooq Abdullah said his party would announce the commission the very day it takes over the reins of the state. The former Union minister also said that his party would not support 'Operation All-out' launched by the security forces against the militants. Srinagar: National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Saturday said if his party is elected to power with a majority in the upcoming assembly elections, it would establish a truth and reconciliation commission to probe killings in Jammu and Kashmir. He also asserted that Kashmir is fundamentally a political problem and only reconciliation and dialogue within the state as well as with Pakistan can afford a way forward. Farooq Abdullah, a member of Parliament from Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency, was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a party function in Anantnag district of south Kashmir. He said his son and NC vice president Omar Abdullah had already spoken about the need to establish a truth and reconciliation commission in the state. "He (Omar) has already asked for it. We hope that God brings our party into power strongly and we do not have to stand on crutches (referring to the coalition)," he said when asked if the NC came to power would the killings of civilians in 2016 and from earlier be probed. Farooq Abdullah said his party would announce the commission the very day it takes over the reins of the state. "This will be a great thing that we will announce on the very day when the new government takes over that we will appoint such a commission and see to it that the results are brought before the people not only in Jammu and Kashmir, but in the rest of the world," he said. The former Union minister also said that his party would not support 'Operation All-out' launched by the security forces against the militants. "How can we support something where there is suppression? It is not a question of 'all out'. We don't want our people to suffer, that they will be beaten in their homes. It has never been part of the NC's policy," he said. He said the party would not support any violence or violation of human rights. "Everyone is free, we live in a free country. Therefore, we, as a government, will have to see that freedom of people (and) expression is not curbed," Farooq Abdullah told reporters. Earlier, addressing party workers and functionaries in Anantnag's Khanabal area, he said, "We cannot think of winning hearts by unleashing torment on people. Hearts can only be won if New Delhi accepts Kashmir as a political issue and restarts a time-bound, result-oriented dialogue process with all stakeholders within and outside the state." The NC president expressed hope that a new government at the Centre would initiate dialogue with all stakeholders in Kashmir. "If New Delhi can be a part of unconditional talks with Taliban, why can't it initiate an unconditional dialogue in Kashmir? "Government of India previously held unconditional talks with different stakeholders during the tenure of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee, but unfortunately, the tempo could not be maintained," he said. He said if the party is elected with a resounding mandate, it would put forth a strong front against forces "that are contriving to harm state's identity and its interest". "People have had enough. The south Kashmir areas, in particular, have been at the receiving end due to sheer arrogance, misgovernment and imprudent policies of former BJP-PDP government," he said. He said the NC will leave no stone unturned to rise up to the expectations of people. "We, as a party, owe a sense of commitment to the people of Kashmir. We do not want our people to suffer," he said. On the occasion, several political activists joined the National Conference. A day after it was virtually left out of an anti-BJP alliance formed by the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party, the Congress on Sunday declared it will contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats from the state on its own. Lucknow: A day after it was virtually left out of an anti-BJP alliance formed by the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party, the Congress on Sunday declared it will contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats from the state on its own. However, the party has kept the doors of a possible alliance open, saying that if any secular party which is competent to fight the BJP would want to tie-up then it will be accommodated. Speaking to reporters, party general secretary and Uttar Pradesh in-charge Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh, and defeat the BJP." Azad also expressed hope that the Congress will double its tally of seats secured by it in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections. During the parliamentary elections, the Congress had bagged 21 seats in the politically crucial state. To a question whether his party will not forge a coalition with any political party, Azad said, "If any political party is willing to accompany the Congress, and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will be definitely accommodated." On Congress being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, the Congress general secretary said: "We wanted that Congress should have been a part of the grand alliance (against the BJP) in Uttar Pradesh. But, if someone does not want to walk along, then nothing can be done." On the post-poll alliance with the SP and BSP, Azad said that at the national level, the Congress welcomes all the secular regional parties. Replying to another question on the SP-BSP alliance, Azad said, "The Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying that the party would have had to contest on 25 Lok Sabha seats, but now they would be contesting on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats of the state." On possibilities of an alliance with the Rashtriya Lok Dal, Azad said that he would not like to peak to the media on this issue. The Congress on Saturday accused the government of removing ex-CBI director Alok Verma by 'misusing' the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and demanded that a high-powered committee convene another meeting and reinstate the officer. New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday accused the government of removing ex-CBI director Alok Verma by "misusing" the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and demanded that a high-powered committee convene another meeting and reinstate the officer. Party spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi alleged that the government stood exposed after retired Justice AK Patnaik claimed that he had not seen the CVC recommendations against Verma and not accorded his assent. He said the Selection Committee removed Verma based on CBI special director Rakesh Asthana's charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was dismissed by the Delhi High Court. "Is it not strange that Rakesh Asthana, who himself is under investigation, was the basis of Verma's removal?" Singhvi told reporters. Taking on the government, the Congress leader said the full basis for the removal of the CBI director was the CVC report. "But the CVC can neither appoint nor remove the CBI chief. The office of the CVC has been compromised by the government," he alleged. The Congress spokesperson said the Modi government was trying to save itself from Rafale and other charges. "The Congress demands that the high-powered committee be reconvened immediately and Alok Verma be reappointed till the panel hears him out...and the 77 days lost by him (Verma) in his fixed tenure of two years be compensated," Singhvi added. Former CBI director Alok Verma had on Friday asked the government to treat him "deemed superannuated" with immediate effect. Refusing to take on his new assignment as Director General, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards, Verma wrote to Secretary, Department of Personnel and Training, stating the selection committee has not provided him an opportunity to explain the details as recorded by the CVC before arriving at the decision of transferring him. Bahrain and Morocco are looking to strengthen their bilateral relations and enhance areas of cooperation to achieve joint tourism related goals. The means to create strong ties between both countries, specifically in the tourism sector, were discussed during a meeting between Shaikh Khalid bin Humood Al Khalifa, chief executive officer of the Bahrain Tourism and Exhibitions Authority (BTEA), and the Ambassador of Morocco to Bahrain, Ahmed Rashid Khatabi. Shaikh Khaled also lauded the relations between both countries across all aspects, which has opened up wide horizons for cooperation and coordination across all fields. He also reviewed the BTEAs tourism strategy and directives, its continual efforts to strengthen the tourism sector and promote its growth and development, and discussed the adoption of mutually beneficial tourism initiatives for both countries. The Moroccan Ambassador expressed his esteem for BTEAs strategy and affirmed his commitment to enhance relations between both countries in the tourism field and further explore other bilateral initiatives. - TradeArabia News Service There are as many as 14 appeals pending in the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment in Ram temple-Babri mosque case, delivered in four civil suits. New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday shrugged off Shiv Sena's allegations that the saffron party spun a jumla (lie) about constructing Ram temple in Ayodhya. BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav came in defense of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who accused Congress of stalling the Ram Janambhoomi case in the Supreme Court and reiterated that his party is committed towards constructing Ram temple in Ayodhya. Earlier on Sunday, while addressing his party workers in Mumbai, Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray criticised Modi for failing to construct Ram temple. Thackeray said that the BJP fired a Jumla about constructing the Ram temple. "We have repeatedly shown our commitment to the construction of Ram temple. Our government is doing everything possible to make sure legal process moves quickly. The Congress is trying to stall the judicial process," Madhav told ANI. The Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute case has been pending before the apex court for last eight years. Parties in the case and various right-wing organisations have been asking for an early or day-to-day hearing for a long time. On Saturday, Modi at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi accused the Congress of creating obstacles in the resolution of Ayodhya issue saying the Opposition does not want a solution. Arguments from politicos came days after the Supreme Court fixed 29 January as the next date of hearing in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute after Justice UU Lalit recused himself from hearing the case. A new bench will now be constituted. A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, and comprising of Justice SA Bobde, Justice NV Ramana, Justice UU Lalit and Justice DY Chandrachud, at the outset said that there will be no hearing in the case on Thursday adding that only date and schedule will be decided. Justice UU Lalit recused himself from hearing the case after advocate Rajeev Dhavan, appearing for Muslim parties, pointed out that Justice Lalit had appeared for Kalyan Singh in a related case. There are as many as 14 appeals pending in the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment, delivered in four civil suits. The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court in its 30 September, 2010, verdict ordered that the disputed site be divided into three parts - one for deity (Ramlala Virajmaan), another for Nirmohi Akhara - a Hindu sect - and a third one, to the original litigant in the case for the Muslims. The Babri mosque, built by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1578 in Ayodhya was on 6 December, 1992, pulled down allegedly by a group of Hindu activists, claiming that the mosque was constructed after demolishing a Ram temple that originally stood there. Since then, several hearings have been held in the top court to resolve the issue. Kejriwal also accused Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar-led Haryana government of not paying enough for cow fodder. Sonipat: It is a "sin" to seek votes in the name of cows, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said on Sunday even as he accused the BJP-led Haryana government of not allocating sufficient funds for cattle fodder. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief visited a cow shelter in Sonipat's village Saidpur. "It is wrong to seek votes and play politics in the name of cows which is currently happening in the country," Kejriwal said, addressing a gathering in the village. "I feel, maybe I am wrong, that it is a sin to seek votes in the name of cows," he said. He claimed the Delhi government was running the "country's best" cow shelter in Bawana. "Nobody knows that the country's best cow shelter is being run by the Delhi government," he said. He accused the BJP-led Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) of not releasing funds for cow fodder. "In Delhi, the MCD is supposed to contribute Rs 20 and the Delhi government is supposed to contribute Rs 5 for cow (fodder) per day. But Delhi government raised it to Rs 20 from Rs 5 so that Rs 40 could be contributed per cow per day," Kejriwal said. "Now, the Delhi government is giving Rs 20 per cow per day but the BJP-led MCD has not released funds for the last three years," he claimed. Kejriwal also accused Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar-led Haryana government of not paying enough for cow fodder. "I have come to know that the Haryana government releases Rs 140 per cow per year. It works out to be around 40 paise for a cow per day," he said. "I want to say that if you seek votes in the name of cows, then you should also pay enough for their fodder," he said. It could be that the BJP will come back to power, though in an alliance. But there is little doubt that it will face much stronger resistance than it did in 2014. What will be the effect of the alliances being formed against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) across the country? The obvious conclusion will be that the BJP will take fewer seats than in 2019. The history of electoral alliances in India is that when the dominant party faces a joint Opposition, it gives up seats. This was the case for the Congress party when it was the dominant force for five decades after independence. Whenever the Opposition came together, as it did in 1977 and 1989, it was able to overwhelm the big party. The theory is that because most parties in India are caste-based, alliances tend to work and are able to increase vote share. When large alliances form against the ruling party, it gets into trouble. That may or may not be the case in May this year and it could be that the BJP will still come back to power, though in an alliance. But there is little doubt that it will have to face a much stronger resistance than it did in 2014. Between Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the expectation is that the BJP could lose as many as 100 seats. Most of these losses will not be recoverable in the parts of India where the party will gain, for example in Kerala and West Bengal. We will soon know what is happening when the opinion polls begin to roll out from next month onwards. There is another effect that the alliances and the weakening of the Modi-Shah combine will have inside the BJP, and let us take a look at that. What I mean is what will happen within the party. In many ways, the BJP is unique because it looks at itself as an ideological party. In comparison, the Congress has no real ideology. It can say it has values, for example secularism, or that it has some policies, for example liberalisation. But it does not have a fixed set of beliefs, and that is what an ideology is. Parties such as the BSP, SP, TMC, BJD etc also do not have any particular ideology. The Samajwadi Party will say it is Lohiaite, but not many party workers or even SP leaders will be able to explain what that means in real terms. The Communists say they have a Marxist or Leninist ideology but they cannot really express the ideology when they are in power in a state. Kerala does not look particularly different under a UDF government led by Congress, than when it is under an LDF government led by the Marxists. But the BJP claims it has a proper ideology, and it calls this ideology Hindutva. What will happen when the party is weakening, as it has been in recent months? We should expect that some consequences will follow. The first is that in times of uncertainty, ideological parties tend to fall back on their first principles. In the case of the BJP, this means that the party will keep to the script that its core supporter understands: temples, statues, Muslims and cows. These are reliable things where the party is surefooted and its stand on these things separate the BJP from its competitors. The result of this is that it will pull the leadership towards the extreme. Within the party, the second rung will try to position themselves with the expectation that the uncertainty will produce opportunities later on. Modi and Shah will be more vulnerable in these circumstances. They will have less space to talk about development and inclusion and will have to move towards the right. This is why we are seeing no emphasis on these things this time, as compared to 2014. The pressure is already on them and will continue to build through the next few months. As Modi and Shah move to the right, centrist BJP leaders like Gadkari will also have a larger opportunity to expand their non-Hindutva appeal. The vulnerabilities will therefore be on both sides. This can be seen as something that is good for the party because right now it is quite closed and undemocratic at the national level. But inclusion and development are not core to the BJPs appeal, and so we must conclude that the change this period will produce will be more visible in religious and nationalistic issues than in everyday and material ones. The findings of the opinion polls, as the alliances are formed and announced, will keep this framework locked in. The space for Modi will continue to shrink and the drift towards the right and the extreme will accelerate. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said India had failed to ensure that the Kartarpur Sahib remains on the Indian side of the border with Pakistan. 'This project is authentic proof of compensating that loss, he said.' New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hailed the decision of his government to construct Kartarpur Corridor and promised justice to the families of 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims, which shook the nation. Modi, who was speaking after releasing a commemorative coin to mark the 352nd birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh Guru, on Sunday, said: "No binoculars are needed as the Sikh shrines of Dera Baba Nanak Sahib will now be visible with naked eyes. Sikh devotees will be able to make a visa-free pilgrimage to Darbar Sahib in Pakistan." "Kartarpur corridor project is an attempt to atone for the mistakes committed during India's partition in August 1947. We had failed to ensure that the sacred site of Guru remains on our side of the border. This project is authentic proof of compensating that loss," said Prime Minister Modi. Talking about the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, wherein around 2,700 Sikhs were killed across India, after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, Modi said: "Our government will ensure that all the culprits are behind the bars and victims' families get justice." Once opened, Kartarpur corridor will allow Sikh pilgrims from India direct access to the historic Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan, where Guru Nanak Dev died in 1539. In November last year, both India and Pakistan did the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the corridor on both sides of the border. "Our government is working as per the teachings and ideals of Guru Gobind Singh ji. We are also preparing for grand celebrations to mark the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev ji," said the prime minister in the event organised at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. Talking about the values Guru Gobind Singh taught to humanity, Prime Minister Modi said: "Guru Govind Singh, the feeder of humanity to Khalsa sect, was dedicated to Indian culture and traditions." "Today, I have got a great opportunity to release the commemorative coin to mark the 352nd Parkash Purab of Guru Gobind Singh ji. His coin is already imprinted in our hearts for many years. It is, however, just a small gesture to pay respect and express our faith in his principles," he said. "Guru Gobind Singh ji was not only a Guru (teacher) but also a great devotee. He was not only an exceptional fighter but also a noteworthy poet and creative writer. He was against injustice and a firm supporter of peace. He sacrificed his own son to protect thousands of sons of the nation. Guru Gobind Singh ji is a true example of patriotism, peace, humanity, and patience," Prime Minister Modi noted. "Despite his own struggles, he was always eager to sacrifice his happiness for others. Khalsa sect is a result of his hard work and esteem knowledge. He fought against the social evils like casteism," he said. "The Dasam Granth, which is a separate religious text from the Guru Granth Sahib, reflects his incredible command over language and literature. All his teachings are being followed by us for the development of a new India," added Prime Minister Modi. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and a host of prominent Sikh personalities were present on the occasion. The movement against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 intensified in Manipur on Saturday. A protest rally was jointly organised at Kwakeithel Akham Leikai in Manipur's Imphal West district. Another protest rally against the bill was also held at Wangoo area in Manipur's Bishnupur district. Imphal: Movement against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 intensified in Manipur on Saturday. A protest rally was jointly organised at Kwakeithel Akham Leikai in Manipur's Imphal West district by several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) like All Manipur United Clubs Organisation (AMUCO), Irawat Foundation, COHR, Poirei Leimarol Network and AMOVA and others in protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill. AMUCO president Ph Devan said that the bill will uproot the existence of indigenous people of the Northeastern region of India. He further appealed the CSOs and political parties to come together to fight against the bill. Six student organisations All Manipur Students' Union (AMSU), Democratic Students' Alliance of Manipur (DESAM), Manipur Students' Federation (MSF), Kangleipak Students' Association (KSA), Students' Union of Kangleipak (SUK) and Socialist Students' Union of Manipur observed "Black Day" on Saturday at various places. Another protest rally against the bill was also held at Wangoo area in Manipur's Bishnupur district. Workers of National Students' Union of India (NSUI), Manipur state and Manipur Pradesh Youth Congress Committee staged a protest demonstration against the bill at the heart of Imphal city, and they also submitted a memorandum to the Governor of Manipur, Najma Heptulha. The bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who fled religious persecution in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan and entered India before 31 December, 2014. The North East Students' Organisation (NESO), a conglomerate of students' bodies of the region, also observed "Black Day" in neighbouring Assam to protest firing in Tripura during the bandh against the Bill on Tuesday. Dumka Superintendent of Police informed that the Maoists have made a hideout here and were planning extortion. Dumka (Jharkhand): A Maoist zonal commander having a bounty of Rs 10 lakh on his head was killed in an encounter carried out jointly by Jharkhand Police and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) in the forests of Chatupada in Dumka on Sunday. The deceased has been identified as Sahdev Rai alias Tala Da, an accused in more than 50 cases. Police recovered an AK-4 rifle, one INSAS rifle and a huge cache of magazines and bullets from the deceased. "The area has been cordoned off and a search operation is underway to nab other Maoists involved," said a police official. Dumka Superintendent of Police (SP) YS Ramesh informed that blood stains were found in the area. "They have made a hideout here and were planning extortion. The operation was going on since last night, but today morning at 7 am the encounter ensued and heavy firing took place from both the sides. The Maoists have fired at least 500 rounds. There were 15-20 Naxalites including 2-3 women Naxalites among their ranks," said Ramesh. The police informed that the deceased was the main hand behind major Maoists attacks or incidences in the area. Makar Sankranti celebrations around the country are a diversified affair. Since it is celebrated in multiple states, every state has added its own local spin to the festival over the years. Considered one of the most ancient Hindu festivals, Makar Sankranti is celebrated in different parts of the country with great fanfare. Observed in different parts of country in different ways, Sankranti denotes the entry of the sun into the zodiac sign of Makara (Capricorn) as it travels on its celestial path. This celestial transition welcomes longer and warmer days. The Hindu calendar also states the end of harvest festival and marks the arrival of spring. The festival is associated with colorful decorations, fairs, kite flying, bonfire and elaborate feasts. Significance: While most Hindu festivals are celebrated as per the lunar cycle, Makar Sankranti follows the solar cycle. Dedicated to Lord Surya, the day marks the onset of summer and beginning of auspicious period Uttarayan. The connection with Uttaraayan dates back to the mythological era of The Mahabharata when Bhishma Pitamah lay down on a bed of arrows and waited for the sun to be in Uttaraayan to breath his last. Harvest festival: For most parts of India, this period is a part of early stages of the Rabi crop and agricultural cycle, where crops have been sown and the hard work in the fields is almost complete. The longer spell of sunlight is important for the crops, and also acts as a retreat for everybody who has been dreading the winter months. The harvest festival is celebrated across the country with much fervor and gaiety. While the harvest festival in Punjab is called as Lohri, in Assam its known as Bhogali Bihu and the southern states term it as Pongal. Holy dip: Makar Sankranti also marks the beginning of six months auspicious period for Hindus known as Uttarayana period. Every twelve years, the Hindus observe Makar Sankranti with one of the world's largest mass pilgrimages and bathe in the holy rivers at the Kumbh Mela. This year, the Ardh Kumbh Mela at Prayagraj will begin from January 14 and continue till March 3 at the Triveni Sangam - the holy confluence of river Ganga, Yamuna, and Saraswati. Thousands of devotees are expected to arrive in the city to take a holy dip in the Triveni Sangam. Food: Seasme seeds (til) are used in almost every Makar Sankranti recipes. As per the Hindu mythology, sesame seeds helps to cleanse the soul and improve spiritual awakening. In Maharashtra, the practice of exchanging sweets made of til (sesame seeds) such as tilgul ladoo and gulachi poli is common. The exchange is considered as a token of goodwill, while these foods give energy as well as helps to keep us warm. While exchanging, people greet each other with the words, Til gul ghyaa, goad goad bola! meaning eat tilgul and speak sweet words. In Delhi and Haryana, people cook ghee churma, kheer and halwa. In Punjab, it is a tradition to consume khichdi and jaggery. Sankrati is one of the major festivals of Rajasthan. The day is celebrated with special Rajasthani delicacies and sweets such as pheeni (either with sweet milk or sugar syrup dipped), til-paati, gajak, kheer, ghevar, pakodi, puwa, and til-laddoo. Kite flying: The morning of Makar Sankranti witnesses colorful kites wafting in the sky. In Gujarat, flying kites and competing with others is regarded as one of the biggest festivals. Scores of people from not only around the country, but across the world, come to participate in the annual International Kite Festival (Uttarayan), the preparations for which begin months in advance. Two years after the jallikattu protest, a look at how Tamil Nadu's Marina revolution acted as a real-life 'social' network and has since brought a change that was not anticipated in the first place. It was a cloudy day when we started out for Sivakumars farm in Koodapakkam, Puducherry. After a 30 minute drive, we see a friendly face wave at us from a jam-packed car. Parvatha gets down along with five others and shows us the way. As we walk along the rain-kissed paddy fields waiting for the harvest, the sun begins to shine through. Like us, all of these youngsters had been total strangers until a movement swept them all. A movement that caught all of our attention for its sheer tenacity. It was January 2017 and the crowds refused to recede in Marina the worlds second largest beach as it spontaneously became the venue for a large peoples movement against the Apex courts ban on jallikattu (a traditional Tamil bull-taming sport). Nobody could really understand the phenomenon of why common men and women thronged the venue to register their support for it. But amidst loud sloganeering against the ban, there were also active discussions on several social issues like increasing farmer suicides, saving lakes, banning plastic usage etc. The 16-day protest had, in fact, become a networking space for any concerned citizen. Many found and connected with people who had similar social interests, much like in Facebook, but in real life. A mothers fight meets farmers plight For instance, Parvatha Rakesh (34), a French teacher from Puducherry, had gone to Marina with her students to protest against the interference on an ancient tradition. On her first stint at a public platform (on one of the stages put up across the Marina), Parvatha not only raised her voice for the sport but also spoke of her own personal battles. Her baby had to be hospitalised after she turned allergic to packaged milk. Parvatha has since been promoting the need to bring back healthy pesticide-free food and pure organic milk to her friends and families. This touched a chord with Rajesh. A software analyst from Bengaluru, Rajesh (29) had already begun a social initiative through a Facebook page called Save Farmers. Personally, I was disturbed by the increasing number of farmer suicides in Tamil Nadu. So, along with friends, we were providing monetary support or setting small poultry farms for families that had lost farmers to suicides. But we wanted to do something more permanent and thats when we met Parvatha during the protests, he says. The duo then connected with like-minded protestors businesswoman Nandhini (29), engineer-turned-organic-farmer Ganeshamurthy (29) and automobile professional Keerthapriyan (25) to form the core team of a refurbished Save Farmers (SF) forum. The fact is jallikattu protest was not just about the sport. It was an outburst of years of pent up anguish on issues like farmer suicides, proposed methane projects in farmlands, political apathy towards the citizen and so on, says Keerthapriyan. The protests showed that what we couldnt do as a single person, we could do together, adds Nandhini. By the time the protests ended, their Save Farmers page grew to over 20,000 members in a week (thanks to the sudden spurt of interest amongst youngsters in farming). Ganeshamoorthy talks about how they chose to approach the existing agrarian crisis, What was the use if the Government subsidies were going towards buying pesticides and urea and the farmers remained in debt? Nothing would change when the procurement price is too low. So thats what they did, they doubled the procurement rate for rice and even got unemployed youngsters to manufacture organic farm inputs (like panchagavya) for the interested farmers, the farmers, in turn, had to provide them chemical-free organic produce. It was a win-win. Sivakumar from Koodapakkam village (one of SF partners) is a happy farmer today, Initially, I was sceptical about working with these youngsters. The first time, I did get two sacks less than conventional farmer but I made a comfortable profit despite that. Around 16 villages in Puducherry and 40 villages in TN work with Save Farmers and the produce is now mostly sold within the group, with plans for expansion already in the pipeline. Saving water bodies Another issue that kept cropping up during the protests was the state of disdain our water bodies were in, as Sathiskumar (28) who runs a software company in Bengaluru, puts it. Hailing from a farming family, he had coordinated the jallikattu protest event in his home town Vellore with police permission, We expected a crowd of 5,000 and eventually, the crowd swelled to close to five lakh. It was wonderful to see people across religions participate in a united manner. We did not want this spirit to end with the protests, and so we with like-minded volunteers, most of who were students, he began Save Vellore forum right after the protest. They took issues that concerned their city the most. First, we helped clean the huge Otteri lake (1,000 acres) and a pond in Abdullapuram. They have since coordinated with Vellore corporation to create awareness campaigns against plastic usage, encroachment of water bodies and now have plans to green the city further with a selfie with a tree campaign, Sathishkumar explains. Citizen-run emergency response team Before the jallikattu meltdown, it was the Chennai floods in 2015 that jostled the common man in the street out of his complacency in Tamil Nadu. It was the first time, this generation of so-called keyboard warriors took to the streets to help in rescue and rehabilitation. The jallikattu protests later gave this citizen-led activism a whole new dimension as everyone came under a single radar, IT professional Ashok A.J (27) who runs Direction for Volunteers (D4V ) page on Facebook explains, Though we began volunteering during floods, it was jallikattu that broke the urban-rural barrier and brought everyone together. Our data of volunteers doubled. For instance, we could see that many Chennaiites who were not involved during the earlier Ockhi cyclone got actively involved for the Gaja cyclone in delta region. His page connects volunteers with those in need of aid across verticals like disaster management, education, blood donation, organic farming etc. They have since educated over 102 students across the state, rebuilt three schools and have collected over Rs 15 lakhs and Rs 22 lakhs for Kerala cyclone and Gaja cyclone respectively. Social media has played a colossal role in building and sustaining this momentum after the jallikattu protest. Divya Marunthiah (30), a civil engineer from Madurai, tells us that their volunteering page The New Face Of Society (TNFS) hit close to 70,000 followers after the protest. We actually began operations during the Chennai floods with traffic updates, rescues, rehabilitation etc, she says. She reckons that the unanticipated side-effect of the protest was that people from all walks of life police officials, bureaucrats, businessmen, students connected. The impact of this social network directly led to the collection of a whopping 19 tonnes of relief materials during Kerala floods and 20 tonnes to the Gaja-affected delta regions by TNFS volunteers. From verifying forward messages of help to getting relief issues sorted on priority, pages like TNFS has become the first point of contact for TN citizens during an emergency. In the shadow of a gigantic protest, nameless volunteers have begun silently revolutionising democracy as we know it; a democracy in which the citizen has found his voice. The members of the Patwa community, which comes under the OBC category in Bihar, have resolved to fight for justice in the Gaya murder case. Patna: A high-level team from the Bihar Police headquarters visited Gaya on Sunday following an ultimatum given by the members of the weaver community to the Gaya police to nab the culprits involved in last week's gruesome killing of a 16-year-old girl. A police team headed by Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Alok Raj visited Gaya on Chief Minister Nitish Kumars directive. The team met the girls family and assured them of speedy justice. The police team also met a delegation of the community, which was up in arms against the alleged police excesses against the victim's family members on the pretext of investigation. The ADGP, during his meeting with Gaya SSP Rajeev Mishra, suggested a narco test on the girls father to ascertain the truth. The Gaya Police, contrary to the statement of the victim's relatives, described the incident to be a case of "honour killing" and arrested the girl's father and his friend and later sent them to judicial custody. The police, however, let off the girl's mother on Friday evening after the intervention of top police officials. Prem Narain Patwa, who led the delegation of the community, said on Sunday that they have given a seven-day ultimatum to the police to arrest the perpetrators of crime and punish the erring cops, whose negligence led to the murder of the minor girl. Though the family had approached the Buniyadganj police soon after the girl went missing on 28 December last year, the latter turned a blind eye. On 6 January, the decomposed and mutilated body of the girl was recovered from a place near Baksaria tola on the Gaya-Khijarsarai road. "The public outcry over the alleged rape and murder for two consecutive days perhaps forced the local police to put the onus of the killing on the family," Patwa added. The members of the Patwa community, which comes under the OBC category in Bihar, have resolved to fight for justice. "We have demanded a CBI inquiry into the incident. We don't have faith in the investigation conducted by the Gaya Police," said Prem Narain, the secretary of Vastra Udyog Seva Samiti. Another member of the community, Tarkeshwar Prasad Patwa, said that a delegation will soon meet the Bihar Director General of Police KS Dwivedi and the Chief Secretary Deepak Kumar in Patna to press for handing over the investigation to the CBI. "Only a CBI inquiry will unravel the truth," Tarkeshwar said, adding, "This is a question of the dignity of the entire community." He said that they would not compromise on the issue. Taking serious note of the incident, deputy inspector general (Magadh range) Vinay Kumar and Gaya district magistrate Abhishek Kumar Singh called on the members of the weaver community and assured them that justice would be delivered to the family. "It was because of the promise given by the two top officials that we have given a seven-day ultimatum to the police. Otherwise, we were not in a mood to relent on the issue, and had resolved to intensify our stir," said Gopal Patwa, who was a part of the delegation. The Patwa community (whose traditional occupation is weaving) has a population of around 20,000 in the Manpur region of Gaya, and plays an important role in elections. "Nobody wants to hurt the feelings of the members of this community, which has a major chunk of votes," said an IPS officer who had earlier served as SSP of Gaya. As per a rough estimate, around 12,000 powerlooms and 6,000 handlooms are at present engaged in the production of cotton in Gaya's Manpur area alone. More than 45,000 families of daily wage workers depend on the industry. Production has come to a standstill for the last three days. The industry has already incurred a loss of over Rs 10 crore due to the ongoing agitation. A daily wager Ram Prasad said, "We have come to the brink of starvation as the powerlooms are lying defunct." The weavers' association has now decided to call off their indefinite agitation. "We have agreed to call off the indefinite agitation on the assurances of the senior officials. But it doesn't mean that we have relented. Our fight for justice will continue," said Phaldhari Patwa. The incident has already taken political overtones. A host of leaders, including Leader of Opposition Tejashwi Prasad Yadav and former chief minister Jitan Ram Manjhi are expected to meet the bereaved family members on Monday. On Saturday, a delegation of the CPI(ML) paid a visit to Gaya and demanded a thorough investigation. The agitation for justice to the minor girl's family has gone beyond the state's boundary. Mukti Ranjan, a Bengaluru-based software engineer who originally hails from Patwa Toli in Gaya, said, "We are organising a torch light procession in Bengaluru on Sunday as a mark of protest over the gruesome murder in Gaya." Ranjan, an IITian, said that the agitation would continue. "The 'Manchester of Bihar' is virtually seething with anger. How can we remain silent?" he asked. More cities are likely to witness protests in days to come. Meanwhile, ADGP (law and order) Alok Raj said that a team of the criminal investigation department and the forensic science laboratory would visit the spot on Monday and collect evidence. They would assist the SIT constituted by the Gaya SSP Rajeev Mishra to crack the case at the earliest. On the claim that honour killing was the motive behind the killing, the ADGP said, "The investigation is in progress. So it will not be prudent to make any comment at this stage. What we can say now is that the case will be probed from all angles." (Ramashankar Mishra is a Patna-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com) The Supreme Court has ground to quash the 10 percent quota law it if it is challenged before it as there has been no mention of any inadequate representation of poorer sections of the society. Editor's note: This article is the second in a two-part series analysing the legitimacy of the Centre's decision to provide 10 percent reservation for economically weaker sections of the general category in government jobs and educational institutions. Read part I of the series here. *** By introducing 10 percent reservations for economically weaker sections of the general category, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is doing what PV Narasimha Rao tried to do and failed in September 1991. Rao had done that to placate upper castes, who he feared had deserted the Congress in the May-June 1991 Lok Sabha elections, and also because of resentment against the Mandal Commission report on backward classes. Modi, too, is doing this to woo the same upper castes, who he fears moved away from his BJP in the recent Assembly elections in the Hindi heartland. But there is one difference. Rao tried to bring in this reservation with an "office memorandum", while Modi has amended the Constitution. The Supreme Court had struck down Rao's decision as unconstitutional, whereas to make his own ploy constitutional, Modi has amended the Constitution, hoping that the court won't quash the move if it is called upon to do so. But here lies a judicial catch in fact, many catches. For one, the Supreme Court, in its Indra Sawhney verdict of 1992, had quashed Rao's decision as unconstitutional not merely because it was made by way of an executive order. This is what the apex court had said while nullifying the Rao government's decision: "Reservation of 10 percent of the vacancies among open competition candidates on the basis of income/property-holding means exclusion of those above the demarcating line from those 10 percent seats. The question is whether this is constitutionally permissible. We think not. It may not be permissible to debar a citizen from being considered for appointment to an office under the State solely on the basis of his income or property-holding. Since the employment under the State is really conceived to serve the people (that it may also be a source of livelihood is secondary), no such bar can be created. Any such bar would be inconsistent with the guarantee of equal opportunity held out by Clause (1) of Article 16. On this ground alone, the said clause in the office memorandum dated 25 May, 1991, fails and is accordingly declared as such." An election lollipop Although an obvious pre-election "lollipop" a word Modi himself used to rubbish the farm loan waivers granted by Congress governments his government is touting the 10 percent quota for economically weaker sections as a measure to help the poor among Hindu upper castes and other religions currently not entitled to any reservations. But even before 1992 verdict, there was never a doubt that while economic criterion could be part of the basis to determine socially and educationally backward classes deserving of reservations, poverty alone could never be a ground to dish out quotas. The predominant view has always been that reservations must seek to undo a historical wrong done to some communities and must attempt to pull them out of backwardness even if such a thing is a temporary strategy. Over the decades, pronouncements from the country's highest court have been consistent in expressing this view. Put simply, the view is this: Upper castes are not known to have suffered social exclusion. And upper caste poverty, not a consequence of any discrimination, can be dealt with by other means, including liberal financial help. But can Modi get away with his new quota because the 124th amendment, which his government rushed through Parliament, makes it constitutional in letter? Article 368 empowers the government to amend the Constitution, but as the apex court has ruled in the past, this is allowed only as long as the "basic structure" of the Constitution is not altered. It could be argued that Modi's 10 percent move does not conform to the Constitution's fundamental principle of equal opportunities and so the decision is not in tune with its "basic structure". It must be noted that the 1992 Indra Sawhney verdict had found the Rao government's move "inconsistent" with Article 16(1). The Supreme Court had also said in the Nagaraj case of 2006: "We reiterate that the ceiling-limit of 50 percent (for total reservations), the concept of a 'creamy layer' and the compelling reasons, namely, backwardness, inadequacy of representation and overall administrative efficiency, are all constitutional requirements without which the structure of equality of opportunity in Article 16 would collapse." "Inadequacy of representation" refers to the proportion of a caste or class of people in government services. This is a key factor to determine backwardness that merits reservations, which has been ignored in the furore kicked up over Modi's quota. The fact that sharing of power or empowerment of the downtrodden is a significant yardstick to determine eligibility for reservations was not only emphasised by BR Ambedkar but has been the subject of unanimous judicial opinion. In the case of the latest move, there has been no mention of any inadequate representation of poorer sections of the society, which makes it another potential ground for the Supreme Court to quash the law it if it is challenged before it. Moreover, the Supreme Court must reverse all its collective judicial wisdom if it upholds the latest constitutional amendment. As the judges in the Indra Sawhney case said: "Reservation in public services either by legislative or executive action is neither a matter of policy nor a political issue." Don't miss the word legislative, the route that the Modi government took. The judges added: "The higher courts in the country are constitutionally obliged to exercise the power of judicial review in every matter that is constitutional in nature or has potential of constitutional repercussions." It calls for a bizarre kind of surrealistic optimism on the part of the Modi government to hope that its politically-motivated decision will pass judicial scrutiny if its constitutional validity is questioned, which it is likely to be. But the BJP needn't worry. The possibility of any Supreme Court verdict, if the matter goes to court, arising before the Lok Sabha polls a few months from now is remote. Isn't all this meant to be a carrot that the BJP is dangling before the upper castes, a carrot nobody may ever get? The author tweets @sprasadindia The Global Airport Leaders Forum (Galf), a knowledge-sharing platform for the airports industry, has released a new revamped agenda for its seventh edition in Dubai this April which will discuss changing aviation landscape and future technologies. Key airport industry decision makers will flock to Dubai International Exhibition and Convention Centre (DICEC) for the three-day forum (April 29 May 1) taking place alongside the 19th edition of Airport Show. Airport Show and its co-located events will be held under the patronage of Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, chairman of Dubai Airports and chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group. The knowledge-enhancement initiative is themed "Leading Collaborative Sustainable Aviation Growth", reflecting the future growth path of the industry which supports $2.7 trillion of the worlds gross domestic product (GDP) and carries over four billion passengers and 62 million tonnes of freight a year. The International Air Transport Association (Iata) expects 7.8 billion passengers by 2036, almost double the current numbers, and airports and airlines will have to adopt smart technologies rapidly to cater to this unprecedented growth volume. The Middle East is expected to welcome 517 million passengers by 2036, and 450 million passengers by the Arabian Gulf airports, including over 100 million passengers in Dubai, by 2020. Galf is a pivotal moment in the year where industry leaders and experts from around the world will gather to discuss common challenges, partnership opportunities and chart the way forward for the regions aviation growth. The three-day event will feature pressing topics including Smart Airports and Sustainability, Airport Privatization Models, Building Non-Aeronautical Revenue Systems and the Future of Blockchain in Aviation, amongst other topics. The first day of the Forum will be dedicated to Smart Airports while the second and third days will focus on Air Traffic Control (ATC) and Airport Security respectively. A strong advisory board team helped shape the topics for discussion, focusing on key strategic issues and challenges facing airports as new technologies come online. The agenda is designed to help regional airport leaders make fast business adaptions, implement smart innovations and embrace collaborative partnerships with airlines to adapt and flourish in the digital age. The initial line-up of speakers announced by the organisers includes Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, director general of General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFADubai); Hussain Al Fardan, head of Innovation Center and Innovation Oasis at Dubai Customs; Ivano Iannell, CEO of Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence; Erik Scherff, head of Business Technology at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol; Kristian Budolfsen, director, Epinion Aviation; Jesper Skou, CEO, GAL ANS; Ryyan Tarabzoni, CEO, Saudi Air Navigation Services (SANS) and Alex Bristol, CEO of skyguide. The forum will highlight the most influential innovations that are shaping the design, features and day-to-day operations of the modern airport. One of the key topics, Blockchain, is a market that will be worth $23 billion by 2023. Blockchain technology has captured the imagination of companies across industries, including airlines as it is capable of easing functions such as flight operations, monitoring and maintenance and repair overhaul. Blockchain is fast emerging as the priority technology for future exploration amongst airport and airline CIOs globally. Dubai has ambitious plans to be the worlds first city fully powered by blockchain by 2020 and the emirate is making persistent efforts to be a global leader in blockchain adoption. By 2020, Dubai wants all visa applications, bill payments and license renewals to be transacted digitally using blockchain. Daniyal Qureshi, Group Exhibition director, Reed Exhibitions Middle East, organisers of Airport Show said: The agenda for Galf 2019 undoubtedly reflects the direction the industry is going in and we are looking forward to seeing what interesting discussions take place to ensure our industry is at the forefront of digital transformation. A smart airport is not about complete digitisation. It is important to have the ability to make the most of innovation to facilitate a more convenient and hassle-free journey for passengers travelling through airports. The global smart airport market is expected to reach close to $13 billion by 2019 and $14.87 billion by 2021. Like Blockchain, Smart Airports are at a developing stage but will grow at a healthy growth rate in the coming decade. In the Middle East, the smart airports market will be worth $850 million by 2019. Airports in the UAE are leading the way when it comes to smart technology adoption and key features of the future smart airport will be discussed at Galf. - TradeArabia News Service The rape victim, in a semi-conscious state, went to Deen Dayal Upadhyay hospital in an autorickshaw and she is out of danger. On Friday, she approached the police and a case was registered against the two men in Uttam Nagar police station, he said. New Delhi: A 17-year-old rape victim was allegedly forced to drink poison by two bike-borne men when she was returning home from tuition in Dwarka district's Hastsal area, police said on Saturday. The incident took place on Thursday evening, they added. In her complaint, the girl alleged that when she was returning home from tuition, two bike-borne men intercepted her way and threatened her of dire consequences if she gave a statement against the rape accused in the court. However, when she refused to do so, they allegedly caught hold of her and forced her to drink poison, a senior police officer said. The accused duo fled the spot after the incident, he said. The girl in a semi-conscious state went to Deen Dayal Upadhyay hospital in an autorickshaw and she is out of danger, the officer said. On Friday, she approached the police and a case was registered against the two men in Uttam Nagar police station, he said. Prima facie it appears that the associates of the rape accused might have tried to poison her to stop her from giving testimony in the court. However, it is being verified, the officer said. The rape accused recently came out on bail. A case of kidnapping and rape was registered against him at Ranhola police station in 2018, police said. He is being questioned in connection with the incident, they said, adding that teams have been formed to nab the culprits. The CVC is expected to write to the Centre recommending a departmental inquiry and a criminal investigation by CBI into allegations against Alok Verma. A day after retired Justice AK Patnaik said there was "no evidence of corruption" against ousted Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Alok Verma, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has recommended a CBI investigation into the allegations against Verma. Patnaik, a former Supreme Court judge, was in charge of the inquiry into corruption charges against Verma. The CVC is expected to write to the Centre recommending a departmental inquiry and a criminal investigation by the CBI against Verma, reports said. "This is a logical corollary of our preliminary probe and the recommendation we made for further probe with regard to some of the charges Verma is facing," The Times of India quoted a source as saying. The report also said that the Research and Analysis Wing had four intercepts of telephone conversations between Verma and several people involved in the Moin Qureshi case including Hyderabad-based businessman Satish Babu Sana that "backed" the CVC's recommendation to investigate Verma's role in the case. The FIR against CBI special director Rakesh Asthana was filed based on a bribery complaint Sana had made against him. Furthermore, the CVC has demanded that the CBI submit documents related to six cases against Verma, India Today reported. "The CVC is looking into Verma's role in these cases, which range from leaking internal documents, diluting lookout circulars and protecting people involved in bank fraud, among others," the report added. On Saturday, Patnaik had criticised the decision of the Selection Committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Justice AK Sikri and Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge to remove Verma from the office of CBI director. They made the decision in a 2:1 vote with Kharge dissenting after the Supreme Court reinstated Verma to the post on Tuesday, but with restrictions. Patnaik said the CVC's findings alone cannot be taken as the "final word" in the matter, The Indian Express reported. "There was no evidence against Verma regarding corruption. The entire inquiry was conducted on Asthana's complaint. I have said in my report that none of the findings in the CVC's report are mine," he had said. Patnaik's comments came after Verma refused to take charge as the director general of fire service, civil defence and home guards on Friday, a post he was transferred to after being removed as the CBI director. In a letter to the Secretary of The Department of Personnel and Training, Verma had said he was resigning because his tenure had been unfairly cut short, and he was not given a chance to explain himself before the selection panel gave its final verdict on his fate. 'Government didn't share Justice Patnaik's report with Selection Committee' On Saturday, Kharge said the government had not shared Justice Patnaik's report with the Selection Committee, The Indian Express reported. "This is the question I raised there (at the Selection Committee meeting). That whether they have recorded the proceedings because the proceedings had not yet come. I told them I had not received Justice Patnaik's report and you should give a chance to Alok Verma to apprise us about the allegations made by the CVC, about whether they are true or false They did not place those records before the committee," the report quoted Kharge as saying. "Patnaik's report was not placed (before the committee), and he himself is now saying that while the report is of 50 pages the annexures ran into 1,000 pages. They did not submit that. They made a hasty decision" he said. Reacting to Patnaik's report, the Congress on Saturday demanded Verma's reinstatement, claiming that the office of the CVC had been "compromised". Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi alleged that the government stood exposed, adding that the Selection Committee had removed Verma based on Asthana's charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was also dismissed by the Delhi High Court on Friday. "Is it not strange that Rakesh Asthana, who himself is under investigation, was the basis of Verma's removal?" Singhvi said. "But the CVC can neither appoint nor remove the CBI chief. The office of the CVC has been compromised by the government." Officers to move Supreme Court against transfer orders Two officers, whose transfers were approved by interim CBI director Nageshwara Rao, will move the Supreme Court against the order, The Hindu reported. The officers may also allege contempt of court "following the interim CBI director's order declaring all the directions issued under Verma as 'non est'". On Friday, Rao had nullified and reversed all transfer orders put in place by Verma after he took charge of the office for two days on the top court's order. The interim CBI director had said: "All actions in pursuance thereof by all concerned are also hereby declared as null and void. In other words, status-quo ante as on 8 January stands restored." Verma responded to his removal on Thursday, saying that the allegations against him were "false, unsubstantiated and frivolous". "It (the CBI) must function without external influences. I tried to uphold the integrity of the institution while attempts were being made to destroy it. The same can be seen from the orders of the central government and the CVC dated 23 October, 2018, which were without jurisdiction and were set aside," he had said. With inputs from agencies The committee was formed on 6 January to assess the quantum of seats to be reserved in the Assam Assembly and in the local bodies of the state for Assamese, besides providing other safeguards. Guwahati/New Delhi: MP Bezbaruah, who was appointed the head of a Centre-nominated committee to assess the implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, has declined to be part of it, leaving the nine-member body in the lurch. Bezbaruah is the fifth member to leave the committee. He has written to the Union Home Ministry in this regard. The development comes close on the heels of four members eminent litterateurs Nagen Saikia and Rong Bong Terang along with educationist Mukunda Rajbongshi and the nominee of the influential All Assam Students Union deciding not to be part of the committee. The committee was formed on 6 January to assess the quantum of seats to be reserved in the Assam Assembly and in the local bodies of the state for Assamese, besides providing other safeguards. Clause 6 of the Assam Accord states that "constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards, as may be appropriate, shall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people". "I have conveyed to the Home Ministry that it is untenable for me to continue in the committee when the representatives of the civil society refused to be part of the committee. Being the head of a committee, without civil society members, does not make any sense," Bezbaruah said in New Delhi. The former Union tourism secretary told a local television channel in Guwahati that when he was asked to be a part of the panel, he was "under the impression that we can make some contribution in implementing Clause 6 of the Assam Accord". "But since then, certain developments have taken place and I find no reason to continue in the committee," he said. "The committee was for the people of Assam and if they think there is no need for it, there is no point in continuing with it," Bezbaruah said. "Moreover, the AASU and three other respected members have decided not to be a part of the committee and as such it has become dysfunctional ... The committee has not been accepted by the people and I also do not find any justification to continue," he said. Saikia and Terang, both former presidents of premier literary organisation Asam Sahitya Sabha and Rajbongshi, decided to opt out of the committee citing reservations about its functioning following the passage of the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha. The Bill, they said, posed a threat to Assamese culture and identity. The All Assam Students Union (AASU), which was a signatory to the Assam Accord, also refused to be a part of the committee, saying the "BJP-led government at the Centre formed it just three months ahead of the Lok Sabha polls to seek votes in Assam". Other members of the committee include former IAS officer Subhas Das, former editor of The Sentinel Dhirendra Nath Bezborua and Assam Advocate General Ramesh Borpatragohain. The joint secretary in the Home Ministry was nominated as the panel's member secretary. The CBI will file its status report in the coal scam probe in the Supreme Court soon, officials said Saturday. New Delhi: The CBI will file its status report in the coal scam probe in the Supreme Court soon, officials said Saturday. "We will be informing the Supreme Court soon about all the progress in the cases and without its permission no details can be shared," agency spokesperson Abhishek Dayal told PTI when asked to comment about reports of the decision of then-CBI chief Alok Verma on clearing prosecution of a senior PMO official in one of the cases related to the scam. "The news item published in a national daily is factually not correct and is denied. It is stated that the orders issued by the agency are only with respect to the transfers of officers alone, and nothing else," he said in a statement during the day. The report had alleged that the prosecution clearance given regarding the officer by Verma was one of the decisions revoked by Interim CBI Director M Nageshwar Rao on Friday after taking over. Verma, who was reinstated by the Supreme Court, was removed within 48 hours by high powered selection committee comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Justice AK Sikri and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge through a split verdict on Thursday. The committee had relied on a controversial CVC report. "Further, as regards the matters relating to cases of allocation of coal blocks, it is clarified that these are Supreme Court monitored cases and the CBI submits periodic status reports to the Supreme Court. With reference to the specific case mentioned in the news item, the status report giving complete details and facts is being submitted to the Supreme Court, and what has been alluded to in the news item is denied as being factually incorrect," Dayal said. He said there is no question of reversal of any decision taken with regard to investigations and inquiries. Over 32,000 BEST employees have been on strike since Tuesday, 15 January, and its fleet of 3,200-odd buses have been off the roads of the metropolis, causing severe inconvenience to several lakh commuters. The union has yet to receive any written proposal from the BEST management to address the concerns of the workers on strike. The ongoing bus strike by employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) in Mumbai entered its sixth day on Sunday as a meeting between the BEST Kamgaar Samyukta Kriti Samiti the umbrella outfit of the BEST labour unions on strike and the management of the undertaking failed to end the impasse on Saturday. The meeting was held after the Bombay High Court, on Friday, directed the union leaders to talk to a state government committee, comprising Maharashtra chief secretary DK Jain, Commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Ajoy Mehta, secretaries of the transport and urban development departments and BEST general manager Surendrakumar Bagde, to find a way to end the strike. The committee will submit a status report on the ongoing bus strike to court on Monday, with a long-term plan to reform the BEST and BMC, The Hindu reported. "Before the report is submitted in court, I cannot reveal the minutes of the meeting," Jain said. Over 32,000 BEST employees have been on strike since Tuesday, 15 January, and its fleet of 3,200-odd buses have been off the roads of the metropolis, causing severe inconvenience to several lakh commuters. The union has yet to receive any written proposal from the BEST management to address the concerns of the workers on strike. "We put our stand before them and very clearly stated that we will not withdraw the strike until our demands are accepted," said Shashank Rao, president of the BEST Workers' Union on strike. He added that the stir would proceed peacefully. The workers on strike have demanded that the Maharashtra government direct BMC to financially "adopt" the transport undertaking to bail it out from its financial woes, The Times of India reported. The workers have also demanded that Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis intervene in the matter. The newspaper quoted sources as saying that BMC officials were not entirely against the merger of the BEST and civic budgets. But if the BMC the country's richest civic body with over Rs 63,000 crore in fixed deposits "adopts" BEST financially, it will have to bear a cash flow deficit of over Rs 9,700 crore in the next five years to bail out the transport undertaking, civic officials said. Representatives told the committee told the committee that the BMC is no position take on the extra burden. Two other ideas are under consideration to generate the revenue to fulfil the demands of the unions on strike, The Asian Age reported. These include privatisation of BEST and leasing BEST buses to private firms. The BMC chief believes that partial privatisation of the BEST transport arm alone can save the undertaking. On Saturday, which marked the fifth day of the strike, the School Bus Owners' Association deployed a total of 2,000 private buses in Mumbai. "As many as 1,000 school buses and 1,000 private buses" were deployed to "provide services to passengers in light of the strike by BEST bus employees", Anil Garg of the School Bus Owners' Association had said. With inputs from PTI The jawan, identified as Sombeer Singh, was allegedly 'honeytrapped' woman posing as Anika Chopra on Facebook, who claimed to be a captain in the Indian Army medical corps. The woman has been in touch with him since 2016 and used to send him lewd messages and photos. The Rajasthan Police on Friday arrested a 22-year-old Indian Army jawan in Jaisalmer on espionage charges. Intelligence agencies found that the soldier identified as Sombeer Singh had been in touch with a Pakistani woman, suspected to be an operative of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), on social media, the Hindustan Times reported. Defence public relations officer Colonel Sambit Ghosh told ANI that the army was providing all assistance to civilian authorities in the investigation. The jawan had allegedly been "honeytrapped" by a woman posing as one Anika Chopra on Facebook. She had claimed to be a captain in the army medical corps, News18 reported. The woman had been in touch with Singh since 2016 and used to send him lewd messages and photos, according to The Tribune. The jawan was caught sending locations of army exercises and images of Arjun Tanks, among other classified information, to the woman. According to the Hindustan Times, the accused had shared the information after being lured by money. The police has also discovered that secret agencies in Pakistan had transferred money to Singh's account. The Indian Army jawan was arrested under relevant sections of the Officials Secret Act, 1923. This comes months after teams of the Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squads arrested an employee at the BrahMos Aerospace unit in Maharashtra's Nagpur on charges of spying. The accused, identified as Nishant Agrawal, had been working at the BrahMos Missile Research Centre for four years, and was accused of passing on information to the ISI. Furthermore, on Wednesday, Chief of Army Staff Bipin Rawat had warned of the dangers of social media. Speaking at a panel discussion at the Raisina Dialogue in Delhi, Rawat had said that there was need to control social media as it was aiding the spread of radicalisation. "Radicalisation through social media is becoming one of the reasons for raising funds for terrorist organisations," he had said. Zeenat-ul-Islam, one of the longest-surviving leaders of new age militancy, joined Al-Badr in November last year, saying that other outfits were 'doing well' and he wanted 'to strength and popularise the group'. As more and more Kashmiris were embracing the idea of homegrown militancy last year and New Delhi had announced a halt in operations against militants, a little known group Al-Badr had released a video on social media in June, in which it had declared a war on security forces in Jammu and Kashmir and workers of mainstream political parties. After remaining defunct for nearly half a decade, Al-Badr was the seventh group among an array of militant outfits that had sprung back to life after "new age militancy" took the Kashmir Valley by a storm. "Those who are religious will be given preference," Hamzah Burhan, an Al-Badra militant, had said in the video, the first time the group had announced its presence on social media, much like other outfits operating in the Valley, to attract youth into its fold. Soon after, a trickle of youngsters began to join the outfit. As the number of Kashmiris taking up militant ranks rose, as did the killing of militants by security forces. In November last year, one of the longest-surviving leaders of new age militancy, Zeenat-ul-Islam, joined Al-Badr, saying that other outfits were "doing well" and he wanted "to strength and popularise the group". "As you are well aware, the Hizbul Mujahideen, with the grace of god, is doing well and is standing firm before the enemy in the battlefield. So I have now decided to join my parent organisation Al-Badr, with the sole motive of popularising and strengthening it and help my oppressed nation in realising the dream of Azadi," Zeenat, the father of a three-year-old girl, had said in a video uploaded on social media. In the weeks he survived as the group's chief, the police says Zeenat tried to act like a "Pied Piper", attempting to expand the Al-Badr's base in South Kashmir. But before he could really make a mark and fill the groups's ranks, he fell to a hail of bullets on Saturday evening, along with another militant. Following specific inputs, security forces had laid siege in the Katpora area of Yaripora in Kulgam district. When they had approached the spot, the militants were exiting a residential area. While trying to break the cordon, the militants had opened fire on the security forces, triggering a brief gunfight. The slain commander was among the 12 most wanted militants in Jammu and Kashmir, and one of three militants in the Indian Army's most wanted list, which Zakir Musa tops. The 29-year-old was an IED expert who acted as an operations chief of the Pakistan-based militant outfit. He joined militancy on 17 November, 2015, after graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree from a local college. In February 2017, Zeenat was involved in an attack in Shopian that left three soldiers, including an officer and a woman, when militants ambushed an army patrol in the district's Mulu Chitragam area. Zeenat was a resident of Shopian's Sugan Zanipura in South Kashmir. He was first arrested in 2007 by the Special Operations Group of the Jammu and Kashmir Police. While being interrogated, he had admitted to working as an overground worker and being in touch with militants from different organisations. He had said he would arrange for food and organise their travel, after which he was booked under the Public Safety Act, police sources said. He was released in 2011, after which he began to work in his village by helping his father in farming. He also got married, in the meantime. When security forces surrounded the house in Kulgam on Saturday evening, they called Zeenat's father to try to persuade him to surrender. But that did not materialise. "An army officer called us, telling me to persuade my son to surrender. But I had not spoken to him since he left his home in 2015," Ghulam Hassan Shah, Zeenat's father, said. "I did not want to tell him to surrender because he chose this life for himself." Last year, for the first time in a decade, the number of militant outfits actively operating in the Valley rose to seven. This included the formerly defunct Al-Badr, which has a record of deviating from the stand of other outfits on issues of ceasefire and dialogue. For instance, in June 2000, when the Hizbul Mujahideen had decided on a three-month unilateral ceasefire after battling government forces in Kashmir for over a decade, Al-Badr was among the key groups that had objected to the decision. Even in 2018, when the central government announced a halt in operations, it opposed the move. Al-Badr is ideologically similar to the Hizbul Mujahideen, with both drawing inspiration from the Jamaat-e-Islami. It began its operations in the Valley in early 1998 but failed to get as much local support as, say, the Hizbul. The group is headed by Bakht Zaman, who has fought in the Afghan War. However, Zeenat, as its Kashmir chief, may have been successful in recruiting a few youths. Security forces say that at least seven militants of the group are currently active in South Kashmir. The Hizbul Mujahideen and Lashkar-e-Taiba have been dominant militant forces in Kashmir, but the Jaish-e-Mohammad, after remaining defunct for more than a decade, made a gradual and serious comeback last year, and Al-Badr followed. After its formation in 1998, Al-Badr had sent its men to fight in the Kargil War in 1999. They were mainly restricted to the Valley to keep the anti-Pakistan elements in check, the police claims. One of its target was the Ansar Gazwat-ul-Hind led by Zakir Musa, who has openly spoken against Pakistan and argues for Islamic rule in Kashmir. "It (Zeenat's killing) is a major achievement for security forces as he was one of the last surviving militants from the Burhan Wani group. His killing has nearly brought the curtains down on the outfit's operations in Kashmir," a top police officer said. The Union government was said to have secured the concurrence of both CJI Gogoi and Justice Sikri before filing the nomination. Justice AK Sikri of the Supreme Court has withdrawn consent to an offer by the Union government to nominate him to the Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal, sources told PTI. This was shortly after a media report stated that the Centre had last month decided to nominate Justice Sikri, who was recently a member of a high-level committee that decided the fate of former CBI chief Alok Verma, to a vacant post in the tribunal. A report by The Print had stated that Justice Sikri was slated to join the CSAT after his retirement on 6 March. The report stated that Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had written to Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi last month, informing him about the decision of the Centre and seeking his consent. The decision to nominate Justice Sikri was taken "at the highest levels," the report quotes sources as saying. The Union government was said to have secured the concurrence of both CJI Gogoi and Justice Sikri before filing the nomination. Sources close to the second senior-most judge after the CJI Ranjan Gogoi said that the consent was withdrawn Sunday evening when the judge wrote to the Law Ministry, seeking withdrawal of his consent. The insinuation linking the CSAT assignment with Justice Sikri's participation in the committee which decided on the ouster of Alok Verma as CBI director was wrong, they said. The CSAT is a body which acts as the final arbiter of disputes between 53 countries which are part of the Commonwealth. Reacting to the developments, Congress president Rahul Gandhi said, "When the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns. This prime minister will stop at nothing, stoop to anything and destroy everything, to cover up the Rafale scam. Hes driven by fear. Its this fear that is making him corrupt and destroy key institutions (sic)." Days earlier, Justice Sikri's vote had proved to be decisive in the verdict of a high-powered committee to remove Alok Verma as CBI director on charges of corruption and dereliction of duty, in an unprecedented action in the central probe agency's 55-year history. The other members of the committee were Prime Minister Narendra Modi and leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge. The decision at the two-hour meeting of the committee was taken by a 2 to 1 majority with Kharge opposing the move. The Congress and noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan had reacted strongly to the removal of Verma, saying he was not given a chance to present his case. With inputs from PTI HONG KONG and SHANGHAI, Jan. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (hereafter "Ping An" or "the Group", HKEx: 2318; SSE: 601318) is delighted to announce that the Ping An Global Voyager Fund, has invested in AI medical solution company Airdoc in its B+ round of funding (Ping An has led the round along with CITIC). This investment aims to boost application of AI healthtech and bring the benefits of quality healthcare services to all. Airdoc is a high-tech company dedicated to improving the efficiency of medical services through artificial intelligence. It develops deep learning techniques based on massive data labeled by medical experts and provides intelligent services to assist doctors and benefit patients. Jonathan Larsen, Chief Innovation Office of Ping An Group, Chairman and CEO of Ping An Global Voyager Fund said: "This is an important investment for Ping An and the Global Voyager Fund. Airdoc brings world class AI-driven medical imaging analytical capabilities in multiple domain areas. There are many applications for their solutions within the Ping An health and financial services ecosystem, in China, regionally and internationally. We are excited to be working with such a high quality team both as an investor and a strategic partner." Dr. Marco Huesch, managing director and Chief Medical Officer Ping An Global Voyager Fund said, "We are excited to partner with Airdoc and proud to co-lead the firm's Series B+ round. Airdoc's market leading medical AI retinal imaging technology offers consumers a fast, convenient and accurate screening service for more than two dozen important diseases, all available at multiple, retail check-up center locations in China." The Ping An Global Voyager Fund, Ping An's $1Bn global corporate venture capital fund, was launched in May 2017 with a mandate to invest in fintech and healthtech businesses to accelerate Ping An's technology transformation. In recent years, Ping An has been building up its expertise in the fintech and healthcare-related areas. The Group invested US$7 billion in R&D in the past decade and expects to invest a total of Rmb100 billion (US$15 billion) in the coming ten years. The core technologies such as AI, blockchain and cloud computing have and will continue to empower the Group's five ecosystems -- financial services, health care, auto services, real estate services and smart city services. Through applying innovative technologies to these ecosystems, Ping An will be able to seamlessly engage with customers to offer simple, professional and relevant financial services to help them better their lives and to help Ping An growth its business. About Ping An Group Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. ("Ping An") is a world-leading technology-powered personal financial services group. With 182 million customers and 513 million Internet users, Ping An is one of the largest financial services companies in the world. Ping An has two over-arching strategies 'pan financial assets' and 'pan healthcare', which focus on the provision of financial and healthcare services through our integrated financial services platform and our five ecosystems in financial services, healthcare, auto services, real estate services and Smart City services. Our aim is to provide customers and internet users with innovative and simple products and services. As China's first joint stock insurance company, Ping An Group is committed to upholding the highest standards of corporate reporting and corporate governance. The company is listed on the stock exchanges in Hong Kong and Shanghai. Ping An ranked 10th in Forbes' 2018 Global 2000, and it ranked 29th in Fortune Magazine's 2018 Global 500 Leading Companies. Ping An also ranked 43rd in 2018 WPP Millward Brown's BrandZTM Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands. For more information, please visit www.pingan.cn About Ping An Global Voyager Fund Ping An Global Voyager Fund is a $1bn Corporate Venture fund, whose role is to make investments in potential partner companies who share our vision of a data economy, can bring strategic value to Ping An Group, and who are interested to work with us in building a large scale franchise in China. The fund seeks to invest in the companies on growth stage in Fintech and Healthtech with a typical size between $10 million and $100 million. About Airdoc Airdoc is a high-tech company dedicated to improving the efficiency of medical services through artificial intelligence. It develops deep learning techniques based on massive data labeled by medical experts and provides intelligent services to assist doctors and benefit patients. Headquartered in Beijing, the company has R&D centers in Beijing, Shanghai and Seattle, with team members from front line technology companies such as Microsoft, Google and Samsung. In recent years, there have been many outstanding AI medical enterprises focusing on fundus retinopathy in China, and the advantage of Airdoc is that it can meet the complex needs of various scenes inside and outside the medical system and recognize nearly 30 kinds of common diseases. For enquiries, please contact: Gareth Hewett @ +852 68822027 or gareth.john@pingan.com.hk A powerful explosion caused by a gas leak at Paris bakery devastated the street it was on! It is being said that the blast took place at around 9 am (the local time). Three people were killed and dozens were injured in the severe explosion. Television couple, Gurmeet Choudhary and Debina Bonnerjee, who are currently holidaying in Paris, were just metres away from the explosion site! Both the actors expressed shock, extended condolences and informed fans that they are safe. Gurmeet shared a video and wrote, "Imagine in the morning in #Paris after feeling the impact on the window I went to look out to see what happened ... my heart reaches out to the people who faced it. Thanku god @imdebina Nd I are safe. Thr was also some protest going on which we filmed today morning. #iloveparis." - (sic) He also wrote on Instagram, "As much I love to travel I live going back to Paris again and again. The city highest in energy , style , fashion , passion and love. Where else can I get a combination of all these and more which in turn brings out the best in me.Unfortunately today morning there was a blast out of gas leakage and we even felt the impact on our window. As much as I thank god that we are safe my heart goes out to the people under the consequence. Leaving the city to come back again and again and ... again." - (sic) Imagine in the morning in #Paris after feeling the impact on the window I went to look out to see what happened ... my heart reaches out to the people who faced it. Thanku god @imdebina Nd I are safe. Thr was also some protest going on which we filmed today morning. #iloveparis pic.twitter.com/ziF2LKas3S GURMEET CHOUDHARY (@gurruchoudhary) January 12, 2019 Debina wrote, "With regards to d #Paris blast due to gas leak @gurruchoudhary and I ARE FINE. Even though I felt the impact in my window and when came out at 9.30 there was fire fighters and ambulances in the road. I posted on insta thinking it's some kind of Paris protest. Heartfelt 4 Paris." - (sic) Most Read: Latest TRP Ratings: The Kapil Sharma Show Gets A Bumper Opening; Beats Bigg Boss & Naagin 3! Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, a luxury brand within the AccorHotels network, marks its debut in the capital city of Saudi Arabia with the opening of the 298-room Fairmont Riyadh. A key centrepiece of the Business Gate community in Riyadh, an ambitious mixed-use development project and business district featuring over 70 multinational and regional companies. Fairmont Riyadh is the closest luxury hotel to the King Khalid International Airport - a mere 15-minutes drive away. It is also one of the only luxury hotels to be located in the northern part of the city. Salama Bin Saedan, owners representative, shared: It is with great pleasure that we announce the opening of Fairmont Riyadh. Riyadh is a vibrant and dynamic city, attracting business and leisure guests alike through its cosmopolitan appeal. The luxury hotel is set to become a popular destination through its unique design, unrivalled culinary options, diverse amenities and notable presence in Business Gate, a prominent development within Riyadh. Through our partnership with AccorHotels, we hope to ensure that the Fairmont Riyadh stands out as a luxurious gateway for business and leisure travellers from within the region and beyond." Sami Nasser, chief operating officer, AccorHotels Middle East & Africa, commented: We are delighted to debut our charismatic luxury brand in Riyadh which will offer guests an exciting and unforgettable experience. Through its thoughtful design and world-class amenities, we are confident that the Fairmont Riyadh will quickly become a destination in and of itself in a rapidly growing city. Fairmont Riyadh offers 298 guest rooms including 40 extraordinary suites that showcase the latest amenities as well as fine details of distinction for which Fairmont is world-renowned. Guestrooms, which range in size from 40-sq-m to 395-sq-m, feature rich tones and colours to contrast the warm desert climate while providing guests with breathtaking floor-to-ceiling views of Riyadh. Guests seeking a greater level of exclusivity, along with members of Le Club, AccorHotels loyalty program, can also enjoy the Fairmont Gold experience, which includes exclusive access to the private Gold lounge, dedicated check-in and check-out areas, meeting rooms and complimentary food and beverage options including breakfast, evening canapes and afternoon tea. Designed by world-renowned LW Designer Group, bespoke elements throughout the hotel focus on combining local culture with luxurious furnishings and textures. Fairmont Riyadh also features strong geometric patterns and unique design motifs to create a confident and modern atmosphere that establishes a distinctive sense of place. For meetings, events and conferences, Fairmont Riyadhs Convention Center offers two state-of-the-art ballrooms that can accommodate up to 1,500 guests each. The property also features 10 meeting rooms, each named after a prominent city in the Kingdom. Guests can indulge in enticing open kitchen dining concepts, reflecting the very best of local and international cuisines. Each exceptional restaurant presents an opportunity for guests to experience an unforgettable meal. The 365 offers exceptional opportunities for guests to experience unique meals, which are available all day and are inspired by nine international cuisines. Cafe Connect presents busy guests with a unique grab-and-go concept. House of Grill offers a fine-dining steak experience while Pesto brings the authentic flavours of southern Italy to the kingdom. The Plaza features the landmark Signature Savoy Lounge which offers delectable beverages and a high tea experience combined with homemade sweets. For guests looking to relax and rejuvenate, the hotel offers wellness facilities such as relaxation rooms, steam and sauna rooms and an indoor pool. The hotel also offers a special male-only spa and salon, Gentlemens Tonic. In a unique gesture, the hotel has introduced a private experience for female guests through the Ladies Lounge which is fitted with a pampering spa, ladies beauty salon and boutique gym. Located adjacent to the hotels guest rooms and suites, the Ladies Lounge is exclusively managed by experienced female staff to guarantee full privacy and comfort. For stays until March 31, guests can avail a special introductory offer for rooms starting at $440++ per night including breakfast for two. - TradeArabia News Service Rashmika Mandanna is one of the most desired, yet youngest actresses of the Southern film industry. She has always managed to be in the news be it for her brilliant acting skills, good looks and certain controversies. But, nothing can stop Rashmika from being the fans' favorite. Recently, her fans took to social media to share one of the good deeds she's involved in and said, they are extremely proud of her. The actress upon learning about this, said she's rather surprised. Read below to know more if you're wondering what we are talking about! Recently, some of her fans spotted her helping the needy. They captured the moment and shared it on social media. They said they are proud of Rashmika for having been involved in something so heart-warming and demanded her to give more details about the social service she's involved in. Kirik Party actress was rather surprised to know that her fans were aware of what she was doing. Reacting to this she said, " I was deeply hurt watching families suffer every day. These families have members suffering from cancer and poverty. I did what I felt was right. That's it". We couldn't be more proud of her either! MOST READ : Sankranti 2019 Special: Movies & Programs To Look Out For On Your Favorite Kannada Channels! Rashmika is extremely active on social media and has a huge fan following. Recently, she was also involved in a photoshoot that was organized for spreading awareness about conservation of the society. We wish the actress good luck and may she continue being involved in such social activities. As per a leading website, Bollywood's leading lady Deepika Padukone scores the highest brand value among Bollywood stars. By all accounts, the brand value of India's top celebrities and their level of engagement with a plethora of products and brands have been increasing over the years. Deepika Padukone has secured a top position and becomes the only Bollywood actress with a brand worth of $102.5 million leaving behind all male celebrities. In 2018, she is the undisputed leader among Bollywood celebrity brands and has truly emerged as the queen of Bollywood. The actress began the year with a bang with the magnum opus 'Padmaavat'. She not only won the hearts of the audience but also garnered rave reviews for her apt portrayal of Rani Padmini in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial. As her film Padmaavat entered the 300 crore club earlier this year, Deepika became the only actress to have shouldered a woman-led film to the coveted club. Munnabhai M.B.B.S Actor Vishal Thakkar Missing Since Last 3 Years; Cops Still Unable To Trace Him! She reclaimed her throne of the sexiest Asian Woman on the planet as the renowned UK based newspaper Eastern Eye crowned the actress in their annual list. Bagging the position for the second time in three years, Deepika Padukone has achieved the title soon after her marriage. Emerging as the only woman to win a spot in the top 5 list of the richest Indian celebrities by Forbes, Deepika Padukone has set new precedents. She is not only the highest paid actress in Bollywood currently but also the most commercially viable actress. Sizzling on the cover of GQ for the December edition, Deepika Padukone graced the first magazine after her wedding. The pictures have been soaring the temperatures owing to her oozing sexiness. Earlier in the year, the beautiful actress also featured in the TIME Magazine list of 100 most influential people in the world, Variety Magazine's International Women's Impact report amongst other accomplishments. Currently, Deepika Padukone is gearing up for her next film Chhapaak based on true story of acid attack survival directed by Meghna Gulzar. Chhapaak will be co-produced by her. If you have been hearing Asli hip hop from Gully Boy on repeat, then we have some great news for you. Makers of Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt starrer Gully Boy are all set to release the films second song, Apna time aayega tomorrow, January 14. Helmed by Zoya Akhtar and co-produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, Gully Boy is inspired from the lives of Mumbai street rappers Divine and Naezy. The films rap theme has already excited the youngsters across the nation excited and the tagline Apna Time Aayega was seen being used in film's kick-ass trailer. We are already so excited for it. Gully Boy marks Ranveer and Alias first outing together and from the looks of it, it already has blockbuster written all over it. The film also stars Kalki Koechlin and Siddhant Chaturvedi in important roles. All set for February 14 release, Gully Boy will also be premiered at the Berlin Film Festival on February 7, 2019. Category Select Category Apparel/Garments Textiles Fashion Technical Textiles Information Technology E-commerce Retail Corporate Association Press Release SubCategory Select Sub-Category A 5m government fund has opened to substantially reduce food waste from farm-to-fork as part of a multi-million pound pilot scheme. Food redistribution organisations in England will be able to bid into a 5 million pot to help them overcome the financial barrier to redistributing surplus food which is currently going to waste but which could be redistributed. Its the first part of a 15 million scheme announced last year by Defra Secretary Michael Gove to specifically address surplus food from farm-to-fork. Currently around 43,000 tonnes of surplus food is redistributed from retailers and food manufacturers every year. It is estimated a further 100,000 tonnes of food - equating to 250 million meals a year - is edible and readily available but goes uneaten. Instead, this food is currently sent away for generating energy from waste, anaerobic digestion, or animal feed. According to government statistics, 13 billion worth of food was wasted in the UK in 2015, approximately 7.3 million tonnes. Approximately one third of this waste stems from food producers, one third from retailers and one third from households. Surplus food The fund is open to organisations that receive surplus food to distribute to those who have a need in England. Applicants will need to show how they will help food businesses reduce their surplus in the long term. The new scheme follows governments 500,000 Food Waste Reduction Fund to support the substantial reduction of food waste throughout England. The government has also recently appointed philanthropist Ben Elliot as Food Surplus and Waste Champion to help promote awareness of the issue and help drive down food waste from all sources. Food businesses interested in redistributing surplus food can contact their local redistribution organisation to see how they can help. The grant closes on the 20 February 2019. Farmer commitment Farming organisations such as the NFU, Soil Association and AHDB have announced their support in cutting food waste. The NFU is encouraging farmers to play their part in tackling food waste in the supply chain. NFU President Minette Batters said: Farmers are the first step in the supply chain, producing the raw ingredients that make up the safe, traceable and affordable domestic food supply that helps to feed the nation. As food producers, farmers and growers have a clear role to play in this effort and it is encouraging to see many of our members already committing to cutting food waste in their businesses. Its very clear that a whole supply chain effort is required to effectively reduce our food waste and it is incredibly positive to see the entirety of the industry throw its weight behind this initiative. She added: The NFU is committed to sustainability and transparency, and will continue to engage with the industry to address the food waste challenge. by Aaron Hudson | Pacers Correspondent | Sun, Jan 13th 9:00am EST Jeremy Lamb had nine points, six boards, and three assists in Saturdays loss to Sacramento. He is struggling to get back to his early season form. The oil market is on the right track and the market will quickly return to balance, said Saudi Minister of Energy, Industry, and Petroleum Resources Khalid Al-Falih. In his remarks during the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Al-Falih said: "Demand growth remains healthy with forecasts in the 1.3 to 1.5 million barrels per day (MMBD) range, while supply is starting to reflect the impact of our adjustments (reached last month and are taking effect this month). "In fact, while the 1.2 MMBD cut came into effect only in January, secondary sources suggest that Opec production in December was already more than 600 (MBD) lower than November, the bulk of which is due to our own pre-emptive actions," he was quoted as saying by Wam news agency. Al-Falih noted that Saudi Arabia went beyond its commitment as it has lowered both production and exports, saying: "As the new 1.2 MMBD cut materialises, we should start to see the impact positively reflected in inventories, which is the key metric to watch. Looking at longer-term fundamentals, the healthy demand growth rate of the past several years is projected to continue into the future." The Saudi Energy Minister said that the global economic growth and prosperity will be predicated on the presence of a healthy and vibrant oil industry, operating in an environment which attracts the necessary investments that will ensure an equal amount of affordable and accessible oil supply is made available in a reliable and timely manner. In this regard, he said that "Saudi Arabia is committed to representing a central part of that reliable supply, as it has always done." The Saudi delegation to the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week includes a number of competent authorities in the fields of energy, industry and electricity to review future initiatives and projects to raise energy efficiency and develop new technologies to enhance sustainability in the kingdom. The kingdom is participating with an interactive pavilion, which includes 21 sectors, offering lectures and panel discussions on energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, Saudi Arabia's initiatives to localise electricity and related services, investment in the Kingdom, as well as the role of research and development for sustainability. The participation aims to shed light on Saudi Arabias role to achieve the goals of sustainable development and the measures taken to achieve them. Editors note: This story has been updated following Mondays vote. HELENA Hours before Montana lawmakers gaveled in the 2019 legislative session, Republicans appeared to have struck a deal on House rules. According to a draft of temporary House operating rules presented when representatives met on the floor at 1 p.m. Monday, lawmakers now require a simple majority vote to approve the House Speakers committee appointments. The temporary rules also tweak the number of votes needed to push bills out of committee and onto the House floor for debate. The motion passed along party lines, with Republicans supporting the motion and Democrats voting against it. The temporary rules expire at noon Friday, meaning lawmakers still have to strike a compromise to operate for the rest of the session. But the temporary motion marks a significant concession to the self-described Republican Solutions Caucus, which has been working to overhaul House rules ahead of the 66th session. On day one, Republicans are united and ready to get to work, said House Speaker Greg Hertz, R-Polson, at a press conference following the vote. The motion notes that the temporary operating rules will remain in effect until Friday, Jan. 11. Then theyll hammer away in the Rules Committee and see if they cant get [out] any of the kinks they disagree with on this one, said Rep. Llew Jones, R-Conrad. The Rules Committee is scheduled to meet at 9 a.m. Tuesday. A series of amendments to House Rules first emerged in December, and consideration devolved into a fight after the House Rules Committee adjourned without debating the changes. One of the major shake-ups would have prevented legislation from stalling in kill committees by allowing a simple majority 51 votes to blast bills out of committee and onto the House floor for a vote. Currently, such blast motions require a 60-vote supermajority. Democrats were not part of Mondays deal, according to House Minority Leader Casey Schreiner, D-Great Falls. They have come up with the majority solution to what they view as a problem, Schreiner told a gathering of House Democrats in the basement of the Capitol Monday morning. We were not part of that conversation. I got a call last night and I was told, We have a Republican solution were moving forward with. Schreiner also noted that he does not support the temporary motion. I went to the speaker this morning and did say, in full transparency, Were not on board with whatever their solution is, he said. Since Democrats werent at the table to negotiate the deal, Schreiner urged his caucus to vote no on the motion in todays floor hearing. The Solutions Caucus and House Democrats also pushed a change to the speakers authority before the session began specifically, the way he can stack committees with members who will likely table bills he doesnt like. Members have called these kill committees designed to keep bills from reaching the House floor. Mondays vote resolves that issue for now. Requiring a vote to approve committee appointments scales down the power of the speaker. In addition, the temporary rules require committee chairs to schedule hearings for all assigned bills. The temporary operating rules also address blast motions. Instead of requiring a simple majority vote, which Democrats support, moving legislation out of committee now requires the same number of votes as members in the majority caucus. For 2019, that means blast motions need 58 votes, since Republicans hold 58 seats in the body. Mondays temporary motion passed with 58 yes votes. Membership of the GOP Solutions Caucus remains unclear, but fissures in the Republican caucus emerged as early as 2007. Rep. Nancy Ballance, R-Hamilton, Rep. Ed Buttrey, R-Great Falls, and Jones have been among the most vocal supporters of House rules changes. House Majority Leader Brad Tschida, R-Missoula, has criticized the changes, saying they weaken the GOPs power at the statehouse. Leia Larsen is an award-winning reporter who has covered the environment and public policy in Colorado, Utah, and now the Montana capital. She has a master's degree in journalism from the University of Colorado Boulder. Contact her at llarsen@mtfp.org or (406) 465-3386. MTFP editor John S. Adams contributed to this report. The original story can be view at https://www.montanafreepress.org/on-the-first-day-of-the-2019-sessions-house-republicans-make-temporary-peace-over-rules/ Saudi Arabia aims to produce 60 gigawatts of renewable energy, including 40 GW from solar energy and 20 from wind and other sources by 2030, a senior official has said. Dr Khalid bin Saleh Al Sultan, president of the King Abdullah Atomic and Renewable Energy City, said in an interview with the Emirates News Agency Wam that there are plans to integrate the renewable energy network of the kingdom. He was on the sidelines of his participation in the 9th General Assembly of the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena), being held as part of the activities of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week. He also pointed out that Saudi Arabia is working, under the framework of the KSA Vision 2030 and the National Transformation 2020 Programme, on building a sustainable renewable energy sector, which includes relevant industries and services, the Saudisation of technologies, and training human resources, to find a balanced mix of fossil and alternative energy. He further added that Saudi Arabia has launched many national programmes, as part of the National Transformation 2020 Programme, with the aim of promoting the overall role of alternative energy. The meetings of Irenas general assembly will conclude today with the participation of presidents of countries, government leaders, and over 120 ministers and government representatives from 160 countries. The assembly discussed ways of accelerating the adoption of renewable energy to support the goals of sustainable development and climate. Laura Salazar helped Nora Balmer don a child-sized beekeepers suit, its arms trailing below her hands and hem dragging on the ground. Nora, 3, took a wooden-handled brush in her right hand, as Salazar demonstrated how she uses it on the brood boxes where she keeps bees at her home near Canyon Lake. Salazar, whose work includes humane removal and relocating of beehives, showed Nora and Jude Balmer, 5, the wax honeycombs in wooden frames that typically house bees, explaining that the bee home was empty because wasps attacked it. When Jude asked about bees attacking people, Salazar reminded him that youre much bigger than them, and encouraged him to think about it from the bees point of view. Teaching kids to think about bees as more than just their stings is vital, said Salazar, who spoke with adults and children alike about the importance of bees and her work as a beekeeper at San Antonios Friedrich Park on Saturday morning. Her daughter, Joaquina Guevara, and San Antonio Natural Areas Education Coordinator Nicole McLeod led kids through bee-themed art projects, while Salazar detailed the parts of the brood box and offered advice to current and aspiring beekeepers who attended the event. Without bees and other pollinators, like bats and birds, youd still have grass, but nothing with flowers, Guevara told Lillian Trevino, 3, and her mother, Jacque Trevino. Lillian used paint, crayons and markers to draw flowers that attract bees, entranced by the bright colors. Guevara, who works with her mother while shes home from college, answered Jacque Trevinos questions about bees while Lillian painted, explaining the differences between docile and aggressive bees and how to react if one lands on you. Jacque Trevino takes Lillian to as many outdoor activities as she can, she said, including the monthly educational events and guided hikes at San Antonios Natural Areas, like Friedrich Park. Thats partially to teach Lillian to understand nature and the environment and to appreciate it, she said. Its also to help conquer fears of things like bees and bats by learning about them, Trevino said. Salazar said that attitude is vital to encouraging people to protect animals, including bees. If you dont know about it, you dont care about it, she said. But once people learn about the importance of bees and their role in the ecosystem as pollinators, they will speak up for it. Stewart Blanton came to the park Saturday to talk to Salazar, seeking advice for the bee colony he keeps at his home in Castle Hills. After attending a beekeeping class two years ago, Blanton got his own materials and now estimates he has more than 30,000 bees, which travel up to three miles away from his home to pollinate. He harvested 50 pounds of honey last summer and expects to collect more this year as his colony has grown. Blanton said caring for the bees is very therapeutic, and he enjoys helping combat the decline in the bee population. To me, this is urgent work, Salazar said of saving bees and educating people about them. And while bees are important as pollinators, she wants more people to see that they have value just because theyre living creatures, too. We need to change how we take care of one another, she said. LTeitz@express-news.net SUGAR LAND The bearded face in the mugshot posted by Kurdish forces looked woefully familiar to Roxanne Bradford. Opposition forces in Syria captured Warren Christopher Clark also known as Abu Muhammad Al-Ameriki earlier this month and labeled him an ISIS combatant. But Bradford recognized the clean-shaven boy with the radiant smile shed known more than a decade ago at William P. Clements High School in Fort Bend County. It makes me super sad to see the road his life has traveled down, Bradford told the Houston Chronicle this week through social media. All I can say is he was just like the rest of us. Had friends. Did his thing. Smart. Laughed. Big ol smile. EX-SUBSTITUTE ARRESTED IN SYRIA: Former Fort Bend teacher reportedly captured among ISIS militants Ashley Sirman Eyer first met Clark years earlier at Colony Meadows Elementary in the pristine suburb where they grew up. He was really funny, very sweet and smart, Sirman Eyer said. Now Clark, 34, is likely facing transfer back to the U.S. where he could face federal terrorism charges. A former Fort Bend substitute teacher, Clark apparently applied for an English teaching position with ISIS a few years ago, according to records obtained by scholars at George Washington Universitys Program on Extremism. If charged, Clark would be the fourth person in recent years accused in Houston federal court with providing support to the terrorist group. Two Houston-area men were recently sentenced to prison in unrelated cases after pleading guilty to supporting ISIS, and the case against a third is pending. STUDENT ISIS RECRUIT: UH engineering student who tried to join ISIS in Syria sentenced to 18 months in federal prison On the stately tree-lined street where Clark grew up, the couple next door to his familys home said they were heartbroken for Clarks parents, both longtime secondary school teachers in the Houston ISD. A poinsettia wreath still adorned the front door, an American flag hung from the wood fence and an SUV in the driveway displayed a University of Houston sticker. But no one answered the door over several days and relatives in the Houston area and beyond have steered clear of the barrage of requests for comment. But Clarks father, Warren Anthony Clark, told The New York Times that his son is a humanitarian, and rejected the suggestion that his son could join ISIS. He said he learned from the news media about his sons capture after it was announced early Sunday by the Syrian Democratic Forces. My son would not be involved in anything along those lines, he told the Times. My son doesnt have an evil thought in his mind about hurting anyone. The accused ISIS supporter graduated from UH in 2007 and taught in Fort Bend, according to records from both institutions. His resume showed he put his teaching experience to use a few years later in Saudi Arabia and Turkey. And then he sent out a highly unusual inquiry, according to a groundbreaking 2018 report called The Travelers: American Jihadists in Syria and Iraq, from GWUs Program on Extremism. In a sunny professional tone, Clark crafted a cover letter requesting a job teaching English for ISIS. Waiting for the bell The Clarks raised their son and his younger sister in the Meadow at Crescent Lakes. The elder Clark told the Sugar Land planning and zoning commission in January 2016 that his children attended local schools before going to college, and that both planned to settle in Sugar Land. The meeting minutes recapped the fathers remarks as, Wants our city to stay as is. Clarks parents Warren, 69, and Betty, 65, taught at James Madison High School in southwest Houston until recently. His mother retired in 2017 after more than 30 years, and worked with special needs students, according to neighbors who asked to remain anonymous. Clarks father had 35 years of experience as an associate social studies teacher and worked with Houston ISD through at least 2013, according to state records. Neighbors said they believed both of Clarks parents had been in the military and they claimed a disabled-veteran exemption for their elegant two-story brick home.. As a teenager, the younger Warren was a practicing Muslim. He belonged to the high schools Muslim Students Association, according to classmate Haseeb Jan, who rode the bus to school with him. Puja Patel, another 2003 graduate, remembered sitting and joking with Clark and her then-boyfriend while waiting for the morning school bell to ring. Clark focused on his schoolwork at Clements High, a top-ranked suburban school where many students go on to become doctors, educators, lawyers and captains of industry. It was the kind of place where students policed their own cheating, broke up fights in the hall and did a lackluster job of cutting on senior skip day, according to Leonard Chan, who was on the student council and remembered seeing Clark in the cafeteria. He was polite and reserved, other Clements alumni recalled. Former classmate Curtis R. Waldo said Clark never showed an affinity to radical ideas. He didnt seem especially devout or have fiery political convictions. But Waldo thought Clark may have easily swayed. I dont know if naive is the right word, but its not shocking to me that this happened to him, Waldo said. Knowing what I know now, I can see other people influencing him and getting him riled up. Application to ISIS On the resume recovered from a house in Mosul, Syria, Clark noted that he majored in political science and minored in global business at UH, details that were confirmed by a university spokesperson. Dr. Emran El-Badawi, program director and associate professor of Middle Eastern Studies at UH, did not know Clark and has not found anyone in his circles who knew Clark back then. El-Badawi said young people who become radicalized tend to break away from the mainstream and many learn about ISIS online. People are brainwashed, he said. Theyre totally in a bubble and they believe things that are fundamentally different and disconnected from this reality. After college, Clark worked as a substitute teacher at Fort Bend ISD from August 2008 to November 2010, according to the district. He later moved to teaching stints in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and Konya, Turkey, according to the resume, which ends in June 2015. Clark appears to have posted on Facebook about his experiences in Syria after his arrival there in the summer of 2014, following the official declaration of a Caliphate by ISIS leadership in June 2014, according to Seamus Hughes, deputy director of GWUs extremism program and a co-author of the report. A Twitter account that matched Clarks email handle began in August 2014 and ended six months later on Feb. 7, 2015. The owner of the Twitter page tried to debunk a number of myths about ISIS and noted the irony of the US criticizing ISIS for setting people on fire after Americans had dropped napalm on civilians during the Vietnam War. Hughes, who has meticulously tracked the cases of alleged ISIS recruits in the U.S., said court documents and testimony in other cases indicate there is a standard procedure for joining ISIS in Syria, including filling out a form that asks what weapons you are capable of using, whether you have any slaves in your possession and your specialty before jihad. Recruits usually undergo three weeks of sharia or religious training and then three more weeks of military training before being given an assignment, Hughes said. His program has identified 73 people who have made the trip to Syria to join ISIS. The FBI estimates that nearly 300 U.S. residents have traveled or attempted to travel to Syria to join ISIS. Support for the Caliphate David Schanzer, director of the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security at Duke University, said his research shows that the vast majority of ISIS recruits dont last there for very long. Even if the number was correct, a pretty high percentage have probably died or escaped, blurred into the civilian population, slipped back into Turkey (or) are in a refugee camp in Jordan - leaving very few U.S. fighters actually on the battlefield, Schanzer said. These guys are picked up in a battle or raid, and they dont have much on them in terms of documentation. Clark was captured along with four other foreign nationals by the Syrian rebel forces, according to the SDF announcement. Hughes said he was contacted by someone who claimed to have met Clark three years earlier at a prison run by the Islamic State in Raqqa, Syria. The man said Clark was incarcerated by Islamic State police because he was trying to defect, and described him as a bit crazy. The man then left the prison without knowing what became of Clark. Hughes said Clark appeared more interested in helping support the Caliphate than joining the fight. In that time frame, many of the American recruits were going to the Islamic State state to build what they saw as an Islamic utopia, Hughes said, and were less drawn to the overly violent aspects of it that we see on the nightly news. Staff writer Jacob Carpenter contributed to this report. Gabrielle Banks covers federal court for the Houston Chronicle. Send her tips at gabrielle.banks@chron.com and follow her on Twitter. The Emirates Authority for Standardisation and Metrology (ESMA) has announced that the UAE is currently developing a regional regulation for air-conditioning systems with regard to energy consumption in the GCC countries. According to Abdulla Al Maeeni, ESMA director-general, this regulation will be in cooperation with the Gulf Standardisation Organization (GSO) and will be inspired by its UAE counterpart in this regard, which has proved a remarkable success in energy conservation. This comes at a time when the UAE system of energy conservation in the domestic and commercial air conditioners sector has achieved remarkable success and became mandatory in the country in 2013, with a savings rate of about 30 percent, in line with global trends, said a Wam news agency report. The energy consumption is consistent with the objectives of the National Agenda 2021, in terms of sustainable development indicators and environmental protection efforts, especially in the Sustainable Environment Index. Al Maeeni said that technical studies indicate that about 70 percent of the total electricity consumption in the country is in the operation of air conditioning, cooling and ventilation. These technical regulations have contributed to the protection of the consumer, the environment, the UAE market and the strengthening of the national economy through the development of the standards sector and standardisation activities, in line with the efforts to provide the highest quality products and services in the market. The ESMA has been contributing effectively to the provision of safety and health, and environmental and consumer protection in the country, by meeting the needs of the strategic partners by preparing, adopting, reviewing and issuing technical standards and regulations in different sectors, he added. The UAE has realised the importance of the role played by standards, especially as the country has become a major global trade centre, he stated. Al Maeeni pointed out that ESMA is the sole reference authority in the country for all specifications, standards and quality. It also aims to support the economy by ensuring the quality of industry with national and local production of goods and other materials to enable them to compete with other industries. In the last year, the authority issued nearly 19 million energy efficiency labels for water, vehicle tyres, paints and varnishes as part of a package of comprehensive programmes to increase efficient energy consumption in electrical appliances used and traded in the local markets. The energy efficiency labels are one of the ESMAs projects, announced four years ago, in order to raise the efficiency of the devices used and achieve a reduction in the rates of electricity consumption. This has been reflected in the consequent reduction in the levels of pollution in the environment. The five labels start from one star to five stars, and carry the most efficient five-star card devices, the report said. WASHINGTON - When President Donald Trump made a rare journey to the U.S. Capitol last week, he was expected to strategize about how to end the government shutdown he instigated. Instead, he spent the first 20-odd minutes delivering a monologue about "winning." "We're winning" on North Korea, the president told Republican senators at a closed-door luncheon last Wednesday. "We're winning" on Syria and "we're winning" on the trade war with China, too. And, Trump concluded, they could win on immigration if Republicans stuck together through what is now the longest federal government shutdown in U.S. history, according to officials who attended the presidential pep talk. The problem was that Trump offered no path to victory - other than brinkmanship. Talks between the two parties remain stalled this weekend after the president torpedoed his last negotiating session with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., by walking out of the room. With Trump determined to deliver on his signature campaign promise of building a wall and Democrats standing firm against what they view as an immoral and ineffective solution to illegal immigration, there is no end in sight to the dysfunction. Trump was nevertheless confident on Saturday about his handling of the standoff. "I do have a plan on the Shutdown," he tweeted. "But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised safety and security for the American people." The president who pitched himself to voters as a world-class dealmaker has proven to be an unreliable negotiator. Grappling for the first time with divided government, Trump has contradicted himself, sent miscues and spread falsehoods. He has zigzagged between proudly claiming ownership of the shutdown to blaming it on Democrats, and between nearly declaring a national emergency to construct the wall without congressional approval to backing off such a legally and politically perilous action. As Washington braced for a snowstorm on Saturday morning, Trump was hunkered down in his private quarters at the White House tweeting taunts to Democrats. "I am in the White House waiting for you!" he wrote in one message. The president claimed in another that there was no chaos in his administration - "In fact, there's almost nobody in the W.H. but me," he wrote - and argued that the onus was on Democrats to buckle and agree to fulfill his demand for $5.7 billion in wall funding. Yet this remains a fight of a stubborn president's choosing. The government could reopen if Trump agreed to sign legislation funding the government, versions of which already have passed both chambers of Congress, and table the polarizing debate over border security. In the weeks leading up to December's deadline to fund the government, Trump was warned repeatedly about the dangers of a shutdown but still opted to proceed, according to officials with knowledge of the conversations. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., told the president that he had no leverage and that, without a clear strategy, he would be "boxed in a canyon." He tried to make the case to Trump that even if Pelosi and Schumer were interested in cutting a deal with him, they would be constrained from compromising because of internal Democratic Party pressures to oppose Trump's wall, these officials said. Then-House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., talked with Trump by phone for 45 minutes the day before the shutdown, warning that he saw no way to win as he paced in a Capitol hallway just outside a conference room where House Republicans were meeting. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy warned about the perils of a shutdown during the Christmas season. Inside, some of the more hard-line members urged a showdown over border wall funding, arguing that Trump's core supporters would revolt otherwise. But then-House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., asked, "Tell me what happens when we get into a shutdown? I want to know what our next move is." A senior White House official characterized Republican leaders as "supportive" throughout the shutdown. Trump's advisers are scrambling to build an exit ramp while also bracing for the shutdown to last weeks longer. Current and former aides said there is little strategy in the White House, and people are frustrated and, in the words of one, "freaking out." The shutdown was born out of frustration. Angry that he was stymied by party leaders and his own aides from getting more money for the wall in 2018, rattled by conservative criticism and stung by his party's midterm defeats, Trump decided in late December to plunge into a border fight after being encouraged by Reps. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., and Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, both hard-line conservatives. It was a startling decision to McConnell and others, who thought they had White House assurances a shutdown would be avoided. "He has no choice here," said Newt Gingrich, a Trump supporter who was House speaker during the second-longest shutdown in the Clinton administration, an episode widely viewed as a disaster for Republicans. "He has to win. His entire reputation, his entire relationship with the base, it's all a function of being committed on big things and not backing down. If he backs down on this, Pelosi will be so emboldened that the next two years will be a nightmare." As the shutdown dragged on, aides said, Trump has bragged that he looked "tough" and that his supporters had his back. He has viewed the past three weeks more as a hour-to-hour public relations fight than as a painstaking legislative negotiation, trying to sway opinion with a prime time Oval Office address and a high-profile trip to Texas to survey the U.S.-Mexico border. "He is determined, as he has been from Day One, not to break faith with the people who brought him to the presidency," said William Galston, a senior fellow in governance at the Brookings Institution. "I've never seen a president who is more indifferent to expanding his appeal." Trump has exhibited more determination than calculation. Over the holidays, he inhabited the White House largely alone, tweeting out his demands and grievances. Several senior West Wing officials described the building as a "ghost town" or a "no man's land." Only after Christmas did administration officials begin realizing the full scale of the logistical problems a prolonged shutdown would cause. Aides said Trump has been largely uninterested in the minutiae of managing government agencies and services. During negotiation sessions, Trump's attention has veered wildly. At one such meeting with Pelosi and Schumer in the White House Situation Room earlier this month, the president went on a long diatribe about unrelated topics. He trashed the Iran nuclear deal, telling Democrats they should give him money for the wall since they gave President Barack Obama money for the agreement with Tehran. He boasted about his wisdom in ordering the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Syria. And he raised the specter of impeachment, accusing Pelosi of wanting to try to force him from office - which she denied. Eventually, he was moved back to the budget talks. During last week's Senate lunch, Trump praised his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un while delineating his foreign policy accomplishments. "I don't know why I get along with all the tough ones and not the soft ones," he quipped, referring to dictators and allies, according to attendees. Also at the lunch, Trump asked Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel to stand up for applause and thanked Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., for supporting him on TV. He obliquely knocked the late senator John McCain for not voting to repeal the Affordable Care Act, attendees said. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., warned Trump that declaring a national emergency could set a precedent for Democrats to follow on other issues, should they win the White House. But Trump assured them he would win reelection in 2020. Vice President Mike Pence, after being roasted by critics last month for sitting idly during Trump's contentious televised meeting with Pelosi and Schumer, jumped into the negotiations in recent weeks, doing what one of his longtime allies described as a "reimagining" of his dutiful and low-key approach. But Pence's efforts were challenged from the start as his initial pitch to Senate Democrats - where he floated lowering the demand from $5.7 billion for wall funds - was dismissed by Trump days later, even though Pence delivered the offer at the president's behest. Still, Pence, whose aides say has a preternatural calm, shifted and became a salesman for the president's position and worked to lay the groundwork for possible executive action. Democratic aides, however, were irritated by Pence's dogged emphasis on a crisis during last weekend's talks and the administration's lack of preparation on the exact numbers of its requests. "They're sitting there going, 'Where are the numbers? What is going on here?'" said a senior House Democratic aide briefed on the discussions. Some White House officials privately groused that meetings were pointless and believed it was beneath the office of the vice president to negotiate with congressional staffers. Exasperated, a small group of Republican lawmakers tried to determine a way out last week. Led by Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, they met Wednesday in Graham's office with White House legislative affairs director Shahira Knight and senior adviser and Trump son-in-law Jared Kushner, discussing a broader immigration deal that could include protections for undocumented children in exchange for $5.7 billion in wall funding. Graham saw an opening to broker an accord between Trump, whom he had come to call a friend, and Senate GOP moderates who were urging aggressive steps to reopen the government. Following the passage of criminal-justice reform legislation that he championed, Kushner carried himself with the confidence of a White House chief of staff, according to congressional aides. One GOP senator, who requested anonymity to speak candidly, said he appreciated Kushner's "good attitude" but said that senators "really doubt whether he can do anything" to convince Trump to soften his hard-line tactics and back a bipartisan immigration deal. After meeting with McConnell last Thursday, Graham and three colleagues - Sens. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska - presented their plan to Pence. He then relayed the idea to Trump, who was flying to Texas for his border tour. But the president said no. Pence then told Graham and Alexander that Trump appreciated their proposal but was not interested in re-opening the government until the Democrats were willing to negotiate on the wall. "I have never been more depressed about moving forward than I am right now," Graham told reporters that afternoon. He then walked off, muttering: "I'm going to the gym." The next day, Graham called for drastic measures: "It is time for President Trump to use emergency powers." - - - The Washington Post's Damian Paletta, Sean Sullivan and Erica Werner contributed to this report. San Antonios office market still heavily favors the Northwest Side, figures show but the center city is catching up. Workers, particularly millennials, increasingly want to live in an urban, walkable environment with plenty of nearby stores, restaurants and gyms. Thats forcing area employers to consider office space downtown if they want to attract top-tier talent, real estate analysts and brokers say. Those dynamics promise to bring downtown San Antonio into greater competition with the Northwest Side, historically the citys hottest office market. A decade ago, you would sit down with a San Antonio corporate user and say, OK, what submarket do you want to be in? said Christi Griggs, first vice president at commercial real estate services firm CBRE. And there was usually a very specific answer. It was, I want to be Northwest where middle-income housing is. I want to be North Central where the airport is or I want to be (downtown) because the courthouse is there. That answer isnt that simple anymore. Griggs added, Now, when you sit down with office users and corporate users, the comment from them is, We want to be where theres a lot of activity, theres a mixed-use vibe and where we can attract young professionals. And thats occurring all over the city. The Northwest Side dominated the San Antonio office market last year, according to figures provided by CBRE. The area accounted for nearly 80 percent of the citys net absorption, or how much office space became occupied in 2018. Thats because much of the citys office-building construction had been completed on the Northwest Side, which meant it was ready for tenants to move in, Griggs said. But nearly 1.4 million square feet of office space is under construction in San Antonio, of which more than 600,000 or 44 percent is in downtown proper. The citys North Central office submarket, which includes the River North area and Broadway corridor, accounts for 47 percent. Compare that with the Northwest Side, where about 94,000 square feet is in the works. It has been decades since the activity level downtown superseded that of the burbs, said Peter French, development director at GrayStreet Partners, which has a number of projects downtown. But the Northwest Side has seen a surge of middle-income housing growth in recent years, sparked by cheaper land prices and lower barriers to development. Its home to the South Texas Medical Center the backbone of the citys health care industry as well the University of Texas at San Antonios main campus and headquarters for USAA, Valero Energy Corp. and NuStar Energy. Those factors make the Northwest Side an attractive target for new office tenants and high-end developments such as Fulcrum Developments Landmarkone project near the intersection of Interstate 10 and Loop 1604, which is leasing 167,000 square feet of class A office space. Among the companies that moved to the Northwest Side last year was San Antonio-based Inspired eLearning, a security and compliance training company. The firm had outgrown its space at the Spectrum Building near North Star Mall on the citys North Side, said Kristen Parry, the companys director of human resources. Inspired eLearning looked downtown but couldnt find a space that could accommodate the companys growth or had enough parking for its 60 employees, Parry said. In September, the company moved into a 13,000-square-foot space at Lockhill Crossing at 4630 N. Loop 1604. Parry said the location was easily accessible for its workers, and close to stores and restaurants at The Rim shopping center and The Shops at La Cantera. But, more than anything, the space was ready to move into. We didnt want to wait another year or something to get in, Parry said. But a slew of developments has promised a new era of interest in downtown office space, and to balance competition between the Northwest and inner-city office markets. USAA has promised to move 2,000 jobs to the One Riverwalk Center and 300 Convent buildings. The new 23-floor Frost Tower developed by Weston Urban will open this year with 460,000 square feet of office and retail space the first new downtown office tower since 1989. UTSA is planning a $200 million expansion of its downtown campus, partially financed by a $15 million grant from developer Graham Weston. A wave of housing development has also hit downtown since 2010. At least 6,500 residential units have been added to the downtown area in the last decade, fueled by a pair of city housing incentives programs that subsidized market-rate housing downtown. In December, City Council approved changes to the programs that allowed for more affordable housing. Its paying dividends, Chuck King, managing director for commercial real estate broker JLL, said of the incentives programs. Were getting critical mass. Were getting people living in those areas, and the employers want to be in those areas. The office market is following the residents. Local developer Hixon Properties is partnering with the Cavender auto-dealership family on The Soto, a six-floor, 140,000-square-foot office building at 711 Broadway. King is the propertys leasing agent. Pearl developer Silver Ventures is building a two-tower complex on Broadway that will house San Antonio-based credit union Credit Humans new headquarters and provide office space for Bank of America and other tenants. In June, San Antonio-based Jefferson Bank bought 1.7 acres near the Pearl, where it plans to move its headquarters from Loop 410 on the Northeast Side and build up to 200,000 square feet of office space. Zachry Construction is planning a $200 million mixed-use project at Hemisfair that will include an eight-story office tower. Downtown developer GrayStreet Partners plans to begin work this year on a 20-story tower on Broadway near the Pearl, which will have four stories of office space. GrayStreet is also renovating the historic San Antonio Light building which it bought from Express-News parent company Hearst in 2016 into 148,000 square feet of office space. French said GrayStreet has lined up two full-floor tenants at the Light building: San Antonio architecture firm Ford, Powell and Carson, and WebTPA, an Irving-based company that deals with health care benefits administration. These are firms that recognize the fact that having people in a walkable, urban environment is a lot more attractive to employees these days than being out in the burbs in a single-use office building where theyd have to drive to get lunch or to go the gym or to do anything else, French said. San Antonios lack of downtown office space has been a barrier for economic development leaders in the past. Amazon needed up to 8 million square feet of office space for its highly sought-after HQ2 within a decade which the local office market couldnt meet when the bid came out in 2017. City and county officials ultimately opted not to bid for the headquarters in part because of the shortage of downtown office space. Much of the office space under construction downtown is being built speculatively, or without tenants already secured when construction begins, Griggs said. About 20 percent of the space in development along the Broadway corridor is speculative, CBRE figures show. But developers are optimistic that decades without office construction downtown and the areas price competitiveness compared with Austins office market will help that speculation pay off. That has created pent-up demand, and the market really needed to sort of get over that hump to reopen, French said. And were there now. Joshua Fechter is a San Antonio-based staff writer covering real estate, economic development and philanthropy. Read him on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | jfechter@express-news.net | Twitter: @JFreports Mrs. Lura Lee Swanner Andrews, 92, of Athens, Alabama, went home to be with the Lord on Monday, June 14, 2021. Mrs. Andrews was born September 9, 1928, in Limestone County to Eugene Lee Swanner and Hattie Lee Edwards Swanner. She was born and raised in the Elkmont area and was the only gradu To build the largest and most complete Amateur Radio community site on the Internet - a "portal" that hams think of as the first place to go for information, to exchange ideas, and be part of whats happening with ham radio on the Internet. eHam.net provides recognition and enjoyment to the people who use, contribute, and build the site. This project involves a management team of volunteers who each take a topic of interest and manage it with passion. The site will stand above all other ham radio sites by employing the latest technology and professional design/programming standards, developed by a team of community programmers who contribute their skills to the effort. The site will be something of which everyone involved can be proud to say they were a part. We welcome your comments. The eHam.net Team, Revision 07/2020. This is racist crisis that we always expected and Trump needs Before James Comey decided to make Donald Trump president, the GOP nominees refusal to say he would concede if defeated occupied much of our political conversation in the closing month of the 2016 election. Since his party suffered its biggest House losses since Watergate, this fear has proven correct. Donald Trump is showing with the struggle over the wall that he doesnt know how to lose, Steven Levitsky, co-author of How Democracies Die, told MSNBCs Joy Reid. And hes willing to violate democratic norms and maybe democratic rules to get what he wants. Taking a defeat is the ultimate acceptance of the legitimacy of a government. Trumps life of refusing service, defrauding taxpayers and even mocking charitable giving with a criminal foundation demonstrated that he has no respect for this country or its laws. Allowing him to assume all the power in the world and expecting this disregard for his fellow citizens to change is the definition of delusion. Trumps refusal to accept the magnitude of his midterm loss began the morning after polls closed, when he illegally installed an acting attorney general who was publicly plotting to shut down the Mueller probe. But the shutdown has made it clear how far hes willing to go. The longest partial government shutdown in American history isnt a shutdown about nothing. Its about the only thing Trump has left racist symbolism. Its Barack Obamas birth certificate as a $25 billion budget item. There is some strategy here. Every time Trump has seemed cornered, he has retreated into race baiting. And this ended up working in 2016, thanks to the aforementioned Comey, Putins considerable donations to his campaign and millions of Obama voters either staying home or voting third party. Greg Sargent lays out why Trump has to keep escalating, politically, despite the costs: The content of this emergency is obvious, and the wall is central to it, but not in the way Trump claims. Trumps wall is his most important unfulfilled campaign promise, but its also a talisman for everything that Trumpism embodies and a chief source of his bond with his base, which he will need as his legal and political travails mount. Sargent suggests the declaration of a national emergency may be the only option Trump has left for bailing himself out. Trump has taken similar leaps towards authoritarianism with the Muslim ban and family separation. The courts hemmed him in slightly, keeping him within what has become Americas excessive tolerance for executive branch authoritarianism. But this shutdown itself shows a major breach of the conventions of American governance. The wall is unpopular, as unpopular as Trump. He sold it on a lie. Republicans just suffered a massive electoral rejection. Some compare this to Obama shutting down the government to expand the individual mandate after losing the House in 2010. But this is worse than that. Its what we feared or expected. Its Trump ginning up a crisis that feeds almost exclusively on racism and Nazi-like smears and using it as an excuse to smash through the checks in our system. Its potentially a Reichstag fire even though theres not even a flame in sight. And its coming right as the checks on him are about to become more real and his criminal conspiracy with Putin is becoming too obvious to ignore. The actual policies that would enable Trumps wall mass confiscation of private lands, wasteful government spending and a complete rejection of Congress role in governance are the Mt. Rushmore of what conservatives used to pretend to be against (at least while there were Republicans in control of Congress during a Democratic presidency). Mitch McConnell could end this shutdown today. Thes GOP willingness to go along with this hoax, much as theyve gone along with his attempts to undermine any investigation in the worst attack on our democracy in American history, suggests that we are miles before Republicans might decide they dont want to bet our country on a guy who couldnt keep a casino his dad bought him open. Trump has lost this wall debate. But his refusal to accept any loss and the Republican partys willingness to abet his assaults on our democracy are our national emergency. If your car drives off the road, your house catches fire, or your ex is pounding too loudly on your door in Wheeler County, know this: Its li Business France, a French business promotion agency, will be hosting two national pavilions featuring 18 companies at the upcoming Intersec Dubai, the largest international meeting platform for the security and safety industry. The event runs from January 20 to 22 at Dubai World Trade Centre. Middle Eastern countries are particularly attractive markets for the security sector and are expected to grow by about 10 per cent per year over the period 2018-2022. French security sector represents a turnover of 29 billion euros ($33 billion) (CoFIS 2016 data), split between physical equipment and platforms (10.8 billion euros), electronic and digital products (12.5 billion euros), cybersecurity products and services (5.7 billion euros). The industrial heart represents 151,000 jobs, 4,000 companies, 50 per cent of which export their products. The sector is home to a number of major corporations, undisputed leaders in their sectors, along with a large number of SMEs and middle-market companies in highly-specialised sectors such as digital security, anti-fraud, communication, connected objects, video-surveillance, detection, fire-fighting, protection equipment and specialist vehicles. French security industries are part of a crucial very high added value sector with technical skills recognised abroad and are among the most efficient in terms of exports. For instance, export sales for the industrial security sector, which includes 13 French multinational companies, amount to 13 billion euros. TradeArabia News Service Where are the best places to shop? Who gives the best haircut? Who cooks the best burger? Join our readers in selecting the "Best of Windham." Make your picks! Greenore Coast Guard and Irish Coastguard helicopter Rescue 116 were called out to the Cooley mountains in north Louth this afternoon to airlift a hillwalker with a suspected ankle injury. The injured party was removed from the scene. That rescue came after the PSNI had warned hillwalkers to exercise extreme caution on the Mourne Mountains today due to strong winds, with several reports of incidents in the region. Inspector Frances McCullough said: "Our officers, along with other emergency services, are currently involved in three rescues following reports of fallen walkers earlier today. "As we continue to deal with these incidents, I would appeal to anyone thinking of venturing out for a walk on the mountains this afternoon, or indeed at any time, to think carefully before they head out. "While weather conditions may seem okay when you start out on your journey, they can change very quickly as you venture upwards on the mountains. "I would also appeal to anyone considering a walk on the mountains to ensure they tell their loved ones where they are going, what route they intend to take and how long they expect to be away, and to always carry identification with them and a phone that is fully charged." POTTSBORO [ndash] Thelma Irene Toney passed away on June 11, 2021, in Denison, Texas. She was born on Feb. 28, 1924, in Francis, Oklahoma to John Franklin and Essie Akins Scroggins. She attended grade school at Cedar Grove School and then attended and graduated from Francis High School. She Former Birmingham Mayor Larry Langford, who died in late December, was for many years a high-profile mover-and-shaker in Birmingham political circles. Until the hammer came down, that is. Since 2010, Langford was an inmate resident of a federal prison in Kentucky, serving time for public corruption. His sentence ran into 2025, when Langford would be 78 years old. As his health declined, family members and notably, a number of elected officials lobbied for his compassionate release, which was initially denied. Ultimately, his sentence was reduced to time served in December, and he was brought back to Alabama, where he died in a Birmingham hospital. Langfords release raises philosophical questions about the justice system, particularly as the inmate population ages. There are matters of compassion to consider, as well as the hard realities of medical costs, which would fall to the state while an ill inmate is in custody. But there is also justice to consider. The number of usufruct agreements signed by the Special Economic Zone in Duqm (SEZD) in 2018 increased to 70, according to a report. The agreements covered a number of sectors, such as industrial, residential and commercial, logistics, tourism and fisheries activities. The number of companies registered at the Commercial Register of the SEZD increased to 186, an increase by 17 companies compared to 2017, an Oman News Agency report quoting a recent report published by the Investors Services Division at the SEZD. The "Economic Vision" programme aired by Oman TV pointed out in a recent report that over the past year, SEZD has created 775 jobs. It added that Duqm Refinery Company has initiated the construction works for the three packages. The contracts were distributed to three contractors due to the big size of the project and to ensure speedy delivery. The company has completed the feasibility study for a petrochemical project and it is now in the initial engineering works stage before floating the project tender. The tourism activity in Duqm Hotel picked up by 15 per cent in 2018 due to the operation of Duqm Airport in the same year. Dr Ismail bin Ahmed Al-Balushi, Deputy CEO of the Special Economic Zone Authority in Duqm (Sezad) said in statements to Economic Vision programme that the high-quality infrastructure in the zone encourages many investors to invest. He added that the port-related projects are in the final stage and that in 2020, Duqm Port will start full operation. As for the infrastructure, he pointed out that 90 per cent of the port-related projects, protection works, the dam, the discharge channels, road and others have been already completed and that by the end of 2019, the infrastructure will be completed. On the Sino-Oman Industrial City in Duqm, which is expected to draw more than $10 billion investment by 2022, he said that after signing the agreement with the Chinese investor, a team has been formed to follow up and supervise the project directly. A senior official of Oman Wanfang pointed out that construction works are underway in two buildings for the Sino-Oman Industrial City in Duqm and that the company has completed the layouts and designs of the city. Eng Said bin Hamoud al-Ma'awali, CEO of Oman Drydock Company, said the company achieved the best financial performance in 2018 thanks to the growth in the number of vessels by 30 per cent compared to 2017. He added that the drydock can receive up to 200 vessels per annum with expansion plans in the pipeline to increase the capacity beyond 200 vessels. The Hesed Project is the name of this mission and Hesed means loving kindness in Hebrew. The only reason we go to Israel is to show loving kindness to the Jewish people and to let them know they are loved and supported by the Christian community in the United States. And since the word Christian has different meanings to different people, Im talking about those who love and believe the Holy Scriptures to be Gods inspired, infallible, inerrant unchanging truth. Nothing added and nothing taken away. God created the Jewish nation to be his representatives to show his love and his mercy and just because they havent done his will as of yet changes nothing. God promised to bless those who bless Israel and that he would curse those who curse Israel and that hasnt changed either and since God never changes, his word never changes. I have been going to Kaplan Medical Center every year since and will return again in March of this year for another two-week period. Not to evangelize, not to talk about my religion, but just to show my love and in return Gods love for his people. Ive heard before that the best sermons are those without words and I can attest that is true. We just want to be the face of Jesus to the Jewish people and I can tell you for a fact that its working -- not by what we say but by what we do. Bethel Baptist Church in Dothan will host weekly meetings of the support group GriefShare on Wednesdays starting Jan. 16 and continuing until April 17. The group will meet from 6-7:30 p.m. in the churchs Family Life Center, room 502. GriefShare is for people who are grieving the death of someone close to them. Participants may begin attending at any point in the course. Each session is self-contained, so you do not have to attend in sequence. You will be able to make up any missed sessions in the next 13-week cycle. The Jan. 16 meeting will focus on loss of a spouse. Bethel Baptist Church is located at 3257 E. Cottonwood Road. For more information, contact Kathy Stumbaugh at 334-792-5908 or kathyg.stumbaugh@gmail.org. You can also visit www.griefshare.org. Thank you for reading! We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content. As news emerged of the sudden passing of Diane Gallagher from Carrick, West Laghey in Beaumont Hospital there was shock and sadness in Laghey, Ballintra and in Donegal Town where Diane was the popular assistant manager in the Market House Restaurant in the Abbey Hotel. Diane took ill on Thursday last and was rushed to Beaumount Hospital in Dublin where she succumbed from her short illness on Saturday evening. Diane has spent practically all her working life in the Abbey Hotel - 23 years in total - and was a popular host to the many guests that came through the doors as well as the whole local community. Diane celebrated her birthday just before Christmas and just last Sunday she was in the restaurant ensuring that all the local ladies enjoyed their Nollaig na mBan celebrations. Funeral arrangements to be announced later. May she rest in peace. Top Products Best Quad Core Mobile Phones in India Best Quad Core Mobile Phones in India Team Digit | Price Updated on 16-Jun-2021 ByPrice Updated on 16-Jun-2021 If you are looking for Best Quad Core Mobile Phones in India, there are a lot of options to choose from. With the rise in availability & usage of data intensive services, in terms of online gaming, music, videos etc., both carriers & mobile phone manufacturers are left to catch up to the speeds as required from current generation of mobile phone users. This is the list of best phones selected from the wide assortment of brands & phones that can cater to most of your requirements in terms of both connectivity & desired features. Although the prices of the products mentioned in the list given below have been updated as of 16th Jun 2021, the list itself may have changed since it was last published due to the launch of new products in the market since then. Azimut Group, one of Europes leading independent asset manager, has signed an agreement with independent alternative asset management group Rasmala to acquire 100 per cent of its Egyptian subsidiary. Rasmala Egypt, founded in 1997, specialises in conventional and shariah compliant portfolio management in Egypt with AUM (asset under management) of E8.46 billion ($474 million) as of November 2018, with a strong expertise in equity strategies (85 per cent of total AUM). Following the successful takeover, Rasmala Egypt will be renamed Azimut Egypt Asset Management, said a statement from the top European asset manager. The company has a high quality team of portfolio managers and analysts, headed by Ahmed Abou El Saad out of Cairo, with 10 investment professionals managing a range of strategies embedded in public funds and mandates for local sovereign institutions, international sovereign wealth funds, pension plans, public banks and HNWI, said a statement from Azimut. The teams track record includes periods of extended instability and volatility for local markets with an overall 624 per cent accumulated returns over the period 2005-June 2018 in local currency, well above 537 per cent for EGX 30 and 324 per cent on average for local funds. As of 2017 the Arab Bank Corporation Equity Fund, managed by Rasmala Egypt, ranked first for 3, 5 and 6 years performance, it stated. Egypt is the largest economy in Northern Africa with a 95 million population and a GDP-PPP adjusted of $ 1.1 trillion as of 2017 (21st largest in the world). Following the flotation of its currency in 2016, Egypt has embarked on a significant home-grown economic reform program supported by IMF and some neighbouring countries to rebalance its economy and set the fundamentals for one of the most attractive growth stories in the region and across global emerging markets, it added. Giorgio Medda, the head of Mena and Turkey at Azimut (DIFC) Limited, said: "The investment in Egypt confirms our commitment in expanding our Mena and Turkey regional footprint which will see Azimut as the first global asset manager with investment teams on the ground in Dubai, Cairo and Istanbul with an oversight on markets which we expect to attract significant interest from global investors." "This investment will also enable Azimut to capitalize on its integrated financial advisory model in a sizeable retail market carrying exciting prospects in the medium term. It marks the first move of the Group in Africa, a vast region offering unique untapped opportunities for product management and distribution expansion," he added.-TradeArabia News Service SALT LAKE CITY Two of three new exhibits highlighting different aspects of the transcontinental railroad are now open at the Utah Capitol, part of Utah's Spike 150 initiative. The first transcontinental railroad was completed May 10, 1869, when the Union and Central Pacific railroads were joined with a golden spike at Promontory Summit in Utah where the Golden Spike National Historic Site is today. The first exhibit, titled "A World Transformed: The Transcontinental Railroad and Utah," explores the impact the transcontinental railroad had on individual Utahns. "The people of Utah really contributed a lot to the transcontinental railroad," said Dan Davis, the head curator for the exhibit and Utah State University's special collections and archives photograph curator. "Utah was really important to both railroads." The exhibit puts on display how integral Utahns were in the process, Davis said. "Utah really is the central focus of the transcontinental railroad in a lot of ways," he said. Another important contribution to the railroads were the Chinese railroad workers the theme of the second exhibit on display at the Capitol. "It's time for us to tell our ancestors' story and our Chinese immigration story," said Jie Xu, the secretary for the Chinese Railroad Workers Descendants Association. The association sponsored the second exhibit, which is named "Tracing the Path: Chinese Railroad Workers and the First Transcontinental Railroad." "We try to tell their stories," Xu said. "Their story has not been told for too long. And hopefully history will remember that contribution to this magnificent work." Chinese railroad laborers experienced countless hardships, Xu said, and he hopes the exhibit helped teach people about what they sacrificed for the railroads. Siu Lin Santee, a board member for the association, helped spearhead the project and she said that while the Chinese story is important, it is not the only story to tell. "The first transcontinental railroad was not only built by the Chinese; we have other people. We have Mormons, we have Irish, we all work together." Santee said she wants everyone to learn from the exhibit. "We've made the exhibit really easy for people to read especially for school children so they can learn from it," Santee said. She said it's important everyone understands why the transcontinental railroad still matters. "Without the railroad, our country would not be as advanced as it is today," Santee said. Some people have already visited the new exhibits, including Jose Garibay from Magna. Garibay took his 2-year-old daughter, Shimmer Garibay, and his father Eliseo Garibay to visit the Capitol where they discovered the railroad exhibitions on the fourth floor. "My dad came from Mexico and so I wanted to show him a part of Utah," Garibay said. "I just wanted to show him around." Garibay said he found the history of the railroad interesting and enjoyed taking his father and young daughter to see the Capitol something he said was important. "Maybe she'll have interest working in the government someday," Garibay said. The third exhibit, not yet on display, will be smaller than the first two and will tell the story of Edward Harriman and his involvement with the transcontinental railroad. The exhibit is titled "Death, Taxes, and an Unexpected Windfall: Edward H. Harriman's Estate and the Building of the Utah State Capitol." "Mr. Harriman is kind of an unsung hero for Utah," said Brad Westwood, the senior public historian for the Utah Department of Heritage and Arts and curator for the Harriman exhibit. "He was the force behind rebuilding the Union Pacific railroad." Westwood said he and other historians involved with the railroad exhibits wanted Harriman's story included because of his influence toward building the Capitol money donated from his estate by his widow helped fund the project. "That unexpected financial windfall became the catalyst for Utah building its Capitol," Westwood said. The Harriman exhibit will open to the public Jan. 18 and a grand opening will be held for all three exhibits Jan. 23 on the fourth floor of the Capitol. PROVO Utah County residents say high moral fiber and safe neighborhoods are the most critical building blocks to maintain high quality of life as leaders start planning for an expected 1 million new residents in the valley in coming decades. And, the group of about 1,500 respondents underscored traffic/congestion and poor air quality as the issues that will have the greatest negative impacts on their collective quality of life in the future. That feedback is part of an initial data set gathered by organizers of the Valley Visioning project, an effort launched in November aiming to navigate the impacts of the coming influx of new residents and their attendant needs in housing, employment, education, recreation and transport. Projections anticipate that a full third of the expected 3 million new residents who will call Utah home in the next 50 years will make their way to Utah County. And, Utah County could surpass Salt Lake County in total population by 2065. Valley Visioning co-chairman and executive director of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, Val Hale, told the Deseret News on launch of the project that the scale of the expected growth requires a careful, forward-looking plan to ensure that quality-of-life issues are not undermined amid the population explosion. "Utah County has always had a lot of land to work with and has been able to build out and grow in really unfettered ways," Hale said. "But, those days are now past. We know the population will double in the next 30 years, and if the Utah Valley is going to continue to be a great place to live we need to plan for, and prepare for, that growth. "We need to be purposeful and smart about the way that happens." The first set of resident feedback assembled by the project, which is being coordinated by nonprofit planning group Envision Utah, came via an online survey. Other highlights from the data include residents' preference for suburban neighborhoods, but with 40 percent hoping for something "more walkable" and ranking water management, transportation improvements and reducing air pollution as the top three priorities "when considering future growth." Envision Utah President and Chief Operating Officer Ari Bruening said the effort is similar to another project his firm is coordinating for the Point of the Mountain Redevelopment Commission. Bruening noted data gathered for the Point of the Mountain study, which includes an area encompassing both southern Salt Lake County and northern Utah County, will be helpful but expects that the Valley Visioning work of "gathering input from broader Utah County ... will be area specific" and help hone in on the concerns of the county's residents. While the online survey can still be found on the Valley Visioning website, a series of public workshops are being held at various Utah County locations through the third week of February. Time and place details for the meetings can be found at utahvalleyvisioning.org. Bruening said the 18-month effort will occur in three phases that will include about six months devoted to outreach and information gathering, six months to assemble desired outcomes or scenarios, and a final six months to zero in on a consensus plan. SALT LAKE CITY Each week, about 200 Utahns 65 years of age or older suffer a fall and receive medical help for their injuries at an emergency room, and about a third of those people require hospitalization. That's according to a report released this week by the Utah Department of Health. Such falls are the "leading cause injury-related death" and hospitalization for Utahns in that age group, according to the department. About one-third of Utahns 65 and older are expected to have a fall of some kind this year, said Sheryl Gardner, falls prevention specialist for the Utah Department of Health. Our goal is to help seniors remain healthy and independent. One fall can be the beginning of a downward health spiral that may include limited mobility, dementia from a head injury, and complications from major surgeries like blood clots and seizures," Gardner said in a statement. "Even minor falls can impact a persons sense of safety and well-being." About three Utah seniors die each week from a fall, the department said. Utahns ages 65 and older account for 77.8 percent of fall-related deaths within the state as of 2016, according to the agency. The department's report found that despite this prevalence, fall hospitalizations among seniors were noticeably more common nationally every year from 2008 to 2016. The rate of fall deaths in Utah was also lower in 2016 compared to national data. In 2014, more than $121 million was paid in medical expenses resulting from falls suffered by a person 65 or older in Utah, with more than $112 million of those costs paid by Medicare, the report says. "More than half of Utahns aged 65 (or older) who were hospitalized due to a fall were discharged to residential care or a rehabilitation facility. (Of those patients), only 24 percent were able to return home," according to the report. The report also shows that from 2014 to 2016 the rate of fatal falls was by far the highest among Utahns 85 and older compared to other seniors in fact more than three times that of Utahns ages 80 to 84 years old, which had the next highest rate. Gardner stressed that seniors should understand that falls are preventable. "Older adults want to stay active, independent, and safe in their homes, but many worry about their risk of falling. Falling is not a normal part of aging and older adults have the power to prevent a fall," she said. Utah health officials also stressed several fall prevention methods as part of the new report: Exercise regularly to improve strength, balance and coordination. Free or inexpensive exercise programs and fall prevention classes are offered at some senior centers and local health departments around the state. Talk with a doctor to help assess the risk for falling and report prior falls. Review medications with a medical provider to better learn which drugs or drug combinations may cause dizziness or sleepiness. Get annual vision and hearing checkups. Remove hazards around the home, such as rugs, books, papers and clutter, with particular attention to stairs and walkways. Ensure there is adequate lighting throughout the house. Put in grab bars by showers and toilets. Talk with family members about the risks of falling and enlist their help in staying safe. WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. The Navajo Nation is establishing its first medical examiner's office. In a statement, President Russell Begaye's office said Tuesday that he had approved a plan of operation for the Department of Medical Examiners, which will fall under the oversight of the Navajo Nation's Division of Public Safety. The new department will be responsible for investigating deaths, determining their causes, and producing records and reports stemming from those investigations. Begaye says the investigations will be conducted with cultural sensitivity. Before the medical examiner's department was approved, Begaye said the Navajo Nation president was responsible for appointing coroners, who were responsible for investigating deaths and recruiting physicians to accompany them in the investigations. The plan of operation signed into law by Begaye must be approved by the Navajo Nation Council's Law and Order Committee. RENO, Nev. A state board wants to change the name of a mountain peak in eastern Nevada's Great Basin National Park to more appropriately recognize a geological area important to a native tribe instead of honoring the president of the Confederacy during the Civil War. The Nevada Board of Geographic Names voted unanimously last week to recommend to a federal panel in charge of making such decisions that the name of Jeff Davis Peak be changed to the Shoshone name "Doso Doyabi." The phrase pronounced "DOH-soh doy-AH-bee" means "white mountain" in the native dialect. Tribal elders say it's a reference to the fact the summit of the 12,771-foot mountain near the Utah line was covered in snow year-round. Support for a name change first emerged in 2017 during a push to remove Confederate monuments in various locations across the country. Christine K. Johnson, collection manager for the Nevada Historical Society who serves as a nonvoting member on the state board, says the name approved Tuesday was supported by the Duckwater Shoshone Tribe as well as members of other area tribes. She said a formal application for the name change will be forwarded to the U.S. Geological Survey's Board on Geographic Names. Tribal member Warren Graham said in a letter on behalf of the Duckwater Shoshone Elders Committee that reinstating the mountain's original name would honor their cultural heritage. "These places were called something else before they were renamed" by Euro-American settlers, Graham said. "Some of these names are disappearing along with our elders and it is good that these names are not forgotten." Jeff Davis Peak is about 240 miles southwest Salt Lake City. Davis' name originally graced a neighboring mountain now known as Wheeler Peak, Nevada's second highest point. During a survey in 1855, Lt. Col. Edward Steptoe of the U.S. Army Corps named the peak after his boss, then-U.S. Secretary of War Jefferson Davis, who later became the president of the Confederate States of America. Wheeler Peak got its permanent name after George Montague Wheeler scaled the mountain in 1869, and the neighboring peak then became Jeff Davis. The renaming was formally proposed last year by tribal elders who said their mother was one of the few survivors of the Spring Valley massacre in 1863 when the U.S. military killed a group of Shoshones nearby. The University of Utah's Shoshone Language Project verified the name's authenticity. Board members voiced their support of the change in September as a symbol of "reconciliation not division," according to the board's minutes. Jack Hursh, a cartographer and publications specialist at the Nevada Bureau of Mines & Geology who serves on the panel, was among those who backed the Shoshone proposal. "The Doso Doyabi name is a Nevadan name proposed by Nevadans," he said in an email Wednesday to The Associated Press. Officials for the federal board couldn't be reached for comment because of the federal government shutdown. U.S. board research staffer Jennifer Runyon told the AP in 2017 the panel typically is reluctant to change well-established names in long-standing published or spoken use, "but will consider doing so if the proponent can demonstrate that there is a compelling reason and if there is local support for the change." WASHINGTON The U.S. Education Department will not impose a $713 million fine that the agency's inspector general previously recommended against an online school based in Salt Lake City. Department officials said Friday that Western Governors University will face no fine or any other penalty. A 2017 audit by the department's inspector general said the Utah-based school was not eligible for federal education funding because its faculty did not have "regular and substantive" interaction with students. The school enrolls about 100,000 students who take online courses at their own pace. It was founded by 19 governors in 1997. The Education Department opposed the audit's finding, saying federal guidance was unclear during the period examined. It has since been updated. Department officials say the inspector general agrees with the final decision. The school did not immediately provide comment. SALT LAKE CITY Talk to an adult in midlife who seems to be doing really well, and there's a very good chance that individual will recall growing up with parents who were nurturing and affectionate, the parent-child relationship a warm one. That's according to a new study from the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard University's Institute for Quantitative Social Science. Research scientist Ying Chen and epidemiology professor Tyler VanderWeele, as well as co-author Laura D. Kubzansky in Harvard's Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, used an online survey that gathered information from a large cohort of people over time to determined the degree of parental warmth with which they grew up. Warmth was measured not just by affection, but also nurturing, teaching and communication. For example, the survey's six questions included "How much time and attention did your mother and father give you when you needed it?" "How much did your mother and father understand your problems and worries?" and "How much did your mother and father teach you about life?" Among those who reported growing up with parental warmth, the study found higher levels of well-being across social, emotional and psychological dimensions, Chen said. The findings are published in the journal Social Science & Medicine. Harvard noted that previous research has looked at parental warmth against the backdrop of individual well-being indicators, like whether it impacted physical or psychological health. The new research is designed to take a more holistic look at the impact of warmth across different dimensions. Chen told the Deseret News that research often tries to identify risk factors for bad outcomes, instead of the factors that can lead to health and well-being later in life. Although there were positive effects of parental warmth on almost all aspects of flourishing later in life, the effects were stronger for some dimensions than others. Epidemiology professor Tyler VanderWeele The results showed that even a moderate increase in parental warmth was associated with positive outcomes in midlife: Those growing up with parental warmth were 18 percent less likely to have depression, 17 percent less likely to use illicit drugs and 21 percent more likely to flourish overall compared to those who experienced less parental warmth. They were also less likely to smoke. "Although there were positive effects of parental warmth on almost all aspects of flourishing later in life, the effects were stronger for some dimensions than others," VanderWeele told the Deseret News. "For example, we saw much stronger effects on happiness, positive relationships and self-acceptance than we did on having purpose in life. This perhaps points to the fact that although parental love and warmth are very important in a child's development, there are other important resources, as we have shown in our prior work, such as religious service attendance and education, that also help profoundly shape some of these other well-being outcomes." The association between warmth and well-being later in life did persist, however, even when the researchers controlled for socioeconomic factors and family religiosity, among others. Chen said they also controlled for family residential characteristics, residential stability and geographic location. But there are still potential confounding factors, including that the study relies heavily on recall of childhood as seen from midlife. And the researchers didn't have data on parents' mental health or the health status of the child during childhood, Chen said. The researchers believe taking a public health approach that improves parenting skills could increase well-being for the broader population. Prior research shows that parenting can be modified, and various parenting programs have been linked already to improvements in health for both parents and their children, Chen said. The World Health Organization has called for implementing such programs at the population level," she said, "but the progress for doing so has been relatively slow." She hopes the study adds to the evidence of "the importance of parenting beyond childhood well into adulthood." The Environmental Protection Agency just announced a plan designed to reduce the number of regulations saddling the natural gas industry. The intention is sound. Natural gas has become a critical component of the U.S. economy, powering our homes and offices and supporting millions of jobs. Easing regulations could help this industry reach new heights. But the plan won't succeed as it'll keep many of the rules that are unnecessary and duplicative in place. Natural gas production does pose some unique risks, chiefly from gas leaking out of the drilling and storage equipment. A key component of natural gas is methane, which is more potent than CO2 in terms of its potential contribution to global warming. The natural gas industry has ample incentive to fix the problem on its own when a rig leaks gas, it might as well be leaking money, since methane itself is a sellable product. That's why, over the past two decades, natural gas producers have invested more than $90 billion to develop new emissions-reducing technology, in large part to capture methane. These investments have worked. As natural gas production has expanded, methane emissions have dropped. From 1990 to 2015, domestic natural gas output spiked more than 55 percent, yet methane emissions from natural gas production fell over 16 percent. These trend lines show no signs of slowing. Two years ago, federal regulators decided to establish some formal rules for methane emissions. Regulators hoped that the rules would empower public inspectors to ensure that gas rigs are minimizing leaks and protecting the environment. These rules known in bureaucratic gobbledygook as the "New Source Performance Standards OOOOa" established plenty of reasonable controls: certification of vent systems, caps on emissions volumes, safety rules for storage vessels, and so on. However, these standards also set up some unnecessary mandates without any environmental purpose. One particularly egregious example? Both state and federal regulators can conduct their own, separate environmental reviews of drilling rigs. Imagine having to get your driver's license from both a state and federal DMV: two driving courses, two eyesight exams, two written quizzes, two driving tests. That's the mindless repetition many gas operations currently face. Likewise, the standards require new emissions technologies to be approved at each site where they're used. What if the federal government had to approve every single iPhone sale, certifying that each device was safe to use for each individual customer? That would be an extraordinarily expensive, time-consuming process and would clearly be unnecessary. Once the iPhone has been deemed safe for one consumer, it's effectively safe for all. The same goes for emissions reduction equipment. One evaluation ought to be enough. These excess rules sap time and capital that could be put towards building new rigs and further expanding production. Companies are spending money on compliance that could be going towards new jobs and higher salaries. The oil and natural gas industry accounts for nearly 8 percent of national GDP hampering its operations hurts the economy as a whole. In September, the EPA announced it would be reforming the methane rules, selling its efforts as a serious streamline. Andrew Wheeler, the acting EPA administrator, called them "common-sense reforms (that) will alleviate unnecessary and duplicative red tape." But this package simply ignores the major sources of duplicative regulations. Regulators whiffed on a rare opportunity to provide serious economic relief to an industry that puts Americans to work and keeps their utility bills low. That failure has environmental costs as well. For most of the last century, coal was the main source for electricity generation. Natural gas is a natural, cheaper replacement for coal, and the recent production boom has prompted power plants to switch over. Natural gas emits about half as much carbon as coal. So this migration has led to a precipitous drop in electricity-related emissions. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, total annual emissions have fallen 14 percent since 2005 "mainly because more electricity has been generated from natural gas than from other fossil fuels." By smothering the growth of the gas industry, these excessive rules slow down this transition and keep electricity-related emissions artificially high. There's still time for the EPA to make good on its promises, as this "reform" package has not been finalized. Regulators ought to cut the red tape and allow the natural gas industry to power the American economy to new heights. Two big items on the political radar are attracting a great deal of attention. One is the maneuvering for the 2020 gubernatorial election and other races. The other is SB54 and the increasing effort to repeal it. SB54 is the compromise legislation that allows candidates to gather signatures to get on the primary election ballot, instead of being forced to go through the caucus/convention system. Interestingly, the current election posturing and the fight over SB54 are closely related. We take a look. At the same time a long list of ambitious politicos are considering running for governor and other offices, attacks on SB54 are increasing. U.S. Sen. Mike Lee wants the Supreme Court to declare the law unconstitutional. Sen. Dan McCay, an original co-sponsor of SB54, now plans to run legislation to repeal it. Whats happening here? Pignanelli: It's a big challenge not to murder each other I mean, we're family so we fight. Sharon Corr As the proud son of an Italian father and an Irish mother, I possess deep expertise of dramatic family squabbles plagued with grudges, perceived offenses, petty bickering, legal actions and decades of ill will among relatives. The emotional non-ideological internal strife among Utah Republicans qualifies as a family fight. In 2014, Sen. McCay persuaded his colleagues to support SB54 armed with the promise by Count My Vote, or CMV, proponents they would not seek another initiative. The Legislature upheld their commitment by debating, but never passing, any changes to the compromise. McCays labeling of the 2016 CMV ballot attempt as a betrayal is understandable and factual providing rationale behind his repeal. CMV struggled with both initiatives, indicating ambivalence among many Utahns. Conversely, activists are frightened of diminished relevancy in the party and view CMV as Utah's elite making a power grab at their expense. They maintain a drumbeat of opposition. Fatigue is infecting politicians and frustration is percolating. I discovered family reunions replete with multiple toasts among warring cousins, enhanced by wine and whiskey, can soothe feelings. I am happy to bring such refreshments to the next GOP gathering. Webb: It is a fact that Utahns of all political persuasions overwhelmingly support SB54 and Count My Vote. The actions of the politicians and party insiders who want to control the nomination process themselves, rather than allow all voters to have a say, are a precise demonstration of elitism and political snobbery. I prefer not to ascribe self-serving motives to the politicians who are enemies of SB54, but it is clear they want to campaign among a small number of delegates to win party nominations, rather than have to face Republican voters in general. In 2014, Count My Vote agreed to end the ballot initiative campaign in exchange for the passage of SB54, ensuring a dual-path party nomination process. There was no agreement regarding any future ballot initiative. To assert otherwise is pure fiction. What would be the impact on upcoming political races if SB54 is repealed? Pignanelli: A repeal definitely changes the flavor of 2020 elections especially the governors race. There would be deja vu of 2012 when massive resources from the Orrin Hatch campaign were targeted towards changing GOP delegates. Because so many candidates will be attempting the same objective next year, those who throw the hardest punches are likely to succeed. A rightward tilt will result. Consequently, large donors may extract uncomfortable promises from candidates to detail a public position on restoring SB54. Webb: Without SB54 and the opportunity for all voters to be part of the nomination process, a number of mainstream GOP candidates would never make it through the convention despite having broad voter support. It has been conclusively proven that convention delegates often do not reflect the candidate preferences of most Republican Party voters. Congressman John Curtis, for example, would have been ousted by delegates and would not be in office today had he not been able to gather signatures to get on the ballot. I could list a half dozen excellent mainstream candidates who probably would be rejected at convention, where ideological purity is demanded and litmus tests prevail. It would be a travesty to deny these candidates a spot on the primary election ballot. Will the Count My Vote coalition put up a fight to save SB54? Pignanelli: Utah's business and community leaders will reach out to key lawmakers, and will be impactful. But the best champion in support of the current system is the individual Utahns overwhelmingly trust Gov. Gary Herbert. A balanced but firm statement from him could cause a ripple among traditional and social media, which lawmakers would feel. Webb: Now that most Utahns, and certainly mainstream Republicans, have enjoyed a few election cycles in which the tyranny of the caucus/convention system has been broken, there is no going back. I detect enormous passion and commitment among mainstream business and political leaders to fight to protect SB54 and the right for all votes to be counted. Whats more, if SB54 was somehow repealed, a mass defection from the Republican Party would occur, putting in doubt the re-election of Sen. Lee. And Rep. McCay would have no chance of defeating Congressman Ben McAdams. Derayah Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), a shariah-compliant close-ended traded real estate investment fund in Saudi Arabia, said it has acquired three labour accommodation buildings in the Dammam region of the kingdom for SR11 million ($3 million). The property, located in Al Mina district and positioned on the east of King Faisal Road, has a built-up area of 5,110 sq m and boasts a land area of 2,160 sq m. All the legal and technical procedures have been completed successfully for the transaction which was funded through the available banking facilities for Derayah REIT, said the company in a statement to the Dubai Financial Market (DFM). The property is entirely leased to Emdad Human Resources Company, a related party to the seller, for five years (binding) commencing on property transfer date. As per the deal, the tenant shall provide promissory notes covering the lease payments throughout the lease duration. Additionally, a guarantor agreement will be in place to enhance the strength of the lease agreement, said the statement. The property is currently used by the tenants with each being responsible for insurance, operational expenses and maintenance of the property during the lease term. The annual rent of the property is SR1.06 million ($282,178), it added.-TradeArabia News Service SALT LAKE CITY A five-minute walk from his home in Londons Notting Hill district takes Nicholas Wright to an incredibly quiet room. "It is absolutely the quietest room you've ever been in in your life," Wright recently told the Deseret News from his London home. The room is on a busy road, but the double walls keep out the city noise. In that room is a grand piano, where Academy Award-winning composer Rachel Portman often sits and dreams up dramatic film scores like the ones for Chocolat and The Cider House Rules. Its in Portmans home especially in that secluded room where Wright worked as a librettist with the film composer for several months creating the childrens opera The Little Prince, an adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exuperys 1943 novella. Houston Grand Opera premiered Portman and Wrights The Little Prince in 2003, and now Utah Opera brings it to life for the first time featuring its own costumes, sets and a chorus of more than 20 children from the Madeleine Choir School at Capitol Theatre Jan. 19-27. The book is all about children The Little Prince was Wrights first attempt at writing an opera hes since written two others but as a longtime playwright, he welcomed the challenge of creating a libretto. We all had to be quite faithful to the original. ... We couldnt just walk off with a copyrighted work and do what we wanted with it. Nicholas Wright, librettist for "A Little Prince" During the creative process, Saint-Exuperys book was his constant companion. Wright scoured the story looking for the dramatic moments moments that could potentially translate into heartfelt arias. But because The Little Prince is still copyrighted, Wright couldnt stray too far from the book. In fact, throughout the writing process, his work was closely monitored by a member of the Saint-Exupery estate. They have a responsibility to make sure that you dont treat it too freely, that youre reflecting the book as it actually is and not turning it into some different kind of property. So we all had to be quite faithful to the original, he said. A lot of the dialogue, the exchanges in the opera are just as was in the book, but then there are choruses and individual songs by the characters which I wrote. But those again had to be very much in the spirit of the original book. We couldnt just walk off with a copyrighted work and do what we wanted with it. But Wright was able to take some creative liberty. As he read the book, he didnt just see words; he saw lines for a soprano to sing and picked out phrases that belonged to a baritone. And in the storys twinkling stars an ever-present theme Wright found his opera chorus. In Utah Operas upcoming production, that chorus of twinkling stars is made up of more than 20 fifth- through eighth-graders including 11-year-old Nitai Fluchel, who plays the lead role of the little prince from the Madeleine Choir School. The book is all about children," Nitai said, "(and) how differently their minds work than the adults and how sometimes what their minds want to know is a lot more important than the grownups random How old are you? questions. Its definitely a great opera with a great message in it. Becoming as a little child Wright has fond memories of hearing Portman compose music to The Little Prince in her quiet room. But all these years after putting the opera together with Portman, its the message that has stuck with him the most. I do remember very strongly thinking that Saint-Exupery created a character who is kind of sad, disappointed (and) frustrated with his life. (The pilot is) in this sterile, lonely place, and I think (Saint-Exupery) is writing about the feeling of depression, the feeling that there's nothing growing around you, nothing rich around you. And (the pilot is) thinking, What is it that will help me here? What will bring me some life? It is himself the child in himself renews him and brings him new life. Thats the story as I see it. Its about becoming as a little child, he continued. You could say its a rather Christian message, actually. Its how the pilot learns from this little child to become an adult. With childlike wonder at the heart of the opera, its fitting to have a boy soprano play the role of the little prince. It might seem risky for 11-year-old Nitai to carry that responsibility, but the fifth-grader, who recently traveled to Italy with the Madeleine Choir School to perform in the Vatican City, is ready. If theres anything attending the school since kindergarten has prepared him for, its this big role. This is an amazing experience for me, Nitai said. I definitely wouldn't have done this without the Madeleine Choir School. They've taught us everything we could know about music. I realize how amazing it is that I have the opportunity to go to this school, and I love it. The child in himself renews him and brings him new life. Thats the story as I see it. Nicholas Wright Wright wont be here when Nitai takes the stage for Utah Operas premiere of The Little Prince, but based on what he witnessed almost 16 years ago at the Houston premiere, he has no doubt Utah operagoers are in for something special. When you see it all put together, you do think, Good (heavens), this is a huge enterprise," he said. Its a beautiful gift to find the words youve written lifted into another almost kind of heavenly dimension. If you go What: Utah Opera's The Little Prince When: Jan. 19 and 25, 7:30 p.m.; Jan. 21 and 23, 7 p.m.; and Jan. 27, 2 p.m. Where: Capitol Theatre, 50 W. 200 South How much: $15-$112 Web: utahopera.org Henry Olsen: The GOP must stamp out the seeds of hatred before it's too late 2018's "Halloween" entertaining, but nowhere near the best the series has to offer featured editorial Pa. needs to make it easier for citizens to vote Southwest Philadelphia native Betty MacMillan, above, spent an afternoon strolling memory lane listening to the happiest music on Earth. Four members of the Woodland String Band recently delighted the residents at Riddle Village in an event hosted by Compassus. The band members wore their brilliantly-colored, bedazzled costumes from four previous New Years Day parades, and played familiar music that had the residents tapping, clapping, and strutting in their seats. MacMillan fondly recalled attending the Mummers Parades with her family and how the Mummers hosted Open Houses in her neighborhood. On a day filled with rumours over the BJPs Operation Lotus, Water Resources Minister D K Shivakumar said Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy is not exposing the saffron party. Shivakumar went on to say that Kumaraswamy was, in fact, being lenient towards the BJP, despite being aware of its attempts to destabilise the coalition government. The minister also said that Congress Legislature Party leader Siddaramaiah and KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao were also aware of the developments, but they are not doing anything. Shivakumars statements have raised eyebrows in political circles. Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, the minister said that if he was given the freedom, he would have exposed everything in 24 hours. Rumours are rife that six to eight Congress MLAs are ready to jump ship to the BJP and that the saffron fold is planning to take its legislators to a resort in Mumbai. By claiming that it will form the government after Sankranti, the BJP is trying to cause confusion and uncertainty... The Congress MLAs have gathered all the evidence against the BJP, he said. The MLAs also have evidence about the methods of trying to poach them. They have informed the chief minister about the conspiracies that are being hatched for horse trading - the conversations that have taken place, and the money being transferred, Shivakumar added. Shivakumar also said that three MLAs were at present in Mumbai and that he was keeping track of the developments. I am aware that three MLAs are presently in Mumbai. I know why they have gone there and the hotel they are staying in. The other MLAs are in their constituencies. If I reveal the names of the three MLAs who are in Mumbai, the media will report it, and it will disturb them. So I will not reveal their names, he said. The minister, however, added to the intrigue by saying that the three legislators could belong to either the BJP or the Congress. I merely said that three MLAs are in Mumbai. I didnt say whether they were from the BJP or the Congress. It will soon be revealed whether BJP MLAs are with the Congress or vice versa. You (media) are free to get their flight details, he added. Shivakumar maintained that the BJPs efforts to destabilise the government would come to nought. Shivakumar said that though Rao had lodged complaints against the BJP with the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the Income Tax department, the agencies have not taken any action. On behalf of the Congress, the KPCC president filed a complaint before the ACB and I-T department about the BJPs attempts to lure our MLAs. The investigating agencies, however, should not sit quietly on such complaints, he added. When asked about the reports on Chikkodi-Sadalga MLA Ganesh Hukkeri defecting to the BJP, Shivakumar said that the MLA would not jump to the saffron party. Ganesh Hukkeri is the chief whip of the party. His father (Prakash Hukkeri) is an MP. He is a party loyalist. He is, in fact, getting ready for the elections - he is not foolish, the minister said. Shivakumar also said that disgruntled MLA B C Patil, too, would not defect to the BJP and that the party would give him a suitable position soon. India has one of the largest and most complex legal professional and legal education systems in the world. Over 1.3 million advocates practice in Indian courts, which currently employ 16,726 judges in the lower judiciary, against a sanctioned strength of 22,474. Another 700 judges in the high courts and the Supreme Court, against a sanctioned strength of over 1,100, run the higher judiciary. India also has one of the largest number of legal education institutions over 1,500 law colleges and law schools. Some 1.5 lakh students graduate from these institutions every year. Further, the government is the biggest litigant in Indian courts, and over 3.3 crore cases remain pending in all the courts. Addressing the challenges of the justice delivery system is critical and, hence, fundamental reforms in legal education ought to receive the highest national priority. Laws relating to universities and higher education institutions remain complex and multi-layered and mostly overlap with multiple regulatory bodies overseeing the same set of institutions. Law colleges are located in public universities, set up by both the parliament and state legislatures. Central universities set up by parliament, like the University of Delhi or Banaras or Aligarh, have their law faculty or department operating as the law school of that university. State universities like the University of Calcutta, Mumbai, Madras, Pune, Osmania, etc, are mostly affiliating universities, where they generally affiliate law colleges set up by private trusts and societies and, in some cases, they have their own law departments or schools in addition. The major problem facing Indian legal education today is this affiliated law college system of state universities. There is an institutionalised mediocrity and dilution of academic standards in a majority of these law colleges. The mushrooming of law colleges and the mass production of incompetent lawyers across the country have contributed to the dilution of standards in both legal education and the legal profession. For example, the three state universities of western Uttar Pradesh Meerut, Agra and Kanpur universities have 107, 40 and 67 law colleges affiliated to them, respectively. These 214 law colleges offer over 25,000 seats in the LLB degree programme alone. The stratification of law colleges with varying legal, regulatory, institutional and governance structures has undermined the development of quality standards, academic ecosystem and the pursuit of excellence in most law schools. The Madras high court held in 2017 that 85% of law colleges must be closed to maintain the sanctity of the legal profession. We have over 1,500 law colleges in 2019. In the year 2000, we had less than 800 law colleges, and the number was close to 900 in 2010. We added almost 600 new law colleges in the last eight years without giving due consideration to the needs of the profession or the availability of suitable opportunities for young law graduates. One of the major reforms needed in legal education is to close down at least 500 mediocre, dubious and substandard law colleges. The chairman of the Bar Council of India had made a similar suggestion. None of the Indian law schools find a place in the top 300 law schools of the world as per the QS World University Subject Rankings 2019. While the establishment of the National Law Universities is a step in the right direction, we cannot lose sight of the larger challenges facing legal education across law schools in India. It is important to note that all NLUs combined impart legal education to only about 2,500 students in a year, which is not even 2% of the total LLB students admitted in Indian law colleges in a year. If our entire legal education policy is directed towards improving the situation of the 2% of law students, we will be doing substantial injustice to the other 98%. The NLU-focused legal education reform agenda must give way to the reforms needed in the central and state university law departments, affiliated law colleges and the deemed and private universities. This requires a new imagination for legal education reforms that is holistic, farsighted and inclusive. Way forward Some key measures to adopt for a substantial and urgent reform are: Strengthening 3-year LLB programme: On par with the JD or Juris Doctor programme of American and Canadian law schools, the Indian LLB 3-year programme must be made more rigorous and full-time. Though NLUs work purely on the 5-year law programme, they must consider starting a 3-year LLB degree on their campuses and open their doors to the graduates of Indias best degree colleges. Establishing NCLEAR: The Bar Council of India must consider establishing the National Council for Legal Education & Research, with adequate representation from all stakeholders in legal education and the legal profession. Such a council could be chaired by the chief justice of India with the BCI chairman as its member-secretary. The council should have all stakeholders, including legal academia, judges, lawyers from both the litigating and corporate bar and also academics from humanities and social sciences. Attracting talent: The biggest crisis facing legal education is the near absence of bright individuals with passion, commitment and dedication to teaching and research aspiring to join law schools. Law schools ought to be places where the most fundamental ideas of building a just society ought to be discussed and debated. Instead, due to institutional apathy, absence of imagination and lack of responsibility and accountability, most law schools in the country are routinely churning out mediocre lawyers. This has to stop now! (Raj Kumar is Founding Vice Chancellor, and Mishra is Director of Law Admissions, Jindal Global Law School, OP Jindal Global University) Imran Khan's government in Islamabad has launched a new smear campaign from Karachi to Sydney to accuse India of funding terror strikes in Pakistan. Pakistan's renewed bids to turn the table on India on cross-border terror met an outright dismissal by New Delhi. India not only once again accused Pakistan of trying to mainstream terrorist organizations, but also asked the government of the neighbouring country to look inwards and take credible actions against terror infrastructure in its own territory. The official delegation of Pakistan Government attending the meeting of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) at Sydney in Australia from January 8 to 10 made an attempt to tacitly accuse New Delhi of funding terrorist organizations. New Delhi countered the move, by presenting a set of 28 questions before the FATF an intergovernmental organization coordinating global efforts against terror financing and money laundering challenging Pakistan Governments claim that it had taken adequate measures to prevent the outlawed organizations from receiving the fund to orchestrate terrorist attacks. It last year put Pakistan on its Grey List officially a list of jurisdictions with strategic deficiencies in its legal regime to check money laundering and terrorist financing. The Government of Pakistan however in June 2018 made a commitment to work with the FATF to plug the loopholes. Its progress was reviewed by the intergovernmental organization in its meeting in Sydney recently. Pakistan Governments delegation led by Finance Secretary Arif Ahmed Khan briefed the other FATF members about the measures taken to squeeze flow of funds to the terror organizations. Khan also submitted before the FATF a report on Pakistan Governments Terrorism Financing Risk Assessment, which identified foreign funding as one of the primary sources of terror funding in its territory along with drug trafficking, kidnapping for ransom, extortion, robbery and bank heists. Islamabad also alleged in the report that hostile agencies were fuelling terrorism by funding sub-national terrorist groups in Pakistan. The allegation was yet another veiled attempt by Islamabad to link India and its external spy agency Research and Analytical Wing with the insurgency in Balochistan province of Pakistan. Indias delegation at the FATF meeting questioned the credibility of the report submitted by Pakistan. Islamabad of late also accused New Delhi of funding the November 23, 2018 terror attack on the Consulate General of China in Karachi, the capital of Sindh province of Pakistan. Amir Shaikh, police chief of the port-city, said that the investigation into the attack revealed that it had been carried out by separatist Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA). Shaikh also told journalists in Karachi that the attack had been planned in Afghanistan and funded by a spy agency of India. Three terrorists had made an attempt to storm into the Consulate General of China in Karachi on November 23 last year, but they had been stopped and shot dead by the police personnel. Two police officers and two civilians, who had gone to the consulate to apply for visas, had also been killed during the exchange of fire. The BLA had later claimed responsibility for the attack. The BLA and other Baloch organizations in Pakistan have been opposing the $ 62 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) a flagship project of Chinese President Xi Jinping's ambitious cross-continental Belt and Road Initiative or the BRI. They accused Beijing of helping Islamabad exploit the natural resources of Balochistan, without ensuring adequate benefit to the indigenous people of the province. The CPEC will link Xinxiang in China to Gwadar Port in Pakistan. New Delhi too is opposed to the CPEC, as it passes through Jammu and Kashmir areas, which India claims as its integral part and accuses Pakistan of illegally occupying. The Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi rejected the fabricated and scurrilous attempts by Pakistan to accuse India for the attack on the Consulate General of China in Karachi. Instead of maliciously pointing fingers at others for such terrorist incidents, Pakistan needs to look inwards and undertake credible action against support to terrorism and terror infrastructure in its territories, Raveesh Kumar, spokesperson of the MEA, said. New Delhi suspects that Islamabads move to blame it for the terror attack on Chinese Consulate in Karachi is aimed at derailing the process to mend India-China ties, which had hit a new low over the 72-day-long military face-off at Doklam Plateau in western Bhutan in June-August 2017 but was on an upswing in 2018. Filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani has been accused of sexual assault by a woman who worked with him on his 2017 film "Sanju". Hirani has categorically denied the allegations. His lawyer Anand Desai termed the allegations "false, mischievous, scandalous, motivated and defamatory". In an article on HuffPost India, the woman, who calls herself as "an assistant", alleged that Hirani sexually abused her more than once between March and September 2018. She detailed her allegations in an email dated November 3, 2018, to Hirani's longtime collaborator and "Sanju" co-producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra. DHRecaps | #MeToo in 2018 The woman said that on April 9, 2018, the director first passed a sexually suggestive remark to her and later sexually assaulted her at his home office. "I remember forming these words on my lips - 'Sir, This is wrong. Because of this power structure. You being the absolute power and me being a mere assistant, a nobody - I will never be able to express myself to you'," she wrote of the April 9 incident in the email to Chopra, as quoted by HuffPost India. The woman said that Hirani was a father figure for her. "My mind, body and heart were grossly violated that night and for the next 6 months," the email read. Chopra's wife, film critic Anupama, who is a director at Vinod Chopra Films Pvt Ltd, "Sanju" scriptwriter Abhijat Joshi and filmmaker Shelly Chopra, Vidhu Vinod's sister, were also marked on the email. Read also: #MeToo: Mumbai police files rape case against Alok Nath The complainant later spoke to HuffPost India that she was "intimidated by Hirani", who was her reporting person at the time. She said she maintained a facade of normalcy regarding Hirani's behaviour as she needed to hold on to her job as her father was suffering from a terminal illness. "I had no choice but to be polite to him. It was unbearable but the reason I endured it all, until I couldn't, was because I didn't want my job to be taken away from me, and work to be questioned. Ever. "I was worried that if I left midway, it would be impossible to find another job in this industry if he were to speak badly about my work. Because if Hirani said I wasn't good, everybody would listen. My future would be in jeopardy," she said. Anupama Chopra had confirmed that the woman had shared an account with her, and that Vinod Chopra Films (VCF) has since set up a committee to address complaints of sexual harassment. "I have offered my full support and recommended that she take the complaint to a legal body or a neutral party since we cannot be arbitrators or judges on this. "We also offered to set up an ICC at VCF (which we have set up since then) even though a VCF ICC could not have taken up the case since she was an RHF (Rajkumar Hirani Films) employee at the time. These are two separate companies," she said in an email dated December 5, 2018. Anupama said the woman told her she needed time to think about how to take things forward. She added, "I did not want in any way to pressurise her or steer her in any direction. As Vinod and I told her then, she has our full support and we are fully respectful of whatever decision she has taken." EDITORIAL | #MeToo: Sandalwood stinks of injustice The development comes close on the heels of Hirani's name been dropped from the new poster and trailer of "Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga", directed by Shelly Chopra. A still from the film's teaser, which released on 27 June, 2018, carried Hirani's name as co-producer. Vidhu Vinod Chopra has not yet commented. Hirani's is the latest name to be called out in India's #MeToo storm, which has engulfed many a stalwart such as Nana Patekar, Alok Nath, Vikas Bahl, Sajid Khan and former Union minister MJ Akbar, among others. Twitter is currently banned in China, however, people use software to access the popular microblogging site. The Chinese government has a reputation for its periodic crackdown on all things internet. In the latest effort, Twitter users in China are being interrogated for posting content critical of the government. One Twitter user in China was reportedly interrogated by the police for eight hours, while some users are facing threats and even detention for days after posting critical messages. The users are demanded to delete critical posts or their accounts. As Cnet reports, the crackdown is said to be part of President Xi Jinping's campaign to censor content posted online in the country. Twitter is currently banned in China, however, people use software to access the popular microblogging site. As per estimates, only about 0.4 percent of China's users are hooked to Twitter. However, given the potent nature of the platform, it often fuels political debate and discussion in the country. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. US and India lobby groups, representing Facebook and other companies, have sought legal opinions from law firms on the impact of the federal proposal. Global social media and technology giants are gearing up to fight sweeping new rules proposed by the Indian government that would require them to actively regulate content in one of the worlds biggest Internet markets, sources close to the matter told Reuters. The rules, proposed by the Information Technology ministry on Christmas Eve, would compel platforms such as Facebook, its messaging service WhatsApp and Twitter to remove unlawful content, such as anything that affected the sovereignty and integrity of India. This had to be done within 24 hours, the rules propose. The proposal, which caught many holidaying industry executives off guard, is open for public comment until Jan. 31. It will then be adopted as law, with or without changes. The move comes ahead of India's national election due by May and amid rising worries that activists could misuse social media, especially the WhatsApp messaging service, to spread fake news and sway voters. Industry executives and civil rights activists say the rules smack of censorship and could be used by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to increase surveillance and crack down on dissent. Social media firms have long battled efforts by governments around the world to hold them responsible for what users post on their platforms. US and India lobby groups, representing Facebook and other companies, have sought legal opinions from law firms on the impact of the federal proposal, and have started working on drafting objections to be filed with the IT ministry, four sources in the sector said. The companies cant take this lying down. We are all concerned, its fundamental to how these platforms are governed, said an executive at a global social media company. An estimated half a billion people in India have access to the Internet. Facebook has about 300 million users in the country and WhatsApp has more than 200 million. Tens of millions of Indians use Twitter. The new rules, the sources said, would put privacy of users at risk and raise costs by requiring onerous round-the-clock monitoring of online content. Internet firm Mozilla Corp said last week the proposal was a blunt and disproportionate solution to the problem of harmful content online, and one which could lead to over-censorship and chill free expression. The IT ministry has said the proposal was aimed at only making social media safer. This is not an effort to curb freedom of speech, or (impose) censorship, Gopalakrishnan S., a joint secretary at Indias IT ministry said on Saturday when the ministry ran a #SaferSocialMedia campaign on Twitter. Facebook and WhatsApp declined to comment. A Twitter spokesperson said the company continues to engage with the IT Ministry and civil society on the proposed rules. This will be like a sword hanging on technology companies, said Nikhil Narendran, a partner specialising in technology law at Indian law firm Trilegal. Such regulations are not unique to India. Vietnam has asked tech companies to open local offices and store data domestically, while Australias parliament has passed a bill to force companies to give police access to encrypted data. Germany requires social media companies to remove illegal hate speech within 24 hours or face fines. Nevertheless, the proposal would further strain relations between India and global technology firms. They have been at odds since last year due to federal proposals requiring them to store more user data locally to better assist legal investigations. The new rules, called intermediary guidelines, also propose requiring companies with more than 5 million users in India to have a local office and a nodal officer for 24x7 coordination with law enforcement. When asked by a government agency or through a court order, companies should within 24 hours remove or disable access to unlawful content, they stipulate. The rules also mandate companies to reveal the origin of a message when asked, which if enforced would deal a blow to WhatsApp which boasts of end-to-end encryption to protect user privacy. WhatsApp has battled criticism after fake messages about child kidnap gangs on its platform sparked mob lynchings in India last year. You have created a monster, you should have the ability to control the monster, a senior government official said, referring to WhatsApp. We remain flexible in principle (to suggestions), but we definitely want them to be more accountable, especially the big companies, the official said. 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. 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. The CCI had said Flipkart as well as Amazon did not break regulations through their selection of merchants and brands. A group representing online sellers in India will appeal against the Competition Commision of Indias (CCI) ruling in favour of Walmart-owned Flipkart, the groups lawyer Chanakya Basa said in a release on Saturday. All India Online Vendors Association (AIOVA), which represents more than 3,500 online sellers, had complained that Flipkart was using its dominant position to favour select sellers. The CCI had rejected this argument in November. The CCI had said Flipkart as well as Amazon did not break regulations through their selection of merchants and brands. The AIOVA will appeal to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal on Monday against the CCI decision, Basa told Reuters. We firmly believe we have filed adequate information to prove the existence of a prima-facie case which the Hon'ble Commission has failed to take into account. Hence, we are filing this appeal, Basa said in a statement. The AIOVA has also brought a similar case against Amazon, alleging it favours merchants that it partly owns, such as Cloudtail and Appario. India has a burgeoning e-commerce market, with almost 500 million Indians using the internet in 2018. The market is tipped to grow to USD 200 billion in a decade, according to Morgan Stanley. 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. These online games will be hosted by cloud servers and streamed over the internet. Amazon is reportedly looking at grabbing a share of the gaming market with its own service. The e-commerce giant is looking to build an online gaming service. The company is in talks with publishers about potential titles for the service. However, the service is unlikely to be ready for launch until next year, Mashable reported. What would possibly set apart the purported gaming service is that unlike Twitch which is a game streaming service, the one by Amazon will allow you to play video games without having to download them. These online games will be hosted by cloud servers and streamed over the internet, giving users the hardware-flexibility. When the service does launch, it will compete against Google's Project Stream, Sony's PlayStation Now, Microsoft's Project xCloud, and Nvidia's GeForce Now, among other cloud gaming platforms. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. The psychology of sovereign power fuels the quest for developing the big-bigger-biggest phenomenon in weapons among the most powerful militaries in the world. Even though the operational nuclear weapons and technology have been around since the 1940s, the global non-proliferation treaties and non-use commitments have ensured that the parallel development of conventional weaponry that still skirts the various provisions, deterrence and protocols on nuclear weapons usage, continues unabated. While China and India have pledged a No-First-Use (NFU) stand on nuclear weapons, the more belligerent states like Pakistan, Israel and North Korea have declined to commit to a NFU stand, as a means to posture aggressive-deterrence against perceived enemies. The United States, Russia and Nato retain a pre-emptive first strike stance, with various caveats to justify their defensive intent, and so far the first and last time such weapons were used were the Little Boy and Fat Man, by the US in August 1945 against Japan in Hiroshima and Nagasaki respectively. All global conflicts since the Second World War have necessitated the exclusive deployment of conventional weapons. The obvious race to develop the most powerful non-nuclear-bomb had led to the famous Daisy Cutter, or the BLU-82, in the United States. This 6.8-ton high-intensity monstrosity was extensively airdropped in the conflict zones of Vietnam, the Gulf War and Afghanistan to intimate with shock-and-awe tactics, flatten artillery emplacements or clear helicopter landing points in enemy territory. Britains Special Air Service (SAS) unit in the Gulf War had mistakenly reported back to its headquarters that the US had nuked Kuwait, after seeing the impact of these BLU-82s! Later, these BLU-82s were replaced by the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast (or MOAB, which earned a more popular moniker Mother of all Bombs). This 10-ton extreme weapon of intimidation was first used in combat on an ISIS-Khorasan cave complex in the impregnable Nangarhar province of Afghanistan and led to the killing of 94 ISIS-Khorasan militants. Not to be outdone, the US Cold War rival Russia field-tested its Aviation Thermobaric Bomb of Increased Power (ATBIP), or the Father of all Bombs (FOAB), in 2007, a thermobaric weapon of smaller physical dimension, but with supposedly deadlier impact 44 tons of TNT or four times more damaging than the US MOAB! Given its destructive capabilities which match those of a smaller/tactical nuclear weapon, without a subsequent radioactive fallout outside of its blast radius the race to develop the most powerful non-nuclear-bomb has escalated. Recently, the Chinese have joined the club with their own version of the Mother of all Bombs believed to be approximately 6m long and weighing several tons, only one was able to be airlifted and dropped by the H6-K Chinese bomber aircraft. Like the Russian version, the Chinese claims of its destructive abilities cannot be technically verified. The relatively smaller size and lighter weight of the Chinese MOAB gives it the ostensible option to be carried in a bomber aircraft, unlike the American MOAB that requires a transport aircraft to operate the same, given its gargantuan weight and size. The Chinese state-owned conglomerate and arms manufacturer, NORINCO, is behind the Chinese MOAB. However, unlike the range, speed, accuracy and undetectable homing abilities of a missile system the delivery of these mega bombs are obviously less stealthy and typically usable in situations where the enemy has inadequate air defence systems on the ground or air to counter the dropping of these bombs, such as the dropping in Afghanistan against the ISIS-Khorasan elements. Military analysts are also a lot less enthusiastic about the long-term impact and efficacy of the much-hyped US MOAB strike in Afghanistan, as ISIS militants still dominate that particular area. It is argued that instead of achieving any strategic or even tactical military objective, it perhaps earned US President Donald Trump the political bragging-rights of muscularity. Therefore, while it is yet another feather in the cap of the Chinese arms manufacturing industry, it poses no immediate headache to Indias security calculus, given the air defence and related security systems. However, riding on the back of the recent Chinese belligerence on threatening to blow up American naval ships and taking over Taiwan by force the latest showcase of Chinese advancement in weaponry via the MOAB, is as much about political posturing as military muscle-flexing. Besides Chinas burgeoning nuclear programme with an estimated arsenal of 260 warheads, it is the recent advancements made in the development of the fifth generation stealth fighter plane J-20, aircraft carrier and nuclear submarine building capabilities, Type-55 naval cruisers and the claimed worlds best anti-ship missile in CM-302 (Pakistans Navy is said to be acquiring the same), that is threatening to alter the regional balance of power. With a Chinese defence budget said to be nearly four times that of India ($175 billion to $45 billion) and galloping away with a eight per cent increase over the previous year, China is globalising and modernising, both its armed forces and its manufacturing capabilities. The Chinese are pushing the boundaries of technological advancement by weaponising artificial intelligence, which will require a completely separate realm and dedicated counter-measure to negate. Holding all the investments and commitments towards acquiring superpower military capabilities, is the Chinese economic juggernaut that has slowly started developing cracks and has witnessed an unprecedented slowdown. The ongoing trade war with the United States will put additional burden on the struggling Chinese economy and its ability of maintain the momentum in military preparedness. The Chinese benchmark stock index was among the worst performing in 2018, signalling the red-flag for its economic health that could jeopardise the hegemonic instinct and onward march towards fructifying the so-called Chinese century. Sabre-rattling and posturing with weapons like the recent MOAB or snarling in the South China Seas or at Taiwan and Japan is one thing, actualising the bite and momentum is another thing. Chinas military and technology remains essentially untested on the battleground, and like its MOAB, enjoys and suffers from an equal measure of both hype and scepticism. Madhya Pradesh chief minister Kamal Nath is apparently having a tough time adjusting to his new role. As a Union minister in Delhi, the nine-term MP from Chhindwara had a streamlined system in place, both at home and in his office. The flow of visitors was kept in check and those who came with personal requests or official work were disposed of swiftly either by his staff or Mr Nath himself. Known for his limited attention span and impatient style of functioning, he was always impossible to pin down. A high flier, Mr Nath was always jetting around the globe, meeting with world leaders. After he took over as chief minister, the veteran Congress leader has not only been grounded in Bhopal but the corporate-style management of his office has also taken a knocking. His staff is finding it difficult to cope with the rush of visitors which runs invariably into hundreds everyday. Moreover, his age and asthma do not allow Mr Nath to keep up the hectic pace required of him as chief minister. A far cry from his affable and energetic predecessor Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The Bharatiya Janata Partys media departments insistence on sending its press releases in Hindi has led to a virtual revolt among mediapersons covering the party. Matters got worse when a junior functionary of the department sniped since Hindi is a national language, all Indians should necessarily know the language. This evoked strong protests, especially from journalists from the southern states, who wanted to know if those who hail from Tamil Nadu or Kerala and are not conversant with the Hindi language, would fail to qualify as Indians. Still others pointed out that as a pan-India party, which is seeking to expand its footprint in south, the BJP should have a more inclusive approach on this matter. Pushed on the backfoot, the department functionary was forced to apologise when his attention was drawn to the fact that the Indian Constitutions eighth schedule recognizes 22 languages and that English serves as a link language between the heartland and the rest of the country. Demeaning an ancient and rich language like Tamil, he was told, would end up hurting the BJP. Even as this controversy was in full flow on the BJPs media WhatsApp group, the media department bosses chose to maintain a studied silence on the issue. Odisha is among the states which have been identified by the Bharatiya Janata Party where it has potential to grow. Consequently, the saffron party has been making strenuous efforts to expand and strengthen its organisation in the state, which has been dominated by the Biju Janata Dal for almost two decades now and whose leader, Naveen Patnaik, has not lost his sheen despite his long stint in office. In its zeal to take on Mr Patnaik, the BJP has been promoting Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan as its chief ministerial face. But party leaders point out that Mr Pradhans projection is unlikely to help the BJP and that, instead, it should have a prominent tribal face given the fact that Odisha has a substantial tribal population. But in its wisdom, the BJP has chosen to marginalise its tribal leader Jual Oram who has the potential of consolidating the scheduled tribe vote in favour of the party in his home state. As a result, Mr Patnaik could prove unbeatable in the coming elections. The Assembly elections in Odisha will be conducted along with the Lok Sabha polls in April. There are many Bharatiya Janata Party leaders who are secretly quite happy with the partys defeat in the recent Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh Assembly polls. This is because it has resulted in a sea-change in the attitude of BJP president Amit Shah. Unlike in the past, Mr Shah has become more amiable and approachable. For instance, BJP insiders point out that Mr Shah has started reaching out to other senior leaders like Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari and Arun Jaitley and involving them in party affairs, which was not the case earlier. In another change, Mr Shah has also begun paying social calls on his senior colleagues at their homes. In the past, they had to line up at Mr Shahs residence if he needed to meet with them. Reputed to be a tough disciplinarian and a hard taskmaster, there are any number of stories in the BJP about how Mr Shah pulls up party members in public and even dismisses them brusquely. Mr Shah has grown in stature over the past four years, primarily due to his proximity to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and also because he has delivered a string of electoral victories for his party. That has changed now. The government has clarified that it does not propose to lower the age limit for general IAS-IPS aspirants from 32 years to 27 years, as suggested by Niti Aayog. It had also said that recruits should be placed in a central talent pool, which would then allocate candidates by matching their competencies and the job description of the post. Earlier, at least three committees had recommended reducing the entry age for the civil service as a much-needed reform. But the government believes accepting the recommendation would come with a heavy political price, which it is loath to pay. The clarification should come as a relief to aspirants who start preparing late and want to join the bureaucracy. Yet, while clearing the air on recruiting civil service officers, the government has no answer to meeting the shortfall of more than 2,400 vacancies in the IAS and IPS cadres. the situation in the IPS is getting worse as the number of IPS officers in total has seen a dip compared to last year. However, the number of IAS officers have increased marginally. According to the official data compiled by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, in 2017 there was a shortage of 908 IPS officers which has increased and reached 970 till January 2018. A parliamentary standing committee expressed serious concerns over the persistent shortage of officers. UP babus feel the ire UP chief secretary Anoop Chandra Pandey is reportedly disappointed with several colleagues in the rank of principal secretary, secretary, and special secretary as they have not yet filed their field tour reports on the status of the governments flagship projects. In a letter to all 75 officers, Mr Pandey has pointed out that 16 officers in August, 31 officers in September and 47 officers in October 2018 did not provide their tour reports to the government. According to Mr Pandey, chief minister Yogi Adityanath has directed that in future such negligence during tours of the districts would invite an adverse report against the officers. He also pointed out that this showed that the nodal officers are neither sensitive nor serious towards their responsibility of touring the districts. He further drew the attention of his colleagues that he has been asked to personally monitor their field tours in future. In Yogis raj, babus can no longer afford to ignore the rules of governance. What will be the effect of the alliances being formed against the Bharatiya Janata Party across the country? The obvious conclusion will be that the BJP will take fewer seats in 2019 than it did in 2014. The history of electoral alliances in India is that when the dominant party faces a joint Opposition, it gives up seats. This was the case for the Congress when it was the dominant force for five decades after Independence. Whenever the Opposition came together, as it did in 1977 and 1989, it was able to overwhelm the big party. The theory is that because most parties in India are caste-based, alliances tend to work and are able to increase vote-share. When large alliances form against the ruling party, it gets into trouble. That may or may not be the case in May this year and it could be that the BJP will still come back to power, though in an alliance. But there is little doubt that it will have to face a much stronger resistance than it did in 2014. Between Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the expectation is that the BJP could lose as many as 100 seats. Most of these losses will not be recoverable in the parts of India where the party will gain, for example in Kerala and West Bengal. We will soon know what is happening when the opinion polls begin to roll out from next month onwards. There is another effect that the alliances and the weakening of the Modi-Shah combine will have inside the BJP; and let us take a look at that. In many ways, the BJP is unique because it looks at itself as an ideological party. In comparison, the Congress has no real ideology. It can say it has values, for example secularism, or that it has some policies, for example liberalisation. But it does not have a fixed set of beliefs, and that is what an ideology is. Parties such as the BSP, the SP, the TMC, the BJD etc. also do not have any particular ideology. The Samajwadi Party will say it is Lohiaite, but not many party workers or even SP leaders will be able to explain what that means in real terms. The Communists say they have a Marxist or Leninist ideology, but they cannot really express the ideology when they are in power in a state. Kerala does not look particularly different under a UDF government led by the Congress, than when it is under an LDF government led by the Marxists. But the BJP claims it has a proper ideology, and it calls this ideology Hindutva. What will happen when the party is weakening, as it has been in recent months? We should expect that some consequences will follow. The first is that in times of uncertainty, ideological parties tend to fall back on their first principles. In the case of the BJP this means that the party will keep to the script that its core supporter understands: temples, statues, Muslims and cows. These are reliable things where the party is surefooted and its stand on these things separate the BJP from its competitors. The result of this is that it will pull the leadership towards the extreme. Within the party, the second rung will try to position themselves with the expectation that the uncertainty will produce opportunities later on. Prime Minister Nadendra Modi and Amit Shah will be more vulnerable in these circumstances. They will have less space to talk about development and inclusion and will have to move towards the right. This is why we are seeing no emphasis on these things this time versus in 2014. The pressure is already on them and will continue to build through the next few months. As Mr Modi and Mr Shah move to the right, centrist BJP leaders like Nitin Gadkari will also have a larger opportunity to expand their non-Hindutva appeal. The vulnerabilities will therefore be on both sides. This can be seen as something that is good for the party because right now it is quite closed and undemocratic at the national level. But inclusion and development are not at the core of the BJPs appeal, and so we must conclude that the change this period will produce will be more visible in religious and nationalistic issues than in everyday, material ones. The findings of the opinion polls, as the alliances are formed and announced, will keep this framework locked in. The space for Mr Modi will continue to shrink and the drift towards the right and the extreme will accelerate. At the BJP national council meeting in New Delhi last weekend, key leaders of the ruling party continued to take aim at the Mahagathbandhan, or the grand alliance of the secular parties, for seeking to challenge the saffron dictatorship, the description of the BJP government put forward by the Congress Party. Interestingly, vitriolic speeches at the BJP forum were made against the very idea of Opposition parties combining even as leaders of Uttar Pradeshs top regional parties, Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav, were announcing that they had joined hands to defeat the BJP, but kept the Congress out of their alliance. The plain truth is that there doesnt appear to be any Mahagathbandhan in the offing to take on the government. The Congress-led UPA of an earlier era has simply failed to take off as a serious all-encompassing platform of anti-BJP forces. Except in Maharashtra and Bihar, where the Congress proposes to come together with regional parties (NCP and RJD respectively) for the Lok Sabha polls, there is no sign yet of any other publicised alliance on the secular side. An alliance in Karnataka between the Congress and JD(S), that runs a coalition government in the state, is within the bounds of feasibility, but theres no formal word yet from either party. The same story holds good on the BJPs side. The NDA, as an idea, seems to have slid into the past. Back in 2014, the BJP is said to have displayed the sound sense to band together with several anti-Congress parties before the election. Its move was then contrasted with that of the Congress, which was becoming known as a party that cant keep allies. Such a sweeping formulation no longer appears to be in consonance with the ground reality. Except for the Akali Dal in Punjab, a small state in the overall scheme of things, the BJP doesnt have any firm allies in the bag as of now. If there are too many leaders on the secular side nursing the ambition to become Prime Minister, a key factor that has prevented the formation of a pre-poll alliance with the Congress, on the BJP side the weightier anti-Congress parties no longer seek accommodation in a BJP-led electoral front before the Lok Sabha polls. A significant former NDA ally of the BJP, the Telugu Desam Party, has turned anti-BJP, although it is not yet clear if it will enter into a formal alliance with the Congress. In the main, the likeliest scenario is that of regional parties linking up with the Congress or the BJP only in a post-poll alliance, with the larger of these two standing a better chance of attracting allies to form the government. Thus, the Congress versus BJP jostling will continue. The government needs to heed the view of the information technology czar N.R. Narayana Murthy who has pointed out that job creation will have to come from manufacturing and low-tech services for the 400 million semi-literates and 400 million illiterates. The steep drop to 0.5 per cent in the manufacturing sector output in November should ring alarm bells in the corridors of government as it plans for the sector to create one million new jobs in the next three years. The reasons for this drop need to be analysed by the government and acted upon if the situation is not to deteriorate. The manufacturing sector is an employment generator, so there is all the more reason to be concerned at the steep negative growth. The government needs to heed the view of the information technology czar N.R. Narayana Murthy who has pointed out that job creation will have to come from manufacturing and low-tech services for the 400 million semi-literates and 400 million illiterates. Indias growth in recent times has been consumption-led and demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax had enfeebled the spending capacity of consumers. This effect is now waning but the manufacturing sector needs a push from the government as it did in the case of the electronics industry in a bid to curb imports. India has the potential to be the manufacturing hub of the world specially since China is exiting this position due to higher wages and changing dynamics in its manufacturing sector . The government needs to build on the steps it has taken to boost the ease of doing business. Industry bodies for instance have suggested an independent regulatory system for the manufacturing sector and empowering of local authorities to deal with them rather than going to the Centre for issues concerning the sector. The Tamil Nadu minister Balakrishna Reddy, who had to step down from the Cabinet is one of the first to be convicted by a special court set up to try cases against legislators of Parliament and the state Assemblies. His appeal was dismissed by the Madras high court on the merits of the case as no defence witness had come forward to testify that the politician was not present during riots in TN 20 years ago. The point is the justice delivery system was seen to be moving far too slowly for any verdict to be meaningful towards nipping criminality by politicians in the bud. The idea of special courts to fast-track hundreds of cases against career politicians who have played ducks and drakes with the legal system to stay afloat and enjoy the trappings of power satisfies a long felt need to bring such offenders to book. Criminality among politicians and outright criminals seeking to become politicians is a major issue in our country. The number of national and state legislators having serious criminal cases pending against them is a clear enough sign that they milk the system through manipulation of justice delivery by endless dilatory tactics. While the special courts to try them serves the lofty principle of no one being above the law, where the judiciary was seen to be backing off was in deciding to ask Parliament to make laws debarring politicians facing serious criminal charges rather than ruling so on its own. To expect politicians to pass laws prohibiting their tribe from contesting elections when they are facing serious criminal charges is akin to asking for the moon. An initiative to cleanse the system can come only from the judiciary rather than the legislature or even political parties agreeing not to sponsor such candidates. The ruling in the Lily Thomas case in 2013 by which legislators lost their three-month leeway in preferring appeals while clinging to power was a significant step to curb sharp practices. But that alone has not gone far enough considering about 36 per cent of MPs in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha have serious cases against them while in the case of MLAs the percentage can be as high as 58 per cent in Bihar. In fact, at one time, the percentage was a mind-blowing 82 per cent of MLAs and MPs in a particular party in Jharkhand. A clean election process has been an ideal that India has to pursue if its political system is not to be further eroded by a group of people who have brazenly mocked the polls by nominating proxies to positions of power, as we saw in the famous case of Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is now one of the few political leaders not eligible to stand for elections for some time to come. From the recent announcement of the proposed policy of reserving 10 per cent of jobs for the economically weaker sections among the upper castes, the BJP is hoping to consolidate its upper caste support base, which seemed threatened in recent years. The BJPs defeat in three state Assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan seemed to have worried the BJP leadership, and it sensed a growing disappointment among the upper castes towards it. The BJP is hoping that the announcement of this policy may be a masterstroke just before the Lok Sabha elections of 2019. True, the BJP might stand to gain, and may win back at least a large section of upper caste voters who had begun to desert the BJP, but the electoral gains for the BJP overall may be limited for two reasons. First, the upper castes are not numerically very large; and second, they have been core supporters of the BJP and have been voting for it in large numbers before this policy was proposed. The proposed policy can at best win back some disenchanted upper caste voters, but it cant possibly add too many additional votes for the party in 2019. The upper castes do play an important role in the politics of the northern Indian states, but this impact is limited to some extent. While there are no official estimates of upper castes in different states, estimates from the various rounds of surveys conducted by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies indicates that upper castes constitute roughly between 20 per cent to 30 per cent of the total population in different states, with some exceptions. Among the Hindi heartland states, the upper castes constitute 18 per cent of the total population of Bihar, 22 per cent of the population of Madhya Pradesh, 25 per cent of the Uttar Pradesh population, 50 per cent of the total population of Delhi, 20 per cent in Jharkhand, 23 per cent in Rajasthan, 40 per cent in Haryana and 12 per cent of Chhattisgarhs total population. There are some other non-Hindi speaking states where the upper castes are in sizeable numbers 35 per cent in Assam, 30 per cent in Gujarat, 19 per cent in Karnataka, 30 per cent in Kerala, 30 per cent in Maharashtra, 20 per cent in Odisha, 10 per cent in Tamil Nadu, 48 per cent in West Bengal and 48 per cent in Punjab. While it is true that the BJP possibly cannot lose votes from this policy, the gains from this policy will be very limited. The reasons are simple. In the states where the BJP had performed well in 2014, namely Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and a few others, the upper castes had voted for the BJP in very large numbers. In fact, they formed the backbone of the support base for the BJP. The CSDS surveys indicate that a majority of upper caste voters have voted for the BJP in various elections in these Hindi heartland states. The proposed policy can only help the BJP in winning back the upper caste voters who seemed to have just begun moving away from the BJP. The recent defeat of the BJP in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, besides other factors, is also due to the shifting of upper caste voters away from the party. This proposed policy and the criteria of determining economic backwardness helps little as the suggested criteria of determining backwardness would mean bringing a very large proportion of upper caste voters into its fold, who are already core supporters of the BJP. The policy suggests the criteria of economic backwardness will be of those having an annual income of less than `8 lakhs, or those having less than five hectares of agricultural land, or those having a flat of less than 1,000 sq. ft. or owing land of less than 100 yards in a notified municipality or less than 200 yards in a non-notified locality. Given these suggested benchmarks, in most likelihood nearly 85-90 per cent of upper castes might come under the ambit of reservations. In states where the BJP is not a political force today, such as Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh or Telangana, this policy could hardly motivate the upper castes to vote for it. The politics of most of these states are dominated by the regional parties, and it is difficult to imagine that the BJP could take centrestage in the politics of these states in 2019 just because upper castes would get mobilised in its favour due to the expected gains from this reservation policy. So the BJP will have limited gains or no gains in these states compared to 2014. There are a few other states, like West Bengal or Odisha, where the BJP was relatively a weak political force in 2014, but there are signals of the party emerging stronger in recent years. But it is important to note that the BJPs emergence in these two states has nothing to do with the shifting of upper caste votes towards it. It is largely due to the peoples disenchantment with the ruling party of the state, the Trinamul Congress in West Bengal and the Biju Janata Dal in Odisha, and the absence of any other viable alternative in these states. The BJP managed to emerge as a political force in some states playing the religious card, Assam being an example. The BJP might well emerge stronger in these states in 2019 compared to 2014, but that may not be due to the shift of upper caste votes in the BJPs favour in these states. Thus, the BJP governments move for 10 per cent reservation for the economically poor upper castes in education and in jobs is unlikely to deliver any significant electoral benefits forthe party in these states. The proposed reservation policy has the ability to create a lot of noise, to bring this to the centrestage of Indian politics before the 2019 election as no political party could possibly oppose it openly, but even then, the gains for the BJP may not be to the extent that the party is hoping for. Kashmiris feel that they are literally imprisoned in a cage from which almost all exit routes are barred save one, to India, which is also not without peril. (Representational image) (Photo: ANI | Twitter) It is accepted by all that Kashmiris feel a deep sense of alienation and oppression, which they resent intensely. But there is another aspect that is often overlooked: Kashmiris feel that they are literally imprisoned in a cage from which almost all exit routes are barred save one, to India, which is also not without peril. Kashmiris are distrusted and treated poorly in many parts of India, whether as students or as traders. Now, even one other solitary opening trade across the Line of Control with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is facing a slow death. It has seen many ups and downs in the decade since it was begun. It always operated on barter; banking and telecommunication facilities were always denied. Initially, it was proposed as a confidence-building measure by Atal Behari Vajpayee. His successor, Manmohan Singh, pursued it in earnest until the LoC trade was set going. Its political impact was considerable. The LoC trade was as popular in Jammu as it was in the Valley, and its popularity cut across political and religious divides. Despite this, no effort was made to improve the arrangements by providing banking facilities and telecommunications. Matters reached a ludicrous stage a few years ago when Mufti Mohammad Sayeed first became chief minister. In one sector of the Kanchenjunga River, the divide is very narrow. Divided families discovered that they could easily throw boxes of gifts to each other. It flourished only for a short time. The security forces put an end to it. Security was a false excuse. The crowds could well have been managed and the gift boxes properly searched. It was the opening to the other side which was unacceptable. Even this small opening was ended. It is this mentality that inspired the slow poisoning of the LoC trade. As a Kashmiri correspondent, Ishfaqul Hassan, reported from Srinagar very recently, (T)he cross-LoC trade is showing signs of stagnation sending shivers through the traders community across J&K. Started in October 2008, the cross-LoC trade was considered as the mother of all confidence-building measures between India and Pakistan. One has heard of many protests at New Delhis calculated indifference to the LoC trade. Rakesh Gupta, president of the Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, worded his protest with admirable precision. It is unfortunate that one of the most important confidence-building measures initiated by the then Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan 10 years ago was dying a slow death due to the absence of proper follow-up action. The effect of its closure on the minds of the people of Kashmir already feeling suffocated, and forcibly contained and controlled can well be imagined. This one avenue offered some hope of other and more promising openings. Now, all the doors will be shut in their face. In no part of the subcontinent does history matter as much as it does in Kashmir. Equally, no other part has had such roaring exchanges with foreign powers, defying the British rulers, as did the maharaja and people of Kashmir. Emperor Akbar is admired throughout the subcontinent. But Kashmiris hate him for destroying their independence by invading and annexing their land in 1586. Likewise, Kashmiris can still recall the times, even during the rule of the tyrannical Dogras and their British overlords, when Russian and Central Asian merchants came to the region for its world-famous shawls. Movement of men and materials like pilgrims, books, shawls, gold tillas, Russian textiles, Kokandi silk, Bukharan rumals and coral formed an essential ingredient of the interaction between Central Asia and Kashmir. The British imposed on the maharaja their resident in Kashmir to detect his dealings with other countries. Trade from British India would flow through Kulu via the Chang Chenmo route to Yarkand, bypassing the maharajas customs officials in Leh. This idea was so attractive that, in 1870, a special treaty signed in Sialkot in 1870 by the viceroy Lord Mayo and Maharaja Ranbir Singh, which would elevate this route to the status of a free highway, to be dotted with supply depots and rest houses jointly supervised by British and Kashmir officials. It became known as the treaty route. Haj pilgrims from Central Asia would pass through Kashmir to board ships at Karachi or Bombay. To this day, Kashmiris fondly recall that history. In 1970, this writer went for a walk in the interiors of Srinagar with the editor of a prestigious weekly. All of a sudden, he exclaimed, This is not India. It is Central Asia. Constitutional oppression apart, Kashmiris must also be freed from physical restraints and allowed to breathe freely. That will facilitate a political solution. Begin with the Jammu-Sialkot road. By arrangement with Dawn Hyderabad: Telanagana state Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao is expected to take a decision on the new Assembly Speaker on January 15. Party sources said the CM has been considering the names of former ministers Pocharam Srinivas Reddy, E. Rajender, A. Indra Karan Reddy, senior MLA T.S. Redya Nayak and former deputy speaker Padma Devender Reddy for the post. Sources said the party chief has spoken to some of them to know their mind and was likely to interact with the others in the coming two days. Sources even said that the probable nominees are not too keen to accept the post of Speaker. Election for the Speaker is scheduled for January 18, the very next day after MLAs take oath. Assembly proceedings are to commence at 11.30 am on January 17 with protem Speaker Mumtaz Ahmad Khan in the chair. He will administer oath to the newly-elected MLAs. The Governor will address a joint session of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council on January 19. The House will introduce a motion of thanks to the Governors address and adopt the same the next day. Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu has put his main rival, the YSR Congress, on the defensive by announcing doubling of the state pension amount from January 1, 2019. The YSRC has been in a jubilant mood after its party chief Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddys successful completion of his almost year-long padayatra, so Mr Naidus announcement has come as a shock as it steals the thunder from Jagan Mohan Reddy who had announced a year ago that pensions would be doubled if his party was voted to power in the Assembly polls. At present, the state government pays `1,000 per person per month under NTR Bharosa, which will double to `2,000 per month. Disabled persons get `1,500 per month which will now increase to `3,000 per month. The state government pays 11 kinds of pensions to 54 lakh people under NTR Bharosa. Since the arrears for January will be paid in February, those eligible for the old age pension will get `3,000 next month and disabled persons will get `4,500. The Telugu Desam believes the enhancement of pension will help the party politically in the forthcoming elections. In the 2014 Assembly elections, the difference in vote sharing between the Telugu Desam and YSR Congress was 1.69 per cent. A survey reportedly conducted at the instance of Telangana Chief Minister and TRS president K. Chandrasekhar Rao two months ago put the vote sharing difference between the Telugu Desam and YSR Congress at 2.5 per cent. The Telugu Desam expects to further improve its vote share after the announcement of the increased pension. Other financial benefits to certain sections, including farmers, will also be announced in the coming days. Mr Naidu is very confident of retaining power in the ensuing Assembly elections. The Telugu Desam will contest alone without entering into an alliance with any other party for the first time. The YSRC has announced that it too will contest on its own and the Jana Sena will have an alliance with left parties. The Telugu Desam party was broken its ties with the Bharatiya Janata Party. In 2014, the Telugu Desam and BJP were allies, and the BJP got four per cent of the vote share. Telugu Desam leaders say that the four per cent of BJP votes will go to their party this time as the people of Andhra Pradesh are angry with the BJP for not granting special status to the state. Hyderabad: Union Public Distribution System department secretary Ravikant on Friday complimented the state for its paddy procurement system. He said it was appreciable that the government had arranged procurement centres every five km to help farmers get the minimum support price. Mr Ravikant was visiting the state to inspect paddy procurement system and implementation of the PDS and met Food Corporation of India and the states civil supplies department officials. He spoke with farmers who were selling their produce at the procurement centres at Khammam, Kothagudem, Siddipet, Mancheriyal and Bhupalpally districts through a video call from Hyderabad. He spoke with beneficiaries of the PDS who were drawing their quota from rations shops. Mr Ravikant asked why the state had purchased 208 per cent more paddy so far this year. Mr Akun Sabharwal, commissioner of civil supplies, said timely rain, uninterrupted power, the Rythu Bandhu scheme and new projects had helped increased yields. Because of this, the state procured 39 lakh tonnes so far against 16 lakh tonnes last year. Separate spots have been arranged for professional kite-flyers and residents to exhibit their skills. Hyderabad: The stage is set for the fourth edition of the International Kite Festival on Sunday. Around 42 international professional kite flyers from 20 countries and around 1,200 varieties of home-made sweets, all representing different cultures, will be on display. Vice-president M. Venkaiah Naidu will attend the event as chief guest while state home minister Mahmood Ali will preside over the event. Separate spots have been arranged for professional kite-flyers and residents to exhibit their skills. The sweet festival is going to be as big a draw as 2,500 homemakers from 22 different countries toil to showcase the 1,200 varieties of sweets. The festival will kick off around 11 am and go on till 10 pm, ending in cultural programmes in which artists from around 25 states will perform on stage. Tourism officials are confident the festival will see a footfall of around 10 lakh in the coming three days. Eight lakh people had visited it last year. Tourism secretary Burra Venkatesham, who was overlooking arrangements at the Parade grounds, said: This festival celebrates the cosmopolitan nature of Hyderabad while boosting tourism in the city. Sankranti is a festival where people fly kites and use manja. They were selling Chinese manja, which is a banned product. They have been handed over to Chilkalguda police for further action, added the DCP. Hyderabad: The Commissioners Task Force teams apprehended four men in two different incidents for selling banned chinese manja. In the first case, the Central Zone team apprehended Manoj Kumar Jaiswal, 40, and Kiran Kumar Jaiswal, 43, police said, from whom they seized Rs 1 Lakh worth materials. The duo used to purchase the banned manja made of glass coated nylon threads through an agent from Macharla of Khanpur district in UP state and were selling the same to customers in and around the city. The men, along with seized material, was handed over to Musheerabad police for further legal action against them, said the DCP of Commissioners Task Force, P. Radhakrishna Rao. In the second incident, the North Zone team apprehended Rachakatla Saranga Pani, 52, and Cheti Dharmaiah, 65, from whom Rs 10 lakh worth materials was seized, police said. Sankranti is a festival where people fly kites and use manja. They were selling Chinese manja, which is a banned product. They have been handed over to Chilkalguda police for further action, added the DCP. The Telangana state government under Section 5 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 has imposed a complete ban on procuring, stocking, sale and use of nylon thread, which is commonly called Chinese dor. Using other synthetic (non-biodegradable) threads coated with glass or other harmful substances and used for kite flying or other purposes can cause grievous injuries and inconvenience to animals including birds. Even humans are affected by the manja, the DCP said. New Delhi: Having sounded the poll bugle for the coming Lok Sabha polls by putting before the people a choice of whether they want a mazboot or a majboor sarkar (hinting at a mahagathbandhan of the Opposition parties), Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked the erstwhile Congress government on Sunday for its failure to bring Kartarpur Sahib under Indias jurisdiction during 1947s Partition. Releasing a commemorative coin as part of the 350th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh guru, Mr Modi also targeted the Congress over the 1984 riots that followed the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Referring to the Kartapur Sahib corridor, he said now devotees do not have to look at the shrine in Pakistan using binoculars, and they could visit the place without visas by using the corridor. A mistake took place in August 1947. It (the corridor) is an atonement of the mistake. An important place of our guru was only a few km away. But it could not be made part (of India during Partition)... The corridor is an effort to reduce the damage, he said in a veiled attack on then Congress government. Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, had passed away at Kartarpur on September 22, 1539. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, former Chief Justice of India J.S. Khehar and many Sikh leaders were present at the PMs residence to participate in the event. Mr Modi said be it Guru Nanak or Guru Gobind Singh, they had taught us to be on the side of justice. Following the path shown by them, the Centre, he said, was trying to get justice for those who had suffered during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The Central government is making efforts to get justice for the period of injustice which started in 1984. For decades, mothers, sisters, daughters and sons have shed tears, now the law will deliver justice, wipe (their) tears, the PM said, referring to the riots that took place after the assassination of then PM Indira Gandhi. The Prime Minister released a `350 commemorative silver coin to mark the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. He described the founder of the Khalsa sect as a warrior and poet who had immense knowledge of religious scriptures. The National Democratic Alliance government projected this legislation as a landmark one aimed at empowering millions of Muslim women who were victims of instant triple talaq. New Delhi: Having missed the opportunity of getting the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018, passed in the Rajya Sabha after it was passed by the Lok Sabha the Centre has re-promulgated the ordinance banning the practice of instant triple talaq. The NDA regime has projected this legislation as a landmark one, which is aimed at empowering millions of Muslim women who have been victims of instant triple talaq. The next sitting of Parliament (which would be the final one of the 16th Lok Sabha) is tentatively scheduled to take place between January 31 and February 13, 2019, during which the government is likely to present its interim Budget. The government would try to get the bill passed in Rajya Sabha during this Budget Session. Under the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance, 2019, which was issued on January 12, divorcing through instant triple talaq will be illegal and void and would attract a jail term of three years for the husband. A bill to convert the earlier ordinance, issued in September 2018, was cleared by the Lok Sabha on December 27, 2018. However, it was pending in the Rajya Sabha. Since the bill could not get parliamentary approval, the fresh ordinance was issued. Last week, the Union Cabinet had approved reissuance of the ordinance. Seeking to allay the fears that the proposed law could be misused, the government has included certain safeguards in it, such as adding a provision of bail for the accused before trial. These amendments were cleared by the Cabinet on August 29, 2018. While the ordinance makes it a non-bailable offence, an accused can approach a magistrate even before trial to seek bail. A provision has been added to allow the magistrate to grant bail after hearing the wife, the government said. The magistrate would ensure that bail is granted only after the husband agrees to grant compensation to the wife as provided in the bill. The police would lodge an FIR only if approached by the victim (wife), her blood relations, or people who become her relatives by virtue of her marriage. 'BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity,' Rahul Gandhi said. (Photo: ANI) New Delhi/Dubai: Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with "full capacity" and stick to its ideology. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has a tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. Once arch-rivals, Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced on Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The parties, however, said they would not field candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by the Congress president and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance', India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. Replying to a question, he said, "RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is that there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on an economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by PM Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of the informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non-violence and its peace-loving nature when people look at India and see violence they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court who are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. Gandhi said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST and bring investments from the Middle East and other parts of the world. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. The jawan, identified as Sombir, belongs to Haryana and was posted in the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. (Representational Image | PTI) New Delhi: An Indian Army jawan posted in a tank regiment in Jaisalmer has been arrested by the Rajasthan police after he was allegedly found to be virtually honey trapped by Pakistan-based ISI operatives on social media and passing critical military information to them. "The jawan has been arrested in Jaisalmer by the Rajasthan police and the Army is providing all possible assistance to the civilian authorities in this investigation," Defence PRO Colonel Sambit Ghosh told ANI over the phone. The jawan, identified as Sombir, belongs to Haryana and was posted in the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. Sources in the Army said the jawan was in touch with a suspected ISI spy using the profile name of 'Anika Chopra' on Facebook and was chatting regularly on the social media and exchanging details and information about the jawan's armoured unit and its movement. The Army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to probe if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel to get information from them, they said. In the recent past, a Group Captain of the Indian Air Force was apprehended by the counter-intelligence units of the Army, Air Force and the Intelligence Bureau for sharing information about transport aircraft operations as he was posted in the Air Headquarters here. A BrahMos employee was also caught where the Pakistani spy had used the same modus operandi to trap the official. Sources in the Army said the jawan was apprehended and interrogated by intelligence agencies for over four months after he was found to be in touch with Pakistani ISI operatives on social media and was being interrogated by the intelligence agencies and the Army for the information supplied by him to the Pakistani spy agency. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the 'CVC should be sacked or tender his resignation', but the 'CVC must go'. (Photo: File | PTI) New Delhi: Amid a row over the removal of CBI director Alok Verma, Congress on Sunday sought "immediate removal" of the chief vigilance commissioner (CVC), alleging that he had acted like a "puppet" in the hands of the government. Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi at a press conference at the AICC headquarters, said, the "CVC should be sacked or tender his resignation", but the "CVC must go". There was no immediate reaction from the Central Vigilance Commission or the government. The Congress also alleged that CVC K V Chowdary is being made to "act like a puppet" to avoid any probe into the Rafale case. "The CVC has been acting like an ambassador, messenger of the government, and lobbying for Asthana (CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana). The CVC has forgotten that he is supposed to do vigilance for public good, and not be a 'vigilant' puppet into the hands of political masters," Singhvi alleged. The senior Congress leader said he was putting forth the views of his party, based on "objectives facts" that has emerged in the press in connection with the CBI controversy. "The data and fact in writing demand immediate action, and that action must start with the removal and sacking of the CVC," he said. "The sequence of events indicates that the CVC acted like a hatchet man of the government," Singhvi alleged. Singhvi on Saturday had alleged that the government stood exposed after Justice (retd) A K Patnaik claimed that he had not seen the commission's recommendations against Verma and not accorded his assent. He said the Selection Committee removed Verma based on Asthana's charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was dismissed by the Delhi High Court. Hyderabad: West Zone Task Force officials apprehended a 38-year-old habitual offender for stealing cellphones from a showroom in Ramachandrapuram last month. Officials recovered 35 sealed cellphone boxes and pen drives, all worth around Rs 5.5 lakh, from him, while he was about to strike a deal with a cellphone shop in Jagdish Market area. According to the police, accused Faiyazullah Khan stole the cellphones from Big C showroom in Ramachandrapuram. Faiyazullah is an alcoholic and gambling addict and has been known to commit burglaries since 2014. Between 2014 and 2016, he and his friend Shaik Ahmed, alias Lalu, had committed six property offences in Chaderghat, Begumpet and Chikkadpally police station areas of Hyderabad and LB Nagar police station of Rachakonda Commissionerate, said Hyderabad police commissioner Mr Anjani Kumar said. In March 2016, Chaderghat police arrested the two for six property offences. The same month, both were detained under the PD Act and sent in judicial custody to Chanchalguda Central Prison. After their release in June-2017, Faiyazullah began committing offences in the RGI Airport and Shamshabad police station areas, Rachakonda commissionerate and Nalgonda Town. RGIA Police of Shamshabad arrested and sent him in judicial custody in both cases. He was released after serving three months in jail. For a brief while he began selling clothes but after failing to earn enough, he hatched a plan to commit a property offence for which he first did a recce of the place. As per plan, in the last week of December, he did a recce of Beeramguda area in Ramachandrapuram and selected a cellphone showroom. On the intervening night of December 28, Faiyazullah entered the showroom by making a hole on the left side wall and stole 35 costly cellphones and six memory cards, an official said. On Saturday, Fayaz went to Jagdish Market in Abids to sell the stolen phones. Based on a tip-off, the West Zone Task Force team apprehended him and recovered the stolen gadgets. The accused and the property were handed over to Ramchandrapuram police for further investigation. Katrina has never looked better. In all her recent films she looks like a diva and has the poise to make the audience gasp each time she strides across the screen. She has also been working on improving her Hindi language and diction. Sadly both her big films of 2018, Thugs Of Hindostan and Zero were flops. Its still a mystery why she agreed to do these films, since her roles in both films werent substantial. Even more baffling is her decision to opt out of ABCD 3, which she had bagged alongside the saleable Varun Dhawan. Now, she only has Salman Khans Bharat, a role she picked up when original choice, Priyanka Chopra walked out suddenly. Apparently, Salman called and said he wanted Katrina to step in. And Bhai gets what he wants. One wonders if Katrina is back to leaning on Salman, her mentor and saviour? I remember how protective Salman was about Katrina when he called up angrily after the release of Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya to complain about something I wrote about Katrina in the film. You can forget about meeting her, Salman chided me! Thankfully, Katrina takes her own decisions. But friends of the actress say that the independence of will is not serving her interests well. According to a close friend of Salman, Bhai advised her against doing both Zero and Thugs of Hindostan. These had been offered to Bhai and he knew her role was minuscule in both. She didnt listen to him. But after both films failed, sources say, Salman is back to giving her career advice. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription and are still unable to access our content, please link your digital account to your print subscription If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. remaining of SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. The best bang for your buck! This option enables you to purchase online 24/7 access and receive the Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday print edition at no additional cost * Print edition only available in our carrier delivery area. Allow up to 72 hours for delivery of your print edition to begin. Print edition not available for Day Pass option. You are the owner of this article. Now, that claim also has worked its way through the court. And Judge Norman K. Moon found that, sure enough, the prison and the corrections department had failed to fulfill eight out of 22 court-ordered standards. Among the incidents he cited, one was particularly poignant. Even after a correctional officer alerted medical staff that a prisoner was having a medical emergency, nurses did not treat it as an emergency. They casually walked toward her cell as she lay dying on the floor. Deanna Niece was mere days from being released. But she never made it out of that cell alive. At least four inmates have died while incarcerated at FCCW since the 2016 agreement was reached. Judge Moon cited technical impediments to holding corrections department accountable for contempt. But he said he was determined to see that the 2016 agreement was upheld. He issued an injunction requiring, among other things, that within 45 days the prison have a full staff of 78 nurses in place. Additionally, officials must develop a protocol to ensure that inmates are receiving care unlike the woman, for instance, who waited three years for a colonoscopy. By this he meant that religious liberty and political equality would not be exclusively Christian. For Jefferson asserted in his autobiography that his original legislative intent had been to comprehend, within the mantle of its protection, the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and Mahometan [Muslim], the Hindoo, and Infidel of every denomination. By defining Muslims as future citizens in the 18th century, in conjunction with a resident Jewish minority, Jefferson expanded his universal legislative scope to include every one of every faith. Ideas about the nations religiously plural character were tested also in Jeffersons presidential foreign policy with the Islamic powers of North Africa. President Jefferson welcomed the first Muslim ambassador, who hailed from Tunis, to the White House in 1805. Because it was Ramadan, the president moved the state dinner from 3:30 p.m. to be precisely at sunset, a recognition of the Tunisian ambassadors religious beliefs, if not quite Americas first official celebration of Ramadan. Muslims once again provide a litmus test for the civil rights of all U.S. believers. Today, Muslims are fellow citizens and members of Congress, and their legal rights represent an American founding ideal still besieged by fear mongering, precedents at odds with the best of our ideals of universal religious freedom. Denise A. Spellberg is a professor in the Department of History and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at Austin. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Immigration, border security. Trump pledged during the 2016 election campaign to deal with a major influx of immigrants who crossed our southern border illegally. Once on U.S. territory, they were entitled to many social benefits until their status was decided by courts. Many disappeared into communities across the country and were never processed. Trumps insistence on a border wall to stop the illegal flow became a political issue in Congress, but the public wants changes in the laws that will curtail growing pressure on the southern border by caravan refugees from Central America. Providing funds for a physical barrier on the Mexican border is a major contest between the president and Congress after Democrats gained control in the House in 2018. Its unclear whether the public supports the president or Democrats on this issue. U.S. troops abroad. The costly invasions and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq soured the public on the wisdom of sending U.S. forces abroad to enforce peace in dangerous places. The public generally accepts the idea that America should not be the worlds policeman, because of its costs and paucity of benefits. The embryo of the EU was a free trade zone a single market. But as the unification project became more ambitious, it required the derogation of national parliaments and hence of nations sovereignties. So, in 1988 Margaret Thatcher voiced what became Conservative Euroskeptics cri de coeur : "We have not successfully rolled back the frontiers of the state in Britain, only to see them re-imposed at a European level with a European super-state exercising a new dominance from Brussels." Hoping to cauterize the Conservative Party's long-festering wound, in 2016 then-Prime Minister David Cameron succumbed to the plebiscitary temptation, scheduling the referendum that he thought Remain would win. It lost, he resigned, and Theresa May, who had voted to remain, became prime minister. She called an election expecting to increase her parliamentary majority and thus her leverage negotiating terms of divorce from the EU. Instead, she lost her majority and was forced into an alliance with a Northern Ireland party. It is dismaying that most of the binding law in Britain comes from the European Commission in Brussels. But why, with its primacy at stake, did Parliament punt one of the most momentous decisions in British history to a referendum? The chili will be both plentiful and famous next week at Harbor Park. The Tides will celebrate The Office with multiple ways for fans to mee When the topic turns to helping people who have scant resources, the first needs that come to mind are the usual ones. Food. Housing. Health care. Clothing. But what about cleaning that clothing? Thats where Cutter Huston has found his niche. MoneyTips You have bought an expensive new toy in expectation of your tax refund, and are now desperately waiting for the refund to arrive before the repo man and his large friend Vito come to visit. How can you find out the status of your refund at any time to estimate whether you need to make a run for it? A more likely scenario is that you are just curious about your refund, and would like to check the status periodically. In either case, regardless of who prepared your taxes, you need to go through the IRS website to get your answer. Under the Refunds tab at www.irs.gov, you can select the "Where's My Tax Refund?" link and find out the latest on your return. The site is only updated once every 24 hours and is also available in Spanish. If you e-filed, you can check the status within 24 hours after the submission, but on a traditional paper return, you will have to wait 21 days or more before checking. This proc... Bernstein made her first appearance as the Narrator in a CHSO presentation of Peter and the Wolf in 2007. She returned to Charlottesville in 2009 to present The Bernstein Beat, a family concert that paid tribute to her fathers popular Young Peoples Concerts. Other special guests will be joining the string orchestra at 3 p.m. Jan. 20 at the Paramount Theater to provide the musical voices of the storys characters. Clarinetist James Tobin will play the role of the Cat, while flutist Angela Kelly will portray the Bird. Oboist Sarah Ballian, a CHS alumna who played in the band and symphony during her high school years, plays the Duck. Bassoonist Suzanne Reid Pattinson portrays Grandfather. The Wolf is represented by three horns, which will be played by Angela Wilmer, Anna Bon-Harper and Aiman Khan. Young Peter is portrayed by the string section. Percussionists Bruce Penner and Max Patek also will perform. Thomas said Bernstein is a natural choice as the Narrator, citing her enthusiasm, for one, and her flair for the dramatic. Jamie is bigger than life, and she takes up the whole stage. Bernstein gives the credit to a well-written story and compelling music. 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.. The following companies are subsidiares of Textron: AAI Corporation, AAI Services Corporation, ALSTOM Gears, Able Aerospace Services Inc., Able Engineering & Component Services, Aeronautical Accessories LLC, Airborne Tactical Advantage Company, Airborne Tactical Advantage Company LLC, Arctic Cat, Arctic Cat ACE Holding GmbH, Arctic Cat Deutschland GmbH, Arctic Cat Espana SL, Arctic Cat France SARL, Arctic Cat GmbH, Arctic Cat Inc., Arctic Cat Italia srl, Arctic Cat Production LLC, Arctic Cat Production Support LLC, Arctic Cat Sales Inc., Arctic Cat Shared Services LLC, Arctic Cat UK Ltd., Arkansas Aerospace, Arkansas Aerospace Inc., Avco Corporation, Avco Rhode Island (2002) Inc., Aviation Service servis letal, Aviation Service servis letal doo Ljubljana, Aylesbury Automation, B/K Navigational Equipment sro, Beech Aircraft Corporation, Beech Enterprises, Beech Enterprises Holding, Beech Holdings, Beechcraft, Beechcraft Australia Pty Limited, Beechcraft Corporation, Beechcraft Defense Company, Beechcraft Defense Support Holding, Beechcraft Defense Support Holding LLC, Beechcraft Domestic Service Company, Beechcraft Germany GmbH, Beechcraft Holdings, Beechcraft India Private Limited, Beechcraft International Holding LLC, Beechcraft International Service Company, Beechcraft New Zealand, Beechcraft Service Company UK Limited, Beechcraft Singapore Pte. Ltd., Bell Helicopter Asia (Pte) Ltd., Bell Helicopter Canada International Inc., Bell Helicopter GK, Bell Helicopter India Inc., Bell Helicopter KK, Bell Helicopter Korea Inc., Bell Helicopter Miami Inc., Bell Helicopter Prague, Bell Helicopter Prague a.s., Bell Helicopter Rhode Island Inc., Bell Helicopter Services Inc., Bell Helicopter Supply Center B.V., Bell Helicopter Supply Center BV, Bell Helicopter Textron Canada Limited/Limitee, Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., Bell Technical Services Inc., Benzlers, Brazaco Mapri Industrias, Burkland, CCP Holdings (ATAC), Cadillac Gage Textron Inc., Cam Tool LLC, Cessna Aircraft Company, Cessna Aircraft Rhode Island Inc., Cessna Citation European Service Center S.A.S., Cessna Citation European Service Center SAS, Cessna Consulting (Shenyang) Co, Cessna Consulting (Shenyang) Co. Ltd., Cessna Dusseldorf Citation Service Center GmbH, Cessna Finance Corporation, Cessna Finance Export Corporation, Cessna Mexico S de RL de CV, Cessna ServiceDirect, Cessna Spanish Citation Service Center SL, Cessna Zurich Citation Service Center GmbH, Citation Parts Distribution International, Citation Parts Distribution International Inc., Cushman, Cushman Inc., Datacom Technologies, David Brown Group, Doncaster Citation Service Centre Limited, E-Z-GO (Jiangsu) Electronic and Technology Co., E-Z-GO Canada Limited, EM Systems, ETOPS (AS) UK Limited, ETOPS Aviation Services Malaysia SDN BHD, ETOPS SAS, Endura-Greenlee Tools (Shanghai) Co., Energy Manufacturing, Flexalloy, Greenlee Communications Limited, Greenlee Textron Inc., Gustav Klauke GmbH, HBC LLC, HD Electric Company, Hawker Beech International Services de Mexico S de RL de CV, Hawker Beech de Mexico, Hawker Beech de Mexico S de RL de CV, Hawker Beechcraft Argentina SA, Hawker Beechcraft Global Customer Support, Hawker Beechcraft do Brasil Assessoria e Intermediacao de Negocios Ltda., Howe & Howe Technologies Inc., Howe and Howe Technologies, Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), Industrial Technology Inc., InteSys Technologies, International Product Support Inc., Jacobsen Professional Lawn Care Inc., KSB Annecy SAS, Kautex, Kautex (Changchun) Plastics Technology Co, Kautex (Changchun) Plastics Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Chongqing) Plastic Technology Co., Kautex (Chongqing) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Guangzhou) Plastic Technology Co., Kautex (Guangzhou) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Pinghu) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Shanghai) Plastic Technology Co., Kautex (Shanghai) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex (Wuhan) Plastic Technology Co., Kautex (Wuhan) Plastic Technology Co. Ltd., Kautex Corporation, Kautex Craiova srl, Kautex Inc., Kautex Japan KK, Kautex Plastic Technology Gujarat Private Limited, Kautex Poland Sp. z.o.o, Kautex Shanghai GmbH, Kautex Textron (UK) Limited, Kautex Textron Benelux B.V.B.A., Kautex Textron Benelux BVBA, Kautex Textron Bohemia spol sro, Kautex Textron Bohemia spol. s.r.o., Kautex Textron CVS Limited, Kautex Textron GmbH & Co. KG, Kautex Textron Iberica, Kautex Textron Iberica SL, Kautex Textron Management Services Company de Puebla, Kautex Textron Management Services Company de Puebla S. de RL de CV, Kautex Textron Portugal Produtos Plasticos, Kautex Textron Portugal Produtos Plasticos Ldas., Kautex Textron de Mexico S de RL de CV, Kautex Textron de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Kautex Textron do Brasil Ltda., Kautex of Georgia Inc., Kaywood Products Corp., King Atmosphere General & Industrial Services and Project Management, King Atmosphere General & Industrial Services and Project Management LLC, Klauke, Klauke France SARL, Klauke Handelsgesellschaft m.b.H., Klauke Polska Sp. z o.o., Klauke Slovakia sro, Klauke Textron (Jiangsu) Electrical Connection Technology Co., Klauke UK Limited, LLC Hawker Beechcraft International RSA, LLC Textron RUS, Maag, McCord Corporation, McTurbine Inc., Mechtronix Systems, Medical Numerics, Medical Numerics Inc., Midland Industrial Plastics, MillenWorks, MillenWorks Themed Technologies, MotorFist LLC, OPINICUS Simulation and Training Services, OPINICUS Simulation and Training Services LLC, OmniQuip International, Opinicus Corp., Optical Boring Co., Opto-Electronics, Opto-Electronics Inc., Overwatch Systems, Overwatch Systems Ltd., PEINER Umformtechnik, Pirelli Tyres - General Rubber Goods (GRG) division, Progressive Electronics, Ransomes, Ransomes America Corporation, Ransomes Inc., Ransomes Investment LLC, Ransomes Jacobsen France S.A.S., Ransomes Jacobsen France SAS, Ransomes Jacobsen Limited, Ransomes Limited, Ransomes Pensions Trustee Company Limited, Ransomes Property Developments Limited, Replacement Part Solutions, Replacement Part Solutions LLC, Ring Screw Works, Rotor Blades Limited, STE Holding Inc., Sherman + Reilly, SkyBOOKS Inc., Suekosim Verbindungselemente, TRAK International, TRAK International Inc., TRU Simulation & Training Spain, TRU Simulation & Training Spain SL, TRU Simulation + Training Canada Inc., TRU Simulation + Training Inc., TRU Simulation + Training LLC, TUG Technologies Corporation, TekGPS Engineering Srl, Textron Acquisition Limited, Textron Airborne Solutions Inc., Textron Airland, Textron Airland LLC, Textron Atlantic Inc., Textron Atlantic LLC, Textron Aviation Australia Pty. Ltd., Textron Aviation Canada Ltd., Textron Aviation Defense LLC, Textron Aviation Finance Corporation, Textron Aviation Inc, Textron Aviation Inc., Textron Aviation Rhode Island Inc., Textron Capital BV, Textron China Holdings S.R.L., Textron China Inc., Textron Communications Inc., Textron Far East Pte, Textron Far East Pte. Ltd., Textron Fastening Systems Inc., Textron Finance Holding Company, Textron Financial Corporation, Textron Financial Corporation Receivables Trust 2002-CP-2, Textron Fluid and Power Inc., Textron France E.U.R.L., Textron France EURL, Textron France Holding S.A.R.L., Textron France Holding SARL, Textron Germany Holding GmbH, Textron Global Services Inc., Textron Ground Support Equipment Inc., Textron Ground Support Equipment UK Limited, Textron IPMP Inc., Textron Iberia, Textron India Private Limited, Textron Innovations Inc., Textron International Holding, Textron International Holding BV, Textron International Inc., Textron International Mexico, Textron International Mexico S de RL de CV, Textron Limited, Textron Management Services Inc., Textron Motors GmbH, Textron Motors North America Inc., Textron Outdoor Power Equipment Inc., Textron Realty Corporation, Textron Rhode Island Inc., Textron Shared Service Centre (Canada) Inc., Textron Specialized Vehicles Inc., Textron Sweden AB, Textron Systems Australia Holding Pty Ltd, Textron Systems Australia Pty Ltd, Textron Systems Canada Inc., Textron Systems Corporation, Textron Systems Electronic Systems UK (Holdings) Limited, Textron Systems Electronic Systems UK Limited, Textron Systems Rhode Island (2001) Inc., Textron Trading (Shanghai) Co., Textron Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Textron UK Pension Trustee Limited, Textron Ulasm Alet ve Parcalar Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Textron Verwaltungs-GmbH, Travel Air Insurance Company, Turbine Engine Components Textron (Newington Operations) Inc., United Industrial Corporation, United Industrial Corporation Limited, Westminster Insurance Company, Williams Machine & Tool, and Wuxi Textron Specialized Vehicles Co. Ltd.. FLEETCOR Technologies, Inc. provides digital payment solutions for businesses to control purchases and make payments. It offers corporate payments solutions, such as accounts payable automation; Virtual Card, which provides a single-use card number for a specific amount usable within a defined timeframe; Cross-Border that is used by its customers to pay international suppliers, foreign office and personnel expenses, capital expenditures, and profit repatriation and dividends; and purchasing cards and travel and entertainment cards for its customers to analyse and manage their corporate spending. The company also provides employee expense management solutions, including fuel solutions to businesses and government entities that operate vehicle fleets, as well as to oil and leasing companies, and fuel marketers; lodging solutions to businesses that have employees who travel overnight for work purposes, as well as to airlines and cruise lines to accommodate traveling crews and stranded passengers; and electronic toll payments solutions to businesses and consumers in the form of radio frequency identification tags affixed to vehicles' windshields. In addition, it offers gift card program management and processing services in plastic and digital forms that include card design, production and packaging, delivery and fulfilment, card and account management, transaction processing, promotion development and management, website design and hosting, program analytics, and card distribution channel management. Further, it provides other products consisting of payroll cards, vehicle maintenance service solution, long-haul transportation solution, prepaid food vouchers or cards, and prepaid transportation cards and vouchers. The company serves business, merchant, consumer, and payment network customers in North America, Brazil, and Internationally. The company was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. Read More Invesco Ltd. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm provides its services to retail clients, institutional clients, high-net worth clients, public entities, corporations, unions, non-profit organizations, endowments, foundations, pension funds, financial institutions, and sovereign wealth funds. It manages separate client-focused equity and fixed income portfolios. The firm also launches equity, fixed income, commodity, multi-asset, and balanced mutual funds for its clients. It launches equity, fixed income, multi-asset, and balanced exchange-traded funds. The firm also launches and manages private funds. It invests in the public equity and fixed income markets across the globe. The firm also invests in alternative markets, such as commodities and currencies. For the equity portion of its portfolio, it invests in growth and value stocks of large-cap, mid-cap, and small-cap companies. For the fixed income portion of its portfolio, the firm invests in convertibles, government bonds, municipal bonds, treasury securities, and cash. It also invests in short term and intermediate term bonds, investment grade and high yield bonds, taxable and tax-free bonds, senior secured loans, and structured securities such as asset-backed securities, mortgage-backed securities, and commercial mortgage-backed securities. The firm employs absolute return, global macro, and long/short strategies. It employs quantitative analysis to make its investments. The firm was formerly known as Invesco Plc, AMVESCAP plc, Amvesco plc, Invesco PLC, Invesco MIM, and H. Lotery & Co. Ltd. Invesco Ltd. was founded in December 1935 and is based in Atlanta, Georgia with an additional office in Hamilton, Bermuda. Read More Embraer S.A. designs, develops, manufactures, and sells aircrafts and systems in Brazil, North America, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Brazil, Europe, and internationally. It operates through Defense and Security; Executive Jets; Service & Support; and Other segments. The Defense and Security segment engages in the research, development, production, modification, and support for military defense and security aircraft, as well as offers a range of products and integrated solutions that include radars, special space systems (satellites), and information and communications systems, such as command, control, communications, computer, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems. The Executive Jets segment develops, produces, and sells executive jets. It also leases Legacy 600 and Legacy 650 executive jets in the super midsize and large categories; Legacy 450 and Legacy 500 executive jets in the midlight and midsize categories; Phenom family executive jets in the entry jet and light jet categories; Lineage 1000, an ultra-large executive jet; and Praetor 500 and Praetor 600, disruptive executive jets in the midsize and super midsize categories. The Service & Support segment offers after-service solutions, support, and maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for commercial, executive, and defense aircraft; provides aircraft components and engines; and supplies steel and composite aviation structures to various aircraft manufacturers. The Other segment is involved in the supply of fuel systems, structural parts, and mechanical and hydraulic systems; and production of agricultural crop-spraying aircraft. The company was formerly known as Embraer-Empresa Brasileira de AeronAutica S.A. and changed its name to Embraer S.A. in November 2010. Embraer S.A. was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in SAo Paulo, Brazil. Read More Bank of America Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides banking and financial products and services for individual consumers, small and middle-market businesses, institutional investors, large corporations, and governments worldwide. Its Consumer Banking segment offers traditional and money market savings accounts, certificates of deposit and IRAs, noninterest-and interest-bearing checking accounts, and investment accounts and products; and credit and debit cards, residential mortgages, and home equity loans, as well as direct and indirect loans, such as automotive, recreational vehicle, and consumer personal loans. The company's Global Wealth & Investment Management segment offers investment management, brokerage, banking, and trust and retirement products and services; and wealth management solutions, as well as customized solutions, including specialty asset management services. Its Global Banking segment provides lending products and services, including commercial loans, leases, commitment facilities, trade finance, and commercial real estate and asset-based lending; treasury solutions, such as treasury management, foreign exchange, and short-term investing options and merchant services; working capital management solutions; and debt and equity underwriting and distribution, and merger-related and other advisory services. The company's Global Markets segment offers market-making, financing, securities clearing, settlement, and custody services, as well as risk management products using interest rate, equity, credit, currency and commodity derivatives, foreign exchange, fixed-income, and mortgage-related products. As of April 15, 2021, it served approximately 66 million consumer and small business clients with approximately 4,300 retail financial centers; approximately 17,000 ATMs; and digital banking platforms with approximately 40 million active users. The company was founded in 1784 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina. Read More The following companies are subsidiares of Dover: ALMATEC Maschinenbau GmbH, Accelerated Production Systems, Advansor A/S, Advansor Dover International (Poland) sp. z o.o, Alfred Fueling Systems Holdco Ltd., Alfred Fueling Systems Inc., Alfred Fueling Systems Intermediate Holdco Ltd., All-Flo Pump Company Limited business, Anman LLC, Anthony Equity Holdings Inc., Anthony Holdings Inc., Anthony Inc., 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, Automatik Grundstucksverwaltung GmbH & Co. KG, Automatik Plastics Machinery (Taiwan) Ltd., Automatik Plastics Machinery Sdn. Bhd., BSC Filters Limited, Background2 Limited, Belanger Inc., Belvac Middle East FZE, Belvac Production Machinery Inc., BlitzRotary GmbH, Butler Engineering and Marketing S.P.A., CEP Liquidation LLC, CP Formation LLC, CPC, CPC Europe Inc., CPI Products Inc., Caldera, Caldera Inc., Canada Organization & Development LLC, Chief Automotive Technologies (Shanghai) Trading Company Ltd., Chippewa Square Captive Insurance 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., DFH Corporation, DSR BZ Holdings LLC, De Sta Co (Asia) Company Limited, De-Sta-Co Cylinders Inc., DeStaCo Europe GmbH, Delaware Capital Formation Inc., Delaware Capital Holdings Inc., Destaco Ema Industria e Comercio Ltda., 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 Finance LP, 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, Dover Energy UK Ltd, Dover Engineered Systems Inc., Dover Engineered Systems UK Ltd, Dover Europe Inc., Dover Europe Sarl, Dover Fluids Inc., Dover Fluids UK Ltd, Dover France Holdings S.A.S., Dover France Participations SAS, Dover France Technologies, Dover Fueling Solutions UK Limited, Dover Germany GmbH, Dover Global Holdings LLC, Dover Global Trading Pte. Ltd., Dover Holdings de Mexico S.A. de C.V., 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 Refrigeration & Food Equipment 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, Dressor Wayne Data Technology (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Dressor 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 GmbH, Ettlinger Kunststoffmaschinen GmbH, Ettlinger Management Inc., Ettlinger North America LP, Ettlinger Vertrieb und Service GmbH & Co. KG, Ettlinger Verwaltungs-GmbH, Fairbanks Environmental Limited, Ferguson CO. S.A., Fibrelite Composites Limited, Fibresec Holdings Limited, Fibresec Limited, Finder, Finder Oriental (Beijing) Trading Co. Ltd, Finder Pompe S.R.L., Finder United Saudi Arabia Company, GAL LLC, GIIER LLC, Gala Industries Asia Limited, Gala Industries Incorporated, 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, Hydro Systems Europe Ltd., Hydronova Australia-NZ Pty Ltd, Industrial Motion Control LLC, Inpro/Seal LLC, International Trade and Equipment B.V., JK Group SPA, JK Group USA Inc., K&L Microwave DR Inc., K&L Microwave Inc., K. S. Boca Inc., KPS (Beijing) Petroleum Equipment Trading Co Ltd., KPS Asia Sdn. Bhd., 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, Lianyngang Jump Petroleum and Chemical Machinery Co. Ltd., Liquip, Liquip International Pty Limited, MARKEM FZ SA, MARKEM Holdings Inc., MARKEM International Inc., MARKEM S.A. de C.V., MARKEM Tag Inc., MARKEM UK Holdings 1 Unlimited, MARKEM UK Holdings 2 Limited, MIP Holdings Inc., MS Printing Solutions S.R.L., Maag Automatik GmbH, Maag Automatik Inc., Maag Automatik Plastics Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Maag Automatik Srl, Maag Pump Systems (US) Inc., Maag Pump Systems AG, Maag Pump Systems SAS, Marathon Equipment Company (Delaware), Markem Imaje Center of Competencies Spain S.L.U., Markem-Imaje, Markem-Imaje (China) Co. Limited, Markem-Imaje A/S, Markem-Imaje AB, Markem-Imaje AG, Markem-Imaje AS, Markem-Imaje Application Innovation Center Sarl, 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 Ltd., Markem-Imaje N.V., Markem-Imaje Oy, Markem-Imaje Pty Ltd, Markem-Imaje S.A., Markem-Imaje S.A. de C.V., Markem-Imaje S.r.l. a socio unico, Markem-Imaje SAS, Markem-Imaje Sdn Bhd, Markem-Imaje Software Development Centre Pvt. Ltd., Markem-Imaje Spain S.A.U, Markem-Imaje Unipessoal Lda (Portugal), Markpoint Holding AB, Midland Manufacturing LLC, Mouvex, Neptune Chemical Pump Company, Northern Lights (Nevada) Inc., Northern Lights Funding LP, Northern Lights Investments LLC, Nova Controls Inc., OK International (UK) Ltd., OK International Holdings Inc., OK International Inc., OPW Engineered Systems Inc., OPW Fluid Transfer Group Europe B.V., 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 Inc., PISCES by OPW Inc., PSG (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, PSG (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., PSG Worldwide Inc., Petro Vend Sp. z o.o., Pike Machine Products Inc., Piston OPW 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., Pump Management Services Co. LLC, RAV Equipment U.S.A. Inc., RAV Equipos Espana S.L., RAV France, Rav Equipment UK Limited, Ravaglioli Deutschland GmbH, Ravaglioli S.P.A., Reduction Engineering GmbH, Revod Corporation, Revod Finance Ireland Limited, Revod Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Revod SAS, Revod Sweden AB, Robohand Inc., Rosario Handel B.V., Rotary Lift Consolidated (Haimen) Co. Ltd, SE Liquidation LLC, SWEP A.G., SWEP Germany GmbH, SWEP Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., SWEP North America Inc., SWEP Slovakia s.r.o., SWEP Technology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Scheer Pelletizing Systems & Machinery (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Scheer Taiwan Machinery Co. Ltd., Seabiscuit Motorsports Inc., Simmons Sirvey Corporation, So. Cal. Soft-Pak Incorporated, Solaris Laser S.A., Space S.R.L., 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 Inc., TQC Quantium Quality S.A. de C.V., TTSI III Inc., TWG Canada Consolidated Inc., TXHI LLC, Tartan Textile Services Inc., The Curotto-Can LLC, The Heil Co., Tokheim Belgium, Tokheim China Company Limited, Tokheim GmbH, Tokheim Group, Tokheim Guardian Venture Sdn. Bhd, Tokheim Hengshan Technologies (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Tokheim Holding, Tokheim Holding B.V., Tokheim India Private Limited, Tokheim Netherlands B.V., Tokheim Sofitam Applications, Trans - Logistic Group S.R.L., Tulsa Winch Inc., Unified Brands Inc., Val TemperBent Glass L.P., Vectron Frequency Devices (Shanghai) Co. Ltd, Vehicle Service Group LLC, Vos Food Store Equipment Ltd., Warn Automotive LLC, Waukesha Bearings, Waukesha Bearings Limited, Waukesha Bearings Russia LLC, Wayne Fuel Management UK Ltd., 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 Pte. Ltd., Wayne Fueling Systems Sweden AB, Wayne Fueling Systems UK Holdco Ltd., Wayne Industria e Comercio Ltda., Wei Li Pump Shanghai Co. LTD., WellMark, and Wilden Pump and Engineering LLC. CoreLogic, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides property information, insight, analytics, and data-enabled solutions in North America, Western Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Property Intelligence & Risk Management Solutions (PIRM) and Underwriting & Workflow Solutions (UWS). The PIRM segment combines property information, mortgage information, and consumer information to deliver housing market and property-level insights, predictive analytics, and risk management capabilities. It also offers proprietary technology and software platforms to access, automate, or track the information and assist its clients with decision-making and compliance tools in the real estate and insurance industries. This segment primarily serves commercial banks, mortgage lenders and brokers, investment banks, fixed-income investors, real estate agents, MLS companies, property and casualty insurance companies, title insurance companies, government agencies, and government-sponsored enterprises. The UWS segment combines property, mortgage, and consumer information to provide comprehensive mortgage origination and monitoring solutions, including underwriting-related solutions, and data-enabled valuations and appraisals. This segment also provides proprietary technology and software platforms to access, automate, or track the information and assist its clients with vetting and onboarding prospects, and meeting compliance regulations, as well as understanding, evaluating, monitoring property values. It primarily serves mortgage lenders and servicers, mortgage brokers, credit unions, commercial banks, fixed-income investors, government agencies, and property and casualty insurance companies. The company was formerly known as The First American Corporation and changed its name to CoreLogic, Inc. in June 2010. CoreLogic, Inc. was incorporated in 1894 and is headquartered in Irvine, California. Read More Investors Search for the Next Big Medical Cannabis Winner - This Is It (Ad) Medical cannabis stocks have rewarded investors with astonishing profits over the last three years and investors are now looking for the next big winner in a market thats expected to quintuple by 2026. One investment expert claims hes already found it Wipro Limited operates as an information technology (IT), consulting, and business process services (BPS) company worldwide. It operates in three segments: IT Services, IT Products, and India State Run Enterprise Services (ISRE). The IT Services segment offers IT and IT-enabled services, including digital strategy advisory, customer-centric design, technology consulting, IT consulting, custom application design, development, re-engineering and maintenance, systems integration, package implementation, infrastructure, analytics, business process, research and development, and hardware and software design services to enterprises. It serves customers in various industry verticals, such as banking, financial services, and insurance; health business; consumer business; energy, natural resources, and utilities; manufacturing; technology; and communications. The IT Products segment provides a range of third-party IT products comprising enterprise platforms, networking solutions, software and data storage products, contact center infrastructure, enterprise security, IT optimization technologies, video solutions, and end-user computing solutions. It serves enterprises in various industries primarily in the India market, which comprise the government, defense, IT and IT-enabled services, telecommunications, manufacturing, utilities, education, and financial services sectors. The ISRE segment offers IT services to entities and/or departments owned or controlled by the Government of India and/or various Indian State Governments. The company has research collaboration agreements with the University of Texas at Austin; Tel Aviv University, Israel; Swinburne University, Melbourne; IIT Kharagpur; IIT Madras; IISc Bangalore; and University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore; and strategic relationship with Amazon Web Services in the area of DevOps. Wipro Limited was founded in 1945 and is based in Bengaluru, India. Read More Zurich Insurance Group AG is a holding company. The Company and its subsidiaries provide insurance products and related services. Its segments include General Insurance, Global Life, Farmers, Other Operating Businesses and Non-Core Businesses. The General Insurance segment provides a range of motor, home and commercial products and services for individuals, as well as small and large businesses. The Global Life segment is engaged in providing unit-linked, protection and corporate propositions through global distribution and proposition pillars. The Farmers segment, through Farmers Group, Inc. and its subsidiaries, provides certain non-claims administrative and management services to the Farmers Insurance Exchange, Fire Insurance Exchange, Truck Insurance Exchange, and their subsidiaries and affiliates. The Other Operating Businesses segment includes the Company's Holding and Financing activities. The Non-Core Businesses segment includes its insurance and reinsurance businesses. Read More Ad Wall Street Rebel 1,157 Recent Views Investors Search for the Next Big Medical Cannabis Winner - This Is It Medical cannabis stocks have rewarded investors with astonishing profits over the last three years and investors are now looking for the next big winner in a market thats expected to quintuple by 2026. 37 minutes ago | June 16th | 2021 8:30 AM The Essentials to Consider When Designing and Equipping Your Restaurant The following excerpt is from The Staff of Entrepreneur Media's book Start Your Own Restaurant and More. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code SIDEHUSTLE2021 through 6/20/21.The two key parts Valero Energy Corporation manufactures, markets, and sells transportation fuels and petrochemical products in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Refining, Renewable Diesel, and Ethanol. The company is involved in oil and gas refining, marketing, and bulk selling activities. It produces conventional, premium, and reformulated gasolines; gasoline meeting the specifications of the California Air Resources Board (CARB); diesel fuels, low-sulfur and ultra-low-sulfur diesel fuels; CARB diesel; other distillates; jet fuels; blendstocks; lube oils and natural gas liquids; and asphalts, petrochemicals, lubricants, and other refined petroleum products. As of December 31, 2020, the company owned 15 petroleum refineries with a combined throughput capacity of approximately 3.2 million barrels per day. It sells its refined products through wholesale rack and bulk markets; and through approximately 7,000 outlets under the Valero, Beacon, Diamond Shamrock, Shamrock, Ultramar, and Texaco brands. The company also produces and sells ethanol, dry distiller grains, syrup, and inedible corn oil primarily to refiners and gasoline blenders, as well as to animal feed customers. It owns and operates 13 ethanol plants with a combined ethanol production capacity of approximately 1.69 billion gallons per year. In addition, the company owns and operates crude oil and refined petroleum products pipelines, terminals, tanks, marine docks, truck rack bays, and other logistics assets. Further, it owns and operates a plant that processes animal fats, used cooking oils, and other vegetable oils into renewable diesel. The company was formerly known as Valero Refining and Marketing Company and changed its name to Valero Energy Corporation in August 1997. Valero Energy Corporation was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. Read More Thor Industries, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells recreational vehicles (RVs), and related parts and accessories in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It offers travel trailers under the Airstream Classic, Globetrotter, International, Flying Cloud, Caravel, Bambi, and Basecamp trade names; Class B motorhomes under the Interstate and Atlas series, and Sequence and Tellaro trade names; and gasoline and diesel Class A and Class C motorhomes under the Four Winds, Freedom Elite, Majestic, Hurricane, Chateau, Windsport, Axis, Vegas, Tuscany, Palazzo, Aria, Quantum, Compass, Gemini, and A.C.E trade names. It also provides conventional travel trailers and fifth wheels under the Montana, Springdale, Hideout, Sprinter, Outback, Laredo, Bullet, Fuzion, Raptor, Passport, Cougar, Coleman, Kodiak, Aspen Trail, Aerolite, Voltage, Cruiser, Volante, Sunset Trail, Zinger, Landmark, Bighorn, Elkridge, Trail Runner, North Trail, Cyclone, Torque, Prowler, Milestone, Shadow Cruiser, Lithium, MPG, Radiance, Sundance, Stryker, Escape, Sportsmen, Connect, Venom, Gold, Durango, Sportster, Stratus, SportTrek, Sonic, Jay Flight, Jay Feather, Eagle, Pinnacle, Talon, Autumn Ridge, Telluride, Highlander, Mesa Ridge, and Open Range trade names; and luxury fifth wheels under the Redwood and DRV Mobile Suites trade names. It offers Class A and Class C motorhomes under the Alante, Precept, Greyhawk, Redhawk, Odyssey, Esteem, Emblem, Insignia, Aspire, Anthem, and Cornerstone trade names. It also provides motorcaravans, caravans, campervans, and urban vehicles under the Buccaneer, Buerstner, Carado, Compass, CrossCamp, Dethleffs, Elddis, Eriba, Etrusco, Hymer, Laika, LMC, Niesmann+Bischoff, Sunlight, and Xplore brands. It offers aluminum extrusion and specialized component products to RV and other manufacturers; and digital products and services for RVs. It provides its products through independent and non-franchise dealers. The company was founded in 1980 and is based in Elkhart, Indiana. Read More South Jersey Industries, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides energy-related products and services. The company engages in the purchase, transmission, and sale of natural gas. It also sells natural gas and pipeline transportation capacity on a wholesale basis to residential, commercial, and industrial customers on the interstate pipeline system, as well as transports natural gas purchased directly from producers or suppliers to customers. As of December 31, 2020, the company had approximately 146.7 miles of mains in the transmission system and 6,771 miles of mains in the distribution system; and served 404,886 residential, commercial, and industrial customers in southern New Jersey. In addition, it markets natural gas storage, commodity, and transportation assets on a wholesale basis for energy marketers, electric and gas utilities, power plants, and natural gas producers in the mid-Atlantic, Appalachian, and southern regions of the United States. Further, the company owns and operates rooftop solar-generation sites. Additionally, it owns oil, gas, and mineral rights in the Marcellus Shale region of Pennsylvania; acquires and markets natural gas and electricity to retail end users, as well as provides total energy management, fuel management, and energy procurement and cost reduction services. The company was founded in 1910 and is headquartered in Folsom, New Jersey. Read More 38 minutes ago | June 16th | 2021 8:30 AM The Essentials to Consider When Designing and Equipping Your Restaurant The following excerpt is from The Staff of Entrepreneur Media's book Start Your Own Restaurant and More. Buy it now from Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes or click here to buy it directly from us and SAVE 60% on this book when you use code SIDEHUSTLE2021 through 6/20/21.The two key parts A new bill in Congress would decriminalize marijuana nationally by removing cannabis from the federal governments list of controlled substances. The law would also allow one established Seattle cannabis company to market across state lines for the first time potentially setting off a bidding war that could blast this stock into the stratosphere! Leidos Holdings, Inc. provides services and solutions in the defense, intelligence, civil, and health markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Defense Solutions, Civil, and Health. The Defense Solutions segment offers national security solutions and systems for air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace for the U.S. Intelligence Community, the Department of Defense, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, military services, and government agencies of U.S. allies abroad, as well as other federal and commercial customers in the national security industry. Its solutions include technology, large-scale systems, command and control platforms, data analytics, logistics, and cybersecurity solutions, as well as intelligence analysis and operations support services to critical missions. The Civil segment provides systems integration services to air navigation service providers, including the federal aviation administration, the En route automation modernization, advanced technology oceanic procedure, time based flow management, terminal flight data management, geo-7, and future flight services, as well as enterprise-information display systems; and security detection and automation services. It also offers information technology (IT) solutions in cloud computing, mobility, application modernization, DevOps, data center, network modernization, asset management, help desk operations, and digital workplace enablement; and environment, energy, and infrastructure services. The Health segment offers solutions to federal and commercial customers responsible for health and well-being of people worldwide, including health information management, managed health, digital transformation, and life sciences research and development services. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Reston, Virginia. Read More Avoid Investing In These Cannabis Companies (Ad) The second "Cannabis Boom" is right around the corner. And this top analyst wants to help you to pick the right investments. (And avoid a costly mistake) Click Here To Save Your Investments Ad Wall Street Rebel Investors Search for the Next Big Medical Cannabis Winner - This Is It Medical cannabis stocks have rewarded investors with astonishing profits over the last three years and investors are now looking for the next big winner in a market thats expected to quintuple by 2026. Crown Holdings, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells packaging products and equipment for consumer goods and industrial products in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. It offers products for consumer goods, including steel and aluminum cans for food, beverage, household, and other consumer products; glass bottles for beverage product; and metal vacuum closures and steel crowns through its sales organization to the soft drink, food, citrus, brewing, household products, personal care, and various other industries. The company also provides products for industrial products, such as steel and plastic strap consumables and equipment, paper-based protective packaging, and plastic film consumables and equipment to metals, food and beverage, construction, agricultural, corrugated, and general industries. In addition, it offers aerosol cans and ends; and promotional and specialty packaging containers with various lid and closure variations. Further, the company provides industrial film and other related products; transit protection products, such as airbags, edge protectors, and honeycombs; and equipment and tools, such as manual, semi-automatic, and automatic equipment and tools used in end of line manufacturing applications to apply consumables. Crown Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1892 and is headquartered in Yardley, Pennsylvania. Read More One pot stock could skyrocket with looming interstate sales (Ad) A new bill in Congress would decriminalize marijuana nationally by removing cannabis from the federal governments list of controlled substances. The law would also allow one established Seattle cannabis company to market across state lines for the first time potentially setting off a bidding war that could blast this stock into the stratosphere! Find Out Why This Could Be the #1 Pot Stock American Consumer News, LLC dba MarketBeat 2010-2021. All rights reserved. 326 E 8th St #105, Sioux Falls, SD 57103 | U.S. Based Support Team at [email protected] | (844) 978-6257 MarketBeat does not provide personalized financial advice and does not issue recommendations or offers to buy stock or sell any security. Our Accessibility Statement | Terms of Service | Do Not Sell My Information 2021 Market data provided is at least 10-minutes delayed and hosted by Barchart Solutions. Information is provided 'as-is' and solely for informational purposes, not for trading purposes or advice, and is delayed. To see all exchange delays and terms of use please see disclaimer. Fundamental company data provided by Zacks Investment Research. As a bonus to opt-ing into our email newsletters, you will also get a free subscription to the Liberty Through Wealth e-newsletter. You can opt out at any time. This stock could soar as cannabis beverage sales hit $2.5 billion (Ad) A popular Seattle cannabis manufacturer is now partnering with other companies to produce a new line of cannabis-infused beverages. Its perfect timing. A new report reveals cannabis beverage sales will reach $2.8 billion by 2025, expanding at an annual compounded rate of 17.8%. A huge opportunity! Find out why this could be the #1 penny stock Facebook Billionaire Investing in a Shocking New Industry (Ad) Peter Thiel, the billionaire investor behind Facebook, PayPal, and eBay, has a new darling industry in his sights. And he's betting a massive $210 million on its success. That's not pocket change. And today, you could get in on the ground floor US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday he will ask Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to ensure the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi are held accountable for their crime. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, spoke ahead of a politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia, which has faced intense international scrutiny over Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told a news conference in Qatar. "So, we'll continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well." Pompeo is due to travel to Saudi Arabia later on Sunday as part of an eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. He was speaking in Doha after meeting his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. He will meet the Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, before heading to Saudi Arabia. Khashoggi was killed on October 2 in a case which stunned the world and threatened a serious rift between Riyadh and Washington. The journalist was murdered and his corpse dismembered inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate. Evidence subsequently emerged that the killing was done by a team of Saudis sent from Riyadh and closely linked to the crown prince. Washington subsequently demanded a transparent investigation. Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people, and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors despite US intelligence reportedly having evidence he was behind it. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, US President Donald President Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the kingdom, although the US Senate has clearly blamed Prince Mohammed for the murder. Washington is eager for regional unity to gain widespread support its fight against Iran. Pompeo refused on Sunday to comment on reports Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. "As for the GCC... We are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world," Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. "Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He added that "President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long". However, Pompeo later admitted in a Q&A session with US embassy staff in Doha that no progress was made on resolving the issue. "(It's) not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday," he said. "And I regret that." He said he raised the standoff at length with his counterparts in Qatar, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain. The United States, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, has so far been unsuccessful in trying to end the dispute. Attempts at mediation have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. "It was time for change and he made his decision to move on but America's commitment remains unchanged," said Pompeo of Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second "strategic dialogue" between the two countries on Sunday, and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. "This reflects the good and historical relationship between the two countries," said the Qatari foreign minister. China's Chang'e-4 lunar rover, which is exploring the dark side of the moon, will measure the freezing night temperature, scientists said Sunday. Chang'e-4, named after a Chinese moon goddess and comprising a lander and a rover, touched down on the dark side of the moon on January 3, the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon by any country. It was a giant leap for cosmic exploration and a major boost to the Communist nation's quest to become a space superpower. Since the moon's revolution cycle is the same as its rotation cycle, the same side always faces the Earth. The other face, most of which cannot be seen from the Earth, is called the far side or the "dark side" of the moon, not because it is dark, but because most of it is uncharted. A lunar day equals 14 days on the Earth, and a lunar night is the same length. Temperatures vary enormously between day and night on the moon. Scientists estimate that the highest temperature during the day might reach 127 degrees Celsius, while the lowest at night could fall to minus 183 degrees Celsius. In 2013, China launched Chang'e-3, the country's first spacecraft to soft-land on the moon. The scientific instruments on its lander are still operating after more than 60 lunar nights in the past five years, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. "It was a success, but Chang'e-3 was designed according to foreign temperature data," Zhang He, the executive director of the Chang'e-4 probe project from the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), told Xinhua. "Without our own data about lunar temperatures, we don't know how cold a lunar night can actually be," Zhang said. "Chang'e-4 will measure the temperature differences between the day and night on the moon, helping scientists estimate the properties of the lunar soil," she said. Tan Mei, a consultant for the probe from CAST, said Chang'e-4 will switch to a "sleep mode" during the lunar night due to the lack of solar power, and rely on the radioisotope heat source, a collaboration between Chinese and Russian scientists, to keep warm. "We need to transform heat into power to run the thermometry to measure the temperatures of the lunar surface at night," Tan said. The lander is equipped with dozens of temperature data collectors and the data they collect at night will be transmitted after the probe is wakened during the moon's daytime, said Li Fei, a designer of the lander from CAST. Sun Zezhou, the chief designer of the Chang'e-4 probe from CAST, said the probe will get first-hand data by directly measuring the temperatures of the lunar soil, probe's surface, and its key interior equipment during the lunar night. Used for the first time in a Chinese spacecraft, the isotope thermoelectric generation technology on Chang'e-4 is a prototype for future deep-space explorations, Sun said. NASA's Curiosity rover also adopts this power technology, freeing it from the sunshine, sand and dust restrictions that have bothered its predecessors Opportunity and Spirit, he explained. "It is a technology that we must master if we want to go to the moon's polar regions or deep space farther than Jupiter, where solar power cannot be used as the primary power source," he said. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal on Sunday inaugurated the Skill Academy of Shri Vishwakarma Skill University(SVSU) at village Dudhola in Palwal. The Chief Minister also greeted the people of the State, on the occasion of Guru Gobind Singh Jayanti, Lohri and Makkar Sakranti and said that the University would prove as a milestone in providing the youth employment opportunities and making them self-reliant. The Chief Minister while addressing the gathering in Palwal said that this is the country's first such unique university, where on doing a course, each student would get employment opportunity either in private or in government sector. He said that employment opportunities in government sector are limited but according to data, every year, two lakh educated youth after their education comes in the line of unemployment in the state, hence, there is a need to increase the employment or self-employment opportunities in the private sector. Manohar Lal said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had launched Skill Development campaign to make youth skilful. Keeping this in mind, it was decided to set up Skill University in the state. The Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of this university on November 19, last year. After this, the building of Construction Skill Academy was constructed in a short span of time, he said. The university would be established in three phases, after which 12,000 students would get employment in government and private sectors with their skills. At the same time, there would also be short-term certificate courses, Manohar Lal said. The Chief Minister said that the rate of Skill Development in India is 8 per cent, whereas 52 per cent in USA, 68 per cent in England, 75 per cent in Germany, 80 per cent in Japan and China and 96 per cent in South Korea. This university would work to provide new direction to skill development in India. He also entrusted the responsibility of the restoration of pond of village Dudhola to the Vice Chancellor of University, Raj Nehru and announced to give Rs two crore to the Panchayat of village Dudhola for development works and for the construction of community center, vyayamshala and park. Similarly, he announced to widen the Dhatir road from Prithala from 7 mtr to 10 mtr and to send the demand of Prithala sub-tehsil to the state level committee. After inaugurating the Construction Skill Academy, the Chief Minister reviewed the construction work of the University and also offered floral tributes to Lord Vishwakarma. He said that the cost of construction of Construction Skill Academy is Rs 3.21 crore, in which 250 to 500 youth would be trained annually. Training would be given to 60 labourers in a batch. In initial stage, the course of Mason and Barber has been started, he added. Speaking on the occasion, the Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Krishan Pal Gurjar said that with the construction of this university, the region of Dudhola and its surrounding area would get its identity on the map of the country. A Metro Line would be set up between Faridabad and Gurugram for about Rs 6,000 crore, he added. On the occasion, five MoUs were signed. Shri Vishwakarma Kaushal University (SVSU) signed MoU with Hero MotoCorp to work in the field of skill development for short-term programs, which will provide training to students in welding, machining, vehicle, auto mechanic trades. Other MoUs were signed with the SVSU, SKH Metals for Doctor and Mobile Medical Van, Ambience Facilities Management Private Limited and Videocon software Private Limited. Sagar Public School organised Crafticaan art and craft exhibition at its Saket Nagar campus. Sagarites displayed the essence of true art by their unique art and craft skills that not only attracted the visitors but also brought smiles in their hearts with admiration. Craftica received an overwhelming response both by the children and the parents of the beautiful art and craft work made by the Sagarites of Nursery to Class VIII. Admiring paintings, a variety of art works, crafts, 3D models, sketches, cartoons, stamp printing, pastel colouring, water colour painting, collage work, needle art, calligraphy, mural art, paper craft work, wind chimes, photo frames, wall hangings etc were created and presented by Sagarites exhibiting the rich aesthetic sense. Engrossed parents appreciated Sagarites in Craftica for their quality paintings and creative items and expressed their happiness over their efforts and guidance of the art and craft department of the school. One of the key attractions of Craftica was the The Mowglis Landshowcasing creative work of the tiny tots exhibiting various animals and birds of the Jungle Book. On the occasion, Pankaj Sharma, Principal, Sagar Public School said that, I congratulate every Sagarite for their creativity in Craftica. Sagarites have shown that creativity has no boundaries. At Sagar Public School, we nurture their creative minds and give them the space to come out with their own vision and creativity. For many regional parties, political opportunism comes naturally and no ideology is an anathema. LJPs Ram Vilas Paswan may have heralded trend, followed by Nitish Kumar and others. It is here to continue Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) may have been the latest to desert the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) on the Citizenship Amendment Bill brought in the last session of Lok Sabha; but by no stretch of imagination could the party be termed as a political weather scientist. Similarly, the tag would not go to Telugu Desam Party (TDP) which parted ways with NDA last year. Compulsions of state politics for these two regional parties and scouting for better opportunities at the national level forced them to take the decision. The tag for being the perfect political weather reader or a scientist of political temperature undoubtedly would go to Union Cabinet Minister Ram Vilas Paswan and that too by a mile. For long, Paswan has been described as the weather scientist who knows for sure which way the political wind is blowing and which party would reap electoral harvest and form the next government. Ask anyone in his home state of Bihar, and the tag of a weather scientist has been attached to him with many appreciating his abilities to be so accurate and correct with his political moves over a period spanning three decades. His admirers and critics both say that has got so much of expertise in reading peoples mood that he always supports the winning causethe coalition which rules the country. Paswan has been a part of every government since anyone can remember. He was first elected as a MLA in Bihar Assembly way back in 1969 though he has always preferred to be in central politics after emergency when he first won Hajipur Lok Sabha seat by a record margin in 1977. Be it the government of the Right (NDA led by BJP) or the one in which the Left had a major role (Third Front led by VP Singh) or the Centrist party (Congress led UPA), one factor which has always been common is the 75-year old Paswan. No ideology is anathema to him as long as it takes him to the Treasury Benches. He was first inducted in Union Cabinet by VP Singh in 1989 and since then the dalit leader has never looked back. Of course, he lost one election in 2009 to an old rival in BiharRam Sundar Dasfrom his stronghold of Hajipur and had to remain out of power for five years. His followers, however, term that period as an accident and an aberration. When he decided to stick to the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in Bihar this time for the 2019 polls, successfully bargaining a healthy six seats for his Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) and one Rajya Sabha seat for himself, many in his home state wondered if the weather scientist has lost his ability to predict political weather with the same perfection which he used to do in the past. Many in Paswans home state say that Upendra Kushwaha, formerly the junior minister in the Narendra Modi Cabinet, the first one to jump ship in Bihar from NDA to UPA, has now developed the knack which Paswan possessed at one point of time. Kushwaha, the president of the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), hailing from the Koeri caste, joined the grand alliance of Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) called Mahagathbandhan in the Hindi heartland, hoping to have a role in the next central government. Kushwaha knows for sure that his utility in NDA ended the moment Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal United (JDU) joined hands with the BJP to retain power in the state and oust Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) with which JDU had fought the assembly elections in the first place. Kushwaha and Kumar share a similar caste support and he was more useful to the Mahagathbandhan in Bihar than the NDA. So Kushwahas ouster was a foregone conclusion. In fact, it helped Paswan get a better deal with NDA in seat sharing as whatever incremental votes his party gets in Bihar, helps the cause of NDA in its bid to do well in the state. Bihar would be an important battlefield in the 2018 general elections with 40 seats and one state where UPA is firmly in place and so is the NDA. This is one state where the battle is largely between NDA and UPA and not the constituent parties as such. Besides RJD, Congress and now RLSP, the grand alliance in Bihar also has former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhis party Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) and LJD founded by Sharad Yadav, who broke away from JDU. Besides it also has Mukesh Sahni, who has floated his political outfit Vikashshil Inshan Party (VIP) and joined the Grand Alliance, aiming to get votes from his Nishad community, spread across the state. In addition, there is a possibility of even the Left parties becoming a part or the grand alliance which could leave a couple of seats for them to show it is an umbrella alliance of all castes, groups and ideology. On paper, it really looks grand given the various caste combinations it carries with it but on ground, it is difficult to visualize how competing castes, parties and groups would jell and whether one community is able to transfer its vote to the other in this alliance. Also, the sharing of seats is still a mystery and many conflicts, claims and counter claims could emerge as this is expected to be finalized after Makar Sankranti. Ironically, it is in Bihar that BJP had to concede to its allies in a big way which many see as the end of plan of its expansion in the state. It won 22 seats in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and along with its allies LJP (6) and RLSP (3) the NDA won 32 seats even though the combined opposition then on paper was quite strongRJD and JDU. BJP would be contesting only 17 seats, forcing it to part ways with five seats which it won last time, clearly a setback for the party cadres in the state who were hoping for expansion and some day form the state government on its own strength like it did in Maharashtra, breaking from the Shiv Sena and contesting assembly polls alone. As of now, Bihar is the only state where the battle lines have been drawn and demarcated firmly with alliances in place. Many see this as a microcosm of Indiaemergence of a two alliance formation where BJP would head one fulcrum and Congress the other with regional parties siding with one or the other depending on their state politics, perceptions at a given point of time and also crass opportunism. It is now gradually becoming clear that it will be the regional parties which would become the new weather scientist of Indian politicsswitching sides at the slightest possibility of better electoral outing and reviewing their decision every now and then according to their convenience and smell of opportunity. Bihar is a perfect example where you do not find any permanent political friend or enemy. Every single regional party of the state has a history of deserting either the NDA or the UPA in the past several years ever since the days of Mandal and Mandir politics which peaked in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Both Paswan and Nitish Kumar are sailing in the same boatchanging sides seamlessly that too repeatedly, without the baggage of ideology or any other factor. So the word weather scientist will stay for the regional parties of Bihar. Paswan may be the expert on this, others are not far behind. Kumar has almost caught up with Paswan, changing from one extreme to the otherfrom NDA to UPA to NDAwithout batting an eyelid. Swine flu is continuing to take toll in Uttarakhand as one more patient has succumbed to the disease in Dehradun on Saturday. With it, the number of patients who have lost life to H1 N1 this season has mounted up to three. The associate professor Medicine, Mahant Indiresh Hospital Dr Amaranth Pandey said that a 41-year-old resident of Vikasnagar had been admitted at the hospital on Friday afternoon with complaint of high fever. The patient was diagnosed with H1 N1 positive. He, however, died on Saturday afternoon, he added. The chief medical officer (CMO), Dr S K Gupta claimed that the health department has been brought on an alert mode to combat the disease. He said that all the hospitals have been asked to open a swine flu ward. He further said that the medical officers have been asked to be cautious on suspected cases of the disease and added that all the hospitals have adequate supply of Tami flu(medicine of swine flu) and triple layer masks. The CMO said that since the disease spreads by droplet infection, the people should cover their nose and face with handkerchief while sneezing or coughing and should regularly wash hands and face. Swine flu is a viral disease and its virus is called H1 N1. Its genetic analysis has shown that it originates from the animals, especially pigs, and hence, it is called Swine flu. The virus spreads from person to person similar to that of seasonal influenza. BK Chands death a big loss for AJSU: Mahto AJSU Party organised condolence meeting across the State on death of the partys Intellectual forum president BK Chand on Sunday. Speaking on the occasion party Supremo Sudesh Mahto said that BK Chand was a very disciplined person and we should follow his way of living. He was like a guardian and his death is a very big loss for the party, he added. All India SC/ST/OBC Jkhand chapter gives clothes The members of All India SC/ST/OBC Jharkhand Chapter distributed woolen clothes on Sunday among the poor people. The programme was organised at different villages located within the jurisdiction of Rampur panchayat, Namkom block. Sunil Lakra, Arun Jaan, Manish Narayan, Santosh Kerkatta and several other members of the group were present on the occasion. Yuva Manch to celebrate 42nd establishment day Marwadi Yuva Manch, Ranchi Branch is going to celebrate its 42 nd establishment day on January 14 and the establishment week will be observed from January 14 to January 20. On the inaugural day on January 14 Chura- Dahi will be distributed and the week will be concluded with a blood donation camp organised by the Manch. In a joint operation by teams of Delhi Police Special Cell and Shopian Police, a hardcore member of banned terrorist outfit Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) was arrested and one juvenile was apprehended from Jammu & Kashmirs Shopian area on Friday. The accused persons were allegedly in contact with a Kashmiri policeman turned terrorist one Naveed Mustaq, in 2017 and is currently a district commander of HM. According to police, the accused arrested was identified as Kifayatullah Bukhari resident of Pora Bora in Shopian district. Kifayatullah along with the juvenile were apprehended from a special Naka setup, near Narwaw village in Shopian. A Team of Special Cell was also present at the Naka for identification, police said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Special Cell) Pramod Singh Kushwah stated that a team of Special Cell, New Delhi Range (NDR) was working upon identifying and apprehending the modules inspired by ISIS and terrorist of HM who are procuring weapons from North India. It was learnt that these modules off lately are strengthening their cadres in Jammu and Kashmir and planning to extend their activities in Delhi and nearby areas. During the onset of this year, a specific input was received by Special Cell regarding movement of HM cadres in Delhi and its neighbouring cities, procuring sophisticated small weapons. It has been learnt that small weapons for executing target killing are difficult to arrange in J& K and the HM militants are procuring the same from adjoining areas of the National Capital, said the DCP. Information was received recently that an operative of HM has procured sophisticated weapons and was set to join the ranks of HM as an active terrorist. The information was further developed and a team of Special Cell headed by Inspector Sunil Rajain and Inspector Ravinder Joshi was sent to J&K. Police said that they further disclosed the information to their counterparts in Shopian District and the accused persons affiliated to HM were apprehended. Kushwah disclosed that the accused persons were in contact with Naveed Mustaq (30), an ex-constable, also known as Naveed Babu, a resident of Nazneenpora of Shopian, South Kashmir. He had joined J&K police in 2012 and was serving as a police constable before joining the terrorist organisation Hizbul Mujahideen. Naveed Babu had decamped with four weapons in 2017. Currently, he is district commander of HM. During this ongoing operation, an underground hideout (believed to be of Naveed Babu) which can accommodate four-five terrorists at a time was also identified, Kushwah revealed. A case under appropriate sections was registered at Shopian police station, J&K in this regard. One pistol and 14 live cartridges were recovered from the accused persons, the DCP said. The JAH Group of Hospitals, the largest hospital group in the Gwalior Chambal Division has appealed to the public, especially the social organisations and business community to lend a hand to improve the situation in the hospital. Dr Ashok Mishra, the Superintendent of the hospital, has called for community participation so that the health system in the hospital can be improved. According to the Medical Superintendent, the focus of the public participation is to strengthen the health care system in the various departments. Speaking to the media persons, Dr Mishra said that the primary focus will be the OPD section where more than thousand patients from various corners of the division come every day. He added that there is a shortage of proper furniture for the doctors and patients to sit; whatever furniture is there is old and unusable. He asked the public to come forward and donate furniture for the OPD. Dr Mishra further said that the Indian Medical Association has already pledged to donate to the Madhav Dispensary furniture valued at Rs 25,000.00. He also asked the public not to donate money in cash but to provide the necessary items, like furniture, blankets, bed sheets, light fittings, carpets etc. He added that if the donors so wish the can have their names imprinted on the items they donate. Dr Mishra further said that the city has more than five hundred social organisations and various clubs. He opined that even if half of them come forward with a helping hand, most of the problems in the hospital can be solved. The Medical Superintendent further said that anyone who wishes to donate any material to the hospital can contact him on 7999656804. Thousands of devotees thronged Gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of 352nd birth anniversary of tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the 'Khalsa Panth', the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. The holiest of Sikh shrines 'Harmandir Sahib', popularly known as Golden Temple in Amritsar and other Gurdwaras elsewhere saw religious fervour to mark the Guru's birth anniversary. The entire Golden Temple complex was decorated with special lighting. Long queues of devotees were seen waiting for up to two hours to offer prayers inside the main shrine. The festivities this year coincided with the festivals of 'Lohri' and 'Makar Sankranti'. Heavy rush of devotees were also seen at the Takht Keshgarh Sahib Gurdwara in Anandpur Sahib town. It was at this place that Guru Gobind Singh founded the 'Khalsa Panth'. Hundreds of people also offered prayers at Gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, where the Guru stayed for a few days during his lifetime. Religious processions were taken out at all places in the region on Friday and Saturday to mark the birth anniversary. Playing down the much hyped alliance between Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that it was a gathbandhan between two most corrupt parties who had joined hands not to save India but to save their own identities. People know the true character of these two parties. They are caste-based parties. The parties which do not have democratic values within their organisation, how can they save or talk about Indian democracy. The high sounding words the leaders of these parties uttered are hollow and meaningless, Yogi said while speaking at a private function here on Sunday. The Chief Minister said that these were anarchic elements and the Bharatiya Janata Party was competent enough to wipe them out. We do not face any challenge in Uttar Pradesh. The BJP and its ally will win a minimum of 72 seats this time. We have chalked out our strategy and are confident of implementing it, he said. Taking a jibe at the newly-formed alliance, Yogi said that SP president Akhilesh Yadav was caught in a mire after declaring the pact because he does not know whom to project as the prime minister. He had been advocating his father Mulayam Singh Yadav as the next prime minister of the country but now he is forced to say Mayawati will be the prime minister, he said. How can such alliance be legitimate? Therefore, I am saying that BJP will defeat this alliance, he added. BSP chief Mayawati and SP president Akhilesh Yadav have announced an alliance between their parties for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls with BSP and SP sharing 38 seats each. The Congress has been kept out of this pact which was announced on Sunday and it has decided to contest all the 80 parliamentary seats in UP on its own. Yogi said if Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav were so serious about this alliance why did they not merge their parties. Yadi dil mil gaye to party bhi mil jaani chahiye, he said. On the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, the Chief Minister said, The BJP had said that it would resolve the issue within the constitutional framework. The matter is in the Supreme Court. We are making repeated appeals to the apex court that this issue must be resolved at the earliest for the sake of development of the country. If there is anyone who can resolve this issue, it is the BJP. Those who created this problem, cannot resolve it, he added. BHEL has secured a prestigious order from Nepal for Arun-III HEP through International Competitive Bidding. The project has Four Turbine-Generator Sets, each of 225 MW rating (total 900 MW) with Francis type of Turbine operating under rated net head of 286.21 m. Design and development of turbine suitable for this project was carried out by BHEL COE-HM Engineers. The Turbine Model Witness Test has been successfully carried out at COE-HM from 4th Jan 2019 to 10th Jan 2019 in presence of a team of Executives from SJVN and SAPDC. The test proved the turbine capability to meet the guaranteed efficiency, output and other parameters. Motilal Taurani, GM (Thermal) and RK Arya, GM (PCG) handed over the witness test data to SJVNL and SAPDC representatives. Both GMs appreciated the performance of Hydro Lab and congratulated it for maintaining the tradition of excellence while assured customer that all the milestones of the project would be met on time. VS Rao, HOD (COE-HM) declared the result and thanked all associated department and COE-HM team. He said the model has achieved all the guaranteed parameters and said that Arun-III was the highest rating individual turbine which BHEL is going to supply. He especially thanked customer for their co-operation and dedication during model witness test. Balwant Negi from SJVN and Chandan Mehta from SAPDC congratulated BHEL and Hydro Laboratory in particular for completing the first milestone as per schedule and giving higher efficiencies than guaranteed. He was sure that BHEL would also meet all its commitment in time. The function was attended by staff of Hydro Laboratory and other senior officials of other Hydro department. Till date, Hydro Lab has successfully completed 58 contractual model test. With change in political scenario after Bahujan Samaj Party-Samajwadi Party alliance in Uttar Pradesh, Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (JCC) Jogi (J) Supremo Ajit Jogi would be in New Delhi for two days starting Monday where he will also meet BSP Supremo Mayawati. Jogi, who is actually going for regular medical check-ups at Medanta Hospital in Noida, will also meet Mayawati on Tuesday which would also be the occasion of birthday of BSP Supremo and a decision regarding continuing the current alliance in Lok Sabha polls too could be taken in the meeting, JCC (J) sources said. Although JCC (J) was benefitted with the alliance with BSP in recently held assembly polls in the state, Mayawati was reportedly not satisfied with the performance of her own party candidates in the polls. Taking a giant leap in providing equal opportunities to women workforce and with an aim to link the farming community of Jharkhand with the new age farming technology, 24 women farmers of the State were sent to Israel on a five-day trip on Sunday. The women farmers will study and gather inputs about advance farming practices during their trip. This is for the first time that to nurture the skills of women farmers, such a tour has been organised by the Government of Jharkhand (GoJ). Notably, Israel is a world leader in agricultural research and development (R&D). During the interactive session with the Chief Minister Raghubar Das and senior bureaucrats, Amrita Kumari, a female farmer said that she was overwhelmed to hear that she has been selected in the women team going to Israel. For the first time, I am going out of my country. I am excited and will try to learn advanced agro techniques there, she said. Similarly, a woman farmer from Khunti district said that after returning, she will impart training to other women farmers of her district for better agricultural yield. On the occasion CM said, The women workforce of Jharkhand has always proved their mettle. Women are doing incredibly well in all the sectors. The government will provide all possible assistance to nurture their aspirations. Das encouraged the team to develop curiosity and learn new agro-technology for the better outcome. Following the vision of PM Narendra Modi, the state has achieved 14% agricultural growth rate within four years. Soon, Jharkhand will emerge as the leader in agro-sector, he said. The CM motivated the team and advised the women farmers to collect inputs about cooperative farming, drip irrigation system, dairy culture, pisciculture including organic farming techniques. On the occasion he announced that the women farmers after getting advanced training at Israel will work as Master Trainers at their respective districts. Agriculture Secretary, Puja Singhal said that earlier 54 male farmers were sent to Israel in two batches, who are now imparting training among the farmers of their districts. The women delegation going to Israel is accompanied by women officials. So far, the experience have been enriching for the farmers. The women team too will gain knowledge out of this trip and will emerge as role models in their respective districts, she said. Agriculture Minister Randhir Singh, Principal Secretary to CM Sunil Kumar Barnwal among other dignitaries were present on the occasion. Sheila Dikshit, the three-time Chief Minister who ran the national Capital for 15 consecutive years till getting a major drubbing in the 2013 Assembly election at the hands of Arvind Kejriwal, has come out of the political hibernation to head the Delhi unit of the Congress. Famous for not mincing her words, the veteran Congress leader believes her party will bounce back to power on its own strength, and is dead against stitching up any pre-poll alliance, ruling out any truck with the Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. In an interview to The Pioneers Swarn Kumar Anand and Asad, Dikshit said Congress prospects are bright as people are growing weary of non-Congress Governments. Excerpts: For almost three years, you have been away from active politics. Now the Congress has entrusted you with an important task of steering the Delhi unit of the party. How do you feel? I am related to Delhi in a very special way. I was educated and brought up here. I have spent my entire political career here. So for me it is a comeback. Whatever I can do for my party and to Delhi, I will be very happy to do it. I didnt seek it (the Delhi Congress chief post), I got it. And I didnt reject it; in fact, I welcomed it. Now, as head of the Delhi Congress, what future do you envision for the party in the Capital, say after one year, in 2020 Assembly polls? You see, the future of the Congress is bright. In Delhi, one of the competitors is the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). But it is a small party, and it has won just by making false promises to the people: free power, free water, etc. We have lost two elections to them. But I am certain that the Congress will make a comeback in Delhi, because even now people still remember 15 years of the Congress rule. As time goes by, they are remembering it more. In the last two Assembly elections in Delhi, the BJP almost retained its vote percentage, but the AAP ate into the Congress votes, and dented its prospects. But recently, speculation about alliance with the AAP has been doing the rounds. And in fact, this is one of the covert reasons for Ajay Makens resignation from State unit chief post. What is your take on alliance? I am not for any kind of alliance with the AAP at all. As a party we have lost one or two elections. But it doesnt matter; as recently we won four elections and I am sure we will make a comeback. It (Congress) is a traditional old party of the country. We should not be discouraged by defeats by the AAP. We will pick up momentum on our own, without any alliance. Despite opinion polls giving the Congress a good chance in UP Assembly elections, you refused to accept CM candidature. Did you see the writing on wall that the party will not do well? It was not about seeing the writing on the wall. I had taken a time out from active politics as I was the Governor of Kerala, and when I came back from there (to UP) I thought it was not the right time for me to enter active politics. It was partys decision to send me there. Yes, there was some assumption that the party will project me as CM candidate, but once they decided to go for alliance with the SP, I bowed down to that. We were doing good on our own, but the collective will of the party had to be honoured. What makes you so confident that voters will again support the Congress? What is your plan? We are going to come out with a policy, an all India policy. The immediate target is the Lok Sabha polls, not the city election. Right now, I am very enthused with the fact that people are showing confidence in the Congress. I have seen it in the last two days as there has been long queues here (her residence). This shows that people are again turning back to the Congress as they dont have good experience with non-Congress Governments. Now back in the saddle in Delhi, how will you strengthen the Congress and energise party workers? The Congress is already energised. I have full confidence in the fact that in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, we will do much better. The Congress is a big party and its work is known to the people. As you are against any alliance with the AAP, will the Congress fight all 7 LS seats in Delhi. Is there any hope for alliance talks? No, there are no such talks. I, personally and as a politician, feel there should be no alliance. The Congress will win on its own. It is reported that the city unit of the Congress is afflicted with infighting. How do you plan to address this issue? Have you seen any party which doesnt have infighting? It is something natural. What you are calling infighting is actually a difference of opinion. People express their opinion in a way it looks like infighting. But it doesnt frighten me. It has always been the Congress tradition to allow people to express free opinion. I will take everybody on board. The controversy surrounding the unceremonious removal of Alok Verma as CBI Director by the Prime Minister-led panel refuses to die down. Justice AK Sikri, who backed Modi for removing Verma, on Sunday evening declined a plum post-retirement London posting even as the Congress sought immediate removal of the Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC), KV Chowdary, alleging the Centre had made him act like a puppet to escape a probe into the Rafale deal. After The Print portal reported that the Government has suggested to post Justice Sikri as member of London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT) after his retirement in March 6, 2019, social media was flooded with scandalous comments questioning the credibility of Justice Sikri for supporting Prime Minister for removing Verma as the CBI Director within 24 hours of being reinstated by the Supreme Court. Retired Justice AK Patnaiks revelations that the no corruption charges were found against Verma was also being flagged in the social media. Justice Sikris plum London tribunal posting was for five years and as per the rules of tribunal, the judges were allowed extension of another five years. India is a member of this Tribunal and Sikri will be expected to be the president of this Tribunal by rotation of the posts among the member countries in the Commonwealth. In the evening, stung by the criticism, Justice Sikri, who enjoys a high reputation as an uncompromising judge, wrote to the Law Ministry that he is declining this post-retirement job in London. Meanwhile, attacking the CVC, the Congress demanded his immediate sacking. We seek the removal, the departure, the exit of the collaborator for violating the Constitution the CVC (Chief Vigilance Commissioner). He must go. It is irrelevant whether he resigns or is sacked, but he must go, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said at AICC Press conference. The Congress alleged that CVC KV Chowdary is being made to act like a puppet to avoid any probe into the Rafale case. Till now, we have been told that only the CBI was the caged parrot but we are now seeing a new vigilant slave of the Government, a collaborator for violating the constitution of the Central Vigilance Commission, the Congress spokesperson alleged, taking a swipe at the Modi Government. The CVC has been acting like an ambassador for Asthana (CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana), lobbying for Asthana, and acting as an agent and messenger for the Government, to do their hatchet jobs, Singhvi alleged. The vigilance commissioner has forgotten that he is supposed to do vigilance for public interest, and not be a vigilant puppet in the hands of political masters, he said. The senior Congress leader said he was putting forth the views of his party, based on objectives facts that has emerged in the press in connection with the CBI controversy. These facts are in the public domain and viable, he said, claiming these cant be denied nor have been denied. The data and facts in writing demand an immediate action and that action must start with the removal and sacking of the CVC. The sequence of events indicates that the CVC acted like a hatchet man of the Government, Singhvi alleged. Now, the question arises as to why the commissioner acted like this and at whose behest he was doing it, he asked. The answer is self-evident, and none except the top two people in this country, who rule this country dictatorially, can claim the power to treat and make the CVC act like a puppet. These master puppeteers can be doing this to hide something, to hide something like Rafale, Singhvi alleged. The Government has repeatedly denied all charges levelled by the Congress in connection with the Rafale deal. Only Rafale (issue) can make them try to make the CVC act like a puppet, he alleged. Singhvi on Saturday had alleged that the Government stood exposed after Justice (retired) AK Patnaik claimed that he had not seen the commissions recommendations against Verma and not accorded his assent. He said the selection committee removed Verma based on Asthanas charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was dismissed by the Delhi High Court. He said if the PM or his Government has even an iota of shame left, then the CVC should be sacked, removed or tender his resignation. Mamata Banerjee is all set to address a mega rally in Kolkatas Parade Ground on January 19, and the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) has set a target to ensure a turnout of 15 lakh people. The rally has a two-pronged purpose: On one hand, it will be Mamatas show of strength, and on the other, it will be a test of the Oppositions unity. That is why all eyes are on the upcoming rally to see who turns up. Congress President Rahul Gandhi and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati are among the most eagerly awaited participants. Both parties have sent a participation confirmation, but it is yet to be seen whether the two party chiefs will attend the rally. The presence of the Left parties, especially the CPM, is also not confirmed. Apart from these, almost all stalwarts of the Opposition will attend the rally. Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav will certainly be a part of Mamatas rally, as will Sharad Pawar. Sharad Yadav who has formed the Loktantrik Janata Dal will also attend. Former PM HD Deve Gowda will also participate, and Arvind Kejriwal has also given his consent. One peculiar thing could be the presence of Chandrababu Naidu who is trying for an Opposition alliance alongside KCR, who is trying to put together a federal front. From the DMK, either Stalin or Kanimozhi will participate in the mega rally. The BJDs participation is also a given, but the representatives name has not been disclosed yet. It is clear that Mamata is trying to bring all anti-BJP parties on her dais, which is why she has invited several activists and leaders who are against the party. Jignesh Mevani, who is an Independent MLA from Gujarat, has also been invited. Three former ministers of the BJP Shatrughan Sinha, Yashwant Sinha, and Arun Shourie have also received an invite, and are likely to be present in the rally. SHIV SENA-BJP TIES WORSEN The gap between the Shiv Sena and BJP is widening in Maharashtra, and the two parties have stopped all communication. Sources say that from mid-November to December, two attempts were made to start talks between them, but to no avail. It is said that in both meetings, talks didnt extend beyond normal courtesy. A Shiv Sena leader said when there was no talk about alliance, there was no question of talking about the seat-sharing arrangement. Now, Amit Shah has told his party leaders to gear up for a solo fight, and has set a target to win 40 seats of the total 48. The Shiv Sena has also said that the BJP must test its strength by going alone. In fact, the Sena is ready to finish itself just to weaken the BJP in the State. A Sena MP said his party didnt get strength from the Government. He said that the Shiv Sena had ruled the State from 1995 to 1999, but after that, stayed out of power for 15 years in the State, and for 10 years at the Centre. Despite that, its strength didnt diminish but only increased. He said the Shiv Sena is not bothered about its own defeat, but would ensure the BJPs fall. The Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray is apparently of the view that when the BJP weakens, he will get more importance, and following that, the BJP will go into an alliance like it did with the JDU in Bihar. The Senas motive is to put the BJP in its old place, so that Uddhavs status is like that of Balasaheb among the next-generation leaders. BJP LEADERS ON A MISSION After defeat in three States, the BJP has been facing many questions from within and outside the party. To put an end to all doubts, Narendra Modi and Amit Shah have roped in five senior leaders of the party to embark on a mission. Shah has formed several committees, and given some or the other responsibility to almost all big leaders. Though most of the responsibilities given to senior leaders pertain to routine work, which was being accomplished by middle-level leaders. Rajnath Singh will prepare the party manifesto, which, some say, is no different than the previous one. Very little new information can be added to the manifesto, which has mostly been announced by Modi in rallies. Of course, Jaitley has been assigned the charge of election campaign, a befitting role at that. Former party president Nitin Gadkari has been given the task of coordination of NGOs, a work usually done by State-level leaders. Sushma Swaraj has been told to prepare the literature of the party. What is interesting is that party literature already exists, so her role will be clear when she begins work on it. SPECIAL TASK FOR RS MPs The BJP has assigned several responsibilities to Central Ministers from the Rajya Sabha, MPs from the Rajya Sabha, as well as other MLAs and ministers to ensure the partys victory in the Lok Sabha Elections. The Lok Sabha MPs have been excluded from this exercise as they will be busy fighting elections. Amit Shah has announced election in-charges for 25 States. Ten MPs and ministers from the Rajya Sabha have been given crucial responsibilities and the charge of important States. JP Nadda has been assigned Uttar Pradesh and all three co in-charges, who had been deputed earlier, will work under him. Prakash Javadekar has been given Rajasthan, and Thawar Chand Gehlot has been made responsible for Uttarakhand. Piyush Goyal has been roped in for Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, while Nirmala Sitharaman has been given Delhi. Thus, five ministers from the Rajya Sabha have been allocated important responsibilities. Five Rajya Sabha MPs Bhupendra Yadav, Anil Jain, Muralidhar Rao, V Muraleedharan, and OP Mathur have also been made election in-charges. Bhupendra Yadav will look after Bihar, and Anil Jain has been given Chhattisgarh. OP Mathur will oversee Gujarat elections, Muralidhar Rao will look after Karnataka, and V Muraleedharan will be in-charge for Andhra Pradesh. For the rest of the States, Amit Shah has roped in MLAs and ministers from various States. Mangal Pandey the minister from Bihar, who was in-charge for Himachal Pradesh has now been given the responsibility of Jharkhand. Minister of Haryana, Captain Abhimanyu, has been given Punjab. UP Minister Swatantra Dev Singh will steer the campaign in Madhya Pradesh. MLAs Nitin Naveen, Vishwash Sarang, Kiran Maheshwari, and CT Ravi have also been made in-charges. Among the Central officials, Arun Singh has been given Odisha, and Avinash Khanna has been given Tripura and J&K. Sudhanshu Trivedi has been made co-in charge of Rajasthan. With the exit of James Mattis, the only person who could raise contrarian views from within the system, White House is bereft of specialist and sagely views The former Marine Corps General, James Norman Mattis, had acquired mythic and cult-like folklore while still in the uniform. The image had got caricaturised into monikers like Mad Dog and Warrior Monk, with many true and even fabricated bravado attributed to the chronic bachelor. The Marine Corps-inspired Oorah battle-rattle personality had led to popular memes like was once bitten by a Black Mamba the Black Mamba died instantly, fear of spiders is called arachnophobia, fear of tight spaces is called claustrophobia fear of Mattis is called logic and Saint Mattis of Quantico, patron saint of chaos. Impressed with the legendary warriors popular persona, Donald Trump had described him an a true generals general and inducted him as his Secretary of Defence. The appointment was in line with the alpha-muscularity of Trumps America First and James Mattis became the second man after George Marshal to get a waiver that requires a seven-year cooling off period before assuming Secretary of Defence. Behind the image lurked the wisdom of 44 years of combat service in the Gulf Wars and Afghanistan, which culminated in the four-star General with responsibilities like the command of Marine Corps Combat Development Command, US Joint Forces Command and US Central Command overseeing operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, Syria and Iran. Besides his operational heroics, he was known to be a voracious reader and student of military history with a personal library of over 7,000 books. The accompanying experience, maturity and gravitas had in recent times led to the more balanced perception as the only grown-up left in the fast depleting administration of Donald Trump. He was often seen assuaging, nuancing and balancing the more intemperate and outrageous statements made by the US President. The straight-speaking former-combatant remained insulated from the whimsicalities that typified Trump, and unlike the President, Mattis stood up for his fellow-combatant Senator John McCain in describing his passing away in a moving way: We have lost a man who steadfastly represented the best ideals of our country. As a Naval Officer and defiant prisoner of war, John McCain stood with his brothers-in-arms until they returned home together. The mass exodus of top officials from the Trump Administration has so far included Secretary of State, Director CIA, Director FBI, Secretary of Interior, Secretary Homeland Security, two White House Chiefs of Staff, two National Security Advisors, three Deputy National Security Advisors, Homeland Security Advisor, White House Chief Strategist, Senior Counselor to the President, three Attorney-Generals and countless others to record the highest turnover ratio of over 60 per cent among the White House positions. The latest to join the bandwagon is Mattis, owing to a very familiar reason of irreconcilability with the outlandish approach of Trump. In a tellingly drafted resignation letter, James Mattis has alluded to the sharp differences and suggested to the President to appoint someone, whose views are better aligned with yours. A clear note of dissent, frustration and resignation rides on the back of President Trumps sudden announcement to withdraw US troops from Syria something that the professional sensibilities of James Mattis would have militated against. Despite the ostensible bravado, Mattis is also believed to have disagreed with the President on the hasty decision to withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal. The prevailing situation harks back to the famous anonymous op-ed in the Washington Post, attributed to a senior official, who speaks on behalf of those who work in the Trump administration by noting, The root of the problem is the Presidents amorality. Anyone who works with him knows he is not moored to any discernible first principles that guide his decision-making. This rings eerily true in the curious case of the revolving-door in the White House, this time by James Mattis. The piece had captured the impetuosity and pettiness that had to be managed in the White House, as the staff was working to insulate their operations from his whims. Obviously, the situation and equation would have reached a point of no-return, as James Mattis slammed Donald Trumps boorish rants and fickleness in treating allies and enemies alike by stating: My views on treating allies with respect and also being clear-eyed about both malign actors and strategic competitors are strongly held and informed by over four decades of immersion in these issues. James Mattis resignation has re-triggered the whispers of the uncontrollable and reckless decisions emanating from the White House. Trump is perennially on the short fuse with the media which asks probing questions, and now with the exit of the only person who could raise contrarian views from within the system, the most important office in the world is dangerously bereft of specialist alternatives and sagely views. The clash between the two was in the offing with Bob Woodwards bestselling book, Fear, depicting an irate James Mattis freezing Trumps wild plan to assassinate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and apparently telling some people that the President had a policy understanding of a 10-11 year-old. A few months ago the US President had rued about Mattis saying, I think hes sort of a Democrat, if you want to know the truth. However, it is now becoming increasingly difficult for even Trumps own Republican Party to defend his decisions and the usually reticent Senate majority leader insisted that the President must now select a leader who shares Secretary Mattis understanding of these vital principles and his total commitment to Americas service members. James Mattis will exit with the grace, sobriety and dignity that come naturally to warriors, as the daughter of fellow-combatant and fellow-Republican, John McCain, had said for her father (whilst contextualising Trump): We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness. The real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly. Nor the opportunistic appropriation of those who live lives of comfort and privilege while he suffered and served. (The writer, a military veteran, is a former Lt Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Puducherry) DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Artillery shelling by government forces pounded parts of the northwestern Idlib province on Saturday, thwarting an infiltration attempt by militants as tension rises in the region following victories by al-Qaida-linked militants against Turkey-backed opposition fighters, Syria's state news agency reported. The violence came as officials in neighboring Turkey said efforts are being exerted to maintain stability in Idlib. SANA said the shelling focused on the areas of Zarzour near the border with Turkey and Tamanaa near Maaret al-Numan that was taken this week by al-Qaida-linked militants from Turkey-backed opposition fighters. It reported casualties among the militants. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the government shelled six areas in and near Idlib province. Earlier this month, members of the al-Qaida-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Arabic for Levant Liberation Committee, or HTS, took over control of Idlib province and the surrounding countryside after forcing rival insurgents to accept a deal for a civil administration run by HTS in their areas. The developments threaten to derail a cease-fire in the area reached in September between Turkey and Russia that averted a potentially catastrophic Syrian army assault on Idlib. The deal required jihadist groups to vacate a frontline buffer zone, a move that was never implemented by al-Qaida-linked militants. Earlier Saturday, Turkey's defense minister met with commanders and the head of the country's intelligence services in the southern Hatay province bordering Syria's restive Idlib. "All efforts are being made to continue stability and the ceasefire in line with the Sochi agreement," said Defense Minister Hulusi Akar, referring to a September agreement between Turkey and Russia to set up a buffer zone in Idlib. "Our close cooperation with Russia on this issue continues," the minister said. Turkey's official Anadolu news agency said Turkish troops dispatched from units across the country were undergoing training at the border in Hatay. The Syrian government has repeatedly threatened to launch an offensive to recapture Idlib province, which is packed with 3 million people, including many who were displaced from other parts of the country. The latest advances by the HTS, which include many foreign fighters, raise questions over the future of the deal. In the capital Damascus, the Foreign Ministry sent two letters to the U.N. Secretary-General and the President of the U.N. Security Council over Israel's airstrikes that hit areas south of the city the night before. "This treacherous aggression comes within the framework of Israeli attempts to prolong the crisis in Syria," the ministry said. Israel did not comment on the airstrikes, the first this year, that Syrian state media said hit a warehouse near Damascus International Airport without inflicting casualties. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said airstrikes targeted an area near the airport while others hit the area of Kiswa, which is home to positions and storage sites for Iranian and Hezbollah forces allied with Syria's government. Israel's outgoing army chief, Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot, told The New York Times in an interview published Friday that Israel "struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit." Eisenkot retires on Sunday. Israel's government approved a change in tactics in January 2017, stepping up air strikes in Syria, Eisenkot was quoted as saying. Israel's air force dropped 2,000 bombs in 2018 alone, he said. ____ Bilginsoy reported from Istanbul. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report. UNITED NATIONS (AP) - A proposed U.N. resolution would establish a United Nations political mission to oversee implementation of a cease-fire and the withdrawal of rival forces from Yemen's key port of Hodeida. The British-drafted resolution, obtained Friday by The Associated Press, would approve Secretary-General Antonio Guterres' proposal for up to 75 U.N. monitors to be deployed for an initial period of six months. The draft resolution says the monitors would oversee the cease-fire in Hodeida and the surrounding area, demining operations at Hodeida and the smaller ports of Salif and Ras Issa, and the redeployment of forces. They would also work with Yemen's government and Houthi Shiite rebels to assure that local forces provide security at the three ports. Diplomats said the Security Council is expected to vote on the draft resolution next week. The council voted unanimously Dec. 21 to authorize the deployment of U.N. monitors to observe implementation of the agreement between the government and the Houthis signed in Stockholm on Dec. 13 to monitor the cease-fire in Hodeida and the surrounding area and the pullout of rival forces. But that was only for 30 days, so a new resolution is needed to extend the deployment and establish a more permanent U.N. operation. The cease-fire, which went into effect Dec. 18, has halted months of heavy fighting in Hodeida, whose port handles 70 percent of the food and humanitarian aid imported into Yemen. U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Wednesday that there are currently about 20 monitors in Yemen, stressing that their deployment also hinges on the security situation, which he called "fairly delicate, to say the least." While the cease-fire and withdrawal of forces are limited, the Stockholm agreement, if fully implemented, could offer a potential breakthrough in Yemen's four-year civil war that has brought the Arab world's poorest country to the brink of starvation and created the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Martin Griffiths, the U.N. envoy for Yemen, told the Security Council on Wednesday that progress so far has been "gradual and tentative" and new talks between the warring sides won't take place until there is "substantive progress." Griffiths had said there would be a new round of talks in January but diplomats said he is now looking to February. The envoy said Yemen's government and Houthi Shiite rebels "have largely adhered" to the cease-fire, but progress on a pullout of rival forces, humanitarian access and other issues agreed to in Stockholm has been slow. He cited a lack of trust by the parties and said there will be many hurdles ahead. But Griffiths said "speedy implementation is crucial," and urged both sides "to engage regularly and in good faith" with the U.N. monitoring team under retired Dutch Maj. Gen. Patrick Cammaert, who would head the political mission. Griffiths said that he is working with the Houthis and the government to make sure the next round of talks "will happen at the earliest possible date," and that those consultations will not only monitor progress on the Stockholm agreement but discuss "the fundamental issues that need to be addressed to resolve this conflict." U.N. humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock told the council Wednesday that the humanitarian situation in Yemen hasn't improved since the Stockholm agreement and "remains catastrophic," with 80 percent of the population - over 24 million people - now in need of assistance. "They include nearly 10 million people just one step away from famine," he said. The conflict in Yemen began with the 2014 takeover of Sanaa by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels, who toppled the government of Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. A Saudi-led coalition allied with Yemen's internationally recognized government has been fighting the Houthis since 2015. Saudi-led airstrikes have hit schools, hospitals and wedding parties and killed thousands of Yemeni civilians. The Houthis have fired long-range missiles into Saudi Arabia and targeted vessels in the Red Sea. Palestinian security forces loyal to Hamas (R) prepare to take control of Gaza's Rafah border crossing with Egypt on January 7, 2019 as Palestinian Authority personnel (L) pull out on orders from president Mahmud Abbas The decade-long Palestinian split looks set to deepen in the coming months, with president Mahmud Abbas poised to take multiple measures against Gaza to squeeze its Islamist rulers Hamas. The moves raise concerns of more suffering for Gaza's two million residents, already under an Israeli blockade and facing severe electricity shortages, while a cornered Hamas could renew violence against Israel. Analysts say the measures will also widen the gap between Hamas-run Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where Abbas's government has limited self-rule. Hamas and Abbas's secular Fatah party have been at loggerheads since the Islamists seized control of Gaza from Abbas's forces in a near civil war in 2007, a year after sweepinging parliamentary elections. Hamas has since fought three bloody wars with Israel and fears of a fourth remain. A Hamas security guard at the Rafah border crossing with Egypt inspects a portrait of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas (R) who ordered Palestinian Authority personnel to leave in the first of a series of threatened measures against the Islamists Multiple reconciliation attempts between the Palestinian factions have failed but Egypt thought it had made a breakthrough in late 2017 when the two sides agreed to eventually share power. As part of that agreement Hamas withdrew from border crossings between Gaza and Egypt and Israel, allowing the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority to return and the Egyptian border to be reopened regularly. The reconciliation agreement has since collapsed acrimoniously. On Sunday, the PA announced it would withdraw from the Egyptian border crossing, creating a dilemma for Cairo about whether to leave it open with Hamas in control. So far they have indicated they will. Senior officials close to Abbas say he is looking for other measures to punish Hamas. - 'Very important decisions' - Among these could be removing staff from the crossings between Israel and Gaza -- making it hard for the Jewish state to allow anything into the territory without dealing directly with Hamas, which it and many other countries label a terrorist organisation. They could also include cutting salaries to families of Hamas prisoners or rescinding Palestinian passports for Hamas employees. Abbas has also pledged to dissolve the Hamas-dominated Palestinian parliament, which though it hasn't met since the 2007 split is still nominally the basis for new laws. Thousands of Fatah supporters mark the anniversary of the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat with a rally in Hamas-ruled Gaza on November 11, 2017 that was billed as a show of unity after a now abandoned reconciliation deal between the rivals "Very important decisions against Hamas are being discussed," a senior official said on condition of anonymity. It follows a series of arrests of those affiliated with Fatah in Gaza, according to Abbas allies. The official said the PA spent around $100 million per month in Gaza, including for electricity subsidies, and was looking to cut back significantly. "Those that want to rule Gaza must bear the responsibility of governing it," the official said. Azzam al-Ahmad, a senior Abbas ally and negotiator of the 2017 reconciliation agreement, told AFP "the leadership is considering a number of measures". Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim said the Islamists had seen similar threats before. "Any type of sanctions such as electricity, preventing medicine, closing the border or cutting the salaries are intended to blackmail residents into rising against Hamas and they fail," he told AFP. "This is the most that Abbas can do." - 'Short-term thinking - The Palestinians have faced stark challenges over the past two years, with US President Donald Trump leading what he has called the most pro-Israel administration in the country's history. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government has meanwhile continued to expand settlements in the West Bank. Abbass government froze contacts with the Trump administration after it recognised the disputed city of Jerusalem as Israels capital in December 2017. The deepening split between the two factions weakens their ability to respond to such pressure, said Hugh Lovatt of the European Council on Foreign Relations think-tank. He said the PA withdrawal from the border crossings was part of a "package of measures designed to try and squeeze Hamas." "It is not irreversible but it is certainly a very negative step. This is short-term thinking triumphing longer-term strategy." A Gazan uses a slingshot to throw stones at Israeli troops during a protest on the border on September 24, 2018 Nadia Hijab, president of the Al-Shabaka Palestinian think-tank, said the infighting prevented a united front against Israeli policies. "Palestinians fear that this latest move will cement the division and lead to a complete break between Gaza and the West Bank, something Israel has been pushing," she said. Both sides were "playing politics with people's lives instead of taking on Israel's 50-year-plus occupation," she said. At least 241 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza since mass protests along the border began in March 2018. Two Israeli soldiers have been killed. The protests had calmed in recent months after Hamas and Israel struck an agreement that saw Qatari aid allowed into the territory. This week, it was reported that Israel had blocked a third tranche of Qatari funding, which could lead to increased tensions. "If the Israelis do block the money, then I think it is almost a certainty you will see Hamas increasing the tension on the border," Lovatt said. Kings from various districts of Abomey, Benin, arrive for the funeral of Dah Dedjalagni Agoli-Agbo, monarch of the former military kingdom of Dahomey on August 11, 2018 A new ruler of the former military kingdom of Dahomey in modern-day Benin was designated on Saturday, after the death of the previous monarch, last year. Dah Sagbadjou Glele succeeds Dah Dedjalagni Agoli-Agbo, who died in July 2017 aged 84, dignitaries from royal families said following lengthy discussions. Modern-day kings of Dahomey have no formal powers under Benin's constitution but retain much ceremonial, political and economic influence. "The night was long but a new dawn has broken on the kingdom of Dahomey," they said. One of those involved said the nomination was "happy and consensual" and that Glele was a worthy successor to Agoli-Agbo, a former police officer who had 41 wives. The kingdom of Dahomey existed for nearly 400 years until its last ruling king, Behanzin, was defeated by the French in 1894. The country then became part of French West Africa. Dahomey was a major regional power built on conquest and the slave trade but also fostered major works of art and had an all-female military unit the French called the "Amazons of Dahomey". The military wing of Gaza's Hamas rulers said Saturday that the aim of a botched undercover Israeli operation in the Palestinian enclave aimed to plant spying devices in their communications network. The November 11 special forces operation, which Israel said was an intelligence-gathering mission, turned deadly when the undercover soldiers were spotted near Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. The ensuing firefight claimed the lives of an Israeli army officer and seven Palestinian militants, including a local Hamas military commander. A spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said that 15 members of an elite Israeli military unit had infiltrated Gaza via the border fence and travelled in the enclave using cars disguised as vehicles belonging to a local charity. Their goal was "establishing a spy system to eavesdrop on the communications network of the resistance in the Gaza Strip", Abu Obeida said, showing video footage of what he said was the soldiers in action. Hamas also managed to capture equipment used by the group, Abu Obeida added, promising a million dollars to any local "collaborator" who would supply Hamas with information about the operation. On Tuesday, Hamas said it had arrested 45 Gazan "collaborators" with Israel following the Khan Yunis incident. Hamas had already published photos of eight people and two vehicles it said were linked to the operation, prompting the Israeli army censor to appeal to the public and media not to republish the images. The incident prompted Hamas to vow revenge and sparked the deadliest flare-up between the two sides since a 2014 war. A November 13 ceasefire brokered by Egypt ended the fighting that had raised fears of another war between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza. Hamas and its allies have fought three wars with Israel since 2008 and the Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli blockade for more than a decade. Israel says the measure is necessary to isolate Hamas and prevent it from obtaining weapons, though critics say it amounts to collective punishment of the territory's two million residents. She agreed a new custody arrangement with ex Brad Pitt on December 1. And on Sunday, a relaxed-looking Angelina Jolie spent time with two of her six kids at a mall in the LA neighborhood of Century City. The Hollywood star was joined by daughter Zahara, 14, and son Knox, 10. Quality time: On Sunday, a relaxed-looking Angelina Jolie enjoyed an outing with daughter Zahara, 14, and son Knox, 10, two of her six kids with ex Brad Pitt, at a mall in LA's Century City The 43-year-old actress appeared to be makeup-free behind a pair of large black-framed sunglasses. She wore a white shirt with the top buttons undone under a black coat and added black leggings and black boots. Not on the outing were the other children she shares with Pitt - son Maddox, 17, daughter Shiloh, 12 and Knox's twin sister Vivienne. Looked happy: The 43-year-old actress appeared to be makeup-free behind a pair of large black-framed sunglasses Shopping trip: She wore a white shirt with the top buttons undone under a black coat and added black leggings and black boots. She carried a large black tote over one shoulder On trend: Zahara showed off her teen sense of style by opting for a strapless stripy jumpsuit tied at the waist and rolled up at the hems along with chunky white lace-up ankle boots Casual: : Knox paired camo pants with red boots and a red and dark green plaid shirt over a white undershirt. He also wore a flat cap, like his famous father Pitt is wont to do Zahara showed she's growing up fast with a keen sense of style. The 14-year-old opted for a strapless stripy jumpsuit tied at the waist and rolled up at the hems along with chunky white lace-up ankle boots. She wore her long hair in braids and accessorized with several bangles. Knox also showed some flair iwth his choice of ensemble, pairing camo pants with red boots and a red and dark green plaid shirt over a white undershirt. He also wore a flat cap, like his famous father Pitt is wont to do Mom of six: Not on the outing were the other children Jolie shares with Pitt - son Maddox, 17, daughter Shiloh, 12 and Knox's twin sister Vivienne Kept hydrated: The trio sipped on beverages as they strolled around the shopping center Had company: The three were accompanied by a female assistant Jolie and Pitt - who split in 2016 - finally reached an agreement over their custody terms last month. Samantha Bley DeJean, Angelina's attorney, said: 'A custody arrangement was agreed and has been signed by both parties and the judge. The agreement, which is based on the recommendations of the child custody evaluator, eliminates the need for a trial.' The lawyer added: 'The filing and details of the agreement are confidential to protect the best interests of the children.' Jolie is reportedly 'pleased to be entering the next stage and relieved at the progress for the health of their family'. Her youngest: On Sunday, Jolie was also seen with Knox and his twin Vivienne visiting a do-it-yourself arts and crafts store Outing: Vivienne was dressed in a t-shirt and blue jeans with a pair of white Nike trainers and she wore her hair tied back into a ponytail They simply can't keep their hands - or their lips - off one another. Heidi Klum and fiance Tom Kaulitz piled on the PDA as they left a shopping mall in Los Angeles on Saturday. The couple, who got engaged on Christmas Eve, cuddled up and kissed as they strolled away from a parking lot. It's definitely love: Heidi Klum and fiance Tom Kaulitz couldn't resist snatching a kiss as they left a shopping mall in Los Angeles on Saturday The model-turned-TV host, 45, looked typically stylish in a black and white graphic pattern dress with a long black cardigan and black, lace-up, ankle boots. Her beau, 29, was more colorfully dressed in a green sweatshirt with the work 'future' on the front along with an image of a flying saucer. He teamed it with baggy brown pants and white sneakers. They've been very open about their love since they became an item in mid-March and are frequently spotted locking lips, most notably on the red carpet at the Golden Globes in Beverly Hills earlier this month. In December they shared a sensuous black and white Instagram snap of themselves in bed with Heidi laying on Tom's chest. She captioned it, simply: 'BLISS' with smiley face and heart emojis So happy together: The model-turned-TV host, 45, and her rocker beau, 29, smiled as they cuddled up while walking across the parking lot The pair, who both hail from Germany, were first spotted hanging out in Pasadena, east of Los Angeles, where she was filming America's Got Talent. And their romance has been going strong ever since. Heidi recently hit back over negative comments about her being with a man who is 17 years younger than her. Talking to InStyle, she said: 'I dont really think about it [the age gap] that much. Sexy selfie: In December they shared a sensuous black and white Instagram snap of themselves in bed that she captioned, simply, 'BLISS' with smiley face and heart emojis 'You have to just live a happy life without worrying too much about what people think because worrying is only going to give you more wrinkles.' Meanwhile Heidi shares three children - Henry, 13, Johan, 12, and daughter Lou, eight - with her ex-husband Seal, who also adopted her daughter Helene, 14. The friendly exes often reunite for family days with their crew. They officially tied the knot in beautiful Maui, Hawaii on Saturday. And The Bachelor's Arie Luyendyk Jr and Lauren Burnham looked like a fairy-tale couple in new photos from the enchanting affair. In the photos, the charming racecar drive, 37, leaned in to share a magical kiss with his pregnant love, 26. Tying the knot: Bachelor couple Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren Burnham were married in a magical Hawaiian ceremony on Saturday Lauren looked like a princess in a delicately decorated sleeveless gown with a long veil while her prince charming went for a classic look in a black tuxedo. She carried a lush bouquet of white flowers while 100 of their closest family and friends, and Bachelor pals looked on. And it's almost guaranteed that the pair made it official with a pair of rings from Bachelor-beloved jeweler Neil Lane. The Bachelor couple tied the knot during a romantic ceremony at the Haiku Mill. Success stories: Former Bachelor Sean Lowe and his chosen bride, Catherine, pose with fellow The Bachelor Ari on his wedding day to Lauren Been there, done that: The Lowes were enjoying the chance to just be guests at the reality show wedding in Hawaii Behind the scenes: Chris Harrison shared a picture with production staff, explaining 'For over a decade Ive traveled the world with @theyearofelan and Bennett, made a thousand memories and easily that many hours of great tv. We can add a great time at @ariejr and @laureneburnham wedding to the list. #BachelorFamily' The guest list: Former Bachelor stars joined the bride and grooms friends and family Beautiful bride: Catherine and Lauren pose together at the reception The groomsmen: Chris Harrison / InstagramIts was an incredible wedding week. My blessings and prayers to Mr & Mrs Luyendyk and baby Luyendyk on the way. For now its Aloha! Back to helping @coltonunderwood find love tomorrow night #JustMauied Groom and pals: Arie with his friends and Chris Harrison The newlyweds: Without The Bachelor, Arie would never have met Lauren 'Ever since we've gotten together, we wanted to fast-forward to this day,' Ari, who now works as a successful real estate agent, told Us Weekly. 'It's been a year. That's kind of crazy 'cause I remember a year ago we were doing 'happy couples [weekend on The Bachelor]' and talking about getting married and wanting to do that, even last year, so it's awesome that the day is finally here,' added the happy groom. The couple met on the 22nd season of The Bachelor. Early on their wedding day, Arie shared a shot of Lauren standing on the beach, drawing a heart in the sand. 'Happy wedding day,' Ari captioned the shot. Knot tied: Ariewed Lauren on Saturday, tenth months after they got engaged; he shared this picture of her in Hawaii on the morning of their wedding day Arie and Lauren's wedding was filled with former Bachelor contestants, including Catherine and Sean Lowe, who met on the 17th season of the Bachelor. Bachelor Host Chris Harrison also made an appearance at the wedding, acting as the officiant. 'It's been an incredible week full of love and laughs. Today I'm honored to stand before your friends and family and officiate your wedding. Love you both @ariejr @laureneburnham I now pronounce you.....,' he wrote on a post featuring a picture of him with the couple Ready to wed! Bachelor host Chris Harrison shared a snap with the groom On Friday Arie shared photos of the two kissing on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean with a rainbow in the background. 'Life with you is all sunsets and rainbows. We're getting married tomorrow!' he captioned the image. The couple and their friends and family have also enjoyed a helicopter trip, and toured a pineapple farm. Things didn't always seem like they would turn into a magical ending for the couple, as Arie gave the Final Rose at the end of the series' 22nd season to Becca Kufrin, 28. But shortly afterward he called off the engagement, telling the winner that he was actually in love with Lauren. Now with the knot finally tied and a little girl on the way, it seems like Arie made the right decision in the end. Wedded bliss: The couple, who met on the 22nd season of The Bachelor tied the knot during a Hawaiian wedding at the Haiku Mill in Maui on the island of Maui The couple revealed the gender of their child as they posed beside a cloud of pink dust. But the gender of their child came as a surprise for the twosome, who had initially believed they were having a boy after an online test determined they were going to have a son. 'We actually did the early gender test online, so we took our test at 10 weeks,' Lauren, 26, shared with the site. 'We got the results back from that, and it was that we were having a boy.' Hosting duties: Bachelor Host Chris is seen wishing the newly weds a bright future Magical endings: Things didn't always seem like they would turn into a magical ending for the couple, as Arie gave the Final Rose at the end of the series' 22nd season to Becca Kufrin, 28 Believing they were about to welcome a boy, the couple even took part in a gender reveal special for The Bachelor. But eventually they learned they were indeed having a girl, and had to contact Bachelor producers to fix the original gender reveal special. 'The phone call back to the producers was hilarious because they're like, 'Arie, you're always making things difficult!' We all had a big laugh about it,' Arie, 37, said. Days earlier, he also revealed that they are expecting the baby in June. Coming soon: It seems like Arie made the right decision in the end Bachelor fame: Arie and Lauren's wedding is set to be filled with former Bachelor contestants, including Catherine and Sean Lowe, who met on the 17th season of the Bachelor Stella Maxwell channeled the late Farrah Fawcett skateboarding in a 1977 episode of Charlie's Angels on the Venice Beach set of her latest Victoria's Secret shoot on Saturday. The 28-year-old Lions Model flaunted cleavage in a black tank top and track pants while her colleague Taylor Hill bared her shoulders in a frilly Bardot top and Daisy Dukes. The VS Angels - who both got their 'wings' in 2015 - sported Vans high-top sneakers as they skateboarded down the sandy boardwalk together. Retro: Stella Maxwell channeled the late Farrah Fawcett skateboarding in a 1977 episode of Charlie's Angels on the Venice Beach set of her latest Victoria's Secret shoot on Saturday Stella and the 22-year-old IMG Model later changed for a second set-up under a beach umbrella iwth their skateboards propped in the sand like surf boards. Maxwell just flew from Miami to Los Angeles after shooting more material with photographer Adam Franzino for the San Francisco bra brand's future campaign. On Saturday night, the Belgian-born Kiwi - who boasts 4.3M followers - Insta-storied a snap of herself atop a strip mall, likely Sushi Park in West Hollywood. The University of Otago grad is reportedly 'fuming' about her ex-girlfriend Kristen Stewart's relationship with 'style visionary' Sara Dinkin. Weee! The 28-year-old Lions Model flaunted cleavage in a black tank top and track pants while her colleague Taylor Hill (L) bared her shoulders in a frilly Bardot top and Daisy Dukes Goofing around: The VS Angels - who both got their 'wings' in 2015 - sported Vans high-top sneakers as they skateboarded down the sandy boardwalk together Catching rays: Stella and the 22-year-old IMG Model later changed for a second set-up under a beach umbrella iwth their skateboards propped in the sand like surf boards Busy: Maxwell just flew from Miami to LA after shooting more material with photographer Adam Franzino for the San Francisco bra brand's future campaign (pictured Thursday) 'They made a pact not to rub it in each other's faces by dating anyone else publicly for a while,' a source told Radar Online on Friday. 'But Kristen couldn't help herself and decided to go public with Sarah almost straight away...The worst part is that they share a lot of mutual friends, all of whom are having to take sides because the girls won't speak to each other at all now.' Stella and the 28-year-old Cesar Award winner first canoodled at the Met Gala in 2016, but they haven't been pictured together since October. Checking for rain: On Saturday night, the Belgian-born Kiwi - who boasts 4.3M followers - Insta-storied a snap of herself atop a strip mall, likely Sushi Park in West Hollywood 'They made a pact not to rub it in each other's faces': The University of Otago grad is reportedly 'fuming' about her ex-girlfriend Kristen Stewart's (L) relationship with 'style visionary' Sara Dinkin (R, pictured Wednesday) 'The girls won't speak to each other at all now': Stella and the 28-year-old Cesar Award winner first canoodled at the Met Gala in 2016, but they haven't been pictured together since October Making things more awkward is Maxwell has an acting role as Sophie alongside the Twilight alum in Justin Kelly's hoax drama Jeremiah Terminator LeRoy, which hits US theaters on March 29. Stewart portrays Savannah Knoop, the woman who pretended to be HIV-positive teenage boy JT Leroy before the literary persona was exposed as her sister-in-law Laura Albert (Laura Dern). The critically-acclaimed Universal Pictures flick also features Diane Kruger, Jim Sturgess, Courtney Love, Kelvin Harrison Jr., James Jagger, and Dave Brown. Hitting US theaters on March 29! Making things more awkward is Maxwell has an acting role as Sophie alongside the Twilight alum (R) in Justin Kelly's hoax drama Jeremiah Terminator LeRoy She touched down in the fashion capital for yet another week of modelling duties. But Gigi Hadid indulged in some time off as she enjoyed a casual stroll in Italy during Milan Men's Fashion Week on Sunday afternoon. The catwalk queen, 23, nailed edgy chic as she rocked a cropped black tee by Krost emblazoned with the words 'support your friends'. Stepping out: Gigi Hadid indulged in some time off as she enjoyed a casual stroll in Italy during Milan Men's Fashion Week on Sunday afternoon Maintaining her style savvy ways, the model finished off her look with a pair of white panelled ankle-grazing trousers and snakeskin ankle boots. Gigi's fashionable appearance didn't stop there as she accessorised with skinny cat-eye sunglasses and toted a monochrome handbag by Prada, retailing at 2,170. Showcasing her radiant clear skin, the blonde went make-up free and wore her tresses in a straight fashion. Style savvy: The catwalk queen, 23, nailed edgy chic as she rocked a cropped black tee by Krost emblazoned with the words 'support your friends' On Saturday, Gigi touched down in Malpensa Airport to make the most of her time in the fashion capital. The model was wrapped up well as she made her way through the airport, donning a blue denim jacket with a large grey scarf. She paired it with a mint green shirt and matching three-quarter length tracksuit pants. Style: On Saturday, Gigi touched down in Malpensa Airport to make the most of her time in the fashion capital Sporting a pair of trainers, she accessorised with a pair of shades and gold Beats headphones. Styling her locks into a ponytail, the model checked her phone as she carried her suitcase to a waiting car. Gigi joins her sister Bella in Milan, with fellow model Kaia Gerber also in the Italian city while former America's Next Top Model contestant Winnie Harlow and reality star Paris Hilton were also in attendance. Fashion: The model, 23, was wrapped up well as she made her way through the airport, donning a blue jacket with a large grey scarf Meanwhile, Gigi has reportedly split from boyfriend Zayn Mailk, with a source telling E! News that the pair believe time apart is what they both need. The source said: '[They] think that time apart is best for the sake of their relationship right now. Both have been really focused on themselves and their separate careers. 'Zayn has been in the studio recording new music and pushing out his new album, while Gigi has been focusing a lot of time on herself.' Look: Sporting a pair of trainers, Gigi accessorised with a pair of shades and gold Beats headphones Abroad: Styling her locks into a ponytail, the model checked her phone as she carried her suitcase to a waiting car The model and the former One Direction member first began dating in November 2015; they split for the first time in March 2018. They announced their breakup on social media with identical statements. In May, the couple were spotted sharing kisses during a stroll in New York City, confirming that they have reconciled. She rang in the new year with her husband in her native country of Russia as they decided to put the Seann Walsh kiss scandal behind them. And it was back to business for Katya Jones as she touched down in London's Heathrow Airport following her getaway on Saturday evening. The Strictly Come Dancing pro, 29, arrived in the English capital without her husband Neil, 35, as she appeared to struggle with her two hefty suitcases. Home turf: It was back to business for Katya Jones as she touched down in London's Heathrow Airport following her Russia getaway on Saturday evening Looking effortlessly chic, the dancer sported a turtleneck top, glossy black leggings and edgy biker boots. The brunette beauty continued her stylish display with her outerwear as she wrapped up in a grey wool coat, paired with a trendy baker boy hat. While carrying her possessions in her two luggage cases, Katya injected glamour into her look with a designer chain-strap bag by YSL. Smitten: The Strictly Come Dancing pro, 29, rang in the new year with her husband Neil, 35, in her native country of Russia as they decided to put the Seann Walsh kiss scandal behind them Arrival: The dancer arrived in the English capital without her husband Neil, 35, as she appeared to struggle with her two hefty suitcases The TV personality accentuated her features with light strokes of neutral-toned make-up, and styled her ombre tresses in a poker straight fashion. Meanwhile, it was recently reported that the pair went on a make-or-break trip to Cambodia to save their marriage ahead of the new year. The couple, who have been married since 2013, are said to have traveled to Asia days before their Russian trip, which has been well-documented their social media accounts. Off she goes: Looking effortlessly chic, Katya sported a turtleneck top, glossy black leggings and edgy biker boots Chic: The brunette beauty continued her stylish display with her outerwear as she wrapped up in a grey wool coat, paired with a trendy baker boy hat Neil and Katya's relationship came under fire after the brunette beauty was pictured kissing her dance partner Seann, 33, during a drunken night out in October last year. A source told The Sun: 'Those close to Neil and Katya have been saying this was a make-or-break holiday. 'Neil really felt like the trust had gone and he wasnt quite sure he knew who Katya was any more. They decided to go away for some time out of the spotlight so they could have some very frank conversations. 'Katya begged for forgiveness and promised it would never happen again while Neil agreed to move towards getting the trust back and putting it both behind them.' Stepping out: While carrying her possessions in her two luggage cases, Katya injected glamour into her look with a designer chain-strap bag by YSL Glowing: The TV personality accentuated her features with light strokes of neutral-toned make-up, and styled her ombre tresses in a poker straight fashion The insider also added that while the pair's main priority is to save their marriage, they also want to 'rebuild their public image'. MailOnline has contacted Neil and Katya's representatives for comment. The pair had a rocky end to 2018 after the Russian star was pictured in a steamy clinch with the comedian. Katya and Neil's marriage was thrown into public scrutiny following the kiss with Seann, which resulted in the breakdown of his five-year relationship with actress Rebecca Humphries. Relaxation: Last month, the show professionals appeared happier than ever as they enjoyed a trip to St. Petersburg, Russia, to visit family over the festive season Controversy: Neil and Katya had a rocky end to 2018 after the Russian star was pictured in a steamy clinch with Seann Walsh (pictured in October) Earlier that week, Neil reflected on his past year, penning on Instagram: 'I was honoured to be part of another successful year on @bbcstrictly which I choreographed @boyzoneofficial on @bbcin special. 'Had a wonderful time dancing with the fabulous @itsanitarani and launched Nell de Jaunse on Ittakestwo fingers crossed I will be back next year plus you will be able to see me on the new Strictly pro tour, strictly cruises and @donaheys weekends.' He finished with: 'Anyway 2018 has given me so many more great moments and Im really excited for 2019 but tell me about some of your great moments in 2018.' Emily Atack made no secret of the fact that she was a foodie during her stint on Im A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! But the actress, 29, has admitted that going with so little sustenance while stranded in the jungle made her 'love it even more' and 'appreciate' it. Chatting on Channel 4s Sunday Brunch, the jungle runner-up said: 'Ive always absolutely adored food, and I love it even more now. I appreciate it more.' Food for thought: Emily Atack has admitted that going with so little sustenance while stranded in the jungle made her 'love and appreciate food even more' She went on: 'Oh my, the hunger was just the most difficult thing, and the things you do for food, the things you have to do for food 'You end up being so thankful for the tasks because you have a chance to win food.' As is the premise of the show, the contestants are faced with so-called Bushtucker trials, where they have to endure endurance tasks in order to win meals for their fellow campmates. Food fan: Emily made no secret of the fact that she was a foodie during her stint on Im A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here Chatting on Channel 4s Sunday Brunch, the jungle runner-up said: 'Ive always absolutely adored food, and I love it even more now. I appreciate it more' Fail, and it's rice and beans for the night. Emily was seen downing blended drinks of jungle nasties, and facing snakes and cockroaches, so that food would be delivered to the celebrity campsite. She finished in second place, losing to Harry Redknapp, and revealed that she 'just ate blocks of cheese for literally about an hour' when she was finally sent back to the hotel after the final. The night before her Sunday morning appearance, Emily was seen enjoying an evening on the town in London. The night before: Emily was seen enjoying an evening on the town in London She went on: 'Oh my, the hunger was just the most difficult thing, and the things you do for food, the things you have to do for food' Promises, promises: She tagged the Sunday Brunch hosts Simon Rimmer and Tim Lovejoy in her Instagram post, to make sure they knew she was being good Taking to Instagram, the actress posted a shot of her enjoying some cocktails. Smiling in the photo, she captioned it: 'Happy Saturday gang! Im on @sundaybrunchc4 tomorrow so just a couple of these and then Im going home... promise...' She tagged the Sunday Brunch hosts Simon Rimmer and Tim Lovejoy, to make sure they knew she was being good. Letting us in: The starlet cropped up in a pre-recorded episode of Through The Keyhole, which saw Keith Lemon rummage through her things inside her North London flat Jokes: TV and radio star Pat Sharp joined him - and was 'killed' by Emily's perilously-positioned television, which she keeps on top of a wardrobe opposite her bed Come on in: She also appeared on TV on Saturday night, just hours before her Sunday Brunch appearance. The starlet cropped up in a pre-recorded episode of Through The Keyhole Keith Lemon rummaged through Emily's things inside her North London flat She also appeared on TV on Saturday night, just hours before her Sunday Brunch appearance. The starlet cropped up in a pre-recorded episode of Through The Keyhole, which saw Keith Lemon rummage through her things inside her North London flat. TV and radio star Pat Sharp joined him - and was 'killed' by Emily's perilously-positioned television, which she keeps on top of a wardrobe opposite her bed. 'It's perfect there!' she reasoned after Danny Dyer, Sally Phillips and Chris Kamara guessed it was her home. Through The Keyhole airs on Saturday night on ITV at 9:30PM. Ajay Rochester has made a shocking admission about her personal life while appearing on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! on Sunday night. The 49-year-old revealed she has not had sex in almost a decade. While chatting to her camp-mate, model Justin Lacko, the former Biggest Loser host blurted some rather private information. 'I haven't had sex in nine years!' Ajay Rochester, 49, (pictured) makes shocking admission about her personal life on I'm A Celebrity ...as the former Biggest Loser host vows to lose 'as much weight as possible' in the jungle Former Love Island star Justin joked that the group was, like 'a swingers club'. Ajay drolly replied: 'That would mean actually having sex and I haven't had sex in nine years'. Justin's mouth dropped open as he gasped: 'Nine years?' The 49-year-old revealed she has not had sex in almost a decade: 'That would mean actually having sex and I haven't had sex in nine years!' she said on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! What? Justin's mouth dropped open as he gasped: 'Nine years?' Pictured: Justin Lacko on I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! The TV host replied with a cackle: 'I've reclaimed my virginity. You have to after nine years'. The footage then cut to hosts Julia Morris and Dr Chris Brown who looked shocked, with Chris gasping, 'Nine years?' Perhaps with a view to getting back on the dating scene, Ajay told The Daily Telegraph that her aim on the show is to lose as much weight as possible while she appears on the show, which is filmed in the South African jungle. Seeing the funnier side: The TV host added with a cackle: 'I've reclaimed my virginity. You have to after nine years' 'I want to lose my fat butt. 'I am so fat right now. I am so unhealthy. It is terrible. Clearly I have issues,' she told the paper. She added: 'I haven't weighed myself but I could be a contestant on The Biggest Loser easily.' The camp mates survive on meagre rations in the jungle, including small handfuls of beans, and are know to lose a large amount of weight during the show. Changes: Perhaps with a view to getting back on the dating scene, Ajay told The Daily Telegraph that her aim on the show is to lose as much weight as possible. Pictured in 2014 New lease: 'I want to lose my fat butt. 'I am so fat right now. I am so unhealthy. It is terrible. Clearly I have issues,' she told the paper. Pictured with Michelle Bridges in 2006 She added: 'I haven't weighed myself but I could be a contestant on The Biggest Loser easily.' Pictured with Michelle Bridges in 2007 Ajay was once engaged to be married to British-born telecommunications manager Martin Gleave but called off the wedding and relationship in 2007. She was spotted passionately kissing a mystery brunette woman in 2012, on a beach in Malibu, revealing to Woman's Day magazine that she is bisexual. 'I'm proud of being part of the gay community - by definition I would consider myself 'bi' as, of course, I am attracted to men also. 'I have been with men and women, and you love who you love. I've never said I'm straight,' she told the magazine. Single and ready to mingle: Ajay was spotted passionately kissing a mystery brunette woman in 2012, on a beach in Malibu, revealing to Woman's Day magazine that she is bisexual In October 2014 the former Biggest Loser host posted on Facebook saying that she'd been asked on a date by a mystery man. 'I don't even remember the last time I went on a date! Not sure I would know what to do' she wrote, however, she later decided to skip the date. In 2017, she was photographed getting very close with a mystery man at Big Bear Lake in California. He's been busy filming his HBO series The New Pope in Italy. And Jude Law, 46, was squeezing in some sightseeing with his girlfriend Phillipa Coan, 32, in Venice, enjoying a romantic outing together on Sunday. The pair strolled along the streets together, looking perfectly in sync during their low-key outing. Stepping out: Jude Law, 46, was squeezing in some sightseeing with his girlfriend Phillipa Coan, 32, in Venice, enjoying a romantic outing together on Sunday Jude was wrapped up warm against the winter chill while Phillipa pulled her hood up over her head to protect her from the cold. Earlier in the day, Jude was spotted taking a water taxi ride with his girlfriend. The Alfie actor wrapped up for the outing in a brown double breasted wool coat as he soaked up the City of Bridges from the comfort of the vessel. Loved-up: The pair strolled along the streets together, looking perfectly in sync during their low-key outing Keeping cosy: Jude was wrapped up warm against the winter chill in a smart wool coat Out and about: Earlier in the day, Jude was spotted taking a water taxi ride with his girlfriend The British star, who is busy filming the Paolo Sorrentino-directed series, continued to combat the chilly climate and teamed his coat with a black scarf wrapped around his neck. The Anna Karenina actor accessorised his suave appearance with a pair of sleek circular-framed sunglasses. In jovial spirits, psychologist Phillipa looked utterly relaxed in his company as she looked at the city's sights from the boat. The pretty blonde was clad in black Teddy jacket, turtleneck and scarf for the afternoon. Sightseeing: The Alfie actor wrapped up for the outing in a brown double breasted wool coat as he soaked up the City of Bridges from the comfort of his own private water taxi Wrapped up: The British star, who is busy filming the Paolo Sorrentino-directed series, continued to combat the chilly climate and teamed his coat with a black scarf wrapped around his neck The blonde beauty wore her tresses in a sleek chignon, covering half of her tresses with a pair of fluffy earmuffs and chic shades. Jude recently opened up about his love life in a rare interview, revealing he was relishing time spent with his girlfriend of four years. 'Shes mine and no one elses. Im very, very happy,' The Holiday star previously told Modern Luxury. 'And our relationship is a very private thing, and I think part of the fact it works so well is exactly because of that.' No shade: The Anna Karenina actor accessorised his suave appearance with a pair of sleek circular-framed sunglasses Relaxed: In jovial spirits, psychologist Phillipa looked utterly relaxed in his company as she looked at the city's sights from the boat While Jude shares no offspring with his current girlfriend, he is the doting father to five children from his former relationships. The father-of-five shares Rudy, 16, Iris, 18, Rafferty, 22, with actress Sadie Frost, 53, from their six-year marriage. In 2009 Jude became a father again for the fourth time when his daughter Sophia was born to model Samantha Burke. Six years later he became a father again to Ada, three, with songwriter Catherine Harding. The New Pope currently lacks a premiere date but HBO released the first official image on Wednesday. Getting chic done: The pretty blonde was clad in black Teddy jacket, turtleneck and scarf for the afternoon In the original series, Jude Law played Lenny Belardo, Archbishop of New York. His youth and novel status as an American leads to his election as the first American pope. Rather than being a force for rejuvenation, the new Pope Pius XIII doubles down on the Vatican's gamesmanship and intrigue, threatening to upend the organization's top chain of command. The 10-episode limited series was created and directed by Paolo Sorrentino, who also helms each episode of its follow-up, The New Pope. Shore thing: The blonde beauty wore her tresses in a sleek chignon, covering half of her tresses with a pair of fluffy earmuffs and chic shades Smoking hot: In the original series, Jude played Lenny Belardo, Archbishop of New York The Italian auteur is best known for his 2013 film The Great Beauty, which captured the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film and was nominated for the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. The series takes up after The Young Pope's cliffhanger ending, which saw Pius XIII confronted with a moment of weakness that threatened to destroy his papacy. Little has been revealed about the plot of this follow-up series, and Malkovich's character has yet to be confirmed. However, the stage and screen veteran was seen filming from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, where he appeared to be giving an Urbi et Orbi papal address to the crowds in November. She's the breakout star of Stranger Things, who exploded onto the Hollywood scene thanks to her incredible performance as super-powered girl Eleven. But Millie Bobby Brown was forced to hit back at trolls who had told her to 'act her age' after she had shared an image where she posed in a snakeskin bodycon dress on Saturday. The actress, 14, had asked fans to 'write a caption' for her post, which led to trolls commenting on her ensemble and telling her it was not appropriate for someone her age to wear. Defending herself: Millie Bobby Brown hit back at trolls who tell her to 'act her age' after she posed in a bodycon midi dress on Saturday... as fans jumped to defend her against haters Millie looked effortlessly chic in the midi dress, while she boosted her height in a pair of gladiator-style high heels. Her brunette locks were brushed into a sleek, poker straight hairstyle, and she added a touch of glitter to her look by wearing an array of rings and necklaces. Following the comments, the UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador took to her Instagram stories to respond, and said: 'ik everyone on my last pic wants me to "act my age" but quite frankly its my instagram and if I choose to post that picture and you don't like it... scroll past it (sic).' Response: Following the comments, the UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador said: 'quite frankly its my instagram and if I choose to post that picture and you don't like it... scroll past it' Stylish: Millie looked effortlessly chic in her midi dress, while she boosted her height in a pair of gladiator-style high heels Millie's post came after trolls told her not to 'grow up too fast', and, in since deleted comments, also allegedly said she should 'act her age'. One user blasted the actress for her look, as they wrote: 'Look first of all, how in the hell do you look older than an almost 18 yr old?????? (sic).' While another troll said: 'Honey you are all of 14 please don't grow up too fast.' Continuing with this theme, another comment slammed the post as they told Millie: 'Don't grow up too fast!! (sic)' Trolls: Millie's comments come after trolls told her not to 'grow up too fast', and, in since deleted comments, also allegedly said she should 'act her age' But the actresses fans were quick to defend her, as they responded to the trolls or made statements on their own following the backlash. One fan said: 'i don't get why people are telling her to act her age, i see nothing wrong with a cute dress and a little pose? honestly i'm sure they're mad they cant pull off like you (sic).' While another reassured Millie by saying, 'This is perfect for your age. You just have a bunch of idiot hates.' Another user took a more comedic approach, as they said: 'If people want millie to dress better. Sorry huns but its not the 19th century anymore we dont dress with them ridiculous poofy dresses like the victorian women. 'Get a grip let her dress however she wants. This is for the negative commenters. Love you mills (sic)' Supportive: But the actresses fans were quick to defend her, as they responded to the trolls or made statements on their own following the backlash Millie will reprise her role as Eleven for the third season of Stranger Things, which Netflix confirmed on New Year's Day would return to the video-on-demand platform on July 4, 2019. In a teaser clip, footage is shown of Dick Clark ringing in the New Year in 1985, with local Hawkin's Indiana news footage sponsored by Starcourt Mall appearing alongside it. The footage cuts back and forth from from computer programming script and test cards, before the whole screen begins to turn upside down, referring to the demonic parallel universe that has plagued their town for two seasons thus far. The new poster shows Will, Dustin, Lucas and Max celebrating in the background as they watch the July 4th fireworks above Hawkins. In the foreground Mike and Eleven hold hands but stand very far apart as Eleven stares pensively back at the camera. Adam Driver spoke about his career at a SAG-AFTRA Foundation Conversations event on Saturday night, where he opened up about not wanting to audition for his breakthrough role as Adam Sackler in HBO's Girls. Driver was living in New York and performing on Broadway, but he revealed (via SAG-AFTRA Foundation Twitter), that he didn't want to to TV because he thought it was, 'evil.' 'I didnt want to do it because I was doing theater and I thought TV was evil,' Driver, 35, said. 'I just auditioned for it and I didnt want to. Then we shot the pilot on my birthday then we waited a year.' Girls debuted in 2012, with Driver playing Adam Sackler for all six seasons before it ended its run in 2017, leading to bigger roles such as Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Star Wars: The Last Jedi as the villainous Kylo Ren. Evil TV: Adam Driver reveals he didn't want to audition for Girls because he thought TV was 'evil' Driver was wearing a black-on-black ensemble, with a black long-sleeved shirt, black pants and black shoes, along with a silver wristwatch. The Star Wars star had advice for young actors, revealing that it's important to have your own 'process.' 'Have a process,' he said. 'Have a technique. Ive found that to be helpful. I think technique is important for a long career.' Former Marine: Driver was raised in Indiana and joined the Marine Corps shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He served for nearly three years without being deployed before being medically discharged Driver was raised in Indiana and joined the Marine Corps shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He served for nearly three years without being deployed before being medically discharged. He enrolled in Julliard, graduating in 2009, before taking to the stage, making his Broadway debut in 2010's Mrs. Warren's Profession before returning in 2011 with Man and Boy. He made his feature film debut in 2011's J. Edgar, revealing during the SAG-AFTRA event what he felt the difference between film and theater was. 'You can constantly ask a different question in theater,' Driver said. 'In film you dont get that. Youre making choices and thats that. We have to get it right the first time. Theater is a never ending pit of things you can ask yourself.' Indiana native: Driver was raised in Indiana and joined the Marine Corps shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks Theater star: He enrolled in Julliard, graduating in 2009, before taking to the stage, making his Broadway debut in 2010's Mrs. Warren's Profession before returning in 2011 with Man and Boy The actor also revealed he's, 'not on social media,' adding, 'I dont get involved. I have a good group of people around me that I feel keep me grounded.' He was nominated for his first Golden Globe this year for his performance in BlacKkKlansman, with the actor showering praise upon his co-star, John David Washington. 'Hes so positive that I forget how negative I am until Im with John David Washington,' he said. 'When you find good scene partners and theyre making it about the scene rather than what else is going on. It works.' No social media: The actor also revealed he's, 'not on social media,' adding, 'I dont get involved. I have a good group of people around me that I feel keep me grounded' He also added how 'nervous' he was upon meeting Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams, adding there wasn't a script in place at the time. 'I was just nervous about it for a while and I talked to JJ and I thought about what they had in mind,' Driver said. 'There was no script to look at. It was so top secret at the time. It wasnt until I got the job and everything was settled that I got the script.' He also added a humorous anecdote about how there are kids who always come up to him and address him as Kylo Ren. 'Little kids come up to me all the time and I dont know where they come from,' Driver said. 'There are kids in my building and every morning theyre like "good morning Kylo Ren" Im like hold on I havent had my coffee yet.'" On Star Wars: He also added how 'nervous' he was upon meeting Star Wars: The Force Awakens director J.J. Abrams, adding there wasn't a script in place She has been climbing the Hollywood ranks for almost a decade. And Blanca Blanco was on the top of Los Angeles on Saturday night as she stood in front of an incredible view in Bel Air. The 37-year-old actress kept things 'casual' by her standards, donning a leather dress in photos she shared to her Instagram. Top of LA: Blanca Blanco was on the top of Los Angeles on Saturday night as she stood in front of an incredible view in Bel Air 'Tonight's casual look dress,' he captioned an image on social media. The Eva Varro frock fell to the middle of Blanca's thighs, highlighting her long, slender stems. A corset was tied around her waist, highlighting her slender figure, and her brunette tresses tumbled across her shoulders in loose waves. The 5ft 9in star added a couple inches with sparkling pointy black heels as the lights of the city danced behind her. The Bermuda Tentacles star painted her lips a glistening pink and added just a touch of blush to her towering cheekbones. Leather weather: The 37-year-old actress kept things 'casual' by her standards, donning a leather dress in photos she shared to her Instagram The beauty had spent her holidays in Malibu. where she and longtime love John Savage lost their home in the Woolsey Fire in November. 'I have been heart broken about losing my home but I am recovering and what gave me comfort is knowing that what happened was beyond my control,' she told DailyMail.com. Blanco said that she was 'still at a hotel and will be moving to [a] permanent home soon' as she remained patient in the process. Broken heart: The beauty had spent her holidays in Malibu. where she and longtime love John Savage lost their home in the Woolsey Fire in November She said she felt 'felt trapped and claustrophobic when [she] was trying to escape' the home, and that she and her spouse are 'considering living in Beverly Hills or Brentwood' moving forward. 'For me, I have been having a hard time sleeping and having nightmares,' she added. It's been a busy year in front of the camera for Blanca, who's appeared in films such as Woman on the Edge, Mission Possible, Daddy Don't Marry Again and The Fabulous Christmas Holidays. And it was just announced that Blanca signed with Swedish fashion brand Chiquelle for a new fashion campaign. She's one of the most recognizable stars in the world. But on Saturday it seemed like Charlize Theron was aiming to keep a low-profile as she attended a screening of the hit movie Roma. The 43-year-old Atomic Blonde actress was dressed all in black for the event. Nothing fancy: On Saturday it seemed like Charlize Theron was aiming to keep a low-profile as she attended a screening of the hit movie Roma Up top she layered a heavy DSTLD trench coat over a black tee with white writing on the front. Leather trousers and white low-cut sneakers completed her demure ensemble. She parted her famous blonde tresses on the left and flung her locks over to the right side. A smokey eye, subtle blush and pale rose-tinted lipstick ensured the Oscar-winner was ready for the many photo ops. Keeping it casual: Up top she layered a heavy DSTLD trench coat over a black tee with white writing on the front Practical: She parted her famous blonde tresses on the left and flung her locks over to the right side Of course other stars were on hand as well to celebrate the unique film. Sharp Objects star Patricia Clarkson, 59, looked stellar in a black sleeveless number that flattered her lithe figure. Thirteen actress Jodie Comer, 25, opted to layer a black leather motorcycle jacket over a floral top, which she in turn paired with some classic jeans. Idol? Sharp Objects star Patricia Clarkson, 59, looked stellar in a black sleeveless number that flattered her lithe figure Having fun! Thirteen actress Jodie Comer (center), 25, opted to layer a black leather motorcycle jacket over a floral top, which she in turn paired with some classic jeans Focal point! Of course the star of Roma itself, Yalitza Aparicio, 25, was on hand as well Rogue One heartthrob Diego Luna, 29, looked dapper in a classic midnight blue blazer and button down shirt combination. Of course the star of Roma itself, Yalitza Aparicio, 25, was on hand as well. She posed for several snaps with a multitude of A-listers, including the film's director Alfonso Cuaron. Alfonso also took a photo with Hollywood legend Peter Fonda, 78. With awards season in full swing, Emily Blunt put in an appearance at a special Q&A screening for Mary Poppins Returns, looking classy and elegant as ever. The 35-year-old actress was joined by Mary Poppins Returns director Rob Marshall at the screening hosted by Deadline, with a Q&A moderated by Pete Hammond. Just two days earlier, Blunt was in New York at another Mary Poppins Returns screening, hosted by Ryan Reynolds and his wife Blake Lively. Q&A: Emily Blunt continues to promote Mary Poppins Returns during a Deadline Q&A screening in Los Angeles on Saturday night Blunt was wearing a royal blue Altuzarra two-piece with white, lavender and yellow floral printed designs. She wore matching pink Sam Edelman heels and gold hoop earrings to the event, which was held at Stage One at Walt Disney Studios. She was nominated for a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy, which she lost to The Favorite star Olivia Colman. Elegant star: Blunt was wearing a royal blue Altuzarra two-piece with white, lavender and yellow floral printed designs, and a pair of pale pink Sam Edelman heels Mary Poppins Returns hit theaters over the holiday season, and it has earned $264.3 million worldwide from a $130 million budget. Blunt plays the title character, who returns to the Banks family she once cared for, the now-grown up Michael Banks (Ben Whishaw) and Jane Banks (Emily Mortimer). The story is set in 1935, decades after Poppins' original visit to the Banks family, with Lin-Manuel Miranda also starring as a lamplighter named Jack. Big hit: Mary Poppins Returns hit theaters over the holiday season, and it has earned $264.3 million worldwide from a $130 million budget Honored: Blunt plays the title character, who returns to the Banks family she once cared for, the now-grown up Michael Banks (Ben Whishaw) and Jane Banks (Emily Mortimer) Aside from her Golden Globe nomination, Blunt has also been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role. She is also nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, for her role in the hit thriller A Quiet Place. She was also nominated for her work in Mary Poppins Returns by the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards and the Satellite Awards. Nominated: Aside from her Golden Globe nomination, Blunt has also been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role. She was also nominated for her work in Mary Poppins Returns by the Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards and the Satellite Awards. Looking ahead, Blunt stars in the new Disney adventure Jungle Cruise, based on the beloved theme park ride. She stars alongside Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, who plays a riverboat captain who takes a group of travelers on an epic adventure with a supernatural twist. Blunt is also expected to reprise her role of Evelyn Abbott in Paramount's A Quiet Place 2, which is currently in development. They've been together for well over a year at this point. And Sofia Richie and Scott Disick still looked to be as happy as can be as they were spotted taking a romantic stroll through a rain-soaked Los Angeles on Saturday. The 20-year-old model flaunted her stellar stems in blue leggings as the couple walked side by side. Romance: Sofia Richie and Scott Disick still looked to be as happy as can be as they were spotted taking a romantic stroll through a rain-soaked Los Angeles on Saturday Rain fell across Southern California throughout the day, but that didn't deter the twosome for enjoying a bit of romance. Sofia bundled up in a puffy navy coat and tucked her leggings into a pair of black boots. She flung a black purse with a gold chain over one shoulder and was all smiles as the couple splashed through the puddles. Stroll: The 20-year-old model flaunted her stellar stems in blue leggings as the couple walked side by side Happy couple: Rain fell across Southern California throughout the day, but that didn't deter the twosome for enjoying a bit of romance Scott pulled on a navy blue hoodie, making sure to keep the hood on to avoid getting to wet. He sported grey pants with a drawstring underneath and kept his hand in his pockets as they walked. The Keeping Up with the Kardashians personality opted for sporty footwear, wearing black sneakers. Hood on: Scott pulled on a navy blue hoodie, making sure to keep the hood on to avoid getting to wet Staying cozy: Sofia bundled up in a puffy navy coat and tucked her leggings into a pair of black boots Sofia and Scott went Instagram official in September of 2017, with her being the first long-term girlfriend for Scott, since his split from ex Kourtney Kardashian. Scott shares his three children, Mason, nine, Penelope, six, and Reign, four, with his reality star former girlfriend. Recently, Sofia joined her boyfriend, his ex and his ex's family for a tropical get-a-way and a snow trip to Aspen. Out and about: He sported grey pants with a drawstring underneath and kept his hand in his pockets as they walked She took the stage by storm when she headlined Sydney's FOMO Festival on Saturday night. And Nicki Minaj gushed over her passionate Sydney audience as their collective voices overpowered her own. During her explosive performance, the pink-haired rapper, 36, strutted on stage amid a pack of shirtless hunks in a video shared to Instagram. 'I'm so obsessed with you': Nicki Minaj gushed over her Sydney audience as she performed amid a pack of shirtless hunks in a racy ensemble at the explosive FOMO Festival on Saturday night Busting a move at the highly-anticipated concert, which was held in Parramatta Park, Nicki was seen making her way towards a pack of half-naked men. All smiles, the star danced around while surrounded by the handsome performance, who all appeared to worship her presence. Despite her best efforts, fans from the crowd over powered Nicki's voice by singing along and rapping the lyrics to her songs. It's getting hot! Busting a move at the highly-anticipated concert, which was held in Parramatta Park, Nicki was surrounded by this pack of half-naked men who worshipped the star by dancing around her 'These h**s copy every word every inch,' she captioned the video. 'BUT GANG GANG #SYDNEY #CHUNLI I promise I'm rapping every word but so are they-I can barely hear me in this,' the Good Form rapper candidly added. 'I love you guys SOOOOOO MUCH OMG!!!!!! #AUSTRALIA HAS MY [heart]. THANK YOU NEXT STOP #Melbourne tomorrow.' 'I promise I'm rapping every word but so are they - I can barely hear me in this': Despite her best efforts, fans from the crowd over powered Nicki's voice by rapping the lyrics to her songs On stage, Nicki wore a pink and black bustier ensemble that showed off her famous curves, as seen in another snap posted to Instagram that shows her striking a pose in an underground parking lot. The racy number, which also included touches of dayglo green, came complete with black straps and metal attachment rings, as well as fishnet across her chest that showcased her ample assets. Of course, she matched it with some fishnet stockings and a pair of shiny black leather heeled boots. Sartorial senses: Nicki wore a pink and black bustier ensemble that showed off her famous curves, as seen in this other snap posted to Instagram The FOMO Festival, headlined by Nicki also included: Rae Sremmurd, Mura Masa, Amine, Kali Uchis, San Holo, Anna Lunoe, Loud Luxury, Cosha, Carmouflage Rose, Just A Gent, Mimi and Tobiahs. The Pink Friday star will kick off a European tour February 21 in Munich, Germany. The 22-show will zig-zag around the continent and conclude with a show in Geneva, Switzerland March 28. Tammy Hembrow's ex-fiance Reece Hawkins has introduced their two children to his new girlfriend, London Goheen. As Instagram star Tammy, 24, partied in Los Angeles on Saturday, Reece, 23, and London, 21, took the children to a farm in Queensland. During their day out, Reece shared brief clips of London with Wolf, three, and Saski, two, on Instagram for the very first time. Worlds apart! Tammy Hembrow, 24, (left) partied in LA as her ex-fiance Reece Hawkins, 23, (right) introduced their children to his new girlfriend London Goheen, 21, (right) on Saturday The group's outing, which took place in the Gold Coast suburb of Currumbin, was captured by a starstruck fan, who shared a photograph of the foursome to Instagram. In the picture, Reece is seen carrying his daughter Saski, as London places an affectionate arm around her boyfriend. Wolf is seen trailing behind the trio, enjoying the outdoor adventure. Back to nature: Reece and London enjoyed some time with Wolf, three, and Saski, two, in Gold Coast suburb Currumbin Fun day out: Reece shared brief clips to Instagram which featured London (left, in striped dress) with the children, but did not include his girlfriend's face 'Australia I love you': London shared one solo selfie to Instagram while gushing about their day out together In the content shared by Reece, he filmed London interacting with the children from behind - choosing not to show her face. Although it seemed London is a hit with the children, the American model did not share any pictures with them to her social media page. Instead, she shared one selfie to Instagram while gushing about their day out. Mum's night off! Their idyllic day out was in strong contrast to Tammy's Saturday, as the blonde partied at West Hollwood hotspot Catch LA with model Jena Frumes 'Australia I love you,' wrote London. The idyllic day out was in strong contrast to Tammy's Saturday, as she partied at West Hollwood hotspot Catch LA with model Jena Frumes. Posing for one photograph inside the A-list venue, Tammy playfully beamed at the camera while dancing with Jena. Tammy appears to be letting her hair down this week, after enjoying a low-key New Year's Eve back home on the Gold Coast. 'Fireworks, junk food, Netflix and in bed before midnight,' wrote Tammy on Instagram as she entered the new year with the children. 'Fireworks, junk food, Netflix and in bed before midnight': Tammy appears to be letting her hair down, after enjoying a low-key New Year's Eve with the kids back home on the Gold Coast They did their best to pull off an intimate home wedding. Still, evidence of Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth's secret nuptials made its way to social media thanks to a careless friend. Now Miley's sister Brandi Cyrus has revealed that all is well and the 26-year-old pop star and 28-year-old actor hold no ill will toward their wedding leaker. Not sweating it: Miley Cyrus' sister Brandi has revealed that all is well and the 26-year-old pop star and Liam Hemsworth, 28, hold no ill will toward their wedding leaker; Liam and Miley smooch after reciting their vows at her home outside Nashville On Tuesday's episode of the Your Favorite Thing podcast, Brandi delved into how the world found out about Miley and Liam's secret wedding. 'Whenever theyve talked about getting married, theyve always wanted to keep it very small and it just be the family and just be at the house. Thats always been what they wanted,' she explained. 'Honestly, Miley's only friend that was there was her best friend, Jessie, and Liam had a handful of his friends there that were there from Australia.' Dream wedding: 'Whenever theyve talked about getting married, theyve always wanted to keep it very small and it just be the family and just be at the house. Thats always been what they wanted,' she explained Keeping it intimate: 'Honestly, Miley's only friend that was there was her best friend, Jessie, and Liam had a handful of his friends there that were there from Australia' The couple invited 'a very, very small, tight-knit group of people,' Brandi said. 'Even with family and close friends, they still made a point to say, 'Hey guys, this is a private thing for a reason. We love you all, but please don't take photos.'' Liam's friend Conrad Carr must have missed the message when it came to the special day. He shared a photo of the newlyweds cutting their wedding cake that tipped everyone off. Big mistake: Liam's friend Conrad Carr must have missed the message when it came to the special day. He shared a photo of the newlyweds cutting their wedding cake that tipped everyone off 'I didnt really ask what happened, but I think from what he said, no one told him not to post about it, so he didnt know,' Brandi continued. Despite the mix-up, Conrad still 'feels really bad' for sharing the wedding photos. There doesn't seem to be any bad blood between Miley and Liam's friend, as she 'doesn't really care' that the pictures got out.' It was revealed late last year that she'd split with her husband of one year, Lachlan Spark. But Lauren Phillips looked upbeat on Thursday when she attended the Piper-Heidsieck event in Melbourne. Clad in a stunning pastel blue number, the 38-year-old flaunted her slender curves as she lead a team of star-studded arrivals on the red carpet. Bouncing back! Lauren Phillips (pictured) looks upbeat in a summery blue frock at Piper-Heidsieck event after shock split with husband Lachlan Spark after just one year of marriage Held at Bistro Guillaume in Crown Melbourne, the evening was held in celebration of Piper-Heidsieck's partnership with the Australian Open as their official champagne. The beauty did not go solo, rather she was accompanied by her brother Bo Phillips who served as her date for the evening. Lauren teamed the elegant dress, which featured a subtle animal print all over, with a pair of towering nude heels. She styled her brunette locks in tousled waves and opted for a glamorous but natural makeup look consisting of neutral tones. Support: The beauty did not go solo, rather she was accompanied by her brother Bo Phillips (left) who served as her date for the evening The appearance comes after the beauty revealed that she'd split from husband of one year, Lachlan Spark, in mid-December, 2018. According to The Daily Telegraph, a representative for TV star confirmed the marriage is over. They were married in December 2017, after six years together. Rumours had by then long been rife that all was not well between the high-profile pair. Over: The appearance comes after the beauty revealed that she'd split from husband of one year, Lachlan Spark (right) in mid-December, 2018 Ending: They were married in December 2017, after six years together. Pictured on their wedding day Sharing a photograph of herself in a hospital bed in early December 2018, after her hip surgery, the brunette beauty wrote a reflective note about ending the year, but failed to mention her husband. 'Finishing off 2018 by putting my hip back together. Huge thanks to the team @stvincentsprivate for getting this emotional mess through the past few days,' Lauren wrote in the caption. Lauren then went on to rave about her support system, writing: 'Thanks for all the lovely messages and phone calls - I really do have the best mates in the world... Hurry up 2019.' Fans of the hit TV series Gavin And Stacey have a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle to thank for the classic romantic comedy, one of its co-creators has revealed. Ruth Jones said that before she met James Corden, she was a showbiz wannabe on the brink of giving up her dreams. As a down-on-her-luck actress doing a humdrum job in London to make ends meet, she decided to return to her native Porthcawl and train instead to be a solicitor. It was only then that a panto producer offered her a part as a Ninja Turtle and her luck changed. Ruth Jones and James Corden as Nessa Jenkins and Neil 'Smithy' Smith in BBC3's hit comedy Gavin And Stacey, which they co-created In an interview for todays Desert Island Discs on BBC Radio 4, the 52-year-old recalls working for Kensington Council. I was a clerical assistant there for a good long while. I just thought, What is happening to me? I am not ever going to act again. So I moved back to Wales and I was going to become a solicitor... That is when one of the letters I had written over the year came to fruition and a pantomime producer in my home town offered me a job shifting scenery and being a Ninja Turtle. And that is when I got my Equity card. Jones subsequently met London comedian Corden now a star in the US on the set of TV drama Fat Friends, set in Leeds, where they began work on a project that would become Gavin And Stacey. She adds: He talked a bit about this idea hed had about a wedding between a Welsh girl and an English boy... and because we were staying in a hotel we used to sort of people-watch in the bar that would be the drunk auntie and that would be the geeky uncle. We wrote up these characters... it kind of went from there really. Ruth Jones said on Desert Island Discs that before she met James Corden, she was a showbiz wannabe on the brink of giving up her dreams The pair sent the idea to Stuart Murphy, then controller of BBC Three. I can still remember getting an email from Stuart Murphy saying, I think this is going to be one of the best things that BBC Three ever makes, says Jones, who played bolshie Nessa Jenkins in the sitcom, which co-starred not only Corden but also former school pal Rob Brydon. The first series with Mathew Horne and Joanna Page in the lead roles aired in 2007 with 550,000 viewers. The third and final series on BBC1 in 2009 had ten million. On Desert Island Discs, the mother-of-three picks Underneath The Stars by Kate Rusby as one of her songs as it reminds her of loved ones who have recently died. She's the stunning model who dated Kris Smith on-and-off for almost four years. But it appears that Maddy King may have moved on from the 40-year-old hunk, as she was spotted with a mystery man on Saturday. All smiles, the slender beauty flaunted her sensational figure for a day out at the beach. Showing him what he's missing? Kris Smith's ex-girlfriend Maddy King flaunts her stunning curves in a skimpy bikini as she's spotted with a mystery man at the beach Maddy stripped down to a very racy swimsuit for the occasion, opting for a black set. She wore a triangle bikini top with matching skimpy briefs, that appeared to be cut in a Brazilian style. Meanwhile, the mystery man opted for colourful board shorts that were emblazoned with blue patterns. Hot! Maddy stripped down to this very racy swimsuit for the occasion, opting for a black set Wow! She wore a triangle bikini top with matching skimpy briefs, that appeared to be cut in a Brazilian style Casual: Meanwhile, the mystery man opted for these colourful board shorts that were emblazoned with blue patterns Tan: They found the perfect spot near the water and settled with their belongings Good day for it! Preparing for a day of fun, the two strutted along the sand, trying to find the perfect spot to relax Preparing for a day of fun, the two strutted along the sand, trying to find the perfect spot to relax. They found the perfect spot near the water and settled with their belongings. Maddy protected herself from the sunny rays with a pair of black shades, as she soaked up the sun. Splash! They walked over to the sun-drenched shore for a quick swim Chat: They appeared to have an amusing conversation while heading into the shallow end of the water A nice walk: The duo then went for a stroll around the beach Equipped! Still glistening from their dip, they both each held onto swimming gadgets All eyes on her! Flaunting her slender stems and washboard abs, Maddy looked every inch the happy model while walking by the shore The duo then went for a stroll around the beach while engaging in what appeared to be an amusing conversation. Still glistening from their dip, they both each held onto swimming gadgets. Flaunting her slender stems and washboard abs, Maddy looked every inch the happy model while walking by the shore. Making their way into the water for a quick splash, the pair walked in after dipping their feet in. Beautiful: Later Maddy walked around the pebble stones and rock area of the beach, enjoying the stunning views Having a blast! The beauty held onto her stomach as she giggled throughout the day Later, they walked around the pebble stones and rock area of the beach, enjoying the stunning views. Maddy and Kris Smith previously enjoyed a four-year romance before calling it quits in October 2016. Kris model found love with personal trainer Sarah in early 2017 after meeting at the gym. Skipping along! Maddy sported a wet hair look to her brunette tresses Former flame: Maddy and Kris Smith previously enjoyed a four-year romance before calling it quits in October 2016 The lovebirds announced their pregnancy in July, with Sarah dedicating a sweet Instagram post to Kris that read: 'I cant wait to meet our next member of this beautiful family we share.' Just hours after the announcement, Maddy made a surprise return to social media after a three-week hiatus by sharing a sexy lingerie snap of herself. The smoldering snap certainly showed Kris was he's missing, with model Maddy wearing a semi-sheer bra and striking a come-hither stare into the camera. Sara Cox has admitted that Zoe Ball will be 'brilliant' in her new role as BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show host after it was suggested she was 'gutted' to lose out on the role. The radio presenter, 44, who has often stood in for Chris Evans before he quit the job, was hotly-tipped to slip into his shoes following his departure. However Sara confessed that she 'never expected' to be offered the job, during an interview with the Sun, because the stand-in never gets given the job, she claimed. Well wishes: Sara Cox has admitted that Zoe Ball will be 'brilliant' in her new role as BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show host after it was suggested she was 'gutted' to lose out on the role Referencing claims that she and Zoe had 'drifted apart', Sara said: 'We drifted insomuch as Zoe lives in Brighton and I live in north London, and even my friends who I could throw a stone from my front doorstep and hit their house I don't b****y see for weeks.' 'So there's nothing gone wrong there's definitely never been a cross word with me and Zoe but you've got to nurture friendships. We're both busy and we've both got kids, and if you don't put the time in with friendships then they do fade a little bit. 'But the roots are still there. It's still there at its core. In the middle of the night I would drop everything and do anything that Zoe needed from me. She will always be a friend, but she's got her best friends and I've got mine.' Hot favourite: The radio presenter, 44, who has often stood in for Chris Evans before he quit the job, was hotly-tipped to slip into his shoes following his departure Sara's comments follow claims that the old friends had drifted apart following the battle for the coveted BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show gig. Sara was said to be expecting the gig after having previously stood in for Chris over the years - and was left 'completely gutted' after the announcement that Zoe had bagged the honour, according to the publication. However, despite the speculation, a BBC source told MailOnline: 'This is a purely speculative piece.' Not meant to be: However Sara confessed that she 'never expected' to be offered the job, during an interview with the Sun , because the stand-in never gets given the job, she claimed (pictured together in 2006) Zoe snagged the slot while Sara was confirmed as the new host of Radio 2's Drivetime. And the claims of a fading friendship comes in complete contrast to Zoe recently mentioning that they have always supported each other in their careers. Zoe told the Radio Times: 'We spoke a lot during the whole process. We're old buddies and we've always been really supportive of each other. Sometimes she gets jobs I've wanted. We always talk. It worked out.' Reports: Sara was said to be expecting the gig after having previously stood in for Chris over the years Following the news about Zoe's new role last year, Sara cheekily played Shaggy's It Wasn't Me track on her evening show on Wednesday, before sending her congratulations. She told her listeners: 'Congratulations to Zoe Ball, she is taking over of course from Chris Evans: she's been given the plum role of my breakfast show holiday cover. 'So basically this is how it works. I've got the Breakfast Show, I just do ten weeks a year because I'm busy doing other stuff, and it is early. So I do ten weeks, and she'll cover the other 42 weeks when I'm off on holiday sunning myself somewhere nice', she added. 'So congratulations to Zoe, I'm absolutely thrilled for her, that's very nice. I did know for a couple of weeks or so that Zoe had it, but I managed to keep it secret.' The 2019 Broadway Con kicked off on Friday, with Anthony Rapp getting the festivities started on Industry Day. The 47-year-old actor, who was part of the original cast of the Broadway sensation Rent, was part of the opening ceremony with Melissa Annelli on Friday. Broadway Con runs from January 11 through January 13 at New York Hilton Midtown. Opening ceremony: Anthony Rapp kicked off Broadway Con during the opening ceremony on Friday with Melissa Anneli Rapp was seen wearing a dark button down shirt under an open black top, with black pants and black shoes. He was joined by Annelli, who wore a knee-length black dress, a long silver necklace and black high heels. Industry Day at Broadway Con is recommended for, 'existing or aspiring members of the Broadway industry looking to hear from experts and connect with other professionals,' according to Broadway World. On stage: Rapp was seen wearing a dark button down shirt under an open black top, with black pants and black shoes Rapp has had a successful career in film, television and theatre, starting his acting career when he was just 10 years old. The Chicago native made his theatre debut in a 1981 production of Evita, and he made his Broadway debut in 1986's Precious Sons. He made his film debut a year later in 1987's Adventures in Babysitting, which lead to roles in School Daze, Dazed and Confused and more. Successful career: Rapp has had a successful career in film, television and theatre, starting his acting career when he was just 10 years old Rapp made headlines in 2017 when he accused two-time Oscar winning actor Kevin Spacey of making an unwanted sexual advance towards him in 1986, when he was just 14 and Spacey was 26. Spacey responded that he did not remember the incident, but he was, 'beyond horrified to hear his story' He offered his, 'sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior,' but Rapp coming forward lead to 14 other accusers to come forward, leading to Spacey ultimately 'retiring' from the biz. Rapp on stage: Rapp made headlines in 2017 when he accused two-time Oscar winning actor Kevin Spacey of making an unwanted sexual advance towards him in 1986, when he was just 14 and Spacey was 26 Rapp, who was said to be one of the first openly gay men on Broadway, has blazed a similar trail on television as well. The actor currently plays Paul Stamets, who is the first openly gay character in the 50-plus-year history of the franchise. The 14-episode second season of Star Trek Discovery debuts Thursday, Jan. 17 at 8:30 PM ET/5:30 PM PT on CBS All Access. Trailblazer: Rapp, who was said to be one of the first openly gay men on Broadway, has blazed a similar trail on television as well She is known for showing off her impressive physique on catwalks around the globe. And Romee Strijd was true to form on Saturday as she strutted across Miami in various bikinis. The 23-year-old model joined fellow Victoria's Secret Angel Jasmine Tookes for the South Florida photo shoot. Pretty in pink: Romee Strijd was true to form on Saturday as she strutted across Miami in various bikinis Romee first sported a pink and magenta two-piece and let her long blonde tresses cascade in gentle waves across her shoulders. She accessorized with a two gold necklaces, one featuring seashells, various bracelets, and hoop earrings. The Dutch enchantress painted her lips a powerful pink and her blue eyes glistened in the camera's light. Later, she changed into a black bikini for a walk across some lush grass. Her golden tresses were pulled into a tight bun for her outdoor excursion and she shared a clip of the jaunt on Instagram. Blonde beauty: The 23-year-old model joined fellow Victoria's Secret Angel Jasmine Tookes for the South Florida photo shoot Cascade: Romee first sported a pink and magenta two-piece and let her long blonde tresses cascade in gentle waves across her shoulders Changing it up: Later, she changed into a black bikini for a walk across some lush grass New 'do: Her golden tresses were pulled into a tight bun for her outdoor excursion and she shared a clip of the jaunt on Instagram Romee wasn't the only Angel to fall across Miami's serene tropical beauty on Saturday. She was joined by Jasmine Tookes, who looked absolutely stunning in a pink and magenta bikini of her own. The 27-year-old's two-piece featured a floral pattern and she let her dark locks fall across her shoulders unencumbered. She accessorized with a seashell-covered necklace of her own as well as well as a gold pendant necklace and a bracelet. Together: Romee wasn't the only Angel to fall across Miami's serene tropical beauty on Saturday Angels: She was joined by Jasmine Tookes, who looked absolutely stunning in a pink and magenta bikini of her own Floral: The 27-year-old's two-piece featured a floral pattern and she let her dark locks fall across her shoulders unencumbered It's one of the ritziest events on Melbourne's social calendar, which is attended by some of Australia's more prominent stars. And while most celebrities arrive at Portsea Polo looking like a million bucks, they don't always leave that way. This year was no different, as various reality TV rejects managed to score invites and raised eyebrows at the glamorous event. Scroll down for video Oops! Former Bachelorette Ali Oetjen, 32, was seen with an embarrassing drink spill on her dress Former Bachelorette Ali Oetjen, 32, looked to be in high spirits while clutching a champagne glass alongside boyfriend, Taite Radley. At one point, the bubbly blonde was seen with an embarrassing drink spill on her dress. Ali and Taite seemed blissfully unaware of their surroundings as they packed on the PDA. Having a blast! Ali (centre) beamed while greeting a friend as Taite (left) snapped selfies for fellow reality TV personality, Alex Nation (right) Busting a move! Former Bachelor in Paradise star Jarrod Woodgate, 32, showcased cringeworthy dance moves Also pictured with a drink spill on his clothes was former Married At First Sight star Nick Furphy, 32. Despite the humiliating ordeal, Nick wore it as a badge of honour and proudly shared an Instagram photo of his espresso martini dripping down his blue shirt. 'First spill of the day,' he captioned while hinting there was more to come. Oh no! Also pictured with a drink spill on his clothes was former Married At First Sight star Nick Furphy, 32. 'First spill of the day,' he captioned while hinting there was more to come Meanwhile, Bachelor in Paradise star Keira Maguire, shared an Instagram video of boyfriend Jarrod Woodgate showcasing his cringeworthy dance moves. Looking smart in a crisp white shirt and olive pants, the vineyard manager displayed some choice r'n'b style moves, that left most fans recoiling. 'The cuteness,' Keira captioned seemingly impressed by his awkward dancing. 'Woo hoo'! Former Bachelorette Georgia Love raised eyebrows as she filmed herself screaming with excitement at the exclusive event Former Bachelorette Georgia Love raised eyebrows as she filmed herself screaming with excitement at the exclusive event. The Channel Ten weather girl was joined by boyfriend Lee Elliot and friends, and they made sure to document every moment on Instagram. Meanwhile, queen WAG Bec Judd, 35, looked rather awkward while dancing alongside an over excited MasterChef's Khanh Ong. Awkward: Meanwhile, queen WAG Bec Judd, 35, looked rather awkward while dancing near MasterChef's Khanh Ong Bec awkwardly moved from side-to-side, as Khanh blew kisses at the camera. Former Big Brother star Tully Smyth, 30, had some choice words while singing with pals at the event. Mind my French: Later into the afternoon, former Big Brother star Tully Smyth, 30, (pictured) enjoyed a couple of choice words while singing with pals at the event Fancy seeing you here! Tully ran into Australian film star Nick Giannopoulos, 55, (pictured), who didn't seem too thrilled to be in her video clip Holding a beverage in her hand, the Instagram enthusiast said: 'Where are we going... Are we going on a boat?' 'On a boat motherf***er. Don't you ever forget.' Superstar DJ Havana Brown, 33, and a friend scored 'free' food at the event. The glamorous DJ joked about a vegan falafel wrap that her friend 'took from the greenroom'. Joking around: Superstar DJ Havana Brown (left), 33, and a friend scored 'free' food at the event. The glamorous DJ joked about a vegan falafel wrap that her friend 'took from the greenroom' 'Babe, check it out. Look what she took from the green room,' the bombshell blonde, who performed at the event, said laughing in an Instagram video. 'Rather than alcohol, she made sure we weren't going to get hungry,' she captioned. TV presenter and model Tess Hanahan flipped the bird in front of stunned onlookers at the exclusive event. Clad in a white pinstripe playsuit and heels, Tess opted to flip the bird at a pal while posing for a snap on one leg. The picture was hashtagged 'lol.' Jodie Comer has told how being kicked out of a girl group during her teenage years led to her success as an actress. The Liverpool native, 25, has become known to audiences worldwide for her role as skilled assassin Villanelle on BBC America's Killing Eve. However, the TV star originally considered a career in music and first got a taste for performing when she was in a girl band. Star: Jodie Comer, 25, has become known to audiences worldwide for her role as skilled assassin Villanelle on BBC America's Killing Eve Jodie told how in the middle of rehearsals for a school talent show, she went on holiday with her family. She was then informed by the other members of the group that she could no longer take part because she missed too many rehearsals. Although upset, Jodie decided to re-enter the talent show as a solo act and performed a dramatic monologue upon the encouragement of her mother. She told The Two Shot Podcast: 'You know when youre a kid and youre so upset you lose your breath? I remember going up to my mum and being so distraught. Pictured: The actress revealed she was kicked out of the band because she missed too many rehearsals - and subsequently turned her back on singing in favour of acting Music: Jodie told how in the middle of rehearsals for a school talent show, she went on holiday with her family (pictured with co-star Sandra Oh at the Golden Globes earlier this month) 'She was like, "Why dont you go back and ask your drama teacher if you can do your monologue? Do your own thing".' A few months later, she auditioned to play a young girl in a BBC Radio 4 drama. Jodie admitted that she was taken aback by the international success of Killing Eve. The series, which also stars Sandra Oh in the title role, follows MI5 officer Eve Polastri as she becomes obsessed with hunting the mysterious assassin known as Villanelle. Removed: She was then informed by the other members of the group that she could no longer take part because she missed too many rehearsals (pictured with co-star Sandra Oh) Comeback: Although upset, Jodie decided to re-enter the talent show as a solo act and performed a dramatic monologue upon the encouragement of her mother Jodie said: 'If someone said to me last year that people would be dressing as Villanelle for Halloween I would have said, "Shut up!" 'Its been so amazing to be a part of something that has resonated with people and people have enjoyed. 'People always ask me what the message is with Killing Eve. There isnt one, you just have fun with it. I think thats what people have enjoyed so much. Ive never been part of a show which has had such a huge response.' The actress is very close with her family and when she's not filming Killing Eve in London or Europe, she travels back to Liverpool to stay with her mother. The Bodyguard's Richard Madden has reportedly split from his long-term girlfriend Ellie Bamber following an 18 month relationship. The actor, 32, and his girlfriend, 21, are believed to have gone through a rocky patch where they 'argued every day' but have now split after deciding that their problems weren't fixable. The couple, who were once rarely seen without one another, have apparently become 'worlds apart' following Richard's acting success, an insider told the Sun. Split: The Bodyguard's Richard Madden has reportedly split from his long-term girlfriend Ellie Bamber following an 18 month relationship (pictured in June 2018) The source added that the split has come as a huge blow to Richard and Ellie, but they believe the decision is in their best interests. They told the news outlet: They were arguing almost daily towards the end and, despite considering couples therapy, it became evident there were far too many issues that could not be fixed. Richard is the toast of Hollywood at the moment, and understandably wants to let his hair down. 'Gutted': The actor, 32, and his girlfriend, 21, are believed to have gone through a rocky patch where they 'argued every day' but have now split after deciding that their problems weren't fixable Ellie is a bit quieter, and wants to focus purely on her work. It felt like their day-to-day lives were increasingly becoming worlds apart.' They continued that Richard and Ellie were never apart during the early days of their relationship, which meant that families became close too, therefore those close to them are also devastated by the break up. The pair are apparently trying to remain amicable following the split in a bid to stay friends. MailOnline have contacted Richard's and Ellie's reps for comment. For the best? The source added that the split has come as a huge blow to Richard and Ellie, but they believe the decision is in their best interests (pictured in September 2018) The news comes after the Scottish hunk took home the Best Actor in a Television Drama gong at the 76th annual Golden Globes in LA, for hit drama Bodyguard. Richard was riding solo at the event with no sign of Ellie Bamber, who in December told Red magazine: 'Being away [filming] puts a strain on family and friends.' While Ellie has made a name for herself in Hollywood productions such as Nocturnal Animals and The Nutcracker And The Four Realms, it's Richard currently basking in the glow of the spotlight, thanks to the runaway hit that was Bodyguard. Victorious: Richard took home the Best Actor in a Television Drama gong at the 76th annual Golden Globes ceremony in Los Angeles on Sunday for hit drama Bodyguard The next 007? Could Richard be next in line for the iconic role, following in the footsteps of the likes of Sean Connery and Daniel Craig The drama aired on BBC One in the autumn, and then transferred to Netflix, where American audiences enjoyed it just as much. Richard plays the titular role - Sergeant David Budd, an Afghanistan war veteran and Protection Command bodyguard, tasked with protecting The Right Honourable Julia Montague [Keeley Hawes] the Home Secretary. He beat fellow Brit Matthew Rhys, who starred in The Americans, as well as Hollywood's Jason Bateman for Ozark, in scooping the coveted accolade. According to reports, Bond producers are on the brink of approaching Madden to take arguably the most famous role in British film, thanks to his impressive turn in Bodyguard, as the brooding cop. Roxy Jacenko's sister Ruby Davis has given birth to her first child, a boy. The happy news was revealed by The Sun-Herald this weekend, reporting Ruby and her husband, Jackson Eisenpresser, welcomed son Ace in December. The publication also published images from Ruby's since-deleted Instagram account which showed the happy couple with their new bundle of joy in hospital and revealed that it was 17 days before they could take their newborn home. Baby joy! Roxy Jacenko's sister Ruby Davis (right) welcomes first child with wealthy American husband Jackson Eisenpresser (left), The Sun-Herald reported this weekend Australian native Ruby made the move to the US in 2012, where she met her wealthy businessman husband, with the couple tying the knot in a secret Beverly Hills ceremony several years later. Ruby has shared a tumultuous relationship with her PR queen sister Roxy Jacenko and were estranged for several years. However, in October 2017, Roxy told Daily Mail Australia that she and her little sister Ruby Davis are speaking again, saying: 'All is forgotten - no family is perfect.' Christmas baby! The publication reported that the couple's son, named Ace, was born in December 'We all have our challenges, we are no different. Mine are just public,' Roxy added. The pair have famously been at odds in the past with dramas continually making national headlines. This culminated in police bringing an AVO application against Ms Davis on Roxy's behalf several years ago. The application was later withdrawn. Ruby attended her sister's wedding in 2012 before leaving Sydney for LA. In 2015 she began a car website for US women called Chickdriven. Rocky relationship: Ruby and Roxy have shared a tumultuous relationship over the years (Pictured at a party together in 2005) New parent: It is the first child for Ruby, who is now based in the US Ruby was among the first people to contact Roxy when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016. 'She reached out right away to tell me she was sad to hear I had cancer,' Roxy previously shared with Daily Mail. 'She lives in the US now and is doing really well - married too!' Despite being a prolific social media user, Roxy has yet to make any reference to he new addition to the family yet. It looks like Dr Chris Brown may be single once again. The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Sunday that his 'relationship with TV presenter Liv Phyland may already be over'. It is then claimed that the blonde was looking 'smitten' with another man last week, while Chris, 40, was in South Africa for I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! Is Dr Chris Brown single again? Claims I'm A Celebrity host's 'relationship may already be over' after girlfriend Liv Phyland is spotted looking 'smitten' on a Sydney beach with another man The publication hinted that Liv, 28, was flirting with several men on Sydney's Tamarama beach following a surf session. An alleged onlooker told the newspaper that 'the petite blonde seemed close to one male in particular.' However, casting doubt on the claims, Liv was stood with another female friend at the time, as the whole group engaged in conversation. Just friends? An alleged onlooker told The Sydney Morning Herald that 'the petite blonde seemed close to one male in particular' at Tamarama beach in the past week Working away! Chris arrived in South Africa on January 06, and will be there until mid-February while presenting I'm A Celebrity Australia alongside Julia Morris Chris arrived in South Africa on January 06, and will be there until mid-February while presenting I'm A Celebrity Australia alongside Julia Morris. It was first reported that Chris was dating Liv in November - after splitting from long-term girlfriend TV producer Kendall Bora in September. Despite being photographed on romantic dates together, neither Chris or Liv have ever publicly confirmed their romance. Livs relationship with actor Nick Slater ended earlier this year. New couple! It was first reported that Chris was dating Liv (pictured) in November - after splitting from long-term girlfriend TV producer Kendall Bora in September In a contrasting report, last week New Idea reported that Chris was 'ready to settle down' with TV presenter Liv. An insider told the publication: 'Chris and Liv have been friends for ages but until now theyve never been single at the same time. 'Finally, they're both ready to give it a go and although they say they're taking things slowly, its obvious to everyone that theyre perfect for each other.' Daily Mail Australia has contacted Chris and Liv for comment. She's a global film icon. And on Friday Sophia Loren, 84, made a rare public appearance to host a star-studded reception and screening of Mary Poppins Returns at the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills. Looking as youthful as the magical nanny herself, the Italian star, who first appeared on screen in 1950 Tarzan parody, Tototarzan, smiled as she posed in a blue jacket and matching pants with a blue chiffon scarf wrapped around her neck. Old pals: Icon Sofia Loren, 80, snuggled up with Mary Poppins Returns director Rob Marshall, 58, at a reception and screening in the movie's honor at the Montage in Beverly Hills on Friday She was pictured with a host of directors and actors including Mary Poppins Returns' Rob Marshall, 58, who was decked out in a black suit and shirt. The couple stood next to a Mary Poppins Returns poster featuring Emily Blunt, 35, as Mary and Lin-Manuel Miranda, 38, as lamplighter Jack. She worked with Rob on the movie musical Nine back in 2009. Keeping it in the family: Rob and Sophia were joined by the actress's son Eduardo Ponti, 46, whom she shared with her late husband, producer Carlo Ponti, who died in 2007 aged 94 Sophia also posed with Rob and her son, Eduardo Ponti, 46, whom she shared with her late husband producer Carlo Ponti, who died in 2007 aged 94. Eduardo, too, was suited up in black but added a blue shirt and tie. Veteran actor Jon Voight, 80, turned up at the event and was pictured with his arm around Rob. Radiant: She smiled as she posed in a blue jacket and matching pants with Marshall Dynamic: She added a blue chiffon scarf wrapped around her neck as they were joined by John DeLuca Cheers! A glass of champagne was poised on the table for the star Applause break: Rob gave a speech at the event Icon: Sophia also said a few words on the mic in front of the delighted guests Others joining Sophia at the reception included Rob's choreographer partner John DeLuca; director of photography Dion Beebe, 51; production designer John Myhre, 60; composer, songwriter/co-lyricist Marc Shaiman, 59, and co-lyricist Scott Wittman, 64. Mary Poppins Returns was nominated for four Golden Globes but didn't manage to convert them into wins on January 6 at the Beverly Hilton. Its also up for nine Critics Choice Awards, which will be handed out on Sunday in Santa Monica. The Oscars, which roles out on February 24 at the Dolby Theater i Hollywood, has yet to announce its nominees. Mixing and mingling: Veteran actor Jon Voight, 80, turned up at the event and was pictured with his arm around Rob Richard Reid looks set to provide the first rumble in the jungle with campmate Jacqui Lambie on I'm A Celebrity. Daily Mail Australia can reveal that the gossip guru previously branded the former senator a 'disgustingly racist bigot'. The 53-year-old, who was confirmed for the Channel 10 reality show on Sunday alongside Jacqui, 47, unleashed in a Twitter tirade in 2017. REVEALED: 'Disgustingly racist bigot': I'm A Celeb's Richard Reid (R) and Jacqui Lambie (L) set for rumble in the jungle after he slammed the former politician in unearthed post Twitter post 'Jacqui Lambie may very well be the most disgustingly racist bigot I have ever heard,' wrote Richard. The Studio 10 contributor then branded her a female version of U.S. President Donald Trump. Richard, who boasts almost 11,000 followers on Twitter then tagged Jacqui directly - but she failed to respond. 'Jacqui Lambie may very well be the most disgustingly racist bigot I have ever heard,' wrote Richard, before branding his co-star 'the female Trump' in February 2017 Controversial! Richard's post came days after Jacqui sparked outrage by declaring 'anybody who supports Sharia law should be deported' on ABC's Q&A in February 2017 Richard's post came days after Jacqui sparked outrage by declaring 'anybody who supports Sharia law should be deported' on ABC's Q&A in February 2017. The outspoken former independent senator got into a shouting match with Islamic youth leader Yassmin Abdel-Magied over sharia law. Jacqui continued to receive backlash after presenter Tony Jones then asked her if she understands that her views may be considered 'hateful.' 'To a minority, well if that's a minority, but this is for the majority, this is what the majority want,' responded Jacqui. Feud in the making! Despite Richard tagging Jacqui in his post in 2017, she did not respond, which could lead to a heated discussion in the jungle if he brings it up. Pictured in 2017 Richard and Jacqui were both confirmed for I'm A Celebrity on Sunday. Despite Richard's strong feelings towards his co-star, the pair were both smiling in a promotional picture together with retired AFL star Dermott Brereton. The three of them will be joined by Gogglebox's Angie Kent, Yvie Jones, and former politician Sam Dastyari in the jungle on Sunday night. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Channel 10 for comment. 'This is what the majority want': Jacquie continued to receive backlash on Q&A after presenter Tony Jones asked her if she understands that her views may be considered 'hateful'. Pictured Jacqui in Parliament House, Canberra, in March 2017 She comes from Hollywood royalty, so it's no surprise that Melanie Griffith turned a grocery outing into a classy affair. The 61-year-old leading lady made her shopping run in an elegant black and white ensemble. She picked a gloomy day in usually sunny Los Angeles to stock up on supplies. Classy grocery trip: Melanie Griffith, 61, made her shopping run in an elegant black and white ensemble The Working Girl star went out in a brilliant white cable knit sweater by Polo. Her striking top stood out against the rest of her dark ensemble. Underneath the sweater she had on a black mock turtleneck, which she paired with black slacks and a pair of fierce black leather boots that went up to her thighs. In addition to her grocery bags, Melanie wore a large black leather bag over her arm. Making an entrance: The Working Girl star went out in a brilliant white cable knit sweater by Polo. The Night Moves actress was back in Los Angeles after spending the holidays at her Aspen, Colorado home with her youngest daughter, Stella Banderas, 22. She's the only child from Melanie's 18 year marriage to actor Antonio Banderas, 58, whom she divorced in 2015. Her other daughter, 29-year-old Dakota Johnson, starred in some of the most high-profile films of 2018, including 50 Shades Freed, Bad Times At The El Royale and the controversial horror remake Suspiria. Melanie was married to Dakota's father, Miami Vice star Don Johnson, for a brief six months in 1976. The couple reunited more than a decade later and were married from 1989-1996. Return to SoCal: Melanie was back in Los Angeles after spending the holidays at her Aspen, Colorado home with her youngest daughter, Stella Banderas, 22 Melanie' connection to Hollywood royalty goes back even further. The Body Double actress is the daughter of Tippi Hedren, who rocketed to fame in the early 1960s. The blonde beauty starred in two films for director Alfred Hitchcock, including the classic environmental horror film The Birds, and also worked with Charlie Chaplin during his golden years. Melanie began appearing in films when he was only 12, leading to a steady stream of acclaimed performances. The Something Wild star received an Academy Award nomination for her leading role in 1988's Working Girl, in which she starred opposite Harrison Ford and Sigourney Weaver. As of late, the fallout following their marriage split has shown no signs of slowing down. However, a new report released by The Sunday Telegraph has claimed that the asset division between Sam and Phoebe Burgess will likely be settled peacefully. According to the publication, an insider revealed that the settlement was 'unlikely to be too nasty'. 'He's committed to providing for his two young children': Report claims the division of assets between Phoebe and Sam Burgess is 'unlikely to get nasty' after their shock marriage split. Sam (left) and Phoebe (right) pictured in May 2017 The assets that will be divided among the former flames include their $4million mansion and $1million apartment in Little Cove. The source added that the Rabbitohs star is 'committed to providing for his two young children'. Although things are shaping up with the breakdown of assets - bitter divisions between Phoebe and the rest of the Burgess family appear to be widening, and her latest social media activity is unlikely to build any bridges. Settlement: The assets that will be divided among the former flames include their $4million mansion (pictured here) and $1million apartment in Little Cove On Thursday, the glamorous WAG 'liked' an Instagram post from her manager Sharon Finnigan, which read: 'It's funny how you're nice to my face. It's hilarious how you talk s**t behind my back. And it's downright comical that you think I'm unaware.' The fact Phoebe 'liked' the post could suggest she identifies with its poignant message about betrayal and two-faced friends. Sam and Phoebe, who were once called the NRL's 'golden couple', broke up just weeks after the birth of their second child, son William 'Billy' Burgess, in December. Double tap: Meanwhile, bitter divisions between Phoebe and the rest of the Burgess family appear to be widening, as the glamorous journalist 'liked' this Instagram post from her manager Sharon Finnigan on Thursday Meanwhile, reports surfaced last week describing Phoebe and Sam's marriage split as 'pretty messy'. A close friend of the former couple told The Daily Telegraph that 'things [had] been bad for a while'. The insider explained that the break-up was particularly hard on Phoebe because Sam's mother Julie Burgess was standing by her son. 'Things have been bad for a while': Reports surfaced last week describing Phoebe and Sam's marriage split as 'pretty messy' 'It would have been hard for Phoebe because Julie would have completely stuck by Sam... and there's talk she didn't offer Phoebe much support,' they claimed. Sam and Phoebe first met at an Avicii concert in Sydney in January 2014, before marrying in December 2015. They also share a daughter named Poppy Alice, who will soon turn two. The Today show's Georgie Gardner has attempted to set the record straight about her rumoured feud with former co-host, Karl Stefanovic. In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, the 48-year-old revealed that she had been in contact with Karl after he was unceremoniously dumped from the program in December. 'He and I have chatted extensively and there certainly never has been bad blood, despite what has been written, and there certainly isn't now,' she said. 'There has never been bad blood': Georgie Gardner denies that she and Karl Stefanovic (pictured) 'could not stand each other' and reveals she was consulted about who should replace him After Georgie was handed the top job in 2017, 'inside sources' at Nine reportedly told The Sunday Telegraph that the pair 'cannot stand one another.' Tensions reportedly reached a pinnacle in March, after Karl was overheard during an Uber ride, 'angrily' complaining about Georgie and warning his brother Peter that her future on Channel Nine's breakfast program was in doubt unless she 'stepped up'. But Georgie is adamant that any animosity between the pair was just baseless hearsay. 'He and I know each other very well. I have a lot of love for him and we have a very solid friendship and respect and I am excited for him in terms of the next chapter of his personal and professional life,' she told The Daily Telegraph this weekend. The best of mates! Georgie claims that any animosity between the pair was just baseless hearsay Admitting that she was consulted on who should replace him, Georgie said that she had nothing but admiration for Deborah Knight, 46, who will be debuting in the role on Monday. After if was announced that Deborah would be stepping into the coveted job, many people took to twitter to question the 'equality' of an all-female line up on the show. But Georgie brushed these concerns aside, pointing out that it is common practice in the US. In her corner: Admitting that she was consulted on who should replace him, Georgie said that she had nothing but admiration for Deborah Knight 'It is about time, don't you think?' she simply said. Deborah was chosen over a long list of contenders for the top job, including Brenton Ragless and Ben Fordham. Tom Steinfort, 33, has also been announced as newsreader, replacing Sylvia Jeffreys, who was recently let go from Today, amid months of poor ratings. After months of speculation, Karl Stefanovic was finally been dumped from the Today show in mid-December. The official trailer for Top Gear's 26th season was released on Sunday, and gave a fun glimpse into what's to come for fans in the new outing. It begins with a silver supercar races through a mountain path when a countdown starts, before a glimpse of three Tuk-tuk's are seen driving along a beach with air pillows installed along the sides to turn them into amphibious cars. Matt LeBlanc, who revealed in May last year that this would be his final season, can then be heard saying: 'Time for a little race.' Top Gear series 26 FIRST LOOK: The Motor show returned on Sunday in action-packed trailer that shows off fast cars, fun tasks, and Matt LeBlanc's final outing as co-host Joining Chris Harris, Rory Reid and The Stig in the five hour-long episodes, the actor, 51, is seen dressed in racing gear as he tells his co-hosts: 'Okay, we are up and away.' The automotive journalist, 43, and the television presenter, 39, are then seen facing off against Matt on the Top Gear race track. Clearly going all out, the trio are seen going head-to-head in an array of picturesque locations, including from atop a mountain where Chris and Matt jump into the air and fly using their wingsuits. Action-packed: A glimpse of three Tuk-tuk's are seen driving in the ocean with air pillows installed along the sides to turn them into amphibious cars Final curtain: Matt, who revealed in May last year that this would be his final season, can then be heard saying: 'Time for a little race' Showing off their comedic chops, Matt, Chris and Rory also embark on a challenge where they play polo in Tuk-tuk and bash each other's vehicles around to come out the winner. The Stig makes a brief appearance in the trailer, as the iconic anonymous driver looks to the camera from the front seat. It also gives a glimpse at Top Gears Star In A Reasonably Fast Car, as one celebrity manages to get out of a very muddy situation and leaves a distraught Rory behind. How hard can it be? The actor, Chris Harris, Rory Reid embark on a challenge where they play polo in Tuk-tuk and bash each other's vehicles around to come out the winner Impressive: Clearly going all out, the trio are go head-to-head, including from atop a mountain where Chris and Matt jump into the air and fly using their wingsuits As the presenters race against each other, Chris can be heard telling Matt that he's cheated, to which the Friends star quips: 'Well, technically we both cheated, I just cheated better than you.' In true Top Gear style, the trailer ends with one of the Tuk-tuks tumbling down a mountainside, with Chris telling the actor: 'You are such an idiot.' Some of the cars that the trio are set to test out includes a Bentley EXP Speed 8,the Porsche 911 GT2 RS (complete with new gadget the Fearometer 3000), and some of the smallest 4x4s in the UK. Picturesque: A lot of the series is also filmed in location around the globe, including Norway, Sri Lanka and Spain Oh dear: In true Top Gear style, the trailer ends with one of the Tuk-tuks tumbling down a mountainside, with Chris telling the actor: 'You are such an idiot' Matt, Chris and Rory will have a number of hilarious tasks ahead of them, including discovering if you can buy and race second-hand luxury cars for less than the cost of a Dacia Sandero. A lot of the series is also filmed in location around the globe, including Norway, Sri Lanka and Spain. Top Gear will return to BBC Two, with a release date to be announced soon. Full details of a plot by rebel MPs to seize control of Brexit can be revealed today. If Theresa May loses tomorrows crunch vote, authority for drawing up a new negotiating blueprint could pass to a panel of senior backbenchers, the Mail understands. The liaison committee, which is dominated by Remainers by a margin of 27 to nine, would be charged with coming up with a proposal supported by MPs. The Prime Minister would then be required to go to Brussels to negotiate for it in all likelihood creating a much softer Brexit. The dramatic move would mean tearing up the Commons rule book giving backbench MPs the power to propose legislation instead of the Government. A senior minister described it as a copper-bottomed, bullet-proof plan to sink Brexit. A dozen Brexiteers including eight who served in Mrs Mays Cabinet have written to all Tory MPs urging them to vote down her plan. Boris Johnson, David Davis and Dominic Raab signed the letter calling upon the Prime Minister to reopen talks with the EU over the Irish border backstop. Britain's Leader of the House of Commons Andrea Leadsom said it was wrong to undermine 'centuries of convention and the rulebook' A draft Bill, which sources say has been drawn up by former ministers Nick Boles (left) and Sir Oliver Letwin (right), is to be published this evening They said if the EU failed to give ground Britain should leave on March 29 to trade on World Trade Organisation terms. It is right to vote down this bad deal and that in doing so we will unlock a better future for our party, our country and its people, they said. The plan to seize control of Brexit is based on a draft Bill, which the Mail understands has been drawn up by former ministers Nick Boles, Sir Oliver Letwin and Nicky Morgan and is to be published today. All three backed Remain, but are expected to vote for Mrs Mays plan tomorrow. A source close to the move said the changes to the standing orders of the House of Commons would be temporary and would be reversed after Brexit. The source said: We all want Brexit to happen on March 29, that is our first preference. A leading figure behind the move added: This is not a wholesale reordering of the British constitution. It would be a one-off surgical strike and afterwards things would go back to normal. Under the plan, the Prime Minister would have 21 days to come up with an alternative Brexit deal. If none is found, responsibility for developing one would pass to the liaison committee which is made up of the chairmen of the 36 Commons select committees. It is chaired by Dr Sarah Wollaston, who is a leading campaigner for a second referendum. The committees proposal would have to be approved by MPs with ministers then ordered to reopen talks with Brussels. If time is short, Article 50 could be extended, meaning the UK would stay in the EU. If Brussels refused this, Article 50 would be revoked, in effect cancelling Brexit. The liaison committee would be expected to propose a version of Brexit involving membership of or a much closer relationship with the single market and customs union. If Theresa May loses tomorrow's 'meaningful' vote, plans for leaving the EU would be passed to a panel of senior backbenchers Mr Boles has long advocated the Norway model which would keep the UK in the single market. Cabinet minister Andrea Leadsom said the move by pro-EU MPs was incredibly dangerous and would change the way Parliament worked. The plotters want backbench motions to take precedence over Government business if Mrs Mays deal is defeated tomorrow. This would strip ministers of control and put Brexit at risk. Mrs Leadsom said this threatened the relationship between the people and those who govern them. Her stark warning comes at the start of what could be the most momentous week in British politics since the Second World War. In other developments: Four Tory MPs last night came out in support of the Prime Ministers withdrawal agreement because of concerns about the threat to Brexit if it is voted down; The Prime Minister will today say she believes Parliament is more likely to block Brexit than allow no deal; Jeremy Corbyn said he would put down a vote of no confidence in the Government if the deal is rejected; The Labour leader suggested he would keep Britains borders open to migrants if he took power; Tory rebel Dominic Grieve teamed up with Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable to publish draft legislation for a second referendum; The European Unions two top leaders are today expected to publish letters reassuring MPs the Irish border backstop will be time-limited; Brussels sources claimed the EU was preparing to delay Brexit until July after concluding Mrs May would lose the meaningful vote. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said it would be a huge mistake for MPs to take control of the Brexit process from ministers How would it work? If Mrs Mays deal were to be voted down tomorrow, she is required under the Grieve amendment controversially allowed by Speaker John Bercow last week to return to the Commons on Monday week to make a statement. By the end of next week, she will put before the Commons a motion setting out her plan. It would be amended by Labour and rebel Tory MPs to change the standing orders of the Commons the rules of how Parliament works. If the Speaker approved and Parliament agreed backbenchers would seize power over proposals for new legislation and then submit a single Brexit Bill. The Bill would give Mrs May 21 days to come up with an alternative plan which commanded the support of a majority of MPs. If she failed, the liaison committee would then be made responsible for coming up with a new proposed deal. This is made up of 36 select committee chairmen and is dominated by Remainers. It is led by Tory Sarah Wollaston, a campaigner for a second referendum. The liaison committee would draw up a new Brexit plan and vote on it. If agreed by a majority of the committee, it would go before Parliament and if MPs approved it, the Prime Minister would be tasked with renegotiating along those lines. The new deal, if negotiated with the EU, would come back before the Commons and Lords for a vote. Ministers would be put under a legal duty to extend Article 50 to allow time for the negotiation. If no deal was done by March 27 and the EU refused an extension to Article 50, it would be revoked. Advertisement Sir Oliver Letwin refused to comment yesterday on claims that he is helping to lead the plot to rewrite Commons rules. Mrs Leadsom, who as Leader of the House is in charge of setting the timetable for Parliament, said it was wrong to undermine centuries of convention and the rulebook. She added: The reason why our Parliament is looked up to around the world is because we have the right balance between the executive, the Government who proposes legislation and the timetable, and then a very strong tradition of scrutiny. I am incredibly concerned about it. I am a huge supporter of Parliament and the rights of Parliament, but to overturn the way we run our democracy is an incredibly dangerous prospect. Transport Secretary Chris Grayling said it would be a huge mistake for MPs to take control of the Brexit process from ministers. My message to anyone who is thinking of that is, this is not a one-off over Brexit. You would change the whole nature of the passage of legislation in the future, he told BBC Radio 5 Live. Mr Boles dismissed talk of a plot, saying: Odd sort of coup that requires a majority of democratically elected MPs to vote for it before the tanks start rolling. Pro-EU Tory MP Anna Soubry accused No 10 of spreading fake news in order to scare Conservative colleagues from voting against the PMs plan. Mrs May will today use a speech to factory workers in Stoke to warn that trust in politicians will suffer catastrophic harm if they fail to implement the result of the referendum. Downing Streets strategy of highlighting how ministers could lose control if the PMs deal is voted down appeared to bear fruit last night as four Tory Brexiteers who had previously been wavering came out in support. Remain fanatics break cover: ANDREW PIERCE reveals the Motley crew of Tory MPs conspiring to seize power from Theresa May after rejecting her Brexit deal Theresa May is facing a fresh headache as Europhiles on her backbenches gang up to seize control of Brexit. Pro-Remain Tories were last night accused of plotting to re-write parliamentary rules to put them in the driving seat if the Prime Minister is defeated in the Commons tomorrow. Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve will today team up with Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable to publish draft legislation revealing how they could push for a second referendum. Meanwhile, former Tory ministers Sir Oliver Letwin and Nick Boles will host a meeting of like-minded MPs to plan how they will block a 'no-deal' Brexit. It comes after 20 Tory MPs last week helped inflict a humiliating defeat on the Government over Brexit after Commons Speaker John Bercow tore up parliamentary convention. As Britain prepares for a tumultuous week in politics, Andrew Pierce profiles the plotters-in-chief and the MPs conspiring to stop a hard Brexit. Dominic Grieve, 62: (Beaconsfield, Leave vote 50.7%) Dominic Grieve, 62: (Beaconsfield, Leave vote 50.7%) - Happy to risk a general election rather than see a no deal Still brooding over his ministerial career ending more than four years ago when he lost his job as Attorney General. Assumed he had been destined for greater things. A Francophile with a French mother and QC father who was a Tory MP. Educated at a French school, Westminster (annual fees up to 37,700) and Oxford. Happy to risk a general election rather than see a no deal. Spotted last year in Brussels leaving a meeting of campaigners for a second referendum. Anna Soubry, 62: (Broxtowe, Leave vote 54.6%) Conservative MP Anna Soubry speaks at a Peoples Vote anti-Brexit rally at Victoria Hall, Sheffield on Saturday Shockingly abused by Right-wing thugs last week outside Parliament who called her a 'Nazi'. Increasingly detached from the Government with pro-Europe views with which she tours TV and radio studios. Comprehensive school-educated, studied law and was a TV presenter before going into politics. Quit the Tories in 1983 to join the SDP but then rejoined the party when it was led by Eurosceptic Iain Duncan Smith. Has threatened to side with Labour to bring down the Government to prevent no deal. Sir Oliver Letwin, 62: (West Dorset, Leave vote 51%) Oliver Letwin arrives at 10 Downing Street as Britain's re-elected Prime Minister David Cameron names his new cabinet, in central London, Britain in this May 11, 2015 At Cambridge, he joined the societies of all three main political parties. His PhD was titled ethics, emotion and the unity of the self. A member of Mrs Thatcher's policy unit, which came up with the much-hated poll tax. Seen as an unworldly egghead out of touch with voters the proof being his call for big public spending cuts during the 2001 election campaign. Other gaffes include saying he'd rather 'beg on the streets' than send his two children to state schools. Tasked with implementing the Leveson inquiry into Press standards, he cooked up a deal which would have introduced statutory regulation of newspapers for the first time in centuries. Nick Boles, 53: (Grantham and Stamford, Leave vote 59%) Oxford and Harvard-educated. Part of the so-called Notting Hill Set of posh cronies who powered David Cameron to No. 10 Oxford and Harvard-educated. Part of the so-called Notting Hill set of posh cronies who powered David Cameron to No.10. Brexiteer Michael Gove's campaign manager when he stood for the Tory leadership. Quit as a minister in 2016 before May could sack him after he called for pensioners to lose free prescriptions and winter fuel payments. In remission from cancer, he's facing the threat of deselection after vowing to bring down the government to stop no deal. Sarah Wollaston, 55: (Totnes, Leave vote 54.1%) A serial rebel on a range of issues. Chairman of the Commons health select committee Qualified GP who was a high-profile Leave campaigner but switched sides after disputing the claim that the NHS would get an extra 350million a week after Brexit. A serial rebel on a range of issues. Chairman of the Commons health select committee. Nicky Morgan: (Loughborough, Leave vote 50.3%) Controversially criticised the PM for 'the height of political vulgarity' for wearing leather trousers in a photoshoot The former Education Secretary has been a persistent thorn in the side of Mrs May who sacked her in her first Cabinet reshuffle. Controversially criticised the PM for 'the height of political vulgarity' for wearing leather trousers in a photoshoot. She later apologised but was exposed for hypocrisy when photographed herself with a 950 Mulberry handbag. The Oxford-educated solicitor considered standing as party leader in 2016 but humiliatingly got only a handful of MPs to back her. Still rankles over her demotion from Cabinet. Antoinette Sandbach, 49: (Eddisbury, Leave vote 52.2%) Has said: 'Britain used to have a reputation for being polite and courteous; have we really turned into this shouty society that just screams at each other?' Barrister who caused outrage for reporting to the police a church-going pensioner constituent who objected to her Remainer views. Has said: 'Britain used to have a reputation for being polite and courteous; have we really turned into this shouty society that just screams at each other?' Suffered tragedy when she lost her five-day-old son to sudden infant death syndrome. At 6ft 4in tall, thought to be the tallest female MP. Jonathan Djanogly, 53: (Huntingdon, Leave vote 55.3%) It was alleged that he claimed parliamentary expenses to hire an au pair A trained solicitor who took over John Major's seat and only rose to become junior justice minister for two years. Stripped of duties for regulating claims management firms after failing to disclose conflicts of interest regarding family members. It was also alleged that he claimed parliamentary expenses to hire an au pair. He said she didn't provide childcare for his family and had only worked as a cleaner. Voluntarily repaid 25,000. Ken Clarke, 78: (Rushcliffe, Leave vote 42.4%) The Father of the House who's standing down at the next election. Famously caught by a TV camera saying 'Mrs May is a bloody difficult woman' Ageing poster boy of Tory pro-Europeans. Has likened visions of a post-Brexit future to a fantasy 'where you follow the rabbit down the hole and emerge in a wonderland where countries around the world are queuing up to give us trading advantages'. The Father of the House who's standing down at the next election. Famously caught by a TV camera saying 'Mrs May is a bloody difficult woman', successive Tory leaders have discovered that Clarke himself is a difficult man. John Bercow, 55: (Buckingham, Leave vote 48.7%) Faced calls to resign after his family car was seen to have a window sticker saying 'b******s to Brexit, it's not a done deal' Has become arch-villain for hard-Brexiteers. But his impartiality and favouritism are very serious charges considering his key role. Faced calls to resign after his family car was seen to have a window sticker saying 'b******s to Brexit, it's not a done deal'. Seen by Remainer MPs as their most important weapon in the battle to stop Britain leaving the EU. They claim to be asserting parliamentary sovereignty, but what they are plotting is constitutional outrage: STEPHEN GLOVER on the insidious Remainer coup that must be smashed Britain famously has an unwritten constitution. On the whole it has worked pretty well over the years, evolving to address political developments and challenges. Its not, though, set in stone. But what a group of MPs is now plotting is nothing less than a constitutional coup which, if successful, could change the way in which we have been governed for well over a century. If Theresa Mays deal is defeated tomorrow, Dominic Grieve and his band of Remainer conspirators plan to neutralise the Government, and to assume charge of the entire Brexit process which would almost certainly mean no Brexit at all. British Prime Minister, Theresa May and her husband Philip (unseen) attend Sunday morning prayers at her local church in Maidenhead, today Needless to say, they claim to be asserting parliamentary sovereignty taking back control, if you like. This is a preposterous falsehood that must be demolished. These MPs are behaving in a fundamentally undemocratic way. They are actually acting against the people, not on their behalf. Let me explain. Under our political system, parties put forward a set of policies in a manifesto which they are committed to enacting if elected. Before the last election in June 2017, both Conservative and Labour undertook to honour Brexit, for which 17.4 million people had voted a year earlier. In other words, the overwhelming bulk of the Commons Tory, Labour, as well as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) made a solemn pledge to carry out the will of the majority as expressed in the referendum. Only about 50 MPs from Liberal Democrat, Scottish Nationalist and other small parties were returned on an anti-Brexit manifesto. Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May and her husband Philip leave church, near High Wycombe This means that the ponderous Grieve and many of his fellow plotters (Vince Cable, the Lib Dem leader, can be exempted) were elected on the understanding that they would support Brexit, not thwart it. They cannot in good conscience renege on the contract they made with electors. Ah, I hear someone say. What about the Tory political philosopher Edmund Burke, who, in 1774, argued persuasively in a speech to the burghers of Bristol that he and other MPs were not mere delegates of the people, but representatives expected to use their judgment? But the truth is that the modern, if seldom employed, device of a referendum drives a coach and horses through Burkes dictum of 250 years ago. Voters charged Parliament with carrying out the result of the referendum, and nearly all MPs accepted this obligation. Former attorney general Dominic Grieve, who has said politicians have a duty to prevent the country committing national suicide in relation to Brexit No, what Grieve, Oliver Letwin, Sarah Wollaston et al are cooking up is a constitutional outrage. They are being assisted in this by the insufferably puffed up Commons Speaker, John Bercow. Last week, having plotted with Grieve in private, Bercow shockingly overrode long established parliamentary convention to force Mrs May, if she is defeated tomorrow, to come back to the Commons within three days to set out alternative plans. Assuming the Prime Minister loses the vote heavily, rebel Remainer Tory MPs (who have dozens of existing or potential collaborators in the Labour Party) will try to impose a series of indicative votes, foremost among which would be a demand for a second referendum. Grieve, Cable and other MPs from the main parties today publish their draft legislation for a so-called Peoples Vote (a term which absurdly implies there hasnt already been one) as though they constitute a government. Such a motion might well be carried. Remember there is an anti-Brexit majority in the Commons which, I regret to say, does not appear to respect the outcome of the referendum, let alone recoil at the prospect of ignoring it altogether. Last weeks finagling by Bercow may only be the start of the subverting of an enfeebled Government. With his dependable assistance, a succession of Commons votes could be binding on Mrs May or on her successor if she resigns. Parliament would control Brexit. And that would probably mean staying in the EU. For as I have previously argued, the most likely threat, if the Prime Ministers hard-negotiated deal is defeated, is not No Deal but a second referendum in which all the forces of Project Fear would be re-deployed with more unscrupulousness than ever before. Pro-European demonstrators protest outside parliament in London, Friday, Jan. 11, 2019 Yesterday we got a whiff of what may be in store for us in a newspaper article by John Major. Having accused the Brexit leadership of mendacity on an epic scale (as though Remainers did not twist and exaggerate!), the former prime minister suggested Parliament should rescind our withdrawal from the EU and establish a national consultation process, which in due course would lead to a second referendum. The nerve of it! Cant these people foresee the damage that would be done to the democratic process if the majority decision of the British people were set aside, and we ended up staying in the EU because the likes of Grieve and Major cant accept the result? By the way, I noticed that, in common with some Remainers, Major had many harsh words for the allegedly lying Brexiteers, but none at all for EU officials such as Jean-Claude Juncker, or the Irish prime minister Leo Varadkar, who have been so obstructive and unhelpful throughout the negotiating process. I dont know about you but in addition to the frightening loss of trust in our democratic institutions I have mentioned the sheer mean-spiritedness and pettiness of EU officials and some European leaders is another strong reason for not wanting to crawl back, cap in hand, to Brussels. So far I have only discussed the short-term baleful effects if MPs hijack the Brexit process, and overturn the outcome of the referendum result. But who can doubt that once they had wrested power from the Government, there would be further incursions into the power of the executive? That could only spell further political chaos to add to the problems we already have, with the prospect of over-mighty MPs squaring up to, and attempting to second guess, the government of the day. A pro-European demonstrator protests outside parliament in London, Friday, Jan. 11, 2019 I repeat: political parties are democratically accountable bodies which offer a series of policies to the people, and are judged by their success or failure. None of us wants to be governed by shifting coalitions of MPs who are not bound by manifesto promises. Are there any circumstances in which it would be legitimate for Members of Parliament to take matters into their own hands and challenge the executive? Maybe in extremis, if the Government had disintegrated, and we were hurtling towards disaster. But we are not by any stretch of the imagination in that position. Theresa May has brokered a deal with the EU, and the Commons will vote on it tomorrow. It is far from perfect, but it honours the result of the Referendum. Of course, lots of Brexiteers have argued it doesnt go far enough. As many, including the Prime Minister, have warned, by their intransigence they risk ending up with no Brexit at all. But now there is a further danger. A vote against Mays deal tomorrow may not only keep us in the EU. It could foster anarchy in Parliament, with Remain MPs making the running. I dont see Jacob Rees-Mogg and his allies, or the DUP, prospering in such conditions. Things really are spinning out of control. The only way to restore a modicum of stability is to support the best version Id say the only version of Brexit we will ever have. A headmaster who told pupils that Brexit would ban Santa Claus has quit. Dr Richard Steward claimed 'foreign citizen' Santa would be barred from flying his sleigh to the UK in what he said was a 'fun' assembly on the last day before Christmas. He joked that imports of Christmas trees and wine would be stopped and there would be no more turkeys due to a lack of eastern European farm workers. Dr Richard Steward who told pupils Brexit will mean Santa won't be able to come to the UK anymore has quit after being bombarded with complaints from parents He also suggested that it would be the last decent festive period pupils would have before Britain withdraws from the EU in March. Dr Steward's speech to pupils at The Woodroffe School, a comprehensive secondary in Lyme Regis, Dorset, was the talk of parents in the Brexit stronghold. And on the first day back, Dr Steward, 57, announced he was quitting, saying in a letter: 'The positive letters I have received from parents over the years would fit neatly into a small ring binder, whereas the letters of complaint would easily fill several large filing cabinets.' Yesterday, Dr Steward said he was bewildered by the complaints about his assembly which he said was intended as a 'fun way to end the term'. Claire Denslow, whose 17-year-old daughter attends the school, said: 'The head was talking utter rubbish about how we wouldn't have any turkeys because there wouldn't be any eastern European workers to catch and pluck them for us.' She added that the 'saddest thing' was younger children who still believe in Father Christmas being let down. Dr Richard Steward claimed 'foreign citizen' Santa would be barred from flying his sleigh to the UK in what he said was a 'fun' assembly on the last day before Christmas. Stock picture shows Santa Dr Steward's speech to pupils at The Woodroffe School (pictured), a comprehensive secondary in Lyme Regis, Dorset, was the talk of parents in the Brexit stronghold Matthew Puddy, a publican who attended the school himself, said: 'He might have said he was joking but there was a subliminal message here that Brexit is a bad thing.' Mother Sasha Flynn said: 'My son said some of the little ones were distressed at what he was saying, basically that it was the end of Christmas.' But others claimed most pupils had taken the assembly in the humorous spirit in which it was meant. A school source hailed Dr Steward as 'a brilliant teacher', saying: 'He has transformed the lives of countless children. He is an Ofsted inspector, that's how good he is. He is devoted to education.' The headmaster said his decision to retire from the outstanding-rated school after 16 years was not connected to his Brexit assembly. He said: 'Of course, none of the parents were there. It was just an amusement and I find it quite disturbing really that parents will complain about that kind of thing.' Dr Steward said his decision to quit 'goes back a long time'. The mayor of a Polish city is fighting for his life after he was stabbed on stage during a charity event. Gdansk mayor Pawel Adamowicz grabbed his belly and collapsed in front of the audience after he was attacked with a sharp tool last night. The attacker reportedly shouted from the stage that he had been wrongly imprisoned when the mayor's former party was in power. 'That's why Adamowicz dies,' the attacker said. Poland's president said he had been told 'there is hope' for the mayor's survival after doctors reanimated his heart, but said his condition was 'very difficult'. Pawel Adamowicz (pictured at Sunday night's event), mayor of the port city of Gdansk, was attacked with a sharp tool during a fundraising event in the city tonight Mr Adamowicz lies on the floor as medics come to his aid during the charity event in Gdansk A man is held on the ground by security personnel after he attacked the mayor of Gdansk Interior minister Joachim Brudzinski said Mr Adamowicz was in a very serious condition, calling the stabbing 'an act of inexplicable barbarity'. Gdansk Archbishop Slawoj Leszek Glod went to the hospital while the operation was underway, Polish media reported. Medical officials appealed for blood donations as Mr Adamowicz was taken to a hospital where he underwent surgery. A Polish broadcaster said a man had rushed on stage at around 8pm and said the mayor was seen holding his belly. Radio Gdansk reported that Mr Adamowicz was stabbed near his heart as the attacker shouted from the stage. A Gdansk police spokesman said the attacker, who was detained by police, was a 27-year-old who lived in the city. Adamowicz later underwent surgery, deputy mayor Piotry Grzelak was quoted as saying by the PAP news agency. Earlier he boasted on Facebook that he hadd raised 5,000 for the event. 'Thank you sincerely everyone who threw money into my can and helped beat my personal record,' Mr Adamowicz wrote. Mr Adamowicz has been mayor of Gdansk, a port city on the Baltic coast, since 1998. He was part of the democratic opposition born in the city under the leadership of Lech Walesa during the 1980s which helped to bring down the Communist regime. As mayor, he is seen as a progressive voice and has supported LGBT rights and tolerance for minorities. A man holds a sharp object just after stabbing Gdansk Mayor Pawel Adamowicz in Gdansk A female medic attends to the mayor of Gdansk after he was stabbed and critically wounded An ambulance thought to be carrying mayor Pawel Adamowicz on its way to hospital The University Clinical Center, in which the wounded Mayor of Gdansk is being treated He showed solidarity with the Jewish community when the city's synagogue had its windows broken last year, strongly denouncing the vandalism. European Council President Donald Tusk, a former Polish prime minister, wrote on Twitter: 'Let's all pray for Mayor Adamowicz. Pawel, we are with you.' President Andrzej Duda said that while he and the mayor have had political differences, 'today I am unconditionally with him and his loved ones, just as - I hope - all of us compatriots are. I pray for his return to health and full strength'. The fundraising event was organised by the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity, Poland's most important charity. It raises money for medical equipment Poland's cash-strapped health care system has trouble providing. The $137billion divorce between Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos will be resolved swiftly, simply because the couple are so rich. 'Their divorce will be handled as quickly as an Amazon delivery,' West Coast-based attorney Christopher Melcher told the Economic Times. According to divorce lawyers, the larger the money the simpler the split typically is, especially because the couple intend to end their marriage as friends. And while some have been speculating that the future of Amazon is in jeopardy, sources close to the world's richest man told The Mail on Sunday that Bezos' 16 per cent share in the company is 'safe'. Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos will retain control of the online retail giant in the divorce to his wife of 25 years MacKenzie. A divorce lawyer says it will be resolved quickly because they have so much wealth Jeff Bezos will retain control of the online retail giant, sources say. 'But this was all worked out last year. Amazon is not in danger. The divorce settlement is far further along than anyone knows,' someone close to the Besoz's tells The Mail on Sunday. 'Both Jeff and his wife are smart people. He is keeping control of Amazon.' Bezos and MacKenzie, his wife of 25 years, announced on Twitter last week that they were parting 'as cherished friends' and divorcing 'after a long period of loving exploration and trial separation'. Lauren Sanchez, the woman at the center of Jeff Bezos' divorce But within hours it emerged that Bezos was in a relationship with Lauren Sanchez, a 49-year- old former TV anchor who split from her husband, the Hollywood talent agent Patrick Whitesell, last autumn. The Bezos divorce is likely to be the biggest in history. The couple, who married in 1993 shortly before he founded Amazon, are understood to have no pre-nuptial agreement, entitling her to half of his fortune. The couple have a string of properties, including a $32million home in Washington State, a $25million home in Beverly Hills and a $24million converted museum in Washington DC, along with 400,000 acres of land. However, the majority of his wealth lies in his Amazon shares and there were fears he might have to sell some of his stake, potentially affecting the value of the online giant. But the source said: 'The majority of Jeff's wealth is tied up in Amazon shares. He will retain control of the company and will remain the majority shareholder. 'The deal is still being worked out because there are so many complex assets, but there is no danger of him losing his majority stake in Amazon. That has been agreed.' Meanwhile, a close friend of Ms Sanchez insisted that she and Bezos are 'madly in love' and plan to marry as soon as their respective divorces are finalized. The US tabloid The National Enquirer last week claimed that Bezos 'cheated' on his 46-year-old wife, with whom he has four children, by starting his relationship with Ms Sanchez before they had formally split. They also published a series of passionate text messages sent by the billionaire to Ms Sanchez. Sources close to Besoz denied rumors that the company's future is in jeopardy due to his affair to Sanchez (pictured together in December 2016) But pals of the former TV presenter said the allegation was 'totally unfair and untrue', adding: 'Most of what has been written about Lauren and Jeff's relationship is not true. 'They both split from their respective partners in the autumn. Their relationship did not start until their marriages had ended. 'They knew each other before and there were text messages between them, but text messages do not mean an affair. There was nothing seedy about how this relationship started and there's nothing sleazy about it now. 'Jeff and Lauren are deeply in love and committed to each other. They are planning their future together.' Another friend said: 'People are shocked because the (divorce) news only became public this week, but both couples dealt with this last year.' The friend said that Mr Whitesell and Ms Sanchez have a so-called 'bird-nesting' arrangement with their children remaining in the family home while estranged parents take it in turns to live there. Insiders claimed Ms Sanchez, a former host of the hit US shows So You Think You Can Dance? and Extra, 'fought' to save her marriage to Mr Whitesell, the chief executive of talent agency William Morris Endeavor, which represents stars including Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Christian Bale. The pair wed in 2005 and have two young children. 'She fought to save her marriage for the sake of her children but sadly it was not to be. But the allegations that she cheated on her husband are simply not true,' the source said. Mr and Mrs Bezos, Ms Sanchez and Amazon did not respond to requests for comment. True, the Prime Minister's deal is not perfect, but it's by far the best on offer. The alternatives range from a high-risk No Deal to the humiliation of Brexit being delayed or the prospect of a Corbyn government. Here, ROSS CLARK examines why if MPs dump Mrs May's deal as expected every other option is horribly flawed... Theresa May and her husband Philip (unseen) attend Sunday morning prayers at her local church in Maidenhead, today Staying in EU's Customs Union The plan: There's no consensus in the Commons for any way forward, but this is being talked up as the most likely outcome. The customs union is a trade agreement between EU states which means they agree not to impose tariffs on each other's goods. Staying in the union, or forming a new one, would mean the UK could continue to trade tariff-free with other EU countries. It is advocated by Labour, with Jeremy Corbyn saying yesterday that Brussels is 'known for being flexible' and could be open to negotiating the creation of a new union. The problem: The UK would be unable to negotiate its own trade deals with major trading partners such as the US, China and Japan and would not regain our seat at the World Trade Organisation. Worse, the EU would dictate precisely how we trade with other nations. In sum, the opposite of the buccaneering international free trade policy promised. Backers: Labour, Chancellor Philip Hammond, Remainer MPs and Ulster's Democratic Unionists, who see it as being less likely to lead to a new border being drawn in the middle of the Irish Sea. Likelihood: 2/10 No Deal The plan: UK would leave the EU on March 29 with no agreement, no trade deal and no 39billion exit bill. Yes, there have been grave warnings about the 'dire' consequences but in one sense this would be the most straightforward option for Mrs May. It would mean we are free to export and import with any nation we want on World Trade Organisation terms. As things stand, this is the default position and would not require the Government to pass any legislation. The problem: Considering the disruptive fall-out it is expected to create, most in Westminster say it won't happen. Mrs May has also firmly ruled it out. And even if forced to change her mind, she would face a majority of MPs of all parties fighting to stop her. According to the PM's former chief of staff Nick Timothy, five Cabinet ministers would resign if we had No Deal. Backers: Hard Brexiteers such as Jacob Rees-Mogg and his European Research Group of MPs, as well as fellow Tories such as John Redwood and Bernard Jenkin. Also, traditional Conservative party members although an opinion poll published in Saturday's Mail showed that 55 per cent of Tory voters don't back No Deal but support Mrs May's deal. Likelihood: 1/10. Rescind Article 50 Backers: Long-time Tory Europhile Kenneth Clarke, former PM John Major and other Conservative Remainers The plan: This is the part of the Treaty of Lisbon used by the Government that allows any EU member state to quit unilaterally. Triggered on March 29, 2017, giving us two years to negotiate an exit deal, it would mean Brexit being put on ice. This might be possible because the European Court of Justice ruled in December that we have the right, up to March 29, to rescind Article 50 and continue as an EU member under existing terms. The problem: The Government would have to pass legislation in Parliament to achieve this and it would mean Mrs May going back on her promise that the referendum result must be respected. Backers: Long-time Tory Europhile Kenneth Clarke, former PM John Major and other Conservative Remainers. Likelihood: 2/10 A second referendum The plan: Disingenuously called the 'People's Vote' and the aim of Remainers who want to overturn the result of the first Referendum which both Labour and Tory election manifestoes pledged to abide by. The problem: Ministers would have to get legislation for such a vote which would be difficult considering Mr Corbyn currently says he's opposed to the idea despite being under huge pressure from his party's grassroots. It would also be deeply divisive and traumatic, as well as taking an estimated eight months to complete, keeping the country in limbo for even longer. It is most unlikely, in any case, to be achievable in the ten weeks left before March 29. Backers: A motley bunch across the political spectrum including Tony Blair, Tory grandee Lord Patten, Alastair Campbell, and former Tory ministers Sam Gyimah, Justine Greening and Jo Johnson as well as Tory backbencher Anna Soubry. Likelihood: 1/10 The 'Norway option' The plan: As a member of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) but not in the EU, Norway has access to the Single Market. But not being a member of the customs union, it's free to strike it own separate trade deals. Many would like Britain to be in the same position. The problem: Norway pays a big financial price for its access to the Single Market by paying into the EU Social Cohesion Fund. Crucially, this option would mean the UK having to accept free movement of people which was a key factor in the referendum and is a red line for Mrs May. It would also require the approval of other EFTA members, including Norway, which has suggested it would not give. Backers: Cabinet minister Amber Rudd has raised the possibility. Tory MP Nick Boles has been a vociferous supporter along with Labour's Stephen Kinnock. Last year, Michael Gove was reported to be in favour of a 'Norway for Now' approach, whereby Britain would join EFTA for a short term before negotiating a separate trade deal with the EU in the longer. Likelihood: 2/10 The 'Canada option' Backers: Boris Johnson has called for a Super Canada deal, which he says would involve 'zero tariffs and zero quotas' on all imports and exports The plan: A loose free trade agreement with Brussels similar to the one the EU has with Canada, which removes the vast majority of customs duties on EU exports to Canada and vice versa. Supporters of this option claim Canada has almost completely tariff-free trade in goods with the EU. European Council president Donald Tusk offered the UK this option last March. The problem: Mrs May has tried to rule it out, saying: 'We can do so much better.' It would only affect mainland Britain, with Northern Ireland remaining in the customs union, and thus would not solve the problem with the Irish border. The Ulster Unionists propping up the Government will not support any arrangement creating a border between Northern Ireland and the mainland. Canada took seven years to negotiate and ratify its deal. Backers: Boris Johnson has called for a Super Canada deal, which he says would involve 'zero tariffs and zero quotas' on all imports and exports. Likelihood: 1/10 Mrs May calls a General Election The plan: The PM could call everyone's bluff and do as she did in 2017 by deciding to invite a national vote on her government's record and credibility. Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, she'd need the Commons to agree. Mr Corbyn and his MPs would be morally bound to approve it since they've been clamouring for a general election for weeks. The problem: Mrs May has promised she won't lead the Tories into another general election. In any case, no Tory would want to risk a Labour government, formed of people who're also deeply divided over Brexit. Backers: Labour, Lib Dems and the Scottish Nationalists. Likelihood: 1/10 A Labour vote of no-confidence The plan: Asked yesterday, Mr Corbyn said this 'would happen soon, don't worry about that'. But he didn't commit to a time, unlike many of his MPs who say it should be called immediately if Mrs May loses tomorrow's vote. The problem: Tories, even die-hard Remainers, are sure to unite to defeat the cynical bid to topple the Government. Backers: Most Labour backbenchers and noisy frontbenchers such as Emily Thornberry and Barry Gardiner. Likelihood: 6/10 A couple have been charged over the alleged murder of a man who was found dead inside his home. Police were called to a home in Sadleir, in Sydney's south-west about 3:20pm on Saturday, where they found the mutilated body of an unidentified man inside. He is believed to be a 40-year-old Minto resident. Police were called to a home in Sadleir, in Sydney's south-west about 3:20pm on Saturday, where they found the body of an unidentified man inside The building where the man's body was found is allegedly a hub of activity and often frequented by police, according to locals The building where the man's body was found is allegedly a hub of illegal activity and often frequented by police, according to locals. A crime scene was established and a number of items were seized for forensic examination. Strike Force Higherdale, comprising detectives from Liverpool City Police Area Command and the State Crime Commands Homicide Squad, has since been formed to investigate the circumstances surrounding the mans death. A 38-year-old man and 39-year-old woman - believed to be known to the man - were arrested at a unit on the Hume Highway in Warwick Farm just before 2am on Sunday The Sadleir man was charged with murder and the Warwick Farm woman was charged with accessory after the fact to murder. The couple were both refused bail to appear at Liverpool Local Court on Monday. Theresa May is facing a fresh headache as Europhiles on her backbenches gang up to seize control of Brexit. Pro-Remain Tories were last night accused of plotting to re-write parliamentary rules to put them in the driving seat if the Prime Minister is defeated in the Commons tomorrow. Former Attorney General Dominic Grieve will today team up with Liberal Democrat leader Sir Vince Cable to publish draft legislation revealing how they could push for a second referendum. Meanwhile, former Tory ministers Sir Oliver Letwin and Nick Boles will host a meeting of like-minded MPs to plan how they will block a 'no-deal' Brexit. It comes after 20 Tory MPs last week helped inflict a humiliating defeat on the Government over Brexit after Commons Speaker John Bercow tore up parliamentary convention. As Britain prepares for a tumultuous week in politics, Andrew Pierce profiles the plotters-in-chief and the MPs conspiring to stop a hard Brexit. Dominic Grieve, 62: (Beaconsfield, Leave vote 50.7%) Dominic Grieve, 62: (Beaconsfield, Leave vote 50.7%) - Happy to risk a general election rather than see a no deal Still brooding over his ministerial career ending more than four years ago when he lost his job as Attorney General. Assumed he had been destined for greater things. A Francophile with a French mother and QC father who was a Tory MP. Educated at a French school, Westminster (annual fees up to 37,700) and Oxford. Happy to risk a general election rather than see a no deal. Spotted last year in Brussels leaving a meeting of campaigners for a second referendum. Anna Soubry, 62: (Broxtowe, Leave vote 54.6%) Conservative MP Anna Soubry speaks at a Peoples Vote anti-Brexit rally at Victoria Hall, Sheffield on Saturday Shockingly abused by Right-wing thugs last week outside Parliament who called her a 'Nazi'. Increasingly detached from the Government with pro-Europe views with which she tours TV and radio studios. Comprehensive school-educated, studied law and was a TV presenter before going into politics. Quit the Tories in 1983 to join the SDP but then rejoined the party when it was led by Eurosceptic Iain Duncan Smith. Has threatened to side with Labour to bring down the Government to prevent no deal. Sir Oliver Letwin, 62: (West Dorset, Leave vote 51%) Oliver Letwin arrives at 10 Downing Street as Britain's re-elected Prime Minister David Cameron names his new cabinet, in central London, Britain in this May 11, 2015 At Cambridge, he joined the societies of all three main political parties. His PhD was titled ethics, emotion and the unity of the self. A member of Mrs Thatcher's policy unit, which came up with the much-hated poll tax. Seen as an unworldly egghead out of touch with voters the proof being his call for big public spending cuts during the 2001 election campaign. Other gaffes include saying he'd rather 'beg on the streets' than send his two children to state schools. Tasked with implementing the Leveson inquiry into Press standards, he cooked up a deal which would have introduced statutory regulation of newspapers for the first time in centuries. Nick Boles, 53: (Grantham and Stamford, Leave vote 59%) Oxford and Harvard-educated. Part of the so-called Notting Hill Set of posh cronies who powered David Cameron to No. 10 Oxford and Harvard-educated. Part of the so-called Notting Hill set of posh cronies who powered David Cameron to No.10. Brexiteer Michael Gove's campaign manager when he stood for the Tory leadership. Quit as a minister in 2016 before May could sack him after he called for pensioners to lose free prescriptions and winter fuel payments. In remission from cancer, he's facing the threat of deselection after vowing to bring down the government to stop no deal. Sarah Wollaston, 55: (Totnes, Leave vote 54.1%) A serial rebel on a range of issues. Chairman of the Commons health select committee Qualified GP who was a high-profile Leave campaigner but switched sides after disputing the claim that the NHS would get an extra 350million a week after Brexit. A serial rebel on a range of issues. Chairman of the Commons health select committee. Nicky Morgan: (Loughborough, Leave vote 50.3%) Controversially criticised the PM for 'the height of political vulgarity' for wearing leather trousers in a photoshoot The former Education Secretary has been a persistent thorn in the side of Mrs May who sacked her in her first Cabinet reshuffle. Controversially criticised the PM for 'the height of political vulgarity' for wearing leather trousers in a photoshoot. She later apologised but was exposed for hypocrisy when photographed herself with a 950 Mulberry handbag. The Oxford-educated solicitor considered standing as party leader in 2016 but humiliatingly got only a handful of MPs to back her. Still rankles over her demotion from Cabinet. Antoinette Sandbach, 49: (Eddisbury, Leave vote 52.2%) Has said: 'Britain used to have a reputation for being polite and courteous; have we really turned into this shouty society that just screams at each other?' Barrister who caused outrage for reporting to the police a church-going pensioner constituent who objected to her Remainer views. Has said: 'Britain used to have a reputation for being polite and courteous; have we really turned into this shouty society that just screams at each other?' Suffered tragedy when she lost her five-day-old son to sudden infant death syndrome. At 6ft 4in tall, thought to be the tallest female MP. Jonathan Djanogly, 53: (Huntingdon, Leave vote 55.3%) It was alleged that he claimed parliamentary expenses to hire an au pair A trained solicitor who took over John Major's seat and only rose to become junior justice minister for two years. Stripped of duties for regulating claims management firms after failing to disclose conflicts of interest regarding family members. It was also alleged that he claimed parliamentary expenses to hire an au pair. He said she didn't provide childcare for his family and had only worked as a cleaner. Voluntarily repaid 25,000. Ken Clarke, 78: (Rushcliffe, Leave vote 42.4%) The Father of the House who's standing down at the next election. Famously caught by a TV camera saying 'Mrs May is a bloody difficult woman' Ageing poster boy of Tory pro-Europeans. Has likened visions of a post-Brexit future to a fantasy 'where you follow the rabbit down the hole and emerge in a wonderland where countries around the world are queuing up to give us trading advantages'. The Father of the House who's standing down at the next election. Famously caught by a TV camera saying 'Mrs May is a bloody difficult woman', successive Tory leaders have discovered that Clarke himself is a difficult man. John Bercow, 55: (Buckingham, Leave vote 48.7%) Faced calls to resign after his family car was seen to have a window sticker saying 'b******s to Brexit, it's not a done deal' Has become arch-villain for hard-Brexiteers. But his impartiality and favouritism are very serious charges considering his key role. Faced calls to resign after his family car was seen to have a window sticker saying 'b******s to Brexit, it's not a done deal'. Seen by Remainer MPs as their most important weapon in the battle to stop Britain leaving the EU. Sarma Melngailis, the chef whose been dubbed 'Vegan Bernie Madoff,' and her high powered attorney Jeffrey Lichtman, who is representing El Chapo, allegedly had a 15-month affair. In explosive messages, the New York Post reveals the alleged sordid affair between the disgraced chef and her drug lord attorney occurred between February 2017 to May 2018. Some of those messages reviewed were also between she and disgraced comedian Louis C.K. The pair exchanged testy emails about how she believed he may have given her a STD. The 46-year-old rose to popularity when her two Manhattan vegan eateries - Lucky Duck restaurant and Pure Food & Wine - became foodie sensations in the city. Melngailis now 46, was jailed for more than three months in 2017 after she confessed to stealing more than $1 million from her former workers and investors. Lichtman, 53, who is married with children, got her the sweetheart deal while he was handling the drug king pin- El Chapo's case, with her receiving almost no prison time considering the charges. Sarma Melngailis, who plead guilty to stealing $1million from her investors in her NYC eateries was allegedly having an affair with her high powered attorney Jeffrey Lichtman Jeffrey Lichtman (left) is representing Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, and was during the alleged affair with his client Melngailis Melngailis, pictured in a Brooklyn court alongside her lusty attorney, Lichtman in June 2017, rose to popularity when her two Manhattan vegan eateries - Lucky Duck restaurant and Pure Food & Wine - became foodie sensations in the city The 46-year-old did just over three months behind bars in a sweetheart plea deal Just two days after she plead guilty to charges of grand larceny, criminal tax fraud and a scheme to defraud, Lichtman sent his client a sex-fueled text. 'Do you want to belong to me? Will it be ok if some days I just use your body so that I can [orgasm]?' he wrote. Things continued to heat up between the two. On March 18, 2017, Lichtman texted Melngailis: 'You do look so pretty in that pic I would like to foul you. Is it bad that I'm thinking some disgusting thoughts about you?' Melngailis replied: 'Is it bad that Im glad youre thinking them?' Less than 10 days later, Lichtman told his client, 'We need to do this soon,' asking, 'Would you still be able to stand me as your lawyer if I foul you?' 'I think so,' Melngailis responded. 'Let's wait until after then,' Lichtman wrote. 'I'm not opposed to before,' the chef turned felon responded. Then, just days before her plea deal, on May 2, Lichtman texted Melngailis effusing their dalliance. 'I loved being in you,' he wrote. Melngailis replied, 'And see how you lucked out: I didn't go all praying mantis and kill and eat you after. For that would have only been self-defeating.' Days later, 'You felt perfect. Like it fit perfectly. Do you want that again,' he wrote. 'Yes I do,' Melngailis answered. Just the day before her plea deal, the texts continued, this time with Lichtman telling his client that he would want to do it while she was on her nightly ambien. 'I would be in favor of that,' Melngailis said. 'They make me kind of rag dollish.' 'Perfect,' her lawyer replied. In court, the feelings betwixt the two did not dissipate. 'It was crazy. During the plea I was kind of swooning for you. Just wanted to touch you a little even,' Lichtman wrote two days later. 'I love when you say stuff like that. As it's often hard to tell behind your surly facade. That's romantic,' she wrote back. 'I wanted you to feel my shoulder rubbing up against yours I need to eat you,' Lichtman added. In one May exchange, Melngailis reassures Lichtman she hasn't told anyone about their dalliance. 'I expected you to keep this between us,' he responded. 'Look. You know how important you are to me.' According to the Post, she did not ask Litchman if he was married until after their coutius. 'Separated since December,' he told her in a May 19, 2017, text. Lichtman's wife they had never separated and she had no knowledge of the affair. Lichtman also responded to the Post: 'This is a deeply personal matter that I'm going to try to deal with privately. My life and behavior have not always been perfect as I think we can all say but I'm proud of my legal work in this case and on behalf of all the clients I've represented for the past 28 years. My personal feelings have never impacted my professional work or the results that I have achieved.' Louis C.K. (left) may have give former restaurateur Sarma Melngailis (right) a sexually transmitted disease during an affair six years ago Other explosive email emerged from the former restaurateur's personal life, revealing how comedian Louis C.K. may have given former restaurateur Melngailis a sexually transmitted disease during an encounter they had six years ago. In a series of emails between the two in 2012 Louis C.K. expresses his desire for the chef, telling her: 'My brain has thoughts about you in it. Somewhere between 27 and 93 /'. The emails, obtained by the New York Post, have revealed her relationship with Louis C.K. PageSix reported that the chef emailed Louis C.K. on June 17 regarding a previous email outburst, stating that she was 'upset and freaked out'. He responded: 'Hey. I understand you're upset. This kind of s**t is tough. I never swore that I was clean. 'I told you I may or may not have given this to you. I'm sorry if I did. If you gave it to me, it's okay. 'We all share the current human bloodstream, which includes this kind of stuff. I should have worn a condom, you should have made me, we should have a lot of things. we are human,' he wrote. The English Bridge Union banned him from their events for two years and fined him 150 for breaking byelaw, but Mr Bornecrantz plans a counter claim for 370 He was accused of being 'aggressive' in an exchange with tournament director Bornecrantz, 72, was accused of swearing at referee in seniors bridge event Leiv Bornecrantz, 72, swore and was accused of being aggressive in an unseemly exchange with the tournament director and is now banned for allegedly breaching conduct and etiquette rules It was not the sort of behaviour expected at a seniors bridge tournament in a genteel seaside town. Leiv Bornecrantz, 72, swore and was accused of being aggressive in an unseemly exchange with the tournament director and is now banned for allegedly breaching conduct and etiquette rules. The retired businessman has been a keen player of the card game since 1962, winning tournaments in Australia where he used to live before moving to England four years ago. The dispute centred on his convention card, a piece of paper competitors use to record their systems of play. Mr Bornecrantz employed an Australian version and, after being told it was not 'legal', was asked to use an English Bridge Union card instead. When tournament director Kathy Williams effectively the referee asked him to fill in the new card at the EBU event in Eastbourne, East Sussex, he said: 'Bull****, I'm not going to do it.' Mr Bornecrantz, who later said the rule was a form of Nazism, was then said to have stood up, 'snatched' the cards from her hand and walked out. He was also alleged to have made 'an aggressive move' towards her, 'possibly causing her to feel threatened'. EBU 'byelaws' state 'a player should maintain a courteous attitude at all times'. Its disciplinary committee found Mr Bornecrantz guilty at a London hearing he decided not to attend. He was banned from EBU events for two years and fined 150. But Mr Bornecrantz, who lives in nearby St Leonards-on-Sea with his wife Elizabeth, is furious and plans a counter claim against the EBU for 370 in costs. Central to Mr Bornecrantz's case is that he has been diagnosed as autistic. He informed the EBU of this, with an accompanying hospital letter, after being charged. But the EBU's written ruling states that it 'decided this should not influence our decision'. Mr Bornecrantz, who worked as a management consultant, describes himself as 'high functioning', but admits his condition means his 'social skills are not always the greatest' and confrontations 'do set me off'. He wrote to the EBU that the swearing charge was 'fatuous' but accepted that if he had directed a four-letter word at the tournament director it 'would have been accurate but aggressive'. He said 'bull****' was 'highly descriptive' of the EBU's attempts to keep its players in the 1950s. He also told the EBU its insistence on the use of a particular convention card was 'over-prescriptive nanny authoritarian Nazism'. He denied that he 'snatched' the cards. Cards on table: Leiv Bornecrantz, with wife Liz, says autism means he 'does not smile' even when playing bridge. Mr Bornecrantz, who worked as a management consultant, describes himself as 'high functioning', but admits his condition means his 'social skills are not always the greatest' and confrontations 'do set me off' 'One man's taking is another man's 'snatch',' he maintained. As for the charge that he was aggressive, he said: 'If just walking towards the tournament director is aggressive, the definition needs an update.' He added: 'I am autistic, I look fierce at all times, my face does not smile, my eyes do. To accuse me of looking aggressive is like accusing me of breathing.' Mr Bornecrantz said: 'I was found guilty by a kangaroo court in a case that is essentially about using the wrong stationery. I'm prepared to launch a civil case in a proper court if I have to.' Yesterday EBU chief executive Gordon Rainsford said: 'The EBU has a comprehensive equalities codes, but will not tolerate abuse against its officials and staff. 'Although the disciplinary panel was aware that the defendant had stated he was autistic, there was no plea in mitigation. Mr Bornecrantz has told us that he intends to make a counter-claim for 370, but we have not yet received any such claim from the courts. Mr Bornecrantz has not yet paid his 150 fine.' Mr Bornecrantz has twice unsuccessfully sought to take legal action against the EBU over a separate case concerning the transfer of master points, used for ranking players, from his Australian record. The EBU is considering applying for a restraining order against Mr Bornecrantz following his letters about the convention cards. Mr Rainsford added: 'We think that we have quite a number of members who are on the autistic spectrum and we would be happy to make any reasonable accommodation for them to be able to play in our events.' If toothaches leaving us a little grizzly, we visit the dentist. Unless youre a 30-stone bear with a sore head, that is and then the dentist comes to you... very carefully. In this case the patient was General, a brown bear rescued from cruel and cramped captivity in Armenia. Paul Cassar flew to Yerevan in the former Soviet state to extract four of the animals teeth and deal with a painful abscess. So Generals jaws were clamped open before the dental work began as he lay stretched out on a table at Yerevan Zoo, in Armenia And the dental expert making space in his appointments diary was Paul Cassar, who is more used to treating families at his private high street practice in Chichester, West Sussex. Mr Cassar flew to Yerevan in the former Soviet state to extract four of the animals teeth and deal with a painful abscess. Most of the dentists daily appointments in the UK take around 25 minutes and a 2ml injection to numb their gums. For General, something a little stronger was required and a cocktail of powerful tranquillisers and anaesthesia had to be administered for the four-hour procedure. Just asking the patient to open wide was out of the question, too. So Generals jaws were clamped open before the dental work began as he lay stretched out on a table at Yerevan Zoo. Mr Cassar, assisting a team of vets from the British charity International Animal Rescue and Armenian group FPWC (Foundation for the Preservation of Wildlife and Cultural Assets), said: Its a bit different from my normal 9.30am appointment. But there is no normal with exotic animals. The 30-stone brown bear General is pictured arriving at Yerevan Zoo in Armenia for the procedure. General, 19, was rescued from a private zoo kept by a former Armenian army general and politician It was tough going but he has recovered well and is free from the excruciating pain he must have been suffering. General, 19, was rescued from a private zoo kept by a former Armenian army general and politician. Mr Cassar has treated more than 150 bears as part of the charitys drive to save and then outlaw dancing bears in India. His dental nurse Charlotte Callaway-Goldstone, who was among the team, said: We used standard dental equipment with some extra veterinary kit but the team had to work hard to get the teeth free because bears have a much tougher bone structure. We gave him the same care we do for all patients. The charity is treating bears kept in captivity before releasing them in a reserve. EU leaders are preparing to delay Brexit until July or possibly longer if Parliament cannot agree a deal, it has been claimed. Brussels is reportedly expecting the British government to ask for an extension to Article 50, allowing Theresa May more time to get a deal through Parliament. Mrs May is expected to lose Commons the vote on her withdrawal deal on Tuesday, raising the prospect of a no-deal departure on March 29. Brexit could be postponed even longer if a general election or second referendum takes place, the Guardian reported. EU leaders could delay Brexit past March 29 to give Theresa May, pictured outside church today, more time to get a withdrawal deal through Parliament An EU source told the newspaper: 'Should the prime minister survive and inform us that she needs more time to win round parliament to a deal, a technical extension up to July will be offered.' EU leaders could reportedly agree to delay Brexit at a leaders' summit organised by Donald Tusk. Should the EU not agree to a postponing of Brexit then the UK would leave the EU without a deal on March 29. A longer extension could clash with the European Parliament elections scheduled for May. Britain is currently not expected to take part in the elections and will no longer have any MEPs. But if Britain were still in the union when the new European Parliament meets in July then the UK could be expected to provide members. Mrs May is facing a heavy defeat on Tuesday as Conservative backbenchers prepare to unite with Labour to vote the deal down. EU leaders could agree to delay Brexit at a leaders' summit organised by Donald Tusk, pictured, although a long extension could clash with European Parliament elections Brussels is preparing to offer fresh assurances over the Irish backstop, which Tory rebels fear could leave Britain tied to the EU's trading rules indefinitely. Meanwhile Mrs May warned of a 'catastrophic and unforgivable breach of trust' in democracy if Brexit is stopped. One of her predecessors, Sir John Major, called for Article 50 to be revoked as he warned it would be 'morally reprehensible' to crash out without a deal. 'When you turned out to vote in the referendum, you did so because you wanted your voice to be heard,' she said. 'Some of you put your trust in the political process for the first time in decades. We cannot - and must not - let you down. Labour is also facing calls to put forward a vote of no confidence in Mrs May and a general election could take place should the Government lose. When your father is the greatest jump jockey ever, you have to aim high to live up to the family name. But Sir AP McCoy's 11-year-old daughter Eve is already proving she is a match for the 20-time champion jockey. The talented rider dazzled spectators as she flew around a showjumping course at a lightning pace dressed in a Superwoman costume. Her impressive performance at the Liverpool International Horse Show last month prompted Sir Anthony, known as AP, to joke: 'Looks like I brought home the right baby!' Sir AP McCoy's 11-year-old daughter Eve is already proving she is a match for the 20-time champion jockey Eve was praised for her 'fearless' display in the fancy-dress relay event, which sees young riders pair up with celebrity showjumpers, with her team going on to finish sixth. She cleared all the jumps on her pony Izzy at breakneck pace, while the commentator said: 'Look at this! It's like the Grand National look at the speed!' Eve, eldest child of the jockey and his wife Chanelle, sets her alarm at 6am every day to ride before school and said she will 'keep practising until I reach the Olympics'. Jockey Tony McCoy poses with his wife Chanelle and daughter Eve after he received his OBE from Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in London She said: 'My dream is to ride in the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. All I want is to get a gold medal like Nick Skelton in the Olympics because that's the biggest showjumping competition in the world.' Her father, 44, previously called Eve his 'miracle' baby when she was conceived through IVF after the Irishman was told he was infertile because of his regime of sitting in hot baths to sweat away weight. Eve, who lives with five-year-old brother Archie at the family's home in Newbury, Berkshire, travels across the country to take part in showjumping competitions every weekend. Her father said: 'She loves competing and she's got plenty of bottle, which you can't teach a kid. I see traits in her that I have she's not a great loser and she gets upset with herself. Even when it goes wrong or I shout at her, she comes back for more.' Six African teenagers and a woman aged in her 20s have been rushed to hospital after two cars collided in a head-on crash. The crash happened at the corner of Springvale Road and Princes Highway in Springvale, Melbourne at 4.50am on Monday, and sent debris flying 20m across a busy intersection. The six youths aged between 16 and 20 years old have been taken to hospital, while a man in his 40s is also receiving emergency care. Scroll down for video Six African teenagers and a woman aged in her 20s have been rushed to hospital after two cars collided in a head-on crash The crash happened at the corner of Springvale Road and Princes Highway in Springvale, Melbourne at 4.50am on Monday The impact of the collision was so forceful that the front of one of the vehicles was smashed in, while the other car was sent flying and ended up more than 20m away. Debris was left strewn across an busy intersection, causing disruptions to peak-hour traffic. The crash involved a white car carrying six young people of African appearance and a black Toyota Yaris with a single occupant, the Today Show reported. A woman aged 20 has been taken to hospital in a serious condition while two men aged in their late teens are also receiving treatment. A high-school aged girl is in hospital with serious back injuries. Various lanes have been affected and drivers have been told to avoid the area if possible. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham on Sunday said President Donald Trump is ready to make a deal with Democrats to reopen the government as three new polls show the GOP is taking the blame for the shutdown. A Washington Post/ABC News poll found that 53 percent say Trump and the Republicans are at fault for the shutdown while 29 percent blame Democrats and 13 percent say both sides have equal responsibility. A CBS News/YouGov poll found similar results: 47 percent blame the president, 30 percent blame the Democrats, and 20 percent blame both. A CNN poll also found Trump bearing the blame: 55 percent said he is responsible for the shutdown while 32 percent blame the Democrats and 9 percent blame both. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said President Donald Trump is ready to make a deal with Democrats to reopen the government Three new polls show President Trump is getting blamed for the shutdown But Graham tried to push the blame toward Democrats and said Trump is ready to reopen the government, which is on day 24 of a shutdown. 'I just talked to him about 30 minutes ago. He said let's make a deal,' Graham said on 'Fox New Sunday.' The senator from South Carolina also urged a breathing period of three weeks where the government would reopen while both sides negotiation a price tag for the president's border wall. 'I would urge them to open up the government for a short period of time, like three weeks before he pulls the plug, see if we can get a deal. If we can't at the end of three weeks, all bets are off, see if he can do it by himself through the emergency powers. That's my recommendation,' Graham said. Last week House Democrats passed individual appropriations bills to open each Cabinet department that is closed. Those are unlikely to be taken up in the Senate, however. Lawmakers are scheduled to return to Capitol Hill on Monday although it's unclear if that will be affected by the snow storm that hit Washington D.C. None of the votes scheduled in the House or Senate for Monday evening deal with reopening the government. No meetings between the White House and Democrats are scheduled after Trump walked out of a sit down last week. The president and Democrats are head locked over funding for his border wall. Trump wants the full $5.7 billion it would take to build it while Democrats are sticking to the $1.3 billion they've offered for border security. The president has tweeted his willingness to talk to Democrats and called into Fox News' Jeanne Pirro Saturday night to say he's ready to work with the other side. 'It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done, and everybody could go back to work. But I'd like to see them act responsibly, and they're not acting responsibly, and that's it,' he said of Democrats. He also tweeted on Saturday 'I do have a plan on the Shutdown. But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised safety and security for the American people.' 'Fox News Sunday' host Chris Wallace asked Graham what the president's plan was. 'The plan is to do a deal,' said the senator, who is a close ally of the president. 'He is willing to do - in my view - a wall plus.' Graham described a deal he thought he could get the president to agree to: full funding for the border wall in exchange for protections for those in the Deferred Actions for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in addition to protections for those with temporary protected status. 'I don't want to speak for the president, I don't want to lock him in but I'm confident what I described plus a few other things would be a deal acceptable to the White House and a lot of Democrats. And I'm just so frustrated we can't get in a room and hammer it out,' he said. Democrats, however, have been firm on their stance of no wall. Trump has been just as firm that he won't sign legislation funding the government without money for his border barrier. 'What are we supposed to do? Just give in? He's not going to give in,' Graham said. Another Republican Senator echoed Trump's stubbornness and said the easiest way to end the stalemate was to give the president the money for his wall. 'The easiest solution to the shutdown, just give President Trump the money for his - the mandate he received from the American public,' said Sen. Ron Johnson on CNN's 'State of the Union.' Democrats, meanwhile, are pushing the blame toward the president as much as Republicans push the blame toward them. Lawmakers have accused Trump of a 'temper tantrum' instead of good faith negotiations. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine called for the government to be opened before talks continue on Trump's border wall. 'I will say this: we first should reopen government. Why punish people who are applying for food stamps because the president is having a temper tantrum? Open government first,' he said on NBC's 'Meet the Press.' And Sen. Chris Coons criticized what he called the rapidly changing positions of Trump as negotiations have dragged on. 'I feel like I signed up for the 'Trump of the Day Club,' ' he said on 'Fox News Sunday.' Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin said he's counting on Republican senators to put the pressure on Trump to sign legislation opening the government. Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin said he's counting on Republican senators to put the pressure on Trump to sign legislation opening the government Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine called for the government to be opened before talks continue on Trump's border wall 'I think it ends when the Senate Republicans say we've had enough. We're not going to stand here and be blamed for this. We believe the government should be opened. There should be timely negotiations on border security after the government is open,' he said on ABC's 'This Week.' Support for building a border wall has increased over the past year, The Washington Post/ABC News poll found. The poll showed 42 percent say they support a wall, up from 34 percent last January, while 54 percent oppose the wall, down from 63 percent a year ago. Trump spent much of 2018 on the campaign trail for the midterm election and he constantly discussed his need for a border wall. He argues it's necessary not just to stop illegal immigration but to stop drugs and terrorists from entering the country. The administration's facts and figures on this matter have been disputed. And CNN's poll found a majority - 56 percent - oppose a wall while only 39 percent favor it. But neither said is getting approval for their handling of the situation. The CBS/You Gov poll found that 55 percent disapprove of Trump's handling of the shutdown while 46 percent disapprove of Democrats' handling. A mother-of-two has claimed she found glass in a nappy she bought from Asda which left her two-year-old daughter bleeding. Charlotte Downie, from Dunfermline, Scotland, discovered the shard in the supermarket brand Little Angels nappy when her daughter Neve started crying. Now the 27-year-old mother is warning other parents to be wary, after being told by Asda that it could take up to 40 days to investigate, reports the Mirror. Ms Downie told the Mirror: 'There was blood in her nappy, it actually cut her. I'm horrified that this could happen. This is a serious issue, it's a piece of glass in a child's nappy.' After finding the glass, Ms Downie called the customer service team who told her to take the nappy to her local store. Charlotte Downie, from Dunfermline, Scotland, discovered a shard of glass in her two-year-old daughter's nappy when she started crying But when she got there, she said staff had no idea what she was talking about, and the open nappy was still lying on the desk 40 minutes later as she went to leave the store. Neve had been wearing an Asda own brand nappy (pictured). Ms Downie is worried the glass could have given her daughter an infection, and took her daughter to see a doctor Ms Downie is worried the glass could have given her daughter an infection, and took her daughter to see a doctor. She added: 'When I went to put the next nappy on her, she was saying "no, no, no". 'She was really scared of it happening again. We were lucky, it could have been a lot worse.' A spokesperson for Asda said: "We are extremely proud of our Little Angels nappies so we take complaints of this nature very seriously and are sorry to hear of Ms Downies complaint. 'As soon as we receive the nappy we will run a full and thorough investigation to understand what happened, but would like to reassure her and all our customers that we have stringent processes in place to ensure there is no contamination within this robust process. 'Our nappies are produced and packed on an enclosed line within a sealed environment and if the door of the production line is opened, the conveyor belt stops and any nappies on the line are rejected. 'This means a customer can have confidence that the they are the first person to open their packet of nappies.' Holly Sansone, 32, is accused of stealing several pieces of underwear from Kohl's in Portage, Indiana on Wednesday night A woman has been arrested after she left a trail of stolen bras and panties in her wake during a high speed police chase on an Indiana highway. Holly Sansone, 32, is accused of stealing several pieces of underwear from Kohl's in Portage on Wednesday night. Police were called to the store as Sansone was allegedly stealing the items and found her in her car in the parking lot. A police report said an officer tapped on her window and ordered her to stop, but Sansone shrugged her shoulders and said 'I've gotta go' before speeding out of the parking lot. Sansone allegedly led police on the high speed chase and was tossing items out of her window as she drove. Police said she ran several red lights and repeatedly almost lost control of her car. She allegedly reached speeds of up to 100 mph. Sansone was eventually forced to stop after police deployed stop sticks on Indiana 49. Police found that Sansone was wearing two pairs of stolen panties - with the security tags still on - when she was strip searched at Porter County Jail Her two right tires deflated and she crashed into the shoulder wall on the highway. Police found several pairs of panties in Sansone's passenger seat. Seven pairs of panties and one bra was found discarded along Indiana 49. Police also found that Sansone was wearing two pairs of stolen panties - with the security tags still on - when she was strip searched at Porter County Jail. Kohl's reported that Sansone stole four bras, 14 pairs of panties, two candles and several air freshener refills. The total value for $44.82. She was booked on charges of theft with a prior conviction and resisting law enforcement, as well as misdemeanor charges of reckless driving and resisting law enforcement. Several hundred angry New Yorkers - and one Marvel superhero - congregated on the Brooklyn Heights Promenade on Saturday morning to defend one of Manhattan's most revered viewing spots from being bulldozed into a temporary highway. Among the swill of disgruntled faces English actor Paul Bettany, star of the Avengers series and husband to Jennifer Connelly, led chants of 'save lungs not lives' to show his contempt towards the plans, having just bought a $15.5million mansion across from the man-made beauty spot. But Bettany isn't the only celebrity set to be affected the proposition, which is set to commence next year. The Brooklyn Heights and Cobble Hill neighborhoods that surround the promenade are well known for harboring some of the City's biggest stars. Paul Bettany, 47, pictured will his daughter as he attended the protest on Saturday morning. He recently bought a $15 million home just feet away from the promenade last year Hundreds descended on the iconic location to make their voices heard to Major DeBlasio, insisting there are viable alternative options to his plan to bulldoze the promenade Residents of all ages congregated on the promenade on Saturday. Several hundred were heard chanting 'save lungs not lanes' The Brooklyn Heights Promenade (pictured) showcases a breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline. It's appeared in a host of Hollywood movies, including Annie Hall and Moonstruck Parents Daniel Craig and Rachel Weisz recently moved to the area from Manhattan, in search of a more practical place to raise their newborn daughter. Fellow-actor Paul Giamatti, the star of Showtime's Billions, is said to live just a few doors down. Academy award-winner Matt Damon also lives near-by in a $16million penthouse in The Standish Arms Hotel. After the success of Disney's Mary Poppins re-boot, A-list couple Emily Blunt and John Krasinski announced their move to the same building last week, having bought an entire floor in the complex for $11million that overlooks the promenade. Daniel Craig (left) and Rachel Weisz (right) are also recent residents of the neighborhood, having made the switch from Manhattan in anticipation of the birth of their new-born daughter Matt Damon (left) moved into a $16 million penthouse in The Standish Arms Hotel this month. Mary Poppins Star Emily Blunt (right) has also secured a foothold in the building with her husband John Krasinski The Standish apartment block underwent renovations in 2018. Matt Damon's $16 million condo broke records for the city Other protesters, from toddlers to pensioners, displayed placards urging New York Major Bill DeBlasio to reconsider his plan to turn the esplanade into a six-lane highway until 2026, while the Brooklyn-Queens express way undergoes repairs. The congregation said they want more of a say in how any potential planning in the area may look. 'I am against the damn plan as it stands,' Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams said during his speech. 'As an environmentalist, I can't accept the same old paradigm. 'Im concerned about the continuation of believing the only way we can move through this city is by expanding highways,' he said. 'Im tired of the poison in schools; Im tired of the poison in the air; Im tired of the way were thinking about how do we move people around this city.' The 1,826-foot path could be bulldozed into a six-lane highway for up to six years The Brooklyn-Queens express way is in desperate needs of repair and the DOT insist the $ billion plan to be the best and most economical alternative The controversial plans were announced by the Department of Transport (DOT) last year, with projected costs over $3 billion. Only one alternative is has been tabled by the DOT so far, which would see them stagger the reconstruction over a series of stages. Officials say the 'plan b' would cost hundreds of millions more and take an additional two years to complete. Major traffic diversions could also lead to more congestion in local areas, backing traffic up for as much as 12 miles in each direction of the express way. Protesters however are accusing city officials of being too narrow-minded, and overlooking other important issues such as congestion pricing and pollution. Protesters are demanding a more collaborative and environmentally friendly approach to the express way repair, that doesn't see the beloved spot ruined 'We reject any plan that would cause the traffic to clog the streets. We need to find a better way of working together,' said Hillary Jager, from the group A Better Way NYC. Jager urged the DOT to come up with a more responsible plan that reduces traffic, potential environmental damage and noise pollution. A DOT spokesman said, 'The City and DOT are thoroughly engaged with the community to ensure the BQE reconstruction is as transparent as possible, and any claim to the contrary is demonstrably false. 'We are committed to partnering with elected officials, community leaders and all local stakeholders on the entire project corridor to hear their input and prioritize their safety.' Advertisement Holy men are preparing to greet millions of Hindu pilgrims who have travelled to bathe in sacred waters at the centuries-old Kumbh Mela festival. Around 12 million visitors are expected to descend on Allahabad, in northern India, for the world's largest religious festival, state authorities in Uttar Pradesh said. Festivities officially begin on Tuesday and continue until early March. The ancient city is nestled along the banks of the Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers, and the meeting point of the three is considered highly sacred in Hinduism. A sadhu sits covered in ash inside his tent as he uses a mobile phone ahead of Kumbh Mela festival in Allahabad, north India Around 12 million visitors are expected to descend on Allahabad for the world's largest religious festival, which officially begins Tuesday and continues until early March A Hindu holy man with his head wrapped in a headscarf walks on a road at the site of the Kumbh Mela, or Pitcher Festival A religious procession towards the Sangam area as devotees cross a pontoon bridge during the 'royal entry' for the Kumbh Mela A young boy is dressed after taking a holy dip at Sangam, the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna and Saraswati rivers Hindus believe bathing there during the Kumbh Mela helps cleanse sins and frees the soul from the cycle of death and rebirth. Two days before the gigantic bathing ritual begins, naked holy men wandered the banks smeared in ash, offering blessings for devotees. Other visitors rode elephants and sung religious hymns during processions which took place before the festivities began. Some devotees were even photographed taking a holy dip on the Triveni Sangam banks ahead of the festival's official start on Tuesday. An Indian holy man painted in ash smokes as he sits inside his tent among the Juna Akhara community, a sadhu order A man dries his hair after plunging into the Triveni Sangam banks - a process believed to help cleanse sins and free the soul from the cycle of death and rebirth Another group of women bathe and wash pots in the water ahead of the start of the Kumbh Mela festival in northern India A pair of Hindu devotees ride on an elephant decorated with paint and yellow cloth during a mass religious procession A holy man prepares tea outside his tent with a group ahead of the start of the Kumbh Mela festival - which ends in March 'We help devotees get rid of their pains and troubles through our blessings, sacred ash, yoga, knowledge and wisdom,' said Prahlad Puri, a holy man with his long knotted hair tied in a bun. 'We distribute food, we serve the poor.' According to Hindu mythology, gods and demons fought a war over a sacred pitcher, or kumbh, containing the nectar of immortality. Another holy man was seen cleaning the entrance of his bright orange and gold tent with a broom in preparation for the event Devotees holding banners and dressed in bright colours sing a religious hymn during a procession ahead of the festival Indian devotees from the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) take part in a religious procession The festival attracts millions of Hindu pilgrims to the sacred confluence of the Yamuna and Ganges rivers over 49 days between January 15 and March 4 During the tussle, a few drops fell to earth at four different locations - one being Allahabad. The historic city was recently renamed Prayagraj by the state's conservative Hindu government but is still widely known by Allahabad - the name it was given by Muslim rulers hundreds of years ago. The Mela, which runs from January 15 until March 4, was recognised as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2017. Worshippers ride camels in the festival area during the 'royal entry' for the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad on Sunday, January 13 A naked holy man, or Hindu Sadhu, sits and smokes beside a bonfire as he prepares tea outside his tent in northern India A woman lured to the UK under the false pretense that she'd become a model has spoken out about her time being forced into the British sex trade. The woman, a Romanian national, was taken from the country ten years ago and told if she didn't work in a pop up brothel her family would be killed. The woman, called Helena, was forced to have sex with strangers when she was aged 20 and didn't pocket any of the cash as pimps grabbed the 120 an hour clients paid. Describing her 'living nightmare' to the Daily Star Sunday, Helena said she was given cocaine every day until she eventually became hooked. The woman, a Romanian national, was taken from the country ten years ago and told if she didn't work in a pop up brothel her family would be killed She told the paper she was 'trapped' and added: 'My life in Romania was hard but that was nothing compared to what I've had to go through in the last 10 years. It's been hell.' Helena was duped into posing for sexy photos after flying to the UK when she was told she could be a model here. The pictures, depicting her clad in underwear, were actually put on a sex site and when she was told there was no modelling work, she was then footed with a 3000 bill. The sum was for a flat she was put up in and her flights. She said: 'Someone who knew our family told me I was pretty and could make it in the modelling world. Her documents were taken by the 'landlord' until she could pay up, being given a job as a 'masseuse' 'He said there was no chance I could do it in Romania but that he could use his connections to get me a modelling contract in England. 'I was only 20 and I didn't want to be struggling or to see my family struggle, so I jumped at the chance. 'I thought it was a chance to start a new life.' Helena told how she was taken to a flat by the man and encountered three other girls who were all told, along with Helena, that they'd have to pay 500 rent per week. She added that the man told her not to worry about the costly sum because she'd be working so much that she'd easily be able to cover it. It was then that her drug ordeal started. On her second day in the UK she was taken for a photo shoot in which she was told to pose in lingerie, she told a man that she wasn't comfortable with this and he gave the self-described 'naive' young woman a pill to 'relax' her. 'I thought they were trying to help me,' she said. After being told she'd have to cough up the 3000, her pictures appeared on a prostitution website alongside a price list. Her documents were taken by the 'landlord' until she could pay up, being given a job as a 'masseuse'. It turned out the job was not as a masseuse, but in reality she was duped into having sex with a man after being given a white powder to 'relax' her. Describing her 'living nightmare' to the Daily Star Sunday, Helena said she was given cocaine every day until she eventually became hooked 'After that I was feeling very bad because it wasn't what I was expecting. I told them I wouldn't do that again. 'That's when they started blackmailing me. 'They said if I didn't do what they said and pay off my debt they would kill all of my family in Romania,' she said. She was given more and more cocaine, leading to a habit that saw her debt worsen. She was eventually saved when an English client with underworld links helped her and last year her Romanian captors let her go. Unfortunately, her story is not unique. It's estimated that around 40% of trafficked women in the UK are Romanian, according to the Global Sex Trades report on organised sexual exploitation. An investigation into a scheme designed to help problem gamblers by banning them from betting websites has revealed that people are able to beat the system. GamStop, a free, independent self-exclusion scheme for people with online gambling problems, was launched in April 2018 and more than 50,000 people have signed up so far. Gamblers who sign up to the scheme should not be allowed to place bets on gambling websites after registering their details and choosing how long they should be banned for. David Bradford (right), 62, from Waterthorpe, Sheffield, kept his addiction which saw him spend up to 30,000 a year a secret from his wife Denise, left, and his three children, including Adam (centre) who worked with the BBC to expose flaws in Gamstop But BBC Radio 5 live investigates found a gambler who had signed up to the scheme could create new online betting accounts by simply changing their user details, including misspelling a surname. In response to the revelation, GamStop's Fiona Palmer admitted the service was not working well enough. Adam Bradford, from Sheffield, campaigns to raise awareness around the risks of online gambling. He was inspired to take up his work after his father David left his family bankrupt after losing more than 500,000 by playing slot machines online. David spent up to 30,000 a year and kept his gambling a secret from his wife Denise, 63 Adam registered with Gamstop but a few days later he was able to open a new online betting account - by changing a letter in his name. Adam, who was even offered 50 in free bets after registering on the sites, said other people had told him how easy it was to bypass the exclusion system. Speaking to the BBC, he said: 'I think it's scandalous - it means the hundreds of thousands of betting addicts across the country are not being protected. The industry is putting up what I think is a facade. It doesn't work'. When presented with the findings, the chief executive of GamStop, Ms Palmer said: 'We are taking on board the feedback and we are looking to improve the scheme'. The Gambling Commission, which regulates the industry, said it was looking to bring in tougher ID checks. It is soon expected to announce the results of a consultation on ID verification on online gambling sites to prevent gamblers from using incorrect details. The BBC also found flaws in the self-exclusion scheme for High Street bookmakers. A 5 live producer used Multi-Operator Self Exclusion Scheme (MOSES) to ban himself from 21 betting shops in Grimsby - but was still able to bet in 19 of them. David Bradford, 59, from Sheffield, kept his addiction a secret from his wife Denise, 63, and his three children In response to the revelation, operators of the scheme, the Senet Group, said 'lessons would be learned'. Then twelve months later, a different BBC producer banned himself from 20 of the same betting shops in Grimsby. Despite this he was allowed to place bets in 15 of them. The findings were met with criticism from the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB) - which said it was 'disappointed' with them. The trade association was encouraged by the results of a survey of genuine participants of the scheme. An independent survey carried out by charity GambleAware found that '83% said the scheme had been effective in reducing or stopping their gambling activity. It also found that 71% said they have not attempted to use their nominated betting shops since signing up. The Senet Group, which uses funding from bookmakers to run the scheme, was disappointed with the results of it. Senet believes MOSES is an 'important first step for people who genuinely want to reduce their gambling'. Shadow culture secretary Tom Watson promised to take the BBC's findings to the government as he thinks they prove the investigation demonstrated the two schemes 'aren't fit for purpose'. Labour MP Carolyn Harris, chairman of a cross-party group of MPs on gambling-related harm added: 'Any system which is easily manipulated like this is not worth it - they have to be robust enough to withstand deliberate attempts to get around them.' To find out more about the investigation, tune into 5 live Investigates at 11 GMT on Sunday 13 January on BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC Sounds. Liberal sensation Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has more power on Twitter than any other Democrat - including former President Barack Obama - although she is miles behind that other social media force: President Donald Trump. The freshman Democratic representative has generated more interactions - retweets plus likes - on the social media site than party leaders Obama, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. She is second only to the president, Axios found, when it measured the Twitter star power of several politicians. Liberal sensation Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has more power on Twitter than any other Democrat The freshman lawmaker trails President Donald Trump however Rep. Ocasio-Cortez has 2.4 million twitter followers Trump has 57.3 million twitter followers And she trails Trump by millions - Ocasio-Cortez came in with 11.8 million interactions while the president easily outdistanced her at 39.8 million interactions. Ocasio-Cortez gets more bang for her buck though. She only has 2.3 million twitter followers to the president's 57.3 million. The freshman lawmaker, who took office in January, stunned Democrats in June when she beat sitting Democratic Rep. Joe Crowley in their primary. She's been a prolific user of social media - using her Twitter account to slam fellow Democrats, interact with journalists and state her opinions. Trump tweets frequently but he only tends to have direct interactions with the official White House twitter account, his staff or the first lady. Coming in third was California Sen. Kamala Harris, who has a new book out and is contemplating a 2020 presidential bid. Obama comes in fourth with Pelosi sixth and Schumer seventh. Even Beto O'Rourke, who became a social media sensation when he tried to knock of Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, trailed Ocasio-Cortez. He logged only 1.8 million interactions. Sen. Kamala Harris came in third and former President Barack Obama came in fourth with Twitter interactions Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Speaker Nancy Pelosi didn't crack the top five Axios noted a discrepancy in the volume of tweets too: Trump: 9.1 tweets per day Ocasio-Cortez: 5.8 tweets per day Harris: 9.7 tweets per day Obama: 0.4 tweets per day. Despite Ocasio-Cortez' telegenic approach to self-promotion and her social media star power, Democratic House leaders have sought to sideline her in practical ways that could limit the public's exposure to her less mainstream views. When she made a play this month for a seat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee, a senior Democrat told Politico that '[i]t totally pissed off everyone. You dont get picked for committees by who your grass-roots [supporters] are.' Veteran Democratic members suspected Ocasio-Cortez was behind a siable online campaign to convince Speaker Nancy Pelosi to give her the plum appointment. And she is expected to loudly advocate for Democratic primary campaigns against some of the middle-of-the-road members of her own party in Congress. Her new chief of staff, Saikat Chakrabarti, told supporters during a November conference call that 'we gotta primary folks.' Trooper Christopher Lambert (pictured), 34, was struck and killed while on the scene of a three-vehicle car crash Saturday afternoon An Illinois state trooper was tragically killed while investigating a traffic accident over the weekend. Off-duty trooper Christopher Lambert, 34, was struck and killed while on the scene of a three-vehicle car crash Saturday afternoon around 4.45pm. The married father-of-one was on his way home to his family when he spotted the accident in the left lane of I-294 near Willow Road, according to a statement from the Illinois State Police (ISP). Lambert was trying to save the lives of the passengers involved in the crash when he was struck by a Jeep that failed to stop. The impact threw Lambert several feet. 'Trooper Lambert deliberately placed his vehicle in a position to protect the lives of the victims of the previous crash, and took on the danger himself,' said ISP Director Leo P. Schmitz Lambert suffered serious injuries and was given CPR by an off-duty nurse at the scene. He was then transported to Glenbrook Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later. 'Trooper Lambert was a great trooper and was respected by those within and from outside the ISP, this is a tremendous loss which could have been prevented and should have never happened,' Schmitz said. Schmitz said Lambert will be 'remembered for his dedication to the Illinois State Police and for giving the ultimate sacrifice to protect and serve the citizens of Illinois'. The married father-of-one was on his way home to his family when he spotted the accident in the left lane of I-294 near Willow Road, according to a statement from the Illinois State Police (ISP) Lambert suffered serious injuries and was given CPR by an off-duty nurse at the scene (pictured). He was then transported to Glenbrook Hospital where he succumbed to his injuries a short time later Lambert was a five-year veteran of the Illinois State Police District 15 in Downers Grove and was assigned to the Criminal Patrol Team. He was also a former member of the United States Army. 'We lost our trooper, we became weaker,' Schmitz said. 'We lost one of our own, one of our best. Everybody loved him.' Lambert's body was escorted to the Cook County medical examiner's office later Saturday night. Photos show dozens of officers standing in the snow as they saluted the patrol cars as they drove by. Earlier on Saturday, the ISP encouraged local residents to stay off the roads after multiple crashes occurred during the day. Lambert, who was also a former member of the United States Army, leaves behind his wife, Halley (left, together) and their one-year-old daughter Lambert's body was escorted to the Cook County medical examiner's office later Saturday night. Officers paid tribute to the fallen trooper during a procession Police have said they will never reveal the true extent of serial killer Levi Bellfield's horrific crimes to protect the families of his victims Police have said they will never reveal the true extent of serial killer Levi Bellfield's horrific crimes to protect the families of his victims. Bellfield, 50, was found guilty of murdering French student Amelie Delagrange, 22, in 2004, and killing Marsha McDonnell, 19, in 2003. He was found guilty of the murder of Milly Dowler, 13, in 2011 and is one of around 50 British prisoners serving a whole life sentence, meaning he will never be released. Three women recently came forward to say they had been attacked by Bellfield after ITV's Manhunt, which re-tells the events leading up to the serial killer's arrest. Bellfield first confessed to his sickening crimes in three interviews with police officers in February and April 2015, reports the Daily Star. He gave a 'detailed description of violent and depraved offences', including Milly's rape and murder, as well as 'other offending'. Surrey Police have said the transcripts from the interviews will never be released because it will cause 'further unwarranted emotional damage' to the families. Replying to a Freedom of Information request, the forces information access manager Tony Smith said: 'We believe public disclosure is highly likely to cause further unwarranted emotional damage and trauma to the families of Levi Bellfields victims, especially to the Dowler family, who in their own words "have had to endure so much".' Since the show, the officer that first nailed Bellfied, Colin Sutton, has revealed three women made contact with him to say they had been targeted by the monster. Retired detective Mr Sutton, played by Martin Clunes in the series, told The Mirror that there was 'little doubt' that some of Bellfield's victims had still not come forward. The television drama, which ended on Tuesday 8 January was based on Mr Sutton's memoir which detailed his experiences during the case. Bellfield is one of around 50 British prisoners serving a whole life sentence, meaning he will never be released. He confessed to the murders in 2015, and gave a 'detailed description of violent and depraved offences', including Milly Dowler's rape and murder. Pictured: Milly Amelie Delagrange (left) was murdered in 2004 while Marsha McDonnell, aged 19, (right) died in 2003, yards from her home after getting off a bus. Surrey Police are withholding transcripts from interviews to prevent 'further unwarranted emotional damage and trauma to the families' The ITV drama Manhunt, which re-tells the events leading up to the serial killer's arrest and stars Martin Clunes as detective Colin Sutton, has inspired other women to come forward The programme followed the then Met detective and his team as they linked the 2004 murder of French student Amelie Delagrange, 22, in Twickenham, with the 2003 killing of Marsha McDonnell, 19, and the 2002 murder of Milly Dowler, 13, in Walton-on-Thames. After Manhunt had aired Mr Sutton said Catherine Harvey, 33, told him that Bellfield tried to lure her into his car in 2002 when she was 17. She said: 'He was really intimidating... I was terrified.' It also emerged last week that he was part of a paedophile gang which preyed on more than 17 children in care, according to a council review. Scotland Yard is studying the report which reveals links between the serial killer and six men accused of grooming children as young as 13 to be raped. Those men have never faced justice and continue to 'pose a serious threat to children', the report by a respected social worker claims. Bellfield is said to have been a member of a Rotherham-style child sex ring in Hanwell, West London preying on victims from two children's homes. His 'associates', who allegedly used Bellfield's flat as a 'raping room', were never caught. A six-month study of police and children's home records has identified at least 17 potential victims aged 13 to 16, including a girl who told police she was assaulted at the age of 14 in Bellfield's home only days before he killed Amelie Delagrange in 2004. A grandmother who was found to be alive in a morgue when an employee tied a tag to her foot died from hypothermia as she was rushed to hospital. The 62-year-old, from Amur in Russia, had been drinking with relatives at a party in Vasilyevka when it appeared she had died. Onlookers then called the police who certified the woman had passed away, reports say. The grandmother, from Amur in Russia, had been drinking with relatives at a party when she appeared to have died But when an undertaker was called to take the grandmother to the morgue - a worker discovered she was still alive. The apparent 'corpse' started moving and 'came to life' when the employee tied a number tag to her foot. The morgue worker immediately called an ambulance and paramedics spent 40 minutes resuscitating the woman. She had suffered from 'extreme cold' according to the chief doctor of Belogorsk Hospital Mikhail Danilov. Mikhail Danilov, chief doctor of Belogorsk Hospital, said paramedics spent 40 minutes trying to resuscitate the woman The grandmother was then taken to intensive care and died later the same day after suffering from 'hypothermia', the region's health ministry said. Medics claim if she had received prompt medical care instead of being taken to the morgue, she might have survived. A police investigation into her death is now underway. A health official said the policeman at the scene had broken rules by failing to call an ambulance and instead certifying the woman as dead himself. 'The police officer did not call for an ambulance, as required by instructions,' said an official. 'He certified the death on his own, called the undertaker's and sent the body to the morgue without accompanying documents.' The estranged Russian wife of white nationalist leader Richard Spencer has detailed allegations of their violent and abusive marriage as their bitter divorce continues to plays out in court. Nina Kouprianova, who married Spencer in 2010 and is the mother of his two young children, filed for divorce in Whitefish, Montana last year. She has previously claimed in interviews and in court documents that her 40-year-old estranged husband physically, verbally and emotionally abused her throughout their eight year marriage. In an interview with HuffPost, Kouprianova detailed specific allegations of abuse she suffered at the hands of Spencer dating back to the early days of their relationship. Nina Kouprianova, who married Richard Spencer in 2010 and is the mother of his two young children, filed for divorce in Whitefish, Montana last year The couple married in Niagra Falls back in August 2010 but had planned a larger ceremony in Whitefish where they lived for January 2011. Kouprianova said she was in bed with a stomach bug just days before the 2011 ceremony when Spencer asked her to watch a James Bond movie with him in the basement. When she said no, Kouprianova claims Spencer dragged her down the stairs by her legs and hair. They went ahead with the ceremony days later and Kouprianova said she was hopeful the incident wouldn't happen again. Kouprianova claims he also held her by the neck and jaw when she was four months pregnant in July 2014 and pushed her into a stove on another occasion when she was also pregnant. She alleges to have hours worth of recordings of Spencer screaming at her and telling her to kill herself. Spencer, who has been dubbed the 'dapper' white nationalist and is a figurehead for far-right groups, married his Russian-born wife in 2010 She has previously claimed in interviews and in court documents that her 40-year-old estranged husband physically, verbally and emotionally abused her throughout their eight year marriage In a series of text messages Kouprianova says were exchanged with Spencer in 2016, he tells her: 'F**k you. Please kill yourself'. 'I hope you kill yourself. I would actually respect you,' another message read. She allegedly responded: 'I apologize for getting into an argument with you. I was hurt by your lack of simple five-minute attention'. Spencer wrote back: 'You are a disgusting c**t'. He also told her: 'The fact that you're in your mid-30s and you're still this pathetic means you'll never change... so again, suicide seems to be your best option.' Spencer denies physically abusing his wife but did admit to yelling at her. 'I get frustrated. She makes me frustrated,' he told the HuffPost. 'It's tough talk, words said in anger. There is a red line between actually doing something.' Kouprianova currently lives in Whitefish in an apartment with the couple's two children and her dog. She said Spencer took their car when they split and she only receives $550 in child support a month and no alimony. Currently, Spencer is only allowed supervised visits with their two children. He will soon be allowed unsupervised visits at his mother's home. She claims she fears for her children with the change to supervision as their divorce proceedings continue to play out in court. Their divorce proceedings continue to play out in court as Kouprianova alleges a violent and abusive marriage. Emails and text messages between the pair have been included in previous court documents (pictured above) Spencer was one of the organizers of the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where a woman protesting against white supremacy was killed when a car ran her over and he claims to have invented the term 'alt-right' The pair, who initially met on Facebook in 2009 and started exchanging messages, separated in 2016. Her lawyers said in court papers that Kouprianova was 'reluctant to call police or seek an order of protection for fear of further reprisal by Spencer'. Spencer, who has been dubbed the 'dapper' white nationalist and is a figurehead for far-right groups, popularized the term 'alternative right' to describe a fringe movement mixing white nationalism, anti-Semitism and other far-right extremist views. He is the president of white nationalist think tank the National Policy Institute. Spencer has previously said he rejects the label of white supremacist and considers himself a white nationalist or 'white identitarian'. He was one of the organizers of the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, where a woman protesting against white supremacy was killed when a car ran her over and he claims to have invented the term 'alt-right'. Spencer's 'controversial public life' was cited as a reason for the divorce proceedings as it had led 'his entire family to be targets of violence'. In an affidavit filed by Kouprianova, she said: 'despite the risk to his family, (Spencer) continues to engage in extremely polarizing public speech advocating 'peaceful ethnic cleansing' and a white-only 'ethno-state' which tends to invite passions and violence. 'Most, if not all, of (Spencer's) public speaking events result in violence.' Advertisement Macedonian revellers are flocking in their thousands to celebrate one of the longest-running, and strangest, carnivals in the world. Featuring swastikas, zombies and skeletons, there is no shortage of pomp and pageantry at the Vevcani Carnival, which is believed to be 1,400 years old. The pagan festival is held every year on the eve of the feast of Saint Basil (January 14), which also denotes the beginning of the New Year according to the Julian calendar, observed by the Macedonian Orthodox Church. Combining pre-Christian customs with modern forms of expression, the Vevcani Carnival is said to 'transform the needs of contemporary society' by addressing topics of the day. Named after the village of Vevcani, the Carnival officially became a part of the World Federation of Carnival Cities in 1993. During the boisterous proceedings, traditional music is played on zurlas (a traditional double-reed woodwind instrument) and drums by Carnival participants known as 'Vasilicari'. And carnival-goers lacking the necessary instruments still make their presence heard with bells, pots, pans, and even bins. Disguised revellers take part in a carnival procession through south-western Macedonia's village of Vevcani, on January 13, 2019 A bold reveller with a swastika on his cheek plays an instrument as he takes part in a carnival procession through Vevcani Local villagers wearing homemade costumes parade during a carnival celebration marking the Orthodox St. Vasilij Day in the village of Vevcani Crimson costumes: Carnival-goers take part in processions over the three day period on the eve of the feast of Saint Basil, which also denotes the beginning of the New Year according to the Julian calendar, observed by the Macedonian Orthodox Church Other revellers adopt a more minimalist approach to their home-made costumes with two men going for the all-black look Terrifying trio: the Vevcani Carnival is one of the most famous village festivals in the Balkans and is believed to be over 1,400 years old Half-clad men wearing ram's heads are photographed singing and dancing their way through the streets as locals celebrate the passing of the old year and the coming of the new one A reveller poses during a parade on the streets during a carnival to mark the annual Orthodox St. Vasilij Day in Vevcani Devilish: The Vevcani Carnival is one of the most famous and cherished village festivals in the Balkans Combining pre-Christian customs with modern forms of expression, the Vevcani Carnival is said to 'transform the needs of contemporary society' by addressing topics of the day Shrouded in shrubbery: Vevcani is recognised by the Federation of European Carnival Cities (FECC) and World Federation of Cities Some of the most typical costumes include devils and mythical characters of a demonic nature as this festival-goer highlights Red and black are two popular colours among the thousands of local and international visitors who participate in the Carnival Participants, or 'Vasilicari', parade through the streets to celebrate the coming of the New Year according to the Julian calendar Spooky: Some carnival-goers prefer to stand and watch while others prefer to take the procession a little more seriously Dancing through the snow: in spite of the heavy snowfall in Macedonia, red revellers skate onto the streets undeterred Satanic costumes are a regular feature of the village festival that has garnered international acclaim and recognition Who shot ya? A cavalcade of comedic outfits show the diverse range of clothing options on offer at the Vevcani Festival Pagan customs included animal and pig sacrifices during the pre-Christian age in Macedonia and elsewhere The satanic overtones of the festival drew a sharp contrast to the more light-hearted elements of the festival Avant-garde costumes and make-up combine pre-Christian customs with modern forms of expression A parade performer, during a carnival in the village of Vevcani about 170 kms from the capital of Skopje on January 13 Blood soaked: the freezing cold temperatures did not prevent hundreds of carnival-goers from stripping down to their trousers During the boisterous proceedings, traditional music is played on zurlas (a traditional double-reed woodwind instrument) and drums by Carnival participants Carnival-goers garbed in Orthodox Christian clothing merge elements of the old with the new in this year's procession A large Romanian flag flaps in the wind beside an imposing guillotine structure that is carried through the procession Feeling horny: people wearing costumes take part in Vevcani carnival through the southwestern Macedonia's village of Vevcani Two carnival-goers pose for a photo at Vevcani Carnival marking the annual Orthodox St. Vasilij Day in the village of Vevcani Bandaged up: performers dance in the streets wearing masks that reflect pagan rituals, religious issues, or satires of current events Always the bridesmaid: a man donning a wedding dress with a 100 down his bosom marches on through the streets Revellers cart through a make-shift guillotine, a method of execution that rose to prominence during the French Revolution Pig heads concealed the faces of several revellers while others chose to cover other parts of their bodies Celebration: two young men covered in flower carry on their celebrations as they march their way through Vevcani Gender-neutral: Other male festival-goers opted for traditionally female Macedonian clothing with one opting for a spot of rouge lipstick too Onlookers laugh as three vine-covered men parade through the village of Vevcani on the penultimate day of the Carnival A cheeky puff: One festival-goer enjoys a quick smoking break in front of a beautiful snowy backdrop One reveller opts fora smattering of cranberry-like spots around the eyes with glittery along the cheeks Powering through: Vevcanci Carnival-goers believe that with their masks they banish evil spirits from their lives Masked performers parade the streets in Vevcani, on January 13, 2014, which coincides with the Twelve Days of the Orthodox Christmas and the Orthodox New Year Bug's life: furry masks shielded participants' faces from the view of the camera and spectators Local villagers applied make-up of all varieties, with two woman covering themselves in a dark brown shade A skint student who quaffed a 1,750 bottle of vintage wine as he celebrated his birthday alone at The Savoy hotel - before trying to do a runner has been ordered by a judge to settle his bill. Yahya Egeh spent his 20th birthday on his own in the swanky restaurant at the famous five-star venue on the after being stood up by a woman, he claims. A court has now ordered Egeh to pay back what he owes, but spared him the 238.50p service charge. The cheeky architecture student, who had been given 20 by his mum to buy himself a birthday meal, decided to drown his sorrows by ordering a 1,750 bottle of 2004 Chateau Mouton Rothschild. Yahya Egeh hides from the press as he leaves Westminster Magistrates Court where he was facing a charge of running up a bill at the Savoy When Egeh saw the bill for 2146.50, including service charge, he tried to slip out of the famous eatery Described as 'distinctive and stylish', tasting notes say the wine has a 'strong, dark and deep colour, while the nose displays a subtle complexity on fruity notes of black cherry, candied quince and liquorice with touches of cold smoke'. When Egeh saw the bill for 2146.50, including service charge, he tried to slip out of the famous eatery, on The Strand in central London, without paying. But he was nabbed by security before he could get away. He pleaded guilty to making off without payment at Westminster Magistrates Court during an earlier hearing. Benita Rosco, prosecuting, told a sentencing hearing at the same court on Friday that Egeh entered the hotel's restaurant at 9pm on December 5th last year. She said: 'He ordered a bottle of wine and a meal. 'He ate alone. 'The bottle of wine was a Rothschild and cost 1,750,' Westminster Magistrates heard 'He told a member of staff that he was expecting a friend and asked to be moved to a bigger table. 'Shortly after he said he was going out for a cigarette. 'The security guard saw him outside and saw him walking towards The Strand. 'He asked him if he had paid for the bill and the defendant said he had paid in cash. 'He checked this and found he was incorrect. 'The defendant told police his friend had agreed to bring him there for a birthday treat. 'The bottle of wine was a Rothschild and cost 1,750. 'His food cost 158 and there was a service charge of 238.50. 'We are asking for the 1,908, not the service charge.' Mohammed Ullah, in mitigation, said it wasn't a 'sophisticated' crime. Mr Ullah said: 'We do accept there was a degree of planning. The Savoy Hotel main entrance. Hotel management are asking for repayment minus service 'But there's no sophistication as you have heard. 'He's a man of previous good character, he's a young man, he turned 20 on December 5, that same day. 'He has eight siblings, one is an accountant and another has just graduated in engineering. 'He is doing an BA in architecture. 'He's doing extremely well in his course, he got an A+ for a group project and an A- for coursework. 'After his degree he plans to do a masters and then a PhD.' The District Judge Anthony Woodcock said although he had taken into account the mitigating factors, he said it was a 'serious offence' in that he had ordered a bottle of wine 'well beyond the means' of most people. However, he did let Egeh off paying the 238.50p service charge. Sentencing Egeh, he told him: 'I have taken into account your guilty plea, that you are a young man of previous good character and that you seem to be doing things to make your way in the world. 'I have taken into account the fact that you are apologetic. 'This was nevertheless a serious offence, you went into the restaurant at The Savoy hotel and, at some point, you decided you would help yourself to a bottle of wine well beyond the means of anyone in this court room and most of the people outside it. 'It's right that there is a community order towards the lower end of the spectrum. 'The order will be for 12 months, during the course of those 12 months you must do 60 hours of community service unpaid. 'You must pay prosecution costs of 85, a victim surcharge of 85 and compensation of 1,908. This is a total of 2078.' Egeh, of Harlesden, north west London, was told he has until May 11 to pay up. A man crashed his car into five other vehicles and then leaped into a canal to escape police, leaving his girlfriend and a toddler inside. The red Vauxhall Corsa was left upside down in the road after it flipped over in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, yesterday. The woman and 18-month-old child were taken to hospital while the unnamed driver was arrested, police in Derbyshire said. The vehicle had been carrying false number plates and failed to stop in the town centre, police said. The red Vauxhall Corsa (pictured) was left upside down in the road after it flipped over in Long Eaton, Derbyshire, yesterday Police at the scene after the vehicle crashed with the driver's partner and a young child inside The aftermath of the police chase which ended with the vehicle lying upside down in the road It hit five other vehicles, including a collision with a Mitsubishi L200 Warrior in Tamworth Road which flipped the Corsa over. The driver was then seen leaping into a nearby canal, Derbyshire Roads Policing Unit said on Twitter. Police said in a statement: 'A man has been detained by police after the vehicle he was travelling in collided with another and ended up on its roof. 'A red Vauxhall Corsa failed to stop for police in the town at about 2.10pm. 'It collided with a small number of vehicles during the incident, including a Mitsubishi L200 Warrior. 'That collision happened in Tamworth Road and resulted in the Corsa ending up on its roof. 'A man was detained at the scene and has been taken to hospital to be checked over. 'A woman and baby who were in the Corsa were also taken to hospital for checks. No one was reported as injured in the Mitsubishi. 'An investigation into the incident is ongoing and there will be disruption to traffic while that continues. 'Witnesses or anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting incident 674 of January 12.' A close-up picture of the upside-down Corsa after it crashed in Derbyshire yesterday The severely damaged Corsa is led away by a truck after the crash, which was followed by the driver's attempt to escape into the canal (pictured behind) Police shut the road down after the crash. Police warned there would be disruption to traffic while the investigation into Saturday's incident continues Hundreds of commuters in London, Berlin and Prague stripped off their trousers to take a half-naked trip for the annual No Trousers On The Tube ride. The event is part of the worldwide No Pants Subway Ride, which began in New York in 2002 and has since spread to more than 60 cities across the globe. In London, crowds met outside the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square before heading underground where they boarded trains on different Tube lines across the capital. More than 100 people piled on to the Piccadilly Line, where they struggled to remove their trousers due to the large crowds. Hundreds of London Underground commuters took part in the 10th annual No Trousers On The Tube ride this afternoon Regular Sunday passengers were left bewildered as men and women sat in their brightly-coloured underwear talking, reading and taking pictures of each other Brave passengers ride a Jubilee Line train as they take part in the event on Sunday afternoon Another group posed at Canada Wharf as they took part in the No Trousers On The Tube event Regular Sunday passengers were left bewildered as men and women sat in their brightly-coloured underwear talking, reading and taking pictures of each other. After changing to the Jubilee Line at Green Park, the group got off at Canary Wharf to do some aerobics on the platform before jumping on another train. Other groups set off for London landmarks, including one which headed to Parliament. Sisters Tessa and Matilda Deterding said they had come for the first time because they liked the idea behind it. Some brave revellers even stopped to pose half-naked as they travelled around the city Crowds piled onto various Tube lines across the capital in brightly-coloured underwear The event is part of the worldwide No Pants Subway Ride, which began in New York in 2002 and has since spread to over 60 cities around the globe Young people wearing no trousers participate in the 'No Pants Subway Ride' in Prague, Czech Republic on Sunday Tessa, 24, from London, said: 'We read about it and thought it sounded hilarious. I wasn't nervous about it. 'I quite like the sentiment behind it, instead of a stiff upper lip it's having a bit of a laugh.' Matilda, 22, said: 'I did especially pick out my pants, you have got to pick out a nice opaque one. Four young people wait to board a train wearing brightly-coloured underwear, trainers, and coats in Prague Some even opted to brave the challenge shoeless as they made their way through a subway station One man in Berlin, Germany opted for bright pink underwear covered in cartoon images of broccoli 'You don't want to give too much of a spectacle.' Trouserless revellers then headed to The Chandos pub in Trafalger Square for an after party. The London event was organised by the Stiff Upper Lip Society, which asked participants to 'avoid thongs/budgie-smugglers/anything see-through as we aim to amuse, not offend, fellow Underground users'. The London event was organised by the Stiff Upper Lip Society, which asked participants to 'avoid thongs/budgie-smugglers/anything see-through' A group of three women (left) sit on a circle line train in their underwear as a young mother (right) waits on a platform with her son in London One of the organisers, Farhan Rasheed, said there was not really an aim to the event, it was just a bit of fun Some participants in Germany dressed even more elaborately in bright orange Lycra shirts with their hair sprayed pink One of the organisers, Farhan Rasheed, said there was not really an aim to the event, it was just a bit of fun. He added: 'There is no point to it, we are not campaigning or raising awareness of anything. 'People just have fun doing it, it's a bit of a nonsense day out. People walk to a Jubilee Line train as they take part in the annual No Trousers On The Tube Day Revellers show off brightly-coloured and patterned underwear as they brave the tube on a cold winter's day The No Pants Subway Ride also took place in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on Sunday 'You very rarely get people who are offended. It's London and London is used to this stuff, they take it in their stride and get back to their book.' The event also took place in Berlin and Prague on Sunday as dozens of passengers hopped on the Metro and U-Bahn half dressed. Some participants in Germany dressed even more elaborately in bright orange Lycra shirts with their hair sprayed pink. The No Pants Subway Ride was also reported to have taken place across Chicago, New York City, Amsterdam and San Francisco this weekend. Half-naked travellers almost filled an entire train carriage after gathering at Vijzelgracht metro station in their underwear Others in Amsterdam posted for photographs as they surprised fellow passengers in their underwear A group of fearless friends laughed together as they exited a tube station during the event French riot police have deployed semi-automatic weapons with live ammunition against Yellow Vest protestors for the first time. Officers were filmed brandishing Heckler & Koch G36 weapons by the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on Saturday afternoon. The presence of semi-automatic rifles at a demonstration by unarmed French citizens shows how President Emmanuel Macrons law and order crisis spirals. It comes after former conservative minister Luc Ferry called for live fire to be used against the thugs from the Yellow Vest movement who he says 'beat up police'. Officers were filmed brandishing Heckler & Koch G36 weapons by the Arc de Triomphe in Paris on Saturday afternoon French riot police are now using semi-automatic weapons with live ammunition against Yellow Vest protestors as Macron's law and order crisis spirals It comes after former conservative minister Luc Ferry called for live fire to be used against the thugs from the Yellow Vest movement who he says 'beat up police' French riot police have deployed semi-automatic weapons with live ammunition against Yellow Vest protestors for the first time Riot police were on crowd control duty today facing off a mob of Gilet Jaunes or Yellow Vests - named after the bright high-visibility clothing. Live ammunition 30 cartridge magazines could be seen as officers marched the streets, although none were used as 5000 police were deployed on the streets of the French capital. Yellow Vest protestor Gilles Caron said: The CRS with the guns were wearing riot control helmets and body armour they were not a specialised firearms unit. Their job was simply to threaten us with lethal weapons in a manner which is very troubling. We deserve some explanations. The CRS are known for their tough approach to policing, frequently using distinctively wide-barrelled guns to fire flash-ball projectiles and tear gas canisters. But until now, the guns used have mainly been associated with specialist military units, as well as the elite GIPN police intervention squads, and the BAC anti-criminal brigade. The CRS are known for their tough approach to policing, frequently using distinctively wide-barrelled guns to fire flash-ball projectiles and tear gas canisters A French National Police spokesman confirmed that the CRS were equipped with H&K G36s on Saturday, but would not discuss their operational use for security reasons. A G36 was stolen from inside a police van during a similar Yellow Vest demonstration by the Arc de Triomphe on December 1. A number of vehicles belonging to the 21stIntervention Company of the Paris Prefecture were stormed, suggesting that the theft was an opportunistic one during a day of intense violence, when the Arc de Triomphe itself was vandalised. Last week, Luc Ferry, who was Frances education minister in the early 2000s, responded to a series of attacks on police by the Yellow Vests by calling for live fire against them. A French National Police spokesman confirmed that the CRS were equipped with H&K G36s on Saturday Mr Ferry, who is now a full time philosopher, said: What I dont understand is that we dont give the means to the police to put an end to this violence.' When it was suggested that guns might lead to wounding or worse, Mr Ferry said: So what? Listen, frankly, when you see guys beating up an unfortunate policeman on the floor, thats when they should use their weapons once and for all! Thats enough. Police were attacked in major cities including Paris on Saturday on an Act 9 Day of Rage by the Yellow Vests, who have pledged to continue their campaign calling for social, political and economic reforms indefinitely. Mr Macrons government has launched a crackdown on their methods, pledging a new anti-riot law to deal with them. Sgt Wytasha Carter, 44, was shot while on duty around 2am Sunday morning One Birmingham police sergeant has been killed and another officer critically wounded early Sunday morning in a shooting as they questioned two people suspected of trying to break into cars in Alabama's largest city. Two suspects are in custody, one of whom was shot and is receiving medical treatment, officials said. Police identified the officer who was fatally shot as Sgt. Wytasha Carter, 44, who had been with the department since 2011. They haven't released the names of the wounded officer or the suspects. Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith said the officers approached the two suspects just before 2am outside a nightclub in downtown Birmingham, after a plainclothes officer spotted one checking door handles on cars parked outside the venue. Smith said one suspect opened fire after being confronted by the officers. 'This is one of the roughest hours of your career,' Smith said at a news conference, according to local media reports. 'There's not a chief, not an officer that ever wants to have to deal with this. This is a very difficult thing for the family, very difficult for the department.' Officers were working a special detail in response to a rash of car break-ins in that area. He was inspecting a car burglary in Birmingham with another officer and when they approached two suspects, one of the men fired When the undercover officer spotted suspects who appeared to be testing door handles on cars, he called for backup and Carter arrived, officials said. 'The officers approached one suspect and patted him down where they found what they believed to be a weapon,' Smith said. 'They asked him about it, he armed himself and fired upon our officers.' Smith added: 'It appears our officers were unable to respond. They were taken completely by surprise. We can't go into great detail because we are still in the infancy stage of the investigation.' Carter began his law enforcement career in 2002 as a correctional officer with the Shelby County Sheriff's Office and worked for two other police departments before transferring to the Birmingham department. Carter had been with the department since 2011. They haven't released the names of the wounded officer or the suspects Carter succumbed to his injuries while the other officer was critically wounded He was promoted to sergeant in February 2018. News outlets said this is the first Birmingham officer killed in the line of duty in more than 14 years. Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin called for prayers on Twitter. 'Join me in praying for the family of the Birmingham Police officer killed early this morning, and the officer who is currently in the hospital. They were shot while serving and protecting our city,' he tweeted. U.S. Attorney Jay E. Town issued a statement calling the shooting 'a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers all law enforcement face while we sleep.' Theresa May's fate could rest in the hands of Speaker John Bercow as Remainer rebels plot to tear up the Commons rule book in order to stop Brexit going ahead. Mr Bercow could effectively end the Prime Minister's career if he allows a 'coup' bid to go ahead that could see the government stripped of control over business in Parliament. The move - which No10 believes is being orchestrated by former ministers Oliver Letwin and Dominic Grieve - could happen within hours of Mrs May's Brexit plan being defeated on Tuesday, as seems inevitable. Ministers have been warned success for the plotters could make it impossible for the government to cling on. Experts said the changes, which turn the constitution on its head by giving Parliament the executive's powers, 'should not be possible', but suggested Mr Bercow might let them happen regardless. Senior government sources said the prospect of Mr Bercow playing such a pivotal role was 'terrifying', after he flouted procedure last week to help MPs opposed to Mrs May's deal. Brexiteers were even more scathing, with Tory MP Andrew Bridgen saying of Mr Bercow: 'He is showing himself for the despot he is.' Commons Speaker John Bercow (pictured) could hold the fate of the PM in his hands Legal experts have warned the Remainer plot could paralyse the PM (pictured at church in her Maidenhead constituency today) The high-stakes battle emerged as Mrs May launched another desperate effort to salvage the package she has thrashed out with Brussels. Mrs May said failing to deliver on the verdict of the referendum would be 'unforgivable' and a 'catastrophe' for democracy. At the start of an historic week in Parliament that could make or break Brexit: Former PM Sir John Major has joined calls for Article 50 to be revoked to give the UK more time, reiterating his support for a second referendum. Mrs May is still thought to be on track for a huge defeat on her Brexit deal, with speculation it could be the biggest ever suffered by a government. Cabinet ministers have warned of a 'Brexit bunfight' between supporters of alternative policies if Mrs May's package is killed off. Hopes are fading of significant concessions from the EU before the crunch Parliamentary clash. Jeremy Corbyn hinted Labour is preparing to force a no-confidence vote this week if the premier loses the Commons showdown. Fourteen military planners are said to have have been deployed to Whitehall departments to help with preparations for border chaos if the UK crashes out. Hardline Remainers and Brexiteers have been mobilising in a bid to thwart her plans. Downing Street said it was 'extremely concerned' about a backbench plot to change Commons rules to enable backbench motions to take precedence over Government business, warning it was a 'real threat' to its ability to function. One senior source branded the plan a 'very British coup', according to the Sunday Times. The government currently has power to control business in the chamber - which is especially crucial when there is no overall majority. The executive proposes legislation and motions, which are then scrutinised by MPs. But ripping up the system to give backbenchers priority over Parliamentary time could fundamentally change the balance. How could the 'coup' plot work? The rules of the House of Commons have been developed over centuries. They are largely set down in Erskine May - known as the procedural 'Bible' - and Standing Orders. The government currently has power to control business in the chamber - which is especially crucial when there is no overall majority. The executive proposes legislation and motions, which are then scrutinised by MPs. But ripping up the system to give backbenchers priority over Parliamentary time could fundamentally change the balance. MPs would be able to prevent ministers bringing forward legislation, and stage votes on what should happen next - potentially even binding ones. Speaker John Bercow will play a key role in pushing through any changes, which would effectively turn the constitutional settlement on its head. No10 sources admit that the tactic could effectively remove their ability to govern. Advertisement MPs would be able to prevent ministers bringing forward legislation, and stage votes on what should happen next - potentially even binding ones. The tactic apparently emerged when one of the conspirators was overheard in the MPs' cloakroom by Mr Smith. He reportedly sought advice from legal experts, who said: 'Such an attempt represents a clear and present danger to all government business. 'Without control of the order paper, the government has no control over the House of Commons and the parliamentary business and legislation necessary to progress government policies. The government would lose its ability to govern.' The manoeuvring was only uncovered by Chief Whip Julian Smith when he overheard conspirators in the MPs' cloakroom. There are claims Speaker John Bercow is ready to help the backbench uprising, after he secretly met Mr Grieve last week. The ex-head of legislation at No10, Nikki da Costa, said she had 'never seen something so designed to undermine government stability'. She said the amendments required to make the overhaul happen would 'normally not be in scope' and 'shouldn't be possible'. 'But with this Speaker... if passed it would be catastrophic,' she added. 'I don't say that lightly. I've never seen something so designed to undermine government stability.' Asked about the claims, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said: 'What recent events have shown, with events over the last week with what happened on the legal advice where the Government was forced to act in a way it didn't want to, is the uncertainty in terms of what will happen in the House has increased. Mr Bercow allowed an amendment tabled by Mr Grieve last week (pictured) that flew in the face of usual Commons procedure, and led to the PM's second major setback in 24 hours No10 also believes Sir Oliver Letwin (pictured) is behind the plot to overhaul Commons rules 'So those on the Brexiteer side seeking ideological purity with a deal are risking Brexit, because there is a growing risk that events could unfold in ways that (mean) they are leaving the door ajar to ways that increase the risk to Brexit.' Pressed repeatedly on what the government's Plan B was, Mr Barclay said he thought MPs would end up passing a package 'on the lines' of that proposed by Mrs May. Mr Grieve is said to have refused to deny he is involved in the scheme. The PM's allies have also pointed the finger at ex-minister Sir Oliver Letwin, while other Tory MPs including Nick Boles, Anna Soubry and Sarah Wollaston have pledged to support any measures necessary to avoid a no-deal Brexit. Ms Soubry today tweeted accusing Downing Street of 'nasty smear tactics' against Mr Grieve and other Remainers, designed to 'scare' politicians into backing the PM's agreement. So what happens next? No 10 fear that Theresa May's premiership could implode on Tuesday night if the scale of her defeat is insurmountable, with aides and allies braced for two doomsday scenarios: Fear one: If Theresa May's bill is heavily defeated, Labour is likely to call a confidence vote in the Government on Wednesday. If the Government loses heavily, Mrs May will resign; if it wins, she will likely head to Brussels immediately for crisis talks. Fear two: Cabinet Remainers could join with Labour to hamstring the Prime Minister by hijacking her Immigration Bill to demand the UK stays in a Customs Union with the EU forever. It would likely spark a devastating backlash from Brexiteers that could yet topple the PM's tenuous grip on power. Advertisement Labour's Chris Leslie, another of those coordinating efforts to avoid no-deal Brexit, said: 'MPs saying no to Executive isnt a coup. Its parliamentary democracy in action. 'Its Ministers who consistently try to overrule Parliament: stacking committees; forcing through Henry VIII powers; withholding papers; breaking pairing; trying to trigger Brexit with no vote.' The Mail on Sunday has revealed that Mr Grieve secretly met Mr Bercow last week just hours before the Speaker threw out centuries of tradition to scupper Mrs May's Brexit plans. The pair spoke in Mr Bercow's grace-and-favour Commons apartment the day before the Speaker tore up the rule book to allow the former Attorney General to table an amendment forcing the PM to table a 'Plan B' within three days of her expected defeat. Ministers believe the Speaker will do 'almost anything' to block the government, with senior sources telling MailOnline it is 'terrifying' that Mr Bercow holds the key to their fate. Conservative Party chairman Brandon Lewis said Britain was facing 'Brexit paralysis' if her plan was rejected by MPs. Tory ex-PM Sir John Major today called for Article 50 to be revoked to give the UK more time, saying it was the 'only sensible course'. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn today defended the Speaker as he hinted that he will trigger a no-confidence vote this week Meanwhile, Labour is gearing up to stage a no-confidence vote immediately after the Brexit deal decision - potentially as early as Wednesday. Jeremy Corbyn has so far resisted pressure to force a vote, with allies insisting there is no point as the government would win. But there are mounting signs that he is ready to take advantage of Mrs May's moment of maximum weakness. Corbyn hints at bid to oust May within days Labour could call a confidence vote this week if Theresa May's Brexit deal is defeated this week, Jeremy Corbyn hinted today. Mr Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and a general election. He suggested the Brexit date will have to be delayed if he succeeds, but repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to take the UK out of the EU. He also declined to say if he would back a second referendum, as is being demanded by dozens of his own MPs. Asked in an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether a no-confidence vote would happen immediately if, as expected, Mrs May's package is rejected by the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Corbyn replied: 'It is going to be soon, don't worry about that.' Advertisement Asked in an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether a no-confidence vote would happen immediately if, as expected, Mrs May's package is rejected by the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Corbyn replied: 'It is going to be soon, don't worry about that.' Mr Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and a general election. He suggested the Brexit date will have to be delayed if he succeeds, but repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to take the UK out of the EU. He also declined to say if he would back a second referendum, as is being demanded by dozens of his own MPs. In the interview today, Mr Corbyn said: 'The crucial thing is Tuesday. And then, if this Government can't control Parliament, it's time to have a general election.' Ducking and diving as he was pressed on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to deliver Brexit, Mr Corbyn said 'we're campaigning for a country that is brought together by investment'. He added later: 'We're campaigning for a customs union.' The Labour leader said his party will 'decide our manifesto content as soon as we know there's an election coming'. Pressed about the option of a second referendum, Mr Corbyn stressed his preference for a general election. He added: 'My own view is that I'd rather get a negotiated deal now, if we can, to stop the danger of a no-deal exit from the EU on March 29 - which would be catastrophic for industry, catastrophic for trade and the long-term effects of that would be huge.' Writing in the Sunday Express, Mrs May pleaded with parliamentarians to 'do what is right for our country' and back her controversial exit plan. Military planners are drafted into Whitehall departments Military planners have been drafted into Whitehall department in a bid to prevent border 'chaos' if there is a no-deal Brexit, it was revealed today. Some 14 military planners have been deployed to the Department for Transport, Home Office and Foreign Office as well as the Cabinet Office, according to Freedom of Information responses to the Observer. Some departments apparently asked for 'the unique skills and operational planning experience the military can offer'. Their duties are said to include 'command and control' advice. Advertisement She said the UK risks crashing out of the EU without a deal or, if MPs are 'unwilling' to face the uncertainty of no deal, then the UK may not leave at all. In what she described as the 'biggest and most important decision that any MP of our generation will be asked to make', the Prime Minister said it was time for politicians to 'deliver' for the people. 'You, the British people, voted to leave. And then, in the 2017 General Election, 80 per cent of you voted for MPs who stood on manifestos to respect that referendum result,' she wrote. 'You have delivered your instructions. Now it is our turn to deliver for you.' Rebel Tories have been warned that forcing a defeat could lead to one of two 'nightmare scenarios'. Pro-Remain Tory MPs join forces with Labour to compel the UK to stay in a customs union with the EU; or Mr Corbyn moves to bring down Mrs May with an immediate vote of no confidence. Either way, it could lead to a crushing General Election defeat within weeks unless they fall into line, whips say. Tory chairman Brandon Lewis told The Mail on Sunday that a 'Brexit bunfight' would 'open up between those who want a second referendum, an extension of Article 50 or a Norway-plus deal'. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay, pictured on the BBC's Andrew Marr show today, warned Tories against insisting on 'ideological purity' Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, pushed about the Government's Brexit Plan B, told Sky News' Ridge on Sunday: 'I'm not going to get into 'will we do this, will we do that, will we do the other?'. 'The important thing is to say to fellow MPs those concerns are out there and the big concerns are: Are we going to leave? Are we going to deliver Brexit? Are we going to somehow try and reverse Brexit? Is Parliament going to force us to reverse Brexit? 'What we have is a sensible compromise deal. It's not giving everybody everything what they want, but it was never going to - this was a 52-48 result.' Labour added to the pressure last night by announcing that Mr Corbyn would unveil a new party political broadcast on Wednesday in which he would 'spell out how Labour plans to unite and rebuild the country' and 'campaign on a growing view that austerity and inequality has created a country of haves and have-nots'. The party also announced that it was hiring pollsters for the next Election 'to test policies and the impact of campaigning in key marginals' and had selected 100 candidates for the closest-fought seats. Labour sources claimed that the most recent polling showed that the country has 'moved economically to the Left'. One said: 'While the Government has been locked in bitter infighting and chaos over their botched Brexit negotiations, the needs of the country have been neglected. Tory austerity has left the majority of people worse off, creating a cost of living crisis and levels of poverty not seen since the 1930s. 'Our Election campaign strategy will set out a positive vision of how we will make the country better, one of fairness and good public services, where we support each other.' A handgun has been confiscated from an Ohio kindergartner walking into school after someone reported that the six-year-old boy appeared to have a heavy object in his pants. Columbus police didn't disclose whether the gun was loaded Friday when it was safely taken from a student at Columbus Africentric Early College. A photo shared by police showed bullets with the seized firearm. 'School staff was advised by a caller that a student was walking in with what appeared to be a heavy object in their pants,' police said. 'The student was encountered at the entry door and a handgun was quickly recovered from the student.' Police say the boy won't be charged because he's so young. They're investigating where he got the weapon. A kindergarten student came to his Ohio school on Friday with this gun and bullets The boy brought the gun to his school, the Columbus Africentric Early College, which goes through 12th grade WBNS-TV reports a principal said in a letter to parents that the student 'will face appropriate discipline' but didn't specify what that would be. Principal Tyree Pollard reiterated the Columbus schools' zero-tolerance policy on weapons and urged families to talk with children about keeping such items out of schools. 'The consequences of having a weapon outside of school can be even more extreme. Whether in the neighborhood or at home, young people at every age need to understand the dangers of having a gun, taser, or other type of weapon - even fake ones that look real,' Pollard wrote, according to WBNS-TV. 'We need families to have thoughtful age-appropriate conversations about the types of items that are never appropriate to bring to school.' A man convicted of murdering an eight-year-old girl was allegedly killed by his cellmate at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. According to The Oklahoman, a corrections officer discovered the body of Anthony Joseph Palma, 59, around 7.30pm on Friday during a regularly scheduled security check. Reports say medical staff's efforts to revive Palma were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 8.55pm. Details on how Palma died were not released nor was the name of the inmate, but he was also serving time for first-degree murder, reported the newspaper. Anthony Joseph Palma, 59 (left), was found in his cell around 7.30pm on Friday at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He was serving life in prison without parole for the 1997 murder of eight-year-old Kirsten Hatfield (right) in Midwest City, Oklahoma Reports say medical staff's efforts to revive Palma (pictured) were unsuccessful and he was pronounced dead at 8.55pm. He's believed to have been killed by his cellmate, also serving time for first-degree murder Palma died 13 months after he was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murder of Kirsten Hatfield. According to The Charley Project, Kirsten disappeared in May 1997. She was last seen at her home on the 1100 block of Jet Drive in Midwest City, Oklahoma. Her mother, Shannon Hazen, said she put her daughter to bed around 11.30am and, when she checked in again between 6am and 6.30am, Kirsten was missing. Blood was discovered on the bedroom windowsill and Kirsten's underwear was found in the backyard. Her body has never been found. Prosecutors say Palma, who lived two doors down from the home, abducted and sexually assaulted Kirsten before murdering her, reported The Oklahoman. In October 2015, Palma was arrested after new testing found his DNA on Kirsten's bedroom windowsill and on her underwear. The Charley Project says Palma knew Kirsten because, at the time of her death, he was dating her older sister. Kirsten (left) disappeared from her home in May 1997. Blood was discovered on the bedroom windowsill and Kirsten's underwear was found in the backyard. New testing found Palma's (right) DNA on both the sill and her underwear Palma lived two doors down from Kirsten and was still at the time of his arrest. He had maintained his innocence. Pictured: A search dog combs through the home and the yard of Palma after his arrest in October 2015 Palma insisted he was at home on the night of Kirsten's disappearance when he was questioned back in 1997 and in 2015, and had maintained his innocence. One month after he was arrested, he unsuccessfully attempted suicide by slitting his wrists, news reports said. This was not Palma's first run-in with the law. His former landlady accused him of drugging and molesting her in 1982 in Walters, Oklahoma, reported News 9. And in a case similar to Hatfield's, Palma allegedly assaulted a young girl in 1979 or 1980, also in Walters. According to prosecutors, he sneaked into the girl's bedroom in the middle of the night. He was never charged. A former Italian communist militant hunted for three decades over four murders in the 1970s, has been arrested in Bolivia wearing a fake beard and moustache. Cesare Battist was arrested by an international police squad who tracked him down while he was on the run in Bolivia in disguise. Italy has repeatedly sought the extradition of Battisti while he lived in Brazil for years under the protection of former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who is now in prison for corruption. The Italian government confirmed today he will be extradited to Rome 'in the coming hours'. Battisti was arrested late on Saturday in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra near the Brazil border, Italian interior ministry sources confirmed, where he gave up without a struggle. He escaped from an Italian prison in 1981 while awaiting trial on four counts of murder allegedly committed when he was a member of the Armed Proletarians for Communism. Italian former leftist activist Cesare Battisti, convicted in Italy for four murders, during an interview in the city of Cananeia, Brazil, last year The 64-year-old was convicted in his absence in 1990, and is facing a life term for the deaths of two police officers, taking part in the murder of a butcher, and helping plan the slaying of a jeweller who died in a shootout which left his 14-year-old son in a wheelchair. He admitted to being part of the group but denied responsibility for any deaths and has painted himself as a political refugee. In 2004 he skipped bail in France, where he had taken refuge and joined dozens of left-wing Italian militants who enjoyed official protection from the French government. He went to live clandestinely in Brazil until he was arrested in 2007 in Rio de Janeiro. Bolivian police released this images of Battisti today after he was arrested late last night After years in custody, then-president Lula issued a decree - later upheld by Brazil's Supreme Court - in 2010 refusing Battisti's extradition to Italy, and he was freed, angering Italy. Battisti, who has a five-year-old Brazilian son, said he faced 'torture' and death if he were ever to be sent back to Italy. While living on the run he reinvented himself as an author, writing a string of noir novels. 'Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was detained in Bolivia (Saturday night) and will be soon brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be sent to Italy to serve a life sentence,' tweeted Filipe G. Martins, a senior aide on international affairs to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. During Brazil's recent presidential campaign the far-right Bolsonaro - who took office on January 1 - vowed that if elected he would 'immediately' extradite Battisti to Italy. In mid-December Brazil's outgoing president, Michel Temer, signed an extradition order for Battisti after a judge ordered his arrest. By then the Italian ex-militant had disappeared and gone on the run. 'Battisti was arrested in the street, unarmed and he didn't resist, responded to police in Portuguese and showed a Brazilian document confirming his identity,' an Italian interior ministry source said. 'Now Italy is waiting for him.' Italian state police said the arrest had been carried out by a joint team of Italian and Bolivian officers with the help of Italy's counter-terrorism section. Italian militant Cesare Battisti escorted by police to the headquarters of the Federal Police in Corumba, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil, after a federal judge ordered his detention According to the Italian government sources, Battisti was spotted 'with certainty' in Santa Cruz last week and an operation was prepared with local authorities. Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported the fugitive, wearing a false beard and moustache, was snatched in the street by a special Interpol squad. An Interpol team had targeted their search in Santa Cruz before Christmas, closing in on the Italian fugitive in a few of the city's neighbourhoods, the paper said. Italy's envoy to Brazil fired off a triumphant tweet upon hearing the news. 'Battisti has been arrested! Democracy is stronger than terrorism!' ambassador Antonio Bernardini wrote. Battisti could be expelled 'within hours' from Bolivian territory, a Bolivian government source said, without giving details where he would be sent. Italian authorities today dispatched a plane carrying police and secret service agents to Bolivia, the interior ministry said, in apparent preparation for a possible extradition. Battisti leaves prison after the decision by the Supreme Court to reject the extradition demanded by the Italian government in 2011 'Now it's necessary to work out if Battisti will make a stopover in Brazil or if he will be brought immediately to Italy. This is a problem that will be decided in the coming hours,' the Italian interior ministry source said. Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini thanked the Italian and foreign police who captured 'a delinquent who did not deserve the comfortable life on the beach, and who should spend out the rest of his days in prison.' Bolsonaro's son, Brazilian lawmaker Eduardo Bolsonaro, tweeted in Italian with a picture of Battisti: 'Brazil is no longer the land of bandits. Matteo Salvini, the 'little gift' is on its way.' Italian police released a video of Battisti they said was taken hours before his capture, showing him seemingly oblivious to the surveillance cameras tracking him as he walked casually down the street in jeans, a blue T-shirt and sunglasses. A still frame taken by a video released by the Italian Police today of Battisti walking in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia A subsequent image showed Battisti's mug shot under the seal of the Bolivian police. 'Cesare Battisti's long flight is over,' Justice Minister Alfonso Buonafede declared. Italian Premier Giuseppe Conte said a government aircraft was expected to land Sunday afternoon in Bolivia, but it wasn't clear if Battisti had to first pass through Brazil. Italian and Brazilian authorities vowed to have Battisti extradited 'as quickly as possible.' Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini called him a 'delinquent who doesn't deserve to live comfortably on the beach but rather to finish his days in prison.' Brazil's new right-wing president, Jair Bolsonaro, hailed Battisti's arrest, vowed to turn him over to Italy and denounced da Silva's government for having granted the Italian asylum. 'Finally, there will be justice for the Italian assassin and partner of ideas of one of the most corrupt governments to ever exist,' Bolsonaro tweeted in a reference to da Silva's Workers' Party. The Brazilian security minister, Augusto Heleno, said Sunday that Battisti would be taken on a Brazilian plane to Brazil before he is sent to Italy, according to the G1 news portal. Salvini praised Bolivian police and Brazil's new government for following through on the fugitive's case. President Sergio Mattarella said Battisti should be returned to Italy to 'serve his sentence for the grave crimes that stained Italy and let the same be said for all fugitives abroad.' Britain's most hated landlord, Fergus Wilson (pictured), is set to unleash yet more misery on his tenants 'Britain's most hated landlord' is set to cause more misery - by evicting hundreds of tenants. Multi-millionaire Fergus Wilson, infamous for banning 'coloured' tenants because they smell like 'curry', hopes to sell his portfolio of 300 homes by the end of the year. The 70-year-old is planning to give tenants their marching orders next week. Just last month his wife Judith Wilson, 68, was ordered to pay 25,000 in fines and legal costs last month for failing to supply hot water to a disabled tenant. The couple, who live near Maidstone in Kent, said they would appeal the decision and threatened to crash Ashford's property market by selling their empire. Fergus has revealed 32 homes have been sold independently and talks are underway to offload some stock in batches. A tenant, who asked not to be named, said: 'I hate him. We all do. It's low rent housing - if I could afford to move elsewhere, I would. 'I'm not one of the first lot getting turfed out but I do feel like it'll happen any day now. 'It's not fair - I'm struggling to sleep because I've got Fergus Wilson's sword of Damocles dangling above my head.' Wilson's wife, Judith, was ordered to pay 25,000 for failing to supply hot water to a disabled tenant A total of 90 Section 21 notices will be delivered to tenants next week, allowing two months to vacate. 'I do feel sad for people who are going to be homeless, it will be hardest for parents with young children, because most landlords won't accept them,' he said. 'I also feel sad selling the houses. We have built them up over the years but we can't take them to the grave with us. 'We haven't thought about what we will do with the money yet, I'm not going to buy a Rolls-Royce or anything like that. I could do that now - it is money down the drain.' The 70-year-old millionaire is set to kick out hundreds more In 2017, Fergus' ban on 'coloured' tenants - because they allegedly left curry smells in his homes - was overturned in a court victory for the Equality and Human Rights Commission. More recently he sparked fury for evicting four mothers which he blamed on the district council's 'strict rules' on how quickly boilers need to be fixed in homes with babies. In September he triggered a police response when he threw his plate of chips on the floor at a service station. Fergus said he is in talks with businessmen from India and Nigeria about the homes. He said: 'I am meeting a large scale landlord this weekend to discuss selling some homes in batches.' Councillor Gerald White, ABC portfolio holder for housing, said the authority will help evicted tenants 'as much as we can.' 'Mr Wilson is a landlord, he is well within his legal rights to do what he wants with his properties whether that's to sell or rent them,' he said. 'We will help evicted tenants, as much as we can. If people need help they should contact our housing option team.' Landlords have the legal right to retain possession at the end of a tenancy, but must follow the legal procedure. Under an assured shorthold tenancy agreement, landlords can issue a Section 21 notice to regain possession after the initial period of the agreement. 'Hamilton' creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda on Sunday slammed President Donald Trump as a liar after the president criticized Democrats for going to Puerto Rico to see him perform in a charity show for the hurricane-ravished country. 'Your occasional reminder that our current president lies as easy as you and I breathe air. Every day, all day, reflexively,' he tweeted. Trump has gone after Democrats repeatedly for going South during the government shutdown for a winter retreat that included attending a performance of 'Hamilton,' where Miranda took on his title role with the proceeds going to relief efforts. 'Hamilton' creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda slammed President Donald Trump as a liar Lin-Manuel Miranda's tweet came after President Trump slammed Democrats for going South during the government shutdow 'They'll get to experience firsthand the needs of the island, so that they go back and sort of fight (President) Trump and the Republicans,' Luis Miranda told CBS News of the Democrats' visit. The Democrats were there with the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to learn infrastructure and economic challenges Puerto Rico is facing in the wake of Hurricane Maria, which devastated the island, and they will meet with local officials. Some of the lawmakers were expected to attend 'Hamilton' on Friday, its opening night, the network reported. The musical's three-week run in Puerto Rico is raising money for artists and arts organizations. The funds will go to the Flamboyan Arts Fund, started by the Miranda family. Trump on Sunday accused Democrats of 'having fun' while he is in the White House waiting to make a deal to end the government shutdown. 'I'm in the White House, waiting. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking!,' he tweeted on a snowy Sunday morning in Washington D.C. Congress left the city on Friday with some lawmakers going back to their home states for the weekend and 30 Democrats - including new Speaker Nancy Pelosi - traveling to Puerto Rico for the conference. President Donald Trump accused Democrats of 'having fun' while he is in the White House waiting to make a deal to end the government shutdown Washington D.C got hit by four to eight inches of snow overnight Trump told Democrats he is waiting on them Lawmakers are scheduled to return to Capitol Hill on Monday although it's unclear if that will be affected by the weather. None of the votes scheduled in the House or Senate for Monday evening deal with reopening the government. The Capitol city received four to eight inches of snow overnight with the flakes still falling on Sunday as Trump went on Twitter storm of his own. The president touted his readiness to make a deal and argued his border wall would bring down crime. He also got slammed Democrats on Dreamers - the illegal immigrants who were brought to the U.S. children by their parents - and said their actions would bring Hispanics to his side. Trump spent Saturday and Sunday getting in digs at his opponents as the government shutdown became the longest in American history. He slammed Pelosi and her fellow Democrats who attended the opening night of Hamilton. 'I'd rather see the Dems come back from their vacation and act they're not acting,' Trump told Judge Jeanine Pirro on her FOX News show during a phone interview. 'It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done if the Democrats come to the table,' he continued to complain to Pirro about the impasse over his desire for $5 billion in funding for a southern border wall. Trump expressed frustration on the 22nd day of the partial government shutdown that he was still in the White House on Saturday awaiting a deal. Scroll down for video Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, center, attended the opening night of Hamilton in Puerto Rico drawing barbs from Trump as the government shutdown continues Touched: Lin-Manuel Miranda was seen breaking down in tears during the opening night of Hamilton in Puerto Rico on Friday evening The Democrats' winter retreat to Puerto Rico was organized by Bold PAC, a political action committee and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and some members attended 'Hamilton' during the trip. The 17-show run is set to help raise funds with an expected $15 million generated. While the shutdown continues to be a current issue with 800,000 federal workers either furloughed or working without pay, there was an estimated 3000 deaths following Hurricane Maria, documented as Puerto Rico's worst natural disaster. The President has been criticized by local politicians and Democrats for his handling of the aftermath of the hurricane. Friday night saw Lin-Manuel Miranda receive a standing ovation during the play's Puerto Rico premiere. The 38-year-old received his first ovation of the night less than one minute into the show when he appeared on stage and stated his name as Alexander Hamilton for the first time in two-and-a-half years. Lin-Manuel Miranda at the @hamiltonmusical opening night curtain call in Puerto Rico pic.twitter.com/4hgq7X7NaS Amy Jacobs (@AJacobs10) January 12, 2019 Lin was dressed in his show costume as he belted out the lyrics during the production. And following a successful opening night, he was seen raising the Puerto Rican flag and waving it proudly before wrapping it around his shoulders. During this time, the Broadway star was seen crying and very emotional. Loved by the crowd: According to the LA Times , the 38-year-old received his first ovation of the night less than one minute into the show when he appeared on stage and stated his name as Alexander Hamilton Lin has always been politically active with most notably on behalf of Puerto Rico. The star's father hails from the country and he has previously met with politicians in favor of debt relief as well as raised funds fro rescue efforts and disaster relief following the 2017 Hurricane Maria. His hometown: The star's father hails from the country and he has previously met with politicians in favor of debt relief as well as raised funds fro rescue efforts and disaster relief following the 2017 Hurricane Maria Proud: And following a successful opening night, he was seen raising the Puerto Rican flag and waving it proudly before wrapping it around his shoulders 'Puerto Ricans are the most resilient people on the face of the Earth,' Lin said in a post-show press conference at the venue, Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferre, according to the LA Times. 'Name any other city in the world that would survive this long without power and the resources that any American state would get in the wake of a hurricane.' Tickets have been placed at a vast variety of prices, with benefit tickets priced at $5000 and thousands of tickets priced at $10 for locals to also enjoy. 'All of our royalty participants author, director, choreographer, designers, producers are waiving our royalties, so all of those dollars are going straight to island initiatives,' said lead producer Jeffrey Seller. James Comey offered an historical quote that appeared to be his response to President Donald Trump's tweet storm calling the former FBI director 'a total sleaze' and a 'crooked cop.' 'I ask you to judge me by the enemies I have made,' Comey tweeted on Saturday, quoting former President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The message made no reference to the president but came after Trump spent the morning ranting about special counsel Robert Mueller, the FBI, its agents, and a New York Times report that the bureau was investigating Trump as a possible secret of Russia. James Comey offered an historical quote that appeared to be his response to President Donald Trump's tweet storm calling the former FBI director 'a total sleaze' and a 'crooked cop' Comey quoted former President Franklin D. Roosevelt Trump fired back in a furious Twitter tirade Saturday after it was reported the FBI opened an investigation to determine whether he was a secret Russian agent in the days after he fired Comey. Trump tweeted on Saturday morning: 'Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin' James Comey, a total sleaze! He continued: 'Funny thing about James Comey. Everybody wanted him fired, Republican and Democrat alike. After the rigged & botched Crooked Hillary investigation, where she was interviewed on July 4th Weekend, not recorded or sworn in, and where she said she didn't know anything (a lie).' Citing unnamed former law enforcement officials, the New York Times reported on Friday that the FBI opened the combined criminal and counterintelligence probe in May of 2017. Scroll down for video President Donald Trump has fired back in a furious Twitter tirade Saturday after it was reported the FBI opened an investigation to determine whether he was a secret Russian agent in the days after he fired FBI Director James Comey The FBI opened an investigation into President Donald Trump to determine whether he was a secret Russian agent in the days after he fired FBI Director James Comey, a new report claims Trump continued tweeting: 'The FBI was in complete turmoil (see N.Y. Post) because of Comey's poor leadership and the way he handled the Clinton mess (not to mention his usurpation of powers from the Justice Department). My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop. '...who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller, & the 13 Angry Democrats - leaking machines who have NO interest in going after the Real Collusion (and much more) by Crooked Hillary Clinton, her Campaign, and the Democratic National Committee. Just Watch! 'I have been FAR tougher on Russia than Obama, Bush or Clinton. Maybe tougher than any other President. At the same time, & as I have often said, getting along with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. I fully expect that someday we will have good relations with Russia again! 'Lyin' James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Peter S and his lover, agent Lisa Page, & more, all disgraced and/or fired and caught in the act. These are just some of the losers that tried to do a number on your President. Part of the Witch Hunt. Remember the 'insurance policy?' This is it!' Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani had earlier dismissed the alleged investigation as baseless, pointing out that no evidence has publicly emerged in the 20 months since to support the idea that Trump is a secret Russian agent. 'The fact that it goes back a year and a half and nothing came of it that showed a breach of national security means they found nothing,' Giuliani told the Times. Trump fired Comey on May 9, 2017, citing a letter from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein that sharply criticized Comey's handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation. However, sources tell the Times that two events raised alarm at the FBI that Trump had fired Comey in an attempt to stifle their investigation into possible Russia election meddling. The first was a draft of the letter Trump wanted to send Comey informing him of the firing, which the Times reports mentioned the Russia investigation. The draft was never sent, after Rosenstein purportedly urged Trump to drop mention of Russia in the letter. The final version of the letter that was sent, and made public, does mention the investigation obliquely, thanking Comey for 'informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation.' Former FBI Director James Comey (C) speaks to the news media after a daylong closed door hearing at the US Capitol in Washington, DC in December 2018 The second issue that reportedly concerned the FBI was Trump's May 11, 2017 interview with NBC News, in which Lest Holt pressed him on the timing of the firing. 'I was going to fire Comey - there was no good time to do it,' Trump said. 'And in fact, when I decided to just do it, I said to myself - I said, you know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story. It's an excuse by the Democrats for having lost an election that they should've won,' Trump continued. Trump's detractors have taken this statement as proof that he fired Comey out of anger over the Russia investigation. However, the President's supporters have said that he was indicating that he knew the timing of the firing might look bad, but decided to move forward with it anyhow because there was nothing behind the Russian collusion allegations. Also fueling the FBI's concerns was Christopher Steele's 'dirty dossier' of unsubstantiated allegations, which had been funded by Democrats but at that point was justifying probes across the Justice Department. Trump is seen in the May 11, 2017 with Lester Holt (right), which the FBI reportedly thought could be evidence that the President was a secret Russian agent In response to the events, according to the Times, the FBI began investigating whether Trump was a secret Russian agent. The investigation was one part criminal, into possible obstruction of justice, and one part counterintelligence, looking into possible national security concerns, the Times reports. Comey's firing led Rosenstein, who had recommended the move, to appoint special counsel Robert Mueller to investigate any links or coordination between the Trump campaign and the Russian government. Twenty months later, the Mueller probe has yet to publicly produce evidence of a conspiracy to tamper with the election. There are reports that the special counsel's probe could wrap up as soon as next month. The Brooklyn detective who accused his sergeant of shoving her lace panties into his mouth has lost his badge and gun. Detective Victor Falcon, 35, claimed that Sgt Ann Marie Guerra, 38, rubbed her panties on his face and tried to stuff them into his mouth in the 72 Precinct locker room on October 7. NYPD officials are now claiming that Falcon has been videotaping his colleagues at the Sunset Park precinct and wearing a backpack with five guns inside, according to The New York Post. 'Over the past few weeks his behavior has been quite bizarre and over the past 10 days he started bringing in a GoPro. He's taping everybody, video and audiotaping. That is a violation of department policy,' an NYPD sourced told the Post. Falcon was ordered to turn in his badge and weapons on Friday. Brooklyn detective Victor Falcon (pictured), 35, who accused Sgt Ann Marie Guerra, 38, of shoving her panties in his mouth, has lost his badge Falcon, 35, claimed that Guerra (left and right) rubbed her panties on his face and tried to stuff them into his mouth in the 72 Precinct locker room on October 7 An NYPD official claims that Falcon's bizarre behavior included him laughing 'when people aren't talking to him'. According to the Post, the department ordered a 'cease and desist' on Friday, requiring Falcon to hand over his badge and the backpack full of guns. Falcon has recently claimed that the NYPD wants to get him committed to a psych ward in a bid to discredit him. He has previously accused the department of leaking his sexual harassment complaint to the press in an effort to embarrass him, and now accuses the department of taking measures to have him committed. 'They want to send me to a psychiatric facility for thirty days,' Falcon told the New York Daily News. 'This is because of the complaints I made. They do this to discredit cops.' Falcon says the latest incident went down on Friday, when he complained about a sergeant whom he said has been following his every move since he complained about Guerra. When he got home, he was met by other cops who he says tried to get him hospitalized. Instead, Falcon claimed to have chest pains and checked himself into NYU Langone Hospital-Brooklyn, where a source told the Daily News that cops showed up and urged doctors to have him involuntarily committed. The hospital rejected the request though, and released Falcon on Saturday after an independent psychiatric evaluation showed him to be sane. 'It's painfully obvious what's happening he's been targeted for the complaints he made about the sexual harassment,' Falcon's attorney Seamus Barrett told the Daily News. The NYPD officially opened a probe and transferred Guerra to Midtown's 17th Precinct on October 24 A photo surfaced of Falcon holding a prosthetic penis and posing with Guerra at a Halloween bash two years ago. He says the photo was leaked to 'publicly shame and discredit' him 'Thankfully had the presence of mind to admit himself to the hospital instead of letting himself being taking advantage of.' The NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com. In October, Falcon made waves in the department by claiming Guerra went ballistic after he complained about her panties being strewn about the unisex locker room, with the supervisor screaming 'they are f***ing clean!' as she rubbed the undergarments on his face. 'I'm the pariah of the precinct and the NYPD. My career is over,' he previously said to the New York Post. 'Nobody will ever take me seriously...I'm known as the panty-eater. To do my job is impossible,' he added. Falcon filed a complaint with the NYPD's Equal Employment Office on October 24. In that complaint he accuses his department and investigators of initially ignoring his complaints and leaking embarrassing details to the press. 'The Department allowed me to be humiliated and that's what I intend on proving,' he said. Falcon claims that's he has been abused by Guerra for years 'on almost a daily basis'. He has worked with Sgt Guerra for five years in Sunset Park. The complaint alleges discrimination based on sex/gender, assault and battery, sexual harassment, hostile work environment and ongoing retaliation. He claims that when he complained to a lieutenant and captain about her 'sexually inappropriate comments', Guerra and Sgt Johnny Wong in turn targeted him for retaliation. Falcon said he told co-workers in 2017 that he started dating someone and Guerra quipped: 'If she doesn't call you back it's because you've got a little d***!' At a department Halloween party two years ago Falcon and Guerra posed together. In the photo he was holding a prop penis, claiming the costume was in reference to her 'little d***' joke. He believes that the photo was recently leaked in an 'attempt to publicly shame and discredit him'. The complaint also alleges that Guerra controlled approving overtime and changing detectives' shifts and deliberately denied Falcon's shift-change requests to attend custody hearings for his autistic child and delayed approving his overtime requests. The 72 Precinct in Brooklyn has been hit with a slew of other salacious allegations recently including a cop being involved in a prostitution ring and the Deputy Inspector being accused of shaking down a business for $80,000 in plane tickets 'In a world where we are looking for gender equality, I was abused for my gender. Picture a male doing that to a female. He wouldn't have a job anymore,' Falcon said. The panty incident on October 7 was the last straw for Falcon. He was in the squadroom with Guerra, Detective Donna Marie Mazza, and Detective Ioannis Kyrkos when he said 'you got panties in the locker room and panties in the shower' as they were discussing hygiene. The comment allegedly threw her into a tailspin and she angrily grabbed a 'dark and lacy' thong and confronted Falcon. 'I was talking and she put it in my face and started rubbing it in my mouth. I was a deer in the headlights. I kept hearing her say, "They're f***ing clean,'' Falcon said. The two other detectives were shocked with the outburst. 'We all looked at each other. Mazza said 'What the f*** did she just do' and Kyrkos said "that was disgusting,"' he added. Falcon said the precinct has a culture of 'you don't rat'. The NYPD opened an official probe on October 24 and Guerra was transferred to Midtown's 17th precinct. Falcon said she's calling her reassignment a promotion. Guerra and Sgt Wong have yet to comment on the complaint. The precinct house has had its fair share of scandals recently. Last year, precinct Detective Manuel Rodriguez was accused of participating in a prostitution and gambling ring run by a former cop. He was subsequently stripped of his gun and badge. Meanwhile, the precinct commander, Deputy Inspector Emmanuel Gonzalez, was sued by a Sunset Park club owner who alleged the cop was shaking down his business to the tune of $80,000 for 11 round-trip tickets to Hurricane Maria-ravaged Puerto Rico. Advertisement A stunning beach that returned after being lost at sea for 33 years has vanished again - after it was hit by powerful winter storms. Dooagh beach in Achill Island, Ireland, miraculously returned in April 2017 for the first time since 1984 - but has once again vanished into the Atlantic. Powerful coastal winds caused by the likes of storm Ali and other freak weather in winter have slowly eroded the sand away. The 300 metre beach hit global headlines in 2017 when the picture-perfect gold sands found their way back to the coastline. Slide me Dooagh beach, in Ireland, miraculously returned in April 2017 (left) for the first time since 1984 - but has once again vanished into the Atlantic (right) Over a ten day period a freak tide saw the sands return - and led to a 70 per cent tourism boost which created 79 jobs for locals in the area. And now the golden stretch of sand has been replaced by huge boulders and rocks that litter the once breathtaking shoreline. Waves and strong currents pounding the beach resulted in almost all of the sand being washed away - but although the beach has gone, it may not be lost forever. The sands are thought to have been dumped below the waves just 400m off the coast, and could return again. Sean Molloy, manager at Achill Tourism, said: 'There is a hole in the village now for sure. It could be 30 years until we see the beach again. Powerful coastal winds caused by the likes of storm Ali and other freak weather in winter have slowly eroded the beach away 'But a change in direction could see it come back again. Why did the beach vanish again? Sand at Doonagh were washed away by storms in 1984 leaving only rock pools and the huge boulders. But after a freak tide around Easter, hundreds of tonnes of sand was dumped on the area where the beach once stood. Return of sand recreated the 300-metre stretch of golden beach. But waves and strong currents pounding the beach resulted in almost all of the sand being washed away. Powerful coastal winds caused by the likes of storm Ali, and other extreme weather in winter, meant the sand was pulled back into the Atlantic. The sands are thought to have been dumped below the waves just 400m off the coast and could return. Advertisement 'Storm Ali had a huge effect on it. It reduced the sand levels right down. 'And then since Christmas it has just eroded away completely. Some of the boulders left there are a big as people. 'As a local I was very proud of the beach. The village will miss it. It was inevitable that he would disappear again. It was always on the cards. 'It just shows the power of nature. Aesthetically it's not great I am a bit sad.' Mr Molloy recreated the same scene he captured on video two years ago this week to reveal the stark difference between how the once golden beach used to look, compared to now. Back in 1984 spring storms washed away all the sand leaving only rock pools and the bare rock. The village then saw its economy left decimated as the tourists left causing the hotels and guesthouses as well as the cafes to close down. Before it vanished it has been a part of the village for as long as living memory. Mr Molloy recalls how when the beach came back in 2017, tourism in the area 'boomed' and people from all over the world dropped by to a pay a visit. He said: 'It was unbelievable and phenomenal really. So many people made sure they visited the beach if they were in Ireland. In 2017, over a ten day period a freak tide saw the sands return - and led to a 70% tourism boost and 79 part time and full time jobs being created in the area Waves and strong currents pounding the beach resulted in almost all of the sand being washed away - but although the beach has gone, it may not be lost forever 'But it's not as if tourism will collapse. We are lucky to have five blue flag beaches nearby. Some of them are the most beautiful in the country. 'We always knew that at some point our gorgeous beach would be washed away again, but we had hoped to have had it for a little longer. According to the history books, the beach at Dooagh vanished in the 1890s but had returned within three decades, when a pier was built in 1927. The beach used to be integral to the population of Achill and during the 1845 famine families moved to nearby to live off the fish and rich soils. A bugle would summon villagers to the beach when large amounts of wrack seaweed was washed ashore with the spring tides. Jake Thomas Patterson was arrested last Thursday soon after 13-year-old Jayme managed to escape the remote woodland cabin in Gordon in rural Wisconsin where she had been held captive for 88 days The 21-year-old man accused of kidnapping teenager Jayme Closs and killing her parents in a home invasion appears to have led an unremarkable existence and has been described by former classmates as a quiet student who lacked social skills. Jake Thomas Patterson was arrested last Thursday soon after 13-year-old Jayme managed to escape the remote woodland cabin in Gordon in rural Wisconsin where she had been held captive for 88 days. Patterson is accused of snatching Jayme from her home in Barron - 70 miles from where she was found - on October 15 after shooting dead her parents James and Denise. The wooden cabin where Jayme was held is the same place where Patterson had lived with his parents and brother growing up. The few neighbors who know Patterson's family say he grew up in the cabin, which is in a remote development that's a mix of seasonal and year-round homes about 10 miles from the town of Gordon. The town where he was raised has only 645 residents. The majority of those people didn't even realize that Patterson still lived in the area and some say they never even knew of his existence. Patterson's high school teachers barely remember the now 21-year-old man who graduated only three years ago. He graduated in 2015 from Northwood High School in nearby Minong, a single building that houses pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. There were only 34 people in his graduating class, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports. Jayme, pictured following her miraculous escape, was snatched from her home in Barron on October 15. Patterson is accused of shooting dead her parents before abducting her Her parents, James Closs, 56, and Denise Closs, 46, were found shot dead inside their family home He wrote in a school yearbook about his plan to join the U.S. Marine Corps following graduation but it is not clear if he followed through. Patterson signed the yearbook: 'I'm finally done with school.' His classmates, who wanted to remain anonymous, recalled him being a quiet student who would sometimes sleep in class and someone who was 'was just kind of there'. 'He seemed like he was just one of those guys in school that wanted to fit in but couldn't because he lacked social skills (He) never really made an impact in any way,' one former student said. Another said: 'Randomly in class, Jake would crack a joke and it would be absolutely hilarious and the whole class would hear it.' Patterson was a member of the school's quiz bowl team, which competed against other schools in tests of knowledge. He also wrestled in elementary school but refused to participate in high school. His former classmates remembered him for not going to prom or joining the class on their senior trip to Florida. He also refused to pose with his graduating class for a photo and his former classmates don't remember him taking part in the ceremony. They say he just 'disappeared' after high school. Northwood Superintendent Jean Serum called Patterson a 'quiet, good student who had wonderful friends and a supportive class,' but said she had no real memories of him. Neighbor Kristin Kasinskas said she was Patterson's middle school science teacher but that she didn't really remember anything about him except that he was quiet. Jake Patterson (above with his mother Deborah in 2015) appears to have led an unremarkable existence and has been described by former classmates as a quiet student who lacked social skills The home in Eau Claire Acres in Gordon, Wisconsin where kidnap victim Jayme Closs, 13, was held captive for 88 days Patterson's parents divorced in 2008, according to online court records. Neighbor Daphne Ronning said that the parents eventually moved away but that Patterson and his older brother, Erik, continued to stay in the cabin. She said she and her husband once caught them siphoning gas. Another neighbor, Patricia Osborne, said the brothers often got into trouble. She said they stole things and spent time in foster care. The suspect has no apparent online presence and it appears he has been living in the family cabin but kept a low profile. Property records indicate his father still owned the place in October but he transferred the title of the cabin to Superior Choice Credit Union just days after the attack. Patterson worked for a day in 2016 for the Jennie-O turkey plant in Barron before he quit, saying he was moving out of the area. The plant is the same place where Jayme's parents had worked for 27 years but it's not believed they would have crossed paths with Patterson. It's unknown what he has done for a living since then. Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said he was unemployed when officers arrested him. Jayme was found at Eau Claire Acres, a development located about 70 miles away from her home in Barron Jayme has now been reunited with her surviving family members and has been pictured settling back into life with loved ones and flashing 'big smiles'. She is pictured above with her aunts Jennifer Smith (left) and Sue Naiberg Allard (right) Authorities believe Patterson went to the Closs home intending to kidnap Jayme back in October but they haven't been able to find any connection between him and the Closs family. The girl's grandfather, Robert Naiberg, insisted on Saturday that none of them know him, raising questions about how Patterson became aware of Jayme. Investigators say they've found no evidence of any online conversations between the two. Jayme had been missing for nearly three months when she approached a stranger Jeanne Nutter, who was out walking her dog at the time, on Thursday. The teenager was described as 'skinny and dirty but outwardly okay'. Nutter, who recognized the girl immediately, took her to a neighbors home so they could alert authorities. Patterson, who had no criminal history in Wisconsin, was arrested minutes later based on Jayme's description of his vehicle. Police said that he was driving round hunting for Jayme after he noticed her missing. He was jailed on suspicion of kidnapping and homicide. The neighbors who took the teen in briefly after her escape, the Kasiskas, described the terrifying moment that Jayme arrived at their home, saying they feared that her abductor could be right behind her. Businesses in the town where Jayme lived with her parents put up 'welcome home Jayme' signs following her escape Jayme has now been reunited with her surviving family members and has been pictured settling back into life with loved ones in Barron 'When our neighbor Jeanne came in with Jayme, she said: 'Get a gun. We don't know if he's after us,' Kasinskas said. 'So we were armed and ready in case this person showed up,' Kristin Kasiskas told Fox News. Police have still not identified a motive for the killings but said Patterson did not appear to know or have any connection with the family. 'This is a true mystery. We believe the first time they met was the night of the incident,' the sheriff said. Authorities are searching through Patterson's phones, computers and the car he was driving in when arrested. Police believe Patterson killed the Wisconsin couple because he wanted to abduct their daughter. They say she was 'the only target'. They said Patterson 'planned his actions and took many steps to hide his identity'. Jayme has now been reunited with her surviving family members and has been pictured settling back into life with loved ones and flashing 'big smiles'. Speaking to DailyMail.com on the first day that she has woken up in the safety of her family's care since her extraordinary recovery on Thursday afternoon, her aunt Jennifer Smith said: 'She had a good night's sleep. It's been just wonderful and it's just wonderful to have her back. 'God is good! He answered our prayers he certainly did and we've just been overwhelmed by everyone's support. ' 'Last night, we were actually able to bring her home to Barron County. That's been the goal of mine for 88 days. And - we got to bring her home,' said Fitzgerald. President Donald Trump on Sunday accused Democrats of 'having fun' while he is in the White House waiting to make a deal to end the government shutdown. 'Im in the White House, waiting. The Democrats are everywhere but Washington as people await their pay. They are having fun and not even talking!,' he tweeted on a snowy Sunday morning in Washington D.C. Congress left the city on Friday with some lawmakers going back to their home states for the weekend and others - including new Speaker Nancy Pelosi - traveling to Puerto Rico for a conference and to see Lin-Manuel Miranda in 'Hamilton.' President Donald Trump accused Democrats of 'having fun' while he is in the White House waiting to make a deal to end the government shutdown Washington D.C got hit by four to eight inches of snow overnight Trump told Democrats he is waiting on them Lawmakers are scheduled to return to Capitol Hill on Monday although it's unclear if that will be affected by the weather. None of the votes scheduled in the House or Senate for Monday evening deal with reopening the government. The Capitol city received four to eight inches of snow overnight with the flakes still falling on Sunday as Trump went on Twitter storm of his own. The president touted his readiness to make a deal and argued his border wall would bring down crime. He also got slammed Democrats on Dreamers - the illegal immigrants who were brought to the U.S. children by their parents - and said their actions would bring Hispanics to his side. 'The building of the Wall on the Southern Border will bring down the crime rate throughout the entire Country!,' he wrote on Day 23 of the shutdown. 'The damage done to our Country from a badly broken Border - Drugs, Crime and so much that is bad - is far greater than a Shutdown, which the Dems can easily fix as soon as they come back to Washington!,' he tweeted. As part of the talks to reopen the government, some Republicans have pushed a plan that would fund Trump's border wall and give benefits to those in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in return. 'Democrats are saying that DACA is not worth it and dont want to include in talks. Many Hispanics will be coming over to the Republican side, watch!,' Trump accused his opposition. Hispanics tend to favor Democrats. Trump only won 28 percent of the Latino vote in 2016. More snow was falling on D.C. on Sunday Trump warned Democrats he thinks Hispanics will come to his side over this He also argued the wall will bring down crime Trump spent Saturday and Sunday getting in digs at his opponents as the government shutdown became the longest in American history. He also slammed Pelosi and her fellow Democrats who attended the opening night of Hamilton. 'I'd rather see the Dems come back from their vacation and act they're not acting,' Trump told Judge Jeanine Pirro on her FOX News show during a phone interview. 'It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done if the Democrats come to the table,' he continued to complain to Pirro about the impasse over his desire for $5 billion in funding for a southern border wall. Trump expressed frustration on the 22nd day of the partial government shutdown that he was still in the White House on Saturday awaiting a deal. Meanwhile, Nancy Pelosi and the 30-person Democratic contingent were traveling to the island territory to raise awareness about the difficulties Puerto Rico still faced after Hurricane Maria, according to CBS News. Scroll down for video Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, center, attended the opening night of Hamilton in Puerto Rico drawing barbs from Trump as the government shutdown continues Touched: Lin-Manuel Miranda was seen breaking down in tears during the opening night of Hamilton in Puerto Rico on Friday evening The winter retreat to Puerto Rico was organized by Bold PAC, a political action committee and the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and some members attended the musical fundraiser during the trip. The 17-show run is set to help raise funds for the island with an expected $15 million generated. While the shutdown continues to be a current issue with 800,000 federal workers either furloughed or working without pay, there was an estimated 3000 deaths following Hurricane Maria, documented as Puerto Rico's worst natural disaster. The President has been criticized by local politicians and Democrats for his handling of the aftermath of the hurricane. 'They'll get to experience firsthand the needs of the island, so that they go back and sort of fight (President) Trump and the Republicans,' Luis Miranda, father of Lin-Manuel told CBS. Friday night saw Lin-Manuel Miranda receive a standing ovation during the play's Puerto Rico premiere. The 38-year-old received his first ovation of the night less than one minute into the show when he appeared on stage and stated his name as Alexander Hamilton for the first time in two-and-a-half years. Lin-Manuel Miranda at the @hamiltonmusical opening night curtain call in Puerto Rico pic.twitter.com/4hgq7X7NaS Amy Jacobs (@AJacobs10) January 12, 2019 Amazing: According to the LA Times , the 38-year-old received his first ovation of the night less than one minute into the show when he appeared on stage and stated his name as Alexander Hamilton Lin was dressed in his show costume as he belted out the lyrics during the production. And following a successful opening night, he was seen raising the Puerto Rican flag and waving it proudly before wrapping it around his shoulders. During this time, the Broadway star was seen crying and very emotional. Loved by the crowd: According to the LA Times , the 38-year-old received his first ovation of the night less than one minute into the show when he appeared on stage and stated his name as Alexander Hamilton Lin has always been politically active with most notably on behalf of Puerto Rico. The star's father hails from the country and he has previously met with politicians in favor of debt relief as well as raised funds fro rescue efforts and disaster relief following the 2017 Hurricane Maria. His hometown: The star's father hails from the country and he has previously met with politicians in favor of debt relief as well as raised funds fro rescue efforts and disaster relief following the 2017 Hurricane Maria Proud: And following a successful opening night, he was seen raising the Puerto Rican flag and waving it proudly before wrapping it around his shoulders 'Puerto Ricans are the most resilient people on the face of the Earth,' Lin said in a post-show press conference at the venue, Centro de Bellas Artes Luis A. Ferre, according to the LA Times. 'Name any other city in the world that would survive this long without power and the resources that any American state would get in the wake of a hurricane.' Tickets have been placed at a vast variety of prices, with benefit tickets priced at $5000 and thousands of tickets priced at $10 for locals to also enjoy. 'All of our royalty participants author, director, choreographer, designers, producers are waiving our royalties, so all of those dollars are going straight to island initiatives,' said lead producer Jeffrey Seller. A real life 'Vicar of Dibley' village has been rocked after a parish council meeting claimed a woman has opened a brothel. Idyllic Marston Magna in somerset was mentioned in the Doomsday Book, the novel The English Patient. It is so small it doesn't even have a shop. But among its tiny population of a few hundred people a rumour is swirling feverishly: that a local lady had opened a house of ill repute. Details of the brothel emerged at a parish council meeting - which had been due to discuss unsafe manholes and the state of paths. Instead the meeting was derailed when a concerned local spoke out about concerns of a 'brothel/drugs den in the area'. The peace in the rural idyll of Marston Magna, has been shattered by a shocking rumour. Pictured are thatched properties in the village, not the building suspected of being a brothel The tiny Somerset village, pictured in a general view, was referenced in the Domesday book and its few-hundred inhabitants have to leave their hometown even to go to a shop St Mary's Church in the village of Marston Magna The claim was reported in the subsequent edition of the village newsletter, which wrote: 'A resident....raised the issue of a suspected brothel/drugs den in the area. They have contacted the police who have visited several times.' Today's edition claims the woman in her 40s has lived there for a few years but had recently become 'very busy'. It notes 'strange men' of all ages - from older businessmen in suits to younger men is work wear - are seen going to and from the alleged brothel on a daily basis, some carrying flowers and deodorant. No one answered the door at the property today but speculation is rife in the historic village. Reaction is mixed, and only some see a funny side to the comings and goings. One local said: 'We haven't even got a shop - you can't buy a pint of milk or a loaf of bread. But now apparently you can pay for sex.' One 26-year-old mum of three said it has made her want to move, saying: 'It started get really bad in the summer. We always see people going in and out. 'My children ask me "why has she got so many boyfriends?" and what is going on. As soon as one man goes, another one comes. 'They cross each other on the path on their way in and out. I've seen some men take flowers and gifts with them. The Marston Inn. One local told a reporter he had not heard the scandalous rumour in the pub 'Some of them are really young but some are in their 60s. It's a disgusting thing to do really. Why would anyone do that to themselves?' Mum-of-four Michelle Hackett, 42, said: 'We often see men going in and out.. And they are all different. There's loads of them. Colin Gilman, 36, said he had not heard anyone say anything about it down the pub. 'I've even seen some men spray deodorant on before going in. ' But one elderly resident, who asked to remain anonymous, said he saw the 'comical' side of the saga, saying: 'It has been the local gossip since it was in the village newsletter. It's laughable to think that men are going in and out of there. 'Apparently she has had regular visitors and that's why people have got suspicious. 'It's comical and really quite amusing to think someone is providing a service to men who need satisfying.' The Parish Council magazine also said officials were liaising with the local Yarlington Housing Group, which it reported 'had been advised but are unwilling to take any action.' It went on: 'Chairman of the parish council Fred Monson will raise the issue with Thelma Mead, the local PCSO.' Colin Gilman, 36, a local for three years, was taken aback upon hearing the news: 'It comes as a massive surprise to me. I didn't expect it at all. I haven't heard anyone say anything about it down the pub. 'It's a normal quiet village and isn't the sort of place you'd expect to find a brothel. You might expect to find one in a town or city but not a place like this.' A local dog walker, who has lived in Marston Magna for 12 years heard the rumour from a neighbour. She said: 'I don't see masses of people come and go so if she is doing it, I don't see or hear anything. 'There are lots of families living here so if she is doing it, it is a concern. You don't want those types of individuals near where children are.' Another resident, a pensioner who has lived in the village since 2001, added: 'You tend to see several men around the place. Not many people know what's going on but a lot of men visit. The Parish Council magazine also said officials were liaising with Yarlington Housing Group Pictured: other houses in Marston Magna, Somerset, which are not suspected of being a brothel. Rumours of prostitution abound in the village. One 26-year-old mother said: 'As soon as one man goes, another one comes' One pensioner who has lived in the village (stock photo) since 2001, said: 'You tend to see several men around the place. Not many people know what's going on but a lot of men visit' 'Let's put it this way, it's not very good for the community. You shouldn't have that sort of behaviour around children.' A Yarlington spokesman said an investigation into the allegations is being led by the police. They said: 'Yarlington does not tolerate criminal activity in its properties whatsoever. 'As these alleged activities are of a criminal nature, the investigation is being led by the police and we are working closely with them to help with their investigations. 'We are keen to hear from members of the community if they have any concerns, alternatively they can contact Crimestoppers to report any information anonymously.' Avon and Somerset Constabulary has been approached for a comment. Prostitution is legal in the UK but solicitation and brothel-keeping are both illegal. Reverend Barbara Stanton of St Mary's Church, Marston Magna, said she was unaware of the situation. Nigel Gawthrope, 61, seen here wearing his chains of office, died on Friday in South Africa The Mayor of Cambridge died on Friday after scuba diving with sharks in South Africa despite frantic attempts to revive him in front of his distraught wife. Councillor Nigel Gawthrope, 61, had just surfaced from a morning dive at Aliwal Shoal on the Kwazulu Natal coastline when he went into suspected cardiac arrest. While the dive crew tried to resuscitate him they sent out an SOS to rescue services and raced towards their shore base at Umkomaas, 50 kilometres from the Kwazulu-Natal capital Durban. Emergency paramedics who were waiting for the boat belonging to the dive outfit Scuba Addicts spent nearly 40 minutes trying to revive him on Umkomaas beach before declaring him dead. Sources on the scene say Cllr Gawthrope's wife Jenny looked on in horror and then collapsed at the scene. the former Mayor of Cambridge, Cllr Nigel Gawthorpe, pictured scuba diving two years ago 'When Nigel Gawthorpe surfaced he was having trouble breathing,' said one of the emergency respondents who spoke to condition of anonymity. 'The crew got him back on the boat and gave him oxygen but minutes later he collapsed. That's when they started CPR and raced back toward the shore. 'Mrs Gawthrope was distraught as she watched waiting medics transfer him to the beach and try to revive him. They were at it for nearly 40 minutes but he never responded. He was declared dead on the beach. 'His wife was overcome by grief and broke down at the scene.' The couple were on a diving holiday in South Africa and were due to continue on to Mozambique this weekend. Umlomaas-based dive company Scuba Addicts, which runs dives at the popular Aliwal Shoal reef and at Ponta Do Ouro in Mozambique, confirmed the Gawthropes were their clients but declined to comment further. On Friday South Africa's National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) released a statement about the diving tragedy without revealing Gawthrope's name. 'At 12h30, NSRI Station 39 Rocky Bay were activated to respond to Umkomaas where a dive charter boat raised the alarm and were heading towards shore from a dive reporting CPR (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation) efforts being performed on a 61 year old British man who had surfaced from a dive before going into cardiac arrest on the boat. 'NSRI Station 39 Rocky Bay, Netcare 911 ambulance services, eThekwini Surf Lifesaving lifeguards and Police Search and Rescue responded and rendezvoused with the dive boat on its arrival on-shore and despite extensive CPR efforts by paramedics the man has sadly been declared deceased. 'The crew of the dive charter boat are commended for their extensive efforts to resuscitate the man and condolences are conveyed to family and friends. 'The body of the man has been taken into the care of the Forensic Pathology Services and Police have opened an inquest docket.' The Mayor was remembered by the city council leader as 'a one-off'. Cllr Herbert continued: 'he will be hugely missed and long remembered on the council but even more so by his Labour colleagues as a friend' Cllr Gawthorpe pictured with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn in a Facebook post from2017 Aliwal Shoal is a 1,5 km wide offshore reef south of Durban that is a widely regarded as one of the best scuba diving spots in the world. Cllr Gawthorpe, an experience scuba diver, was eight months into his role as Cambridge Mayor after he was elected in May 2018 and tributes have been pouring since the news broke. East of England MEP Alex Mayer said: 'This is such a shock and deeply, deeply sad news.' He said Nigel was a 'committed' councillor in the area 'and great to go out campaigning with. He always greeted you with a smile and had a great sense of humour'. Cllr Lewis Herbert, leader of the city's 26 Labour councillors and of the city council, said: 'Our thoughts and emotions are with his wife Jenny so far away, and with Nigel's family and close friends at this truly horrible time. 'Nigel was a one-off and he will be hugely missed and long remembered on the council but even more so by his Labour colleagues as a friend.' Labour MP for Cambridge, Daniel Zeichner, wrote on Twitter: 'So sad to hear the shocking news about my good friend and comrade Nigel Gawthrope. 'Cambridge robbed of the remainder of his mayoralty and we've all lost a true man of the people.' A spokesman for Cambridge City Council added: 'Our thoughts are with Jenny, his family, friends and close council colleagues as they come to terms with this devastating loss.' Cllr Gawthrope was born in Leeds in 1957 and moved to Cambridge in 1962. He began his working life as a bookbinder for Cambridge University Press and worked for the publisher for 38 years until 2012. He was a staunch Trade Unionist throughout his working life, representing fellow print workers for over 30 years including as Father of the Chapel from 1980 until he left the company. The Marine Protected Area is best known for its abundance of ragged tooth sharks and oceanic blacktip sharks which allow divers to get close without attacking them. It's also home to soft corals and a variety of tropical and subtropical fish. It was named after the Aliwal after a ship that sailed from London was nearly wrecked there in 1849. The captain, James Anderson, then wrote a letter to a local newspaper to warn other seafarers of the dangerously shallow and unchartered reef The parents of a three-year-old Oklahoma girl have been arrested after she died from a 17-pound cancerous tumor. Records show that 49-year-old Henry Clarence Lilly III and 42-year-old Bonnie Beth Mills-Lilly, both of Lawton, were charged with first-degree murder. According to The Lawton Constitution, they both made their initial court appearances on Thursday in Lawton and are accused of not providing medical care. A three-year-old girl in Lawton, Oklahoma, died of a 17-pound cancerous tumor. Her parents Henry Clarence Lilly III, 49, and Bonnie Beth Mills-Lilly, 42, were charged with first-degree murder and are accused of not providing medical care Comanche County sheriff's deputies were called to a camper home near Lake Lawtonka on Oklahoma State Highway 58, according to The Constitution. When they arrived, the three-year-old girl was unconscious but breathing. She was rushed to a local hospital, where she passed away. According to Sheriff Kenny Stradley, the child was living in the camper with her parents and six other children. The state medical examiner found she had cancer. More specifically, Sheriff Stradley said she had a 17-pound tumor. It is currently unclear where the location of the tumor was, what type of tumor it was and how long she had been living with it. Records viewed by DailyMail.com show that bond for each defendant was set at $60,000. Both appear to have posted their bonds on Thursday, January 10, and are required to wear a GPS monitor as a condition. They are next scheduled to appear in court on February 28 for a preliminary announcement and March 18 for a preliminary hearing conference. Kenny D Harris, the attorney listed for both defendants, did not immediately return DailyMail.com's request for comment. If convicted, Mills-Lilly and Lilly would each face a minimum of four years in prison, reported The Constitution. Islamist hate preacher Abu Hamza has been exchanging letters with a gay priest while serving time in an American 'supermax' prison. Rev Stephen Coles, who is vicar of St Thomas the Apostle in Finsbury Park, North London, is a friend of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and has been pictured with the politician. Hamza has railed against gay people in vile diatribes, but the hook-handed cleric has struck been writing to Rev Coles while serving a life sentence in solitary confinement ADX Florence, Colarado, for terrorism offences. Rev Coles (circled, in red, next to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn) has been writing to extremist Abu Hamza The preacher assures his pen pal 'you are in my prayers' as he signs off the letters, The Sunday Times reports. In one bizarre letter he expresses concern at the prisoner appearing tired around the eyes in a photo he sent, then adds: 'At least you still have a good head of hair!' Their correspondence includes discussions on US President Donald Trump and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman. Rev Coles even shares details of his holiday in Spain, writing: 'Everyone was very friendly and helpful towards us and the food was delicious. But perhaps it is cruel of me to write about such things, given your imprisonment, isolation and situation far away from anything or anyone familiar? I'm sorry if that's the case.' Hamza (pictured) is serving a life sentence in the US over terror offences The letters surfaced in court filings as 60-year-old Hamza tries to overturn his conviction and appeal against being held in a maximum security jail on human rights grounds. A former imam of Finsbury Park mosque, he claims to have suffered 'inhuman and degrading' treatment due to his disabilities. But a panel of judges has upheld nine out of 11 counts against him and maintained that his sentence must stand. Rev Coles met Hamza shortly after the 9/11 terror attack on 2001 after saying he was concerned about the extremist's comments. The 69-year-old even acted as a character witness at Hamza's Old Bailey trial for inciting murder and racial hatred. He also visited him in south-east London's Belmarsh prison before he was extradited to the US in 2012. The vicar says that Hamza sent him a letter and images of himself in prison 'out of the blue' last year. He describes his relationship with the inmate as 'pastoral' and says he wants the hate preacher to be 'treated like a human being' and his captors are not repaying evil with evil. Nicola Sturgeon has referred herself for a conduct probe over meetings with Alex Salmond while he was being investigated over sexual harassment allegations. The Scottish First Minister insisted she had done nothing wrong, but recognised that an independent watchdog should look at whether rules had been breached. Ms Sturgeon said she met Mr Salmond on three occasions and spoke to him on the phone twice after sexual harassment allegations had been made against him by two women to the Scottish Government in January 2018. Last week the Scottish Government's handling of the allegations against former first minister Mr Salmond was ruled unlawful by Scotland's highest civil court. Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (pictured last week) insisted she had done nothing wrong, but recognised the watchdog should look at whether rules had been breached Ms Sturgeon said: 'It is in the interests of the women who have complained that the ongoing police investigations are allowed to continue without any risk of prejudice. That must be the priority for everyone. 'Questions have been raised about my meetings and telephone calls with Alex Salmond during the Government's investigation into the complaints which were made. 'I have acted appropriately and in good faith throughout, and in compliance with the Ministerial Code at all times. However, I have reflected carefully and understand that it is also important for Parliament and the wider public to be assured of that. 'I have therefore decided to refer the matter for consideration by one or both of the Independent Advisers on the Ministerial Code.' Opposition parties had been calling for Ms Sturgeon to make the referral to the watchdog, with Scottish Conservative deputy leader Jackson Carlaw describing the situation as 'a shambles'. Ms Sturgeon stated that the complaints made against Mr Salmond cannot be ignored. The First Minister said: 'The Independent Advisers will now be consulted on their precise remit, and advice will also be sought on how to ensure that there is no risk of prejudice to the ongoing police investigation. 'The remit will be published in due course. Ms Sturgeon said she met Alex Salmond (pictured) on three occasions and spoke to him on the phone twice after sexual harassment allegations had been made against him by two women to the Scottish Government in January 2018 'The fact remains that at the centre of this issue are two women whose complaints could not be swept under the carpet. 'Any continuing commentary about these issues at this stage - whether from myself, the Government or Mr Salmond and his representatives - would only serve to distract from, and potentially compromise, the proper consideration by the police of the subject matter of their investigations. That is something we will not do.' Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard MSP said Ms Nicola Sturgeon had 'done the right thing' in referring herself under the Ministerial Code and called for a full inquiry. He said: 'Transparency is now absolutely essential in order for the public to have confidence in the First Minister and the Scottish Government. 'That is why we should also see a full, public parliamentary inquiry in to what exactly has happened - and I look forward to working constructively with members from other parties this week in order to secure that.' Ali Omar Ader (pictured) was sentenced to 15 years in jail in Canada for orchestrating the kidnapping Journalist Amanda Lindhout has revealed how she was able to help authorities arrest her Somali captor after he reached out to her on Facebook and said 'hello'. Lindhout and her boyfriend, Nigel Brennan, were kidnapped in Somalia in 2008 for 460 brutal days with the group of young hostage takers demanding $1.5million for each of them. Speaking in Dateline special 'The Trap' tonight, Lindhout recalls how she was terrified when she saw the message from Ali Omar Ader - the main kidnapper who she knew as Adam - on the social network. She tells how, in the months after her release from captivity and her return to Canada, she received the Facebook message from Ader that just read 'hello'. 'It was so scary that he could find me, even though I was safe and across the world and was at home,' she said. She called the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and so began a five-year long undercover operation to bring Ader to justice. Scroll down for video Journalist Amanda Lindhout, from Canada, was taken as a hostage for ransom in Somalia in 2008. She and her boyfriend at the time - photo journalist Nigel Brennan, were freed 460 days after they were kidnapped after their families gave thousands. She is pictured speaking on Sunday's episode of Dateline Journalist Amanda Lindhout is pictured with her mother, Lorinda Stewart, who negotiated her daughter's freedom Lindhout credits her mother with saving her life and giving her a reason to live while she was held captive (pictured walking near their homes in Canada) Dateline: The Trap Amanda Lindhout was finally safe. Back with her family. But Adam, the one who tormented them so much, wasn't finished with them yet Dateline new tonight at 10/9c with Kate Snow on NBC. Posted by Dateline NBC on Friday, 11 January 2019 Dateline also speaks to Lindhout's mother and an undercover agent with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in the gripping special. The journalist credits her mom with saving her life. 'I would not be here now if it was not for my mother,' Lindhout says. 'My mom gave me life and she saved my life.' Lindhout made a series of emotional and terrifying phones calls to her mom during her time in captivity which feature in the special. 'If you guys don't pay one-million-dollars for me by one week they will kill me,' she told her mother in one phone call. Her mother responds 'Amanda...' with her anguished daughter crying, Mommy, mommy, mommy, mommy...' Amanda Lindhout and Nigel Brennan smile for photographers in Somalia's capital Mogadishu on November 26, 2009, after their release from captivity Dateline: The Trap They were driven by strength, courage, and endurance Dateline new Sunday at 10/9c with Kate Snow on NBC. Posted by Dateline NBC on Friday, 11 January 2019 Lindhout was 26-years-old and working as freelance journalist in Mogadishu, when she and Brennan were captured when they encountered armed men on the side of a road. While in captivity, Adam contacted her mother, Lorinda Stewart, in Canada to demand a ransom payment. Over the course of months, Stewart was terrified as she negotiated her daughter's release with Adam. The undercover agent - posing as a media professional - and Adam spoke at length. Lindhout is pictured with her mother back in Canada during the Dateline special this evening Adam eventually told the agent that he was well educated and wanted to write a book about Somalia. 'That's our in,' the investigator told Dateline. 'It totally fits in line with what I knew of this man,' Lindhout said. 'He struck me as the kind of guy whose ego was so big of course, if somebody told him he's capable of writing a book, he would think that.' As things progressed, the investigator convinced the kidnapper to meet in person on an island in the Indian Ocean off of Africa's east coast, to sign a book deal. During the meeting, after burying a clause in the contract that would encourage Ader to reveal details of his past- which would encompass Lindhout's kidnapping, he confessed. 'In my head I was dancing. It was amazing. You couldn't ask for better evidence,' the investigator said. However, it wasn't enough as authorities on the island wouldn't allow the operation to be videotaped. So, they had to lure Ader to Canada. Which proved successful. Once Ader was in Ottawa, he confessed to his past, while hidden video cameras were rolling in the hotel room where they would continue their conversation under the rouse of a book deal. This file pictures shows Somali security forces near the presidential palace in war-torn Mogadishu, on July 14, 2018. Lindhout was kidnapped from Mogadishu as she headed to a refugee camp to cover a story Finally, 460 days after being captured, Lindhout (left in 2014 with a book she has written) and Brennan (right in 2008) were set free And when Ader and the investigator walked out of the room, they were both arrested. 'They handcuffed us both, led us off in different directions,' said the investigator, who remained undercover during the apprehension. 'I went for a beer. He went to jail.' Ader was found guilty and sentenced to 15 years in prison on June 18, 2018, five years after she had been messaged with the 'hello.' When asked if bringing Lindhout's kidnapper to justice was worth all that time, the investigator said: 'Absolutely.' 'We always refer to this operation as the Hail Mary play,' the investigator added. 'We didn't think it would work. And as it was continuing we were surprised ourselves.' Brennan published a memoir the Price of a Life in 2011 while Lindhout released a memoir, A House in the Sky, in 2013. The Dateline special, The Trap, will air tonight at 10p/9c on NBC. Donald Trump has called for the press to investigate his former lawyer Michael Cohen's father-in-law. Speaking to Judge Jeanine Pirro on Fox News Saturday, Trump claimed Michael Cohen is telling the FBI false stories about the president to reduce his sentence. 'In order to get his sentence reduced, he says, ''I'll give you some information on the president.'' Well, there is no information,' Trump said of Cohen. 'He should give information maybe on his father-in-law, because that's the one that people want to look at.' This is not the first time Trump has attempted to shift the focus to Cohen's father-in-law, Fima Shusterman, who reportedly loaned $20million to a Chicago cab company operator mentioned in the the FBI warrants used to raid Cohen's home and office. In a Fox News interview Saturday, Trump claimed Michael Cohen is telling false stories about him to the FBI to reduce his sentence Trump instead suggested Cohen 'should give information on his father-in-law 'I guess he didn't want to talk about his father-in-law he's trying to get his sentence reduced. So it's pretty sad. It's weak and it's very sad to watch a thing like that,' Trump said. Pirro then asked Cohen's father-in-law's name, to which Trump responded: 'I don't know, but you'll find out, and you'll look into it because nobody knows what's going on over there.' During Saturday's phone interview, Trump called Cohen an 'already proven liar'. 'He's in trouble on some loans and fraud and taxi cabs and stuff that I know nothing about,' Trump said of Cohen. Last month, Trump also brought up Fima Shusterman during a Twitter tirade bashing Cohen. Trump referenced Cohen's father-in-law, Fima Shusterman, on Twitter last month Cohen's father-in-law, Fima Shusterman, reportedly loaned $20million to a Chicago cab company operator 'Michael Cohen asks judge for no Prison Time,' Trump vented on Twitter December 3 morning, following his return from a trip to Argentina. 'You mean he can do all of the TERRIBLE, unrelated to Trump, things having to do with fraud, big loans, Taxis, etc., and not serve a long prison term?' The president asked. 'He makes up stories to get a GREAT & ALREADY reduced deal for himself, and get...his wife and father-in-law (who has the money?) off Scott Free. He lied for this outcome and should, in my opinion, serve a full and complete sentence,' the president added. Just a week later, Trump tore into his former lawyer in a Fox News interview, claiming Cohen misled prosectors to keep his family out of jail.T The president brought up Cohen's father-in-law as well as his former fixer's Ukraine-born wife, Laura, saying both could be implicated in crimes and that Cohen 'made a deal' to keep them out of jail. 'His father-in-law, I thought is the guy that was the primary focus. Well, what did he do? Did he make a deal to keep his father-in law out? Did he make a deal to keep his wife Maybe I'm wrong, but supposedly ... did he make a deal to keep his wife out of trouble?' the president asked. Apartments in Sydney's maligned Opal Tower are being bid on for as little as $1 by buyers looking to cash in on the question marks still surrounding the cracked complex. The newly-built tower in Olympic Park was evacuated on Christmas Eve after cracks were found in the building - sparking fears it would collapse. Most residents have now been told they can return home, but estate agents appear to still be struggling to move properties at the Homebush tower. Apartments in Sydney's maligned Opal Tower (pictured) are being bid on for as little as $1 by buyers looking to cash in on the question marks still surrounding the cracked complex The basement offers have been reported by a listings agent responsible for units in the tower, who said bargain hunters were the least of his worries. Du Yang, who works for SY Realty, said potential buyers had withdrawn $400,000 offers and even pulled their interest in his listings when they realised where they were located. The agent also shared the email from a potential buyer offering the unlikely price tag with The Daily Telegraph. 'Considering all the controversy lately how about I make you a deal? $1, take it or leave it,' the email read. One apartment in the 33-storey tower is on sale for $720,000, and Mr Yang said the financial hit he had taken from owning a unit in the tower himself was causing him sleepless nights. One apartment in the 33-storey tower is on sale for $720,000 (pictured), and Mr Yang said the financial hit he had taken from owning a unit in the tower himself was causing him sleepless nights 'This was meant to be the Australian dream and now it has become the Australian nightmare,' he told the publication. The see-it-to-believe-it offer comes as angry Opal Tower residents faced-off against the building's owners Icon. Although people have been told they can go back to their homes, one resident claimed they were yet to receive any written confirmation they could do so. Heart-wrenching pictures show a seal with a frisbee wrapped around its neck and another tangled in netting on the UK coast. Volunteers rescued a seal nicknamed Mrs Pink Frisbee as the pink toy cut into her skin at Waxham Beach, Norfolk, on Wednesday before saving a seal at Horsey Beach on Friday. It was seen writhing in pain on Friday as it struggled against the netting. Both of the animals are now recovering thanks to conservationists. The seal trapped in netting - nickname Suffolk Punch - was moved from Horsey Gap beach to East Winch RSPCA in Norfolk on Friday, where he will be soaked in a salt bath, medicated and fed for several months. Supervisor Jo Mead said: 'We have taken the netting off, he was very angry - but all being well the wound will be cleaned up so we'll let him settle in and start feeding him fish.' Heart-wrenching pictures show a seal with a frisbee wrapped around its neck and another tangled in netting on the UK coast The seal - which has been dubbed the Suffolk Punch - was seen struggling against the netting, which is here pictured tangled around his neck The seal (pictured) was tangled in netting and spotted writhing in the sand a sit struggled to get free But she adds, it is still 'touch and go' as their main priority is getting his health back to normal. Dan Goldsmith, chairman of the Marine and Wildlife Rescue, said he has seen an 'increase' of seals rescued from entanglement. He says his teams are having to rescue seals at least 'once a month'. 'It is so sad - although I suspect there are more seals out there, and there has always been an issue with rubbish,' he said. Friends of Horsey Seals Chairman Peter Ansell said: 'This is not the first time we have tried to catch him. If you had seen the state of his neck you would have seen that the netting had been stuck in his neck for months and months. 'I would say the netting had wedged into his skin about an inch and half deep. I could see the vert digging her fingers into the wound to try and get underneath the netting so she could cut the strings wrapped around his neck. 'It wasn't a simple job and he wasn't very happy. I reckon it will take months and months for him to repair - I would say probably three months.' The conservationists descended on the beach to rescue the deal and it is now being treated for its neck wound The seal (pictured being rescued) will require several months of treatment after it became tangled in netting Last year, Horsey volunteers also rescued a seal with frisbee stuck around its neck. The mammal called Frisbee is thought to have swam with the yellow plastic ring cutting into her neck for up to six months. She was rescued starving to death and has undergone five months of rehabilitation at an RSPCA centre. Volunteers at Friends of Horsey Seals made several desperate attempts to rescue her after spotting the plastic ring embedded on her neck off Horsey Beach, Norfolk. Frisbee was nursed back to health with antibiotics, painkillers and steroids for the very deep and infected wound. She went through four 25kg bags of salts a day as part of her rehabilitation. Police say a 'mass overdose' of the synthetic opioid fentanyl at a house in Chico, California, has left one man dead and 12 more hospitalized. According to The Sacramento Bee, authorities arrived at a home on the 1100 block of Santana Court around 9am on Saturday after receiving a 911 call from someone inside. 'Upon arrival, Chico police officers found multiple individuals in what appeared to be life-threatening overdose conditions,' Chico Police Chief Michael O'Brien said at a news conference. ''Every indication - talking to medical staff, talking to doctors - everything is consistent with a fentanyl or fentanyl similar-type overdose.' O'Brien said police performed CPR and administered six doses of naloxone, which is used to treat and reverse the effects of narcotic overdoses. Police say a 'mass overdose' of the synthetic opioid fentanyl at a house in Chico, California, has left one man dead and 12 more hospitalized Twelve people in the house received CPR and doses of naloxone, which is used to treat and reverse the effects of narcotic overdoses An adult male was pronounced dead at the scene while 12 others - between ages 19 and 30 - were transported to Enloe Medical Center. According to O'Brien, eight people were admitted, four of whom are listed as being in critical condition. He added that it's possible the number of fatalities could rise. The Bee reported that the first two responding officers were also taken to the hospital when they began feeling ill, potentially side effects of being exposed to fentanyl in the house. Both were treated and released later in the day. Officers have obtained a search warrant of the house, which is currently being treated as a 'hazmat site'. Police suspect the overdose was caused by fentanyl and that tests are being run to confirm this belief. 'The amount of fentanyl - these substances are extraordinarily dangerous and it takes a very minute amount to cause [life-threatening] conditions,' O'Brien said. In November, a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that fentanyl was behind the increase of drug overdose deaths between 2016 and 2017. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 100 times stronger than morphine. The first two responding officers were taken to the hospital after the began feeling ill; they were treated and released later that day According to the Defense Intelligence Agency, 68 percent of fentanyl and precursors used to make the drug originate in China These factory-produced drugs, cheap and easy to make, are sold either directly to the US or via trafficking networks set up in Mexico. According to The Bee, O'Brien says Chico officers began carrying naloxone in 2018 but, until recently, it has been used to reverse heroin overdoses. He says he is concerned that fentanyl may become a problem in Chico. 'We were waiting, and have been waiting unfortunately, for this to happen in the sense that we knew fentanyl had been moving west,' O'Brien said. 'That is changing unfortunately, and now we've had this mass casualty incident... likely to have been cause by fentanyl. One of Australia's promising young jockeys critically injured in a freak accident has started the long road to recovery. Natasha Faithfull, 25, was airlifted to Perth in an induced coma after she was bucked and crushed by her horse at a beach in Albany on Western Australia's far south coast on Saturday morning. After the young rider spent the night fighting for life in intensive care, her mother Samantha took to social media on Sunday with better news. Natasha Faithfull suffered multiple injuries when she was trampled by her horse at a beach 'Natasha has had the breathing tube removed and is breathing well on her own.. she still has a drain in her lung but will heal with time and rest,' she posted on Facebook. 'Tash has got a couple broken ribs, broken shoulder and collarbone.. and a couple of broken bones on the tips of her spine.' Mrs Faithfull also paid tribute to Natasha's friends, who were with her daughter at the time of the accident. 'Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your quick thinking,' she posted. Natasha has since been moved from intensive care to the trauma unit at Royal Perth Hospital, where her family remain by her bedside. Natasha's father told Nine News his daughter is now talking but is still 'very sore'. The Faithfulls publicly thanked everyone for their overwhelming support. 'Our thanks go out to everyone for their kind messages, love and support in the last 24 hours,' the family said in a statement to Seven News. Natasha (pictured) was airlifted to Royal Perth Hospital in an induced coma on Saturday The Australian Jockeys' Association national occupational health and safety officer Kevin Ring told racing.com Natasha is extremely lucky to be awake and breathing unassisted so soon after the nasty fall. 'There has been speculation that she was in a coma and fighting for her life but I can confirm she is okay and the doctors are happy with her condition this morning,' Mr Ring said 'At this stage she doesn't require an operation, which is fantastic news, she's really dodged a bullet and will hopefully continue to recover well.' Natasha Faithfull's mother took to social media on Sunday to say her daughter (pictured) is now breathing on her own and 'will heal with time and rest' The racing community in Western Australia continues to send well wishes to Natasha. 'Hope you mend quickly and I'm sure all horse people wish you all the best,' a stable owner posted on Facebook. Another well wisher wrote: 'You have much to live for Natasha, keep up the good fight.' Less than 24 hours before the near tragedy, Ms Faithfull rode two winners at a racing meet in Albany. Jockey Natasha Faithfull (pictured) was critically injured after she was trampled by her horse It's understood she was leaving the beach on Saturday morning when something 'spooked' her mare. 'Apparently she was just coming back from the beach and she fell with the horse over a sandbank,' Racing and Wagering WA's Ron Fleming told The West Australian. 'The horse rolled on her and then jumped on her trying to get back up which is never good. It's very unfortunate.' Drivers at a busy intersection were met with an unexpected surprise on Sunday afternoon in the form of a small boat laid casually across the freeway. With the raised freeway looming overhead, it looked as if the Stejcraft vessel had incredibly survived a fall from a five-story height. But the orange boat was not as indestructible as the picture may suggest, and simply had fallen from the back of a trailer who was driving underneath the overpass in western Adelaide. Drivers at a busy intersection were met with an unexpected surprise on Sunday afternoon in the form of a small boat laid casually across the freeway (pictured) The hapless trailer driver's mistake was picked up by a passing motorist, who called SA Police. South Australia police said the owner had not realised the vessel had 'slipped its moorings'. He returned to pick up his stranded vessel after being contacted by police, a spokesman said. The owner has been fined for an unsecured load. The incident comes after similar incidents in Adelaide - where police had to deal with a ladder blocking a highway and a wardrobe hanging from the back of a car. The British wife of former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon is set to be tried alongside him on corruption charges that could see them both receive multiple prison sentences. It follows specialist financial prosecutors in Paris recommending that Penelope Fillon, 63, and her 65-year-old husband appear in the city's Correctional Court this year. Both are alleged to be involved in a fake jobs scandal that saw Mrs Fillon, the Wales-born mother of four, pretending to work as his parliamentary assistant for at least 15 years. Welsh-born Penelope Fillon, right, is set to be tried alongside her husband the former French Prime Minister Francois Fillon, left, on corruption charges Mrs Fillon also had a fabricated job as 'literary advisor' to a magazine ran by a political ally, it is alleged, meaning the couple raked in a total of at least 500,000 through their scams. The scandal led to Mr Fillon, a right-wing conservative who made much of his Catholicism and devotion to family values, losing the 2017 election to become President of France. He had been the hot favourite to become head of state, with Mrs Fillon as his First Lady, but both were instead placed under investigation, and independent Emmanuel Macron was the surprise victor. A prosecutors' report leaked to Le Monde reveals that the recommended charges are for 'misappropriation of public funds, frauds, theft and criminal complicity.' Most come with prison sentences of up to 10 years, and fines equivalent to some 1million. Marc Jouland, the MP who did Mr Fillon's constituency work when he served as Prime Minister for five years up until 2012, is also set to stand trial. The scandal led to right-wing Mr Fillon, pictured with his wife during a campaign rally in Paris in 2016, losing the 2017 election to Emmanuel Macron Mr Jouland is said to have renewed Mrs Fillon's fake contracts, and increased her salary for doing nothing. The prosecutors' report reads: 'There is no evidence indicating the reality of Penelope Fillon's work.' It adds: 'Penelope Fillon benefited from two parliamentary assistant contracts with Francois Fillon, between 1998 and 2002, then between 2012 and 2013, interspersed with a parliamentary contract with Marc Joulaud from 2002 to 2007.' All three accused deny any wrongdoing, and are set to contest all the evidence against them. In her last public interview in 2017, Mrs Fillon said she was 'so surprised by all the violence and hysteria that I just withdrew inside my Welsh shell.' But she insisted she was innocent, and added: 'My husband needed someone to carry out these very diverse tasks. If it hadn't been me, he would have paid someone else to do it. So we decided it would be me.' Mrs Fillon is a solicitor's daughter from Llanover, Wales, who went to King Henry VIII School in Abergavenny. After studying modern Languages in London, and law at Bristol University, she married Mr Fillon, whom she had met while working as a teaching assistant in his home town of Le Mans. One of the men at the heart of pro-Brexit yellow jacket protests outside Parliament was jailed for his part in an attempted kidnapping. Danny Thomas - who is Tommy Robinson's bodyguard - has been protesting alongside activists who clashed with Remain-voting Tory MP Anna Soubry in Westminster. The revelation comes after protest leader James Goddard was arrested an subsequently bailed over calling Ms Soubry a Nazi. He accused the MP of masterminding his arrest as he was pictured enjoying a pint of beer and cigarette after his release while his supporters chanted 'Soubry is a Nazi'. 'This is gonna open up the biggest can of worms ever because of what she has done,' he said. 'Everyone who has ever been called a Nazi should report it to police.' Danny Thomas (pictured, left, during the yellow vest protests) was jailed for his part in an attempted kidnapping. James Goddard (pictured, right, in the Brexit demonstrations in central London) has been bailed and told to stay away from London following his 'Nazi' comment Mr Goddard is pictured after he was bailed and given two hours to leave the area within the M25. His supporters chanted 'Soubry is a Nazi' The protesters are donning high-vis jackets in a nod to the populist uprising in France, where people took to the streets to express their outrage at fuel prices. Thomas took part in a 'frightening' armed raid in which three thugs threatened a man at knifepoint, the Daily Mirror reports. The raiders mistakenly believed that their victim had stolen 10,000 worth of drugs. Father-of-four Thomas was jailed for two years at Portsmouth Crown Court in 2016. The 29-year-old and his accomplices were branded 'cowardly' by a judge over the 'extraordinarily frightening incident' in Hayling Island, Hampshire. Thomas (pictured, at Saturday's protest) has also worked as a bodyguard for English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson Since his release from prison last year, Thomas has appeared alongside English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson. Calling himself 'Danny Tommo' in online videos, Thomas claims that he is 'reporting' on the yellow vest demonstrations in central London. He has appeared alongside Ukip leader Gerard Batten, who recently hired 36-year-old Mr Robinson as an adviser. Thomas told the Sunday Mirror that he has turned his back on his criminal past and accepts that what he did was 'wrong'. He says that he goes 'to church every week' and was determined to better himself after his release. 'I support Tommy,' he said. 'Im doing whats right for me to have karma for the future. I did wrong, Ive changed my life around and now Im doing good.' Thomas (pictured) organises rallies online and has been seen in central London filming himself at demonstrations Thomas (pictured in central London) was jailed for two years for his part in an attempted kidnapping in which he and two other thugs terrified their victim at knifepoint In posts on social media he encourages supporters to attend protests and warns them not to don their yellow jackets until they reach demonstration points. He boasts of organising five demonstrations with more than 200,000 attendees in the last 12 months and funds his activism through his Facebook profile. But he claims not to organise the yellow vest demonstrations even though he supports them '100 per cent'. Thomas says he is not a racist and has 'no problem with legal immigration' if it is helping those fleeing war torn nations. He says his girlfriend's father is from Iran and that Ukip is not racist, adding: 'Throughout our movement we have black people, Sikhs, Muslims. I am not racist. I have lots of Muslim friends. I have no problem with them.' When Mr Goddard was released yesterday police gave him two hours to leave the area within the M25. He shared the details of his bail to backers in a Holborn pub before heading home to Leicester. Pledging to rally people in Manchester or Leicester instead, he accused Ms Soubry of orchestrating his arrest. The Tory has branded him and others leading the protests as 'racist, fascist and a threat to democracy'. Yesterday Thomas filmed himself mixing with the People's Assembly Against Austerity. Bottles were thrown, an a European Union flag burned and a man was arrested after thousands descended on Trafalgar Square. Advertisement One of the four victims who died in a gas explosion in Paris has been named today as the death toll rose to four when a second woman was pulled from the rubble. Two firefighters and a Spanish tourist were killed in the massive blast gutted part of a building, injured dozens more people and badly damaged nearby apartments. The fourth victim was a missing woman found under by rescuers last night under the damaged buildings. Another woman, a Spanish national, has been named today as mother-of-three, Laura Sanz Nombela. The 38-year-old supermarket worker was on a romantic break with her husband Luis Miguel and was staying at a hotel opposite the bakery where a suspected gas leak caused a deadly explosion that claimed the lives of four people. Laura, who had three children aged ten, five, and three, lived in the town of Burgillos near Toledo an hour's drive south of Madrid. She and her husband were visiting the French capital for the first time and had left their kids with with Laura's dad, Jose Luis. He told Spanish newspaper El Pais: 'My son-in-law asked my wife if we could babysit the children while they were away because he wanted to surprise my daughter. It was a romantic break, the first time they had visited Paris.' Scroll down for video The shocking aftermath of this morning's bakery blast which killed two firefighters and a Spanish tourist in central Paris Firefighters stand on the scene of a gas leak explosion in Paris as the emergency services begin the clean-up operation is underway Laura Sanz Nombela in one of the last photos taken before she died in Paris while on a romantic getaway with her husband, Luis Miguel Paris Fire Department said rescuers have found a woman's body under the rubble of a bakery in Paris that was blown apart by a powerful explosion, bringing the overall death toll to four The scene of the gas leak and explosion Gas explosion at a bakery, Paris, today A woman laying flowers today outside the Paris Fire station in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, in tribute to the two firefighters killed the day before in a powerful gas explosion Laura Sanz Nombela with her husband Luis Miguel on their holiday in Paris. The mother-of-three was killed while at a bakery in the city Firefighters and cleaners of the city of Paris gather at the scene the day after a powerful gas explosion tore through a building in central Paris to clear the rubble The scene of the gas leak and explosion at a bakery in the Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in Paris today as the emergency services pick through the debris and rubble People today placed flowers laid outside the Paris Fire station in tribute to the two firefighters killed the day before in a powerful gas explosion which tore through a building in central Paris The two firefighters were investigating a suspected gas leak when an explosion ripped through the Paris bakery which was serving breakfast yesterday morning. Today their colleagues began searching through the debris and cleaning up the streets A neighbour in Burgillos described Laura as 'very nice'. Toledo mayoress Milagros Tolon said of the dead woman, who was born in the provincial capital Toledo: 'I'm shocked by the terrible news we have received about the death of a woman from Toledo in the explosion in the centre of Paris. 'I have been able to speak to her husband and offer him as mayoress the condolences of the city of Toledo. My solidarity and support to their family and friends.' The other three people killed by the Paris blast were two firemen and a second woman whose body was found under rubble. The two firefighters were investigating a suspected gas leak when an explosion ripped through the Paris bakery which was serving breakfast yesterday morning. In total, 47 people were injured in the blast which happened in the city's 9th arrondissement at 9am local time. The explosion destroyed the bakery, which is on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise. The Paris prosecutor's office confirmed today rescuers found a body under the rubble of the bakery in Paris, with ten of the injured are still in critical condition. Paris fire department spokesman Eric Moulin told reporters about 30 firefighters were at the site this morning to search for other potential victims, amid a mountain of debris and wrecked cars. Paris authorities said 12 neighbouring buildings that were damaged by the blast apparently due to a gas leak have been evacuated. Temporary accommodations were provided for about 50 residents while dozens of others have been housed by family and friends. Paris firefighters have been battling a blaze at a bakery caused by a suspected gas explosion at a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise Firefighters helped elderly survivors living above the bakery from the first floor following this morning's blast in Paris Multiple people have been injured following the blast which ripped through the bakery in central Paris early this morning Firefighters rest in the street after the explosion of a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in central Paris yesterday A line of cars was destroyed by the blast which caused fires to break out in the popular bakery in north-eastern Paris A general view shows debris and car wreckage following the explosion of a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in central Paris French prime minister Edouard Philippe, left, arrived at the scene of the explosion this morning to inspect the damage The blast ripped through a bakery in the city's ninth arrondissement in north-central Paris at 9am local time yesterday A powerful gas explosion tore through a building in central Paris on January 12, killing two firefighters and a Spanish woman, injuring dozens of people and badly damaging nearby apartments, officials said Rescue workers with sniffer dogs had earlier been searching for a missing woman who lived above the point of Saturday's explosion and who was believed to be in the rubble. A source close to the investigation said it was still to be confirmed if the body was of the missing woman. Engineers are assessing the extent of the damage over fears that the building could collapse. Although across the city, emergency services are preparing for major disturbances during the ninth weekend of yellow jacket protests. The blast, which is thought to be accidental, drew attention to the notoriously dilapidated state of the French's capitals housing stock, in a city where such leaks are as frequent as domestic fires. Neighbours smelt gas first thing on Saturday morning, before calling the emergency services. As they responded, the explosion happened shortly before 9am inside the Hubert bakery, which was selling breakfast cakes and pastries. The explosion blasted rubble across the street outside the bakery shattering windows and destroying nearby cars Authorities in Paris have confirmed several people have been injured while two firefighters and two civilians died Medical teams triaged survivors on the street before sending the more seriously injured people to hospital Paris prosecutor Remy Heitz said yesterday: 'At this stage we can say it seems from accidental origin, this would be a gas leak.' He said that Paris firefighters were already at the scene for a suspected gas leak on Saturday morning when the explosion happened. Spanish Foreign Minister Josep Borel wrote on Twitter: 'I profoundly regret the death of three people in an explosion in central Paris, among them one Spanish citizen.' Rue de Trevise is an easy walk from popular tourist destinations and the Gare du Nord Eurostar hub. Confirming the deaths, France's Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said: 'At 8.37 in the morning, the emergency services went to 6 Rue Trevise to investigate a gas leak. 'When they were there, a massive explosion happened. One of the fire fighters remained under the rubble for two and half hours. 'There are other very serious casualties. The area has been secured as the fires are put out.' Mr Castaner said a 'pocket of gas' had built up in the building. As well as the four dead, ten others were in a critical condition with 37 people suffering more minor injuries. One firefighter was rescued by his colleagues after spending two-and-a-half hours trapped under the rubble. Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, who was also at the scene, extended a 'message of affection and solidarity' to the victims. An eyewitness at a hotel nearby said he saw a huge fire erupt in the building blown out by the blast. The powerful explosion knocked one car onto its side as debris was shot across the street earlier this morning Fire chief Eric Moulin, pictured, confirmed two of his men are fighting for their lives along with three civilians. Unfortunately, the two firefighters and two of the civilians later died Around 200 firefighters were sent to the scene to rescue survivors following yesterday's explosion in the city's 9th district David Bangura, 38, said: 'There was broken glass everywhere, storefronts were blown out and windows were shattered up to the third and fourth floors.' He said that as he approached the scene, a woman was crying for help from the first floor of a building: 'Help us, help us, we have a child.' Several of those injured in the blast were sitting in the street eating their breakfast when the bakery exploded. Witnesses told local media that if felt as if there had been an earthquake, with buildings rocked several hundred metres by the blast. French prime minister Edouard Philippe arrived at the scene around an hour after the blast to inspect the damage. Windows on the entire block were shattered by the powerful blast. Around 200 firefighters were mobilised to battle the fire that broke out after the blast and rescue residents in neighbouring buildings, Interior Minister Christophe Castaner told reporters at the scene. Police closed off streets in front of Opera theatre as emergency services landed two helicopters in the street, apparently to evacuate victims. He said: 'The toll appears to be high, and severe.' More than 100 police officers blocked off surrounding streets to allow the rescue efforts to continue unimpeded. Rescuers assisted the walking wounded from the scene of the blast which is being blamed on a gas leak in a bakery At least five people have been seriously injured in this morning's blast which occurred at around 9am local time Silver-helmeted firefighters and red firetrucks filled the street and inspected adjoining courtyards. Debris from a burned car and broken glass littered the pavement. A vehicle from gas company GRDF was stationed nearby. The building is around the corner from the Folies-Bergere theater and not far from the shopping district that includes the famed headquarters of Galeries Lafayette. The explosion came amid heavy security in Paris and around France for yellow vest protests expected later Saturday. Businesses have boarded up their windows ahead of another planned demonstration. Witness Claire Sallavuard, who lives on Rue de Trevise said: 'I was sleeping and woke up by the blast wave. All the windows in the apartment exploded, doors were blown off their hinges, I had to walk on the door to leave the room, all the kids were panicking, they couldn't get out of their room.' Rescuers eventually used a ladder to evacuate the family, who lived on the first floor. Police sources said firefighters had already been responding to an alert of a gas leak at the site when the explosion occurred. Cars were overturned by the blast and glass and rubble was strewn across large swathes of the street, as fire trucks and police continued to race toward the scene more than an hour later. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe also arrived on the scene to survey the damage. People are evacuated by firefighters from their apartment after the explosion of a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in central Paris on January 12, 2019. - A large explosion badly damaged a bakery in central Paris, injuring several people and smashing windows in surrounding buildings, police and reporters said An air ambulance evacuated some of the more seriously injured survivors from the scene The blast ripped the front off the bakery and threw debris for several hundred metres in all directions Sylvain Maillard, deputy mayor of the 9th Arrondissement said: 'There was an explosion in a bakery, it was accidental. There is heavy damage, lots of broken windows, and the bakery was totally gutted.' Dozens of tourists, suitcases in hand, were evacuated from the many nearby hotels in the area, a popular weekend shopping destination for locals and visitors alike. Other residents were in bathrobes or quickly dressing in the street as police helicopters circled overhead. One teenager said: 'We were sleeping when we heard the noise, it sounded like an earthquake.' One emergency worker said: 'There are casualties. A whole shop front has been taken out, and other buildings have also been severely damaged. It's a Saturday morning - a lot of people were at home. Leaking gas caused the explosion, which is being viewed as an accident.' Pedro Goncalves, an employee at the Hotel Mercure opposite the bakery, said he saw firefighters enter the bakery in the morning but he and his co-workers 'thought maybe it's a joke, a false alarm' and they went back to work. About an hour later, he said a blast rocked the surrounding streets. He said: 'In the middle of nothing, I heard one big explosion and then a lot of pressure came (at) me (and) a lot of black smoke and glass. And I had just enough time to get down and cover myself and protect my head.' Goncalves said he 'felt a lot of things fall on me' and that he was struck by shattered glass. He had a few cuts on his head, and spots of blood on his sweater and undershirt. 'Thank god I'm OK,' he said, saying that the blast was so powerful that he heard whistling in his ears in the aftermath. Firefighters evacuate an injured person on a stretcher after the explosion of a bakery on the corner of the streets Saint-Cecile and Rue de Trevise in central Paris on January 12, 2019 French anti-riot police CRS stand guard by one of their vehicle equipped to form a dam in the streets of Bourges ahead of an anti-government demonstration called by the Yellow Vest 'Gilets Jaunes' movement Firefighters tackle the outside of the gutted building. The explosion came amid heavy security in Paris and around France for yellow vest protests expected later Saturday A large explosion badly damaged a bakery in central Paris, injuring several people and smashing windows in surrounding buildings, police. The fire broke out at around 9am yesterday. Firefighters were on hand to tackle the flames before moving on to clearing the debris Goncalves said that he ran for the exit and then went to check on the hotel's clients, adding that some of them had head injuries and were bleeding. He said that the hotel was 'destroyed' in the blast. Another witness told The Associated Press that she was awakened by the blast, and feared it was another terrorist attack. There were 5,000 police on the streets of Paris yesterday for an Act 9 'Day of Rage' by the anti-government Yellow Vest movement. They have been behind numerous acts of vandalism, including destroying parts of the Arc de Triomphe itself. Fires have been life and buildings smashed to pieces during nine weeks of Saturday rioting by the movement. Paris has also been targeting by terrorist groups in recent years, including ISIS and Al-Qaeda. However, gas leaks frequently lead to explosions in the city, and yesterday's will be investigated in full. Some 80,000 police and troops have been stationed in Paris yesterday ahead of the expected ninth weekend of anti-government protests. Firemen work at the site of an explosion in a bakery shop in the 9th District in Paris, France Emergency workers pulled survivors from the rubble following the blast which happened at 9am local time Officials said they are investigating the cause of the blast which is thought to have been caused by a gas explosion Ross Ramsey is executive editor and co-founder of The Texas Tribune, a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. This analysis originated at texastribune.com. Contact Ramsey at rramsey@texastribune.org. Sydney personality and sandwich-board activist Danny Lim is planning to take legal action against three Sydney police officers following his 'brutal' arrest on Friday. The 74-year-old activist was arrested and charged for offensive behaviour in Barangaroo, and was captured being aggressively restrained by police in now-viral footage. Video of the arrest shows Mr Lim holding a sandwich board sign that reads: 'SMILE CVN'T! WHY CVN'T?' Sydney personality and sandwich-board activist Danny Lim is planning to take legal action against three Sydney police officers following his 'brutal' arrest on Friday The 74-year-old activist was arrested and charged for offensive behaviour in Barangaroo, and was captured being aggressively restrained by police in now-viral footage Hundreds of supporters came together at Sydney Police Station on Sunday to protest for the 74-year-old, best known for his social and political sandwich boards. Supporters banded together and are calling for consequences against those who perpetrated the arrest which left Mr Lim bloodied and bruised. The Sydney personality is now planning on taking legal action against the three police officers involved in the attack, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. At the protest on Sunday Mr Lim said he did not point blame at the police force as a whole as he addressed the 300-strong crowd with a trademark sandwich board in-tow. 'Thank you to the police for being here, it's not their fault they are just public servants,' he said to more than a dozen officers keeping the crowds at bay. 'This (WHY CVN'T?) sign means peace to me, and we have to be kind and smart that is our greatest asset.' 'The only race in Australia is the human race dont let people like Pauline Hanson divide us.' Organiser Max Russell told Daily Mail Australia the gathering aimed to show Mr Lim the diversity and presence of his supporters from across the city. 'The video everyone saw was really graphic and stressed me out a lot,' he said. 'What we wanted to do here was remind people that we're talking about a 74-year-old man who isn't doing anything he hasn't done before.' Onlookers said Mr Lim was confronted by police over a controversial sign with many claiming officers were 'rough' and 'aggressive' and caused injuries (pictured above) Mr Lim is known across Sydney for his sandwich board signs and footage of his arrest went viral on Friday Onlookers who witnessed Friday's arrest said Mr Lim was confronted by police over a controversial sign with many claiming officers were 'rough' and 'aggressive'. Photos posted on social media have shown Mr Lim sporting bloodied and bruised arms, which allegedly came from his confrontation with the officers. Niki Anstiss, who filmed the encounter, labelled Friday's arrest 'disgusting' and is among multiple witnesses to lodge formal complaints over the officers' conduct. However she also added police were pointing and shouting at Mr Lim before one 'ripped the sign off his back' and the other two forced him into handcuffs. 'My issue is with the brutality of moving him on with such force,' she told AAP. 'He was screaming and crying 'don't take my sign'.' As two officers led Mr Lim in cuffs to a police van, Ms Anstiss saw a third officer take the lead of the activist's small dog Smarty and follow 'faster than the dog could walk'. Sydney icon Danny Lim was confronted by police in Barrangaroo on Friday after a complaint was made about the language on his sign Members of the public were astonished when the police arrived, with their reportedly rough actions causing Mr Lim to scream: 'please, help' 'It took a woman telling the cop 'You need to pick the dog up' for them to stop dragging it.' Christina Halm said up to 30 people stopped in their tracks and were 'all shocked, gasping and crying at what we were seeing'. 'I saw police officers use a completely unnecessary and unacceptable amount of force to arrest Danny for wearing a humorous sign,' she posted on Facebook. A spokesman for NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia on Friday: 'Officers spoke to a 74-year-old man and gave him a move-on direction'. 'The man repeatedly refused to comply with the move-on direction and became aggressive towards police. 'The man was then detained and issued a Criminal Infringement Notice for offensive behaviour and released a short time later.' Footage taken of the altercation from a nearby office shows two officers push Mr Lim away from the area, as his screams of 'no' echo through the new development. A third stops and appears to be getting Mr Lim's pet dog, Smarty. A mother has removed her son from school and made a homemade classroom after the academy imposed a controversial 'no talking policy' to stop children talking in the corridors. Jenny Kearns, 43, from Acocks Green, Birmingham, removed 15-year-old son Regan Coates from Ninestiles Academy after he brought a letter home in October last year stating pupils would be asked to remain silent when moving through the corridors. The furious mother-of-four claims the policy could cause irreversible damage to students and that not enough research or planning had been carried out to condone the new rule. Despite having no teaching qualifications, she formally removed Regan, from school after the letter arrived and is now teaching him History, English and Science as well as other subjects in a homemade classroom. Mother-of-four Jenny Kearns, 43, from Acocks Green, Birmingham, removed 15-year-old Regan from Ninestiles Academy after he bought home a letter stating pupils would be asked to remain silent when moving through the corridors The stay-at-home mother said: 'I was completely bewildered by the introduction of this policy. 'I spent weeks asking other schools in the trust if they had introduced the policy too, and all of them said no. 'When I asked the school why this was happening they said it was because of overcrowding and for a better learning environment, but they had done no research to back this up. 'If that's the case then they need to stop taking on so many students. 'Rules such as this can cause a lot of damage and suppressing children can lead to lots of issues. 'There is already a lack of communication caused by computers and technology so why add to that. Regan was formally removed from school last year and is now being taught by his mother and private tutors in a homemade classroom 'The children are not allowed to talk during lessons and exams, in assembly and now in the corridors. 'Where do they have the time to discuss important issues surrounding their age group, such as puberty, social issues or talk with others regarding cultures and ethnicity? 'These are the times that they should be talking and learning about each other but the school is trying to stop this. 'They teach the kids 1984 but the school is just the like the book with posters telling the children to be silent. 'The school is rated as outstanding so what else do they want from students?' Ninestiles Academy first hit the headlines in October 2018 after the proposed policy caused outrage among parents. A letter sent to parents stated students were to remain silent during lesson change overs and whilst leaving the school. Students were also asked to walk in silence to designated lunch and break time areas where they could then be free to socialise, but if the rules was broken a 20 minute detention would be enforced. Following its proposed policy in 2018, Ninestiles Academy was met with outrage among parents. In a statement the school said the new policy has resulted in classes starting promptly and on time Ms Kearns has so far spent 500 hiring tutors and buying the necessary books and equipment so Regan, who is a year nine pupil at the school, can be home schooled but claims that the school has not helped in providing her with the curriculum. She said: 'We made the backroom into a classroom and bought everything we needed. 'I even make sure Regan is up with his school uniform on at the same time, ready to start. 'But only a few of the teachers have provided me with a learning plan to follow. I teach him as much as I can and get help from tutors when needed. 'I have spoken to parents who now don't want to send their younger children to the school because of the policy. 'I'm willing to fight this all the way for the sake of our children.' Ms Kearns added that she hoped more could be done to stop the policy and return Regan to the school. She said: 'We choose the school three years ago because it was the right one for Regan. 'My eldest son left Ninestiles with 11 GCSEs and I know it is a good school but they cannot allow this policy to continue. 'We are hoping he can continue his studies at the school but if not we will have to look into other options for taking his GCSE exams. 'I love the work that schools do, it is amazing that our children get a free education and I'm not trying to stop that.' A statement written by co-headteachers Andrea Stephens and Alex Hughes read: 'This initiative was introduced on 5th November 2018 on a phased basis. 'It has been well received by the vast majority of our students and has resulted in classes starting promptly on time. 'As planned, we have been reviewing the policy and because it has worked so well achieving its objectives, we will be announcing a few changes in due course which we believe will be of further benefit to the smooth running of the school. 'We are sure these changes will be welcomed and reflect the positive response we have had from students. 'This is an initiative that has worked well in many other schools and we are pleased that it has had a positive impact here.' A mother who allegedly poisoned her severely ill 13-month baby boy with bleach has previously advertised herself as a babysitter and claimed to have nine years of experience in the childcare industry. Police charged Perth woman Brooke Evelyn Lucas, 26, with unlawful intent to kill or endanger human life on Friday. It is alleged she poured the chemical into her son William's feeding tube on December 29, who is now believed to be in a stable condition at Perth Children's Hospital. Perth mother Brooke Evelyn Lucas, 26, allegedly poisoned her severely ill 13-month-old son (pictured) by pouring bleach down his feeding tubes Police allege Lucas, 26, (pictured top-centre) fed her son William (pictured lower-centre), who requires around-the-clock care for a rare condition, the cleaning fluid on December 29 William will be released back into his grandfather's care on Monday, Channel 9 has reported. The network also revealed his mother claimed to have experience in the childcare sector for almost nine years in 2015. The 26-year-old added she was a 'reliable' worker. Meanwhile, a loving interview on the health of the one-year-old - given by his mother to Channel 7 last year - has re-emerged. Meanwhile, a loving interview on the health of the one-year-old (centre) given by Lucas (left) has re-emerged 'It's a miracle he (William) is still here. We didn't think he was going to make it,' Lucas told a reporter in the footage taken at the Telethon fundraising event in October. She explained to journalist David Koch his condition called Pierre Robin sequence meant his airways were compromised by his recessed chin. The infant, who requires around-the-clock care for a rare condition, was rushed to hospital but it is believed doctors were able to prevent him from suffering any serious harm. Lucas faced Perth Magistrates Court on Saturday charged with unlawful intent to kill or endanger human life. The 26-year-old was inconsolable when facing the court, Channel 9 reports. The one-year-old was born 14 weeks premature and has to eat and breathe through a tube. He was discharged from Perth's Children's Hospital just five days before his mother allegedly tried to kill him after receiving treatment for bronchitis. The one-year-old has a rare condition called Pierre Robin sequence and has to eat and breathe through a tube Lucas wrote on her Facebook page when he was discharged on Christmas Eve after the bronchitis treatment it was 'a Christmas miracle he would be spending his first Christmas at home.' 'I am in tears after he was so sick Friday and Saturday that he needed to be admitted In to hospital,' she wrote. The young mother has been remanded in custody and is due to face Perth Magistrates Court on Monday. A teenager whose paedophile father raped her up to four times and day and took her on the run has revealed the trauma she suffered during childhood. Brave Shannon Clifton, now 18, waived her anonymity to reveal the vile beatings and sexual abuse she was subjected to at the hands of her father. Paedophile Shane Ray Clifton first raped his daughter when she was just six on the living room floor, the Mirror reports. And when Shannon was 11, he got her pregnant but battered her unconscious and she lost the baby. Brave Shannon Clifton, now 18, waived her anonymity to reveal how the vile monster the vile beatings and sexual abuse she was subjected to at the hands of her father. Stock image When Shannon turned 13, she found out she was pregnant again but twisted Clifton Googled ways to make her miscarry and forced her to do dangerous exercise routines. At nine months pregnant, a suspicious nurse at school asked Shannon to take a test - but she refused. Terrified his sickening crimes would be exposed, Clifton went on the run with his daughter which sparked a six day manhunt for the pair. Two days after they were found, Shannon gave birth to a baby boy - that was both her son and her brother. Clifton, 36, got a minimum 15 years life sentence for rape at Derby Crown Court in 2015. The case made headlines after brainwashed Shannon screamed: 'I love you Dad, I miss you.' Neither Clifton or Shannon could be named during the trial. Three years on, Shannon has bravely chosen to speak out about the abuse in the hoping of helping others like herself. When Shannon turned 13, she found out she was pregnant again but twisted Clifton Googled ways to make her miscarry and forced her to do dangerous exercise routines. Stock image She told the paper: 'He stole my life. He turned it into a nightmare I couldn't wake up from raping and beating me for years. I was frightened and in pain every day.' Shannon says she 'hates her Dad' but still misses him because he was the family member she had during her childhood. Clifton took custody of Shannon, whom he called her 'little princess' at the age of five after he split with her mother. But things quickly changed, and the violent thug began to beat her - even burning her with an iron and hitting her with a hammer. Speaking about the first time she was raped, Shannon said: 'He got me up in the night and made me lie on the floor in my nightie. 'Then he lay on top of me and just did it. I felt the worst pain imaginable. I was screaming for him to stop, but he wouldn't. 'Afterwards I lay there bleeding. I was sobbing so much I could barely breathe'. When Shannon gave birth to her child, she said that she 'loved him instantly' but found it 'confusing' that he was also her brother. Stock image Clifton convinced his daughter that the regular rapes were something all fathers did to their daughters. He forced Shannon to have sex up to four times a day, and even made her do it in the woods. She told the Mirror: 'He'd film it and once made me watch it. I was crying it was so horrible.' But Shannon still loved her father as he was 'all she had'. When Shannon gave birth to her child, she said that she 'loved him instantly' but found it 'confusing' that he was also her brother. A year after her birth, she made the difficult decision to put him up for adoption while she was living in care. Shannon now suffers from PTSD and attempted suicide at the age of 16. But with the help of her foster family she is rebuilding her life. She added: 'I'll never know exactly why my dad did what he did, but my aim is to help other abuse victims who read this so they can find the help they need.' Half of the people who died in traffic crashes in Iceland last year were foreigners olice say they have seen drivers without their lights on to prevent light pollution Police in Iceland have warned visitors to beware of the country's icy roads in the winter. They are increasingly worried about visitors scanning the sky for the Northern Lights and not looking at the road, which may be icy, twisty or narrow - or all three conditions at once. It comes after an SUV carrying seven British tourists plunged off a one-lane bridge on Road No. 1 in southern Iceland, killing three people and critically injuring the others. It comes after an SUV carrying seven British tourists plunged off a one-lane bridge on Road No. 1 in southern Iceland, killing three people and critically injuring the others Mother Rajshree Laturia with her 11-month old daughter, Shreeprabha Laturia, who died after the Land Cruiser they were travelling in crashed off a bridge The crash on December 27 killed Rajshree Laturia, her baby daughter Shureeprahba and sister-in-law Khushboo. Rajshree's husband Shreeraj, 39, who was said to be driving, and his brother Supreme, 37, were also badly injured in the crash along with their two other children. In the winter, tourists from warm countries - who may never have driven in snow and ice - have been more likely to get into accidents, according to the Icelandic Transport Authority. Jeremy Tan, a financier from Singapore who was about driving his rental car half way around Iceland, said: ''Driving on Icelandic winter roads it is tough. Definitely.' 'Dark roads and strong winds are something that I am not used to.' Of the 18 people who died in traffic crashes in Iceland in 2018, half of them were foreigners, continuing a trend that started the year before, when more foreigners than residents died for the first time on this volcanic island in the North Atlantic. Shreeraj Laturia, 39 (right) has told police that he cannot remember anything about the crash which killed wife Rajshree (left), daughter Shureeprahba (centre) and sister-in-law Kushboo Sisters-in-law Rajshree Laturia (left) and Khushboo Laturia (right) who died after crash at the Sula bridge barrier in Nupsvotn, Iceland on December 27 A further four people were critically injured in the accident, in Nupsvotn, south of Vatnajokull glacier Police say they have encountered sleep-deprived drivers cruising into the night, as well as vehicles driving without lights on to prevent light pollution. Police say some accidents even happen on main roads, when tourists hit the brakes quickly because of a sudden Northern Lights sighting and then get hit from behind. Superintendent Johannes Sigfusson of the Akureyri Police Department, the largest in the northern region, said: 'The weather in Iceland changes every five minutes, so to speak, and road conditions change accordingly.' 'In a matter of minutes, a dry road can turn icy and slippery. The risk is compounded in the middle of the night, when an inexperienced driver is deprived of sleep and with one eye on the sky.' It doesn't help that, in Icelandic winters, the sun in Akureyri can rise as late as 11:39 a.m. and set as early as 2:43 p.m., meaning that tourists are spending most of their day driving in the dark. The accident took place at Skeidararsandur, a vast sand plain in southern Iceland, at around 9.30am (file picture shows the bridge where it is understood the crash happened) Authorities note that the capital, Reykjavik, Akureyri and other areas have tourism companies that offer nightly Northern Lights bus tours near-daily in the winter so tourists can leave the driving to professionals. Iceland's road infrastructure also lags behind its boom in international tourism. The national Road No. 1, which runs for 830 miles as it connects coastal towns and villages on this volcanic island of 350,000 people, still has narrow lanes and many one-lane bridges. The final moments of a distressed young girl who died from a suspected drug overdose at a music festival have been revealed. Alex Ross-King, 19, was rushed to Westmead Hospital from FOMO Music Festival in Parramatta on Saturday at about 6pm, but later died that evening with her family by her side. Friends of the teenage reveller have revealed that in her last seconds of life, she could tell 'something had gone wrong'. Scroll down for video In Alex Ross-King's (pictured) final moments, she and her friends visited a medical tent, knowing something was awry The young woman went to the festival's medical tent feeling unwell, only moments before she collapsed, Nine News reported. Her friends believe it was a mixture of drugs and extreme heat that killed her. She had been dancing in the blistering 35C sun with a crowd of more than 11,000 other people. More than a third of the 146 people searched by police for drugs were found with illicit substances in their possession. 'Everywhere I looked people were on drugs and drinking a lot of alcohol so its scary that it could be one of my friends next,' one festival-goer said. Ms Ross-King's is the fifth person to die from suspected drug overdose at New South Wales music festivals in the past four months. The teen's friends believe a combination of drugs, suspected to be MDMA, and heat killed her The tragic death has led to renewed calls for pill testing to be introduced, spearheaded by Ms Ross-King's family. Grandmother Denise Doig says she's fearful her beloved granddaughter's death will just 'pass by', and wants pill testing to be introduced as her final 'legacy'. 'Premier, please: can we have this pill testing done. It's such a small thing to do, it's not hard. Let's try and get it out there,' Ms Doig told Network Ten on Sunday. 'If it saves one life; one life is a life. And these are children.' New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian has remained unmoved in her stance against pill testing. 'I want to make sure we reduce deaths and my worry is pill testing could actually have the opposite effect,' she said in Sydney on Sunday. Her family have spearheaded calls for pill testing to be introduced as a show of her 'legacy' Ms Ross-King's uncle Phil Clark also spoke, saying the entire family of the teenager were 'grieving heavily'. 'Strong leadership isn't always about sticking to an ideological decision or a position when there's possibly mountain [of] evidence or advice that maybe something else should be tried,' he said. 'Strong leadership is trying something different.' Friends remembered her as a 'remarkable human being, who had a positive impact on every single persons life that she walked into', while family shared their grief and broken hearts on social media. Pictured; Alex Ross-King, 19, died after a suspected drug overdose at the FOMO music festival on Saturday 'My heart is broken and [I'm] lost for words,' her cousin Rhys Ross-Clark wrote. 'This world is cruel and unfair. Love you my beautiful cousin.' Ms Ross-King had attended the festival with friends, one who shared her shock over the tragic turn of events in an emotional Facebook post. 'You were always full of life and a genuine person with such a big heart and quite easily one of the funniest people I've ever met, you were the life of the party always,' Tayla Brookhouse wrote. 'You'll be very missed by way too many people. Heaven's gained another angel, rest easy and don't stop partying.' Friend Brooke Farr said Alex was 'such a lively, happy girl', who had a big impact on her childhood. 'She taught me how to have confidence and helped me through some tough times,' she said. 'I'm forever grateful because it all helped me be a better version of who I am. 'She truly was beautiful, inside and out. 'I will always continue to ask myself why this life takes the best people so early.' The young woman was remembered as a 'remarkable person' who impacted the lives of everyone she knew Kiarra Harrison said the young woman was a kind of soulmate, and said there were 'no words' to describe her sorrow. 'You understood me completely, no matter the situation no matter what I did you were always there to pick me up or tell me to stop being an idiot,' she said. 'Your kind heart will never be forgotten by anyone that it touched. 'I am so broken and confused, this world is such an unfair place. 'I love you with my whole soul Al, forever. Shine bright up there. The FOMO festival, which plays electronic hip-hop music, was home to an increased police presence, following five other deaths at similar events in just the last four months. Event organisers appeared just as concerned as police about the alarming spike in deaths, advising of the safety hotline and first aid facilities in the lead-up to the event. Alex (left) died in Westmead Hospital after being taken there from the music festival, making her the fifth person to die in four months at a music festival in Australia 'We're here to help, please party safe,' the organisers said over the event's Facebook page. Nearly 30 would-be revellers were refused entry to the party, while 24 others were kicked out for fighting or being too intoxicated. Police searched a total of 146 people, 54 of whom were found in possession of drugs. Two were charged with possession. Organisers of the festival, which was headlined by Nikki Minaj, said in a statement the event was anti-drug. 'Our most heartfelt and sincerest condolences go out to her family and friends,' a spokeswoman said on Sunday. 'The safety and wellbeing of our patrons is at the forefront of every planning decision. 'Our anti-drug messaging began weeks ahead of the event and continued at the event itself - a message we're proud to deliver and will continue to do so with unwavering commitment in order to keep our beloved patrons safe.' Israel has said it has uncovered all cross-border attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon and will bring its operation to find and destroy them to an end after more than a month. The operation, which begun on December 4, had raised concerns that Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Shiite group and enemy of Israel, would respond and spark a new conflict between them, but the border has remained calm throughout. An Israeli military spokesman declined to say how many tunnels had been discovered in total, but the army has announced six since the operation was launched. The last tunnel was exposed on Saturday, the army said. Israel troops have uncovered all cross-border attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon. (Stock image) 'We have found yet another Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnel from Lebanon to Israel,' Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus told reporters. 'According to our intelligence and our assessment of the situation there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel.' The latest tunnel began in the Lebanese village of Ramyeh, some 800 metres (yards) away from Israel, the army said. It reached a few dozen metres into Israel, and at 55 metres underground was the deepest as well as 'the longest and most detailed' of all the tunnels the army exposed, Conricus said. The army said its discovery marked the end of the operation that it called 'Northern Shield' and that the last tunnel will be destroyed in the coming days. The tunnels are being destroyed either with explosives or by filling them with a cement-like material to make them unusable. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listed the tunnel operation on Sunday when thanking Eisenkot for his 40 years of military service Conricus said there were no more tunnels reaching Israel from Lebanon but the army was still monitoring 'facilities' being dug by Hezbollah inside Lebanese territory. 'We have achieved the goal (to expose and destroy the tunnels from Lebanon) which we set out to achieve at the beginning,' Conricus said. He also reiterated that Israel holds the Lebanese government accountable 'for any act of violence or violation of 1701,' the UN resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, was informed of the latest tunnel, Conricus said. Israel alleges Hezbollah had planned to use the tunnels to kidnap or kill its civilians or soldiers, and to seize a slice of Israeli territory in the event of any hostilities. It has said, however, that they were not yet operational. A month-long war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. Israel says all anti-tunnel operations have taken place within its territory, and the highly publicised mission has gone ahead without drawing a military response from Hezbollah. The announcement that the operation is ending comes as military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot steps down at the end of his term. Israeli analysts see the operation as one of Eisenkot's important achievements. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu listed the tunnel operation on Sunday when thanking Eisenkot for his 40 years of military service, including the last four as chief of staff. Labour could call a confidence vote this week if Theresa May's Brexit deal is defeated this week, Jeremy Corbyn hinted today. Mr Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and trigger a general election. He suggested the Brexit date will have to be delayed if the bid succeeds, but repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to take the UK out of the EU. He also declined to say if he would back a second referendum, as is being demanded by dozens of his own MPs. And he suggested free movement rules would effectively stay in place if Labour ends up negotiating a deal with Brussels. Asked in an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether a no-confidence vote would happen immediately if, as expected, Mrs May's package is rejected by the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Corbyn replied: 'It is going to be soon, don't worry about that.' Despite desperate last-ditch pleas, Mrs May is still facing a massive defeat in the crunch Brexit vote with hardline Remainers and Brexiteers mobilising in a bid to thwart her plans. Pro-EU rebels are said to be plotting a 'coup' against the government afterwards to give Parliament control of the negotiations with the EU and rule out a no-deal departure. On the BBC's Andrew Marr show today, Jeremy Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and a general election Theresa May (pictured at church in her Maidenhead constituency today) is facing a disastrous defeat on her Brexit deal this week Mr Corbyn has so far resisted pressure from his own ranks to force a confidence vote, with allies insisting there is no point as the government would win. But there have been mounting signs that he is ready to take advantage of Mrs May's moment of maximum weakness. In the interview today, Mr Corbyn said: 'The crucial thing is Tuesday. And then, if this Government can't control Parliament, it's time to have a general election.' Ducking and diving as he was pressed on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to deliver Brexit, Mr Corbyn said 'we're campaigning for a country that is brought together by investment'. How do no-confidence votes work? Only the official Opposition party can force a vote of no confidence in the government. If the government loses the vote, the terms of the Fixed-term Parliaments Act set out a specific timetable for what happens next. First there is a 14 day period in which the government - or a new administration - can try to establish a majority again. If a confidence motion is not passed by MPs during that time then an election is triggered. The PM has the discretion to set the date for the poll. Advertisement He added later: 'We're campaigning for a customs union.' The Labour leader said his party will 'decide our manifesto content as soon as we know there's an election coming'. Pressed about the option of a second referendum, Mr Corbyn stressed his preference for a general election. He added: 'My own view is that I'd rather get a negotiated deal now, if we can, to stop the danger of a no-deal exit from the EU on March 29 - which would be catastrophic for industry, catastrophic for trade and the long-term effects of that would be huge.' Asked if Article 50 needed to be extended, Mr Corbyn said: 'Clearly if Theresa May's deal is voted down, clearly if a general election takes place and a Labour government comes in - an election would take place February, March time - clearly there's only a few weeks between that and the leave date, there would have to be time for those negotiations.' Mr Corbyn got into a tangle when he insisted he was not against free movement of people. When Andrew Marr pointed out that the last Labour manifesto committed to ending free movement, Mr Corbyn said he did want it to end - but suggested it was be effectively replicated by new deals with the EU. 'We would obviously have an immigration based policy which would be based on the rights of people to move in order to contribute to the economy here,' he said. 'Our economy relies in people coming in from other countries. I want to keep that.' Asked if he would allow free movement to continue after Brexit, Mr Corbyn said: 'I think Ive made it pretty clear the need for workers to go both ways, because obviously theres an awful lot of British workers that work in other parts of Europe.' He also defended Common Speaker John Bercow over accusations he has been conspiring with Remainer MPs to frustrate the Brexit process. 'I think he is a very good Speaker,' Mr Corbyn said. Earlier today, Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long-Bailey said the odds of Labour tabling a vote of no confidence in the Government would 'increase dramatically' if the Prime Minister's Brexit deal falls. She told Sky News's Sophy Ridge On Sunday: 'Ultimately the decision rests with Jeremy (Corbyn) and it's up to him to determine when we do put forward that vote of no confidence, but it's certainly a case of when, not if.' Mr Corbyn defended Common Speaker John Bercow (pictured) over accusations he has been conspiring with Remainer MPs to frustrate the Brexit process But Labour MP John Mann underlined the splits Mr Corbyn faces in his own party, confirming he will vote for Mrs May's deal. Mr Mann said he expected some of his colleagues to support it too, but added: 'I'd be surprised if it's anything like enough to get this deal through, but things could change.' Labour has revealed Mr Corbyn will unveil a new party political broadcast on Wednesday. The party also announced that it was hiring pollsters for the next Election 'to test policies and the impact of campaigning in key marginals' and had selected 100 candidates for the closest-fought seats. Labour sources claimed that the most recent polling showed that the country has 'moved economically to the Left'. One said: 'While the Government has been locked in bitter infighting and chaos over their botched Brexit negotiations, the needs of the country have been neglected. Tory austerity has left the majority of people worse off, creating a cost of living crisis and levels of poverty not seen since the 1930s. 'Our Election campaign strategy will set out a positive vision of how we will make the country better, one of fairness and good public services, where we support each other.' US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday he will ask Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to ensure the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi are held accountable for their crime. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, spoke ahead of a politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia, which has faced intense international scrutiny over Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate. 'We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi,' Pompeo told reporters at a press conference in Qatar. 'So, we'll continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well.' Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said he will ask Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to ensure Jamal Khashoggi's killers are held accountable US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his wife Susan arrive at Doha during his politically sensitive, eight-day trip to the Middle East Pompeo is due to travel to Saudi Arabia later on Sunday as part of an eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. He was speaking to journalists in Doha after meeting his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. He will meet the Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, before heading to Saudi Arabia. - Smiles with MBS - Khashoggi was killed on October 2 in a case which stunned the world and threatened a serious rift between Riyadh and Washington. The journalist was murdered and his corpse dismembered inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate. Evidence subsequently emerged that the killing was done by a team of Saudis sent from Riyadh and closely linked to the crown prince. Washington subsequently demanded a transparent investigation. Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people, and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors despite US intelligence reportedly having evidence that he was behind it. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, US President Donald President Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the kingdom, although the US Senate has clearly blamed Prince Mohammed for the murder. Washington is eager for regional unity to gain widespread support its fight against Iran. Pompeo refused on Sunday to comment on reports that Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. - Gulf crisis - He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. It has been more than 100 days since journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was exonerated by prosecutors in Saudi Arabia despite US intelligence reportedly having evidence that he was behind the murder Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt - all US allies - cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar - also a US ally - denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. 'As for the GCC... we are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world,' Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. 'Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful. 'We're hopeful that unity in the GCC will increase in the days and weeks and months ahead.' He added that 'President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long'. Washington, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, has so far been unsuccessful in trying to end the dispute. Attempts at mediation have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. 'It was time for change and he made his decision to move on but America's commitment remains unchanged,' said Pompeo of Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second 'strategic dialogue' between the two countries on Sunday, and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. 'This reflects the good and historical relationship between the two countries,' said the Qatari foreign minister. A young woman was physically attacked on the train after defending a mother and young baby who were being racially abused. Fahima Adan, 20, was on her way to work in Melbourne's CBD when a female passenger started abusing a mother and her infant son. As soon as she stepped in to help, Ms Adan quickly became a target as the woman began to physically assault her. Scroll down for video. Fahima Adan (pictured) was on her way to work in Melbourne's CBD when a female passenger started abusing a mother and her infant son The 20-year-old was one of 30 people on the train, but she was the only one who had the courage to try and protect the woman and her child against the 'racist crazy lady'. 'This woman ran for her safety away from the lady to the other side of the train leaving her belongings where she was harassed,' Ms Adan wrote to Facebook. In video footage obtained by Nine News, the woman can be heard screaming 'I hate Islam!'. When Ms Adan defended herself by saying 'I'm Australian as well', the woman jumped at her and attempted to rip her hijab off her head. 'It really opened my eyes how no one even tried to stop the lady once she jumped towards me trying to take my hijab off,' the 20-year-old said. 'All everyone did was record, I'm so hurt and disgusted that I was even disrespected like that, I'm an Australian citizen, I work and take public transportation just like everybody else.' The 20-year-old was left in tears with bruises and scratches all over her body As soon as she stepped in to help, Ms Adan quickly became a target as the woman began to physically assault her When Ms Adan left the train to catch a replacement bus, the woman again started attacking her and ripped the scarf from her and throwing her into bushes. The 20-year-old was left in tears with bruises and scratches all over her body. 'I feel belittled and disgusted in a country I call home. I was disrespected in so many ways, this was so wrong and justice never came, it was thrown to the side like it was nothing,' Ms Adan wrote. She also feels disheartened by the lack of support from other commuters on the train. 'This scarf. This is my world. You know. It's my religion. And this being taken off me it's just the ultimate disrespect. And people just sat there and watched,' she told Nine News. Authorities arrested a 39-year-old Clayton woman over the incident, but she has since been released pending summons for unlawful assault. A city worker is suing her former employers for sexual harassment, alleging her boss repeatedly invited her back to his hotel room after a boozy office party. Executive director Frederic Michel-Verdier, 50, is said to have leered at Nathalie Abildgaard, 27: 'If I was 20 years younger, I would have been all over you', the Sunday Times reported. Later that night he suggested she should go to his hotel room 'so we could have fun', before sending her messages including one with his room number and a smiling emoji. Michel-Verdier, who is married, has been disciplined by his employers for 'miuse of alcohol' over the incident. He denies the allegations. Nathalie Abildgaard, 27, is asking her former employer for a slice of the bonus she would have earned in full had she stayed at the firm longer. She claims her boss sexually harassed her at a work party The alleged exchanges took place in a Madrid nightclub in March last year, where the pair and their team from IFM Investors, an Australian fund management firm with an office in Gresham Street, London, were celebrating closing a deal. The paper reported that in a witness statement, Amelia McArdle, IFM's global head of people and culture, said Mr Michel-Verdier 'stated that he was stunned' when told about the allegations. 'He said he had no recollection of having sent messages, or the content of those messages,' McArdle said in the document. 'He explained that there had been a lot of drinking over the course of the evening ... and stated that while he may have made some bad jokes, he did not intend any wrongdoing.' IFM said it had investigated the claims after Ms Abildgaard left the company in April of last year, and concluded that while Michel-Verdier sending his room number breached its code of conduct, the firm 'felt we could not reasonably conclude that there had also been verbal unwanted and physical advances.' At the event in Madrid, Michel-Verdier, 50, is said to have leered at Nathalie Abildgaard, 27: 'If I was 20 years younger, I would have been all over you', before sending her a text with his hotel room number and a smiley face The message, and another incident, earned Michel-Verdier a reprimand for 'misuse of alcohol'. He had his bonus cut and has even been banned from drinking at company events for 12 months. When Abildgaard left IFM she asked the company to pay her a pro rata percentage of her bonus, for the proportion of the year she had worked. she claimed she had intended to leave the company later in the year having received her bonus in full. But IFM rejected her request on the grounds that the incident was not 'of such a nature that it in effect forced Nathalie to resign'. In a rarity, her case (against both IFM and Michel-Verdier) is set to be heard by a London employment tribunal in central London this coming week. Most claims of harassment in the City are settled in advance, with the alleged victim often made to sign a gagging order in return for a payout. Copenhagen-born Nathalie Abildgaard joined IFM's London office in 2016 as an analyst. Michel-Verdier joined in 2008 after working as an investment banker at ING Barings. Speaking to The Sunday Times, Ms Abildgaard declined to comment on the specific allegations against Michel-Verdier but said the process of taking legal action had been both 'very isolating and incredibly stressful'. She added: 'Apart from the money, it's also incredibly time-consuming and it wears on you,' she said. Ms Abildgaard is suing both her former boss and her former employers - IFM Investors, an Australian fund management firm with an office in Gresham Street, London Later today, she will launch a charity to help employees who have suffered workplace discrimination. Legal Aid for Business Diversity, which has the backing of the Labour MP Jess Phillips, is intended to help 'level the playing field' for individuals taking on their employer, providing them with financial support. She said the charity was not saying everyone should sue their employer, but that 'if you want to do it, it shouldn't be the money that prevents you.' Abildgaard called her legal battle a 'David and Goliath fight', on which she has already spent 50,000, and accused IFM's lawyers of trying to 'drown' her 'in litigation'. IFM Investors, which manages about 52bn in assets, told the paper: 'IFM Investors takes allegations of workplace misconduct extremely seriously ... We will move swiftly to address any identified shortcomings in the culture in our workplace.' Benjamin Netanyahu has revealed today that Israel carried out an airstrike in Syria on Friday, in a rare public confirmation of such attacks. The Israeli PM said the country successfully blew up an Iranian weapons storage facility at Syria's biggest airport. 'Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus International Airport,' Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting today. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revealed today that Israel had carried out an air strike on Iranian weapons in Syria 'The accumulation of recent attacks shows that we're more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised.' Netanyahu added that Israel had attacked Iranian and Hezbollah targets in Syria hundreds of times. It's a rare public announcement of Syrian airstrikes from Netanyahu - but he may be looking to burnish his security credentials with an April 9 election on the horizon. Syria's official SANA news agency claimed it had shot down most of Israel's missiles, and that the attack was largely unsuccessful. But it did admit that a warehouse in the airport had been hit. The Israeli leader said the accumulation of recent attacks shows Israel is 'more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised' Israel has pledged to prevent its main enemy Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, where it is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime alongside Russia and Hezbollah. Uncharacteristically, outgoing military chief of staff Gadi syria also spoke publicly of Syrian airstrikes in interviews in recent days. Eisenkot told the New York Times: 'We struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit.' Beachgoers have been left horrified after two naked men were allegedly seen stripping naked before urinating and defecating in the sea at a popular swimming spot. Residents were looking to make the most of the clear skies at Lamberts Beach in Slades Point, northern Queensland on Saturday but instead saw their relaxation rudely disturbed by the two interlopers. Witness Lance Payne said he saw the incident transpire from the moment the men got out of their car at the beach - as did a woman and her baby. Residents were looking to make the most of the clear skies at Lamberts Beach in Slades Point, northern Queensland on Saturday but instead saw their relaxation rudely disturbed by the two interlopers (stock image) He told The Courier-Mail the two men began removing their clothes while running around the beach. Mr Payne claimed one of the men started urinating in the ocean before the other joined him and apparently defecated in the surf. 'He walked out to the water pulled his pants down, bent his knees and maintained a position,' he told The Mackay Daily Mercury. The men's actions turned even more shocking, Mr Payne said, when he suspected one them started to pleasure himself in the surf. Disgusted by the behavior of the two nude men, who he thought may have been intoxicated by the way they had stumbled through the surf, the witness reported what he saw to police. But they were left horrified after two naked men were allegedly seen stripping naked before urinating and defecating in the sea at a popular swimming spot (stock image) Aside from the baby, Mr Payne thinks many other children were at the beach and could also have seen the men's inappropriate behaviour. Mackay Police said they had filed the report, but given how long after the incident it was lodged it would be difficult to level charges. Police also said the evidence given about the identity of the culprits was insufficient. Upmarket towns are being choked up with huge fatbergs due to wealthy residents' fondness for expensive quilted toilet paper and wet wipes. Last week, a fatberg longer than five double-decker buses was found blocking a sewer in the seaside resort of Sidmouth, Devon. One of the biggest fatbergs ever found, it is estimated take around eight weeks to remove it. The enormous blockage, fed by luxury lifestyles of rich residents, is the latest to be discovered in posh towns. Last week, a fatberg longer than five double-decker buses was found blocking a sewer in Sidmouth, Devon (pictured) Water company bosses say fatbergs form under upmarket towns due to residents' penchant for better quality brands of toilet paper which do not break down easily in water Sewers in Chelsea, Cheltenham, Harrogate and Henley-on-Thames have been plagued by fatbergs in the past three years. And water company bosses say fatbergs form under wealthy towns due to residents' penchant for better quality brands of toilet paper which do not break down easily in water, according to The Sunday Times. Andrew Roantree, director of wastewater at South West Water, which manages Sidmouth sewers, told The Sunday Times: 'These fatbergs do seem to crop up in more upmarket towns.' 'The social demographics of fatbergs are complex - we see them in deprived areas too - so we want to work out how modern lifestyles cause them'. The company have asked Exeter University to analyse the huge fatberg found in Devon. Luxury quilted toilet paper along with pre-moistened wipes coated in cooking oil appear to be the main cause of these mass sewer blockages. South West Water have asked Exeter University to analyse the huge fatberg found in Devon (pictured) Experts say the 'ultra-strong' paper is a huge problem as they may never fall apart in water - which is what sewers are designed for. Many of the expensive brands can stay intact for 'forever' because other materials cling to it and and balls of fat solidify and grow. Rae Stewart, of Water UK, told The Sunday Times: 'Polyester baby wipes and so-called flushable wet wipes are the worst. Andrex Washlets are made by US company Kimberley-Clark rejected the claims its wipes caused blockages. But Mr Roantree claimed the wipes stay moist without breaking up 'for weeks' and urges people to put these products, along with quilted toilet paper 'in a bin, not down our sewers'. Andrex Washlets are made by US company Kimberley-Clark rejected the claims its wipes caused blockages A British teacher cleared of sex crimes in the UK has been warned he faces up to 12 years in prison in Spain over the alleged abuse of a former teenage pupil. Carlo Troiano, 41, moved abroad after being sacked by his Cheshire school despite being acquitted at a 2010 trial of engaging in sexual activity with a pupil half his age. He was arrested in November 2016 on suspicion of sexually abusing a 15-year-old pupil at his new school in southern Spain - and thrown in jail again after a brief release on bail for allegedly breaching a court ban by contacting her. British Carlo Troiano, 41, pictured, could face up to 12 years in jail in Spain over the alleged abuse of a former teenage pupil Today it emerged Spanish state prosecutors and lawyers for the fee-paying bilingual school which employed him after he left the UK, want him sentenced to 12 years in prison if he is convicted. The jail demand has been made in an indictment filed with a Spanish court ahead of his sex abuse trial. Lawyers for St George's British School of Almeria in Roquetas de Mar say in their six-page indictment Troiano began a sexual relationship with his former pupil in May 2016 behind his employers' back. Sex between the pair is said to have taken place at his then-home in the tourist resort of Roquetas. The teenager's mother reported him in November 2016, sparking his arrest and sacking. School bosses, who under Spanish law can prosecute Troiano as well as the state, are also seeking a 15-year ban from jobs that involve contact with children as part of any conviction and a 35,000 compensation payout to his alleged victim. The father-of-two, pictured, moved abroad after being sacked by his Cheshire school despite being acquitted at a 2010 trial of engaging in sexual activity with a pupil half his age State prosecutors have demanded a 12-year prison sentence in a separate indictment. The teenager's mother is among the witnesses who have been asked to give evidence at his trial. The trial date has not yet been made public. Dad-of-two Troiano, now divorced from his ex-wife, was found not guilty in January 2010 of three charges of causing or enticing sexual activity with a 16-year-old pupil in a classroom. A jury of seven women and five men unanimously cleared him after a four-day trial at Warrington Crown Court. They ruled after listening to the evidence that they did not believe the girl, 17 at the time of the trial, had been telling the truth. She had claimed he had asked her to perform sex acts on him. University-educated Troiano denied the allegations. Governors at Bankfield High School terminated his contract despite the acquittal. He was released on bail in December 2017 after being held on remand in prison for nearly a year following his new arrest in Spain. Lawyers for St George's British School of Almeria in Roquetas de Mar, pictured, say Troiano began a sexual relationship with his former pupil in May 2016 behind his employers' back A Spanish judge issued a European Arrest Warrant after Troiano, from Wirral, after being told he had taken advantage of his release to contact the teenager he allegedly had an illegal affair with and asked her to write a letter for his lawyer saying her sex claims against him were 'lies.' The arrest order stated he told her he had got her name tattooed on his body. The teenager also accused Troiano of becoming aggressive to make sure she penned the apology, insisting he told her to 'do it for his children' and saying they could only meet up if she agreed to his request. Police in Germany, where the girl moved to after leaving Spain and he had travelled despite an international travel ban, swooped on him at a railway station last October. He was subsequently extradited to Spain and remanded in prison where he is expected to remain until trial. Court sources revealed last October Troiano was facing another court probe for allegedly trying to sexually abuse an under-age cousin of the former pupil he is accused of having an affair with after getting both girls drunk. The sacked ex UK-based teacher has also been charged with a separate offence of possession and distribution of child pornography. Prosecutors want him jailed for two years if convicted. The charge is understood to relate to allegations he uploaded images of naked and semi-named girls 'in erotic poses' onto the Internet on January 20 2016. A committed terminally-ill husband has visited his wife in prison to celebrate their wedding anniversary - even though she plotted to kill him. Ray Weatherall's wife Hayley, 32, schemed with her secret lover - who was also his best friend of 20 years - Glenn Pollard, 49, to shoot, poison and blow him up. However despite her being jailed for 15 years in November, the married couple are still seeing each other regularly at Bronzefield Prison in Surrey. In an anniversary card made by Hayley in the prison 200 miles from her husband's home in Kent, she writes: 'I am so sorry and I love you more than ever. Ray Weatherall, right, visited wife Hayley, left, at Bronzefield Prison in Surrey to celebrate their anniversary despite her being jailed for 15 years over plots to shoot, poison and blow him up 'You and our babies are all that matters to me and nothing and no one will ever come between us I swear. All my love, hugs and kisses, Hayley,' reports the Mirror. Mr Weatherall, who has terminal brain cancer, told a shocked Susanna Reid on Good Morning Britain in November that he's forgiven his wife. He said: 'I'd much love her to come home, but I know that she isn't going to, not in my lifetime. So I've got to deal with the future as it's fed to me now. Hayley gave her husband a card for their anniversary, pictured, and wrote: 'I am so sorry and I love you more than ever' inside 'She apologised for what she got herself tangled up in and there's not much we can do about it now.' The loyal husband also brought his wife Christmas presents to enjoy in prison. A family friend told the Mirror that he wanted to give her perfume, but as liquids were not allowed in the prison he chose a Boyzone CD. They said: 'Boyzone are one of her favourite bands. One of her favourites songs is Life Is a Rollercoaster. I think it sums up her life and relationship well.' Ray had been told he had months to live when his best friend's daughter Heather shot him in the face like a 'sniper' after a string of failed attempts on his life. They included a swimming pool heater explosion which left him with second degree burns, drowning him while fishing and poisoning him with insulin. At their trial, Maidstone Crown Court was told the non-fatal shooting triggered a long and intricate Kent Police investigation, which uncovered a string of other unsuccessful attempts on the man's life. Mr Weatherall told Good Morning Britain that Glenn had been the main instigator of the plot, and that his wife was 'dragged into it'. Terminally-ill Mr Weatherall, pictured, said he still loves his wife despite her scheming with secret lover Pollard and his daughter Heather to kill him He said: 'I'm disgusted with Glenn and his daughter. Glenn was most certainly the driver of it all. I'm disgusted that my wife for getting involved with it all.' Their schemes began unravelling in January after Ray's niece Emma Worsfold tipped off police that they were trying to kill Ray, after she learned of the affair. Kent Police raided their homes and quickly recovered the bolt-action rifle that was used to shoot him. Electrical devices were analysed and hundreds of messages were discovered between Glenn and Heather, including about how they planned to kill his love rival. The jury was also told about other events that had threatened the victim's life between the summer of 2017 and the spring of 2018, which was just chalked up to accidents. Mr Weatherall was blown up when his burner exploded, was set up to be drowned during a fishing trip with Pollard, and an incidence of suspected poisoning. From left to right: Heather Pollard, Hayley Weatherall, who were both jailed for 15 years, and Glenn Pollard, who was jailed for 17 years An X-ray of Mr Weatherall's jaw, with a bullet visible to the top right where he was shot in the face, while at Sandwich Marina in Kent Glenn Pollard got life with a minimum of 17 years while the other two were jailed for life with a minimum of 15 years. Heather Pollard was seen laughing in the dock with her father before the sentence was handed down. Jurors heard treacherous Pollard had a gun license and 'brainwashed' his daughter - who was Mr Weatherall's great-niece - to fire the 'sniper' shot last November. He was shot in the face at Sandwich Marina in Kent but survived when the bullet hit his right cheekbone. Even at the point of the shooting the trail remained cold until the affair was revealed in January of 2018. The Archbishop of Canterbury is being called to force his new ambassador to resign after he claimed Jesus did not rise from the dead. Australian-born Dr John Shepherd, who was appointed last week as the new representative to Rome, delivered a sermon in which he said Christians should be 'set free' from the view of the resurrection. Senior Anglicans have branded his comments, made while he was Dean of Perth's St George's Cathedral, as 'bizarre' and 'inappropriate', The Telegraph revealed. Australian-born Dr John Shepherd was appointed last week as the new representative to Rome In a 2008 Easter sermon, he said: 'It's important for Christians to be set free from the idea that the resurrection was an extraordinary physical event, which restored to life Jesus' original body. 'The resurrection ought not to be seen in physical terms, but as a new spiritual reality.' Senior Anglicans questioned his position as someone who will act for the Archbishop, Church of England, and will be closely involved with the Pope. The Bishop of Maidstone, the RT Rev Rod Thomas, said that believing in the resurrection was a fundamental Christian belief. The Rev Dr Lee Gatiss, director of the Church's biggest Evangelical group, told The Telegraph he thought the situation was 'utterly bizarre and and absolutely inappropriate'. He also said that if his beliefs were true, who should not have been ordained as as a minister in the first place. Senior Anglicans questioned his position as someone who will act for the Archbishop (pictured), Church of England, and will be closely involved with the Pope The Rev Dr Ian Paul, a member of the General Synod, said questioned whether it was wise to 'appoint someone as the Archbishop's envoy to Rome someone who doesn't believe in the bodily resurrection of Jesus'. But other senior Anglicans said Dr Shepherd was an 'extremely goof theologian'. A spokesperson for the Archbishop told The Telegraph that he was of 'good standing' and 'due diligence' was used when appointing him. Dr Shepherd did not respond for The Telegraph's request for comment. His views about the resurrection are shared by a number of other Anglicans. Theresa May is facing an all-out bid by Remainer rebels to stop Brexit going ahead by tearing up the Commons rulebook. The 'coup' could see the government stripped of control over business in Parliament - paralysing the PM and potentially allowing MPs to prevent the UK crashing out without a deal. The move - which No10 believes is being orchestrated by former ministers Oliver Letwin and Dominic Grieve - could happen within hours of Mrs May's Brexit plan being heavily defeated on Tuesday, as seems inevitable. The manoeuvring was only uncovered by Chief Whip Julian Smith when he overheard conspirators in the MPs' cloakroom. Ministers have been warned success for the plotters could make it impossible for the government to cling on. There are claims Speaker John Bercow is ready to help the backbench uprising, after he secretly met Mr Grieve last week. The high-stakes battle emerged as Mrs May launched another desperate effort to salvage the package she has thrashed out with Brussels. Legal experts have warned the Remainer plot could paralyse the PM (pictured at church in her Maidenhead constituency today) The 'coup' could see the government stripped of control over business in Parliament - potentially allowing MPs to prevent the UK crashing out without a deal. Theresa May is pictured taking PMQs in the House last week Mrs May said failing to deliver on the verdict of the referendum would be 'unforgivable' and a 'catastrophe' for democracy. At the start of an historic week in Parliament that could make or break Brexit: Former PM Sir John Major has joined calls for Article 50 to be revoked to give the UK more time, reiterating his support for a second referendum. Mrs May is still thought to be on track for a huge defeat on her Brexit deal, with speculation it could be the biggest ever suffered by a government. Cabinet ministers have warned of a 'Brexit bunfight' between supporters of alternative policies if Mrs May's package is killed off. Hopes are fading of significant concessions from the EU before the crunch Parliamentary clash. Jeremy Corbyn hinted Labour is preparing to force a no-confidence vote this week if the premier loses the Commons showdown. Fourteen military planners are said to have have been deployed to Whitehall departments to help with preparations for border chaos if the UK crashes out. Hardline Remainers and Brexiteers have been mobilising in a bid to thwart her plans. Downing Street said it was 'extremely concerned' about a backbench plot to change Commons rules to enable backbench motions to take precedence over Government business, warning it was a 'real threat' to its ability to function. How could the 'coup' plot work? The rules of the House of Commons have been developed over centuries. They are largely set down in Erskine May - known as the procedural 'Bible' - and Standing Orders. The government currently has power to control business in the chamber - which is especially crucial when there is no overall majority. The executive proposes legislation and motions, which are then scrutinised by MPs. But ripping up the system to give backbenchers priority over Parliamentary time could fundamentally change the balance. MPs would be able to prevent ministers bringing forward legislation, and stage votes on what should happen next - potentially even binding ones. Speaker John Bercow will play a key role in pushing through any changes, which would effectively turn the constitutional settlement on its head. No10 sources admit that the tactic could effectively remove their ability to govern. Advertisement One senior source branded the plan a 'very British coup', according to the Sunday Times. The government currently has power to control business in the chamber - which is especially crucial when there is no overall majority. The executive proposes legislation and motions, which are then scrutinised by MPs. But ripping up the system to give backbenchers priority over Parliamentary time could fundamentally change the balance. MPs would be able to prevent ministers bringing forward legislation, and stage votes on what should happen next - potentially even binding ones. The tactic apparently emerged when one of the conspirators was overheard in the MPs' cloakroom by Mr Smith. He reportedly sought advice from legal experts, who said: 'Such an attempt represents a clear and present danger to all government business. 'Without control of the order paper, the government has no control over the House of Commons and the parliamentary business and legislation necessary to progress government policies. The government would lose its ability to govern.' The ex-head of legislation at No10, Nikki da Costa, said she had 'never seen something so designed to undermine government stability'. She said the amendments required to make the overhaul happen would 'normally not be in scope' and 'shouldn't be possible'. 'But with this Speaker... if passed it would be catastrophic,' she added. 'I don't say that lightly. I've never seen something so designed to undermine government stability.' Asked about the claims, Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay said: 'What recent events have shown, with events over the last week with what happened on the legal advice where the Government was forced to act in a way it didn't want to, is the uncertainty in terms of what will happen in the House has increased. 'So those on the Brexiteer side seeking ideological purity with a deal are risking Brexit, because there is a growing risk that events could unfold in ways that (mean) they are leaving the door ajar to ways that increase the risk to Brexit.' Pressed repeatedly on what the government's Plan B was, Mr Barclay said he thought MPs would end up passing a package 'on the lines' of that proposed by Mrs May. Mr Grieve is said to have refused to deny he is involved in the scheme. The PM's allies have also pointed the finger at ex-minister Sir Oliver Letwin, while other Tory MPs including Nick Boles, Anna Soubry and Sarah Wollaston have pledged to support any measures necessary to avoid a no-deal Brexit. Ms Soubry today tweeted accusing Downing Street of 'nasty smear tactics' against Mr Grieve and other Remainers, designed to 'scare' politicians into backing the PM's agreement. So what happens next? No 10 fear that Theresa May's premiership could implode on Tuesday night if the scale of her defeat is insurmountable, with aides and allies braced for two doomsday scenarios: Fear one: If Theresa May's bill is heavily defeated, Labour is likely to call a confidence vote in the Government on Wednesday. If the Government loses heavily, Mrs May will resign; if it wins, she will likely head to Brussels immediately for crisis talks. Fear two: Cabinet Remainers could join with Labour to hamstring the Prime Minister by hijacking her Immigration Bill to demand the UK stays in a Customs Union with the EU forever. It would likely spark a devastating backlash from Brexiteers that could yet topple the PM's tenuous grip on power. Advertisement Labour's Chris Leslie, another of those coordinating efforts to avoid no-deal Brexit, said: 'MPs saying no to Executive isnt a coup. Its parliamentary democracy in action. 'Its Ministers who consistently try to overrule Parliament: stacking committees; forcing through Henry VIII powers; withholding papers; breaking pairing; trying to trigger Brexit with no vote.' The Mail on Sunday has revealed that Mr Grieve secretly met Mr Bercow last week just hours before the Speaker threw out centuries of tradition to scupper Mrs May's Brexit plans. The pair spoke in Mr Bercow's grace-and-favour Commons apartment the day before the Speaker tore up the rule book to allow the former Attorney General to table an amendment forcing the PM to table a 'Plan B' within three days of her expected defeat. Ministers believe the Speaker will do 'almost anything' to block the government, with senior sources telling MailOnline it is 'terrifying' that Mr Bercow holds the key to their fate. Conservative Party chairman Brandon Lewis said Britain was facing 'Brexit paralysis' if her plan was rejected by MPs. Tory ex-PM Sir John Major today called for Article 50 to be revoked to give the UK more time, saying it was the 'only sensible course'. Commons Speaker John Bercow (pictured) secretly met Tory rebel Dominic Grieve just hours before allowing a vote of an amendment to the Brexit withdrawal bill last week The amendment tabled by Mr Grieve (pictured) flew in the face of usual Commons procedure, and led to the PM's second major setback in 24 hours No10 also believes Sir Oliver Letwin (pictured) is behind the plot to overhaul Commons rules Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn today defended the Speaker as he hinted that he will trigger a no-confidence vote this week Meanwhile, Labour is gearing up to stage a no-confidence vote immediately after the Brexit deal decision - potentially as early as Wednesday. Jeremy Corbyn has so far resisted pressure to force a vote, with allies insisting there is no point as the government would win. But there are mounting signs that he is ready to take advantage of Mrs May's moment of maximum weakness. Corbyn hints at bid to oust May within days Labour could call a confidence vote this week if Theresa May's Brexit deal is defeated this week, Jeremy Corbyn hinted today. Mr Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and a general election. He suggested the Brexit date will have to be delayed if he succeeds, but repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to take the UK out of the EU. He also declined to say if he would back a second referendum, as is being demanded by dozens of his own MPs. Asked in an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether a no-confidence vote would happen immediately if, as expected, Mrs May's package is rejected by the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Corbyn replied: 'It is going to be soon, don't worry about that.' Advertisement Asked in an interview on the BBC's Andrew Marr show whether a no-confidence vote would happen immediately if, as expected, Mrs May's package is rejected by the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Corbyn replied: 'It is going to be soon, don't worry about that.' Mr Corbyn made clear the party is on high alert to try to force the PM out and a general election. He suggested the Brexit date will have to be delayed if he succeeds, but repeatedly refused to be drawn on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to take the UK out of the EU. He also declined to say if he would back a second referendum, as is being demanded by dozens of his own MPs. In the interview today, Mr Corbyn said: 'The crucial thing is Tuesday. And then, if this Government can't control Parliament, it's time to have a general election.' Ducking and diving as he was pressed on whether Labour would campaign on a manifesto to deliver Brexit, Mr Corbyn said 'we're campaigning for a country that is brought together by investment'. He added later: 'We're campaigning for a customs union.' The Labour leader said his party will 'decide our manifesto content as soon as we know there's an election coming'. Pressed about the option of a second referendum, Mr Corbyn stressed his preference for a general election. He added: 'My own view is that I'd rather get a negotiated deal now, if we can, to stop the danger of a no-deal exit from the EU on March 29 - which would be catastrophic for industry, catastrophic for trade and the long-term effects of that would be huge.' Writing in the Sunday Express, Mrs May pleaded with parliamentarians to 'do what is right for our country' and back her controversial exit plan. Military planners are drafted into Whitehall departments Military planners have been drafted into Whitehall department in a bid to prevent border 'chaos' if there is a no-deal Brexit, it was revealed today. Some 14 military planners have been deployed to the Department for Transport, Home Office and Foreign Office as well as the Cabinet Office, according to Freedom of Information responses to the Observer. Some departments apparently asked for 'the unique skills and operational planning experience the military can offer'. Their duties are said to include 'command and control' advice. Advertisement She said the UK risks crashing out of the EU without a deal or, if MPs are 'unwilling' to face the uncertainty of no deal, then the UK may not leave at all. In what she described as the 'biggest and most important decision that any MP of our generation will be asked to make', the Prime Minister said it was time for politicians to 'deliver' for the people. 'You, the British people, voted to leave. And then, in the 2017 General Election, 80 per cent of you voted for MPs who stood on manifestos to respect that referendum result,' she wrote. 'You have delivered your instructions. Now it is our turn to deliver for you.' Rebel Tories have been warned that forcing a defeat could lead to one of two 'nightmare scenarios'. Pro-Remain Tory MPs join forces with Labour to compel the UK to stay in a customs union with the EU; or Mr Corbyn moves to bring down Mrs May with an immediate vote of no confidence. Either way, it could lead to a crushing General Election defeat within weeks unless they fall into line, whips say. Tory chairman Brandon Lewis told The Mail on Sunday that a 'Brexit bunfight' would 'open up between those who want a second referendum, an extension of Article 50 or a Norway-plus deal'. Brexit Secretary Stephen Barclay, pictured on the BBC's Andrew Marr show today, warned Tories against insisting on 'ideological purity' Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, pushed about the Government's Brexit Plan B, told Sky News' Ridge on Sunday: 'I'm not going to get into 'will we do this, will we do that, will we do the other?'. 'The important thing is to say to fellow MPs those concerns are out there and the big concerns are: Are we going to leave? Are we going to deliver Brexit? Are we going to somehow try and reverse Brexit? Is Parliament going to force us to reverse Brexit? 'What we have is a sensible compromise deal. It's not giving everybody everything what they want, but it was never going to - this was a 52-48 result.' Labour added to the pressure last night by announcing that Mr Corbyn would unveil a new party political broadcast on Wednesday in which he would 'spell out how Labour plans to unite and rebuild the country' and 'campaign on a growing view that austerity and inequality has created a country of haves and have-nots'. The party also announced that it was hiring pollsters for the next Election 'to test policies and the impact of campaigning in key marginals' and had selected 100 candidates for the closest-fought seats. Labour sources claimed that the most recent polling showed that the country has 'moved economically to the Left'. One said: 'While the Government has been locked in bitter infighting and chaos over their botched Brexit negotiations, the needs of the country have been neglected. Tory austerity has left the majority of people worse off, creating a cost of living crisis and levels of poverty not seen since the 1930s. 'Our Election campaign strategy will set out a positive vision of how we will make the country better, one of fairness and good public services, where we support each other.' The UAE has swapped a British arms consultant suspected of being at the centre of a helicopter corruption scam in India for a runaway Dubai princess in a bizarre extradition. 'Smooth' business dealer Christian Michel, 57, is one of three middlemen being investigated by the Central Bureau of Intelligence (CBI) over claims they accepted bribes to buy luxury aircraft for politicians in 2013. He was extradited from the United Arab Emirates last month to face police over the deal and given to India in exchange for Princess Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, The Sunday Telegraph reports. 'Smooth' business dealer Christian Michel, 57, who's accused of being involved in a multi-million pound bribery scandal was given over to India by Dubai He was swapped in exchange for runaway princess Latifa bint Mohammed Al Maktoum, who tried to escape her father's regime in Dubai but was captured by Indian officials The Princess had tried to flee Dubai in a yacht last year but was intercepted by the Indian Navy. She was last seen on March 5 being dragged into a rubber boat by Indian and Emirati forces. The 33-year-old royal was trying to escape the regime amid claims that her and her sisters were frequently heavily medicated and described as mentally ill. European and Asian diplomatic sources in New Delhi told the Telegraph India struck swapped the princess for Mr Michel, who owns a home and business in Dubai. Asked about the alleged extradition swap, a member of Mr Michels legal team, speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Sunday Telegraph: 'That there was a swap deal is my understanding too.' The Princess (left) escaped with Ms Jauhiainen (right) and planned to start a new life in America but three weeks into her escape bid, their yacht was surrounded by Indian forces The arms consultant was wanted in India for his part in the 400million purchase of 12 helicopters for Indian politicians during the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government. His personal books showed he paid 5.4m to Indian Air Force officers, 7.5m to bureaucrats and 12.5 - 14m to an unidentified political family, according to CBI investigators. But Mr Michel claims the CBI had coerced him into signing a confession. Princess Latifa's identity card (pictured above) which states her full name as Sheikha Latifa Mohd Rashed Almaktoum This photo, released by the UAE in December, show Princess Latifa posing with the former UN high commissioner for human rights Mary Robinson. The emirate released the image to help find the 'missing' royal Radha Stirling of Detained in Dubai, a criminal justice NGO in the UAE, said India and Dubai had shown blatant disregard for 'standard norms of diplomatic relations'. Princess Latifa's father, Sheikh Mohammad Al Maktoum, is the ruler of Dubai and the Maktoum family. According to campaigners, Latifa was snatched from a yacht after trying to flee with the help of French former spy Herve Jaubert and long-time friend Tiina Jauhiainen. Rights groups had called on the UAE to disclose the whereabouts and condition of Latifa, following reports in the international media that she was forcibly returned after fleeing the Gulf Arab state She changed her clothes and sunglasses, and along with Ms. Jauhiainen crossed into Oman. They then headed out into international waters by inflatable boat and jet ski to meet Mr Jaubert in a yacht flying the US flag. They set sail for India, where Latifa hoped to claim political asylum in the US, but were stopped by armed men just 30 miles from the coast. Her plight was the subject of a December 6 BBC documentary, Escape From Dubai: The Mystery Of The Missing Princess. Soft sentences handed down by judges to drug dealers and violent criminals are driving the gang violence gripping Britain. A damning Government-funded report tells how young pushers and knife-wielding thugs are being let off with a slap on the wrist, sending the message that the consequences of drug-dealing and violence are minimal. In a shocking expose of Wild West Britain, the study also shows how: Ruthless gang bosses are now turning to middle-class children to sell drugs for them; They keep tabs on their foot soldiers using mobile phone tracking apps; Dealers are offering two-for-one deals and prize raffles to get more people hooked on heroin and crack cocaine; Children are being sold addictive anti-anxiety drug Xanax to calm their nerves before exams. Parents are urged to search their childrens bedrooms for knives. Soft sentences handed down by judges to drug dealers and violent criminals are driving the gang violence gripping Britain The findings have been sent to MPs by the Violence And Vulnerability Unit, set up to tackle the growing problem of County Lines gangs who send young people to sell drugs in provincial towns. The report has been submitted to the Home Affairs Select Committees inquiry into serious violence, launched last year as fears grew of a Wild West Britain where stabbings, muggings and murders became commonplace across towns and cities. There were 134 homicides in London alone during 2018, making it the bloodiest year for a decade, and there have been another five victims since New Year, including 14-year-old Jayden Moodie. Last night, former Childrens Minister Tim Loughton, who sits on the committee, said: We need to get serious about clamping down on County Lines, which means sending out a very clear message that there will be serious penalties for those caught up in this horrendous spiral of violence. By treating these teenagers as victims, the courts are sending out mixed messages. The surge in violence has been linked to police numbers falling to their lowest level since 1981 after almost a decade of budget cuts. And a new pledge by Prisons Minister Rory Stewart to ban prison sentences of under six months will likely heighten concerns over soft sentencing. The report makes it plain that Britain is now being plagued by a new type of criminality that links street gangs, drug dealers and organised crime groups who are running an extremely violent but very lucrative business. Jayden Moodie, 14, who died in an 'horrific' targeted attack when three men rammed a car into his moped then stabbed him multiple times And it warns there are widespread concerns about how the criminal justice system is handling the problem. Its written evidence includes the stark line: When young people go through the justice system they only receive a slap on the wrist. It says Youth Offending Team (YOT) workers cite one 15-year-old caught with large quantities of Class A drugs as many as 30 rocks of crack cocaine who was being punished only for the lesser offence of possession rather than supply. The study goes on: Regular offenders are not being given custodial sentences, a practice exacerbated by a lack of consistency in knife crime sentencing. This sends a message to young people that the consequences of drug dealing and violence are minimal and acts as an incentive for older dealers to continue to use teenagers of around 14 and 15 years old. It warns: In effect, YOT workers have no sanction they can invoke as a warning for young people, the lack of which they feel undermines their work. And there is a rising tide of antisocial behaviour which is not being challenged, leading to (very) young people thinking they can do whatever they like with impunity. The key element of the new criminality involves preying on vulnerable people. Dealers find new markets, then groom children as young as 14 to act as mules and enslave them in a life of crime through debt. They particularly target teenagers who have been expelled from school and sent to Pupil Referral Units, which are now becoming the area for gang rivalries and a recruiting arena for crime. Gang leaders even use apps such as Find My iPhone to monitor the children working for them. Others use young people to launder money through their bank accounts. The report has been submitted to the Home Affairs Select Committees inquiry into serious violence, launched last year as fears grew of a Wild West Britain According to the researchers, one of the reasons for a rise in youth violence may be ruthless and desperate teenagers committing robberies to pay off their debts. In this world, carrying knives and dealing drugs is viewed as normal activity with stabbings seen as a way to send a warning, leading to children carrying weapons for protection. The violence is also fuelled by social media as gangs post music videos on YouTube to threaten rivals. After carrying out hundreds of interviews with youth workers and drug support groups, the team believe that more and more people around the UK are now taking crack cocaine and heroin, including women and younger people. The drugs gangs are using price wars to control their markets, even offering two-for-one deals and prize raffles to win new customers. And middle-class children are increasingly using Xanax to calm nerves before exams while the gang members themselves take it prior to acts of violence. In some areas including Brighton, the study says, middle-class children are targeted as the gangs become more creative in their recruitment methods. Experts want the grooming of young people to sell drugs to be made a specific offence that incurs stiff penalties, while there should be more done to tackle older dealers driving expensive cars who recruit teenagers in the street. Even those who are put behind bars are able to carry on operating their lines because of the freely available supply of mobile phones inside prison, and when rival gangs are housed in the same jail their feuds only become more violent. The report also warns that social workers struggle to protect teenagers caught up in debt enslavement and entrapment because the system is designed only to protect children neglected or abused by their families. It says that one YOT worker had to fight for a case of a child who had a gun to be accepted as neglect. In addition, it can be difficult to get families to help when money from County Lines activities might be paying household bills. The report says that in some areas parents are being taught how to look for weapons and drugs and even telling them how to carry out daily searches. Evidence obtained by The Mail on Sunday backs up the units suspicion that young drug dealers are being spared jail. A snapshot of court cases from the past year revealed at least 15 examples of judges handing out suspended sentences to teenagers and young adults convicted of possession with intent to supply, which could yield a seven-year jail term. The number of convictions for drug offences dropped from 82,561 in 2008 to 65,677 last year, according to Ministry of Justice data. And for the specific offence of possession with intent to supply, only 6,947 of the 13,186 people convicted in 2017 received an immediate custodial sentence. Overall, the number of children entering the criminal justice system has fallen by a staggering 85 per cent over the past decade and the number being locked up has dropped by 74 per cent even as the number committing knife crimes has rocketed. Last night, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Ed Davey said: When young people are arrested in their early teens, the alarm bells should be ringing. If we intervened to help these young people on to a different path, theres a fighting chance we could reduce crime and undermine these criminal gangs. Father of British public schoolboy facing 24 lashes in Singapore for drug trafficking begs for mercy By Jonathan Bucks The parents of a former public schoolboy facing a flogging and 20 years jail in Singapore have pleaded for the sentence to be overturned on the grounds of diminished responsibility. In a highly emotional interview with The Mail on Sunday, the father of London-born Ye Ming Yuen, 29, claimed his son suffered a mental breakdown prior to his arrest, adding: The court must therefore find Ming not guilty by diminished responsibility. Ming, a former pupil at 37,000-a-year Westminster School, has been sentenced to 24 strokes of the cane for repeat trafficking. Former public schoolboy Ye Ming Yuen, 29,is facing a flogging and 20 years jail time in Singapore His father Alex Yuen, 70, said: I think he turned to drugs because he was put under lots of pressure at private school. It was very competitive and they pushed the students a lot. I think he felt pressured so instead he went with the wrong crowd. He did many things because he wanted acceptance. Instead of realising his talents, being recognised and accepted for what he could achieve, he became a slave to pleasing other people and thats why he did the things he did. However he added that his sons use of drugs did not begin until long after he had left the school. Last night, Mr Yuen spoke of his fears that his son might be violently assaulted in Changi prison. If you asked me, would I be surprised if I received a message tomorrow, next month, that he has been found stabbed in prison, I would say of course not. It is surprising that he hasnt been, he said. And the former top club DJs mother Melina Yuen added tearfully: We didnt even have the chance to say goodbye properly. There is no family support and he is so far away. A prison officer demonstrates the caning procedure on a dummy inside Singapore's Changi Prison. Michael Fay was caned for committing vandalism in Singapore He puts on a very brave face but, as his mother, he speaks to me and I know how he feels. He is very worried. Singapore refused me entry so I was not able to see my son out there in prison, said his father, a businessman. Hes a really nice guy but hes a fool. The reason he got this monster sentence was because the prosecution tried to make out that he was unremorseful and had no respect for law. Both Ming and I know that he committed an offence. He just cant understand how he got such a long sentence. Ming has been convicted of several drug offences, including one of trafficking 69g of cannabis and another of 60g. He originally faced the death penalty but the capital charge was dropped because the net weight of drugs involved was below 500g. His punishment will be inflicted by a trained caner taught how to cause the most pain possible. Ming will be stripped naked and strapped to a large wooden trestle, then his buttocks will be flogged 24 times with a 4ft-long rattan cane. The case has triggered a diplomatic rift between the UK and Singapore, which has some of the toughest drugs laws in the world. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt and his officials made clear they strongly oppose the use of corporal punishment. The Foreign Office said it has been assisting a British man and his family since his arrest in Singapore in 2016. Advertisement She was the inspector who whisked the Duchess of Sussex out of harm's way when large crowds at a bustling market raised security fears on an overseas visit. But in future Meghan will have to look to someone else to keep her safe as her armed Scotland Yard bodyguard has announced that she is quitting. The inspector's appointment as head of protection made her the first woman to hold such a key post for the royals, but she will now become the latest in a string of aides to stop working for the duchess. The bodyguard (pictured, left, protecting Meghan in Fiji and, right, on Bondi beach with Harry) has quit her position amid claims Meghan finds the security measures constraining She follows personal assistant Melissa Touabti, who departed Kensington Palace last year after six months in the role, and Harry and Meghan's private secretary Samantha Cohen. Ms Cohen is set to leave this year after 17 years with the royal family, although her role with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex was on a temporary basis until the post could be filled permanently. The departures have raised eyebrows and prompted claims that the prince, 34, and his wife have not endeared themselves to staff with reportedly dictatorial behaviour. There have also been rumours of a rift between the duchess, 37, and her sister-in-law Kate, also 37. The top police officer (pictured in Sydney accompanying Meghan on her tour of Australia) was the first female key security officer for the Royals The bodyguard (left, and, right, at Bondi Beach) has resigned following the departure of Meghan's personal assistant The bodyguard, who has not been named for security reasons, has been head of Meghan and Harry's security for less than a year. A Scotland Yard source told the Daily Mail: 'It's true she is leaving. She told the household and principals at Christmas. 'But it's for personal reasons and absolutely nothing to do with the duke or duchess, who are hugely disappointed at losing her. 'She has made a decision to leave the Met Police. It's a real shame as she was a great addition to the team and hugely liked. 'It came as quite a shock. Everyone was very sad at the news. As was she. It was clear it was a decision she hadn't taken lightly.' A royal source denied any sort of personality clash with Meghan. Dedicated: Pregnant Meghan, 37, who is expecting her first child with husband Prince Harry this spring, is continuing to keep a busy schedule packed with royal engagements. She is pictured paying a visit to the London headquarters of women's charity Smart Works on Thursday However, it was reported that the desire of the American former actress to be seen as 'one of the people' has presented challenges to her protection team. 'Unlike someone who has grown up in the royal family and has been used to having close protection from an early age, it can be quite constraining,' an insider told The Sunday Times. 'Even though she was a famous actress, she could still do what she wanted in the way of getting around freely. 'But in her current role she can't go anywhere without her protection team and that's a massive constraining force on an individual like her.' The inspector, who was armed with a gun and Taser while on duty, replaced Harry's long-term head of security, Sergeant Bill Renshaw, who retired last year after 31 years with the police. In October, she was with the couple on a Pacific tour when she helped rush the duchess out of a solo visit to a market in Fiji, cutting it short because of the crowds and sweltering conditions. The Duchess of Sussex is pictured helping Patsy Wardally pick out clothes at the Smark Works charity in London. Meghan is a Royal Patron of the group The Duchess of Sussex is said to be 'miserable' due to the pressures of Royal life but was pictured last week attending an event at Smart Works in London Meghan examines jewellery at the Smart Works charity in London, where she was pictured on Thursday before it emerged that her bodyguard was quitting Meghan, then 14 weeks into her pregnancy, was meeting female entrepreneurs but was whisked away after only eight minutes. Kensington Palace said it was due to 'crowd management issues'. Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick is keen to raise the number of women in senior jobs. But colleagues said the bodyguard was 'brilliant' and had earned the role on merit. The Duchesses of Cambridge and Cornwall both also have female personal protection officers on their security teams. Kensington Palace and the Met Police declined to comment. A man who punched his pregnant girlfriend in the stomach and made a shocking threat to kill their unborn child has been released on parole. Brenton James Reilly appeared in Gladstone Magistrates Court on Queensland's central coast last week, where he pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault and breaching a domestic violence order. The court heard that Reilly grabbed his girlfriend by the hair and dragged inside the house, punched her and made a terrifying threat to kill their unborn child during an argument over images found on his phone in September 2017, the Gladstone Observer reported. Brenton James Reilly (piictured) pleaded guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm, common assault and breaching a domestic violence order The court heard the woman told him during the attack she was 'embarrassed' to have his child. Reilly responded: 'Well let's kill it then.' The court was told Reilly tried to punch the woman in the stomach and said 'look what you made me do'. The court also heard that during a separate argument with the woman at his Boyne Island home in February last year, Reilly went 'right up to her face', said he hated her and bit her on the arm, the publication reported. Police prosecutor Senior Constable Balan Selvadurai described Reilly's behaviour as 'frightening' and recommended that he be sentenced to a stint behind bars. The court heard that Brenton James Reilly (pictured) grabbed his girlfriend by the hair, punched her and threatened to kill their unborn child Reilly's lawyer Jun Pepito told the court his client had been diagnosed with bipolar and 'had come to the realisation he has problems he needs to address', The Gladstone Observer reported. Magistrate Philippa Beckinsale took Reilly's good character references into account as she sentenced him to six months jail with immediate parole release and convictions recorded against him. Reilly was also ordered to pay $1000 compensation to the victim. A young family-of-four have found themselves temporarily homeless after falling for a simplistic Gumtree scam. Harley D'Arcy, Louise Hall and their two children had packed their bags after securing a rental property in the Western Australian coastal town Mandurah, much closer to Perth than their rural home in Wheatbelt. The move was meant to bring new job opportunities and a fresh start for the young couple. But their aspirations turned to devastation when the dream home they thought they'd secured was revealed to be a scam. A young couple with two children have falled victim to a simplistic rental scam. Pictured is mother-of-two Louise Hall, who thought she'd secured a new home closer to the city Being from the country, the young couple said they had 'no reason not to trust' the woman who responded to their desperate Gumtree ad for a private rental home. An apparent police officer by the name of Ebony Richards claimed to be their saving grace, telling them she had a house they could move into whenever they liked. All it would cost them was a bond payment of $1,000. Masquerading as a police officer, the couple told WA Today Ms Richards was too busy going in and out of court to show them their new home personally. But when the family arrived at the property with their children and pet dog in tow, a confused house of roommates said they'd never heard of anyone named Ebony Richards. Harley D'Arcy (pictured) and his partner quickly realised they'd been duped out of their savings Mr D'Arcy said he and his partner quickly realised they had been duped by the scammer. 'Police came and told us Ebony had never owned the property. We can't get in touch with her anymore.' The scammer has vanished, taking the couple's $1,000 bond payment with her, leaving Harley and Louise unable to afford another down payment. They are now living with relatives until they find their feet. The scammer was masquerading as a female police officer on the online marketplace Gumtree Consumer Protection Commissioner David Hillyard said the couple weren't the first to fall for the simplistic scam, and certainly won't be the last. 'Usually it's an exceptionally good deal with cheap weekly rates for a high-quality home and there will be a reason that you cannot view it or meet with the landlord.' He says arrangements to meet face-to-face with the scammer consistently fall through and eventually the pressure to fork over money becomes too much. 'The victims are then left without accommodation and are often devastated by their monetary loss.' A young Melbourne woman was among at least eight people to lose tens of thousands of dollars in a similar cyber rental scam only weeks earlier. Only weeks earlier, a scammer used social media to steal $79,000 in bond payments for properties he didn't own, including apartments in Melbourne's EQ Tower (pictured) Geyatri Azzumi thought she'd landed the ideal apartment, a fully furnished, modern apartment within her budget in the heart of Melbourne. But only days after forwarding more than $10,000 in deposits to secure the unit, the man posing as a real estate agent went quiet on her. That same scammer racked up more than $79,000 in fraudulently obtained bond payments in only a month. In 2018, Australians were cheated out of more than $50 million in cyber scams. Further information on rental scams can be found on the federal government's ScamNet website. The cop killer who took the life of rookie Officer Natalie Corona in an ambush left a note behind claiming that police had been targeting him with 'ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking.' Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48, of Davis, California, was identified as the man who shot and killed Corona on Thursday while she responded to a routine vehicle collision, SFGate reported. As police closed in on Limbaugh, he killed himself with a gunshot to the head, according to Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel. The one-paragraph letter was found in his apartment. 'The Davis Police department has been hitting me with ultra sonic waves meant to keep dogs from barking,' reads the typewritten note. 'I notified the press, internal affairs, and even the FBI about it. I am highly sensitive to its affect on my inner ear. I did my best to appease them, but they have continued for years and I can't live this way anymore.' Scroll down for video Kevin Douglas Limbaugh, 48, shown in this 2018 booking photo released by the Yolo County Sheriff's Office, killed Officer Natalie Corona and left a bizarre note behind in his apartment The note found in Limbaugh's apartment apparently accuses police of targeting him with 'ultra sonic waves' for years 'There have been a lot of rumors as to why this happened, why he did what he did, and we're hoping this sheds some light,' Lt. Paul Doroshov said. He said it was unclear as to when the note he left behind may have been written. Investigators also found two semiautomatic handguns inside the apartment, a 9 mm and a .45-caliber, Doroshov said. The weapons match descriptions of those witnesses say Limbaugh used in his ambush attack on Thursday. Prior to this incident, Limbaugh had been arrested this past September on a felony charge of battery with serious bodily injury for punching a co-worker in the face, the Sacramento Bee reported. After a plea deal he received an eight-day jail sentence, probation and was ordered to surrender a semiautomatic assault rifle. On Thursday, 22-year-old Officer Natalie Corona was gunned down by Limbaugh after responding to a multi-vehicle crash in the area of Fifth and C streets near downtown Davis at 6.45pm. Corona was rushed to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, where she later died. Rookie killed: Davis police officer Natalie Corona (pictured at police academy graduation), 22, was shot and killed in the California city Thursday, after only a few weeks on the job Rookie killed: Davis police officer Natalie Corona (pictured during her swearing-in ceremony with her dad on August 2), 22, was shot and killed in the California city Thursday, after only a few weeks on the job Corona wore her love for the police on her sleeve, as evidenced by her Facebook profile picture showing her posing in a floor-length blue gown while holding an American flag with a blue line honoring law enforcement Following the shooting, police issued a citywide shelter in place order as officers spent hours scouring the city in search of the suspect. The shooter was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound inside a house, after an hours-long standoff with police at 1.30am Friday. Officers say the suspect had repeatedly disregarded commands to exit the house with his hands up. Corona, whose father is a 26-year veteran of the Colusa County Sheriff's Office, graduated from the Sacramento Police Department's training academy in July, was sworn in on August 2 and completed her field training just before Christmas, reported the Sacramento Bee. Corona was gunned down after responding to a multi-vehicle crash in downtown Davis (pictured is the scene after the shooting) The patrol vehicle driven by Corona is taken away on a flatbed truck Friday in Davis Flowers lay near the scene where Corona was shot and killed Thursday night in Davis During her swearing-in ceremony, Merced Corona pinned a badge on his smiling daughter's uniform and was quoted as saying that Natalie is excited to join the force and is dedicated to the profession. Corona first joined the police department in 2016 as a community service officer. When the agency ran out of funds for her position, she continued showing up to work as an unpaid volunteer. 'She was a rising star in the department,' Davis Police Chief Darren Pytel said during a news conference Thursday night. 'She just worked like you can't believe.' In early December, Corona was photographed bringing presents to the new home of a wildfire victim from Paradise, California, who had lost everything in last year's deadly Camp Fire. 'We are always proud of the work our officers do, but have a little extra pride today,' the caption read. Corona graduated from the Sacramento Police Department's training academy in July In December, Corona was photographed bringing presents to the new home of a wildfire victim from Paradise, California, who had lost everything in the Camp Fire Corona wore her love for the police on her sleeve, as evidenced by her Facebook profile picture showing her posing in a floor-length blue gown while holding an American flag with a blue line honoring law enforcement. She wrote in a status update in 2016: 'I would like this photograph to serve as my gratitude for all those law enforcement men and women who have served, who are currently serving, and those who have died in the line of duty protecting our liberties in this great country.' Corona is the first Davis police officer to die in the line of duty in 60 years. Dozens of family and friends have offered their 'thoughts and prayers' for the rookie cop. Nancy Reynoso-Williams offered her 'deepest condolences' for the loss of Officer Corona. 'She was a beautiful lady and now a beautiful angel. No words of gratitude can express the ultimate sacrifice of Officer Corona . Know your whole family is surrounded by prayers and love. My heart is broken.' City of Davis Police Department posted on Facebook today: 'On this gray morning, our flags fly at half mast for Officer Corona. Thank you for the outpouring of support for Natalie, her family and our Davis PD Family.' Local council member Angelique Ashby added that the community was stunned by the 'absolutely devastating' news. 'The Davis Police Department has not lost an officer in well over 50 years. This senseless loss is shocking and heartbreaking. Officer Corona wanted only to do good, to serve and to protect,' she said. Explosive emails reveal how comedian Louis C.K. may have given former restaurateur Sarma Melngailis a sexually transmitted disease during an encounter they had six years ago. In a series of emails between the two in 2012 Louis C.K. expresses his desire for the chef, telling her: 'My brain has thoughts about you in it. Somewhere between 27 and 93 /'. Melngailis, once described as the 'Vegan Bernie Madoff', was jailed for more than three months in 2017 after she confessed to stealing more than $1 million from her former workers and investors. Louis C.K. (left) may have give former restaurateur Sarma Melngailis (right) a sexually transmitted disease during an affair six years ago The 46-year-old rose to popularity when her two Manhattan vegan eateries - Lucky Duck restaurant and Pure Food & Wine - became foodie sensations in the city. The emails, obtained by the New York Post, have revealed her relationship with Louis C.K. The documents also included sexual text messages between Melngailis and her defense attorney Jeffrey Lichtman. PageSix reported that the chef emailed Louis C.K. on June 17 regarding a previous email outburst, stating that she was 'upset and freaked out'. He responded: 'Hey. I understand youre upset. This kind of s**t is tough. I never swore that I was clean. 'I told you I may or may not have given this to you. Im sorry if I did. If you gave it to me, its okay. 'We all share the current human bloodstream, which includes this kind of stuff. I should have worn a condom, you should have made me, we should have a lot of things. we are human,' he wrote. Last year five women came forward and told the New York Times that Louis C.K. allegedly displayed inappropriate behavior, including masturbating in front of them. Shortly after the Times ran the story, the comedian issued a statement saying the allegations were true. FX canceled a deal with Louis C.K. and Netflix scrapped plans for a stand-up special. HBO also scrubbed his work from its on demand video streaming service. According to PageSix, he also sent Melngailis a text saying: 'Our generation has this stuff. 'the next generation will all be inoculated and will have sex with electric glass penises and digital vaginas and theyll get software viruses instead. Its part of life'. Melngailis (right) was jailed for more than three months in 2017 after she confessed to stealing more than $1million from her former workers and investors Later on he told Melngailis that he accepts his responsibility 'for our chemistry and exchange' and wonders whether anyone is 'clean' nowadays. He added: 'Ive been told the same thing, that theres no good tests for guys and even that condoms dont stop s**t. i dont know. Its a mess. 'I hope youre okay. i think you will be. And I am sorry. I still look back tenderly and happily on our time together. 'And that night. It was really wonderful, even though it never happened again and it seemed to be sort of a stopping point for us, unfortunately'. It appears from the texts sent by Louis C.K that the tryst may have just been a one-night affair. Melngailis, pictured in a Brooklyn court in June 2017, rose to popularity when her two Manhattan vegan eateries - Lucky Duck restaurant and Pure Food & Wine - became foodie sensations in the city She was accused of withholding $40,000 in wages from 84 employees, stealing $840,000 from investors, and siphoning a further $1.6million from her business accounts It is also not known how well Melngailis knew Louis C.K. but she previously urged people to watch his appearance on Conan O'Brien in 2009. In a tweet she wrote: 'My friend Louis CK on the tonight show w conan o'brien tonight. Best comedian ever. :-) worth watching. Or taping'. Prior to her downfall, Melngailis had book deals, and celebrity customers such as Chelsea Clinton, Alec Baldwin, Woody Harrelson and Kyle MacLachlan. But things took a wrong turn, friends and family say, when she met estranged husband, Anthony Strangis in 2007. She would later call the man a 'sociopath' after he disappeared with their eight-month-old son in 2010, but she still brought him on board as a manager in 2013. From January 2014 to January 2015, Melngailis reportedly transferred over $1.6million from the business accounts to her personal bank account. Melngailis and Strangis took money from investors, didn't pay $400,000 in taxes and spent more than $2million at Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun Casinos, prosecutors say. They also dropped $80,000 on pricey watches and $70,000 on trips to Europe and $10,000 in Uber rides, according to an indictment. A year after they disappeared, the pair were arrested in Sevierville, Tennessee, in May 2015. They had been hiding out, but were busted after they ordered a pizza from Dominos. President Donald Trump has reiterated his willingness to declare a national emergency to build the border wall if Congressional Democrats don't play ball. 'I have the absolute right to call a national emergency. Other presidents have called many national emergencies for things of lesser importance, frankly, than this,' Trump said on Saturday night in a live telephone interview with Fox News' Jeanine Pirro. The government shutdown, now the longest ever, dragged into its 23rd day on Sunday, as Trump insisted on $5.7 billion to build a Mexico border wall that congressional Democrats oppose. Pressed by Pirro to go ahead and declare and emergency, Trump said: 'Well, that might happen. But I want to give them [Democrats] a chance to see if they can act responsibly.' President Donald Trump has reiterated his willingness to declare a national emergency to build the border wall if Congressional Democrats don't play ball Trump gave a phone interview with Fox News' Jeanine Pirro on Saturday night 'And if they don't do it, if they don't come to their senses, you know what I'll do? We'll do a national emergency. We're all set. It's 100 per cent, and I'll have to do that,' he said. Trump reiterated his argument that crime, illegal drugs, and human trafficking are creating a national security and humanitarian crisis at the border, and that a wall is needed. 'We need a wall, very simple. Whether you call it a steel barrier, wall, doesn't matter, but we need a very strong structure,' Trump said. Trump also blasted Democrats for attending a winter retreat in Puerto Rico, where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other lawmakers attended the opening night of Hamilton with creator and original star Lin-Manuel Miranda back in the lead. 'I'd rather see the Democrats come back from their vacation and act,' Trump said. 'They're not acting, and they're the ones that are holding it up. It would take me 15 minutes to get a deal done, and everybody could go back to work. But I'd like to see them act responsibly, and they're not acting responsibly, and that's it,' he continued. Trump added: 'I haven't actually left the White House in months,' with the exception of a Christmas visit to troops in Iraq and Germany. Trump's last visit to one of his resort properties came over Thanksgiving weekend. Trump also blasted Democrats for attending a winter retreat in Puerto Rico, where House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (above) and other lawmakers attended the opening night of Hamilton Lawmakers are due back in Washington from their states and congressional districts in the new week. An emergency declaration by Trump could break the stalemate by letting him use existing, unspent money to build the U.S.-Mexico border wall, without needing congressional approval. Democrats oppose that step but may be unable to stop it. Many Republicans are wary, too. Nevertheless the administration has accelerated planning for it. Officials explored diverting money from a range of accounts, including $13.9 billion given to the Army Corps of Engineers after last year's deadly hurricanes and floods. That option appeared to lose steam following an outcry. Other possibilities included tapping asset forfeiture funds, such as money seized from drug kingpins, according to a congressional Republican not authorized to speak publicly about private conversations. The White House also was eyeing military construction money, another politically difficult choice because it would take away from a backlog of hundreds of projects. Trump has been counseled by outside advisers to move toward declaring a national emergency for the 'crisis' that he says exists at the southern border. This, as polls suggest Trump is getting most of the blame for the shutdown. Trump said he had been stuck in the White House waiting for Democrats to make a deal. Above, snow falls on the White House on Saturday night as a winter storm arrives But some in the White House are trying to apply the brakes. Jared Kushner was among those opposed to the declaration, arguing to his father-in-law that pursuing a broader immigration deal was a better option. A person familiar with White House thinking said that in meetings this past week, the message was that the administration is in no rush and wants to consider various options. The person was unauthorized to discuss private sessions and spoke on condition of anonymity. Pelosi argued that Trump is merely trying to steer attention away from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation and other White House problems. 'This is a big diversion, and he's a master of diversion,' she told reporters. Trump has told advisers he believes the fight for the wall, even if he never gets money for it, is a political win for him. Some of the outside advisers who want him to declare a national emergency say it could have two benefits. First, it would allow him to claim that he was the one to act to reopen the government. Second, inevitable legal challenges would send the matter to court, allowing Trump to continue the fight for the wall - and continue to excite his supporters - while not actually closing the government or immediately requiring him to start construction. But while that might end the standoff and allow Congress to move to other priorities, some Republicans believe such a declaration would usurp congressional power and could lead future Democratic presidents to make similar moves to advance liberal priorities. 'Most conservatives want it to be the last resort he would use,' said Rep. Mark Meadows, R-N.C., a leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus who speaks to Trump frequently. 'But those same conservatives, I'm sure if it's deployed, would embrace him as having done all he could do to negotiate with Democrats.' A California woman who was jailed for 88 days after she was falsely suspected of orchestrating the fantasy rape of her ex-fiances new girlfriend is now suing him and the police. Michelle Hadley, 32, filed suit in federal court against Ian Diaz, her ex-fiance and a deputy United States Marshal who she alleges plotted to frame her for stalking his new wife because he was so hell-bent on punishing her after their relationship dissolved. Hadley is alleging that the Anaheim Police Department became a weapon in his tortuous campaign by arresting her and ignoring Diazs role in the plot in order to protect a colleague in law enforcement. At its heart, this is a case about the blue wall of silence, i.e. law enforcement officers and officials enabling fellow officers to violate civilians rights, according to the complaint, whose contents were reported by BuzzFeed News. The entire ordeal started in June 2016 when Angela Diaz sent herself threatening emails, pretended she was pregnant, made false police reports, faked a crime scene and posed as the victim of a 'rape fantasy' ad on Craigslist. The elaborate plot led police to believe Hadley was working to eventually cause Diaz's rape or death. But it was revealed that Diaz set Hadley up after police first got a break in September 2016, when one of the IP addresses used to send the emails was linked to Diazs Anaheim condominium. Michelle Hadley (seen in 2017), 32, filed suit in federal court against Ian Diaz, her ex-fiance and a deputy United States Marshal who she alleges plotted to frame her for stalking his new wife because he was so hell-bent on punishing her after their relationship dissolved It was later found out the 32-year-old used a VPN and third-party proxy servers to send the emails to herself while disguising her IP address. The lawsuit, which was filed on December 20, names the city of Anaheim, four Anaheim detectives, and Ian and Angela Diaz. The lawsuit is an amended version of an earlier filing in California state court from 2017. Hadley is alleging that they are guilty of 15 different violations, including false imprisonment and defamation. The lawsuit accuses Anaheim Police of failing to adequately investigate Ian Diaz, whom she accuses of being the mastermind of the scheme. Hadley says that the authorities never bothered to investigate Diaz despite the evidence of his wrongdoing. She said that the police and the press mistakenly portrayed the case in sexist terms, describing it as a catfight between Hadley and Angela Diaz, who were in the heat of a love triangle. The crazy ex, the crazy new wife, all those crazy girls getting emotional, Hadley said. Theres absolutely no doubt in my head about who did this. There never has been. Ian Diaz declined to comment. The Anaheim Police Department said it was not permitted to discuss pending litigation. Anaheims assistant city attorney, Moses Johnson, told BuzzFeed that the position the citys taking in this case is that the officers had probably cause for the arrest of Hadley. Angela Diaz has since pleaded not guilty to charges including kidnapping and false imprisonment. Prosecutors said they have no evidence Ian Diaz he was involved. The lawsuit goes into explicit detail about the alleged abuse to which Hadley says she was subjected by Diaz during their tumultuous relationship. The two had met in 2013, not long after Hadley divorced her high school sweetheart after just four years of marriage. Just months after they first met on a dating site, Diaz and Hadley moved in together. Early on in the relationship, Hadley alleges that Diaz began to exhibit controlling behavior. He pressured her to dress sexier by wearing crop tops and acrylic nails, according to the lawsuit. Diaz also wanted Hadley to pierce her belly button. Hadley is alleging that the Anaheim Police Department became a weapon in his tortuous campaign by arresting her and ignoring Diazs role in the plot in order to protect a colleague in law enforcement. She is seen above with Diaz during their relationship Hadley also alleges that Diaz pressured her to leave her job for a marketing position which paid $20,000 less. She says the job was at Diazs favorite place - Disneyland Resort, where Diaz once worked. Hadley believes Diaz pressured her to work there so his former colleagues can keep an eye on her. She says she agreed to his demands because she wanted to make him happy. She was afraid that if she didnt, he would leave her. In court, a detective testified that Diaz regularly spied on Hadleys computer and her online activity. Hadley also believed that Diaz was tracking her movements. Diaz would call her whenever she drove a few miles beyond the zone of her house, job, and the school where she was taking night classes so she can earn an MBA, according to BuzzFeed. Despite the alleged abuse, Hadley agreed to marry Diaz when he proposed to her in December 2014. But the controlling behavior continued. Diaz had been pressuring Hadley for months to have sex with other men while he watched, she alleges. He was so persistent in asking her that she finally gave in - on Valetines Day. She said Hadley found someone on Craigslist. Diaz is then alleged to have filmed his fiance and the man having sex. The next morning, Hadley was so filled with regret she begged Diaz to destroy the footage. No one put a gun to your head, he allegedly told her. In the summer of 2015, the couple moved into a two-story condo in downtown Anaheim. Hadley put down $14,400 as a down payment and the couple took out a mortgage on the property. But the relationship deteriorated after they bought the condo, according to Hadley. Hadleys lawsuit says Diaz would go on angry tirades and rants for hours on end. In one instance, the couple got into an argument while Diaz was driving in his SUV. He then pulled over the car to the side of the freeway and ordered Hadley to get out, according to the lawsuit. In another instance, Hadley told Diaz she was leaving him. He allegedly responded by throwing her down on the bed and holding her down as she tried to get away while screaming. By the end of the summer, the relationship ended. Diaz took back the engagement ring and accused Hadley of cheating on him. Hadley packed up her stuff and left, but while she was physically free of Diaz, her name was still listed on the mortgage so she still paid half even though she wasnt living in the condo anymore. For the next year, the two would fight over finances. Their dispute became so bitter that an enraged Hadley wrote in an email: Youre in your body, but your mind is somewhere else...Your sins are many, including defiling me and my family with your wicked and evil sexual acts, your financial coercion and irresponsibility, your gluttony, your greed, your lust, your sloth, your wrath, your envy, and most of all your pride. She also wrote: I will bring the full force of the Law and the Word of God against you to judge you. Hadley also feared that Diaz was using his connections with law enforcement to intimidate her into giving up her half of the condo. She believes Diaz was following her whenever she drove out of Anaheim. She says she noticed an SUV similar to Diazs though it had the license plates removed. Hadley had Diaz barred from her school, Chapman University, after she complained to security officers that she feared she was being followed. By the end of 2015, both Hadley and Diaz hired property lawyers to end their dispute. It was agreed that Diaz would eventually assume full payments for the condo. If he wasnt able to afford it, they would sell the property. Unbeknownst to Hadley, Diaz also complained to law enforcement about her emails, asking for a restraining order due to her emotional instability and history of fits of rage. In January 2016, authorities said Diaz met Angela Connell through a dating site. A month later, the couple was married. Angela, who was pregnant, moved in with Diaz. In June, Hadley was shocked to learn that Angela, a woman whom she had never met, obtained a restraining order against her. On June 17, Hadley appeared in court and saw Angela and Ian Diaz in person. It was the first time she ever saw her ex-fiances new wife. Angela walked over to Hadley and handed her a stack of threatening emails. Here you go, Angela Diaz told Hadley. Angela Maria Diaz, 33, was sentenced to five years in prison in October 2017. She concocted a scheme in which she faked cervical cancer, forged a doctors note which said she was pregnant, and then posted rape fantasy ads which she later claimed was the work of Hadley I had no concept at that time of what was coming, Hadley told BuzzFeed. The emails were doctored to appear as though they had been sent from Hadley's account. The phony emails also included disturbing images of decapitated bodies, aborted fetuses and dead women. Angela Diaz also fooled authorities by using religious language that mirrored the contents of Hadley's correspondence with Ian Diaz shortly after they broke up. The situation escalated when Angela Diaz claimed she was the victim of a 'rape fantasy' Craigslist ad she claimed was set up by Hadley. She told police Hadley had impersonated her and responded to advertisements on Craigslist saying she wanted to act out her 'rape fantasies'. In reality, Diaz posted an advertisement herself. She told responding men that she wanted to have forced sex even if she screamed or resisted, and sent out photos of herself, along with details of her daily routine. The ad, which Diaz claimed was the work of Hadley, attracted at least two men who intended to travel to Diaz's home in Anaheim before they were intercepted by police. On June 24, 2016, Diaz called 911, saying a man tried to rape her in the garage of her home - but that turned out to be another one of Diaz's lies, Deputy District Attorney Richard Zimmer said in January 2017. She pointed out where her 'attacker' slammed her face into the wall, and showed police a ripped shirt, along with an abrasion on her head and red marks on her neck. Zimmer told Dailymail.com: 'We believe that whole crime scene was staged and that she did that to herself.' Angela Diaz's also had a history of fraud, which included altering a paycheck from her employer to add $2,000, telling her previous boyfriend she had cervical cancer, pretending to be an attorney, forging doctor's notes and impersonating two of her husband's ex-girlfriends through email in addition to her fake pregnancy. 'She's a serial con artist,' Zimmer said earlier this year of Diaz. 'She duped us. It was very sophisticated, well thought out and took a great deal of planning.' The Orange County District Attorneys Office lodged 32 counts against her after the deception was discovered, including 10 felonies. In October 2017, Angela Diaz was sentenced to five years in prison. A Greens Senator has slammed Scott Morrison as being 'fake and desperate' due to his recent changes to Australia Day citizenship ceremonies. Her criticism comes as the Prime Minister moves to force local councils to run citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day. Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said in an interview Scott Morrison was skirting around the real issues and instead choosing to 'pick a fight' on a 'non-existent problem'. Scroll down for video Senator Sarah Hanson-Young (pictured) said in an interview Scott Morrison was skirting around the real issues and is instead choosing to 'pick a fight' on a 'non-existent problem' In particular, Senator Hanson-Young took issue with Mr Morrison introducing a stricter dress code for the citizenship ceremonies. The prime minister is bringing in a smarter dress code which will see thongs and shorts banned from the events. 'It's clearly just a stunt from a fake and desperate Prime Minister,' the Greens politician said in an interview with 7 News. The Greens Senator said Mr Morrison should instead be turning his attention to the Murray-Darling Basin, where up to a million fish died earlier this week. The rotting fish began appearing in the Darling River, near Broken Hill in far west New South Wales, after a toxic algal bloom starved the water of oxygen. Senator Hanson-Young referred to the incident as an environmental crisis. The rotting fish began appearing in the Darling River, near Broken Hill in far west New South Wales, after a toxic algal bloom starved the water of oxygen Senator Hanson-Young referred to the incident as an environmental crisis She labelled Mr Morrison's focus on Australia Day and citizenship ceremonies as 'fake politics by a fake politician'. Local councils will be forced to hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day in a Morrison government move aimed at locking in January 26 as the national day. A strict dress code for ceremonies will also be introduced, with Immigration Minister David Coleman set to announce the changes on Sunday. 'New citizens should be given the opportunity to become an Australian on our national day,' Mr Coleman said in a statement. 'While most councils already hold citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day, becoming an Australian on our national day is a great privilege and I want more people to have that opportunity.' She labelled Mr Morrison's focus on Australia Day and citizenship ceremonies as 'fake politics by a fake politician' Under changes to the Australian Citizenship Ceremonies Code to be introduced in the first half of 2019, councils must hold a second citizenship ceremony on September 17 - Australian Citizenship Day. Prime Minister Scott Morrison told the Sunday Telegraph the government would protect the national day, ensuring it is respected. 'We believe all councils who are granted the privilege of conducting citizenship ceremonies should be required to conduct a ceremony on Australia Day,' he said. With Australia Day less than two weeks away, national debate is again set to flare on the most appropriate date to have it on. Labor leader Bill Shorten said 530 of Australia's 537 councils already held citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day. 'You sort of know when Australia Day's coming up don't you when a couple of weeks before we get the annual conservative outing to put politics into Australia Day,' Mr Shorten told reporters in Melbourne on Sunday. 'It's what the conservatives do to keep their base happy.' NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said January 26 was the natural day for ceremonies to be staged. 'I think most people are excited to become Australian citizens and what better day to do that than on Australia Day,' she told reporters in Sydney. Some people staunchly oppose the current date, with thousands attending Invasion Day rallies to highlight it as offensive to Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders because it marks the arrival of the First Fleet. But there is little political appetite for shifting Australia Day, with both major political parties committed to the status quo. Something strange is going on at the top of the world. Earths north magnetic pole has been skittering away from Canada and towards Siberia, driven by liquid iron sloshing within the planets core. The magnetic pole is moving so quickly that it has forced the worlds geomagnetism experts into a rare move. Yes now we have a geomagnetic Cold War. The north magnetic pole moves from Canada to Siberia On 15 January, they are set to update the World Magnetic Model, which describes the planets magnetic field and underlies all modern navigation, from the systems that steer ships at sea to Google Maps on smartphones. The most recent version of the model came out in 2015 and was supposed to last until 2020 but the magnetic field is changing so rapidly that researchers have to fix the model now. The error is increasing all the time. Whats going on? The problem lies partly with the moving pole and partly with other shifts deep within the planet. Liquid churning in Earths core generates most of the magnetic field, which varies over time as the deep flows change. In 2016, for instance, part of the magnetic field temporarily accelerated deep under northern South America and the eastern Pacific Ocean. Satellites such as the European Space Agencys Swarm mission tracked the shift. By early 2018, the World Magnetic Model was in trouble. Researchers from NOAA and the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh had been doing their annual check of how well the model was capturing all the variations in Earths magnetic field. They realized that it was so inaccurate that it was about to exceed the acceptable limit for navigational errors. Wandering pole That is an interesting situation we found ourselves in. Whats happening? says a researcher. First, that 2016 geomagnetic pulse beneath South America came at the worst possible time, just after the 2015 update to the World Magnetic Model. This meant that the magnetic field had lurched just after the latest update, in ways that planners had not anticipated. Second, the motion of the north magnetic pole made the problem worse. The pole wanders in unpredictable ways that have fascinated explorers and scientists since James Clark Ross first measured it in 1831 in the Canadian Arctic. In the mid-1990s it picked up speed, from around 15 kilometres per year to around 55 kilometres per year. By 2001, it had entered the Arctic Ocean where, in 2007, a team including Chulliat landed an aeroplane on the sea ice in an attempt to locate the pole. In 2018, the pole crossed the International Date Line into the Eastern Hemisphere. It is currently making a beeline for Siberia. To fix the World Magnetic Model, he and his colleagues fed it three years of recent data, which included the 2016 geomagnetic pulse. The new version should remain accurate, he says, until the next regularly scheduled update in 2020. Core questions In the meantime, scientists are working to understand why the magnetic field is changing so dramatically. Geomagnetic pulses, like the one that happened in 2016, might be traced back to hydromagnetic waves arising from deep in the core1. And the fast motion of the north magnetic pole could be linked to a high-speed jet of liquid iron beneath Canada2. The jet seems to be smearing out and weakening the magnetic field beneath Canada, Phil Livermore, a geomagnetist at the University of Leeds, UK, said at the American Geophysical Union meeting. And that means that Canada is essentially losing a magnetic tug-of-war with Siberia. The location of the north magnetic pole appears to be governed by two large-scale patches of magnetic field, one beneath Canada and one beneath Siberia, Livermore says. The Siberian patch is winning the competition. Which means that the worlds geomagnetists will have a lot to keep them busy for the foreseeable future. Yes, now we enter the era of geomagnetic Cold War! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter or become a Patron on Patreon / donate through Paypal. Please and thank you [Nature] The young woman who died of a suspected drug overdose at a music festival in Sydney has been identified as Alex Ross-King. The 19-year-old, who lived on the Central Coast, was rushed to Westmead Hospital about 6pm on Saturday, but died later in the evening. Friends remembered her as a 'remarkable human being, who had a positive impact on every single persons life that she walked into', while family shared their grief and broken hearts on social media. Scroll down for video Pictured; Alex Ross-King, 19, died after a suspected drug overdose at the FOMO music festival on Saturday 'My heart is broken and [I'm] lost for words,' her cousin Rhys Ross-Clark wrote. 'This world is cruel and unfair. Love you my beautiful cousin.' Ms Ross-King had attended the festival with friends, one who shared her shock over the tragic turn of events in an emotional Facebook post. 'You were always full of life and a genuine person with such a big heart and quite easily one of the funniest people I've ever met, you were the life of the party always,' Tayla Brookhouse wrote. 'You'll be very missed by way too many people. Heaven's gained another angel, rest easy and don't stop partying.' Friend Brooke Farr said Alex was 'such a lively, happy girl', who had a big impact on her childhood. 'She taught me how to have confidence and helped me through some tough times,' she said. 'I'm forever grateful because it all helped me be a better version of who I am. 'She truly was beautiful, inside and out. 'I will always continue to ask myself why this life takes the best people so early.' The young woman was remembered as a 'remarkable person' who impacted the lives of everyone she knew Kiarra Harrison said the young woman was a kind of soulmate, and said there were 'no words' to describe her sorrow. 'You understood me completely, no matter the situation no matter what I did you were always there to pick me up or tell me to stop being an idiot,' she said. 'Your kind heart will never be forgotten by anyone that it touched. 'I am so broken and confused, this world is such an unfair place. 'I love you with my whole soul Al, forever. Shine bright up there. The FOMO festival, which plays electronic hip-hop music, was home to an increased police presence, following five other deaths at similar events in just the last four months. Event organisers appeared just as concerned as police about the alarming spike in deaths, advising of the safety hotline and first aid facilities in the lead-up to the event. Alex died in Westmead Hospital after being taken there from the music festival, making her the sixth person to die in four months at a music festival in Australia 'We're here to help, please party safe,' the organisers said over the event's Facebook page. Nearly 30 would-be revellers were refused entry to the party, while 24 others were kicked out for fighting or being too intoxicated. Police searched a total of 146 people, 54 of whom were found in possession of drugs. Two were charged with possession. Organisers of the festival, which was headlined by Nikki Minaj, said in a statement the event was anti-drug. 'Our most heartfelt and sincerest condolences go out to her family and friends,' a spokeswoman said on Sunday. 'The safety and wellbeing of our patrons is at the forefront of every planning decision. 'Our anti-drug messaging began weeks ahead of the event and continued at the event itself - a message we're proud to deliver and will continue to do so with unwavering commitment in order to keep our beloved patrons safe.' The Transportation Security Administration is offering a bit of compensation for its agents working without pay as the longest government shutdown in American history drag on. TSA Administrator David Pekoske made the announcement on Twitter Friday that agents who were working on December 22, the last day of the pay period, would receive that payment along with a $500 bonus for working during the holidays. Workers had not gotten paid for that day originally because the shutdown had already begun. 'While I realize this is not what you are owed for your hard work during pay period 26 and what you deserve, I hope these actions alleviate some of the financial hardship many of you are facing,' Pekoske tweeted. Pekoske had tweeted early on Friday that the TSA was looking at multiple ways to get some compensation to their unpaid employees. According to the administrator, the funding was possible 'because of unique authorities provided TSA in law.' The passenger area of the Miami International airport Terminal G on January 11 one day before it closed The Terminal G passenger area of the Miami International Airport on January 12 shown after it was forced to shut down due to a shortage of security agents Federal workers during this shutdown missed their first paychecks on Friday, heightening concerns about mounting financial pressures on employees. TSA agents are among the 420,000 federal workers considered essential employees required to work without their paychecks. The TSA said its rate of unscheduled absences rose to 5.6 percent on Saturday from 3.3 percent a year ago but that security standards have not been compromised Miami International Airport said it will close one of its terminals early over the next several days due to a possible shortage of security screeners, who have been calling in sick at twice the normal rate. The TSA administrator explained on Friday what the compensation for workers would look like as they roll it out over the weekend The shutdown had begun before the start of the December 22 work day, so the compensation is completing that pay period for those that worked that day The paid day and bonus comes at a time TSA employees have started calling in sick, a process that is beginning to strain airport traffic and security Pekoske did not explain as to what the 'unique authorities' were that found cash to distribute to the employees Roughly 800,000 federal workers did not receive paychecks that would have gone out on Friday. Some have resorted to selling their possessions or posting appeals on online fundraising sites to help pay their bills. Trump is considering a possible national emergency declaration that would end the shutdown and allow him to obtain his wall funding by circumventing Congress. But on Saturday, he told Fox News' Jeanine Pirro that he would rather Democrats take action, adding that he was waiting at the White House ready to cut a deal. 'I want to give them a chance to see if they can act responsibly,' Trump said, calling the situation at the nation's southern border a 'humanitarian crisis.' TSA Administrator David Pekoske announced the compensation package on Friday in the hopes of alleviating some of the hardship on workers leading to absences President Trump continues to push for a border wall as part of a budget deal with Democrats who have tried to pass legislation without funding to no avail 'They think it's politics. I think it's bad politics. This country wants to have protection at the border,' Trump said. Democrats say Trump shut the government in a 'temper tantrum' by refusing to sign bipartisan funding legislation last year that did not include money for his wall. The closure, which began on December 22, broke a decades-old record by a 1995-1996 shutdown under former President Clinton that lasted 21 days. Democrats, who call a wall an ineffective, outdated answer to a complex problem, have passed several bills in the House of Representatives to reopen the government without the $5.7 billion funding for Trump's barrier, but the legislation has been ignored by the Republican-controlled Senate. Trump originally promised Mexico would pay for the wall, which he says is needed to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs. But Mexico has refused. Sydney personality Danny Lim has asked hundreds of protesters not to blame police following his 'brutal' arrest on Friday. The 74-year-old activist, best known for his often-politically focused sandwich boards, was captured being aggressively restrained by police in now-viral footage. Video of the arrest shows Mr Lim holding a sandwich board sign that reads: 'SMILE CVN'T! WHY CVN'T?' Supporters banded together at a protest at on the CBD's police station on Sunday, calling for consequences against those who perpetrated the arrest which left Mr Lim bloodied and bruised. '(When I was being arrested) I asked for 'help, help'. I suffer from post-traumatic stress and I needed to pick up my dog Smarty,' he said. Sydney personality Danny Lim has asked hundreds of protesters not to blame police following his 'brutal' arrest on Friday The 74-year-old activist, best known for is often-politically focused sandwich boards, was captured being aggressively restrained by police in now-viral footage Supporters banded together at a protest on in Sydney's centre Sunday, calling for consequences against those who perpetrated the arrest which left Mr Lim bloodied Mr Lim said he did not point blame at the police force as a whole as he addressed the 300-strong crowd with a trademark sandwich board in-tow. '(When I was being arrested) I asked for 'help, help'. I suffer from post-traumatic stress and when I said I needed to ring an ambulance they wouldn't listen,' Mr Lim said of Friday's events A protest organiser told Daily Mail Australia the gathering aimed to show Mr Lim the diversity and presence of his supporters from across the city However, Mr Lim said he did not point blame at the police force as a whole as he addressed the 300-strong crowd with a trademark sandwich board in-tow. 'Thank you to the police for being here, it's not their fault they are just public servants,' he said to more than a dozen officers keeping the crowds at bay. 'This (WHY CVN'T?) sign means peace to me, and we have to be kind and smart that is our greatest asset.' 'The only race in Australia is the human race dont let people like Pauline Hanson divide us.' Organiser Max Russell told Daily Mail Australia the gathering aimed to show Mr Lim the diversity and presence of his supporters from across the city. 'The video everyone saw was really graphic and stressed me out a lot,' he said. 'What we wanted to do here was remind people that we're talking about a 74-year-old man who isn't doing anything he hasn't done before.' Onlookers who witnessed Friday's arrest said Mr Lim was confronted by police over a controversial sign with many claiming officers were 'rough' and 'aggressive'. 'What we wanted to do here was remind people that we're talking about a 74-year-old man who isn't doing anything he hasn't done before,' said a protest organiser Mr Lim is known across Sydney for his sandwich board signs and footage of his arrest went viral on Friday Onlookers said Mr Lim was confronted by police over a controversial sign with many claiming officers were 'rough' and 'aggressive' and caused injuries (pictured above) Photos posted on social media have shown Mr Lim sporting bloodied and bruised arms, which allegedly came from his confrontation with the officers. Niki Anstiss, who filmed the encounter, labelled Friday's arrest 'disgusting' and is among multiple witnesses to lodge formal complaints over the officers' conduct. However she also added police were pointing and shouting at Mr Lim before one 'ripped the sign off his back' and the other two forced him into handcuffs. 'My issue is with the brutality of moving him on with such force,' she told AAP. 'He was screaming and crying 'don't take my sign'.' The 74-year-old, best known for is often-politically focused sandwich boards was arrested for offensive behaviour at Barangaroo in the city centre on Friday As two officers led Mr Lim in cuffs to a police van, Ms Anstiss saw a third officer take the lead of the activist's small dog Smarty and follow 'faster than the dog could walk'. 'It took a woman telling the cop 'You need to pick the dog up' for them to stop dragging it.' Christina Halm said up to 30 people stopped in their tracks and were 'all shocked, gasping and crying at what we were seeing'. 'I saw police officers use a completely unnecessary and unacceptable amount of force to arrest Danny for wearing a humorous sign,' she posted on Facebook. A spokesman for NSW Police told Daily Mail Australia on Friday: 'Officers spoke to a 74-year-old man and gave him a move-on direction'. Thousands of supporters have banded together at a protest on Sunday in response to the much-loved activist's 'brutal' arrest 'The man repeatedly refused to comply with the move-on direction and became aggressive towards police. 'The man was then detained and issued a Criminal Infringement Notice for offensive behaviour and released a short time later.' Footage taken of the altercation from a nearby office shows two officers push Mr Lim away from the area, as his screams of 'no' echo through the new development. A third stops and appears to be getting Mr Lim's pet dog, Smarty. Smarty, Mr Lim, and his colourful signs are widely known throughout the Sydney CBD, where man and dog can be seen travelling between suburbs with their often politicised sandwich boards. Mr Lim gained notoriety after he took a $500 fine for offensive behaviour - issued for a sign calling then-Prime Minister Tony Abbott a c*** with an upside down v - to court, and walked away a free man. His appeal was initially denied, but finally granted by Judge Andrew Scotting in August 2017, who found 'c***' had been used by Shakespeare, and was less offensive in Australia than many English-speaking countries. Sydney icon Danny Lim was confronted by police in Barrangaroo on Friday after a complaint was made about the language on his sign Members of the public were astonished when the police arrived, with their reportedly rough actions causing Mr Lim to scream: 'please, help' He was found to have been exercising his right to freedom of speech, and the infringement notice was quashed. Witnesses were distraught at the way Mr Lim was treated on Friday, with many questioning the aggressive movements of the officers involved. One woman, who asked not to be named, said she was sitting at a cafe nearby when the commotion began. She told Daily Mail Australia Mr Lim had been 'sitting there chilling', when she first saw him, but was clearly in distress when she next turned around to find out what all the noise was about. Mr Lim was cleared of a similar notice in 2017, after holding a sign telling then-Prime Minister Tony Abbott to 'smile c***'. A magistrate found the word was not as offensive in Australia as it was in other English-speaking countries 'We turned around and saw him with three officers, all holding him,' she said. 'It was really distressing to see - he was yelling out and screaming... honestly I couldn't believe what I was seeing, the force they were using didn't seem necessary at all.' The woman said Barrangaroo security guards were aware of Mr Lim's presence, but police arrived after a single complaint was made. 'It's ridiculous,' she said. 'There's actually real crime just streets away.' A US Navy submarine commander was relieved of his duty last summer after paying for ten female prostitutes while stationed in the Philippines. Captain Travis Zettel lost the confidence to command the attack submarine USS Bremerton and was disciplined back in August following the investigation. An investigation by the U.S. Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) was launched following a sailors tip to the Department of Defense Inspector Generals hotline. Captain Travis Zettel (left) was relieved of his duty last summer after paying for ten female prostitutes while stationed in the Philippines Zettel lost the confidence to command the attack submarine USS Bremerton and was disciplined back in August following the investigation The sailor was apparently told by Zettel that 'requested/ordered ten girls to arrive at the hotel' where they were staying, according to documents obtained by the Kitsap Sun. The sailor later saw the commander with around ten 'provocatively dressed females outside the front door of the hotel'. Another sailor, whose name was redacted in the documents released to the Kitsap Sun, was spotted with three 'local females holding onto his arm as he was wandering around' greeting sailors from his command. The incident occurred March 1 while the sub was ported in Subic Bay, according to documents released to the Kitsap Sun. Zettel was confronted by NCIS with the allegations and 'admitted culpability in the payment of female accompaniment,' the documents said. The other sailor was also interviewed but said he 'did not participate in prostitution'. He then asked for a lawyer and that sailor was not 'pursued for disciplinary action', the document states. Zettel (center), pictured with his wife Chantel (right), was confronted by NCIS with the allegations and 'admitted culpability in the payment of female accompaniment' The incident occurred when the fast-attack submarine USS Bremerton (pictured) was ported at Subic Bay, Philippines Zettel was reprimanded and was relieved of his command in August. He was administratively reassigned to the staff of Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor-based Submarine Squadron 19, Navy officials said. Zettel became the commander of Bremerton, the oldest submarine before its recent decommission, in August 2016. 'Becoming the 15th commanding officer of the now 35-year-old 'American classic' is a proud moment for me and my family', Zettel said in 2016 after taking control of the sub. It is not known how many sailors or staff were on duty at the time of the incident. A middle school in a wealthy part of Long Island is asking parents not to send their students to class wearing $350 designer beanies. Administrators at Great Neck North Middle School on Long Islands North Shore say that students have been losing their winter headgear made by the popular brand Moncler. The Italian apparel maker has seen a surge in the popularity of its products, particularly after the rapper Drake wore a puffer jacket with the Moncler logo in the music video for his hit single Hotline Bling. The brand has become so popular that students who lose their $350 Moncler beanie are unable to concentrate in class since theyre so distraught, according to the New York Post. We understand that fashion is very important to our middle schoolers, administrators wrote in a letter to parents last week. However, we have had many students who have worn their Moncler Winter Pom Pom hats to school, and either lost or misplaced them. We need your help! Please try and redirect your middle schooler from wearing these hats to school. Administrators at Great Neck North Middle School on Long Islands North Shore say that students have been losing their winter headgear made by the popular brand Moncler The brand has become so popular that students who lose their $350 Moncler beanie are unable to concentrate in class since theyre so distraught It has consumed a great deal of our time trying to locate these missing hats, and it has been disruptive to the students focus and time as well. Despite the pleas from school administrators, it doesnt appear as if parents are eager to enforce a Monclerless dress code. One parent said the letter was silly, according to the Post. I think theres other things that should warrant parents attention, Elissa Siony, whose daughter is enrolled in eighth grade, told the Post. If they lose it and freak out, they freak out. I dont know why they have to send an email about it. Another parent said the issue was a Great Neck problem. Great Neck is one of the most affluent neighborhoods in the country. The average household income in Great Neck is $170,422, according to Point 2 Homes. Its ridiculous, the parent said of the schools request. If my kids had [the hats], Id let them wear them. Its their prerogative. Ying Xiong, a parent who is of Chinese descent, agrees with the school administrators. She said kids obsession with brand names is a negative byproduct of American consumerism and materialism. The Italian apparel maker has seen a surge in the popularity of its products, particularly after the rapper Drake wore a puffer jacket with the Moncler logo in the music video for his hit single Hotline Bling They dont need to have those expensive hats, Ying said. Its part of American culture that kids feel they need to have such expensive things. My kids, they would need to get those hats on their own. Another parent who agrees with the letter said: I think at this age when the kids are so impressionable its important to limit status symbols. I thought it was sad that instead of teaching kids something important, theyre hunting down winter accessories. Aside from Drake, other celebrities that have been spotted out and about wearing Moncler products include Gerard Butler, Daniel Craig, Justin Timberlake, Jay Z, Gisele Bundchen, and Gwyneth Paltrow. President Donald Trump has blasted the notion that he is a secret agent for Russia, following a report that the FBI had investigated that possibility in 2017. One day after the New York Times made the claim, Fox New's Jeanine Pirro posed the question to Trump in an interview on Saturday night, asking: 'Are you now or have you ever worked for Russia, Mr. President?' 'I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked,' Trump replied. 'I think it's the most insulting article I've ever had written.' 'It was a great insult, and the New York Times is a disaster as a paper,' Trump said. Trump called in to Justice with Jeanine Pirro on Saturday night to deny that he is a secret agent of Russia, following a New York Times report that the FBI had investigated the possibility Citing unnamed former law enforcement officials, the Times reported that the FBI opened the combined criminal and counterintelligence probe into Trump in May of 2017. Trump fired former FBI director James Comey on May 9, 2017, citing a letter from Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein that sharply criticized Comey's handling of the Hillary Clinton email investigation. However, the FBI grew concerned that Trump was acting on behalf of Russian interests by firing Comey, the report claims. Trump dismissed the notion in Saturday's interview, but without ever directly denying that he was working as a secret agent for Russia. Trump said he fired Comey because 'he was a terrible liar, and he did a terrible job as the FBI director.' 'And, obviously, nothing was found,' Trump said of the alleged investigation. Donald Trump (L) and Russia's President Vladimir Putin pose ahead of their meeting in Helsinki, on July 16, 2018 Trump, left, shakes hands with James Comey, then-director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), during an Inaugural Law Enforcement Officers and First Responders Reception on January 22, 2017 Trump is seen delivering an address to the nation from the Oval Office on Tuesday No evidence has publicly emerged in the 20 months since Comey was fired that indicate Trump is a secret agent, or that he engaged in a criminal conspiracy with the Russian government. 'I can tell you this, if you ask the folks in Russia, I've been tougher on Russia than anybody else,' Trump said. Robert Mueller took over the FBI investigation when he was appointed special counsel soon after Comey's firing. The overall investigation is looking into Russian election interference and whether Trump's campaign coordinated with the Russians, as well as possible obstruction of justice by Trump. The Times says it's unclear whether Mueller is still pursuing the counterintelligence angle. Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani told the Times he had no knowledge of the inquiry but said that since it was opened a year and a half ago and they hadn't heard anything, apparently 'they found nothing.' Trump has also repeatedly and vociferously denied collusion with the Russians. Trump also responded to a new report from the Washington Post claiming that he confiscated his translator's notes about at least one of his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and ordered the linguist not to discuss the conversations with other top U.S. officials. Trump reportedly confiscated his translator's notes after his first meeting with Putin in Hamburg (above). Present at the meeting were (left to right) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the Russian translator, Putin, Trump, the US translator, and Rex Tillerson Citing unnamed current and former U.S. officials, the Washington Post reported on Saturday that Trump had taken extraordinary measures to conceal the contents of his meetings with Putin. Timeline of Trump's meetings with Putin July 7, 2017: Trump and Putin meet for about two hours on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are present, as well as two translators. July 7, 2017: After a banquet later the same day, Trump and Putin chat again for about an hour. This time only Putin's interpreter is present. November 2017: Trump and Putin shook hands and chatted informally at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit (APEC) summit in Vietnam, but did not hold formal talks. July 16, 2018: The two leaders met for a summit in Helsinki, Finland. They spoke privately for two hours, accompanied only by their respective translators. November 2018: Trump had a brief conversation with Putin at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires, but the two did not have a formal meeting. Advertisement The Post claims that Trump confiscated his translator's notes after he and Putin first met in person on July 7, 2017 on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hamburg. The leaders spoke for about three hours, and then-U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and the U.S. interpreter were present for the meeting, as well as Russian Foreign Minster Sergei Lavrov and Putin's translator. 'I'm not keeping anything under wraps - I couldn't care less, it's so ridiculous,' Trump fired back in the interview with Pirro. 'Anybody could have listened to that meeting, it is open for grabs. The whole Russia thing it's a hoax, it's a total hoax, everybody knows it.' 'Think of it, I had a one-on-one meeting with Putin, like I do with every other leader. I have many one-on-one, nobody ever says anything about it, but with Putin they say, 'Oh what did they talk about?' We talked about very positive things,' Trump added, saying that Israel was among the topics discussed. Trump also said: 'The Washington Post, that's basically the lobbyists for Amazon - [Jeff] Bezos has bigger problems than anybody right now, but Bezos uses that as his lobbyist.' A man has been fined for flying a drone over a Winter Wonderland event attended by thousands of revellers. Paul Griggs, 44, used his 1,200 drone over Hyde Park on December 7, weeks before a rogue drone operator brought chaos to Gatwick Airport. Westminster Magistrates Court heard that the theatre- set designer tried to flee police when confronted. Westminster Magistrates Court heard that the theatre- set designer tried to flee police when confronted (stock image) The father-of-two, from Enfield, North London, was ordered to pay 475 for obstructing a constable in the execution of his duty and flying a small unmanned surveillance aircraft within 150m of an organised open-air assembly of more than 1,000 persons. Defence lawyer Kieran Smith said Griggs had acted stupidly. Police are continuing their hunt for those behind the Gatwick drone attack and are investigating reports of another drone at Heathrow Airport on Tuesday. Traditional masculinity is toxic and encouraging boys not to cry is dangerous to their health, according to the worlds leading psychology group. In its first official guidelines on the treatment of men and boys, the influential American Psychological Association says many male traits including stoicism, competitiveness, dominance and aggression are harmful and can lead to violence, depression and suicide. It argues that this traditional masculinity ideology pushes boys toward anti-femininity and forces them to mask the appearance of weakness while encouraging risk-taking, aggression and violence as a means of solving problems. Traditional masculinity is toxic and encouraging boys not to cry is dangerous to their health, according to the worlds leading psychology group (stock image) As a result, it limits mens psychological development, constrains their behaviour, causes gender role strain and has a negative impact on their mental and physical health. But critics have accused the report of taking an anti-male stance, which depicts traditional male values as nearly monstrous. The report paints a picture of generations of boys under constant pressure by society to conform to masculine expressions who are censured by their parents and peers if they fail to maintain the expected behaviour. Its authors say transgender issues are at the forefront of the cultural conversations, with evidence suggesting a link between adherence to rigid masculinity in gay, bisexual and transgender men and higher rates of self-destructive behaviour, such as drug-taking. The APA is regarded as a leading authority on psychological matters. Its manual of mental disorders is taken as the bible of mental illness and consulted by British psychologists and health experts. While the controversial guidance was years in the making, its publication in the wake of the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment and sexual assault feeds a prevailing narrative about the dangers of traditional masculinity. Critics last night accused the authors of anti-male rhetoric (stock image) Critics last night accused the authors of anti-male rhetoric. Frank Furedi, Emeritus Professor of Sociology at Kent University, said: Suddenly the reluctance of some men to cry on demand is recast as pathology. This is not a scientifically informed document, it is an ideologically driven attempt to devalue male identity. Professor Chris Ferguson, a fellow of the APA, complained that the guidance read like an activists agenda, saying: In sweeping terms, traditional men are portrayed as nearly monstrous, their cultural values associated with everything from sexism to promiscuity, to their own declining health. But psychologist Ryon McDermott, who helped draft the report, said the profession needed to help men break free of masculinity rules that dont help them and focus on potentially positive aspects of masculinity such as courage and leadership. And Dr Glenn Wilson, a British psychologist and author of The Great Sex Divide, said: Male-female differences are not socially constructed, they have early evolutionary origins. Male and female-typical traits have both advantages and disadvantages. For example, psychopathy increases the likelihood of crime but is useful in battle. A dissident friend of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi believes his phone was hacked by Saudi authorities who intercepted messages critical of the country's regime. Khashoggi, 59, had sent messages to Saudi activist Omar Abdulaziz before his death through whatsapp. However it later emerged that the messages were compromised along with the rest of Abdulaziz's phone, which had allegedly been infected by Pegasus, a powerful piece of malware designed to spy on its users. Omar Abdulaziz, (left), a friend of murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, (right), believes his phone was hacked by Saudi authorities Abdulaziz is now suing the creators of Pegasus, the Israel-based cyber company NSO Group, accusing them of violating international law by selling the software to oppressive regimes, CNN reported. Mr Khashoggi disappeared on October 2 when he went to the Saudi consulate in Turkey alongside fiancee Hatice Cengiz to obtain divorce papers from his previous marriage so he could remarry. Turkey concluded that he had been killed soon after walking into the embassy and his body dismembered by a team of Saudi assassins. The Arab kingdom initially denied the killing. Saudi then changed its story several more times before finally acknowledging that he had been killed in a act of premeditated murder. But Saudi denied accusations by the regime's critics that Bin Salman had given the order, instead blaming 'rogue elements' of the state. Researchers at the Citzen Lab have tracked the use of NSO Group's Pegasus software to 45 countries where operators 'may be conducting surveillance operations'. This includes at least 10 Pegasus operators who 'appear to be actively engaged in cross-border surveillance'. Citizen Lab researchers claim that Abdulaziz received a text message disguised as a shipping update about a package he had just ordered. Saudi officials have admitted that Khashoggi's killing was a premeditated act carried out by state assassins, but deny that Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (pictured) gave the order The link, which Citizen Lab says it traced to a domain connected to Pegasus, led to Abdulaziz's phone becoming infected with the malware. The software, able to infect a phone after a single click on a link in a fake text message, then grants hackers complete access to the phone, CNN reported. Data stored on the phone, messages, phone calls and even GPS location data are visible, allowing hackers to see where someone is, who he or she is talking to, and about what. This in turn gave hackers access to virtually his entire phone including his daily conversations with Khashoggi. Abdulaziz believed their conversations, which were critical of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, may have been intercepted by Saudi authorities. It is understood that Khashoggi learned that his conversations with Abdulaziz may have been intercepted and sent a text To him saying 'God help us' two months before his death on October 2. Saudi opposition activist Omar Abdulaziz, 27, is suing the creators of Pegasus, accusing them of violating international law by selling malware to oppressive regimes Saudi Arabia has denied accusations by the regime's critics that Bin Salman had given the order, instead blaming 'rogue elements' of the state. The country's attorney general has sought the death penalty for five of 11 defendants charged with the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi as their high-profile trial opened in Riyadh earlier this month. Seven of those men are bodyguards of the kingdom's de-facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman, who denies giving the order to kill him. Mr Khashoggi's body has yet to be found amid reports that it was given to a local 'fixer' who dissolved it in acid. A still image taken from CCTV video and obtained by A News claims to Jamal Khashoggi and his fiancee entering their residence on the day he disappeared in Istanbul In an given by NSO Group since the company was implicated in the Khashoggi case, CEO Shalev Hulio categorically denied any involvement in the tracking of the Saudi journalist or his killing. He told CNN that his death was a 'shocking murder' and that the company would have known immediately if their software had been used to track a journalist. Hulio added: 'I'm saying on the record that after all these checks there was no use of any NSO product or technology on Khashoggi; and that includes tapping, monitoring, finding location, or gathering intelligence. 'Exclamation mark! The story is simply not true'. Hulio said the NSO Group can disconnect a client's software if it is used inappropriately or against improper targets, like journalists or human rights activists who are just doing their jobs. 'In cases where the system is misused, assuming we are aware of it, the technological system that we sold them will be immediately disconnected; that is something we are able to do both technologically and legally'. An author explores a strange and surprising story in a new book about her own heritage growing up as an Orthodox Jew only to find out her lineage was not at all what she was led to believe. Dani Shapiro, 56, the author of Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love, always thought Wall Street stockbroker Paul Shapiro, who died in a car accident in 1986, had been her father until she took a DNA test in 2016. 'It upended my world,' said Shapiro in an interview with the New York Post. Her mother Irene had once told her she had received fertility help, which Shapiro uncovered happened at the Farris Institute for Parenthood in Philadelphia, long since closed. Paul Shapiro's sperm was apparently mixed with an anonymous donation to inseminate Irene in a process called 'confused artificial insemination.' 'It was to protect the presumably fragile ego of the intended father because infertility was seen as a weakness,' Dani Shapiro said. 'The parents were told: 'Don't tell anyone, not even the doctor who delivers your child.'' Dani Shapiro, left, accomplished author of novels and memoirs, tells the story of finding out her genetic lineage in her new book Paul Shapiro with young Dani Shapiro, seen here, was a Wall Street stockbroker and the only father Dani had known until she happened to take a commercial DNA test in 2016 Her eventual DNA results would reflect her mother's Jewish heritage, but also a background of French, Irish, English and German origins. Dani Shapiro says she 'stuck out like a sore thumb' in her community of mostly Eastern European Ashkenazi Jews, and was once grabbed by Rae Kushner, Holocaust survivor who would eventually become Jared Kushner's grandmother. 'We could have used you in the ghetto, little blondie,' Kushner told her at the time. 'You could have gotten us bread from the Nazis.' Shapiro did not know what to make of her conspicuous physical differences until she got tested with Ancestry.com after her mother's death and looked deeper into her own history. Dani Shapiro, seen here with Paul Shapiro, knew that she physically looked out of place among the mostly Eastern-European Ashkenazi Jews she grew up around While Shapiro did eventually track down and meet her biological father and his family, she still considers Paul Shapiro to have been her real father With the help of her journalist husband, Shapiro would eventually track down the man who was her biological father. The father of three had donated sperm to the Farris Institute in 1961 when he had been a medical student. Since then they met in October of 2016 and have been introduced to each other's families, maintaining a relationship. Throughout the experience, Shapiro still believes Paul Shapiro had been her real father, but she is still troubled how easily these secrets could have remained buried without modern technology and the fact that her parents are no longer here to say anything. 'The kits hung around the kitchen for weeks until we finally opened them,' she recalled about the DNA tests. 'That's how casual the whole thing was.' Longtime harness racing industry participant Gerald 'Jerry' Nelson of Truro, N.S. and Coconut Creek, Fl., passed away in Truro with family and friends by his side on Friday, January 11 at the age of 86. Nelson passed peacefully at the Colchester East Hants Health Centre in Truro. Born and raised in Truro, Nelson fell in love with horses as a boy and started working with Standardbreds in his teen years. This was just one of Nelsons passions, as he also loved to strap on some blades and hit the ice for a game of hockey. He was known for reminiscing of his action-packed days with the Truro Bear Cats with Shirley as his cheerleader. He remained a loyal friend with many of his teammates throughout his life. After marrying Shirley, his high school sweetheart, in 1950, the duo soon after welcomed their two beautiful children, Debbie and Stanley. Family was so important to Gerry and challenging to balance in such a demanding industry. He always cherished the time when the family could be together. Gerry, who was a longtime trainer/driver, started working in the racing circuits of the Maritimes. He was honoured with many prestigious awards during his time, including being one of the top drivers in eastern Canada for many years running. Gerry and Shirley moved to the United States in 1977 and worked out of California, with the great Joe OBrien, and Florida for many years till retirement. Nelson also was first trainer with Archie McNeil, Ron Waples, Joe Pavia Jr. and Wally Hennessey, and worked much of his career at Pompano Park. Gerry was honoured by the Florida chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016. Gerry has been around horses all his life, Hennessey said at the time of the award announcement. He was always reliable, super with the horses, he was the whole package. Everyone has nothing but the utmost respect for him. Gerry is survived by his lifelong love of 68 years, Shirley (Works) Nelson, daughter, Debbie Nelson of Florida, sister, Phyllis (Nelson) Coolen of Ontario, daughter-in-law, Beverley (Waddell) Nelson, most precious grandchildren, Joshua and Victoria (Tori) Nelson. Also left to mourn are numerous nephews, nieces, cousins, and friends. Besides his parents, the late Charlie and May (Connolly) Nelson, Gerry is predeceased by a son, Stan Nelson, brothers, Ralph Doyle, George Nelson, sisters, Mildred (Doyle) Dewar, Francis (Nelson) Saville. Arrangements were handled by the Mattatall Varner Funeral Home in Truro. Gerry will be buried in Bible Hill Cemetery, Bible Hill. Donations in memory may be made to a charity of choice. The family would like to thank the hospital staff, Earth Angels and staff of Cedarstone Enhanced Care for being such loving support. Private messages of condolence may be sent to the family by viewing Gerrys obituary online and selecting Send A Condolence at www.mattatallvarnerfh.com. For more on Gerrys passing, click here. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Gerry Nelson. Jayden Moodie, 14, who died in an 'horrific' targeted attack when three men rammed a car into his moped then stabbed him multiple times The news that London-born Ye Ming Yuen will be flogged for drug offences, committed in Singapore, will rightly strike most people as archaic and barbaric. Alongside his 20-year prison sentence, the 29-year-old will be stripped, strapped to a wooden table, and beaten 24 times. Yesterdays criticism by Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt is both welcome and justified. Such punishments belong in the dark ages. Yet for all its unacceptable barbarity, it is nevertheless a sign of how seriously they take the issue of drug harm. It also exposes how weak and patchy our policy and enforcement is. Indeed, the cold-blooded murder of Jayden Moodie, 14, was a reminder of the destruction and chaos permeating through our society. The Mail on Sundays revelation that judges are giving teenagers convicted of dealing Class A drugs a slap on the wrist rather than serious custodial sentences, has exposed a major failing one that fuels the mayhem which is turning swathes of our country into a gangsters paradise. Young teenagers are being lured, then trapped, in gangs and in some cases killed in cold blood on our streets. It is utterly reprehensible that Singapore uses such an outdated physical punishment, yet it must be kept in mind that teenagers are not stabbed to death on the streets of Singapore. Indeed, the citys tough approach to crime and punishment has resulted in it being ranked as the second safest city in the world, after Tokyo. And, in many other cities with clear attitudes to drugs policy, like Singapore, far fewer teenagers are murdered on their streets. Other countries much closer to home, such as Sweden, show a zero tolerance approach focused on prevention and treatment, which we can learn from. And learn we must. Violent and often drug-related crime is back on the rise in the UK. Much of Londons knife epidemic last year, which saw the murder rate in the capital rise to its highest level for a decade, was linked to a rise in drug gang feuds. It is estimated that gangs are responsible for as much as half of all knife crime with injury, 60 per cent of shootings, and 29 per cent of reported child sexual exploitation. Much of Londons knife epidemic last year, which saw the murder rate in the capital rise to its highest level for a decade, was linked to a rise in drug gang feuds It is time that our approach to tackling violent crime changed. First, we need to sort out our policing. We must not be afraid to use stop and search however much controversy surrounds it. It is true that concerns about racism are often quoted to discredit stop and search based on flawed and inflated statistics. But what should be of far greater concern to its critics is that young people aged 1524 who are non-white are on average six times more likely to be fatally shot or stabbed than young people of the same age who were white. These are devastating statistics. Combined with intelligence-led, community-focused policing, stop and search is a powerful weapon in fighting the scourge of knife crime. And communities want it. Polling of Londoners by the Centre for Social Justice last summer found support for the power at over 90 per cent, holding at more than two thirds even in non-white communities. But stop and search is not enough by itself. Our criminal justice system is one of the oldest and best in the world but it does not mean that we cannot improve significantly in the way that we deal with criminals. While there should be little appetite to imitate the barbaric sentence in Singapore, we also know that many of the cautions and fines meted out for minor drug offences here do not help. We must do more to reform what is often an ineffectual waste of time for courts, police, and offenders. One such idea, currently being investigated by the Centre for Social Justice which I helped set up is a practice used in Sweden; where the offender is given the choice of taking the criminal route or the rehabilitation route. For example, the use of a drug awareness course, akin to a speed awareness course. Those found with small amounts of cannabis would have to pay to spend time at an addiction treatment centre. It would give them a horrifying glimpse into the potential consequences of their actions. Vitally, we must get kids out of the clutches of gangs and into schools. The brutal murder of Jayden last week highlights the crisis we face. Now is the time to act to take back control of our streets to save more young lives Lastly, and most importantly, we must go right back to the root cause of much of this problem and grasp the nettle on a most thorny issue: family breakdown. For some reason, my colleagues in Parliament and the thinkers of Westminster are afraid to broach the issue of which Britain is world leading. Well, normal people arent. The scourge of fatherlessness underpins swathes of violent crime, as young men seek identity and belonging from gangs when they find none at home. And then, of course, we must amend sentencing policy, so that our courts take the matter seriously. We cannot continue with a situation where the police do their best to take criminals off our streets and yet are let down by the justice system handing out slaps on the wrist to serious offenders. Until our courts start giving out sentences that reflect the severity of the crime committed, more young blood will continue to be spilt on our streets. The brutal murder of Jayden last week highlights the crisis we face. Now is the time to act to take back control of our streets to save more young lives. Father of British public schoolboy facing 24 lashes in Singapore for drug trafficking begs for mercy By Jonathan Bucks The parents of a former public schoolboy facing a flogging and 20 years jail in Singapore have pleaded for the sentence to be overturned on the grounds of diminished responsibility. In a highly emotional interview with The Mail on Sunday, the father of London-born Ye Ming Yuen, 29, claimed his son suffered a mental breakdown prior to his arrest, adding: The court must therefore find Ming not guilty by diminished responsibility. Ming, a former pupil at 37,000-a-year Westminster School, has been sentenced to 24 strokes of the cane for repeat trafficking. Former public schoolboy Ye Ming Yuen, 29,is facing a flogging and 20 years jail time in Singapore His father Alex Yuen, 70, said: I think he turned to drugs because he was put under lots of pressure at private school. It was very competitive and they pushed the students a lot. I think he felt pressured so instead he went with the wrong crowd. He did many things because he wanted acceptance. Instead of realising his talents, being recognised and accepted for what he could achieve, he became a slave to pleasing other people and thats why he did the things he did. However he added that his sons use of drugs did not begin until long after he had left the school. Last night, Mr Yuen spoke of his fears that his son might be violently assaulted in Changi prison. If you asked me, would I be surprised if I received a message tomorrow, next month, that he has been found stabbed in prison, I would say of course not. It is surprising that he hasnt been, he said. And the former top club DJs mother Melina Yuen added tearfully: We didnt even have the chance to say goodbye properly. There is no family support and he is so far away. A prison officer demonstrates the caning procedure on a dummy inside Singapore's Changi Prison. Michael Fay was caned for committing vandalism in Singapore He puts on a very brave face but, as his mother, he speaks to me and I know how he feels. He is very worried. Singapore refused me entry so I was not able to see my son out there in prison, said his father, a businessman. Hes a really nice guy but hes a fool. The reason he got this monster sentence was because the prosecution tried to make out that he was unremorseful and had no respect for law. Both Ming and I know that he committed an offence. He just cant understand how he got such a long sentence. Ming has been convicted of several drug offences, including one of trafficking 69g of cannabis and another of 60g. He originally faced the death penalty but the capital charge was dropped because the net weight of drugs involved was below 500g. His punishment will be inflicted by a trained caner taught how to cause the most pain possible. Ming will be stripped naked and strapped to a large wooden trestle, then his buttocks will be flogged 24 times with a 4ft-long rattan cane. The case has triggered a diplomatic rift between the UK and Singapore, which has some of the toughest drugs laws in the world. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt and his officials made clear they strongly oppose the use of corporal punishment. The Foreign Office said it has been assisting a British man and his family since his arrest in Singapore in 2016. Advertisement Soft touch Britain: Judges are fuelling knife gang epidemic by letting drug dealers off scot-free By Martin Beckford Soft sentences handed down by judges to drug dealers and violent criminals are driving the gang violence gripping Britain. A damning Government-funded report tells how young pushers and knife-wielding thugs are being let off with a slap on the wrist, sending the message that the consequences of drug-dealing and violence are minimal. In a shocking expose of Wild West Britain, the study also shows how: lRuthless gang bosses are now turning to middle-class children to sell drugs for them; lThey keep tabs on their foot soldiers using mobile phone tracking apps; lDealers are offering two-for-one deals and prize raffles to get more people hooked on heroin and crack cocaine; lChildren are being sold addictive anti-anxiety drug Xanax to calm their nerves before exams. lParents are urged to search their childrens bedrooms for knives. The findings have been sent to MPs by the Violence And Vulnerability Unit, set up to tackle the growing problem of County Lines gangs who send young people to sell drugs in provincial towns. The report has been submitted to the Home Affairs Select Committees inquiry into serious violence, launched last year as fears grew of a Wild West Britain where stabbings, muggings and murders became commonplace across towns and cities. There were 134 homicides in London alone during 2018, making it the bloodiest year for a decade, and there have been another five victims since New Year, including 14-year-old Jayden Moodie. Last night, former Childrens Minister Tim Loughton, who sits on the committee, said: We need to get serious about clamping down on County Lines, which means sending out a very clear message that there will be serious penalties for those caught up in this horrendous spiral of violence. By treating these teenagers as victims, the courts are sending out mixed messages. The surge in violence has been linked to police numbers falling to their lowest level since 1981 after almost a decade of budget cuts. And a new pledge by Prisons Minister Rory Stewart to ban prison sentences of under six months will likely heighten concerns over soft sentencing. The report makes it plain that Britain is now being plagued by a new type of criminality that links street gangs, drug dealers and organised crime groups who are running an extremely violent but very lucrative business. And it warns there are widespread concerns about how the criminal justice system is handling the problem. Its written evidence includes the stark line: When young people go through the justice system they only receive a slap on the wrist. It says Youth Offending Team (YOT) workers cite one 15-year-old caught with large quantities of Class A drugs as many as 30 rocks of crack cocaine who was being punished only for the lesser offence of possession rather than supply. The study goes on: Regular offenders are not being given custodial sentences, a practice exacerbated by a lack of consistency in knife crime sentencing. This sends a message to young people that the consequences of drug dealing and violence are minimal and acts as an incentive for older dealers to continue to use teenagers of around 14 and 15 years old. It warns: In effect, YOT workers have no sanction they can invoke as a warning for young people, the lack of which they feel undermines their work. And there is a rising tide of antisocial behaviour which is not being challenged, leading to (very) young people thinking they can do whatever they like with impunity. The key element of the new criminality involves preying on vulnerable people. Dealers find new markets, then groom children as young as 14 to act as mules and enslave them in a life of crime through debt. They particularly target teenagers who have been expelled from school and sent to Pupil Referral Units, which are now becoming the area for gang rivalries and a recruiting arena for crime. Gang leaders even use apps such as Find My iPhone to monitor the children working for them. Others use young people to launder money through their bank accounts. According to the researchers, one of the reasons for a rise in youth violence may be ruthless and desperate teenagers committing robberies to pay off their debts. In this world, carrying knives and dealing drugs is viewed as normal activity with stabbings seen as a way to send a warning, leading to children carrying weapons for protection. The violence is also fuelled by social media as gangs post music videos on YouTube to threaten rivals. After carrying out hundreds of interviews with youth workers and drug support groups, the team believe that more and more people around the UK are now taking crack cocaine and heroin, including women and younger people. The drugs gangs are using price wars to control their markets, even offering two-for-one deals and prize raffles to win new customers. And middle-class children are increasingly using Xanax to calm nerves before exams while the gang members themselves take it prior to acts of violence. In some areas including Brighton, the study says, middle-class children are targeted as the gangs become more creative in their recruitment methods. Experts want the grooming of young people to sell drugs to be made a specific offence that incurs stiff penalties, while there should be more done to tackle older dealers driving expensive cars who recruit teenagers in the street. Even those who are put behind bars are able to carry on operating their lines because of the freely available supply of mobile phones inside prison, and when rival gangs are housed in the same jail their feuds only become more violent. The report also warns that social workers struggle to protect teenagers caught up in debt enslavement and entrapment because the system is designed only to protect children neglected or abused by their families. It says that one YOT worker had to fight for a case of a child who had a gun to be accepted as neglect. In addition, it can be difficult to get families to help when money from County Lines activities might be paying household bills. The report says that in some areas parents are being taught how to look for weapons and drugs and even telling them how to carry out daily searches. Evidence obtained by The Mail on Sunday backs up the units suspicion that young drug dealers are being spared jail. A snapshot of court cases from the past year revealed at least 15 examples of judges handing out suspended sentences to teenagers and young adults convicted of possession with intent to supply, which could yield a seven-year jail term. The number of convictions for drug offences dropped from 82,561 in 2008 to 65,677 last year, according to Ministry of Justice data. And for the specific offence of possession with intent to supply, only 6,947 of the 13,186 people convicted in 2017 received an immediate custodial sentence. Overall, the number of children entering the criminal justice system has fallen by a staggering 85 per cent over the past decade and the number being locked up has dropped by 74 per cent even as the number committing knife crimes has rocketed. Last night, Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Ed Davey said: When young people are arrested in their early teens, the alarm bells should be ringing. If we intervened to help these young people on to a different path, theres a fighting chance we could reduce crime and undermine these criminal gangs. A bitter row has broken out between key Jeremy Corbyn aide Seumas Milne and Labours Brexit supremo Sir Keir Starmer over delaying Britains departure from the EU. Sources say Sir Keir, the Shadow Brexit Secretary, took Mr Milne by surprise by declaring that it was inevitable that Brexit would not be achieved by March 29. He told MPs: I actually genuinely think we cant do it on March 29 this year. Its simply not viable, for so many practical reasons. There is a question of extension of Article 50 and that may well be inevitable now given the position that we are in. Key Jeremy Corbyn aide Seumas Milne (left) and Sir Keir Starmer (right), the Shadow Brexit Secretary, have had a bust up over delaying Britains departure from the EU Shadow Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union Keir Starmer and Labour Leader Jeremy Corbyn listen to Prime Minister Theresa May's statement in the House of Commons in London on Brexit But the move is said to have infuriated party strategy chief Mr Milne labelled by Labour insiders as a hard-core Brexiteer. He shares Mr Corbyns distrust of Brussels and EU state aid rules, which he fears would hinder a future Labour governments freedom of action. It also comes amid panic among Northern Labour MPs that backsliding over Brexit would cost the party vital support among anti-EU voters in its heartlands, and wreck Labours chances of winning the next Election. One MP said privately: What many of our London-based MPs dont seem to realise is that we cant just dump our commitment to Brexit and not lose votes in seats in the North. But other Labour sources played down talk of a major rift between Mr Milne and Sir Keir. One said: Its not that there is some massive split between them over the Brexit date. Its more that Seumas doesnt want to let the Tories off the hook over this. Friends of a young Filipino student who drowned at a notorious waterfall in New Zealand have described the horrifying moment he slipped under the surface. Nursing student Kenny Espinosa, 26, was out swimming with friends at Whangarei Falls on Friday afternoon when slipped underwater and failed to resurface. His body was recovered just before 5pm on Saturday by the Police Dive Squad. Nursing student Kenny Espinosa, 26, (pictured) was out swimming with friends at Whangarei Falls on Friday afternoon when slipped underwater and failed to resurface Friends of a drowned Filipino student, 26, have described their horror as they watched their friend drown at a notorious waterfall A friend, who wished to remain anonymous, witnessed the incident and has spoke out about the horror. 'Yes I saw him go under ... it's difficult to talk now, and we're with Victim Support,' they told the NZ Herald. Mr Espinosa's devastated cousin in the Philippines took to Facebook to express her grief at his passing. 'For those who sympathise in time of our grief ... please do help us in praying for Kenny's soul. May God bless us all,' she posted on the social platform. A desperate search was launched for Mr Espinosa after the young man's friends watched him struggle to stay afloat from the water's bank, according to Stuff Northland. One of his friends told the publication he ran into trouble at the centre of the body of water, barely holding his head afloat and spitting out mouthfuls of water before he fully submerged. A late-night dive search yielded no results, with the popular photography spot closed overnight and through Saturday. The dive search resumed on Saturday morning, with the grim finding confirmed at 4:22pm. A late-night dive search yielded no results, with the popular photography spot closed overnight and through Saturday Friends have remembered the young man, who was Filipino-born but studying nursing in Auckland, as 'jolly'. 'He is fun to be around - he's jolly, very nice and approachable,' a friend said. 'He's physically fit and we did not expect this to happen.' His friends and family are now speaking with victim support officers within New Zealand Police. A group of bloodied teenagers had to be patched up on the side of the road before they were rushed to hospital after a mass stabbing at a quiet Sydney park. Police allege a 34-year-old man went on a stabbing rampage after coming across the youths partying at Cameron Park, in Turramurra, just before midnight on Saturday. Paramedics raced to the scene to take some teenagers - including a 16-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy with deep gashes to their neck - to hospital for urgent surgery. Other youths were left dripping blood on the footpath as paramedics bandaged their stab wounds, before piling them into ambulances for further treatment. Business owners in the wealthy Upper North Shore suburb told Daily Mail Australia the park had become a popular hangout spot for rowdy teenagers in recent months. An elderly woman said she was too scared to walk past the dimly-lit area at night. A group of bloodied teenagers had to be patched up on the side of the road before they were rushed to hospital after a mass stabbing at a Sydney park A number of the teens, including two males, sat calmly as paramedics patched up their stab wounds The boys were then piled into an ambulance and sent to hospitals across Sydney Local teenager Alexandra Kemp told Daily Mail Australia she missed the melee by minutes. 'I walked by the park at about 12 last night, it must have been just after it happened. 'I saw 5 or 6 police vehicles and two ambulances and some kids around. It was a big scene,' she said. Police have been told a man allegedly stabbed the teenagers, who were aged between 15 and 19, a number of times during the altercation. It's understood the bloody brawl broke out after the man left a nearby wine and tapas bar. The teenagers were all treated at the scene by paramedics before being taken to hospitals across Sydney with a number requiring immediate surgery. Multiple youths suffered stab wounds to the arm, including two 17-year-olds and one 15-year-old Multiple youths suffered stab wounds to the arm, including two 17-year-olds and one 15-year-old Local teenager Alexandra Kemp told Daily Mail Australia she missed the fracas by minutes, and walked past at midnight to see a number of police and ambulances in attendence Replay Cafe manager Manni Zantiotis said he was shocked by last night's violent melee, particularly in the sleepy suburb of Turramurra. 'One of my customers who lives near the park came in this morning and said he heard shouting and screaming and then next thing he heard was sirens,' he told Daily Mail Australia. Restaurant owner Hector Salazar said: 'Since November I've seen heaps of school kids hanging out at the park, especially on weekends.' Lachlan Bois, who lives across the road from the park, said he heard screaming and shouting at 10.30pm and noticed a group of 'about 15 to 20' teenagers in the park. Six teenagers have been rushed to hospital with serious wounds after a mass stabbing in a park in Sydney's posh northern suburbs overnight It's understood the bloody brawl broke out after the man left a nearby wine and tapas bar Forensic crews were at the taped-off crime scene on Sunday morning. Footpaths leading from the public park, just across the road from the local train station and a strip of businesses, were stained with blood. A 17-year-old Mt Kuring-Gai boy is now undergoing surgery at Royal North Shore Hospital for stab wounds to his throat, chest and abdomen. A 16-year-old girl is undergoing surgery in the same hospital for neck and arm wounds. Meanwhile, a 19-year-old Hornsby local is at Westmead Hospital currently being treated for a stab wound to his upper chest while two 17-year-olds, one from Berowra and the other from Mt Colah recover after they were stabbed in the arm. A 15-year-old boy also from Berowra is being treated for a stab wound to his left arm. The 34-year-old alleged attacker suffered head and upper body injuries and was taken to Westmead Hospital where he remains under police guard. Officers from Kuring-Gai Police Area Command established a crime scene and have launched an investigation into the incident. A 34-year-old man allegedly went on a stabbing spree after encountering the teenagers at Cameron Park A high speed chase between police and a fleeing suspect ended in gunfire yesterday, right outside the workplace of Kanye West in Calabasas, California. The suspect was eventually shot dead by Ventura County officers, following a lengthy stand-off in front of the 41-year-old rapper's Yeezy HQ. Police Sgt. Eric Buschow said deputies were called to investigate a domestic violence call in Moorpark on the morning of January 12, when the suspect fled the scene in a stolen car. A deputy reported seeing the man striking himself as he drove at speed. Scroll down for video The lengthy pursuit concluded with a 30 minute stand-off outside the office of 41-year-old rapper, Kanye West (pictured left) on January 12 The stand-off ensued after the suspect crashed his stolen vehicle into a guard rail on the Ventura 101 highway The unnamed man led police on a high-speed chase up and down the Ventura 101 highway in a gray Chrysler 300, before crashing into a guardrail near the Las Virgenes Road exit in Calabasas. For 30 minutes he squared off with officers until gunfire broke out at 12pm. The suspect died at the scene. Police have not yet confirmed whether the man fired at officers, but a number of photos from the scene show the suspect appearing to reach into his inside jacket pocket. The man hasn't been named by police, but he was on parole and a wanted felon in another state, an officer said Reports of gunfire were heard at 12:10pm. Police haven't confirmed whether the man fired at officers, but he can been seen reaching into his jacket pocket, gesturing as if he's armed Police had been called to investigated a call of domestic abuse in Moorpark before the suspect fled the scene in a stolen vehicle His name and age have not been released, but Sgt. Buschow said he was on parole and a wanted felon in another state. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department will investigate the shooting, according to Buschow, as the gunfire occurred in their jurisdiction. Southbound lanes of the freeway remained closed at Lost Hills Road until the early hours of Sunday morning. It's not yet clear whether Kanye West was in his Calabasas office during the incident. The man was shot dead by Ventura County officers on Saturday. An investigation will be carried out by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's department More than a third of people who take up exercise in the New Year quit after suffering an injury, a new study reveals. Of the 37 per cent of people who end up hurt, more than half dont even make it past the first week. The College of Podiatry, which quizzed 2,000 Britons, says knees, feet and muscles are most likely to suffer and some injuries are so severe that people become incapacitated, and gain weight while laid up. More than a third of people who take up exercise in the New Year quit after suffering an injury Common causes of injury are not warming up properly, not taking your age into account and using the wrong footwear. At first glance, it appears to be a rather impressive canine statue. But on closer inspection, the viral photo is actually a living, breathing dog. The hairless dog Pipe belongs to Sandra Pineda, from Quezon City, Philippines, who was stunned when the picture of her pet received 10,000 likes within an hour of them posting it. Pineda, 22, first brought black-colored Piper, a Xoloitzcuintle or Mexican Hairless Dog, home when he was just two months old in March last year. An image of Piper the hairless dog went viral online due to his unusual appearance She said many people mistake Piper for a statue due to his unique look and and the fact he doesn't have hair. Pineda told Unilad: 'It was so funny to see all these compliments coming through of people thinking Piper was a statue. 'They were all really confused and asking me whether she was real or not. 'At first, I thought it was a joke, but then I realized they were serious. They just couldn't believe that she was a real dog. 'I guess I'm so used to her I don't see it as much as other people, but my friends and family told me they can definitely see it. 'It's actually really flattering to think that my beautiful dog could be mistaken for a work of art'. Owner Sandra Pineda (pictured) was humored but not surprised by the attention 2-year-old Piper attracted online as he is often mistaken for a work of art Pineda said baths and being rubbed with coconut oil keeps Piper's skin supple and shiny Sandra said she gives Piper a regular polish with virgin coconut oil. She said: 'I really like the fact that she's hairless, it's really easy to deal with. 'We use a mild dog shampoo on her, and after baths she gets lathered up in virgin coconut oil to keep her skin moisturised and shiny'. Xoloitzcuintlis have been around for 3,500 years and are worshipped in Aztec culture. Skulls of dogs resembling the Mexican hairless and dating back 3,300 years have been found in Mexico. The Mexican hairless is considered intelligent, even-tempered, affectionate and playful. The dog is also protective and will bark at intruders. Some Mexican hairless dogs tremble easily, which could be related to nervousness or lack of warmth. Labours John McDonnell was accused last night of failing to condemn an activists call for Theresa May to shoot herself over the Windrush scandal. The Shadow Chancellor faced calls to explain why he did not immediately disown the abusive remark, made at a rally in London he was addressing. Mr McDonnell was standing in the wings as Stand Up to Racism co-convenor Weyman Bennett attacked the Prime Minister over the Windrush scandal of Commonwealth migrants wrongly deported. He said: Our advice to her [the Prime Minister] is very, very simple advice: shoot yourself. And the reason why you should shoot yourself is because weve have seen people lose their lives as a result of the Windrush scandal. An activist called on Theresa May to 'shoot herself' while Labour's John McDonnell watched on Who put the Windrush scandal in? It was Theresa May. The remark came days after Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn called for a safe space for political debate after Remain MP Anna Soubry was confronted by protesters outside of Parliament and called a Nazi. It also came after Mrs May called on Mr McDonnell to apologise for comments about lynching the former Pensions Secretary Esther McVey four years ago. He has insisted that he was not indicating approval when he quoted a member of the public. Former Labour acting leader Harriet Harman, who last week called for new measures to protect MPs from abuse, reacted with horror at yesterdays shoot herself remark. She tweeted: This is terrible. Freedom of political speech is essential in a democracy but that brings with it personal responsibility not to contribute to atmosphere of violence and threat to elected politicians. Tories demanded an apology from Mr McDonnell, accusing him of applauding the speech by Mr Bennett. Tory chairman Brandon Lewis said: In a week where we have seen politicians from all sides come together to condemn abusive behaviour towards politicians and journalists, to see the Shadow Chancellor applauding. Enraged Tories have called on the Shadow Chancellor to apologise for not intervening Brussels last-ditch mission to save deal Brussels most senior Eurocrats are set to publish two letters tomorrow in a last-ditch effort to help Theresa May get her Brexit deal through the Commons. The Mail on Sunday understands EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and EU Council president Donald Tusk will each send a separate letter designed to reassure MPs over the controversial backstop measure that could see the UK locked to EU rules indefinitely. But the correspondence is likely to fall far short of the demands of Tory Brexit rebels who want the Prime Minister to reopen talks with the EU to rip out the fallback from the terms of her withdrawal agreement. EU Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and EU Council president Donald Tusk will each send a separate letter designed to reassure MPs over the controversial backstop Brussels sources say that Mr Junckers letter will vow to expedite trade talks between the EU and the UK to try to avoid the backstop ever being triggered. He will set out a process for a new trade deal to be done as quickly as possible but is unlikely to include a date for talks to start. Meanwhile, Mr Tusk will reiterate the 27 other EU countries have a firm determination to have a new relationship with Britain in place by the end of 2020 to avoid the measure kicking in. He will add that if the deal is not ready by that point, all European states will work to have it signed by 2021 at the latest, meaning the UK would only have to shadow EU trade and customs rules for an additional year. Last night Downing Street insiders said they expected the letters to be published on Monday evening for maximum impact ahead of Tuesdays Commons showdown. Even with a trickle of Tory MPs climbing down from their opposition to Mrs Mays deal, she is on course for an defeat of historic proportions. After three full days of debate, Mrs Mays allies are braced for a thumping defeat, with efforts focused on keeping the tally to under three figures. Mrs May will likely address MPs and the public late on Tuesday evening or early on Wednesday, with Ministers expecting her to announce yet another trip to Brussels to try to squeeze more concessions from the EU. Officials in Brussels, Dublin and London are all said to be acutely aware that the backstop is the last major sticking point to a deal being done, with the Irish government expected to come under increased pressure to soften their objections to the measure being watered down. But last night Brussels sources said in response to the likely defeat, attention would instead begin by focusing on a rewriting of the non-legally binding political declaration that sets out EU and UK hopes for future trade arrangements rather than reopening the withdrawal agreement treaty on the terms of divorce. Advertisement John McDonnell should apologise and condemn these words. Last night, a spokesman for Mr McDonnell said: The Shadow Chancellor does not condone this language. Before he became Shadow Chancellor, Mr McDonnell sparked outrage in 2014 for repeating a comment that Ms McVey should be lynched. To the fury of Ms McVey and fellow Tories, he has refused to apologise for the remark, insisting he was only quoting what someone else had said. He has also stressed that he was not inciting violence against the Tory MP. Mr McDonnell said: I spoke at a packed public meeting and there was a whole group in the audience that kicked off, quite critical of the whole concept, because they were arguing, Why are we sacking her, why arent we lynching the b*****d? Ms McVey has said that the remark made her life difficult and dangerous and claimed that it had led to her being followed. Last night, Mr Bennett a Socialist Workers Party member insisted that he had meant the shoot herself advice metaphorically. He said he himself was from the Windrush generation. A man accused of slamming his ute through roadworks before attempting to steal a motorbike and then assaulting a police officer has been hit with a string of charges. It's understood the driver, 44, was speeding southbound on the M1 Motorway in the Gold Coast at 8pm on Friday in the Gold Coast before his wild alleged rampage. His ute allegedly collided with two other vehicles, one which had a 10-month-old baby inside, as he sped through a roadworks site before eventually hitting a barrier. Police allege the man got out of his ute and tried to push a person off his motorbike, according to the Courier Mail. Scroll down for video The ute collided with two other vehicles as it was passing through a roadworks site and hit a barrier on the motorway A 47-year-old female police officer from the Forensic Crash Unit stopped at the scene and tried to arrest the man. The police officer suffered from minor injuries of cuts and bruises on her hands, arms and face while the man had a gash on his head following the alleged struggle. Bystanders helped take the man down before more officers arrived at the scene. The man, who was a 44-year-old Munruben resident, was arrested and taken to the hospital. The alleged ordeal caused a major traffic jam on the M1 Motorway, with cars lined up for kilometres. The Queensland Police Union expressed concern over the alleged incident and are calling for mandatory jail terms for police assault cases. 'It is the only way we are going to stop (attacks) upon police which are becoming all too common each and every day,' Queensland Police Union Ian Leavers told the Courier Mail. Bystanders helped take the man down before more police officers arrived at the site of the motorway crash The alleged ordeal caused a major traffic jam on the M1 Motorway, with cars lined up for kilometres (pictured) 'Whether it's a week, or a month, three months or six months, depending upon the severity there needs to be time served for these offences'. 'Because at present people are walking away with a slap on the wrist or little to no penalty'. The ute driver was charged with one count of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and one count of serious assault. The man underwent drug testing and is set to appear in the Southport Magistrates Court on Monday. Mystery has continued to surround the discover of a man left for dead with critical injuries on the side of a road following a Christmas Day assault. Three weeks later, the unnamed 41-year-old remains in intensive at Royal Perth Hospital while his attackers continue to evade authorities. His seriously injured body was found on at Mandurah Road, Dudley Park, 60 kilometres south of Perth, at 6.30pm on Tuesday, December 25. Mystery has continued to surround horrific injuries which left a man fighting for life following a Christmas Day assault Three weeks later the unnamed 41-year-old remains in intensive at Royal Perth Hospital while his attackers continue to evade authorities The man was seen speaking to the occupants of a white Ford Falcon XR6 stopped on Mandurah Road shortly before sustaining the injuries The man was seen speaking to the driver and passenger of a white Ford Falcon XR6 stopped on Mandurah Road shortly before sustaining the injuries. Following the interaction, the Ford continued driving before stopping again on Coodanup Drive in Mandurah. It is here the car's occupants are believed to have spoken to people inside an orange Holden Colorado Z71. Following the interaction, the Ford continued driving before stopping again on Coodanup Drive in Mandurah It is here the car's occupants are believed to have spoken to people inside an orange Holden Colorado Z71 CCTV footage shows both vehicles at the pinpointed locations and detectives believe their occupants may be able to assist with the ongoing investigation. Members of the public came to the injured man's aid following the attack, shortly before he was rushed to hospital later on Christmas Day. Anyone with any information relating to the two vehicles are asked to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Gerell Terrence Shingles, age 27, of Mechanicsville Javonta Christopher King, age 24, of Lexington Park Kentwuan Lionel Wills, age 21, with no fixed address Nicholas Antonie Shade, age 25, of Hollywood Previous Next Disclaimer: In the U.S.A., all persons accused of a crime by the State are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. See: so.md/presumed-innocence. Additionally, all of the information provided above is solely from the perspective of the respective law enforcement agency and does not provide any direct input from the accused or persons otherwise mentioned. You can find additional information about the case by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search Database using the accused's name and date of birth. The database is online at so.md/mdcasesearch . Persons named who have been found innocent or not guilty of all charges in the respective case, and/or have had the case ordered expunged by the court can have their name, age, and city redacted by following the process defined at so.md/expungeme. On January 10, detectives with the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office Vice Narcotics Division, along with the COPS Unit, Sheriff's Office K-9, and the Emergency Services Team executed a search warrant in the 40000 block of King Drive in Mechanicsville. Recovered during the search warrant were two handguns, cocaine, marijuana, and U.S. currency., and, were arrested and charged with CDS Possession-Not Marijuana, in conjunction with the search warrant. Shingles was also charged with CDS Possession-Marijuana More than 10 grams. Additional charges are pending review with the Office of the States Attorney for St. Mary's County.On January 3, the St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office Vice Narcotics Unit, along with the COPS Unit and Sheriff's Office K-9, conducted a vehicle stop in the 20700 block of Pt. Lookout Road in Callaway in reference to an ongoing investigation. The operator of the vehicle was identified as, and the front seat passenger was identified as. Also in the vehicle was an infant child. Sheriff's Office K-9 positively alerted on the vehicle during a scan, and subsequent search of the vehicle yielded a digital scale with white powdery residue, and a plastic bag containing suspected cocaine was located in the vehicle. Wills was found to have an active warrant for his arrest for the charge of Driving While Suspended. Located in Wills' pants was a folded lottery ticket which contained a powdery residue: suspected Ecstasy.Wills was arrested and charged with two counts of CDS Possession- Not Marijuana and CDS Possession-Paraphernalia. Once at the St. Mary's County Detention and Rehabilitation Center, three baggies of suspected cocaine were located hidden in Wills' underwear. Wills was also charged with Possession of Contraband in a Place of Confinement, and served the outstanding warrant for Driving While Suspended. King was arrested and charged with CDS Possession-Not Marijuana.Additional charges are pending review with the St. Mary's County States Attorney's Office. Sales of secret paternity tests are surging, according to suppliers of DIY home kits. The DNA tests, which can be carried out with simple cheek swabs, are leading to growing numbers of men discovering they are not the biological father of children they had been led to believe were theirs. AlphaBiolabs, the leading British home test supplier, says up to 30,000 paternity tests are being performed in this country every year and that the figures are rising by ten per cent per year. Of these, around 20 per cent of men will learn they are not the father of the child they are testing, says the companys director, David Thomas. He added that in some regions the figure is higher, including the North East, where it is 30 per cent. Around 20 per cent of men will learn they are not the father of the child they are testing The explosion in demand for the tests has been fuelled by the ease with which definitive DNA paternity results can now be obtained. For about 99, testing kits which promise 100 per cent accurate next-day results can be bought online. Instead of requiring the physical presence at a clinic of both parties being tested, they involve only swabs taken from the inside cheeks of father and child, which are then packaged up and posted to the company. As long as the man is named on the childs birth certificate, or has parental responsibility, no permission is required from either the mother or child, meaning the tests can be carried out in total secrecy. Some websites suggest DNA can be taken from children while they are asleep, to avoid awkward questions, particularly if the children are older. In some US states, concern over this has led to a recent ban on DIY home DNA testing, with all tests now having to be ordered by a doctor or court official and conducted under their supervision. In Britain, there is no such legislation currently being considered. Experts warn that the shock of learning a child is not biologically theirs can lead to severe emotional distress for some men, for which they may not be prepared. Last week, The Mail on Sunday revealed the case of Moneysupermarket.com co-founder Richard Mason, who discovered the three sons he had raised as his own with his ex-wife Kate were not biologically his. Richard Mason (left) with partner Emma (right) has revealed he discovered the three sons he had raised for more than 20 years were not his when doctors told him he had been infertile since birth Mr Masons devastating realisation was the result of his being diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, which led doctors to inform him he had been infertile since birth. After the diagnosis, he confronted his ex-wife and uncovered the truth that his sons had been conceived by another man with whom she had conducted a four-year affair. The rising numbers of men turning to paternity testing suggests there are many who feel they may have been duped by women. Mr Thomas said: Sometimes men will be delighted to learn they arent the father usually when a woman with whom they have been having a casual relationship tells him he has fathered a baby and he can prove otherwise. In other cases its the mother whos ordered the test to shut the father up. President Donald Trump has blasted reports that he confiscated his translator's notes about at least one of his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and ordered the linguist not to discuss the conversations with other top U.S. officials. Citing unnamed current and former U.S. officials, the Washington Post reported on Saturday that Trump had taken extraordinary measures to conceal the contents of his meetings with Putin. 'I'm not keeping anything under wraps - I couldn't care less, it's so ridiculous,' Trump fired back in a phone interview with Fox New's Jeanine Pirro on Saturday night. 'Anybody could have listened to that meeting, it is open for grabs. The whole Russia thing it's a hoax, it's a total hoax, everybody knows it.' 'Think of it, I had a one-on-one meeting with Putin, like I do with every other leader. I have many one-on-one, nobody ever says anything about it, but with Putin they say, 'Oh what did they talk about?' We talked about very positive things,' Trump added, saying that Israel was among the topics discussed. Trump reportedly confiscated his translator's notes after his first meeting with Putin in Hamburg (above). Present at the meeting were (left to right) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the Russian translator, Putin, Trump, the US translator, and Rex Tillerson Trump also said: 'The Washington Post, that's basically the lobbyists for Amazon - [Jeff] Bezos has bigger problems than anybody right now, but Bezos uses that as his lobbyist.' Trump has met Putin in person five times since assuming office, and the Post claims that there is no detailed record of those meetings, even in classified files. A White House spokesman disputed the Post's account and said that the Trump administration has sought to 'improve the relationship with Russia' after the Obama administration 'pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement.' Trump and Putin first met in person on July 7, 2017 on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hamburg. The leaders spoke for about three hours, and then-U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and a U.S. interpreter were present for the meeting. It was after this meeting that the Post claims that Trump confiscated the notes from his own interpreter, and ordered the linguist not to discuss the meeting with others in his administration. It is unclear whether Trump had taken similar steps after other meetings with Putin, including his summit with the Russian leader in Helsinki in July 2018. However, several officials did tell the Post that they were unable to get a 'reliable readout' from the Helsinki meeting. Unlike the Hamburg summit, the Helsinki meeting included no other officials besides Trump, Putin and their respective interpreters. Trump and Putin shake hands as they hold a joint news conference after their meeting in Helsinki, Finland July 16, 2018. There, the pair met alone with only their translators Aside from the Hamburg and Helsinki sit-downs, Trump has also encountered Putin three other times in more brief and informal settings. Timeline of Trump's meetings with Putin July 7, 2017: Trump and Putin meet for about two hours on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hamburg, Germany. Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are present, as well as two translators. July 7, 2017: After a banquet later the same day, Trump and Putin chat again for about an hour. This time only Putin's interpreter is present. November 2017: Trump and Putin shook hands and chatted informally at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit (APEC) summit in Vietnam, but did not hold formal talks. July 16, 2018: The two leaders met for a summit in Helsinki, Finland. They spoke privately for two hours, accompanied only by their respective translators. November 2018: Trump had a brief conversation with Putin at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires, but the two did not have a formal meeting. Advertisement At the Hamburg G-20, hours after their sit-down, Trump attended a banquet with the other leaders, and spoke with Putin privately afterwards for about an hour. Trump relied solely on Putin's translator in that discussion, because the interpreter he had at the banquet spoke only Japanese. Then in November 2017, the two leaders talked briefly at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit (APEC) summit in Vietnam. He said he didnt meddle, Trump told reporters of the discussion at the time. You can only ask so many times. I just asked him again. He said he absolutely did not meddle in our election. The most recent encounter occurred last month, at the G-20 summit in Buenos Aires, where Trump and Putin spoke briefly in passing. It follows a report on Friday that the FBI had opened an investigation into Trump in May of 2017 out of concern that he might be a secret Russian agent. Trump responded by tweeted on Saturday morning: 'Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin James Comey, a total sleaze! Putin and Trump are seen during a photo session of world leaders on the closing day of the 25th APEC Summit, in Da Nang, Vietnam on November 11, 2017 He continued: 'Funny thing about James Comey. Everybody wanted him fired, Republican and Democrat alike. After the rigged & botched Crooked Hillary investigation, where she was interviewed on July 4th Weekend, not recorded or sworn in, and where she said she didnt know anything (a lie).' Trump continued tweeting: 'The FBI was in complete turmoil (see N.Y. Post) because of Comeys poor leadership and the way he handled the Clinton mess (not to mention his usurpation of powers from the Justice Department). My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop. '...who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller, & the 13 Angry Democrats - leaking machines who have NO interest in going after the Real Collusion (and much more) by Crooked Hillary Clinton, her Campaign, and the Democratic National Committee. Just Watch! Trump walks past Russia's President Vladimir Putin as they gather for the group photo at the start of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires, Argentina in November 'I have been FAR tougher on Russia than Obama, Bush or Clinton. Maybe tougher than any other President. At the same time, & as I have often said, getting along with Russia is a good thing, not a bad thing. I fully expect that someday we will have good relations with Russia again! 'Lyin James Comey, Andrew McCabe, Peter S and his lover, agent Lisa Page, & more, all disgraced and/or fired and caught in the act. These are just some of the losers that tried to do a number on your President. Part of the Witch Hunt. Remember the insurance policy? This is it!' Trump's lawyer Rudy Giuliani had earlier dismissed the alleged investigation as baseless, pointing out that no evidence has publicly emerged in the 20 months since to support the idea that Trump is a secret Russian agent. Britain was last night branded a 'soft touch' for accepting far more Iranian asylum-seekers than France does. Figures obtained by The Mail on Sunday show the UK grants refugee status to almost two-thirds of those who arrive from Iran. By contrast France takes in only one in three. And even those refused asylum in Britain are highly unlikely to be kicked out, analysis of official data shows. Experts last night claimed that the stark disparity in treatment explains why so many Iranians are prepared to risk their lives making the perilous trip across the Channel in flimsy dinghies. Figures obtained by The Mail on Sunday show the UK grants refugee status to almost two-thirds of those who arrive from Iran (pictured, a Border Force team bring migrants ashore at Dover Harbour) Lord Green of Deddington, chairman of Migration Watch UK, said: 'The British asylum system is less stringent than the one in France and this is partly why people are trying to come through Calais into Britain and not apply in France.' An analysis of Home Office data by Migration Watch found that about 2,500 Iranians applied for asylum in the UK each year between 2008 and 2017, more than from any other country except Germany. In the past year, 63 per cent of the cases ended with claimants being granted asylum, discretionary leave or humanitarian protection. Only 37 per cent were rejected. Tribunal judges often accept the claims of those who say they are from minority ethnic groups, political dissidents, Christians, gay or deemed at risk of torture or detention if they are returned to their Sharia-ruled homeland. For the past five years, an average of only about 100 failed applicants have been forcibly removed or chosen to leave per annum less than four per cent of the total. Refugee groups say that once an Iranian loses a bid to remain on appeal, they often abscond and work in the black economy or their lawyers submit a fresh asylum application which could take years to process. The asylum rejection rate for Iranians is much higher in France the country where all of the Calais migrants could have applied for asylum. Latest figures from Eurostat, the EU statistical body, show that in 2017, France rejected 63 per cent of Iranian asylum seekers at first decision and ordered them to leave the country. In the first three quarters of 2018, that rose to 69 per cent. A French government source said the rejection rate for Iranians is similar to the overall rate for all asylum seekers in France, which stands at around 70 per cent. 'This rejection figure is very likely to rise following the passing of a new asylum bill last summer,' the source said. Even those refused asylum in Britain are highly unlikely to be kicked out, analysis of official data shows 'Procedures are becoming far more streamlined, more forensic and fast. Those who have not been able to build a credible asylum case are rejected very quickly.' Some of the Iranians at Calais have told The Mail on Sunday that they want to come to Britain because there is a lower chance of being denied permission to stay. The Home Office says 543 Iranians crossed the Channel on dinghies and small fishing boats in 2018. Of those, 438 made the crossing between October and December. Earlier this month, Home Secretary Sajid Javid was criticised after expressing scepticism about most of the Iranian migrants being genuine asylum seekers. He said: 'If you are a genuine asylum seeker, why have you not sought asylum in the first safe country you arrived in? 'Because France is not a country where anyone would argue it is not safe in any way whatsoever, and if you are genuine, then why not seek asylum in your first safe country?' A Home Office spokesman said: 'The UK has a proud history of providing protection to those who need it, however, we are clear that those with no right to be in the UK should return home. 'Since the beginning of 2010 there have been more than 345,000 voluntary or enforced returns and we will always seek to return people with no right to be in the UK.' He often boasts about setting records, but US President Donald Trump has passed an unwanted milestone the longest government shutdown in history. About 800,000 federal workers are unpaid, including Mr Trump's own Secret Service bodyguards. The shutdown which today entered its 23rd day was triggered after the President's demand for $5.7 billion (4.4 billion) to build a wall along the border with Mexico was rejected by Democrats. As reports of hardship among government workers grew, Nancy Pelosi, Democrat leader of the House of Representatives, yesterday said the onus was on Mr Trump. About 800,000 federal workers have not received wages, including Donald Trump's own Secret Service bodyguards 'When the President acts, we will respond to whatever he does,' she said. DeCarann Speaks, a mother- of-two and the wife of a Border Patrol agent in Vermont who is awaiting back pay, said: 'If the shutdown keeps going, my husband said he'll call his parents and see if they'll lend us some money. 'Some days I just want to sit and cry, but I have to stay positive for my children.' Mr Trump ordered the shutdown on December 22 after his demand for funds to build his long-promised wall was rejected by Democrats, who described it as 'costly and immoral'. The closure has hit the Department of Homeland Security, the Interior Department and the Internal Revenue Service, as well as forcing the closure of national parks and museums. More than 7,000 Secret Service employees, including those who protect Mr Trump and his family, have not received their wages and 42,000 Coast Guards are working without pay. Hillary Clinton, who lost the 2016 election to Mr Trump and whose husband Bill was President in 1996 when the previous 21-day shutdown record was set, said: 'Americans can't afford another day. People are missing pay cheques, losing business and working without pay.' The shutdown which today entered its 23rd day was triggered after the President's demand for $5.7 billion (4.4 billion) to build a wall along the border with Mexico was rejected by Democrats A food bank in Washington DC yesterday arranged pop-up markets for unpaid federal workers and asked volunteers to pack bags of food. Classified advertising website Craigslist said it had been inundated with listings from government employees trying to sell possessions. Meanwhile, the White House yesterday described a New York Times report that the FBI opened an inquiry into whether Mr Trump was secretly working for Russia as 'absurd'. The newspaper said law enforcement officials became worried by Mr Trump's behaviour in May 2017, when he sacked FBI director James Comey. A subsequent investigation examined whether the President was a national security threat. The businessman tricked by his ex-wife into believing he was the father of three sons for 21 years has defended himself against critics. The Mail on Sunday last week broke the exclusive story of how Richard Mason, 55, discovered in 2016 that he could not be the boys father when he was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, which leaves 98 per cent of male sufferers infertile. He sued his ex-wife Kate for paternity fraud and won a 250,000 out- of-court settlement in November. After our story was picked up by hundreds of newspapers and other media around the world, some commentators accused Mr Mason of being narcissistic and selfish and having little regard for his sons. Richard and ex-wife Kate with the children Willem in the centre and twins Joel and Edward in red Mr Mason has candidly admitted that his wounded pride over the deception did trump his concern for the boys when he decided to go public. But the millionaire co-founder of Moneysupermarket.com last night said he would not have taken legal action or gone public if the three had still been children but that, as they were adults, he hoped they would eventually understand. Asked if the blow to his pride after being deceived had outstripped his concern for the boys welfare, he confessed: It may not be the answer you want to hear, but yes, I think it did. However, neither launching the case nor going public were steps I took without a lot of thought. For a start, the boys are now adults and if they were children I wouldnt have spoken to The Mail on Sunday or any media. Richard Mason and his new wife Emma. he settled out of court with his ex for 250,000 I purposely didnt name the boys in last weeks story and I made sure any photos published were from at least ten years ago. But I also wanted to be honest and end all the secrets and lies. Theyre very clever boys and because of the way I brought them up to do the right thing, I hoped they now grown men would understand that I needed to take that decision. Mr Mason insisted that he wanted to show the boys, Willem, 23, and 19-year-old twins, Joel and Edward, a better example than his ex-wife Kate, 54, who had lied to them all their lives about the identity of the father. The boys have heard their mother lie over years and years, whether about the affair or their paternity, he said. I wanted to give them a better role model. He pointed out that it had been vital that it was proven whether he was or was not the father because of the nature of cystic fibrosis, a condition which dramatically limits sufferers lives. I have a genetic disease and until two months ago my ex-wife was insisting the boys were biologically related to me, which would have made them carriers, or possibly even sufferers of cystic fibrosis, he said. Mr Masons comments came after Joel accused his father of being manipulative. The 19-year-old student added that he did not share Mr Masons desire to know the identity of his biological father. In response, Mr Mason said: Any parent of a teenager will know that you get a different opinion from them, depending if you ask in the morning, afternoon and evening. Joels a cheeky scamp and Ive sent him a message to tell him so. When the dust has settled, I feel confident me and the boys will get our relationship back on track. Kate Mason declined to comment. Independent scientists seeking to manage expectations before restrictions are lifted told MailOnline that achieving zero Covid deaths was 'impossible' and that the focus should be to bring them down to levels comparable with flu - which kills roughly 17,000 people in England annually and up to 50,000 in a bad year (pictured left, a graph showing how many people die of different conditions). The comments were echoed by Michael Gove (bottom right) who said that while ministers need to do 'everything we can to protect people', it was important for the public to 'accept' that there would continue to be Covid deaths when the country unlocks on July 19. Boris Johnson and England's chief expert advisers Professor Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance (pictured together last night top right) have all repeated the line that we will 'have to learn to live with Covid' in the past 24 hours, in what seems to be a concerted effort to take emphasis away from the daily death numbers. There has been fierce debate about what level of Covid deaths would be 'tolerable' when Britain emerges from the shutdown, but one of the Government's top scientists said it was 'quite possible' there could be hundreds each day post lockdown. A 65-year-old grandfather who died after he was pulled unconscious from the ocean while competing in a swimming race has been remembered as a 'model farmer'. Murray Howard was pulled from the water during the Lorne Pier to Pub open water swimming event in western Victoria about 2.45pm on Saturday. Paramedics were called but they were unable to resuscitate him and he died at the scene. Mr Howard, who is from the town of Beeac, was remembered by his community as a respected cattle farmer and retired primary schoolteacher, according to the Herald Sun. Murray Howard, 65, (pictured) has died after he was pulled unconscious from the ocean while competing in a swimming event in western Victoria Mr Howard, who is from the town of Beeac, was remembered by his community as a respected cattle farmer and retired primary schoolteacher 'He was a model farmer, who consistently topped the market along with his wife Anne,' a friend told the Herald Sun. 'Murray was community minded and was always proud of his achievements and grandchildren'. Mr Howard was nearing the finish line of the swim race at the Lorne Surf Lifesaving Clubhouse when he lost consciousness in the water. The circumstances of his death remain unknown but police will prepare a report for the coroner on his death. In a statement, the Lorne Surf Life Saving Club said its thoughts were with the family and friends of the competitor. 'The Lorne Surf Life Saving Club is saddened to hear of the passing of a 65-year-old male competitor at today's Lorne Pier to Pub, despite the best efforts to revive him from life savers and paramedics,' the statement read. The event bills itself as the largest ocean water swim in the world, attracting about 5000 competitors and 15,000 spectators 'Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the competitor. We ask media to respect the family's privacy at this stage and no further comment will be made from the Lorne SLSC.' The event bills itself as the largest ocean water swim in the world, attracting about 5000 competitors and 15,000 spectators. The race starts at Lorne Pier and finishes on the foreshore in front of the Lorne Surf Lifesaving Club house. A senior Tory MP tipped as a future leader has pledged the party will produce the first black Prime Minister because Labour is run by old white men. Conservative Party deputy chairman James Cleverly, whose mother comes from Sierra Leone, sparked fresh speculation about his own ambitions by predicting the Tories would be the first party to put an ethnic-minority politician in Downing Street. Mr Cleverly, 49, said: Im going to say yes, I reckon well have the first BME [black or minority ethnicity] Prime Minister. Conservative Party deputy chairman James Cleverly, whose mother comes from Sierra Leone, sparked fresh speculation But when asked whether it was most likely to be him or Home Secretary Sajid Javid, Mr Cleverly says: Haha. Look, it could be Sajid, there are a number of people. The Braintree MP told the Sydney Morning Herald: Thats what freaks the Labour Party out. 'They are realising there is a very credible chance that we will have had two female Prime Ministers and a black Prime Minister, maybe even a black female Prime Minister, before theyve had even their first female Prime Minister. He added: The real decision-making in the Labour Party is by old white men. Assisted by young posh men. Conservative Party deputy chairman James Cleverly (L) and his wife Susannah (R) arrive for a reception at No. 10 Downing Street 'Youve got [Jeremy] Corbyn, youve got [John] McDonnell, they drive it and they are supported by Seumas Milne, who is a posh public schoolboy, and James Schneider, a posh public schoolboy. Mr Milne and Mr Schneider, who are Mr Corbyns two most senior aides, both attended the elite 40,000 Winchester College. Mr Cleverly also accused Mr Corbyns team of appointing women such as Shadow Foreign Secretary Emily Thornberry as a few baubles superficially. He added: Its a tight little cabal, same old, same old. A father who helped raise 7 million for medical research after his son was born with a rare illness has condemned NHS chiefs for threatening to withdraw care from the six-year-old. Thomas Westenholzs son Tuffel suffers from midgut volvulus, a life-threatening condition where the intestine becomes twisted in the womb. As a result, doctors were forced to remove most of his small bowel at birth and the youngster now has to receive the nutrients he needs to stay alive through a tube. Tuffel Westenholz in hospital. Doctors were forced to remove most of his small bowel at birth On receiving the diagnosis, Mr Westenholz resolved to help find a way to extend his sons life and discovered that research at Great Ormond Street Hospital into creating a new bowel from stem cells had stalled from lack of funds. He threw himself into fundraising and his applications to EU bodies and the Oak Foundation, a Danish philanthropic organisation, helped to secure 7 million to allow scientists to continue the research. The Danish-born businessman is now battling NHS finance managers to ensure that Tuffel continues to receive critical overnight care. The youngster is fed over 12 hours at night through a catheter attached to a machine that runs into his heart and must be constantly watched in case the feeding line is pulled out, which causes severe bleeding and requires surgery. Mr Westenholz, 40, said the family sought help after finding they were unable to cope after being Tuffels sole carers for the first three years of his life. The Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), the familys local NHS authority in South East London, agreed to provide overnight carers all week but, following a review, told the family last March that this would be reduced to four nights. On receiving the diagnosis, Mr Westenholz resolved to help find a way to extend his sons life What theyve done makes no sense because it costs a fortune putting Tuffel into hospital, Mr Westenholz said. So its absolutely absurd that youre exposing him to this harm and risk and its costing the NHS more money. Medical records show that he lost his line and required multiple operations when we did not have seven nights care. After we got seven nights he has not lost a single line and had no life-threatening infections. After Greenwich CCG turned down his appeals, Mr Westenholzs asked lawyers in November to inform it of his intention to request a judicial review. In response, the health authority has agreed to review Tuffels case and reinstate his seven-day respite care as it does so. A Greenwich CCG spokesman said: We have been in communication with Mr Westenholz and will continue to work with him and collaborate with the legal action he has initiated. There is also fundraising page set up by Tuffels father Thomas Westenholz to raise funds for a legal case to prevent Greenwich CCG from cutting his sons respite care in the future. Model Annalise Braakensiek took her life last week Model Annalise Braakensiek was mourning the two men she loved most when she took her own life last week, friends have said. The 46-year-old Bondi icon had split with her stockbroker husband Danny Goldberg in April 2018, and had only just moved into her new apartment in Potts Point when friends reportedly found her dead from an overdose, according to The Daily Telegraph. Her shock split from her husband of 16 years left her reeling, friends said, and she had struggled to leave Bondi. Photo agency executive Kasey Drayton said Braakensiek had dreamed of marrying Mr Goldberg since the pair met. 'She absolutely adored him and losing him - it broke her,' she said. Ms Drayton said no matter what she was facing, Braakensiek was always able to find a silver lining, or a positive spin, so she was 'truly just shocked' to hear of the model's death. 'To me there weren't any red flags really. She had some issues but overall she seemed like moving forward,' she said. While Braakensiek was left devastated by the breakdown of her marriage, friends say she was also grieving for a man she had lost more than a decade before. The 46-year-old had struggled previously with mental illness, and friends say she was grieving the end of her marriage and her father At the age of 19, the model and presenter finally amassed enough information to find her father, yachtsman Odd Karlsen. Braakensiek only met her father in 1993, but the pair were fast friends. Odd Karsen (pictured) died in 2004, leaving the model heartbroken She had not known much of Norwegian man growing up, but quickly set to work trying to find him. A chance meeting in San Francisco International Airport in 1992, where Braakensiek was working as a waitress, led her to a man who knew Mr Karlsen, and the father and daughter finally met at a regatta in 1993. Those close to Braakensiek and Mr Karlsen say they connected instantly, with the pair sharing not only their good looks, but also their natural charisma. A friend told the Telegraph meeting her father felt like 'the final puzzle piece' to Braakensiek. When Mr Karlsen died after a long battle with cancer in 2004, aged just 68, Braakensiek was crushed. 'They were similar in a lot of ways and kind of both had these extraordinary lives. But he passed away less than 10 years later and she was devastated. She adored him,' one friend told the Telegraph. Not much is known about Braakensiek's final movements. Friends had gone to check on her in her new apartment after not hearing from her for a few days when they found her dead. Neighbours and local businesses all said they had never seen the woman, who had lived in the unit for at least three months. One woman, who works in a cafe across the street from the home, said she knew everyone who came by, but didn't know the model at all. When asked by Daily Mail Australia, many neighbours said they had heard the news, but were shocked to learn Braakensiek lived in their building. Close friend Gina Byrnes said in a tribute to her friend, shared to social media, that the model had felt 'abandoned' and 'misunderstood'. Braakensiek had kept very much to herself in the past few months, and friends went to check on her when they had not heard from her in 'days' 'You were a work of art and yes not everyone understood you but those who did will never forget you,' she wrote. 'You stayed committed to being adventurous joyful authentic creative genuine inclusive compassionate forgiving and open minded. You loved passionately, fiercely and without conditions. 'We laughed and cried together sharing each others pain and happiness . Baby I know you felt so abandoned and miss understood by some people but you were loved globally sweetheart. 'Your presence and unselfish creative soul touched so many peoples hearts.' Braakensiek was a fierce ambassador for R U OK, a suicide prevention charity, and had been vocal about her own struggles with mental illness. She said when she was first 'immobilised' by depression, she felt she had little support, as friends struggled to find the words to reach out to her. 'Very few people asked me 'was I OK?' And when I did say [I wasn't], they ran,' she told the Sydney Morning Herald in 2017. 'I was so shocked by the reaction of so-called friends the aggression, the lack of support. That's when I really realised the negative stigma with mental illness is rampant. People have that real "what have you got to be depressed about?"' Neighbours were unaware she even lived in the building of her new Potts Point apartment (pictured) She said many people didn't understand how her successful, high-profile life didn't shield her from her inner demons. 'Suicide and feeling you're on the edge; success doesn't come into it.' After becoming an ambassador for R U OK?, Braakensiek continued to speak out about mental health, often opening up on Instagram about her own struggles. She detailed in one of her last posts how: 'life's challenges have been deep, dark, difficult, demanding and down right scary lately'. Braakensiek split from stockbroker husband Danny Goldberg in April 2018, and left Bondi, where they both lived, at least three months ago 'Everything seems to feel twisted and upside down at the moment... am I right?' she posted to her almost 40,000 followers in mid-December. Ms Braakensiek also gave 'thanks to all of you who have carried me though this turbulent year', adding 'time to breathe in the new beginnings and let go of the old... bring on 2019 already I say'. In another post weeks earlier, she said: 'Isn't it incredible how life has such variable highs and lows, and insane contrasts?'. R U OK? chief executive Brendan Maher said the organisation was 'devastated' to hear of Braakensiek's death, noting the woman was 'much loved and respected'. 'We are still processing the news we have heard today. Annalise has been a huge voice for suicide prevention in Australia,' he said in a statement. 'Nothing we have ever asked of Annalise was too much, she has stepped up time and time again to share our message, even when she was going through her own tough times. 'We couldn't have asked for a more genuine, kind and sincere spokesperson.' BALTIMORE (January 10, 2019)Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh today announced settlements with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (Fiat) and Bosch, resolving allegations the companies engaged in and facilitated cheating diesel emissions tests, defrauding consumers, and causing dangerous and illegal amounts of air pollution. The settlements are the result of multi-state investigations of Fiat and Bosch's conduct that were co-led by Attorney General Frosh on behalf of the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's Office and the Department of Environment. The settlements address allegations that those companies were involved with using illegal "defeat devices" in diesel vehicles sold in Maryland and throughout the U.S to allow the vehicles to appear to meet emissions requirements. Attorney General Frosh alleged consumers were sold cars that were advertised as being "clean" and "green," but which actually emitted far more dangerous oxides of nitrogen (NOx) than allowed by law. NOx is a dangerous pollutant that causes and aggravates respiratory diseases and contributes to the formation of smog and acid rain. Fifty-two jurisdictions took part in the Fiat investigation, including all states except California, and included D.C., Puerto Rico, and Guam. A total of 50 jurisdictions took part in the Bosch investigation. Fiat has agreed to pay the investigating states a total of $72,500,000, and Bosch has agreed to pay the investigating states a total of $103,713,378 - a combined total of $176,213,378. "Automobile manufacturers and their suppliers cannot design vehicles or parts to cheat emissions tests," said Attorney General Frosh. "Consumers paid a premium to buy what they thought were clean cars, but ended up spewing huge amounts of pollution into the air. The additional pollution endangered the health of Marylanders, fouled our air and our Chesapeake Bay. Today, both companies are paying for the damage that we allege they caused." "This settlement shows polluters will pay a stiff price for breaking the laws that protect the air Marylanders breathe," said Maryland Environment Secretary Ben Grumbles. "Some of the funds will be used for a pilot program for electric school buses. It's all part of the Hogan Administration's strong commitment to clean transportation, climate action and a healthy Chesapeake Bay." Fiat is alleged to have used defeat devices in approximately 100,000 diesel-powered Jeep Grand Cherokees and Ram 1500 pickup trucks in model years 2014 through 2016, about 1,200 of which were sold in Maryland. As was the case in the Volkswagen emissions cheating scandal, the Attorney General alleged that Fiat cheated on emissions tests because its vehicles could not meet Fiat's performance and fuel economy goals while maintaining legal emissions levels. Instead, Fiat allegedly used defeat devices so that its vehicles could pass emissions tests, but then operate differently in real-world driving, where the vehicles could achieve better fuel economy, but only at the expense of significantly increased emissions. The Attorney General alleged that Fiat marketed the vehicles to consumers as "clean" and "green" even though it knew that was far from the case. The Fiat settlement requires the company to pay the Maryland Attorney General's Office and the Maryland Department of the Environment a total of $2,358,204, which includes payment for the costs of the investigation, penalties for alleged violations of Maryland's environmental laws and funds to provide restitution for Maryland consumers who purchased Fiat's diesel vehicles. The settlements are also conditioned on Fiat fixing the affected vehicles so that they are emissions compliant, paying owners who get the fix between $2,460 and $3,075 through a class-action claims process, and providing an extended warranty on the vehicles' emissions systems. Lessees and some former owners of the vehicles will receive $990. The Bosch settlement, which is unique in that it holds a parts supplier responsible for its alleged role in developing and marketing products sold by other companies, addresses not only Bosch's role in working on the alleged defeat devices in Fiat's vehicles, but also its alleged participation in the massive emissions fraud Volkswagen admitted to in 2016. Bosch provided the software that controlled emissions systems in over half a million diesel VWs with defeat devices, as well as in the over 100,000 Grand Cherokees and Ram 1500s that are now alleged to use the software to cheat emissions tests. The Attorney General and MDE alleged that Bosch enabled Fiat and VW's cheating by programming the emission control software it sold them when Bosch knew that VW and Fiat would use that software to avoid emissions limits and to deceive their customers. Under the settlement, Bosch must pay the Maryland Attorney General's Office and the Maryland Department of the Environment a total of $3,879,082 for its participation in Fiat and VW's violations of environmental and consumer protection laws. Under a related settlement with vehicle owners announced today, Bosch will pay approximately $27.5 million to consumers who purchased or leased the affected Fiat Chrysler vehicles. Bosch earlier paid more than $275 million to consumers who purchased or leased Volkswagens that included defeat devices. Both settlements contain injunctions against the companies that should prevent this type of emissions cheating from reoccurring and, in the case of Bosch, require the company to report emissions cheating scandals rather than facilitate them. Jonathan Fair, 19, of Waukegan, Illinois was indicted on four counts of first-degree murder by a Lake County Grand Jury on Wednesday An Illinois man could face life in prison for fatally beating his girlfriends four-year-old daughter after she spilled juice on his Xbox console, prosecutors said. Jonathan Fair, 19, of Waukegan, was indicted on four counts of first-degree murder by a Lake County Grand Jury on Wednesday. His bail has been set at $5million, according to the Lake County News-Sun. Fairs arraignment has been scheduled for February 17. Assistant States Attorney Steve Scheller said on Thursday that authorities plan to seek life in prison for Fair because of the alleged heinous circumstances. Scheller said that on the night of December 13, Fair was babysitting Skylar Mendez, the four-year-old daughter of his girlfriend. The young girl spilled juice on Fairs Xbox. Prosecutors allege that he punished her in response. Fair then took the girl to the hospital. He told doctors that the girl fell and hit her head. But in statements to police, Fair acknowledged that he shook the girl really hard and beat her as punishment for spilling the juice, according to prosecutors. Authorities say Fair kicked Skylar down the hallway numerous times. Fair faces life in prison for the alleged fatal beating of Skylar Mendez, 4, who was punished by Fair after she spilled juice on his Xbox console Fair rushed the girl to hospital after she passed out during the attack. Doctors at Lurie Childrens Hospital in Chicago tried to relieve swelling in Skylars brain, but were not successful, according to prosecutors. Authorities said doctors noticed signs of physical abuse, including violent shaking, that likely stretched back months. Prosecutors said that on the night of December 13, Fair was babysitting Skylar Mendez, the four-year-old daughter of his girlfriend Authorities said doctors uncovered evidence of physical abuse dating months back Initially, prosecutors charged Fair with aggravated battery after his arrest. But prosecutors decided to file more severe charges in the indictment after the extent of the alleged abuse was revealed by doctors. Authorities said Fair was at home alone with the child during the alleged incident. The girls mother was not at home, according to police. Skylar's aunt, Cecilia Villalpando, launched a GoFundMe page asking the public for help in funding the funeral. Initially, the family believed the girl died by accident. 'We have found out that this was no tragic accident,' Villalpando wrote on GoFundMe last month. 'Our sweet angels life was taken from us by a heartless human being. 'Just adding more pain into our lives knowing that someone took our babygirl.' The heartbroken community of a mother and 10-year-old daughter, who were killed in a horror double electrocution, have farwelled the pair in a moving funeral service. Juanita Bendel, 39, her 'little cowgirl' Ava were spending New Year's Eve together at their farm in Tumoulin, near Cairns in far north Queensland, when the tragedy struck. Hundreds of mourners gathered to farewell the pair in Atherton, south of Cairns, on Friday in a service which detailed the close nature of the family's bond. 'She was the apple of her eye,' The Cairns Post reported Ms Bendel's parents wrote as part of a eulogy paying tribute to the pair. The community of mother-of-three Juanita Bendel (right) and her 10-year-old daughter, who were killed in a horror double electrocution, have farwelled the pair in a moving funeral service 'She was dad's little mate and 'right-hand man,' Ava's grandparents Ray and Rosanne Bendel wrote. The service also told of both mother and daughter's love of the land and country life, and the impact the tragedy has had on their tight-knit, rural community. Juanita and Ava were killed by a massive electric shock after attaching a charger to a semi-trailer, which had already been attached to an electric fence to keep horses out. 'She was dad's little mate and 'right-hand man,' Ava's grandparents wrote in their eulogy Following the tragedy last week, Juanita's parents issued a heartbreaking statement. 'Juanita loved country life and animals,' they said at the time. 'Ava also loved country life and always by her mother's side. Please check to make sure that all sheds and houses have throw-out safety switches.' Juanita Bendel's husband Mitchell Cole, who is Ava's father, returned home at about lunchtime to find the couple's second eldest daughter in hysterics, before making the grim discovery. 'The husband has found them, he had come back for the farm for lunch; he too received a sizeable shock,' Superintendent Geoff Sheldon told The Cairns Post. 'He began to give CPR... paramedics tried to resuscitate both mother and child but efforts were negative.' Both Ms Bendel, who ran a childcare centre at nearby Ravenshoe, and her daughter were pronounced dead at the scene. Ms Bendel ran a childcare centre at nearby Ravenshoe and was mother to three young girls Supt Sheldon said the tragedy had rocked the tight-knit community of less than 800 people. 'It is just a family tragedy but it is such a broader thing than that,' he said. 'Everybody in the community knew them, came to help at a time of crisis and they have all been horrendously affected by this.' Tablelands Regional Council Mayor Joe Paronella said the deaths came as an 'awful shock' to the community. 'It's a tragedy and very sad loss. It just highlights how careful we have to be at all times,' Cr Paronella told the Cairns Post. Daily Mail Australia understands Ava attended the Catholic St Teresa's Primary School in Ravenshoe and was the eldest of three girls. Ava Collins, 10, (pictured) and her mother were electrocuted on a rural cattle property, possibly while fixing a cable to a semi-trailer Ava was remembered for being a cowgirl, and poses as one with friends at the Brahman 50th anniversary Cairns Show The married mother lived with her family on a cattle and horse property she owned with her husband. Ava's four-year-old sister Hannah suffered minor injuries from the electrified setup as she went outside to look for them. Their neighbour Mark Toohey, who arrived at the scene soon after tragedy struck, was distraught at losing those next door to him. He described the child who lost her life as 'an active little cowgirl'. 'The family's grieving, we're all grieving, I was on site,' he told Daily Mail Australia on Wednesday. 'The chances of this happening are so remote. That's what makes it especially tragic.' Workplace Health and Safety is investigating the incident and police are preparing a report for the Coroner. The drug overdose death of another young adult at an Australian music festival on Saturday has intensified calls for pill testing to be legalised. The 19-year-old woman, Alex Ross-King, attended FOMO music festival alongside 11,000 glittered-up revellers in Sydney's west on Saturday. But a fun day out ended in tragedy as the woman was rushed to Westmead Hospital around 6pm, where she later died of a suspected drug overdose. Her sudden death brings the number of fatal overdoses to six - five in NSW and one in Victoria - in the last four months. Australia is in the midst of a music festival drug crisis as another young adult dies at a music event of a suspected overdose The death brings the number of such fatalities to six in just six months - as calls for pill testing intensifies The 19-year-old woman, Alex Ross-King, (pictured) attended FOMO music festival alongside 11,000 glittered-up revellers in Sydney's west on Saturday The FOMO music festival was held amid increased scrutiny on drug-taking and a renewed debate surrounding pill testing at music festivals across the country. Just weeks before, on Saturday, December 29 university student Callum Edwards, 20, fell critically ill at the Beyond The Valley music festival in Lardner, about 100km east of Melbourne in Victoria. He was flown to hospital where he died three days later from a suspected drug overdose. His family later refuted this as reports emerged Mr Edwards died with tiger snake venom in his blood. Just weeks before, on Saturday, December 29 politics and history student Callum Edwards, 20, (pictured) fell critically ill at the Beyond The Valley music festival The same weekend Josh Tam, 22, (pictured) died after taking an unknown substance at Lost Paradise festival in Gosford, New South Wales Mr Edward's death followed two other revellers at the same festival being rushed to hospital suffering from suspected drug overdoses. A man in his 20s was rushed by air ambulance to Royal Melbourne Hospital in a critical condition but was later upgraded to stable and discharged. Another man, also in his 20s, was taken to Dandenong Hospital in a critical condition. The same weekend Josh Tam, 22, died after taking an unknown substance at Lost Paradise festival in Gosford, New South Wales. Mr Tam, from Toowong in Brisbane, was rushed to Gosford hospital at 8pm on Saturday, December 29 and died soon after arriving. Mr Tam, (pictured) from Toowong in Brisbane, was rushed to Gosford hospital at 8pm on Saturday, December 29 and died soon after arriving Earlier in December, 19-year-old Callum Brosnan, (pictured) from Baulkham Hills, was found in a 'distressed state' at the Knockout Games of Destiny Dance Party Festival organisers took to their social media account following the incident to warn of a 'dangerous orange pill' in circulation across Australia. The festival organisers also warned: 'We want to remind everyone of the potentially fatal risks that come with illicit substances. You do not know what is in them, how your body will react, there is no safe level of consumption.' 'One pill can kill.' Earlier in December, 19-year-old Callum Brosnan, from Baulkham Hills, was found in a 'distressed state' at the Knockout Games of Destiny Dance Party at Sydney Olympic Park in Homebush, Sydney. He was admitted to Concord Hospital with a suspected drug overdose just before 1.30am on Sunday, December 9 and died little more than three hours later. Nursing student Tina Thanh Truc Phan, 18, later admitted she attempted to smuggle 390 ecstasy pills into the Knockout Games of Destiny festival. The deaths of revellers Joseph Phan, 23, and Diana Nguyen, 21, at Defqon. 1. music festival on September 15 shocked the country and threw the future of the popular Sydney festival into doubt. The double deaths prompted NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to call for a ban on the event (pictured: Joseph Phan, left, Diana Nguyen, right) Their deaths prompted NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian to call for a ban on the event, saying: 'I never want to see this event held in Sydney or New South Wales ever again we will do everything we can to shut this down.' The recent spate of fatalities prompted Australia's largest music festivals to write an open letter calling on state and territory governments to allow pill testing trials at events in a bid to prevent more deaths. The New South Wales government previously rejected pill testing but Premier Gladys Berejiklian indicated earlier this month that she would consider it if the government was shown evidence it could save lives. Some advocacy groups are also recommending young party-goers to use DIY drug testing kits before consuming the illicit substances. Fritz Kleinmann was shifting a heavy concrete block into place when he was summoned from the scaffolding. Kapo wants you. Fritz feared the worst. Kapos inmates assigned by the SS to help oversee fellow prisoners had the power of life and death in Buchenwald, the concentration camp in which hed managed to survive for three long years. There is a list in the records office of Jews to be transferred to Auschwitz, the kapo said simply. Your fathers name is on it. Fritz, 17, and his 53-year-old father Gustav had been together the entire time theyd been in Buchenwald, helping one another to stay alive in nightmarish circumstances. Now his father was to be taken away. Everyone knew the name of Auschwitz. There had been disturbing rumours about special gas chambers being built, in which hundreds of people at a time could be put to death. Buchenwald was horrific, but a transfer to Auschwitz meant only one thing. Poignant last portrait before the family was ripped apart: The Kleinmanns pose for a family photo in 1938, just months before the Nazis sent Gustav and Fritz to a concentration camp The list of those going was a long one; the only exceptions were those like Fritz, who were required for building work. The kapo looked Fritz in the eye. If you want to go on living, you have to forget your father. Thats impossible, he replied. After a few days of agonising, he returned to the kapo with an extraordinary request: I need you to pull whatever strings you can to get me on the Auschwitz transfer. The kapo was aghast. What youre asking is suicide. But Fritz was adamant. I want to be with my papa, no matter what happens. I cant go on living without him. And so it was that two days later, Fritz and Gustav were herded on to a cattle wagon their destination a place synonymous with murder on an industrial scale. There are many Holocaust stories, but not like the tale of Gustav and Fritz Kleinmann. Not only did they experience the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps from the first mass arrests in the late 1930s all the way through to eventual liberation, but they went through the whole inferno together, father and son. That makes them unique. More than luck or circumstance, it was their love and devotion to each other that kept them alive. The boy is my greatest joy, Gustav wrote in his secret diary. We strengthen each other. We are one, inseparable. Together, they endured a six-year odyssey through the hell of the camps, beginning with three years at Buchenwald, where Gustav so nearly became one of the tens of thousands to die in its unimaginably harsh conditions. Yet, however remarkable their story would prove to be, before the Nazis tore them apart there was nothing unusual about Gustavs family. A decorated hero of the Great War, Gustav had married his sweetheart Tini and they were raising their four children Fritz, Edith, Herta and Kurt in a small apartment in Vienna, where he worked as a master upholsterer. Everything changed in March 1938, when Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany. Under the Nuremberg Laws, Austrian Jews were stripped of their citizenship. In April that year, Fritz, then 14 and training to enter his fathers trade, was expelled from the Trade School. Gustavs workshop was seized. Those caught buying from Jews were made to stand with a sign: I am an Aryan, but a swine I bought this in a Jewish shop. A month later, the family dressed in their best outfits for a photograph. The photographer caught Gustavs apprehensiveness and the stoicism of Tinis dark eyes. It had been Tinis urging that had brought them to the studio. She had a foreboding that the family might not be together for much longer and wanted to capture her childrens image while she had the chance. The hammer blow came on a Sunday in September 1939, when Tini was in the apartment with Herta, Fritz and Kurt. Four men arrived, all neighbours. All were working men like Gustav friends with wives she knew, whose children had once played with hers. We want your husband, one said. We have orders. If he isnt here, were to take the lad. He nodded at Fritz. Tini felt as if shed been physically beaten. They took hold of her precious boy and marched him out. When Gustav returned and heard what had happened, he turned around and headed for the door, intending to go straight to the police. Tini grabbed his arm. Dont, she said. Theyll take you. Im not leaving Fritzl in their hands, he replied. No! Tini pleaded. You have to run away, go somewhere and hide. But there was no dissuading him. Leaving Tini in tears, Gustav walked quickly to the police station and announced: Im Gustav Kleinmann. Im here to turn myself in. You have my son. Take me and let him go. The policeman glanced around. Get the hell out of here, he muttered. Bewildered, Gustav left the building. He went home to find Tini distraught that Fritz was still gone. Ill try again tomorrow, Gustav said. But at 2am, a tide of men surged into the apartment. There was weeping, there were pleas, and final desperate words between husband and wife. And then it was all over. The door slammed, and Gustav was gone. Each morning, an hour and a half before dawn, shrill whistles yanked the prisoners from their sleep. Then came the kapos, yelling at them to hurry. Outside, Buchenwald was ablaze with electric light along the fence lines, atop the guard towers and in the walkways. People were herded to the square for roll call, standing motionless and shivering in their pitiful clothes for two hours. When it was time to go to work, sunrise was beginning to lighten the landscape. Gustav and Fritz had been assigned to the quarry detail, working as wagon haulers. All day, they and 14 other men had to heave and push a laden wagon weighing around four and a half tons up the hill, a distance of more than 800 yards, lashed and yelled at by kapos. Falls were frequent, with fractured limbs and broken heads. The injured would be taken to the infirmary or, if they were Jews, to the Death Block a holding barrack for the terminally sick. Gustav and Fritz toiled on day after day, miraculously managing to avoid both punishment and injury. We are proving ourselves, Gustav wrote in his diary. But things turned very different one day in November, after a failed assassination attempt on Hitler in Munich. When the prisoners lined up in the square, the kapos went along the ranks, grabbing every 20th man and shoving him forward. One of them was Fritz. A heavy wooden table with straps dangling from it was dragged on to the square. The Bock the whipping bench. Fritzs jacket and shirt were removed and his trousers pulled down. Gustav watched helplessly as the first lash landed like a razor cut across Fritzs buttocks. Count! they yelled at their victim. One, Fritz said. The bull-whip cut across his flesh again. Two, he gasped. Fritz struggled to concentrate, knowing that if he lost count the lashes would start over again. At last the count reached 25; the strap was loosened and he was forced to his feet. Before his fathers eyes he was helped away, bleeding, his body on fire with pain, his mind stunned as the next unfortunate was dragged to the Bock. Despite his agony, Fritz was more worried about his papa than about himself. Dysentery and fever plagued the camp, and now the older man had caught the sickness. During roll call he swayed, shivering, his senses failing. He was unconscious before he hit the ground. When he woke, he was on his back. In his hazy, febrile state, Gustav dimly realised that he must be in the block set aside for hopeless cases, from which people rarely emerged alive. The Death Block. The air was thick, stifling, filled with groans and an atmosphere of hopelessness. As the days wore on, Fritz visited his papa whenever he could. The dysentery had failed to kill him, and the worst had passed. However, it was obvious to Gustav that he would never get well in this environment. After two weeks, Gustav begged to be discharged, but doctors wouldnt let him go. He was far too weak to survive. Gustav was determined and asked Fritz to help him to his feet. With Fritz guiding his papas faltering steps, father and son slipped out of the Death Block together. It was October 1942 when they arrived at the most notorious of all the camps. Fritz had been allowed to go with his father and on their journey to Auschwitz, Gustav wrote: Everyone is saying it is a journey to death, but Fritzl and I do not let our heads hang down. I tell myself that a man can only die once. Fritz saw the marks of abuse and the signs of impending death in all his fellow prisoners, including himself: bruises, broken bones, sores, scabs and gapped teeth. The prisoners were able to shower once a week, but it was an ordeal. After showering, only the first men out got dry towels, so if you lagged behind you got nothing but a soaking rag and had to walk back to the barrack dripping, even in the coldest winter weather. Pneumonia was endemic, and often fatal. Food was distributed in the barrack. Only a few bowls were provided, so the first to get their helping of soup had to wolf it down so as not to keep the others waiting. If you managed to acquire your own spoon, you would guard it with your life. Having a decent pair of shoes was essential. If they were too large or too small, they chafed and caused blisters. Socks were rare, and many substituted strips of fabric torn from the tails of their camp-issue shirts. This in itself was risky, because damaging SS property was classed as sabotage. Gustav and Fritz were sent to a sub-camp within Auschwitz called Monowitz. Within weeks, most of their Buchenwald comrades had been sent to their deaths, but against the odds the pair had managed to survive as a result of their useful labouring skills. Fritz had been building the new camp, while his father had worked as a carpenter and upholsterer. Despite the overwhelming danger, Fritz became involved in a covert resistance against the SS, passing information to other prisoners about progress of the war, details hed picked up from the civilians he worked with. One day he was seized, driven from the camp and accused by the head of the Auschwitz Gestapo of planning a large-scale escape, which he knew nothing about. He was lashed again, this time 60 times. Still he refused to name friends involved in the resistance. Fritz, 17, at Buchenwald in 1940 Fritz was allowed to return to camp, but fearing the Gestapo would return to look for him, his comrades came up with a daring plan: they hid him in an isolation room in the hospital, and recorded his death with the authorities. Weeks passed as Fritz recovered, now with a new identity taken from a deceased typhus patient and a new job as a warehouseman. So horrific was the death rate at Auschwitz that few prisoners were easily recognisable. Yet not knowing the truth, his fathers agony continued. One evening a friend came to see Gustav. Follow me, he indicated, and led the older man down away from the road and towards the bathing block. In the low light inside, he saw the outline of a man standing back in the shadows. The figure came forward, his features resolving into the face of Fritz. It was miraculous. For Gustav, to hold his son in his arms again, to inhale the smell of him, to hear his voice, was beyond hope, beyond everything. Together they remained until January 1945, when Auschwitz was evacuated as Russian troops neared. They and thousands of other prisoners were forced to trudge through the snow, away from the advancing Red Army. Then they were put on trains bound for camps deeper inside the Reich. Their destination was Mauthausen in Austria, but father and son had decided to seize the chance to make their escape. When it came to it, Gustav, 53 years old and exhausted, didnt have the strength to attempt it. Yet he couldnt deny his son the chance to live. It would be a wrenching pain to part, but he urged Fritz to go alone. Fritz embraced his papa, and with his help climbed the slippery side wall of the wagon. He peered anxiously towards the brake houses on the adjacent wagons, occupied by armed SS guards. The train was thundering along at its maximum speed. Screwing up his courage, Fritz launched himself into the night and the rushing, freezing air. Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Poland was infamous for the horror what went on inside Fritzs brave escape would not succeed, however. Despite his fathers fervent prayers, he was recaptured and imprisoned in Mauthausen although the train itself was then diverted and took Gustav to a different camp, Mittelbau-Dora. Father and son spent three months praying the other had been able to cling to life. And their prayers were answered. Mittelbau-Dora was liberated by US troops in April; Mauthausen in May. When Fritz was first checked into an evacuation hospital, his weight was recorded as 5st 7lb, but he gradually regained strength. He returned home to Vienna, but found himself alone: his mother and sister Herta had been murdered by the Nazis, while Kurt had found sanctuary in America and Edith in England. He had no idea if his father was alive. It was September by the time Gustav, too, finally made his way home and went to the apartment building where his workshop used to be. There he found the one person he most longed to see: his beloved boy. They wept tears of joy. They were home and together again. Jeremy Dronfield, 2019 Gable Tostee could still face an inquest and fresh charges over the death of his Tinder date in 2014, despite being acquitted of any crime. New Zealand woman Warriena Wright, 26, plunged to her death from the 14th floor of his Surfer's Paradise apartment block on August 8, 2014. Ms Wright had met up with the self-confessed playboy through Tinder. Mr Tostee, who changed his name to Eric Thomas following years of media scrutiny and public notoriety, was acquitted of murder and manslaughter after a lengthy trial. The man once known as Gable Tostee (left) may still face repercussions over the death of his Tinder date (right) in 2014, despite previously being acquitted of any crime. Gable Tostee, also known as Eric Thomas, has lashed out at 'alpha fembots' who he claims are fixated on 'victim blaming' after labeling him a misogynist Mr Tostee may still be investigated in relation to the death of Warriena Wright Coroner James McDougall told the Courier Mail he was still investigating the circumstances surrounding Ms Wright's death. Mr Tostee was officially acquitted of Ms Wright's murder, manslaughter and any wrongdoing surrounding her plunge from the balcony after harrowing three-hour audio footage was played for the court in 2016. The audio tapes were used as key evidence both for the defense and prosecution. Coroner McDougall has refused to rule out the possibility of a coronial inquest into Ms Wright's death. He told the Courier Mail he would need to provide fresh and compelling evidence to authorise the inquest, which could technically bring forward fresh charges for Mr Tostee. The Justice Department has confirmed the investigations are ongoing. Warriena Wright, 26, plunged to her death from Mr Tostee's 14-storey apartment block on August 8, 2014 after meeting up with the self-confessed playboy through Tinder Mr Tostee, 31, was acquitted of the murder and manslaughter in 2016 but public interest in the case remains high, sparking a true crime podcast by 60minutes Mr Tostee recently lashed out at women on a 60 Minutes post, targeting 'screeching fembots' who are obsessed with 'victim-blaming' after the news outlet released a trailer for a true crime podcast they've created following Mr Tostee's case. '60 Minutes Australia, how much more do you want to milk this?,' he commented on the post. 'Are you that devoid of genuine news that you feel the need to repost this 4+ year old story for the second time in a month.' When a woman accused him of being misogynistic he let loose, saying 'victim blaming' was 'hardcoded into the fembot brain'. 'They shout it out voluntarily whenever they detect the slightest suggestion that a female might be responsible for her own actions,' his response said. 'This signals a challenge to all the other fembots, who then start shouting it louder and louder themselves. Whoever screeches the words loudest becomes the alpha fembot. 'Then, they go back to reading their true crime paperbacks and crying themselves to sleep.' 60minutes reportedly paid Mr Tostee up to six-figures for the exclusive tell-all interview but he has now hit back at the organisation for 'milking' the story Ambulance workers last year took almost a quarter of a million days off work, including 50,000 due to stress. Newly released figures reveal that staff each took an average of 12 days off over a year. Between them, the 20,000 people who work for Englands ten mainland NHS ambulance trusts were absent on 240,589 days between July 2017 and June 2018. Around a fifth was due to anxiety, stress, depression and other psychiatric illnesses. Newly released figures reveal that staff each took an average of 12 days off over a year The statistics also highlight stark variations in rates of sickness absence between different trusts. At South Central Ambulance Service, which serves a swathe of the country south-west of London, the overall sickness absence rate was 6.3 per cent, but at West Midlands Ambulance Service it was 3.4 per cent. The overall rate of sickness absence is similar to NHS nurses, who take about ten days off a year on average. That is more than double the 4.1 days that private sector workers take. The overall rate of sickness absence is similar to NHS nurses, who take about ten days off a year on average Colm Porter, from the Unison union, which represents many ambulance staff, blamed increasing demands on the service. He said: Demand continues to rise across the UK, affecting ambulance teams on the front line and staff in control rooms. This extreme pressure means a constant struggle to retain experienced staff, and unfilled posts only increase the strain. Melanie Saunders, human resources director for South Central Ambulance Service, said: Emergency service workers do unfortunately suffer higher levels of work-related stress due to the nature of the incidents which they are exposed to. 'We offer our staff a range of internal and external support if they are feeling anxious or stressed while at work or out of work. Norfolk Island was once considered the worst place of penal punishment in the English-speaking world, a hellhole so brutal that prisoners wept in sorrow when spared the death penalty. Today, this tiny paradise in the Pacific Ocean is home to about 1,750 residents who rely primarily on tourism but its police force still has to lock up the odd criminal. The Australian territory is advertising for a 'gaoler/correctional officer' to supervise the occasional occupants of Norfolk's two cells in the island's police station. Described as an 'exciting and long-term' opportunity, the role does not require any previous experience in custodial work and on-the-job training is available. The cells serve as an overnight lock-up for minor offenders, a periodic detention centre and short-term jail. The remains of the gaol on Norfolk Island which was once considered the worst penal institution in the British Empire. Some prisoners preferred death over its cruel daily regime One of the two modern cells in Norfolk Island's police station. Gaolers are wanted to assist in the operation of the cells and detention area, including supervising short-term inmates Norfolk Island is about 1,400km east of the Australian mainland and relies heavily on tourism Norfolk Island has little violent crime but has recorded two homicides this century. Here Glenn McNeill is transported to the Kingston courthouse over the 2002 murder of Janelle Patton 'The position of the Gaoler/Correctional Officer is to assist the Norfolk Island Police Force with the operation of the police station cells and detention area, including the supervision and care of persons detained in custody at the Norfolk Island Police Station from time to time,' the advertisement states. 'You will be engaged in a casual on-call capacity and must be available to work as required. 'The hours will be up to the discretion of the Officer in charge at the time and may be at any time, day or night, including public holidays.' The job requires applicants who exhibit values such as 'accountability, trust, respect, integrity and commitment' - none of which, apart from commitment, would have been necessary in the distant past. The second white settlement on Norfolk (1825-1855) was a penal colony with a disciplinary regime considered the worst in the British Empire. Norfolk, which had been a penal colony from 1788 to 1814, was reoccupied as a place of secondary punishment to send 'the worst description of convicts.' New South Wales Governor Thomas Brisbane said 'the felon who is sent there is forever excluded from all hope of return.' His successor, Ralph Darling, decreed that 'every man should be worked in irons' and Norfolk should be 'a place of the extremest punishment short of death.' Convicts were starved, tortured and flogged by corrupt overseers. Norfolk Island served as a penal colony from 1788 to 1814 and then 1825 to 1855. The second penal settlement was considered to be the worst in British Empire. Pictured is the cemetery Norfolk Island Inmates spared hanging after an 1834 uprising were said to have wept in sorrow, while 13 convicts dropped to their knees in thanks to God when sentenced to their deaths Norfolk Island's gaol had five wings radiating from a central building to form a pentagon. Each wing contained rows of stone-floored cells, typically 1.8 metres long by 1.5 metres wide Inmates spared hanging after an 1834 uprising reportedly wept at their fate, while 13 convicts dropped to their knees in thanks to God when sentenced to their deaths. The cells in Norfolk's modern police station are clean, safe and large, unlike those in what is now known as the New Gaol built between 1838 and 1847 near Slaughter Bay. The New Gaol had five stone wings radiating from a central building to form a pentagon. Each wing contained rows of stone-floored cells, typically 1.8 metres long by 1.5 metres wide with a 3.3 metre ceiling. Up to three prisoners shared a cell. Isolation in an underground 'dumb cell' was likened to being buried alive. On a good day a convict would receive 680 grams of maize meal, 454 grams of salt meat, 907 grams of sweet potato, 284 grams of sugar, 14 grams of salt and a lemon. As a penal colony Norfolk housed convicts who had reoffended on the mainland; now the island has an arrangement with NSW to jail its convicted criminals. While the island has a low crime rate, the cells have in recent years held two men charged with homicides, in one case for much longer than intended. Historic stone buildings from the penal colony era in the capital of Norfolk Island, Kingston An aerial view of Norfolk Island showing Kingston and the lush surrounding farming land Leith Maclean Buffett, 25, shot dead his 60-year-old father Ivens 'Toon' Buffett, a member of Norfolk's former Legislative Assembly, in his office in July 2004. He was held in one of the cells for weeks before legislation could be passed in New South Wales and on Norfolk to allow his transfer to Long Bay prison hospital in Sydney. Conditions in custody could have been far worse for Buffett. Provisions under the island's then penal code - an almost original version of the NSW Crimes Act 1900 - included keeping prisoners in leg irons and floggings. Buffett was declared mentally unfit and incompetent to stand trial. Two years later, Glenn McNeill, 28, was held in the cells after being extradited from New Zealand over the March 2002 murder of 29-year-old Janelle Patton. McNeill, who was eventually jailed for a minimum 18 years, was transferred to the Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre in Sydney's Silverwater using the legislation passed for Buffett's case. [Ivens Buffett had been the first Norfolk-born resident to voluntarily present himself to police when the island's adult population was fingerprinted in the hunt for Ms Patton's killer]. New Zealand chef Glenn McNeill, pictured being taken into Norfolk Island's courthouse in 2006, was convicted of the first murder committed on the island since the 19th century Glenn McNeill, right, was convicted of murdering Janelle Patton (left) and jailed for 18 years As Ms Patton's murder was the first on the island since the late 19th century it is unlikely the successful applicant for the advertised job of gaoler would ever be dealing with killers. The front desk of the island's police station operates 8am to 4pm Monday to Friday and 8am to 12pm on Saturdays. A courtesy phone at the front door connects to the duty officer outside hours. The Norfolk Island Police Force (NIPF) is comprised of five Australian Federal Police officers on two-year rotations, one local special constable and one person in administrative support. They conduct daily patrols of the territory, with an emphasis on ensuring traffic safety, as well as investigating crime and searching for people lost on the island or at sea. The most recent serious crime reported on the NIPF Facebook page was the alleged theft of a large quantity of alcohol from a cargo ship that arrived on the island on September 28 last year. The stolen haul included 272 cans of Speight's Gold Medal Ale, a carton of Bundaberg rum and cola cans, 31 bottles of McGuigan Black Label red wine and a litre of Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur. On a good day a convict on Norfolk Island would receive 680 grams of maize meal, 454 grams of salt meat, 907 grams of sweet potato, 284 grams of sugar, 14 grams of salt and a lemon Serious crime is rare; islanders routinely leave their homes unlocked and the keys in their parked cars. Prospective gaolers, who should be 'reasonably physically fit' and have no criminal history, must still be ready for any eventuality. 'This role requires someone who is willing to take on the excitement that each day is different and can also show initiative when needed,' the advertisement states. 'You should be able to identify, monitor, prepare written reports and records about and manage prisoner conduct, movements, risks of escape and health issues either alone or in conjunction with police or other gaolers.' In the unlikely event a prisoner manages to escape, Norfolk Island covers just 35 square kilometres and sits 1,412km east of Evans Head on the NSW northern rivers. About half the territory's population is descended from the British sailors who mutinied on the Bounty and 1789 and hid on Pitcairn Island with their Tahitian wives before being resettled on Norfolk in 1856. The advertisement says previous recent experience as a correctional officer, gaoler or police watch-house officer would be an advantage but training will be provided. A contract is available until June 20 next year with the possibility of extensions and the closing date for applications is January 18. A level one casual correctional officer earns $26.48 an hour. Mean streets: Stark photos show behind-the-scenes life of police patrolling crime-ridden New York in the 1970s Photos taken at time when New York City was facing near-bankruptcy and notorious for spiralling crime rates Photographer Leonard Freed joined officers on the beat for his project - first pictured in British press in March 1973 Exhibition of impressive full collection of photos now on display at the Museum of the City of New York in Manhattan Advertisement A shooting gallery is raided for drugs, cars are searched for wanted men and political protesters lie on the streets as they are cuffed and chained up. These astonishing photos from a 1970s study give a fascinating insight into the behind-the-scenes working life of New York City police officers. It was a time when the city was facing near-bankruptcy and had become notorious for spiralling crime rates and social disorder on the streets. 1972: 'New York City, Police Raid a Shooting Gallery for drugs in old Harlem Building' shows Leonard Freed's attempt to portray a city drugs bust 1979: 'New York City, Police Arrest Political Protesters' by Leonard Freed shows a young man and woman lying down on the street as they are handcuffed 1978: 'New York City, 9th Police Precinct, Man Reported Sick on City Street, Waiting for Hospital Wagon' shows NYPD cops surrounding an ill man 1972: 'New York City' is one of many astonishing photos from a 1970s study that give a fascinating insight into the behind-the-scenes working life of police officers 1979: 'New York City' was taken a time when the city was facing near bankruptcy and was notorious for spiralling crime rates and social disorder on the streets 1978: 'New York City' shows how Leonard Freed joined officers on the beat for his project, which went on display at the Museum of the City of New York on Tuesday Photographer Leonard Freed joined officers on the beat for his project, which went on display at the Museum of the City of New York on Tuesday. The pictures first appeared in the Sunday Times in March 1973 under the controversial headline of: Thugs, Mugs, Drugs; City In Terror. The New York Daily News sued the Sunday Times for copying its style and the New York Times protested at the depiction, a museum press release said. Even New York City Mayor John Lindsay, who was on holiday abroad, slammed the Sunday Times article as a gross insult to the city and outrageous. 1978: 'New York City, Dectectives at Police Station' is in a set of pictures - the first of which appeared in a Sunday British newspaper five years before in 1973 1979: 'Police Station, New York City, Back Room' was one of many photos taken by Mr Freed, who lived in Garrison, New York, with his wife 1978: 'New York City' was photographed by Mr Freed, who also photographed subjects including the Ku Klux Klan in 1988 and the Berlin Wall in 1989 1972: 'New York City' was taken by Mr Freed, who said the public must know who the police really are because they are a 'symbol of society's efforts to control itself' 1972: 'New York City' is one of many photos Mr Freed did not want to offend people with - rather his intention was to perform a sociological study 1978: 'New York City, 9th Police Station Back Room used for Questioning People' shows a policeman putting together a report with a typewriter But Mr Freed did not set out to offend people - rather perform a sociological study - and claimed he had been asked for blood and gore. I was more interested in who the police were, he told Worldview magazine. I wanted to understand what they do - why we cannot do without them. Mr Freed lived in Garrison, New York, with his wife, and also photographed subjects including the Ku Klux Klan in 1988 and the Berlin Wall in 1989. Sunday 13 January marks a year since the launch of open banking but experts predict 2019 will make more of a meaningful difference to how people manage their money. The so-far quiet revolution has pushed major British banks into sharing customer data securely and quickly with third parties. The aim is for people to easily access better financial deals with help from these third-party firms, based on personal financial information. Banks must comply by law. Open banking: The so-far quiet revolution has pushed major British banks into sharing customer data securely and quickly with third parties. It happens only when a customer demands their details be shared and if they give permission through online or mobile banking. Separate European law has enabled much of the same, but from a wider choice of financial firms, not just banks. One example of how it works is money app Yolt, owned by Dutch bank ING. It has more than half a million registered users and allows them to see their bank, credit card, savings and investment details using just one app rather than several. It also offers tools to track spending and budget more effectively. Leon Muis, chief operating officer at Yolt, says: This year is set to be an exciting one for open banking as we see the legislation take hold and move into the next phase. Imran Gulamhuseinwala, trustee of the organisation delivering open banking, also says the emergence of new technologies and products will ramp up. He adds: We have seen some impressive early signs of new technologies powered by open banking, with lots more to come. Consumers are gradually being offered products and services which will securely help them move, manage and make more of their money. Meanwhile, online advice service OpenMoney is partnering with comparison website uSwitch to offer savings on household bills. Its new app launches next month and will allow users to sync their details to find cheaper deals across the market. Initially it will focus on energy, broadband and mobile phone tariffs. Credit card and insurance deals are expected to follow. As a nation, we Brits have long prided ourselves on our manners. We are, supposedly, polite sorts who hold doors open and say please and thank you. But manners evolve, like language, and if you use the wrong spoon for the soup these days it shouldnt cause anyone heart palpitations, as it might have done 100 years ago. Instead, we have a new range of quandaries to consider. What should we do about our obsessive phone use? How do we greet someone weve never met but follow on social media? Do you have to invite that vegan over for dinner? And should we really still send thank-you letters? (Yes, sorry.) Patricia Routledge as Hyacinth Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances. As a nation, we Brits have long prided ourselves on our manners. But manners evolve... Im familiar with all this because I worked at Tatler magazine for five years, where new employees were made to study Debretts Guide to Etiquette & Modern Manners, and I wrote pieces with headlines such as How posh is your dog? and The etiquette of the threesome. So, to avoid awkward social dilemmas, heres my guide to getting it right in 2019 1 Do not correct people or make a face if they say toilet (rather than the allegedly more acceptable loo or lavatory). I cannot bear the snobbery around this word. The same applies to couch, settee, lounge and so on. It is 2019 people should be able to use whatever words they like without judgment. One of my friends taught her children to say toilet purely to wind up her snobby mother-in-law and I love her for it. 2 Never email people at the weekend unless its an actual emergency. This applies mostly to work emails since weve all become so caught up with being in touch and fear being fired if we dont reply to a colleague/boss within two and a half seconds, even if its 11pm on a Sunday. But how urgent is this, really? Its not. Leave it until Monday morning. 3 If in doubt when meeting someone, shake hands. Greetings can be hideously awkward these days when we tend to be less formal with people and sprinkle our emails with kisses. How do we greet that colleague or person we follow on social media but have never actually met two air kisses? One kiss and a weird half-hug? If youre worried, stick out your hand with confidence. Nobody can misconstrue that. 4 Dont be a TV snob. A friend went on a date and was struggling with conversation, so she asked her prospective beau what he was watching. I dont have a TV I read books, came the reply, as if he deserved a medal and she was a halfwit. Snobbery of all forms is unattractive, but TV snobbery is particularly misplaced nowadays given how excellent television has become and how many choices we have. Being pointedly rude about Love Island or Bodyguard makes you sound like an out-of-touch geriatric. 5 If youre sitting next to someone at a dinner or standing next to them at a drinks party, ask questions. Be interested in them. Do not assume that youre so intriguing the other person only needs to hear about you. A friend has a little trick she often plays if sitting next to a self-obsessed man who wont stop banging on about himself. And when did you first realise you were so fascinating? she asks, and they apparently always answer genuinely. Dont be the butt of this joke. 6 You still need to send thank-you cards or letters but its totally acceptable to do it online. I often use the website Moonpig to send a postcard. Ill go online, upload a photo from my phone of the lunch/dinner in question for the front of it, type out a thank-you note for the back, then send it to arrive the next day. Quick, easy, job done. 7 Never leave your phone on the table when youre in a restaurant or at someone elses house. So many do it, eyes flicking from their friends faces to their phone to check for a little blinking light. Its incredibly irritating. Put it away. And dont do that thing of reaching for your phone halfway through a meeting/lunch/dinner, mumbling vaguely that youve just got to check something and then scan your emails and all forms of social media because youre addicted to the dopamine hit. Just leave it for a few minutes/hours. Nobody will die. 8 If someone has a poppy seed stuck in their teeth or a drop of gravy on their chin at a party (this is often me), tell them. Theres nothing worse than going to the bathroom only to realise that, while chatting about international affairs, trying to sound intelligent, there was a piece of dill wobbling on my lower lip. Please tell me. Wed all much rather know. 9 Look people in the eye. It may seem obvious, but its one that my stepmother drummed into us as teenagers. Slidey eye, she used to say severely of our friends who failed to do this. It looks shifty if you dont. Snobbery of all forms is unattractive, but TV snobbery is particularly misplaced nowadays given how excellent television has become and how many choices we have 10 Try to wean yourself off the habit of saying, We must have drinks soon, to someone youd rather never see again. Trying to set up a date for something that will never actually happen is a waste of time for everyone involved. 11 If you are vegan/havent eaten bread since 1997/only eat organic foods that have been locally foraged even though you live in London, and you are asked to dinner at someones house, let the host know this when youre invited. A discreet text or email is fine. Im so sorry to be difficult but Im vegan, so do let me know if I can bring something, strikes the right tone and gives the host time to prepare. Do not leave it until youre all sitting around the table and then loudly proclaim, Oh no, Im so sorry, I cant possibly eat this chop because I dont know the name of the lamb it came from. 12 If you really have to cancel something at the last minute, its best to call the other person. Dont send a WhatsApp with a feeble explanation and a string of sad-face emojis. When you phone, try to sound suitably guilty and offer another date to make up for it. 13 What kind of birthday person are you the sort who treats it as a week-long festival or the kind who hates the weird pressure to have the best day ever and so ignores the whole thing? Im the latter, but not telling colleagues or friends that its your birthday and then casually letting it slip too late in the day when youre feeling needy can make them feel awkward. Instead, why not simply say, Its my birthday, smiling, whenever someone asks you how you are that day, and then graciously accept their congratulations. That way nobody feels guilty. 14 Dont always make friends do the running. People with babies and small children should, every now and then, make the effort to travel to see their single mate who usually comes to them. If you are the single friend in this scenario, dont make passive-aggressive remarks about it; remember, the height of good manners is not making a fuss or making someone else feel uncomfortable. Console yourself with the fact that you werent woken up at 5am this morning. 15 Whatever you do, dont mention Brexit in polite company or any company at all. And some very bad manners... Being nice to others has always been good etiquette, but it seems that many people still havent got the memo. After we published our best (and worst) backhanded compliments last month, we asked you for your own examples. You didnt disappoint, sending us the catty comments that made you wince and laugh in equal measure. Here are our favourites Our feature on backhanded compliments prompted many of you to send in your hilarious instances My new mother-in-law, who idolised my husband, was looking at our wedding photos and said, Doesnt that white dress make his suit stand out nicely? Melanie, Lyme Regis Many years ago, arriving at the office with my hair newly styled into a curly perm, a friend commented, I love your hair. I would have mine done in that style if it ever came back into fashion. Helen, Lincoln Early on in our relationship my husband told me he wouldnt describe me as stunning but I was a good all-rounder. Joanne, Manchester A neighbour on first seeing my newly arrived third baby: Oh, shes lovely. A really beautiful baby what a lucky girl to look so like her father. Carrie, Surrey A lovely friend, who is still a lovely friend, told me a couple of years ago: Oh, its OK for you! Being slim means you can get away with wearing cheap clothes. Ann, Lancashire Im a life model for art classes; Im Rubenesque and not slim or young. Several years ago, while working at an adult education evening class, a very drunk intruder burst in. I held my pose while the tutor tried to get him out of the door. Just as we thought hed gone, the door flew open again and he said, Youre not bad looking, for a fat bird, before slamming the door shut. I burst out laughing. I am still curvy and still modelling. Sharon, Essex A colleague once said to me: How early in the morning do you have to get up to look like that? Nicola, Hereford A woman at a business event once said about me: I have always thought it is better to be interesting looking than attractive. Susan, Berkshire That coat is lovely. If you were tall and slim it would suit you. Pamela, Buckinghamshire After our wedding ceremony, friends and relatives gathered round to compliment us on the day when an aunt came up to me and said, You do look lovely your dress suits you well and it must be so hard to get one in your size. Dawn, Shropshire I was once told by a close friend: Your nose fits your face. Donna, Belfast My mum to me: I know youre kind underneath that waspish exterior. Hannah, Market Harborough When I mentioned to a friend that someone had told me I looked young for my age, she said, Yes, you do, except for your hands and feet. Jean, Warwickshire I was walking into town with my granddaughters. The younger one was being rather unkind to me, as children of this age can be, which I chose to ignore. The elder one rose to my defence and said, Dont be unkind to Grandma as we dont know how long we will have her for. Christine, Essex Years ago, I was singing away in work when a visiting engineer said, You sing like a bird. I felt really proud, and then he said, Like a crow. Kath, Torfaen I met an old friend and his mother, who I hadnt seen since infants school. He told me later that his mum had said, Shes quite attractive now, considering she was such an ugly child. June, Manchester A colleague once told me, Youve got no real talents but lots of skills. Ruth, Sunderland A friends daughter when she was about 12 said to her godmother, Id really like boobs like yours when Im older. Only bigger! Jenny, Reading My favourite was from a drunken man on the tube who said to me, You have such beautiful blue eyes, you look like Mickey Rourke. Alice, London An American friend once told me I was an eight [out of 10], which is like a British nine in a conversation about attractiveness in the US versus UK. Sophie, Cambridge When I had platinum hair I got: I love your wig! Suzy, York I have a friend who, when I showed her a new dress Id bought, said, Youre so lucky, you can wear dresses like that because youre so flat-chested. Anna, Surrey I took my new baby, who was rather red-faced, out in his pram and called into a local toy shop. The assistant looked at my darling son, paused, and said, My, what a lovely pram! Theresa, Dorset Former Maryland Circuit Court Judge, the Honorable Karen Abrams. (Submitted photo) LEONARDTOWN, Md. (January 13, 2019)Former Maryland Circuit Court Judge, the Honorable Karen Abrams, has been selected by the St. Mary's County Commission for Women to receive the 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award.Judge Abrams' community activities have included membership on the following boards: United Way of St. Mary's County, St. Mary's Nursing Center Foundation, Calvert Marine Museum and Calvert Marine Museum Society, Patuxent Tidewater Land Trust and Historic St. Mary's City Foundation.She has served with the Inquiry Committee of the Attorney Grievance Commission, the Public Defender Regional Advisory Board, the Attorney Character Committee for St. Mary's County, the Maryland Council of School Board Attorneys and the Family Violence Coordinating Council.Judge Abrams was integral in founding the St. Mary's County Substance Abuse Recovery. The Substance Abuse Recovery Court promotes abstinence while addressing the unique needs of persons who have criminal records and addiction problems. With a team of professionals she has recruited, Judge Abrams and the recovery court have reduced the rate of incarceration and recidivism. Moreover, St. Mary's County has seen a cost savings of $84 per person per day, and more than $25,000 per person annually.Judge Abrams has a varied professional background that is reflected in her approach to seeking compassionate and creative solutions to difficult situations. With the heart of a social worker, the intellect of an attorney and the discernment of a judge, she has improved the lives of St. Mary's County citizens in many ways.She has represented many private and corporate clients over the course of her 23 years of practice, as well as the St. Mary's County Board of Education, the St. Mary's County Board of Elections, the St. Mary's County Alcohol Beverage Board, St. Mary's Nursing Center, St. Mary's Home for the Elderly and the Town of Leonardtown.Judge Abrams is a member of the Seventh Circuit Trial Courts Judicial Nominating Commission, the Inquiry Committee of the Attorney Grievance Commission and the Conference of Circuit Court Judges, as well as the American Bar Association, Maryland State Bar Association, St. Mary's County Bar Association, Women's Bar Association of Maryland and the Maryland Bar Foundation. Judge Abrams is a recipient of the Daily Record's Leadership in Law Award.Judge Abrams will be honored at the Commission for Women's Annual Banquet on Thursday March 14, 2019, at the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center. Josie Rourkes sumptuous new film, Mary Queen Of Scots, has set a cat among the historical pigeons even before it comes out. Chief among the targets for historians ire was the fact that in this film Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots meet, when they never did in real life. Its one of a number of ways that the film shows things that in history were only determined by letter. Elizabeth and Mary did agree to meet in York in 1562: in the film, we see Mary and her retinue en route, turning back when met by Elizabeths ambassador, Thomas Randolph, who tells them that the planned meeting has been postponed. In practice, Elizabeth did change her mind, and conveyed that by letter before Mary set out. But letter-writing makes for dull drama. Josie Rourkes sumptuous new film, Mary Queen Of Scots, has set a cat among the historical pigeons even before it comes out Dr Suzannah Lipscomb is a historian at the University of Roehampton and the author of books including Witchcraft: A Ladybird Expert Book Mary Stuart was just six days old when she became Queen of Scots in 1542. In 1559, she and her husband were crowned Francis and Mary, King and Queen of France, Scotland, England and Ireland. Henry VIII had named his daughter Elizabeth in the line of succession, but he had also made her illegitimate. To Catholics, Elizabeth had no right to the English throne. Within 18 months, Francis died. The widowed, teenage Mary Queen of Scots returned home to a Protestant Scotland determined to be declared Elizabeth Is heir. It was Marys great hope that if she met Elizabeth in the flesh she could persuade her. This is where Mary Queen Of Scots picks up the story. There is much history here you can trust. Saoirse Ronan makes a good Mary: shes young, slim and beautiful, as Mary herself was, with the same marble-like complexion and auburn hair. In much of the film, Mary speaks English with a Scottish accent; in reality, its more likely she would have spoken her mother tongue, Scots a specific language distinct from Gaelic. Mary was also truly surrounded by four close womenfolk, all her own age, and all called Mary too. And Elizabeth I played by Margot Robbie really did get smallpox in 1562 and her face was ever after marred by the scars. To hide them, she took to wearing make-up of white lead and vinegar, glazed by egg white. Elizabeth I played by Margot Robbie really did get smallpox in 1562 and her face was ever after marred by the scars. To hide them, she took to wearing make-up of white lead and vinegar, glazed by egg white Even the most scandalous moments of the film the parts where youll be thinking This cant be true are. Henry, Lord Darnley, who goes on to become Marys second husband, was found in bed with Marys confidential secretary, David Rizzio. And if the blood-drenched murder victim in one scene seems a bit far-fetched, its not: conspirators stabbed the poor man 56 times. Even in having the two Queens meet, the movie uses a clever premise: Elizabeth says to Mary No one can know we met if you speak of it to anyone, I will deny it, creating the possibility that they did meet but the whole thing was hushed up. What else isnt totally accurate? We dont know if Darnley persuaded Mary into marriage because of his skill at oral sex historical records dont extend to that level of detail but we do know he was tall, charming and good-looking, and it was lust at first sight. There were black Africans in Britain in the 16th century and their inclusion at court is not far-fetched, but Randolph himself wasnt black. While Elizabeth ages in the film, Mary does not. This is, surely, because we are to imagine her as Elizabeth does: not an aged woman but a young resplendent queen Perhaps the most notable departure from the record is advancing many of the older Elizabeths characteristics into her early reign in order to contrast a natural, decisive and passionate Mary with a frigid, indecisive and weak Elizabeth. While Elizabeth ages in the film, Mary does not. This is, surely, because we are to imagine her as Elizabeth does: in her minds eye, she says, she sees not an aged woman but a young resplendent queen. In many ways, the film is Elizabeths fearful fantasy of what her rival was like. Dr Suzannah Lipscomb is a historian at the University of Roehampton and the author of books including Witchcraft: A Ladybird Expert Book Her new role was announced only days after Health Secretary Matt Hancock revealed details of a scheme to radically increase online consultations Ms Blackwood was announced as the Health Minister for Innovation last week Former Tory MP Nicola Blackwood sat on the governance board of Push Doctor Former Tory MP Nicola Blackwood, who was a Health Minister when she lost her seat at the 2017 Election, controversially received a peerage from Theresa May in the New Year Honours List [File photo] Controversy over the revolving door between the Government and business was reignited last night after it emerged that a newly appointed Health Minister has been working for a fast-growing Skype-style GP appointment company. Former Tory MP Nicola Blackwood, who was a Health Minister when she lost her seat at the 2017 Election, controversially received a peerage from Theresa May in the New Year Honours List. Last week, she was announced as the new Health Minister for Innovation after being elevated to the House of Lords. However, The Mail on Sunday has established that after losing her Oxford West and Abingdon seat, she became a paid adviser to Push Doctor, an online GP service hoping to gain a foothold into the vast NHS market. Ms Blackwood sat on the governance board of Push Doctor, which offers private pay as you go video consultations priced at 30 for ten minutes and wants to work with the NHS, as well as advising it on how to expand its digital health services. In her new ministerial post, Ms Blackwood will be responsible for digital technologies in the NHS. Last night, shadow Health Minister Justin Madders said: This is yet another shocking example of private health companies getting far too close to Tory Ministers. A source close to Ms Blackwood said she accepted the Push Doctor role last spring when she had no plans to return to the Government and that the Health Minister vacancy in the Lords only arose a month ago. The source added Ms Blackwood never had an executive role at Push Doctor, would not be directly involved in NHS procurement decisions and said her elevation to the Lords has been approved by the House of Lords Appointments Commission. However, her role at Push Doctor did raise eyebrows at the advisory committee on business appointments, the anti-corruption watchdog. In a letter to Ms Blackwood last February, officials wrote: Although you do not intend to have contact with Government in this role, there may be a risk that Push Doctor could gain an unfair advantage as a result of your contacts gained across Government/Whitehall during your time in ministerial office. Ms Blackwood sat on the governance board of Push Doctor, which offers private pay as you go video consultations priced at 30 for ten minutes and wants to work with the NHS, as well as advising it on how to expand its digital health services [File photo] Her new role was announced only days after Health Secretary Matt Hancock revealed details of a scheme to radically increase online consultations. The Government hopes that a third of the 90 million NHS outpatient appointments performed annually will be conducted by video-link, an aim likely to trigger a feeding frenzy among private GP consultation firms such as Push Doctor, Dr Doctor and Babylon, which already offers an NHS service. A Department for Health spokesman said: To avoid any perception of conflict of interest, Nicola Blackwood resigned from all other paid and unpaid advisory roles in advance of her appointment. Meanwhile, NHS Englands chief digital officer is joining another video GP consultation company. Juliet Bauer told colleagues that she was leaving with immediate effect to join Livi, a Swedish firm that holds NHS contracts to provide online GP appointments in Surrey and the North West of England. As I scoop the childlike bundle into my arms, its big eyes light up with delight and it lets out a cheerful chirp. An immediate sense of warmth, calm and yes, even affection sweeps over me. Its clearly feeling as content as me, and its eyes start to close as it settles down, making occasional mews, just like a baby. But its not human, nor an animal. In fact, I am cuddling a robot one that is on a very important mission: to cure loneliness. Im in the heart of noisy, 24-7 Las Vegas at CES, the biggest, most celebrated annual technology convention in the world. And even though there are hundreds of thousands of people here, vying to see the latest must-have gadgets from more than 20,000 on display, I find that cuddling the Lovot the name combines the words love and robot to be an astonishingly soothing experience. It gives me a wonderful sense of not being quite so alone in this crowd of strangers. Indeed, Lovot is being hailed as the key to beating the devastating loneliness crisis blighting every country, including Britain. Mail On Sunday reporter Eve Simmons cuddling a robot. She said she felt an 'immediate sense of warmth, calm and affection' when cuddling the robot There are already almost 12 million older people in the UK those over 65 and more than half consider the television their main source of company. At least 3.5 million live alone, nearly 70 per cent of them women. By 2040, one in four people will be in this age group, meaning loneliness will increase to epidemic proportions. And this is not just a social tragedy. Research shows that long-term loneliness raises the risk of stroke, heart disease, cancer, depression, diabetes and suicide, and doubles the risk of Alzheimers and dementia. Enter Lovot. This furry friend, weighs 6 lb the size of an average newborn stands 16in tall and is designed to give unconditional love and tactile companionship. It was built by Japanese tech guru Kaname Hayashi, best known for designing Pepper, the robot that made history in October when it appeared in the House of Commons to answer questions from MPs about the role of technology in our lives. March of the machines: Virtual reality carer Addison An elderly lady heads down memory lane in Rendever virtual-reality goggles Pepper was primarily intended to work in shops. But Lovot was created to be like a best friend. Hayashi believes his creation, with its soft outer shell, own clothing range and a temperature just above human body heat, can help fill that lonely gap so many adults feel. With its big eyes, round face and two wheels, Lovot also has a voice although it doesnt speak in words, but strange Tellytubby-like coos and chirps. An antenna on its head and 50 sensors allow it to be responsive to sounds, temperature and how its treated. It wanders around, with its sophisticated internal circuitry mapping the layout of a room as it goes. And it flaps its penguin-like arms when it wants to be held. Lovot is available to pre-order but a pair will set you back 4,320, with delivery not expected until 2020. Its hardly a throwaway Christmas purchase for the kids, then, but possibly cheaper than a pedigree dog. And there are no food or vet bills. This robot is just one of the amazing new wave of innovations I witnessed at CES that aim to transform health and social care as we know it everything from a pair of robotic trousers to aid mobility to robot home carers, and even a robot to cuddle in bed. And theres no doubt that this is the way things are going. Last week, Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that all patients in England should be able to have a digital consultation with their GP via video link using a smartphone or computer webcam by 2024. As I have seen first-hand, the march of the machines continues and technology-enabled care services are already starting to transform peoples lives. Sceptical? Read on to find out about a few of the other revolutionary discoveries I saw last week and coming your way ROBO-LEGS THAT PUT SOME PEP IN YOUR STEP WHAT IS IT? Samsung's most intriguing unveiling was a range of devices that mesh man and machine: three robotic exoskeletons to be worn over the legs. The Gait Enhancing Motivational System, or GEMS, look a bit like lederhosen that Robocop might wear, and are designed to boost walking speed, improve balance and cut energy expenditure. Stroke patients, people rehabilitating after joint ops and those who simply are no longer steady on their feet could all benefit. Mail On Sunday reporter Eve Simmons wearing the Samsung GEMS exoskeleton HOW DOES IT WORK? While other robotic exoskeletons are designed to help the paralysed walk again, this high-tech harness is aimed at those who have slowed down and would like to speed up. Samsung is making three versions, the GEMS-H for hips, GEMS-A for ankles and GEMS-K for knees. The GEMS-H promises to assist walking, cutting energy expenditure by almost a quarter, and improve posture and boost walking pace by almost 20 per cent. It will also help provide stability. Straps hug the hips and connect to ones that encircle both thighs while electronic packs sit on the small of the back and on the outside of each leg. Sensors measure the wearers hip angles and posture, and each time the wearers foot hits the ground, the robot subtly assists and lift the legs. I slip my legs into the white, plastic frame and adjust it using clips on the side of each leg to fit against my thighs tightly. After setting the built-in control to a modest medium speed, I am off. It feels as though my legs have been super-charged: steps require minimal effort. I glide up stairs and dart around the room without feeling Ive moved much at all. Next I change the setting to resistance mode, designed to provide a challenging exercise for those who need to increase their fitness. Its a little like walking under water. The strain on my buttocks and thighs is enough to feel like exercise, without breaking much of a sweat. Theres no launch date or price for GEMS yet. THE CUSHION THAT CUDDLES YOU TO SLEEP WHAT IS IT? Billed as the worlds first sleep robot, Somnox is a chunky peanut-shaped cushion that gently breathes in and out as you hug it in bed. It aims to help you sleep faster, longer and wake up refreshed by slowing down your breathing, focusing your breathing and playing soothing sounds. With almost seven in ten British adults struggling to get a good nights sleep, raising their risk of obesity, heart disease and mental health problems, Somnox could be a welcome cuddly alternative to sleeping pills. HOW DOES IT WORK? Samsung's Bot Care 'robonurse 'is a 2ft-tall robotic nurse on wheels More a smart pillow than a robot, it is designed to be cuddled like a teddy bear. Once in your arms, a touch-sensitive computer and motor deep inside triggers it to slowly inflate and deflate, mimicking the calm breathing pattern of a deep sleep. The device is based on the idea that slow, deep breathing is key to sleep and the brain subconsciously mirrors the breathing of others. Studies on babies have shown that such mirror breathing can lead to not just better sleep but a better mood the next day. Although the softer-than-soft fabric is certainly comforting to touch, I felt uneasy about a non-human sleep partner, quietly moving in my embrace (but at least you dont worry about snoring). Somnox also emits light that gradually gets brighter, simulating a sunrise, when its time to wake up. Somnox is available now, priced 429. Visit meetsomnox.com. THE WORLDS FIRST ROBO-NURSE WHAT IS IT? Bot Care is a 2ft-tall robotic nurse on wheels. She (it has a female voice) has a sleek white exterior with a screen face complete with blinking, animated eyes. Bot Care explained when she introduced herself: I make it easy to manage your daily health routine by checking vital signs like blood pressure, pulse and heart rate. According to Yoon Lee, senior vice president of creators Samsung, she is an example of the companys quest to address the challenge of an increasing ageing population with technology. HOW DOES IT WORK? Bot Care has an array of sensors: if you hold a fingertip on one on her face, she can read blood pressure and pulse. It then draws on its artificial intelligence catalogue to tell you via speech what your reading is and whether it is normal. I do so, and have readings that are within the normal range, she says, adding: Keep up the good work. And what if I fancy doing a spot of yoga? Bot Care, I ask, show me a yoga workout please? With a single blink of its line-drawing eyes, a full instruction video is displayed on-screen within seconds. Other sensors can monitor breathing rate even while the user is asleep and temperature and will offer solutions accordingly; including playing music to ease stress. The spatial awareness sensor detects changes in their users height, indicating a fall, and calls a specified emergency contact via the phone function which could very well prove life-saving. Recent figures from the Office of National Statistics show that fall-related deaths have rocketed up by 177 per cent in men over the past decade, and by 72 per cent in women. A price and release date for Bot Care is yet to be announced. GLASSES TO BOOST MEMORY FOR DEMENTIA PATIENTS WHAT IS IT? Rendever are goggles that use virtual reality to transport users to anywhere in the world, providing it is listed on Google Maps. Home towns, wedding locations and favourite holiday spots can all be visited on a stroll down memory lane. Such interaction can ease the agitation, isolation and depression that often accompanies dementia, boosting mood and, crucially, improving recall. HOW DOES IT WORK? THEY are much like the goggles used for computer video games, except that these are designed for use by the elderly at home and in care homes. The user feels he or she is actually in the place on the screen. All you need to do is tap a postcode into the linked app. I opt for my childhood home, and the experience is truly magical. Dr Mike Short, chief scientific adviser to the Department for International Trade, says: VR devices can be an effective and useful memory jogger for people with Alzheimers disease and dementia. It can ease the pain often felt when patients struggle to remember something important. Rendever will be available by 2020. Visit rendever.com. YOUR FRIENDLY VIRTUAL REALITY CARER WHAT IS IT? ADDISON Care Virtual Assistant is billed as the worlds first virtual-reality carer. More than 15 million Britons are living with a chronic illness, with many needing part or full-time carers while a severe shortage of care professionals continues to worsen. Addison aims to fill the gap by monitoring the health of users at home, sending alerts to a doctor or emergency services if there are concerns. HOW DOES IT WORK? Addison works in much the same way as Amazons Alexa: it is a voice-controlled artificial intelligence computer programme. Unlike Alexa, Addison has a friendly face: a computer animated blonde female character dressed in a hospital scrubs-type outfit. The system involves computer screens being fitted throughout the home, on which Addison appears to interact with the users. Sophisticated motion-sensing cameras allow her to watch whoever is in the room. Facial recognition software means she instantly knows who she is looking at. Users medical records can be uploaded to the Addison central computer, and constant at-home monitoring can be carried out using wearable wrist trackers and handheld devices to measure blood pressure, heart rate and other vital statistics. She can give health and medication advice and is connected to GP services. A price and release date for Addison is yet to be announced. THE PILL DISPENSER THAT TALKS TO YOU WHAT IS IT? Pillo is a coffee machine-size robot that dispenses medication when it sees your face and hears your voice at set times throughout the day. The designers say it is an effective way to reduce inefficiencies a recent NICE review found that between a third and half of all medications in the UK are taken incorrectly, especially among people taking several prescriptions, wasting 300 million annually. HOW DOES IT WORK? The user or their carer loads the Pillo with a batch of medication every 28 days. Health data, emergency contacts, medication dose and preferred timings are input into a paired app. An hour before it is time to take the medication, Pillo issues a sound alert on the device and app. When its time to take the tablets, it releases the dose. The built-in voice and face recognition provide an extra layer of security: Pillo will dispense pills only when it recognises the designated users faces or voices. It reminds you of medication times, and contacts a family member or carer if a dosage is missed. When its 7in touchscreen isnt displaying important information, it turns into a cute face. Pillo is available now, priced 389 plus a 31.25 monthly subscription fee. pillohealth.com Every day, warned the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, you will meet people, who are meddling, ungrateful, violent, treacherous, envious and unsociable. He may have lived two millennia ago, but havent we all had mornings which felt like that? A few bruising encounters and the world can seem an unforgiving place. Now, a non-profit organisation called Modern Stoicism, set up by a group of British and American academics, is suggesting we look back in time for answers. Specifically, to the Greco-Roman philosophy of stoicism which Marcus Aurelius helped to define, as a way to ease the pain of modern life. Most of us think of stoicism as keeping a stiff upper lip, but theres far more to it than that. Stoicism challenges us to examine our emotions and use that knowledge to control our response to outside events or other people. Its aim is to encourage everyone to lead good, calm, purposeful and happy lives. Non-profit organisation Modern Stoicism, believe the Greco-Roman philosophy of stoicism could hold the secret to easing the pain of modern life (file image) John Sellars, lecturer in philosophy at Royal Holloway, University of London, explains that its perfectly relevant today. A lot of people feel they dont have a say in the way the world is run much like in Roman times, he says. Things feel out of control and we need a way to deal with that. He points out that stoicism also teaches us to ignore the latest fads, to consume less in general and to live a plain and simple life. All good lessons, surely, as we face the uncertainties surrounding Brexit. Indeed, the stoic philosophy of calm forbearance seems like the only sanity-preserving response. On a more domestic level, with a teenage daughter, a full-time job, a house to run, plus caring for my 90-year-old mum, my life could do with some calm. Lately, Ive been waking up already feeling anxious at the things I need to achieve just to keep abreast of the day, let alone get ahead. So I decide to join Modern Stoicisms Live Like A Stoic week. Its a seven-day online course offering morning and evening meditations plus a midday exercise, each of which teaches a different key Stoic concept, such as Virtue or Justice. There are audio downloads and an exercise sheet. Others have reported promising results, noting fewer negative emotions and increases in wellbeing ranging from 10 to 16 per cent. So how easy is it to live like a stoic today and can it really make you wiser, sunnier and more at peace? Victoria Lambert tried a seven-day online course offered by Modern Stoicism that many have praised for improving their wellbeing (file image) MONDAY There are three well-known stoic philosophers Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and Epictetus so I order works by all three on Amazon. Shopping for books makes me happy. This is a rookie mistake. I soon learn from reading the course handbook that happiness for a stoic does not reside in fleeting emotions brought on, say, by impulse shopping. My next test is at Boots, when I turn up for my flu jab to discover the stock of vaccine has not been delivered and all appointments are cancelled. Other customers are venting their fury. But that morning my meditation warned that a good stoic in the words of Roman statesman Marcus Tullius Cicero anticipates nothing as if it is bound to happen. I calmly rebook my jab. Do I feel happier for not overreacting? Yes, I do. TUESDAY A friend sends messages to ask if I am enjoying what she calls National Bottling Things Up Week. This is stoicisms modern reputation; most people associate it with keeping emotions locked away. Stoics are good at self-control, but they are not passive, says Donald Robertson, part of the team behind Stoic Week and author of How To Think Like A Roman Emperor: The Stoic Philosophy Of Marcus Aurelius. They value logic and weigh up decisions before they act. Victoria tried to encourage her inner stoic by spreading positive comments on social media and on a friend's website (file image) I test this by looking at my to-do list, which seems littered with projects I cant start, such as looking for a second-hand car. I remind myself to act with courage and wisdom. It works and I am soon zipping through calls and appointments. WEDNESDAY Even if we dont understand why people act as they do, we must still make allowances for them, say stoics. Crucially, its not enough just to be nice to someone to their face. Good stoics dont harbour resentment, so dont envy others good fortune. This is easier said than done, as anyone on social media knows. The irritation caused by pictures of exotic holidays, or posts bragging of a grandchilds brilliant exam results, is sometimes hard to quash. I try to encourage my inner stoic and spread some social media sunshine by giving five-star ratings to books Ive enjoyed and leaving a positive comment on a friends website. This is a crucial lesson for todays selfie generation. Liking other peoples work in no way lessens our own value. THURSDAY Todays meditations take us into our relationship with the wider world. I begin by reminding myself other drivers on the school run deserve to be treated with kindness even if they box me in. Its not easy, but I smile. It feels good. Victoria ended her week with a walk on the Sussex Downs and says she felt less frantic as well as her family commented on how calm she seemed (file image) FRIDAY Today is about changing our emotional patterns from bad to good. You can even learn to relish insults, says Professor Massimo Pigliucci, author of How To Be A Stoic. I venture on to Twitter to write something controversial, but my nerve fails. Im not stoic enough for online trolls yet. SATURDAY Stoics believe the way to feel less fearful about the future is to picture your worst-case scenario repeatedly to become inured to it. How do you become a modern stoic? 1. Think before you act or speak. Try to develop the habit of pausing before passing judgment on an event, situation or person. 2. Plan your day with an eye on what could go wrong as well as what youd like to happen. 3. Take time out to reflect on how well you have coped with difficult situations. Were you quick to get angry? Think how you might do better tomorrow. 4. Remember that were all in the same boat. Advertisement Todays task is to dwell on an upsetting scenario for 20 minutes. Having experienced a chimney fire in the past, I think about what it would be like to lose my home in a blaze. Later, I have to take my 13-year-old daughter and a friend to an appointment and were late. Instead of hurrying them and snapping, I chill out and rearrange the time were expected to arrive. This is the first time I have acted in a truly stoic fashion without thinking about it. I try not to feel pleased with myself. SUNDAY Stoics think we can draw comfort from nature and its repeated patterns. My stoic handbook tells me we need to think about our place in nature, to care for our environment and find solutions to climate change. I walk on the Sussex Downs and relish being an equal part of the world. By the end of the week, I am feeling less frantic, and my family are commenting on how much calmer I am. Stoic mum is a hit. No wonder my husband is not afraid to ask later: Is it all back to normal now? Or do you want to keep calm and carry on for a bit longer? see modernstoicism.com Pop quiz: which garment underwent the most unlikely metamorphosis from style no-go to chic modern must-have last year? Answer: the hoodie. Previously, it was a signifier of slobdom, the uniform of Harry Enfield and Kathy Burkes eternal teenagers Kevin and Perry and shorthand for the disenfranchised underclass (remember David Camerons hug a hoodie speech in 2006?). Time was when the sight of a midlife woman wearing a hoodie in public possibly having forgotten to get dressed, so doing the school run in her pyjamas, or maybe bawling out her soon-to-be ex on her mobile on the steps of a mid-price hotel suggested one thing: a woman on the verge. And yet here I am, looking at a sumptuous long, forest-green cashmere hoodie from Victoria Beckhams autumn/winter 2018 catwalk collection, worn over a pleated floor-sweeping skirt. And it is chic, chic, chic. Sarah Bailey shared advice for embracing this season's luxe hoodie trend as seen on Victoria Beckhams autumn/winter 2018 catwalk (pictured) True, the price might be a bit prohibitive at an eye-watering 718 (and thats in the sale!), but no matter there are some completely fabulous looky-likey options around. Autograph at M&S have a grey cashmere hooded jumper, for instance (119, marksand spencer.com). To create a similar ensemble, team with a sleek maxi skirt and a slouchy leopard print tote. Thats right ladies, this is not a cosy hooded knit for being hygge (that mysterious Scandinavian notion that apparently involves curling up in front of a fire with a mug of cocoa). No, these new luxe hoodies are for wearing in your daily life even to the office! The hoodie may only have reached my wish list this year, but in truth its journey from gym sweats to everyday civilian attire has been under way for some time. For this we can thank the new generation of designers, such as Demna Gvasalia at Balenciaga and Jeremy Scott at Moschino, for playing with the contradictions of high/low fashion and injecting a subversive shot of streetwear into their collections. If you have teenagers, you are doubtless aware of the phenomenon of over-priced hoodies with luxury logos. And while these are probably best left to the young, for fear of entering Patsy and Edina territory, there is no avoiding the influence of sportswear, no matter your age. How best to style it? The key is not to be too matchy-matchy, so pair your hoodie with a long skirt in slipper satin or velvet. Rodarte, the designer darlings of the bohemian Hollywood set (Kirsten Dunst, Emma Watson, Natalie Portman) do this look brilliantly. Sarah recommends experimenting when trying to find the right hoodie and advises against pairing them with novelty leggings or grey marl joggers (pictured: Chanel catwalk) On the High Street, &OtherStoriess midnight-blue hoodie, with a sequinned mythical-looking bird on the back (79, stories.com) delivers gothic glamour. It would look perfect with a long black satin skirt for a winter party. For day, I love the hoodie and blazer look, with jeans, flats and a cross-body bag, but do be mindful of the bulk of your hoodie to avoid sausage arms you cant lift above your head. What are the rules for wearing luxe hoodies? Beware Crayola colours and in-your-face logos (thats for holidays only). Keep the look fresh. Go for pared-back French girl make-up a la Carla Bruni. An overcoat over your hoodie works, but watch out for sausage arms. Avoid wearing them with grey marl joggers and novelty fleece PJ bottoms. Advertisement Whistless orange fashion hoodie (41.65, whistles.com) is a good one to layer with a menswear check jacket. Be mindful of double hoods (ie, a hoodie and a parka), and wearing a hoodie and a beanie is probably best left to Cara Delevingne and her chums. Should you go cropped? My desk-mate at Net-a-Porter has a nice line in layering a midriff hoodie over a long-sleeved tee, but she does have a washboard stomach. Getting the right hoodie is about trying a few on and experimenting. Just remember, youre going for a sense of insouciant ease, rather than a look youd put the bins out in. Grey marl joggers and fleece novelty leggings are a no-no. Sarah Bailey is executive brand editor at Porter. The Queen brought a burst of colour to a grey winter's day as she arrived for church at Sandringham today. The monarch, 92, was joined by family members including her nephew, Earl Snowdon, and cousin's daughter Lady Helen Taylor for the weekly service. The Queen, who remains in Norfolk on her winter break, looked regal in a vibrant purple coat, complete with satin buttons and trim. Purple reign! The Queen brought a burst of colour to a grey winter's day as she arrived for church at Sandringham today. She was joined by a friend in a car to the church Splash of colour: The Queen, who remains in Norfolk on her winter break, looked regal in a vibrant purple coat, complete with satin buttons and trim She sported a matching hat that boasted a large floral piece on the brim. The Queen arrived at St Mary Magdalene Church by car with a friend while her nephew Earl Snowdon, son of the late Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon, made the short journey from Sandringham House on foot. Earl Snowdon, 57, who enjoys a good relationship with his aunt the Queen, wore a thick grey suit but appeared to leave his coat at home. Family outing: The Queen's nephew Earl Snowdon (in grey), son of the late Princess Margaret and Lord Snowdon, made the short journey from Sandringham House on foot Close relationship: Arriving separately was Lady Helen Taylor (seen in grey) the 54-year-old daughter of Edward, the Duke of Kent, who is the Queen's first cousin Arriving separately was Lady Helen Taylor, the 54-year-old daughter of Edward, the Duke of Kent, who is the Queen's first cousin and carries out duties on behalf of the monarch. Lady Helen, who is 39th in line to the British throne, wrapped up in a long charcoal grey cape and a khaki green hat. She finished her look with a pair of black velvet shoes that appeared to feature a playful pink bow motif. Security checks: Royal supporters were scanned by police officers as they made their way into church grounds in the hope of catching a glimpse of the Queen this morning Extra careful: A little girl was held by her mother as she was checked by a police officer All smiles! The Queen brightened up the grey January day with her vibrant ensemble complete with matching brooch The Queen left London last month to pass the festive season at Sandringham. She will remain there until early February. On 20 January she will mark the anniversary of the death of her father, King George VI, privately on the estate, as she does every year. Coordinating: The Queen matched her hat to her coat as she climbed into her chauffeur-driven Rolls Royce on Sunday A mother-of-two revealed how she was diagnosed with rare and aggressive cancer one year after her husband finally beat the disease. After spending almost his entire life getting treatment for leukaemia, Scott Adams, 30, and his family were overjoyed when he was finally given the all-clear in 2017. But just a year later his wife Martine, 28, from Barry, Wales, who has two children, Cai, nine, and Parker, six, started complaining of problems with her back. Within months the masseuse was diagnosed with a rare, life-limiting form of cancer herself. 'All you can do is be as mentally strong as possible in the hope of overcoming this,' said Martine. 'Of course I don't want my children to live without their mum, which is my main priority and worry. 'People know me as the silliest, life-loving, most random person ever, genuinely one of a kind. And that won't change.' Martine Adams, 28, has been diagnosed with rare and aggressive form of cancer one year after her husband Scott finally beat the disease after a 26-year long battle. Pictured on their wedding day with sons Cai and Parker The childhood sweethearts, pictured together, met through mutual friends when Martine was 17 and tied the knot in 2016. They are now facing a second battle with the disease which has now entered the masseuse's spine and brain Aerospace engineer Scott (left), 30, was struck down with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the white blood cells, when he was two and a half years old. A year later, Martine has been diagnosed with a rare, life-limiting form of cancer herself The devastating diagnosis means the childhood sweethearts are facing a second battle with the disease which has entered Martine's spine and brain. And because the family are unable to get life insurance, a GoFundMe page has been set up for them by friend Kate Hughes. Within just 24 hours of the page being live a staggering 10,000 was donated - mostly from residents in Barry and the surrounding area. 'As a family we are completely overwhelmed,' explained Martine. 'We need to make as many memories as possible right now. I have already made a bucket list as I've been told my cancer is life-limiting.' Aerospace engineer Scott, was struck down with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the white blood cells, when he was two and a half years old. He was treated soon after diagnosis through an autologous stem cell transplant, in which the patient's own stems cells are used to combat the cancer cells. After making good progress he was required to visit hospital regularly to check the cancer had not returned - and at the age of 28 he was finally discharged for good. 'It was a huge relief for us,' said Martine, who met Scott through mutual friends when she was 17. 'When he was very young he needed chemotherapy and was told he could never have children as a result but nurses at the hospital were completely shocked when we ended up having two. They are such a blessing.' Due to Scott's near lifelong battle with leukemia and grue'ling courses of chemotherapy, he was told he could never have children. Martine said the hospital were 'completely shocked' when they ended up having two - Cai, nine, and Parker, six At the same time as hearing this good news, Scott was found to have a heart condition called cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle that affects around 160,000 people in the UK. It was at this point that Martine said she wishes she had taken out life insurance for herself. 'It was on my to do list but time just flashed by,' she explained. 'For whatever reason I didn't take it out. If I can push just one family to get insurance before it's too late then telling my story will be worthwhile.' During the school summer holidays last year Martine began suffering terrible pains in her back and went to the GP. 'I never go to the doctors unless I'm very, very unwell which isn't often at all,' she said. 'My back was so bad that I was cramped over like an old woman. But it didn't feel peculiar at all.' Martine's friends have now set up a GoFundMe page as the family are unable to get life insurance. Following the diagnosis, she said: 'always knew what was coming' and called it 'gut instinct' For several months Martine underwent several scans and blood tests only to be told her back pain was 'a mystery'. 'They did every test possible so they weren't palming me off or anything. I can't fault their efforts,' she said. 'I began to get terrible pressure headaches too and I was diagnosed with idiopathic intracranial hypertension. But it was when they did the lumbar puncture that the ball really started rolling.' Doctors discovered that Martine's spinal fluid was yellow - when it should have been clear - and she was sent for an emergency MRI which found a mass at the base of her spinal cord. It would require her to undergo emergency surgery at the University Hospital of Wales (UHW) in Cardiff. 'I kept getting told that it was possibly benign but they'd not seen anything like this before,' explained Martine. 'I felt okay apart from the possible risk factors which included paralysis or incontinence for life. I was putting my life in their hands.' As well as taking her family to Disneyland Paris, children Cai, nine, and Parker, six (pictured), Martine plans on performing with her local amateur dramatic group called Billboard, pulling a pint in a pub, and getting another tattoo Three days before the vital operation Martine said a member of staff in UHW's surgical team fell ill so the decision was made to transfer her to Southmead Hospital in Bristol. It was there that two further MRI scans found more masses further up her spinal cord and in her brain. 'That's when I was very shocked and thought there was something more sinister inside me,' she said. On November 29 last year Martine underwent surgery to remove the large tumour from the base of her spine which was thought to be the cause of the pain. But not all of it could be taken out as part of it was matted within important nerve endings. 'I cannot praise the hospital highly enough,' said Martine. 'Everyone, from the cleaners to the doctors, were fabulous on ward 6B.' Thankfully Martine and Scott, who tied the knot in 2016, were able to enjoy Christmas with their two children before Martine was asked to go back to Bristol to receive the news she'd been dreading. On January 2 she was diagnosed with diffuse leptomeningeal glironeuronal tumour - an extremely rare tumour of the central nervous system. 'They don't really know much about the behaviour of the tumour so it could become aggressive at any time. A lot of things are left unanswered at the moment,' she explained. The mother-of-two took to her Facebook page to express her gratitude for the amount of money raised so far. She said: 'not a single donation goes unnoticed...I see everyone. But I can't possibly thank you all individually' 'We are very family-oriented so it pains me that I cannot tell my grandmother that I have cancer as she has Alzheimer's.' With the money raised from donations, Martine plans on taking her family to Disneyland Paris, and has set her sights on performing with her local amateur dramatic group called Billboard, pulling a pint in a pub, and getting another tattoo. Some of the money may also be used to fly her younger brother Richard home from Australia to spend time with the family. Martine is set to start her first course of chemotherapy at Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff on January 21. If you would like to donate please visit: www.gofundme.com/f/help-martine-make-memories-livinginthenow When women fall in love, they experience physiological changes similar to those seen in people fighting a virus, research shows. A new romance can cause women to produce a specific kind of protein typically used to combat infection - suggesting being 'love sick' is more than just an emotion. Scientists at the University of California in Los Angeles, who carried out the research, suggest these changes mean love could one day be 'measured'. A new romance can cause women to produce a specific kind of protein typically used to combat infection - suggesting being 'love sick' is more than just an emotion. Stock image The team took blood samples from 47 women over the course of a two-year period as they entered new romantic relationships. Their aim was to monitor how falling and being in love affects genes governing the immune system. Researchers found that new love activates genes to produce interferon, which is a protein usually released to combat viruses. 'New romantic love is accompanied not only by psychological changes, but physiological changes as well,' scientists noted in the report, published in the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology. The report continued: 'These findings are consistent with a selective up-regulation of innate immune responses to viral infections... and provide insight into the immuno-regulatory correlates of one of the keystone experiences in human life.' A study conducted at the University of California found that lovesick is a real thing for women, as it causes a specific kind of protein similar to that seen in people fighting viruses The study set out to determine the impact romantic love has on the human genetic function. Findings suggested that it may also be possible to test to see if people really are in love and whether that emotion gradually wades over a period of time. 'Some research suggests that psychological changes associated with romantic love may be attenuated as the relationship matures,' the experts said. 'The biological correlates of love might abate with the maturation of a longer-term more stable mate bond.' In those cases where the flame had started to burn out, researchers found evidence of women's interferon levels decreasing. 'Falling out of love was associated with a reduction in interferon-related gene expression,' the researchers found. Scientists are yet to examine whether the experience is the same for men. When it comes to updating your makeup kit, a visit to your nearest beauty counter can set you back hundreds. But this shouldn't be the case, Australian makeup artist Yolanda Lukowski said. Speaking to Beauticate, Yolanda, who has created looks for top models including Karlie Kloss, said she often uses budget products that can be just as good - or even better - than some expensive cosmetic brands. From a $34 foundation to an eyeliner which costs just $6, Yolanda shares four of her best budget-friendly beauty buys worth adding to your makeup bag this year. Yolanda has created looks for some of the world's most recognisable faces including top model Karlie Kloss (pictured) Australian makeup artist Yolanda Lukowski (pictured) believes budget beauty buys can deliver on performance 1. Revlon ColorStay Makeup - $34.95 It can be tricky trying to find the right foundation in summer. If its too sheer. sweat and humidity will see the product 'slide off'; too thick and it looks 'cakey'. Yolanda said one of her all-time favourites is Revlon's ColorStay Makeup, priced at a very affordable $34.95 for a 30mL bottle. 'When it gets really hot, I find that it's one of the few foundations that doesn't slide off - and it's such a good price,' she explained. The foundation, which is specifically formulated for combination or oily skin, has been designed to control oil absorption and shine. The foundation boasts a four-and-a-half star rating out of five. Yolanda said one of her all-time favourites is Revlon's ColorStay Makeup (pictured) which is priced at a very affordable $34.95 for 30mL This mascara by L'Oreal Paris (pictured) costs just $24.95 and according to Yolanda it's possible to create full, black lashes with just two coats 2. L'Oreal Paris Paradise Mascara - $24.95 When it comes to purchasing a new mascara, it's likely you'll be met by a plethora of products. One, L'Oreal Paris Paradise Mascara, priced at just $24.95, has recently caught Yolanda's attention and it's a product she said she 'loves'. For the thickest, blackest lashes, the makeup artist advises applying two coats. Product information states the formulation comes laden with castor oil to nourish lashes and to prevent flaking. Its ultra-soft brush makes the formula easy to apply. The mascara holds a four-star rating out of five online. This $19.95 nail polish (pictured) by Revlon gets the tick of approval from Yolanda, thanks to its great colour range 3. Revlon ColorStay Gel Envy Longwear Nail Enamel - $16.95 When it comes to nail polishes, the cheaper the product, the less hard-wearing its likely to be. But Yolanda said this isn't the case when it comes to a product by Revlon. She said its ColorStay Gel Envy Longwear Nail Enamel, priced at $16.95, isn't just long-lasting, the colours are right on-trend. 'Such good shades - theyre not those ugly, nanna colours, theyre actually really modern,' she said. This Covergirl eyeliner which is priced at $6.47 is as good, if not better, than some pricier brands (pictured left and right) 4. Covergirl Perfect Blend Eye Pencil - $6.47 When it comes to the perfect eyeliner, there's no need to spend on expensive products, Yolanda revealed. Her new go-to, Covergirl's Perfect Blend Eye Pencil, costs a mere $6.47 and it's one she believes is as good, if not more so, than pricier brands. 'The Covergirl Perfect Blend Eye Pencil is a good one - it's soft and it comes with a smudger, which some budget brands dont have,' she said. As well as offering great value for money, the pencil which comes in black, black-brown and taupe shades, is also water-resistant. Reviewers gave the pencil a four out of five-star rating. If your hair is in need of a refresh for 2019, there's no better way to embrace the icy winter weather than with a vibrant blue rinse, experts say. It might sound like something out of a Disney movie but stylists insist the latest hair trend beloved by celebrities is both 'accessible and achievable' - and the perfect way to give your locks a refresh for the new year. Chris Williams, international colour director at Rush Hair, has noted a flock of celebrities trying the pastel shade, from Kylie Jenner to Cardi B, and has tipped it as 'one of hottest hues for 2019'. Speaking exclusively to FEMAIL, Chris said: 'If we were in any doubt over which colour we'll be seeing most in the year ahead, we only need to look at rainbow-haired celebrities for inspiration. Lady Gaga at last week's Golden Globes in Los Angeles. She is just the latest star to go blue in a trend hailed as accessible and achievable' - with experts insisting it's the perfect way to give your locks a refresh after the Christmas period Kylie Jenner has debuted blue locks this month. Karen Haller, an applied colour psychology practitioner, agrees: 'It certainly takes a certain type of personality to pull of this look; someone who likes to get notice, be seen and stand out from the crowd' 'Lady Gaga rocked a light blue style at the Golden Globes, matching her gown perfectly and showing how versatile the colour is, looking as fabulous on the street as it does the red carpet. 'Kylie Jenner is also known for her "unicorn" locks, but she keeps returning to blue, albeit in different tones and shades, time and time again. She even dyed her hair a bright, light, sky blue on New Year's Eve, choosing the trend to enter 2019.' Karen Haller, an applied colour psychology practitioner, agrees: 'It certainly takes a certain type of personality to pull of this look; someone who likes to get notice, be seen and stand out from the crowd.' Blac Chyna recently sported bright blue hair in an Instagram post. Chris Williams, international colour director at Rush Hair, has noted a flock of celebrities trying the pastel shade, from Kylie Jenner to Cardi B Celebrity hairdresser Jason Collier observes: 'It's difficult to pinpoint a key reason as to why blue might be the new shade du jour, but I think it's possibly an outward sign of rebellion. 'Pastel hair has been big news for the past few years, but always in soft-focus, fairytale shades of pink, rose gold and silvery grey. 'This turn towards bolder, brighter blue is shaking off those overtly feminine connotations; blue hair is fierce, it's daring and it's a huge statement of confidence and power. Cardi B debuts vibrant blue locks. Celebrity stylist Jason Collier notes: 'Pastel hair has been big news for the past few years, but always in soft-focus, fairytale shades of pink, rose gold and silvery grey' 'Blue is a statement of intent in all its various hues; I think that it may be no coincidence that many of the celebrity women spearheading this look are also women who are very well-known for their families, relationships and associations. 'Many of them are going through life-changing experiences at the moment, like motherhood, new careers or marriage breakdowns. 'Perhaps opting for blue hair is a way of asserting their own power and independence, doing something that is out of the ordinary to create a statement of confidence and self-belief.' Amanda Jane Brown, age 25, of Great Mills Antionette Kenbria Galloway, age 25, of St. Petersburg, Florida Blake William Biggers, age 25, of California Donald Levi Warrick, Jr., age 30, of Lexington Park James William Thomas Burke, age 33, of Chaptico Jamie Lynn Kimble, age 28, of California Johnnie William Raines, Jr., age 41, of Mechanicsville Kristy Nichole Langston, age 33, of Baltimore Mark Anthony Baltimore, age 52, of Marbury Rodney Delray Taylor, age 52, of Hollywood Rodney O'Neal Runnels, age 30, of Lexington Park Shawn Michael Miles, age 27, with no fixed address Travis Nathaniel Nelson, age 34, of Lexington Park Tyrone Corde Claggett, age 31, of Leonardtown Willard Douglas Bright, age 54 of California William Luke Ellis, Jr., age 24, of Hollywood Previous Next LEONARDTOWN, Md. Disclaimer: In the U.S.A., all persons accused of a crime by the State are presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. See: so.md/presumed-innocence. Additionally, all of the information provided above is solely from the perspective of the respective law enforcement agency and does not provide any direct input from the accused or persons otherwise mentioned. You can find additional information about the case by searching the Maryland Judiciary Case Search Database using the accused's name and date of birth. The database is online at so.md/mdcasesearch . Persons named who have been found innocent or not guilty of all charges in the respective case, and/or have had the case ordered expunged by the court can have their name, age, and city redacted by following the process defined at so.md/expungeme. (January 13, 2019)The St. Mary's County Sheriff's Office released the following arrest reports.VIOLATION OF PROTECTIVE ORDER: On January 6, 2019, Dep. Henry responded to the St. Mary's County Detention and Rehabilitation Center in Leonardtown for the reported protective order violation. Investigation determined, sent the victim a letter in violation of a valid court order prohibiting Bright from contacting the victim. Bright was charged with Violate Protective Order. CASE# 1119-19.ASSAULT: On January 8, 2019, Dep. Chase responded to the 46000 block of Midway Drive in Lexington Park for the reported disturbance. The victim advised, brandished a knife and threatened the victim while the two were arguing over a cellphone. Baltimore became confrontational on the scene and began threatening the victim in Dep. Chase's presence. Baltimore was advised he was under arrest, at which time Baltimore refused to place his hands behind his back. After a brief struggle Baltimore was arrested and charged with Assault 1st and 2nd Degree, Resisting Arrest, and Disorderly Conduct. CASE# 1462-19.01/06/2019: Rodney O'Neal Runnels, age 30, of Lexington Park, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Assault 2nd Degree by Cpl. Connelly# 151. CASE# 1130-19.01/06/2019: Jamie Lynn Kimble, age 28, of California, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Burglary 4th Degree and Malicious Destruction of Property by Dep. Raley# 345. CASE# 1125-19.01/06/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Unauthorized Removal of Property, Theft, Malicious Destruction of Property, Attempting to Flee on Foot, Attempting to Flee in a Vehicle, Burglary 1st and 4th Degree, Impersonate a Police Officer, and Regulate Firearm: Stolen-Sell by Cpl. Connelly# 151. CASE# 1137-19.01/06/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Escape 2nd Degree by DFC. Tirpak# 270. CASE# 1193-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding Baltimore City warrant for FTA/Theft by Cpl. C. Beyer# 246. CASE# 1318-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for FTA/Assault 2nd Degree by Cpl. C. Beyer# 246.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding Indiana warrant for Robbery by Cpl. C. Beyer# 246. CASE# 1318-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for FTA/Child Support by Cpl. Kirkner# 133. CASE# 1362-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for FTA/Assault 2nd Degree, Theft, and Violate Exparte/Protective Order by Dep. Chase# 346. CASE# 1400-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for FTA/Failure to Control Veh. Speed on Highway to Avoid Collision, and Theft by Cpl. Pesante# 153. CASE# 1440-19.01/07/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Arson/Threat, and Escape 2nd Degree by Dep. T. Snyder# 342. CASE# 1346-19.01/08/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Violation of Probation/Armed Robbery by DFC. Holdsworth# 305. CASE# 1458-19.01/08/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding Charles County warrant for Arson and Motor Vehicle Theft/Unlawful Taking by DFC. Muschette# 303. CASE# 1576-19.01/09/2019:, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for Malicious Destruction of Property by DFC. Holdsworth# 305. CASE# 1676-19.01/07/2019:, was charged with Theft via a criminal citation by Dep. M. Beyer, after Lovell attempted to leave the Walmart store located in California, with merchandise that had not been purchased. CASE# 1394-19. (No Photograph Available) In earlier centuries, parliaments were often given nicknames. Some were straightforward and depended on their duration, such as Short or Long. Others were more imaginative Merciless, Addled and Rump. The current antics in Westminster mean that its high time to revive the custom. And there is only one possible name for this one. It has to be the Parliament of Pygmies, presided over as it is by the pygmy-in-chief, Speaker John Bercow, who, early in his period of office, was denounced by one infuriated Minister as a sanctimonious, stupid dwarf. Ordinarily all this would be no more than matter for wry amusement. But the times are anything but ordinary. So strange are they, in fact, that the pygmies think they are giants and ape the gestures of the parliamentary greats of the past. The parliament of Pygmies led by Speaker John Bercow tells the people to forget Brexit and let their betters take charge. It is a coup against the people But they do so without understanding the context or still more important the consequences. Which are terrifying. Take, for instance, last weeks self-aggrandising statement by Bercow, who had defied precedent, ignored the advice of his parliamentary clerks and accepted an amendment that will allow the House of Commons to take control of Brexit. His decision has quite rightly angered millions who believe that the purpose of Parliament is to serve the will of the people. I am not setting myself up against the Government. I am championing the rights of the House of Commons, he said, before adding portentiously: My job is not to be a cheerleader for the executive branch [the Government]. Here Bercow is echoing, deliberately no doubt, the words of his famous predecessor William Lenthall, who was Speaker of the Long Parliament in 1642 when Charles I entered the House with his guards to arrest five MPs who he thought to be in traitorous communication with the Scots. Where are they? demanded the King. May please, your Majesty, Lenthall replied on his knees, I have neither eyes to see nor tongue to speak in this place but as this House is pleased to direct me whose servant I am here. Bercows fellow-Remainer, and arch-legal dwarf Dominic Grieve QC likes to think that he is channelling his historic hero Edmund Burke who declared that an MP was not a delegate but a representative All very noble, and the sort of brave defiance of absolute authority that has, over the centuries, laid the foundations for the democracy we now cherish. But dont let Bercows carefully turned words fool you into believing that he is on the side of the people. He is not. Lenthall was defying a would-be absolute King. Bercow, in contrast, is challenging a Prime Minister who holds office according to the existing norms of the constitution and behind her lie the 17.4 million electors who voted Out in the referendum of 2016. There are other, less flattering, comparisons. Bercow and Lenthall share more than a fondness for fine words. Both Speakers adored the trappings and wealth of office. Lenthall clung on to them like grim death, just as Bercow does now, as indeed did the members of the Long Parliament. Having become a government-by-default in the Civil War, they tried to make themselves into a permanent oligarchy, unanswerable to the electorate and holding their seats for life. And oligarchy the control of government by the few is the ill-concealed and utterly disturbing agenda today of the extreme Remainers, not just those in Parliament but outside it also. It is most blatant in the case of media cheerleaders such as Times columnist Matthew Parris, who declares that his kind of Conservative listens to popular opinion and then, if it suits him, ignores it. Parris cites, of course, Parliaments vote to abolish the death penalty in the teeth of popular support for it. But that was a free vote on a matter of conscience. Dominic Grieve stood as a Conservative Party candidate on the Conservative Party manifesto, which included a clear commitment to honour the result of the referendum and repeated Theresa Mays famous phrase that we continue to believe that No Deal is better than a bad deal for the UK Membership of the EU is not a matter of conscience, however much some silly folk try to make it one; it is a matter of policy and broad questions of policy have been decided since the Reform Acts of the 19th Century by the democratic vote of a mass electorate outside Parliament and the vote of MPs within it. Until now. What, then, of the man who tabled last weeks objectionable motion handing control of Brexit to MPs Bercows fellow-Remainer, and arch-legal dwarf Dominic Grieve QC? Grieve, the MP for Beaconsfield, likes to think that he, too, is channelling his historic hero. In this case it is MP and political theorist Edmund Burke, who declared in his Letter to the Electors of Bristol in 1774 that an MP was not a delegate who should blindly obey the instructions of his voters, but their representative, empowered to use his brain and conscience in the best interests of his country. For Grieve, whose father was an MP before him, 1774 is no doubt yesterday. For the rest of us it is rather a long time ago. Burke was writing when Bristol, though it was the largest urban constituency in the country outside London, had an electorate of only 5,000 out of a population of about 80,000. Few working men and no women had the vote. There were no proper political parties and no manifestos, and politics was a matter for gentlemen and their immensely rich aristocratic patrons. Im sure that the fastidious Mr Grieve would be happier and much more at home in such a world. But in 2017, when he was last returned as MP for Beaconsfield, he stood as a Conservative Party candidate on the Conservative Party manifesto. This manifesto included a clear commitment to honour the result of the referendum. It even repeated Theresa Mays famous phrase that we continue to believe that No Deal is better than a bad deal for the UK. What is it that enables the honourable Mr Grieve to break this contract with his electorate? Did he come clean on his wrecking intentions in the 2017 campaign? I can find no evidence of it. Does he have superior knowledge? Not on the showing of his latest claim that leaving the EU with no deal would amount to national suicide. This is beyond silly and beyond Project Fear; it is Project Hysteria and to be blunt it suggests that, with the strain of events, Grieves brain has become as addled as the Parliament of 1614. While the country voted narrowly but firmly to Leave, MPs voted overwhelmingly, 480 out of 650, to Remain and Remainers intend to use their parliamentary majority to give us either a Brexit in name only, or to reverse it entirely Bercow and Grieve are not alone. Far from it. While the country voted narrowly but firmly to Leave, MPs voted overwhelmingly, 480 out of 650, to Remain. Now the Government has lost control of the House and it is clear that the diehard Remainers intend to use their parliamentary majority to give us either a Brexit in name only, or to reverse it entirely defying the electorate in the process. They justify this by invoking the historic doctrine of the sovereignty of Parliament as described by the Earl of Shaftesbury after the Glorious Revolution of 1688. The Parliament of England, he declared, is that supreme and absolute power, which gives life and motion to the English government. But the 17th and 18th Century Parliament was a narrow and unrepresentative oligarchy. It survived and Britain escaped revolution only because Parliament had the wisdom to broaden the electorate in successive Reform Acts until finally Britain became a full democracy, in which all adults, women as well as men, had the vote. Parliament, in other words, has long given way to the people and quite rightly so. But not now. Instead, marshalled by Bercow, Grieve and their ilk, the Parliament of Pygmies tells the people to forget it and let their betters take charge. It is a coup against the people. And I doubt if the people will take it lying down. Even Downing Street is no longer claiming that Theresa May is heading for victory in her vote on Tuesday which is why they have entered damage-limitation mode. In an effort to manage the personal humiliation for the Prime Minister, her officials have been painstakingly amending any document which refers to Theresa Mays deal and replacing it with the Governments deal. Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan Even Downing Street is no longer claiming that Theresa May is heading for victory in her vote on Tuesday which is why they have entered damage-limitation mode [File photo] How long can Cabinet Secretary Mark Sedwill combine his exhausting role as head of the Civil Service after succeeding the late Jeremy Heywood with holding down his former gig as National Security Adviser? As long as he wants, it turns out. A senior source tells Dog: He cant appoint a new NSA without interviewing candidates. And hes refusing to do that so he gets to keep wearing both hats. Its out of order. Why Bernard is our big-screen bumbler In Channel 4s Brexit: The Uncivil War, veteran Leaver Sir Bernard Jenkin was played by actor Tim McMullan, pictured in the role not as a campaign hero but as a bumbling, out-of-touch obstacle to Vote Leaves genius Dominic Cummings. But he should be used to getting a raw deal from the silver screen. He is the inspiration for every irritating Bernard in Richard Curtiss films including a sad, lovelorn character in Four Weddings And A Funeral. In Channel 4s Brexit: The Uncivil War, veteran Leaver Sir Bernard Jenkin was played by actor Tim McMullan, pictured in the role not as a campaign hero but as a bumbling, out-of-touch obstacle to Vote Leaves genius Dominic Cummings [File photo] Ken Clarke chivalrously backed Harriet Harmans call for new measures to stop MPs being harassed and abused but then ruined it by admitting he hadnt actually read Labour grandee Harriets 20-page dossier setting out why the action was needed. Plus ca change. Arch-Europhile Ken famously admitted he had never read the Maastricht Treaty which created the European Union. Cheryls glass of cheer Hurrahs rang round the Commons Tea Room when Cheryl Gillan defied a ban on intoxicating liquor within hours of it being introduced to promote responsible alcohol consumption in the hallowed watering hole. The Tory ex-Cabinet Minister confessed: I took a glass of wine I purchased in the Smoking Room to enjoy with my supper. Drinking responsibly with food! Hurrahs rang round the Commons Tea Room when Cheryl Gillan defied a ban on intoxicating liquor within hours of it being introduced to promote responsible alcohol consumption in the hallowed watering hole [File photo] Still on the demon drink, Diane Abbotts struggle with numbers continues. I tried to make a New Years resolution to have a dry January, she said. I think I kept it up until January 1 and then I broke it. Refreshingly honest but it doesnt bode well for the shelf life of the Shadow Home Secretarys election promises. At last a Brexit win for gaffe-prone Chris Grayling. Once rid of Brusselss grip, we will apparently be free of an EU directive dictating the height of new railway platforms. Hoorah. But heres hoping the Transport Secretary wont insist on lowering them to suit himself. Beanpole Chris is 6ft 5in in his stockinged feet. Last Wednesday evening, Conservative MPs assembled in Downing Street for a drinks reception. Widely perceived to be a desperate, last-minute lobbying operation by the Prime Minister, it actually proved to be a relaxed event. 'I walked in and the first thing I saw was Dominic Grieve and Bernard Jenkin having a friendly chat,' said a Downing Street adviser. Mrs May has made her mistakes over the course of Brexit. But in the end she has done her job. She has decided on a plan for Britain's withdrawal, negotiated it with our European partners and finally secured their agreement [File photo] 'It was like the Tory family was coming back together again. I thought, 'Can't things just stay like this?' ' No, they can't. On Tuesday, Tory MPs will walk through the voting lobbies and begin the process of tearing their party and country apart. 'We're going to lose the vote,' another No 10 adviser admitted to me. 'And when that happens, all hell is going to break loose. People don't understand what's coming.' Theresa May's aide was right about the impact, but wrong about the ignorance of our parliamentarians. They might be forcing themselves into a blissful, if convenient, state of denial. But deep down, they know full well the implications of what they are about to do. It's almost three years since the nation voted by a decisive margin to leave the EU. But in two days' time, MPs will take the decision to throw that process into reverse. Over the past months, I've talked to MPs from all sides of the debate. In almost every case they have spoken with conviction and sincerity. Many Leavers genuinely feel this is not the Brexit people voted for [File photo] At last week's Cabinet meeting, Andrea Leadsom explained that even if Mrs May's deal secures parliamentary approval within the next 48 hours, it will be touch and go whether the Government can drive through the legislation necessary to secure a departure on March 29. Defeat will guarantee that deadline can no longer be met, and the timetable for leaving will be torn up. At which point the decision taken by the British people will be torn up as well. That will delight many. Those who believe Mrs May's deal itself represents a repudiation of the public will. Those who have never reconciled themselves to the decision taken on June 23, 2016. Those who look at the impending chaos as a pathway to power or personal advancement. But they should hold their cheers because a storm is coming. A storm with a ferocity and fury unparalleled in modern British political history. Last week, as John Bercow unilaterally anointed himself the living embodiment of the British constitution, there was much talk of how Parliament had 'seized control' of Brexit. It has not. Instead, it is preparing to send our politics careening out of control in a way that can only end in catastrophe. If our MPs were preparing to reject the Prime Minister's Brexit plan in order to replace it with one of their own, there would be some legitimacy and rationality to their actions. The inversion of the roles of legislature and executive would be constitutionally questionable, but given the extremes of the moment, justifiable. People differ on the potential impact of No Deal. But those in Government do not. Every Cabinet Minister I have spoken to is privately terrified of the consequences of crashing out of the EU [File photo] But that it is not what they are proposing. They are about to replace her plan with a state of enforced and lethal paralysis. Rather than grasp the steering wheel, they are opting to block off the junctions, kill the motorway lights and lash the driver's foot to the accelerator. Mrs May has made her mistakes over the course of Brexit. But in the end she has done her job. She has decided on a plan for Britain's withdrawal, negotiated it with our European partners and finally secured their agreement. And now MPs are preparing to take a hammer to it, with no regard for what should come in its place. 'It's disgraceful that the Prime Minister is trying to force through her deal without proper parliamentary scrutiny,' her critics have consistently chided. So just after 5pm last Thursday, I walked into the Commons to see how many of our 650 MPs were engaging in this vital act of oversight. I counted 38. The reality is MPs have not wrested control from the PM. They are hiding behind her. 'If she loses the vote she must come back to this House in three days to tell us what her Plan B is,' they demand. In the full knowledge they will vote down that Plan B, just as the will vote down Plans C to Z. All while demonstrating neither the courage nor foresight to agree their own strategy. It is no longer good enough for MPs to continue to regale us with passionate and eloquent statements of the sort of Brexit they do not want. If they wish to oppose Mrs May's deal, fine. But they now have an obligation to the country to tell us what their own plan is to lead us out of this crisis. The initial impact of No Deal would come as a social, economic and political body-blow. 'No Deal means a Corbyn government,' one Minister told me. 'We wouldn't recover politically' [File photo] Over the past months, I've talked to MPs from all sides of the debate. In almost every case they have spoken with conviction and sincerity. Many Leavers genuinely feel this is not the Brexit people voted for. DUP members have honest fears about what May's deal will do to the status of their province. Remainers feel they cannot vote for something they believe will bring hardship to their constituents. But those MPs now have to face the full implications of the step they are preparing to take on Tuesday. If a deal cannot be agreed, there are three possible outcomes. A No Deal Brexit, a new referendum or a General Election. People differ on the potential impact of No Deal. But those in Government do not. Every Cabinet Minister I have spoken to is privately terrified of the consequences of crashing out of the EU. Britain is no longer a nation toughened by Hitler's bullets and bombs, but a country still struggling to come to terms with a sustained period of austerity after decades of relative prosperity. The initial impact of No Deal would come as a social, economic and political body-blow. 'No Deal means a Corbyn government,' one Minister told me. 'We wouldn't recover politically.' Defeat will guarantee that deadline can no longer be met, and the timetable for leaving will be torn up. At which point the decision taken by the British people will be torn up as well [File photo] Which leaves a referendum or an Election. The Brexit referendum was the most toxic campaign of my lifetime. I remember a nation tearing at its own throat. The increasingly vicious claim and counterclaim. The overt racism. And above all, I remember the murder of Jo Cox. We must not give validation to those who in the past week have been exposed intimidating and abusing MPs. No democratically elected politician brings such vitriol upon themselves. But I have to be honest. I am scared at the prospect of a referendum or Election in the present environment. Layer in the inevitable sense of establishment betrayal, the appropriation of the campaign by the neo-Nazi Right, the reaction of hard-Left activists driven by their messianic devotion to a Labour leadership that itself has openly endorsed political violence. We would be courting catastrophe. With no guarantee that at the end of that process our Brexit crisis would have been resolved. This can't go on. We cannot continue with a situation where our leaders are unable to lead, and our legislators refuse to legislate. The log-jam must be broken. Because if it is not, the nation will literally become ungovernable. The storm is coming. On Tuesday it will break. When it does, our MPs will find that they, like us, have no place to shelter. Why an epic Farage landslide is looming The assumption among Ministers is that Theresa May will announce a delay to Article 50 if she loses Tuesdays crunch Brexit vote. But in Downing Street there is mounting concern the timetable could be shunted back so far, it could skip beyond May 23 the date provisionally scheduled for the next round of European elections. If we get to the point where were forced to hold a fresh round of elections, it will be a disaster, a No 10 official tells me. Farage and the Brexiteers would field a slate of Stop The Brexit Betrayal candidates, and they would absolutely clean up. Wed be destroyed, Labour would be destroyed. It would be like a proxy second referendum. And wed be handing it to them on a plate. Time to start making plans, Nigel. Westminster was transfixed last Monday by the broadcast of Brexit drama The Uncivil War, starring Benedict Cumberbatch. But one senior parliamentarian was otherwise engaged. No, the Prime Minister didnt watch it, a No 10 official tells me. Shes much too busy at the moment. And even if she wasnt, do you honestly think shes going to choose to relax by watching a programme on Brexit? Fair point. Quotes of the week Honestly, poor old Nick Robinson going for an interview what a waste of petrol that was. No chance hes going to get it. Jeremy Clarkson says men now dont stand a chance of getting top jobs at the BBC, such as hosting Question Time. Theyre like 50-year-olds at the end of a disco, who have turned down other offers and are waiting for Scarlett Johansson to come along. Michael Gove urges rebels to accept Theresa Mays Brexit deal. I have come through 18 wars almost unscathed and I trip up at a railway station. Veteran correspondent Martin Bell, who had to have his skull rebuilt after a fall. I prefer younger womens bodies. The body of a 25-year-old is extraordinary. The body of a woman of 50 is not. French author Yann Moix prompts outrage with claims that women over 50 are too old to love. A chunk of the holiday was spent spraying and combing to evict lice from my unkempt noggin. Broadcaster Robert Peston admits he was struck down with nits over Christmas. Its not my duty to dob him in. Solicitor Richard Egan sparks fury by refusing to disclose the whereabouts of fugitive killer Jack Shepherd. Be shocked. Be appalled. We shouldnt have to live like this. Detective Superintendent Richard Tucker after 14-year-old Jayden Moodie was stabbed to death in East London. I was never any good on the catwalk. I looked like the cleaner who had come in through the wrong door. Radio 2 star Sara Cox admits that her days as a model were not altogether a success. Kennett Square Community helps woman rise out of homelessness Once homeless, this Kennett mother of two found generosity in the community Three sailors on the town in New York City during a 24-hour leave, Lorie Street, Loretta Payne and Alicia Katterheinrich, in the Three Arts Club of Ashlands production of Broadway on the Town. Another view The stupidity of the wall CHESAPEAKE BEACH, Md. (January 13, 2019)The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has delivered its Fiscal Year 2019 Work Plan for the Army Civil Works program to Congress. The Fishing Creek dredging project in Chesapeake Beach, originally allocated only $10,000 in FY2019 budget, will now receive $1.36M under the Army Corps of Engineer Work Plan.The Fishing Creek channel serves over 6,500 public boat ramp accesses annually. The channel is accessible to the public through 6 public boat ramps with over 70 boat trailer parking spaces for general public use owned by the Town. The Fishing Creek channel serves over 20 commercial charter boats capable of chartering over 300 patrons at a single point in time and serves as a vital point of access and a Federal navigation channel for the United States Navy."The Town of Chesapeake Beach is honored to receive increased funding for Fishing Creek providing its continued use as a vital channel within the Town, the State and the Nation. This allocation of funding would not be possible without the support of Congressman Steny Hoyer, Senator Chris Van Hollen and Senator Ben Cardin, who have worked to keep Chesapeake Beach on the list of priorities to support maintenance, and related activities, at the Nation's most heavily used coastal ports and inland waterways," Chesapeake Beach Mayor Patrick J. "Irish" Mahoney stated in appreciation.According to the Town's Engineer, Paul Woodburn, "If the dredging were not to occur, Fishing creek would not be passable for nearly all boats; including recreational boats, commercial charter boats, the Fire Departments life safety boat, the Navy pier boats and the creek would no longer be a "safe harbor" for our citizens during major storm events." A partial dredge of the channel was completed in 2017 moving approximately 2,260 cubic yards of dredge yield to the Town's permitted containment facility. The 2017 partial dredging of the channel was primarily funded by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Waterway Improvement Fund with a portion of the funding contributed by the Town of Chesapeake Beach.According to Captain Drew Payne, who has operated his charter business out of Fishing Creek for most of the last 20 years, news of the incoming Federal monies earmarked for Fishing Creek dredging has been well received by all Captains. During the Fall of 2018, Captain Drew's 52-foot charter boat ran aground in the Fishing Creek entrance more than a few times during winddriven low tides. "My boat requires 5 feet of water to float, and not being able to sail creates an immediate impact on my business. I'm sure that all Captains operating out of this Creek will join me in thanking the Town Mayor and staff for their efforts in securing these dredging funds. Dredging Fishing Creek entrance can't happen soon enough," according to Captain Drew.The Town received a recent update from the Army Corp of Engineers Project coordinator regarding the plans for the FY19 $1.36M in funds. The FY19 funds will be used for rehabilitation of the south jetty as the first phase of the dredging project to mitigate the urgency and frequency of dredging the creek. The FY19 funds remaining, after the first phase of the project, will go toward the maintenance dredging with additional funding considerations taking place for the FY2020 budget.Fishing Creek Inlet on marinas.com Another view Trump's real fears have nothing to do with the wall The Capitol Connection It doesn't take much for Gov. Cuomo to make news The following items are based on information provided by officials in law enforcement and the criminal justice system. KINGSTON, N.Y. U.S. Rep Antonio Delgado unveiled his new district office at 256 Clinton Ave. on Sunday, Jan. 13, with a packed open house that featured a speech and a meet-and-greet session with constituents. A storefront space on the first-floor of the building was packed with area residents, campaign volunteers and local officials, including Kingston Mayor Steve Noble, who spoke briefly before Delgado, D-Rhinebeck, appeared out of a back room to loud cheers. - Advertisement - Delgado focused much of the speech on being available to constituents. "Constituent services go to the heart of this job," he said. "I can go to D.C. and cast a vote and that vote matters, but I can't always control what we vote on and what's put in the bills, but what I can control is how I connect with you," Delgado said. "I don't want you to ever feel like I'm not beholden to you." Delgado said his Kingston office is the first of many permanent and mobile offices planned for the 19th Congressional District, which comprises all of Ulster, Greene, Columbia, Sullivan, Delaware, Schoharie and Otsego counties; most of Dutchess County; parts of Rensselaer and Montgomery counties; and a small section of Broome County. Delgado praised Kingston. "Kingston is special in a lot of ways," Delgado said, adding he proposed to his wife, Lacey Schwartz, a Kingston High graduate, in Kingston. "This place for us is home on a lot of levels," Delgado said. He added that he never wants residents to feel like they can't reach him. "We have a lot of dynamics in our political climate that cut against that," he said, "and I think part of what I'm trying to do, and what we could do for years, is to come is a real genuine community of service where you can come if you're a small business owner and you want to try to figure out how to get that grant. "If you want to figure out how you can empower yourself, if you're a farmer, and you're dealing with the trade policies of the administration, and you want to get that subsidy, and get some relief to get through that, you can come in here," he added. "If you're looking for help, Social Security, and you want to figure how to get that, we're here to serve you." Lauren Reed, a math professor at Bard College who canvased for Delgado before November's election, said Delgado's new office offered a stark contrast to one-term U.S. Rep. John Faso who had an office at the 721 Media Center that drew frequent protests. Delgado defeated Faso in November's election and was sworn in earlier this month. "This is really exciting to have someone who cares about the people of this district," Reed said. "I'm in my 50s. This is the first time I got involved with a campaign." Callie Jayne, executive director of Rise Up Kingston, said before Delgado's speech that she wanted to come out and visit his new office and hear his priorities. Euginia M. Coppola owner of Apple Mountain Montessori Nursery Daycare and Preschool, traveled from Plattekill to discuss public school reform with the congressman. Coppola said she was deeply concerned about how schools don't give children enough freedom when it comes to learning and doctors prescribing too many prescription drugs like Ritalin to children. "America has the most drugged children in the world," Coppola said. Editor's note: This story was updated Jan. 13, 2019, at 7:11 p.m. to correct Callie Jayne's title. Paul Kirby is a reporter for the Freeman, covering Kingston politics. He has been at the Freeman since August 1996. Michael is the Daily Emerald's Editor-in-Chief. He started at the Emerald as a reporter in 2017 and has held the roles of senior news reporter and associate news editor. He has bylines in The Wall Street Journal, The Portland Tribune and Eugene Weekly. Follow Michael Tobin Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Employees of the Metropolitan Commission present a $2,078 donation to Mary Lou Gough Food Pantry representative Dennis Cantwell. (Submitted photo) HOLLYWOOD, Md. (January 13, 2019)On December 20, employees of the Metropolitan Commission presented a $2,078 donation to Mary Lou Gough Food Pantry representative Dennis Cantwell. This donation was the result of fundraising efforts by MetCom employees which continued into the holiday season. Employees also contributed over 200 pounds of food to the effort.The Mary Lou Gough Food Pantry is administered by Our Lady of Wayside parish, located in Chaptico.Mary Lou Burroughs Gough passed in September 2010, following a life of service to her family, community, and church. She served as administrative director for Alternatives for Youth, beginning at Loretta House, where she was a mentor to her coworkers and a kind and gentle role model to the young boys living there. She volunteered for a variety of organizations, including Meals on Wheels, St. Mary's Nursing Home, and Mother Catherine Spalding School. Gough was instrumental in establishing the food pantry now named in her honor, formerly known as the St. Vincent DePaul Food Pantry.Contributing to a local charity has been an annual initiative undertaken by MetCom employees in conjunction with its annual holiday luncheon. In recent years, several thousand dollars have been donated to local organizations including Hospice House, St. Paul's Soup Kitchen, Hunter's Heroes, and Christmas in April.Please visit www.olwrcc.org/pantry.php or call 301-884-2502 to learn more about the Mary Lou Gough Food Pantry. They are open on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of the month from 10 a.m. to 12 noon and serves approximately 50 families per month. Laura Marie McDermott Edwards, 52, of Chattanooga passed away Saturday, June 12, 2021 at her home. Laura spent most of her life in Dalton, GA and was of the Christian faith. She was preceded in death by her mother, Beverly Ruth Duncan. Survivors are her daughter, Brittney Rae Edwards (her pa Virginia "Sue" Robinson of Cullman Alabama passed away June 10, 2021 at the age of 82. She was born January 14, 1939 in Cullman to E.R. and Gracie Nix Neal. She was preceded in death by her parents, husband Elwin Ray Robinson, daughter Sharron Fuller, sisters Evelyn Hardin and Norma Bradford The following are recent arrests released by the Bridgeport Police Department on Jan. 10 and Jan. 11, 2019. Jan. 10, 2019 A 32-year-old Stratford Avenue man was charged with two counts of failure to appear in court. A 25-year-old Boston Avenue man was charged with violation of probation. A 20-year-old Stamford man was charged with illegal operation of a motor vehicle under suspension. A 31-year-old Main Street man was charged with disorderly conduct, assault in the third degree and failure to appear in court. A 55-year-old Pembroke Street male was charged with failure to register. A 22-year-old Trumbull man was charged with drug possession. A 22-year-old Colony Street woman was charged with operating an unregistered vehicle, illegally operating a vehicle without insurance and failure to grant right of way. A 28-year-old Stamford woman was charged with interfering with a police officer, assault, and failure to appear in court. A 43-year-old Connecticut Avenue woman was charged with operating a vehicle while under suspension. A 20-year-old Linwood Avenue man was charged with disorderly conduct and third-degree assault. A 32-year-old East Main man was charged with criminal mischief and third-degree assault. Jan. 11, 2019 A 47-year-old Waterbury man was charged with breach of peace and third-degree assault. As of January 2019, Hearst Connecticut Media does not include names in online police blotters. Ethics Panel to Meet The St. Mary's County Public Schools' Ethics Panel will be holding a meeting on Thursday, January 17, 2019, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., at 23160 Moakley Street, Leonardtown, Maryland 20650. For more information, call 301-475-5511, ext. 32177. Change of Meeting Date for the Board of Education The meeting of the Board of Education of St. Mary's County that was scheduled for January 9, 2019, has been moved to January 16, 2019. It will be held at 9:00 a.m. in the Board of Education Meeting Room of the Central Administration Building, 23160 Moakley Street, Leonardtown, Maryland 20650. For additional information, call 301-475-5511, ext. 32177. STRATFORD The Shakespeare theater burned to the ground early Sunday morning, shocking the community and leaving crews to spend hours trying to extinguish the remaining flames. The building where many famous theater stars performed was an integral part of the community. Mayor Laura Hoydick said Sunday that the loss of the building is devastating for the entire community. Those memories in that structure deserved better than to be destroyed by fire, Hoydick said Sunday afternoon after visiting the site. Fire Marshal Brian Lampart said no one has been injured and the building was unoccupied. It will likely be some time before the blazes cause and origin are identified, Lampart said. Unfortunately, this ones going to be a slow process because of the amount of damage, Lampart said. Were trying to filter through whats pertinent and whats not. Lampart said dispatchers got several calls around 1 a.m. about a fire on the property. When our units arrived, they found a heavy volume of fire in the building, Lampart said. More than 50 firefighters responded every one of Stratfords units, as well as crews from Bridgeport and Milford. Fairfield, Shelton and Bridgeport crews also covered the Stratford firehouses, Lampart said. The fire destroyed the building, leaving a massive pile of rubble, charred steel and wood that was still smoldering Sunday afternoon as dozens of residents came by the scene to survey the damage. Its a loss. Stratford will never be the same, Marie Schiller said while standing on Shore Road and recalling how her three children went on field trips to the theater years ago. I feel like Im at a funeral. As crews hosed down hotspots Sunday afternoon, a backhoe was leveling a wall that was still partially standing to give investigators better access. The unstable wall separating what was the stage from the backstage area of the theater was an area of interest. Shakespeare theater through the years 1950: Lawrence Langner comes up with idea for the theater and eventually enlists the help of Lincoln Kirstein and philanthropist Joseph Verner Reed to build it. 1955: The theater opens. 1960s and 1970s: High school students travel from around the country to see productions at the theater. 1973: Joseph Verner Reed dies and money for the theater dies with him. 1982: The final season of shows is held in the building. Shows included "King Henry IV," "Twelfth Night" and "Hamlet" with Christopher Walken and Anne Baxter. 1983: State takes over the theater. 2005: Ownership of the theater passes to Stratford. 2014: A committee picks the Elm Street Theatre Company to restore the theater. 2015: Town Council picks the Stratford Stage Group to build a luxury hotel on the property and get the theater running again. 2016: Town ends negotiations with the Stratford Stage Group. April 2017: The town plans to hire an architect to prevent building from falling into disrepair. 2017: Contractors bid to mothball the building. See More Collapse We need to get under that, Lampart said. We dont want to do that with it standing. Its a slow, methodical process. In addition to Stratford fire officials, investigators from the state fire marshals office were at the scene as well. Winter fires in abandoned buildings are often started by people seeking shelter from the elements. Lampart said Sunday afternoon it was too early to speculate on the fires cause, but thats certainly something that were going to be looking at. The mayor asked residents not to draw conclusions yet. We want answers, and theres a lot of conjecture on social media, I would just caution people to wait it out and lets find out what happened, Hoydick said. A press conference has been scheduled for 1 p.m. at Town Hall Monday for officials to discuss the fire. The mayor said the property will also be a topic of discussion at the Town Council meeting Monday night. Several of the councils members visited the site Sunday, Hoydick said. The theater was well-known in the local and wider theater community, with famous actors and actresses, including Katharine Hepburn, Christopher Plummer and Christopher Walken having performed on the stage. On Sunday morning, Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit Broadway musical Hamilton, tweeted the fire was heartbreaking. Lawrence Langner, co-founder of The Theatre Guild and the Westport Country Playhouse, developed the idea for the theater in 1950. It was built with the help of Lincoln Kirstein and philanthropist Joseph Verner Reed. The theater opened in 1955 with American Shakespeare Festival Theatres production of Julius Caesar. During the 1960s and 1970s, high school students across the country visited the theater for shows. But after Reed died in 1973, the money to keep the theater going was gone and the building struggled to stay open. The American Shakespeare Festival Theatre held its final full season in the building in 1982, but other companies held shows there in the 1980s. The state took over the theater in 1983. Stratford has owned the building since 2005. The town has floated various plans for the theater over the years and most recently planned to mothball the building. Shows were still held on the grounds of the property over the years. Staff writer Ethan Fry contributed to this report. John Carl D'Annibale / Albany Times Union The Monroe Health Department is again providing flu vaccinations for children by appointment. We are pleased that through our partnership with the Connecticut Vaccine Program, we can offer this program at a reduced cost to parents, said First Selectman Kenneth Kellogg in a news release. In fact, those with financial hardship may be eligible for vaccination of their children at no cost. Vaccine is available for those 6 months through 18 years old. Monroe health director Nancy Brault strongly encourages all Monroe residents over the age of 6 months to get a flu shot. Yes, I am an opinionated woman. And ever since the first time I was called a name by a reader who disagreed with my column, Ive been proud of my profession. Turns out, Im in good company. Opinionated Women in the Land of Steady Habits is a recently published compendium of columns by 63 women writing for daily newspapers in Connecticut through the years. Three of my columns are in the book, and its not because the editor, James Herbert Smith, is my husband. The day Smiths first daughter was born in 1969, he became a feminist. In my mind and heart that day I pledged that no boy, no man, was going to stand in the way of my daughters ambitions and desires, and American society would have to change to accommodate a new generation of girls who could become the women they wanted to be, he wrote in the introduction to Opinionated. A national award-winning journalist for more than four decades, he is now retired and this is his fifth published book. It took a long time for American society to change. Not long ago, women who wanted to be journalists typically landed in the features department of newspapers. This used to be considered the soft news in newspapers, such as recipes or plays. The hard news of politics and crime were for men. But some strong women made their mark. In 1831 in the Hartford Courant, Lydia Huntley Sigourney wrote an impassioned plea to beautify schoolhouses: Why need the structure where the young are initiated into those virtues which make life beautiful, be divorced from taste or devoid of comfort? Hers is the earliest voice in Opinionated. She became a successful poet and a street in Hartford was named for her. For most women in the early feminism days of the 1970s it was difficult to find female opinionator role models in daily newspapers. Think about it the first female columnist in the Colonies wasnt even a woman! In 1722 The New-England Courant published 14 letters by a widow with a gift for satire called Silence Dogood. She was developing a following (and a few marriage proposals) until the publisher, James Franklin, discovered Silence Dogood was the pen name of his 16-year-old brother, Benjamin, an apprentice in the shop. Upon discovery, Ben Franklin bolted for Philadelphia. Silence is an antithesis to the women in the book who were not only finding their voices, but also daring to influence opinion. Irene Driscoll, who I know, was on the leading edge. Her 1974 column, Her Sex Still a Quiet Issue, takes on reactions to the possibility of the first female governor elected in her own right. Although she downplays its significance, it has not gone unnoticed that Ella Grasso, Democratic candidate for governor, is a woman, Irene begins. She scolds for the attention placed on Grassos clothing style when no similar critique of (Bob) Steeles style of dress has cropped up. His polyester suits and white shoes escaped all but the most fleeting commentary. Would a male columnist draw attention to the unequal treatment of candidates for the states highest office? Lets just say it is harder to notice an inequality when youre in the majority. It was important for women to attain positions throughout the newspaper and to add their voices. After the riveting Watergate reporting by Woodward and Bernstein that toppled a presidency, women were just as inspired as were men to pursue the ideals of journalism. The vitals "Opinionated Women in the Land of Steady Habits" Edited by James Herbert Smith Published by Elm Grove Press, Old Mystic 452 pages, $18.95 Available at Hickory Stick Bookshop in Washington, Conn.; Bank Square Books in Mystic; Elm Grove Press, Amazon or for a signed copy email jhsmithy34@gmail.com See More Collapse In 1978 I started on my path as a correspondent in the Hartford Courants Groton bureau, earning a whopping 35 cents an inch for a story and $3 to cover a meeting. I wrote long and went to lots of meetings. When I had my first page-one byline, on the Eastern and Western Mashantucket Pequots, I was hooked. But it would take many years to move from writing objective news to writing opinion. Barbara C. White, the editor of the Record-Journal in Meriden, encouraged me in 1992 to write restaurant reviews, which was great fun but harder than you would think. Although Mrs. White wrote exquisite reviews, her columns in the Opinionated book are on other matters. She writes of lesbian and gay friends, of the need for open government and of her brothers addiction to cigarettes. That column begins this way: He came for the flavor; last week he died for the taste. While the #MeToo movement has empowered women to speak up about sexual abuse, female columnists grappled with the issue earlier. Bethe Dufresne, with whom I worked at The Day in New London, wrote in 2006 of a Coast Guard Academy cadets court martial for extorting sexual favors. There are so many sad things about this trial but the saddest of all, to me, is that it seemed to send a message that women want the freedom to act as recklessly as men, yet at the same time be protected from our own unique consequences. Dont get me wrong: We women have every right, or at least the same right, to get drunk, have casual sex or make complete fools of ourselves, and none of this entitles men to do with us as they please. Some of the many columns in Opinionated Women are shocking such as the mother arrested for enjoying breastfeeding her baby others are humorous or touching or provocative. Many are by writers at Hearst Connecticut newspapers, such as Jane Stern, Mary Ellen Fillo, Linda Tuccio-Koonz, Angela Carella and the late Lisa Chedekel. With our rising voices, comes the criticism and name calling. We have to be able to take it. Feminazi is the epithet that made me take a deep breath and stand taller. The American society of equality Smith envisioned for his first daughter is getting closer. To the upcoming opinionated women we say: Stand on our shoulders. Jacqueline Smith is an editorial page editor with Hearst Connecticut Newspapers. Email her at jsmith@hearstmediact.com. Did he or didnt he? Only his budget chief knows the answer if there is one. The mystery is whether Gov. Ned Lamont signaled in his State of the State address on Wednesday that public employee unions need to cough up more concessions. Were parsing words here, and theres plenty for both sides to work with. The disagreement, as you might expect, divides along partisan lines. Republicans, seeking more union givebacks, thought they heard Lamont say hell push for exactly that, maybe even a reopening of the controversial health and pension agreement that runs until 2027. Many labor leaders heard a softer approach from the governor whose campaign gelled in April, when he won the strong support of the state AFL-CIO after delivering a passionate promise of comradeship. Others worried, at least at first. Lets look at a full showing of the words Lamont spoke in his first address to the General Assembly, two hours after he raised his hand for the oath of office in the armory across the street. As you read it, think about words like inaction and make the changes necessary, for hints of what he meant. We cannot afford to let the next four years be defined by a fiscal crisis. The fate of our great state is on a knifes edge, he said. If we choose inaction and more of the same we fail. But if we choose creative and bold leadership, a commitment to make the hard and difficult choices necessary to right the wrongs of the past we will succeed. Lets fix this damn budget, once and for all! ... I refuse to invest any time in the blame game of whos responsible for this crisis. Its real, its here and its time to confront it head on. And, please dont tell me youve done your share and its somebody elses turn. Its all of our turns. Then he addressed different groups. State employees and labor leaders: I have been so impressed by the quality of the folks who work for the state of Connecticut. I am a strong believer in labor, and now is the time to show that collective bargaining works in tough times, as well as good times. As our liabilities continue to grow faster than our assets, together we have to make the changes necessary to ensure that retirement security is a reality for our younger, as well as our older, state employees, and do that without breaking the bank. That last bit about making changes, combined with the part about doing your share, gives hardliners hope that Lamont will toughen his stance toward the unions. He was referring to exacting some concessions, said Pat ONeil, spokesman for the House Republicans and a longtime Capitol insider real concessions, perhaps. He added, We wont know how meaningful those words were for months, if in fact thats what he meant, after budget talks for fiscal 2020 are done. After Lamont spoke those words, three union leaders sent texts to Jody Barr, executive director of AFSCME Council 4, which represents 15,000 state employees. They wondered whether that meant more demands for givebacks. They were curious, like when he said, in good times and bad times, what does that mean? He didnt say concessions, Barr said. Maybe its PTSD from what happened in the past, but I think our members were just concerned, Barr said, referring to post-traumatic stress disorder. Barr and others persuaded the fearful ones that Lamont will stick with his promises to stick by unions but will seek win-win changes that save the state money without hurting workers, like the 2011 preventive health requirements. Barr says labor will be at the table, not on the table, and not with major concessins. He included us in the campaign, he included us in the transition, and now were going to be part of his term as governor, said Barr, a calm sort whos not given to the bombastics of some labor leaders. Both sides say they feel harmed by the budgets of the last decade. Former Gov. Dannel P. Malloy enacted two big tax increases, Republicans say, without extracting enough from labor. The shared sacrifices were not in fact so shared, ONeil said. The unions claim their six recent years of pay freezes, 3 percent across-the-board charges for health care for at least ten years, 2 percent floors for pension payments, higher co-pays and lower benefits for new employees all represent more than enough. We are very very sensitive to our memberships givebacks again and again and again, Barr said. Barr tells a story about leaders of the three rank-and-file corrections unions, totaling 5,000 members, upset that Lamont named Rollin Cook, a reformer from Utah, as commissioner without consulting them. We reached out to Ned with our concerns, and Ned did the right thing and called those local presidents and had a discussion with them about why he made the decision he made. Crisis averted but now they get harder. Lamonts budget proposal isnt due until mid- to late-February and his office is saying nothing about what he meant. The joint session address was about introducing himself to the legislature in Hartford, and goving people a sense of how he will govern, spokeswoman Maribel La Luz said. It was not intended to introduce specific policy or legialative proposals. Id guess Lamont and budget chief Melissa McCaw dont yet know what theyre going to seek from labor. Keith Phaneuf of The CT Mirror seems to think the speech signaled a big ask, but I see pure ambiguity with purposeful hints for both sides to digest. Lamont and McCaw wont call on unions to reopen the 2017-27 deal, at least not for serious concessions, simply because they wont need to do that this year. But if the economy doesnt cooperate in 2020, all bets are off. dhaar@hearstmediact.com LA PLATA, Md. (January 13, 2019)The Board of Education at its Jan. 8 meeting honored five Charles County Public Schools (CCPS) staff members for their commitment to teaching and learning, and their support of student success. Honored were Kristen Barrett, a social studies teacher at Milton M. Somers Middle School; Robin Figurelle, a fourth-grade teacher at Mary H. Matula Elementary School; Kelly Kavlick, a reading resource teacher at Gale-Bailey Elementary School; Nathan Mouli, a social studies teacher at Maurice J. McDonough High School; and Meagan Fox, a fifth-grade teacher at Arthur Middleton Elementary School. Barrett teaches seventh grade social studies at Somers and was chosen for recognition by not only her principal, Sandra Taylor, but her colleagues as well. She is dedicated, kind and professional and strives to engage each student in her classroom. Barrett uses a variety of lesson plans and teaching strategies to reach all levels of learners. She goes out of her way to help a colleague in need of assistance and is known by Somers staff as a team player. Barrett shares instructional strategies with her peers, and her students are eager to learn from her each day. She sets high expectations for her students and pushes them to do their best. Taylor said Barrett is a role model teacher. "Ms. Barrett embodies all of the characteristics of an exemplary employee and is truly deserving of this recognition," Taylor wrote in a nomination statement. Figurelle has been teaching at Matula for several years and provides a welcoming learning environment for students. She collaborates with both the special education and instructional leadership teams to provide engaging instruction. Figurelle opens her classroom for observation to teachers across the system and is a leader among her peers. She is part of a team that helped to implement the Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) State Personnel Development Grant at Matula five years ago. Known as the BUZZ grant, Figurelle led the team in the implementation and monitoring of the grant. Since 2013, her students have consistently met or exceeded their learning targets and continue to excel. Matula Principal Carrie Richardson said Figurelle is a model educator. "Robin has embraced the structures of the BUZZ grant across all content areas as well as the strategies learned during Matula's community of practice meetings focused on effective questioning. Robin is a member of the core school-based leadership team and model educator," Richardson wrote in a nomination statement. Kavlick is a 22-year veteran CCPS teacher who has spent her entire career at Gale-Bailey. She has taught students in first through fifth grades and served as a reading interventionist. Kavlick is an instrumental part of the Gale-Bailey team. She helps to lead schoolwide and countywide professional development opportunities, new teacher orientation sessions and serves as a mentor for her peers. She was inspired to go into education by her second-grade teacher, and provides a welcoming learning environment. Her students know they are important and she tells them each day. Kavlick is active in her community and has served as a Maryland State Certified Emergency Medical Technician for 28 years. She demonstrates commitment, pride and leadership within the school community, and strives to build positive relationships with students, parents and her colleagues. Gale-Bailey Principal Verniece Rorie said Kavlick is a role model teacher. "She has made a positive impact on many children, parents and staff members. As indicated, she has demonstrated commitment, leadership and positive relationships within the Gale-Bailey community to show her love for teaching and learning," Rorie wrote in a nomination statement. Mouli is an example of an educator who loves the content he teaches. His love for history is apparent in his lessons and in the classroom. In turn, his students are excited and engaged in their learning. Mouli creates a collaborative environment in which students are actively engaged in the learning process. His students leave his class with an enhanced self-esteem and feel empowered to share what they are learning. Mouli primarily teaches students in local, state and national (LSN) government classes, a subject area in which students are assessed and must pass in order to graduate. Mouli's students not only exhibit a desire to learn the content, but they demonstrate their willingness to achieve by scoring well on the exam. He also oversees the student service-learning program at McDonough, which is another high school graduation requirement. He encourages students to go above and beyond to earn their required community service hours and make a difference. Earlier this school year, a group of his students participated in the Lifestyles of Maryland Walk to End Homelessness to show support for the community. Mouli serves as the McDonough social studies department chair and coordinates countywide professional development sessions to share his expertise. McDonough Principal Steven Roberts said Mouli is an exceptional teacher. "He has a thorough knowledge of his subject matter, which he shares with great effectiveness with his students. Understanding the needs of his students, Mr. Mouli's teaching style is such that he creates a space for thoughtful exploration of historical and current topics of a civic nature," Roberts wrote in a nomination statement. Fox has served as the fifth-grade inclusion teacher at Middleton for the past four years. She strives to reach all levels of learners and is dedicated to ensuring all students achieve success. Fox consistently seeks rigorous teaching strategies to connect with students and helps to write fifth-grade curriculum at the county level. She plans with her colleagues, offering lesson plan ideas, behavior management strategies and support. Fox takes pride in the success of her students and helps them to understand goal setting and achievement. She also works with a student teacher as part of the Teacher Academy of Maryland program, volunteers to assist with academic nights, clubs and the extended-learning opportunity (ELO) program and annually coordinates the fifth-grade Nanjemoy Creek field trip. Middleton Principal Benjamin Harrington said Fox is a vital part of the school. "As a fifth-grade teacher for the last four years, Meagan has shown excellent growth and achievement. Her passion for teaching is not limited to the curriculum. She recently led a Just Say No group of students in the importance of standing their ground in making good choices. Meagan is a vital part of Middleton Elementary," Harrington wrote in a nomination statement. The Board at its monthly meetings honors CCPS students and staff who are nominated by their principals for recognition. To enjoy our website, you'll need to enable JavaScript in your web browser. Please click here to learn how. CORNWALL, Ontario The Cornwall Community Hospital (CCH) as well as CCVS are under lockdown and other schools are under "hold and secure" procedures after a gunman was sighted in the area of Amelia and Seventh streets at around 8:50 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 8. The Cornwall Police Service is actively investigating a report of a suspicious male seen in the area of Amelia St. and Seventh St. at approximately 8:50 am this morning. As such, the public will note an increased presence of police officers in the area searching for the male, read a CCPS statement. The man was sighted in the area of Amelia Street and Seventh Street at approximately 8:50 a.m., A CCPS update reads. No injuries have been reported at this time. Police are asking residents in the area of Second St. to Ninth St., and Nick Kaneb Dr. to Cumberland Ave. to remain in their residence. We thank the public for their cooperation at this time. Further updates to follow. Cornwall CCVS released the following statement on their Facebook page around 10:05 a.m.Cornwall Collegiate and Vocational Institute (CCVS) is currently in a Lockdown as requested by Cornwall Policeall students and staff are safe. Police are on site at CCVS. No one can enter or exit these schools while this matter is under investigation . We will update via social media as more information becomes available. Police say no injuries have been reported and the investigation is its early stages. Patients at the Cornwall Communtiy Hospital (CCH) report that the hospital is also under lockdown. The Cornwall Community Hospital has also been placed on lockdown at this time. Ambulances are still being accepted and a triage nurse is available for all absolute emergencies, the CCPS said in a statement. There is currently no in and out traffic from both Main hospital building and Community Addiction and Mental Health Centre being permitted. More information will be provided as it becomes available. We are analyzing the site. Please wait a few seconds.. Heightening fear through raising the spectre of the IRA is unacceptable, Sam Gyimah tweeted, in response to Chris Pattens warning that Brexit he doesnt want to go back to the days when people were being shot and maimed. Vince Cable dismissed Project Terror. David Lammy said that history shows us appeasement only emboldens the Republican movement. Nor was the condemnation restricted to politicians. Others laid in too. Jane Merrick, the political commentator, got to the heart of the criticism when she described Pattens words as a threat. As most of our readers will have worked out by now, none of this happened when, last March, Lord Patten raised the prospect of violence returning to Northern Ireland in the event of Brexit. There was scarcely a cheep of protest from prominent Remain and Soft Brexit supporters. Compare this to the buckets of ordure emptied yesterday over the head of Chris Grayling, who warned yesterday that cancelling or delaying Brexit could provide an electoral boost for the Far Right. We have adapted the remarks from Lammy, Cable and Gyimah about Graylings words to make the point, substituting the Republican Movement or the IRA for the Far Right. What did Grayling actually say? As follows: We risk a break with the British tradition of moderate, mainstream politics that goes back to the Restoration in 1660. MPs need to remember that Britain, its people and its traditions are the mother of Parliaments. We ignore that and the will of the people at our peril. The Daily Mail added that he stopped short of predicting riots if Brexit is weakened or reversed. But he added: People should not underestimate this. We would see a different tone in our politics. A less tolerant society, a more nationalistic nation. It will open the door to extremist populist political forces in this country of the kind we see in other countries in Europe. So, unlike Patten, Grayling steered clear of suggesting that people might be shot and maimed: indeed, he was careful to avoid raising the prospect even of riots. But he was excoriated none the less when Patten was not. Now you may object that Grayling did raise the possibility of violence by pointing back towards the English Civil War. Or say that he evidently cant complain about his words being publicised: that was clearly the intention of speaking them. If the row has made more people aware of them than would otherwise be the case, then he might think so much the better. You could add that Patten, as a former Northern Ireland Minister, knows what hes talking about, and that Grayling hasnt got a clue (though two recent Northern Ireland Secretaries, Owen Paterson and Theresa Villiers, voted Leave). If you did, so be it: these are points of view. But however mistaken we might think them, here at ConservativeHome, at least they dont muddle two different things. If two men are in a car, and the passenger says to the driver: Look out! Youre going to crash, he is shouting out not a threat, in Merricks word, but a warning. He is not trying to grab the steering wheel himself, and career the car at speed into a motorway barrier. In that sense, Grayling and Patten are on the same page or, if you like, in the same seat. They may both be prescient or plain wrong. Or one may be and not the other. However, there is no instrinsic difference between what either did. So why the silence over Patten and the noise over Grayling? Some will say is that all it shows is the usual Remainer double standard (though they should ask themselves whether they thought or said at the time that Patten was acting irresponsibly). We think there is a bit more to it than that. For most Westminster politicians and political journalists, Northern Ireland is a long way away. SW1 is where many of them work. The yellow jacket protesters have abused some of the latter as well as some of the former. The natural reaction is to rally round. It follows that the intimidation of, say, Anna Soubry (who was threatened) gained coverage and condemnation that the intimidation of Nigel Farage (who was chased in and out of a Glasgow pub by Far Left and SNP activists five years go, before being escorted to safety in a police van) did not. This is the effect of distance as well as, if you like, of bias in the sense that more Westminster journalists and politicians will identify with Soubry, who is one of the club, than with Farage. Interestingly, Soubry in yesterday condemning Grayling, as one would expect expressly wrote off the yellow-clad thugs as a sign of anything bigger. The 15 yobs who have been roaming outside Parliament do not represent anyone but themselves, she tweeted. Its shameful to validate them in this way. Right-wing extremists have always existed. This suggests that she thinks there is no substantial electoral threat to the Conservatives from their right. We are not so sure. The AfD, Orban, Bolsonaro, Trumps toppling of the old Republican order in America all are signs of a worldwide populist revolt from the right or, one might say just as accurately, from parts of the working as well as the middle class. Remainers blame Brexit for heightening tensions in British politics. But these anti-establishment upheavals elsewhere have nothing much to do with Britains referendum decision to leave the EU, if anything. Indeed, the political effect of the vote in Britain to date has been the opposite collapsing UKIP, helping to halt the march of the SNP in Scotland and containing anti-establishment passions within an established party, the Conservatives (the most established party in the world, if longevity is the measure). First past the post, a mainstream centre-right party and a rooted national moderation have contained populist reactions. Todays papers are full of claims that the Speaker will this week change Commons standing orders in order to stop or soften Brexit. We shall see. But if anything of the kind happens, and it follows that some voters conclude that an elite what we call, more accurately, an Ascendancy has manipulated Parliamentary procedure to frustrate a popular vote, can we really be sure that Grayling is wrong? ConservativeHome apologises for thus uttering a threat. But together with what is still, we suspect, a majority in the Commons, we believe that the gamble of shoving up two fingers at the referendum result is one that MPs would be unwise to take. Owen Paterson is a former Environment Secretary and former Secretary of State for Northern Ireland. He is MP for Shropshire North. He is Chairman of UK2020. The EU question has always been about sovereignty. It is about who governs the United Kingdom and how. Parliament deliberately put the answer to this in the hands of the British people by passing the EU Referendum Act in 2015. In 2016, the people gave their answer. They wished, via democratically-elected Members of Parliament, to govern themselves. The Withdrawal Agreement categorically fails to deliver that result. Despite repeatedly ruling out membership of the Customs Union, the Prime Ministers proposed single customs territory locks the UK into it in all but name. The UK would be tied to EU rules on critical policy issues, with the European Court of Justice retaining the right to issue binding rulings on the interpretation of such rules and sanction the UK for non-compliance. The Agreement is not even compatible with the EU (Withdrawal) Act passed earlier this year. This Act repeals the European Communities Act 1972 (ECA) entirely from March 29 of this year. Yet under the Prime Ministers proposed Withdrawal Agreement, a version of the ECA will remain in place throughout the lengthy transition period. The supine nature of the Withdrawals Agreements negotiation is fully revealed in its treatment of Northern Ireland. The Backstop would keep Northern Ireland in the Customs Union and Single Market, creating a new political entity called UK(NI). Northern Irelands elected politicians would have no say over significant areas of this new entitys policy (ironically, unlike those in Dublin); Northern Irelands constitutional status would be fundamentally altered in clear breach of the Belfast Agreements Principle of Consent, the requirement to consult the Northern Ireland Assembly and even the Acts of Union 1800. With no unilateral right to end the arrangement, the UK could continue indefinitely as a permanent rule-taker, with no say as to how its rules are made while paying 39 billion for the privilege. None of these failures arise under World Trade Organisation terms. The WTO has already confirmed that nothing in WTO rules . . . forces anyone to put up border posts, so there would be no hard border. The jurisdiction of the ECJ would end and we would save ourselves 39 billion. The UK would be free to make its own laws, to be interpreted in our own courts. We would take our independent seat on the WTO to work for free trade with allies across the world. Perhaps the real reason for the Establishment hysteria surrounding a No Deal Brexit under WTO rules is that we actually would be leaving. The other options now being floated extending Article 50, a second referendum, or the subjugation demanded by the Withdrawal Agreement are designed to hold the UK in the EUs orbit in the hope that it may be sucked back in. These options would completely fail to honour the biggest democratic verdict ever delivered in British history. The optimal Brexit outcome remains a wide-ranging, zero-tariff Free Trade Agreement as offered repeatedly by Donald Tusk. Such a deal can still be negotiated, but not by the end of March. Having wasted so much time on the Withdrawal Agreement, leaving on WTO terms is now the only way to break free fully and build a more prosperous, independent future. This article is adapted from a new Economists for Free Trade report: No Deal is the Best Deal for Britain The Calvert County Planning Commission is seeking agency and public comments on its recommended Calvert County Comprehensive Plan. The plan is recommended to replace the current Comprehensive Plan first adopted in 2004 and amended in 2010 and 2017. The Planning Commission's recommended draft and support materials are available at www.co.cal.md.us/futureCalvert The Planning Commission will consider comments on the plan and may make revisions before recommending the plan be adopted by the Board of County Commissioners. A public hearing on the Comprehensive Plan will be held prior to plan adoption, but not before Feb. 26, 2019. The public hearing date, time and location will be released once the hearing details are finalized.Comments should be addressed to Mr. Greg Kernan, Chair, Calvert County Planning Commission. While written comments may be submitted any time prior to the public hearing or submitted at the hearing, the Planning Commission is requesting comments by Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2019. Please note that names, addresses/e-mail addresses and/or written comments become part of the public record and may be made available to the public upon request and posted to the county's website.Comments may be submitted in the following ways: Email pz@calvertcountymd.govMail to 175 Main St., Prince Frederick, MD 20678Fax to 410-414-3092Hand deliver to 150 Main St., Suite 300, Prince Frederick, MD 20678The Comprehensive Plan update process is now in its third and final phase. The first phaseidentifying issuesincluded meetings and a series of public workshops in the summer and fall of 2016. Phase 2plan developmentfeatured workshops, public meetings and open houses, along with the development and review of the first draft, published in October 2017. Phase 3the adoption processbegan in spring 2018 with the publication of the second draft in May. The Planning Commission held monthly work sessions June through November 2018 to review public comments and make revisions to the draft plan.The Calvert County Department of Parks & Recreation, in partnership with the Arthritis Foundation, will offer a six-week Walk With Ease program beginning Monday, Jan. 28. The program is designed to help citizens with arthritis pain begin safely incorporating exercise into everyday life. Sessions will be held every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through March 11 from 10-11:30 a.m.Walk With Ease can help reduce the pain and discomfort of arthritis; increase balance, strength and walking pace; and improve overall health. To learn more, residents are invited to an information session scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 16. The session is from 10-11 a.m. at Northeast Community Center located at 4075 Gordon Stinnett Ave. in Chesapeake Beach.For additional information, please contact the Calvert County Department of Parks & Recreation at 410-535-1600, ext. 8211 or 8205. Citizens with speech or hearing impairment can contact Maryland Relay at 800-735-2258. Calvert County services are accessible for individuals with disabilities.The Calvert County Department of Parks & Recreation, Natural Resources Division, announces a new floating dock has been installed at Lower Marlboro Wharf. The installation of the dock is part of a multi-year effort to increase water access for residents in Calvert County. This $43,000 project was funded by the State Highway Administration's National Recreational Trails Program grant.The floating dock offers safe access to the Patuxent River and allows kayak and canoe paddlers to explore the river and its wetlands. This location provides access along a stretch of the Patuxent River with very few public launching facilities. Lower Marlboro Wharf is located at the end of Lower Marlboro Road in Owings.Lower Marlboro is one of 20 former steamboat landings/wharves located in Calvert County. Approximately 36 miles from where the Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake, the wharf accessed an important mode of transportation for local residents, farmers and businesses.A full list of water access sites that are part of the Patuxent Water Trail is available at www.patuxentwatertrail.org . To learn more about water access sites and trails throughout Calvert County, pick up a copy of the "Water Trail Adventures in Calvert County, Maryland" guide. The guide offers maps and detailed descriptions of water access sites and amenities throughout the county including six paddling routes in the Chesapeake Bay, Patuxent River and St. Leonard, Cocktown and Caney creeks. It also provides information on historic, cultural and tourism resources.Visit www.calvertcountymd.gov/WaterAccess to download a copy of the guide for free. The guide can also be purchased for $3 from the Maryland DNR Outdoor Store online or by calling the Calvert County Natural Resources Division at 410-535-5327. Additionally, guides are available at sites throughout the county including Kings Landing Park, Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum, Solomons Visitor Center, Calvert Marine Museum, Solomons Boat Ramp, North Beach Welcome Center, Chesapeake Beach Town Hall and Battle Creek Cypress Swamp Nature Center.Learn more about the Calvert County Natural Resources Division by visiting online at www.calvertcountymd.gov/naturalresources . For updates on Parks & Recreation services, park availability, field closures and more visit Parks & Recreation at www.Facebook.com/CalvertCountyParks.The Calvert County Department of General Services is coordinating the annual "On Watch" memorial brick campaign taking place now through April 30, 2019. For a limited time, the public may purchase memorial bricks to be placed at the Veterans Patio, located at the World War II "On Watch" Memorial Statue in Dowell.The bricks are available to memorialize those who served our country during World War II. The cost of each brick is $100 and all contributions are tax deductible. Bricks will be installed in fall 2019 and purchasers will be notified when the bricks are in place and available for viewing. "On Watch" applications are available at www.calvertcountymd.gov/onwatch . To learn more, call Melinda Donnelly at 410-535-1600, ext. 2565.The "On Watch" Memorial Statue is an 8-foot-tall bronze statue unveiled in 2007 by Maryland artist Antonio Tobias Mendez. The statue commemorates the people and work at the Solomons Amphibious Training Base, the nation's first, during World War II. Between 1942 and 1945, around 68,000 sailors, marines, coast guardsmen and soldiers trained to make beach landings; these forces had major roles at landings in Guadalcanal, North Africa, Sicily, Normandy and the Pacific Solomons Islands. Thank you for reading! Please purchase a subscription to read our premium content. If you have a subscription, please log in or sign up for an account on our website to continue. National Security Advisor John Bolton answers questions from reporters as he announces that the U.S. will withdraw from a treaty with Iran during a news conference in the White House briefing room in Washington, October 3, 2018. The White House requested options for a military strike against Iran last September, a report by the Wall Street Journal revealed on Sunday, citing current and former U.S. officials. The request, reportedly made the National Security Council led by national security advisor John Bolton, alarmed Pentagon and State Department officials, The Journal wrote on Sunday. The Council made the move after an Iranian-aligned group fired missiles into Baghdad's diplomatic quarter, which hosts the U.S. embassy in Iraq. No one was harmed. According to the publication, it remains unclear whether President Donald Trump himself knew about the request, whether the Pentagon ultimately delivered military options to the White House, and if concrete attack plans against the Islamic Republic were actually formulated. But officials who spoke to the publication confirmed that the Defense Department did indeed comply with the National Security Council's request to develop those options. Bolton, an avid proponent of the Iraq invasion during the George W. Bush administration, has long taken one of the hardest lines against Iran in Washington and has openly supported the idea of regime change in Tehran. A spokesperson for the White House did not immediately reply to a CNBC request for comment. Garrett Marquis, a spokesman for the National Security Council told The Journal: "We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate, and we will consider a full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests." The full report from the Wall Street Journal can be found on its website. Saudi Arabia's energy minister said Sunday he's positive OPEC and partnered nations will meet their production cut commitments to balance oil markets in 2019, despite what he described as a slower than anticipated pace by some. "We've already done it, we've done enough," Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told CNBC on Sunday in Abu Dhabi, when asked what OPEC's largest producer would do to balance markets this year. "Not only the kingdom but other countries, we've heard from the Emirates, I've talked repeatedly to my colleagues in Iraq, they've already taken action," he told CNBC's Hadley Gamble. He then mentioned the performance of the largest non-OPEC producer that's partnered with the cartel on cuts: "Russia has started, slower than I'd like, but they've started, and I am sure as they did as in 2017 they'll catch up and be a positive contributor to re-balancing the market." OPEC members, along with several other countries, in December agreed on output cuts totaling 1.2 million barrels per day in order to stem a sinking market and support their own export-dependent economies. "OPEC plus" refers to the group's cooperation with the non-OPEC producers like Russia and other former Soviet states, as well as Mexico. Russia was more reluctant to cut its output, as its growth is heavily dependent on robust crude exports. Russia has initially let the Saudis shoulder the bulk of output cuts. The top OPEC ally, which in late 2016 began a cooperation agreement with Riyadh to stabilize oil prices, has often said that $60 per barrel is enough to meet its economic needs. Moscow in December said it would cut production by 50,000 to 60,000 barrels a day in January, while Saudi pledged a cut of 900,000 barrels. Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih arrives for a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Vienna, Austria, November 30, 2016. Saudi Arabia plans to set up a $10 billion oil refinery in Pakistan's deepwater port of Gwadar, the Saudi energy minister said on Saturday, speaking at the Indian Ocean port that is being developed with the help of China. Pakistan wants to attract investment and other financial support to tackle a soaring current account deficit caused partly by rising oil prices. Last year, Saudi Arabia offered Pakistan a $6 billion package that included help to finance crude imports. "Saudi Arabia wants to make Pakistan's economic development stable throughestablishing an oil refinery and partnership with Pakistan in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor," Saudi Energy Khalid al-Falih told reporters in Gwadar. He said Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman would visit Pakistan in February to sign the agreement. The minister added that Saudi Arabia would also invest in other sectors. Beijing has pledged $60 billion as part of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) that involves building power stations, major highways, new and upgraded railways and higher capacity ports, to help turn Pakistan into a major overland route linking western China to the world. 51-year-old Mark Cooksey, of Waldorf, Md. LA PLATA, Md. (January 12, 2019)For 51-year-old Mark Cooksey, of Waldorf, finally earning his high school diploma through the Adult Education Program at the College of Southern Maryland (CSM) allowed him to stand right some wrong turns, rewrite his future, and accomplish it allin just two months."We all have accomplished something special here and I would like to congratulate the entire class," he said during his recent graduation ceremony at CSM's Prince Frederick Campus where he served as the student guest speaker. "As you can tell just by me being here, I did not finish school. Why, you ask?"And so began Cooksey's short but deeply purposeful explanation of the speech impediment he had struggled with throughout his time in public schools. "I knew most of the answers to the questions in class, I just refused to answer them even when the teachers called upon me. At the age of 15 and being a troubled child, I was done with school and they were done with meso I was expelled."Cooksey said he struggled for the next 36 years, "working harder and longer than everyone else" moving through the ranks, and getting a job in the energy industry. "Although I was making a very good living I never felt good about myself for all those years. At least a dozen times a year, I would dream of returning to school and graduating. Deep down inside, I knew having a diploma was one of the most important things I could ever do for myself. So important, in fact, that I made my son know that dropping out of school and not getting a high school diploma was not an option for him."Cooksey explained that he kept his secret of not graduating close at hand until he was offered a promotion at work."Then it happened," he said. "They asked for a copy of my high school diploma or GED so I could finish the paperwork for my promotion and there I was with nothing to show them."At that moment, Cooksey said he decided to do something, and do it with fierce determination."The first day I met himhe asked what was the fastest anyone has done this," said CSM's National External Diploma Program (NEDP) Lead Advisor Trudy Rice, who has administered the program for 19 years."I told Mark that the quickest I had witnessed someone completing the program was three months, but it was really hard," she explained. "He (Cooksey) said, 'I'll beat that.' And he did."Cooksey earned his high school diploma in two months. Rice called Cooksey's achievement "record-breaking."Students enrolled in the NEDP program review 10 Content Areas which Rice describes as "a lot of work, but very rewarding." It offers workforce development-focused courses that assist adult students with practical, real life areas of study. Unlike the General Educational Development (GED), which is a timed test, NEDP provides a supervised study guide with material and student review provided by Rice and her fellow advisors scattered across the state at other community colleges."He came in every week and completed his work with flying colors," she said. "There he was, learning a new job, learning new software at work, being a husband, a father and studying to get his high school diploma," she said. "He was driven. It was incredible to see how hard he worked to get through the program. I started working during the weekends just to keep up with him.""One thing that was also neat about him," she continued, "was that his company gave him the promotion before he completed the program, but he completed it anyway.""The most important message I want to get out there to people with disabilities who are struggling in school is don't give up," shared Cooksey. "I want people who are handicapped in any way to believe that nothing in life can hold them back."Cooksey said that once he took the step to get his diploma, and with the guidance and support from Rice, the NEDP program was manageable."Ms. Trudy Rice helped grow my confidence and I became outgoing and eager to learn," Cooksey said. "For that, I thank you Ms. Rice. The program for me made me want to work hard and go the extra mile to accomplish my lifelong goal of having my high school diploma. Once my first paper was done, I was off and running," he shared. "Every day I worked on it. Every Sunday I hit the computer for 12 hours a day to get it done."Calling his journey "one of the best times" of his life, Cooksey said there is nothing to hold him back. "I feel more confident about myself than I ever have in my life," he added. "This achievement has secured my future. Since earning my diploma I have earned nine certifications in welding and one in thermal imaging and I plan to go back to get my steam engineers license next year."There are more than 500,000 people in the state of Maryland without a high school diploma, according to Rice, yet very few people know about the National External Diploma Program which is available at community colleges throughout the state. This web-based program for adults and out-of-school youth offers flexibility to earn a diploma. The online program allows students to work at their own pace with guidance and review from an advisor/assessor."It fits in well with our working clients who have a hard time making it to the Adult Basic Education classes we offer at the college," Rice continued."I always felt behind the eight ball," added Cooksey. "But now that I have my diploma, I can do anything. I can do everything." Carlos Ghosn, the recently ousted Nissan Motor chairman, received about $8 million in pay in 2018 from a Netherlands-based entity that was owned by both Nissan and partner Mitsubishi Motors, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The publication, citing a person familiar with Nissan's probe, reported on Sunday that the motor giant found that Ghosn signed a contract with a Dutch entity that granted him a $1.7 million signing bonus and salary of $6.7 million for the year through March 2019. The amount Ghosn reportedly made was more than any of his peers who had held his roles at Nissan, Mitsubishi and Renault SA. It undercut Ghosn's previous claim that his salary was short of his peers, the Journal said. A spokesperson for Nissan did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. Ghosn has been charged with under-reporting his income in Japan where prosecutors allege that the former Nissan chairman understated his pay in the company's financial statements by more than $80 million over eight years. Ghosn, who was removed from the company after his arrest, has denied the accusations. The $8 million alleged payments in the Journal report would be in addition to those mentioned in the charges in Japan. The entity that made the payments is called Nissan-Mitsubishi BV, was founded in the Netherlands in June 2017, with the two automakers each having half of the ownership. Ghosn managed to authorize the payments without other executives' knowledge because he had earned the board approval to have the sole authority to disburse the entity's cash in January 2018, according to The Journal's report. Nissan has been looking into a number of Dutch entities fully or partly owned by the company, including Renault-Nissan BV, jointly owned with alliance partner Renault, the Journal reported. The original Wall Street Journal report can be found on its website. OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo is largely optimistic over prospects of achieving a balanced oil market in 2019. But if one thing keeps him awake at night, it's the U.S.-China trade war's potential to disrupt growth in major Asian markets that import the highest proportion of the world's crude. "We are concerned with the lingering trade disputes," Barkindo told CNBC's Hadley Gamble while at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi Sunday. "The synchronized growth that we have witnessed since the last global financial crisis that has taken this long was also due largely to the growth in international trade." "Any measures that may impact or constrain trade may likely impact on growth and by extension on demand for energy. At the moment, outside the U.S., China and India remain the brightest spots in terms of demand for energy. So you can imagine our concern of the lingering negotiations." Mohammed Barkindo, Secretary General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries aron M. Sprecher | Bloomberg via Getty Images China is the world's largest importer of crude, and its purchases constituted 18.6 percent of total crude imports in 2017. India's booming growth is set to see it overtake China as the country with the world's largest demand for oil by 2024, according to a recent report by energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie. But if a trade war severely hit China's growth, it would send shockwaves through the rest of Asia and threaten crucial sources of income for OPEC's producers. Already, U.S. tariff pressure and dampened domestic demand have started to manifest themselves in China's economic forecasts. Reuters reported last week, citing sources with knowledge of China's economic policy, that the country is planning to set a lower growth target of 6 percent to 6.5 percent in 2019, compared with last year's target of "around" 6.5 percent. We remain cautiously optimistic that they'll be able to overcome some of the difficulties, on the premise that both the U.S. and China want these issues resolved. Mohammed Barkindo OPEC secretary general With a growing number of long-range battery-cars coming to market, Nissan's own electric vehicle, the Leaf, has been in danger of coming unplugged. But the Japanese automaker is hoping to attract potential buyers with the launch of a new model that gives a 50 percent boost to both range and performance. The new Nissan Leaf Plus will go on sale in early spring and will deliver an estimated 226 miles per charge of its lithium-ion battery. That's more than triple the range of the original Leaf which, when launched in 2010, was the world's first mainstream battery-electric vehicle, or BEV. The second-generation Leaf, launched two years ago, yielded 150 miles per charge. The latest model, which will be known as the Leaf e+ outside the U.S. and Canada, will now fall in line with a surge of long-range competitors, such as the Tesla Model S, Chevrolet Bolt EV and Hyundai Kona EV. "This deserves to be called a big bang," Denis LeVot, the CEO of Nissan North America, said during a conversation with CNBC following the debut of the 2020 Leaf Plus at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Tuesday night. A long with the boost in range, the updated battery car will also deliver better acceleration, Nissan promised. While it didn't offer specific performance figures, Japan's second-largest automaker said the updated hatchback's single electric motor will now punch out 217 horsepower, up from 147 when the second-generation Leaf launched, with torque climbing from 174 to 250 pound-feet. The Leaf Plus relies on a 62 kilowatt-hour battery pack, about 50 percent bigger than the 2017 model and the mere 24 kWh pack in the original, 2010 Leaf. Like the earlier versions, however, the latest battery-electric vehicle will remain air-cooled, rather than the more advanced liquid cooling found in its key competitors. Nissan claims the approach requires few compromises but means a less complex and thus less expensive product. The automaker won't release final pricing until the Leaf Plus goes on sale in early spring. But at a starting price of $29,990, the current model is one of the least expensive all-electric models on the market. Since the debut of the original Leaf, Nissan has sold about 365,000 to customers around the world, LeVot pointed out, making it the best-selling BEV on the market. But it has been losing momentum as new competitors have come to market. The Tesla Model 3 is now the best-seller on a monthly basis and likely to pass Leaf's overall record this year if current demand holds, according to industry analysts. "Ideally, Nissan should have had this long-range model at (the) launch" of the second-generation Leaf in 2017, said Sam Abuelsamid, a senior analyst with Navigant Research. "They absolutely needed to bring this out to remain competitive." For his part, LeVot said he is confident the long-range Leaf will help rebuild demand for Leaf in a market just beginning to embrace electrification in all its various forms. And, if anything, he added, "competition growing is not a bad thing. It is converting (more) people to electrification." By various estimates there will be as many as 100 all-electric vehicles on the market by the end of 2020, along with scores of hybrids and plug-in hybrids, the latter extending range by blending gas and electric powertrains on the same platform. Nissan was an early proponent of electrification, along with French alliance partner Renault, but it has been slow to expand its line-up at least until now. The automaker is expected to signal an acceleration of its battery strategy at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit next week. It is expected to reveal a concept vehicle that will signal the future direction of the Nissan brand. While LeVot would not discuss what's coming in Detroit, Nissan has already confirmed it's upscale Infiniti brand will also signal its battery-car plans during the auto show with its QX Inspiration concept. Nissan's global CEO Hiroto Saikawa last year announced that Infiniti will electrify virtually its entire line-up starting in 2021. During his presentation at CES, North American chief executive LeVot did confirm that there will be "eight models electrified or fully electric" available through the two brands by 2020, with the parent company expecting to sell 1 million battery cars worldwide in 2022. If anything, the increase in range with the Nissan Leaf Plus will be just the beginning, he told CNBC, suggesting that "in three to four years, we could have 300-mile" ranges on some models. That would be in line with the top products from Tesla, though some manufacturers are now looking at pushing up into 400-mile territory as lithium-ion technology improves. A number of manufacturers are using this week's CES to discuss their electrification strategies, including some new brands such as Chinese-owned Byton. It showed off a long-range model dubbed the M-byte it expects to put into production by the end of this year at a new plant in China, with U.S. sales set to begin by the third quarter of 2020. Mercedes-Benz also showed off its first long-range electric vehicle in Las Vegas, the EQC set to launch later this year. Disclosure: Paul Eisenstein is a freelancer for CNBC. His travel and accommodations for this article were paid by an automaker. Midtown Health Center will be named the UH Rainbow Babies & Childrens Ahuja Center for Women & Children in honor of Monte and Usha Ahuja, who recently donated over $10 million to the University Hospitals health center. The gift is in honor of Ahuja daughters, Manisha Ahuja Sethi and ANNAPOLIS (January 8, 2019)Despite the federal government shutdown, Comptroller Peter Franchot said there are no plans to delay processing personal income tax returns for Tax Year 2018. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Maryland remain on track to begin processing individual returns on January 28.Processing of business tax returns began January 8."Marylanders should go about their typical preparations to file their personal income tax returns," Comptroller Franchot said. "My agency is in direct communication with the IRS to monitor the situation. If there are any changes at the federal level, we will immediately notify taxpayers."The IRS has asked furloughed employees to return to the job during the shutdown to avoid any impact to the processing of tax returns.As in previous years, the Comptroller's Office will not immediately process a state tax return if W-2 information is not on file with the agency. Employers are required to report wage information to the Comptroller on or before January 31.The filing deadline for 2018 tax returns is Monday, April 15.Taxpayers are encouraged to file their returns electronically for the fastest possible processing and to ensure they receive all possible refunds. A list of approved vendors for use in filing your electronic return can be found at www.marylandtaxes.gov Free state tax assistance is available at all of the agency's 12 taxpayer service offices, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. A list of office locations can be found at www.marylandtaxes.gov For more information on any tax-related matter, please visit the Comptroller's website at www.marylandtaxes.gov or call 1-800-MD-TAXES (1-800-638-2937) or 410-260-7980 in Central Maryland. Ohio Gov. John Kasich leaves office this week with a legacy of good and bad that can best be summed up in our editorial board's very mixed assessment of him over the last eight years: We endorsed Kasich both times he ran for governor -- and lauded the mixture of political dexterity, clear-eyed financial calculations and compassion that underlay his engineering of Medicaid expansion in Ohio without putting GOP lawmakers to the test with a vote. Yet we have repeatedly lambasted him for local government cuts starting in his first term that foisted the hardships of state budget-cutting on municipalities instead of on state government itself. We applauded his administration's strong push for Lake Erie protections, but decried its failure to reposition Ohio education spending and other state investments for the future, vesting economic development instead in a nontransparent JobsOhio. And as Kasich in his second term spent less and less time in Ohio and more and more of it on national television, positioning himself for a possible 2020 presidential run, relationships with the GOP-run state legislature frayed. Yet amid our caution flags to him, we also lauded his willingness -- unlike the vast majority of GOP elected officials in Ohio -- to divorce himself from the hurtful politics of blame and recrimination of President Donald Trump. How has he done overall? Looking back over his legacy, we award John Kasich at best a C+. He has failed to position Ohio to pull out of its long-term economic mire grounded in an undereducated workforce, an aging population, a less-than-dynamic economy and a continuing decline in good-paying, middle-class jobs. Yet at the same time, he leaves important legacies for Gov.-elect Mike DeWine to preserve and build upon, including the Medicaid expansion, which halved the number of Ohioans without health insurance and expanded the resources and treatment available to drug-addicted Ohioans in the midst of a terrible opioid tsunami. John Kasich's first term opened ignominiously. Three months after his 2011 swearing-in, he and his backers rammed Senate Bill 5 through the General Assembly to bust Ohio's public employee unions, including police and fire unions. That didn't work out well. Ten months into Kasich's governorship, 62 percent of Ohioans voting on the measure killed the bill. Novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote that "there are no second acts in American lives." Yet despite SB 5, that seemingly didn't apply to Kasich, thanks to a reviving economy and the political alliances he formed later in his first term that lay behind his successful Medicaid expansion. Concurrently, Kasich also bolstered state finances, albeit on the backs of local needs. Ohio's rainy-day fund totaled 89 cents when Kasich succeeded Democrat Ted Strickland toward the end of the Great Recession. It's now $2.7 billion. As he sought a second term in 2014, Kasich also benefited from an exceptionally weak challenger in Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald. Kasich beat FitzGerald by almost 950,000 votes, carrying 86 of Ohio's 88 counties, including Cuyahoga. And while presidential ambitions may have distracted Kasich in his second term, he also won Ohio's 2016 Republican presidential primary. Still, Kasich's criticisms of Trump cost him: They sparked the unseating in 2017 of then-Republican State Chair Matt Borges, a Kasich ally, by Trump-backed Jane Timken, of the Canton industrial dynasty. And last month, a lame-duck GOP-run General Assembly defied Kasich on a range of issues. As former Gov. Richard F. Celeste, a Democrat, told Andrew J. Tobias of cleveland.com that "John has had more of a problem with his own party than I think he's had with Ohio citizens generally." Still, the bottom-line question about Kasich's governorship may be akin to one Ronald Reagan asked in 1980 on his way to the presidency: Are Ohioans better off now than they were eight years ago? The data suggest that a number in the state might answer no. Cleveland.com's Rich Exner found that Ohio under Kasich still lags the nation in the major indicators of economic health -- jobs, wages and population growth -- and inched up in only a few categories relative to other states. Annual average pay wasn't one of them. Ohio ranked 24th in the nation last year in average pay, at $49,153. And the trend lines are troubling: Ohio ranked 23rd in 2010, right before Kasich took office, and 22nd in 2006, Republican Gov. Bob Taft's final year. Under Kasich, Ohio cut its income tax (and eliminated it on the first $250,000 of self-employment or business income). But on top of the slashed aid to local governments, Ohio also boosted its sales tax and ended taxes that benefited only localities or local schools, such as the estate tax and, via Kasich's accelerated phase-out, the tangible personal property tax. That forced cuts in services and/or increases in local taxes. As for funding public schools, Ohio continues to patch rather than replace a bald tire. Medicaid expansion is a godsend to hard-pressed Ohioans. But Exner's data suggest that the middle class, Ohio's backbone, is, at best, treading water. Bettering the circumstances of those men and women, salt of the Earth Ohioans, is among the unfinished business that John Kasich has bequeathed to Mike DeWine. 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. * Use the comments to share your thoughts. Then, stay informed when readers reply to your comments by using the "Follow" option at the top of the comments, & look for updates via the small blue bell in the lower right as you look at more stories on cleveland.com. Editors Note: This is one in an occasional series that will help explain how to read your utility (gas and electric) bills. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Winter is finally here, complete with miserable temperature shifts, sunless skies and hit-or-miss lake-effect snow squalls. Its most serious impact is still to come -- heating bills that can rip through a budget like a tornado. Most homes in Northeast Ohio are heated with natural gas, and the first step in trying to save money is to examine your gas bill. The Plain Dealer has taken a closer look at a typical Dominion winter gas bill and offers an explanation below. (Columbia Gas bill will be explained in an upcoming story). Are you on budget billing? About 29 percent of Dominion Energy Ohios 1.2 million customers and 34 percent of Columbias are. That may smooth payments, but you wont know whether or not conservation efforts are working, especially if you dont even bother to receive a paper bill copy. If you are among the roughly 20 percent of Dominion and Columbia customers who have gone paperless, you are missing the most important details. You can fix that problem. Sign into your on-line account now and print a PDF copy of your last few bills. Though organized differently, each companys bills contain a wealth of information. You just have to read them. Start by asking yourself these questions: Has that deeply discounted contract you signed with a gas marketer last year reverted to a steeply priced monthly variable contract? It happens. Is the sweet deal that NOPEC promised actually competitive? If you have been riding the monthly variable price that comes with your utilitys Standard Choice Offer, or SCO, is it time to get off that pony? Or can you make it to April? More than half, 53 percent, of Columbias residential customers were using the SCO in September 2018, according to PUCO records. But only 30 percent of Dominions residential customers used the SCO. The questions to consider: Which will save you money in the long run? And can you stand the risk of an unexpectedly high winter bill? The lowest cost suppliers for years have been those participating in each utilitys SCO. But this fall, SCO prices moved higher because the industry did not salt away as much gas for winter use as it previously did. And despite record daily production of new gas from shale wells, monthly closing prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange have been choppy, ending the year with a December closing price of $4.72, the highest since the spring of 2014, following the Polar Vortex event in January. The average NYMEX monthly contract price in 2018 was just over $3 per 1,000 cubic feet. Looking ahead to spring, the NYMEX closing price Friday was $3.10 for gas delivered in February, $2.94 for March gas, $2.77 for April gas and $2.75 for May gas. Those futures can change. Fixed-price retail contracts for the gas itself, once the hands-down best deal when winter price spikes were inevitable and often severe, are still preferable if you want a guaranteed price, especially if there is another outbreak of 20-below-zero weather like in January 2014. For a look at all supplier prices, including the current Dominion and Columbia SCO, visit the PUCOs Apples to Apples supplier website. Or you can call the PUCO at 1-800-686-7826 and ask for a printed copy. One question you cant solve is why are you are paying so much in fixed monthly fees to your utility, even if you use less gas. The answer in a word is conservation. The PUCO decided a decade ago that as efficiency gains drove down average consumption levels, traditional delivery rates wouldnt give the utilities enough money to operate. They moved to fixed monthly charges. Pipeline projects have increased those charges. There have been calls for annual reviews of fixed delivery charges and more frequent full-blown delivery rate cases. You will receive 5-day a week delivery of the Citizen Tribune newspaper to your home or business, plus full, ad-free access to CitizenTribune.com as well as full access to the Electronic Edition of the newspaper. ONLY $13.99 per month for the first 3 months! Only $16.00 per month after promotional period. Or ONLY $169.99 for a full year Only $198.95 per year after promotional period. A. There needs to be a traffic light there instead. B. A roundabout will work just fine in that location. C. Roundabouts are confusing and terrible. It shouldn't happen. D. That intersection is not a priority for change, so just leave it the way it is. Vote View Results Former San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro announced Saturday that he is running for president, as more than 1,000 gathered at the West Side's historic Plaza Guadalupe to hear him speak. "I'm running for president because it's time for new leadership, because it's time for new energy and it's time for a new commitment to make sure that the opportunities that I've had are available to every American," he told supporters. Castro said he was proud to call himself a son of San Antonio, and noted that the West Side where he spoke is a community built by immigrants. "So many journeys for me and my family have begun right here," Castro told the crowd. "And today, we begin another one." FIND OUT FIRST: Get San Antonio breaking news directly to your inbox He said his story would not be possible without the strong women who came before him and passed the baton. But he said that "today we are at risk of dropping that baton" because of poor leadership. "We're going to make sure that the promise of America is available to everyone in the 21st century," he said. Castro, who also led the Department Housing and Urban Development under President Obama, is the Alamo City's first presidential hopeful. He is also one of the first in the country to join what is expected to become a very crowded Democratic field. In sometimes soaring rhetoric, he said he would push for universal healthcare, affordable housing, criminal justice and immigration reforms. "My family's story wouldn't be possible without a country that challenged itself to live up to the promise of America," Castro said. "That was the point of the American dream. It wasn't supposed to be just a dream. America was a place where dreams could become real." ON EXPRESS-NEWS.COM: The many remarkable moments of Julian Castro presidential announcement He noted that his grandmother suffered from diabetes, but received good medical care. "Thank god Medicare was there for her, it should be available for everyone in this country -- Medicare for all," he said. And he said today's immigration crisis is a "crisis of leadership" by President Trump. "We say no to building a wall and yes to building community." This is a developing story. Please check back later for more details. The Associated Press contributed to this report. HOLLYWOOD, Md. (January 10, 2019)The community swimming pool in Town Creek has been closed for the past two summers due to failing plumbing and now the group which oversees its operation, Town Creek Recreation Inc. (TCRI) wants the county to pay for the repairs and renovations to the 50-yearold pool.Cindy Cartwright, president of the Board of Directors for TCRI said at Tuesday night's public forum that 40 years ago, when TCRI gained 501c7 non-profit status that it should have been exempted from paying property taxes.She said in her testimony that perhaps neither the county nor TCRI understood that they should not have had to pay property taxes."This is an opportunity to correct an oversight that has been ongoing for 40 years," Cartwright said.She said TCRI was requesting the county reimburse the organization for $43,000 paid in property taxes from 1989 to 2018; the county's records only go back that far, Cartwright said, and that there were still other property taxes paid between 1974 and 1989 that were unaccounted for.The overall request was for $100,000 from the county to pay for the pool repairs and renovations."This would be a timely investment in one of the county's oldest communities," Cartwright said.Also at the public hearing were numerous supporters for the construction of a new community center in Lexington Park; many speakers called for accelerating the project in the county's capital improvement construction schedule.The project is currently slated for planning in 2022 at a cost of about $16 million."In case you haven't gotten the point yet, let me be pretty clear," said Marcia Greenberg. "We're not going away."Greenberg, one of the leaders of the community center effort, said it was not a small group of people seeking the center but a broad base of residents."We can spend our time getting 3,000 signatures and we will if need be, but we encourage you to take a pass on that," she said. "Listen to these voices, let's get on with it." Jared Chavis was a 19-year-old Air Force veteran with a son on the way when he was last seen in someone else's car in a CVS pharmacy parking lot on Westheimer Road. Police said there was an argument. Shots rang out. Neither Chavis or the other man have been seen since Jan. 12, 2018, and Chavis family has searched fruitlessly for answers. At a prayer vigil in Houston Saturday, they begged again for help. Their grief has been intensified mainly because justice is lacking and because they dont know what happened, said Andy Kahan, director of victims services for Crime Stoppers of Houston. Its the not knowing thats laying heavily on them. An increased reward of $10,000 is being offered for more information in the case. Chavis had only been living in Houston for two months, and was working for a satellite dish installer and pursuing an information technologies degree online. The mother of his child, who is serving in the military in Washington D.C., was several months pregnant. Chavis last spoke to his mother on Jan. 12. Later that night, police said he was was riding in the back seat of a black Ford Fusion driven by an acquaintance, apparently known as Bolt Suave. There was a disagreement. Shots were fired. Chavis didnt leave the car, witnesses later told police. Then the car, and the men, disappeared. Chavis own unlocked car was found at a nearby gated apartment complex with its seat covers removed. Chavis parents have said police think that his car was involved in a robbery and that Chavis may be a suspect in that crime. As each day drags on without any word, they fear he may also have been a victim. They have zero clue as to what happened, Kahan said. Theres a lot of questions. Chavis father, Willie Smith, is raising his grandson in Lafayette, La., and has tried to keep attention on his sons search through Facebook. The family recently spent their first Christmas without Chavis as his 9-month-old son, Ameer, laughed and played with presents. Smith said he looked at his grandson and vowed: We have to get answers for you. Anyone with more information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS. lomi.kriel@chron.com @lomikriel Detectives found blood trails and shell casings outside an Alief-area home when they showed up late Saturday, but the victim and shooter had both already fled. "We have a whole bunch of puzzle pieces at this point that we are still trying to put together," Houston police investigator C. Bowling told reporters afterward, adding that there were "some conflicting statements." HOLLYWOOD, Md. (January 10, 2019)Dr. Robert Caret, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland (USM), told community stakeholders last week that when his organization takes over the reins at the Southern Maryland Higher Education Center in just a few months, the transformation will be a harbinger of innovation and prosperity.The key piece to making that happen, he said, was the construction of the long-awaited third building at the higher education center (SMHEC) that will be a hub for research and development for unmanned and autonomous systems that can be transferred to the commercial market.The aim, Caret said, speaking at SMHEC Jan. 4, was to diversify the local economy and provide a place where local defense industry talent could find a home rather than looking to other communities for the next challenge."This will become our third regional center," Caret said, adding that such centers were far more than places for academic study, they were centers for entrepreneurship.He said the centers USM currently runs are responsible for between 300 and 400 inventions a year created by students that result in about 50 patents a year.What's more those same students are encouraged in starting businesses that apply these innovations to the marketplace."A lot of exciting things are related to technology transfer," Caret said to a full conference room at SMHEC. "A lot of this is being done by students themselves."The new research hub at SMHEC would also help serve the needs of the defense related work force already in the region by providing skilled employees and new technologies related to cyber security and data analytics, among other in-demand skills.Dr. Darryll Pines, head of the USM A. James Clark School of Engineering, said the third building could become a center for technological revolution."It's to develop skills for people in the region to go out and change the world," Pines said. "That's how I see the vision for this building."Pines estimated that the unmanned and autonomous technology base represented a $2.5 billion market in Maryland with more than 2,000 jobs.Observers at the meeting said the sheer number of officials, from the USM on down to elected leaders, helped to dispel concerns that the third building might never be constructed.Both Sen. Jack Bailey and Del. Brian Crosby attended as well as a significant number of leadership from USM. Many from the defense industry came as did others from educational institutions.Glen Ives, a member of the SMHEC Board of Governors, said the move to bring USM to St. Mary's started 10 years ago with bringing in the unmanned vehicle test site next to the county airport.Thereafter, Ives said, the momentum began to build for the USM to move more fully into the county."It made a lot of sense with what we believed SMHEC could do," Ives said. "It's incredible to see where we are today."[USM] is a $6 billion enterprise coming down to St. Mary's County; that has to be a good thing."The coming of USM with the third building could provide another economic engine to compliment the naval air station."They are that engine," Ives said. "They're that fuel to take us to that next level."The University System of Maryland has been on board since the beginning; there shouldn't be any doubt in anyone's mind that they are committed to this." Photo of the front of the residence after the fire. (Source: Office of State Fire Marshal) CHARLES COUNTY, Md. (January 3, 2019)A Deputy State Fire Marshal has charged a sixteen year-old male with arson charges stemming from a fire that occurred in early January in the 9000 block of Pep Rally Lane in Waldorf. The Investigator was requested by firefighters, who responded as a result of the 911 call.On January 2, at approximately 5:27 p.m. five firefighters from Waldorf Volunteer Fire Department responded to a call from the homeowner for a scooter that had been previously burned in the garage which was attached to the two story single family dwelling. The fire had occurred prior to the 911 call and was out upon fire department arrival.The fire caused approximately $500 in damages to the Tao Tao Motor Scooter and approximately $3,500 to the structure. The amount of smoke did activate the smoke alarms in the single family dwelling.The Deputy State Fire Marshal determined the fire was intentionally set. During the course of the investigation it was determined that the owner's son was the person responsible.No injuries related to the fire were reported.The juvenile was transported to Cheltenham Youth Detention center. He was charged with 1st and 2nd Degree Arson and Manufacturing a Destructive Device. As a result of the juvenile hearing on January 3, he was released into the custody of his father. The sun sliced the statue at an angle, highlighting the serious faces of the two men weighed down by military garb and rifles. In the shadow rests a plaque etched with people Vietnamese refugees in boats, the brass depicting a tone of somberness and fear that is carried over by the immigrants gathered nearby on Saturday morning. Every day, when I wake up and think about being deported back to Vietnam and separated from my family, that tears my heart, Robert Huynhs voice cracked. He quickly wiped tears from his eyes as he stood in front of the Vietnam Memorial in southwest Houston Saturday morning. Dozens of people stood beside him to urge the U.S. government to renew the 2008 repatriation agreement between the U.S. and Vietnam, which protects certain Vietnamese refugees from deportation. FOR SUBSCRIBERS: Border wall shutdown prevents employers from confirming immigration status The memorandum of understanding, which is set to renew on Jan. 22, bars the deportation of Vietnamese immigrants with final removal orders who arrived in the U.S. prior to July 12, 1995 the date the previously warring countries re-established diplomatic relations. But the Vietnamese community and immigration lawyers and advocates have been on high alert after the two governments reportedly met last month to discuss dissolving the agreement. If Vietnam caves to pressure from the U.S. to back out of the agreement, an estimated 9,000 Vietnamese immigrants nationwide and roughly 1,500 in Texas would be subject to deportation by the end of January. The move, immigration advocates and lawyers say, would be a devastating and unfair blow to a vulnerable population. Many came to the United States to flee the Vietnam War only to be placed in struggling neighborhoods with little or no resources. As a result, some may have looked to gangs for support they couldnt find in their homes, schools and communities. Tung Nguyen was one of those people. He was a teenager when he arrived in California as a refugee of the Vietnam War. He didnt speak English, he didnt know the culture, and for that, he was frequently bullied. I didnt know how to function, I made a mistake as a youngster and I had to pay for that with 18 years in prison, he said. He was 16 and a non-citizen when he was sent to prison, which resulted in him receiving a final order of removal. But Nguyen changed his life, becoming an advocate and mentor for other incarcerated men when he was released. I didnt know that what I did as a dumb and stupid kid was going to affect me and send me back to a country I dont even know anymore, he said. Yes, I was a criminal 30-something years ago. Today, Im a community member like everybody else. Advocates said the agreements has been tremendously important in providing humanitarian relief and protection for Vietnamese refugee. DETAINED: Afghan translator, family held at Bush Intercontinental, only at HoustonChronicle.com The government considers a criminal act by a noncitizen problematic in and of itself, thanks to major immigration law reforms passed in 1996. Those reforms expanded the definition of what is considered a felony by so many criteria, that even small crimes that are misdemeanors can be classified as aggravated felonies, Quyen Dinh, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based Southeast Asian Resource Action Center, told the Chronicle last month. Those who entered the country illegally prior to 1995, or who overstayed temporary visas would also potentially be affected by the policy change, said Khanh Pham, attorney for the refugee and asylum advocacy group Boat People SOS. State Reps. Gene Wu and Al Green attended the rally, and both said that attempting to dissolve the 2008 agreement is one of many moves in the Trump administrations zero-tolerance policy on immigration. This is an ongoing smear against the immigrant community, against the refugee community, against anyone whos not white, Wu said. Look around this city and see how rich we have made the state of Texas, how rich we have made Houston. Wu added that many of the refugees who would be affected by the agreement were refugees for a reason many of them fought with us against the Vietnamese government in the war. We are here because the U.S. was over there, Nguyen said. A man was killed late Saturday after his pickup crashed into an exit ramp on Interstate 45 in southeast Houston. It's not clear why the man lost control just before midnight in the 14100 block of Gulf Freeway service road, but he was headed south when he plowed into part of the HOV exit ramp and spun back out in the feeder lanes. In Thu Thiem new urban area, some projects have been opened for sale although their foundations have not been built to meet capital mobilization regulations. They comprise Empire City Thu Thiem and Metropole Thu Thiem which are said attractive to foreign house buyers. Apart from a sample house, the site of Empire City Thu Thiem is still an empty land. However a sale staff of the project told that some buildings of the project have been opened for sale since 2016. Although there have been no apartment sale contracts, customers have signed deposit contracts to book the location they want in the project. Some of the customers are Hongkongers who have been weighing between sale contracts and 50 years long tenancy contracts. With the former type of contract, only 30 percent of apartments in a project will be sold to foreigners and granted with pink book which is a house ownership certificate. With the later one, foreigners can buy more than that and resell to Vietnamese who are eligible for getting the certificate, told a sale staff at Empire City Thu Thiem. Similarly, nearby Metropole Thu Thiem project is a vacant land plot. The projects marketing and opening for sale has taken place at the investors headquarters in Nguyen Dinh Chieu street, District 3. An investor representative said that the company owns four unconnected land plots with the total area of 7.6 hectares. On December 14, 2018, it offered the first phase with a 450 apartment building for sale. Construction of the buildings foundation is scheduled in the first quarter this year. Customers have to leave a deposit of VND200 million to book an apartment. A sale man said that in the last opening for sale, foreigners purchased over 50 percent of apartments. The investor has given priority to foreign customers with purchase lease contracts because of complicated procedures in selling houses to foreigners. Currently, there is no instruction to implement the regulation enabling foreigners to buy houses in Vietnam. Therefore, the investor has advised foreigners to sign lease purchase contracts without pink books. The time limit of both lease purchase and sale contract to foreigners is 50 years. Relating to foreigners house purchase, CBRE company and HCMC Real Estate Association (Horea) have disagreed with each others point of view. A report by CBRE said that up to 31 percent of Chinese customers buy houses in HCMC and 10 percent are Hongkongers. Afterwards, the association said that such report has caused interference in the market. According to the associations statistics, nearly 1,000 foreigners bought houses in HCMC in 2016 and the number must have increased for the last two years. In a dialogue with businesses in August last year, the representative of the HCMC Department of Construction said that the Housing Law and Decree 99 of the Government clearly stipulate ownership certificate granting for foreign house buyers in Vietnam. Still they also stipulate that the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Defense determine projects locating in areas where foreigners are not permitted to buy houses for national security. This conflict has been reported to the Ministry of Construction and the Prime Minister for instruction. In a recent interview with Sai Gon Giai Phong Newspaper, Mr. Tran Trong Tuan, director of the HCMC Department of Construction said that there has been no produces guiding foreigners house purchase in Vietnam. Those from Europe, North America, Australia and Japan usually chose to rent apartments while those from South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan (China) and China including Hong Kong have been in the tendency of buying houses in Vietnam. The CBRE report originates from its customers while the company has mainly operated in high and middle class segments so the report does not fully reflect the entire housing market in HCMC. Regarding the information that some Chinese have never been to Vietnam but they have already bought houses in the country, Horea said that does not abide by the Vietnam law. Talking about foreigners' house purchase while there has been no specific instructions to implement the Housing Law, Lawyer Ho Ngoc Diep from HCMC Bar Association said that it is highly risky for the buyers because their house purchase is not protected by the law. In case of conflicts, that they usually receive disadvantages. In addition, it might be investors trick announcing that their future apartments have been sold foreign customers to advertise their projects. So Vietnamese customers should consider legal aspects of projects, for instance if the projects are eligible for sale and whether they are guaranteed by banks. They should not decide to buy because the projects have foreign buyers to prevent from spending money and getting worse. By LUONG THIEN - Translated by Hai Anh Jose Manuel Tiscareno Hernandez An undocumented immigrant has been arrested in Conroe for alleged aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office. Jose Manuel Tiscareno Hernandez, 31, who the sheriffs office said has been deported to Mexico on multiple occasions, is currently in the Montgomery County Jail, and an U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold had been requested due to the crime as well as his current immigration status. Montgomery County Sheriff's Office A 31-year-old man has been arrested for the sexual assault of a child, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office. Jose Manuel Tiscareno Hernandez was arrested around 8:30 a.m. Saturday in Conroe, the release said. Hernandez began abusing the child when they were only 11 years old. After Hurricane Harveys visit in August 2017, Wendy Duncan co-founded with Marlin Williford an advocacy group called Barker Flood Prevention. Its goal, according to www.barkerfloodprevention.org, is obtaining immediate and substantial flood control solutions for Barker Reservoir, both the upstream and downstream, as well as the Greater Houston Area. Its initial community forum addressing issues and possible solutions on July 12, 2018, drew about 100 people to Kingsland Baptist Church. Where did you grow up and go to school? I grew up in New Braunfels and went to public school until fourth grade when I began attending a private school in San Antonio where my mother taught. I graduated from Texas A&M with a bachelor of science degree in interdisciplinary studies with a math emphasis and then earned a masters degree in education administration from the University of Houston. What brought you to Katy? After the birth of our first child, my husband and I moved from the Heights in Houston to Katy for the excellent schools and the amenities of Cinco Ranch such as parks, pools and trails. How did you become involved with the Willow Fork Drainage District and Houston Stronger? In 2011, Willow Fork Drainage District (WFDD) was seeking to pass a bond program for the purpose of building additional parks and trails within its boundaries. Part of the bond program included allocation of funds to each of the 10 schools within the districts boundaries to make improvements to the schools outdoor spaces utilized by the public during non-school hours. At that time, I was the PTA president of Williams Elementary, and one of the WFDD board members, April Renberg, engaged the PTAs to encourage awareness of the bond program. Our PTA passed a resolution in support of WFDDs bond program. Several years later, April resigned from WFDDs board because she and her husband were moving out of state, and she asked me to put my name in as a candidate for her position. After an interview with the board, I was chosen from four candidates who applied. Several months later, Hurricane Harvey hit our area, and I was thankful to have crucial and helpful information to give to our community during and after that crisis. In the aftermath of Harvey, I learned from WFDDs legal counsel, Steve Robinson, that the solutions to Houstons flooding problems had been known for decades but had only been partially implemented. I felt compelled to work toward acquiring additional flood mitigation for our region. With the help of my friend, Michelle Anderson, we set up meetings with local, state and federal officials to deliver Steves powerful message of a better path forward for flood control for the Greater Houston Area. During this time, Steve invited me to be a part of the Houston Stronger which had been working toward this goal for many years. Houston Stronger is a coalition of civic groups, business associations and active citizens from throughout the Texas Gulf Coast region dedicated to working with government officials to implement a comprehensive regional flood and storm resiliency plan that safeguards our citizens and property. What led you to form Barker Flood Prevention? An active and engaged community is the key ingredient to successful and positive change in society. Through an introduction by Steve Robinson, Marlin Williford and I met in June of 2018 to discuss ways we could join efforts to produce immediate and substantial flood control solutions for upstream and downstream of Barker Reservoir. Marlin suggested that we form a coalition to help educate the public about the 2018 Harris County Flood Control District Bond Program and lend support for its approval by voters. Barker Flood Prevention was quickly formed, and our first community meeting featuring Steve Robinsons presentation was held three weeks later. From that meeting, several community members emerged with offers to lend expertise to our efforts. Barker Flood Preventions Steering Committee was formed from these volunteers and include a hydrologist, engineers, and marketing and financial experts. After the passage of the HCFCD bond, Barker Flood Prevention held our second community meeting featuring speakers from HCFCD, Fort Bend County Drainage District and Willow Fork Drainage District. A third community meeting is being planned for February which will feature the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. What are the goals of Barker Flood Prevention and how are you working to achieve those goals? The purpose of the Barker Reservoir Flood Prevention advocacy group is to identify and promote immediate and substantial flood control projects in the Barker Reservoir Area, both upstream and downstream. We are using community meetings, our website www.barkerfloodprevention.org, our Facebook Page @barkerfloodprevention, and newsletters sent via email to educate the public about flood control solutions for the Barker Reservoir Area and to inspire the public to advocate for these solutions. We are working with federal, state and local government officials and agencies such as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to realize the execution of these flood control solutions. We have been fortunate to develop positive relationships with those that serve our community in positions of influence and authority. We will remain steadfast in our resolve to get these solutions completed as well as empower and support community groups who are working to implement solutions in support of flood control initiatives. What is the groups role relative to the Harris County Drainage District? Barker Flood Prevention has developed a very positive working relationship with HCFCD. I see our role relative to HCFCD as a support for their initiatives to restore the drainage systems from the damage from Harvey as well as deliver additional flood mitigation to provide more protection from future events. We support their effort to restore channels to original capacity, build additional retention and detention facilities and study the feasibility of infrastructure such as the flood tunnel. Should development below the Barker Reservoir be stopped until flood control measures are in place? Much of the area downstream of Barker Reservoir is already developed and was built before the 2009 TCEQ standards were put into place. According to the study conducted by Meyers Research, https://meyersresearchllc.com, Hurricane Harvey: Impact of Harvey on Houston MUDs, newer developments fared very well in this unprecedented event with only 3 percent of homes flooded during Harvey built after 2009 as compared with 65 percent of the flooded homes built before 1981. One of the conclusions from this study is when we learn more about flooding and implement stricter regulation, home flooding is reduced. We need to focus on responsible development which adheres to the regulations put in place to provide protection of life and property as well as retrofitting older neighborhoods to meet these standards through additional retention and detention facilities, increased channel conveyance, home modifications, and/or buyouts. Is flooding getting worse in the region? The Greater Houston Area has experienced devastating flooding for over 100 years. We have built infrastructure which has helped to reduce flooding. However, in this decade we have experienced rainfall events which are producing greater volumes of precipitation in shorter amounts of time. NOAA has released the new Atlas 14 map. Local governments such as Fort Bend County have responded by changing the standards for the 100-year rain event (1 percent chance that a structure will flood in a given year). The old standard was 12.5 inches in a 24-hour time period; the new standard recently adopted is 16.5 inches in a 24-hour time period. The result is that more flood mitigation and infrastructure will be needed to keep homes out of the 100-year flood plain. In recent memory, Tropical Storm Alicia, Hurricane Ike and Hurricane Harvey all caused historic flooding. Is overdevelopment to blame? During the flood of 1935, an 8-inch rain event over Houston with 10-20 inches falling on the largely undeveloped prairie land to the northwest of Houston caused Buffalo Bayou to come out of its bank and create a raging river flowing through the streets of Downtown Houston. The problem in that storm was not overdevelopment of natural lands; the problem was that our natural lands are composed of high run-off soils such as clay. These soil compositions are what made our area excellent for rice farming. The clay acts much like concrete and prevents water from absorbing past the clay barrier. In response to a series of floods in the 1920s and 1930s, the citizens demanded flood control which resulted in the construction of Barker and Addicks Reservoirs. Other solutions proposed in the same U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 1940s Study were not constructed the Cypress Creek Levee, Buffalo Bayou improvements, the North and South Canal and the White Oak Bayou Reservoir. If all of this infrastructure had been constructed, it seems obvious that Houston would have experienced less flooding over the years. I believe lack of adequate flood control infrastructure caused loss of life and property damage in the flood of 1935, and the lack of adequate flood control infrastructure is what is causing on-going loss of life and property damage from flooding today. We cannot design a system to alleviate 100 percent of flooding in a Harvey situation, but we can build infrastructure that will help control and reduce chronic flooding in seasonal rain events. Who has been most helpful with your efforts? Steve Robinson has been instrumental in getting me involved in working on this issue. He has worked tirelessly for many years to bring Houston world-class flood control for our world-class city. Matt Zeve and Matt Lopez from Harris County Flood Control have been a fantastic example of how government entities should engage the community with transparency and professionalism. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has been exceptionally responsive to Barker Flood Prevention. We have participated in Stakeholders Meetings, received a briefing and tour of Barker Reservoir, and met with leaders in project management to discuss a project which would increase the capacity of the reservoir. My partner, Marlin Williford, has been a steadfast source of energy moving our organization in the right direction. I appreciate his tenacity and positivity. The citizens who volunteer their time and talents on the Steering Committee are to be commended: Patrick Friend, Erich Schroeder, Libby Clark, David Clark, Susana Dias, James Uhl, Chancie Davis and Tim Miller. Has there been any opposition? Finding a solution for the Cypress Creek Overflow has brought to light some differences of opinion. In the end, the priority has to be protecting people. Generations before us gifted us with two reservoirs that have protected the people of our city for many decades. It is now time for us to show the political will to build flood control infrastructure which protect us and future generations. karen.zurawski@chron.com Church raising money to help workers affected by US government shutdown As the partial federal government shutdown moves toward a fourth week, a historic church in Memphis, Tennessee, has stepped in to help their affected members weather an uncertain period of missed paychecks. Pastor Donald Johnson of Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church told News Channel 3 that a few of his members work for government agencies such as the IRS. So when he first heard about the shutdown he began proactively looking at ways to help. "I just realized people were going to be affected by it, and we didn't want to spend any time just arguing and fighting about what the president is doing," Johnson said. He combed through the church's database and found eight members who were federal workers. He then collected an offering and had the church's financial board match what was collected and was able to raise $8,000. The affected workers were asked to stand in church on Sunday and were given nearly $1,000 each. "We didn't want to look at them as a handout or people that were asking, but we wanted to be kind of proactive in that area," Johnson said. Church member Janice Bankston who has worked for the IRS for nearly 35 years, told Fox 13 that she survived being furloughed before but this shutdown feels a bit different. She added that the past few weeks have been stressful. "The uncertainty of what's going to happen, how soon we can return, don't know how you're going to pay your bills," Bankston told Fox 13. Wall Street Journal opinion columnist Kimberly Strassel noted that unlike other shutdowns like Obama's 16-day shutdown in 2013 in which "the administration immediately furloughed workers and cut pay for private contractors," and shut down Head Start and placed barricades around the World War II memorial President Trump told the Office of Management and Budget to make "this event as painless as possible." "Yet there are no legal fixes for some truly painful effects including Friday's missed paycheck for 800,000 federal workers," Strassel added. While there will be no further payments for food stamps or for the Coast Guard, she noted that under the partial federal shutdown some agencies can continue to function to protect safety and human life and property, "as well as in aid of the president's fulfilling constitutional duties." As a result, programs such as Social Security and Medicare fall under "indefinite" appropriations and must continue during the shutdown. For example, even though the Social Security Administration and Treasury Department are both technically shut down, they have to process Social Security checks that operate under continuous appropriations as well as tax refunds. Bankston received her pay two weeks ago and expects to be pain on Friday but said it wouldn't be her full paycheck and she wouldn't have much left after taxes are deducted. "It's very scary, I've been able to get some creditors to put off receiving a payment and some are saying no you have to bring the payment on in," Bankston explained. "It's very scary to know you're not going to have any income coming in." Reacting to the assistance from her church, she said: "I didn't see it coming, but I am grateful, very grateful." Johnson told Fox 13 that he's hoping other churches will mobilize and help their affected members, and noted that if they have to help affected members financially again, they will. He's praying, however, that the shutdown will end. "We'll do it again if it goes on. We're praying that things change but if it doesn't, we're not going to let them go without, how about that!" Johnson said. Christians must offer hope in face of division and fear over Brexit, says bishop The Bishop of Leeds has called for an end to the Brexit 'mudslinging' as he urged Christians to offer an alternative message. Writing in his blog, the Rt Rev Nick Baines said Christians needed to give hope to people in the 'current dangerous circumstances of division and insecurity and growing fear'. With Britons remaining sharply divided over Brexit, he said that it should be a 'priority' for everyone, including the nation's leaders, to pay attention to their language. 'I have repeatedly pleaded for our legislature to watch its language and do something to redeem our articulated common life,' he said. 'Everyone agrees, but many then promptly revert to the categorising and mudslinging.' He warned that the rise of populism not only in the UK but across Europe and in the US risked reducing public discourse to 'the trading of competing slogans devoid of substantive vision' and creating a 'culture that confuses patriotism with nationalism' . Days away from a key Brexit vote in Parliament, Bishop Baines said the Brexit debate was no longer about political vision or substance and had instead become 'visceral and emotional'. 'Poor people might well get considerably poorer, but many would still vote to leave, anyway,' he said. 'But, Christians are not driven by fear; we are drawn by hope. A hope that comes to us from the future resurrection. It is a hope that should not be confused with fantasy.' He urged Christians to question the 'dualistic language being used to perpetuate a common sense of crisis, and to divide people according to notions of who is in and who is out'. Instead, he said the church needed to consider the voiceless and 'resist those who offer simplistic (but emotionally appealing) solutions to complex questions'. 'We must question what we are being fed through media, and question which values are being driven by which people, especially when charismatic leaders are involved,' he said. 'We must insist on integrity, on consistency within clear moral frameworks, on the place of head over heart when making big decisions that have consequences for many people.' China creates church-free zones around schools; Communists want Christians to lose faith: believer Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment The Chinese government is creating church-free zones around schools and is requiring places of worship to submit the names of their youth members. Bitter Winter magazine, which reports on Christian persecution in China, said it recently obtained a copy of the document, titled "Implementation Plan on the Special Governance of Private Christian Gathering Sites" in the northern Shanxi Province. Another document, issued by the Religious Affairs Bureau, declares: All private Christian gathering sites around universities and colleges, as well as on-campus activity sites, are to be shut down in accordance with the law. Criticism and (re)education of participating teachers and students is to be carried out by the school authorities. The church closures affect all houses of worship, including the government-approved Three-Self Church. When talking about the forced closures near schools, government officials have warned that there will be no reversal of the decision in the future. As for the demands that churches hand over a list of university students who attend gatherings, believers have said they're worried the government will use it to affect their employment prospects. Speaking of church meeting venues that were closed in 2018 in Hebei, Shanxi, and Shandong, one believer who wasn't named said: By being so strict in preventing minors from believing in God, the Chinese Communist Party is seeking to sever the roots so that the next generation loses its faith. As various persecution watchdog groups, including International Christian Concern, have noted, the crackdown on churches in China, which extends beyond churches closing near schools, stems from the new Regulations on Religious Affairs that was issued last year. Under these new rules, the Chinese governments control over the religious faith of minors has reached its highest level since the Cultural Revolution, Bitter Winter magazine noted. In addition to forbidding religious facilities near schools, the regulations mandate investigating the beliefs of students and their parents; prohibiting minors from believing in God; and closing Sunday schools. The faith of children has been a particularly controversial subject. In October, World Watch Monitor reported that a trusted local source revealed that more than 300 Christian children at two high schools in Zhejiang have been asked to fill out a form stating that they have no religion. While "it is normal for a school to ask parents to fill out a form which includes questions of faith when a child is first enrolled in school, for many years this hasn't been an issue," the source said at the time. "In this case, however, the children were handed a questionnaire in class about faith, which is not normal. It seems this is part of the new push to identify Christians and give them pressure of one sort or another, the source added. "Children in this part of China would write 'Christian' because of 1) their innocence and 2) they come from families of fervent believers who do not compromise their faith." Email Whatsapp Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment If you want to feel small, just imagine moving at 34 thousand miles per hour for forty years and gettingastronomically speakingnowhere. Late last year, the Voyager 2 space probe became the second craft to ever leave our solar system. Now 11 billion miles from earth, it is one of the farthest-flung man-made objects in existence. And it was launched in 1977. Because there are different ways of defining the solar system, we should be precise. The American Geophysical Union in Washington reports that Voyager 2s sensors recently detected a sudden dip in radiation and magnetism, which marks the boundary of what astronomers call the heliosphere, our suns protective bubble of particles and magnetism. In other words, the probe is now beyond our stars most significant influences and is hurtling into interstellar spaceliterally the space between the starsat 34 thousand miles per hour. Its departure from the heliosphere is big news because, unlike its twin, Voyager 1, Voyager 2 is still transmitting data back to us here on earth, providing first-of-its-kind observations of the nature of this unexplored space. Voyager 2 was originally designed to observe the gas giants Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptunea mission it completed back in 1989. But scientists now think the aging probe might hold together as late as 2027, depending on how long its plutonium fuel source provides power. The accomplishment of both Voyager probes is unparalleled. Still, astronomically speaking, theyve only just stepped outside our front door, and barely entered the larger stellar neighborhood. It will take Voyager 2 another 40 thousand years to approach the nearest star to our sunwhich together occupy only a fraction of the Orion Arm of the Milky Way galaxy. The Milky Way, in turn, is just one of at least 100 billion galaxies in the visible universe. In the distant reaches of space, there are stars so much bigger than our sun they defy description. The longtime record-holder for largest known star is VY Canis Majoris, a red hypergiant over two thousand times the size of our sun. To give you an idea of the scale were talking about, if VY Canis Majoris replaced our sun, it would engulf most of the inner planets of the solar system, including Earth. Voyager 2s journey is a constant reminder to us of the enormity of the universe. I dont know about you, but the distances and objects visible in the night sky make me dizzy; they confront me with the realization of how little I seem to matter by comparison which is exactly the reaction God wanted us to have. Our own wonder ought to echo the Psalmist, who sang: When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Godthe Creator of VY Canis Majorisanswered that question, but not ultimately in words. Instead, He came to dwell with His people, first through the Ark in the Tabernacle, and ultimately in the Incarnation of Jesus Christ. Though it boggles the mind, the maker of the Milky Way chose this little planet to reveal Himself most fully and personally. By doing this, He bridged a gulf that makes the space between our stars seem smallthe separation between an infinitely holy God and sinners like us who are doomed to death. Against this backdrop of our cosmic insignificance, we can better appreciate Gods lovewhich He demonstrated by (as Eugene Peterson once put it) coming to our neighborhood. Thank God, since we cant even build a probe able to leave our interstellar neighborhood. And before I close, dont forget that the Colson Center is offering a one-year subscription to WORLD Magazine, an outstanding Christian news source, with your next donation to the Colson Center. Check it out at BreakPoint.org. Resources NASA's Voyager 2 probe 'leaves the Solar System', Victoria Gill | BBC News | December 10, 2018 The biggest stars in the universe, O'Callaghan | Spaceanswers.com | May 16, 2012 Originally published at Breakpoint. Church raises money to help furloughed federal workers during gov't shutdown Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment As the partial federal government shutdown moves toward a fourth week, a historic church in Memphis, Tennessee, has stepped in to help their affected members weather an uncertain period of missed paychecks. Pastor Donald Johnson of Oak Grove Missionary Baptist Church told News Channel 3 that a few of his members work for government agencies such as the IRS. So when he first heard about the shutdown he began proactively looking at ways to help. I just realized people were going to be affected by it, and we didnt want to spend any time just arguing and fighting about what the president is doing," Johnson said. He combed through the churchs database and found eight members who were federal workers. He then collected an offering and had the churchs financial board match what was collected and was able to raise $8,000. The affected workers were asked to stand in church on Sunday and were given nearly $1,000 each. We didnt want to look at them as a handout or people that were asking, but we wanted to be kind of proactive in that area," Johnson said. Church member Janice Bankston who has worked for the IRS for nearly 35 years, told Fox 13 that she survived being furloughed before but this shutdown feels a bit different. She added that the past few weeks have been stressful. The uncertainty of whats going to happen, how soon we can return, dont know how youre going to pay your bills, Bankston told Fox 13. Wall Street Journal opinion columnist Kimberly Strassel noted that unlike other shutdowns like Obama's 16-day shutdown in 2013 in which "the administration immediately furloughed workers and cut pay for private contractors," and shut down Head Start and placed barricades around the World War II memorial President Trump told the Office of Management and Budget to make "this event as painless as possible." "Yet there are no legal fixes for some truly painful effects including Fridays missed paycheck for 800,000 federal workers," Strassel added. While there will be no further payments for food stamps or for the Coast Guard, she noted that under the partial federal shutdown some agencies can continue to function to protect safety and human life and property, "as well as in aid of the presidents fulfilling constitutional duties." As a result, programs such as Social Security and Medicare fall under indefinite appropriations and must continue during the shutdown. For example, even though the Social Security Administration and Treasury Department are both technically shut down, they have to process Social Security checks that operate under continuous appropriations as well as tax refunds. Bankston received her pay two weeks ago and expects to be paid on Friday but said it wouldnt be her full paycheck and she wouldnt have much left after taxes are deducted. Its very scary, Ive been able to get some creditors to put off receiving a payment and some are saying no you have to bring the payment on in, Bankston explained. Its very scary to know youre not going to have any income coming in. Reacting to the assistance from her church, she said: I didnt see it coming, but I am grateful, very grateful. Johnson told Fox 13 that he's hoping other churches will mobilize and help their affected members, and noted that if they have to help affected members financially again, they will. He's praying, however, that the shutdown will end. Well do it again if it goes on. Were praying that things change but if it doesnt, were not going to let them go without, how about that! Johnson said. Christian legal group pushes back against 'false reporting' insinuating it supports lynching gays Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A Christian legal defense group is pushing back against mainstream media coverage of its position on an anti-lynching bill, saying it is now receiving death threats because of the "false reporting." In an interview with OneNewsNow earlier this week, Mat Staver, who heads the religious liberty firm Liberty Counsel, explained that while no one can or should oppose a bill banning lynching, there were provisions in it that served an ill purpose. "The old saying is once that camel gets the nose in the tent, you can't stop them from coming the rest of the way in," Staver explained. "And this would be the first time that you would have in federal law mentioning gender identity and sexual orientation as part of this anti-lynching bill," which would make lynching a federal crime. Those categories were slipped into the legislation in an amendment in order to go for the proverbial jugular vein of religious freedom at a future time, he said, adding that his organization was talking to lawmakers in the House of Representatives to urge them to strip the bill of that amendment prior to voting. Reports soon emerged indicating that the group somehow supported removing protections from gays and lesbians from the anti-lynching bill. "Some media have falsely reported that Liberty Counsel is opposed to banning lynching, or, opposes banning lynching of LGBT people. Such reporting is false, reckless, and offensive" the group said in a Thursday statement. "In fact, Mat Staver said, 'No one can or should oppose a bill that bans lynching.' We oppose lynching across the board for any person. Period! The bill in question created a list of protected categories, thus limiting the application of the law. Lynching should be prohibited no matter the persons reason for committing this violent crime, Staver said. "Evangelical group wants gays removed from anti-lynching bill" read the headline from an NBC News report Wednesday. Newsweek's headline read "Evangelical 'Hate Group' Lobbies to Remove LGBT protections from anti-lynching bill." Both mainstream publications cited the Southern Poverty Law Center's designation of Liberty Counsel as a "hate group" to frame their reporting. Jonathan Alexandre, an African-American and director of public policy for LC in Washington, D.C., expressed disgust. "As an African-American, I am likewise outraged over the false narrative that the media is spinning of Liberty Counsel's position here," he said in video posted to YouTube Thursday. The systematic torture and abuse of African-Americans throughout history is this countrys greatest disgrace. Some politicians and media have tried to use this horrible history to push unrelated political agendas by hijacking a serious issue. Lynching is wrong for all people despite the reason for targeting a victim. He reiterated: "There is no proper comparison here. And there is no excuse for this false narrative." The legal group said they have received death threats as a direct result of the misleading narrative that has been furthered in the press. One person, whose identity is being traced, said, All LC leaders must die. "The media and those with a political axe to grind must exercise caution when reporting or using social media. False reporting endangers lives," LC's statement concluded. Liberty Counsel was founded in 1989 and is an international nonprofit, litigation, education, and policy organization that defends religious freedom and the sanctity of life. City of Denver bans 'conversion therapy' for minors Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment The city of Denver recently outlawed what has been commonly referred to as "gay conversion therapy" for minors, the first jurisdiction in the state of Colorado to do so. In a unanimous vote Monday, the city council approved a ban on the practice. "Tonights vote to ban conversion therapy is our city coming together and saying with one voice that we will never allow our LGBTQ+ youth to be the targets of these dubious practices, and that we are here to support them," Denver Mayor Michael Hancock said in a statement his office released. "Who they are is something to be celebrated, not maligned, and Denver will always be there to lift up our youth and ensure that they have the opportunity to grow up safe, happy and healthy. The proposal is aimed at state-licensed therapists in the city who say being gay or transgender is a mental illness. The practice is presently banned for minors in nine states. The Colorado General Assembly attempted to pass such a ban in 2018 and on other occasions but never succeeded. The legislative body is expected to consider a similar proposal this year, local reports say, and it is expected to pass given that Democrats will soon take charge of the state Senate. Others say the move is based on a deceptive premise, framing all counseling care by potential outliers. "Rather than providing compassionate ethical counseling options for youth who have unwanted same-sex attraction, Denver followed a fascist protocol initiated first in California to ban talk therapy for kids who do not want to be gay," said Anne Paulk of the Restored Hope Network, now based in Colorado, in a statement to The Christian Post Thursday. The city is "using scare tactics such as the term conversion therapy to conjure images of aversion therapy used in the 1950s if at all." "Based on that false or outdated information, Denver followed the politically motivated pathway that 20 other American states have rejected. Counseling need not happen only for mental illness; if so, where would marital counseling be?" she said. "Compassionate care should be client directed, not government ordered." Clients should lead their goals, not the government, Paulk stressed. "The city of Denver has joined several other municipalities and states who have passed such counseling room speech intrusion policies and laws. These are currently under review in the courts and may go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in the next few years," she said. The subject of counseling as it is related to same-sex attraction and other sexual issues appeared in the decision of a Supreme Court case last year, NIFLA v. Becerra, a ruling in favor of a network of crisis pregnancy centers in California that sued the state over a law requiring them to advertise for and promote abortion services. Writing for the majority, Associate Justice Clarence Thomas likened the speech of the professionals working at the pregnancy centers to that of counselors, citing Pickup v. Brown and King v. Governors of New Jersey. In those cases, courts ruled that bans on sexual orientation change efforts were not constitutional since the speech of the counselor is classified as professional "conduct" and is not fully protected under the First Amendment. Thomas explained that certain appeals courts "have recognized 'professional speech' as a separate category of speech that is subject to different rules," yet "speech is not unprotected merely because it is uttered by 'professionals.'" New 'Visual Commentary on Scripture' website offers new way to study the Bible Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A new $2 million web project launched by King's College London is offering users a new way to visually digest biblical Scripture through the analyses of classic and contemporary works of art. In November, the United Kingdom-based public research university officially launched a website titled Visual Commentary on Scripture, thevcs.org, a project that has been over a year in the making and was made possible by a donation from billionaire U.S.-based philanthropists Roberta and Howard Ahmanson. The project, which aims to cover every book in the Christian Bible, uses works of historic and modern visual art that reflect messages found within passages of Scripture. According to the projects director, the VCS aims to make it easier for people to see the bridge between the historic traditions of Christianity and the art world. What we are seeing now, and I think it is a new moment in Christian history, more Protestant and Evangelical churches have a very strong desire of wanting to use a visual language in the mission, Kings College professor of Christianity and the arts Ben Quash told The Christian Post on Friday. Visual language is a new kind of currency among young people who talk to each other all the time in visual language by sharing images on [social media.] So churches who want to communicate the Gospel for young people who talk in images are having to take images seriously. I think that is very exciting because it means that there is a new opportunity to draw people into reading the Bible through using visual arts. Each passage of scripture included in the VCS will have three accompanying works of visual art that all relate to the biblical passage in question. Each painting associated with the scripture will have their own commentaries written by a select writer or author. The commentaries of the paintings reflect on the historical perspective of the time period the artwork was completed as well as perspectives on the passages of Scripture they are associated with. As of now, there are nearly 100 passages of scripture completed by the project, each with their own three paintings and accompanying reflections. One example is the VCS exhibition of the Sermon on the Mount, which is accompanied by a 14811482 fresco by Italian painter Cosimo Roselli, a 1442 fresco by Italian painter Fra Angelico and a 1598 oil painting by Flemish painter Jan Brueghel the Elder. According to Quash, the goal is to have over 1,500 scripture exhibitions included in the project with about 240 being produced per year. The shortest scriptural passage in the project currently is two verses long and the longest passage is three chapters. Quash, who joined King's College London as its first professor of Christianity, told CP that the goal to reach 1,500 exhibitions could take five years or more. But Quash believes the project will enable people to read the Bible in a new way. This is something that people wherever they are they can engage with a short passage of Scripture and have their imagination kindled by the works of art and be stimulated to come into the presence of the biblical text through their hand-held devices and [computers], Quash stated. Wherever they are, they have an invitation to read the biblical text through the attractiveness of visual imagery. That for us is a big motivation. We can reach people who probably wouldnt otherwise be reading the Bible and also enriching people who have a great relationship with the Bible already by giving them new ways to explore, new ways to relate to it. As the exhibitions are composed by various authors, Quash maintains that he and his Kings colleagues maintain a very high level of standard. Although we want to reach a very wide public, nevertheless it is a scholarly project, Quash, who heads the first master's program in the world that is a joint enterprise between a theology school and a major international art gallery (the National Gallery in London), said. Those who write for it have to write for a non-specialist audience. We expect them to do their homework and go and read about the Bible passage and read about the way it has been interpreted historically and read about the works of art that they want to use. They dont just go throwing out their opinions but actually ground them in detailed research. It will be a more enduring resource as a result of that. Quash said that the biggest challenge the project faces is getting artwork and writers from outside of North America and Europe. The project does already include a few pieces of art from Latin America, Asia, and Africa. It is very important to me that we have art and people writing from beyond the Western world, Quash stressed. Quash also aspires to have the VCS available in several world languages, including Chinese. He is also hopeful the VCS will be used an educational resource in schools and colleges throughout the world. Someone might give it as a class assignment and tell their students: Go and look at this art. It has been arranged on the VCS site and your project is to go and do your own exhibition, Quash imagined. That will get them thinking about the text and visual art in relation to the text. According to Quash, the project was partly inspired by the Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, a multi-volume book set in which the biblical text is surrounded by classical commentary from early church theologians. The idea was to get people to realize the depth of the commentary tradition in the early centuries of Christianity and give them an opportunity to read the Bible in the company of the great early church theologians, Quash said. Instead of textual commentary gathered around the Bible passages, what we did was works of art that people selected [and explained] how the [biblical] texts interact with the works of art. In a way, the nearest model we have is this Ancient Christian Commentary. But it takes a big step beyond that by going into the visual realm. Hollywood actor cut from ABC show for refusing to do sex scenes is glad he stuck by Christian values Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Actor Neal McDonough says he was blacklisted in Hollywood for several years because he refused to perform sex scenes. Known for his performances in Band of Brothers, Minority Report and Desperate Housewives, the Catholic actor recently opened up about his strong Christian convictions and said it cost him his job on ABCs Scoundrels series in 2010. It was a horrible situation for me, he told Closer Weekly of being fired for refusing to perform sex scenes with co-star Virginia Madsen. After that, I couldnt get a job because everybody thought I was this religious zealot. I am very religious. I put God and family first, and me second. Thats what I live by. It was hard for a few years. The Boston native has had a no sex scenes policy for most of his 30-year career and not even his stint in Desperate Housewives, a highly sexualized series, made him compromise his rule. When Marc Cherry signed me, I said, Im sure you know, but I wont kiss anybody, McDonough recalled telling the Desperate Housewives creator. He was like, But this is Desperate Housewives! I said, I know. He paused for about five seconds and said, All right, Im just going to have to write better. And we had a great time. McDonough and his wife of 16 years, South African model Ruve Robertson, have five children together. The loyal husband said he also refuses to kiss his co-stars because these lips are meant for one woman. Despite being fired from Scoundrels in 2010 for standing by his convictions, McDonough celebrated his decision. He said his career has been phenomenal ever since. Almost 20 years, five kids and just one heck of an awesome life later, to have her as my partner in everything, Im just the most blessed guy I know, the 57-year-old said. Thats why I go to church every day and say thank you to God for everything Hes given me. And most importantly, thank you for giving me Ruve, because, without her, I most certainly would not be talking with you right now. McDonough isn't the only actor whose spoken about being temporarily blacklisted in Hollywood for their religious or political beliefs. In an interview with The Christian Post last year, 30-year TV and film star Antonio Sabato Jr. said he's been barred from Hollywood because of his faith. "They don't want to say Jesus; they don't even want to mention His name. It's a shame! They need Jesus. I think Jesus needs to be more relevant to everyone in Hollywood," said Sabato who told CP he was shunned for being conservative and for supporting President Trump. "... if you talk about this president or being a conservative, you'll be blacklisted. I was completely blacklisted from Hollywood." College Campus Ministries leader offers 6 necessary changes for reaching the next generation' Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment A director for a California-based ministry that seeks to evangelize college students offered six important adjustments he believes American churches should undertake when reaching young people. GJoe Joseph of Campus Outreach San Diego out of Redeemer Church in Encinitas, wrote a column published by The Gospel Coalition titled 6 Needed Shifts for Reaching the Next Generation. By no means are we proposing that we shift away from clear biblical teaching on important truths such as our legal guilt before God, clarified Joseph. We are merely saying that shifting intuitions may require new starting places in evangelistic conversations and discipleship relationships. The first shift Joseph advised was to move away from the assumption that a preachers audience is going to be knowledgeable about the Bible. At least on the West Coast, the days have long past when one could start talking about Jesus and assume people knew his identity and claims, wrote Joseph. To justify this point, Joseph pointed to Acts 17, where the Apostle Paul used different methods when communicating the Gospel to non-Jewish audiences. The apostle Paul, who was quick to jump into the message of Jesus with Jewish audiences, shifted his approach when speaking to the unprepared Athenians, Joseph explained. Unlike his typical messages laden with Old Testament references and Jewish assumptions, he was patient, contemplative, and slow with unprepared audiences. Joseph also advised evangelists to shift to emphasize shame before guilt, a dialogue-oriented form of discipleship, winsome boldness, to shift from apologetics to hospitality, and to create a developmental approach to ministry. Ministering to younger generations demands that we disciple the whole person for all of life. In the past, much discipleship started in the spiritual realm, wrote Joseph. But upcoming generations need mentoring that helps to press Christianity into practical areas like finances, relationships, faith and work, and countless others. Read the rest here. Campus Outreachs stated mission is to seek to see college students called to Christ, changed by the gospel and compelled to go out into the harvest fields all round them. We exist to come alongside Christ in His raising up of Christ-centered leaders from the campus through the Church for the renewal of our city and beyond, explained the group. In a column published by The Christian Post last September, Dare 2 Share Ministries International founder and president Greg Stier offered seven ways to help strengthen youth ministries. These included making intercessory prayer a priority, training teens to practice relational evangelism, have a clear vision, have leaders who model good values, focus on making and multiplying disciples rather than just making converts, program true priorities, and properly measure progress. Your youth ministry priorities are either empty platitudes or true priorities depending on whether or not they get programmed. For instance, if you spend more time in announcements than actual prayer during youth group, is prayer a true priority? If you push all of your outreach efforts into a monthly or quarterly outreach meeting, is it a real priority? wrote Stier. We must relentlessly program our priorities. We must put intercessory prayer, leadership development, evangelism training and disciple multiplication strategies into our programs and onto our calendars. If we don't, we are only fooling ourselves. Christian man told can't use 'Christ,' 'Jesus' on Sweden license plate, could 'cause offense' Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Swedish officials blocked a Christian mans request to include the words Christ or Jesus on his license plate, claiming the move could cause offense to those opposed to Christianity. The Swedish Transport Agency rejected Cesar Kisangani Makombes application to add the word Kristus the Swedish word for Christ on his car registration plate, according to Swedish newspaper The Local. When he asked to use the name Jesus instead, he was informed that word was blocked, too. We deny any words that we believe can cause offense. Among other things, we say no to everything that has any religious connotations no matter which connotations," Mikael Andersson, press officer for the Transport Agency, said. Currently, theres no way for people to appeal the decisions made by the agency officials, who reportedly so far rejected 94 license plates. Makombe told regional newspaper Goteborg Direkt he would drop the request but said he did not understand the authority's decision. "As a Christian, you should not make war on those who make decisions in this country, instead we must pray for them," he said. He pointed out that Sweden is a Christian country that bears a cross on its flag yet claims displays of religiosity are offensive to the general population. There are more than 3,500 churches in Sweden and the Swedish Church (Svenska Kyrkan) says it has 6.3 million members. However, a recent study found that 75 percent of young adults in Sweden categorize themselves as non-religious, and only about 5 percent of the population actually belong to a congregation and are regular churchgoers. Religious liberty has come under threat in Sweden in recent years amid increasing secularization. Last year, Germund Hesslow, a professor of neurophysiology at Lund University, was investigated by his university after he spoke about the biological differences between men and women. The professor came under fire after he cited empirical research which supports the idea that there are differences between men and women which are biologically founded and therefore genders cannot be regarded as social constructs alone." Hesslow was later investigated after one female student complained that the professor had expressed his personal anti-feminist agenda, Academic Rights Watch reported. The church is not exempt from the push for political correctness: In 2017, the Church of Sweden sparked controversy after urging its clergy to use more gender-neutral language when referring to God and to avoid referring to the deity as Lord or he to avoid offense. "Theologically, for instance, we know that God is beyond our gender determinations, God is not human," Archbishop Antje Jackelen, who heads the former state church in Uppsala, said at the time. Back in 2009, the Church of Sweden consecrated its first lesbian bishop in the face of Eva Brunne, and in the same year, it voted in favor of blessing same-sex marriages. In 2005, Ake Green, pastor of a Pentecostal congregation in Kalmar, Sweden, was sentenced to one month in prison under the countrys law against hate speech for preaching a sermon condemning homosexuality as "a cancer on society. Americas youngest black legislator is a pro-life Christian Republican inspired by Barack Obama Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Caleb Hanna, the West Virginia State University student who at 19 became the youngest African American to be elected to a state legislature, is a pro-life Christian Republican who says he was inspired by former President Barack Obama. Hanna, 19, was elected last November to the West Virginia House of Delegates as a Republican, on a platform of investing more state funds in career and technical education. Im proudly a Christian conservative and was raised on the belief that success is built with hard work, commitment and dedication West Virginia values that continue to guide me today, he explained in the Register-Herald ahead of his election last year. He beat three-term incumbent, Webster County Democrat Dana Lynch, 1,306 to 874 in the fragmented 44th District. In a recent interview with the Charleston Gazette- Mail he explained that his political philosophy is driven by God, guns and babies, and his worldview is informed by his faith. He was an active member of the Christian organization Young Life at Richwood High School and worships at the Little Laurel Baptist. He is also dating the daughter of a pastor at another church. The teenager who is majoring in economics at West Virginia State University, told WJLS that he wants to serve in government for as long as he believes his efforts are having a positive impact on peoples lives. I first got interested in politics in the third grade, he told the Gazette-Mail. Here was this charismatic black man who rose to be president of the United States. I thought, I can do that. Hanna said he grew disenchanted with Obama however after his father was laid off in the mines. He said Obamas policies were bad for West Virginia so when he was old enough to register to vote he registered as a Republican. He is now focused on championing his platform. Our state has been pushing students toward a four-year college degree when what we need is more technical training. We dont need to spend four years in college just to acquire a bunch of debt, he told the Gazette-Mail. Hanna, who was raised by a white family in a predominantly white area, says even though he is fully aware that racism remains a problem in America, he believes, Theres room for everyone in the GOP. He remained undaunted when he became the target of flyers containing racist claims, which were enclosed in a ziplock bag filled with birdseed. The bags were tossed into the yards of several homes that had his campaign signs the Gazette-Mail said. I reported it to the sheriff only because I was concerned about the safety of my supporters, Hanna explained. He plans to explore his black heritage at the historically black West Virginia State University. His favorite professor, Dr. Ali Zayati, who is from Morocco, praised the young politicians work ethic so far. He never missed a class, Zayati, who doesnt agree with all of Hannas political views, said. We need smart people like him. Despite his Christian faith, Hanna says he is also in favor of legalizing medical marijuana. Maybe even recreational if I learn more about it. I see this as a tremendous revenue opportunity for our state, he said, pointing to Colorado. When does lack of Bible reading become sinful? Email Print Img No-img Menu Whatsapp Google Reddit Digg Stumbleupon Linkedin Comment Theologian John Piper listed several circumstances in which failure to read the Bible becomes sinful for Christians. Diminishing Bible reading and meditation is becoming sinful when it is owing to a loss of desperation for what the Bible alone can give, he warned. Piper, the former pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, was responding to a question asked on Ask Pastor John by someone who was concerned that his friends and other Christians, particularly in the West, are spending little to no time reading the Bible. "When does a lack of Bible reading become sin?" The theologian explained, Wherever diminishing Bible reading is owing to a loss of desperation for seeing God, trusting God, rejoicing in God, and holiness as if those these things dont matter or can be found without the word sin is taking hold. He said that even those who read the Bible not due to faith, but because they are trying to win Gods favor, are committing sin. Reading by faith means reading with a reliance on the great reality that in Christ God is one hundred percent for us. He will incline our hearts to his word (Psalm 119:36). Hell open our eyes (Psalm 119:18). Hell satisfy our souls (Psalm 90:14), he explained. If we dont read by faith, we will be disillusioned. And if diminishing Bible reading is owing to that disillusionment, it is sin. Not reading your Bible also becomes sinful "when the activities that replace it are not experienced as the fruit of it," Piper said, adding that it is right to stop reading the Bible in the morning and go to work if your work is experienced as a fruit of what you saw of God and savored of God in the word. God, he stressed, "designed the Bible as a tree that produces delicious fruit of living for the glory of God and the good of others." And when people stop reading the Bible, they should be gladly experiencing its replacement as the fruit of it. If not, then probably our lives are not the fruit of Gods word, but an alien tree. And our diminishing Bible reading is becoming sinful, he said. Another way failing to engage with the Bible becomes sinful is when Christians stop finding the Gospel more precious than gold and sweeter than honey. Finally, he warned that it is sinful when Christians back away from the Bible due to "recoiling" from their parents' traditions and what they see as hypocrisies in the church. Its a mark of great immaturity in twentysomethings and thirty and forty-somethings to refuse to do something well because your parents did it poorly. This is like refusing to be a doctor because your dad was a quack, or refusing to enjoy dessert because your mom was overweight, or refusing to listen to classical music because thats all they let you listen to when you were a teenager, he said. Thats idiotic. Thats immature. Dont be like that. This includes refusing to read your Bible daily because your dad did it, and he beat your mom. He was abusive, and he read his Bible. That kind of immaturity is a tactical triumph of Satan. You dont want to be Satans lackey and actually be like an immature, adolescent follower of the evil one. According to the American Bible Society's State of the Bible survey in 2017, 32 percent of U.S. adults say they never read, listen to or pray with the Bible. Only 16 percent read it daily on their own. Piper has often preached about the importance of Christians reading the entire Bible from cover to cover. In 2018, he argued that it is not the specific method of how Christians read that is important, but how and why they engage with God's Word. "I think the ultimate goal of every Christian should be to glorify God in your life every day or, to use the words of Philippians 1:20, to magnify Christ in your body, whether you live or whether you die," Piper said at the time. "We exist ultimately on this planet to make God in Christ look magnificent to make Him look precious and valuable, to look like the supreme treasure that He is. Thats the goal of life: make God look like a treasure." Tunisia is now the front runner in expanding womens rights and religious liberties in the Muslim nations. Image: via Pixabay Tunisia is now the front runner in expanding womens rights and religious liberties in the Muslim nations. And the world is watching. In 2017, Tunisias President Essibsi celebrated his countrys National Womens Day by calling for a change in the constitution to allow Muslim women to marry non-Muslim men. Historically, Islam has prohibited Muslim women from marrying men from other faiths, unless they convert to Islam. However, Muslim men are allowed to marry non-Muslims. President Essibsi called on leaders to make changes to Article 73, arguing that the Tunisian constitution, in its sixth chapter, grants citizens the freedom of belief and conscience. In his mission to achieve gender equality, President Essibsi also called for amendments to womens inheritance. According to Islamic law, women inherit only one half of mens inheritance. President Essibsi stated, "The state is committed to achieving full equality between women and men ... and equal opportunities for them in assuming all responsibilities, as stipulated in Article 46 of the Constitution." On November 23, 2018, Tunisia became the first Arab country to achieve gender equality in inheritance, after the Tunisian Cabinet approved a law that would allow men and women to inherit equal amounts, contrary to what is stipulated in the Quran and Islamic world. Some Muslims object to the new law, claiming it contradicts Quranic verses which state that males should inherit twice as much as females. However, President Essibsi shared that citizens should be given the choice to follow Sharia Law in inheritance if they so wish. But not through compulsion or force. President Essibsi shared that: Tunisias Constitution supports a civil country that is based on three elements:citizenship, the will of the people, and the supremacy of law. The rights and duties of Tunisian men and women are equal, and the state is committed to defending womens rights, and supporting and developing them. For the Muslim world, the Quran reads in Sura 2:256, Let there be no compulsion in religion. Accordingly, faith under force is ingenuine. Therefore, it is never in the publics interest to force belief on individuals, and restrict their right to question, explore and fulfill their purpose. The Muslim world is complex, and in growing numbers, Muslims value the ideals of religious liberty and pluralism. Many Muslims are writing and speaking about Islam and religious freedom. When women are allowed to exercise freedom of conscience and contribute to the economy, communities experience greater peace and prosperity long term. Religious freedom is an antidote to extremism. Shirin Taber is Founder/Director of the Middle East Womens Leadership Network, is a media producer, and is author of Muslims Next Door (Zondervan/Harper Collins). With an Iranian Muslim father and an American Christian mother, she has lived in the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. With a background in direct ministry and cross-cultural training, Shirin assists multiple organizations in faith-based initiatives. Contact: Shirin@visualstory.org or www.mideastwomen.org. When does lack of Bible reading become sinful? Christian Post Contributor | 12 January, 2019 by Stoyan Zaimov Theologian John Piper listed several circumstances in which failure to read the Bible becomes sinful for Christians. "Diminishing Bible reading and meditation is becoming sinful when it is owing to a loss of desperation for what the Bible alone can give," he warned. Piper, the former pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, was responding to a question asked on Ask Pastor John by someone who was concerned that his friends and other Christians, particularly in the West, are spending little to no time reading the Bible. "When does a lack of Bible reading become sin?" The theologian explained, "Wherever diminishing Bible reading is owing to a loss of desperation for seeing God, trusting God, rejoicing in God, and holiness as if those these things don't matter or can be found without the word sin is taking hold." He said that even those who read the Bible not due to faith, but because they are trying to win God's favor, are committing sin. "Reading by faith means reading with a reliance on the great reality that in Christ God is one hundred percent for us. He will incline our hearts to his word (Psalm 119:36). He'll open our eyes (Psalm 119:18). He'll satisfy our souls (Psalm 90:14)," he explained. "If we don't read by faith, we will be disillusioned. And if diminishing Bible reading is owing to that disillusionment, it is sin." Not reading your Bible also becomes sinful "when the activities that replace it are not experienced as the fruit of it," Piper said, adding that it is right to stop reading the Bible in the morning and go to work "if your work is experienced as a fruit of what you saw of God and savored of God in the word." God, he stressed, "designed the Bible as a tree that produces delicious fruit of living for the glory of God and the good of others." And when people stop reading the Bible, they should be "gladly experiencing its replacement as the fruit of it." Continue reading about the Bible on The Christian Post. What? Cervical exams for men who identify as women? Christian Post Contributor | 12 January, 2019 by Michael Brown One of my colleagues has been confronting LGBT activism for more than 20 years, and they have been thankless, difficult, sacrificial years. I asked him once on my radio show, "Why don't you stop?" He replied, "I'll stop when they stop." Exactly so. We did not start this ideological battle. We are simply responding to it. And that's why I can't (and won't) stop addressing the rising tide of transanity in our society. As long as the social madness continues, I'll keep addressing it. By now, we've heard about boys competing in girls' sporting events (and winning handily). And we've heard about men competing in women's sporting events (and winning handily). We've heard about teachers telling 8-year-olds that "boys get periods too." And we've heard about tampons being put in men's bathrooms on campuses because "men menstruate too." We've heard about all-female colleges now accepting men who identify as women (although a woman who identifies as a man will not be accepted at some of these same campuses). We've heard about websites selling genital prosthetics for prepubescent, trans-identifying children (so, a 9-year-old girl who identifies as a boy can wear this to look more boy-like). We've heard about "Rapid Onset Gender Disorder," through which an increasing number of young people are suddenly concluding they are trans, based primarily on social influences. We've even heard about a biological male and female conceiving a child, but it's newsworthy because the man identifies as gay and his partner is a woman who identifies as a man (this is becoming increasingly common). So, in their minds, it's a same-sex relationship (male and male), but in reality, it's a man and a woman, which is why they can conceive a child. But perhaps the craziest thing yet is this report from the UK's The Sun: "Men who identify as women are being invited for cervical smear tests even though they don't have a cervix. However, women who identify as male are not being offered crucial routine breast screenings or cervical cancer checks." (The report is actually one-year old but it just came to my attention this week.) According to the article, "Women who identify as male are not being offered vital routine breast screenings and cervical cancer checks in case it offends them." Forget about health concerns. Forget about screening out cancer. Forget about protecting the lives of these women. We don't want to hurt their feelings! Let them get breast cancer or cervical cancer. Just don't make them feel bad. What kind of madness is this? The guidelines come "from a 24-page booklet published by Public Health England called 'Information for trans people'." The simple upshot of the booklet is this: Your biological sex doesn't matter (even though the issue is with health, which correlates directly with biology). What matters is how you identify. Thus, "If a transman, born female, registers as male he won't be invited for routine breast screenings at 50, or cervical screening. However, if a transwoman registers as female they will be routinely invited for cervical screening." Put another way, if you're a biological male who identifies as a female, you'll be treated as if you were a female, including be invited for cervical screening. The fact that you have no cervix is not the issue. The fact that you cannot get cervical cancer (again, because you have no cervix) is not important. What's important is that you identify as a female and therefore you will be treated as such. This is madness, not sensitivity. It's like screening women who identify as men for testicular cancer or men who identify as women for ovarian cancer. Or like asking males who identify as females to conceive children or females who identify as males to father children. Or like asking a biological male who identifies as a female to breastfeed or suggesting that he has a hysterectomy to relieve his health problems (even though he doesn't have a uterus). To repeat: This is madness. Read more from "What? Cervical exams for men who identify as women?" on The Christian Post. Hollywood actor cut from ABC show for refusing to do sex scenes is glad he stuck by Christian values 12 January, 2019 by Jeannie Law , | Actor Neal McDonough says he was blacklisted in Hollywood for several years because he refused to perform sex scenes. Known for his performances in "Band of Brothers," "Minority Report" and "Desperate Housewives," the Catholic actor recently opened up about his strong Christian convictions and said it cost him his job on ABC's "Scoundrels" series in 2010. "It was a horrible situation for me," he told Closer Weekly of being fired for refusing to perform sex scenes with co-star Virginia Madsen. "After that, I couldn't get a job because everybody thought I was this religious zealot. I am very religious. I put God and family first, and me second. That's what I live by. It was hard for a few years." The Boston native has had a no sex scenes policy for most of his 30-year career and not even his stint in "Desperate Housewives," a highly sexualized series, made him compromise his rule. "When Marc Cherry signed me, I said, 'I'm sure you know, but I won't kiss anybody,'" McDonough recalled telling the "Desperate Housewives" creator. "He was like, 'But this is 'Desperate Housewives!'' I said, 'I know.' He paused for about five seconds and said, 'All right, I'm just going to have to write better.' And we had a great time.'" McDonough and his wife of 16 years, South African model Ruve Robertson, have five children together. The loyal husband maintained that he refuses to kiss a co-star "because these lips are meant for one woman." Despite being fired from "Scoundrels" in 2010 for standing by his convictions, McDonough celebrated his decision. He said his career "has been phenomenal ever since." "Almost 20 years, five kids and just one heck of an awesome life later, to have her as my partner in everything, I'm just the most blessed guy I know," the 57-year-old said. "That's why I go to church every day and say 'thank you' to God for everything He's given me. And most importantly, thank you for giving me Ruve, because, without her, I most certainly would not be talking with you right now." McDonough isn't the only actor whose spoken about being temporarily blacklisted in Hollywood for their religious or political beliefs. In an interview with The Christian Post last year, 30-year TV and film star Antonio Sabato Jr. said he's been barred from Hollywood because of his faith. "They don't want to say Jesus; they don't even want to mention His name. It's a shame! They need Jesus. I think Jesus needs to be more relevant to everyone in Hollywood," said Sabato who told CP he was shunned for being conservative and for supporting President Trump. "... if you talk about this president or being a conservative, you'll be blacklisted. I was completely blacklisted from Hollywood." Read more from "Hollywood actor cut from ABC show for refusing to do sex scenes is glad he stuck by Christian values" on The Christian Post. Three Covenant women's basketball players scored double figures, Joanna Smith recorded her 800th career rebound, and the Scots got back in the win column with a 74-47 victory at Agnes Scott on Saturday afternoon in Decatur. Covenant moves to 5-11 on the year and 3-5 in the USA South. The victory for the Scots also completes a season sweep of Agnes Scott (1-16, 1-7 USA South). Kaley Hallmark led the way for Covenant with 15 points to go with four assists and three rebounds. Bekah Walter added 13 points and Margo Koby chipped in 11 points in her reserve role. Bekah Walter added 13 points and Margo Koby chipped in 11 points in her reserve role. Smith finished with eight points and grabbed five rebounds. Smith's first rebound of the day in the first quarter gave her 800 for her career as she becomes one of just four players to achieve the milestone in program history. In the first quarter, Covenant got out to a 6-0 lead and held Agnes Scott scoreless for the first four-plus minutes of play. Smith scored four of the first six for the Scots. The offense clicked in the final four minutes of the period as the Scots finished the quarter on a 15-1 run, capped by a Hannah Monday layup with 40 seconds left, to take a 21-5 lead. Despite Agnes Scott cutting the Scots' lead to six in the second period, Covenant held a 30-17 lead at the break. Covenant never saw its lead dip below double digits over the final two quarters of action. The Scots took a 20-point lead at 49-29 after a Raquel Rosa layup with 2:43 left in the third. The lead grew to as many as 29 on two occasions late in the fourth quarter as Covenant cruised to the conference victory. Taylor Robinson added seven points, five assists, four rebounds, and three steals for Covenant, while Rosa ended with four points, four assists and three steals. Covenant shot 47.1 percent (32-of-68) from the field with nine 3-pointers. The Scots forced 25 turnovers and scored 28 points off those giveaways. Agnes Scott was led by Emma Olson's 13 points, while Garis Grant had 11 points and eight rebounds. The Scotties connected on only 37.8 percent (17-of-45) for the game with three 3-pointers. Covenant returns home to face Maryville on Wednesday. Tip-off between the two USA South foes is set for 7 p.m. With shots tough to come by most of the evening the Lee men's basketball team suffered its second straight defeat after rattling off an eight-game winning streak as it dropped a Gulf South Conference contest to Alabama Huntsville, 75-58 on Saturday afternoon inside Walker Arena.The Chargers pulled away in the second half with hot shooting from beyond the arc while limiting the Flames to just 28 second half points.Lee was led by junior big man Colton Blevins who tallied 22 points.Junior Ryan Montgomery added 13 and Parker Suedekum finished with nine."I thought today we did a lot of standing around and watching too often offensively," said Lee head coach Bubba Smith. "Colton did a nice job in the post but we struggled shooting the ball and didn't crash the boards like we need to get second chance opportunities. Credit Huntsville they had a game plan, executed well and were not giving us many open looks."The Flames went 0-6 from the 3-point line in the first half but got a lift with 13 points from Blevins and a racing layup at the horn by Suedekum to stay within striking range, trailing 35-30.The Lee defense buckled down in the early portion of the second half and held the Chargers scoreless for over three and half minutes out of the locker room but from there it was all UAH as they canned six 3-pointers to pull away from the Flames.For the game the Chargers converted 22 of 46 (47.8 percent) from the field and hit 10 of 24 (41.7 percent) from deep while Lee struggled from the field connecting on just 19 of 48 (39.6 percent) from the field and only 2 of 12 from beyond the arc.UAH was paced by 25 points and 10 rebounds from Sam Orf. Malik Cook-Stroupe went a perfect 4 of 4 from 3-point land to account for his 12 points while Max Shulman followed suite in nailing all four of his attempts from the 3-point line as well.The Chargers held a 33-24 advantage on the glass in the contest and surrendered just one offensive rebound to the Flames.After eight straight wins and six straight in the GSC Lee has dropped back to back games to fall to 9-7 overall and 6-2 in league play. The Flames are currently in third place in the conference standings. The win propels the Chargers to 12-4 on the year and 5-3 in the GSC."I told our team the good thing is we have been here before," added Smith. "We got off to a slow start this year and turned it around and started playing really good basketball for several weeks and I'm confident we will get back on track next week."The Flames will look to get back in the win column as they continue a four-game home stand on Thursday against the University of Montevallo. Opening tip is scheduled for 8 p.m.For the second straight game, Lee womens basketball team got off to a slow start in the first quarter, trailing 19-13 to visiting Alabama Huntsville but finished strong over the last three periods to win convincingly 87-64.Saturday afternoons victory was the fifth straight for the surging Lady Flames as they improved to 13-3 overall and continue to lead in the Gulf South Conference standings with a 7-1 mark. Alabama Huntsville dropped to 6-8 and 4-4.Lee will continue its home stand on Thursday, hosting University of Montevallo at 6 p.m. Montevallo won again today and they will certainly come in fired up and ready to play us, commented Lee head coach Marty Rowe.After trailing 19-13 at the end of the first quarter, the Lady Flames seized control in the second quarter and grabbed a 39-29 lead at the break. The contest stood at 62-49 after three frames.Huntsville cut our margin to 10 points in the final quarter but our girls rebounded and showed our strength in finishing the contest. Our goal is to see our team keep improving and thats what happened this afternoon, pointed out Coach Rowe.Rowe was pleased to see five of his players finish in double-figures. When that happens, we are hard to beat. Lindsey Roddy finished with 20 points and connected on 8-of-12 field goal attempts and 4-of-5 3-pointers. For the game, Lee connected on 12-of-23 3-pointers (53 percent). They carded 33-of-60 shots from the field (55 percent).Taylor Boggess came up with one of her best efforts of the year and tallied 17 points, canning 7-of-8 field goal attempts and 3-of-4 treys. Abby Bertram was held scoreless in the first half but finished with 14 points (4-of-9 3-pointers). Haley Schubert poured in 13 points and Kayla Tillie rounded out the double-figure scoring with 10 points. Becca Cheeks had a team-leading eight rebounds as the Lady Flames won the battle of the boards 39-31. Ten different Lee players contributed to the victory.The Chargers managed to stay close most of the way behind the play of Baylee Johnson (27 points) but Aryn Sanders was the only other Huntsville player in double figures (15). Once again the Lee defense did the job, holding the Chargers to 36 percent shooting from the field. Not standing in a room.Sanchez was the home of the Salamia family The agricultural area of Puebla was threatened by... Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact. Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. 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Choose wisely! * First name * Last name Your real name will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more! * Email Your e-mail address will be used to confirm your account. We won't share it with anyone else. * Password Create a password that only you will remember. If you forget it, you'll be able to recover it using your email address. remaining of Thank you for reading! This is your last free article before you will be asked to subscribe. Already have a paid subscription? Sign in news, latest-news Susie and Obi Shadmaan were initially turned off the idea of having a home birth for a number of reasons, one being the mess. But mid-way through their pregnancy they attended an information night at the request of their midwife, and after hearing from other couples who had tried it they were sold. On September 20 last year, their second child, a son named Leo Rahvi weighing 3.44 kilograms, was born at home. Mrs Shadmaan was one of the lucky few in Canberra who fitted neatly into the criteria for a home birth, as part of the ACT governments three-year trial. Location, at least one previous healthy pregnancy, overall health of mum and baby, mums age, babys position, no water birthing a raft of rules are in place for the trial to ensure its success. Midwives who are part of the program hope that in a years time, when the trial is over, the criteria can be expanded and more women can be eligible to take part. But for now, theyre focused on finding as many women as possible who fit the existing criteria to bolster numbers and spread the word that home birth is not a "hippy" option. Midwife of 30 years, Ann Clark, talked the Shadmaan's into giving birth at home. Ultimately, her confidence and knowledge was what decided for them. "This is not an out-there hippy-type thing, this is mainstream," Ms Clark said. "It's a very well put together trial, and it's been very successful." Two years into the trial, 19 babies have been born (and one is due imminently). Two women were taken to hospital by ambulance as a precaution after giving birth, but they were released a few hours later. If all goes well, mother and baby dont have to visit the hospital until theyre due for a hearing test and vaccinations. For Mrs Shadmaan, that was just one of the benefits. Her first labour with now two-and-a-half year-old Eva, who was born in hospital, took about 12 hours. The second labour, with Leo, took just three. She attributes that to a number of things, including being in her own environment at home, with her husband and her trusted midwives by her side. The lights were off, the candles were on, the pizza was delivered in the midst of it and then the baby was born. It was surprisingly fast, Mrs Shadmaan said. Mr Shadmaan supported her throughout and despite his wife's insistence not to answer the door for the pizza - it was about 7pm and they hadn't eaten - he did and put it in the fridge for later. Mr Shadmaan felt he was able to be more involved and more supportive during the home birth, rather than in the clinical setting at the hospital. He said encouraging more home births is all about changing perceptions. Particularly dads are probably fearful. We play a supporting role, were a cheerleader at best. It can be quite daunting for the dad because weve got no control over the process. What was I doing? While she was in labour I was copping abuse, he laughs. No, it wasnt that bad. The Shadmaan's are now huge advocates for home birth. Mr Shadmaan has since learnt that if everything goes right, theres barely any mess. And that having a pizza in the fridge for after the main event is actually a fantastic idea. If you can do it, youve got to do it. It is a pretty magical experience, but you dont actually know what that means until you go through it," he said. The Canberra Hospital is hosting an information night on Friday, January 18, at 5.30pm in the birth centre for those wanting to find out more about birthing at home. The Shadmaan's will be guests on the evening. For more information phone Ann Clark on 0481 012 316. /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/91f1e887-1f9e-43a5-943f-f9a6e45667f4/r0_228_4256_2633_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg news, latest-news It's a trade so secretive many in the field are unwilling to divulge their practice out of fear their techniques would be stolen by others. For more than 30 years, Scott Keogh has worked as a taxidermist. When he started out as a 17-year-old it was hard to know where to begin. "It was all trial and error because no one tells you anything about it," Mr Keogh said. "Everyone keeps it close to their chest, because no one wants to tell people how to do it. Taxidermy is one of the most secretive trades you can do." Mr Keogh, who runs a taxidermy business just outside of Canberra, is one of the only people in the profession in the ACT. In an average year, the taxidermist works on between 70 and 100 animals each taking a minimum of three months from start to finish. While most of the jobs he completes are for private clients and hunters, his work takes him to some unexpected places. "There's also a bit of restoration work for animal models in Canberra museums," Mr Keogh said. "But 99 per cent of my work is for hunters." For Mr Keogh, growing up on a farm meant shooting was a way of life. He learnt how to trap rabbits when he was three years old. He became interested in taxidermy after wanting to get a pig's head he had killed mounted, but he couldn't afford it. With many in the taxidermy industry not wanting to pass on their techniques, Mr Keogh said he taught himself how to do it. "It was all trial and error and trying to put two and two together," he said. "I was still doing that until around 15 years ago when the internet came around, and I got talking to a few other taxidermists online." Mr Keogh said perceptions of the industry had changed dramatically over the years he's been involved as more people seek them out. "My wife used to not tell people, but she does now. Taxidermy is what it is," he said. "My job isn't as gory as a butcher, who works cutting up fresh meat. I work with leather and preserve the skin and the memory of the animal." Mr Keogh begins his work week by getting the animal skins and mounting them on a cast. He also uses air brushes to give a sheen to other animals further along the production line. Deer make up the majority of the animals he works with, but he also works with exotic animals. "I love working with a Himalayan tahr, probably because I hunt them often, and while they're not the hardest animal to get, the terrain they live in is one of the worst in the world," he said. "I get one every second trip or so. Although, I only fired two shots this year, and I would've seen lots of animals." As part of the taxidermy process, Mr Keogh said he often goes into the bush with a camera, taking as many photos as he can to get an accurate point of reference for the animals he works with. Mr Keogh said there were many benefits to his job, such as working in the outdoors on a regular basis. "The best part of the job is the freedom of it," he said. "Getting the skin of animal looking like the real thing is not an easy task. Anyone can pull a skin over a form, but to get the look right takes a lot of time." /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/10c9c08c-d5ec-4e6f-b300-d90f749c37bb/r0_124_3259_1965_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg Xiaomi Founder Goes Viral With Screed Against Huawei Brand By Runhua Zhao / Jan 11, 2019 04:42 PM / Business & Tech The Chinese internet is ablaze after Xiaomi founder Lei Jun employed colorful language to diss a Huawei brand. At a product launch for Xiaomi smartphone line Redmi on Friday, Lei claimed the vice president of Huawei brand Honor had said: [Our] competition with Xiaomi has concluded for a while, and we are way better than them. Using a phrasing associated with kung fu stories, Lei responded: Should (Honor) have doubts (about Xiaomi products), Id rather we just fight. He then added that Honor has been copying Xiaomi for years, and that it has have a long way to go to catch up with Xiaomi. The crowd burst into cheers. But the screed continued. Showing a photo of an Honor phone on the big screen, Lei pointed and said: Lets be nice and not embarrass Honor handset model 8X too much. Leis words circulated widely on the internet due to their surprisingly harsh nature and also because supporting Huawei has been seen as a symbol of national pride ever since Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhous arrest in Canada. In interviews with media after the event, Lei defended himself by saying, (Honor) has been doing things in disgraceful ways since their birth. For five years, they have verbally attacked (Xiaomi), and I have never fought back. Related: Xiaomi to Spin Off Low-Cost Brand Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao Saturday favoured a change in the way the Finance Commission functioned and devolution of funds to states is decided in view of the diversity in requirements of states. Rao held a review meeting with senior officials ahead of a possible visit of the 15th Finance Commission to the state shortly, an official release said. Also Read: Syndicate Bank plans to recover Rs 1,500 crore from NPAs "The Finance Commission visits states with pre-occupied notions. They come with pre-occupied ideas like ToR (Terms of Reference) which in fact should be done after they complete their visit, discuss with state governments and take their views. It's better if the Finance Commission becomes a policy formulating body. Devolution is the right of the states. A lot of diversity is there with reference to states requirements," the release quoted him as saying. Rao asked the finance department officers to prepare a memorandum highlighting the States requirements and the report should include all that it state needs, the release said. Rao felt that there has not been a qualitative change in peoples lives since Independence and that it was time to introspect on this. The broad fiscal policy lies with the Government of India, he said. "Whatever they are supposed to devolve, they have instead centralized. I told NITI Ayog in one of the meetings that the Centre should not come in the way of growing states," he said. The growth of the state should be considered as the growth of the country. "Do not disincentivise growing states. Even for meagre funds lots of conditions are imposed by the centre. The relation that should exist between the union government to state government is absent. It's highly unfortunate that the policies devolution is in a manner of dishonouring state government and states powers," he said. Rao, who also reviewed preparations for the upcoming state budget, said it should be formulated only after defining as to what should be the Telangana State "Livelihood." He suggested that a comprehensive plan is prepared before preparing the budget and also forming different task forces for different areas. He said the budget should concentrate on working out modalities and ways and means for increasing the growth. The chief minister also suggested preparing a Master Plan for the development of Hyderabad. Rao also said a rigorous orientation-cum-training programme for all ministers and secretaries would be organised, after the expansion of Cabinet, in the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad on their roles, powers and responsibilities. Only Mohd Mehmood Ali had taken oath along with Rao when the latter assumed office as chief minister for the second term on December 13. The programme envisages acquainting the ministers with rules and regulations, business rules of the secretariat, budget making procedures, their limits, priorities as well as on state and national economy, according to the release. Also Read: Francis Gurry praises PM Modi over success of Ayushman Bharat health scheme Also Read: Government to focus on districts to boost GDP growth: Suresh Prabhu Syndicate Bank hopes to recover about Rs 1,500 crore from non-performing assets (NPAs) over the next three to six months, chief executive officer and managing director of the bank Mrutyunjay Mahapatra said here Saturday. The bank is adopting a combination of methods to recover bad loans, he told reporters here. Also Read: Government to focus on districts to boost GDP growth: Suresh Prabhu It has formed a team of 1,500 people meant for taking up the recovery process, in addition to special branches which took up the task. The branches report directly to the corporate office. ''As on September, our gross NPA was 12.9 per cent and net NPA roughly 6.8 per cent,'' he said. The NPAs in agriculture sector were also rising due to expectations of loan waivers, he said. ''We are expecting that we will be profitable, kind of a breakeven basis by the end of March and start getting profits in June, Mahapatra said. Currently, the bank has a total business of roughly around Rs 4.80 lakh crore, comprising deposits of about Rs 2.50 lakh crore and advances of around Rs 2.15 lakh crore. The bank is following a multi-pronged strategy of managing the capital by taking assets which are highly rated by external credit rating agencies, reducing NPAs and focusing on retail and MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises) to turn the bank into profitability, Mahapatra said. The bank had reported losses earlier. The net interest margin (NIM) is hovering in the range of 2.25-2.5 per cent. The bank is proposing to raise Rs 500 crore to Rs 600 crore through an employee share purchase scheme, he said. ''We are doing a employee share purchase scheme in which we are proposing to raise Rs 500 crore to Rs 600 crore. This will be one of the largest employee share purchase schemes which is given in a public sector bank. We believe that our bank has strong value, he said. He also felt that a direct transfer of benefits in farm sector like 'Rythu Bandhu' scheme in Telangana is better as the loan waivers affected repayments. Also Read: Francis Gurry praises PM Modi over success of Ayushman Bharat health scheme Also Read: Telangana CM pitches for change in Finance Commission's functioning Director General of World Intellectual Property Organisation Francis Gurry has praised the Centre's health scheme Ayushman Bharat and congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on its success. "WIPO Director General Gurry meets CEO of #AyushmanBharat @Ibhushan, lauds ambitious health scheme that is bringing free health care to hundreds of thousands, underlines the importance of innovation to health and congratulates PM @narendramodi on this incredible success," WIPO tweeted. Also Read: Government to focus on districts to boost GDP growth: Suresh Prabhu The ambitious healthcare scheme, touted as the world's largest, aims to benefit more than 10 crore poor families in the country. On January 1, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley termed Ayushman Bharat a "game changer" in healthcare and said on an average 5,000 claims are being settled every day since its rollout on September 23, 2018. The total number of hospitals covered by this scheme is 16,000 and increasing steadily. More than 50 per cent of the implementing hospitals are in the private sector. Jaitley had said in the first 100 days, 6.85 lakh patients have been provided hospital treatment and 5.1 lakh claimants have availed the scheme, for which payment has been released. All states and Union territories, barring Delhi, Telangana and Odisha, have signed agreements with the health ministry for implementing the scheme. Also Read: Syndicate Bank plans to recover Rs 1,500 crore from NPAs Also Read: Telangana CM pitches for change in Finance Commission's functioning The Finance Ministry may consider selling part of its stake in Axis Bank and ITC, held through SUUTI, in the next few months, an official said. As on September 30, 2018, Specified Undertaking of Unit Trust of India (SUUTI) held around 9.63 per cent stake in Axis Bank, 7.97 per cent in ITC and 1.80 per cent in L&T. Also Read: Francis Gurry praises PM Modi over success of Ayushman Bharat health scheme While the government is waiting for L&T to launch a buyback offer to tender its shares; for holding in Axis Bank and ITC, it would consider off-market deals, an official said. "We are open to selling stake in Axis Bank and ITC through bulk or block deals. It all depends on the valuation," the official told PTI. Shares of Axis Bank settled at Rs 666.50, up 0.53 per cent, while ITC was up 2.02 per cent at Rs 295.40 at the close of market hours on January 11. A bulk deal is a deal in which more than 0.5 per cent of the total number of shares of a listed company is sold or bought by a single investor in the open market. In a block deal, two parties make a transaction involving shares worth at least Rs 5 crore. Block deal transactions are conducted in a separate trading window. Infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has already approached market regulator Sebi for launching a share buyback programme. The government would participate in the buyback programme and is expecting to get around Rs 700 crore. The government had sold 2.5 per cent stake in L&T held through SUUTI in June 2017 through block deals in the market. In February 2017, the government had raised Rs 6,700 crore through sale of 2 per cent stake held through SUUTI in tobacco-to-FMCG firm ITC. In November 2016 it sold 1.63 per cent in L&T, while in March 2014 it had sold 9 per cent stake in Axis Bank to raise Rs 5,500 crore through block deals. SUUTI holdings in ITC, Axis Bank and L&T are also part of Bharat 22 exchange-traded fund (ETF). The government, which has set a divestment target of Rs 80,000 crore for 2018-19, has so far raised over Rs 34,000 crore. Also Read: Syndicate Bank plans to recover Rs 1,500 crore from NPAs Also Read: Government to focus on districts to boost GDP growth: Suresh Prabhu By Rania El Gamal and Maha El Dahan ABU DHABI (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday the oil market is "on the right track" and will quickly return to balance, but oil producers are willing to do more if needed. "If we look beyond the noise of weekly data and speculators' herd-like behaviour, I remain convinced that we're on the right track, and that the oil market will quickly return to balance," said Falih, addressing an oil conference in Abu Dhabi. "If we find that more needs to be done, we will do so in unison with our OPEC and non-OPEC partners where ... BEIJING (Reuters) - Bank of China's New York branch will enable Chinese firms to receive payment in yuan rather than dollars from their sales on U.S. e-commerce platforms this year, the official Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.Pledging to introduce more services for small and medium-sized enterprises engaged in cross-border trade between the United States and China, executives from the branch said payment in yuan would be possible by tapping new functions of e-MPay, a cross-border payment system launched by the branch in 2016. The branch is developing a system using an existing ... Year-long celebrations of Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary has kicked off in the US to spread his message of brotherhood and sharing. The Indian Embassy and Consulates have chalked out a calendar of activities including musical concerts, seminars and interfaith events throughout the year, India's new Ambassador Harsh V Shringla said. The year 2019 marks the 550th birth anniversary year of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak, whose birthplace is Sri Nankana Sahib, in Pakistan. He was addressing people gathered to celebrate the occasion with colourful events where artist Bhai Baldeep Singh played devotional music Saturday. "Guru Nanak Dev ji was one of India's greatest philosophers, teachers and social reformers. Born in an epoch when the Indian society was caste-riddled, Guru Nanak's voice was an empowering call to unshackle the human mind of centuries of religious and political tyranny and for the creation of a new egalitarian order," Shringla told the gathering of some 200 people. The Indian government, he said, is planning celebrations in various countries around the world. "In the US, the Embassy has reached out to various Gurudwaras and Sikh community leaders to discuss various ideas with them," he said at the first of the series of year-long events in the US, being organised by the Indian Embassy here in association with various Sikh groups and Gurudwaras. Observing that the enthusiasm and support of the local Sikh organisations and Gurudwaras have indeed been heartening, the Ambassador said the Indian Embassy with their cooperation have set up a task force to coordinate planning of different events. The planned events include seminars on the philosophy and teachings of Guru Nanak in prestigious venues; musical concerts like the one today during the year at different venues; and interfaith events to get the message of Guru Nanak to the wider American society, Shringla said. "We are joined by our five Consulates in Houston, New York, San Francisco, Chicago and Atlanta which will similarly partner with the Gurudwaras and Sikh community organisations in their regions to chalk out a calendar of activities throughout the year," he said. The ethos of Sikhism -- hard work, simple and honest life, compassion for fellow human beings -- have formed the success of the Sikh community across the globe. In the US, the Sikh migration dates back to more than 130 years when they first arrived in California and on the eastern coast in New York, he said. "We are proud to see five Indian-Americans in Congress today but it is important to remember that they are following in the footsteps of pioneers like Judge Dalip Singh Saund who was the first person of Indian-origin and first Asian-American to be elected to the US Congress from California in 1957," Shringla said. The Sikh community in the US has prospered through their hard work and ethics, and today numbers about five lakh, wielding influence in all walks of American life, the top Indian diplomat said. Throughout the programme, Bhai Baldeep Singh along with an ensemble of musicians, held the audience captive with his masterly presentation of mystical hymns of Guru Nanak. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tired but smiling, an 18-year-old Saudi woman who said she feared death if deported back home arrived Saturday in Canada, which offered her asylum in a case that attracted global attention after she mounted a social media campaign. "This is Rahaf Alqunun, a very brave new Canadian," Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said arm-in-arm with the Saudi woman in Toronto's airport. Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun smiled broadly as she exited an airport arrival door sporting a Canada zipper hoodie and a UN High Commissioner for Refugees hat, capping a dramatic week that saw her flee her family while visiting Kuwait and before flying to Bangkok. Once there, she barricaded herself in an airport hotel to avoid deportation and tweeted about her situation. On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada would accept Alqunun as a refugee. Her situation has highlighted the cause of women's rights in Saudi Arabia, where several women fleeing abuse by their families have been caught trying to seek asylum abroad in recent years and returned home. Freeland said Alqunun preferred not to take questions Saturday. "She is obviously very tired after a long journey and she preferred to go and get settled," Freeland said. "But it was Rahaf's choice to come out and say hello to Canadians. She wanted Canadians to see that she's here, that she's well and that she's very happy to be in her new home." After arriving she was off to get winter clothes, said Mario Calla, executive director of COSTI Immigrant Services, which is helping her settle in temporary housing and applying for a health card. Calla said Alqunun has friends in Toronto who she would be meeting up with this weekend. "She did comment to me about the cold," Freeland said. "It does get warmer," Freeland said she told her. Alqunun flew to Toronto via Seoul, South Korea, according to Thai immigration Police Chief Surachate Hakparn. Alqunun tweeted two pictures from her plane seat one with what appears to be a glass of wine and her passport and another holding her passport while on the plane with the hashtag "I did it" and the emojis showing a plane, hearts and a wine glass. Canada's decision to grant her asylum could further upset the country's relations with Saudi Arabia. In August, Saudi Arabia expelled Canada's ambassador to the kingdom and withdrew its own ambassador after Canada's Foreign Ministry tweeted support for women's right activists who had been arrested. The Saudis also sold Canadian investments and ordered their citizens studying in Canada to leave. Freeland avoided an answer when asked what Alqunun's case would mean to Saudi relations. There was no immediate Saudi government reaction, nor any mention of her arrival in state media. Freeland said that the UN refugee agency found she was in danger in Thailand and that Canada's government is glad it was able to act quickly to offer her refuge. Alqunun's father arrived in Bangkok on Tuesday, but his daughter refused to meet with him. Several other countries, including Australia, had been in talks with the UN's refugee agency to accept Alqunun, Surachate said. "She chose Canada. It's her personal decision," he said. Australian media reported that UNHCR had withdrawn its referral for Alqunun to be resettled in Australia because Canberra was taking too long to decide on her asylum. "When referring cases with specific vulnerabilities who need immediate resettlement, we attach great importance to the speed at which countries consider and process cases," a UNHCR spokesperson in Bangkok told The Associated Press in an email reply on condition of anonymity because the person wasn't authorised to discuss the case publicly. "Why did Rahaf go to Canada instead of her preferred choice of Australia where she had friends?" Human Rights Watch executive director Kenneth Roth said in a tweet. "Because she needed safety from her Saudi pursuers fast, and Canada expedited her case while Australia (under Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton) slow-walked it." Canada's ambassador saw her off at the airport, where Alqunun thanked everyone for helping her. She plans to start learning more English, though she already speaks it more than passably. Alqunun was stopped January 5 at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport by immigration police who denied her entry and seized her passport. She barricaded herself in an airport hotel room where her social media campaign got enough public and diplomatic support that Thai officials admitted her temporarily under the protection of UN officials, who granted her refugee status Wednesday. Surachate said her father whose name has not been released denied physically abusing Alqunun or trying to force her into an arranged marriage, which were among the reasons she gave for her flight. He said Alqunun's father wanted his daughter back but respected her decision. "He has 10 children. He said the daughter might feel neglected sometimes," Surachate said. UNHCRspokeswoman Lauren LaRose the fact she was processed so quickly is a credit to those that made it happen. "This is someone who was clearly in harm's way, who clearly felt her life with her threatened, and my colleagues in concert with governments in Thailand and Canada recognized that need," she said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Officials in Uttar Pradesh are yet to complete the relocation of stray cattle to shelter homes, even as the deadline set by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for shifting the bovines to proper facilities ended January 10. On January 3, the chief minister had given district magistrates about a week to ensure stray cattle across Uttar Pradesh are shifted to cow shelters with fences and veterinary care. He had issued the direction during a video-conference with the DMs, amid reports that stray cattle were destroying crops. Farmers in some parts of Uttar Pradesh had reportedly herded stray cattle into places like government schools to save their crops. "Work is going on at all the places on war footing. All the district magistrates (DMs) are adopting innovative ways and means as per their local needs to implement the policy," a senior official of the state animal husbandry department told PTI. He added that some of the innovative models that the department has come across are from Lalitpur, Etawah and Firozabad districts. "Under the Lalitpur model, a cow shelter is being run and managed with public partnership. In Firozabad, funds under MGNREGA have been used for this purpose, while in Etawah district, a good mechanism has been developed to identify stray cattle, and provision made with the help of locals to arrange for fodder," the official said, requesting anonymity. Temporary shelters for cow have been identified at the district, village and panchayat levels. Work is going on in several areas to establish shelters, he said. On when all the cow shelters will become operational, the official said,This is a continuous process, and every district has its own local needs. On an average a shelter at the village or panchayat level will have a capacity to hold 50-100 cattle. The directives to the DMs were issued following a meeting on December 26 when Adityanath had directed the officials to make immediate arrangements for proper care of stray cows and asked the chief secretary to present recommendations within a week. On why cattle was being abandoned, the official said, The problem is at places where there is low productivity, and the animals have turned out to be economically non-viable asset." "Why are buffaloes or goats not left by their owners. In Bundelkhand, there is 'anna pratha', (mainly during summer), in which farmers let loose their cattle, especially unproductive and pregnant cows, to graze freely, the animal husbandry official said. The chief minister had also told the DMs to ensure that farmers and others do not face any problems due to stray cattle. The district magistrates should impose fines on those who come to the shelters to claim their cows after abandoning them, Adityanath had directed. The Basti district administration has started a helpline for people to report stray cattle. "Many people narrate to me stories of stray cattle that have been left in the open by their owners. They also tell about how they (the cattle) escaped an accident or how they were hit by a speeding vehicle. "In these circumstances, the public does not know where to call for assistance," said Basti District Magistrate Raj Shekhar. The 'cattle conservation' helpline is 05542-245555, he said said. The chief minister had also said funds allotted for cow welfare -- Rs 60 crore in 2017-18 and Rs 95 crore in 2018-19 -- should be used effectively. The state government also decided to levy a 0.5 per cent cow welfare cess on some public sector undertakings to help construct and maintain more cow shelters. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The US ambassador to Germany has warned of sanctions against firms linked to the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia, the American embassy in Berlin confirmed Sunday. A letter envoy Richard Grenell sent to several businesses "reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector... is in danger under CAATSA of US sanctions," an embassy spokesman told AFP. The Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) adopted in 2017 targets Iran, Russia and North Korea. Close Donald Trump ally Grenell's letter "is not meant to be a threat, but a clear message of US policy," the spokesman said. "The only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies," he said. Construction has already begun on Nord Stream 2, set to double the capacity of an existing pipeline across the Baltic Sea. Firms including Germany's Wintershall and Uniper, Dutch-British Shell, France's Engie and Austria's OMV are involved in the project. Combined with the planned TurkStream pipeline across the Black Sea, Nord Stream 2 would do away with the need to transport natural gas to Europe via Ukraine -- robbing the country of a factor shielding it from Russian aggression, Grenell said. The two countries are in conflict over the eastern part of Ukraine and the annexation of the Crimean peninsula by Russia in 2014. "Firms supporting the construction of the two pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe," Grenell wrote. Washington's fears about the pipeline are shared by a number of eastern European Union countries including Poland, and the European Parliament last month passed a resolution condemning the construction. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel, backed by France and Austria, has so far insisted it is a "purely economic project" that will ensure cheaper, more reliable gas supply. The veteran leader -- a key player in Moscow-Kiev peace talks -- says Ukrainian interests will be protected as some Russian gas will still be transported via the country once Nord Stream 2 is online. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also weighed in on the transatlantic row last week, saying "European energy policy should be decided in Europe, not in the United States. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The shutdown on Saturday became the longest in history and is taking a growing bite out of the world's largest economy with each passing day, economists say. While most of the 21 "lapses" in government spending since 1976 left barely a scratch on economic growth, the length of this shutdown makes it harder to say just how bad the impact could get. "It's not a hard stretch to say that initially it's smaller and then it expands, the pain starts to widen," Beth Ann Bovino, chief US economist at S&P Global Ratings, told AFP. "Think of it as a butterfly effect." With about a quarter of the federal workforce affected, the shutdown is currently squeezing an estimated USD 1.2 billion a week out of the economy, Bovino said, but that figure could grow if it drags on. At the current rate, within two weeks it will have cost more than the USD 5.7 billion US President is demanding for a wall on the border with Mexico, the dispute with that led to the failure to pass funding for government operations. Following extended closures in 1995 and 2013, the US economy continued to grow while stock markets mainly went sideways. And GDP growth lost in one quarter can rebound in the next as the government springs back to life and workers recoup lost salaries. But some losses can never be recovered. In myriad but often unseen ways, the USD 4 trillion federal budget is felt in the daily lives of all Americans, well beyond the 800,000 government workers now going without pay -- many of whom missed their first paychecks on Friday. Switching off even a part of the government means that life force quickly begins to bleed away. Payments to farmers and poor families, craft beer labels, food inspections and economic data all have fallen victim to the budget impasse. Meanwhile, tax refunds and borrower income verifications crucial to the mortgage industry were briefly up in the air with billions at stake. "The tentacles start to touch many avenues of life and that's a very sad thing," Bovino said. US Coast Guard cutters, their crews working without pay, on Monday began icebreaking at commercial ports in the frigid waters of Great Lakes near the Canadian border so local steel mills can remain supplied with iron ore. Meanwhile, farmers cannot collect aid payments designed to help ease the pain caused by Trump's trade war with Small Business Administration loans to help mom-and-pop businesses trying to invest, hire and grow have been delayed. There are no government loans for seeds or cattle feed and none of the regular Agriculture Department data about crop yields and commodity prices that farmers depend on to plan for the coming year. Permits from some oil and gas drilling -- which feeds into GDP calculations -- are delayed. Bloomberg estimates that government contractors are losing USD 200 million a day, cutting revenues for defense industry giants like Boeing, General Dynamics and Leidos. Tourism at the country's 400 national parks normally generates a reported USD 18 million a day, but with some parks unattended and many services halted, local restaurants, hotels and shops are losing customers. Government assistance to feed the poorest Americans is funded through next month only. None of this includes the hardships felt by the 380,000 federal workers who have been furloughed or the 420,000 who are deemed "essential" but are working without pay. They owe an estimated USD 438 million a month in rent and mortgage payments, according to the real estate firm Zillow. Around the region, home to about 20 per cent of the federal work force, restaurants are sitting empty, taxis are idled and traffic increasingly moves with eerie ease along the capital's choked boulevards. Yingrui Huang, an engineer for a defense contractor at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, told AFP his company is normally at work building weather satellites and telescopes for the government but is shuttered until further notice. To fight boredom, he is now driving for the mobile ride hailing service Lyft but said he was most concerned hourly employees like janitors, cafeteria workers and secretaries. "Their salaries are definitely lower than most of the engineering staff. They don't get the limelight. We don't think about them," he said. Economic research on the last major shutdown in October 2013 found many federal workers were largely able to avoid sinking into debt -- delaying mortgage payments and shifting balances between credit cards. But that shutdown lasted for barely two weeks -- one pay cycle -- and lawmakers at the time had quickly promised workers would receive back pay. "It's possible that the effects will be greater for this shutdown," University of Chicago economist Constantine Yannelis, who studied the 2013 shutdown, told AFP. "The longer a shutdown lasts, the more persistent a change in habits you could see. Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on the eve of Makar Sankranti urged the youth to understand the rich and diverse traditions of Indian festivals and called for protecting, promoting and enriching "our exceptional" culture and folk art forms. Speaking after inaugurating the fourth International Kite Festival and second International Sweet Festival at Parade Ground in Secunderabad Sunday, Naidu said festivals are occasions for social bonding and inculcate a spirit of communal harmony and national integrity. "They symbolise renewal, rejuvenation, and revival of our traditions and heritage and bring in a sense of togetherness, unity, love, and brotherhood in today's fast-paced world," Naidu was quoted as saying in an official release. "We witness the coming together of families and communities during such festivals. They are also occasions for social bonding," he said. Calling the harvest festival Makar Sankranti a celebration of life and vitality, Naidu said it holds great historical and religious significance. It is the festival of the sun god who is often regarded as the symbol divinity and wisdom and those who celebrate this occasion of thanksgiving and merrymaking revel in anticipation and joy, he said. The vice president also tried his hand at kite-flying and said it was a tremendous experience which transcends age, class, and community. Observing that kite-making was an art form, the vice president said it required skill, precision, devotion, and inventiveness. As many as 42 professional kite fliers from abroad and 60 from India are participating in the Kite Festival. Stating that India's tremendous diversity and plurality made it home to several colourful festivals, he stressed the need to understand meaning and values associated with them, adding that they also had deep ties to nature. Referring to the display of 1,200 sweets from different countries at the Sweet Festival, he said they symbolise the sweet happenings in life and hold a place of great prominence in the Indian culinary tradition. Telangana Home Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali, Legislative Council Chairman Swamy Goud were among the dignitaries who attended the event. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ujjain district hospital civil surgeon is landed in soup after a video purportedly showing him getting intimate with a woman, believed to be a nurse, in an operation theatre has gone viral on social media. The 49-year-old civil surgeon has been removed from his post for the "behaviour unbecoming of an officer", district collector Shashank Mishra told PTI Sunday. The undated clip purportedly shows the civil surgeon (CS) kissing a woman in an operation theatre. "I have removed him from the post of civil surgeon of the district hospital," Ujjain district collector Shashank Mishra told PTI, adding that he has also issued a notice seeking the senior doctor's explanation. The civil surgeon has been replaced with Dr PN Verma, he said. When asked about the next course of action, the collector said he was awaiting reply of the CS who has been on leave since the last two days. When contacted, District Chief Medical and Health Officer (DCMHO) Dr Mohan Malviya said Divisional Commissioner is expected to order an enquiry into the incident. According to sources, the woman seen in the video is a nurse with the district hospital while the operation theatre is believed to be the one in the hospital. Dr Malviya refused comment when asked if the clip was shot in the operation theatre. Local police said they have not received any complaint so far. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two alleged narcotic smugglers were arrested and a huge quantity of contraband substance was seized from their possession in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said Sunday. Sameer Ahmad of Doda and Mohammad Farooq of Reasi were arrested after the recovery of 205 kilograms of poppy straw from their vehicle during checking at Jakheni Saturday evening, they said. A case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act was registered against them, police said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Donald faced uncomfortable new questions Sunday about his relationship with Vladimir despite his angry dismissal of a report that he has kept top aides in the dark about his private conversations with the Russian leader. Republican lawmakers generally defended the president, saying he had been tougher on Russia than his Democratic predecessor Barack Obama, but some had questions. "I want to find out a little bit more about what happened there," said Senator Ted Cruz, on NBC's "Meet the Press." "I want to learn more than just the allegations in the press." The Post reported that has gone to unusual lengths to keep his private talks with secret, withholding details from senior officials and at one point even taking away his own interpreter's notes. That account followed another in The New York Times that the FBI became so alarmed after fired director James Comey in May 2017 that it opened a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was acting on Russia's behalf. Asked in an interview with Fox News late Saturday "are you now or have you ever worked for Russia," Trump responded: "I think that's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked." "I'm not keeping anything under wraps, I couldn't care less. I mean, it's so ridiculous," he told Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, without directly denying the Post story. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders issued a statement calling the Post story "so outrageously inaccurate it doesn't even warrant a response." Democrats weren't convinced, however. "You know, there's so many questions raised," said Senator Dick Durbin, a top Democrat, on NBC's "Meet the Press." "Why is he so chummy with Vladimir Putin, this man who is a former KGB agent, never been a friend to the United States, invaded our allies, threatens us around the world, and tries his damndest to undermine our elections, why is this President Trump's best buddy? I don't get it." Adam Schiff, the head of the House Intelligence Committee, tweeted that Democrats on the committee had sought last year to obtain interpreters' notes or testimony about Trump's private meeting with in Helsinki, but Republicans voted them down. "Will they join us now? Shouldn't we find out whether our president is really putting 'America first?'" he asked. In the Fox News interview, Trump said he did not care if details of the July 2018 meeting were made public, calling it "a great conversation." "Anybody could have listened to that meeting, that meeting is up for grabs." The reports come as Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation looms large in the background, punctuated by guilty pleas, convictions and indictments of former Trump associates. These include his former national security advisor Michael Flynn; former Trump campaign chief Paul Manafort; and Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen. Flynn pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his Moscow ties. Manafort was convicted of financial crimes related to political work he did in Ukraine before the 2016 election as well as witness tampering. Cohen was sentenced to three years in prison for multiple crimes, including lying to Congress. Cohen, who has agreed to testify before Congress on February 7, has disclosed that he negotiated to build a Trump hotel in Moscow up until his boss's nomination as the Republican presidential candidate in 2016. Manafort, meanwhile, has admitted to sharing polling data with a Russian during the 2016 presidential race, according to a court filing inadvertently made public by his lawyers. CNN reported that the intended recipients were two pro-Russia Ukrainian oligarchs. Manafort has denied lying to investigators about his dealings with the Russian, Konstantin Kilimnik, a political consultant with alleged intelligence ties, claiming he merely forgot details during the hectic campaign. Trump has repeatedly denounced the Mueller investigation as a "witch hunt," denying any collusion with Russia's attempt to sway the 2016 election. Mueller has been expected to wrap up a report on his findings soon, but the grand jury impaneled to hear evidence has been extended beyond its original 18-month mandate, suggesting investigators have more work to do. US President Donald Trump has denied reports that he did not share details of some his meetings with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, saying that he would not mind releasing those details. "Well, I would (release details of the conversations with Putin) I am not keeping anything under wraps," Trump told Fox in an interview following a report by the Washington Post that claimed he has concealed details of his face-to-face encounters with Putin from senior officials in administration. "I don't care. I mean I had a conversation like every president does, you sit with the president of various countries. We had a great conversation. We were talking about Israel and securing Israel and lots of other things and it was a great conversation. I'm not keeping anything under wraps. I couldn't care less," he said. "Why not release the conversation that you had with President Putin in Helsinki along with some other stuff?" he was asked by Fox following the damaging report by The Washington Post. Trump described the report as "ridiculous". "The Washington Post is almost as bad as probably as bad as The New York Times. I have a one-on-one meeting with Putin like I do with every other leader and I had many one-on-ones. Nobody ever says anything about it," he said. "I meet with every leaderindividually. I meet with (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi. I meet with (Shinzo) Abe (of Japan), I meet with them. Nobody says anything. But, I meet with Putin, they make a big deal. Anybody could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," Trump said, denying the Post report. The Post reported that Trump has gone to "extraordinary lengths" to conceal details of his conversations with Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials. "Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-secretary of state Rex Tillerson. US officials learned of Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson," the daily said. "The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries," the daily reported. As a result, according to the Post, US officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. "Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what US intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference," the daily reported. Trump denied the allegations. "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked," he said when asked if he has ever worked for Russia. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) "Venom" star Tom Hardy and his wife, actor Charlotte Riley have become parents for the second time. According to The Independent, Riley, 37, gave birth to a baby boy last month. This is the second child for the couple. Their first was born in October 2015. However, they never revealed the gender and the name of the child. The couple, who got married in the South of France in July 2014, have remained fiercely private about their personal lives. Hardy, 41, is also a father to a 10-year-old son, Louis Hardy, whom he shares with ex-girlfriend Rachel Speed. The actor was previously married to producer Sarah Ward from 1999 to 2004. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Isha Yoga Centre will celebrate Pongal on January 16 which will be attended by several people from across the world, according to a release issued Sunday. The celebrations will take place at Adiyogi, about 25 km from here. It will be held in collaboration with Tamil Nadu Tourism, the release said. Thousands of people are expected to participate in this grand celebration from across the world, it said To mark the occasion of Mattu Pongal (cattle festival), 15 varieties of native cattle breeds' like Kankarej, Kangayam, Sahiwal and Gir will be exhibited to represent the importance of cattle in the country's culture, the release from the Centre said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday derided opposition efforts to cobble up a grand alliance against the BJP and pitched for his party's re-election in the coming parliamentary election, saying these "opportunistic" alliance and "dynastic" parties "want to build their own empire while we want to empower people". During an interaction with booth-level BJP workers from five parliamentary constituencies in Tamil Nadu via video-conference, Modi said, "Unlike other parties, we are not in for divide and rule or building vote banks. We are here to serve the country in every possible way." "On one hand we have our development agenda and on the other, there are opportunistic alliance and dynastic parties. This election is an opportunity for us to take the agenda of development to new heights. On one hand we have our development agenda and the vision of sabka saath sabka vikas. On the other hand, there are opportunistic alliance and dynasty parties," he said. Such parties, the prime minister charged, "want to build their own empire while we want to empower people". Modi's comments came a day after the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party announced their alliance for the coming Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh in a bid to counter the saffron party. Billing his party as one that recognised the cultural diversity of the country, he also patted his party workers and exuded confidence they will once again ensure its victory in the coming elections. A BJP worker is driven not by any self-interest but national interest, he said, adding only in the saffron party can a person born in socially backward and economically poor family think of reaching the top. "In the BJP one only needs hardwork, not big wallets, high birth or loyalty to one family. We are proud that a party with two MPs (to start off with) is ruling so many states and is running the government at the Centre," Modi said. He said that the BJP's success has "naturally angered so many people who have done nothing but done negative politics," and have been abusing both the party and himself, the prime minister said. "But they should not underestimate the people of India. Our friends in the opposition are anyway a confused lot. They leave no opportunity to say Modi is bad, government is not working, people dislike the BJP....the first thing that they do is make opportunist alliance with parties they disliked till recently and still do perhaps," he said, without naming anyone. "If Modi is so bad, government is not working and if the people dislike the BJP then why build these alliance. Should you not be confident about yourself. The truth is they know it is a working government, that the poor of India, the youth of India, the farmers of India and the women of India have a strong bond with the BJP." "Hence, for their own existence they are making short-term alliance," he said during the interaction with party workers from Mayiladuthurai, Sivaganga, Perambalur, Virudhunagar and Theni parliamentary constituencies as part of his 'Mera Booth, Sabse Mazboot' (My booth is the strongest) initiative. Taking a dig at the previous UPA government, he said it had built only 25 lakh houses in its last five years under a housing for poor scheme, whereas the present government has constructed 1.25 crore houses in four years. "In the previous government, for them the name of schemes was important, not their functioning. For them houses were means of publicity, for us they are means of poverty elimination. Earlier, whatever schemes were made were only on paper. No one knew how many real beneficiaries existed," he said. Responding to a question on the MSME sector, Modi hailed the role of small industries in the nation's growth. The government's commitment to MSME sector can be proved by the fact that 15 crore collateral-free Mudra loans have been provided to entrepreneurs. "Many people think ease of doing business only helps big companies. This is a completely wrong perception. Ease of doing business helps the MSME sector and small businesses most," he said. To a question on GST, he said that the government has from day one of its roll-out been saying that it will improve the new taxation system as "we move ahead" and recalled the various sops being given from time to time, including the latest one where the exemption for suppliers for registration and payment of GST has been raised from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 40 lakh. "This will help a large number of MSMEs. Free accounting and billing software will also be provided to taxpayers. Making business easier also means devoting special focus where it is needed," Modi said. "It would be have been tough to imagine India will one day leave even China behind in attracting foreign direct investment. Let me tell you, India has already surpassed china in 2018 in FDI," the prime minister said. The "tallest" Statue of Unity of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was a model of India's design prowess and showed nothing is impossible, he said. "We are changing all the assumptions that the world had about India, we had about ourselves. If this is possible in four years after we had inherited a mess, think what we can do in the next five years," he said. Asked about first time voters ahead of this year's polls, Modi asked his party workers to "make them your first priority" as they decide the future. "The BJP is a natural choice for first time voters," Modi added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Gujarat government said Sunday that it will implement the 10 per cent reservations in government jobs and higher education for the economically backward sections in the general category from January 14. The Constitutional amendment to provide the 10 per cent quota received assent of President Ram Nath Kovind Saturday. "The economically weaker sections from the general category will get 10 per cent reservation in admissions to higher education and government jobs starting Uttarayan on January 14," the state government said in a release. The new quota will also be implemented in admissions and jobs which were advertised before January 14 but for which the actual process has not started, it said. In such cases, fresh announcement about the admission process or jobs will have to be made, it added. However, if the recruitment or admission process -- tests or interviews -- has started before January 14, the 10 per cent quota would not apply, the release added. Gujarat Congress chief Amit Chavda criticised the announcement, saying it will create confusion. "The government has said it will implement the provision from January 14, which is Uttarayan holiday. The chief minister should explain the logic behind this announcement and the process to implement it," he said. The BJP government should also explain the status of a stay granted by the Supreme Court on the similar 10 per cent reservation for EWS category in Gujarat that was introduced when Anandiben Patel was chief minister, Chavda added. The "hurriedly made announcement" will create confusion among the candidates, he claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Telangana Jagruti, an organisation formed by TRS MP K Kavitha to work for heralding cultural renaissance in Telangana, will host an International Youth Leadership Conference on January 19-20, focusing on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The conference would kick off on January 19 with chief guest and anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare addressing delegates on 'Gandhian Path to Sustainability and India's unique role in sustainable development, why youth is the key to attain sustainable development goals', a release said. After the keynote address, journalist Shekhar Gupta will moderate a panel discussion on 'What Have Policymakers Done for Youth Development in India?, it added. The two-day conference's "cross-cutting" theme will be 'Mahatma Gandhi's Path To Sustainability and Innovation?', it said. The two-day TJIYLC 2019 is expected to have over 500 delegates from 110 countries discussing 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) with emphasis on poverty, gender rights, education, health, sanitation, worker safety and wages among others, the release informed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The refractory and steel sectors need to work closely with each other to reduce dependence on imports and cut production costs, a top official of the Indian Refractory Makers Association (IRMA) said. If India wants to achieve its ambitious target of 300 million tonne of steel production by 2030, the only way forward is synergy between the two sectors, said Sameer Nagpal, Head, Advocacy of IRMA. Though the Indian refractory industry was minuscule compared to its steel counterpart, it is critical in the production of the metal, he said, adding, the steel sector consumes about 65 to 70 per cent of refractories. "Unless the issues related to the refractory industry are addressed, the government's steel production target might get hampered," Nagpal, who is also the CEO (Refractory Business) of the Dalmia Bharat Group, told PTI on Sunday. At present, the refractory sector is largely dependent on China for raw-material procurement, much like the steel industry that imports around 40 per cent of low-cost finished products from that country. Nagpal, however, said following the implementation of new environmental rules in China, the inflow of raw materials has been disrupted, affecting the refractory companies. Batting for zero per cent duty on raw materials, he said domestic refractory companies are on expansion mode through the inorganic route, and the industry is expected to garner an investment of USD 100-150 million, mainly in the eastern part of the country in the next three to five years. The IRMA functionary said most of the acquisitions are likely to be in Europe, which will also help in latest technology transfers. Nagpal said that India can become a refractory hub if the right steps in favour of the sector are initiated, such as making it a part of the Steel Research and Technology Mission of India (SRTMI), which has already attracted an initial corpus of Rs 200 crore. He also said that a proposal has been mooted to set up a refractory centre of excellence. On Dalmia Bharat Group's expansion plans for the refractory business, Nagpal said it is eyeing overseas acquisitions, too, particularly in Europe and Egypt. "Our negotiations are underway with three companies in Europe and Egypt. At least one of them will be finalised by the next quarter," he said. India's current refractory capacity stands at 1.5 million tonne per annum. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday met Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rasit Meredow on the sidelines of the India-Central Asia Dialogue here and discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across sectors. Swaraj arrived in the ancient city of Samarkand on Saturday on a two-day visit to Uzbekistan to attend the first India-Central Asia Dialogue, which focussed on a plethora of regional issues including enhancing connectivity to war-ravaged Afghanistan. "EAM @SushmaSwaraj met the Foreign Minister of Turkmenistan Rasit Meredow on the sidelines of the India-Central Asia Dialogue in #Samarkand. Discussed enhancing bilateral cooperation across sectors," MEA Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. India enjoys close, friendly and historical ties with Turkmenistan and the two countries are part of the ambitious TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan- PakistanIndia) pipeline project. Turkmenistan, which sits on the world's fourth-largest gas reserves, started building its section of the pipeline in December 2015. The TAPI pipeline will have a capacity to carry 90 million standard cubic metres a day (mmscmd) gas for 30 years. The project will bring clean fuel to the growing economies of India and Pakistan. It will provide energy-hungry India gas to run its power plants. Under the pipeline project, Pakistan and India will be provided 1.325 bcfd gas each and Afghanistan will be getting a share of 0.5 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) gas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Turkmenistan in July 2015 during which a number of documents were signed between the two sides. It was a historic visit given that an Indian Prime Minister had visited Turkmenistan after 20 years. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A team of a city-based company that specialises in submersible robotic inspections on Sunday joined the operation to rescue 15 miners trapped for a month now inside a flooded rat-hole coal mine in Meghalaya. According to the website of the company, Planys Technologies, it is an IIT Madras incubated company that provides submersible robotic inspections and survey solutions using Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROV). One ROV and a six-member team of the firm have joined the operation, a company official said. "The team joined Sunday. They are working with the Navy," the official, who did not want to be named, told PTI. The miners have been trapped inside a 370-foot-deep illegal coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia Hills district since December 13, 2018 after water from a nearby river gushed in, puncturing the mine wall. Even as a multi-agency effort to rescue them is underway, the Supreme Court is hearing a PIL in the matter for urgent action. The Centre on Friday told the apex court it has to "believe in miracles" and see if the miners come out alive. The Indian Navy and planes and helicopters of the Indian Air Force have been deployed in the rescue operations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after the SP and the BSP announced alliance for the Lok Sabha polls in the state, senior Congress leaders Sunday held a brainstorming meeting at the party's state headquarters here to discuss future course of action. The Congress, which has been left out of the alliance in the state, might go it alone in the Lok Sabha elections but may choose not to field candidates on a few seats, a senior party leader said. While announcing the SP-BSP alliance Saturday, BSP chief Mayawati had said they would not contest from Amethi (currently held by party chief Rahul Gandhi) and Rae Bareli (held by Sonia Gandhi) seats. Congress general secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad and UP Congress chief Raj Babbar held a close door meeting with senior leaders, party sources said. Asked to comment on the tie-up announced by BSP chief Mayawati and SP leader Akhilesh Yadav, All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad had Saturday said the party would not react immediately and would come out with a detailed reaction in Lucknow. He said a meeting would be held with leaders and workers of the party from central and eastern Uttar Pradesh on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Army personnel was injured Sunday when Pakistani troops violated ceasefire by resorting to unprovoked firing from across the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said. The soldier, manning a forward post, was hit by a bullet apparently from a Pakistani sniper in Keri sector and was hospitalised, they said, adding the Indian troops retaliated and the exchange of fire between the two sides continued for some time. There has been a spurt in ceasefire violations along the LoC in the twin districts of Rajouri and Poonch since the beginning of this year, resulting in the killing of two army personnel and injuries to several others. The army major and a soldier were killed when an improvised explosive device went off in Naushera sector of Rajouri on Friday, the day when a porter was also killed in Pakistani firing in nearby Sunderbani sector. The year 2018 recorded 2,936 ceasefire violations by Pakistan the highest in the past 15 years with an average of eight cases daily in which 61 people were killed and over 250 injured. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Too much of social media such as Facebook makes people envious and creates bad mood that can accumulate over time into a general dissatisfaction with life, claims a new book. Online social networks have made it easier to stay in touch with friends and family around the world, but a worrying factor is that they can easily become a "den of comparisons," says Ashesh Mukherjee in his book "The Internet Trap". Mukherjee, a professor of marketing at the McGill University in Canada, says as social animals, people are hardwired to compare themselves with others, with the social media magnifying this "inherent aspect" of human nature. With people now using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Periscope and YouTube to interact, he says compared to face-to-face communication, online communication prompts users to talk more about unusual and desirable products they own, citing research findings. "This is because online communication is usually in written form while face to face communication is in oral form. Writing gives people the time to construct and refine what they want to say and, during this time, the self-enhancement motive drives people to come up with interesting things to post. "And once people start posting interesting information, others are likely to follow suit in a bid to keep up with the Joneses. This creates an arms race of one-upmanship, leading to ever more upward comparisons on the Internet," he says. Mukerjee says he co-conducted a study in 2014 to analyse the psychological effects of "upward social comparisons" where participants were asked to browse social media such as Facebook and some other website, like CNN, for some time and then fill up a questionnaire measuring emotions such as pride, anger, joy, and envy. "Of all the emotions measured, I found that envy was the most strongly associated with browsing social networks such as Facebook. Since envy is created by upward social comparisons, this study suggests that browsing social networks often makes us envious," he says in the book published by Rupa. Envy could be either good or bad as on the positive side it can motivate people to work hard to advance their social standing, says Mukherjee, whose researches have focussed on marketing communications, word-of-mouth, online behaviour, and pro-social behaviour, among others. "On the other hand, people experiencing envy are often ashamed and spend their mental energy trying to conceal their feelings from others," he says, adding that expending mental energy "reduces self-control, which often leads to decisions we regret later." "Another negative effect of envy is that it creates a bad mood that can accumulate over time into a general dissatisfaction with life," Mukherjee says. Analysing the perils of comparisons on social, he cites another study of his to say that a vast majority of the pictures posted on Facebook were of people having a "good time". In fact, he says, people even risk life and limb in pursuit of the perfect picture to post on social media as it has been reported that 57 people have been killed in India since 2014 while taking dangerous selfies on top of buildings, on train tracks, and on the beach. "These 'selfie deaths' are testament to the power of the social image: people like to show off, and social media has given us a bigger stage and a brighter spotlight than ever before to flaunt our stuff," Mukherjee says. In "The Internet Trap", Mukherjee uses latest research in consumer psychology to highlight the pros and cons of a more internet-dependent lifestyle and offers solutions to online problems including privacy issues. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Sunday reached Portblair on a two-day visit to Andaman and Nicobar Islands where she will witness a joint military drill involving the Army, the Air Force, the Navy and the Coast Guard, officials said. Sitharaman will witness three exercises -- general survival exercise, amphibious drill and a joint drill, an official said. Andaman and Nicobar is also the armed forces' tri-service command. At least two drills will see participation of the three armed forces, the official added. "Smt @nsitharaman arrives in Port Blair to oversee a major joint excercise involving the @adgpi , @indiannavy , @IAF_MCC and @IndiaCoastGuard during her 2 day visit," the defence minister's official handle tweeted. Andaman and Nicobar archipelago is straddled strategically near the mouth of the Malacca Straits. The Malacca Straits is also an important Sea Lane of Communication and used by the navies of several countries, including China which has been stepping up its military infrastructure in the Indian Ocean Region. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The minority Sikh community in Pakistan celebrated the 352nd birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh in the country's restive Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province amid tight security. A three-day event to celebrate Prakash Parv at Gurudwara Bhai Joga Singh here concluded Sunday. The event was organised by Department of Hajj, Auqaf, Religious and Minority Affairs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to show the signs of harmony and inclusiveness. Over 5,000 Sikh devotees took out a procession and converged at a programme to mark the occasion. Adequate security measures were put in place to ensure a smooth and hassle-free event. The major attraction of the procession was the display of 'Gatka', a famous Sikh martial art and other famous sword exercises. On the occasion, member of the provincial assembly Ravi Kumar paid tributes to Soran Singh, the provincial minister for minority affairs who was shot dead in 2016, saying his services will always be remembered. Kumar said the three-day event will build understanding of traditions and beliefs of minorities. People here have shown signs of interfaith harmony. Lawmaker Wazir Zada said celebrating events of minorities will help spread love and peace. Guru Gobind Singh's birth anniversary is one of the major festivals of the Sikh community across the world. Known as Guru Gobind Singh Prakash, or the dawn of light, he was born on January 5, 1666. He is the 10 Sikh Guru, a spiritual master and philosopher. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 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 Every couple of months Surveer Singh, who fled religious persecution in Afghanistan, is torn between identity and livelihood. And his dilemma between fulfilling requirements for citizenship of his "natural homeland", India, and holding on to a stable job refuses to end even after 27 years. The 33-year-old, who, along with his family of four, lives in Amritsar, says he is struggling to stay afloat as every other month he has to visit government offices and cut through red tape to continue living in his "natural homeland". Surveer Singh's family had been living in Afghanistan's restive Nangarhar province before his parents decided to move to in 1992, when a wave of Hindus and Sikhs left after the withdrawal of the USSR and the arrival of Mujahideens. Being the sole bread-winner of the family, Surveer Singh, who earns his livelihood doing odd jobs, says though his family migrated to at the same time, every person in his family has their visas and refugee certificates issued on different dates. As their citizenship application is caught in a bureaucratic maze, they need to visit government offices on a regular basis to maintain their papers. They have pleaded with several political leaders for getting the Indian citizenship but all they have got is assurances, he says. "Since the papers expire every 12 months, I have to visit once in two or three months along with one of my family members for renewals," Surveer Singh said, adding that he is sick of his shaky status in It is already very difficult to find a job as no one wants to employ Even if one secures a job, often low-paying ones, the need to visit every other month frustrates employers who then look for staffers who need leave less, he said. The plight of immigrants from and seeking to renew long-term visas and refugee certificates does not end here. They also have to find two Indian citizens who are ready to become their guarantors. "After hearing that we are from Afghanistan, no one readies to become our guarantor. We continue to be nowhere people," he says. However, the Narendra Modi government's push for the Citizenship Amendment Bill has rekindled hopes of Surveer Singh and thousands of other from and The proposed legislation seeks to amend the Citizenship Act of 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to people from minority communities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians -- from Afghanistan, and after six years of residence in India instead of 12 even if they don't possess any proper document. "I request the government to pass the Bill as soon as possible," Surveer Singh said. Like him, Saran Singh said he wants a dignified life. The 50-year-old, who left his properties worth crores of rupees in Pakistan and reached in 1999 along with his family, says they were treated as "second-class citizens" in Pakistan. He lived in Pakistan's Khyber Agency where militancy and religious persecution are rampant. He said militants would often coerce him and his family to convert to Islam if they want to be alive. So many women were kidnapped and forcibly converted to Islam. "No one wants to marry our daughters and sons as people become suspicious once they get to know that we are from Pakistan. People say since you do not have the Indian citizenship, what would happen if the government decides to deport you? What would happen to the marriage?" said Saran. "We escaped religious persecution in Pakistan and reached India, our natural homeland, but here we are entangled in red tape and bureaucratic hurdle. Sometimes officials ask us to renew our Pakistani passports for which we have to risk our lives to visit Pakistan and get the papers issued," Saran said. "When we were living in Pakistan, locals would say you are not Pakistanis as you are Hindus and Sikhs, and you must go to your country. While living in India, people say you are from Pakistan," Saran said. He requested the government to give them citizenship as soon as possible as the pain of living in India as has been taking a huge toll on their lives. "We have been facing a lot of hardships in our daily lives as one needs Aadhaar and voter identity cards for any work," Saran said. In the absence of papers, many refugees are even unable to educate their children, he claimed. The condition of refugees living in is worse as compared to those living in as every time they apply for citizenship, their file gets stuck on the way and never reaches the capital. One of the biggest hurdles for the Pakistani refugees seeking the Indian citizenship is lack of paperwork. The government asks them to establish that their grandparents or parents were born in undivided India, Saran said. "Finding proof that our grandparents or parents lived in undivided India is like finding a needle in haystack," he said. From a vibrant population of 2.20 lakh in Afghanistan, the number of Hindus and Sikhs have now come down to 5,000 now, according to estimates of India security agencies. The refugees have now pinned their hope on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, whose approval in pending in Rajya Sabha. They say the opposition parties should not protest against the bill and ensure its safe passage on humanitarian grounds. "It is our last hope of leading a dignified life," one of them says. The Tribal Research and Cultural Foundation (TRCF), an organisation representing the Gujjar community, urged the Jammu and Kashmir administration on Sunday to formulate a compact programme to eradicate poverty among nomadic tribes. The organisation also sought inclusion of the nomadic population in the blow-poverty line (BPL) list and demanded food security for them. "Gujjar and Bakerwal communities being nomads are not properly aware of the schemes being launched by state and central governments to uplift them socially, economically, educationally and culturally under Scheduled Tribe category. "Poverty is growing rapidly among nomadic tribes as they are relinquishing their nomadic life and opting for unskilled labour and poverty eradication programmes are required for them immediately," TRCF founder Javaid Rahi said at a function here. The TRCF leader said lakhs of members of nomadic tribes, mainly Gujjar, Bakerwal, Gadii, Sippi and Changpa, migrate along with their cattle to upper reaches annually and are not available at one place like other communities to take ration and other benefits. "Due to their wandering way of life, the tribes not only face food scarcity but also come across acute shortage of basic facilities, absolute illiteracy and lack of health facilities," he said, demanding an innovative scheme for nomads be designed keeping in view their lifestyle for their overall development. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday he will ask Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to ensure the killers of journalist are held accountable for their crime. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, spoke ahead of a politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia, which has faced intense scrutiny over Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told a news conference in Qatar. "So, we'll continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well." Pompeo is due to travel to later on Sunday as part of an eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. He was speaking in Doha after meeting his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. He will meet the Qatari emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, before heading to Khashoggi was killed on October 2 in a case which stunned the world and threatened a serious rift between Riyadh and Washington. The journalist was murdered and his corpse dismembered inside the kingdom's Istanbul consulate. Evidence subsequently emerged that the killing was done by a team of Saudis sent from Riyadh and closely linked to the crown prince. Washington subsequently demanded a transparent investigation. Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people, and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors despite US intelligence reportedly having evidence he was behind it. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, US President Donald President Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the kingdom, although the US Senate has clearly blamed Prince Mohammed for the murder. Washington is eager for regional unity to gain widespread support its fight against Iran. Pompeo refused on Sunday to comment on reports Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. "As for the GCC... we are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world," Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. "Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He added that "President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long". However, Pompeo later admitted in a Q&A session with US embassy staff in Doha that no progress was made on resolving the issue. "(It's) not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday," he said. "And I regret that." He said he raised the standoff at length with his counterparts in Qatar, Egypt, the UAE and Bahrain. The United States, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, has so far been unsuccessful in trying to end the dispute. Attempts at mediation have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. "It was time for change and he made his decision to move on but America's commitment remains unchanged," said Pompeo of Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second "strategic dialogue" between the two countries on Sunday, and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. "This reflects the good and historical relationship between the two countries," said the Qatari foreign minister. Gujarat independent MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mewani said Sunday that the Centre's move to provide 10 per cent quota to upper caste poor is a step towards realizing the RSS-BJP's agenda to remove caste-based reservations from the system. President Ram Nath Kovind Saturday gave his assent to the constitutional provision to provide 10-per cent reservation in government jobs and education to economically backward section in the general category. The bill was passed by the Parliament on January 9. "I am apprehensive and so are the members of the Scheduled Caste/ Scheduled Tribe and Other Backward Class that this is the first step towards putting an end to the reservation on the ground of socio-educational deprivation. "It has been a long-pending agenda of the RSS-BJP to discard the Constitution and end reservation based on caste system," Mewani said on the sidelines of a programme here. The Independent MLA also said that the quota system was introduced in the country to give representation to socially and educationally backward people, it wasn't meant to end poverty. "We have absolutely no issues with the poor people from the other communities getting any benefit. But reservation is not meant to remove poverty. "It is meant to give representation to SC/ST/OBC people, who on account of the society's caste structure, have remained socially and educationally backward," he said. Congratulating BSP supremo Mayawati and SP supremo Akhilesh Yadav for stitching an alliance in Uttar Pradesh against the BJP, Mewani said the other opposition parties should also take cue from the coalition and make efforts for maximum polarisation of anti-BJP votes. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) National Conference president Farooq Abdullah Sundaysaid the "rising intolerance" in the country has "severely affected" religious minorities, especially Muslims. Attacking the BJP-led government at the Centre, Abdullah said the current dispensation in Delhi was "hell-bent on destroying the secular and liberal visage of India". In an official statement, the lawmaker from Srinagar was quoted as saying that the people of the country showed the BJP its "right place" by voting their governments out in the recently concluded assembly elections. He said, "Rising intolerance in the country has severely affected religious minorities, especially Muslims." He urged Muslims to forge unity and give a befitting response to "forces contriving to divide the community". Addressing gatherings at Syed Hamid Pura Nawabazar and Boulevard, Abdullah said Islam is all about love, peace, and compassion. "The name of Islam is enough to impress upon us the importance of peace as the word denotes same," he said, according to the statement. The NC president said it was high time for Muslims to imbue the teachings of Islam in their daily lives. "It is high time that Muslims across the world realise that getting swayed by sectarian strife will only ruin them," he said. Recounting the achievements of Islamic civilisation and culture, he said the Islamic achievements in medieval medicine were groundbreaking and the advent of Islam gave impetus to many discoveries in many fields ranging from architecture to geography. Abdullah said the need of the hour is to draw inspiration from the achievements of Islam of which peace and brotherhood have always been an essential ingredient. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has urged private doctors to notify every tuberculosis patient and register them on NIKSHAY, a web-enabled application developed by the Health Ministry. NIKSHAY is an online tool which aims to create a database of all TB patients for monitoring and research purposes. Dr R V Asokan, secretary general and chairman of IMA, said private doctors have a huge role to play in reporting TB cases and adhering to the standards for TB Care in India (STCI). "They (private) need to realise the urgency of the situation in that a drug sensitive epidemic is being transformed into a drug resistant epidemic. Standards of TB care have to be followed uniformly across the private sector. "India has the largest burden of tuberculosis in the world. Notification of every TB patient is the single most important intervention to meet the government's vision of a TB-free India. IMA is addressing this and is encouraging all private doctors to notify every TB patient in order to achieve the goal of 'End TB' in India by 2025," Asokan said. It is seen that we are unable to track the actual number of TB cases on the ground, he said. "To make the TB-free India mission a success notification of patients by private doctors has to increase by leaps and bounds. India declared TB a notifiable disease in 2012. All medical practitioners in the country need to notify their TB patients. Upon notification, the patient gets access to free drugs, diagnostic tests and nutritional support," he said. IMA has been working with the government to develop strategies that effectively address the impediments in the management of the disease, especially the low notification of patients. The IMA is holding a series of TB programmes for medical professionals across the country to increase notifications in the private sector and is encouraging them to register TB patients on NIKSHAY, he said. Notification allows access to free drugs and diagnostic tests as per the STCI and patient-centric support that ensures patients adhere to the treatment and incentives. The financial incentives are provided upon notification in NIKSHAY through integrated direct beneficiary transfer. "Ultimately, TB patients need a complete solution to their problem, regardless of whether they seek care in the public or the private sector. Therefore, it is important for the private sector to work hand-in-hand with the Revised National TB Control Program (RNTCP), and improve the overall quality of TB care in the country," Asokan said. India accounts for a quarter of the 8.6 million cases of TB that occur worldwide. India also accounts for a third of the 'missing 3 million TB cases' that do not get diagnosed or notified. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Activists of right-wing group, Rashtriya Bajrang Dal (RBD), on Sunday staged a demonstration here against illegal Rohingya and Bangladeshi immigrants and gave Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik a week's ultimatum to deport them. The protesters, some of whom wielded tridents, placards and the national flag, assembled outside a mall along Narwal bypass, not far from where a settlement of Rohingya Muslims is located. They raised slogans in support of their demand for eviction of the illegal immigrants and later dispersed peacefully. RBD state president Rakesh Bajrangi said the protest should serve as a "warning" to the governor-led administration. He claimed the presence of Rohingyas and Bangladeshi nationals in the state posed a threat to national security. The RBD has given the governor a week's time to take measures for the early deportation of the Rohingyas and Bangladeshi nationals. If the government fails to fulfil the demand, there will be a bigger agitation involving local residents, he added. Bajrangi claimed these illegal immigrants were involved in criminal activities like drug peddling and posed a threat to the region's culture. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor-filmmaker Pooja Bhatt says she is happy that #MeToo movement has helped women come out with their stories of harassment but believes allegations need to be followed up with serious action instead of "ranting on public platform". A string of cases gave birth to India's #MeToo chapter last September, with women from all walks of life coming forward to demand for a safer work environment. "One should take names. One should file a case and take the person to court. Just ranting on a public platform with no thought towards the consequences, I think, is a bit too much," Pooja told PTI. She contends that the movement should not be limited to social media and rather be dealt properly with the help of law. "If a man has made an overture at you and is harassing you, there is a law that protects you. Ranting on Twitter and not backing it up with a police complaint (does not help)... I am not interested in a media trial," she adds. The actor-director says she too has been a victim of sexual harassment. "It's a fallacy, I have had my share. Which woman has not dealt with somebody putting their hand on the butt? When I used to go to school by train, I have got my butt pinched. But we were trained to take on that person." In 2002, Pooja had confessed that she was in an abusive relationship with an actor. She says she was then accused of washing her "dirty linen in public" by the industry. "I felt I must talk about it as I represent courage and strength to the world. That time it was not considered fashionable to talk about it. I got a lot of flak for it. "Saif Ali Khan and John Abraham were couple of few people who stood up for me. Everyone from Shekhar Suman to Ruby Bhatia said, 'How can I talk about all this in public?' For me, it was not about him or me, it was about something larger. We need to empower our women to speak." She says, both as an actor and a producer, she has never worked in an uncomfortable work environment. "Ninety per cent of the crew that work with me are there since my childhood and which is why I do not want to work too much outside because the people I work with are as important for me as my role. "For no amount of money or love will I work with people I do not trust. Casting couch does exist and it exists everywhere, when there is an exchange of power. If two adults decide to consent, who are we to judge that? It comes down to women's will." She says 90 per cent of sexual abuse cases are domestic in nature but no one talks about it fearing its adverse effects on the family system. "You are often told by people, 'Let it be. Why talk about it as it will unnecessarily upset the power structure?' You are afraid of being ostracised. When you speak the truth, you find yourself in a minority. "If you are not willing to be a lone wolf, keep your truth to yourself. If you want acceptance and your truths to be spoken, it is a slippery slope," she adds. Pooja, 46, is of the opinion that it is wrong to assume that men are not harassed. "Women can be equally vile, big bullies. It is unfair to paint every man with the same brush. There are decent men as well." She says that both men and women need to work together for creating a safer environment. "If we have to win this war, we have to do it with men. It is not about women against men." On the work front, Pooja's home production film "Cabaret" is currently streaming on ZEE5. She is set to make a comeback to acting with "Sadak 2". The actor will also be seen in a web series based on Abheek Barua's book, "A City of Death". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJP national spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain Sunday said that Congress president Rahul Gandhi must keep India's dignity in mind while speaking on a foreign soil. Hussain criticised Gandhi a day after the Congress president, in a conference in Dubai, accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "helping" Anil Ambani "steal Rs 30,000 crore" of the country. In Dubai, Gandhi also reiterated his allegations that the prime minister shied away from defending himself personally in Lok Sabha on Rafale deal and fielded a woman - Defence Minister Nirmala Shitaraman - instead for it. Gandhi also dubbed India as having become "intolerant" during the last four years under the BJP rule. Speaking to reporters here, Hussain said, "Rahul Gandhi (in Dubai) made indecent remarks against Prime Minister Modi and said that intolerance in India has gone up in the past four years." "The Congress president should have kept India's dignity in mind (while making statements). Terming India as intolerant is unfortunate," Hussain said. "Rahul should keep in mind that on foreign soil, he is not speaking against the leader of a political party, but speaking against the prime minister of the country. Using such unfortunate words will hurt Indians," Hussain rued. He added that "the people of the country will give a befitting reply to the Congress for using undignified language." On a question over the SP-BSP alliance, Hussain said, "This alliance will not pose any challenge to the BJP. The result of the SP-BSP alliance will be similar to the SP-Congress alliance forged ahead of 2017 UP assembly elections. People had then rejected 'UP ke ladke' and 'UP ko yeh saath pasand hai' and reposed its faith on the prime minister. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Minister V Narayanasamy said here on Sunday said that the cabinet has decided to ban production, sale and use of single-use plastic products in the Union Territory from March 1. He said a massive drive would also be launched to create awareness among the merchants and the public on the necessity of the ban. "We want to gift a plastic free Puducherry to the future generation and curb the plastic in the larger interest of environment," he told newsmen after the cabinet meeting. The neighbouring Tamil Nadu government had in June 2018 announced that it would ban the use of plastic items including non-biodegradable carry bags from January 1, 2019 to "gift a plastic-free state to future generations". A nominated BJP MLA caused a flutter on the Assembly premises here on December 31 by resorting to sudden dharna urging the Puducherry government to ban immediately production, sale and use of plastic products in the Union Territory on the lines of neighbouring Tamil Nadu. Narayanasamy also said the cabinet has decided to introduce 'voluntary retirement scheme' for the workers and staff of the the century old Anglo French Textiles (AFT) mill and two other textile mills, named Bharathi and Swadeshi (run by Puducherry Textile corporation) in a phased manner in the next six months. The liquor business of the Puducherry Agro Service and Industries Corporation Limited, popularly known as PASIC and the Civil Supplies Corporation (PAPSCO) would be handed shortly to private players by auctioning licenses, the CM said. Narayanasamy also said the staff in the government owned Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation Limited (PIPDIC) and Distillery and Power Corporations would be extended the benefit of the report of the Seventh Pay Commission as these three organisations were functioning profitably. He said one per cent quota of reservation would also be provided to the members of the 'Irular, Villi and Vettaikaran' communities under the Scheduled Tribes Category in education and employment opportunities. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Top Ghanaian gold dealer, Nana Appiah Mensah - who is wanted by authorities for alleged fraud - is out of the country looking for money to refund investors, privately owned news site MyJoy Online says, quoting his company's spokesman. "He has travelled outside the shores of Ghana and is working to make sure that he gets money to come and pay our customers," Menzgold's Nii Armah Amarteifio told the news site. Ghanas Supreme Court issued an arrest warrant on Wednesday for Mr Mensah, who is the CEO of gold dealership Menzgold, for alleged fraud by "false pretense". The company allegedly promised customers a return of 7.5% monthly on gold they deposited with them, which is way above the international average. But customers say they didn't receive the promised money and on Tuesday more than 100 of them protested outside the Menzgold office in the second city, Kumasi. The company is estimated to have collected $200m (157m) from customers over five years. Mr Mensah, popularly known as NAM 1, has not yet commented. He is known to rub shoulders with politicians and local celebrities, MyJoy Online reports. In another development a High Court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit filed last year by Menzgold to bar the Bank of Ghana and the Securities and Exchange Commission from looking into its business. The gold firm had argued that the activities of the two regulatory bodies were hurting its business. Source: BBC Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Qatar on Sunday pushing for an end to a diplomatic rift between Washington's Gulf allies on the latest leg of his Middle East tour. The top US diplomat's visit to the small, energy-rich Gulf state comes amid a more than 18-month-old dispute pitting Riyadh and its allies against Doha. "It is time for old rivalries to end for the sake of the greater good of the region," Pompeo said on Thursday in Cairo, where he laid out the Middle East strategy of US President Donald Trump's adminstration. The secretary of state travelled to Doha from Abu Dhabi, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed on Saturday. Pompeo is later expected to head to Riyadh, where all eyes will be on a possible meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The visit comes just three months after the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi in his country's Istanbul consulate. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. Washington, which at first appeared to back the boycott, has so far been unsuccessful in trying to get the countries to set aside their differences in order to focus on Washington's regional priority -- the fight against Iran. Attempts at mediation have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni -- who quit because of an apparent "lack of will" on behalf of "regional leaders" for regional reconciliation. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. "Today, we ask each of those countries to take the next step and help us solidify MESA," Pompeo said in Cairo. But the task is not going to be easy. "It is complicated to put together, make no mistake about it, because we're talking about a complex agreement among a number of nations where we're asking for significant commitments from them," Pompeo told reporters in Abu Dhabi on Saturday. "But I believe that there is a path forward where there's a set of common understandings." In Doha, Pompeo is expected to meet with several senior government leaders, including Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. The two are expected to hold a joint press conference on Sunday. Qatar's relationship with Iran is complicated as it shares the world's largest natural gas field with Tehran. Gas has been responsible for transforming Qatar into one of the richest countries in the world, since it first began exporting liquefied natural gas little more than 20 years ago. It has also agreed to increase gas production since the beginning of the crisis. Washington's call for regional unity is clouded by its relations with Saudi Arabia since the murder of Khashoggi in early October. During Pompeo's previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, his broad smiles with the crown prince had outraged some Americans. Trump has said he wants to preserve the alliance with the Saudi kingdom, although the US Senate has clearly blamed Prince Mohammed for the murder. "We will continue to work to ensure that all those responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi are accountable," Pompeo said Friday on the US channel Fox He reaffirmed that US-Saudi relations remain "incredibly important to Americans". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday advised fellow politicians not to interfere in "other fields". The senior leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was speaking at the valedictory function of an annual Marathi literary meet at Yavatmal, which has been embroiled in a controversy after an invitation to noted writer Nayantara Sahgal was withdrawn by the organisers. Without making a direct reference to the row, Gadkari said, "Politicians should learn not to interfere in other fields. The people in universities, educational institutions, literature and poetry should be dealing with their (respective) areas." "When I say there should not be any interference, it does not mean there should not be any contact between the people from the field of literature and politicians," he added. "During Emergency, the speeches of (Marathi) writers like Durga Bhagwat and P L Deshpande drew bigger crowds than political rallies. Both of them, however, returned to literature after the election. They did not even seek political postings such as a Rajya Sabha membership," the Union minister for road transport and highways noted. While Bhagwat had criticised the Emergency openly, Deshpande had campaigned for the Janata Party after the Emergency was lifted and the polls were announced in 1977. "There should be cooperation, coordination and communication between writers and politicians. Lack of communication leads to miscommunication and then, arguments," Gadkari said. "We should only respect the person who is expressing the opposite views," he added. Sahgal, a noted English-language writer who was at the forefront of the "award wapsi" campaign a few years ago, was invited to inaugurate the 92nd Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, which started at Yavatmal on January 11. But the organisers of the event withdrew the invite subsequently, after local leaders of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) opposed the invitation to the "English-language writer". The decision drew flak from several quarters even as MNS chief Raj Thackeray said it was not his party's official stand. Opposition parties alleged that it was the BJP which did not want Sahgal to attend the meet, a charge the Maharashtra government denied. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to launch a slew of centrally funded projects worth over Rs 1,545 crore in Odisha during his third visit in last three weeks to the state on Tuesday, official sources said. Modi, who toured Bhubaneswar and Khurda on December 24 and Baripada in January first week, will visit Balangir, where he is scheduled to address a rally, besides inaugurating and laying foundation of the development projects, mostly in railway sector, they said. On December 24, the prime minister had launched Rs 14,523 crore worth of projects for Odisha, while on January 5, he unveiled programmes worth Rs 4,733 crore, taking the total value to Rs 20,801 crore in the past month, officials said. Modi's visits to the state in quick succession assume significance as Assembly election in the state is slated to be held together with the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. Two days after Modi's rally in Balangir, BJP president Amit Shah is slated to visit Odisha on January 18 when he will meet booth-level workers in Cuttack, a senior BJP leader said. The back-to-back visit by the top BJP brass shows the party's efforts to take on the ruling BJD, which has been in power in the state since 2000. Shah has set an ambitious target for the BJP to win at least 120 of the 147 Assembly seats in the state. The saffron party had won 10 assembly seats and one of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in 2014. During his Balangir visit on Tuesday, the prime minister will dedicate to the nation electrification of Jharsuguda-Vizinagaram and Sambalpur-Angul lines, spanning 813 km, completed at a cost of Rs 1085 crore. The project will ensure seamless rail connectivity on the line and reduce running time, a senior railway official said. It will also reduce diesel consumption and lead to reduction of Green House Gas emissions. Modi will also dedicate the doubling of 14.273 km of Barpali-Dungaripali and 17.354 km Balangir-Deogaon road lines, completed at a cost of Rs 189.3 crore. It forms a part of the 181.54 KM Sambalpur-Titlagarh doubling project. Among other railway projects, he will dedicate a Multi-Modal Logistics Park (MMLP) at Jharsuguda, built at a cost of Rs 100 crore. Spread over an area of 28.3 acre, the MMLP is situated adjacent to the main line of Howrah-Mumbai, 5km from Jharsuguda Railway station. A number of industries, such as cement, paper, aluminum, refractory, pig iron, sponge iron, steel pipe, located in and around the catchment area will benefit from this facility, he said. The PM will also inaugurate 15 km Balangir-Bichhupali new railway line built at a cost of Rs 115 crore. It is a part of the new 289-km Balangir-Khurda road line which connects to Howrah-Chennai main line on Khurdha roadside and Titlagarh- Sambalpur line at Balangir. Once completed, the line would connect coastal Odisha with western region through Sonepur, Boudh, Puranakatak, Daspalla and Nayagarh, synchronising development across the state. The line would also benefit many MSME and cottage industries and open up opportunities for the mining sector. He will flag off a new train on Balangir-Bichhupali route which would benefit commuters in the region, besides connecting Bichhupali to Jharsuguda and Vizianagaram main line through Balangir. A bridge between Theruvali and Singapur road station, commissioned at a cost of Rs 27.4 crore, will be inaugurated on the occasion. It will rebuild the linkage over Nagavali river, washed away during floods in July 2017, he said. These apart, Modi will inaugurate renovation and restoration works at Nilamadhav & Siddheswar Temple at Gandhaharadi in Boudh, Paschim Somnath group of temples, also in Boudh, and Ranipur Jharial group of monuments in Balangir, said an official of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The prime minister will inaugurate six passport sewa Kendras at Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Puri, Phulbani, Bargarh and Balangir, Regional Passport Officer (RPO) Sudhansu Sekhar Mishra said. In addition, he is slated to lay the foundation stone for permanent building at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Sonepur, to be constructed with an investment of Rs 15.81 crore. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Sunday attacked the previous Congress government for its inability to bring Kartarpur Sabib under India during partition. Releasing a commemorative coin as part of the 350th birth anniversary celebrations of 10th Sikh guru Guru Gobind Singh, Modi also came down on the Congress for the that took place following the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Referring to the Kartapur Sahib corridor, he said now devotees do not have to look at the shrine in Pakistan using binoculars and they could visit the place without visa using the corridor. "A mistake took place in August, 1947. It (the corridor) is an atonement of the mistake. An important place of our guru was only a few kilometers away. But it could not be made part (of India during partition) ... the corridor is an effort to reduce the damage," he said in a veiled attack on the then Congress government. Guru Nanak passed away in Kartarpur on September 22, 1539. Former prime minister Manmohan Singh, former chief justice of India J S Khehar and several Sikh leaders were present at the Prime Minister's residence to participate in the event. Modi said be it Guru Nanak or Guru Gobind Singh, they have taught us to be on the side of justice. Following the path shown by them, the central government is trying to get justice for the people who suffered during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Modi said. "The central government is making efforts to get justice for the period of injustice which started in 1984. For decades, mothers, sisters, daughters and sons have shed tears, the law will deliver justice, wipe (their) tears," the PM said referring to the riots that took place following the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi. The PM released a Rs 350 denomination commemorative silver coin to mark the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. He described the founder of the Khalsa sect as a warrior and a poet who had immense knowledge of religious scriptures. Modi said the government now plans to celebrate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak across the country. Modi said while the event will be held various states and union territories, Indian embassies abroad will also organise programmes as part of the celebrations Guru Nanak was born on April 15, 1469, in Nankana Sahib, now Pakistan. Modi said, for the last four years, his government has been making comprehensive efforts to bring the cultural and knowledge heritage of India to the world. "From Yoga to Ayurveda, the country has succeeded in re-establishing its status. This work continues," he said. A two-member People's Conference delegation, led by its chairman Sajjad Gani Lone, Sunday met Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik here and sought his assent to the J-K Reservation Amendment Bill. The bill was passed in the state legislative assembly before the fall of the PDP-BJP government last year. Lone along with his close associate Imran Raza Ansari met the governor at the Raj Bhavan and also discussed various development issues of their respective areas, an official spokesman said. Discussing the issue of reservation to Paharis and economically weaker sections of society, the former ministers sought the governor's assent to the J&K Reservation Amendment Bill, he said. The bill was passed by the state legislature during their ministership, the spokesman said. The legislative assembly passed the landmark bill in February last year to extend three per cent reservation benefits to the Pahari speaking people in the state. The delegation also stated their demands for sanctioning a water supply scheme for Parihaspora, expanding the Imambara, Zaidibal and compensation to victims of Handwara fire incident, the spokesman said. He added that they also sought early redressal of issues related of a fruit mandi association in Sopore. The governor urged Lone and Ansari to continue their endeavours for promoting public welfare and development works in their respective areas. The spokesman said a delegation of the Zanskar Sub Division, led by Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil, councillor Stanzin Lakpa also met Malik. They requested him to grant adequate funds for arrangements for the forthcoming International Conference at the Karsha Monastery in Zanskar. The conference would be organised, for the first time in Zanskar division of the state's Ladakh region, to revive and preserve the Nalanda tradition of Buddhist philosophy. The delegation extended an invitation to the governor for the annual Monastic festival ---- Karshagustar -- to be held in July, the spokesman said. He said the delegation also put forth demands related to speedy construction of the Nimmo-Padum-Darcha road, de-limitation of the Zanskar assembly constituency, granting of district status to Zanskar Valley, upgradation of post of sub division magistrate and creation of a separate National Highway Division for execution of work on NH-301 Kargil-Padam highway. They also sought helicopter service for transportation of patients, sanctioning of a no-frill airport at Padam in Zanskar, filling-up of vacant posts of sub divisional officers, posting of specialist doctors at the Padma Community Health Centre. The delegation also asked the governor for inclusion of the Boti language in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution and creation of posts of Boti teachers for schools in the Ladakh region, the spokesman said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Pakistani university will celebrate Sisters' Day on February 14 to promote "Islamic traditions", according to the vice chancellor. Female students can be gifted scarves and Abayahs (clothes) as decided by Vice Chancellor Zafar Iqbal Randhawa of the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad and other decision makers, Dawn reported. The vice chancellor believes it was "compatible with Pakistan's culture and Islam", the report said. February 14 is celebrated as Valentine's Day across the world. On the day, people express their love and affection with greetings and gifts. The university announced that it will celebrate Sisters' Day on February 14 to "promote Islamic traditions", Randhawa said. While speaking to DawnNewsTV, he said that he was not sure if his suggestion to celebrate Sisters' Day "would click or not". He said that although some Muslims have turned Valentine's Day into a threat, "My thinking is that if there is a threat, convert it into an opportunity". The report quoted Randhawa as saying that women face certain conditions related to their attire which dictate that their body should not be revealed. "Women are at a very high rank for us. Today the era of gender empowerment is here, Western thinking is being promoted. But the best gender empowerment and division of work is in our religion and culture," the vice chancellor said. He claimed that celebrating Sisters' Day would allow "a soft image to develop", and that people will realise that this is how much sisters are loved in Pakistan. "Is there a love greater than that between brother and sister?" On Sisters' Day, it is greater than the love between husband and wife," Randhawa said. Valentine's Day has been a controversial subject in Muslim-majority Pakistan for years, with some celebrating and others protesting against it. The Islamabad High Court in 2017 and 2018 "banned" all Valentine's Day celebrations, and print and electronic media were warned to "stop all Valentine's Day promotions immediately". In 2016, then president Mamnoon Hussain urged Pakistanis to forego celebrating Valentine's Day, saying it was not a part of Muslim tradition, but a Western innovation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) should strengthen its ties with and other neighbours instead of becoming a US client state, former foreign minister Hina Rabbani Khar has said. Speaking on the US- relationship at ThinkFest here on Saturday, Khar said always imagined itself as a complete strategic partner, which was far-fetched, Dawn reported on Sunday. She said that with a begging bowl in both hands, Pakistan cannot command respect in the comity of nations. "Pakistan's most important relations should be with its neighbouring countries like Afghanistan, India, and instead of the US," said Khar, the first woman foreign minister of Pakistan. "The US does not deserve that much importance as is given in Pakistan because our economy is not dependent on US aid, as is widely believed," said the Pakistan People's Party leader, who held the position of foreign minister from February 2011 until March 2013. During her tenure, chief was killed in a covert US military raid in Pakistan's garrison city of Abottabad in May 2011. Khar said Pakistan must not pin high hopes on the US any more. She said Pakistan must get out of the Afghan war and refuse to become front-line state again. Pakistan had suffered the maximum damage of the 17-year long Afghan war, she added. "Despite being front-line state and the most suffered ally, the US had put Pakistan at number 54 on the list of countries it had trade partnerships," she lamented. Referring to Prime Minister Imran Khan-led government's claims of copying China, she said had brought its people out of poverty, while the Pakistani rulers were doing the opposite. Only 73 judges out of the 670 judges serving in various high courts are women, the government has informed a parliamentary committee. The government also pointed out that against the sanctioned strength of 1,079 judges as on March 23, 2018, only 670 judges are working in 24 high courts of the country, leaving 409 vacancies. "There are 73 women judges working in different high courts as on March 23, 2018, which in percentage terms is 10.89 per cent of the working strength," the Department of Justice in the Law Ministry informed the department-related Standing Committee on Law and Personnel. Responding to the concerns of the parliamentary panel on inadequate representation of women and people from marginalised communities, the ministry said the Centre had been requesting chief justices of high courts that while sending proposals for appointment of judges, "due consideration" be given to "suitable candidates" belonging to scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and other backward classes, minorities and women. "This is being done to ensure a fair representation of different sections of the society in the higher judiciary," the government said. It, however, made it clear that there was no proposal to amend Articles 124 and 217 of the Constitution to allow reservation in the higher judiciary. "The committee feels that a timeline of six weeks given to chief minister/governor may be reduced to expedite the process of appointment of judges. It also feels since there is no proposal to raise the retirement age of judges in higher judiciary by the government, unnecessary delay in recruitment of judges should be avoided at any cost," it said. As of now, Governors and chief ministers are given six weeks to recommend proposal received from the chief justice of the high court to appoint a candidate as a judge. There were 24 high courts when the committee had prepared its report. From January 1, the number of high courts have gone up to 25 with Andhra Pradesh and Telangana getting separate high courts. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The number of protesters in the latest "yellow vest" rallies across France surged on Saturday, but there was a marked decline in violence despite hundreds of arrests and clashes with police in Paris and other cities. More than 84,000 people turned out for the ninth round of demonstrations against President Emmanuel Macron since November, the interior ministry said, up from 50,000 the previous Saturday. Attendance had declined over the Christmas holiday break, and while Saturday's turnout was higher than the 66,000 protesters on December 15, it was still far below the nearly 300,000 when the rallies began two months ago. Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said that "responsibility triumphed over the temptation of confrontation" in Paris, where 8,000 protesters marched "without serious incident", up from 3,500 last week. He also hailed the 80,000 officers deployed nationwide, including 5,000 in the capital. However several journalists were assaulted at rallies in several cities, as well as a security officer accompanying LCI television reporters who was surrounded and beaten by marchers, some wearing yellow vests, in the northern city of Rouen. "In our democracy, the press is free. In our Republic, the freedom to inform is unalienable. Assaulting journalists is an attack on both," Castaner tweeted. For the first time organisers of the Paris march deployed teams wearing white arm bands to corral the march that began near the Place de la Bastille. "We're guiding the march to make sure they keep to the route and avoid confrontations, so they don't respond to police provocations," one of the "white bands," who gave his name as Anthony, told AFP. But scores of protesters later clashed with riot police at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, prompting volleys of tear gas and water cannon as security forces prevented them from reaching the heavily fortified Champs-Elysees. The protesters began to disperse as night fell, however, and police began removing armoured vehicles and trucks in an atmosphere of relative calm -- TV images later showed a guitarist crooning not far from the police lines. Police detained 244 protesters nationwide, 201 of which were taken into police custody, the interior ministry said. Dozens were arrested in the central city of Bourges, the site of another major rally aimed at drawing people farther from the capital. "I get by on 1,200 euros (USD1,380) a month, and taxes eat away at my savings every day. They're taking away everything we have," said "Vercingetorix," a 74-year-old retired archeologist dressed as the legendary Gallic resister to Roman rule. "We want parliament dissolved. Macron has to stop ignoring us and realise how bad things are," said William Lebrethon, a 59-year-old construction worker amid signs saying "Macron resign!" and "France is angry." A few hundred protesters later burned trash cans amid cat-and-mouse clashes with police in Bourges' historic centre, and skirmishes also broke out in Nimes, Nantes, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and other cities. The demonstrations also spilled over the border into eastern Belgium late on Friday, where one of around 25 protesters manning a blockade died after being hit by a truck, Belgian media reported. The man suspected of driving the truck remains on the run. He was identified on Saturday after his licence plate was traced back to a Dutch company, local prosecutors said, adding that a European arrest warrant would be issued. In London, hundreds wearing yellow vests took to the streets as well, demanding a general election and an end to austerity programmes. The yellow vest movement, which began as protests over high fuel taxes, has snowballed into a wholesale rejection of Macron and his policies, which are seen as favouring the wealthy at the expense of rural and small-town France. Officials had feared bigger and more violent protests than last week, when demonstrators rammed a forklift truck through the main doors of a government ministry in Paris. But many demonstrators say the violence cuts both ways, pointing to social media footage of a police officer repeatedly striking an unarmed man on the ground during a protest last week in Toulon. Macron has called for a national debate starting next week to hear voters' grievances, hoping to sate demands for more of a say in national law-making and tamp down the protesters' anger. He has already unveiled a 10-billion-euro (USD 11.5 billion) financial relief package for low earners, and axed the planned fuel tax hike. But the public consultations risk being hobbled by record levels of distrust towards politicians and representatives of the state. A poll by the Cevipof political sciences institute released Friday showed 77 per cent of respondents thought politicians inspired "distrust", "disgust" or "boredom". And Macron may not have endeared himself to many voters on Friday, when he told a gathering at the Elysee Palace that "too many of our citizens think they can get something without making the necessary effort." "I work 60 hours a week and don't even make the minimum wage!" said Maurice, a 60-year-old carpenter at a protest in Strasbourg. "Macron goes too far, he's condescending and arrogant. We want the system to change," added his wife, declining to give her name. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The head of Iran's nuclear program said the Islamic Republic has begun "preliminary activities for designing" a modern process for 20-percent uranium enrichment for its 50-year-old research reactor in Tehran, signalling new danger for the nuclear deal. The comment on state television Sunday from Ali Akbar Salehi increases the pressure on the international community as 20-percent enrichment would mean Iran has abandoned the terms of the 2015 atomic accord. President Donald Trump already pulled America out of the accord in May and resumed sanctions on Tehran. So far, United Nations inspectors say Iran continues to comply with the deal's terms, which limits enrichment to 3.5 percent. Salehi said "we are at the verge" of being ready, without elaborating in his remarks. The US donated the reactor to Iran in 1967. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has sought a report from Rajasthan government on a complaint by a wildlife activist regarding missing tigers from its Ranthambore reserve, according to official documents. Wildlife activist Ajay Dubey had written to the NTCA seeking a high level enquiry on reports of tigers poaching in Ranthambore. "There have been reports of missing tigers from Ranthambore. It is feared that tigers are being poached regularly, Dubey had said in the letter. Acting on his complaint, the NTCA sent a letter to Chief Wildlife Warden of Rajasthan government seeking a report on factual status and updates. A copy of the letter sent to the state government by the NTCA was received in response to an RTI query filed by Dubey. There are about 2,226 tigers in India, according to a latest report on the big cats census. Of these, 45 were in Rajasthan. Dubey, referring to another letter written by the Rajasthan government in 2017 to the NTCA, said that the the state forest department instead of taking stern measures against the poachers wanted to stop monitoring of tigers that are no more traceable or moved to other forest areas. As per the protocol, tigers need to be provided with IDs for their monitoring. The Rajasthan government had then proposed that the monitoring of tigers, as mentioned in the protocol, that are not traceable, died or moved to other areas be stopped. Replying to the move, the NTCA had asked Rajasthan government not to stop the monitoring as it is crucial for long term evaluation of tigers population, according to the letter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar Sunday visited Takht Sri Harmandir Patna Sahib and offered prayers on the occasion of 352nd Prakash Parv, the birth anniversary of 10th Sikh Guru, Guru Govind Singh. Addressing the people who gathered in large numbers on the auspicious occasion at a specially built 'Diwan Hall' here, Kumar said "We had organized 350th Prakash Parv of 10th Sikh Guru on a grand scale two years ago. People of Bihar had welcomed the devotees from across the world". "This (Patna) is the birth place of 10th Sikh Guru Guru Gobind Singh. It's a matter of pride for the people of Bihar. This is the same ancient Patliputra from where the entire country was ruled once. Patna Sahib site was the actual Patliputra. This is a historic place. Bihar is the place of knowledge, salvation and Nirvana," he said. Patna Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh, is considered one of the holiest places by Sikhs around the world, besides being a major tourist attraction for people from all communities. The state government had organised inaugural programme of the Prakash Parv on a grand scale in January 2017 to mark the 350th birth anniversary of the 10th Sikh guru, followed by "Shukrana Samaroh" (thanksgiving or closing ceremony) of the anniversary function. Kumar said that a gurudwara is being built near Shitalkund at Rajgir where Guru Nanak Dev, Sikhs' first Guru, had also visited in his lifetime. Construction of the gurudwara will be completed before the 550th 'Prakash Parv'. Sikh devotees from across the world will come here to offer their prayers to Guru Nanak Dev, he said. Kumar said that preparations such as erecting tent city have been made at Baal Lila and Kanganghat of Patna Sahib. In view of Sikh devotees visiting Bihar every year in huge numbers, the state government has to erect tent city, he said. The government has decided to construct a permanent community centre which will be used for special occasions and it will be handed over to the Gurudwara for 25-30 days during 'Prakash Parv' celebrations. Kumar also visited Baal Lila Gurudwara and offered his prayers where he was welcomed with a 'Saropa and sword'. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel had at the weekend carried out an air strike on Iranian weapons in Syria, a rare public confirmation of such attacks. "Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus international airport," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting, according to his office. "The accumulation of recent attacks shows that we're more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised." Late Friday Syrian air defences shot down Israeli missiles, Syria's official SANA agency reported that day quoting a military source. "Only a ministry of transport warehouse at Damascus international airport was hit," SANA cited the military source as saying at the time. On Sunday Netanyahu said that Israel had attacked Iranian and Hezbollah targets in Syria hundreds of times. Israel has pledged to prevent its main enemy Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, where it is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime alongside Russia and Hezbollah. It rarely publicly confirms such strikes, though outgoing military chief of staff Gadi syria has spoken of them in interviews in recent days. Eisenkot told the New York Times that "we struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit." Netanyahu is also facing April 9 elections in Israel and has been seeking to burnish his security credentials. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BEST bus strike in Mumbai entered its sixth day Sunday with no agreement in sight between agitating workers and the management of the civic-run transport undertaking. Over 32,000 employees of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) are on strike since Tuesday and 3200-odd buses in its fleet are off the roads. Only four drivers out of the 2,610 on the rolls, and none of the 2,764 conductors, were present Sunday which meant that not a single bus plied, an official said. A meeting between a state government committee, comprising the chief secretary, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation commissioner, BEST general manager and transport and urban development secretaries, and union functionaries Saturday had failed to break the impasse. The meeting was held on the directions of the Bombay High Court. Striking workers have been demanding the merger of the BMC and BEST budgets as well as higher salaries among other issues. Meanwhile, Vidyadhar Date, convener of Amchi Mumbai Amchi BEST, a citizens' forum for public transport, blamed the BMC and the undertaking for the stir. He alleged that BMC and BEST had failed to invest in the city's public transport mechanism and had been encouraging an energy-guzzling car-centric system for the metropolis. He said these moves had led to debilitating traffic congestion, worsening air pollution and life-risking overcrowding on the suburban rail network. The BMC has been focused on the coastal road instead of bus priority lanes, private contractors instead of commuters, BESTs so-called "inefficiencies" instead of the citys worsening pollution and congestion, and convenience of private motorists instead of safe, affordable and sustainable public transport, he claimed. He alleged the BEST management looked at its bus service as an essential one under the Essential Services Maintenance Act only when it came to strikes, but on other occasions, like when it wanted to reduce fleet size, manpower, routes and increase privatisation, it saw the system as a "non essential" one. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A minor student of a state-run tribal residential school in Odisha's Kandhamal district has given birth in her hostel, following which six of its employees were 'disengaged', officials said on Sunday. The 14-year-old girl, a student of class eight, delivered a baby girl in the school hostel on Saturday night, Kandhamal District Welfare Officer (DWO) Charulata Mallick said. The school, Seva Ashram High School, at Daringbadi in Kandhamal district is run by the tribal and rural development department of Odisha. The student and her new born were on Sunday admitted to Phulbani sub-divisional hospital. Doctors said their condition was normal. With the government facing sharp criticism from the opposition over the incident, SC and ST Development Minister Ramesh Majhi said the district collector had been asked to probe the incident and submit a detailed report on the circumstances under which the girl got pregnant and delivered the baby. "The government has taken a serious view of the incident," he said in Bhubaneswar. Stringent action would be taken against those responsible. The police are also investigating the matter, he added. Mallick said a third year student of Daringbadi College, who is a resident of Takalmaha village, has been arrested in connection with the incident. District Collector D Brunda said two matrons, two cook-cum-attendants, a lady supervisor and an auxiliary nurse midwife of the institute were disengaged from service for dereliction of duty. The government has also recommended suspending the school headmistress Radha Rani Dalei on the same charges, Brunda said. "As per the direction of the government we have taken stringent steps against the errant (employees) and already submitted the investigation reports to it," the district collector said. The girl on Sunday alleged that soon after she delivered the baby, the two were driven out of the hostel, forcing her to take shelter in a nearby jungle. The two were traced by Mallick and the local police on Sunday morning and taken to hospital. The police were informed by the locals, who also staged a demonstration and put up a blockade on National Highway 59 demanding immediate arrest of the culprit and stern action against the school headmistress and the hostel warden. The road blockade was lifted after senior officials reassured the locals. Mallick, who visited the school, said a police team interrogated several people, including the hostel superintendent. Opposition Congress and BJP launched a scathing attack on the state government over the incident. President of state Congress women's wing Sumitra Jena demanded Majhi's resignation and said the incident proved that the BJD government had failed to provide security to girls and women. State BJP leader Rabi Naik alleged the state government was not concerned about women and girls, particularly those belonging to tribal communities. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A mentally unstable woman sneaked into a high-security area during the Republic Day rehearsal and allegedly shouted 'Pakistan Zindabad' on Sunday morning, police said. The woman has been identified as Sultana, a native of Nizamabad in Hyderabad, they added. The security personnel on the duty at the India Gate prevented the woman from entering Amar Jawan Jyoti. She also pushed away the soldiers who were on duty and created a ruckus around the monument, police said. The woman was held by Delhi Police woman constables who later took her to Parliament Street police station, a senior police officer said. Investigations revealed that two days ago, the woman had left her native place to visit a relative's house in Mumbai and she got confused on the way and arrived in New Delhi, he said. Sultana was taken to hospital for medical examination from where she was sent to a women shelter home, he added. The officer said they contacted the local police in Hyderabad to inform her relatives regarding her and it was learnt that two days ago, a missing complaint was filed in Nizamabad after the woman had left for Mumbai. During medical examination, doctors informed police the woman is mentally unstable. Other security agencies also verified the details before she was sent to women shelter home, the officer added. Police said there was nothing suspicious about the woman. No case has been registered in this regard. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A man posing as a police officer and allegedly extorting money from truckers was arrested in Uttar Pradesh's Shamli district, police said Sunday. Shiv Kumar was posing as a checking officer and would stop truckers and demand money from them. He was arrested in Kandhla town of the district Saturday, said Circle Officer Rajesh Kumar Tiwari. A case has been registered and the accused sent to jail, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three persons were arrested in Bhiwandi in Maharashtra's Thane district for allegedly raping a teenage girl several times, police said Sunday. Senior Inspector K D Jadhav of Shanti Nagar police station said the 14-year-old girl was acquainted with one of the accused, Jamil alias Bullan Vali Mohammad Khan (58) as she used to purchase cosmetics from his handcart. "Jamil along with others raped the girl on multiple occasions between June last year and January 9 this year. She revealed her ordeal to her mother who filed a complaint on Friday," Jadhav said. He identified the others arrested, apart from Jamil, as Shahnavaz Khan (19) and Rizwan Khan (23), adding that a fourth person, Firoz Siddiqui, was wanted in the case. "We have charged the accused under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. They have been remanded in police custody for six days," he informed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The national constituencies of senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders surely overlap. Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images Recent Democratic presidential nominating contests have been relatively simple. The 2000 (Gore versus Bradley) and 2016 (Clinton versus Sanders) primary battles were almost entirely two-candidate affairs. 2008 quickly devolved to a two-candidate fight between Obama and Clinton by the end of January. The 2004 competition was all but over after John Kerry won both Iowa and New Hampshire, and among the viable candidates, only John Edwards lasted until March. There were all sorts of interesting fights underneath the surface in all of these contests, but nothing that required three-dimensional chess to understand. In most years, Establishment versus Insurgent was about as deep as you had to get. The 2020 Democratic presidential race, however, is shaping up as a vast and complicated battleground with many viable and even more dark-horse candidates. Inevitably, both campaign operatives and political observers will have to analyze the field in terms of sub-contests between clusters of candidates pursuing particular constituencies. When Republicans had a similar situation in 2016, with 16 serious candidates in the fray, the metaphor of lanes in which such clusters competed for oxygen and viability before the deal went down became nearly ubiquitous. As early as March 2015 before Donald Trump entered the race the Washington Posts Phillip Bump was slicing and dicing the field in terms of five lanes with different candidates competing for supremacy, with some transcending any one lane. Bump had Scott Walker, Ted Cruz and Mike Huckabee as the leaders in the tea party lane; Walker, Huckabee and Jeb Bush as the top three in the evangelical lane; Bush and Chris Christie dominating the moderate/establishment lane; Walker and Bush doing best in the very conservative lane; and Rand Paul pretty much alone in a harder-to-discern libertarian lane. Trump came along and scrambled these lanes and helped croak several candidacies. By February 2016, Morning Consult editor Reid Wilson posited just three lanes: The five remaining candidates in the race are competing for constituencies who might conveniently be characterized as establishment voters, values voters and change voters. Wilson suggested that Marco Rubio was fighting with John Kasich in the establishment lane; Ted Cruz was battling to subdue Ben Carson for supremacy among values voters; and Trump has the newly defined change lane to himself. Eventually, of course, all the establishment candidates vanished and Trumps final battle was with Ted Cruz, who looked like an also-ran in the tea party lane in the early going. And in the end, the candidate who didnt fit into any preexisting lane won the nomination and the presidency, casting doubt on the whole construction. How might the chattering classes slice and dice the 2020 Democratic field? There are several ways to look at it: 1. Ideological lanes: Bernie Sanders will anchor the progressive lane, with potential competition from Elizabeth Warren, Tulsi Gabbard, Jeff Merkley and Sherrod Brown. If theres a moderate lane, Joe Biden will be the pace-setter, with dark-horse House members John Delaney and Seth Moulton, former governor John Hickenlooper, and possibly Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, all following in his wake. Down the road, Amy Klobuchar and Beto ORourke might appeal to moderate voters and opinion-leaders if Biden doesnt run or does poorly. Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, and Pete Buttigieg are hard to pigeonhole ideologically. They, along with ORourke, Warren, Klobuchar, and multiple dark-horses (including 2004 nominee John Kerry) have potential as party unity candidates a lane that tends to form late in the nomination cycle. 2. Racial/ethnic/gender lanes: The size of the likely 2020 field means multiple candidates from demographic groups that are rarely represented in presidential contests. Theres never been a Democratic primary field with more than one viable woman or African-American. Gabbard, Gillibrand, Klobuchar, and Warren could create a womens lane in theory. Booker and Harris could battle for African-American votes, beginning in the early South Carolina primary. Julian Castro and Garcetti could attract the attention of Latino voters. And although its a sentiment expressed more in private than in public, theres a constituency for the idea that Democrats need a white male to beat Trump especially someone who can appeal to Rust Belt white working-class voters. Joe Biden and Sherrod Brown could wind up competing in a white working-class lane of their own. 3. Generational lanes: Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Mike Bloomberg and John Kerry are all potential Democratic candidates who are (or in Warrens case, will soon be) in their 70s. That makes virtually everyone else a possible youth candidate. Gabbard, Pete Buttigieg, and Calfornia congressman Eric Swalwell are in their thirties; Booker, Castro, Garcetti, and ORourke are in their 40s. If Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had reached the constitutionally minimum age of 35, she might be a compelling candidate for the hard-to-mobilize, but sizable, millennial constituency. 4. Fame lanes: In a big field like 2020s, less-well-known candidates will inevitably battle with each other for the media attention the celebrity candidates take for granted. In a social media era, fame can arrive quickly (as Ocasio-Cortez has demonstrated). So perhaps one or two of the candidates you have never heard of can strike name-ID gold before things get really serious. 5. The electability lane: Depending on all sorts of factors such as the objective condition of the country and Trumps relative popularity, the Democratic nominating contest could revolve around evidence and impressions about various candidates ability to beat the incumbent. Several proto-candidates, including Biden, Brown and ORourke, have nascent electability arguments that could grow powerful if Democrats begin to worry the 2020 general election will be as close as the last one. General election trial heats testing this or that candidate against Trump could become important, despite the bad experience Democrats had with trusting 2016 polls showing Hillary Clinton handily beating the mogul. Very particular electoral college arguments for electability e.g., Sherrod Browns popularity in Ohio could matter in a close nomination race. 6. Luck lanes: The hardest thing to anticipate and adjust to are the fortuitous events that shake up nomination contests before and just after voters begin voting. If, for example, both Biden and Sanders who lead most early polls decide not to run, everything could change. The millstone Elizabeth Warren is trying to shrug off involving the essentially silly issue of her claimed Native American ancestry is an example of variables that are hard to calculate in advance. Whoever does best in critical moments of the nominating contest could rise to the top of the charts with a bullet. Its impossible to know in advance. And thats the key thing to keep in mind when contemplating efforts to neatly classify the Democratic field. The one thing we should have learned from the 2016 GOP contest is that every rule can be broken. Going into that contest, political scientists had largely concluded that party elites pre-control presidential nominations. Trump blew up that supposition, which is part of the reason so many potential Democratic challengers to him are standing in line for 2020 in what some have labeled the Why Not Me? race. The primaries may surprise us, and theres even a chance no one will have the nomination nailed down before Democrats gather for their convention in July. The lanes surviving candidates would traverse in the first truly deliberative Democratic convention since 1952 are impossible to anticipate. So perhaps we should treat it as a wide-open highway. A controversy erupted in Kerala after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Sunday backed out of a program organised here to "celebrate menstruation" in a bid to end the stigma associated with the biological process. The two-day program titled 'Aarpo Aarthavam' (Hurray menses!) was organised by some activist groups in response to widespread protests in the state by right-wing outfits over the implementation of a Supreme Court verdict, permitting the entry of women in the menstruating age groups into Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala. The organisers had informed the media that Vijayan, who had organised 'Women's Wall' program on women empowerment on January 1, would participate in the program Sunday to be attended by cultural icons of the Left. However, government sources said the chief minister had not consented to attend the function. Citing the schedule of the CM prepared by his office, the sources said Vijayan had four back-to-back programs in Kochi on Sunday, but the 'Aarpo Aarthavam' function was not on the list. Meanwhile, sources claimed that the presence of people with extreme Leftist views in the program might have forced the Kerala chief minister to skip the function. The program, which began Saturday, aimed at ending the stigma around menstruation that is still considered taboo by a significant section of Kerala society. "Kabali" director Pa Ranjith spoke at the event on Saturday. Over 35 lakh women from various walks of life had participated in the 620 km-long state-sponsored 'Women's Wall' campaign stretching from the northern tip of Kasaragod to the southern end of the state on January 1 to uphold gender equality and renaissance values. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Justice AK Sikri Sunday withdrew his consent to a government offer to nominate him for president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). The government is understood to have recommended Justice Sikri's name for CSAT late last year. Sikri's consent was "taken orally for a vacancy" in the Commonwealth tribunal, sources said. Sources close to the second senior-most judge after the of told that the consent was withdrawn Sunday evening when the judge wrote to the Law Ministry, seeking withdrawal of his consent. The insinuation linking the CSAT assignment with Justice Sikri's participation in the committee, which decided on the ouster of as CBI director, was wrong, they said. "Since this consent was taken in the first week of December 2018, it has no connection with the CBI matter for which he became the CJI's nominee only in January, 2019," the sources added. They said "a totally unjust controversy" has been raised by connecting the two. "True facts are that sometime in the first week of December 2018, Justice Sikri's consent was taken orally for a vacancy in Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). "CSAT is meant to decide service disputes between the employees of the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Commonwealth Secretariat itself," sources close to Sikri said. was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister and senior Mallikajurn Kharge which decided on removal of Verma from the post of CBI Director. Sikri's vote proved crucial to remove Verma from his post as Kharge opposed the move strongly while the government was pushing for Verma's removal. On the CSAT issue, the sources said, "It is not an assignment on regular basis. There is no monthly remuneration. There may be two to three hearings in a year. There was no question of staying in or at any other place." The government has not got back to him on the CAST assignment, they said. "The government had approached him for the part-time assignment last month. He gave his consent. The job required attending two to three hearing per year and came without emoluments," the sources said. Sikri wrote a letter to the competent authority in the government withdrawing his consent. "He (Justice Sikri) has withdrawn his consent, he has given no reasons. He just wanted to be away from the controversy," a source close to said. ALSO READ: CJI nominates Justice Sikri on panel to decide CBI Director Verma's fate The source said "is a man of very simple nature" and he felt that there should not be any controversy over his appointment and that is why he wants to keep himself away from the controversy." Hitting out at the government, senior said the Centre has a "lot of explaining to do" on the nomination of Sikri to CSAT. "The Government has a lot of explaining to do (sic)," Patel said in a tweet tagging a media report. Official sources said nomination of Sikri, who retires on March 6, was made last month following an internal process carried out by the The External Affairs Ministry communicated to CSAT about India's nomination, the sources said. There was no reaction from either the Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Law and Justice on it. The Commonwealth Secretariat, established in 1965, plays the role of an arbiter in case of disputes among its 53 member-countries. The CSAT has a total of eight members, including its The members are picked up on the basis of regional representations. A CSAT member has a tenure of four years. Lenskart's eyewear brand John Jacobs is looking to garner Rs 500 crore in revenue in two years as it strengthens its retail presence and expands the product portfolio. The brand, which has eight stores currently in Delhi, Pune and Bengaluru, will add six more in the next two months and aims to set up about 50 stores by March 2021. "John Jacobs has been witnessing strong growth, we expect to close this fiscal with a topline of Rs 180 crore. By March 2021, we expect our revenues to touch Rs 500 crore," John Jacobs Business Head Manan Duggal told PTI. He added that about 40 per cent of the sales is driven by online channels, with the rest coming from offline stores. Last year, Lenskart had said it will invest USD 4 million in John Jacobs to fuel the brand's expansion plans. "We are aggressively growing our presence both in online and offline. The brand is already retailing through Lenksart outlets (over 450 in more than 100 cities). The aim is to take the number of our own stores from 8 now to 50, by March 2021, covering all major metro cities," he said, adding that the store expansion will entail investment of about Rs 10-15 crore. John Jacobs is also in discussions with fashion retail chains for distribution of its products. "In terms of online reach, we are already there on Lenskart and Amazon.in and will soon be available on Flipkart as well," Duggal said, adding that the brand is aggressively expanding its product portfolio as well. John Jacobs recently introduced a new eyewear delivery model where the brand delivers eyeglasses, fitted with powered lenses, in a 20-minute timeframe. The service, currently available in select stores in Bengaluru, will be expanded to Delhi and Pune as well, Duggal said. He added that with the new service, the brand expects to "see 30-40 per cent upside in orders". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Faced with criticism of reducing JD(S) to a family enterprise, former prime minister and JD(S) supremo H D Deve Gowda Sunday asserted the notion was wrong as the party helped many grow including ex-chief minister and Congress strongman Siddaramaiah. Blowing a bugle for the upcoming Lok Sabha election from his constituency and JD(S) stronghold of Hassan district, the 86-year-old Gowda said, "Our critics often say JD(S) is the political party of Deve Gowda's family. Have a look at these facts as well. "We have made A H Vishwanath state president. Prior to that, I went to Krishnappa's house (asking him) to join our party and observed fast for it. It (JD-S) is not Deve Gowda family. Didn't we give prominent positions to Siddaramaiah, C M Ibrahim, Merajuddin Patel?" Gowda lamented that an impression has been created that the JD(S) belonged to Deve Gowda family as his son H D Kumaraswamy was made the chief minister. He clarified that the 'pressure' to make his son chief minister came from Congress and he could not help but bow to the wish. "There was a big that it was a father-son enterprise. Is it so easy to convince all the 37 MLAs to make him (Kumaraswamy) chief minister? They (Congress) came from Delhi and insisted me to give my approval. An hour-long discussion ensued because I did not agree for it. Finally they forced me to accept it ," the former prime minister said. Making an appeal to the party workers to work towards making the JD(S) strong, Gowda asked them to ponder over the future of the party if it is not in power. "Please don't take it otherwise. There is no need to believe that we can resort to anything for power. How to save this party? Today, we have a coalition government but what will happen tomorrow," said Gowda. The event also witnessed JD(S) leaders attacking their coalition partner in the government, the Congress. The two parties have agreed to fight to the upcoming Lok Sabha election together. However, the two parties have not yet reached a consensus over sharing of seats. Instances of bickering often come to fore between the alliance partners as was seen at Hassan on Sunday. In an angry rebuttal to Congress, Arakalgud MLA A T Ramaswamy said the JD(S) was ready to sit in the opposition rather than tolerating the "arrogant" behaviour of Congress. "The arrogant statement that we are twice your size and you have to listen to us' must go. I would like to say it absolute clearly that if this arrogance damages the interests of farmers and poor people, we will not think twice to sit in the opposition," said Ramaswamy. The JD(S) MLA warned Congress that the party was under no pressure to run the administration by appeasing it. He urged the party workers to gear up to see a Kannadiga unfurling the tri-colour from the Red Fort as had happened in 1998 when Deve Gowda became the prime minister. Deve Gowda's grandson Prajwal Revanna was present on the dais. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said Sunday religion is the very essence of society and respect towards it is important. Thakur paid obeisance at Guru Singh Sabha Gurudwara here. Speaking at a function organised by the Gurudwara on the auspicious occasion of 352nd Prakashotsva of Sri Guru Gobind Singh, he said the spiritual leader made great contributions to religion, society and the country. The teachings of Guru Gobind Singh are extremely relevant today, he opined. The chief minister said, "We should read the history of these great men and saints who established ideal society." Later, the president of Guru Singh Sabha Jaswinder Singh honoured the chief minister with 'saropa' and sword. Education Minister Suresh Bhardwaj, MLA Balbir Verma, Deputy Mayor MC, Shimla, Rakesh Sharma attended the function. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Cesare Battisti, an Italian sought by Rome for four murders attributed to a far-left group in the 1970s, was in Bolivia and will be extradited to Brazil and then likely to Italy, a senior aide to Brazil's new president said Sunday. Italy has repeatedly sought the extradition of Battisti, who has lived in Brazil for years under the protection of former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010), now in prison for corruption. "Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was detained in Bolivia (Saturday night) and will be soon brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be sent to Italy to serve a life sentence," tweeted Filipe G Martins, a senior aide on international affairs to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. During Brazil's recent presidential campaign the far-right Bolsonaro -- who took office on January 1 -- vowed that if elected he would "immediately" extradite Battisti to Italy. In mid-December Brazil's outgoing president, Michel Temer, signed an extradition order for Battisti after a judge ordered his arrest. By then the Italian ex-militant was nowhere to be found. Battisti, 64, was arrested late Saturday in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Brazilian Federal Police sources told Brazilian media. Bolivian officials have not confirmed the reports. Italy's envoy to Brazil fired off a triumphant tweet upon hearing the "Battisti has been arrested! Democracy is stronger than terrorism!" ambassador Antonio Bernardini wrote. Battisti escaped from an Italian prison after being convicted in 1979 of belonging to an outlawed leftist group, the Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was subsequently convicted in absentia of having killed two Italian policemen, taking part in the murder of a butcher, and helping plan the slaying of a jeweler who died in a shootout which left his 14-year-old son in a wheelchair. Battisti admitted to being part of the group but denied responsibility for any deaths. He reinvented himself as an author and in 2004 skipped bail in France, where he had taken refuge. He went to live clandestinely in Brazil until he was arrested in 2007 in Rio de Janeiro. After years in custody, then-president Lula issued a decree -- later upheld by Brazil's Supreme Court -- in 2010 refusing Battisti's extradition to Italy, and he was freed, angering Italy. Battisti, who has a five-year-old Brazilian son, last year told AFP he faced "torture" and death if he were ever to be sent back to Italy. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It is a "sin" to seek votes in the name of cows, Chief Minister said on Sunday even as he accused the BJP-led government of not allocating sufficient funds for cattle fodder. The (AAP) chief visited a cow shelter in Sonipat's village Saidpur. "It is wrong to seek votes and play politics in the name of cows which is currently happening in the country," Kejriwal said, addressing a gathering in the village. "I feel, may be I am wrong, that it is a sin to seek votes in the name of cows," he said. He claimed the government was running the "country's best" cow shelter in Bawana. "Nobody knows that the country's best cow shelter is being run by the government," he said. He accused the BJP-led Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) of not releasing funds for cow fodder. "In Delhi, the MCD is supposed to contribute Rs 20 and the is supposed to contribute Rs 5 for cow (fodder) per day. But raised it to Rs 20 from Rs 5 so that Rs 40 could be contributed per cow per day," Kejriwal said. "Now, the is giving Rs 20 per cow per day but the BJP-led MCD has not released funds for the last three years," he claimed. Kejriwal also accused Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar-led government of not paying enough for cow fodder. "I have come to know that the government releases Rs 140 per cow per year. It works out to be around 40 paise for a cow per day," he said. "I want to say that if you seek votes in the name of cows, then you should also pay enough for their fodder," he said. Israel's Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz arrived in Cairo on Sunday to attend a natural gas conference in a rare visit to Egypt by an Israeli official, airport sources said. Jordan and Egypt are the only two Arab states to have full diplomatic ties with Israel, but the relations remain limited and taboo among the general populations. Egyptians, like most Arabs, are largely opposed to the normalisation of ties with Israel in the absence of any resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Steinitz's visit came at the invitation of the Egyptian government, Israel's energy ministry said. The Israeli minister was set to attend a regional forum on natural gas, which has become a major economic and strategic issue in the eastern Mediterranean. The "development of gas fields has geopolitical and geostrategic value," Steinitz told Israeli army radio ahead of the trip. "Here you have for the first time real economic cooperation between the axis-of-peace states Israel, Egypt and Jordan, along with European countries." Egypt has increased its meetings and agreements on natural gas with neighbouring countries as of late. In February 2018, Cairo reached a deal with Israel for the transfer of natural gas from Israel's Tamar and Leviathan reservoirs to Egypt. "Steinitz's invitation to the conference in Egypt is the positive outcome of the gas agreement," a source close to energy minister told AFP. The last time an Israeli minister visited Egypt was in November 2017 when Social Equality Minister Gila Gamliel took part in a conference on the promotion of gender equality in Mediterranean states. Relations between Israel and some Arab countries have warmed in recent months, with Israeli ministers last year visiting the United Arab Emirates and Oman. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Iran's foreign ministry summoned Poland's top diplomat in the country to protest its decision to host what it called an "anti-Iranian" summit, a spokesman said Sunday. Poland's charge d'affaires was summoned to "protest the anti-Iranian so-called peace and security conference," said foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi on his Telegram channel. He was told "this is a hostile act by the United States against Iran and Poland is expected to refrain from going along with the US in holding this conference," Ghasemi added. The summit was announced last week by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who said dozens of countries would participate. They will "focus on Middle East stability and peace and freedom and security here in this region, and that includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilising influence," he told Fox Poland's representative in Iran, Wojciech Unolt, reportedly said the conference, to be held February 13-14 in Warsaw, was not anti-Iranian and that Poland did not share recent remarks by the US against Iran. The Iranian official said this was inadequate and Iran would be "forced to retaliate" if Poland did not back down. Iran poured scorn on the meeting and pointed out that the country, then impoverished after invasion by Britain and the Soviet Union, welcomed more than 100,000 Polish refugees during World War II. "Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts a desperate anti-Iran circus," Foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted earlier this week. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The 1999 Kargil intrusion was the fallout of the failure of the military intelligence as well as other intelligence agencies, Lieutenant General (retd) Mohinder Puri said Sunday while speaking at the Bhopal Litfest here. Recalling the intrusion, Lt. General Puri said Pakistan's aim was to internationalise the Kashmir issue and change the alignment of the Line of Control in the Kargil sector by opening the conflict against India. He had headed the 8 Mountain Division during "Operation Vijay". "The Kargil War happened due to the failure of intelligence agencies, including military intelligence," the decorated officer said during an interaction on the second day of the Bhopal literature and art festival at Bharat Bhavan here. The 8 Mountain Battalion headed by him was tasked to evict the enemy from the Drass-Mushkoh Sector during "Operation Vijay". "It was in the first week of May (1999) when 3 Infantry Division received information of an intrusion in the Batalik sector. Later on, it was detected that the intrusion had taken place over a very wide front," the Lt. General said. The top commander said Pakistan's aim was to internationalise the Kashmir issue and to change the alignment of the LoC in the Kargil sector. "Pakistan also wanted to interdict a road from Srinagar to Leh thus isolating Siachen. It also wanted to launch a fresh launch pad for militants from the captured area to intrude into Himachal Pradesh," the Lt. General said. The Lt. General recalled that he was tasked with restoring the sanctity of the LOC and clear the national highway 1D in the Dras- Mushkoh Sector. Lt. General Puri further said the main credit of the Kargil victory goes to the young officers who fought bravely. "This is the hallmark of the Indian army," he added. When asked about the regimental culture of the Indian Army, the Lt General said a regiment is a small family of around 900 soldiers, and a soldier's first commitment is towards the unit and then for the country. "Being in uniform for 40 years, I must say that one should not tinker with the structure of regimentation. It is tried and tested structure for years," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India got its largest startup ecosystem Sunday when Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan inaugurated here a 1.8-lakh-square-feet facility housing incubation set-ups across a string of segments in modern technology. The Integrated Startup Complex under the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) includes the ultra modern facilities of Maker Village that promotes hardware startups, the BioNest that promotes medical technologies, BRINC which is the country's first international accelerator for hardware startups; BRIC which aids developing solutions for cancer diagnosis and care, and a Centre of Excellence set up by industry majors such as UNITY. Overall the Kerala Government is working for the state to have a total area of 2.3 crore sq ft of IT space (up from 1.3 crore sq ft last year). The opening of the new complex at the Technology Innovation Zone (TIZ) is a major step towards achieving the objective, Vijayan said in his speech at KINFRA Hi Tech Park, Kalamassery. "We are also planning to give direct jobs to 2.5 lakh in IT," he said, adding that the government was working to ensure that information technology fosters social development. After the completion of three more projects, Kerala will have startup and incubation space of 5 lakh sq ft, which will be the largest of this type in the world. No less than 30 applications for patent has gone from startups with the 13.5-acre TIZ, the CM noted, lauding it as a sign of the high-quality work in the zone. Simultaneously, Kerala was sensing increasing optimism in boosting software export from the state. M Sivasankar, secretary, IT (Kerala), pointed out that the entire space at the TIZ facility has been sold out. "This has never happened in our country, where it usually takes a couple of years for an incubator to get the whole area occupied," he said. "The first three floors of the new complex have been furnished, while the rest of the floors have already got allotted to various startups." "The campus has another incubator complex coming up and it will be opened early next year," Sivasankar said. Besides the Maker Villager with its 30-odd startups, the facility has nascent firms working in fields such as biotechnology, computer-aided design, augmented/virtual reality and advanced communication. Kalamassery MLA Ebrahim Kunju, in his presidential address, said Kerala has been proving to be a superpower in south India in the field of IT and incubation. "We expect more help from the government in its related endeavours," he added. Ernakulam MP Prof K V Thomas launched BioNest, which is a startup the KSUM has established in association with Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology with financial aid from BIRAC, under the union government's Department of Bio Tech. It has 20 companies involved in deep research in biotechnology and allied fields. The BRIC, which was inaugurated by Kerala Health Minister K K Shailaja, will chiefly work in fighting cancer. The state has 50,000 additions to its cancer patients every year, the minister noted, adding that the BRIC will work in accordance with a Cancer Strategic Action Plan and funds totalling Rs 350 crore. Officials pointed out that TIZ was set to become the country's largest Work-Live-Play space exclusively dedicated to startups. The Maker Village, set up by the IIITM-K in association with KSUM and supported by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, houses 65 startups working in electronics hardware technologies. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India on Sunday said it was committed to the economic reconstruction of Afghanistan and to promote an inclusive "Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled" peace and reconciliation process in the war-torn country. India's position was enunciated by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at the historic India-Central Asia Dialogue here, with the participation of Afghanistan, which focussed on a plethora of regional issues including enhancing connectivity to the country ravaged by terrorism. "I would like to specifically point out that our region is facing serious challenges posed by terrorism. India, Central Asia and Afghanistan are societies which are tolerant and plural. The ideology of hate which the terrorists would like to spread has no place in our societies," Swaraj said while addressing the first session of the dialogue. "We also need to ask that who these terrorists are, who funds them, how do they find sustenance, who protects and sponsors them," she said. "No business development, no investment can take place in a country suffering from terrorism. To promote business development in our region, we agreed to fight the scourge of terrorism together," Swaraj said, adding that terrorism seriously erodes all avenues of development which a country can have. Development partnership has emerged as an important component of India's engagement with Afghanistan. The minister offered to extend this partnership to Central Asia as well, where India can bring countries closer by taking up concrete projects under lines of credit and buyers' credit, and by sharing its expertise. She said more efficient connectivity will lead to the full realisation of the growth potential of the region. "We are geographically close and, in terms of air connectivity, only about three hours away," she said adding the time has come to develop more efficient transit routes, as well as to better utilise existing opportunities and find innovative solutions. India has proposed the setting up of the 'India-Central Asia Development Group' to take forward this development partnership between India and Central Asian countries. The group will come up with concrete proposals, Swaraj said. She mentioned the joint efforts of India, Iran and Afghanistan that have led to the development of the Chabahar port in Iran as a viable route to connect to Afghanistan and potentially to Central Asia. "Chabahar provides a shining example of what strong partnership can achieve to overcome any obstacles," she said. India has already sent a very substantial quantity of wheat to Afghanistan using the Chabahar port. Last month, an Indian company opened its office and took over operations at the Shaheed Beheshti port at Chabahar, she said. India is also looking to develop the Chabahar-Zahedan railway link which would bring it close to the Zaranj-Delaram road link which India has already built in Afghanistan. India has also put forward several proposals towards enhancing cultural cooperation and training programmes for capacity building for candidates from Central Asia. Swaraj said "India supports the people and government of Afghanistan in their efforts to build a united, sovereign, democratic, peaceful, stable, prosperous and inclusive nation. India supports all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan which are inclusive and Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled". These efforts should preserve the gains of the last 18 years. The violence and terror imposed on Afghan people should end. It should strengthen unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country, she said. India is extending development assistance to Afghanistan of over USD 3 billion, focused on reconstruction, infrastructure development, capacity building, human resources development and connectivity. Under the 'New Development Partnership' launched in September 2017, new projects are being taken up including Shahtoot Dam drinking water project for Kabul city, low-cost housing in Nangarhar province, 116 High Impact Community Development Projects and a host of other infrastructure development projects. Over 3,500 Afghan nationals are trained and receive education in India every year, she said. Bound together by shared history and cultural linkages, India and the Central Asian states look forward to the dialogue as an important initiative to enhance their cooperation in wide-ranging spheres including exploring ways to substantially enhance India's economic involvement in business and development sector of Central Asia, the MEA had said. Swaraj arrived in the ancient city of Samarkand on Saturday on a two-day visit to attend the first-ever India-Central Asia Dialogue. The MEA earlier said that the first-ever India-Central Asia Dialogue, with Afghan participation, "will take India's outreach to the region to a new high." Foreign ministers of Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan and the First Deputy Foreign Minister of Kazakhstan are also participating in the dialogue. India will host the next India-Central Asia Dialogue with the participation of Afghanistan at the foreign ministers' level in 2020. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India and five Central Asian countries along with Afghanistan on Sunday condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering the menace which poses a threat to people across the world. This was part of a joint statement issued at the end of the first ever meeting of the India-Central Asia Dialogue which also saw the participation of Afghanistan at the ministerial level in Samarkand. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with the foreign ministers of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan took part in the meeting. "All sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering terrorism which posed a threat to the people and economies of the world," the statement said. It referred to the ancient civilisational, cultural, trade, and people-to-people links between India and Central Asia and expressed commitment to dynamic and fruitful friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between India and the Central Asian countries at bilateral and multilateral formats. "The countries reaffirmed their willingness for cooperation, mutual support, joint solution on relevant issues in order to ensure security, stability and sustainable development," the statement said. The ministers welcomed the participation of Afghanistan in the India-Central Asia Dialogue as an important land link in the regional cooperation, transit of goods and energy and expressed support and commitment of Central Asian countries and India to peace, security and stability of Afghanistan. They also called for an inclusive Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process and reconciliation, and assistance in economic reconstruction of Afghanistan through the implementation of joint infrastructure, transit and transport, energy projects including regional cooperation and investment projects, the statement said. The ministers noted the importance of sustainable economic growth in Afghanistan by attracting Afghan women to participate in the public life of the country and welcomed the successful holding of forums and conferences on this issue in the countries of Central Asia. They also noted the results of the seventh Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA VII), held in Ashgabat in November 2017, and expressed willingness to cooperate in preparation for the RECCA VIII meet in Tashkent in the second half of 2019. The participants welcomed the accession of India into the Ashgabat agreement on creating an international transport and transit corridor. The ministers emphasised the importance of developing and implementing projects, that provide a concerted solution to the problems and issues of economic growth of the countries of Central Asia based on the principles of equality, mutual benefit and respect for their interests. The statement said the nations expressed their intention to strengthen cooperation in order to create real opportunities for expanding economic cooperation, and ensuring favourable conditions for mutual free trade. They discussed promising opportunities and areas of cooperation in promoting mutual trade, attracting investments, innovations and technologies in key spheres of industry, energy, information technologies, pharmaceuticals and agriculture, education and training. They also highlighted the importance of concerted efforts to improve the investment climate and the market attractiveness of the region's economy, business opportunities of the Central Asian countries on the world stage. The statement said special attention was paid to the need to expand and establish direct mutually beneficial economic and cultural ties between the regions and cities of India and the countries of Central Asia and expressed their intention to contribute to this direction. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The All India Unorganised Workers Congress will hold a nation-wide protest on January 21 seeking "proper implementation" of the street vendors act, a senior AIUWC official said Sunday. AIUWC chairperson Arbind Singh, during a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, alleged that street vendors were suffering due to "lack of adherence" to town vending committee norms. "We will be holding demonstrations across the country, including in Delhi. In the city, our members will be holding protest in front of the offices of the three corporations and the New Delhi Municipal Council on January 21," Singh said. The AIUWC chairperson said, proper implementation of the Street Vendors Act will be a "win-win situation" for both "vendors and all levels of government". "We, therefore, demand from the Centre, state government, and local bodies to ensure proper implementation of the Act. We also seek regularisation of the town vending committee," he said. Singh alleged, town vending committee has "not been meeting" fora long time. All actions against street vendors be taken as per the norms set by the committee. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) High taxation, lack of infrastructure and rising pollution levels are impeding the growth of yacht tourism in India, an industry expert has pointed out. India has as high as 60 per cent tax on imports of yachts which is discouraging industry players from bringing luxurious boats into the country, Gulu Lalvani, the chairman of Royal Phuket Marina, told visiting Indian journalists on the sidelines of a yacht exhibition here. At the same time, places like Phuket have zero import tax on boats and offer great price advantage to enthusiasts to own yachts at these places instead of importing into India, he explained. Acknowledging the Narendra Modi-led government's efforts to promote cruise and sea tourism in India, he said the country with its vast coastline has a great potential for the yacht industry and creating jobs. But rising pollution levels and lack of port base and berthing facilities are major challenges to growth, Lalvani noted. The growth has been limited to few places like Kochi and Goa despite a vast coastline, he rued. The prime minister in 2017 boarded a seaplane in Gujarat as part of efforts to promote water-based tourism activities and waterways. Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari is also pushing for a hybrid amphibious boat that can run on low depth waters in India. Cochin Port Trust is also making efforts to promote cruise tourism. However, Lalvani thinks this is not enough at a time when Phuket is emerging as a yachting hub in Asia due to attractive taxation policy and favourable weather. With airlines like GoAir and IndiGo starting direct flights to the famous tourist spot in Thailand, it has become easier for Indians to fly to the city and enjoy yachting than owning expensive vessels in India. After the direct flights, the number of Indian tourists as well boating enthusiasts to Phuket has grown manifold, Lalvani noted, expressing confidence that Indians would emerge as the third largest yacht owners in the city. Now yacht traders are offering fractional ownership to Indians which would also boost their flow to the tourist spot, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Greece's defence minister, who is head of the main coalition partner of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, announced his resignation on Sunday ahead of the upcoming parliamentary vote to end a 27-year name dispute with Macedonia. "The Macedonia issue does not allow me not to sacrifice my post," Panos Kammenos said after a meeting with Tsipras. "I thanked the prime minister for the cooperation and I explained to him that for this national issue we cannot continue," he said, adding that his Independent Greeks party "is pulling out of the government". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Given the rising challenge to the free trade, Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said Sunday that while the aim is to open up more for free trade and make WTO more efficient, the government is also keen to work on bilateral trade with more nations. "One of the big challenges before the world is protectionism. We as a country are supporting open trade with all the countries....but we also want to develop bilateral trade agreements with many countries. For each of the geographies we are keen to have free trade agreements with the countries in Latin America, Africa, Southeast Asia," he said, adding that New Delhi already has trade pacts with ASEAN and some other countries. Addressing a CII event, he also said there has been an ongoing discussion with Sri Lanka for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). For countries in Africa like Angola, he said such association can be in the form of technical assistance, financial assistance and a trade agreement which will not initially have any ambitious targets but will be a win-win for both the parties. Prabhu, who is also the Civil Aviation Minister, said the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have decided to use India as a base for their food security. "This is happening at an interesting time because we just had made a policy for agriculture exports which has identified food items that can be exported," he said. He informed that this year the country would be producing 290 million tonnes of farm produce as per advance estimates, and 305-310 million tonnes of horticultural items. "In the export policy, we have decided to remove all restrictions on organic products and processed products. Both the UAE and Saudi want to invest in both organic as well as food processing industries. This will be a win-win situation for the UAE, Saudi, and other GCC countries but also for us, particularly for our farmers, who want better prices to their produce," he said. Saudi Arabia has said it can make investment in logistics, food parks and make sector-specific investment in food processing, Prabhu said. The farm export policy will go a long way in reducing wastage, the minister said. On the Udan policy, he said the government will announce its phase III in the next few days, which will also focus on air cargo. On January 15, the government will be announcing the first air cargo policy, Prabhu added. The UAE and Saudi Arabia are keen to invest in all these infrastructure initiatives, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government will construct 44 strategic roads along the border with and over 2100 km of axial and lateral roads in and Rajasthan, abutting Pakistan, a CPWD document shows. According to an annual report (2018-19) prepared, and released earlier this month by the Central Public Works Department, the agency has been asked to construct 44 "strategically important" roads along the India- border to ensure quick mobilisation of troops in case of a conflict. The nearly 4000-km-long Line of Actual Control between and touches areas from to Arunachal Pradesh The report comes at a time China is giving a priority to projects along its borders. Last year, Indian and Chinese troops engaged in a face-off at the Doklam tri-junction after the neighbouring country had begun building road in the area. The standoff ended on August 28 following a mutual agreement under which China stopped the construction of the road and withdrew its troops. The report stated that these 44 strategically road along the India-China border will be constructed at a cost of nearly Rs 21,000 crore. "The CPWD has been entrusted with construction of 44 strategically important roads along the Indo-China Border spanning 5 states of J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Arunachal Pradesh," the report stated. "The total Cost of work as per DPRs (Detailed Project Reports) is Rs 21,040 crores (approx.)," the report stated It said the process of approval of DPRs by the (CCS), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is underway. The CPWD report also stated that lateral and axial roads measuring over 2,100 kilometers will be built with a cost of around Rs 5,400 crore in and along the Indo- border. The DPRs for this project are under preparation in CPWD, which is a major construction agency of the central government. "A total of 945 km of lateral roads and 533 km of axial roads lie in (tentative cost Rs 3,700 crores) and 482 km of lateral roads and 219 km of axial roads in (tentative cost Rs 1,750 crores)," it stated. The road projects will secure the vast and remote border areas of and Punjab, it stated. India's border with runs through four states, (1,225 km, which includes 740 km of Line of Control), Rajasthan (1,037 km), Punjab (553 km) and (508 km). The government may extend the Remission of State Levies (RoSL) to sectors including chemical and engineering as part of the proposed incentive package for exporters to boost the country's outbound shipments, an official said. Currently, RoSL, which is to offset indirect taxes levied by states such as stamp duty, petroleum tax, electricity duty and mandi tax that were embedded in exports, is provided to textiles exporters. The commerce ministry is working on an incentive package for labour-intensive sectors to promote shipments and address issues of exporters. It is holding meetings with the finance ministry on the matter. As part of the package, the ministry is proposing several steps such as funds for rebate of state levies, creating system for online refund of GST (goods and services tax) and expansion of Niryat Bandhu Scheme, the official said. Under this Scheme, mentoring is provided to the first-generation entrepreneurs. Recently, Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu said the ministry would provide support to exporters are they are facing several challenges. "We are preparing a package which will ensure that exporters' woes are addressed properly. There have been challenges for the export sector over a period of time and one big challenge is credit," he said. He also said the package would focus on labour-intensive sectors as it would help in creating jobs. The Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) President Ganesh Kumar Gupta said incentives would help promote exports, which is expected to touch USD 350 billion in 2018-19. "Steps like online ITC (input tax credit) refund, one-time amnesty for fulfilling export obligation under Advance Authorisation and EPCG (Export Promotion Capital Goods) Scheme, and Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS) benefit for fabrics and yarn would boost exports," he said. The Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) has demanded a rebate on state levies to increase shipments. During April-November this fiscal, exports rose 11.58 per cent to USD 217.52 billion. Since 2011-12, the country's exports have been hovering at around USD 300 billion. During 2017-18, the shipments grew by about 10 per cent to USD 303 billion. Promoting exports helps a country create jobs, boost manufacturing and earn more foreign exchange. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A girl has been raped by a person in a Hazaribagh forest, police said Sunday. Seeing a girl alone in Hazaribagh on Friday, the person forcibly huddled her into his SUV, took her to a forest in Tati-Jharia area on Hazaribagh-Bagodar road (NH-100) and raped her, they said. The girl, who came to Hazaribagh from Raj Dhanwar in neighbouring Giridih district to purchase medicine, was waiting for a bus to return home when the incident happened, police said. After committing the crime the accused left her in the forest and fled. The victim was found by villagers who took her to Hazaribagh Mahila police station, where she lodged an FIR. Baby Jha, the officer-in-charge of the Mahila police station, took her to a hospital for medical examination. A police team recovered a purse from the spot which led them to the suspect Ashok Kumar Gupta who hails from Dhanbad, Jha said. "We have informed Dhanbad police about the incident and asked them to arrest the culprit," she said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Foreign investors have pulled out more than Rs 3,600 crore from the Indian equity in the last nine trading sessions, adopting a cautious stance towards the country. This comes following a cumulative net inflow of Rs 8,584 crore in the equity by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) during November and December. According to data available with the depositories, FPIs withdrew a net amount of Rs 3,677 crore from equities during January 1-12. However, they pumped in a net sum of Rs 1,872 crore in the debt during the period under review. "While it may not be a good start for the year, it is too early to draw any conclusion. However, at best what it indicates is that FPIs are continuing with their cautious/wait and watch stance towards India," said Himanshu Srivastava, Senior Analyst Manager Research, Morningstar Investment Adviser "Going ahead, the focus would be on the budget, country's progress on the economic growth front as well as general elections. Other factors such as movement in crude prices and currency, which would have a bearing on the country's macro-environment; and worries over global trade war will continue to guide the direction of FPI flows," he added. Harsh Jain, COO at Groww, an online MF investment platform, said 2019 is likely to see a lot of volatility because of rate hikes and dollar instability, but the Indian markets may not be as volatile as developed ones despite short-term political uncertainty. " offers better investment opportunities due to consistent growth, supportive global factors and attract valuations. We should expect positive inflow in the coming months," he added. With killings of four heavily armed militants and arrests of several others last year, an alert police force and security agencies managed to keep in check the spread of terrorists' base in the border district of Rajouri, a senior police officer said Sunday. The arrested persons included four over-ground workers (OGWs), who were in close contact with Al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam, killed Saturday in a gunfight in Kulgam district of south Kashmir along with his four accomplices, said Rajouri's Senior Superintendent of Police Yougal Manhas. Manhas said the police managed to foil a number of militancy-related incidents in close coordination with the Army and other security agencies last year and took stern action against people involved in unlawful activities including drug peddling and bovine smuggling. On counter-insurgency front, security forces last year killed four militants, who had infiltrated from Line of Control (LoC), he said. The militants were killed on the intervening night of March 27 and 28, within days after they infiltrated from Line of Control (LoC), he said. The four infiltrators were tracked down after a three-day operation and neutralised near Sunderbani town. In another significant anti-militant operation, the police and 38 Rashtriya Rifles jawans nabbed two ultras in June 2018, he said, adding the ultras had escaped from the valley after snatching a policeman's weapon. They were overpowered and nabbed even as they tried to open fire at security forces at Thanamandi main chowk, the SSP said. He said besides these, the police and 48 Rashtriya Rifles, in a joint operation, arrested last year four OGWs running a hawala racket in Rajouri and recovered a huge amount of hawala money from them, he added. These OGWs were in close contact with Al-Badr commander Zeenat Ul Islam and engaged in garnering financial support for the militant outfit in Rajouri but were arrested by forces," he said. The police also detained 11 anti-social elements under Public Safety Act, the SSP said, adding they were engaged in bovine smuggling and drug peddling besides operating as OGWs for various militant outfits. In its drive against drug peddling, 32 FIRs were registered and 52 persons were arrested across the district following recovery of huge amounts of narcotics from them, Manhas said. Besides these, 109 others, involved in different kinds of unlawful activities including drugs peddling and thefts, were taken into preventive custody on executive magistrate's orders, the SSP said. The police also opened history sheets for 46 criminals, involved in drug peddling in the district, with an aim to keep a closer watch on them, the officer said. The police last year also arrested 237 people, involved in bovine smuggling and registered 198 cases against them across the district, he said. On traffic management front, the police fined 12,329 erring drivers and collected a revenue of Rs 16,45,415, besides registering a total of 116 cases of accidents and overloading of vehicles last year, he said. On delivery of public service, the SSP said, the police received 7,648 requests for passport verifications and disposed them all within stipulated period, besides conducting 2,454 service verifications in a time-bound manner last year. The police also verified and issued 811 LoC permits last year, besides issuing 1,507 character certificates to candidates applying for various government and other jobs. The police also managed to apprehend 33 absconders last year, he added. The SSP said the police also held 178 interaction meetings with public across the district in 2018 with an aim to secure peoples cooperation and assure them of police readiness to help them in time of needs. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The may consider selling part of its stake in and ITC, held through SUUTI, in next few months, an official said. As on September 30, 2018, Specified Undertaking of Unit Trust of India (SUUTI) held around 9.63 per cent stake in Axis Bank, 7.97 per cent in ITC and 1.80 per cent in While the government is waiting for to launch a buyback offer to tender its shares; for holding in and ITC, it would consider off-market deals, an official said. "We are open to selling stake in and ITC through bulk or block deals. It all depends on the valuation," the official told PTI. Shares of Axis Bank settled at Rs 666.50, up 0.53 per cent, while ITC was up 2.02 per cent at Rs 295.40 at close of market hours on January 11. A bulk deal is a deal in which more than 0.5 per cent of the total number of shares of a listed company are sold or bought by a single investor in the open market. In a block deal, two parties make a transaction involving shares worth at least Rs 5 crore. Block deal transactions are conducted in a separate trading window. Infrastructure major (L&T) has already approached market regulator Sebi for launching a share buyback programme. The government would participate in the buyback programme, and is expecting to get around Rs 700 crore. The government had sold 2.5 per cent stake in held through SUUTI in June 2017 through block deals in the market. In February 2017, the government had raised Rs 6,700 crore through sale of 2 per cent stake held through SUUTI in tobacco-to-FMCG firm ITC. In November 2016 it sold 1.63 per cent in L&T, while in March 2014 it had sold 9 per cent stake in Axis Bank to raise Rs 5,500 crore through block deals. SUUTI holdings in ITC, Axis Bank and L&T are also part of Bharat 22 exchange-traded fund (ETF). The government, which has set a divestment target of Rs 80,000 crore for 2018-19, has so far raised over Rs 34,000 crore. Scholar and freedom fighter Maulana Abul Kalam Azad's firm belief in Hindu-Muslim unity and his opposition to partition in the pre-Independence days will be the highlight of a new feature film, which is set to hit the theatres on January 18. Rajendra Sanjay, who penned the story and co-directed the film 'Woh Jo Tha Ek Massiah-Maulana Azad', said the younger generation should get to know what the freedom fighter stood for, in times of crisis. "The film talks about Azad's principles, his belief in communal harmony, secularist views which was not coloured by any religion and faith in humanity," Sanjay, who visited the city along with lead actor Linesh Fanse and co-director Sanjay Singh Negi, said at a press meet Saturday. The film will show the events that shaped Azad's life, turning him into a "true mass leader", he said. "As someone who believed in united India and Hindu- Muslim unity, he had fervently hoped the partition can be avoided. But that wasn't the case," the director-script writer told PTi after the press meet. 'Woh Jo Tha Ek Massiah-Maulana Azad' will also dwell on the phase Azad came into contact with Mahatma Gandhi in 1920 in Delhi, his house arrest for publication of two magazines which propagated nationalist ideas in Kolkata and other defining moments, he stated. The film will also have references to post- Independence period, following Gandhiji's assassination, Sanjay added. Co-director Negi said "very few remember Azad as education minister had introduced science and technology as subject in our education system". The censor board has passed the two-hour-long Hindi film, mostly shot in Kolkata, Mumbai and Delhi, without a single cut, he claimed. Sharing his experience, Fanse, who plays the titular role, said he had auditioned for Muhammad Ali Jinnah's role, but the directors insisted he played Azad. "The directors suggested that I would be suitable for the role of Azad. I had to learn Hindu and Urdu for the role," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Angry over delay in payments, farmers attacked offices of sugar factories in Satara, Sangli and Kolhapur districts of Maharashtra and set some of them ablaze, police said Sunday. A group of protesters torched the office of Krishna Sugar Factory at Karad in Satara on Friday, a police official said. Some important documents, computers and furniture were destroyed in the blaze, he said, adding that offences were registered against unidentified persons by the Karad rural police. Besides, another office of the sugar factory in neighbouring Sangli was set on fire on Saturday morning, an official at Islampur police station said. Some workers informed police about the incident at the sugar factory's office, where computers and several documents were kept, he said. Protesters also vandalised and tried to torch the office of Kranti Sugar Factory at Walwa in Sangli on Saturday and later fled, the officials said. Offences were registered against unidentified persons under Indian Penal Code sections for mischief and house-trespass, he said, adding that no arrest was made so far. In another incident, farmers gathered near the Gurudatt Sugar Factory's office at Shirol in Kolhapur Saturday afternoon, seeking fair and remunerative price for their produce, another police official said. The protesters, belonging to a local farmers' organisation, then broke the factory office's lock and vandalised furniture, computers, stationary and other material kept there, he said. The Shirol police registered offences against nearly 65 people, out of whom 15 were identified. They were under IPC sections for rioting, unlawful assembly, house-trespass and mischief, the official said. No arrest was made so far, he said, adding that a probe was underway. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh Sunday said that exclusion of Congress from the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh was wrong and not a good sign for future alliances at national level. Singh, RJD's national vice president, suggested that the mistake should be rectified by including the "grand old party" in the alliance. RJD is part of the Grand Alliance in Bihar that comprises Congress, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, Hindustani Awam Morcha (S) and Mukesh Sahni's Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP). "This (SP-BSP alliance excluding Congress) is not good. They have stitched an alliance leaving Congress out of it. The grand alliance should be formed with Congress," Singh told reporters here. Arch rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had yesterday announced a tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. He said the alliance was suited for the state but not for at a national level. "If we (opposition) have to provide an alternative on national level, then all the forces opposing BJP must unite in order to defeat them (BJP)," he said adding "it is high time that they (SP-BSP) should rectify it (exclusion of Congress from alliance)." The Hindustani Awam Morcha (S), another constituent of the Grand Alliance in Bihar, has also expressed reservation over Congress' exclusion in the alliance announced by UP's satraps Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav. HAM(S) chief and former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi had said "if they (SP-BSP) neglect Congress in UP, then they may have to face loss as BJP may be able to gain from it". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former AAP leader H S Phoolka was felicitated Sunday for his legal battle for anti-Sikh riot victims at an event hosted by Union minister Vijay Goel, who said the doors of the BJP were open for all "good" people. Phoolka, though accepted his "closeness" with several BJP leaders, ruled out joining any political party. "BJP has always supported us in our fight for anti-Sikh riots victims. I met Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Home Minister Rajnath Singh and they supported my stand on it," Phoolka told reporters. He, however, denied speculations that he might join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). "I am not joining any political party," he said. Goel lauded Phoolka as a "good man" and his friend who fought to give justice to the victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. "It does not matter that he was associated with AAP. He is a good person who did a good thing. That is why we are felicitating him. People ask me, if he will join my party. BJP wants all good people should join it," he said. Phoolka had resigned earlier this month from the Aam Aadmi Party without giving any reason behind the move. He had met Goel to greet him on his birthday on January 4, amid speculations that he might join the BJP. Commenting on Phoolka's resignation from AAP, Goel had said, "He quit AAP recently. (It is) better late than never." Phoolka has avoided giving any reason for quitting the AAP and expressed his desire to float a non-political outfit in Punjab to fight the drug menace and the perceived politicisation of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC). He, however, was averse to any alliance between the AAP and the Congress. Reports about a pre-poll tie-up between the two parties is doing the rounds, with none of them denying it officially. The sources claimed Phoolka was also annoyed over the AAP's stand on the demand to strip former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi of the Bharat Ratna for "justifying" the anti-Sikh riots. Phoolka had said that the conversion of Anna Hazare's anti-corruption movement into a political party in 2012 was a wrong step. He has not declared his future political move, although he has announced that he would not contest the upcoming Lok Sabha election. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Major Shashi Dharan V Nair, who was killed in an IED explosion in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, was cremated with full military honours here in Maharashtra on Sunday. The body was brought to the National War Memorial in Pune on Saturday evening where wreaths were laid. The mortal remains were taken for the last rites on Sunday morning in a massive procession from his residence in Khadakwasla area on the outskirts of Pune. Major Nair's well-wishers raised slogans in his praise throughout the procession. The last rites were performed at the city-based Vaikunth crematorium where his wife, mother, sister and other friends and relatives bid him a emotional adieu. Officials from the Southern Command and police department were also present. District Guardian Minister Girish Bapat, BJP Lok Sabha member from Pune Anil Shirole and leaders from various other political parties also attended the funeral. Major Nair, who grew up in Khadakwasla and studied at the famous Fergusson College in the city, was killed along with another soldier in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosion in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district on Friday. He was "passionate" about joining the armed forces, one of his childhood friends had said on Saturday. Another friend had recalled that Nair, who was in National Cadet Corps (NCC), used to cycle 15 km to reach his college everyday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Around a dozen persons were injured allegedly in security forces' action on protestors during clashes in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday, police said. Clashes erupted between groups of youth and security forces in Sugan village of south Kashmir's Shopian district amid multiple funeral prayers for Al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam who was killed in an encounter in Saturday, a police official said. Sugan is Islam's native village. Clashes erupted soon after the forces tried to chase away the people from assembling in the village, the official said. He said at least a dozen persons were injured in the forces' action. The injured were taken to nearby hospital, wherefrom four of them were referred to SMHS hospital here, the official said. A woman also suffered injuries when she was allegedly hit by a security forces' vehicle during the clashes, the official said, adding she has been hospitalised. Islam and his associate terrorist Shakeel Ahmad Dar were killed in an encounter with security forces in Katpora area of the neighbouring Kulgam district on Saturday. Meanwhile, former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti termed the security forces' action as "unfortunate and disturbing". "Reports of aerial firing at Sugan Shopian to stop the crowd from participating in the funeral prayers of a local militant , are very unfortunate and disturbing . Such interference in the religious affairs is undesirable and may backfire leading to further anger and alienation," Mehbooba wrote on Twitter. PTI SSB http://ptinews.com/images/pti.jpg We bring the World to you"Disclaimer : This e-mail message may contain proprietary, confidential or legally privileged information for the sole use of the person or entity to whom this message was originally addressed. Please delete this e-mail, if it is not meant for you. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Minorities Commission has asked city government departments to allow minorities to wear dresses and carry articles as per their religious beliefs when appearing in recruitment and academic tests. Acting on the commission's order, the General Administration Department (GAD) issued a circular to all principal secretaries and heads of department asking for "appropriate action" on the dress code for minority students and candidates appearing in examinations. Minority commission chairman Zafarul Islam Khan said the order was issued in view of complaints from members of minority communities that they faced difficulties when appearing in such examinations and were forced to take off their articles of faith. In its order, the Commission said, "Muslim women cannot be denied their religious right to wear Hijab (headscarf). They must also he allowed to wear full-sleeve shirts. The Sikhs are allowed to carry Kirpan (dagger) of reasonable length as per Indian Constitution's Article 25." The order noted that while the security precautions are very much required during examinations, it should not harm the interests of the minorities students and candidates. "Where certain security arrangements and frisking are required, candidates must be clearly informed in advance that they have to present themselves at the frisking point, say half an hour. "The frisking staff is fully within its rights to check Hijab of Muslim women and allow them in after making sure security requirements have been met," said the order. The Commission has directed all the government departments and educational institutions to "meticulously observe" its dress code order, saying failure to do so will invite legal action. Pursuant to the order, the Directorate of Training and Technical Education has in its letter to principals of institutions under it has asked for necessary action. Khan said that compliance reports on the order have been received by the Commission from various departments including the Services under Delhi government. The Commission had last month also issued a notice to the University Grants Commission (UGC) taking up the issue of a Jamia Millia Islamia student being allegedly not allowed to appear in the UGC-NET examination for wearing Hijab (headscarf). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Several disabled people in Nepal were provided free Indian-made prosthesis 'Jaipur Foot' during an artificial limb fitment camp inaugurated here on Sunday. The Bhagwan Mahavir Vikalang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS) has started an artificial limb camp at Norvic International Hospital in Kathmandu in association with Chaudhary Foundation, a charity organisation belonging to Binod Chaudhary, the first billionaire of Nepal. During the three-day camp, 50 people from Kathmandu will get artificial limbs free of cost. Another camp will be held in Nawalparasi district in western Nepal where more than 400 disabled people are expected to receive artificial limbs. Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health Upendra Yadav, Indian Ambassador to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri, Chairman of Chaudhary Foundation Binod Chaudhary and D R Mehta, chairman of Jaipur Foot jointly inaugurated the camp on Sunday. The BMVSS has so far provided 1.7 million artificial limbs to people from 30 countries around the world since its inception in 1975. Addressing the programme, Deputy Prime Minister Yadav said the government is planning to set up a permanent organisation for providing artificial limbs to the needy people in collaboration with private sector. Chaudhary Foundation's chairman said he is ready to collaborate with the government to launch artificial limb fitting programme on a permanent basis. There are around 100,000 people in Nepal who are handicapped and the foundation is planning to provide limb fitting service to at least 500 people this time. Ambassador Puri assured Indian government's continued support for such service for humanity in Nepal in future too. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra has managed to save Rs 12,000 crore in farm loan waiver alone by adopting a digital platform that helped eliminate bogus claimants, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said here Sunday. The state had, in June 2017, announced a farm loan waiver worth Rs 34,022 crore amid rising incidents of farmer suicides due to crop failures or falling prices and rising input costs. The scheme made each farmer with a debt of up to Rs 1.5 lakh eligible for the write-off. Maharashtra was following other states like UP, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh among others. "Our farm loan waiver scheme was executed on a digital platform and by that we could save Rs 12,000 crore just because of digital intervention. Had it been the regular way, we would have ended up paying Rs 12,000 crore more to the people and that is the power of digitisation," he said at an industry event organised by corporate lobby CII, without offering any details. He further said the state is launching a programme which is a virtual life cycle management for every farmer. "From sowing to harvesting, everything will be managed through a digital platform and that will give advantage to farmers to make this sector more sustainable, predictable," he said, adding it will be launched Monday. Fadnavis further said the state has collaborated with the World Economic Forum for Fourth Industrial Revolution and has started pilot project to introduce drones in agriculture. "We are trying to make agriculture more precision-oriented so that we bring down the cost, make it predictable and connect farmers directly to technology," he said. The state aims to cover all the villages under its broadband connectivity programme by the end of this year. "As part of Bharat Net, we have started our Maha Net, which has already reached out to 60 percent of our targeted villages and by the end of this year we will be reaching rest of the villages. Hopefully our fibre will reach every single village. And with this robust connectivity, we will empower every single citizen to leverage on digital governance and digital economy," he said. He further said his government's Aple Sarkar Service Kendra has also provided internet access to villages. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Much water has flown under the bridge since the January 12, 2018, unprecedented presser by four senior judges of the Supreme Court who had raised a litany of problems, including the issue of assigning of cases, plaguing the apex court. The historical press conference was held by four judges Justices (retired) J Chelameswar, Madan B Lokur, Kurian Joseph and Ranjan Gogoi (current CJI). The then CJI Justice Dipak Misra has also retired. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi took over from Justice Misra, while the three judges-- Justices J Chelameswar, Kurian Joseph and Madan B Lokur -- have superannuated from service. November end last year saw allegations against Justice Misra, with one of the judges again dropping a bomb shell saying "someone from outside controlled the then CJI". The judges had said the situation in the top court was "not in order" and many "less than desirable" things have taken place. Unless this institution is preserved, "democracy will not survive in this country," the four judges had said in a letter to the then CJI Justice Misra. The apex court, under the new CJI, has witnessed a spate of appointments to various high courts and the top court as well. Four new judges joined the top court in November last year, increasing its strength to 28 against the sanctioned 31. Recently, the Supreme Court Collegium recommended the names of Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, the chief justice of the Karnataka High Court, and Justice Sanjiv Khanna of the Delhi High Court for elevation as judges to the apex court. The five-member Collegium, headed by Chief Justice Gogoi, took the decision at its meeting on January 10. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Police has initiated a pilot project in 30 police stations in the national capital to study the feasibility of separating investigation and law and order. Sanjay Singh, the Special Commissioner of Police (Headquarters and Recruitment), said the pilot project setting up separate investigation wings has been initiated in 30 police stations in the first phase. "This step shall ensure specialisation as well as improve police response to the victims and families affected by crime, especially in heinous cases," he said. As many as 1,409 teams consisting of one sub-inspector, one head constable and one constable (4,227 personnel in total) have been constituted and allocated to two police each in 15 police districts, said another officer. The pilot was started in mid-September and under this project police personnel tasked with investigation have been given laptops and are engaged in law and order duties, apart from big events like the new year eve, the Republic Day, he added. The investigation team staffers have been trained and equipped with legal, forensic, scientific and technological aids. The objectives of this are to improve quality of investigation, ensure timely disposal of cases, improve conviction rate and ensure co-ordination with prosecuting agency for speedy trial, the officer added. He said this allows more time for investigating teams to probe cases, prepare chargesheets and "we have seen that there has been a speedy disposal of cases". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Left out of the SP-BSP pre-poll tie-up in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday announced that it would go it alone on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming general election. After a brainstorming session with senior party leaders, Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam NabiAzad, however, said his party would accommodate any secular force that was capable of taking on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha polls. The meeting of the Congress was held a day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, sharing 38 seats each and leaving two seats for the smaller parties, besides leaving Rae Bareli and Amethi for United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi respectively. Speaking to reporters here, Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh and defeat the BJP." He also expressed hope that the Grand Old Party would double the tally of 21 seats it had secured in the state in the2009 general election. To a question on whether the Congress will forge a coalition with any other political party, Azad said, "If any party is willing to accompany the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will definitely be accommodated." On his party being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, the Congress leader said, "We wanted that the Congress should have been a part of the Grand Alliance (against the BJP) in Uttar Pradesh. But if someone does not want to walk along, nothing can be done."Asked whether the Congress would field candidates in seats which will be contested by BSP supremo Mayawati and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav (since the SP-BSP alliance will not field nominees from Rae Bareli and Amethi), Azaddid not give any clear answer. On the possibility of a post-poll alliance with the SP and the BSP, he said at the national level, the Congress would welcome all the secular regional parties. Replying to another question on the SP-BSP tie-up, Azad said, "The Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the party would have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contesting on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will hold at least 13 rallies in Uttar Pradesh." At the joint press conference with Yadav held here on Saturday, Mayawati had explained why the Congress was left out of the pre-poll tie up of the SP and the BSP. She had said that during the Congress's rule in the country, poverty, unemployment and corruption grew, and there were scams in defence deals. The BSP chief had also pointed out that in the past, her party had not benefitted from seat-sharing pacts with the Congress. "In the past, I have seen that our votes get transferred to the Congress, but not vice-versa. We do not gain from an alliance with the Congress, whereas the vote transfer is perfect in an SP-BSP tie-up," Mayawati had said. Drawing a parallel between the Congress and the BJP, she had said while the former had imposed Emergency in the country, the latter was responsible for the current state of "undeclared Emergency". Azad on Sunday accused the BJP of dividing the country for power and claimed that the saffron party had failed to fulfil any of its poll promises. "The coming Lok Sabha election is a battle to unite India and safeguard the democratic values," he said. Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress leader said, "Modi is not concerned about the country, he is bothered about his own chair. One of the biggest scams has taken place during the tenure of this government. The government has not gone for a probe. Not going for a probe does not mean that the scam has not been committed." Stating that the Congress had always put the country before everything else, he cited the examples of the party sacrificing power in Jammu and Kashmir to strengthen Sheikh Abdullah and how it had sacrificed power to put an end to terrorism in Mizoram. "The Congress has been fighting for the rights of the poor, farmers, backward castes and Dalits since even before Independence and after Independence, it is following the same ideology," he said. On the possibilities of an alliance with the Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), Azad said he would not like to speak to the media about it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel said Sunday government has a "lot of explaining to do" on the nomination of Justice A K Sikri to the vacant post of president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). "The Government has a lot of explaining to do (sic)," Patel said in a tweet tagging a media report. The government is understood to have recommended Supreme Court Judge A K Sikri's name as India's nominee for president/member in the CSAT. Official sources said nomination of Sikri, who retires on March 6, was made last month following an internal process carried out by the Law Ministry. Justice Sikri, the second senior-most judge in the apex court after Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikajurn Kharge which decided on removal of Alok Verma from the post of CBI Director. Sikri's vote proved crucial to remove Verma from his post as Kharge opposed the move strongly while the government was pushing for Verma's sacking. Justice Sikri supported the government. The External Affairs Ministry communicated to CSAT about India's nomination, the sources said. There was no reaction from either the Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Law and Justice on it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A mysterious cosmic explosion detected about 200 million light years away may be the exact moment a star collapsed to form a black hole or neutron star, scientists say. Researchers from Northwestern University in the US are getting closer to understanding the mysteriously bright object that burst in the northern sky this summer. On June 17, the ATLAS survey's twin telescopes in Hawaii found a spectacularly bright anomaly 200 million light years away in the Hercules constellation. Dubbed AT2018cow or "The Cow," the object quickly flared up, then vanished almost as quickly. After combining several imaging sources, including hard X-rays and radiowaves, the multi-institutional team now speculates that the telescopes captured the exact moment a star collapsed to form a compact object, such as a black hole or neutron star. The stellar debris, approaching and swirling around the object's event horizon, caused the remarkably bright glow. This rare event will help astronomers better understand the physics at play within the first moments of the creation of a black hole or neutron star. "We think that 'The Cow' is the formation of an accreting black hole or neutron star," said Raffaella Margutti, from Northwestern University, who led the research. "We know from theory that black holes and neutron stars form when a star dies, but we've never seen them right after they are born. Never," Margutti said. After it was first spotted, The Cow captured immediate international interest and left astronomers scratching their heads. "We thought it must be a supernova. But what we observed challenged our current notions of stellar death," Margutti said. For one, the anomaly was unnaturally bright -- 10 to 100 times brighter than a typical supernova. It also flared up and disappeared much faster than other known star explosions, with particles flying at 30,000 kilometers per second (or 10 percent of the speed of light). Within just 16 days, the object had already emitted most of its power. In a universe where some phenomena last for millions and billions of years, two weeks amounts to the blink of an eye. "We knew right away that this source went from inactive to peak luminosity within just a few days," Margutti said. "That was enough to get everybody excited because it was so unusual and, by astronomical standards, it was very close by," she said. Researchers examined The Cow's chemical composition, finding clear evidence of hydrogen and helium, which excluded models of compact objects merging -- like those that produce gravitational waves. Although stars might collapse into black holes all the time, the large amount of material around newly born black holes blocks astronomers' vision. Fortunately, about 10 times less ejecta swirled around The Cow as compared to a typical stellar explosion. The lack of material allowed astronomers to peer straight through to the object's "central engine," which revealed itself as a probable black hole or neutron star. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Four persons were arrested in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district for allegedly duping several people in the name of Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana, a flagship Central government housing scheme, police said Sunday. The accused, allegedly posing as government officials, had siphoned off money from the accounts of the people by collecting their bank and identity details on the pretext of providing houses under the scheme, an official said. The four were arrested from Lailunga area here on Saturday based on the complaint of Kharsia residents Hemlal Raitiya and Bharat Ram Kalaar, Raigarh Additional Superintendent of Police Rajesh Agrawal said. He identified those arrested as Lailunga residents Dharmendra Mahant, Sanjay Tirky, Shravan Mahant and Chaitan Yadav. As per two complainants, on January 5, two of the accused had posed as Janpad Panchayat officials and had taken the complainants' Aadhaar numbers, mobile numbers and thumb impression through a digital device in the name of a PMAY survey, Agrawal said. Later, Raitiya and Kalar found that Rs 10,000 and Rs 1,900 respectively had been withdrawn from their bank accounts following which they informed police, he said. As many as 15 ATM cards, five mobile phones, one computer set, one JCB machine, one motorcycle and Rs 5000 cash were recovered from them, he said. The accused admitted to having duped several people in four districts- Janjgir-Champa, Raigarh, Jashpur and Balrampur on the pretext of providing houses under the PMAY scheme, he said. They have been charged under section 420 (cheating) and 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Walking around the theme pavilion at the New Delhi World Book Fair, one can spot a range of aides for the visually impaired -- Braille geometry sets, chess boards, a set of playing cards, but oddly enough, not many books. The visible shortage of literature for people with disability at the fair themed, "Books for Readers with Special Needs", can be attributed to the dearth of publishers working in the sector, said one of the officials from National Book Trust (NBT). "When we started working on this theme, we realised there was very little work done in this sector by publishers, and that remains our main aim -- to sensitise the publishing fraternity to address this need," Neera Jain, chief editor and joint director, NBT, said. Disappointment over the lack of books for individuals with special needs was also expressed by Narayani Kaushik, a hearing-impaired student of psychology, who had been looking forward to the fair, particularly because of its theme this year. She hoped to find material on disabilities beyond physical ones to make herself more aware. "I like that they have done extensive work for blind people, but I could not find a single book on sign language, or books on different forms of mental disorders, that would have been helpful," Kaushik told PTI. To make up for the missing literature to a certain extent, NBT invited Microsoft, which has developed reading-aides for differently-abled people. The company exhibited technologies like 'Eye Control' for people with mobility disorders, translator applications for speech and hearing impaired people, and learning tools for people living with mental disorders. "We also intend to sensitise more and more people about the issues, so they can go out and treat people living with disabilities as themselves," Jain told PTI. Kaushik said it would have felt more welcoming had there been more people living with disabilities in the managing staff. "It is good that there are sign interpreters assigned here, but I or anyone else would feel more comfortable to approach the management if there were more people with disabilities employed," she said. While this year's theme was appreciated by visitors like her, she said it was difficult to overlook the miniscule footfall the theme pavilion received. Although the response so far has been great, Sandeep Garg of All India Confederation for the Blind (AICB) said that the crowd coming in at their stall was far less than others. "It's not like we are not getting visitors, but look at the crowd next door. There is a staggering difference. I agree that the population of general public is more than that of disabled people, but it would have been great if more people come to visit," Garg said. As part of the theme, the book fair also featured special programmes for and by differently-abled people including a film festival, dance performances by autistic children, and a kavi sammelan by blind people. "We believe more people should receive the message that disability is by no means a barrier and they can still do great things in life," Jain said. The fair came to a close on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Sunday claimed the recently-forged alliance between the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party will have no impact on the of the state, and that the BJP will "effectively wipe them off". Speaking at a programme here, Adityanath noted that the BSP-SP alliance denoted "casteist mentality" and "anarchic elements". "The (SP-BSP) alliance means giving power to people who are corrupt, anarchic elements and have casteist mentality. This alliance will have no impact on the of the state. "It is good that both these parties have come together. It will help us to effectively wipe them off," he asserted. Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had on Saturday announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The priest-turned-politician said his party faced no challenge by the alliance. "SP chief Akhilesh Yadav should clarify who is the PM candidate this time -- his party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav or BSP supremo Mayawati. A leader-less alliance will be rejected by the people," Adityanath said. He also went on to say, "Why are SP and BSP different parties? They should be merged". "From 1993 to 1995, SP-BSP coalition functioned in Uttar Pradesh. Everyone has seen their style of working. They sow the seeds of casteism in the state," Adityanath said. On the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, the chief minister said, "The BJP had said that it will resolve the issue while staying within the ambit of the Constitution. The matter is in Supreme Court. We are making repeated appeals to it that this issue must be resolved at the earliest for the sake of development of the country. "If there is anyone, who can resolve the issue, it is the BJP. Those, who had created this problem, cannot resolve it," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJP national secretary R P Singh defended the film, "The Accidental Prime Minister", on Sunday, claiming that former prime minister Manmohan Singh never took a stand for Sikhs and kept "silent" when the Congress scuttled the process of justice for the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, after a Sikh body asked the community to boycott the movie for its "facetious" portrayal of Singh. The Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee had objected to Singh's facetious portrayal in the film Saturday with its general secretary Manjinder Singh Sirsa saying the former prime minister had made the Sikh community and India proud during his 10-year tenure on the top post and the movie "spoils" his image. "For those who say the Accidental PM demeans Manmohan Singh ji as a Sikh, should tell when did he ever take a stand for Sikhs. As a PM he stayed silent when the Congress scuttled the process of justice for @SikhGenocide84. He was also silent when MP tickets were given to Sajjan & Tytler," R P Singh wrote on Twitter. He also sought to know which tenets of Sikhism allowed overlooking corruption "under your nose while your bosses loot public money". The film, based on a book of the same name written by Sanjaya Baru, has been dubbed by the Congress as a part of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) propaganda against the opposition party, while various leaders of the saffron party have promoted it on Twitter. Baru was Manmohan Singh's media adviser when the latter was the prime minister. The film hit the screens on January 11. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJP expelled its Barak Valley leader Pradip Dutta on Sunday, two days after threatening Assamese speaking students for protesting against the Citizenship Bill at Assam University. Dutta has been expelled for breaking the party discipline and taking a "stand against the party's ideology and position", the expulsion letter by Assam BJP general secretary Dilip Saikia said. The letter also said Dutta has been expelled from the primary membership of the party as per the instruction of the state president Ranjeet Kumar Dass with immediate effect. Dutta had on Friday courted controversy by threatening Assamese speaking students in Bengali-dominated Barak Valley that their admission in Assam University at Silchar would be barred if they protested against the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. Dutta, a local leader of the saffron party known for making controversial statements, issued the threat after a section of students of the Assam University raised their voice against the controversial Bill. "I warn the Assamese (speaking) students of the university that you don't indulge in politics and study only. Think about the future. We will be otherwise forced to bar admission of Assamese students in the university," Dutta was heard saying in local channels. "I am writing to the vice-chancellor of the university asking him what step he is taking against the students for opposing the Bill", Dutta had said in Bengali. Buckling under Dutta's threat, Assam University on Saturday banned protests inside the campus with immediate effect without prior permission of the vice-chancellor. In an order, Assam University registrar Sanjib Bhattacharjee directed that no procession/dharna or any sort of gathering of people within the campus without prior approval of the authorities is strictly prohibited until further order. Cotton University Students Union had filed a complaint at Pan Bazar police station in Guwahati, while another case was lodged at Nagaon by Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuva Chhatra Parishad against Dutta for making the communally provocative statement. Several organisations, including the All Assam Students' Union (AASU), Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) and Students Federation of India (SFI), have condemned Dutta's threat. Protesting against the statement, ULFA (pro-talk) general secretary Anup Chetia had said such people are backed by the "government lobby" to fuel "feelings of communalism" between Assamese and Bengali speaking people. A different section of Assam University students Thursday came out in support of the Bill, while another had taken out a candlelight vigil on Wednesday to protest against it. The bill seeks to amend Citizenship Act 1955 to grant Indian nationality to people from minority communities -- Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians -- from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan after six years of residence in India instead of 12 even if they don't possess any proper document. It has been opposed by a large section of people and organisations in the Northeast. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Centre's bill prohibiting commercial surrogacy has evoked a mixed response, with some welcoming it while others raising doubts over its efficacy. The Lok Sabha had last month passed the bill that bars commercial surrogacy and allows the process only by close relatives for 'altruistic' reasons. Surrogacy refers to a contract whereby a woman carries a pregnancy and gives birth to a child for another person or another couple, who will ultimately be the baby's parent(s). National Commission for Women's former member Nirmala Samant Prabhawalkar said the bill has been brought to regulate the "uncontrolled" practice of surrogacy, but it still has some "grey areas". "There was massive exploitation which forced the regulation, but there is scope to improve the legislation further," she said. Another Mumbai-based advocate Siddh Vidya said she was in favour of making the laws tough, but found the term 'altruistic' a bit unrealistic. "Confrontation between the family going for surrogacy and the surrogate mother is inevitable even if the latter may not develop an emotional bond with the child," she said. Vidya had earlier moved the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, alleging that many big hospitals in Mumbai and doctors were minting money by facilitating surrogacy. Union Health Minister J P Nadda had earlier said that under the law, only defined mother and family can avail of surrogacy and it was not permitted for live-in partners or single parents. Dr Suruchi Desai, a gynaecologist at the Nanavati Super Speciality Hospital here, said the bill needs to clearly define who is a close relative and who can be a surrogate. The legislation will hamper medical tourism in India, but at the same time reduce the exploitation of women who are forced to turn to surrogacy due to financial crisis, she said. Navi Mumbai-based chartered accountant Sunil Satghare, however, was sad as his son and daughter-in-law, settled in the US, wanted to have a child through surrogacy in India, but could not go for it after learning about the new legislation. "It's ok to regulate rules and stop misuse of surrogacy. But, making it too stringent is not good for those who want to enjoy parenthood," he said. City resident Shubhangi Bhostekar claimed to be a victim of surrogacy 'racket', but was now hopeful that the new rules will be followed "in letter and spirit". "I have two daughters, still my husband managed to have a male child through surrogacy," she said, adding that she had last year filed a complaint against her spouse with the Mumbai Police and the child rights' commission. A surrogate mother, who did not wish to be identified, said people from across globe come to India to have a baby because the women delivering children through this method here are "extremely cooperative and obey their agreement clauses". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police say three German skiers have been killed in an avalanche in the Austrian Alps and a fourth is missing. The bodies of the men, aged 57, 36 and 32, were recovered Saturday evening near Lech, a few hours after the wife of one of the skiers reported them missing. Police in Vorarlberg, Austria's westernmost province, said Sunday they had to call off the search for another German, age 28, because of heavy snow and the risk of avalanches. The avalanche deaths bring to at least 24 the number of weather-related deaths reported in parts of Europe this month. On Saturday, authorities in southern Germany and Austria used a break in the weather to clear heavy loads of snow from roofs and roads. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Top Al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam was among the two militants killed in an encounter with security forces in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said Sunday. "The two militants killed in the Katpora encounter have been identified as Zeenat-ul-Islam and Shakeel Ahmad Dar. Both were involved in several terror crimes," a police official said. Islam, a category A++ militant, was a top commander who had switched over to Al-Badr from Hizbul Mujahideen in November last year following consensus between the two outfits to strengthen the Al-Badr, he said. The official said security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Katpora area of Yaripora in south Kashmir's Kulgam district Saturday evening after receiving specific information about the presence of militants there. He said as the forces were conducting the searches, the militants fired upon them. As per policy, the militants were given an opportunity to surrender, but they continued to fire upon the forces, the official said. The forces retaliated, ensuing an encounter in which two the militants were killed, he said. Meanwhile, a police spokesman said both the killed militants were affiliated with Al-Badr and were wanted by the law for "their complicity in a series of terror crimes including attack on security establishments and civilian atrocities". "Islam, according to police records had a long history of terror crime records since 2006 when he got affiliated with Al-Badr and was later arrested," he said. The spokesman said after Islam was released, he again got recycled in 2016 and subsequently affiliated with HM and then recently joined the Al-Badr outfit in Shopian District. "Consequently, he became the chief of the said outfit. Several terror crime cases were registered against him. He was also involved in a weapon snatching case at Tukroo Shopian. Similarly, Shakeel Ahmad Dar was also involved in terror related crimes as well," the spokesman said. He said incriminating material such as arms and ammunition was recovered from the site of encounter and all these materials have been taken in the case records for the purpose of investigation. The spokesman said no collateral damage took place during the encounter. Bodies of the killed militants were handed over to their families after completion of medico-legal formalities, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) Adviser Akhil Gogoi on Sunday appealed to opposition Congress to ensure defeat of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill in the Rajya Sabha. Gogoi said the KMSS will try to meet all other opposition parties to convince them to stand against the bill in the Upper House, where the controversial document is likely to be placed for passage during the Budget Session beginning January 31. He criticised the Congress for "not taking strong stand" against the bill, when it was introduced and passed in the Lok Sabha on January 8. "Congress should play its national role. The people of Assam are keenly watching them. So, I appeal them to stake a bold step and ensure that it is never passed in the Rajya Sabha," the peasant leader said in a press conference here. The Congress will become history if it wants to play the "soft Hindutva card" and directly or indirectly supports the bill for passage in the Upper House, he said. "We will try to meet the Trinamool Congress, the JD(U), the RJD, the Aam Aadmi Party, parties from the south and all other parties to request them not to support the bill," Gogoi said. The firebrand RTI activist also warned the Centre and the state that if it is passed, then the "law and order situation in north east is surely going to deteriorate" and the BJP-led government will be responsible for that. Gogoi had Friday announced that he will hold a 24-hour hunger strike on Monday during the coming 'Magh Bihu' festival, of which community feast is an integral part, to protest against the bill. On 'Uruka' night, the first day of the three-day Magh Bihu, people enjoy community feast with new harvest and it is one of the main attractions of the festival. Magh Bihu is one of the three Bihu festivals of the state. The Citizenship Amendment Bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who fled religious persecution in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and entered India before December 31, 2014, after six years of residence in the country, instead of the current 12 years, even if they do not possess any proper documents. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Left out of the SP-BSP pre-poll tie-up in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday announced it would go it alone on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming general election. After a brainstorming session with senior party leaders, Congress general secretary in-charge of UP Ghulam Nabi Azad, however, said his party would accommodate any secular force capable of taking on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the Lok Sabha election. Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed the recently forged alliance between the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party will have no impact on the state's and the BJP will "effectively wipe them off". Speaking at a programme here, Adityanath said the SP-BSP alliance denoted "casteist mentality" and "anarchic elements". "The alliance means giving power to people who are corrupt, anarchic elements and have casteist mentality. This alliance will have no impact on the of the state. "It is good that both these parties have come together. It will help us effectively wipe them off," he asserted. The priest-turned-politician also went on to say, "Why are SP and BSP different parties? They should be merged". Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, an ally of the ruling BJP, appeared to differ with Adityanath's assessment. It said the SP-BSP alliance will put up a strong fight in Lok Sabha elections. "The country is witnessing an era of coalition, and no party has the courage to go to the polls alone. The SP-BSP alliance is a strong alliance and it will put up a strong contest in the elections," UP Cabinet minister and SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar told reporters Saturday. Replying to another query on whether his party will go with the SP-BSP alliance, Rajbhar said there was "no truth" in such rumours. Taking a jibe at BJP, he said, "The BJP feels there is a saffron wave across the state. The BJP is having the galatfahmi (wrong perception) that more than 60 per cent of people are supporting it." He said the party did see the result of this wrong perception during the Lok Sabha bypolls when it lost the Gorakhpur, Phoolpur and Kairana, and Noorpur assembly seat. In another development, Shivpal Yadav, chief of Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) told reporters here, "When Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav) had forged an alliance (with BSP), there was no fear of CBI. Today there is a fear of CBI, and it is because of CBI that the alliance is taking place. This alliance will not prove to be successful." Shivpal also said his talks for Lok Sabha elections are going on with various parties including the Congress. Sunday's meeting of the Congress was held a day after SP and BSP announced their alliance in UP, sharing 38 seats each and leaving two seats for smaller parties. They also left Rae Bareli and Amethi seats for UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi respectively. Speaking to reporters here, Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in UP and defeat BJP." He expressed hope that the Grand Old Party would double the tally of 21 seats it had won in the state in the 2009 general election. Asked whether the Congress will forge a coalition with any other party, Azad said, "If any party is willing to accompany the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will definitely be accommodated." On his party being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, he said, "We wanted that the Congress should have been a part of the Grand Alliance (against the BJP) in UP. But if someone does not want to walk along, nothing can be done." Asked whether the Congress would field candidates on seats which will be contested by Mayawati and Akhilesh Yadav (since the SP-BSP alliance will not field nominees from Rae Bareli and Amethi), Azad did not give any clear answer. On the possibility of a post-poll alliance with the SP and the BSP, he said at the national level, the Congress would welcome all secular regional parties. To another question on the SP-BSP tie-up, Azad said, "Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the party would have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contesting on all 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will hold at least 13 rallies in UP." At the joint press conference with Yadav held on Saturday, Mayawati had explained why the Congress was left out of the SP-BSP alliance. She had said that during the Congress's rule in the country, poverty, unemployment and corruption grew, and there were scams in defence deals. She had also pointed out that in the past, her party had not benefitted from seat-sharing pacts with the Congress. "I have seen that our votes get transferred to the Congress, but not vice-versa. We do not gain from an alliance with the Congress, whereas the vote transfer is perfect in an SP-BSP tie-up." Azad accused the BJP of dividing the country for power. "The coming Lok Sabha election is a battle to unite India and safeguard the democratic values," he said. Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said, "Modi is not concerned about the country, he is bothered about his own chair. One of the biggest scams has taken place during the tenure of this government. The government has not gone for a probe. Not going for a probe does not mean that the scam has not been committed." On the possibility of an alliance with the Ajit Singh-led RLD, Azad said he would not like to speak to the media about it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Manish Paul Sunday visited the forward areas along the International Border (IB) here and saluted the courage and bravery of BSF personnel for their contribution in securing the borders, an offcial said. The actor was very excited to be at the IB for the first time. Paul met jawans at duty points, a BSF spokesman said. Paul is an Indian television host, anchor and an actor. BSF families as well as civilians visiting border outpost octroi also got the opportunity to meet the actor and took photos with him, he said, adding that the actor also took selfies during his visit. He expressed his heartfelt respect and gratitude for BSF jawans for their courage, bravery and commitment, and relentlessly serving in tough conditions to guard the nation against adversaries, the spokesman said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thane Police have recorded a crime detection rate at 63 per cent for the year 2018 in the police commissionarate limits, an uptick of five per cent from 2017, as per a report. Out of the total 12,439 crimes registered under various heads in 2018, a total of 7,833 cases were successfully solved by the police, Thane police commissionarte stated in its annual report. In 2017, the crime detection percentage for the Thane commissionarate region stood at 58 per cent, it stated. There are total 35 police stations that fall under five zones in the Thane police commissionarate limits. Thane Police Commissionerate comprises four Municipal Corporations (Thane, Bhiwandi, Ulhasnagar, and Kalyan-Dombivali) and two Muncipal Councils (Ambarnath and Badlapur) besides a number of small villages. Out of 108 murder cases, 102 cases have been cracked by the police. Similarly, out of 307 cases of rape registered during the given period (2018), 288 cases have been solved, it stated. The number of successful investigations into the attempt to murder cases stood at 136 out of total 141 cases. Other crimes included molestation, dacoity, burglary, kidnapping, assault on public servants, abetment to suicide, death due to negligent and rash driving. However, a close scrutiny of the report reveals that the police have faltered in cracking burglary cases during the period. The detection percentage recorded for burglaries stood at poor 41 per cent. Out of the total 1,222 such cases, only 497 cases have been detected, as per the report. Thane, a city with population of over 18 lakh, is part of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). Mumbai, the financial capital of India, and Navi Mumbai, another most developed city, lie on the border of Thane. The Central and Western Railway tracks go through Thane. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two school officials were Saturday booked in connection with the death of a student in a water park in Maharashtra's Thane district on Friday, police said. Students of Navjivan School in Nalasopara in neighbouring Palghar district had gone to the water park Friday as part of a school excursion during which a Class X student, identified as Deepak Gupta, reportedly drowned, a Kasarwadavali police official said Sunday. He said the duo had been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder following a complaint filed by the deceased's parents. He added that no arrests had been so far and probe was underway to get more details of the incident. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Anti-Narcotics Cell of Mumbai Police's Crime Branch Saturday arrested two foreign nationals with 1.005 kilograms of high-quality cocaine worth Rs 6.3 crore in the illicit market, police said. An official said the men, who were nabbed by the ANC's Bandra Unit from Amboli in Andheri West, are members of an international drug syndicate. Deputy Commissioner of Police (ANC) Shivdeep Lande identified the two as Nigerian nationals Daniel Ifeanyichukwu Ezieke (38) and John James Fransis (35). Lande said the two are part of an international drug cartel and added that a hunt for their local contacts was underway. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a joint operation by Delhi and J&K police, two militants of Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, including a juvenile, were nabbed from Shopian, police said here Sunday. The arrested militant was identified as Kifayatullah Bukhari, a resident of Now Pora Bara, Shopian in Jammu and Kashmir and a juvenile was apprehended. They were nabbed at special blockade setup in Shopian on Friday, they added. The special cell officials were identifying the various modules inspired by the ISIS group and terrorists of HM who are procuring weapons from north India, police said. It was revealed that militant organisations were planning to extend their activities in Delhi and nearby areas, they said. In September, police nabbed two militant of ISIS-JK from Red Fort, New Delhi, along with arms and ammunition, and in November, three militants were arrested from Srinagar with hand grenades and weapons. DCP (special cell) P S Kushwah said, "This year, a specific input was received regarding movement of HM militants in NCR for procuring sophisticated small weapons. It has been learnt that small weapons are difficult to arrange in J&K and the HM militants are procuring the same from NCR." Information was received recently that a militant has arranged a sophisticated weapons and will join HM as an active militant, the DCP said. Later, the information was shared with police in Shopian district. A trap was laid and apprehended two active HM militants, the officer added. The militants were in contact with Naved Mustaq (30), an ex-constable of J&K police, also known as Naveed Babu, the DCP said. He had joined J&K police in 2012 and was serving as a police constable before joining militants. He decamped with four weapons in 2017. He is district commander of HM, he added. An underground hideout suspected to be of Naveed which can accommodate 4-5 militants at a time was also identified, DCP said. One pistol along with 14 live cartridges were recovered from them, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A total of 169 complaints of at workplace have been received in private industries since 2017, the Women and Child Development Ministry has said. The complaints were received through 'SHe-box', an online system for filing complaints by women, working in both government and private sectors, related to at the workplace. A senior ministry official said 169 complaints have been received through 'SHe-box' since 2017. The highest number of complaints have been received from Maharashtra (33), followed by Delhi 23. ALSO READ: #MeToo movement raged on social media, but only 21 move NCW since October Central ministries have received as many as 141 complaints since last year, out of which 45 have been disposed of, the WCD Ministry said. The highest number of complaints were received by the Finance Ministry (21), followed by the Ministry of Communications and the Ministry of Defence at 16, the ministry said. Against the backdrop of the "MeToo" campaign, the WCD Ministry had last month linked the online portal to report complaints of sexual harassment at workplace, to all the central ministries, departments and 653 districts across 33 states and Union territories. For prompt disposal of complaints on "SHe-Box", each case goes directly to the central or state authority concerned having jurisdiction to take action in the matter. Cases on 'SHe-box' can be monitored by the complainant and the WCD Ministry, reducing the time taken in case disposal. Terming the Modi government's decision to provide 10-per cent reservation for economically backward section in general category a move towards social justice, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said thousands of seats will be there in higher education institutions under the new category from the next academic session. President Ram Nath Kovind has given his assent to the constitutional provision to provide 10-per cent reservation in government jobs and education to economically backward section in the general category. The bill was passed by Parliament on January 9. This is a revolutionary decision to deliver economic justice. This is a decision of social justice and my preparation has started. In June, when institutions opens (for next session), thousands of seats will be there under ten per cent reservation in institutions like IIT, IIIT, NIT, central universities and others, Javadekar said at a function here on Sunday evening. He said that no one's reservation was abolished and additional 10 per cent reservation was given to economically backward sections of general category. Javadekar said Congress and other left parties had also promised such steps in their election manifestos but they did not take decision for providing reservation to economically backward people. Attacking Congress, the minister said corruption was rampant in Congress led former UPA government and claimed that no scam took place in the BJP government's rule. He also highlighted the achievements of the NDA government. The party's national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi also targeted the Congress president Rahul Gandhi in the intellectuals' meeting here, that was also attended by the party's state president Madan Saini and others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A day after arch-rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced their pre-poll alliance in the run up to the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday asserted the tie-up was not a challenge for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state. The SP-BSP alliance will have no impact in UP politicsactually, it is good that they have joined hands, since it would be easier to trounce them in elections, Adityanath said at a programme organised by a media organisation here. Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. 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If you are already a subscriber, just click log in to continue reading. The former Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director Alok Vermas resignation has come a bit too late. He failed to read the writing on the wall after the Supreme Courts order reinstating him but with a caveat. It would have been more honourable for him to have stepped down immediately after assuming charge as the director thereby sparing himself the embarrassment of an ignominious exit from the CBI. The courts direction to the select committee headed by the Prime Minister for deciding his continuation in office would have also become infructuous. Instead, ... Vehicles before sale liable to tax Manufacturers of motor vehicles, who keep them in their possession in the course of business while the vehicles are suitable for use on roads, shall pay a tax under the Bihar Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, according to the Supreme Court. It stated so while dismissing a batch of appeals led by Tata Motors vs State of Jharkhand. The tax proviso applicable to Bihar and Jharkhand was challenged as unconstitutional earlier by manufacturers and dealers in the Patna High Court, but it was dismissed. Their appeals to the Supreme Court were also dismissed. ... Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the BJP government is committed to ensuring justice to the 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims and asked why the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara was allowed to go to Pakistan during partition when it was close to the border. Addressing a gathering after releasing a Rs 350 commemorative coin to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh here, Modi said his government was pledged to facilitate the smooth entry of Sikhs to Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan through the Kartarpur corridor. "The gurdwara was just a few kilometres away but it was not brought in India. Building the Kartarpur corridor is an honest attempt to recompense that loss. It is an act of repentance for the mistake that happened in August 1947," he said. The Prime Minister also said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government would ensure that justice was provided to "all sisters and mothers" who were victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots that followed the assassination of then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. "The Central government is working to provide justice to those who have been subjected to injustice since 1984," he said. Modi also said that his government had asked all Indian embassies to celebrate the 352nd 'Prakash Utsav' of Guru Gobind Singh. Calling Guru Gobind Singh a "multi-talented personality", Modi said the Sikh master was not just a warrior but a poet and literary figure whose values could be found in the foundation of new India. --IANS spk/mag/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday urged the younger generation to understand "the rich and diverse traditions" ingrained in Indian festivals and called for protecting, promoting and enriching country's "exceptional" culture and folk art forms. Festivals are occasions for social bonding and inculcate a spirit of communal harmony and national integrity, he said after inaugurating the fourth International Kite Festival and Second International Sweet Festival here. He said that the festivals symbolise renewal, rejuvenation and revival of Indian traditions and heritage, and bring in a sense of togetherness, unity, love and brotherhood in today's fast-paced world. Naidu also tried his hand at kite flying for a few moments. The fascination associated with the kite flying transcends age, class and community, he said, adding that kite-making is an art form and it requires skill, precision, devotion and inventiveness. As many as 42 professional kite flyers from abroad and 60 from India participated in the Kite Festival. The Vice President expressed happiness over this year's Kite Festival having adopted the theme of empowerment of girl child -- "Educate girl child and she will save the world". --IANS spk/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Police on Sunday said it has identified the two militants, among them a top commander, who were killed in a gunfight with the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. The militants who were killed on Saturday have been identified as top commander Zeenat-ul-Islam alias Zeenat alias Usman - resident of Shopian, and his associate Shakeel Ahmad Dar - resident of Chilli Pora village, a police statement said. "Both the slain militants were affiliated with proscribed outfit Al-Badr and were wanted by law for their complicity in a series of crimes including attack on security establishments and civilian atrocities. "Zeenat-ul-Islam had a long history of crime records since 2006, when he got affiliated with Al-Badr and was later arrested," the statement said. "However, after he was released, he affiliated with proscribed outfit Hizbul Mujahideen and recently he joined Al-Badr outfit in Shopian district. Consequently, he became the chief of the outfit. "No collateral damage took place during the encounter. Bodies of the militants were handed over to their families after completion of the formalities," it said. --IANS sq/mag/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said he is optimistic an agreement can be reached with Turkey to protect Kurdish fighters in Syria after the US pullout. He was speaking in the United Arab Emirates following a phone call with his Turkish counterpart, the BBC reported on Sunday. US forces in northern Syria have fought alongside a Kurdish militia against Islamic State (IS) militants. Turkey, however, regards the People's Protection Units (YPG) as a terrorist group and has vowed to crush it. Pompeo is touring the Middle East to try to reassure allies following President Donald Trump's abrupt announcement in December that US forces would withdraw from Syria. Talking to reporters here, Pompeo said the US recognised "the Turkish people's right and (Turkish President Recep Tayyip) Erdogan's right to defend their country from terrorists". "We also know that those fighting alongside us for all this time deserve to be protected as well," he said. "Many details (are) still to be worked out but I'm optimistic that we can achieve a good outcome," he added. Last week, President Erdogan had rejected calls by US National Security Adviser John Bolton for the Kurdish fighters to be protected. Erdogan had said that the US did not know who the various Kurdish groups were, adding: "If the US evaluates them as 'Kurdish brothers' then they are in a serious delusion." Turkey considers the YPG an extension of the banned Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey for three decades. The YPG denies any direct organisational links to the PKK. --IANS mag/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The of (RBI) has raised a red-flag on the spike in non-performing assets (NPAs) under the government's flagship scheme to support micro enterprises in the country -- the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana. According to Ministry sources, RBI has cautioned the ministry that the scheme might turn-out to be the next big source of NPAs, which have plagued the system. The central has flagged that bad loans under PMMY have risen to Rs 11,000 crore. As per the annual report of PMMY, 2017-18, total disbursements under the scheme stood at Rs 2.46 trillion in FY 18. Out of this, 40 per cent were disbursed to women entrepreneurs and 33 per cent to social categories. More than 4.81 crore micro borrowers have benefited through PMMY during the year FY2017-18. The PMMY was launched on April 8, 2015. Under the scheme, are required to micro and small entrepreneurs for up to Rs 10 lakh. Loans can be granted under three categories - up to Rs 50,000 under 'Shishu'; Rs 50,001-Rs 5 lakh under 'Kishore' and between Rs 5,00,001 and Rs 10 lakh under 'Tarun' category. In addition, RBI's caution comes at a time when the country's financial system in reeling under sevier stress due to the IL&FS crisis which continues to hurt with impairments, the most recent case being On January 9, in its latest quarterly earnings result statement without naming the IL&FS Group, said: "Advances granted to various companies and SPVs belonging to a Group in the infrastructure sector against certain identified cash flows and pertaining to specific assets are 'Standard' as at December 31, 2018 on the basis of the conduct of the accounts till date. "Since October 1, 2018, certain governance and management changes have taken place in the Group and measures to turn it around through a Resolution Plan are underway." The bank said it was monitoring the developments and implications of the 'Resolution Plan'. "In the interim, as a prudential measure, the bank has made a contingent provision of Rs 255 crore on these 'Standard' assets during the quarter ended on December 31, 2018, in addition to an amount of Rs 275 crore made during the quarter ended on September 30, 2018. Total provisions attributable to this exposure is Rs 600 crore," the statement added. Congress President Rahul Gandhi's two-day visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was a huge success, party General Secretary Oommen Chandy said on Sunday. "He had various interactions with people. The highlight was his public meeting in which over 40,000 people packed the stadium to hear him," the former Kerala Chief Minister told IANS. The visit to the UAE was planned by Chandy, who was in the UAE for several days along with his former cabinet colleague and Indian Union Muslim League Lok Sabha member P.K. Kunhalikutty to organise the trip. "Thousands of Indians settled in various GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) countries attended the rally," Chandy said. He said the visit to a labour camp where at least 5,000 Indians reside was an eye-opener to the Congress President. Gandhi also interacted with students at the IMT University and met Indian business honchos. --IANS sg/pgh/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Calling the opposition alliance "opportunist", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday accused the parties coming together ahead of the Lok Sabha polls of practicing negative for their own existence and said the BJP was not in for "divide and rule" or building vote banks. The Prime Minister's attack come during his interaction with booth level BJP workers from Mayiladuthurai, Perambalur, Sivaganga, Theni and Virudhunagar in Tamil Nadu through video conference. "Unlike other parties, we are not in for divide and rule or building vote banks. We are here to serve the country in every possible way. The upcoming polls are very important for BJP and the country," he said. "On one hand, we have our development agenda and the vision of 'sabka saath, sabka vikas' while on the other hand there are opportunist alliances and dynastic parties. They want to build their own empires while we want to empower the people," he added. Modi said that success of his government had upset the opposition leaders and that was the reason they were busy in negative politics. "They are abusing Modi and the BJP but they should not underestimate the people. Our friends in opposition are anyway a confused lot. They leave no opportunity to say that Modi is bad, government is not working, people dislike the BJP, yet the first thing they do is form opportunist alliances with parties they disliked till recently and still do perhaps," he said in a apparent jibe at the coming together of SP and BSP in Uttar Pradesh. He asked if Modi was so bad and that his government was not working, why were they making alliances. "Should you not be confidant of yourself? The truth is that they know this government is a working government. They know the poor, youth, women and farmers have a strong bonding with BJP. Just for their own existence, they are making short term alliance," he said. Expressing confidence that his party would do well in the Lok Sabha elections, he urged the workers to keep reaching out to different sections of society. "We are not a coterie-based party but a cadre-based party. Make first time voters your priority." Taking a jibe at Congress, he said it was only in the BJP that a person born to a socially backward and economically poor family can think of reaching the top and needed no loyalty to "one family". "In the BJP, one only needs hard work. We do not need big wallets or loyalty to one family," he said, adding that this made the BJP family different from the rest. To a question on potential of India's MSME sector, he said: "When it comes to India's growth story and the role of small industries, small is big. Small industries may seem small but their impact on employment and on bringing people out of poverty, is big." He said that it was a wrong perception that Ease of Doing Business helped only big companies. It also helped the MSME sector and small businesses. --IANS bns/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Nobel laureate James Watson, co-discoverer of the DNA helix and father of the Human Genome Project, has been stripped of honours by his laboratory following "reprehensible" remarks on race and ethnicity. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), the New York facility where Watson worked for nearly four decades and which has a school named after him, said it was acting in response to his remarks made in a television documentary aired this month, Xinhua reported on Sunday. The 90-year-old geneticist resigned under fire from his laboratory in 2007 after telling a British newspaper that people of African descent tend to have lower intelligence. However, in the new PBS documentary titled "American Masters: Decoding Watson", when asked about his views on race in the decade since his departure from the lab, Watson said he stood by his former remarks, citing the difference in IQ tests results to suggest black inferiority. While the DNA pioneer also expressed his hope for everyone to be equal, he added: "People who have to deal with black employees found this is not true." "Watson's statements are reprehensible, unsupported by science and in no way represent the views of CSHL, its trustees, faculty, staff or students. The Laboratory condemns the misuse of science to justify prejudice," the laboratory said in a Friday statement before revoking three titles -- chancellor emeritus, Oliver R. Grace Professor Emeritus and honorary trustee soon afterwards. --IANS pgh/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) WashingtonPresident Donald Trump blasted the FBI on Saturday, insisting it acted for no reason & with no proof when it opened an investigation into whether he was acting on Russias behalf after he fired the agencys director, James Comey, in May 2017. The New York Times reported that the FBI launched the previously undisclosed counterintelligence investigation to determine whether Trump posed a national security threat, at the same time that it opened a criminal probe into possible obstruction of justice by the president. The FBI investigation was subsequently folded into the broader probe by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into Russias meddling in the 2016 election and possible collaboration by the Trump campaign. No evidence has publicly emerged that Trump was secretly in contact with or took direction from Russian officials, the Times said. Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin James Comey, a total sleaze! Trump tweeted. According to Trump, the FBI was in complete turmoil... because of Comeys poor leadership and the way he handled the investigation into Hillary Clintons use of a private server to send some government emails. My firing of James Comey was a great day for America, Trump said, describing the former FBI director as a Crooked Cop who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller. Asked in a late Saturday interview with Fox News whether he had ever worked for Russia, Trump replied: I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked... I think it the most insulting article Ive ever had written and if you read the article, youd see that they found absolutely nothing. Such standard reactions from Trump do nothing to address the incredibly serious nature of these allegations, said Democratic Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI, Nadler said in a statement which said his committee will take steps to better understand both the presidents actions and the FBIs response to that behavior, and to make certain that these career investigators are protected from President Trumps increasingly unhinged attacks.The Times said that the FBI had been suspicious of Trumps ties to Russia during the 2016 campaign. But it held off on opening an investigation until the president sacked Comey, who refused to pledge allegiance to Trump and roll back the nascent Russia investigation. Trump has repeatedly criticized the Mueller probe as a witch hunt and views it as an attempt to besmirch the legitimacy of his presidency. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who was CIA director at the time the investigation was launched, declined to comment on The New York Times report, but insisted in an interview with CBS that the notion that President Trump is a threat to American national security is absolutely ludicrous. Mueller has indicted 33 people, including members of Russias GRU military intelligence, and chalked up convictions against some of the presidents close associates. Trumps ex-national security advisor, Michael Flynn, pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his Moscow ties. His former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, has been sentenced to three years in prison for multiple crimes, including felony violations of campaign finance laws that prosecutors allege were carried out under Trumps direction. Trumps former presidential campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, has been convicted in one case brought by Mueller and pleaded guilty in another, over financial crimes related to his work in Ukraine before the 2016 campaign, and for witness tampering. Cell phone records show that Cohen was near Prague during the summer of 2016, supporting claims that he met there with Russian officials during the presidential election campaign, McClatchy news service has reported. Cohen, who will testify in Congress on February 7, insists that he has never been to Prague, but added in a tweet: #Mueller knows everything! The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Sunday questioned J. Srinivas Rao, an accused in the knife attack on YSR Congress Party chief Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy. A day after getting the custody of the accused, the NIA officials brought him from Vijayawada to Visakhapatnam and questioned him at the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) training centre in the port city. According to police sources, the 29-year-old accused was questioned for three hours in the presence of his lawyer. He is likely to be taken to Visakhapatnam Airport where the investigators will re-create the crime scene. The NIA may later shift Srinivas Rao to Hyderabad or some other location for further questioning. Jagan, as the YSRCP leader is popularly known, was injured when Srinivas, a worker at the airport canteen, attacked him with a knife used in cockfight. Jagan was attacked as he was waiting to board a flight to Hyderabad. The leader of opposition, who sustained a bleeding cut on his left upper arm, continued his journey and got admitted in a hospital in Hyderabad. After the attack, leaders of the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) termed it as a ploy of YSRCP to gain public sympathy. Jagan had refused to record his statement before the Andhra Pradesh Police saying he had no trust in agencies controlled by the state government. YSRCP leaders had approached the Hyderabad High Court seeking a probe into the attack by a central agency. On the directions of the Union Home Ministry, the NIA booked a case on January 1 and took up the investigations. The NIA Special Court in Vijayawada on Friday sent Srinivas Rao to NIA custody for a week. In another development, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Saturday came down heavily on the Centre for handing over the case to the NIA. He said the State would challenge the decision in a court. Naidu vowed to protect the powers of the state. He alleged that this was the best example that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Jagan had joined hands. --IANS ms/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Sunday charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi with destroying key institutions to cover up the "Rafale scam" following reports of Supreme Court judge A.K. Sikri, who sided with the government to remove CBI Director Alok Verma, being nominated to the Commonwealth Tribunal. According to sources, Justice Sikri was nominated by the Modi government to the prestigious post of President/ Member of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). CSAT is the final adjudicator of disputes arising out of contracts entered into by or on behalf of the Commonwealth Secretariat. After reports of his nomination emerged, Justice Sikri declined his "consent" for the post. Reacting to the development, Gandhi tweeted: "When the scales of justice are tampered with, anarchy reigns." "This Prime Minister will stop at nothing, stoop to anything and destroy everything, to cover up the Rafale Scam. He's driven by fear. It's this fear that is making him corrupt and destroy key institutions," said Gandhi tagging a media report about the post-retirement offer to the Supreme Court judge. Sikri was part of the Selection Committee including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge that on Thursday decided 2:1 to remove CBI chief Verma from the post. Kharge gave a dissenting note and opposed Verma's ouster. --IANS and/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actresses Lady Gaga and Angelina Jolie are in a battle to land a chance to play Cleopatra in a mega-budget film reboot. Oscar-winning Angelina, 43, has been in on-off talks for months with studio bosses at Sony over playing the part, which was essayed by Elizabeth Taylor in a 1963 film version. But Gaga, 32, is now also in the running following the success of "A Star Is Born", her big screen debut as a leading lady. A senior production source at Sony told The Daily Star: "Cleopatra was known as the Queen of the Nile, and Elizabeth Taylor firmly established herself as Hollywood's queen in the 1963 film version. "There's every reason to think that whoever gets to play her this time round is going to enjoy an equally lofty perch in the motion picture industry." The movie won four Academy Awards and sparked controversy over Taylor's on-set affair with co-star Richard Burton. They later wed and divorced twice. It was billed at the time as an "epic historical drama", but Sony's new Cleopatra is being touted by producers as a "dirty, bloody political thriller told from a feminist perspective". The source said it could be so close between Jolie and Gaga that "both of them will have to audition - a pretty rare ask of an A-list star", according to dailystar.co.uk. --IANS rb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After a controversy erupted, Supreme Court judge A.K. Sikri, who last week sided with the government in the three-member committee to remove CBI Director Alok Verma, on Sunday withdrew his "consent" to be nominated to the post of President/Member of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). Sources close to the jugde said that Sikri communicated to the government on Sunday expressing his withdrawal of consent after news broke out over his nomination to the post. They said that the judge was asked by the government in December about his inclination to hold the post. He had then agreed. As there was "no word of communication" from the government till the news broke out about his nomination, Sikri told the government on Sunday evening that he was withdrawing his earlier consent, the sources said. Sikri was part of the Selection Committee including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge that on Thursday decided 2:1 to remove CBI chief Verma from the post. Kharge gave a dissent note and opposed Verma's ouster. The CSAT was established to meet the requirements of the Agreed Memorandum on the Commonwealth Secretariat (1964) which was revised by governments in 2005. In fulfilment of its obligations under the Agreed Memorandum, the UK government passed the Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966 which, among other things, gives the Commonwealth Secretariat legal personality and accords it certain immunities and privileges. The CSAT has a full complement of eight members comprising the President and seven others. The members are selected by Commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country. The members are appointed on a four-year term which may be renewed only once. Born on March 7, 1954, Sikri was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge on April 12, 2013. He earlier served as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. --IANS pk-bns/vsc/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Israeli military on Sunday said it has found another cross-border tunnel allegedly dug by the Hezbollah militant group. The tunnel, which is the "longest and most detailed yet", reaches a few tens of metres into Israel and stems 800 meters into Lebanon, Xinhua news agency quoted the Army as saying. With this, "Operation Northern Shield" -- which aims to expose and neutralize attack tunnels which infiltrate into Israeli territory -- has been completed, a senior army official said. The intent of the tunnels, according to Israeli officials, was to launch a massive attack against in the north of the country in order to begin an offensive. "According to our intelligence, there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel now," he told reporters. The official did not confirm the total number of tunnels found so far, but a count of previous announcements makes this one the sixth. "There are however still facilities that Hezbollah has dug within Lebanese territory that have yet to cross into Israel and we are monitoring them." The Lebanese government is responsible for everything happening in its territory, according to the Israeli Army statement. Hezbollah has not yet commented on the issue. Hezbollah and Israel fought a war in 2006. Since then, there has been tension along the border with isolated violent incidents. Both Israel and the UN say the tunnels violate the fragile cease-fire reached at the end of the 2006 war. --IANS mag/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Israel's Prime Minister on Sunday confirmed his troops had bombed a warehouse at the Damascus International Airport recently. The Syrian state-run TV had revealed earlier that the airport located in east Syria was attacked by Israeli warplanes and that a warehouse was damaged, reports Efe news. "Israel Defense Forces have attacked hundreds of Iranian and Hezbollah targets. Just in the past 36 hours, the Air Force attacked Iranian depots full of Iranian weapons in the Damascus International Airport," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. The Syrian source reported on Friday that the Syrian forces managed to shoot down at least eight missiles launched by Israeli planes that entered the Syrian airspace from the Israeli-Syrian border. Israel considers Iran as the main threat to its existence and has launched hundreds of air attacks in Syria over the last few years, allegedly targeting positions belonging to Iran or its allies. --IANS mr/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India has a very rich and advanced music industry, says music composer Shashwat Sachdev, who returned to the country's music industry a few years ago after working briefly in Hollywood. Though Sachdev had learned Indian classical music for 20 years, he moved to Los Angeles in 2011 and started working with international artistes like Tony Maserati, Marc Shaiman and Katharine McPhee. In an e-mail interview to IANS, the composer spoke about his love for Indian music and what made him shift from Hollywood to Bollywood. He said: "I made the decision to come back and work in India for a reason. In fact, I think that India has a very rich and advanced music industry. There are things in Indian music and the music industry that I really like and love. The fact that the music and the films in India are intertwined is very interesting to me. "With our writers writing such interesting scripts and with such accomplished and creative top-tier technical support, I think Indian music has a very bright future." Sachdev debuted in the Bollywood music industry in 2017 as a composer in Anushka Sharma-starrer film "Phillauri". The audience appreciated his soulful, heart touching songs in the movie. After "Phillauri", he worked in "Veere Di Wedding" and now he has composed tunes for "Uri: The Surgical Strike". While sharing his experience composing songs for "Uri", Sachdev said it was challenging to "think out of the box" and "to break the rules, yet create something that people can easily accept." "The challenging part for an artiste is to do something out of the box, something new, yet get popular appeal with the work. It's very easy to experiment and to think outside the box, but the challenge is to break the rules yet create something that people can easily accept. The sonic scape of the film is very different," he added. He composed songs like "Beh chala" and "Jigra" in Vicky Kaushal and Yami Gautam-starrer film "Uri: The Surgical Strike", based on the 2016 real-life incident when the Indian Army conducted surgical strikes as retaliation for the Uri attack. Asked if he was given complete freedom to explore his musical creativity in the film by director Aditya Dhar, he said they both have a "relationship of mutual respect and appreciation". "After I read the script, I made a few themes and a few melodies on the piano and met my director. I played them to Aditya and Aditya loved them. We have a relationship of mutual respect and appreciation and I really love the script. It has its own tone, pace and sound built into it. "So, the possibility to go wrong was very limited I think. We went to Germany and got ourselves a huge synthesizer, handpicked for the tone and sound of of our film. But the film also needed an emotional touch. So we recorded a live symphonic orchestra with 60 musicians at the Synchron Stage in Vienna." --IANS sim/rb/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Himachal Pradesh High Court has refused to stay the transfer of forest land to an Asian Development Bank-funded hydropower project in the state's Kinnaur district being executed by the state-run Himachal Pradesh Power Corp Ltd. However, local residents, activists and environmental groups, who are opposing the project, said the court order for the 130 MW Integrated Kashang Stage II and III project is "disappointing". It was passed "without looking into the merits of the case, which include violations of constitutional laws like Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act of 1996 and Forest Rights Act of 2006", they said in a statement to the media on Saturday. These acts are meant to safeguard the rights of tribal communities. Dismissing the petition, a division bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant on January 7 said: "Prima facie it appears that this writ petition has been sponsored by private hydro project proponents as apparently the project is likely to affect the productivity and/or monopoly in market of the nearby private project(s)." "Our suspicion is strengthened by the fact that earlier the setting up of the project by Himachal Pradesh Power Corp Ltd was opposed tooth and nail by one Paryawaran Sangrakshan Sangarsh Samiti Lippa whose Vice-President was Tashi Cherring." The bench said "the same Sangarsh Samiti had earlier approached the National Green Tribunal also but having failed to stall the project, now the grievance is sought to be projected through the Gram Sabha". Listing the case for next hearing on April 2, the bench, also comprising Justice Ajay Mohan Goel, asked Cherring to file an affidavit giving details of the members of the Sangarsh Samiti, details of its bank accounts, the donations, if any, received by it and source of expenditure incurred by it in litigations. The Gram Sabha of Lippa village, known for endangered Chilgoza trees, has been struggling against the forest diversion for the hydro power project for over a decade. The villagers say the construction and tunneling activity for the project will lead to severe destabilisation of the land in the region and affect the natural water sources. Even the diversion of the Kerang stream for the project will impact the local hydrology. The state cabinet on October 12, 2018, granted the lease for the forest diversion of 13.47 hectares to Himachal Pradesh Power Corp Ltd. "This was done without the company having taken a no-objection certificate from the gram sabha of Lippa as mandated by the National Green Tribunal order of May 4, 2016, and the provisions of the Forest Rights Act," the environmental groups said. "The (high) court has made assumptions about the motive behind the case and did not look into the merits of the case and serious violations of laws like Panchayat (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act and Forest Rights Act and Himachal Pradesh Lease Rules of 2013 are disappointing," they said. They said even the state government has not adequately apprised the court of the process and implementation of an act like Forest Rights Act that empowers forest dependent people. The groups comprise environmentalists and intellectuals, the Himachal Van Adhikar Manch and the Save Lahaul Spiti Society and activists like Akshay Jasrotia of Kisan Sabha, Gulab Singh and Manshi Asher. --IANS vg/pgh/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Supreme Court judge A.K. Sikri, who voted with the government in the three-member committee to remove CBI Director Alok Verma, is understood to have been nominated to the post of President/Member of the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). Sources in the Ministry of External Affairs said the decision regarding Sikri's nomination was made last month in view of his retirement on March 6, 2019, from the Supreme Court. The CSAT was established to meet the requirements of the Agreed Memorandum on the Commonwealth Secretariat (1964) which was revised by governments in 2005. In fulfilment of its obligations under the Agreed Memorandum, the UK government passed the Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966 which, among other things, gives the Commonwealth Secretariat legal personality and accords it certain immunities and privileges. The CSAT has a full complement of eight members comprising the President and seven others. The members are selected by Commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country. The members are appointed on a four-year term which may be renewed only once. Born on March 7, 1954, Sikri was sworn in as a Supreme Court judge on April 12, 2013. He earlier served as the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Sikri was part of the Selection Committee including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge that on Thursday decided 2:1 to remove CBI chief Verma from the post. Kharge gave a dissent note and opposed Verma's ouster. --IANS rak-bns/vsc/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thousands of demonstrators turned out across France for new "yellow vest" protests, with dozens of arrests and clashes in Paris and other cities. Police in the capital used water cannon and tear gas as scuffles broke out at the Arc de Triomphe on the ninth consecutive weekend of protests, the BBC reported on Sunday. Some 84,000 demonstrators were recorded nationwide, an increase compared with last week, official figures show. The nationwide protests were initially triggered by the rising price of fuel. They have since widened to include anger at the cost of living, with a wide-ranging list of other demands. Thousands of officers were deployed across Paris, which has previously seen street clashes and vandalism, to tackle the protesters, and parts of the city centre were blocked off by riot police. Some 8,000 demonstrators were on the streets - more than in the past two weekends, when authorities counted just 3,500 people on January 5 and 800 on December 29, according to Interior Ministry figures. There were also thousands of protesters in the cities of Bordeaux and Toulouse in southern France as well as Strasbourg in the east and the central city of Bourges, the site of another major rally, where more than 6,000 people took to the streets. Nationwide, 244 people were arrested, of which 201 remained in custody, police said. Some 80,000 police officers were deployed nationwide to face the protesters. French President Emmanuel Macron had said that a national debate is due to kick off on January 15 in response to weeks of protests by the "gilets jaunes" (yellow vests). It will be held publicly in town halls across France and on the internet, and will focus on four themes: taxes, green energy, institutional reform and citizenship. --IANS mag/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) SydneyAn extensive aerial search for a German tourist missing in the vast Australian outback for almost two weeks has been called off, police said. Monika Billen, 62, was reported missing last week after leaving her resort in Alice Springs, a remote town near the geographical centre of Australia. She is believed to have hitched and walked her way to the Emily Gap, a site popular with tourists in a remote nature park famed for its rocky ravines and gorges. Police had launched land and aerial searches for Billen, including the use of drones. They believe a motorist may have seen her looking dehydrated and a disorientated as early as January 2.Despite our efforts, no further evidence has been found to indicate Monika is still out there, Northern Territory Police Superintendent Pauline Vicary said in a statement on Saturday. Neither is there any evidence to indicate foul play. The last physical sighting we have for her is the Emily Gap and surrounding area, which we have thoroughly searched. Temperatures have soared above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) during the southern hemisphere summer in the central desert region. Police said Billen had only a yellow cashmere scarf to protect against the scorching sun. Vicary urged any witnesses to come forward and report any sightings or encounters with Billen. Thousands of devotees thronged gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Patna and other places across the country on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of 352nd birth anniversary of tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. The festivities this year coincided with the festivals of 'Lohri' and 'Makar Sankranti'. Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the 'Khalsa Panth', the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. The holiest of Sikh shrines 'Harmandir Sahib', popularly known as Golden Temple, in Amritsar and other gurdwaras elsewhere saw religious fervour to mark the guru's birth anniversary. People braved the early morning chill to offer prayers at gurdwaras. The rush of devotees continued in most gurdwraas later in the day also. Long queues of devotees could be seen waiting for up to two hours to offer prayers inside the main shrine. The entire Golden Temple complex was decorated with special lighting. Heavy rush of devotees could be seen at the Takht Keshgarh Sahib gurdwara in Anandpur Sahib town, around 85 km from here, since early Sunday morning. It was at this place that Guru Gobind Singh founded the 'Khalsa Panth'. Reports of hundreds of devotees offering prayers at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Patna city in Bihar, the birth place of Guru Gobind Singh, were also received. Hundreds of people offered prayers at gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, where the guru stayed for a few days during his lifetime. Gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh were decorated to mark the guru's birth anniversary. Religious processions were taken out at all places in the region on Friday and Saturday to mark the birth anniversary. Tight security arrangements were made around all leading Sikh shrines in Punjab in view of recent terror-related incidents in the state. At the Golden Temple complex, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) task force members and volunteers kept a strict vigil inside the shrine complex. At other gurdwaras in cities, towns and villages, hundreds of people could be seen coming to offer prayers. 'Langars' (community kitchen), were arranged at most gurdwaras. Punjab Governor V.P. Singh Badnore and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh greeted people on the occasion and urged them to follow the Guru's teachings and to maintain peace and harmony. --IANS js/mag/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The will contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming general elections, party leader announced on Sunday. Azad spoke a day after the and the announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, virtually blanking out the "We will fight all 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh in the Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like the emerged the number one party in Uttar Pradesh in 2009 Lok Sabha elections, it will happen again in 2019," Azad told reporters here. The Congress leader spoke after a meeting at the party's state headquarters here. "We had earlier also said that we are ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we can't force anyone. They have (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so we will continue this fight to defeat the BJP on our own," he added. While announcing the alliance, the and BSP, however, said that they would not put candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, the Lok Sabha constituencies of Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi. Snubbed by the SP and BSP who have joined hands in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday said it will contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state but insisted that its doors were open for secular parties willing to defeat the BJP. A day after arch rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced an alliance, Congress General Secretary Ghulam Nabi Azad said his party not being a part of the alliance was a blessing in disguise as it will get to contest all the seats in the state. "Our party is rather happy... Had there been an alliance we would have to be contend with 25-30 seats. But now we will be contesting in all the seats. We are all prepared and will contest in all the 80 seats," Azad told the media here. "We are ready to contest all the 80 seats but if there are any secular party or parties whom we find competent to join us in our fight against the BJP, we are ready to accommodate them. We welcome such party or parties and we will agree for seat sharing," he said. Talking about the SP-BSP dumping the Congress, Azad said: "The Congress is the only party that can uproot the Modi government and defeat the BJP. We wanted all secular parties to join our fight against the BJP. "But if someone does not want to walk with us, it is their choice, we cannot do anything," he said. On the SP-BSP combine leaving out Amethi and Rae Bareli -- constituencies held by Congress President Rahul Gandhi and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi respectively -- Azad said that both the parties earlier too did not contest on the two seats. "This is not a fight for a state, the fight is for Parliament," said Azad, while remaining evasive about a post-poll alliance. The Congress leader spoke after a meeting at the party's state headquarters here. "We had earlier also said that we are ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we can't force anyone. They have (SP-BSP) closed this chapter, so we will continue this fight to defeat the BJP on our own," he said. "For the last 3-4 years we have been talking about secular parties joining hands against the BJP. Some of them like N. Chandrababu Naidu's TDP (Telugu Desam Party) has come on its own. So whether we are talking with some parties for an alliance or not, that is not something to be informed in a press conference," said Azad, on being asked if the Congress was in talks with other parties for stictching a grand alliance in the Lok Sabha polls. The Congress also refused to comment on the Prime Ministerial face, saying the battle was first about defeating the BJP. On Saturday, the BSP and SP, burying a quarter century of animosity, announced they will fight the Lok Sabha polls jointly in Uttar Pradesh -- 38 seats each. Apart from Amethi and Rae Bareli, they are expected to accommodate the RLD in two seats in western Uttar Pradesh. In 2014, the BJP swept 71 of the 80 seats while an ally won two more seats. The Congress won only from Amethi and Rae Bareli while the BSP drew a blank. The Samajwadi Party got five seats. --IANS and/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A buffalo on Sunday ran amok here on Sunday for several hours attacking pedestrians, leaving eight persons injured, one of them in a serious condition, officials said. The buffalo, brought from Dimapur in Nagaland apparently for illegal slaughter, escaped from the butcher, causing a commotion. One person who was gored in the stomach is battling for his life in a hospital in Imphal, police said. It took several hours to bring the buffalo under control. Police have registered a case against S. Mufarsauddin of Imphal East who had brought the buffalo. --IANS il/pgh/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bengali poet Srijato Bandyopadhyay's presence at a literary event in Assam's Silchar drew strong protests from a group of local people over one of his controversial poems, police said on Sunday. "The people had gathered at the literary meet on Saturday and demanded an explanation for certain lines of Srijato's poem. The poet's safety was taken care of," an officer of Silchar police station said. Sharing the experience of the event, Bandyopadhyay on Sunday said: "Many outsiders had gathered on the stage and they created a ruckus with the organisers. They resorted to sloganeering outside the hotel and ransacked the property and we could not step out." He said that it was not possible to identify the group of people as they had carried no flags or banners. According to him, the only thing they wanted to know why the poet was invited and demanded an explanation for his two-year-old controversial poem. In 2017, a police complaint was lodged against Bandyopadhyay for posting a 12-line poem titled "Abhishaap" (curse) in Facebook. Complainant Arnab Sarkar -- said to be a member of a Hindu right-wing group -- had filed a case at the Cyber Crime Police Station of northern West Bengal's Siliguri Police Commissionerate. "I had faced protests earlier but never expected it to flare up again. The issue is being deliberately brought up and the present days seem to be very dark for the people who express themselves freely," the Bengali poet said. Condemning the act Sahitya Akademi awardee Sirshendu Mukhopadhyay said: "We all are supporters of free thinking. Self-restraint is like suicide. It is not possible and such incidents make us feel like we are living in anarchy." Poet Subodh Sarkar said that the entire fraternity of writers will protest against it. "The way Hindutva activists have been harassing writers, teachers and journalists since last four and half years, it is akin to sheer fascism. Writers and intellectuals from Kolkata will strongly protest against Srijato's ordeal," Sarkar said. --IANS bnd/bdc/vc (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 Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Bangladeshi government Sunday signed an agreement for $200 million in loans to improve the rural road network in Bangladesh. Monowar Ahmed, secretary of Bangladeshi Economic Relations Division (ERD), and Manmohan Parkash, country director of the ADB, signed the agreement at a ceremony in Dhaka, reports Xinhua news agency. "The assistance supports the government's priority of delivering urban services in rural areas by increasing connectivity, providing greater access to social services and markets, and promoting the agriculture sector, benefiting over 51.5 million people," said Parkash. The assistance will support the government's Rural Connectivity Improvement Project (RCIP) to upgrade about 1,700 km of rural roads on all-weather standards in 34 districts located in five divisions. The total cost of the project, which is due for completion in November 2023, is $285.31 million. --IANS mr/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A winter storm has swept through the US Midwest where at least five persons were killed in road crashes, media reported. Missouri was worst hit, with the National Weather Service reporting more than a foot of snow. The storm covered roads and made driving dangerous, Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday. Most of the flights at Lambert International Airport in St. Louis were either cancelled or delayed. By Saturday afternoon, Missouri troopers had responded to more than 3,000 calls for help, involving more than 700 crashes and 1,300 stranded vehicles. In central Missouri, about 12,000 households and businesses suffered power failure at one point, media reported. The snowstorm also hit Chicago, the third largest US city, which has put a winter weather advisory. Weather map of the National Weather Service shows the snowstorm moved into Kansas and Nebraska from the Rockies on Friday, then went eastward into Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana. It is expected that the storm will bring three to six inches of snow to Washington D.C. and some areas in northern and central parts of Maryland on Sunday before reaching into the mid-Atlantic region. --IANS mag/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday said that it will come out with details of how the Modi government destroyed institutions and democracy in the last five years so that voters know the "reality" before they decide the country's future in 2019. Blaming the BJP-led Central government for leaving no stone unturned in targeting its political opponents with the "illegal and blatant misuse of central agencies", the AAP said in a statement that the Modi government has destroyed all institutions in the country. "The AAP is very clear that the coming Lok Sabha elections will determine whether India will remain a democracy. With the Modi government approaching the end of its five-year undemocratic, anti-federal and dictatorial tenure, the voters of India will decide whether such a regime was in their interest," it said. The party also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was harping on lies to mislead the nation as there was no concrete achievement during his tenure. "In the coming days, the AAP will come out with details of how Modi government destroyed institutions and democracy during the last five years so that the voters know the reality before they decide the future of the country in 2019," the party said. Recalling the number of times the central agencies were used against the elected government in Delhi, the party said: "Office and home of elected Delhi Chief Minister have been raided by CBI and Delhi Police and Deputy Chief Minister and two Ministers have been raided and questioned by central agencies. "At least 20 MLAs were arrested on fake charges by politically manipulated Delhi Police and all cases which have been tried so far in courts have fallen flat. "More than 400 files of Delhi government were illegally seized in a bid to implicate the Chief Minister and council of Ministers in fake cases -- but Modi government badly failed in its sinister design." The party also said that the Modi government unleashed the CBI and Delhi Police on Kejriwal government so many times during the last four years and subjected it to countless raids and inquiries. "Now, it has come to light that the Modi government wants to purchase Rafale fighter aircraft at a very high price -- the cost of one fighter aircraft is around Rs 600 crore and they want to purchase it at Rs 1,600 crore per aircraft -- meaning 36 fighter jets at an extra Rs 36,000 crore to the government exchequer. "This is what was to be probed by (CBI Director) Alok Verma. What was wrong if this had been probed? For this precise reason, the Prime Minister put all his might in removing Verma as CBI Director," it said. The party wondered what was the problem if the Rafale probe had gone on, "if the Prime Minister had done no wrong". --IANS nks/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday said it will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Uttar Pardesh but unlike last time, party chief Arvind Kejriwal will not be its face from Varanasi. Speaking to IANS, AAP MP Sanjay Singh said the details of the seats and candidates would be finalised by February-end. "The party or Kejriwal never said that he is going to contest the Lok Sabha elections. He is Delhi's Chief Minister and he has no plans to join the electoral race in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections," Singh said. "The party will field candidates in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh from the areas where the organisation is strong. The details of seats and candidates will be announced by February-end," he added. Singh on Sunday concluded his two-day "Bhajpa Bhagao, Bhagwan Bachao Yatra" in Varanasi. The Yatra, which started from Ayodhya on Saturday, was organised to "expose" the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on various issues. He also sough to highlight that hundreds of Shivlingas were allegedly found lying under the rubble of structures demolished to pave way for the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor -- a pet project of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his parliamentary constituency. The AAP has announced that it will focus on Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and Goa in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. In 2014, Kejriwal contested face from Varanasi against BJP candidate and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Kejriwal lost the elections by over three lakh votes. --IANS nks/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Increasing militancy and counter-militancy have claimed the lives of more than 70 people in Afghanistan since Saturday, officials said on Sunday. In the latest wave of bloody clashes between security forces and Taliban insurgents in Aqcha district of the Jawzjan province, 16 people including nine militants and seven security personnel were killed, district governor Ghulam Sakhi Subhani said. A clash between government forces and Taliban militants killed 13 armed militants and three security personnel in Imam Sahib district of the northern Kunduz province, district governor Mahboubullah Sayedi has confirmed. The clash, according to Sayedi, flared up with Taliban attacks on security checkpoints in Kunjak area on Saturday night and lasted several hours, also left six militants and one security personnel injured, Xinhua reported. In another case, eight Taliban fighters were killed and 12 others injured after government forces stormed a Taliban hideout in Arghandab district of the southern Zabul province on Saturday night, an army statement said Sunday. Another statement of army released on Sunday also reported military operations, which killed 15 militants outside Tirin Kot, the capital of Uruzgan province on Saturday. Twelve militants, according to army spokesman Mohammad Hanif Rezai, were killed after military aircraft pounded a Taliban motorbike convoy in Balkh province on Saturday. However, a Taliban deadly attack on a police station in the Herat province on Saturday evening left six people including two civilians dead. The government forces have intensified operations against militant groups during the freezing winter in Afghanistan, observers said. --IANS pgh/sed (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Justice department said Sunday the $81-million cyber heist in Bangladesh Bank in 2016 was not yet a closed case despite the conviction of former Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. bank manager Maia Deguito for money laundering last week by a Makati City court. The department said the criminal charges for money laundering under the Anti-Money Laundering Act against six other RCBC officers had yet to be resolved. Prosecutor General Richard Anthony Fadullon said the complaint filed by the AMLC against former RCBC treasurer Raul Victor Tan, national sales director for retail banking Ismael Reyes, regional sales director for retail banking Brigitte Capina, direct sales director Nestor Pineda, customer service head for Jupiter business center Romualdo Agarrado, and senior customer relations officer for the Jupiter business center Angela Ruth Torres had not yet been resolved. There is no resolution yet from the preliminary investigation earlier conducted on that case, Fadullon said in a text message. But Fadullon, head of the National Prosecution Service, could not say when the resolution on the charges filed in Nov. 2016 would be released, saying he would check with the prosecutors assigned to the case. We will check on the status of the case first before we can give a timetable on when the resolution could be released, he said. The pendency of the case means a possibility of another trial on the Bangladesh Bank heist in court should the prosecutors find probable cause to indict Tan and the five other respondents. Tan, brother of former national treasurer and now Philippine Deposit Insurance Corp. president Roberto Tan, resigned in April 2016 out of decency and honor while Torres was reportedly dismissed after she and Deguito were found to have been involved in the money laundering scheme.Bangladesh Ambassador Asad Alam Siam has called on the Justice department to resolve the separate case against other RCBC officers as he said their government also plans to file a lawsuit in New York against the executives of RCBC. In its complaint, the AMLC accused Tan and the five other respondents of criminal liability over the laundering of the stolen money from Bangladesh Bank that shook the domestic financial system as well as the gaming industry. The AMLC said in consequence of his failure to order enhanced due diligence on the high-risk accounts and to continue the hold on the beneficiary accounts, Tan facilitated the commission of money laundering under Section 4(f) of the AMLA, as amended. Citing evidence gathered from RCBC, the AMLC said there were suspicious indications of violations of the AMLA, as amended, or red flags, which deserved further investigations by RCBC. Tan was in a position to order enhanced due diligence based on the red flags. Tan could have convened the anti-money laundering committee to act on these red flags, the AMLC said. Despite awareness of the suspicious circumstances concerning [four suspicious beneficiary] accounts, Tan willfully ignored them and failed to conduct a thorough investigation as required by law and regulations, and RCBCs own money laundering and terrorist financing prevention program. This is knowledge that the funds transacted represented the proceeds of an unlawful activity. Only Deguito has been indicted in court in the case. Last week, the Makati Regional Trial Court Branch 149 found Deguito guilty of money laundering and sentenced her to four to seven years in prison for each of the eight counts. Protesters and security forces clashed on Sunday during the funeral procession of a militant commander in Shopian in Jammu and Kashmir, leaving seven civilians injured and drawing condemnation from former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti and separatist leader Mirwaiz Umer. Stone-pelting youths clashed with the security forces in Sugan village, from which hailed Al-Badr commander Zeenatul Islam alias Zeenat alias Usman, who was killed in a gunfight with the security forces on Saturday in Kulgam district along with his associate. His associate was identified as Shakeel Ahmad Dar. Both were wanted for their complicity in a series of crimes including attacks on security establishments. Zeenat was affiliated with Al-Badr and was earlier arrested. After his release, he joined the Hizbul Mujahideen and recently he rejoined Al-Badr. After their deaths, their bodies were handed over to their families. The security forces on Sunday fired in the air to disperse the protesters who resorted to violence while marching to attend the funeral of the militant commander, a police officer said. Police said the injured protesters, including one who suffered a bullet wound, had been shifted to a Srinagar hospital where his condition was stated to be critical. Mehbooba Mufti said in a statement that aerial firing aimed at stopping mourners would lead to further alienation. "Reports of aerial firing ... are very unfortunate and disturbing. Such interference in the religious affairs is undesirable and may backfire, leading to further anger and alienation." Mirwaiz Umer said on his Twitter page: "Use of brutal force on the martyr's funeral is not only un-Islamic and undemocratic but contrary to human values." Authorities suspended rail services passing through south Kashmir as a precaution. Mobile Internet services were also suspended in Kulgam and Shopian districts on Saturday. --IANS sq/mr/nir (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders are leaving no stone unturned to garner public support for their party. A number of party leaders celebrated the Hindu festival of "Makar Sankranti" and "Lohri", looking for an ample opportunity to festoon their vote bank, party ranks, and files. BJP leaders Manoj Tiwari, Udit Raj and Vijay Goel reached out to the commoners in lieu of celebrating the two festivals. Speaking to ANI, Goel said that thousands of people have come to celebrate Makar Sankranti and the party leaders are reaching out to them, telling them about the policies and programmes of the NDA government. "Thousands of people have come to celebrate the festival. All is well within the party and Delhi BJP is united," said Goel. On the other hand, Udit Raj, Member of Parliament (MP) from North-West Delhi, who is said to be disenchanted with the party over some issues, also celebrated the festival with zeal and fervour. Meanwhile, Member of Lok-Sabha from north-east Delhi Manoj Tiwari said: "We need Narendra Modi as Prime Minister for 5 more years. Now every step of BJP is towards the Lok-Sabha elections. We will remind the public about our good work and policies and programmes meant for their welfare. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) 'We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court who are under systematic attack by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi led Central government, said Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday. Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Modi, he once again invoked Rafael deal and Demonetisation and said, "The watchman instead of doing his job is stealing. We have a wonderful watchman. This is just the starting, only a trailer. When people will see the truth of demonetisation and Rafael, people will know. The Prime Minister cannot run away from the truth." Addressing a press conference in Dubai, the Congress chief also endorsed the idea of having a peaceful relationship with Pakistan and said, "I am all for a peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani side." He also criticised the Centre dubbing demonetisation and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) as "ill-advised economic policies". "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments. A couple of ill-advised economic policies like Demonetisation and GST have vitiated the atmosphere. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by BJP. The priority today is that current government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of the informal sector," he said. Rahul was on a two-day visit to Dubai, where he addressed Indian diaspora yesterday and met with the Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE, HH Sheikh Mohammed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Indian Army jawan posted in a tank regiment in Jaisalmer has been arrested by the Rajasthan Police after he was allegedly found to be virtually honey trapped by Pakistan-based ISI operatives on social media and passing critical military information to them. "The jawan has been arrested in Jaisalmer by the Rajasthan Police and the Army is providing all possible assistance to the civilian authorities in this investigation," Defence PRO Colonel Sambit Ghosh told ANI over the phone. The jawan, identified as Sombir, belongs to Haryana and was posted in the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. Sources in the Army said the jawan was in touch with a suspected ISI spy using the profile name of 'Anika Chopra' on Facebook and was chatting regularly on the social media and exchanging details and information about the jawan's armoured unit and its movement. The Army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to probe if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel to get information from them, they said. In the recent past, a Group Captain of the Indian Air Force was apprehended by the counter-intelligence units of the Army, Air Force and the Intelligence Bureau for sharing information about transport aircraft operations as he was posted in the Air Headquarters here. A BrahMos employee was also caught where the Pakistani spy had used the same modus operandi to trap the official. Sources in the Army said the jawan was apprehended and interrogated by intelligence agencies for over four months after he was found to be in touch with Pakistani ISI operatives on social media and was being interrogated by the intelligence agencies and the Army for the information supplied by him to the Pakistani spy agency. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) United States President Donald Trump put forth a proposal to hold a second summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in mid-February. According to Yonhap News Agency, Vietnam has been suggested as the venue for the meeting. Talks of holding a second summit come amid stalled denuclearisation talks between the US and North Korea. Even though engagements between Washington and Pyongyang reached new heights in 2018 with the Singapore meeting between Trump and Kim in June, the last few months of the year saw a stalemate in relations. Progress after the June summit has been slow since North Korea eyes sanctions relief while the US insists that the sanctions remain intact. Kim, in his New Year's speech, had threatened that his country would have to "seek a new way" if the US "does not make good on its promises" with regard to denuclearisation and continues with sanctions. However, the US President has remained firm that sanctions will remain "in full force and effect. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray, whose party is a constituent of the ruling NDA, on Sunday attacked the Modi government over delay in the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, and said people won't trust it if the issue is made into another 'jumla'. Thackeray criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for accusing the Congress of stalling the Ram Janmbhoomi case in the Supreme Court. "Rs 15 lakh in accounts was a 'jumla' and now even this (Ram temple) is a jumla? When we went to Ayodhya, people said,"ye to Bal Saheb ka ladka aaya hai, ye to Ram Mandir banake hi jayega". If you are making this issue also a jumla, how can you expect people to trust you?" he asked. "They (BJP) say Congress comes in between when the Ram Mandir issue comes up. Just because Congress comes in the middle, people punished them by taking away the majority and giving you the power. However, we don't see any Ram Mandir built by you so far," said Thackeray. Shiv Sena is a constituent of the NDA and part of BJP-led governments at the centre and in Maharashtra. On Saturday, Prime Minister Modi, while addressing the BJP council meeting at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi, had accused the Congress of creating obstacles in the resolution of the Ayodhya issue. Furthermore, the Prime Minister said the Congress did not want a solution in the matter. In November last year, Thackeray had visited Ayodhya to "wake up the central government" and initiate the construction of the Ram temple. Furthermore, he had said no talks would be held on any other issues, including an alliance ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, unless and until the Centre fixes a date to begin construction of the temple. "When I was coming here (Ayodhya), some people asked me why you want to come here. Is there behind this because elections are near? My answer is quite simple. We recall those, whom we forget. I am not here to do Today is an important day in my life. Every Hindu wants the Ram temple to be made. Today I have come here to wake up Kumbhakarna. Kumbhakarna was not just a part of Ramayana; he is there today also. Kumbhakarna used to sleep for six months in Ramayana, but present-day Kumbhakarna has been sleeping for four years. So, I have come here to wake him up," Thackeray had said during his visit to Ayodhya. "We want the date when the temple will be made. First, tell us when you will make the temple, then we can talk on other things. Today I want the date. I don't want to take credit for the construction of Ram temple, we want a date," he had emphasised. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray in a veiled attack slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for failing to construct Ram temple in Ayodhya. Thackeray on Sunday, while addressing a gathering here cornered the Prime Minister, after the latter accused the Congress party of stalling the Ram Janmbhoomi case in the Supreme Court. On Saturday, Prime Minister Modi at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi accused the Congress of creating obstacles in the resolution of Ayodhya issue saying the opposition party does not want a solution. The Shiv Sena chief underlined that people of the country punished the Congress and voted BJP into power so that it could erect a Ram temple in the holy city. "They say Congress comes in between when RamMandir issue comes up. Just because Congress comes in the middle, people punished them by taking away the majority and giving you the power. However, we don't see any Ram Mandir built by you so far," he said. "When we went to Ayodhya, people were assured that I can built Ram Mandir as I am the only son of Bal Thackeray (ye to Bal Saheb ka ladka aaya hai, ye to Ram Mandir banake hi jayega).If you're making this issue also a jumla (a lie), how can you expect people to trust you?," he further questioned the ruling government while addressing his party workers in Mumbai. The issue of Babri Masjid demolition has been time and again raked up by scores of leaders belonging to different political quarters highlighting how its construction is significant for their parties. The Babri Masjid, built by Mughal emperor Babur in 1578 in Ayodhya was on December 6, 1992, pulled down allegedly by a group of Hindu activists, claiming that the mosque was constructed after demolishing a Ram Temple that originally stood here. Since then, several hearings have been held in the top court to resolve the issue. The Shiv Sena chief also expressed anger over several remarks being made on Lord Hanuman's caste and religion. Lord Hanuman's caste and religion shot to limelight when Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed that Lord Hanuman was a Dalit tribal. This was followed up with MLC from Uttar Pradesh, Bukkal Nawab, suggesting that the Hindu deity was a Muslim. After which, Uttar Pradesh Minister Chaudhary Lakshmi Narayan went on to suggest that he was a Jaat. "Why is Lord Hanuman's caste being discussed? If any other religions' castes are discussed, it will be made a huge issue, but it's okay to discuss Lord Hanuman's caste. How sad it is," he said. The statement drew strong criticism from the Congress and other political quarters while the BJP defended Adityanath. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The sleuths of Special Cell of Delhi Police arrested two Hizb-ul Mujahideen militants, including a minor, in a joint operation with the Jammu and Kashmir police here on Sunday. One pistol along with 14 live cartridges was recovered from their possession. The duo has been identified as Kifayatullah Bukhari, a resident of Now Pora Bara, Shopian and a juvenile in conflict with the law. According to police, the duo was in contact with the ex-constable of Jammu and Kashmir Police, who joined militant ranks in 2017 and acted as a district commander of the terrorist outfit. Acting on specific inputs that a Hizb-ul Mujahideen militant has procured a sophisticated weapon and is about to join the ranks of the terrorist outfit as an active militant, Delhi police sent two of its officials to Shopian. Subsequently, a joint operation was conducted with the help of Shopian police and a trap was laid to nab the duo. According to the Delhi Police, militants prefer procuring sophisticated small firearms for targeted killings from the Delhi-NCR region as the same are difficult to arrange in Jammu and Kashmir. A case under relevant section of law has been registered at Shopian Police Station. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) English actor Tom Hardy and her wife Charlotte Riley welcomed their second baby together. While the name or gender of the newborn is yet to be confirmed, a recent revelation that the name of the child will be after Forrest Gump is untrue, E! News reported. The 'Venom' star and his actor wife welcomed their first child in 2015. The couple, who believe in keeping their private lives away from the paparazzi did not reveal the pregnancy until the 'London Has Fallen' star walked on the red carpet with her baby bump. The 'Legend' star also has a 10-year-old son, Louis Hardy with his ex-girlfriend Rachel Speed. In an earlier interaction, Hardy said it was hard to impress his son Louis when it came to his latest superhero movie because he was a comic book aficionado. Tom Hardy married Peaky Blinders actress Charlotte Riley in July 2014. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New Delhi [India], Jan 13 (ANI): 15 Corps Commander Lt General Anil Bhatt on Sunday urged the local youth of the valley, who had joined terror groups to surrender and return to the mainstream. General Bhatt made the statement a day after the security forces gunned down top Al Badr commander, Zeenat-ul-Islam in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. He told ANI, that the Army made the appeal, as the forces will continue to target the terrorists and their leaders. "This was a major success for the security forces in the Kashmir valley. My message to the local terrorists operating in the valley is to return to the mainstream and surrender as we will continue to hit terrorists hard and continue eliminating the terrorists' leadership," Lt Gen Bhatt told ANI over phone. The Corps Commander's offer to local terrorists to either surrender or face elimination is part of the force's hard and soft power policy where it is allowing terrorists to quietly give up arms and come back to mainstream. The 15 Corps Commander, who is the in-charge of counter terrorist operations across the Kashmir valley, was speaking after the elimination of terrorist Zeenat ul Islam who had been operating in the valley for many years now and was placed in the Category A++ list of the Army. In the last over 18 months, the Army has managed to eliminate nine of the top ten terrorist commanders on its list and the only category A++ terrorist surviving in it is Riyaz Naikoo. Lt Gen Bhatt credited the coordination between the Jammu and Kashmir police, CRPF and the Army for the success in operations against the terrorists in the Kashmir valley where over 250 terrorists were eliminated while over 60 of them were arrested or had surrendered. Islam and another terrorist Shakeel Ahmed Dar were killed in an operation in Kulgam after getting a specific input gathered from both human and technical intelligence about the presence of terrorists in a particular house in Kulgam. A joint operation was launched on Saturday night by the Army, Police and CRPF in Kulgam after receiving specific information about the presence of terrorists there. As the security forces were conducting the searches, the terrorists fired upon them. The forces retaliated to the firing, ensuing an encounter in which the two terrorists were gunned down. Weapons and other war-like stores have been recovered, officials said, adding that no collateral damage has been reported. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Senator Win Gatchalian on Sunday renewed his call for the immediate passage of the bill which would require prospective vehicle owners to present proof of ownership of a parking space before authorities allow them to acquire a new auto. Gatchalian, author of Senate Bill No. 201, also known as the Proof-of-Parking Space Act, made the call as he threw his support behind the initiative of the Metro Manila Development Authority to impose heftier fines on illegally parked vehicles. We are pushing for SBN 201 or Proof-of-Parking Space Act to make vehicle owners responsible. The proposed law aims to ensure that before we purchase a vehicle, we should have a parking area, he added. Under the bill, individuals and businesses based within Metro Manila would only be allowed to purchase vehicles after the execution of an affidavit confirming that they have acquired, either through purchase or lease, a parking space for the vehicle sought to be purchased. LTO records show that the number of registered motor vehicles from the year 2015 until 2017 reached 10,410,814. There are an estimated 1,000 registrations each day, 600 of which are for newly purchased vehicles. The bill also mandates the Land Transportation Office, the Metro Manila Development Authority, and local government units to conduct frequent ocular inspections of major and minor thoroughfares across the National Capital Region to remove illegally parked vehicles and to punish vehicle owners who refuse to comply with the law.In October, the Senate Committee on Trade, Commerce, and Entrepreneurship created a technical working group to refine the provisions of the bill. With this bill, we hope to make the National Capital Region a more livable place by decongesting the roads, taking a modest step toward solving Manilas perennial traffic crisis in the process, Gatchalian said. The MMDA has raised the fine for attended illegally parked vehicles from its original price of P200 to P1,000. Drivers of unattended illegally parked vehicles, on the other hand, will now have to pay P2,000. The senator believes that the MMDAs initiative to decongest the already crowded streets of Metro Manila will be greatly complemented with the enactment of the Proof-of-Parking Space Act. The MMDAs move to impose higher penalties may now prompt motorists to think twice before parking their cars along the streets. However, I believe that we still need a law that will instill a culture of responsible vehicle ownership among Filipinos, the lawmaker said. Another spell of snow on Sunday forced the local authorities here to close Jammu Srinagar Highway for vehicular movement. The region at present is under the grip of Chillai-Kalan, a 40-day long period of harsh winter. Chillai-Kalan starts every year on December 21 and stretches till January 30. Due to snow and slippery roads at a couple of areas, the state traffic police has restricted the movement of vehicles, leaving scores of commuters stranded. Moreover, water bodies situated in the region such as Dal Lake have already frozen and the locals lit small fires each day around the water taps to melt the deposited snow. According to the experts, the snowfall around this time provides relief from the intense cold but the phenomena has not occurred this time unlike last seasons when the region experienced early snowfall. The open skies with no cloud cover have made the conditions worse as it reduces the chances of any kind of downpour. According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the minimum and maximum temperature in Srinagar will be hovering around 0 and 6 Degree Celsius respectively. The other northern states of the country such as Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi have also come under the grip of cold air due to the flowing of the dry north-westerlies above them. Because of this, the temperature has also dropped further over the parts of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and the Capital Region (NCR). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shivpal Singh Yadav on Sunday said that his Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSPL) is ready to form an alliance with the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the coming Lok Sabha elections. In an exclusive interview to ANI, PSPL chief Yadav said the SP and the BSP alliance is a 'Thugbandhan' (alliance among thugs). "This alliance is a 'Thugbandhan' and is for money. It is possible that money must have been taken before forging the alliance," added Yadav. However, the PSPL chief said that no talks have so far been held in connection with forging an alliance with the Congress. "There have been no talks with the Congress party as yet. The Congress is also a secular party and if it approaches us to defeat the BJP, we will lend our support," he said. Yadav's statement comes a day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) went for forging an alliance among themselves keeping the Congress party out of the new alignment. The SP and the Congress had fought the last assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh as allies. Yadav, who parted ways with Akhilesh Yadav-led, also expressed interest to forge an alliance among all secular parties including the Congress to oust the BJP from power in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. "No alliance can defeat the BJP without support from the PSPL, the Bahujan Mukti Party and our other allies. We are ready to form an alliance with other secular parties to defeat the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections and oust it from power at the Centre," added Yadav. The SP and the BSP on Saturday announced that they would contest on 38 seats each, adding that they would not field candidates against Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Amethi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli. They have also kept two seats for the smaller parties. The Congress party too on Sunday announced that they would contest on all 80 Lok Sabha seats at stake in Uttar Pradesh with 'full might,' but did not rule out the possibility of joining hands with the secular forces in the state to defeat the BJP in the state. "Under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, the Congress will fight the Coming Lok Sabha elections with full might and defeat the BJP. The whole world knows that the fight is between the Congress and the BJP. We will welcome those who join us in this fight. It is not an individual's fight, but of principles and keep India united," Congress leader and in-charge for the party's UP affairs Ghulam Nabi Azad told a media persons in Lucknow on Sunday. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The 18-year-old Saudi girl, Rahaf Alqunun, who fled her family from Kuwait to Thailand, has landed in Canada after being granted asylum in the nation. Hailing Alqunun as a "very brave new Canadian", Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland welcomed her at Toronto airport on Sunday, reported Al Jazeera. Talking to media at the airport, Freel and stated that granted asylum to Alqunun was part of Canada's "policy of supporting women and girls around the " "It's obvious that the oppression of women is not a problem that can be resolved in a day, but rather than cursing the darkness we believe in lighting a single candle. Where we can save a single woman, a single person that's a good thing to do," Freeland stated. On Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated that Canada had accepted a request from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to grant asylum to Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun, who was fleeing her parents and has alleged abuse from family. The Saudi teenager had boarded a plane to Thailand while her family was on a holiday in Kuwait. Upon arriving in Thailand, she claimed that her passport was taken away by a man at the airport on the pretext of getting her a Thai visa. However, the man did not show up, she said. Furthermore, the 18-year-old alleged that the man who took away her passport came with other men who she believes were Thai security officers and a representative of Kuwait Airlines. The men reportedly told Alqunun that her family had filed a missing person report about her and informed her that she had to return to Kuwait on a flight late Monday morning. She had also clarified that she did not run away from home in order to escape her marriage. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud will visit Pakistan in February to sign an agreement for setting up an oil refinery here, Saudi Minister for Petroleum and Energy Khalid Bin Abdul Aziz said on Saturday. Gwadar is a port city located in the southwestern region of Balochistan in Pakistan, featuring the famous China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. Dawn newspaper reported that a Saudi ministerial delegation, including Chief Executive Officer of Aramco Associated Company Al Buainain Ibrahim Qassim, visited the port city, earlier on Sunday to inspect the region for the proposed oil refinery project, worth USD 10 billion, and later attended a meeting with Pakistani ministers and officials from Balochistan to discuss over this issue. The Saudi delegation was received by Pakistan's Petroleum minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Minister for Marine Affairs Ali Zaidi and Balochistan's Information Minister Mir Zahoor Ahmed Buledi at Gwadar airport. While addressing the meeting, Aziz was quoted as saying that Saudi Arabia is interested in uplifting the economic situation of Pakistan and seeking for partnership in the CPEC project by setting up the oil refinery in the region. Aziz further stated that the oil refinery would be completed within minimum time and would help the entire region to become a centre point for purchasing, importing and exporting oil. The Saudi Petroleum minister added that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan had always shared "cordial economic, social and deep-rooted friendly relations" with Pakistan, especially by providing financial support to the country's slow-paced economic development. Meanwhile, Pakistan's Petroleum Minister Khan appreciated the efforts of Saudi Arabia, asserting that the Government of Pakistan has given a nod to the oil refinery project following which Saudi Arabia would become an important and strategic partner in the CPEC. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As the 2019 Lok Sabha elections are inching closer, Congress president Rahul Gandhi will address an anti-BJP rally named 'Jan Aakansha' at Gandhi Maidan in Patna on February 3. This is the first time after 28 years that the Congress is holding a massive rally in the state without having any alliance. Congress leader and MLC Prem Chand Mishra said the party has invited top opposition leaders from across the country to attend the rally. "It will be a huge rally as the party is holding it after 28 years without any alliance. All party workers, MPs or MLAs have geared up to make this rally a big success. We have invited all Opposition leaders to attend this rally in Patna. People of Bihar have the right to know what the Central and Bihar government has done so far for poor and common people," he added. While the NDA in Bihar, led by state Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JDU has already announced its seat-sharing formula, the Opposition here is yet to arrive at a consensus. BJP, JDU, and LJP have already announced the seat-sharing formula for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls with the BJP and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JDU contesting 17 seats each, leaving six seats for Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Asha Paswan, daughter of Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, staged a protest against her father here on Sunday for allegedly referring to former Bihar chief minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Rabri Devi as "Angootha Chap" or illiterate. "I want him (Ram Vilas Paswan) to take back his words and apologise. He should respect all women," said Asha. On Friday, Paswan had said "any uneducated person becomes chief minister nowadays," in a veiled jibe at Rabri Devi. Disappointed with these remarks. Asha threatened to protest along with other women in front of her father's Lok Janshakti Party office. Asha is Paswan's daughter from his first wife Raj Kumari Devi, whom he divorced in 1981. Two years later, he tied the knot with Reena. It may be noted that Asha's husband Anil Sadhu is part of the RJD. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday shrugged off Shiv Sena's allegations that the former party spun a jumla (lie) about constructing Ram temple in Ayodhya. BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav came in defense of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who accused Congress of stalling the Ram Janambhoomi case in the Supreme Court and reiterated that his party is committed towards constructing Ram temple in Ayodhya. Earlier in the day while addressing his party workers in Mumbai, Thackeray criticised Prime Minister Modi for failing to construct Ram temple. Thackeray said that the BJP fired a "Jumla" about constructing the Ram Temple. "We have repeatedly shown our commitment to the construction of Ram Temple. Our government is doing everything possible to make sure legal process moves quickly. The Congress is trying to stall the judicial process," Madhav told ANI. The Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute case has been pending before the apex court for last eight years. Parties in the case and various right-wing organisations have been asking for an early or day-to-day hearing for a long time. On Saturday, Prime Minister Modi at Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi accused the Congress of creating obstacles in the resolution of Ayodhya issue saying the opposition party does not want a solution. Arguments from politicos came days after the Supreme Court fixed January 29 as the next date of hearing in the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute after Justice UU Lalit recused himself from hearing the case. A new bench will now be constituted. A five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, and comprising of Justice SA Bobde, Justice NV Ramana, Justice UU Lalit and Justice DY Chandrachud, at the outset said that there will be no hearing in the case on Thursday adding that only date and schedule will be decided. Justice UU Lalit recused himself from hearing the case after advocate Rajeev Dhavan, appearing for Muslim parties, pointed out that Justice Lalit had appeared for Kalyan Singh in a related case. There are as many as 14 appeals pending in the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgement, delivered in four civil suits. The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court in its September 30, 2010, verdict ordered that the disputed site be divided into three parts -- one for deity (Ramlala Virajmaan), another for Nirmohi Akhara - a Hindu sect - and a third one, to the original litigant in the case for the Muslims. The Babri Masjid, built by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1578 in Ayodhya was on December 6, 1992, pulled down allegedly by a group of Hindu activists, claiming that the mosque was constructed after demolishing a Ram Temple that originally stood here. Since then, several hearings have been held in the top court to resolve the issue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday hailed the decision of his government to construct Kartarpur Corridor and promised justice to the families of 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims, which shook the nation. Prime Minister Modi, who was speaking after releasing a commemorative coin to mark the 352nd birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh ji, 10th Sikh Guru, on Sunday here, said: "No binoculars are needed as the Sikh shrines of Dera Baba Nanak Sahib will now be visible with naked eyes. Sikh devotees will be able to make a visa-free pilgrimage to Darbar Sahib in Pakistan." "Kartarpur corridor project is an attempt to atone for the mistakes committed during India's partition in August 1947. We had failed to ensure that the sacred site of Guru remains on our side of the border. This project is authentic proof of compensating that loss," said Prime Minister Modi. Talking about the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, wherein around 2,700 Sikhs were killed across India, after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards Satwant Singh and Beant Singh, Prime Minister Modi said: "Our government will ensure that all the culprits are behind the bars and victims' families get justice." Once opened, Kartarpur corridor will allow Sikh pilgrims from India direct access to the historic Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan, where Guru Nanak Dev died in 1539. In November last year, both India and Pakistan did the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of the corridor on both sides of the border. "Our government is working as per the teachings and ideals of Guru Gobind Singh ji. We are also preparing for grand celebrations to mark the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev ji," said the Prime Minister in the event organised at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. Talking about the values Guru Gobind Singh taught to humanity, Prime Minister Modi said: "Guru Govind Singh, the feeder of humanity to Khalsa sect, was dedicated to Indian culture and traditions." "Today, I have got a great opportunity to release the commemorative coin to mark the 352nd Parkash Purab of Guru Gobind Singh ji. His coin is already imprinted in our hearts for many years. It is, however, just a small gesture to pay respect and express our faith in his principles," he said. "Guru Gobind Singh ji was not only a Guru (teacher) but also a great devotee. He was not only an exceptional fighter, but also a noteworthy poet and creative writer. He was against injustice and a firm supporter of peace. He sacrificed his own son to protect thousands of sons of the nation. Guru Gobind Singh ji is a true example of patriotism, peace, humanity, and patience," Prime Minister Modi noted. 'Despite his own struggles, he was always eager to sacrifice his happiness for others. Khalsa sect is a result of his hard work and esteem knowledge. He fought against the social evils like casteism," he said. "The Dasam Granth, which is a separate religious text from the Guru Granth Sahib, reflects his incredible command over language and literature. All his teachings are being followed by us for the development of a new India," added Prime Minister Modi. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and a host of prominent Sikh personalities were present on the occasion. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking direction for the government to ensure transparency and fairness at petrol pumps across the country. The petitioner, advocate Amit Sahni, sought immediate steps to stop cheating at petrol pumps by giving lesser fuel by installing a "microchip" to speed up the pulse meter or by any other method. The PIL is likely to come up for hearing before the apex court in the coming week. The petitioner claimed that the petrol pump owners use a hyper-technical mechanism for cheating customers. "The petrol pump owners use a hyper-technical mechanism for cheating customers by using a micro-chip for vending lesser fuel. At some places, remotes are used for the purpose of increasing or decreasing the measurement depending upon the customer's attitude," the petition stated. "Cheating at petrol pumps across the country is rampant to such an extent that as per news report, the petroleum minister had advised the state governments to conduct surprise inspections at petrol pumps and check for the chips, which cut the outflow of fuel by as much as 10 per cent," it further read. Furthermore, various news reports have stated that Delhi ranks third in the list of petrol/diesel fraud among states. Maharashtra tops the list, followed by Uttar Pradesh, the petition submitted. In order to ensure fairness and transparency at petrol pumps, proper regulations are required with respect to fuel vending as it affects every one of us directly or indirectly, said the petitioner. To stop fraud at petrol pumps, the petitioner suggested that black hose pipes used for fuel vending may be replaced with a transparent pipe so that the consumer can see the fuel passing through the same in the vehicle. Sahni suggested and urged the top court that his suggestions be implemented by the state governments. "Transparent dispenser with measurements may be installed or connected along with the fuel vending machines in such a way to fill the fuel in the transparent dispenser first and then the same is transmitted to the vehicle through a transparent hosepipe," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Resident doctors at Safdarjung Hospital announced an indefinite hunger strike on Sunday after a patient allegedly attacked one of the doctors earlier in the day. The incident, which took place at 8 in the morning, left one doctor with injuries on his nose and face. A police complaint has been registered in this regard. The patient, Akshay, had allegedly gone to the emergency after complaining of stomach ache. Subsequently, a scuffle broke out between him and the doctors over treatment. Resident Doctors Association Chief Joy Utpal told ANI, "A resident doctor was attacked, his nose was broken, he is under observation. This is the third such incident in a week. The administration does not pay heed, so we are on strike. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress will hold a necrological service in honor of the late Ako Bicol Party-list Rep. Rodel Batocabe tomorrow. Girtie, Batocabes wife, and their two sons, lawyer Jhustine and Khiel, are attending the final tribute to the slain lawmaker. We celebrate his memory as an unyielding advocate of eradicating poverty through affordable quality education. He was also a proponent of legislative efforts to mitigate the occurrence of hazing and bullying in schools. A lawyer by profession, he took a firm stand in promoting social justice, women empowerment, environmental protection, renewable energy and universal access to health and education, the program invitation read. Rep. Paul Hernandez of Kabayan Party-list shall lead the invocation of the program to start at 10 a.m. after a requiem mass at the plenary hall of the House of Representatives. Jhustine Batocabe would respond to the eulogies to be delivered by lawyer John Reyes; Justices Vicente Mendoza and Presbitero Jose Velasco Jr.; former Rep. Michael Angelo Rivera of 1-Care party-list; House Minority Leader and Quezon Rep. Danilo Suarez; Deputy Speaker and Rep. Sharon Garin of AAMBIS-OWWA Party-list, and Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. An offering of the legislative memorabilia shall follow. The late Hon. Rodel M. Batocabe was an exemplar of how the party-list framework effectively works for the Filipino people. He wasthe delegate of Ako Bicol party-list to Congress for three consecutive terms and a lead convenor and spokesperson of the Party-List Coalition in the past Congresses. In the 17th Congress, he was the president of the 50-member Party-List Coalition, the program invitation stated. Batocabe was running for mayor in Daraga, Albay in the 2019 mid-term election. He, along with police escort, SPO1 Orlando Diaz, was shot dead on Dec. 22 while leaving a gift-giving activity in Barangay Burgos. The Philippine National Police filed double murder and frustrated murder charges against incumbent Daraga Mayor Carlwyn Baldo and several others. Pakistan has offered all amenities and facilities to the Sikh community settled across the globe to invest in Kartarpur Corridor and make the area between Kartarpur and Nankana Sahib unprecedented and historic. The offer was made by visiting Governor of Punjab, Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar, while talking to the Sikh community at Guru Gobind Singh Sabha in Southall, West London on Thursday. "The opening of (Kartarpur) Corridor after 70 years is splendid and we feel the heart-touching sentiments and pleasing moments of Sikh community at this affectionate occasion", Sarwar emphasised. "Sikhs are our brothers and sisters, Pakistan is already supporting and helping them and taking extra care to look after the Gurdawaras in all over the country, especially the Nankana Saheb," he added. The Punjab Governor also appreciated the gesture of the Indian government and said that this would not have had happened if New Delhi would not have expressed reciprocal response. Both the countries have set the foundation of goodwill and friendship and the opening of the Corridor is, in fact, the fulfilling the wishes of 120 million Sikh community, he noted. Sarwar also said the Pakistan government will meet all expenses of development of both religious places and connecting corridor. "The opening of the corridor is a triumph of Baba Guru Nanak, who is the leader not only of Sikh community but also of Muslims and Hindus as he is the leader of international repute. We would like to develop Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur on the same level and pattern so that the younger and future generation should not feel any difference between the two holy places. There is no shortage of land in Nakana Saheb, so I personally, and on behalf of the Pakistan government, invite the Sikh community-based in Britain and other countries to invest in educational, hotel and business industries. Thus they can serve their own community and simultaneously can also avail huge profit out of their investments," the Governor Punjab offered. Sarwar also expressed a wish to establish Guru Nanak University in Nankana Saheb to spread the teachings of Baba Guru Nanak. "We shall celebrate his 550th anniversary in a befitting manner and I shall spend the whole day there as it would be a memorable and remarkable day," Sarwar added, while promising to meet all suggestions and genuine demands of Sikh community, including the visa extension from two to four weeks and increase in quota of pilgrims on emergency basis. Meanwhile, President of Sri Guru Gobind Singh Sabha, Southall, Gurmail Singh Malhi and Vice President Sohan Sigh Samra, along with other Sikh leaders expressed gratitude to Sarwar for his offer and promised that the Sikh community as a whole will support every project aimed to serve these two places. "This corridor will bring Sikh nation and Pakistan more closely", they commented. In November last year, Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan laid the foundation stone of the Kartarpur Corridor along the India-Pakistan border, allowing Sikh pilgrims a direct access to the historic Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, Pakistan, where Guru Nanak Dev died in 1539. The construction of the corridor will facilitate lakhs of pilgrims from India to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur on the banks of river Ravi in Pakistan, where Guru Nanak Dev ji spent 18 years of his life. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday confirmed that an air raid was carried out by Israel on Iranian weapons in Syria. According to Al Jazeera, Netanyahu, at the start of a cabinet meeting, said: "Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus international airport. The accumulation of recent attacks show that we're more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised". Syria on Friday had claimed that Israel filed multiple missiles towards Damascus with one striking a warehouse at the airport. Israel, in efforts to counter the Iranian influence, has been mounting attacks in Syria. Israeli warplanes last hit targets in Syria on Christmas, in which three soldiers were injured and an arms depot was struck. According to a senior Israeli official, Israel has carried out more than 200 attacks against Iran in Syria in the last two years. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) American talk show 'Megyn Kelly Today' ended in October by NBC Universal, has finally reached to an agreement. The host of the show, American journalist Megyn Kelly now has officially signed off from NBC program. Earlier, the show was ended when Kelly ousted from NBC talk show after 'blackface' remark, reports Variety. "The parties have resolved their differences, and Megyn Kelly is no longer an employee of NBC," Variety quoted from a statement by the NBC News. Further, the host will get the remaining money which she owed from her original $69 million contract (which is estimated $30 million), CNN quoted a source saying. However, the host is ready to move forward and to make the next step in her career, "Megyn learned a lot from her time at NBC. Anytime you have a passionate, driven soul like her, there may be times within the context they say or do something that offends people without them even realizing it, Megyn is the first to stop and turn around and apologize," a source told US Weekly. Adding that, Kelly is "ready to fight another day in applying her talents, enduring values and experiences to make real progress in this polarized world. Being true to herself is important to her." the source added. In October, NBC clarified that Kelly's time as the host of the show was over. On October 25, Megyn stopped hosting her show and a pre-taped episode was aired instead of the live telecast sparking speculation about her exit from the show. Kelly drew huge flak after a racist comment she made regarding Halloween costumes on October 23. "You do get in trouble if you are a white person who puts on blackface on Halloween, or a black person who puts on whiteface for Halloween. Back when I was a kid, that was O.K., as long as you were dressing up as a character," Kelly said. However, the 48-year-old apologised for her remarks saying, "I realise now that such behaviour is indeed wrong, and I am sorry. The history of blackface in our culture is abhorrent; the wounds too deep. I've never been a (politically correct) kind of person - but I understand that we do need to be more sensitive in this day and age. Particularly on race and ethnicity issues which, far from being healed, have been exacerbated in our politics over the past year." Kelly, who earlier worked for Fox News, joined NBC on an estimated $20 million-a-year contract days before US President Donald Trump's inauguration. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ignored by SP and BSP, the Congress on Sunday announced to contest all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh on its own in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls and aim to emerge as the largest party like in 2009 General Elections. Senior Congress leader and in-charge of the party's Uttar Pradesh affairs, Ghulam Nabi Azad also indicated unhappiness over the SP and the BSP keeping his party out of their coalition, saying the people should know that "we did not break the alliance." Talking to media persons here, Azad said: "We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like the Congress emerged as number one party in Uttar Pradesh in 2009 Lok Sabha elections, we will fight on our own and win twice those number of seats in the coming elections." In 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress had won 21 seats in Uttar Pradesh. "We did not break this alliance. Public should know that. We had earlier also said that we are ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we cannot force anyone. They have (SP-BSP) closed this chapter. So we will continue this fight for defeating the BJP on our own," he said further. UPCC chief Raj Babbar was also present on the occasion. "Under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, the Congress will fight the Coming Lok Sabha elections with full might and defeat the BJP. The whole world knows that the fight is between the Congress and the BJP. We will welcome those who join us in this fight. It is not an individual's fight, but of principles and keep India united. People of all castes and religion have to fight this war together," he said. Talking about the grand alliance, Azad said: "Mahagathbandhan is a creation of the media. However, as I said, any party which has interest in defeating the BJP is welcome to us. By the end of this month, you will come to know that we are also talking (for alliances)." In response to BSP chief Mayawati's statement that she did not find much difference between the Congress and the BJP where she gave the example of Bofors and Rafale to bring home her point, Azad said: "Every individual is entitled to his or her opinion, which we cannot change." Azad, also the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said: "The fight is not confined to one state. The fight is for the Parliament, for Delhi. Congress has MPs from Kanyakumari to Kashmir, and we can only defeat the BJP. We can strengthen the nation only when the party and the government do not divide the people for their own interests." Speaking about talks with Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) led by Ajit Singh and Shivpal Singh Yadav of Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia (PSPL), a splinter group of SP, Azad said: "N Chandrababu Naidu has come to us on his own, and we will talk to others." Azad's announcement to contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats in UP comes close on the heels of Congress president Rahul Gandhi's statement during a media conference in Dubai on Saturday where he said that his party would contest the coming Lok Sabha elections with "full force" in Uttar Pradesh. Rahul's comment had come hours after the SP and the BSP announced their alliance to take on the BJP in Uttar Pradesh in 2019 General Elections. "The Congress party has tremendous to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh. I have tremendous respect to the leaders of BSP and SP. They have a right to do what they want to do. The BSP and SP have made a political decision. It is on us how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh. We will fight with our full capacity," Rahul had told media in Dubai. As per the alliance, the SP and the BSP will contest on 38 seats each, while they will not field their candidate against Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Amethi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli. They have also kept two seats for the smaller parties. During the press conference to announce the alliance in Lucknow on Saturday, Mayawati said that neither the SP nor the BSP would benefit by allying with the Congress. She also said that there was not much difference between the Congress and the BJP. "Many a time, we have seen similarities between the Congress and the BJP. For example, in the defence sector, we are seeing how both indulged in corruption (Bofors and Rafale). Congress imposed declared emergency. Today there is an undeclared emergency," she said. "Most sections of the society including scheduled castes, farmers, and the poor were unhappy with the Congress' rule. Whether the mandate goes to the Congress or the BJP, it is one and the same thing," Mayawati added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Justice AK Sikri, who is the second senior-most judge of the Supreme Court, withdrew consent from the post of president/member in London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT), the source said. The source revealed on Sunday that Justice Sikri denied a post-retirement offer from the government and informed authorities about the same. Recently voted to oust Alok Verma as the director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Justice Sikri will retire on March 6. The Central government in December 1st week last year had inform Justice Sikri about the CSAT vacancy and offered him the post. The CSAT is the final arbiter of disputes between its 53 member-countries. It has eight members, including the president, selected by Commonwealth governments on a regionally representative basis from among persons of high moral character who must hold or have held high judicial office in a Commonwealth country or who are jurisconsults with at least 10 years experience. Recently, Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, who passed the order to reinstate Verma as CBI Director, had nominated Justice Sikri to the three-member high-powered panel to decide the fate of Verma. The Selection Committee also comprising Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge had transferred Verma from the CBI. While Modi and Justice Sikri had same view on Verma's transfer, Kharge had dissent view. The decision of Verma's transfer has drawn a lot of flak. Verma has refused to take up his new posting - DG, Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. Wanted terrorist Zeenat-ul-Islam was among the two terrorists gunned down by security forces. Zeenat-ul-Islam, was associated with the terror group Al Badr and was considered as an improvised explosive device (IED) expert. The other terrorist killed in the encounter has been identified as Shakeel Ahmed Dar. A joint operation was launched on Saturday night by the Army, Police and CRPF in Kulgam after receiving specific information about the presence of terrorists there. As the security forces were conducting the searches, the terrorists fired upon them. The forces retaliated to the firing, ensuing an encounter in which the two terrorists were gunned down. Weapons and other war-like stores have been recovered, officials said, adding that no collateral damage has been reported. The operations have been concluded. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel on Sunday extended an open invitation to the noted lawyer HS Phoolka to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Union Minister Goel, while speaking to the media on the sidelines of a function to felicitate Phoolka for fighting and getting justice delivered to the families of 1984 anti-Sikh riots victims, said that the doors of the BJP were always open for the good people. "The BJP's doors are always open for the good people. It is up to HS Phoolka to decide whether he wants to join the BJP or not," Goel said in response to a question from ANI. On January 3, Phoolka handed over his resignation to AAP chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal without mentioning any reason for his decision. Currently, Phoolka is a member of Punjab Legislative Assembly from Dakha in Ludhiana district. Following his resignation from the AAP, speculations were rife that Phoolka was joining the BJP. Speculations got credence when the BJP decided to felicitate him for fighting the legal battle of families of 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims. It is worth mentioning that Phoolka was felicitated on Sunday here at the residence of Vijay Goel in the presence of senior BJP leaders including Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Radha Mohan Singh. Apart from Phoolka, anti-triple talaq activist Shayara Bano and seven others were also felicitated on the occasion. Phoolka, however, dismissed the speculations of joining any party. "At the moment, I am not joining any political party," said Phoolka. However, the senior Supreme Court lawyer while speaking on the occasion, heaped praises on BJP patriarch L K Advani and the Democratic Alliance (NDA) for their support in his fight for justice to the riot victims. "I don' think I have done anything that deserves felicitation. I have only done my duty and God gave me success. Today, I am present among those people who have supported me during this 34-year-old fight. We have come to celebrate the conviction of prime accused Sajjan Kumar," said Phoolka. He said that in 2005, the then-Congress led UPA government was creating a hindrance for the prosecution of Congress leaders Sajjan Kumar and Jadish Tytler, despite the recommendation of action against them by the Nanavati Commission report. "I was in LK Advani ji's room. There were several other NDA leaders present there. I told them how the government was wrong. Next day, they stalled the functioning of both the Houses of Parliament. After a few days, the Central government was forced to allow the prosecution. The conviction (of Sajjan Kumar) is a result of that work," he said. Phoolka said that Kumar's conviction on December 17 last year was only the first victory and that two more accused-Jagdish Tytler and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath-were left to be brought to justice. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Income Tax department on Sunday said they found several discrepancies in the sales and inventory in most of the businesses run by BJP leader Anil Goyal in Dehradun. Goyal, whose properties were raided on Friday, has been accused of electronic sales suppression tax fraud, unaccounted receipts, long-term capital gains (LTCG) in penny stocks and unaccounted investments. Sharing details of the raids, I-T (investigation) commissioner Amrendra Kumar said two account books were found from Umang sarees and a huge house was being constructed behind Goyal's residence, the funding channel for which is unknown. The I-T official further said that the stock inventory was also not maintained in Kwality Mart P Ltd, hence, the stock found of Rs 9 crore needed to be explained. There is also a difference between closing and opening stock, which needs explanation, he said. Kumar said that the statutory auditor Naveen Gupta also failed to submit the list of inventory so certified by him. He also said that Gupta's conduct for abetment of tax evaders will also be examined and if found so, the process of Prosecution shall be initiated against him. Goyal's business partner Naresh Garg got himself admitted to a hospital claiming to be ill, Kumar said. Lockers are yet to be operated which are said to be containing jewellery. However, search action is halted temporarily today. A team of the District Police on Sunday claimed to have nabbed the absconding leader Goyal. Goyal was traced by the Income Tax (I-T) Department on the basis of his cell phone location and with the help of the local police brought him back to Dehradun from an undisclosed location. Goyal had fled Dehradun after the I-T Department conducted raids at his properties on January 11. The I-T department raided a total of 13 places of Goyal located in Dehradun, Yamunanagar, Roorkee, and Delhi. In Dehradun, raids were conducted at Kwality Hardware, Alexia Panels, Punjab Plywood Ind, Umang Sarees and Quantum University. During the raids, Rs 70 lakh cash and jewellery worth crores was seized. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five persons, including a BJP leader and his three sons, were arrested for allegedly killing a 22-year-old woman two years ago. As per the police, the accused had planned and executed the murder drawing inspiration from the 2015 Bollywood film 'Drishyam'. The BJP leader, identified as Jagdeesh Karotiya, was arrested on Saturday in Indore, along with his sons. The deceased, identified as Twinkle Dagre, a woman Congress worker, had gone missing two years back and was later found dead. The woman belonged to Banganga area in Mumbai. Indore Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra while briefing the media on the murder said that for the first time, Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature test was used for interrogation in a criminal incident in Indore. Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature Profiling is a technique by which a suspect's participation in crime is detected by eliciting electrophysiological impulses. Police further revealed that Karotia had relations with the victim. "His name was tattoed on victim's arm. This led to a dispute at the accused's home and so he planned her murder." "Accused mentioned that they had watched Hindi movie 'Drishyam' and used it in the crime. We used Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature test for interrogation. Police had received information that they had buried something near crime spot. This information was leaked on purpose. Police found remains of a dog after digging the spot," Mishra said. "The accused called Municipal Corporation to dig a pit on a plot of land they owned, claiming they need to bury a dog. They burnt victim's body there and threw remains in nearby sewage. Two-three days after the crime, they tried to generate the location of the victim's phone to create confusion," he noted. Further investigation in the matter is underway. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kicking of celebrations to commemorate the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, the Embassy of India here, in association with various US-based Sikh organisations and Gurdwaras, organised a Sikh devotional music programme (Gurbani Sangeet) on Saturday (local time). A press statement released by the Indian Embassy on Sunday informed that the ceremony was attended by over 200 members of the Indian community, media, think tanks and local government officials, and was held at AMP auditorium in Maryland. While addressing the gathering on the occasion, Ambassador of India to the United States Harsh Vardhan Shringla highlighted several key decisions taken by the Government of India to honour Guru Nanak Dev's 550th Birth Anniversary, such as development of Kartarpur in Gurdaspur district of Punjab, development of Sultanpuri Lodhi as a Heritage town, establishment of a centre for interfaith studies at Guru Nanak Dev University, among others. "Guru Nanak Dev ji was also a great organiser, setting up a network of congregations wherever he travelled. Planning ahead, he purchased land to establish Kartarpur, and it was to Kartarpur that he returned after the travels - here he set up the daily routine of the Sikh congregation - kirtan (daily prayers), katha (exposition of ideas) and langar (community meal)," Shringla said. "Through his life, travels and teachings Guru Nanak Dev called for an egalitarian social order, equality for all human beings, compassion, questioning of rituals and dogma through reasoning and sincerity towards an eventual realisation of the eternal universal truth. It is truly a philosophy and legacy that we must celebrate and recount to our younger and future generations," the Ambassador added. Highlighting the role of five lakh strong influential Sikh communities in the US, Ambassador Shringla stated, "Embassy and our Consulates in the U.S. have chalked out a calendar of activities including musical concerts, seminars, and interfaith events through the year." Musicians including Bhai Baldeep Singh accompanied by an ensemble of talented instrumentalists held the audience captive through mystical hymns of Guru Nanak Dev, the Indian Embassy said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government should go beyond giving loans to farmers as this is just a short-term solution, said Senator Sonny Angara as he called for help to farmers hit by huge losses due to oversupply and low prices of their produce. The government should put in place long-term solutions to make farming sustainable, Angara stressed. What we need are solutions that are sustainable in the long-run such as providing them assistance in marketing their produce or facilities to process their harvest, Angara said. Farmers could easily go out of business if there is a glut in supply because prices can plummet below cost, he pointed out. The government, particularly the Agriculture department, he said, should heed the call of farmers for the building of more and bigger processing facilities to address oversupply. He said that processing facilities, such as the Benguet Agri-Pinoy Trading Center, can prolong the shelf life of farm produce since they have dry and cold storage facilities. Angara said there should be a greater government intervention regarding facilities and the use of technology to help farmers operate effectively. He said the government could also help farmers find the best price for their crops by dealing directly with large buyers.He said that agencies should focus on supporting farmers if it wants to lift the ailing agriculture sector. Agriculture remains the most vital to the overall development of the country, not just as the main driver of food security, but also as a source of livelihood. Angara proposed the Entrepreneurial Agricultural Education Act seeking to develop and strengthen agricultural education and training in the country to encourage more Filipinos to become agri-preneurs. Cordillera farmers were forced to throw away tons of vegetables they harvested last week as prices have taken a dive due to overproduction and the lack of means to transport the harvest to market. Traders were not able to buy the produce to transport to Bicol and the Visayas due to flooding brought by Tropical Depression Usman. Bicol is part of the overland supply route to the Visayas connected by ferries. The Department of Agriculture has announced that farmers who lost their produce could avail of a loan of up to P50,000 at six percent annual interest under the agencys Production Loan Easy Access. To commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Embassy of India in Nepal organised 'knee artificial limb fitment' camps in Kathmandu and Nawalparasi district on Sunday. A press statement released by the Indian Embassy said that the camps were organised as part of an initiative by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs in collaboration with Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BMVSS) in Jaipur, India, and the Chuadhary Foundation of Nepal. Ambassador of India to Nepal Manjeev Singh Puri inaugurated the Camp at Norvic Hospital in Kathmandu. A number of dignitaries, including the founder of BMVSS Devendra Raj Mehta, and Chairman of Chuadhury Foundation Binod Chuadhary were also present during the inaugural ceremony and handed over custom-made Jaipur Foot to amputees. "Ambassador Puri and Dr. D R Mehta, founder of jaipur foot, presented their remarks at the launch of Jaipur Foot Camp under India for Humanity initiative. 73rd camp of bmvss abroad; 51 limbs fitted so far; Jaipur foot is an easy, affordable, class technology," the Indian Embassy in Nepal tweeted. "Ambassador Puri and Mrs. Puri also presented artificial limbs to select beneficiaries," the Embassy added The second camp will be organised in Sahaj Community Hospital, in Nawalparasi District. A total of 500 people with disability will be provided with artificial limbs free of cost during these camps. "While we celebrate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India has launched an 'India for Humanity' Initiative to honour Mahatma Gandhi for his service towards humanity. The Initiative focuses on Gandhi's philosophy of compassion, caring and service to humanity through a yearlong series of artificial limb fitment camps globally in collaboration with BMVSS," the Indian Embassy said in its statement. Founded in 1975 and better known by its trademark "Jaipur Foot", BMVSS is among the world's largest organisations for the fitment of artificial limbs. It has served over 1.73 million amputees with disability in India and around the world, till date. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A group of unidentified goons on Sunday assaulted a woman, who runs a private school in Bihar's Saharsa after she allegedly refused to pay extortion money to them. In a video, four goons can be seen suddenly running towards the victim and one of them pushed her to the ground. The victim can also be seen requesting the attackers to spare her but they were in no mood to stop the assault. Moments later, one of the attackers rushed towards the main gate of the school with a gun in his hand and fired a few shots before fleeing the spot. Some of the attackers fled on a motorcycle. Police said a probe has already been initiated in the matter. Efforts are on to nab the accused. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The police on Saturday arrested former Italian left-wing militant Cesare Battisti, who fled to Bolivia following his extradition to Brazil and Italy. Battisti, a former member of Armed Proletarians for Communism -- an Italian far-left terrorist group- escaped from prison in Italy in 1981. Thereupon, he was convicted in absentia for four counts of murder. However, he had denied the charges levelled against him, despite acknowledging his membership with the Italian terrorist organisation. "Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was detained in Bolivia (Saturday night) and will be soon brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be sent to Italy to serve a life sentence," Filipe G Martins, a top aide to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, tweeted. A source told Al Jazeera: "Battisti was arrested in the street, unarmed and he didn't resist, responded to police in Portuguese and showed a Brazilian document confirming his identity. Now Italy is waiting for him." On December 15 last year, Brazil 's outgoing president Michel Temer had passed orders for the extradition of Battisti after the Supreme Federal Tribunal of Brazil ordered his arrest. Fearing extradition charges, Battisti had initially escaped to France and then Mexico before fleeing to Brazil. His arrest in Rio de Janeiro in 2007 further instigated the Italian government to request Brazil for sending him back to his homeland. In 2010, Battisti was granted asylum under the rule of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Battisti was detained in 2017 while trying to cross the Brazil-Bolivia border carrying a heavy amount of undeclared cash, approximately USD 7,500. He was, however, released within the next two days. Following this incident, the Supreme Federal Tribunal levied charges of tax evasion and money laundering on the former militant, followed by a warrant. During his campaign for the presidential elections last year, President Bolsonaro promised to extradite Battisti "immediately" to Italy. According to Brazilian police sources, the 64-year-old Italian fugitive was reportedly arrested in Santa Cruz de la Sierra in Bolivia. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be witnessing a major joint exercise involving the Army, Navy and the Air Force along with the Coast Guard in the Andaman and Nicobar island territory involving the Marine Commandos (MARCOS) during her two-day trip to the strategic archipelago, starting Sunday. The Minister is scheduled to reach Port Blair on Sunday, where the country's only tri-Services operational command formation Andaman and Nicobar Command would showcase their operational capabilities. During the operational demonstration to the Defence Minister planned at the Anderson Bay island, the Andaman and Nicobar Command will carry out a drill where the three Services- Army, Navy and Air Force-will carry out a mission along with the Coast Guard, to show the unity among services on ground, Defence Ministry officials said. The Army, which has a brigade strength (around 3,000 troops) deployed in the Andaman, would also be showcasing its ability to carry out amphibious warfare operations. During the drills, Army troops are carried on the naval ships to take back any island perceived to have been taken over by the armed anti- elements. The Air Force and the Coast Guard also play a role in carrying out these operations. The Marine Commandos of the Navy and the Ghatak troops of the Army battalions launch attacks on their targets after slithering down from the Mi-17 helicopters. In the drills planned after the commandos clear the base for the arrival of amphibious ships, the Landing Crafts of the Navy carrying BMP infantry combat vehicles would ferry infantry soldiers to the shore to capture their objectives. The Coast Guard helicopters would also showcase their search and rescue capabilities during the exercise. During her visit, Defence Minister Sitharaman would also be inaugurating a housing complex for defence forces personnel under the Married Accommodation Project of the Central government. The Minister would also be reviewing a jungle survivor drill to be shown by the troops deployed there. For long, India has been developing its military capabilities in the Andaman Islands in a big way by establishing a troop services command there. The strategic archipelago is very close to the mouth of the Malacca straits which is used by almost 70 per cent of the merchant traffic going towards China and other destinations. The Chinese Navy also uses the same route to enter the Indian Ocean Region. India would be getting a fourth major airfield in the Andamans as INS Kohasa would be inaugurated by Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba near Diglipur island north of Port Blair. The southern-most airfield INS Baaz can operate fighter aircraft which can, if required, carry out operations near the Malacca Straits in almost no time. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress party will contest all 80 Lok Sabha seats at stake in Uttar Pradesh in the coming General Elections, the party veteran and Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said here on Sunday. Talking to media persons, Azad, also the party's in-charge for UP affairs, said: "We will fight on all 80 seats of Uttar Pradesh in the coming Lok Sabha elections. We are fully prepared. And just like the Congress emerged number one party in Uttar Pradesh in 2009 Lok Sabha elections, we will fight on our own and win twice those number of seats in the upcoming elections." "We did not break this alliance. The public should know that. We had earlier also said that we are ready to walk with every party that wants to defeat the BJP. But we cannot force anyone. They have (SP-BSP) closed this chapter. So we will continue this fight for defeating the BJP on our own," he said further. UPCC chief Raj Babbar was also present on the occasion. Azad's announcement comes close on the heels of Congress president Rahul Gandhi's statement during a media conference in Dubai on Saturday that his party would contest the coming Lok Sabha elections with "full force" in Uttar Pradesh. Rahul's comment had come hours after the SP and the BSP announced a tie-up to take on the BJP in Uttar Pradesh in 2019 General Elections. "The Congress party has tremendous to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh. I have tremendous respect to the leaders of BSP and SP. They have a right to do what they want to do. The BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," Rahul had told media in Dubai on Saturday. As per the alliance, the SP and the BSP will contest on 38 seats each, while they will not field their candidate against Congress president Rahul Gandhi in Amethi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli. They have also kept two seats for the smaller parties. During the press conference to announce the alliance in Lucknow on Saturday, Mayawati said that neither the SP nor the BSP would benefit by allying with the Congress. She also said that there was not much difference between the Congress and the BJP. "Many a time, we have seen similarities between the Congress and the BJP. For example, in the defence sector, we are seeing how both indulged in corruption (Bofors and Rafale). Congress imposed declared emergency. Today there is an undeclared emergency," she said. "Most sections of the society including scheduled castes, farmers, and the poor were unhappy with the Congress' rule. Whether the mandate goes to the Congress or the BJP, it is one and the same thing," she said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The U.S. ambassador to Germany has warned companies involved in the construction of the Russian-led Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline that they could face sanctions if they stick to the project, a senior U.S. official said on Sunday. U.S. President Donald Trump has accused Germany of being a "captive" of Moscow due to its reliance on Russian energy and urged it to halt work on the $11 billion gas pipeline. The pipeline, which would carry gas straight to Germany under the Baltic Sea, is driving a wedge between Germany and its allies as it would deprive Ukraine of the ... Saudi Arabia plans to set up a $10 billion oil refinery in Pakistan's deepwater port of Gwadar, the Saudi energy minister said on Saturday, speaking at the Indian Ocean port that is being developed with the help of China. Pakistan wants to attract investment and other financial support to tackle a soaring current account deficit caused partly by rising oil prices. Last year, Saudi Arabia offered Pakistan a $6 billion package that included help to finance crude imports. "Saudi Arabia wants to make Pakistan's economic development stable through establishing an oil ... is in the process of developing a pipeline of products under its new programme to treat various like and metabolic disorders, a top company official said. The company, which last month inked a partnership with global pharma company AbbVie for the development and commercialisation of its novel oncology drug to treat hematological cancers, is focussing on first-to-market kind of opportunities with its new products. "The Novel and Development (NDDD) is focused and committed on developing a pipeline of highly differentiated and innovative new chemical entities in various therapeutic areas like oncology, immunology and metabolic disorders," NDDD Raj Kamboj told When asked about company's ambitions from the programme over the next two-three years, he said, " will focus NDDD activities to advance pipeline programs where there are first-to-market and/or best-in-class opportunities. Emphasis will be stressed on designing compounds that are differentiated in their respective class. This in turn will create attractive partnering opportunities." Sharing details, Kamboj said the Mumbai-based company is currently working on developing various products, including two major ones to treat chronic kidney and Lupin currently utilises its Pune-based research and development centre for NDDD programme. Last month, AbbVie licensed Lupin's MALT1 (Mucosa-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma Translocation Protein1) inhibitor programme. Through this partnership, AbbVie gains exclusive global rights to develop and commercialise MALT1 inhibitors. Under the terms of the agreement with AbbVie, Lupin is entitled for an upfront payment of USD 30 million. Upon successful completion of regulatory, development and commercial milestones, the company is eligible to receive total milestone payments of up to USD 947 million. Additionally, Lupin will be entitled to receive a double-digit royalty on the sales of the product and will retain commercial rights to the programme in India, the company added. "The deal with AbbVie is a tribute to the outstanding scientific and technical progress that NDDD has been able to achieve," Kamboj said. Buhay Party-list Rep. Lito Atienza has accused lawmakers supporting the legalization of medical marijuana as being eager to go into the business of cultivating the illegal drug and running dispensaries. There are politicians who want to profit from legalized medical marijuana. This is clearly all about moneylots of money, the House senior deputy minority leader said. Atienza claimed a number of pro-medical marijuana legalization members of Congress have actually gone on field trips to Canada and America to look into the operations of dispensaries there. Palace spokesman Salvador Panelo earlier said that President Rodrigo Duterte would sign into law any bill legalizing medical marijuana. Atienza, however, insisted that no such bill would arrive at the Palace for the President to sign. The bill legalizing medical marijuana is already dead as far as this Congress is concerned, Atienza said, adding the House minority prevented further floor deliberation on the measure. The current Congress has only 20 session days left, and most of these days are expected to be spent on passing the proposed 2019 national budget, he said. Atienza warned the legalization of medical marijuana would open the floodgates to abuse and addiction and create an unwanted public health emergency in the country.He said the susceptibility to abuse far outweighs any and all of the unproven benefits of allowing prescription marijuana. Marijuana is a poison. No amount of sugar-coating will make the illegal drug less toxic, Atienza said. The Philippine Medical Association, the professional organization of Filipino physicians, has rejected the legalization of medical marijuana. At present, marijuana is tagged as a prohibited substance, just like shabu, cocaine and heroin, under the Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. Under the law, mere possession of at least 500 grams of marijuana, or at least 10 grams of marijuana concentrate (resin or resin oil), is punishable by life in prison plus a fine of up to P10 million. Carrying lesser quantities of the drug is punishable by 12 to 20 years in prison plus a fine of up to P500,000. Amid stress in the power sector, woes of generating firms have increased further as their outstanding dues on state distribution companies (discoms) rose to Rs 39,498 crore in October 2018, up 24.7 per cent from a year-ago levels, official data showed. "If the outstanding dues on of the past 60 days get added, the figures would rise to over Rs 50,000 crore," a senior official of a thermal power company said. In October 2017, the discoms' dues to power-producing companies stood at Rs 31,676 crore, the data available on the PRAAPTI (Payment Ratification And Analysis in Power Procurement for Bringing Transparency in Invoicing of Generators) website showed. The website was launched by the government in May last year to bring transparency in payments. of (UP), Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and owe the major portion of dues to the power generating companies and take over 514 days or about 1 year and 4 months to make payments, the portal showed. While UP tops the list with 537 days in making payments, takes 519 days and is followed by (518 days), (517 days), (516 days), (515 days), (514 days) and (514 days). Outstandings of public sector thermal power companies amount to over 55 per cent of the total dues of Rs 39,498 crore on This includes outstanding of NTPC at Rs 15,661.31 crore, NHPC at Rs 3,011.67 crore and Damodar Valley Corporation at Rs 1990.59 crore. Discoms owe the most to at Rs 6,878.94 crore, Bajaj Group-owned Lalitpur Power Generation Company Ltd at Rs 1,861 crore, GMR at Rs 1630.40 and Energy at Rs 1,712.32 crore among the private generators. Senior officials of thermal power generation firms said: "Such staggering levels of unpaid bills have left private sector companies worried. While the issue of 30,000 MW stressed assets are yet to be resolved, this alarming level of unpaid bills have started impacting cashflows of many companies." Citing reports, they added that recently Lalitpur Power Generation Company faced issues in paying salaries to its nearly 3,000 staff and meeting their operations and maintenance requirements. The officials added that accepting the recommendations of the P K Sinha-headed High Level Empowered Committee would lead to resolving most of the issues of the power sector, particularly the bill discounting mechanism that has the potential to resolve the issue of unpaid bills forever. The Sinha Committee had recommended that public finance institutions (PFIs), such as REC and PFC, may discount the receivables from discoms and make an upfront payment to the generators. Against that, the PFIs will realise their dues from the discoms in due course of time and charge interest for the period of delay in payment by the discoms. In the case of a default by discoms, the PFIs be covered with a tripartite agreement with the and the states, where the RBI can deduct the money directly from the accounts of a state and pay the financial institution. The officials said NTPC has a similar mechanism with the states and the RBI against default by a discom and therefore, the discoms and states should not have any issue in accepting the recommendations on the bill discounting mechanism. The government has constituted a Group of Ministers headed by Finance Minister to vet the recommendations of the Sinha Committee. The government has proposed to cap the number of take-off and landing slots an airline can hold in congested airports. The move, which could turn out to be controversial, is meant to check monopolistic growth of airlines. This comes after rival carriers accused IndiGo the largest Indian airline by market share of using its dominant position to control pricing in the market. According to the plan, an upper limit cap will be set for the percentage of slots an individual airline can hold in any congested airport. If the threshold is reached, the particular airline will be ... A Nepalese non-governmental organisation has launched a signature campaign demanding the return of territory that lost to British through the historic Sugauli Treaty of 1815. The campaign was initiated here by the Greater Nationalist Front on Friday coinciding with Unity Day, according to 'The Rising Nepal', a government-owned daily. Signatures will be collected from within and outside the country, and the campaign will continue until coming mid-April, according to the front's chairman Fanindra Nepalese territories including Darjeeling were handed to the British East Company as concessions under the treaty which was signed in 1816 on the conclusion of the Anglo-Nepalese War. Under the treaty, Nepalese-controlled territory that was ceded included all areas that the king of Nepal had won in earlier wars such as the kingdom of in the east and Kumaon and Garhwal in the west. The signatures collected will be handed over to the Nepal president, UN secretary general, the five members of the UN Security Council, and to the SAARC secretary general, according to the report. A month after 15 miners were trapped in a coal mine, search operations for which is still underway, a three-member committee of the Green Tribunal (NGT) has asked the Police to investigate into nearly 1200 cases of illegal quarrying across the state. The green tribunal had imposed a blanket ban on and in in 2014, citing unscientific methods and absence of safety measures. The three-member NGT committee, constituted in August last year, is currently studying the environmental aspects of rat-hole in the state. An official said the police have been told that their probe should reach a logical conclusion after taking into account all 1200 cases of illegal rat-hole in East Garo Hills, South-West Khasi Hills and West and East Jaintia Hills districts. Rat-hole mining involves digging of narrow tunnels, usually 3-4 feet high, for workers to enter and extract coal. The horizontal tunnels are often termed "rat-holes", as each just about fits one person. On December 13, water from nearby Lytein river flooded a network of tunnels in a coal mine in Lumthari village of East Jaintia Hills, trapping 15 men and prompting a rescue attempt that has failed to yield any result so far. That mining goes on unabated in the state can be gauged from the fact that heaps of freshly dug coal is dumped on both sides of the road that approaches Lumthari from Khliehriat, the district headquarters of East Jaintia Hills. Meanwhile, official sources said the NGT committee, which has sought police investigation into the registered cases of illegal mining, is set to visit the state by January-end. The committee, headed by retired judge Justice (Retd) B P Katakey, will conduct a field visit to South Garo Hills on January 30-31 to study the ground-level situation, they said. Katakey told that 98 cases of illegal quarrying have been registered in East Jaintia Hills district alone since the ban. The committee, after a thorough study, will prepare a report and present it before the tribunal by March 31, he said. "We have directed investigation into nearly 1200 cases of and of coal since the 2014 ban. In East Jaintia Hills, the SP has been asked to submit a report at the earliest in connection with the 98 cases recorded in the district," Katakey added. An official in the state mining and geology department said does not maintain statistics on mining and mishaps. "As there is no study or statistics on the prevalence of mining in the state, the three-member NGT panel has asked district deputy commissioners to furnish all available data in connection with the illegal practices," he added. Delhi was the most unsafe among 19 major cities, accounting for nearly 40 per cent of rapes , 33 per cent of crimes against women and the highest crime rate in 2016, according to the National Crime Records Bureau data. It got the dubious distinction of topping the list in cases of murder, abduction, juveniles in conflict and economic offences for that year. But no longer. Crime rates in the city are falling. A total of 236,476 cases were registered in 2018, with an increase in the number of murders (3.25 per cent) and thefts (7.7 per cent), particularly of vehicles (12.98 per ... Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc. put on hold the development of a 660-megawatt coal-fired power project in Redondo Peninsula, Subic, Zambales because of construction and power supply agreement issues, a top executive said over the weekend. RP Energy is a joint venture among Meralco PowerGen Corp., Therma Power Inc. of the Aboitiz Group and Taiwan Cogeneration International Corp. RP Energy issued a limited notice to proceed to the EPC [engineering, procurement and construction], but we discovered we had problems with the slope, with the site and to mitigate, to fix the site, would require the site to be stable. The board decided to hold development and with that the limited notice to proceed was also cancelled on the EPC, Aboitiz Power chief operating officer Manny Rubio said. This was before. Now, we are looking for alternatives, and based on the decision, we will make a decision should we actually proceed. Again, conditional to the condition of the site. Its a construction issue, something that was not foreseen by RP Energy, Rubio said. Rubio said the technical problem involved instability in one of the slopes which needed to be addressed. We really have to find a solution on that one. At the moment, its Meralco looking at a way to manage the movement. A number of [technologies are available], but given that the contracts are actually pending in court, I think we will make a decision also once we have clarity on the decision on the contract, he said. RP Energy earlier tapped Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co., Ltd. as its EPC contractor.RP Energy signed a power service agreement with Meralco for a contracted capacity of 225 MW within a 20-year term on April 20, 2016. The PSA was filed for approval with the Energy Regulatory Commission on April 29, 2016. Public hearings were subsequently held and were concluded on Jan. 6, 2017, but the application was still pending with the ERC. RP Energy and Meralco agreed to extend the date of the PSA for a period of 12 months or from April 29, 2018 to April 29, 2019. If the ERC does not approve the PSA by April 29, 2019, RP Energy would then have the option to terminate the PSA. To date, RP Energy is still awaiting the ERCs approval of its PSA, Aboitiz Power said in a previous disclosure to the stock exchange. RP Energys construction was previously delayed by the issuance of a writ of Kalikasan against the project, which has since been resolved. Emergency services at Hospital here were affected on Sunday as the resident doctors stayed away from work alleging one of their colleagues was manhandled by a Police head constable's son who had come for treatment. According to police, son of Head Constable Vinod -- who is posted at Enclave police station, (24), was taken to the hospital on Sunday morning after he complained of abdominal An argument broke out between Akshay and the doctor on duty over the former allegedly not being given priority and subsequent delay in treatment, a senior police officer said. Enraged, Akshay punched the doctor, who sustained injuries on his nose. The accused fled from the hospital soon after the incident, he said. A member of Resident Doctors Association (RDA) said the doctor on emergency duty tried to relieve the patient's but it did not subside. "While the resident doctor on duty was filling up a form so that the patient could undergo an ultrasound, the latter started hurling abuses," a senior doctor said. The doctor on duty fell unconscious after he was attacked and suffered a broken nose, he said. "The resident doctor is under observation. We have lodged an FIR in the case," he added. Police said Head Constable Vijay and constable on duty, who was also present at the time of incident, have been transferred to District Lines. An enquiry has been ordered into the incident and the role of duty constable in instigating the accused is also being probed, they said. Meanwhile, patients coming to Hospital faced a tough time. The faculty and the paramedical staff managed the Emergency at the state-run hospital on Sunday. The resident doctors held a protest and demanded that security at the hospital premises be beefed up. They have also threatened to go on indefinite strike from Monday if their demand is not fulfilled. Amid a row over the ouster of director Alok Verma, Sunday sought "immediate removal" of the chief vigilance commissioner, alleging the government had made him act like a "puppet" to "escape a probe" into the Rafale deal. There was no immediate reaction from the Central Vigilance Commission or the government on the charge. "We seek the removal, the departure, the exit of the collaborator for violating the Constitution -- the CVC (chief vigilance commissioner). He must go. It is irrelevant whether he resigns or is sacked, but he must go," spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said at a press conference at the AICC headquarters here. The alleged that CVC K V Chowdary is being made to "act like a puppet" to avoid any probe into the Rafale case. "Till now, we have been told that only the was the 'caged parrot' but we are now seeing a new 'vigilant' slave of the government, a collaborator for violating the constitution of the Central Vigilance Commission," the Congress spokesperson alleged, taking a swipe at the Modi government. Verma was Thursday removed unceremoniously as the director after a high-powered panel led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi found that he had not been functioning with integrity expected of him. "The CVC has been acting like an ambassador for Asthana (CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana), lobbying for Asthana, and acting as an agent and messenger for the government, to do their hatchet jobs," Singhvi alleged. The vigilance commissioner has forgotten that he is supposed to do vigilance for public interest, and not be a "vigilant puppet in the hands of political masters", he said. The senior Congress leader said, he was putting forth the views of his party, based on "objectives facts" that has emerged in the press in connection with the CBI controversy. These facts are in the public domain and "viable", he said, claiming these "can't be denied nor have been denied". "The data and facts in writing demand an immediate action and that action must start with the removal and sacking of the CVC. The sequence of events indicate that the CVC acted like a hatchet man of the government," Singhvi alleged. Now, the question arises as to why the commissioner acted like this and "at whose behest" he was doing it, he asked. "The answer is self-evident, and none except the top two people in this country, who rule this country dictatorially, can claim the power to treat and make the CVC act like a puppet. These master puppeteers can be doing this to hide something, to hide something like Rafale," Singhvi alleged. The government has repeatedly denied all charges levelled by the Congress in connection with the Rafale deal. "Only Rafale (issue) can make them try to make the CVC act like a puppet," he alleged. Singhvi on Saturday had alleged that the government stood exposed after Justice (retired) A K Patnaik claimed that he had not seen the commission's recommendations against Verma and not accorded his assent. He said the selection committee removed Verma based on Asthana's charges, whose plea to quash the FIR against him was dismissed by the Delhi High Court. The senior Congress leader Sunday claimed that one of the "objective facts" that has emerged in public domain is that "Verma had written in great details that the CVC was backing entirely for Asthana". The CVC has forgotten that he has to be "vigilant for public interest, for the nation and not for Asthana or his masters", Singhvi said. "It is clear that to escape any probe into the Rafale case, they made the CVC into a puppet (Rafale ke jaanch se bachne ke liye chowkidar ne CVC ko kathputli bana diya)," he alleged. He said if the prime minister or his government has even an "iota of shame" left, then the CVC should be sacked, removed or tender his resignation. "In Ramlila Maidan (event), Modi spoke about lofty ideas and truthfulness. Maryada Puroshottam Ram is a symbol of truthfulness. If Modi doesn't remove the CVC, his complete truth and lie will come in front of the public," he said. Singhvi alleged that the shoulder of the CVC was "first lent by the CVC, happily and willingly, and then used by the government to fire bullets. Health-tech platform is planning to expand its presence in the retail pharmacy segment by opening around 750 pharmacies across the country in two years, a top company official said. The company, which is a leading player in the online pharmacy segment, is mainly looking at acquisitions to achieve the target. "We have started the omnichannel where we are now looking at active acquisitions of offline retail chains. We want to open close to 750 retail pharmacies in two years, by end of 2020," Founder and CEO Tushar Kumar told PTI. These stores will act both as offline pharmacies and also as well as hyper local centres for last mile delivery of medicines, he added. On being asked how the company plans to fund the acquisitions, Kumar said, "We have earmarked around Rs 250 crore for the acquisitions. This would be raised through internal accruals and we also have commitment from the Alkem Family Trust." The company is targeting pharmacy chains in the country for the acquisitions, he added. The company is also looking at operating hospital OPD pharmacies and as part of this endeavour going forward, the pharmacies in will be managed by us, Kumar said. is currently present in around 21 cities with 50 licensed pharmacies (fulfilment centres), through which it dispenses medicines for the orders it receives online. On the growth of fulfilment centres, Kumar said, "We want to expand our presence to 50 cities from present 21 where we are operating and will be adding 60 more fulfilment centres in the coming fiscal year." The new locations will be mainly tier II cities such as Indore, Chandigarh, Mangalore, Durgapur, Howrah, Surat, Nagpur and Kanpur among others, he added. Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance. We, however, have a request. As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed. Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard. Digital Editor The Misinformation Age How False Beliefs Spread Cailin OConnor and James Owen Weatherall Yale University Press 266 pages; $26 Down to Earth Politics in the New Climatic Regime Bruno Latour Translated from the French by Catherine Porter Polity; 128 pages; $14.95 Alternative facts: The term manages to be tedious, ridiculous and perilous at once a real sign of the times. For anyone who doesnt remember, Kellyanne Conway introduced it in early 2017 to defend the White Houses falsehoods about attendance numbers at Donald ... The filing for corporate rehabilitation by shipbuilder Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Company Philippines will hurt local banks with exposure to the company and the banks involved should work together to address the problem, Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III said over the weekend. We have to address it. There are assets to be had. Well, this is a difficult problem to be worked through by the banks, Dominguez said in an interview. Its going to hurt, but its certainly not going to end up hampering them, but its going to hurt... But its still early days. The banks have agreed to work together and see how we can move forward from here, he said. Dominguez said one thing the banks should consider is the prospects for the shipbuilding industry. The real important thing is what are the prospects in that industry? Are there good prospects in the industry? he said. When asked if the Finance Department was ready to mediate, Dominguez said: We dont know yet. Were not the lead bank. The lead bank is RCBC [Rizal Commercial Banking Corp.]. We will work along with all the other banks. Dominguez is also the chairman of state-owned Land Bank of the Philippines which also has exposure to Hanjin. LBP president and chief executive Alex Buenaventura said the bank had an $85-million exposure to Hanjin, contrary to earlier reports of $80 million. Well have to address the problem. But the good news is we can recover the assets. The shipyard is worth $1.2 billion and the total exposure of the creditors is less than $400 million. Down the road, we hope to recover our exposure, Buenaventura said. Buenaventura expressed optimism on the shipping industry, saying shipbuilding supports global development. But the global economy is improving. Theres a lot of moving goods through ships..., he said.Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo also downplayed any significant impact to the banking industry of the reported loan exposures of some banks to Hanjin that filed for corporate rehabilitation at the Olongapo Regional Trial Court. Guinigundo said banks exposures were very negligible. We received report that Hanjin filed for corporate rehabilitation at the Olongapo Regional Trial Court on Jan.8, 2019. Beyond this, it would be most premature for the BSP to comment on a matter pending with the court, Guinigundo said. Based on our initial assessment, some banks are exposed to Hanjin but relative to both total loans of the banking system and total FCDU [foreign currency deposit unit] loans of the banking system, their exposure is very negligible, he said. He said Philippine banks as a whole were very strong and more than adequately capitalized. Banks assets continued to grow and the quality of their loans based on non-performing loan ratio was less than 2 percent. The banks in compliance with the BSPs regulations have risk management systems in place. They are very liquid and their profitability has been sustained. Their loan loss provisions is more than a hundred percent, Guinigundo said. Reports on ABS-CBN said that five universal and commercial banksRCBC, Land Bank of the Philippines, Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co., Bank of the Philippine Islands and BDO Unibank Inc were seeking to recover some $412 million in combined loans to Hanjin and were looking at all kinds of alternatives, including talking to strategic investors. BPI president Cezar Consing said the banks were in close contact with one another will do whats best for the banking industry and for the country. This is something that the banks can handle. We have provisions for this sort of thing, Consing told ANC. Waukegan, Illinois: Prosecutors will seek a life sentence for a suburban Chicago man accused of beating a 4-year-old girl to death after she spilled juice on an Xbox video console. Microsoft's Xbox One controller. Prosecutors said "heinous" circumstances justify the sentence for 19-year-old Johnathan Fair, of Waukegan, if he is eventually convicted of first-degree murder in the death of his girlfriend's daughter, Skylar Mendez, the Chicago Tribune reported. Fair was babysitting Skylar on December 13 at a Waukegan apartment when she was fatally injured. He brought her to a hospital after she lost consciousness and initially claimed she'd fallen. She died a few days later at a Chicago hospital following surgery doctors had hoped would relieve swelling of her brain, the Lake County State's Attorney's Office said. More than 13 million animals were used for scientific research, testing and teaching in Queensland last year. That was a staggering 194 per cent increase on the previous year, when 4.52 million animals were used. Poultry, such as chickens, were the most common animal to be used for scientific purposes in Queensland last year. Credit:AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall Poultry made up the biggest group of animals used for scientific purposes in 2017-18, with more than 12 million, followed by almost half a million "other native mammals", which included flying foxes and bandicoots. Turtles, cattle, kangaroos, rabbits, dogs, whales and dolphins, possums, pigs, cats, koalas, mice and wombats were also used. Triffitt says progressive as a political brand has been traditionally owned by the left side of politics, which links progress to advancing major social reforms such as human rights and equal opportunity. But progress is in the eye on the beholder one partys progressive policy can be often seen as a backward step by someone on the other side of the political fence, he says. Political conservatives would argue they are being progressive if they are cutting taxes or red tape for business. As with many terms in politics, progressive can be understood in a variety of ways, according to Nicholas Barry, a lecturer in politics at LaTrobe University. But he says the term generally describes voters, parties and politicians who support a reformist position on social issues - such as support for same-sex marriage and opposition to the mandatory detention of asylum seekers - and the need to take action to address climate change. If it is extended to the economic sphere, to be progressive usually means to be broadly supportive of government intervention in the market, the need for a strong welfare state, and the need for strong public investment in education, infrastructure and public transport, Barry says. As this all suggests, though, the phrase usually connotes a moderately reformist political position rather than a radical one. Yet considerable tension exists within both major parties over these issues. Andy Marks, an assistant vice-chancellor at Western Sydney University, is sceptical about the major parties' claims to be progressive. Stable party beliefs and fixed ideological positions had, to some extent, given way to issues-based, expedient politics, he says. Loading We now have a Liberal government that yearns for state-funded coal-fired power stations and a Labor party scrambling to surrender clean energy generation to market mechanisms, he says. Were not necessarily seeing a leaning towards more progressive policies - both major parties still support offshore detention, both have failed to meaningfully redress Indigenous inequity, and both are yet to arrest declining educational outcomes in Australian schools. Marks also cast doubt on whether voters were favouring more progressive policies. Labors ascendancy is significantly bolstered by the inability of the Coalition to cohesively reclaim the centre-right, rather than a notable shift towards more progressive voter sentiment, he said. One Nations re-emergence puts pay to that thesis. New Zealand, on the other hand, has most certainly entered a progressive phase under Jacinda Ardern, with mainstream support for policies like free tertiary education now clearly consolidated. On economic questions, Barry says voters have never been strongly supportive of major free market economic reform: Although in recent times, there does seem to have been increased support for spending on infrastructure and concern at poor job insecurity and low wage growth. He also says the 2016 Australian Election Study showed a significant increase in the number of Australians concerned that big business had too much power. Politics aside, Melburnians seem to think of themselves as progressive in other ways. Panellists at the 2019 Melbourne Insights conference seemed to wholeheartedly agree the city was Australias most progressively city because of its embrace of the arts and creativity. Seb Chan, the chief experiences officer at the Australian Centre for the Moving Image asked: The idea that you would have a national museum of film, TV and video games, where else in Australia, let alone the world, would you find that? The contest between Melbourne and Sydney is never-ending, although it would appear the Victorian capital is winning the culture war when it comes to live music, nightlife and support for the arts. Professor James Arvanitakis from the Institute of Culture and Society at Western Sydney University says Melbourne had a reputation and perception, mostly deserved, of better funding for schools and hospitals as well as cultural institutions. Loading But he cautions against a blanket statement that Melbourne was more progressive than Sydney: I think there are some very progressive sections of the Victorian community. We see this in the support for Adam Bandt. The difference I think is that there are more clustered and as a result, can have a higher profile. Former prime minister John Howard labelled Victoria "the Massachusetts of Australia" after that states election - a reference to the reliably Democratic-voting state in the US north-east that was a stronghold of the Kennedy political dynasty. Barry says there was a mix of voters - progressive and conservative, radical and disengaged - in every Australian state and city: And levels of support for the major parties dont vary radically state to state, so its important not to exaggerate the differences between them. The major parties have assigned close to 300 operatives to the upcoming federal election campaign, with infrastructure, advertising and personnel already in place for whenever Prime Minister Scott Morrison calls the poll. Labor is about to marshal its campaign squad of about 180 at its Parramatta headquarters for another training and simulation day before Parliament returns in February. The party held its first campaign trial back in August to test IT systems, allocate desks and identify logistical gaps, and plans to move into the office space right after the April budget. It is now less than 18 weeks until the election, expected to be on May 11 or May 18. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen After many years of basing its campaign in Melbourne - and a controversial decision to run the show from Canberra in 2016 - the Coalition will move its HQ to Brisbane. Queensland is the key battleground state in this election and the government needs to hold marginal seats there. Opposition Leader Bill Shorten will start a quasi campaign aboard the "Bill Bus" at the end of this week, touring the Queensland coast just as Mr Morrison did last year - though sources stressed Mr Shorten would travel by bus the entire time. Pademelons and goannas are being hunted and killed with what is believed to be a crossbow at Mount Glorious, about 40 kilometres north-west of Brisbane. A goanna was found with a crossbow bolt stuck in its body on Alex Road at Mt Glorious, struggling to survive before it took its last breath on Saturday afternoon. Police are investigating reports of wild animals being shot on Mt Glorious. This follows the deaths of at least five pademelons in the area, which were found with large holes through their bodies in the past month. An email from the Mt Glorious Community group had circulated among residents to inform them police and the RSPCA were on the case. A bus has crashed into three cars, blocking a major arterial road on Brisbane northside. The Brisbane City Council bus hit the parked cars on Hamilton Road approaching the intersection with Gympie Road in Chermside about 6.15am. The bus crashed into three cars on Hamilton Road near the intersection with Kelso Street. Credit:Mackenzie Ravn - 7 News Brisbane Hamilton Road was closed in both directions between Farnell Street and Gympie Road and police were asking motorists to avoid the area. The bus driver, a man in his 50s, was believed to have suffered a medical episode behind the wheel and was taken to the Royal Brisbane and Womens Hospital in a stable condition, according to the Queensland Ambulance Service. The family of the latest young person to die of a suspected overdose at a music festival has pleaded with NSW Premer Gladys Berejiklian to show ''strong leadership'' and introduce pill testing. Central Coast teenager Alex Ross-King, 19, died after taking a suspected dose of pills at the FOMO festival in Parramatta at the weekend. Ms Ross-King is the fifth young person to die at a music festival in recent months. Credit:Facebook Family members of the teenager have pleaded with the government to introduce pill testing in "legacy" of her death, with grandmother Denise Doig worried her granddaughter's death will "just pass by". "Premier, please: can we have this pill testing done. It's such a small thing to do, it's not hard. Let's try and get it out there," Ms Doig told Network Ten on Sunday. "If it saves one life; one life is a life. And these are children." Loading Not making us feel bad about our messes is a huge part of her appeal and hits at the basic truth that no one can learn our lessons for us. What doesn't seem necessary is the pseudo-ritual she's concocted to go along with cleaning, which involves holding each item to see if it brings you a "zing!" of joy (Kondo is at her most animated when describing this zing), then thanking each holey sock and sprung-elastic bathing suit before consigning them to rapidly filling garbage bags. I'm all for gratitude, and I get the notion of revisiting the memory of the great concert you went to as you are bidding fond farewell to the ragged concert T-shirt. Applying that to every item you own seems like a little bit of magical thinking that is bound to ring false when you're looking at your 25th pair of pilled, black underwear. And it's likely to make your cleanup take seven times longer than it needs to. Kondo's theories also hit a snag when it comes to her main sorting criteria. "Does this item spark joy?" is an OK question to ask, but there's also "does this item replicate the 2000 other Christmas nutcrackers in our rumpus room?" and "does this item represent the tipping point into insanity?" Kondo nods at the idea that we'd all be better off with less stuff, but she's most intent on building in a way to let ourselves off the hook when we hang on to too much leaving us to wonder whether some of her subjects are headed for a serious relapse into clutter. (I'd bet on it.) It's quite clear that we're entering a time where there'll be a lot of job disruption because of technology. So you'd think in that framework you'd say, well we need to do everything we can to be the most innovative country we can in the world, says Petre. "Pretty much the government's done everything it can to make us the antithesis of that. Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video In 1988, aged just 29, and with a few years of experience in the computer industry under his belt, Petre was appointed managing director of Microsoft's operations in Australia. Over the next nine years, he rose through the ranks to become one of the companys most senior global executives. After moving to its head office, near Seattle, he was promoted to run Microsofts communications products, including its email service Outlook. He reported directly to its billionaire co-founder, Bill Gates, who to this day remains a personal friend. It was the best working experience of my life bar none, Petre says. And primarily because of Bill Gates. Bill Gates with then Prime Minister Paul Keating and Daniel Petre (far right) Credit:Heide Smith In those days, the desktop computer was still the dominant technological device in most peoples lives, and Microsoft, which made the software that powered the lions share of them, was the worlds most powerful tech company. Petre had a front row seat to this spectacle, and working closely with Gates in his prime was a priceless learning experience. Working with someone like Bill Gates, you learn so much about how to think about business and products and problem-solving," Petre recounts. "So it was an extraordinary experience and stayed with me for the rest of my life. Loading Petre has worked with some high calibre people in his career. He says the best leaders tend to have high intellect, immense curiosity, and elevated levels of self-awareness. None more so than Gates. He doesn't suffer fools gladly, Petre says. By that I mean you can't have random ideas without data. You can have ideas, they've got to be backed up. The second part of that, which was very instructive, was if something went wrong people weren't yelled at. It was, okay, well, what did we get wrong in our execution or what did we get wrong in our planning? It was "not a blame culture, but more a learning culture," he recounts. "That sort of process is something I've tried to take with me in other organisations that I've been involved with. Loading Microsoft in its golden era grew so dominant that regulators in the US attempted to break it up. There are some striking parallels between that period and today, with governments around the world (including in Australia) now grappling with the dominance of two of todays internet giants, Google and Facebook, in the digital advertising market. Petre has been outspoken in warning regulators against overreach in their attempts to regulate the so-called digital duopoly. "I think regulators are struggling to understand how to deal with companies that are being dominant in a space," he says. "I'm not sure the Microsoft case was that fair...today I think there's a similar set of issues that need to be unpacked with a bit more nuance if you look at Google or Facebook." These days, Bill Gates is considered one of the elder statesmen of the global economy. Yet back when Petre was reporting to him, and particularly during its court case with the US government, the billionaire was often depicted as an indignant and ruthless wunderkind. Does Petre see any similarities between Gates and another Harvard drop-out turned software billionaire wunderkind, namely Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg? In short, not really. Well they're obviously both incredibly bright people, he says. I think Bill built a far better company with far less major disasters [for society]" Loading Replay Replay video Play video Play video Also I think Bill, even though he didn't like it, took on board some of the criticisms. Whereas Mark Zuckerberg seems to have taking that early [approach] of, you know, move fast, break things. Which is fine if you're 12 people. If you're the sort of company you are now with two billion consumers, I don't think that approach really works that well. Tragedy brought Petre back to Australia - he returned from the US when his sister was killed in a car accident. But it didnt forestall his career. After some time running Microsofts Asia Pacific operations from Sydney, he decided to change tack and become a venture capitalist. He has subsequently founded and run three technology investment vehicles: ecorp, which was backed by the Packer family; Netus, which was backed by News Corp (and eventually acquired by Fairfax Media) and now AirTree, which counts some of the nations biggest super funds among its investors. The difference I think between the ecorp, Netus and AirTree years is just the cadence of new opportunities, he says. I think we're still punching under our weight in terms of our ability to build scaled technology companies, but we're on the right trajectory. Daniel Petre In the five years of Netuswe probably saw 500 start-ups. We were seeing most of the good ideas. In AirTree we're seeing about 1000 a year. Part of that is because people can develop a start-up a lot more cheaply now. The other side of it though is the rise of higher quality Australian tech entrepreneurs and companies. Atlassian is now a $US20 billion company. Online design software company Canva (which AirTree is invested in) is valued at over $US1 billion and considered one of the most promising tech startups in the world. I think we're coming into our own, Petre says.I think we're still punching under our weight in terms of our ability to build scaled technology companies, but we're on the right trajectory. Loading That this is happening without the kind of support the tech sector, in his eyes, deserves, is all the more remarkable. Australia's approach to skilled immigration, which startups say makes it harder to attract talent in critical roles from offshore, is "appalling, he says. And the encryption legislation is a disaster,. My theory is, no-one will touch it prior to election because no-one wants to be seen to be soft on security, says Petre. But the reality is, it's terrible. It's so far reaching it's going to be incredibly damaging. On top of this, the recent crackdown on R&D grants is misguided, according to Petre. At a time when every country around the world is investing more government dollars and private dollars in R&D, the Australian government took $2.4 billion out of the R&D pile in the federal budget last year , he laments. I mean it's just - it is nearly criminal to at a time when we need to be investing more in breakthrough technology and more in research, we are taking money out. The way they've gone after the start-ups- with the R&D tax refund is madness." Want to praise someone or get something off your chest? Darts and Pats is the place to do it. Julian Castro, a former member of Barack Obama's cabinet, has joined the 2020 presidential race as the rush of Democrats making early moves to challenge Donald Trump accelerates. "I'm running for president because it's time for new leadership, because it's time for new energy and it's time for a new commitment to make sure that the opportunities that I've had are available to every American," Mr Castro told cheering supporters. Mr Castro, who could end up being the only Latino in what is shaping up to be a crowded Democratic field, officially kicked off his campaign with a rally in his home town of San Antonio, where he was mayor for five years. The ex-housing secretary became the second Democrat to formally enter race, after former Maryland representative John Delaney. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts has also started an exploratory committee for president, and four other Democratic senators are taking steady steps toward running. Hawaii Representative Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu elected to Congress, is planning a bid too. Mr Castro, the 44-year-old grandson of a Mexican immigrant, made the campaign announcement at Plaza Guadalupe, less than 200 miles from the US-Mexico border. The impasse over a border wall that Mr Trump made a central promise of his 2016 campaign has led to the longest government shutdown in US history. Joining Mr Castro at the campaign kick-off was his twin brother, Democratic Representative Joaquin Castro, chairman of the Hispanic congressional caucus and a frequent Trump critic. Were going to make sure that the promise of America is available to everyone in this 21st century." Former secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro, a Democrat, announces his 2020 presidential bid in San Antonio, where he served as mayor. https://t.co/hfFA5ElyUk pic.twitter.com/yY4khcWkkg CNN (@CNN) January 12, 2019 The Democratic field is starting to take shape even though the first primary elections are more than a year away. Senator Kamala Harris of California has recently published a memoir, a staple of presidential candidates. Former Texas representative Beto O'Rourke is doing little to dim speculation that he might jump into a field that has no clear front-runner. Mr Castro is aware he lacks the name recognition of potential 2020 rivals or the buzz surrounding Mr O'Rourke, whose flirtations with 2020 have tantalised donors and activists after a close race last year against Senator Ted Cruz. "Together we will show that hope can be bigger than fear, that light can be bigger than darkness, and that truth can be bigger than lies." #Julian2020 Julian Castro (@JulianCastro) January 12, 2019 But Mr Castro, who has repeatedly dismissed talk that an O'Rourke candidacy would complicate his own chances, has framed the neighbourhood and his upbringing as the story of an underdog. Mr Castro was raised by a local Latina activist. After a brief career in law, he was elected mayor of the nation's seventh-largest city at 34. It was not long before Democrats nationally embraced him as a star in the making, particularly one from Texas, where a booming Hispanic population is rapidly changing the state's demographics and improving the party's fortunes. Mr Castro delivered the keynote speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention. Two years later, Mr Obama picked him to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. PA & Digital Desk Yellow Vest protesters say they will not stop until the Taoiseach has resigned and a general election is called. The movement, which has held demonstrations in Dublin every Saturday for the past five weeks, has this weekend staged additional protests in towns and cities around the country. Update - 1pm: A 51-year-old man has been charged with possession of a firearm after he was arrested yesterday as part of a National Crime Agency investigation into the supply of drugs and firearms in Ireland and the UK. Britain's National Crime Agency confirmed that Thomas Kavanagh, with an address in Tamworth, was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to import and supply drugs, firearms and ammunition, as well as money laundering. Mr Kavanagh, who is believed to be a senior figure in the Dublin-based Kinahan crime cartel, was detained as he arrived at Birmingham Airport yesterday morning. NCA officers, supported by colleagues from An Garda Siochana and Staffordshire Police, conducted a number of searches. They recovered a combination torch and stun gun, which is illegal to own and possess in the UK. Mr Kavanagh was remanded in custody overnight and will appear at North Staffordshire Magistrates court tomorrow. A 20-year old man, who was arrested at the airport, has been released under investigation. A third man, aged 19, was also arrested but has been released under investigation. Update - 10.30am: British police questioning senior Kinahan figure after arrest A 51-year-old man is still being questioned by British police as part of an investigation into the supply of drugs and firearms in Ireland and the UK. The man, who is believed to be a senior figure in the Kinahan crime cartel, was arrested along with another 20-year-old man at Birmingham Airport yesterday morning. The younger man, who is understood to be the elder man's son, has since been released on police bail. The 51-year-old was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to import and supply drugs, firearms and ammunition, as well as money laundering offences. The pair were arrested yesterday as part of an operation by Britain's National Crime Agency which was supported by the gardai and other international policing partners. Earlier: Senior Kinahan figure one of two men arrested in the UK UK police are questioning two men as part of a joint operation into the supply of drugs and firearms in Ireland and the UK. The operation, which is supported by the gardai and other international policing partners, is said to be a major blow for organised crime gangs in Dublin. One of the men is believed to be a senior figure in the Kinahan crime gang. A number of searches were conducted at premises in the Staffordshire area following the arrest of the men on their arrival at Birmingham Airport yesterday morning. The pair, aged 51 and 20, who both have an address in Staffordshire, are being questioned as part of a joint Irish/UK investigation into the activities of an organised crime network alleged to be involved in the supply of drugs and firearms in Ireland and the UK. The 51-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to import and supply drugs, firearms and ammunition, as well as money laundering offences. The 20-year-old was arrested on suspicion of money laundering offences. The men are being questioned at a police station in Staffordshire. A spokesperson for Britain's National Crime Agency said: A 51-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to import and supply drugs, firearms and ammunition, as well as money laundering offences on arrival at Birmingham Airport this morning. At the same location a second man, aged 20, was arrested on suspicion of money laundering offences. NCA officers, supported by colleagues from Staffordshire Police, are also searching a property in the Tamworth area and a business premises in Birmingham. The arrest and searches are part of an investigation into the activities of an organised crime network alleged to be involved in the supply of drugs and firearms. Username: Password: or Register Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread Thread Rating: 0 Vote(s) - 0 Average 1 2 3 4 5 Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 482539 01-13-2019 05:01 PM Post: #1 Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Advertisement SAO PAULO, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Brazil's government on Saturday issued a statement saying it recognized Venezuela's Congressional leader, who opposes President Nicolas Maduro, as the rightful president of Venezuela. Maduro, who started a second term as president this week, has found himself increasingly isolated as countries around the world have called his continued leadership illegitimate. Juan Guaido, the head of Venezuela's opposition-led Congress, said this week he was prepared to assume the country's presidency on an interim basis and call elections. (Reporting by Marcelo Rochabrun Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) http://news.trust.org/item/20190112140040-1djls This Juan Guaido guy is a mason. Most likely why he is getting all the popular back up from the OEA, The Lima group, and The US, amongts other countries like Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Peru, and many others. He will be Venezuelas Interin President, and if they hold elections in 30 days, he will become Venezuelas President. Another elite puppet.SAO PAULO, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Brazil's government on Saturday issued a statement saying it recognized Venezuela's Congressional leader, who opposes President Nicolas Maduro, as the rightful president of Venezuela.Maduro, who started a second term as president this week, has found himself increasingly isolated as countries around the world have called his continued leadership illegitimate.Juan Guaido, the head of Venezuela's opposition-led Congress, said this week he was prepared to assume the country's presidency on an interim basis and call elections. (Reporting by Marcelo Rochabrun Editing by Chizu Nomiyama) LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 471605 01-13-2019 05:02 PM Post: #2 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Grand... LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 482539 01-13-2019 05:02 PM Post: #3 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president The United States, which has sanctioned Venezuelan officials and entities, hailed the legislature as "the only legitimate and last remaining democratically elected institution" in the country. "We reaffirm the illegitimacy of Nicolas Maduro," the assembly's new president Juan Guaido said after being sworn in at the start of a new legislative session. "As of January 10, he will be usurping the presidency and consequently this National Assembly is the only legitimate representative of the people." Maduro, who has presided over a virtual collapse of the economy in the once-rich OPEC member state, is set to be sworn in on Thursday for a second six-year term after elections widely condemned by the international community. The ballot, on May 20, was boycotted by most of the opposition. On Friday, foreign ministers from 12 Latin American countries and Canada announced in Lima that their governments would not recognize Maduro as president if he attempts to remain in office and urged him to turn over power to the National Assembly. The Maduro government accused the so-called Lima Group of "encouraging a coup d'etat" on instructions from Washington. Mexico, which is a member of the group, withheld its support for the statement. https://www.france24.com/en/20190106-ven...tle-maduro Venezuela's congress names new leader, vows to battle MaduroThe United States, which has sanctioned Venezuelan officials and entities, hailed the legislature as "the only legitimate and last remaining democratically elected institution" in the country."We reaffirm the illegitimacy of Nicolas Maduro," the assembly's new president Juan Guaido said after being sworn in at the start of a new legislative session."As of January 10, he will be usurping the presidency and consequently this National Assembly is the only legitimate representative of the people."Maduro, who has presided over a virtual collapse of the economy in the once-rich OPEC member state, is set to be sworn in on Thursday for a second six-year term after elections widely condemned by the international community.The ballot, on May 20, was boycotted by most of the opposition.On Friday, foreign ministers from 12 Latin American countries and Canada announced in Lima that their governments would not recognize Maduro as president if he attempts to remain in office and urged him to turn over power to the National Assembly.The Maduro government accused the so-called Lima Group of "encouraging a coup d'etat" on instructions from Washington. Mexico, which is a member of the group, withheld its support for the statement. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 483386 01-13-2019 05:16 PM Post: #4 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president I for one, don't believe a damn thing coming from countries run by chosenite puppets. dan7 Registered User User ID: 483390 01-13-2019 05:30 PM Posts: 1,681 Post: #5 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Trumps Bolsobitch asking blessings on the Bildeberg Club. Lakeofmarch ~Shemhazai, Key and Guardian of the Gate User ID: 479158 01-13-2019 05:33 PM Posts: 16,607 Post: #6 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Maybe it can all be resolved without a shot being fired and the continent go back to peace and plenty on its own. But that is longer than the usual Vegas odds. Enjoy. https://terebess.hu/english/tao/wu.html https://het-report.nl/ NS "Snow Crash", CC "Eagle's Gift" Son Calenda/Fudo Myoo https://secretsun.blogspot.com Axte Incal, Axtuce Mun -NO8DO- The Great Tao is universal like a flood. How can it be turned to the right or to the left?NS "Snow Crash", CC "Eagle's Gift"Son Calenda/Fudo MyooAxte Incal, Axtuce Mun-NO8DO- LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 482362 01-13-2019 06:13 PM Post: #7 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Cool, I'm going to recognise Flavor Flav as the president of the USA. LoP Guest lop guest User ID: 482539 01-13-2019 06:23 PM Post: #8 RE: Brazil says it recognizes Venezuelan opposition leader as president Maduros regime just detained Juan Guaido in a highway Caracas La Guaira. He was later released . Back to Forum Reply to This post Post New Thread A man has been arrested after a car crashed into a fuel pump at a filling station in Dublin. The incident occurred at around 1am this morning at the Circle K station on Fortfield Road in Terenure. The government is set to press ahead with minimum unit pricing for alcohol, despite previously indicating that the measure would be introduced at the same time as Northern Ireland. However, due to the political stalemate in Belfast, it is now expected the government will press ahead with its plans to implement the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015. Update 5.30pm: About 80 people have attended an anti-racism gathering at Rooskey in Co Leitrim, after a fire at a hotel earmarked for asylum-seekers. The event was organised by the Leitrim and Roscommon United against Racism group with people from Ballaghaderreen, Cootehall, and south Leitrim attending, as well as some Rooskey residents. South Africa's Bulelani Mfaco, who lives in a direct-provision centre in Limerick spoke of his negative experience of Ireland's system for asylum-seekers. Gardai are still investigating the attack at the Shannon Key West Hotel on Thursday night. "We oppose the direct-provision system as one that's unfit for purpose," said one protestor. Another added that direct-provision was "a very, very bad system. We need to finish up that system. We should give a right to work [to] everybody. "Young people like to work." Another protest remarked that she attended to "condemn the attack that has happened on this hotel". Earlier: Anti-racism event to be held in Rooskey after fire at hotel earmarked for asylum seekers An anti-racism event will take place in Rooskey in Co Leitrim today. The event will be held at the scene of a suspicious fire at the Shannon Key West Hotel and gets underway at 12.30pm this afternoon. The fire on Thursday night caused extensive smoke damage to the hotel which was earmarked as a direct provision centre for asylum seekers. Gardai say there are investigating all possible causes of the blaze. Today's rally has been organised by the Leitrim and Roscommon United against Racism group. Organisers say the gathering intends to "reject the kind of casual racism that is increasingly directed at members of ethnic minorities, asylum seekers and refugees". In a Facebook post, the group said they want an end to the Direct Provision system and they are opposed to "the manner in which Direct Provision centres are imposed without consultation on small communities". "We will welcome support from local people - but also from those from outside the area that want to say no to racism and the Direct Provision system," the group said. Three has announced it will add 30 new jobs at its customer service centre in Limerick. The new roles will bring the number of people employed by the mobile network in Limerick to over 500. It is looking to recruit telesales agents to fill the permanent and full-time roles. Speaking about the announcement, Ashley Cook, CRM Director with Three said: A testament to the quality of our operation in Limerick is the long service of many of our employees, some of whom have been with us for over 20 years. "This is due to a number of factors including strong learning and development opportunities, a genuine focus on wellbeing, and a competitive salary and benefits package. Three is a leading mobile communications provider in the Irish market place with data at the centre of everything we do. "We carry approximately 60% of all mobile data on our network, thats more than all other operators combined. And we are delighted to be announcing these new roles as we expand our Customer Service Centre in Limerick. Three was recently named the regions best employer by the Limerick Chamber of Commerce. OTTAWA - A former federal Conservative cabinet minister from Alberta is back in the political game, hoping to take down the Liberal minister in charge of the nation's energy industry, in the heart of the country's oil patch. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 13/1/2019 (884 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Conservative cabinet minister Tim Uppal speaks with the media about Senate reform in the Foyer of the Senate on Parliament Hill Friday February 1, 2013 in Ottawa. Uppal, who served as a minister of state in Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cabinet for almost four years, is nominated to run again in Edmonton Mill Woods, a riding Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi nabbed from him in 2015 by just 92 votes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld OTTAWA - A former federal Conservative cabinet minister from Alberta is back in the political game, hoping to take down the Liberal minister in charge of the nation's energy industry, in the heart of the country's oil patch. Tim Uppal, who served as a minister of state in Prime Minister Stephen Harper's cabinet for almost four years, is nominated to run again in Edmonton Mill Woods, a riding Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi nabbed from him in 2015 by just 92 votes. With the issues facing Alberta's economy, including a lack of pipeline capacity and low oil prices, Uppal said he felt drawn to jump back in. "I've started to get excited about politics again," said Uppal, 44. "There's just a lot that needs to be done and I want to be part of that." Alberta isn't exactly the biggest battleground in this fall's federal election the Conservatives already have 29 of the 34 seats and it's really only the five seats they don't hold that are in play. The possibility exists for the Conservatives to wipe out the Liberals and NDP there completely. The possibility also exists that Maxime Bernier's new People's Party of Canada will play spoiler in some of those seats, taking enough votes from the Tories to help the Liberals or NDP survive. Almost one-fifth of the new members signed up by Bernier's party thus far are in Alberta. Although support for the party is still generally pretty small nationally, there are some Tories who privately predict Bernier is likely to do best in Alberta. The Liberals want to hang on to some Alberta seats, even in the face of oil industry economic doom and gloom. Just before Christmas they dispatched Sohi with a $1.6 billion aid package. Uppal said one might expect $1.6 billion would always be welcome. Instead, he said, people saw it as desperation from the Liberals trying to save Sohi, Edmonton Centre MP Randy Boissonnault and Calgary Centre MP Kent Hehr. The Liberals won two seats in Calgary in 2015, their first in that city since 1968, but both Hehr and Calgary Skyview MP Darshan Kang have since faced harassment allegations. Hehr lost his job in cabinet over his behaviour, for which he apologized a year ago, but he has been nominated to run for the Liberals again this fall. Kang left the Liberal caucus and allegations against him were later substantiated by a House of Commons investigation. He remains an independent and hasn't decided yet whether he will be on the ballot come October. A senior Conservative told The Canadian Press on background last summer, before Bernier split from the Tories to form his new party, that Calgary Centre was the only Alberta seat the party was not expecting to take easily. He said the demographics have changed somewhat since the days the Tories slid to easy victories there and it may be the hardest seat to flip come October. It is one of just two seats in Alberta where the Conservatives haven't yet nominated a candidate. The other is Edmonton Strathcona, which is wide open after lone New Democrat Linda Duncan decided not to seek re-election. The Liberals see that seat as a potential pick up. Although they finished third there in 2015, the lack of an incumbent and the belief the NDP is weaker than in 2015, gives the party hope it can capture some of the NDP's vote. Liberal spokesman Braeden Caley said that riding was the first without a Liberal MP to hit all the party's required fundraising and membership targets. He also said more than 10,000 new Liberals have registered with the party in Alberta in the last two years. Elections Canada data show the Conservatives consistently raise two or even three times as much money as the Liberals in Alberta, but in Edmonton, the Liberals raised more than the Tories in both the second and third quarter of 2018. Sohi said Friday the party has confirmed he will be acclaimed as the Liberal candidate, having met the voter engagement and fundraising requirements to avoid a possible nomination challenge. "It is a real honour to serve the constituents of Edmonton Mill Woods and Alberta and to work with Justin Trudeau and our Liberal team to grow our economy and strengthen our middle class," he said in a written statement. But Sohi was handed a tough challenge as the minister in charge of the energy industry, at a time when that industry is facing significant challenges, the government's Trans Mountain pipeline endeavour is on the rocks, and the inability to get oil to markets led to a price crash last fall. One Liberal went so far as to suggest that if the cabinet shuffle had come after the Federal Court of Appeal overturned cabinet approval for the pipeline, Sohi may never have been moved to natural resources at all. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 12/1/2019 (886 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Advertisement Advertise With Us Dakota Tiwahe Services Inc. executive director Carol McKay-Whitecloud, left, and worker Megan McKay showcase the newly established food bank "Kunsi's Cupboard" at the centre Thursday. (Chelsea Kemp/The Brandon Sun) SIOUX VALLEY Reaffirming cultural traditions, Dakota Tiwahe Services Inc. has launched Kunsis Cupboard, a food bank in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation. "Historically we all go to our grandmothers if were hungry," the organizations executive director Carol McKay-Whitecloud said. "We can always be fed if we go to our Kunsis (grandmothers). We just kind of used that concept." The idea for the food bank, which launched this week, was originally conceived in the summer of 2018. Dakota Tiwahe Services Inc. is a community alternative to Child and Family Services. After discovering that many clients came to Tiwahe in search of rides to visit urban food banks, organizers were inspired to create their own. The food bank also provides an opportunity to showcase Tiwahe Services and the support programs they offer. Describing it as a holistic support system, McKay-Whitecloud said that guests who visit the food bank will receive the sustenance they need, along with community support. "Were in the process of just gathering donations right now," he said. "Weve been really lucky weve had other departments donate too." A big step in setting up the food bank was a $500 donation from Chief Jennifer Bone, which helped stock their cupboards with dry goods. Further help came in the form of a donated two-year-old buffalo calf from Standing Buffalo Dakota Nation, a sister community in Northern Saskatchewan, to dispense to community members as needed. "Historically, the buffalo is what sustained our people. Many, many, years ago its what kept us from starving to death," McKay-Whitecloud said. "Every part of the buffalo is used there is nothing that goes to waste." The food bank is launching with a strong foundation of support, including a community hunt organized by the chief and council capturing two moose and some deer to add to their food supplies. On Thursday, they received 30 turkeys and cases of french fries for clients. "We have a freezer full of meat," McKay-Whitecloud exclaimed. All this has been accomplished without any advertising. They have approached Co-ops in Oak Lake, Kenton and Hamiota to see if they can place a donation box to further support the food bank. "Our main goal is to keep families fed so they never have to go into CFS (Child and Family Services) care based on poverty," McKay-Whitecloud said. "Theres always going to be a means for them to eat. This is Canada. Its 2019; theres no need for anyone to go hungry." In the creation of the food bank, Tiwahe Services is working carefully to create boundaries with community members in an effort to ensure clients do not become dependent on the service. Those who access the food bank will have a discussion with a prevention worker who will help meal plan, discuss why they are running short on food, help with grocery shopping and budgeting, as steps to help clients find success. "You have somewhere youre not going to get turned away. Youre not going to get in trouble by coming here," McKay-Whitecloud said. "Its a safe place for them to come." January can be a difficult month as many people overspend during the holidays, and struggle with mental health, said Tiwahe Services Inc. employee Megan McKay. The food bank is one of many programs the centre is using to promote preventative action in the community and foster a network of support. "It doesnt happen overnight," McKay said. "We have to work hard." As an example, Dakota Tiwahe Services is taking steps to teach the men of the community traditional skills such as trapping, snaring and ice fishing to keep community members fed and provide them with a purpose in the community. The hope, McKay-Whitecloud said, is to decrease the number of children that go into foster care by helping parents. The ultimate goal, she said, is to keep kids in the community. "Its a resource that helps everyone." ckemp@brandonsun.com Twitter: @The_ChelseaKemp Submit your letter to the editor for publication in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. Letters should be no more than 300 words and must include the writer's first and last name (no initials), home address and daytime phone number. Submit Lunaticoutpost.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program , anaffiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.Amazon, the Amazon logo, MYHABIT, and the MYHABIT logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.Don't be a pest to the forum.No profanity in thread-titles or usernamesNo excessive profanity in postsNo Racism, Antisemitism + HateNo calls for violence against anyone..This website exists for fun and discussion only. The reader is responsible for discerning the validity, factuality or implications of information posted here, be it fictional or based on real events. The content of posts on this site, including but not limited to links to other web sites, are the expressed opinion of the original poster and are in no way representative of or endorsed by the owners or administration of this website. 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The material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.In accordance with industry accepted best practices we ask that users limit their copy / paste of copyrighted material to the relevant portions of the article you wish to discuss (no more than 50% of the source material) provide a link back to the original articleIf you are a legal copyright holder or a designated agent for such and you believe a post on this website falls outside the boundaries of "Fair Use" and legitimately infringes on yours or your clients copyright please contact [email protected] This website is owned by :Marco ZwaneveldDrijfriemstraat 522516 XR The HagueNetherlands.I will not rent, sell, share or otherwise disclose your personal information to any third party.We might contact you from time to time regarding your purchases or the services (like forums and announcement lists) you have subscribed to.Some of the 3rd party advertisers on lunaticoutpost.com may use cookiesto track peformance and/or to serve relevant ads.If you wish to read more and/or opt out of such cookies, please visit: http://www.networkadvertising.org/choices/ PR Newswire LAS VEGAS, Jan. 13, 2019 LAS VEGAS, Jan. 13, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- BANGI, Inc. (OTC PINK: COBI), an emerging diversified investment vehicle that is focused on acquiring and leasing real estate to the cannabis industry, today issued a Special Letter to Shareholders summarizing its recent accomplishments and, more importantly, outlining the bright future the Company believes is on the horizon for its clients, partners, employees and, of course, shareholders. The text of the letter follows: "Dear Fellow Shareholder, We are more excited than ever about the growth prospects that we see for BANGI as we continue to execute on our national growth strategy. Through a creative process and innovative thinking, we believe we have carved ourselves one of the most lucrative niches in the cannabis industry, that being our ability to provide land to cannabis growers and distributors at a lower cost of capital than current market rates. This is, of course, possible due to the federal banking laws continuing the prohibition of providing growth capital to cannabis entrepreneurs. Although this may have presented a hurdle for cannabis growers in need of financing, it has presented a unique niche opportunity for companies such as BANGI that is uniquely positioned to access the capital markets to make-up this significant shortfall. This, in essence, is the BANGI investment story and why we believe BANGI today is one of the most undervalued equities in the cannabis space. This, however, won't last for long as we dive into 2019 with a strategic communications plan that is designed to broaden our exposure to Wall Street's institutional investors as well as its traditional retail brokers who have predominantly been our key supporters. BANGI Completes Public Listing Last Fall As indicated, our single most important accomplishment over the past 90 days has been our successful listing into a publicly traded company. Last quarter, we completed our reverse merger with Cobi Biotechnologies, Inc. (which is why we are currently temporarily trading under the symbol COBI). With the final steps of this merger coming to a close, we can now focus on officially changing our corporate name and ticker symbol to one that is more appropriate for a company such as ours. We expect to begin the application process with FINRA shortly and are hopeful to make an official announcement shortly with our new name and symbol. Buildings a World Class Board of Directors In no specific order, another significant milestone for BANGI over the past quarter has been the build-out of one of the most seasoned, knowledgeable, and blue-chip Board Members that an emerging company such as ours has ever experienced. We are proud to illustrate that the strength and appeal of our business model were able to attract industry veterans such as Willard L. Jackson, the Co-Founder of CVG Group, LLC, as well as the former Ambassador to Trinidad & Tobago Embassy, Dr. Neil Parsan, as its Chairman of the Board. BANGI has retained an executive search firm to locate the most qualified Chief Executive Officer to oversee the execution of its business strategy while pioneers such as Dr. Parsan and Mr. Jackson oversee the Company's long-term financial strategy, strategic business development and perhaps the most important aspect of our business, the execution of our mergers and acquisitions program. 2019: First Stage of the Execution of our Business Plan In 2018, BANGI focused most of its time and financial resources to ensure it had made the most opportunistic investments for our future. From a successful reverse merger to the appointment of a blue-chip Board of Directors, last year's investments will slowly but surely begin to bear fruit as early as the first quarter of 2019 when we begin announcing a series of positive developments that we have been diligently working on over the past several weeks to achieve one goal: the enhancement of shareholder value. This has been and will always be our overriding mission as the management team at BANGI and as a fellow shareholder want to ensure you that our interests are very well-aligned with yours. Contact and Informative Policy At BANGI, our employees are systematically working every day to create value for our shareholders; obviously, there will not be news every day, but be assured that every day we are working for you. We will use press releases, our Twitter feed @BANGI, emails and phone conversations to inform and reinforce institutional messages that we desire to be delivered to our shareholders and related parties. As a reminder, you can always reach us at [email protected] with any questions or concerns. Every day we will check out our Twitter and e-mails, listening to our shareholders, taking note of your questions, comments, concerns or suggestions, to be able to answer them in the most appropriate way. Final Message I do not want to finish this first letter without expressing our greatest gratitude for your interest in our company. This interest heightens our commitment to continue working day by day, as we are already doing, to turn BANGI into a company that all shareholders feel proud of and, I assure you, this is just the beginning. Stay tuned! Sincerely, /s/ Rick Shykora Interim CEO BANGI, Inc." BANGI, INC [ OTC: COBI ] BANGI (pronounced bon-ghee), which means "marijuana" or "hemp" in the African dialect Swahili is a diversified investment vehicle that acquires and leases specialized real estate assets, such as cannabis farms. The corporation combines hard asset security and long-term appreciation potential. BANGI INC FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This press release contains statements that the Company believes to be "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than historical facts, including, without limitation, statements regarding the investment offerings and the terms thereof, are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, words such as we "expect", "intend", "plan", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe", "should", or the negative thereof or similar terminology are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, such statements. Investors should not place undue reliance upon forward-looking statements. The Company disclaims any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/bangi-ceo-sees-positive-developments-in-special-letter-to-shareholders-300777355.html SOURCE BANGI, Inc. We listen to local police and fire departments scanner traffic, but sometimes miss crimes, wrecks, fires or other incidents, especially if they happen overnight. If you know of something were not covering yet, please let Managing Editor Jeff Pownall know by emailing him at jpownall@lufkindailynews.com, or submit a news tip online by visiting lufkindailynews.com/tips. SIGN UP TO GET BLACKLISTED NEWS DELIVERED RIGHT TO YOUR INBOX Enter your email address: "Its possible that you havent run into the stories of Lou Antonelli. Since 2003, hes been publishing delightful short tales of alternate history all over the nooks and crannies of the SF world. Thanks to Fantastic Books, we now have 28 of these little gems in one place. "Many of Antonellis stories have an unexpected twist ending. And many of them are what he calls secret history stories, which arent exactly alternate historytheyre set in our familiar history, but theres always some element that contemporary observers missed. " - - Don Sakers, The Reference Library, Analog July-Aug. 2014 A better path develops for a distraught man in Double Exposure by Lou Antonelli (debut 6/11 and reviewed by Frank D). Jake is about to end it all. He has been trying to keep his high maintenance wife happy for decades and has needed to embezzle to satisfy her spending habits. Now, on the verge of indictment and abandoned by his spouse, he buys a gun. Before he pulls the trigger, he spies a Kodak one-day photo hut. Curious, he pulls up to the window. They are holding pictures of him and his last girlfriend from 30 years before. The package is a lot thicker than it should be. Double Exposure is listed as an Alternative History story but I would classify it as a Magical Realism tale. It is set as a second chance tale, a look into a life that should have been. The author is inspired by his memories of the old photo huts (I remember them) and of their disappearance. A cool idea (photos of another life), one that I could imagine would make for a great anthology. - Frank Dutkiewicz, Diabolical Plots Great White Ship: A traveler stuck waiting for a flight strikes up a conversation with an old airline employee. The Old Timer tells him a story of a Great White Airship that arrives from a most unusual destination. The story of a craft from an alternate reality and how it got there is only the precursor to the final act. This is one of my favorite stories from this site. I have a great passion for lighter-than-air craft and their potential as a future means of transport, which opens the story. The author uses this speculation to launch into an engaging tale. As fascinating as the main story line is, the alternate history premise that accompanies it is just as worthwhile. This story was well written and very well thought out. It is well worth the read. Recommended. - James Hanzelka, Diabolical Plots The US secretary of state will ask Saudi Arabias crown prince to ensure that the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi are held accountable. Mike Pompeo will meet Mohammed bin Salman when he travels to Saudi Arabia as part of his Middle East tour. The relationship between Riyadh and Washington remains tense following the October assassination of Washington Post columnist Mr Khashoggi at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul. Expand Close Jamal Khashoggi was killed in Saudi Arabias Turkey consulate (Johnny Green/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Jamal Khashoggi was killed in Saudi Arabias Turkey consulate (Johnny Green/PA) Members of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmans entourage have been implicated in the killing and US members of Congress have demanded America pull back its support of the Saudi-led war in Yemen. Mr Pompeo said: We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring that the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi. Well continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable certainly by the Saudis, but by the United States as well, where appropriate. Mr Pompeo has also said that an ongoing boycott of Qatar by four of Americas allies in the Middle East has dragged on too long though he gave no sign of any coming breakthrough in the dispute. Stopping off in the small, energy-rich nation on the tour, he made a repeated point to say that great things were happening between Qatar and the United States. Were all more powerful when were working together, Mr Pompeo said. Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful. Mr Pompeo said he signed a memorandum of understanding with Qatar regarding the expansion and renovation of al-Udeid Air Base, which hosts the forward headquarters of the US militarys Central Command and some 10,000 American troops. However, comments by Mr Pompeo and Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani gave no sense of any movement in the ongoing diplomatic crisis with Doha. Expand Close Mike Pompeo at a joint press conference with Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mike Pompeo at a joint press conference with Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/Pool via AP) Later, speaking to a US embassy staff member in Qatar who said her job was moving to the UAE due to the boycotts effects, Mr Pompeo was even more frank. Its on everyones mind and not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday and I regret that, he said. Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates began a boycott of Qatar in June 2017, alleging Qatar funds extremist groups and has too-cosy ties to Iran. Qatar has long denied funding extremists, but Doha shares a massive offshore natural gas field with Tehran that gives its citizens the highest per-capita income in the world. It restored diplomatic relations with Iran after the crisis erupted, marking a setback for Saudi Arabia, which views the Shiite power Iran as its main regional rival. Greeces conservative defence minister, who leads the junior partner in the countrys coalition government, has resigned over the Macedonia name deal, which he opposes. Panos Kammenos announced his resignation after meeting with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Sunday morning. He said his party is quitting the government. Expand Close People in Macedonia attend a protest against the change of the countrys name (Boris Grdanoski/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp People in Macedonia attend a protest against the change of the countrys name (Boris Grdanoski/AP) Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said, in response, that he will ask for a vote of confidence in Parliament in the coming week. He added he had a frank discussion with Mr Kammenos, whom he thanked for his government partnership. Mr Tsipras also announced that Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will replace Mr Kammenos as defence minister. Greece and Macedonia agreed last June to a deal that would change the name of Greeces northern neighbour to North Macedonia. In exchange, Greece would lift its objections to the country joining Nato. Macedonias parliament ratified the deal on Friday and the Greek parliament now needs a majority for its ratification. Mr Tsipras left-wing Syriza party has 145 deputies in the 300-member Greek Parliament, while Mr Kammenos right-populist Independent Greeks party has seven. With the departure of his coalition partner, Mr Tsipras would need opposition help to pass the Macedonia name deal. Teachers raised a number of concerns in letters sent to the Scottish Government (PA) Teachers have described physical and verbal assaults, overwhelming workloads and a lack of staff in schools in letters sent to the Scottish Government. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in October asked teachers in Scotland to write to her to tell her about their experiences of working in the profession. A freedom of information request by the Scottish Conservatives has released 60 out of 120 letters which were sent during that time. Amongst the letters, concerns over assaults, as well as difficulty in managing the level of work required, were raised. In one letter, a teacher writes: The class teacher was hit, I was kicked and punched. My amazing support staff were subject to repeated kicks to the stomach and were bitten. Another teacher wrote: The best teacher I have ever seen left last year due to paperwork and sheer unmanageable workload something must be done before there are no teachers left. The lack of teaching staff was also cited as a significant issue. One letter stated: We share a headteacher but she is available less and less to manage our school as the workload at our cluster school is ever increasing due to cuts in support staff, social services, primary mental health services, speech and language the list goes on. It is a completely unacceptable state of affairs that many teachers are forced to operate in this kind of environmentLiz Smith, Scottish Conservative MSP The Scottish Conservatives have said that the letters highlight the pressure teachers are under in schools, including increased levels of violence in the classroom. Liz Smith MSP, Scottish Conservative shadow education secretary, said: These letters speak for themselves. As well as all the other pressures currently being cited by teachers, the growing level of violence in our classrooms is a major worry. It is a completely unacceptable state of affairs that many teachers are forced to operate in this kind of environment. It is also interesting to note from the letters that teachers believe some of the problem is created by the well-intentioned, but nonetheless increasingly problematic policy which encourages local authorities to mainstream all pupils wherever possible. In far too many cases, pupils with particular support needs are in classes which cannot possibly provide them with the support they need. Likewise, there are growing worries that the education of other pupils in these classes is being affected and putting unfair, additional pressures on teachers. John Swinney has acknowledged in Parliament that the mainstreaming policy should be reviewed. He has to do so urgently for exactly the reasons spelt out in these letters. Education Secretary John Swinney said that the Scottish Government is working towards improving conditions for teachers. No teacher should have to suffer abuse in the workplace, and we want all pupils to behave in a respectful manner towards their peers and staff, said Mr Swinney. Our refreshed guidance on preventing and managing schools exclusions, published in June 2017, includes guidance on managing challenging behaviour. The number of teachers is the highest since 2010 and we have committed to creating new opportunities for teachers to develop their careers. We have also undertaken a range of actions to reduce teacher workload, acting to clarify and simplify the curriculum framework and to remove unnecessary bureaucracy. John Major has called for Article 50 to be rescinded (Jeff Overs/BBC/PA) Former prime minister Sir John Major has said revoking Article 50 is the only sensible course but accepted this would be politically uncomfortable. Sir John, who led the country between 1990 and 1997, wrote in the Sunday Times of his support for a second ballot of Britains membership of the European Union, adding the Government allowing a no-deal Brexit would be morally reprehensible. Theresa May is preparing to put her Brexit blueprint to a vote in the House of Commons next week with former Brexit minister Dominic Raab saying Britain should be prepared to leave with no arrangement in place. Jumping off a cliff has never had a happy ending Writing that the divisions between people on both sides of the referendum debate have become bitter and entrenched, Sir John added: The cost of a no-deal Brexit to our national wellbeing would be heavy and long-lasting. The benefits are close to zero. Every single household rich or poor would be worse off for many years to come. Jumping off a cliff has never had a happy ending. He added that a new process of national consultation was needed, adding: No true democracy should deny a considered choice to its people. Expand Close Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has reiterated the case for a Peoples Vote (Yui Mok/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has reiterated the case for a Peoples Vote (Yui Mok/PA) Meanwhile, London mayor Sadiq Khan has written in the Observer suggesting that Mrs May should step down and call a general election if she loses next weeks vote. He wrote: Its clear that if our government and parliament are incapable of finding a way out of this mess, it should be taken out of the hands of the politicians and returned to the British people to take back control. Expand Close Dominic Raab believes Britain should be prepared to leave with no deal (Andrew Matthews/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Dominic Raab believes Britain should be prepared to leave with no deal (Andrew Matthews/PA) On the other side of the divide on Britains departure from the European Union, Mr Raab has said Mrs Mays deal suffocates the opportunities Brexit offers. He wrote: If MPs vote the deal down, we should continue to press our EU partners for a deal that respects the referendum. If EU intransigence persists, we must be willing to leave the EU at the end of March on World Trade Organisation terms. Wed be in a stronger position, then, to continue the negotiations as an independent third country. Police have confirmed that two men have died in separate falls on the Mourne Mountains on Sunday. Earlier on Sunday police issued a warning to members of the public to take care due to strong winds. Police responded to three separate incidents on the Co Down mountains. A tough and challenging day in the Mournes as Police 46, @PSNINMDown and other emergency services responded to 3 separate incidents. In strong winds we managed to airlift one male out but sadly the two others had died. Our thoughts are with their loved ones. Sgt A pic.twitter.com/iGnmwvKgqN PSNI Air Support (@PSNIAirSupport) January 13, 2019 Inspector Frances McCullough said one man had been rescued. Police received a request for assistance after a male was reported to have fallen while walking on Wee Binnian shortly before midday and received a further request for assistance after a male was reported to have fallen while walking on Slieve Commedagh shortly before 1pm," she said. Police and other emergency services responded but unfortunately both men died at the scene." Inspector McCullough said the deaths are not being treated as suspicious. A third male was also rescued from the Mountains with a suspected broken ankle following a fall close to the Saddle at around 2.30pm," she said. South Down MP Chris Hazzard expressed his condolences following news of the deaths. The tragic news that two men died today while walking in the Mournes will have shocked the entire local community," the Sinn Fein MP said. Id like to commend Mountain Rescue and the emergency services who responded to todays incidents and who also rescued a third walker who got into difficulties elsewhere in the Mournes. My thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of those who tragically died in these incidents in the Mournes today. SDLP MLA Colin McGrath has an office at the foot of the Mournes and said the area had suffered "two tragedies in one day". "Such an event is chilling and shows the power of nature and how it can strike without notice as has happened with these winds today," the South Down MLA said. "My thoughts and prayers are with the families of those that have died and those involved in the operations to assist those caught in these tragedies." Police in Londonderry have spoken of their "disgust" after a children's play park was set on fire on Saturday night. The Eglinton playpark, in the village on the outskirts of the city, sustained extensive damage in the attack. A 15-year-old male has been arrested in connection with the incident and is currently in custody assisting police with their enquiries. "What kind of people would set fire and cause such damage to play equipment used by little children?," a PSNI spokesperson said. A childrenas play park in Eglinton village has been torched by vandals overnight. A lot of the wooden equipment has been either completely destroyed or damaged. The gates of the park are locked up pic.twitter.com/rFlm9nko2y Leona O'Neill (@LeonaONeill1) January 13, 2019 Foyle MLA Mark H Durkan said work was already undergoing to get the playpark back in operation. "Disgusting vandalism of the playpark in Eglinton that is used and enjoyed by so many families from the village and beyond," the SDLP MLA said. "I, along with SDLP Councillors, will be working to ensure the park can be restored and reopened as soon as possible. "I would urge anyone with any information about this attack on the community to come forward with it." Local DUP councillor Graham Warke said it was not the first time the playpark had been targeted by "vandals". "The playpark has now been closed. We have been speaking with many residents this morning who are disgusted by what has happened," he said. "The PSNI are aware of the incident and will be following up on the information they now have." Police said that videos and images of the incident had been posted online. "We are aware of a number of videos and images circulating on social media and we would ask for those to be removed and to be sent directly to us," a PSNI spokesperson said. "If anyone has information about the incident or those involved we would be keen to hear from you. You can contact us by pm or by phoning 101 and quoting ref 518, 13/01/19." The incident took place in the Burneys Mews area. A man and woman have been arrested after a man suffered head injuries in a violent burglary in Co Antrim. The incident took place in the Burneys Mews area of Newtownabbey on Friday night. A 21-year-old woman and 33-year-old man were arrested in Newtownabbey on Saturday night on suspicion of aggravated burglary and remain in police custody at this time. A 25-year-old man sustained lacerations to his head and a suspected fractured wrist when he was assaulted by two men and a woman who forced their way into his flat. It is believed the suspects made off in a red coloured Ford Focus car following the incident. Detective Sergeant Coulter continues to appeal for anyone who witnessed the incident or anyone with any information that can assist with the investigation to contact Detectives in Antrim on 101 quoting reference 1114 11/01/19. Detectives are particularly keen to speak with anyone who observed a red coloured Ford Focus car in the Burneys Mews area on Friday evening. Alternatively information can also be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 which is 100% anonymous and gives people the power to speak up and stop crime. A flight to Belfast was forced to make an emergency landing. A flight from Tenerife to Belfast International Airport was forced to make an emergency landing in Spain on Saturday due to two "disruptive" passengers. Well-known local makeup artist Paddy McGurgan was a passenger on the Jet2.com flight and told the Belfast Telegraph that the plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Santiago, Spain. Jet2.com released a statement confirming that the flight was diverted "so that police could board the aircraft and offloaded two disruptive passengers". Mr McGurgan said one of the men, who appeared to be from Northern Ireland, was removed after becoming "threatening and abusive" towards staff. He said that one of the men appeared to be "heavily intoxicated" and was described by staff as "non compliant". Their luggage was subsequently removed from the airplane's hold, Mr McGurgan said. "There were a number of people on the flight who were very unhappy because there are quite a few young children present," he said. A Jet2.com statement said that the company wished to apologise to passengers. "As a family friendly airline we take a zero tolerance approach towards disruptive behaviour, so we will fully assist the authorities with any subsequent investigations and will prosecute where necessary," the statement read. "We would also like to apologise to customers for the delay to their journey home. Expand Close Paddy McGurgan / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Paddy McGurgan Welcome to my world where the hyphen between the words Italian and American is the bridge between espresso and Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, red wine and pit barbecue, the Amalfi Coast and Hilton Head Island, and with life in Georgia. There are lots of stories about my Italian n I am also an amateur tour guide. The Summer of 2015 I organized a Girls' Trip to Italy for 23 women to Rome and the Amalfi Coast. We had so much fun that we did it again in 2019 with 31 women, this time to Tuscany and northern Italy. Oh, and I wrote a book -- An Ocean, an Airplane, and Two Countries Full of Kisses. Check it out below ... onna. The families of a doctor who went missing a decade ago have questioned a gardai decision to undertake a major dig for her remains. Former GP and mother of three Deirdre Donnelly OFlaherty has not been seen since January 11 2009, when her car was found at Kinnego beach, Co Donegal. In a shock development, gardai last week commenced an excavation on land in Milford, Co Donegal 50 miles from the place of her disappearance. The 46-year-old Strabane-based doctor had been staying with her family at a holiday home when she went missing. The dig concluded on Friday, with gardai announcing that nothing linked to the investigation had been found. The excavation had been ordered after gardai apparently received information claiming to identify the whereabouts of the Co Tyrone doctors remains in an anonymous note handed in to a Garda station in Co Monaghan. In 2012, a judge in Belfast formally declared that Mrs Donnelly OFlaherty, who suffered from depression, had drowned after entering the sea. The Donnelly and OFlaherty families have now issued a joint statement expressing concerns about the Garda operation. They described the last week as an ordeal, and have asked to meet the officers involved in the operation in a bid for answers. The close and extended families of Dr Deirdre Donnelly OFlaherty wish to express their heartfelt gratitude for the many kind and thoughtful messages of support which they have received over the course of what has been a tumultuous and distressing week leading up to the 10th anniversary of Deirdres disappearance on the 11th of January 2009, they stated. The families are relieved only because this ordeal is over although in our view, the outcome was not in doubt. Notification that Gardai were going to carry out a land search for Deirdre was entirely unexpected, not least given that the finding by Order of Judge Deeney at Belfast High Court on the 12th of January 2012 that Deirdre had gone into the water and drowned was supported by the oral evidence of the investigating Garda Sergeant. As far as the families are aware there has not in fact been any ongoing search for Deirdre since at least that time. The families had only three days advance notice of the Gardai excavations near Milford, County Donegal and therefore had little time to prepare for the consequences of the very public, national exposure of this story during the week. Gardai confirmed to the families at that time that the decision to conduct the excavation in a remote area over fifty miles from her last known whereabouts flowed from an anonymous note handed in to a Garda station in County Monaghan in August 2017. This note apparently provided precise map co-ordinates for the location of Deirdres remains. The families have not seen this note and this information was not made public due to the ongoing nature of the investigation. In their Press Release yesterday Gardai stated that they had found nothing to further the search. Accordingly, the families have requested a meeting with the Gardai investigation team to discuss a number of questions relating to the conduct, conclusions and consequences of this investigation. Police have arrested two men after a burglary in Omagh on Saturday evening. The incident took place in the St Mary's Road area around 5.30pm. It was reported that neighbours had disturbed three males after they had been observed entering a house in the area. A male was detained a short distance away by local people and subsequently arrested by police. A second male was arrested a short time later after he had been found hiding by a police dog. Both males, aged 23 and 36, remain in police custody at this time. A silver Lexus car, VRM TEZ 8777, used by the suspects was also seized by police. Detectives are appealing to anyone with any information that can assist with the investigation or anyone who observed the silver Lexus car recently to contact detectives in Omagh on 101, quoting reference 775 12/01/19. Alternatively, information can also be provided to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 which is 100% anonymous and gives people the power to speak up and stop crime. Cerner made a new weight-loss surgery program available to its health plan members Jan. 1 in collaboration with Newark, Del.-based Christiana Care Health System. Cerner selected Christiana Care as its certified bariatric partner after a yearlong nationwide search. Cerner and Christiana Care plan to work together to deliver a personalized program to support health plan members considering bariatric surgery, a weight-loss procedure. The program will span the entire surgical process, from pre- to post-operative care, and focus on improving health outcomes, care navigation and patient education. Cerner and Christiana Care will also develop "innovative pricing structures" for the program, according to a news release. "Our weight loss surgery program has been a leader in the healthcare landscape for many years," Sharon Kurfuerst, COO of Christiana Care, said in the news release. "We share Cerner's vision for innovation and positive disruption in the healthcare system, and we embrace the opportunity to work with them to create the right experience for their members. Last weeks start of the new session of the Texas Legislature was notable for an encouraging sign: Top state leaders and legislators seem to realize they should focus on important issues instead of getting distracted by partisan talking points. Our local representatives James White, Dade Phelan and Joe Deshotel and our state senators Brandon Creighton and Robert Nichols need to support this approach. Granted, thats the way its supposed to go. Democrats and Republicans say rough things in their election campaigns, but once the votes are counted and the opening gavel bangs down in the state House and Senate, its time to get serious. You focus on priorities, you treat the other party with a degree of respect, and you make sure to take care of the peoples business. For a long time, thats the way it worked in Austin. Even at its worst, the Texas Legislature was more collegial than Congress, where members of one party might not get on an elevator if someone from the other party is in it. But in recent years, the tone in Austin was distinctly sharper, and angrier. That wasnt good for either party, and certainly not for the people they represent. This time, the mood is clearly better. Republicans still control both chambers, but they lost 12 seats in the House and now have an 83-67 margin there. Given the internal disputes that any party has, the GOP will need some Democratic votes on some bills. Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and new House Speaker Dennis Bonnen all Republicans even held a joint press conference last week. That wouldnt have happened two years ago, when arch-conservative Patrick was at odds with the relatively moderate House speaker, Joe Straus. Straus didnt seek re-election last year, in part because he took so much flak for stopping Patricks bathroom bill. But Patrick has also abandoned that distraction, and that will allow for more cooperation between the House and Senate. Bonnen was even elected speaker by a symbolic unanimous vote, another nice touch by Democrats. This year, state leaders are focused on school finance reform, which is overdue. They also keep talking about property tax reform, which is also welcome unless it involves state caps on local government spending. But these issues can be discussed in a civil manner, with give and take from both sides. State officials need to make sure they maintain this momentum instead of getting sidetracked. The Texas Legislature, unlike its counterparts in most other states, meets only once every two years, not every year. Lawmakers have to plan a budget for two years out, and thats not easy. A good start is essential to a challenge like that. Taxpayers are seeing that, and the cooperation needs to continue until the session ends in May. The principals of four Houston ISD schools in danger of triggering major state sanctions this year are encouraged by progress at their campuses, but district administrators say its too early to predict whether the schools will stave off punishment by meeting academic standards. The leaders of Highland Heights Elementary School, Henry Middle School, and Kashmere and Wheatley high schools told HISD trustees Saturday that early returns largely show improvement following chronically low performance at their campuses, which have all been rated improvement required by the state for four-plus years. However, some grade levels continue to struggle mightily, particularly in reading, and attendance issues still plague the high schools, the principals warned. Despite some of the setbacks, were moving in the right direction, said Joseph Williams, the second-year principal of Wheatley, which has not met state standard since 2010. Our momentum is really good right now. Kids are getting it that were very serious about their education and being successful this year. The principals comments came during an eight-hour school board meeting held Saturday, where the performance of HISDs longest-struggling schools dominated discussion. Trustees gathered for the rare weekend meeting to talk about some of the districts most pressing issues, including an anticipated budget deficit and enrollment losses. The board, however, did not vote on any issues or create plans of actions. The academic performance this year of the four HISD schools likely will dictate whether the Texas Education Agency replaces the districts locally elected school board, a possibility that has drawn significant condemnation from Houston-area leaders. Under a law passed in 2015, the TEA must take over the school board or close campuses in a district once any school receives five straight improvement required ratings. TEA leaders have all-but-confirmed they would replace HISDs school board before closing campuses. Results will be released in August. HISD officials are analyzing performance on the 2017-18 state tests, known as STAAR, as well as data from district-administered assessments given in the first semester of this academic year. The results generally show modest, but not extraordinary, upticks in year-over-year performance across the four schools. The four principals said numerous efforts to raise achievement reshuffling staffs, reducing class sizes, putting multiple teachers in a single room, increasing community engagement appear to be paying off. However, reading scores at the two high schools remain particularly problematic, with Kashmere reporting only 8 percent of students reaching benchmarks under the district-administered reading exam at the start of 2018-19. Im not going to predict that schools are going to exit out of (improvement required), Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan said. To give you that 100 percent was not part of what the plan is for today. Trustees also were briefed that little has changed to projections for a $76 million budget deficit in 2019-20, equal to roughly 4 percent of the districts total spending. The board briefly addressed the districts estimated 4,000-student enrollment decline, raising the possibility of closing campuses and redrawing school boundaries. Trustees did not disclose their appetite for such changes or any specific proposals under consideration. Following months of criticism about public displays of acrimony and an inability to tackle serious issues, Saturdays meeting marked a cordial effort to discuss weighty topics. Im always happy to have a conversation about data, Trustee Anne Sung said. What would help me is a so-what for how this fits into our work. jacob.carpenter@chron.com twitter.com/chronjacob President Moon Jae-in speaks with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at a hotel in New York on September 25. Yonhap Seoul reviews request for discussion of forced labor ruling with Tokyo By Kim Bo-eun Dealing with history issues with Japan, yet seeking to develop bilateral relations has been the Moon Jae-in government's stance toward Tokyo. Japan's 1910-1945 colonial rule of Korea and atrocities Tokyo committed during that time have posed difficulties in ties. Japan intended to conclude compensation for colonial era issues by a deal in 1965 when the countries formally established diplomatic relations. However, compensation under the deal was not defined as compensation for atrocities committed under Tokyo's occupation of Korea. Forced labor ruling Stay up to date on COVID-19 Get Breaking News Sign up now to get our FREE breaking news coverage delivered right to your inbox. Virginia State Trooper, Senior Trooper Gavin Scott, had the privilege of partaking in the trooper Safety at Sea program with the US Navy, which allows one trooper to travel aboard a vessel and speak with the sailors aboard. The focus of the program is to reduce military member involved crashes. Contact The Californians Robert Price at 661-395-7399, rprice@bakersfield.com or on Twitter: @stubblebuzz. His column appears on Sundays, Wednesdays and Saturdays; the views expressed are his own. John Cox can be reached at 661-395-7404. Follow him on Twitter: @TheThirdGraf. Sign up at Bakersfield.com for free newsletters on local business. No arrest had been made in a notorious dog-dragging case that has enraged thousands of local residents and animal lovers, the Bakersfield Poli You can reach Sam Morgen at 661-395-7415 or smorgen@bakersfield.com. You may also follow him on Twitter @smorgenTBC. Trend: Association of Iranian Airlines has demanded compensation from the government for discharge of 23 Russian Tupolev planes. The Secretary of Association of Iranian Airlines Maghsoud Asadi Samani has submitted the request to the parliament and demanded payment to four Iranian companies which have faced losses due to discharge of 23 Tupolev planes, Trend reports citing ISNA. "Iran Civil Aviation Organization has ordered to discharge all the Tupolev planes in 2011, so 23 planes owned by four airline companies were discharged, as a result of which those companies faced huge losses," he said. He noted that the government has not paid any compensation since 2011. We suggest the government to calculate the losses of airline companies and pay the cost. Samani noted that if the request is approved, the credit of compensation for these airliners will be added to the next Iranian year (March 21, 2019) budget plan. Referring to the government`s decision on discharging the Tupolev planes due to multiple crashes in 2011, he said "the planes were capable of flying until 2020. In 2011, following several accidents involving Russian-built Tupolev passenger planes in Iran, the country discharged its entire Tupolev fleet. By Leman Mammadova SOCAR Energy Ukraine (the Ukrainian subsidiary of Azerbaijan's state oil company SOCAR) is planning to open up to eight new gas stations in Ukraine in 2019, the company told Trend. Today, the decline in sales of traditional fuels is the main trend in the market of gas stations, not only in Ukraine but also in Europe, SOCAR Energy Ukraine mentioned. Correspondingly, the priorities for SOCAR in 2019 remain the expansion of the complex of services at gas filling stations and increasing the sales of related products. We also plan to open up to eight new filling stations, install modules for the sale of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) at all existing filling stations, where, according to Ukrainian legislation, their operation is possible," said the company. SOCAR Energy Ukraine said that as before, the company focuses on million cities, in particular, Kyiv. "We will actively develop the network of modern filling stations for electric cars. We will continue to surprise customers with a high level of service, innovative offers that save time and increase the speed of service," the company said. SOCAR is the sole producer of petroleum products in Azerbaijan owning over 370 filling stations in Georgia, Ukraine, Romania and Switzerland. SOCAR carries out its activity in Ukraine through SOCAR Energy Ukraine since 2009. SOCAR filling station network includes 59 filling stations and two oil tankers located in 11 regions of the country The main activity of SOCAR Energy Ukraine is to develop a network of petrol stations in Ukraine, organize wholesale of gasoline and oil products. Since late 2016, the company has also been engaged in trade of natural gas in Ukraine. Four oil bases belonging to SOCAR Energy Ukraine operate in Kiev, Odessa, Lviv and Kharkov cities. SOCAR Energy Ukraines subsidiaries Torgoviy Dom and SOCAR-AVIA organize the sale of light oil products and aviation fuels at Ukrainian airports. Since its establishment, SOCAR Energy Ukraine has invested $ 286 million mainly spent on the creation of petrol stations, acquisition of oil bases and working capital. In the first half of 2018, SOCAR became the leader in terms of sales of natural gas in Ukraine among commercial structures, imported 250 million cubic meters of natural gas into the country. This is almost four times more than during the same period of 2017. The company supplies the purchased resource both for household consumers and major business structures. Trend: On Jan. 12 at 11:20 and 11:40 (GMT+4) units of the Armenian armed forces opened fire at an excavator which was driven by a civilian and engaged in engineering work at a border point near Kamarli village of Azerbaijans Gazakh district, Trend reports referring to the Azerbaijani State Border Service. As a result, six bullets hit the ladle and other parts of the excavator, damaged the glass of the cab. There are no human casualties. The Armenian armed forces continue to violate the ceasefire regime in the areas of border points on the line of contact with Azerbaijan in Gazakh and Agstafa districts. Earlier, the Armenian armed forces opened sniper fire at an excavator on Jan. 6 at 15:35 (GMT+4) at a border point near Kamarli village of Azerbaijans Gazakh region. The excavator was operated by a civilian, in 450 meters from the state border. The bullets hit the excavator, the civilian was not injured. 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. Trend: Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 22 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Jan. 13, Trend reports. The 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. A freshman congresswoman who has held office for less than a month is dominating the Democratic conversation on Twitter, generating more interactions retweets plus likes than the six most prolific news organizations combined over the last 30 days. The big picture: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is miles behind President Trump in the influence of her Twitter account. But he's the president she's a new member of Congress who shot out of a cannon following the midterm elections. And she has far more power on Twitter than the most prominent Democrats, including the congressional leaders and the likely 2020 presidential candidates. Ben Thompson founder of Stratechery, and one of the most pioneering online thinkers points out that neither Ocasio-Cortez's "background nor her position as a first-time representative are ... noteworthy enough to be driving the national political conversation. And yet she is doing exactly that." "In short, she is the first but certainly not the last of an entirely new archetype: a politician that is not only fueled by the Internet, but born of it." Antonio Garcia Martinez author of "Chaos Monkeys," about Silicon Valley wrote in Wired that she's "a harbinger of a new American political reality": "[W]hen a 29-year-old former bartender of Puerto Rican descent beats a senior Democratic leader of the House, and then proceeds to set the political agenda during her first week in office, its more than a cute social media story." former bartender of Puerto Rican descent beats a senior Democratic leader of the House, and then proceeds to set the political agenda during her first week in office, its more than a cute social media story." "AOC is one answer to the bigger question of how social media impacts not just the portrayal of political power, but its seizure and exercise." The main takeaways: Among 2020 Democratic hopefuls, Sen. Kamala Harris (combining her Senate and personal accounts) had the highest Twitter engagement at 4.7 million interactions over the last 30 days but that's still way behind Ocasio-Cortez. Sen. Kamala Harris (combining her Senate and personal accounts) had the highest Twitter engagement at 4.7 million interactions over the last 30 days but that's still way behind Ocasio-Cortez. Even former President Barack Obama was far behind Ocasio-Cortez, at 5.3 million interactions (but she's a lot more active on Twitter). was far behind Ocasio-Cortez, at 5.3 million interactions (but she's a lot more active on Twitter). Other notable Democrats: Bernie Sanders: 3.2m (combined Senate and personal account) Nancy Pelosi: 2.5m Chuck Schumer: 1.9m Elizabeth Warren: 1.5m (combined Senate and personal account) Beto O'Rourke: 1.5m News organizations' metrics do not include numbers from their star journalists. CNN's Jim Acosta generated 2.2 million interactions, compared to the network's 3.3 million. do not include numbers from their star journalists. CNN's Jim Acosta generated 2.2 million interactions, compared to the network's 3.3 million. On the right, individual personalities out-index partisan news organizations. The biggest conservative megaphones aside from the president are Charlie Kirk (7.8 million interactions) and Donald Trump Jr. (2.4m) individual personalities out-index partisan news organizations. The biggest conservative megaphones aside from the president are Charlie Kirk (7.8 million interactions) and Donald Trump Jr. (2.4m) The volume of tweets is an important variable to consider: is an important variable to consider: Trump: 9.1 tweets per day Ocasio-Cortez: 7.2 Harris: 10.5 Obama: 0.4 CNN: 136 Two notes about the data: Not listed is Fox News, which has boycotted Twitter since November. These numbers do not account for Twitter activity from bots. Note: This article was updated on Jan. 19 to reflect the most recent data. Former Defense Secretary James Mattis had "deep concerns" about a request late last year from national security adviser John Bolton for options to attack inside Iran, according to a source close to Mattis. The big picture: "There were deep concerns about any efforts to escalate a conflict with Iran," the source told me. As the Wall Street Journal first reported, Bolton's request came "after militants fired three mortars into Baghdad's sprawling diplomatic quarter, home to the U.S. Embassy, on a warm night in early September. The shells launched by a group aligned with Iran landed in an open lot and harmed no one." Behind the scenes: Mattis thought that attacking inside Iran risked escalating a conflict with an Iranian proxy into war with a nation state the Iranian regime. The source told me that despite Mattis' concerns, the Pentagon provided the White House with options to counterattack against Iran. In response to questions for this article, National Security Council spokesman Garrett Marquis said: "The NSC coordinates policy and provides the president with options to anticipate and respond to a variety of threats. We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate and will consider the full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests." And Pentagon spokesman Col. Rob Manning responded: "The Department of Defense is a planning organization and provides options to the president for decision. Discussions between the secretary of defense and the president are privileged." Go deeper: Powerful Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, who as Finance Committee chairman will oversee Trump's trade agenda, sat down with Axios on Friday to discuss this fraught moment in international trade. Behind the scenes: Trump's principal trade negotiator Robert Lighthizer had just left Grassley's office as we entered, a Grassley aide told us, and we began the trade discussion by asking Grassley what he learned from that conversation with Lighthizer. Grassley said they discussed the ongoing China negotiations, the early moves toward a U.S.-Japan bilateral trade deal, and the USMCA (Trump's re-negotiated NAFTA, which Congress has yet to approve). Highlights from our conversation: On China negotiations: "I think I would make my comment based upon what I've read in the paper, which isn't a whole lot different than what maybe he [Lighthizer] told us. Progress made on a lot of little things, but on the structural things that we want progress made on, there hasn't been much progress made. ... And a conclusion I've drawn, that doesn't necessarily come from his conversation, is so China makes an agreement. How are you going to police it?" Why it matters: Trump has been touting the progress he's been making with China, but China hawks are worried he's going to let Beijing off the hook by effectively letting them purchase away their problems. Trump has been touting the progress he's been making with China, but China hawks are worried he's going to let Beijing off the hook by effectively letting them purchase away their problems. The risk: Instead of stopping their bad behavior including theft of U.S. intellectual property the Chinese government would go on a short-term shopping spree, buying U.S. products. Such a deal might temporarily stimulate the U.S. economy, and therefore be politically tempting for Trump, but it wouldn't solve any of the major long-term problems with China. On the USMCA: Grassley reiterated that Trump should "pull out" of NAFTA if the Democrat-controlled House doesn't ratify the deal signed by the U.S., Mexico and Canada last November. On re-engaging with Asia: Grassley said it "was a mistake" for Trump to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal with 11 other countries. He said the first step to repairing Asian trading relationships would be to "start with Japan. ... If we get a good bilateral agreement with Japan ... I'll bet it'll make up 90% of the bad things that resulted because we pulled out of TPP." On Trump's hawkish trade adviser Peter Navarro: "He's a professor. Professors often aren't practical. ... His way, I think the practical effect would be to move forward ideologically without any concern about impact on the economy." Go deeper: After celebrating a series of successful launches, including the final shipment of Iridium satellites to low earth orbit last week, SpaceX has announced its laying off about 10 percent of its staff. The company told Reuters that it faces some extraordinarily difficult challenges ahead and needs to lean out its operation. To continue delivering for our customers and to succeed in developing interplanetary spacecraft and a global space-based Internet, SpaceX must become a leaner company, Reuters quoted a SpaceX spokesman as saying in an email. Either of these developments, even when attempted separately, have bankrupted other organizations. SpaceX didnt specify the difficulties its girding against but it does face significant competition on several fronts. Its Starlink satellite Internet service is in a race to market with OneWeb and Canadas Telesat to bring web service to all corners of the earth. A couple of months ago, SpaceX founder Elon Musk fired seven senior managers of the Starlink program over the pace of the development. The company also has some capital-intensive projects on the front burner, including a trip to Mars and creation of a crew capsule service for the International Space Station. The retro-looking SpaceX Starship was unveiled on Friday. Boeing and Embraer now have all the approvals they need to move forward with two joint ventures that will change the commercial and perhaps military aircraft market. Boeing will take over 80 percent of the Brazilian companys passenger plane business and will also take a 49 percent stake in the development of the KC-390 military transport. Both the Brazilian government, which has veto power over Embraers decisions, and the company board of directors have approved the deal. All the paperwork is expected to be done by the end of 2019. The government had sovereignty concerns about allowing such a large foreign investment but Boeing and Embraer were able to convince officials the deal would be good for the country and the company. Under the deal, Boeing will take over the day-to-day management and operation of the commercial aircraft operation, allowing it to compete directly with Airbus in the small airliner business. Airbus assumed control of Bombardiers CSeries airliner business last July and the rebranded A220 has attracted some large orders since then. Embraers answer to the A220 is its E series of airliners, which effectively had the 100-160-seat market to itself until CSeries entered service in 2016. It hasnt been announced if the E-series will be rebranded with a Boeing nameplate. The joint venture on the military aircraft could expand cooperation on marketing the aircraft, which is seen as a faster, more capable and cheaper-to-run alternative to the venerable C-130. The KC-390 is a twinjet that can carry 57,000 pounds, compared to 42,000 for the Herc. Brazilian media has reported that Boeing may build the KC-390 in the U.S., making it easier to offer the aircraft to U.S. military forces. Embraer put the KC-390 through its paces at Farnborough last summer. HP Now, our last encounter with the 04 was in January 2018 , almost a full year ago. Since then, some of the camouflage has come off, but we're more interested in the extra info we've acquired. According to official statements from the Chinese parent company, some of the models will be produced at the Volvo factory in Belgium Chinese phone makers like Huawei or Xiaomi have proven that Western markets are ready for their high-end goods. But sometimes, a little encouragement is needed, like "designed in California" with a "camera by Leica," or "assembled in Europe. Remember that Geely is now the third highest-earning manufacturer in China.Cosmetically, the 04 shares design cues with the three models that came before it. That means a split headlight design that makes the front end look high and chunky. Despite this and a raised suspension setup, the 04 is not like the Volvo XC40. Instead, it reminds us of the Cross Country version of the V40, which we fondly remember from a few years back. It's even got the same odd combo of dual exhaust, a diffuser and off-road cladding.This car is probably going to be offered with only two engine configurations, a 1.5-liter 3-cylinder with 150and a 2-liter with 190 Hp. Both are turbocharged and matched to auto gearboxes. A bit later down the road, the plug-in system developed around the 1.5L will also be adapted.If this ever makes it to European showrooms, which it might since China isn't big on hatchbacks, a diesel 2-liter might also be a good idea. Volvo has a few of those, including one that's got compressed air for quick turbo boost. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close Of custody and crypto The normally staid world of custody banking is now having to embrace the wild child of global assets: cryptocurrency. And this is happening just as bitcoin, the poster child of cryptocurrency, seesawed from US$30,000 one week to $40,000 the next, shedding then recovering 30% of its value. Some bitcoin bulls are talking of $100,000 by year-end Way North: Fearless And Kind (M A P L) Way Norths three Canadians and a New Yorker are reminiscent of the kind of ensemble you might find playing on a corner in the French Quarter of New Orleans. For all of their sophisticated musicianship, thats the kind of jovial feeling the quartet summons in tenor saxophonist Petr Cancuras Boll Weevil, trumpeter Rebecca Hennessys Fearless And Kind and several other rollicking pieces in this carefree collection. The title track maintains the feel-good atmosphere while at the same time giving the proceeding an almost (but not quite) somber cast. That is also true of Way Norths approach to a brief exposition of Jelly Roll Mortons Buddy Boldens Blues, which includes growls by Hennessy that seem to be inherited more or less directly from Boldens trumpet successor King Oliver. Solemnity dissolves when they move into their second Morton tune, King Porter Stomp. Bassist Michael Herring and drummer Richie Barshaythe American membergenerate enthusiastic swing as they collaborate behind Cancuras and Hennessys solos on Porter. Herrings solos on that piece and on Hennessys Inchworm are highlights of those tracks. Hennessys trumpet work throughout further illuminates why she is enjoying growing regard in Canadian jazz circles. She is one to keep an ear on. For Rifftides reviews of other recent recordings from Canada, go here. You know, its hard to understand the word mama, better put madre in there. Wait. What? Netflix is essentially sending a message that the way we speak is not better than the way we write, and thats a very old-fashioned idea, said a linguistics professor. The New York Times Have any questions? Please give us a call at 541-889-5387 Not at all. It just seems like a lot of back-and-forth talk. Yes. I'm growing very worried over what might happen. If it keeps up, I might be a little more concerned. I think there are much larger things to concern us as a country. It's hard to tell; I can't take the leader of either country seriously. Vote View Results Purchase an online subscription to our website for $7.99 a month with automatic renewal. Each online subscription gives you full access to all of our newspaper websites and mobile applications. To cancel you may contact Customer Service @ 256-235-9253 or email JPAYNE@ANNISTONSTAR.COM For a limited time, for NEW SUBSCRIBERS ONLY a NEW ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION is just $59.99 for the first year. Existing customers do not qualify for the specials! After the first year, well automatically renew your subscription to continue your access at the regular price of $69.99 per year. Please note *Your Subscription will Automatically Renew unless you contact Customer Service To Cancel* The latest sign of fractures in the movement came as the Southern Poverty Law Center announced they would not support the national March this year. The Women's March movement is in deep trouble and is in danger of falling apart as a result of the nauseating anti-Semitism of its leadership. Daily Caller: Jen Fuson, a spokeswoman for the SPLC, told The Daily Beast, other projects were a priority, but she added that they would partner with the localized marches where they have offices. Back in December, a Tablet Magazine investigative report revealed that two of the Womens March founders, Carmen Perez and Tamika Mallory, accosted a Jewish woman who was in a meeting and spouted false allegations that Jewish people bore a special collective responsibility as exploiters of black and brown people and were proven to have been leaders of the American slave trade. The report also revealed connections between some of the founders and Nation of Islam leader and known anti-Semite Louis Farrakhan. Last year, Farrakhan compared Jews to termites in a video that he posted on Twitter. The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington (JCRCGW) and Zioness, two organizations that identify as progressive, previously told The Daily Caller that they also would not support the march. Both groups specified that they would not support the national organization, but would support a march if its one of the local ones. Women like Linda Sarsour and Tamika Mallory rose to the very top leadership of the movement because anti-Semitism on the left is acceptable and usually couched in terms of "Anti-Zionism." But the raw, cringe-inducing Jew hatred of those women, and others on the left involved in the Women's March, couldn't be hidden, excused, or explained away. While the SPLC and others may look to support local events, I wish them luck. NBCNews: Adkins said the New Orleans march, which is affiliated with the national organization, had a terrible time fundraising since mid-November, taking in just over $600 of the roughly $8,000 to $10,000 needed for permits, police escorts, port-a-potties, speaker systems and more. Only about 500 people said they planned to attend, down from thousands in previous years. At the end of December, organizers canceled the Jan. 19 march. New Orleans was not alone in that decision; a group in Eureka, California, scrapped its march over concerns that it would be "overwhelmingly white," and organizers in Chicago replaced their January march with an event in October before the midterms and a day of action planned for March. Other local march organizations including in Rhode Island and Washington state have splintered from the national group, while some including the Women's March Los Angeles Foundation and Women's March Florida have made a point of noting on their websites that they are unaffiliated with Women's March Inc. The original march in January, 2017 was a huge success because organizers had successfully terrorized ordinary women and led them to believe that Donald Trump and the Republicans would take away their birth control pills and deny them equal opportunity. While the anti-Semitism angle is playing out, far more importantly is that the veil of deception by radical feminists who energized housewives and career women into joining them, has fallen away and while many women still hate Trump, they realize that the worst of their fears were manufactured. The Women's March movement has lost credibility among the vast majority of women. It's an open question whether there will even be a march this time next year. National Security Adviser John Bolton asked the Pentagon to draw up ways the US could strike back at Iran. It's unknown if the president ever received those options. The Wall Street Journal reported today that the White House explored options to strike Iran militarily following a mortar attack on the US embassy in September in Baghdad that was linked to Iran. Jerusalem Post: The request, which could lead to direct military confrontation between Iran and the United States, raised concern in the Pentagon. "It definitely rattled people," a former senior US administration official told the Journal." It was mind-boggling how cavalier they were about hitting Iran." However, it is not clear if the proposals were ever delivered to Trump, even though they were compiled. Last year, Trump pushed Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to strike in Syria to punish President Bashar Assad for a chemical weapons attack. In the end, Trump adopted a modest approach, but Mattis resigned because of security disputes with the president. Before joining the Trump administration, Bolton argued repeatedly that the US should attack Iran and had supported regime change in the country. Official White House policy does not call for regime change in Iran, and Bolton has said he would implement the President's agenda. The Pentagon's reluctance to hit Iran is understandable. Iran could hit a wide range of US facilities in the Middle East in response to any attack. Our assets in the region have dwindled while Iran has used the money so generously given them by Barack Obama to improve their military. It's not that we couldn't or shouldn't hit Iran, the question is at what cost to us? This is the same dilemma faced by President Bush, and his national security team ended up advising against it. Eventually, I think it will take a coalition that includes Israel, Saudia Arabia, and other Gulf states to take out Iran's regime. Meanwhile, we can continue to support dissident elements within Iran to see if the regime can be changed relatively peacefully. Failing that, the military option will still be viable, and will be activated if Iran can be shown to be continuing their development of nuclear weapons. Varshini Prakash, founder of the Sunrise Movement, was quoted as saying, "[We are] feeling really disappointed that Nancy Pelosi had failed to follow the leadership of the 45 members of Congress, including some of the freshest faces of the Democratic Party Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, Joe Neguse, so many more in calling for a select committee for a Green New Deal." Organized by the Sunrise Movement, over 200 youth activists supported by then-representative-elect Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took over House minority leader Nancy Pelosi's office the morning of November 13, 2018, lobbying Democrats to act decisively on climate change. Pelosi's first address to the 116th session of Congress Thursday, January 3, 2019 stating that she would be "reinstituting the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis" was not sufficient to satisfy the demands of the Sunrise Movement. Mid-January, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has now already published a Draft Text for a Proposed Addendum to House Rules for 116th Congress of the United States, which lays out what such a Green Deal would establish. It includes the following: The Plan for a Green New Deal (and the draft legislation) shall be developed with the objective of reaching the following outcomes within the target window of 10 years from the start of execution of the Plan: Dramatically expand existing renewable power sources and deploy new production capacity with the goal of meeting 100% of national power demand through renewable sources; building a national, energy-efficient, "smart" grid; upgrading every residential and industrial building for state-of-the-art energy efficiency, comfort and safety; eliminating greenhouse gas emissions from the manufacturing, agricultural and other industries, including by investing in local-scale agriculture in communities across the country ... Also included are these goals: Mitigate deeply entrenched racial, regional and gender-based inequalities in income and wealth (including, without limitation, ensuring that federal and other investment will be equitably distributed to historically impoverished, low income, deindustrialized or other marginalized communities in such a way that builds wealth and ownership at the community level); include additional measures such as basic income programs, universal health care programs and any others as the select committee may deem appropriate to promote economic security, labor market flexibility and entrepreneurism; and deeply involve national and local labor unions to take a leadership role in the process of job training and worker deployment. This hodgepodge of wishful socialist thinking, climate non-science, social justice mandates, population control advocacy, and progressivism laced with technocracy is not new or original. Even before Jill Stein, failed Green Party 2016 presidential candidate, there was the Club of Rome, founded in 1968. They have also issued their plan for climate control, and with much the same goals and mechanisms for the world to conform to their view. Is it possible that the "tippy top" Green New Deal spokesperson had the recent Club of Rome publication in mind when she published her Draft Text? The Club of Rome Climate Emergency Plan calls for 10 priority actions: 1. Halt fossil fuel expansion and fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 ... 2.Triple annual investments in renewable energy, energy efficiency and low carbon technologies for high emitting sectors before 2025 ... 3. Put a price on carbon to reflect the true cost of fossil fuel use and embedded carbon by 2020 ... 4. Replace GDP growth as the main objective for societal progress ... 5. Improve refrigerant management by 2020. ... 6. Encourage exponential technology development by 2020 ... 7. Ensure greater materials efficiency and circularity by 2025 ... 8. Accelerate regenerative land use policies and adaptation ... 9. Ensure that population growth is kept under control by giving priority to education and health services for girls and women. ... 10. Provide for a just transition in all affected communities[.] Hailed, by some, as the new youthful face of the Democratic Party Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez seems to be reading from the same old page written by the old Club of Rome. Nothing new under the sun, and nothing new about the socialist-progressive quest for absolute power over the masses and acquiescence by the deplorables. Climate change is the new scapegoat, and control of energy sources the new shape of the ruling iron fist. Charles G. Battig, M.S., M.D., Heartland Institute policy expert on environment; VA-Scientists and Engineers for Energy and Environment (VA-SEEE). His website is www.climateis.com. With everyone on the same page now, one can see the outlines of the stage in Venezuela being set for action. As I noted yesterday regarding National Security Advisor John Bolton's and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's statements, something is going on with Venezuela. Both Bolton and Pompeo told Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro to get the heck out and suggested the U.S. was ready to recognize National Assembly leader Juan Guaido as the country's president. They had perfect grounds for it, because Maduro illegally and unconstitutionally swore himself in to another term after a fraud election and didn't even show up at the right place for his inauguration. The statements coming from the U.S. were unprecedented - evidence of a true recognition of the facts on the ground, evidence of the U.S. leading, and evidence of "a plan," as I argued . So now we're seeing a coordinated ballet of actions unfolding, from multiple directions, to an extent that actually reminds me of the series of events leading to the Velvet Revolution of 1989. There's some kind of plan because according to some of the most credible Venezuelan sources on Twitter, this is what went down: Guerra avisada | Fuerzas Armadas de distintos paises de las Americas comunican a sus contactos y pares en la FAN(B*) sobre la disposicion cierta de sus gobiernos de reconocer en breve a @jguaido como Presidente Encargado de la Republica Bolivariana de VENEZUELA. Reaccionaran? pic.twitter.com/AlQXPjcZOl Pedro Mario Burelli (@pburelli) January 12, 2019 Here is a quick Google translation, with some tweaks from me: War advisory | Armed forces from different countries of the Americas communicate with their contacts and peers in the FAN (B*) [Venezuelan armed forces] about the certain disposition of their governments to recognize shortly @jguaido as president in charge of the Bolivarian Republic of VENEZUELA. Will they react? So now we got military on military contacts from Latin countries to the Venezuelan military, and one can only guess what went on in those conversations. I can imagine the Venezuelan military men scared to act, but I can also imagine the tough military officers from place such as Brazil, Colombia, Chile, Argentina and Peru offering a steady hand of support if the Venezuelans will just get the show over, and lawfully act to dislodge Maduro and bring him to justice. The Venezuelans are undoubtedly operating in a shambling situation, with everything broken and order falling apart - they even have soldiers fleeing - and only the Cubans to surveil and scare them. One can only wonder what that must look like from the inside. There was also this, stated earlier and retweeted by Venezuela's respected (pre-Chavez) elder statesman, Diego Arria, who obviously recognizes the importance of those coordinated phone calls: Hace un ano. Hoy aun mas pertinente pic.twitter.com/uoRTvsenLH Diego E. Arria (@Diego_Arria) January 12, 2019 He argues the military is key. If you can understand Spanish, he has much more here Now here's the next thing that's happened SAO PAULO, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Brazil's government on Saturday issued a statement saying it recognized Venezuela's Congressional leader, who opposes President Nicolas Maduro, as the rightful president of Venezuela. Maduro, who started a second term as president this week, has found himself increasingly isolated as countries around the world have called his continued leadership illegitimate. Juan Guaido, the head of Venezuela's opposition-led Congress, said this week he was prepared to assume the country's presidency on an interim basis and call elections. Brazil is the big dog on the South American bloc and its statement means something. It comes after its smaller neighbor, Paraguay, pulled up stakes and cut off diplomatic relations with Venezuela during the phony inaugural, which was a pitch-perfect thing to do. I wrote about that here. Next up, more nations are going to follow Brazil, not just because it's big, but because Latin America is now loaded with leaders whose conservative views are closely aligned with Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro's.They know about the Venezuelan shambles, they've experienced the failure of socialism in their own countries which is why they themselves got elected, and they all now know that there's a problem in Caracas. Following Brazil and the U.S. is going to be a piece of cake for them. The plan to boot Maduro peaceably if possible is going to gain steam. And now the phone calls are coming, from all directions, and the Venezuelan military in coming days may just take center stage. A plan is moving quickly, likely the work of the U.S. and Brazil, working hand in hand and bringing in the otherwise isolated and debilitated Venezuelans themselves. For Maduro, that's no longer cause for paranoia. With a plan like this, it looks someone really is out to get him. Image credit: U.S. Air Force photo by Master Sgt. Donna T. Jeffries / public domain 1. Yes. Its important to address the problem before it gets worse. A bond is needed. 2. Yes. Its fine, as long as the bond isnt too large. The city doesnt need more debt. 3. No. A bond issue would just put the problem back on the taxpayers. Not acceptable. 4. No. Certificates of obligation, targeting the worst roads, would be a better choice. 5. Unsure. Its hard to say without knowing the details of what a bond would entail. Vote View Results NYTs Tom Friedman loses it on Trump New York Times Columnist and Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Friedman has been a globalist activist and thought leader of the left for nearly 40 years. He has become increasingly progressive and partisan, but now hes reached the point where hes resorted to calling a man elected as president and supported by 62 million Americans as a demented man. Yes, he actually said this. Friday on CNNs The Situation Room, Friedman also said, We have a disturbed man as president. Thats very clear. Whaat? No, Tom, a reasonable person can see its your mental issues that you have clearly exposed here. This sort of slander and name-calling should be beneath someone at your level. Obviously its not. Friedman has morphed into just another left wing political hack. But as we increasingly see from all across the landscape of the progressive left, there is little trace left of decency and objective fairness among the left anywhere. At least half of America recognizes that in President Donald J. Trump what we really have is a true patriot, a man who has sacrificed a great deal of his own wealth, who works without a salary, who has been insulted and slandered well beyond any sense of fairness, a man who has been under daily attack by the Deep State and the left since his inauguration, who is trying to save our country from the ravages of far left liberal group think and the unbelievable hypocrisy that Friedman now sadly represents and supports. In fact, Friedmans latest musings make it clear the level of left wing hypocrisy has now moved well beyond delusional. We have to wonder how such a seemingly intelligent, well-connected and well-traveled guy can be so totally out of touch that he cant even see how ridiculous his own comments are. What worries me now is were threatening our institutions. Whaat? This presumably refers to some unspecified actions by Trump. Well, Tom, youre almost right, but not in the way you mean it. Some of Americas most revered institutions were broken if not shattered by the Obama presidency. The challenge to our institutions has for some time been well beyond just threatening. How is it that Friedman somehow failed to notice or at least mention how President Barack Obama and his minions thoroughly corrupted the IRS, the FBI, the Justice Department and the CIA? During the Obama administration, conservatives and conservative groups were under constant threat and harassment by the IRS and Lois Lerner who has never been charged with any crimes. The damage to the international reputation of the FBI caused by the blatantly unethical and probably illegal actions of disgraced James Comey, Peter Strzok, Lisa Page, Bruce Ohr, Andrew McCabe and Robert Mueller will take years to cure. Meanwhile, Obamas Justice Department under Attorneys General Eric Holder and Loretta Lynch was almost certainly the most cynical and political in our history. John Brennan, with his pro-Muslim agenda and his role in the FISA warrant scandals damaged the CIA in ways that are tough to calibrate. The so-called investigation of Special Counsel Robert Mueller into alleged collusion by the Trump campaign with Russia is beyond ridiculous. Start with the fact that the criminal investigation of alleged collusion was launched despite the fact political collusion is not a crime. The entire Mueller investigation is built on a fraudulent premise. But even after two years of investigation, which has ignored the apparent crimes of Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and others while ruining the lives of several men who had been associated with Trump, nothing has been found against Trump. The primary result so far has been to destroy the confidence that millions of Americans have in our justice system. Again, it will take years to overcome this. Somehow Friedman cant grasp that the emperor has no clothes. Look, what he (Trump) did describing the judges as Bush judges and Obama judges. Thank God John Roberts said, there arent Obama judges and Bush judges. Theyre just judges. Whaat? If thats the case, why is the left in an obvious panic over the frailties and health issues of 85-year-old Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg? If she dies in the near future she is likely to be replaced by a third justice nominated by President Trump. Look at the circus created by the Democrats over the nomination of Justice Brett Kavanaugh, one of our finest and most decent Americans. He and his family were threatened and slandered well beyond any sense of shame or ethics by the left. If judges are just judges, what was that all about? Nevertheless, Friedman was on a roll. Look what he (Trump) has been doing with the military. Whaat? Tom, if you havent noticed, Trump has supported and worked aggressively to strengthen our military that was seriously crippled during the Obama years. I can only assume Friedman was making an obscure reference to the departure of Defense Secretary James Mattis, a revered and highly accomplished Marine Corps general. Remember when President Harry Truman fired General Douglas McArthur? Presidents and generals sometimes disagree. In our form of government, the president is the commander-in-chief. As he did when he moved our embassy to Jerusalem, Trump fulfilled a promise he made to the American people, in this case to get our troops out of Syria, a dangerous war zone where ultimately they were in a high-risk situation with little possible gain or benefit for the United States. These are our institutions, Friedman continued. What makes us unique as a country is that we have a judiciary, we have a non-partisan military, we have a true state, not some nefarious deep state. Whaat? Is Friedman not paying attention to what has gone on for the past two years or is he just another cynical part of the left wing media cover-up? The vicious and disgusting uninterrupted assault on Trump and the Trump presidency from day one by people at the highest levels of our government has been thoroughly documented. Hello, Tom. This is the Deep State, resisting at multiple government levels together with allies in the media and the judiciary everything that Trump has done or tried to do simply because they lost an election or just dont like him. Fashion magazines even refuse to put our beautiful first lady on the cover of their publications. It was the excesses of the Obama administrations heavy handedness and damage to our institutions that led to the Trump revolution and his election. How can Friedman not see that? The biggest crisis we have right now is in the Oval Office. We have a president who does not appreciate the institutions that make our country unique, Friedman said. Whaat? Its precisely because President Trump understands and honors what makes our country great and unique that drives Trump and motivates him. Its also the reason he was elected. The Obama, Clinton, Kerry administration pushed us closer than ever into a third world banana republic style of government that featured lying, racism and some of the most cynical levels of behavior our country has ever seen. Think of the multi-billion dollar payoff to the Iranian mullahs. Think of Obamacare that promised Americans they could keep their doctor and plan and their insurance rates would go down. Think of the approaches made to the Muslim Brotherhood by Obama. Think of the lies and cover-up of the Benghazi debacle that resulted in the deaths of four Americans including an ambassador. Think of the millions of unborn slaughtered by those on the Planned Parenthood payroll. Think of Obamas blatant racism displayed in the cases of Henry Louis Gates, Trayvon Martin, Freddie Gray and Michael Brown. The world envies those institutions. They want to be in a place that has those kinds of institutions. Thats precisely what this president is attacking. Thats a threat. Whaat? Tom, thats miles beyond ridiculous. Illegal immigrants want to be in a place where they are immediately fed, housed and given medical treatment well beyond what they can expect to get in their native countries. If they are able to get in front of a judge, they are quickly released and make their way into our country generally permanently. Apparently Friedman hasnt heard about the criminals, drug runners, gang members, rapists and possibly terrorists flooding the border on a daily basis in direct challenge to American law and the safety of ordinary Americans thereby insulting legal immigrants and thousands around the world waiting to come to America legally. Sadly, illegal aliens have been responsible for the deaths of and damage to thousands of Americans. What kind of institutions permit that? Envy? Whaat? Ask the heads of state in China, Japan, Austria, Poland, Hungary and other European countries threatened with floods of illegal immigrants about their envy of our open borders. Finally, Friedman cant resist at taking a shot at Republicans all across the country. Its really sad. This is a party that has simply laid down for a demented man. They have been laying down for anyone who would energize their base, going back to Sarah Palin and the Tea Party, and now its Trump. Sorry Tom, good Americans are not buying this drivel. We Republicans are behind Trumps efforts to Make America Great Again. Your comments make it clear the only dementia showing is yours. Frank Hawkins is a former U.S. Army intelligence officer, Associated Press foreign correspondent, international businessman, senior newspaper company executive, founder and owner of several marketing companies and published novelist. He currently lives in retirement in North Carolina. MEXICO CITY Another migrant caravan is forming in Honduras, with plans to set out next week on a journey that will once again test the immigration policies of Mexico and the United States. Walls don't work, as the Democrats like to say. But get a load of how 'no walls' work, from a Washington Post report : In much the way last years Central American caravan originated, a flier is circulating on Honduran social media. Were looking for refuge, it says. In Honduras, we are being killed. It advertises a 5 a.m. departure on Jan. 15 from the northern city of San Pedro Sula. The Mexican government says it is preparing for the groups arrival. Obviously, caravans, ever better organized and more frequent, are becoming 'a thing.' As miserable as the last migrant caravan was, leaving thousands holed up in Tijuana's rainy, wet, cold, mass-living campgrounds, with open toilet smells to inhale, lice and thieves to keep them company, the horror of having to eat, gadzooks, Mexican food, and actual protests from disgusted locals, it apparently has worked out well enough for the migrants who decided to not bother waiting for an asylum appointment, but decided to take advantage of the U.S.'s barely-there walls. Crossing illegally, without waiting, they made all the others feel like fools for not coming. And word gets around. Here are some examples: A U.S. congresswoman led a group of them illegally across the border to make it to the states to claim asylum, so, some got in that way. Others just ran in through the cracks in the border gates and got through to make their asylum claims, too. A single mom who got a pity-picture from Reuters for storming the U.S. port of entry at Tijuana and getting tear-gassed, an image which some say was manipulated, well, she somehow got in ahead of the others, too. Someone let that woman who insulted Mexican food and drew Tijuana protests into the states illegally, too, where she is dining in style in Dallas now -- and expects free health care. Someone let a pregnant woman in illegally to give birth - and automatic U.S. citizenship - to a baby as a means of increasing the legal case for her own stay in the states. Anyone left outside still waiting for their number to be called in Tijuana must wonder why they're doing that instead of just running through. The incentives, based in existing U.S. law, are pretty amazing. A wall would stop that, at least to some extent, and make migrating legally a more attractive prospect. People are not stupid, and they weigh their best options. What the coming caravans, and their increased organizational muscle, are telling us, is that it makes more sense to migrate illegally than legally. Obviously, the attractive nuisance of the unwalled U.S. still stands, at least for now. Combine that with the legal incentives to come illegally, and it's no surprise that the caravans -- many, many, caravans -- are coming. If that's not a case for President Trump's wall, what is? How is the prospect of 15,000 people, or 80,000 people, or 500,000 people, (with criminals salted in), storming our border, not a crisis, as Trump has argued. The fact that caravans, of murky financing, are being organized and turned into an ongoing and ever more polished organized operation suggests that the funding and organization of leftist open border groups is there, and the lack of a wall makes it attractive. Two years ago, we heard about a smaller caravan that headed north to Tijuana, and then things went dormant. Then late last year, a larger caravan showed up, getting lots of bad P.R., but obviously some kind of success for at least some of them, all premised on illegal crossing. Now, there's this vast new caravan preparing to set off on Jan. 15 at 5:00 a.m., and far fewer of them are going to take a number as many of these past caravan migrants, still waiting at the gates, are. They're just going to march right through because that's where the instant rewards are. With this going on, a very large part of the population of Honduras is going to be in the states before long, which is hardly a good thing for Honduras itself, which is already in a demographic death spiral. (All of the Central American states that send large numbers of military-aged young men are in that death spiral and cannot actually afford to lose the people, educated or not, that they are losing.) There are a lot of reasons to favor a wall - with friendly door for legal immigrants alongside it. But probably the biggest one which will support President Trump's case for a border wall on the grounds of national security, is the new reality here - that another caravan is headed our way with thousands of people who don't want to take a number to enter - and as each successive caravan succeeds in its mission, more will be coming. Image credit: Screen grab from CBS News, via YouTube On November 1, 2017, Lindsay Shepherd, a graduate student and teaching assistant at Wilfrid Laurier University in Ontario, Canada, presented to her class a clip from a popular Ontario television talk show. The topic of the clip was gender pronouns, and the format was a panel discussion that included Jordan Peterson as one of the participants. A great many people including many strong advocates of free speech have only a passing acquaintance with the Lindsay Shepherd matter. This lack of awareness is unfortunate, because nothing more chillingly reveals the way in which universities are violating the free speech principle. Jordan Peterson had already become famous (or notorious, depending on your politics) for having publicly stated that he would not abide by a recently established Ontario law called C-16. This law, in Peterson's view, obliged him and all others to use recently coined pronouns to refer to people who deny their own biological sex. Peterson saw this law as a form of compelled speech imposed by government, an unacceptable transgression against the principle of free speech. His perspective on the issue of transgender pronouns contrasted with those of other members of the panel, presumably an intentional effort on the part of the television show to include divergent views. Nathan Rambukkana, a communications professor at Wilfred Laurier University, was Lindsay Shepherd's adviser and her supervisor for the work she was doing as a teaching assistant. Shortly after the showing of that clip from the television show, Ms. Shepherd received an email from Professor Rambukkana asking her to attend a meeting that, in addition to the two of them, would include the Masters Program coordinator and the acting director of the Gendered Violence Prevention and Support Program. When she attended the meeting, Ms. Shepherd was informed that one or more students in her class had complained about the showing of the clip, and the three university officials censured her for having shown it. One of them claimed she had violated university policy and broken Ontario law by spreading transphobia, one slandered Jordan Peterson (a psychology professor at the infinitely more prestigious University of Toronto) by contending that he was not a credible academic, and the third Mr. Rambukkana himself admonished Ms. Shepherd that playing the clip of Peterson was like "neutrally playing a clip of Hitler." Without their knowing it, Lindsay Shepherd had recorded the meeting (which is legal in Ontario). After the meeting, Ms. Shepherd went public with her recording. No evidence ever emerged confirming Rambukkana's contention that one or more students had complained about the content of that Peterson video clip. On November 17, after widespread public disapproval over the way in which Lindsay Shepherd had been treated, Nathan Rambukkana issued a public letter of apology to her. On the same day, the president of Wilfred Laurier University also posted a public letter of apology in which she implied but avoided saying directly that the university would be taking steps to fortify its commitment to "the abiding principles of freedom of speech and freedom of expression." In June of 2018, Lindsay Shepherd launched a 3.6-million-dollar lawsuit against the university, evidently based on its continuing failure to honor the principle of free speech so piously expressed in that apology letter from the president. A few days later, Jordan Peterson initiated a 1.5-million-dollar defamation lawsuit against Laurier in which he contends that Ms. Shepherd's inquisitors slandered him in a format they ought to have realized was likely to go public. Peterson claims that his lawsuit was filed largely because he believes that Laurier University is continuing to avoid its avowed commitment to fostering free speech. Put differently, he supports Lindsay Shepherd's contention that Laurier's apology is proving to have been fake. Just last month, Nathan Rambukkana and Herbert Pimlott (two of the three who interrogated Shepherd over a year ago) filed a lawsuit against Lindsay Shepherd, contending that she is financially responsible for any damage to themselves as a consequence of the Peterson suits. Their rationale is that she was the person in power because she made the secret recording and chose to make it public. Rambukkana and Pimlott have been named as personally responsible by the Peterson lawsuit; they evidently fear being held responsible for their own actions. Anyone who values free speech as a sacred right of the individual ought to be familiar with the details of this matter. Lindsay Shepherd was institutionally abused by Wilfred Laurier University for doing nothing more than encouraging open discussion of a contentious contemporary issue a fact that was admitted by the university in its letter of apology. But since that event over a year ago, Ms. Shepherd has received no institutionally recognized relief for the injustice that she suffered, and no corrective actions have been taken against her three inquisitors. To feel the full force of academia's paternalistic arrogance and ideological authoritarianism, all one needs to do is listen to the secret recording of Lindsay Shepherd's inquisition. To know and fear the puritanical righteousness with which progressives impose their own beliefs on others, please read Fay Voshell's indictment of revolutionary zeal. Image: Tyler Menezes via Flickr. Representative Gabbard, who just announced her candidacy for president, first grabbed my attention and admiration when she denounced the anti-Catholic religious bigotry demonstrated by Dianne Feinstein, and by implication her Hawaii Democrat colleague, Senator Mazie Hirono and California Senator Kamala Harris. Fifty-nine percent of Democrats polled say they are "excited" about "someone entirely new" as their presidential candidate. Tulsi Gabbard certainly is that. This position makes her stand out in a crowded and growing field of over 30 potential or declared candidates for the Democrats nomination. As Ruth King noted on these pages last week, the 2020 nomination contest could well recapitulate the rise out of nowhere of Barack Obama from obscurity to an eagerly embraced nominee, as someone new and different. Four days later, The Hill has published an opinion piece making the same point, that there's every reason to believe an unknown will emerge and win the Democratic presidential nod. Barack Obama did it in 2008. Bill Clinton in 1992 and Jimmy Carter in 1976 also came from nowhere to win the Democratic presidential nomination. Bernie Sanders didn't even think he had a chance to win when he entered the 2016 race, but he came within a whisker of taking the Democratic nod away from the prohibitive favorite, Hillary Clinton. This view is supported by an interesting USA Today/Suffolk University poll revealing that: Landing at the top of the list of 11 options was "someone entirely new" perhaps a prospect not on the political radar screen yet. Nearly six in 10 of those surveyed 59 percent said they would be "excited" about a candidate like that; only 11 percent said they'd prefer that a new face not run. Someone entirely new describes Rep. Gabbard in a way that I had not realized until today. She was born into a remains a member of a cult (or High Demand, Closed Group, as one former follower called it) based on some Hindu teachings as delivered by its leader, named Chris Butler. I was reluctant to even mention this because I am a First Amendment absolutist, and believe that no religious test for office means exactly what it says. I was politically aware when John F. Kennedy ran for president and was thrilled when a Catholic finally won the nations highest office, not because I am Catholic (I am not), but because I passionately believe in religious freedom and abhor religious exclusion from office. I remember in 1960 that there were people calling JFK a pawn of the pope in Rome (that was a common expression of anti-Catholic bigots back then) unworthy of the presidency on that basis. I also realize that, as an old saying has it, one mans religion is another mans cult, and many large and well-established religions began life being denounced as cults. That said, the values and predispositions of anyone seeking the presidency deserve scrutiny. So, it may be worthwhile to learn more about Chris Butler. Especially since she hired a member of that group as her chief of staff in 2015. Hawaii Free Press reported: So, I am going to be doing my homework, and finding out whatever I can about the influences on her political values and activities that might derive from her being a follower of a guru. The fact that her membership in this group has been well-known to her constituents in Hawaii is proof enough that she deserves every consideration and is entirely legitimate as an office holder. If you are interested, the material I have so far uncovered can be found here, here, here, here, and here. One thing is certain: this election cycle will be very interesting. Ana Navarro, CNN's Madame Defarge Ana Navarro is a regular on CNN. She is billed as a Republican but of course she is nothing of the kind. She is a heartless, cruel, anti-conservative in every way. She is of course a Trump hater and revels in her vicious attacks on the President. An example of her most recent reprehensible bit of behavior was to insouciantly file her nails on screen while a supporter of Trump and the wall was talking about the thousands of Americans killed by illegal immigrants. This was her way of demonstrating her contempt for all of us who support Trump and the wall, those of us who know how necessary it is. How do we know? We live in cities in which hundreds of crimes - rapes, DUIs, murders, gang violence, drug use - are destroying the neighborhoods in which we live. Navarro, like Schumer and Pelosi, do not care about those victims, about those families' grievous losses. Dead Americans are a small price to pay for a flood of illegal migrants sure to be future democrat voters. Dead Americans are a small price to pay for sabotaging the President they despise, despite his many successes for the good of the nation. Obama, Schumer, Pelosi, and Hillary Clinton have all supported a wall in the past. They have voted for many billions more than the five-plus billion for which Trump is now asking. Obama repeatedly called the throngs crossing the southern border into the US with impunity a "crisis." Now that Trump is President they have reversed course and they think we won't notice their blatant hypocrisy. Something terrible has happened to the Democrats in Congress; they've lost all sense of decency, of love of country. They are only about one thing: hating Trump. That is today the one and only essence of the democrat party. They have no agenda beyond impeaching the President. They have no ideas, none. One cannot give any credence to socialists like Bernie Sanders or Ocasio-Cortez and her ridiculous New Green Deal. Nor can we take seriously proud anti-Semites like Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar. They are leading the rest of their party to an openly all-out anti-Israel posture. Anti-Semitism is now fashionable among the left. That two such ridiculously biased people as Tlaib and Omar were elected is a very bad sign for America, once the beacon of freedom of religion and respect for all religions. America was founded on the rejection of biases that these two women, along with Keith Ellison and a few others, openly espouse. Despite their bigotry these people are now celebrated members of the democratic left. Dickens's Madame Defarge possessed a remorseless bloodlust. She has a relentless thirst for vengeance; she had suffered at the hands of the aristocracy. But for Dickens, she symbolizes his belief that her sort of vengeful attitude will ultimately prove a self-damning one. Madame Defarge dies in a scuffle from a bullet from her own gun. Ana Navarro is a thoughtless and cruel woman. Is her vengeful attitude the result of previous cruelties? Perhaps. She has no children, which may explain her unsympathetic, uncharitable contempt for the families whose kids have been slaughtered by criminal illegals. Nevertheless, her on-screen nail-filing stunt has betrayed her diabolical emptiness for all to see. That CNN still embraces her is yet another nail in the coffin of their credibility. Dickens wrote that "A loving heart is the truest wisdom." Navarro lacks both heart and wisdom. She is the perfect archetype of our progressive left. Trump Has the Democrats Cornered No sooner had the Democrats taken back the majority in the House of Representatives than they proved their harshest critics correct the party no longer concerns itself with the interests of the American people. And by refusing to provide a dime for a physical barrier on our border, they did it in the starkest terms possible. Led by far-left Nancy Pelosi, who held off a challenge to her leadership from the even farther left, the House Democrats promptly put themselves in the position of being seen taking the side of foreigners entering the country illegally over the security and economic prosperity of American citizens. They reduced themselves to the absurd position that "walls don't work." I'm not one who necessarily believes that President Trump is a master negotiator or is playing 3D chess. But whether by design or because of pressure from his restive base, he now has the winning hand to build his wall and go on to re-election in 2020. What's important now is that Trump plays his winning hand and resists the growing calls from the opposition media and cheap-labor Republicans to compromise with Nancy and Chuck. Doing so would just throw them a lifeline. Instead, Trump should use the power granted presidents by Congress, declare a national emergency, and begin construction of the wall. Sure, the Democrats and open-border zealots will run to the thoroughly discredited 9th Circuit and get an activist Obama judge to stand the law on its head and issue a bogus restraining order. But the president will be on solid legal footing, and that ruling will be overturned by the Supreme Court on the expedited basis that an emergency declaration demands. It took a while for them to admit it, but even liberal legal scholars now grudgingly recognize that the National Emergencies Act of 1976 grants the president the authority to reprogram military construction funds for emergency projects. And sorry, CNN, but it's the president and the president alone who decides what's an emergency. The Secure Fence Act passed by Congress in 2006 further strengthens Trump's case for declaring an emergency. This will put the Dems in the awkward position of arguing that wasteful Army Corps of Engineer projects in Iraq and Afghanistan are more important than one protecting America's border. While many of those projects were of dubious value to begin with, many more have already been built, have been destroyed, and are waiting to be rebuilt to be destroyed again. While all this plays out, the Democrats will be all over the opposition media, declaring Trump a tyrant for having the audacity to secure the nation's borders. It will be Trump Derangement Syndrome on parade as one wild-eyed leftist after another vehemently argues against what Americans can plainly see is common sense. Trump's greatest value is as a disruptor, and all this disruption is just too delicious, as it forces the Dems to play their losing hand. While Trump should quickly end the partial government shutdown to take away that issue, he shouldn't give an inch on DACA or any other form of amnesty. Doing that would muddy the waters and fracture his base and congressional Republicans. That argument can wait for another day and for more substantial concessions from the Democrats like an end to chain migration. In the meantime, let the Dems twist in the wind. This would also be a good time for the administration to get its communications act together and correct several fallacies the opposition media have ingrained into the public's consciousness fallacies like that the wall is an exorbitant expense, when in reality it will save far more through reduced costs associated with illegal immigration, which currently costs the nation well over $150B each and every year. Heck, it will save money on the reduced need for border patrol personnel alone. Then there is the fallacy that a 2,000-mile border barrier is some major engineering challenge, when the U.S. has built over 46,000 miles of interstate highways, each mile of which required more complex engineering than setting a steel-bollard wall. And there is the self-obvious fallacy that agenda-driven politicians, open-borders advocates, and opposition media pundits know more about how to secure the border than border patrol agents who overwhelmingly are calling for a physical barrier. Having regained one house of Congress, the Democrats immediately boxed themselves into a losing position. That position is in opposition to the main issue that elected Trump to the presidency: securing the border. Their fellow travelers in the media can deceive the uninformed portion of the electorate for only so long before it becomes painfully clear that voting for Democrats imperils the nation. The author hosts Right Now with Jim Daws, a video webcast on news, politics, and culture from an American nationalist perspective. http://twitter.com/RightNowJim Daws It is increasingly obvious that there is a pony in the heap of Mueller Trump-Russia dung, and the pony is a corrupt FBI and CIA covering up their unlawful conduct. Even the best efforts by the wrongdoers' media mouthpieces are not sufficient to keep us from seeing that. Despite spending millions of dollars, hiring 13 of the most vicious anti-Trump prosecutors available, and having allies in the DoJ and FBI continuing to delay congressional efforts to reveal the machinations of their anti-Trump colleagues, it is increasingly obvious that they have turned up no evidence of any Trump-Russia collaboration. (Something common sense would have indicated at the outset.) Scott Johnson at Power Line blog has a laugh at the latest "Mueller madness": Today's New York Times expose of the nefarious activities under investigation in the Mueller probe is "Prosecutors Examining Ukrainians Who Flocked to Trump Inaugural" (accessible here on Outline). It carries the bylines of four of the Times's top reporters Kenneth P. Vogel, Scott Shane, Mark Mazzetti and Iuliia Mendel, but they also had the help of Sharon LaFraniere and Maggie Haberman, who contributed reporting from Washington. That makes six. I read their long, long article with increasing incredulity and amusement. I asked a trusted friend who has closely followed the Mueller probe whether I was wrong to find the story funny. I regret that I must keep my friend's identity secret to protect him from the long arm of Team Mueller. He responds: Funny? This is serious stuff. Not only did these pro-Russian Ukrainians suggest peace plans, they posted pictures on social media about inaugural balls that some attended and some did not attend. We all know how nefarious social media posts are. And if you're going to propose a peace plan to lawmakers, you better darn well have your FARA filings up to date. Because FARA filings protect America against social media and peace plans. The knowledge of vigilance on this makes me sleep easier at night. I've been to inaugural balls. Let me tell you about them. They are crowded and very noisy. The weather is usually cold, and there's no way for cars to get you near the venues, so you have to walk to them often for blocks. The cloakrooms are always jammed, and you wait in long lines to check your garb. Entering, the rooms are packed with half-drunk revelers before the music starts. You'll be cheek to jowl with lobbyists for such things as the sugar lobby and some staffer's great aunt from Des Moines who complains her feet are hurting. The president and first lady enter at some point, do a quick turn on the raised stage, everyone claps, they leave, and the drinkers continue in earnest. When you try to get out of there, there's another long line to get your coat, and another hike to some transportation. If the Ukrainians managed any serious work at the balls, it would be a miracle unless maybe they talked that aunt into a visit to Lvov, "the Paris of the Ukraine." The Pony On the other hand, Congress apparently has had it with the FBI's and DoJ's continued efforts to keep us in the dark about the skullduggery that went on prior to and after the president was inaugurated and is beginning to leak what it found out. As the story unfolds, no one in those outfits' higher ranks looks good, and the entire Mueller investigation appears to be, as Sharyl Attkisson in The Hill suggests, an effort to keep hidden and protect from disruption "long established money channels ... secret machinations that could arguably land some people in prison." (a) Lisa Page Transcript The Epoch Times received a leaked transcript of the Lisa Page testimony before the Joint House Congressional Committee testimony that implicates the present FBI deputy director, David Bowdich, in the FBI's Russia investigation. And who has been keeping this testimony locked up from public scrutiny? David Bowdich, who also locked up the testimony of "confidential witness interviews" by the House Judiciary Committee: once again, the FBI posits its hold on "law enforcement sensitive information," the possibility of revealing "classified information" and the need for the FBI, the Department and the Special Counsel's Office to review this information. Skeptics like "Sundance" believe that the Mueller investigation always had an ulterior purpose and that the refusal to release publicly what congressional investigations learned is part of the plan: (1) Create an investigation -- Just by creating the investigation it is then used as a shield by any corrupt FBI/DOJ official who would find himself/herself under downstream congressional investigation. Former officials being deposed/questioned by IG Horowitz or Congress could then say they are unable to answer those questions due to the ongoing special counsel investigation. In this way Mueller provides cover for ideologically aligned deep state officials. (2) Use the investigation to keep any and all inquiry focused away from the corrupt DOJ and FBI activity that took place in 2015, 2016, 2017. Keep the media narrative looking somewhere, anywhere, other than directly at the epicenter of the issues. In this way, Mueller provides distraction and talking points against the Trump administration. (3) Use the investigation to suck-up, absorb, any damaging investigative material that might surface as a result of tangentially related inquiry. Example: control the exposure of evidence against classified leak participants like SSCI Director of Security, James Wolfe; and/or block IG Horowitz from seeing material related to the FISA abuse scandal and "spygate". In this way Mueller provides cover for the institutions and the administrative state. In all of these objectives the Mueller special counsel has been stunningly effective. (b) Here's the Pony The New York Times, which has been desperately digging through the dung for years, finally found the pony: "No evidence has emerged publicly that Mr. Trump was secretly in contact with or took direction from Russian government officials." Then they buried it as deep in the pile as they could in a story sourced to unnamed former law enforcement officials and "others familiar with the investigation." The story revealed that, as President Trump tweeted, "the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin' James Comey, a total sleaze." From this concocted rationale, the Mueller investigation was created and, like the brooms in "The Sorcerer's Apprentice," keeps on and on and on. Rudy Giuliani found fresh meat with which to criticize Mueller in this account. In an acknowledgment of just how serious an FBI investigation of a sitting president would be, the report details a "vigorous debate" among former law enforcement officials about whether the probe was an overreach. Rudy Giuliani, Trump's attorney, said the FBI's investigation into Trump should have resulted in an outcome, otherwise the bureau is "imperiling our national security." But legal experts pointed out that a counterintelligence investigation is different from a criminal probe and the lack of previous public knowledge of the investigation or of any possible outcomes is not surprising. "If it was a counter intelligence investigation and it obtained any evidence, it would have to have resulted in some action being taken or they are imperiling our national security," Giuliani said in a statement to MSNBC. "This shows how out of control they are." The Pony is not Russia There Is No There There. The Pony is the hiding of deep-seated corruption in the intelligence community, FBI, and Department of Justice. No one explains this better than Sharyl Attkisson in the Hill article already linked above. I urge you to read it all as she explains, in a tongue-in-cheek hypothetical (which is not really hypothetical), that "the insurance policy" reference against Donald Trump in the Peter Strzok-Lisa Page correspondence and the Comey leakee Benjamin Wittes's blog was designed not to protect us from Russian influence, but to protect high-ranking bad actors from prosecution. She begins her most plausible scenario: Assume, for the sake of argument, that powerful, connected people in the intelligence community and in politics worried that a wildcard Trump presidency, unlike another Clinton or Bush, might expose a decade-plus of questionable practices. Disrupt long-established money channels. Reveal secret machinations that could arguably land some people in prison. What exactly might an "insurance policy" against Donald Trump look like? He would have to be marginalized at every turn. Strategies would encompass politics, the courts, opposition research and the media. He'd have to become mired in lawsuits, distracted by allegations, riddled with calls for impeachment, hounded by investigations. His election must be portrayed as the illegitimate result of a criminal or un-American conspiracy. To accomplish this, bad actors in the intel community could step up use of surveillance tools as a weapon to look for dirt on Trump before his inauguration. They could rely on dubious political opposition research to secretly argue for wiretaps, plant one or more spies in the Trump campaign, then leak to the press a mix of true and false stories to create a sense of chaos. Attkisson lays out the step-by-step plan as it unfolded and concludes with "ex-intel officials getting hired at national news outlets where they'd monitor and influence news organizations, and be[ing] invited to give daily spin on controversies surrounding their own actions." Wait...what? How else to explain former director of National Intelligence James Clapper and former Comey aide Josh Campbell being hired by CNN? Or former CIA director John Brennan and ex-Mueller-Comey aide Chuck Rosenberg by NBC and MSNBC, except that it is a continuing plan to cover their own malfeasance? The (Partial) Shutdown In the meantime, with some of the government shut down, traffic is sparse on D.C.'s streets, though tree-trimmers, road construction projects, and new housing and shopping mall building cranes still clog the thoroughfares (burly men still have jobs), and online restaurant delivery companies are offering their services free. Happy hours are crowded with people gobbling up the free tidbits with their drinks and leaving before dinner is served. To emphasize how great is the effect of the partial shutdown, Democratic congressmen Jared Huffman and Jackie Speier hauled tons of trash by plane from the National Parks and dumped it in front of the White House. The president emphasized the need for border security: 23% of Federal inmates are illegal immigrants. Border arrests are up 240%. In the Great State of Texas, between 2011 & 2018, there were a total of 292,000 crimes by illegal aliens, 539 murders, 32,000 assaults, 3,426 sexual assaults and 3000 weapons charges. Democrats come back! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 12, 2019 Nevertheless, thirty House Democrats left town to travel by chartered plane to Puerto Rico with 109 lobbyists for a weekend winter retreat. And Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who argued that the wall is unnecessary and immoral, is now absurdly arguing that the wall won't work because people can tunnel under it. Progressive Indoctrination in Church I became aware that the "Head Start" program for preschool children is not simply preparation for elementary school work when this federally funded program trickled into a church in Maine during Sunday School. I was music director at the time (the 1980s), and the choir gathered in the church's assembly hall before the start of each Sunday service, as children gathered for their Sunday session. Wittingly or not, the church had allowed a de facto collusion between secular and sacred teaching. Unsuspecting families were in fact exposing their children to ideas more in line with paganism than with Christianity. It was a subtle form of indoctrination. I was not amused when I saw, among the children's playthings, dolls of both sexes that were "anatomically correct." Parents who might justifiably object to this public display of what was formerly a private matter were out of luck. Unmistakable evidence of tampering with Christian doctrine came during the Sunday School lessons. Children were being made to understand that Jesus was not at all different from you or me, that He was simply an extra-nice and loving man. The Christian tenets that He is the Son of God, divine, and without sin were details left out of the narrative. The relation between Jesus and His Father to whom the adults on the other side of the church wall would pray ("Our Father...") was also omitted. And God loves you, no matter what you do was the only side of Christian theology emphasized. The "go and sin no more" side was not even whispered. Bye-bye, sin, bye-bye, guilt, bye-bye, all the best and most humane moral brakes on waywardness and wrongdoing ever manifested in sacred Scripture. "Sin" and "guilt" soon became dirty words, in fact, and were deleted from the official Christian lexicon. This was an important step for the political left in their ongoing effort to disable individual responsibility for right behavior and transfer it to the group, a more effective object of control. Criticism of what was happening was squelched with smears like being "judgmental," "rigid," even "fundamentalist." Political leftists tend to agree with Humpty Dumpty when he declared that "when I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean." Pastors who did not follow the new politically correct gospel would soon be in hot water. Most were sufficiently intimidated to guard their speech and keep their religion to themselves (Brainwash 101). The distortion of Christian teaching became obvious on both sides of the church wall. Whether at the pulpit or at the Sunday School tables, sacred text was being altered to conform to the new political commandments. Minds, young and old, were being closed to the truth about their church and their religion. The new, watered down, "liberalized" version of Christianity was opening doors to harmful political obsessions like prenatal infanticide, sodomy, and radical feminism. And a new political bug was being let in called liberation theology, which was a Marxist appropriation of Christian theology for the spread of communism. Was it just me finding it difficult to picture Karl Marx assisting Christianity? When asked for my review and opinion of a new hymnal for children that celebrated this liberalized version of Christianity, I made it clear that its distortions of Scripture, combined with trivialized music, made it an inappropriate hymnal for Christian worship. The new hymnals were ordered anyway. It was not long before guest speakers appeared during Sunday services to inform the congregation that changes in the church were on their way. No details were given, but it was emphasized that the coming changes were needed and were to be accepted. As I sat in front of the church with the choir, facing the congregation, I watched the faces in the audience as they listened to the sales pitches of these strangers peddling their new agenda. They all sat like well behaved schoolkids, taking it all in without a murmur of concern from any of the pews. And I could not help visualizing sheep being addressed by wolves in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7:15). The alteration of church doctrine in many churches across the land, over many decades, cannot honestly be said to have improved the moral health of America. Daily headlines confirm the contrary. It would be smarter to get off the "progress express" and return to the Gospel as delivered by Christ's apostles. There is solid, good reason to believe that their version of Christianity is the true one. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made a public declaration of Israel's interest in having the United States recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Senators Tom Cotton and Ted Cruz have introduced legislation urging just that. There is no "peace process" certainly none that involves Syria and little push in international circles to force Israel to cede the territory to the war criminal Bashar Assad. The U.S. has even taken a stand against the annual U.N. resolution condemning Israel's presence on the Golan, calling it "useless" and "plainly biased." Is it possible that someone, somewhere, thinks that as the Syrian civil war calcifies and the players jockey for new semi-permanent positions, this is a good time to "settle" the Golan as well? Well, yes. The prime minister. Two things are worth understanding: U.N. Resolution 242 and Israel's "right to exist." Among those opposed to recognition of Israel's sovereignty on the Golan are some notable friends of Israel including former U.S. ambassador Daniel Shapiro who believe that under the terms of UNSCR 242, Israel is required to give up the Golan at some point (not now, Shapiro says adamantly) because countries cannot acquire territory by force. That is incorrect. The text says, "Emphasizing the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war..." War, not force, and the difference is meaningful. It was the Arab states that went to war in 1967; Israel acquired the territory in self-defense. To say territory acquired through defense has to be returned to the aggressors would suggest that the Arabs could go to war and lose territory (which they did) but then return to status quo ante and try again later, rendering defense temporary at best. The U.N. understood that, mandating that territorial adjustment for Israel would include: ... [t]ermination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgment of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force. Arabs first, since Israel maintained no state of war against any Arab country. It was only when Anwar Sadat acknowledged the requirement by appearing in Israel's Knesset that peace was possible and Sadat's demand for "every grain of sand in Sinai" was met. Sinai was 93% of the "territories occupied in the recent conflict," leading the late Eugene Rostow a chief architect of the resolution to say Israel had complied with it whether it returned "all, some, or none" of the remaining territory to Arab control. "Secure and recognized boundaries" is a reference to the fact that the 1948 borders were neither of those things and would have to be fixed. This leads directly to the second point. It is frequently said by people meaning to defend the State of Israel that they accept "Israel's right to exist, but not..." whatever. Who asks permission to "exist"? Did the United States ask King George? The restoration of part of the Jewish people to part of its historic, indigenous territory did not need ratification by the League of Nations or the U.N. Jews lived there from the beginning sometimes only a remnant, and after 70 C.E. under various occupations, and in increasing numbers beginning in the 19th century. Its capital was never anyone else's capital. To be a modern, independent state, however, the Jewish people accepted the international standards of the 20th century the Balfour Declaration, with an endorsement by the U.S. Congress in 1922, the League of Nations, and the United Nations in support of its sovereign status. That's it. The fact that the Arab States not only did not accept those standards, but went to war more than once to turn the clock back has nothing to do with anything. As we mourn the passing of Moshe Arens Israeli patriot and diplomat, defense minister and aeronautical engineer, we quote him. "According to the second law of thermodynamics there are no reversible processes in nature. Nothing can return exactly to its original state. This law may not hold in international relations, but the exceptions are few and far between." The U.N. may have a better chance of reversing the laws of thermodynamics than of bringing Syria to accept its obligations under U.N. Resolution 242. But in 1967, the U.N. was smarter than that. Resolution 242 did not confirm some nebulous "right to exist" for Israel; that was established. It didn't even call for "peace" as its ultimate aim. Instead, it required "a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security." Peace was the condition that would provide security and security for a sovereign Israel was the endgame. How long is Israel required to wait? It has been almost 52 years since Syria lost the Golan Heights as a result of aggression from that space that began before the independence of Israel. It is 45 years since Israel repulsed the aggression of the Yom Kippur War. It is appropriate for the world to ratify Israel's right, not to minimal or shaky "existence," but rather to "secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force" on the Golan. Spencer's The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS is an amazing book, extraordinary in its detail and riveting in its narratives and analysis. This book documents the history of horrors, violence, brutality, oppression, conquests by the sword, beheadings of hundreds of thousands (probably millions), destruction of civilizations and cultures, corruption, deception, and lies that are part of the Islamist culture, and every other evil that you can imagine that one group of humans could impose on others in the name of an ideology or, in this case, a pseudo-religion. The book is a comprehensive history of the role of war and terror in the spread of Islam, and the book details 1,400 years of sheer evil with no relief, imposed on the Middle East, Eastern Europe, North Africa, the Iberian Peninsula, India, and Asia. The only let-up in these killings that ever came was when some of the cultures and civilizations successfully repulsed the monsters, or else were conquered and then violently and rapidly subdued. Spencer briskly traces the 1,400-year war of Islamic jihadis against the rest of the world, detailing the jihad against Europe, including the 700-year struggle to conquer Constantinople; the jihad in Spain, where non-Muslims fought for another 700 years to get the jihadi invaders out of the country; and the jihad against India, where Muslim warriors and conquerors wrought unparalleled and unfathomable devastation in the name of their religion. Spencer adds to the drama and impact by telling much of the tale in the words of contemporary chroniclers themselves, both Muslim and non-Muslim. The History of Jihad shows that jihad warfare has been a constant of Islam from its very beginning, its major focus. In fact, in reading the stories and considering the historical realities, it is safe to say that the Islamists were constantly on the hunt and constantly bloodthirsty thirsty for conquest and focused on plunder. That is what proves that the history of Islamism is consistent with present-day jihad terrorism, and that present-day jihad proceeds along exactly the same ideological and theological foundations as did the great Islamic warrior-states and jihadi commanders of the past. The book is worthwhile now as a lesson in history in an age when Islamic jihadis are more assertive in Western countries than they have been for centuries, and propaganda and deception are tools well developed in a culture that approves of deception and promotes conquest. Taqiyya is the Muslim word for approved deception of the non-believer, which raises the question for today: at which point can a non-Muslim trust the promise of a jihadi or any Muslim? Read this book and understand that faithful and observant Muslims are part of the jihad, as commanded by Islam and Allah, whether armed or not, and thus cannot be assumed to be "peaceful" since Islam is all about conquest at any cost and oppression or destruction of the kafir non-believer (infidel). Consider the attitude of Islamists for the non-believer in this 1,300-plus-year saga that extends all the way into the early 21st century the Muslim philosophy that is nothing but hair-on-fire murderous when directed at non-believers. That is why beheading is so common among their jihadis. They hate, and they want to strike terror in the hearts of their enemies. Their enemies are anyone who is not a Muslim. With this logic, an easy argument to make is that there is no place for national loyalties in the mind of a Muslim and in fact, one of the internal conflicts in Islam itself is its rejection of secular, or less than sharia law, nations. However, a method for conquest that includes some deception is approved by Islam, and when a Muslim swears an oath to the United States, for example, it is a deception for the benefit of the conquest, and that certainly that would be approved by Allah. Muhammad himself broke treaties and lied to advance his cause, and he clearly taught that deception to advance the cause of Islam is not immoral, but to be promoted and utilized for jihad. This brings us to today. This book is indispensable to understanding the geopolitical situation of the twenty-first century and ultimately to formulating strategies to deal with the Islamist threat and defeating radical Islamist terror. It's critical to know and understand this for context, yet that's not being done. It's certainly not being done by the wimpy Western intellectuals and politicians, intimidated by the well-developed Islamic propaganda machine. Knowing the enemy is essential to survival and victory. To underestimate a threat and the nature of the enemy is suicide. Spencer has long been the leading historian of the nature of Islamic violence and conquest, and now he's telling the story of the monstrous movement that is Islam. His grasp of the history of, and the important events and figures within, Islam from the beginnings to the present is unexcelled. In reading this book, it's obvious he is the go-to guy for scholarship on the theology, or what is more properly the ideology dressed up like theology, of Islam as we can see it. It's also important that he be listened to. These days, it is taken for granted, even among many Washington policymakers, that Islam is a fundamentally peaceful religion and that Islamic jihad terrorism is something relatively new, a product of the economic and political ferment of the twentieth century. It's not true. In The History of Jihad, Spencer proves definitively that Islamic terror is as old as Islam itself, as old as Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, who said: "I have been made victorious through terror." He had been a highwayman and terrorist for years before he founded his religion, dying in 632. Reading the details of the killings is not only alarming, but exhausting. I learned that some Islamist leaders spent all their time killing and torturing people and taking woman and children as slaves, both sex slaves and house slaves. I also learned that Islam had a limited economic base effectively confined to conquest and slavery. Muslims were effectively a criminal enterprise, and anything they acquired of value came from the end of a sword or the threat of death or torture. The book is a long serial of bloodbaths and terrorist outrages. I challenge any reader to keep track of the killers and the magnitude of the killing (millions died) in places such as North Africa and the Asian subcontinent, or the number of churches, shrines, temples of the non-believers destroyed and replaced with mosques. Civilizations decimated it is a disgusting thing, Islam, and to keep track of the appalling conduct requires copious note-taking and remains difficult to grasp. Spencer tells a terrible tale, indeed, yet all Western intellectuals can do is talk about the conduct of the crusaders. The Spencer book will cure the reader of that silly nonsense. One reads too many stories in the book of Muslim victors doing mass executions of enemies to have any fury left for crusaders. Muslim conquerors were positively steeped in violence and bloodshed stacking the heads of their enemies high and raping all of their women, executing hundreds of thousands, and far more than can be accurately counted. I spent uncomfortable hours reading the of the horrors of Islam and sometimes had to take a break from the bloodletting it is and was a movement of prodigious killing and torture but then one must remember that it is an ideology and a movement built on terror. If you hang in and wade through the gore and the blood, which is the main story for more than 400 pages, you will realize that the Islamist conquest was rivaled only by communism in the number of people annihilated and the civilizations destroyed, by terror, torture, oppression. Only a fanatic ideology can produce killing and evil on this prodigious scale. Most important, Spencer is our ally in the war against the evil and treacherous phony "religion" that is nothing more than a corrupt ideology of conquest, xenophobia, and misanthropy. What is unfortunate is that people don't pay attention to Spencer, who can, in a wink, extinguish the idea that Islam is a religion, and with certainty demonstrates that it has no place in any credible vision of peace, as the Western politicians and intellectuals have claimed and as so many leftists continue to babble on about. To try to make a case for Islam as a religion of peace after reading what Islamists did for the last 1,400 years is nonsense. Spencer underlines that Islam, and its practitioners, above all, are all about conquest. Moves by Texas Legislature needed if WCID No. 1 is to do away with elections Just eight months after its first election in 24 years, a group with control of area water is seeking to end elections and have area cities appoint representatives. Bell County Water Control and Improvement District No. 1 is seeking support from local representatives to eliminate voters right to elect representatives to the district that control water for more than five towns and has the power to tax water users. How do other water districts function? Many have elections, said Marty Otero, spokeswoman for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality According to the TCEQ, water district elections are governed by the Texas Water Code and the Texas Election Code, unless specific requirements are established for a particular district by the Texas legislature. A water district proposing to revise the process by which it elects its board members, like WCID, would require a legislative change. Otero said board members can be elected or appointed depending on the manner in which the district was created. If the TCEQ creates a district, appointment of temporary directors that are named in the creation petition are done in accordance with Texas Water Code. The temporary directors serve until the initial directors are elected and have qualified for office. If the district is created by the Legislature, the legislature provides the method for selecting directors. WCID No. 1 was approved by the State Board of Water Engineers in 1952, according to the district website, and was authorized by House Bill 632 during the 54th Legislature in 1955. NEW YORK (AP) Rita Moreno emigrated with her mother from Puerto Rico at age five. By six, she was dancing at Greenwich Village nightclubs. By 16, she was working full time. By 20, she was in Singin in the Rain. About the show A weekly programme that examines and dissects the worlds media, how they operate and the stories they cover. Watch The Listening Post every Saturday at 0830GMT What does Rahafs case say about social reform in Saudi Arabia? Canada has granted asylum to Rahaf al-Qunun, who fled Saudi Arabia to escape alleged abuse. Turkish president vows to strengthen relations in various sectors including defence, trade, tourism and energy. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Turkeys cooperation with Qatar will continue to strengthen in various sectors including defence, trade, tourism and energy. We have never forgotten and will never forget the solidarity shown to our country by our Qatari brothers on nearly all issues from the July 15 coup attempt to the attacks in August on [our] exchange rates [Turkish lira], Erdogan said on Sunday, speaking at a meeting of automotive manufacturer BMC in Turkeys northwestern province of Sakarya. Erdogan underlined that Turkey will continue to reduce foreign dependence in its defence industry, which he said had more than halved its foreign dependence from 80 percent in 2002 to 35 percent at present. Turkeys military capacity and economic, political and diplomatic capabilities must be robust, he said, adding that the deterrence of its defence sector had to be particularly high. During times of crisis, Qatar and Turkey have developed strategic relationships at political, economic and military levels. In August 2018, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani pledged to invest $15bn in Turkey, which had been struggling with a currency crisis that saw the lira fall by 45 percent against the US dollar. We stand by the brothers in Turkey that have stood with the issues of the Muslim world and with Qatar, Sheikh Tamim said in a tweet at the time. In 2017, Qatars Chamber of Commerce Vice Chairman Mohamed bin Twar said that Qatars investment in Turkey exceeded $20bn, the second highest by any country. Support during Gulf crisis In May 2017, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic and transportation links with Qatar, accusing it of sponsoring terrorism, a charge that Doha denies. Since then, the Saudi-led bloc has isolated Doha diplomatically and economically. On June 7, 2017, just two days after the start of the Gulf crisis, Turkeys parliament ratified two earlier agreements allowing Turkish troops to be deployed in Qatar and another approving an accord between the two countries on military training cooperation in order to maintain security and stability in Qatar. Five armoured vehicles arrived in Doha on June 18 with plans to keep a brigade in the Gulf country. The blockading countries have set the closure of the Turkish base in Qatar, which can accommodate up to 5,000 soldiers as one of 13 conditions to restore relations with Doha. When Saudi Arabia closed Qatars only land border, it blocked many vital imports from reaching Qatar, including basic food supplies. To avoid potential food shortages, less than 48 hours after the start of the blockade, Turkey sent cargo planes full of milk, yoghurt, and poultry. Turkish exports to Qatar increased by 90 percent in the first four months of the blockade, according to statistics released by Turkeys Aegean Exporters Association. Ending the rift US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also hailed Sunday what he called a strategic partnership between the US and Qatar. At a press conference in Doha, he called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the political rift. Pompeo is in Qatar as part of a nine-nation trip to the Middle East aimed at allaying regional allies concerns about US commitments to them. Our strategic partnership spans many areas and continues to grow, Pompeo said at Dohas US-Qatari strategic dialogue forum. Qatar is home to Al Udeid airbase, the regional headquarters of the US Central Command. The base has served as a key launching pad for a US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS). Pompeo pushed for GCC unity, as the US seeks to build a solid alliance against Iran. Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful, he said. Some 27,000 Palestinians are no longer receiving food aid through the UN programme, amid funding shortages. The World Food Programme (WFP) has suspended or reduced aid for some of its Palestinian beneficiaries in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip due to funding shortages, an official has said. Some 27,000 Palestinians are no longer receiving aid through the United Nations programme since January 1 in the occupied West Bank, said Stephen Kearney, the organisations director for the Palestinian territories. Another 165,000, including 110,000 in Gaza, are receiving 80 percent of the usual amount, he said on Sunday. The cuts were decided upon after a gradual reduction in donations over the past nearly four years, with US cuts having the biggest effect. In 2018, the WFP assisted 250,000 people in Gaza and 110,000 in the West Bank. In the village of Yatta near Hebron in the southern West Bank, Maha Al-Nawajah said she is buying fewer necessities. In December, they did not renew my card, said the 52-year-old mother, referring to the WFP card that allowed her to buy groceries for 12 members of her extended family. She said family members were unemployed. 180831203947486 My sons do not have permission to enter into Israel and my husband receives it occasionally and can earn some cash during those times, she said. The West Bank has an unemployment rate of 18 percent and some Palestinians seek to work in Israel with the hope of earning a higher salary. But permits are needed to do so and Israel is selective in who is given one. The WFP launched a funding appeal on December 19 and received additional contributions from the European Union and Switzerland, but the amount remains short, Kearney said. It said at the time that it was in need of $57m. It will now seek contributions from new donors in an effort to fill the gap, he said. Kearney said there were also concerns that the cuts would affect the local economy since residents used the cards to buy goods in local stores. In the Gaza Strip, around 80 percent of the two million residents rely on international aid. The strip has been under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade for more than a decade. Israel has launched three military offensives on the territory since 2008. US President Donald Trump has cut some $500m in Palestinian aid. Turkish forces conduct military exercises on Syria border US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is hopeful an agreement can be reached with Turkey to protect Kurdish troops. US president reportedly asked a translator not to disclose or discuss details of his conversation with Vladimir Putin. US President Donald Trump hid details of his conversations with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, the Washington Post has reported. The Washington Post report, published on Sunday, comes two days after the New York Times disclosed that the FBI had opened an investigation into Trumps relations with Russia. Citing current and former officials in the White House, the Washington Post reported that Trump asked a translator present in a meeting between him and Putin not to disclose or discuss details of his conversation with the Russian president. According to the newspaper, the meeting with Putin took place in Hamburg in July 2017, which was also attended by the then Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. US officials were made aware of Trump concealing the notes when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the translator other than information Tillerson had shared, the Washington Post reported. The Trump administration rejected the report, saying Tillerson in 2017 gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterwards to other US officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press. Most insulting On Friday, the New York Times published an article stating that federal law enforcement officials were so concerned about Trumps behaviour in the days after he fired James Comey from the FBI that they opened an investigation into whether he had been working for Russia against the interests of the United States. The New York Times report cited unnamed former law enforcement officials and others familiar with the investigation. 190112054128496 Trump reacted on Saturday during a telephone interview broadcast on Fox News Channel after host Jeanine Pirro asked whether he is currently or has ever worked for Russia. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked, he said. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written, and if you read the article youll see that they found absolutely nothing. Trump went on to say that no president has taken a harder stance against Russia than he has. If you ask the folks in Russia, Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any other probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents. The inquiry forced counterintelligence investigators to evaluate whether Trump was a potential threat to national security. They also sought to determine whether Trump was deliberately working for Russia or had unintentionally been influenced by Moscow. The Times reported that FBI agents and some top officials became suspicious of Trumps ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign but didnt launch an investigation at that time because they werent sure how to approach such a sensitive and important probe, according to the unnamed officials. But Trumps behaviour in the days around Comeys May 2017 firing as FBI director, specifically two instances in which he seemed to tie Comeys removal to the Russia investigation, helped trigger the counterintelligence part of the investigation, according to the newspaper. Trump tweeted early on Saturday that the report showed that the FBI leadership opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof after he had fired Comey. Robert Mueller took over the investigation when he was appointed special counsel soon after Comeys firing. The overall investigation is looking into Russian election interference and whether Trumps campaign coordinated with the Russians, as well as possible obstruction of justice by Trump. The Times says its unclear whether Mueller is still pursuing the counterintelligence angle. Trumps lawyer Rudy Giuliani told the Times he had no knowledge of the inquiry but said that since it was opened a year and a half ago and they hadnt heard anything, apparently they found nothing. Trump has also repeatedly and vociferously denied collusion with the Russians. Third space of conversation It should be a space for transformation for Dalits and non-Dalits, men and women Protest organisers vow to stage new demonstrations, including for the first time in the region of war-torn Darfur. Police have fired tear gas at protesters in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and the western war-torn region of Darfur after organisers called for nationwide rallies against President Omar al-Bashir. Protesters chanting peace, peace and revolution is the peoples choice took to the streets on Sunday in the capitals district of Bahari, but were quickly confronted by riot police, witnesses told the AFP news agency. Protests that first erupted across Sudan on December 19 over a government decision to triple the price of bread have swiftly escalated into broader demonstrations against al-Bashirs three-decade rule. Authorities say at least 24 people have died in the protests, while rights group Human Rights Watch has put the death toll at 40, including children and medical staff. Calls for protests in Darfur On Sunday, protest organisers called for demonstrations in Khartoum and other towns, including Madani, Kosti and Dongola, as part of what they have called a Week of Uprising. They also urged protests in Niyala and el-Fasher in Darfur, the first such rallies to be called in the region. The people of Niyala and el-Fasher, we call on you to gather in downtown like other towns and villages who are calling on President Bashir to step down, the Sudanese Professionals Association said in a joint statement with an alliance of opposition groups. 181227154036544 Darfur, a region the size of France, has been torn by violence since 2003 when ethnic minority rebels took up arms against Khartoum, accusing it of economic and political marginalisation. Darfur has remained largely calm since last year, with no anti-government demonstration held so far even as protesters staged hundreds of rallies in other cities that have been swiftly broken up by riot police. Although the trigger was the rise in the price of bread, Sudan has faced a mounting economic crisis over the past year, led by an acute shortage of foreign currency. Repeated shortages of food and fuel have been reported in several cities, including Khartoum, while the costs of foods and medicines have more than doubled. Number of protesters killed is 24 since start of unrest, official says, even as rights groups state much higher toll. The number of protesters killed in Sudan has risen to 24 since demonstrations began last month, according to the head of the countrys fact-finding committee, even as rights groups state a much higher toll. According to Human Rights Watch, at least 40 people have been killed in clashes during the anti-government demonstrations. People took to the street on December 19 after the government tripled the price of bread. Since then, tensions have escalated into nationwide rallies, with protesters calling for President Omar al-Bashirs resignation. In response to the demonstrations, riot police and security agents have broken up the rallies by firing live ammunition and volleys of tear gas, rights groups reported. Al Jazeeras Hiba Morgan, reporting from Khartoum, said last week bullets were fired at a hospital in Omdurman, Sudans second largest city, targeting patients and doctors. Al-Bashir, who has been ruling the country since a military coup in 1989 and remains wanted by the International Court of Justice for war crimes, has blamed the protests against his government on conspirators. In a joint statement on Tuesday last week, the United States, Norway, Canada and the United Kingdom condemned the violence and said Sudans actions and decisions over the coming weeks will have an impact on the engagement of our governments and others in the coming months and years, referring to ongoing efforts by the US and the UK to normalise relations with Sudan. Although the immediate trigger for the protests was the increase in the price of bread, Sudan has been facing a mounting economic crisis over the past year, partially caused by an acute shortage of foreign currency. Repeated shortages of food and fuel have been reported in several cities, including the capital, Khartoum, while the cost of food and medicine has more than doubled. Al-Bashir and other officials have blamed Washington for Sudans economic woes, as it had imposed a trade embargo on Sudan in 1997 that was lifted only in October 2017. The president has remained defiant, telling thousands of loyalists at a Khartoum rally on Wednesday that his government would not give in to economic pressure. Those who tried to destroy Sudan put conditions on us to solve our problems, I tell them that our dignity is more than the price of dollars, al-Bashir said. Across the Nile in Khartoums twin city of Omdurman, three demonstrators were killed on Wednesday as police fired tear gas to disperse the protest, the authorities said. Al Jazeeras Morgan said that there were concerns among the protesters that the government would escalate its use of force in an attempt to put down the protests. People are saying that the force used against them by the government is brutal and that it increases day by day, Morgan said. Human rights groups say more than 1,000 people, including opposition leaders, activists journalists and demonstrators, have been arrested since the protests began. SADC says Kinshasa should recount votes of the disputed December 30 election and form a national unity government. The Democratic Republic of Congo should recount the votes of its contested presidential election that the runner-up says was rigged, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) said. A recount would provide the necessary reassurance to both winners and losers, SADC said in a statement on Sunday. The 16-member bloc recommended a government of national unity including parties representing Kabila, Fayulu and Tshisekedi that could promote peace. Members of the regional body include Angola and South Africa, old allies of President Joseph Kabila, who has ruled the central African country for the last 17 years. SADC draws the attention of Congolese politicians to similar arrangements that were very successful in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya that created the necessary stability for durable peace, the statement said. The December 30 poll was supposed to mark Congos first uncontested democratic transfer of power since the mineral-rich country gained independence from Belgium in 1960. But runner-up Martin Fayulu claims that he, in fact, won by a landslide and that the official winner, opposition leader Felix Tshisekedi, struck a deal with Kabila to be declared the victor. Tshisekedi and Kabila deny this. Congos Catholic Church has said that tallies compiled by its 40,000-strong monitoring team show a different winner to those announced by the electoral commission, without saying who. The opposition leader has challenged the provisional results in the countrys constitutional court, which is expected to announce its verdict in the coming days. Heres a recap of the developments, as political uncertainty grows in the wake of contested election results: Vote delay Polls were first scheduled to be held in 2016 but the electoral commission delayed the vote citing lack of resources. The poll body (CENI) also said it needed more time to complete voter registration in the vast country roughly the size of Western Europe. The delay led to deadly street protests leading to the deaths of dozens of opposition supporters. After almost two years of delay, the election was announced to be held on December 23, 2018. Another delay Two days before polls were scheduled to take place, CENI dropped another bombshell: polls will be delayed by a week. CENI said it was not prepared to hold the elections following a fire that destroyed voting machines as well as the deadly Ebola outbreak in the countrys east. No voting in three cities Four days before polling date, the election commission said voting will not be taking place in the eastern cities of Beni and Butembo due to ongoing Ebola outbreak, while election in the western city of Yumbi was postponed because of violence. All three cities were opposition strongholds. Results delay On January 6, when the provincial results were to be declared, CENI said it was postponing the announcement saying commission had only about half of the vote tally sheets. Major irregularities SYMOCEL, a Congo-based observer mission, said it had witnessed 52 major irregularities in the 101 of the 179 vote-counting centres it observed, including people tampering with results. Disputed results Hours after results were announced on Thursday, opposition leader Martin Fayulu rejected and appealed to the Constitutional Court to annul the provisional result. Fayulu filed a fraud complaint on Saturday with Congos highest court, which has eight days to rule on the case. France and Belgium are also challenging the outcome of the election, with Frances foreign minister saying the declared victory of opposition candidate Felix Tshisekedi was not consistent with the results and that his rival Martin Fayulu appeared to have won. The swearing-in of the new president is planned for January 18. Protesters march ahead of voting on Brexit deal in UK Parliament Protesters marched in London demanding general election, while demonstrators in Sheffield called for second referendum. US secretary of state on Qatar visit urges an end to a diplomatic rift between Washingtons Gulf allies. United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that a rift between Qatar and its Arab Gulf neighbours had gone on for too long, as the blockade against the Gulf nation entered its 19th month. Speaking at a news conference in the Qatari capital, Doha, on Sunday, Pompeo argued that the continuing crisis between Qatar and the four blockading nations Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain benefited their adversaries. We are all more powerful when we are working together and disputes are limited. When we have a common challenge, disputes between countries with shared objectives are never helpful, he said at joint news conference with Qatari Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani. The US diplomat also said he would ask Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, known by his initials MBS, to ensure the killers of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi were held accountable for their crimes. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt all US allies cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi archrival Iran. Qatar also a US ally denies the allegations and accuses the countries of impinging on its sovereignty. The US, which at first appeared to back the boycott, has so far been unsuccessful in trying to get the countries to set aside their differences in order to focus on its regional priority the fight against Iran. Qatars relationship with Iran is complicated as it shares the worlds largest natural gas field with Tehran. Gas has been responsible for transforming Qatar into one of the richest countries in the world since it first began exporting liquefied natural gas little more than 20 years ago. It has also agreed to increase gas production since the beginning of the crisis. 181128162020009 Attempts at mediation between Qatar and the blockading nations have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni who quit because of an apparent lack of will on behalf of regional leaders for regional reconciliation. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. Next stop: Riyadh Pompeo arrived in Qatar on the latest leg of his Middle East tour. The secretary of state travelled to Doha from Abu Dhabi, where he met Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed on Saturday. Pompeo travelled to Saudi Arabia later on Sunday, nearly three months after Khashoggi was murdered in the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul. At the news conference in Doha, Pompeo reiterated that Khashoggis murder was unacceptable and that he would work to get new answers from the Saudi crown prince. We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi, Pompeo said. Well continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable certainly by the Saudis, but by the United States as well, where appropriate, he added. During Pompeos previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, his broad smiles with Prince Mohammed had outraged some Americans. Trump has said he wants to preserve the alliance with the Saudi kingdom, although the US Senate has clearly blamed Prince Mohammed for the murder. US Secretary of State is hopeful Turkey will reach agreement with US over fate of Syrian Kurdish armed groups. Washingtons top diplomat said he was optimistic an agreement with Ankara could be reached which will protect Syrian Kurdish groups while allowing Ankara to defend their country from terrorists following a United States pullout from Syria. We are confident we can achieve an outcome that achieves both of those, United States Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told journalists on Saturday in Abu Dhabi. The Gulf emirate is his latest stop in a regional tour aimed at reassuring allies after a shock December announcement by President Donald Trump that US troops would be withdrawn from Syria. Pompeos remarks follow tensions between the US and Turkey over the fate of Washingtons Syrian Kurdish allies in the fight against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) fighters. Turkey had reacted angrily to suggestions that Trumps plan to withdraw troops was conditional on the safety of the US-backed Kurdish fighters, seen by the Turkish government as terrorists. US-led operations against ISIL in Syria have been spearheaded on the ground by the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Ankara sees the backbone of that alliance, the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), as a terrorist group linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has fought a decades-long campaign against the Turkish state. 190108203410642 Pompeo said that Washington recognised the Turkish peoples right and (Turkish President Recep Tayyip) Erdogans right to defend their country from terrorists. But, he added, We also know that those fighting alongside of us for all this time deserve to be protected as well. Pompeo said he had spoken to Turkeys Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, but did not elaborate on how the protections would be achieved. Many details (are) still to be worked out but Im optimistic that we can achieve a good outcome, he said. Threatened assault Multiple operations including American-backed assaults have removed ISIL fighters from most of the swaths of Syria and Iraq they captured in 2014. But Trumps announcement raised fears of a long-threatened Turkish assault against the Kurds. On Thursday, Cavusoglu repeated that threat, telling NTV television: If the (pullout) is put off with ridiculous excuses like Turks are massacring Kurds, which do not reflect the reality, we will implement this decision. That came after a tense meeting between Turkish officials and Trumps national security adviser John Bolton in Ankara, aimed at coordinating the pullout process after Bolton set conditions that appeared to postpone it indefinitely. The terms included the total defeat of ISIL still active in some parts of Syria and ensuring protection for Kurdish fighters. The US-led coalition launched operations against ISIL in September 2014, forming the SDF a year later with some 25,000 Kurdish fighters and 5,000 Arabs. 190108094851818 Backed by US arms and air support, the YPG-dominated group has overrun the de facto Syrian capital of ISIL, Raqqa, and a large part of Deir Az Zor province. But that stirred Turkish fears of a breakaway Kurdish state on its border. As well as fighting ISIL, the YPG has also battled pro-Ankara forces in northwestern Syria. Trumps announcement last month prompted the YPG to call on Syrian government troops to deploy alongside their own forces in the north to help counter a potential Turkish offensive. A spokesman for the US military said Friday it had begun the process of our deliberate withdrawal from Syria. But US defence officials quickly sought to clarify that while gear was being pulled out, we are not withdrawing troops at this stage. In an interview with US broadcaster CBS on Saturday, Pompeo said the presidents guidance is incredibly clear on the withdrawal. Syrias devastating conflict began in 2011 with anti-government demonstrations that were brutally crushed, sparking a complex war involving multiple foreign armed groups, as well as regional and international powers including the US. The withdrawal announcement had also sparked concerns among Arab states and Israel that it could open the way to growing Iranian influence. Pompeo has pledged to expel every last Iranian boot from Syria, and on Saturday sought to downplay the effect of the US pullout on this goal. The fact that a couple of thousands of uniformed personnel in Syria will be withdrawing is a tactical change, he said. It doesnt materially alter our capacity to continue to perform the military actions that we need to perform. The US is looking to create an anti-Iran front the Middle East Strategic Alliance bringing together Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. Washington is set to convene an international summit in Poland next month focusing on stability in the Middle East, including countering Irans influence. Syrian state media reported on Sunday one missile fired towards Damascus struck a warehouse at the citys airport. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel carried out an air raid on Iranian weapons in Syria over the weekend, a rare public confirmation of such attacks. Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus international airport, Netanyahu said on Sunday at the start of a cabinet meeting, according to his office. The accumulation of recent attacks shows that were more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised, the prime ministers office said. Syrian state media reported on Sunday that Israeli warplanes fired a number of missiles towards Damascus, with one striking a warehouse at the airport. The raids triggered Syrian air defence to shoot down most of them. 181226135745199 Syrian state media broadcast footage of what it said was the air defences firing, with bright lights seen shooting across the night sky. Explosions were heard in one of the videos. Israel has mounted attacks in Syria as part of its efforts to counter the influence created by Iran, which is supporting President Bashar al-Assad in the war that erupted in 2011. Many of them have been in the area south of Damascus. Netanyahu has vowed not to let Tehran entrench itself militarily in the war-torn country. The last Israeli attack reported by the state media was on December 25, when a missile attack wounded three Syrian soldiers. A senior Israeli official said in September Israel had carried out more than 200 attacks against Iranian targets in Syria in the last two years. Having floated to safety in a biryani vessel, a 77-year-old flood victim is among those struggling to survive. Kerala, India Amminis face glows and comes alive whenever she sits at her loom the 77-year-olds steady companion for decades. On August 15 last year, their home in Chendamangalam was hit by waves as high as 11 feet, causing the worst floods since 1924 in the southern Indian state of Kerala. Nearly 500 people were killed and over a million displaced. The total loss of property was estimated at $3bn. Ammini says she floated to a nearby relief camp in a large metal vessel used to make biryani. Four others pushed us forward, swimming through the rising water, which was well over their heads by then. We were moving this way and that. I thought we would drown, said Ammini. Once the waters receded, her family returned home to assess the damage: a dead cow, four broken doors, a collapsed boundary wall, and lots of rotting wood. Among the debris around their small, three-room house, made of hollow cement bricks and surrounded by fields, lay the bits and pieces of an old investment. I bought the loom 50 years ago, when I first started, for what would be 40,000 rupees [$560] today, said Ammini, who began working at 12. I was widowed young when my husband died of cancer. I have always been a weaver. Ammini, 77, works on her repaired handloom [Jithin Shamsu/Al Jazeera] Some 700 weavers were severely affected by the floods in Chendamangalam, on the outskirts of Kochi city, a well-known handloom hub in India for more than half a century. The craftspeople in the community are part of an industry that sometimes struggles to survive and the deadly floods compounded the pressure. Looms, equipment, raw materials and finished goods worth nearly $2m were destroyed, says Chendamangalam Handloom Weavers Cooperative Society, one of the five weavers societies in the area. Kerala, with millions of its diaspora abroad, witnessed a massive outpouring of assistance to supplement the governments compensation. Handloom operations resumed after a month and many looms have been replaced. They will be steadily upgraded, says Sojan PA, the weavers society secretary. About 90 percent of the damages were covered through local designers and concerned people around the world, who came forward to buy the damaged stock and pay off creditors. A number of private initiatives breathed new life into the flood-ravaged weaving sector. But many people fell through the gaps of relief and rehabilitation. Almost six months later, Amminis family, like many others, hasnt caught up. In September, a month after the floods, Amminis loom was repaired by the weavers society. But stress took a toll and she had to undergo an angioplasty. I think I fell sick because I was forced to rest for one month. Before the floods, I was always working, so nothing happened. The doctor told me to keep working, she said. The elderly weaver, one of around 200 homeworkers under the mandate of the weavers society, said health insurance and other benefits have helped. But I am weak. I could make two mundus a day when I was healthy, now only one. It is not enough, said Ammini, who makes a little more than $1 for a mundu, a style of sarong specific to Kerala. It was like what you see on TV, we were waiting in long lines. The first day there was no food, the second day the rice came, shoes and clothes after two days. Sujitha, Kerala resident Meanwhile, her son Balu, 42, has varicose veins which require treatment, while her granddaughter, 10, struggles with psoriasis. Balu works as a welder for a meagre income of around $12 a day, so his mother-in-law, a nurse in Qatar, sends money home to help. During the floods, Balu was stranded at his submerged home for several days, when a burst vein made him vulnerable to water-borne infections. We had five cows. One died in the floods and three had to be sold to finance my daughters psoriasis treatment. The one remaining will produce milk again only in February, said Sujitha, Balus wife. We got around $140 from the government as compensation, but more than that amount went just in cleaning the house, said Ammini, who claims some of her neighbours below the poverty level received more government funds. Several textile workers in Kerala are still awaiting compensation, almost six months after devastating floods [Jithin Shamsu/Al Jazeera] The Employees State Insurance (ESI) Scheme of India said Ammini would have been eligible for medical insurance if she had gone to an ESI hospital. Ammini said she tried to get the insurance with the support of Sojan, the weavers society secretary, but was unsuccessful. She is grateful for private charity, however. The weavers society sent over a benefactor from the Gulf, who gave me and eight others 5,000 rupees ($71) each, she said. Sujitha is calm and sturdy next to her frail mother-in-law. She smiles when she remembers the chaos at the relief camp. It was like what you see on TV, we were waiting in long lines. The first day there was no food, the second day the rice came, shoes and clothes after two days. Last May, Sujitha started a business venture with nine other women with a $14,000 loan. They buy milk and turn it into curd, but that hasnt yielded much yet. All of this has meant a reduced income and tremendous strain for the family. The thrill of survival has given way to a lasting sense of insecurity which Sujithas and Amminis faces betray. How will we keep living, said Sujitha. How will we go on? Lebanons protesters angry over worsening economy Fiscal reforms are needed but Lebanon has been without a functioning government since elections in May. Refugees seek shelter in incomplete housing units, garages or evacuated schools after Storm Norma hit last week. Bekaa Valley, Lebanon Syrian refugees in Lebanon are enduring yet another heavy storm, bringing more rains and snowfall to the camps in the countrys eastern and northern regions. Warnings of the winter storm have pushed refugees in Ghazze, a town in the Bekaa Valley, to take precautions against the floods, days after the country was hit by Storm Norma on January 6. Lebanon is home to more than one million Syrian refugees, most of whom live in informal settlements made out of tarpaulin tents supported by wooden frames. They are usually required to pay landowners rent ranging from $50 to $200, depending on the area, even as half of the Syrian refugee community in Lebanon already lives in extreme poverty, earning less than $3 a day, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). During last weeks storm, many have found shelter in incomplete housing units, garages, or evacuated schools as the country does not permit them to upgrade their tents to more permanent structures. The tent was our castle In Ghazze, refugees are housed in at least 1,500 tents divided over several unofficial camps, according to municipality figures published last year. In one camp, dubbed 008 by the UN, at least 36 out of 48 tents were flooded during Storm Norma. While some families in Ghazze say they have no other option than to withstand the upcoming storm, others have already sought temporary shelter. Wessal Al Mustafa, a mother of five, said she simply cannot put her children through a storm similar to Norma, which affected more than 11,000 Syrian refugees across the country. The last storm was so sudden, Al Mustafa, who fled Raqqa in 2014, told Al Jazeera. I barely managed to rush my children out of the tent, let alone grab a few clothing items before we were completely soaked, the 32-year-old said. To us, this tent was our castle. Mustafa says she and her children were forced to leave behind the little they owned [Sorin Furcoi/Al Jazeera] The family lost their mattresses, blankets, food items, and most of their clothing to the floods. Their tent carried a stench of mold that has forced the Al Mustafa family to seek temporary, yet more expensive shelter in a nearby housing complex until the tent is restored. 190110184315430 The camps lack adequate infrastructure, and given the poor sewage systems, wastewater has overflowed and seeped into the tents, increasing the risk of diseases in the crammed settlements. Since the arrival of the refugees from neighbouring Syria, NGOs have taken the responsibility of WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) efforts, but in Ghazze these efforts have been halted due to lack of funding. Mustafas eldest daughter, Fatma, said she wishes she could have saved more of her clothes from the floods. I had to carry my younger sister, who was in shock as the water quickly filled up the tent and reached our hips, the 14-year-old said. Sheer negligence There has been a stark deterioration in shelter conditions for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, according to a 2018 UN study. Fundraising campaigns led by NGOs and individuals may bring temporary relief to refugees, but Syrians in Ghazze say more is needed to be done by the government to improve living conditions. The camps community leader told Al Jazeera that he has already mobilised a team of young men who will be assisting in evacuating families with flooded tents to neighbouring camps that have remained unaffected, and garages in the area. We have called on the local municipality time and time again to at least raise the ground level of the tents here, but they have yet to respond, Hussam Mansour told Al Jazeera. Its sheer negligence on their part, he said. Many families sought shelter in an education centre run by Syrians [Sorin Furcoi/Al Jazeera] According to Mansour, some NGOs arrived on Saturday to distribute blankets and mattresses, as well as gas for heaters. The main highway connecting the capital Beirut to the Bekaa Valley had been sealed off to trucks transporting aid, and was only been cleared for the passage of such larger vehicles by authorities on Saturday. Nothing to return to Meanwhile, an education centre run by a group of Syrian women will be open as a temporary shelter for families evacuated in Ghazze. Ghada Abu Mito, cofounder of Dammah, the NGO that runs the school, said the centre has begun preparing for the next storm by clearing classrooms for families who will require immediate shelter. We laid out blankets and mattresses in the classrooms, and will also heat the rooms which is important especially for the children, Abu Mito told Al Jazeera. Last week, some 13 families sought shelter in the centre, Abu Mito said. We had to respond to the crisis quickly and accommodated 75 people for about four days, she said, adding almost all of those who evacuated suffered flu symptoms and chest infections, she said. Their psychological state was a mess, she added. Many wondered why no one rushed to help. Lebanon has always said it wants Syrian refugees to return to Syria [Sorin Furcoi/Al Jazeera] Lebanons leaders have urged Syrian refugees to return to their home country, but many refugees still fear being either arrested or drafted into the army upon repatriation. 190111120619121 UNHCRs Rana Khoury told Al Jazeera the agency has been advocating for either the resettlement of refugees to a third countries, or working with concerned authorities to remove obstacles refugees are seeing for their return to Syria. Were advocating for these two solutions because the government does not allow for permanent resettlement, Khoury explained. Syrian refugees in Lebanon are unable to work, and can only obtain work permits to work in agriculture and construction to sustain themselves in the country, which has suffered economically over the years. The prolonged political deadlock over the formation of a new government has also worsened the situation. Still, for people such as Wessal Al Mustafa, staying in Lebanon amid challenges such as the harsh winters, is the only option. I love my country but for now, there is nothing to return to, she said. Suspected smuggler killed in Rupandehi shootout One person died in a shootout between police and smugglers at Shankarpur in Siddharthanagar Municipality of Rupandehi district on Saturday night. Wanted in Italy for the killing of four people, Battisti was arrested earlier on Sunday in Bolivia. Cesare Battisti, a former Italian communist activist sought by Rome for four murders in the 1970s, will be extradited to his home country in the coming hours, the Italian government said on Sunday. Battisti, who has been sentenced to life in prison, was arrested on Saturday after an international police squad tracked him to Bolivia. He was convicted in 1979 of belonging to the Armed Proletarians for Communism, an outlawed leftist group. The communist activist lived in Brazil for years under the protection of former leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2003-2010), who is now in prison for corruption. Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was detained in Bolivia (Saturday night) and will be soon brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be sent to Italy to serve a life sentence, tweeted Filipe G Martins, a senior aide on international affairs to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro. During Brazils recent presidential campaign, the far-right Bolsonaro, who took office on January 1, vowed that if elected he would immediately extradite Battisti to Italy. In mid-December, Brazils outgoing president, Michel Temer, signed an extradition order for Battisti after a judge ordered his arrest. By then the Italian had disappeared. Battisti, 64, was arrested late on Saturday in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Brazilian police sources told Brazilian media. Italian interior ministry sources confirmed the arrest. Battisti was arrested in the street, unarmed and he didnt resist, responded to police in Portuguese and showed a Brazilian document confirming his identity, an Italian interior ministry source said. Now Italy is waiting for him. Italian state police said the arrest had been carried out by a joint team of Italian and Bolivian officers with the help of Italys counterterrorism section. Little gift Italys Interior Minister Matteo Salvini thanked the Italian and foreign police who captured a delinquent who did not deserve the comfortable life on the beach, and who should spend out the rest of his days in prison. Bolsonaros legislator son, Eduardo Bolsonaro, tweeted in Italian with a picture of Battisti: Brazil is no longer the land of bandits. Matteo Salvini, the little gift is on its way. Battisti escaped from an Italian prison after being convicted in 1979 of his allegiance to an outlawed leftist group, Armed Proletarians for Communism. He was subsequently convicted in absentia of having killed two Italian policemen, taking part in the murder of a butcher and helping plan the slaying of a jeweller who died in a shooting which left his 14-year-old son in a wheelchair. Battisti admitted to being part of the group but refused to take responsibility for any deaths. He reinvented himself as an author, writing a string of noir novels and in 2004 skipped bail in France, where he had taken refuge. He went to live clandestinely in Brazil until he was arrested in 2007 in Rio de Janeiro. After years in custody, then-President Lula issued a decree later upheld by Brazils Supreme Court in 2010 refusing Battistis extradition to Italy, and he was freed, angering Italy. Battisti, who has a five-year-old Brazilian son, last year told the AFP news agency that he faced torture and death if he were ever to be sent back to Italy. Energy minister is set to attend a regional forum on natural gas, a major issue of cooperation between the two nations. A senior Israeli minister has arrived in Cairo to attend an energy conference after receiving an invitation from the Egyptian government, Israels energy ministry has said. Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz arrived in Cairo late on Sunday to attend a regional forum on natural gas, which has become a major economic and strategic issue in the eastern Mediterranean. The development of gas fields has geopolitical and geostrategic value, Steinitz told Israeli army radio leading up to the trip. Here you have for the first time real economic cooperation between the axis-of-peace states Israel, Egypt and Jordan, along with European countries. 181031084807219 In recent years, ties between Egypt and Israel have gotten closer, with Cairo reaching deals with Israel over the purchase of natural gas. Last year, Egyptian company Dolphinus inked a deal to buy $15bn worth of natural gas from the Israeli company Delek Drilling and its US partner Noble. Steinitzs invitation to the conference in Egypt is the positive outcome of the gas agreement, a source close to energy minister told the AFP news agency. Sisi: W ide range of cooperation with the Israelis Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to bolster ties with the Arab world in the face of the perceived expansion of Iranian influence across the region. Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab nations to officially recognise Israel, but relations between Israel and the Gulf Arab countries have also warmed in recent months. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, like Israel, view Iran as a regional threat and have previously lobbied the US to withdraw from a multinational nuclear deal with Tehran. Saudi Arabias powerful crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman (known by his initials MBS), met with several Jewish groups and pro-Israel lobbies during a trip to the US last year and went so far as to declare that Israel had the right to its own land alongside Palestinians. Meanwhile, last week, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi told US broadcaster CBS that his country was cooperating with Israel against armed groups in the Sinai Peninsula, a potentially damaging acknowledgement that analysts said could explain the governments request that the network not air the interview. 161107083926863 In the interview, Sisi was asked if his countrys cooperation with Israel was the closest ever between the two countries. That is correct We have a wide range of cooperation with the Israelis, he responded. Egypts military was forced to deny reports last year that it and Israel were cooperating in the fight against the local chapter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in northern Sinai, a region of rugged mountains and desert bordering Israel and the Gaza Strip. Most Egyptians view Israel as their sworn enemy with trade unions and most political parties vehemently opposed to the normalisation of relations with Israel. However, since ousting of Mohamed Morsi Egypts first democratically elected president, in a coup in 2013, Sisi has met at least twice with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to the Haaretz newspaper, Netanyahu secretly flew to Cairo last year to discuss the countries plans for the Gaza Strip. Israeli army says its troops have found six tunnels since an operation was launched in December. Israel says it has completely dismantled a series of tunnels under its border with Lebanon, which it claims were dug by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah. A military spokesman said the Israeli army would now end its operation to find and destroy the tunnels that it said the armed group wanted to use to conduct cross border attacks. According to our intelligence and our assessment of the situation there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel, Israeli Officer Jonathan Conricus said. Israel launched Operation Northern Shield on December 4 to find and destroy what it described as a vast network, with troops finding six tunnels in total. Conricus said the latest tunnel originated in the Lebanese border town of Ramyeh and was found Saturday night. It was 55 metres deep and ran 800 metres inside Lebanese territory and dozens of metres into Israel, he said, adding that it included stairs, a rail system, and a wide passageway that allowed for the movement of equipment, and a large number of forces, he added. The Israeli military said the structure would be destroyed in the next few days. Hezbollah has not commented on the Israeli operation, which Israel says occurred within its own territory. News agencies have not independently verified the Israeli description of the tunnels, however, the Israeli army did release edited footage showing the inside of the one found in Ramyeh. Israel also accused Hezbollah of planning to use the tunnels to seize territory from Israel in the event of conflict. It has said, however, that the tunnels were not yet operational. Both Israel and the United Nations say the tunnels violate a ceasefire resolution that ended fighting between the two sides during the 2006 Lebanon War. The Israeli military said its forces would stay deployed along the border area to ensure there was no further underground activity. Polish diplomat says meeting not aimed against Iran, as Tehran threatens retaliation if Warsaw does not back down. Irans foreign ministry has summoned Polands highest-ranking diplomatic representative to the country after it was announced that Warsaw would host a summit on Iran in February. Irans official IRNA news agency said on Sunday that Tehran conveyed its displeasure to Polands Charge dAffaires, Wojciech Unolt, over its apparent readiness to co-host the February 13 conference. An unnamed official warned that Tehran would resort to unspecific counter-action if the Polish government did not take urgent compensation measures. In his Telegram channel, Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said Unolt was told that this is a hostile act by the United States against Iran, and Poland is expected to refrain from going along with the US in holding this conference. On Friday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is on an official visit to the Middle East, told Fox News that the meeting in Poland would focus on Middle East stability and peace, freedom and security here in this region and that includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilising influence. Israeli Prime Minister Benjami Netanyahu and Arab foreign ministers have reportedly been invited to the event, according to news reports. Unolt, the Charge dAffaires, reportedly said the conference was not anti-Iranian and that Poland did not share recent remarks by the US against Iran. The unnamed Iranian official said this was inadequate and Iran would be forced to retaliate if Poland did not back down. Already, Irans cinema organisation said it had cancelled a Polish film festival scheduled for next month, according to local media. A guest who does not honour their host cannot continue to be a guest. To honour Irans dignity, the Polish film week in Tehran will be postponed until Warsaws behaviour is proper, tweeted cinema organisation chief Hossein Entezami, according to the semi-official news agency ILNA. Zarifs admonition In response, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif took to Twitter to admonish those who plan to participate in the conference. Reminder to host/participants of anti-Iran conference: those who attended last US anti-Iran show are either dead, disgraced, or marginalized. And Iran is stronger than ever. Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus. pic.twitter.com/iOOvhgtUsL Javad Zarif (@JZarif) January 11, 2019 Reminder to host/participants of anti-Iran conference: those who attended last US anti-Iran show are dead, disgraced or marginalized. And Iran is stronger than ever, Zarif wrote on Friday. Zarif was referring to Iran hosting more that 100,000 Polish refugees during the Second World War. Relations between Tehran and Washington are highly fraught following the decision in May by President Donald Trump to withdraw from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and to reimpose sanctions, including on Irans vital oil sector. Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said the summit was being held because US sanctions had failed to bring Iran to its knees. Americans thought pressures would break down our economy. They wanted to bring our oil exports to zero but failed Now theyve decided to hold an anti-Iran conference in Europe, the semi-official news agency Fars quoted Jahangiri as saying. The news comes as the Wall Street Journal reported that the White Houses national security team led by John Bolton asked the Pentagon last fall to provide it with options for striking Iran, after a group of armed groups aligned with Tehran fired mortars into an area in Baghdad near the US embassy. The request reportedly sparked deep concern among Pentagon and State Department officials, the newspaper reported, citing current and former US officials. Images of glowing light danced to a slow electronic beat, as an indistinguishable instrument radiated sound resembling flowing water. No more than 100 people sat down in the darkened cavern in the northwest Iranian city of Qazvin, while listening to the tune played by the electronic musician, Saba Alizadeh, who came up with the idea to highlight the ongoing water shortage in Iran. A century ago, it would have been impossible for the artist to entertain his audience there. The facility, common across pre-modern Iran, was originally built to store drinking water underground for local residents in Qazvin, 140km northwest of the capital Tehran. But for years now, most of these reservoirs have dried up, turning the structures into relics of Irans past. The brick-lined water reservoir, known as Ab-Anbar in Persian, is covered with a dome, protecting the stored water from evaporation and contamination. It is connected to a wind tower, known as badgir, which serves as a natural cooler of the water inside. These reservoirs were so important to life, particularly in the desert areas, that they became integrated into communities in arid regions of the country. Alizadeh, the musician, saw an opportunity to revisit these architectural icons, in an effort to raise awareness about the countrys water crisis. Metaphorically speaking, the concerts were a recollection of the water that did not exist there in the reservoirs any more, Alizadeh told Al Jazeera. It is supposed to sound the alarm, reminding Iranians that in a place which used to be a depot for water, now there is only dirt. Recently, the research arm of the Iranian parliament warned that water shortage in the country could lead to social discontent. It added that by 2020, up to 80 percent of Irans more than 80 million people could face water scarcity. Elegy for water So far, Alizadeh has performed his show, Elegy for Water, at reservoirs in the cities of Qazvin, Kerman and Shiraz. The 35-year-old musician plans to do more events in Kashan, Yazd and Isfahan, cities that in recent years have faced water shortages. The underground reservoir was used to store drinking water during pre-modern Iran [Erfan Dadkhah/Al Jazeera] The water problem in these major cities has been exacerbated by poor infrastructures and government policies. About 35 million Iranians, a little less than half of the total population, living across 334 cities faced water shortage during the summer of 2018, according to Irans Minister of Energy Reza Ardakanian. Lack of awareness about the issue has further added to the problem. We are facing a severe drought We dont seem to pay attention to the things that are happening in this regard, Alizadeh said. Perhaps this tour could be a very small gesture to remind people of water; so that they could appreciate it a bit more, he said, referring to the wastage of water in the country. Alizadeh came up with the idea of the musical piece in 2012, when he started to study music at the California Institute for Arts, after he finished his bachelors degree in photography in Iran. It was only much later, when he decided to perform the piece at dried-up cisterns to highlight the growing water problem. Fusing music and religion The musician uses Zanjeer which is made of small chains hanging off a wooden handle as a source for musical notes. A dome protects the brick-lined water reservoir from evaporation and contamination [Erfan Dadkhah/Al Jazeera] Zanjeer is mostly used during annual Ashura commemorations by Shia Muslims, swinging it against their back as an act of mourning the death of their third Imam. Alizadeh installed a microphone at the end of Zanjeers handle to capture the granular sound made by the movement of the chains. The rattling of the chains is then processed by a computer to become a sound that is reminiscent of that of flowing water. I wrote the harmonies within the sound of the water, he explained. The initial piece was completed with an overture that he wrote recently, turning Elegy for Water into a 40-45 minute-long musical number. Nailed to my chair The performance includes visuals created by artist Siavash Naghshbandi, who collaborated on the project. The images were an artistic perception of the reflections of water. They were projected on the walls of the water cisterns. The musician uses Zanjeer, a chain used during Shia religious rites, as a musical instrument [Erfan Dadkhah/Al Jazeera] Speaking to Al Jazeera, Naghshbandi referred to the mysterious quality of the forms that the flow of the water creates; as well as the irony of watching those visuals in a dried-up cistern. The images were projected on the ceiling. It was as if you saw the reflections of the water when you take a look above, knowing there is no water in the reservoir, he said. Roshanak Sajadian, a Tehran-based architect, took a two-hour road trip to Qazvin to watch the show. The combination of the concept, the music and the location turned this into a curious event, she told Al Jazeera. It was as if I was nailed to my chair, wiping tears off my face as the music rose to a crescendo. Andreas Spechtl, an Austrian musician who collaborated with Alizadeh on the project, told Al Jazeera that the artist is mourning the loss of water, while treating a highly traditional and religious device, Zanjeer, as an electronic instrument. One could call it conceptual art. But its not that easy, because there are no answers and no great solutions in his work. He is not making a big case. No. Hes now and then dropping a question. And thats the noblest thing you can say about art. Armed forces shoot at mourners and protesters who tried to attend funeral prayers of two rebels killed in gun battle. At least 11 people have been injured after Indian security forces opened fire on mourners, who were attending the funeral of two rebels in Indian-administered Kashmir. Zeenat ul-Islam was killed along with his associate on Saturday in a gun battle with Indian troops. Thousands of people on Sunday marched towards his village, Sugan in Shopian district, to offer funeral prayers despite the barricades and deployment of troops along the way. To stop people from joining the funeral prayers, government forces fired bullets, shotgun pellets and tear gas to stop the mourners, leading to street clashes as groups of youths pelted stones at the troops, police and residents said. 181129152141686 According to Anadolu Agency, six injured were brought to the district hospital in Pulwama. One of the injured is in critical condition, according to local media reports. Both India and Pakistan claim the territory of Kashmir in its entirety but they control parts of the Himalayan region. Rebels in Indian-administered Kashmir have been fighting against Indian rule since 1989. Most Kashmiris support the rebel cause that the territory stays united either under Pakistani rule or as an independent country. 181206223840348 The disputed territory, over which India and Pakistan have fought three wars, is currently under the presidents rule after India dissolved the state assembly in November. India accuses Pakistan of arming and training the rebels, a charge Islamabad denies. Nearly 70,000 people have been killed in the uprising and the ensuing Indian military crackdown. According to rights groups, 2018 was the countrys most deadly year in almost a decade. Guatemala City Holding picket signs emblazoned with messages condemning corruption, Dolores Yal and other indigenous Maya Kaqchikel women and men lined up behind their banners, waiting for the march to begin. They travelled 65km from the Patzicia municipality to Guatemala City to join hundreds of Guatemalans to march against the latest government threats to constitutional order and anti-corruption efforts. We are here to oppose corruption. We have already been battling it for years, Yal, a leader of the Residents Against Corruption in Patzicia movement, told Al Jazeera. The protests came after Guatemalan President Jimmy Morales on Monday shut down the International Commission Against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) and ordered its international staff to leave the country within 24 hours. The CICIG shutdown and government defiance of Constitutional Court rulings overturning its anti-CICIG measures have sparked widespread opposition. Patzicia residents, urban collectives, human rights activists, students, artists and other Guatemalans gathered at a capital city roundabout on Saturday to begin an hours-long march into the downtown core. We do not want [CICIG] to leave the country. We want it to come back, said Yal. Residents from Patzicia, Chimaltenango march in the protest rejecting Morales actions against CICIG [Jeff Abbott/Al Jazeera] Jorge Santos sees the growing demonstrations as a positive sign. The executive director of Udefegua, a national human rights group, attended the march along with other human rights observers from the organisation. The executive branch of government undertook these illegal, unconstitutional and illegitimate actions during a period when they did not expect people to react, between Christmas and into the new year, he told Al Jazeera as hundreds of people began marching up a boulevard. Repeated attacks on CICIG Established in 2007, CICIG gained international attention following an investigation into the administration of then President Otto Perez Molina, which led to his resignation in 2015 and his prosecution for corruption. 190109211600314 Morales was elected president on an anti-corruption platform just days after Perez Molinas arrest. Since taking office in 2016, however, the Morales administration has faced investigations into alleged acts of corruption, including illegal financing of the 2015 campaign. Morales has denied all allegations of corruption. As the investigations into Morales and his party progressed, the administration attempted in 2017 to derail CICIGs investigations by declaring head commissioner Ivan Velasquez persona non-grata, attempting to bar him from the country. The measure was reversed days later by the countrys Constitutional Court. In August 2018, Morales announced that he was not going to renew CICIGs mandate and then barred Velasquez from the country in early September. Once again the Constitutional Court ruled against Moraless unilateral decision, but the administration refused to comply with the court order. The battle between the government and the countrys top court continued over visas for international CICIG personnel in December 2018 and into the new year, when the government held a CICIG investigator January 5 for more than 24 hours upon entry at the airport. Two days later, Morales announced that the government was unilaterally withdrawing from the agreement with the UN that established the CICIG. He accused the body of polarising the country, violating human rights, and being allied with criminal structures and terrorists. The [government] thinks that it has absolute power, said Pamela Saravia, a member of the Batucada del Pueblo collective that has participated with drumming in nearly every anti-corruption protest since 2015. 190107232649418 This is the moment to tell them that it isnt that way. We need to defend the constitution, Saravia told Al Jazeera. The Constitutional Court ordered a provisional injunction on Wednesday, reversing the expulsion of CICIG, but the highest court itself is also under attack. The government has been defying its rulings, breaking with constitutional order, and government-aligned politicians are attempting to remove judges. In a public statement on Friday, the Guatemalan government pledged ongoing support for anti-corruption efforts and the rule of law, but made no explicit mention of either CICIG or the court. More protests expected Velasquez weighed in on Friday with an 11-page letter to UN General Secretary Antonio Guterres, laying out details of the commissions work and responding to the accusations against CICIG levelled by Morales, among others. The smear campaigns, defamation and threats have increased. That is expected when it comes to a body that has as its goal the prosecution of structures that co-opt the State to make a profit and that refuse to give up the privileges they obtained illegally and illegitimately, Velasquez wrote. 190102132047518 Saturdays march kicked off several days of protests and scheduled more for next week around the country. A broad coalition of organisations has organised highway and border blockades on Monday, and a rural social movement has plans for further nationwide actions on Tuesday. Guatemalan movements see the struggle against corruption and a constitutional breakdown as more important than ever as the country prepares for the June 2019 general elections. The issue right now is that we must defend and guarantee that the government respects the constitution, said Saravia. We must prevent, by all means, the authoritarianism of the government that we are seeing today, she said. Athens, Greece Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has asked parliament for a vote of confidence after a senior minister resigned over the Macedonia name change agreement, potentially leaving the governing coalition without a workable majority in parliament. Defence Minister Panos Kammenos and his Independent Greeks party quit Greeces ruling coalition on Sunday over a deal struck with former Yugoslav Macedonia last June, which would rename that country North Macedonia. Many Greeks believe that any name containing the term Macedonia would imply territorial claims on Greeces northern province of the same name, incorporated into the Greek state in the Balkan Wars of 1912-13. We cannot, for the sake of membership in the government, sacrifice Macedonia for which blood has been spilled, Kammenos said on Sunday. With the confidence vote scheduled for Wednesday, the prime ministers Syriza party is six votes short of the 151 votes needed for a majority in the 300-seat chamber. I have made it absolutely clear that faced with what is obviously beneficial to the nation, what is in the national interest, I shall not turn back, I shall not show cowardice, I shall not count the political cost, Tsipras said on Sunday. Kammenos has been in open disagreement with Tsipras since talks with former Yugoslav Macedonia began a year ago. When the deal was announced last June, the opposition conservatives brought a vote of no-confidence. Kammenos took an ambivalent stance, supporting the government even as he opposed the deal. That stance split the party. At least two Independent Greeks MPs now say they will defect and side with the government. Another two votes could come from Independent Greeks MPs who are cabinet members and have not yet resigned, suggesting they will remain loyal to the government rather than their party. Tsipras could hope to pick up another two votes from among nine independents. 190111175646383 Should the government survive Wednesdays vote, it has hopes of passing the Macedonia deal by virtue of the same minority. Kammenos departure was triggered by the ratification of the agreement in the former Yugoslav Macedonian parliament on Friday. Kammenos had said he didnt believe either parliament would ratify it and was apparently surprised. Greeks who oppose the name deal applaud what Kammenos did, even if the action came late. The government should fall and the agreement should not pass. There is only one Macedonia and it is Greek, said lawyer, Zoi Perili. This agreement, in the distant future, could prove to be against our country. Sooner or later Skopje will seek an outlet to the sea. The nearest port is Thessaloniki. Others believe Kammenos departure came too late to prevent the deal. The agreement has been in process for a year. We knew Skopje would pass it [Independent Greeks] waited until the last possible minute, says Dimitris Bovaris. When you make promises as a country, you have to come through on them. The Greek government undertook a commitment to ratify this agreement if it was ratified by the other side. So this is theatre. It wont end well. The constitution allows for a minority government for as long as opposition parties will tolerate it. It also allows bills to pass on the basis of a majority of MPs present, rather than absolute majorities. On the basis of these minimum standards, the Syriza government could technically continue to govern and attempt to bring the Macedonia name deal to the floor without securing 151 votes. However, the government has said that it does not consider this option politically viable. Authorities fear Mohammed Zuraibi al-Zoabi, 28, may have left the country with help from the Saudi embassy. Canadian authorities are searching for a Saudi citizen accused of sexual assault after he failed to show up for a court hearing in the Canadian city of Sydney, Nova Scotia, the local Chronicle Herald newspaper said. Mohammed Zuraibi al-Zoabi, a student at Cape Breton University, faces charges of sexual assault, assault, forcible confinement, uttering threats, criminal harassment, dangerous driving and assault with a weapon (a vehicle) in separate trials related to two incidents that occurred in Sydney between 2016 and 2017. Local police told the Chronicle Herald that al-Zoabis passport was given as collateral when the 28-year-old student posted his $37,500 bail in cash, a hefty sum provided by the Saudi Arabian embassy. It should be impossible (for him to leave the country or enter without a passport) unless Saudi Arabia furnished him with a Saudi travel document, Lee Cohen, a Halifax-based immigration lawyer, told the Chronicle Herald. 190111152027742 They have done this before. Asked by the paper whether he was still in Canada, al-Zoabi said probably not I cant tell you that, adding that he wouldnt come back for the trial because he feared they might be unfair. I cant respect that, he said of the warrant and charges. Everybodys against me just because Im a (racial expletive) and foreign student despite the fact that we boosted so much money to that island of Canada. The Saudi Arabian embassy did not respond to a Chronicle Herald request for comment on al-Zoabi. Jessica Hines, the manager of Kevins Towing in Sydney, Cape Breton, described al-Zoabi as rude, obnoxious and thought he was above women and the rules. First time I met him consisted of him coming into my office and snapping his fingers because I didnt greet him quick enough as I was busy, Hines said. I immediately marked my dominance by telling him, I dont jump for men when they snap their fingers at me, and made him sit and wait for near an hour. Between March 2012 and April 2016, al-Zoabi racked up 34 infractions ranging from speeding, driving uninsured, driving without a valid license, unregistered and uninspected vehicles. Unpaid to this day, the fines amount to $68,967. News of al-Zoabis suspected escape will only serve to further exacerbate Canadas already poor relations with Saudi Arabia, which last year barred the Canadian ambassador to Riyadh after Ottawa criticised Saudi authorities for detaining female activists. Most recently, Canada agreed to grant asylum to a Saudi teenager fleeing abuse from her family. Rahaf Alqunun, 18, was greeted by Canadas Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland on Saturday, ending an ordeal that saw her stranded at Thailands international airport for about a week. Riyadh was already struggling to deal with the blowback from the murder of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the kingdoms consulate in Istanbul late last year. Turkish and Western intelligence officials have either hinted at or directly blamed Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the murder but Saudi monarch King Salman left his sons portfolios unchanged in the latest reshuffle. Police fire tear gas and water cannon on protesters, who have been demanding higher wages for the past two weeks. Thousands of garment factory workers in Bangladesh clashed with police on Sunday as they continue to protest against low wages in a sector that brings billions of dollars in export earnings to the South Asian nation. Police fired water cannon and tear gas to disperse the demonstrators in the capital, Dhaka. The workers barricaded the highway, we had to drive them away to ease traffic conditions, Industrial Police Director Sana Shaminur Rahman told the AFP news agency. So far, 52 factories, including some big ones, have shut down operations due to the protests. In September, the government increased the minimum monthly wage to taka 8,000 ($96) that came into effect last month, but trade union leaders demand taka 18,000 ($215) to compensate for the rising costs of living, especially in housing. Union leader Aminul Islam, accused factory owners of resorting to violence to control the striking workers. But they (workers) are more united than ever, he told AFP. It doesnt seem like they will leave the streets until their demands are met. No work, no pay Nearly four million Bangladeshis are employed in about 4,500 textile and clothing factories, which shipped than $30bn worth of apparel last year. But many of the workers in the factories say they are paid extremely low wages. Roughly 80 percent of the countrys export earnings come from clothing sales abroad, with global retailers H&M, Primark, Walmart, Tesco and Aldi among the main buyers. Last year, Bangladesh was the second-largest global apparel exporter after China. President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has threatened that all factories in the country would remain closed on Monday if those taking part in the protests would not return to work. No work, no pay, Siddiqur Rahman said during a press conference according to local media. Wage rise The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that wage hikes should not take place too quickly, as it might kill competitiveness of the countrys garment industry. 190103113836858 In an interview with Al Jazeera last month, Gowher Rizvi, adviser to Prime Minister Hasina, defended the governments policies. When our government came to power in 2008 the average wage of a garment worker was 1,600 taka ($19). Today, even though I will agree that it is still low, it is 8,000 taka ($96). This means it has increased five-fold. And this has been done largely at the intervention of the government, Rizvi said. I agree that it should be higher, but our record of increasing it five-fold should be applauded and the government should not be blamed, he added. The protests are the first major test for Hasina since winning a fourth term in December 30 elections marred by violence and allegations of vote irregularities. Province 2 planning minister Yadav accused of assaulting secretary Jha Province 2 Financial Affairs and Planning Minister Bijay Yadav has been accused of assaulting Secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Forest and Tourism Bidhyanath Jha. Qatar to raise US investments to $45bn in next two years from around $30bn now, funds chief executive says. Qatar Investment Authority aims to raise investments in the United States to $45bn in the next two years from around $30bn, its chief executive said, as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited Qatar as part of the US-Qatari strategic dialogue. The Qatari fund was looking to balance investment, so the level of US investment is closer to that in Europe, Qatar Investment Authority CEO Mansoor bin Ebrahim al-Mahmoud told reporters on Sunday. Visiting Doha on Sunday, Pompeo will hold talks with Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and a number of government officials from both sides. A Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said the talks the second round of the US-Qatari strategic dialogue would focus on a number of political, economic, defence and cultural fields, as well as the signing of a number of memorandums of understanding to enhance bilateral ties. The first round of the strategic dialogue was held in January 2018 in the US after which the nations issued a joint statement emphasising the two countries commitment to promoting bilateral trade and investment, and addressing fiscal policy to reduce regulatory hurdles. The two sides also signed a number of agreements and letters of intent in the fields of technology, energy and cooperation in sectors of sport, education, health, arts and culture. As country reels from violence after disputed result, opposition leader Jean Ping renews claim that he won the vote. Gabons top opposition leader Jean Ping has declared himself the rightful winner of this weeks presidential election, accusing the countrys leader of using fraud to cling to power. Pings statement on Friday set the stage for a protracted dispute over the election after days of sporadic violence, as President Ali Bongo Ondimba has also declared victory. The whole world knows today who is the president of the Republic of Gabon. Its me, Jean Ping, he told a news conference. Each time the Gabonese people have chosen their president, the dark forces are always gathered to place he who was not chosen as head of state. Together we have decided, however, that this time things will be different. On Friday, Ping said the results from individual polling stations should be released, echoing a call from France and the United States. Results released by election officials showed Bongo won by just 1.57 percent. Bongos father had ruled the oil-rich country since the 1960s until his death in 2009, after which his son came to power. Al Jazeeras Catherine Soi, reporting from Libreville, said: There has also been widespread looting in the city People here say that things will get worse if the political crisis is not resolved. READ MORE: Gabon opposition leader Jean Ping demands a recount Shortly after Wednesdays vote, Ping told Al Jazeera that the vote was a joke, and that everybody inside and outside the country knows that Im the winner. Opposition supporters have already taken to the streets in protest, and at least three people have been killed in the unrest. On Friday, Ping said citizens had strongly demonstrated their legitimate anger. We are not politicians or the military. The police and military are our brothers, but we need change. We need to be free, one protester told Al Jazeera. The US Embassy in Libreville said in a statement on its website on Tuesday that Gabons voters were not well served by the many systemic flaws and irregularities that we witnessed, including the late opening of polling stations and last-minute changes to voting procedures. European Union observers criticised a lack of transparency on the part of institutions organising the vote. People are afraid The latest deaths in the violence included Bekam Ella Edzang, 27, who was killed when shot in the stomach by the Republican Guard, who were firing tear gas and live bullets, a childhood friend told the AFP news agency. A second victim was identified as 28-year-old Axel Messa, whose mother told AFP he had been shot outside his home. They found my son outside his front door in the street. A black car pulled up. They lowered the window there were two of them and they fired twice, she said. Earlier this week, an Al Jazeera team was blocked by security forces from entering neighbourhoods in Libreville where protesters had gathered. READ MORE: Libreville reels as clashes erupt over vote The trouble has paralysed transportation across the country, with bread and other fresh food in short supply, the situation further aggravated by widespread looting. As he queued in a long line outside a bakery, waiting for bread, Lionel Biteghe told Al Jazeera: The situation in this country is alarming. People are afraid. We have nothing in the house. We want the crisis to end. Since Wednesday evening, many towns have been hit by violence, notably in the countrys north, close to the border with Cameroon where the situation is particularly tense, a security source told AFP. In Oyem, the main town in the north, a policeman was hospitalised after being shot in the head, he said. In Port Gentil, the economic capital, some youths could be seen barricading shops to deter further looting, while others blocked roads and threw stones at police, who then fired tear gas. On Thursday, the interior ministry said up to a thousand people had been detained in the post-vote unrest, with a government spokesman saying the aim was to catch the criminals who set fire to the parliament building late on Wednesday. A year ago today, a young man named Naqeebullah Mehsud was killed in an alleged shoot-out in Pakistans southern port city of Karachi. The police initially claimed that Mehsud was a hardened member of the Pakistani Taliban and was killed during a raid on a terrorist hideout. But his family, friends and some human rights organisations questioned this claim, saying Mehsud was just an innocent shopkeeper and aspiring model. The government ordered an investigation. The police committee probing the incident found no evidence of a shoot-out or terrorist activity and was determined that Mehsud was killed by the police in a fake encounter a practice Pakistani security forces are often accused of being involved in. Officers accused of being involved in the killing were put on trial which is still ongoing. In the past, allegations of extrajudicial killings similar to this one were regularly ignored by the authorities, and security forces were allowed to operate with impunity. What set Mehsuds case apart, and forced the government to take swift action, was a little-known movement which started in his Waziristan hometown of Makin: the Pashtun Tahaffuz (Protection) Movement (or PTM). The PTM was launched by human rights activist Manzoor Pashteen to address the many grievances of Pashtuns, who are the second largest ethnic group in Pakistan and mostly live in the north-western part of the country, close to the Afghanistan border. The Pashtuns have been bearing the brunt of the so-called war on terror for nearly two decades. When the US and its allies invaded Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks, members of terror groups operating in that country passed the border with Pakistan and took refuge in the areas where Pashtuns reside. In response, the Pakistani military started carrying out operations to clear the area from terrorists. However, rather than stopping terrorist activity, military operations in the area increasingly victimised innocent civilians. Pashtuns across Pakistan started to be stereotyped as terrorists even though they themselves were victims of terrorism. Demanding justice After the killing of Mehsud in Karachi, Manzoor Pashteen called for a march from Waziristan towards Islamabad. Thousands joined Pashteen on his way to the capital city demanding justice not just for the murdered man, but for all Pashtuns who have been facing discrimination in Pakistan. This march rapidly transformed into a nationwide rights movement and the PTM was born. In rallies held across the country, Pashteen and his supporters raised questions about the reasons behind the armys failure to drive out militancy from their region and asked whether Pakistani authorities really wanted to eradicate such groups. One slogan that they commonly used was Yeh jo dehshatgardi hai, is ke peechay wardi hai (behind this terrorism, is the [military] uniform), alleging a collusion between terrorists and the military. The PTM also called for all accusations of extrajudicial killing to be investigated independently and demanded the practice of enforced disappearances a legal term coined to explain abductions allegedly carried out by the Pakistan Army to come to an end. Moreover, Pashteen and his supporters started pressuring the Pakistani government to reform the draconian laws that govern the tribal belt that violate basic human rights, such as the law of collective responsibility which the Pakistani state routinely uses against locals from the tribal belt punishing entire families, villages and tribes for the crimes of one person. Rather than addressing the genuine grievances expressed by this growing movement, the Pakistani government chose to embark on a crackdown. The Pakistani media stopped reporting on the movements gatherings. Many of the members and leaders of the movement were repeatedly arrested by the police. The leaders were prevented from entering parts of Pakistan where they wanted to hold rallies. Recently some of PTMs members were also barred from leaving the country. In one public briefing, the military media spokesperson accused the PTM of working on an anti-Pakistan agenda with the help of foreign hostile governments a tactic often used by the Pakistani military to discredit its critics. But the Pakistani states efforts to silence and contain the movement have backfired. As a result of this state-led harassment campaign, the PTM gained more traction and its gatherings are becoming larger than ever. While the movement has always claimed to be non-violent, there are now fears that the continuous use of such heavy-handed tactics to suppress the movement may result in a confrontation that may go out of control, as seen before in Pakistan. Learning from past mistakes In the past, a similar rights movement launched by East Pakistani residents eventually culminated into a movement for independence from Pakistan, and let to the creation of Bangladesh in 1971. In the 1960s, the Bengali population living in East Pakistan, the largest ethnic group in the country at the time, felt neglected by the central government that was headed by General Ayub Khan. Instead of listening to the grievances of this group and addressing the injustices they say they have been facing, the military launched an operation against the aggrieved population. This caused the Bengalis to start an armed resistance which resulted in Pakistans division. Almost 50 years later, it seems that Pakistans ruling elites have not learned much from history and seem to be repeating the same mistakes that led to much pain, bloodshed and irreversible damage to the nation in the 1970s. Today as the PTM marks one year of its struggle, it is of utmost importance that the Pakistani civilian and military leadership address the legitimate concerns of the Pashtun population, meet their demands which are well within the scope of the Pakistani constitution and immediately stop persecuting those demanding their basic fundamental rights. If this does not happen, the PTM may become a catalyst for the break-up of an already divided nation and Pakistan may head towards another national disaster. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. On January 9, the upper house of Indias parliament the Rajya Sabha passed a constitutional amendment to lift the cap on reservations in education and public sector jobs from 50 to 60 percent. The next step is for the bill to receive presidential assent, but its fate is still somewhat uncertain, given the possibility that it might not withstand judicial scrutiny and be struck down by the countrys Supreme Court. What is certain is that this initiative has proven deeply controversial. Opposition parties have criticised its legality, intent, and practicability, while public intellectuals such as Pratap Bhanu Mehta has labelled it cynical politics and cynical policy. What explains this level of controversy? Reservations are what passes for affirmative action in the Indian context, and entail, simply put, a percentage of state and central government jobs and seats in higher educational institutions being reserved for Dalits and other lower caste groups. This form of affirmative action has colonial antecedents, and was written into the constitutional backbone of Indias political system after the coming of independence as a means of improving the condition of groups who were thought to be suffering from social and educational backwardness. Reservations were initially limited to Dalits (Scheduled Castes) and Adivasis (Scheduled Tribes). However, in the early 1990s, in accordance with the recommendations of the Mandal Committee Report, reservations were expanded to encompass other lower caste groups (Other Backward Classes) as well. In 1992, the Supreme Court imposed the 50 percent cap on reservations, which is currently in the process of being overturned, avowedly to avoid compromising the constitutional principle of equal access. What is crucial about the constitutional amendment that has now successfully made it through parliament is the fact that it is delinked from caste. The additional 10 percent of reserved jobs and seats in higher educational institutions that is to be introduced by removing the current 50 percent cap is intended to benefit what the Modi government refers to as economically weaker sections that do not fall under the categories Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe, or Other Backward Classes that is, so-called general category poor. Economically weaker sections are defined as households with an annual family income of less than $11,345 (800,000 rupees) a year, who do not own more than two hectares of agricultural land or a house that is larger than 1,000 square feet. However, as commentator Ajaz Ashraf has pointed out, upper caste groups are expected to benefit disproportionately from this policy measure, as their high levels of education, as well as their accumulated social capital, will most likely enable them to corner most of the benefits. This is why Modis scheme has come to be scorned as upper caste reservations that erase the fact that, in India, affirmative action was introduced specifically to remedy the indignity of caste-based discrimination. In this regard, it is also significant, of course, that the economic criteria for eligibility have been defined in such a way that nearly all Indian households qualify a fact that, according to Supreme Court lawyer Karuna Nundy, renders the constitutional amendment nothing less than ridiculous. 190101221740651 Modi is making this move in no small part due to an electoral imbroglio that is emerging from his project of authoritarian populism. His electoral success in 2014 was based on the fact that he and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) managed to extend their base of support from the urban upper caste and middle class groups that have been the main supporters of Hindu nationalism in electoral politics to incorporate Other Backward Classes, Dalits, and Adivasis. From 2016 onwards, this bloc began to crumble. Dalit and lower caste voters began to abandon the party, and Modi was the target of large-scale protests both by Dalits and farmers. Modi has attempted to stem this tide for example by reversing the Supreme Courts decision to relax the provisions of laws aimed to prevent violence and atrocities against Dalits but this seems in turn to have resulted in the alienation of upper caste voters. As the 2019 general elections are looming on the horizon, Modi is now attempting to shore up the support of the BJPs main vote base. In doing so, he is appealing to upper caste and middle class groups who resent caste-based reservations due to the profoundly mistaken belief that affirmative action prevents social mobility based on merit. He is also attempting to appease Hindu nationalist hardliners who have recently called for caste-based reservations to be abandoned in favour of reservations based on economic criteria. Poverty does not see caste, argues Desh Ratan Nigam a leading activist with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sang, the BJPs ideological parent-body and therefore reservations should be based on economic criteria. How should progressive forces in India respond to this initiative? A good starting place is to point out that Nigam is as wildly incorrect in his assertion that poverty does not see caste as he was in his ludicrous claim that the Taj Mahal which was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan was in fact a Hindu temple. According to the Oxford Poverty and Development Initiative, 65.8 percent of Indias Dalits, who predominantly earn a living as wage labourers, and 58.3 percent of the countrys lower castes are poor. By contrast, 33 percent of the rest of the Indian population are poor. The fact that poverty in India is structured in this way testifies to the truth of the claim made by Dalit intellectual Anand Teltumbde that beneath the veneer of a modern developing superpower, India remains a republic of caste. Closely linked to this must be the argument that reservations were never intended to be an anti-poverty measure, and that it is therefore disingenuous when the BJP speaks of it as such. However, this point in turn needs to be connected to a progressive critique of the limitations of reservations for the politics of social justice. Again, Anand Teltumbdes reflections are instructive. Reservations, he argues in a recent interview, were never about rooting out caste if that had been the intention, the caste system as such would have been abolished, which it was not. Moreover, the persistence of dramatically low social development indicators among Dalits suggests that reservations have done little to achieve progressive change even on their own terms. Advancing social justice for Dalits, he suggests, has to be linked to a struggle for universal social citizenship, which can grant access to healthcare, education, and secure livelihoods. This perspective provides a way in which to link struggles against the injustice of caste with the political economy of inequality in India a political economy that is writ large in the fact that in a country which has grown at an average rate of 7.3 percent since 2007, 57 billionaires own as much wealth as the bottom 70 percent of the countrys population, while at the same time Indias social development indicators are much weaker than those found in far poorer neighbouring countries. Importantly, that link is already being forged by Dalit activists who couple claims for dignity and recognition with demands for social justice and redistribution, and it is quite possible that it is struggles such as this that can consign the republic of caste to the dust heap of history where it belongs. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. PM Oli to visit Switzerland Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is scheduled to visit Switzerland on January 20. He will attend a conference on Annual World Economic Forum there. Stacker dove into film history to compile data on 50 films set in ancient times, an era which spans from the beginning of human history to the fall of the Roman Empire in the fifth century. To qualify, the movie had to have at least 1,000 votes on IMDb. Click for more. * Username This is the name that will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more. Choose wisely! ComebackTown is published by David Sher to begin a discussion on a better Birmingham. David Sher is Co-Founder of AmSher Compassionate Collections and past Chairman of Birmingham Regional Chamber of Commerce, ONB, and CAP. Let's turn Birmingham around. Click here to sign up for newsletter. There's power in numbers. (Opt out at any time) Okay, I've written or published about this topic before--actually numerous times. But now since we are just days away, I may actually get your attention. Nothing is more frustrating than being stuck in traffic. The Sunday before I wrote this piece, my wife and I sat in our car on I-459 for about an hour as lanes were closed for construction. The previous week ice on our roads caused wrecks everywhere and folks were marooned much of the morning. Fortunately this doesn't happen in Birmingham often. But that may be about the change. Within the next few days, I-20/59, the major interstate highway through downtown Birmingham, is scheduled to close for 14 months. Bad for all of us This won't just affect people and businesses downtown, but also detour routes, like I-459, I-65 and 280 as traffic is rerouted. As Tommy Neely, president of Ross Neely Systems, a Birmingham-based trucking company told al.com. "I can't say enough about how much I'm not looking forward to this...I think the general motoring traffic in Birmingham, they're going to be stunned by how many trucks are here in town, not just from local companies like us, but from all over the country. Not only have the truck drivers got to be patient, these motorists in passenger vehicles are going to have to be extremely patient too because they're going to be stuck behind all these trucks." This could have been avoided There were other options to rebuilding the bridges downtown. There was the possibility of lowering I-20/59 underground or moving the interstate to the north. When top communities leaders came out against the plan a couple of years ago, The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) said that it was too late to consider alternate plans. But there were efforts by Operation New Birmingham (now REV Birmingham) to explore options with ALDOT a decade ago. Chris Hatcher, a previous employee of Operation New Birmingham, told me he met numerous times with ALDOT to discuss other options, but he said he was 'stonewalled.' Birmingham powerless No other major metro in the U.S. would allow this to happen to them--not Atlanta, not Nashville--no one. But as I wrote in 2013, Birmingham is powerless... "We have no government entity that has the authority to fight for our community...We're just too divided and disorganized. We have no one who has the authority, clout, or the incentive to make a stand. We have too many governments with no one in charge. We are powerless in Montgomery and powerless as we negotiate with ALDOT." Louisville- unified local voices accomplish tough projects Louisville, Kentucky suffered many of the same problems as Birmingham before combining its county and city governments in 2003. But according to the well-researched Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham report, Louisville is now accomplishing tough projects. "Prior to the merger, Louisville, as a community, had difficulty coming together to pursue big-ticket projects. Observers note that since the merger took effect, the dueling priorities of different governmental bodies have been replaced by "a quicker pace of decision-making, conflict resolution, and priority setting." "...One example can be found in a huge transportation project... It was long recognized that Louisville needed to make improvements to its transportation connections with Southern Indiana across the Ohio River from the city." "There was a perceived need for improvements to the downtown bridge carrying Interstate 65 across the river, and there was also a desire to create a separate crossing upstream. The tension between the two needs kept either from gaining full support. In the end, it was decided two new bridges would be built, using tolls to help pay for the $2.6 billion project. The Downtown Bridge has been completed and is open to traffic. The East End Bridge opened in December 2016." Our Birmingham region can learn We may be stuck in traffic for the next 14 months. But we can take this unproductive time to reflect on how we might find ways to collaborate. We may not choose to combine our county and city as Louisville, but the efforts of our mayors to begin to work together on broader community initiatives is a good first step. We certainly must demand a regional vision and plan. When I first heard that Trump judicial appointee Brian Buescher was catching flack from some in Congress over his Catholicism and association with the Knights of Columbus, I was utterly confused. The Tootsie Roll guys? Who has a beef with the Tootsie Roll guys? Thats how most of us know the gentlemen of this Catholic fraternal organization. They typically appear as a group of granddaddies in cute matching vests, out and about soliciting donations for charities and offering Tootsie Rolls as a thank you to donors. The KOC seems to understand that as much as I value philanthropy, what really motivates me are Tootsie Rolls. When waving a bucket of the chocolatey treats around, it becomes rather easy to separate me from a few dollars. For a good cause, of course. Yet in this day of unprincipled tribalism and hysteria, the same people who would fight to the death for religious liberty for, say, Muslim Americans or Hindu Americans, find Catholicism and the Knights of Columbus a bridge too far. Come on, people. This is just like when Dianne Feinstein tried to make Amy Coney Barrett appear as some sort of judicially-unfit nut when she revealed that shegasp!actually believes and lives in accordance with the doctrines of her Catholic faith. The dogma lives loudly within you, Feinstein famously said. Its true that the Knights of Columbus have backed political efforts to affect changes they think, based on the tenets of their faith, to be better for America. They have funded anti-same sex marriage initiatives in the past. Thats all kind of a moot point since Obergefell v. Hodges, but the organization advocated for that which was in keeping with their own religious doctrine. Just like I do when I push for greater restrictions on abortion. Heres the thing: if we are to have a prayer of protecting religious liberty in this countryfor any of usthose of us who believe in the First Amendment are going to have to develop the intellectual discipline and foresight to defend it for all. Good for me, good for thee. Russell Moore, President of the Ethic & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention makes the case this way: Moreover, the idea that religious freedom should apply only to Christians, or only to religious groups that arent unpopular, is not only morally wrong but also self-defeating. A government that can tell you a mosque or synagogue cannot be built because it is a mosque or a synagogue is a government that, in the fullness of time, will tell an evangelical church it cannot be constructed because of our claims to the exclusivity of Christ. Those voices (though a distinct minority, to be sure) that claim to be Christian but seek to restrict religious freedom for others are perhaps unknowingly on a campaign to destroy religious liberty. They would set the precedents that will be used to destroy churches, and they will give the opponents of religious liberty the charge that the issue isnt about freedom at all but about seeking government approval of ones religion. Beyond protecting a groups ability to worship as they see fit, the concept of religious liberty must also protect potential public servants from a religious litmus test which can deem the individual unfit for public service based upon the beliefs of the religious group with which they worship. To her great credit, Democratic Representative Tulsi Gabbard gets this, and has blown the whistle on the religious intolerance displayed by some in her party (including fellow Hawaiian, Senator Mazie Hirono). In an op-ed published this week she writes: The party that worked so hard to convince people that Catholics and Knights of Columbus like Al Smith and John F. Kennedy could be both good Catholics and good public servants shows an alarming disregard of its own history in making such attacks today. We must call this out for what it is religious bigotry. This is true not just when such prejudice is anti-Catholic, but also when it is anti-Semitic, anti-Muslim, anti-Hindu, or anti-Protestant, or any other religion. If America, a diverse and vibrant nation, is to survive as conceived, we must discipline ourselves to apply the principles of liberty outlined in the constitution, not just for ourselves, but also for those with whom we disagree. By Rep. Merika Coleman, Assistant Minority Leader for the Alabama House Democratic Caucus This has been a dark week for our state. This week, the legislature met for organizational meetings, which include setting session rules for the next four years. The new rules passed by the Republican majority will drastically limit debate and transparency in the House of Representatives. In essence, they will silence the voices of House members that represent the majority of Africans Americans and other minorities in our state. Yet, despite the enormous impact these changes will have on the lives of Alabamians across the state, most citizens are likely unaware of them because there was minimal media coverage and no media outcry at the clear curtailing of transparency and accountability. Television crews didnt cover, for the most part, the five-hour filibuster of the Black Caucus and Democratic Caucus, which were fighting for the voices of minorities, poor people, children, seniors, educators etc. in this state to be heard, to be considered in developing legislation, and to have a fighting chance to have any influence on legislation that passes. When Republicans silence my voice, they also silence the voice of the 44,000 constituents I serve - Republicans, Democrats and Independents. And, they silence the voices of the other 27 Democrats. (Yes, that number is correct. There are only 28 Democrats out of 105 members of the Alabama House of Representatives.) So when I cant get an amendment on a bad piece of legislation to make it a little less painful, or cant get meaningful legislation passed that raises the quality of life for the people I serve, youll know why. Debate and the length of debate allow us to negotiate. When you take away our ability to debate for any meaningful time, then youve taken away our ability to negotiate. And, our statewide media just let them get away with it. The Republican majoritys actions wont just stop with these moves. The supermajority will continue to operate in this manner if it thinks nobodys watching. Thats a far cry from when I first was elected to office in 2002. The media would stay with us for the long haul. If we were in session until 4 a.m., they were there, too. Not only were they present, they truly understood the process and knew how to cover not just hot-button legislative issues, but were nuanced enough to identify the issues that were going to have sweeping positive or negative impacts on the state or the local municipalities and counties we serve. Now, when they do show up, no matter what is happening on the floor at a certain point, they just pack up and leave except for a few people in print and often times, Alabama Public Television. Its no wonder people back at home think we dont do anything because no ones reporting on the major fights the Black Caucus and the Democratic Caucus have to endure most session days that we are there. When one of the Republicans sent out a racist email last session and the Black Caucus ended up on the Floor of the House singing We Shall Overcome, while there were some print reporters, there was not one broadcast news outlet that was present. Its a shame and detrimental to our government, state and democracy in general when the most powerful lawmaking body in our state is not adequately covered. There are always more than 500 new laws proposed each session. Peoples lives are impacted through every vote we take on issues including access to healthcare, jobs, education, mental health, roads and bridges, new crimes, gun safety, licensures, equal pay for women, money for large scale economic development projects, human trafficking, transit funding or lack there of, constitutional reform, banking regulations, restructuring of local municipalities government and how they vote, domestic violence regulations, retirement funds, voter restoration, funding the courts and on and on and on. We sponsor bills on these issues, fight bad bills on these issues and vote on these issues. The people of our state need to know what is happening in regard to them. Frankly, they DESERVE to know. Did you know that during session, the Democratic Caucus in conjunction with the Black Caucus held weekly press conferences to inform the public of the issues facing the legislature that week? I bet you didnt know because very few members of the press showed up for those press conferences. I know that some of these issues are complicated, but when I graduated from the University of Alabama at Birmingham with a degree in Mass Communications with an emphasis in Broadcasting, we were taught to not shy away from the complicated issues. We were taught to simply do the research and the work to break down those complicated issues so that even an 8th grader could understand it. While I, and many of my colleagues will do our best on our own to get the word out, our media statewide, the free press, a major institution in American politics, must step up and do more to ensure better transparency and accountability in our state government. I know your budgets are tight but without the free press reporting about these complicated issues and injustices that occur in the Alabama Legislature, it will be much more than a dark week because in darkness, democracy dies. A Birmingham police sergeant slain early Sunday morning died doing his lifes work trying to make the world around him a better place. A safer place. Sgt. Wytasha Carter, affectionately known to his friends and family as Wyt, died from a gunshot wound to the head about 2 a.m. while on a special detail investigating car break-ins in the downtown Birmingham area. Those who knew the 44-year-old husband, father and U.S. Air Force veteran said he had a passion to serve and it showed every time he hit the citys streets. He wanted to make a difference, said Pell City Police Chief Paul Irwin, who was Carters captain at Birminghams West Precinct. The type of person who killed him, thats exactly the type of person he was trying to help. He was the most amazing, most caring husband, father and officer I have met in my entire life, said Birmingham police Officer Jordan Campbell who also worked with Carter at the West Precinct. Every time I found myself getting into a dangerous situation, Id look up and he was always there. He prayed with me, he counseled me, most of all he was there for me and anyone else the needed him, without question, she said. The shooting happened just before 2 a.m. Sunday in the 900 block of Fifth Avenue North outside the 4 Seasons Bar & Grill. One suspect was taken into custody and one suspect was also shot. Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service took all three to UAB Hospitals Trauma Center where Carter was pronounced dead. His co-workers later saluted the mortuary transport van that carried the fallen officers body to the Jefferson County Coroners Office. More than a half-dozen patrol cruisers provided escort for the transport. Carter was a 1993 graduate of Phillips High School and then served in the U.S. Air Force. Once he completed his military service, Carter launched a career in law enforcement in 2002 as a correctional officer with the Shelby County Sheriffs Office. Later that year, he joined the Leeds Police Department and remained there until moving to the Fairfield Police Department in 2007. Tuskegee University Police Chief Patrick Mardis Sr., who formerly served as Fairfield police chief, said Carter was both a co-worker and a friend. Carter served as a detective, a sergeant and a member of the Special Response Team while he was at Fairfield. He loved to work with school kids, mentoring them on the dangers of drugs and gangs, Mardis said. Carter was a fierce protector of his co-workers. He was always the first one in and the last one out, Mardis said. He made sure his comrades were safe. He was truly a public servant, he said, and his death will leave a profound void in Birmingham area law enforcement. Another former Fairfield police chief, Leon Davis, described Carter as hardworking and dedicated. He was always willing to go the extra mile, Davis said. He was the ultimate profession and public servant. Even more importantly, Davis said, he was a great man and humanitarian. Carter left the Fairfield PD in 2011 to join the Birmingham Police Department, where he worked various assignments including patrol at the citys West Precinct, HICOPP and Youth Services as a school resource officer. He was made a member of the precincts task force because he was such a go-getter, Irwin said. He was all about getting the job done, Irwin said. In 2016, Carter was one of several officers who responded April 14 to a home in the 1700 block of Seventh Avenue West where a roof and chimney had collapsed, trapping two young children ages 8 and 5 beneath the rubble. He and the other officers were later honored for the rescue. I went in and was in there moving the debris, Irwin said. He came in behind me and shoved me out of the way. He really cared about people, about the community. Slain Birmingham police Sgt. Wytasha Carter was one of several officers who, in 2016, rescued two children buried in rubble after their roof and chimney collapsed. Carter was promoted to sergeant in February 2018. Birmingham police Sgt. Tim Gardiner and Carter were promoted at the same time and grew close over the years. He was one of those people who never met a stranger, Gardner said. He graduated from Phillips High School but as a school resource officer he worked at Jackson-Olin and Woodlawn and he was 100 percent about that school when he was there. He took a vested interest in every single kid he dealt with, Gardiner said. We talked, probably last week, about getting back over there (to the school resource division. Thats what he really wanted to do. He always helped people. Hed been in law enforcement a long time and had a lot of knowledge for the new people coming in, Gardiner said. Asked what he would remember most about Carter, Gardiner said this: For his co-workers, it would be how much he loved his law enforcement family, and how much he sacrificed for the city. Former Birmingham Police Chief A.C. Roper said he was saddened by Carters tragic death. "I had the honor of promoting then Officer Carter to Sergeant as one of my final acts as the Birmingham Police Chief. He was a great hire for us and was very deserving of Sergeant stripes,'' Roper said. "I will always remember him and his can-do attitude. Birmingham has truly lost a guardian of public safety and Wyts sacrifice should never be forgotten. We must remember his family with our prayers and support during this great loss. " Former Birmingham and Fairfield police officer Erick Burpo Sr. said Carter was his brother not only by the badge, but through his life journey. I remember the first time I met him in the hallway of Fairfield police department and he made it sound and feel like we already knew each other. I looked at Nick Dyer and said, Who is this dude and where did he come from? Nick just laughed and said, He must be your brother. From then on, the friendship and the brotherhood began, Burpo said. When Burpo was injured in the line of duty in 2006, he said the entire police department supported him but, Carter did more, he said. He called and texted to make sure I was straight almost every day. This was how he was. When he came to the Birmingham Police Department he continued to shine. Any department he went to they were sure to find out that they had a great man/officer in their midst, Burpo said. He helped to mold officers to not only be great at what they do but be great in life. His legacy will not be forgotten and will live on through many of us that have worked alongside of him. Carter is the 52nd Birmingham police officer killed in the line of duty. The last time an officer was killed was June 17, 2004 when Robert Bennett, Harley Chisholm and Carlos Owens were gunned down in an ambush outside an Ensley drug house. "This is one of the roughest hours of your career.'' said Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith. Theres not a chief, not an officer that ever wants to have to deal with this. This is a very very difficult thing for the family, and for the department. Birmingham police Sgt. Heath Boackle, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said the department has been hard hit by Carters death. Were human too. Its a tragic loss for us, he said. We have senseless crime in this city and now its happened to one of our officers. Were trying to get everybody to come together to solve this crime problem in the city. One Birmingham police officer was killed and another critically wounded in a shooting early Sunday outside a downtown nightclub. The shooting happened just before 2 a.m. in the 900 block of Fifth Avenue North outside the 4 Seasons Bar & Grill. One suspect was taken into custody and one suspect was also shot. Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service transported all three to UAB Hospitals Trauma Center. Birmingham police officials identified the fallen officer as Sgt. Wytasha Carter, 44. He had served with the Birmingham Police Department since 2011, where he has worked various assignments including West Precinct, HICOPP and Youth Services as a school resource officer. Carter was promoted to sergeant in February 2018. Carter began his law enforcement career in 2002 as a correctional officer with the Shelby County Sheriffs Office. Later that year he joined the Leeds Police Department where he served as an officer. In 2007, Sergeant Carter joined the Fairfield Police Department until transferring to the Birmingham Police Department. He was a 1993 graduate of Phillips High School. He received his bachelors degree from Belford University. He also served in the United States Air Force. He is survived by his wife and children. The sergeant is the 52nd Birmingham police officer killed in the line of duty. The last time an officer was killed was June 17, 2004 when Robert Bennett, Harley Chisholm and Carlos Owens were gunned down in an ambush outside an Ensley drug house. "This is one of the roughest hours of your career.'' said Birmingham Police Chief Patrick Smith. Theres not a chief, not an officer that ever wants to have to deal with this. This is a very very difficult thing for the family, and for the department. "Each and every day the men and women of the Birmingham Police Department do everything that we can to try to address crime within the city. We do everything that we can to try to protect and serve the people of the city of Birmingham with pride with respect. We do everything we can to keep everyone safe,'' the chief said. Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin called Carter a true public servant who will be honored. "As this investigation continues, I ask that everyone pause and reflect on how our Birmingham police officers go out everyday to protect our community,'' Woodfin said. We also remain in prayer for the second officer who was shot along with Sgt. Carter. He is currently in critical condition. As the scripture teaches us, Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends,.'' the mayor said. Each day, Birmingham police officers risk their lives when they report for duty. This is a time of mourning for our city, but please know our police officers are dedicated to justice and continued service for the people of Birmingham. The ordeal began at 1:59 a.m. when officers were working a special detail dealing with a rash of car break-ins in that area. An undercover officer spotted at least two suspects who appeared to be trying door handles to see if they were locked. The officer called for backup, and the sergeant arrived. The officer and the sergeant approached two suspects. "The officers approached one suspect and patted him down where they found what they believed to be a weapon,'' Smith said. They asked him about it, he armed himself and fired upon our officers. "What I can tell you is it appears our officers were unable to respond,'' he said. They were taken completely by surprise. We cant go into great detail because we are still in the infancy stage of the investigation. The second officer remains critical at UAB Hospital. "Both of them were shot in very critical areas,'' Smith said. Dozens of officers are keeping vigil in the emergency room area and later saluted as the mortuary transport van left the hospital. More than a half dozen patrol cars escorted the fallen officers body as he was taken away from the hospital. Smith said he did not immediately know the condition of the suspect who was wounded. The second suspect is under arrest. Were not absolutely certain right now if we have one outstanding suspect but we have other possibilities and the investigation is ongoing. The chief said he does not know if the break-ins in that area are linked to similar crimes in other downtown areas. "This is a problem weve been working in the city and thats why the officers were out here trying to make sure we do everything we can to protect the citizens,'' he said. Smith said he has spoken to family members of one of the officers. You know the main thing is were here for them and were going to do everything that we can to support them,'' he said. This is a difficult time. There are members on this department that have worked with them for years and theyre hurting just like everyone else. Dozens of officers gathered outside of UABs emergency room, some of them visibly emotional. "We ask that everyone be respectful of their space. We want to give them their time to grieve and were going to continue to move forward and do everything we can to keep the citizens of Birmingham safe,'' he said. At a public safety Town Hall meeting held late last week, Smith talked of volume of weapons that police are taking off the street each day. "Were averaging just under 200 a month,'' he said, adding that they confiscated more than 2,200 in 2018. "That lets you know what is happening and the number of weapons that are out there and the sheer dangers that our officers face each day,'' he said. "We do it successfully, we do it safely, and this is just one of those very unfortunate times that it led to a tragedy. " Police have set up a massive multi-block perimeter around the crime scene. Officers from all four of the citys police precincts are on the scene, as are officers from Bessemer and the Jefferson County Sheriffs Office. The State Bureau of Investigation is also on the scene and will lead the investigation. Jay Town, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama, called the shooting a terrible tragedy. "This tragedy is a heartbreaking reminder of the dangers all law enforcement faces while we sleep. While they keep us safe,'' Town said. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the officers, the officer still fighting for life and the fallen officer whose end of watch came much too soon. Birmingham City Councilman Hunter Williams, public safety chairman, issued this statement: On behalf of the Birmingham City Council, Please join me in lifting up our thoughts and prayers for the families of the officers shot this morning, as well as the men and women of Birmingham Police Department. Our officers make many sacrifices to keep us safe. Early this morning one officer made the ultimate sacrifice and another of our officers is still in critical condition. The Birmingham City Council stands with the law abiding citizens, families, and victims, and will cooperatively work with Mayor Woodfin and other law enforcement agencies to combat this senseless act of violence. We know the negative impact of gun violence on the health and safety of our communities must be met with swift and certain punishment. The Birmingham City Council fully stands behind all of the men and women of the Birmingham Police Department in their efforts to make sure justice is served. Jefferson County Sheriff Mark Pettway released this statement: My sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of the officers involved in todays unfortunate shooting. Sgt. Wytasha Carter was a courageous man and his sacrifice will be forever remembered. My thoughts and prayers are with my fellow law enforcement colleagues. My office will be available to the Birmingham Police Department should any additional resources be needed. This story will be updated as more information is released. Its been eight days now since the folks who oversee the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute told us Angela Davis, the Birmingham native, and long-timeand, yes, controversialactivist, academic, poet, and authordid not meet all the criteria to be honored with the Fred L. Shuttlesworth Human Rights Award. Eight days since someone from the Institute telephoned Prof. Davis in California and read her the same confounding statement it fed the rest of us, the one that inspires more head-scratching questions than answers. Eight days. And nary a peep. Not a peep informing us exactly which criteria Davis suddenly did not meet. Full coverage of BCRI decision and Angela Davis. Not a peep about why the Institutes board of directors did a sudden flip-flop, taking a hurried vote during an emergency telephone conference call late afternoon on Friday, January 4 to rescind an honor it touted to the world back in October. (We soon learned it was sparked by pressures from some in Birmingham who are uncomfortable with aspects of Davis revolutionary past, particularly her support for the pro-Palestine Boycott, Divestiture and Sanctions movement.) Not a peep, especially, on how each board member voted on the fiasco of an action that has, infuriatingly, made the venerable caretaker of this citys civil-rights legacy a global laughingstock. (Just two voted against rescinding the awardfrom what Ive been able to arm-twist from people. Several others abstained, and not all board members were able to join the call.) Not even a peep after the Institutes leaders were called on the carpet last Thursday by Birmingham mayor Randall Woodfin, who decried poor stewardship, unanswered questions surrounding their situation, and revealed hed made several demands of BCRI the previous Monday, including the release of minutes of board meetings from last October through the ill-fated January 4 meeting. (the BCRI sent all but the January board meeting; see the minutes here.) Not a peepand its inexcusable. No, its abhorrent. Its flunking Crisis Management 101: Be truthful, be transparent, be apologetic, and, perhaps, most important, be fast. Eight days aint fast. Silence is not transparent. Truth? Nowhere to be found. I reached out to several board members, as well as CEO Andrea Taylor, utilizing every technology available. Like a lot of people, Id like at least a modicum of clarity on how the BCRI arrived at this disastrous and embarrassing place, and, as important, how it plans to move beyond it. Some cordially responded but none were willing to allow me to use their name. Some had lots to say. Some felt blindsided. Some were even angry. All were frustrated. On Wednesday, three board officers resigned: President Mike Oatridge, vice president, Honda Alabama; First Vice Chair Walter Body, retired director, multi-cultural marketing, Coca-Cola, and Secretary Janice Kelsey, a retired school teacher. Call it a start. That afternoon, board member Jeffrey Bayer responded to an email inquiring about his role in the decision, though only offering: My only comment, I am remaining on board with the prospects of constructive dialogue within our community. Ironically, that is exactly what was supposed to have happened. What should have happened. On the morning of Monday, January 7, people who expressed concerns about Davis had been invited to join BCRI leaders at the Institute for just such dialogue. All board members agreed that the meeting was the most prudent way to respond to the misgivings, and perhaps create a platform that would result in a compromise that would be amenable to all. The meeting never happened, of course, because the board took its hasty, panicked vote on the telephone three days before. We still dont know why. But we do know this: The BCRI must do better, and that begins with significant changes. Changes in actions. Changes in process. Changes in relationships. Changes. This is BCRIs proverbial teachable momentwhen its leaders must do what must be done to climb out of the muck and reclaim the mission, status, and integrity of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. And do it fast. Roy S. Johnsons column appears in The Birmingham News, the Huntsville Times, the Mobile Register and AL.com. Hit me up at rjohnson@al.com. Follow me at twitter.com/roysj or on Instagram at instagram.com/roysj/ Condolence messages for the family of Sgt. Wytasha Carter were sent from Birmingham and beyond on Sunday after the Birmingham police officer was killed in the line of duty early Sunday morning. Carter, 44, was shot after he was called in for backup and patted down a person suspected of breaking into cars outside the 4 Seasons Bar & Grill nightclub around 2 a.m. Sunday.The suspect armed himself and fired at Carter and an officer who was part of a special detail investigating break-ins. The officer was in critical condition as of Sunday afternoon. The police officers death was the first in Birmingham since 2004, when three officers were shot to death in Ensley during an ambush outside a drug house. Reaction came in from around the country -- from police departments from New York to Oregon, elected officials in Alabama and national police organizations. Sgt. Wytasha Carter laid down his life for the city he served," said Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin. "This husband and father was a true public servant and will be honored by each of us. Birmingham City Councilman Hunter Williams, chairman of the councils Public Safety Committee, released a statement on behalf of the whole council on Sunday after Carters death. The Birmingham City Council stands with the law abiding citizens, families, and victims, and will cooperatively work with Mayor Woodfin and other law enforcement agencies to combat this senseless act of violence, Williams said. We know the negative impact of gun violence on the health and safety of our communities must be met with swift and certain punishment. The Birmingham City Council fully stands behind all of the men and women of the Birmingham Police Department in their efforts to make sure justice is served. Hoover Mayor Frank Brocato said his city was devastated to learn of the tragedy. We are devastated this morning to learn of the loss of a Birmingham Police Department sergeant and the critical wounding of another BPD officer last night," Brocato said in a statement. "All across the metro area, officers from many agencies do everything in their power to serve and protect us all every day. The loss of an officer in the line of duty underscores these efforts. Please join me in continuing to pray for these officers' families, their brothers and sisters at BPD, and for safety and protection for all our law enforcement officers. Selma Mayor Darrio Melton said the city has "extended our thoughts and prayers to the Birmingham Police Department and the officers families. My thoughts are also with Mayor Randall Woodfin. Nothing can prepare you as a Mayor to receive a call that one of your officers has been shot. Fortunately, Officer Micah Hale survived when I received the same call just a few months ago. We all should pause and recognize that our law enforcement officers put their lives on the line every single day. We stand united with Birmingham in combating illegal gun violence. Here is other reaction from around the country: .@BhamPolice Sergeant Wytasha Carter was more than just a cop who was senselessly murdered. He was a husband and a father your neighbor. Together with the communities we serve, the men & women in blue must carry on his work of preventing crime and violence.#NeverForget pic.twitter.com/VX3z4K4Q8q Chief Terence Monahan (@NYPDChiefofDept) January 13, 2019 The MCSO sends our condolences to the family, friends, co-workers and Law Enforcement family of Sgt Wytasha Carter of the @BhamPolice Dept. We pray for the healing of the second officer injured in the incident and further for comfort of all involved. Madison Sheriff AL (@mcsosheriffAL) January 13, 2019 #FallenHero We offer our heartfelt condolences to the family, agency & community of @BhamPolice Sgt. Wytasha Carter. He was killed this morning. He is now the 6th officer to give his life in service to his community in 2019. Rest in Peace brother we have the watch from here. pic.twitter.com/tqEVrkjBff Aurora Police Dept (@AuroraPD) January 13, 2019 For the 3rd time in a week, an officer was shot and killed in the line of duty. In Birmingham AL, Sgt. Wytasha Carter was killed, and a fellow ofc. was also shot, reportedly in critical condition. They were investigating a burglary. Our prayers are with the families and Dept. Chief Brian Manley (@Chief_Manley) January 13, 2019 Sgt. Wytasha Carter of the @BhamPolice, shot and killed today by a car prowl suspect. Rest easy Sarge. https://t.co/sqUfuKoqJE Sgt. Pete Simpson (@SgtPeteSimpson) January 13, 2019 Sadly another police officer was shot and killed this morning while investigating car burglaries. We send our thoughts and prayers to the family and friends of Sergeant Wytasha Carter of the Birmingham Police Department. Sergeant Carter is survived... https://t.co/YSZeA40VAm Cranford Police Dept (@CranfordPD) January 13, 2019 I am heartbroken this morning over the news that weve lost a Birmingham Police Sergeant who was killed while protecting our fellow citizens. Lets pray for the police force and the family and loved one of the sergeant killed. https://t.co/3CMUverO2C Rep. Terri A. Sewell (@RepTerriSewell) January 13, 2019 Our prayers and love go to the family of Sergeant Wytasha Carter Rest In Peace #NYPDGA @NYPDHousing @NYPDChiefPatrol @NYPDChiefofDept pic.twitter.com/EVAnZQmSno NYPD Housing PSA 5 (@NYPDPSA5) January 13, 2019 Sgt. Wytasha Carter laid down his life for the city he served. This husband and father was a true public servant and... Posted by Randall Woodfin on Sunday, January 13, 2019 A man was found dead at the scene of a house fire in Jefferson County this morning, authorities said. Emergency workers were called to a home on the 4400 block of Boston Road at 9:39 a.m. Jefferson County sheriffs Lt. Jack Self said after the fire was extinguished, authorities found the mans body inside the home. The mans name hasnt yet been released. Self said investigators dont suspect foul play. The State Fire Marshals Office is investigating. Panel calls for halting college affiliation until new federal and provincial university Acts are in place A government-formed panel of experts has recommended halting affiliations to private and community colleges until federal and provincial university Acts are in place.The panel led by Dev Raj Adhikari, member-secretary at the University Grants Commission, a government entity overseeing university education, has recommended formulation of laws on time for demarcating the jurisdictions of provincial and federal governments on university education. Update: A Mobile police officer is the eighth U.S. law enforcement officer killed in 2019. Ofc. Sean Tuder died Sunday after following up on leads on a suspect, according to Chief Lawrence Battiste. The suspect is identified as 19-year-old Marco Perez. Tuder joined the Mobile Police Department in March 2016 and was named Officer of the Month in August 2017. His death comes a day after Birmingham police laid to rest an officer shot to death in the line of duty. Tonight Alabama mourns the loss of another law enforcement officer. @MobileALPolice Officer Sean Tuder was killed in the line of duty while executing an arrest warrant. A suspect is in custody. We pray for Officer Tuder's family and his fellow officers. #ThinBlueLine pic.twitter.com/Lyc3JVPYuK AG Steve Marshall (@AGSteveMarshall) January 21, 2019 Tuders slaying comes just days after the death of a Texas officer. Deputy Sheriff Ray Horn of the Comal County, Texas Sheriffs Office died Jan. 17, 2019 after suffering a heart attack while driving home after participating in required physical fitness activities. His vehicle collided with two others during the accident. Our hearts are heavy and saddened today with the passing of Deputy Ray Horn last night. Our sincerest condolences are... Posted by Comal County Sheriff's Office on Friday, January 18, 2019 Earlier: Birmingham police Sgt. Wytasha Carter, shot and killed in the early morning hours Sunday, is the 6th law enforcement death in the U.S. in 2019 and the third from gunfire. An officer with the Birmingham Police since 2011 and in law enforcement since 2002, Carter was shot before 2 a.m. outside the 4 Seasons Bar & Grill. One suspect was taken into custody and another was shot. A second officer who was also shot is in critical condition. Carter is the 52nd Birmingham police officer killed in the line of duty and the first since 2004 when three officers died in an ambush outside an Ensley drug house. Third law enforcement death from gunfire this year Carters death is the third U.S. law enforcement fatality contributed to gunfire since the new year started some two weeks ago. David, California Police Officer Natalie Corona, 22, was responding to a triple-car crash on Jan. 10 when she was gunned down by a man on a bicycle in what officials described as an ambush. A July 2018 graduate of the police academy, Corona had completed her field training just three weeks before she was killed. She is survived by her parents. Last week, DPD Officers were called out to the new home of a Paradise fire victim who had lost everything. Officers were... Posted by City of Davis Police Department on Tuesday, December 11, 2018 Provo, Utah Police Department Police Officer Joseph Shinners, 29, was shot and killed Jan. 5 during the arrest of a wanted fugitive. He had been with the department for three years and is survived by his wife and young son. Three other law enforcement deaths are attributed to being struck by a vehicle: Colerain Township, Ohio Police Officer Dale Woods, who died Jan. 7; Salt River, Arizona tribal police officer Clayton Townsend, who died Jan. 8; and Illinois State Trooper Christopher Lambert, who died Jan. 12. Please continue to pray for our officer. Thank you for the outpouring of support the family feels it! Posted by Colerain Police on Sunday, January 6, 2019 SRPD ESTABLISHES OFFICER CLAYTON TOWNSEND BENEFIT MEMORIAL FUND The Salt River Police Department has established a... Posted by Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community on Friday, January 11, 2019 Former Alabama Rep. Ed Henrys gonna cop a plea. Hell admit guilt in federal charges accusing him of paying kickbacks and conspiring with a pain clinic to commit healthcare fraud and launder money. Oh, how the high-and-mighty have fallen. This was a guy who led a moral crusade against former Gov. Robert Bentley, who was quick with a scarlet letter at the same time he was washing dirty knickers for a pill mill. Alabama corruption. Another day another double dose of it. No wonder theres such profit in sedation. It just keeps coming. Prosecutors in December approved a pretrial diversion agreement with another former state representative, Jack Williams (R-Vestavia Hills). That means he can, if he abides by the rules, have the bribery charges against him dropped without having to admit guilt. Which is great for him, of course. And its not all that shocking, because the case against him was weakest, on the surface. Prosecutors never even said he took money in exchange for helping shadier figures try to push a bill through the Legislature. The alleged bribery was more subtle, and probably harder to explain to a jury. So it was not that shocking, except that the DOJs own U.S. Attorneys handbook says current and former public officials should not be eligible for pretrial diversion. To be precise: The U.S. Attorney, in his/her discretion, may divert any individual against whom a prosecutable case exists and who is not A public official or former public official accused of an offense arising out of an alleged violation of a public trust. Who is not. If they think hes guilty they ought to try him, and hold him to the highest standard. If they think hes not they should drop the charges. Which will come into play again, because other defendants in the case, including former Rep. Randy Davis (R-Daphne) want some pretrial diversion action, too. Because it is literally a get-out-of-jail-free card and asks little of them. The briber in the case, California businessman G. Ford Gilbert, pleaded guilty this month to one count of conspiring to bribe a public official. Gilbert, owner of Trina Healthcare, wanted legislators to help him pass a bill to force Blue Cross and Blue Shield to cover a diabetes treatment his clinics offered. Prosecutors said he paid then-House Majority Leader Micky Hammon who has since pleaded guilty on unrelated charges and solicited Davis and lobbyist Marty Connors to help him get the job done. Davis and Connors were supposed to go to trial next week, but U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson agreed to delay it until April to let prosecutors consider their pretrial diversion requests. Yeah. Consider. We need a little time to consider what the heck prosecutors in the middle district of Alabama are doing at all. Those are the same guys who recommended that Hammon who took tens of thousands of dollars in campaign money and spent it on himself serve no jail time for his crimes because he admitted guilt. Judge Thompson who is no hanging judge had to rebuke those prosecutors in court, ignore their request for leniency and send Hammon to prison, if only for a little while. There is not much to think about here. Especially for Davis. If there is no case against him, the charges should be dropped. But if prosecutors believe a public official is guilty of bribery, of violating the public trust, he or she should be prosecuted, and made an example, and barred from sidestepping the consequence. Thats what the DOJs own handbook says. Thats what Alabama needs. 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. Two days before shes sworn in for a four-year term in office, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey thanked her supporters Saturday during a pre-inaugural party in Gulf Shores. She also briefly acknowledged the hard work in front of the newly-elected state leaders during a party that was partially paid for by taxpayers in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. It was the first time any inauguration-related event was held in coastal Alabama, and the first time since former Gov. Bob Riley held an inaugural ball in Birmingham in 2007 in which an inauguration-related event was held outside of Montgomery. We have a lot of hard work ahead of us in the next four years, Ivey said. That means we have opportunity. I look forward to working with you to bring quality jobs and quality education and a brighter future for all of us who love this state so much. Ivey was joined on stage by the Republican constitutional officers who won election in November during a GOP sweep of all statewide contests. Among those in attendance and who spoke briefly on stage included Attorney General Steve Marshall, Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth, Auditor Jim Zeigler, Secretary of State John Merrill, Treasurer John McMillan, and Agriculture and Industries Commissioner Rick Pate. Its good to be out of Montgomery its good to be down here among normal people and good to find out what normal people are thinking and thats my job, said Zeigler. The pre-inaugural party was subsidized, in part, by the cities of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach at $10,000 a piece. Gulf Shores portion went toward a fireworks show that occurred after country music entertainer Neal McCoy performed, and Orange Beachs allocation went to the event in general. Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon said his city agreed to the investment because the pre-inaugural was open to the public. It cost $25 for attendees, or they could get in for free if they donated four childrens books as part of the governors initiative to promote childrens literacy ahead of Mondays inauguration. Close to 1,900 books were gathered during the event. AFRIN, Syria Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), led by al-Qaeda's former Syria affiliate, has sealed its grip over most of Idlib province and parts of the neighboring provinces of Aleppo and Hama. A cease-fire deal was reached Jan. 10 in Idlib between HTS and its rebel rival, the Turkey-backed National Liberation Front (NLF). The deal ended the battle and established the administrative control of the self-proclaimed Salvation Government the administrative arm of HTS in all areas previously controlled by the NLF. Seated in Idlib, the HTS-dominated Syrian Salvation Government was formed in 2017 as an alternative to the opposition's Syrian Interim Government. It represents the civil authority of HTS and administers large parts of Idlib. In addition to this administrative gain, HTS was able to strengthen its military control and expel the NLF from the front's main strongholds in Idlib and the western Aleppo countryside HTS is an alliance of Salafi-jihadi factions led by Jabhat al-Nusra, a former branch of al-Qaeda. It is deployed in the province of Idlib and the nearby countryside of Aleppo and countryside of Hama. The NLF was also deployed in this area. It is a coalition of several opposition factions supported by Turkey and includes, mainly, Failaq al-Sham, Ahrar al-Sham and Nureddin Zengi Brigade. From Jan. 1 to 10, HTS launched a widescale offensive against NLF-controlled areas from various fronts, defeating the NLF in Idlib. Clashes had flared up in western Aleppo province when HTS accused the rebel Nureddin Zengi Brigade of killing five of its members. Al-Monitor headed to the town of al-Ghazzawiya, 16 kilometers south of Afrin city, on Jan. 9, a day before the cease-fire. The National Army, the main Turkish-backed rebel force which fought HTS alongside the NLF was reinforcing its presence along the confrontation line with HTS. National Army personnel had set up checkpoints and guard posts, while vehicles fitted with heavy machine guns patrolled the town streets. We have reinforced our positions in the area and dispatched more fighters to the confrontation line in anticipation of any moves or attack by HTS against us, a National Army field commander told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. We are concerned about this expansion by HTS, classified as a terrorist group. We will put an end to this expansion, which could harm the region and its population. The National Army is estimated to have 35,000 fighters deployed in Afrin and the Euphrates Shield areas. National Army-affiliated groups moved on Jan. 4 to the western part of Aleppo to support the NLF, but this limited movement was confined to groups of fighters hailing from areas attacked by HTS. This was confirmed by the spokesman of the National Army, Maj. Yusuf Hamoud, in a tweet Jan. 2. Hamoud added that his army is on the verge of a battle against terrorism in Manbij and the eastern Euphrates. The NLF suffered a major defeat by losing all of Aleppo's western countryside on Jan. 6, in a broad offensive by HTS that pushed the Nureddin Zengi Brigade fighters to withdraw from Aleppo's western countryside toward Afrin. The Nureddin Zengi Brigade is not only a main component of the NLF but is also the local force in the western Aleppo countryside. HTS deployed its elite fighters in its war against the Nureddin Zengi Brigade. This elite group consists of Jaysh al-Badia Army and al-Asaib al-Hamra forces. On Jan. 1, HTS controlled the strategic hill of Jabal al-Sheikh Barakat. Soon after, it seized all of Aleppos western countryside, including 17 villages and cities, most notably Dar Azza, and Atareb. Ousting the Nureddin Zengi Brigade and extending its reach over most of Idlib province are accomplishments for HTS. This victory allows it to maintain control of all the humanitarian and commercial crossings between the province of Idlib and the regime-held areas. The Nureddin Zengi Brigade controlled the last of these crossings, the Mansoura crossing. Of course, HTS controls the Bab al-Hawa crossing, the only one with Turkey in Idlib province. These rapid defeats by the NLF reveal its fragmentation. Its constituent factions did not act collectively against HTS. Although the NLFs leadership issued a statement Jan. 2 sounding a clarion call and requesting all of its components to deter HTS attack, some NLF brigades and groups refrained from fighting and said they would remain stationed at the confrontation line with the Syrian regime only. It seems HTS is trying to impose itself as a de facto power, forcing regional powers, especially Ankara which has 12 military observation posts in Idlib to deal with it as the most powerful opposition force in Idlib. On Jan. 9, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar discussed with his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu recent developments in Idlib province and regional security issues within the framework of the Sochi agreement. Following threats by the Syrian regime to invade Idlib, Turkey and Russia had reached an agreement in October 2018 to set up a de-escalation zone in Idlib at a depth of 15-20 kilometers. Both Russia and Turkey repeatedly emphasized their determination to combat all forms of terrorism in Syria. Without the cloud of suspicion and potential indictments against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, there would be no doubt that the Likud and the right-wing coalition would win the election on April 9 in a landslide and form a coalition similar to the current one, perhaps bolstered by one of the new centrist parties. But the cloud is a determining factor, and the election campaign wont focus on security or economic issues, but rather the expected indictments. Gayil Talshir from the Department of Political Science at Hebrew University says that its true that according to polls and analyses, the right-wing bloc seems guaranteed a clear majority, while the center-left bloc, including the popular former Chief of Staff Benny Gantz, pose no real threat to the coalition. Gantz merely hopes to form a bloc with the Arab parties to prevent the establishment of a right-wing coalition. Thus, according to Talshir, the question isnt a battle between the blocs, but whether enough parties agree to join Netanyahus coalition while he faces prosecution. Under Israeli law, a prime minister, unlike other ministers, does not have to resign even if indicted until all potential appeals are completed. The crux of Netanyahus problem lies with his current coalition partner, former Likud member and current chairman of Kulanu Moshe Kahlon, whose party now numbers 10 Knesset members. Kahlon said explicitly Dec. 20 that Netanyahu wont be able to serve as prime minister when indictments hang over his head. The rest of the coalition parties declared that since the law does not require the prime minister to resign over an indictment, they would be willing to join him in a next coalition. Education Minister Naftali Bennett, who in the meantime left HaBayit HaYehudi and established the New Right party with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, said in a televised interview that he doesnt agree with Kahlon. He said, Whether you love him or not, hes done a lot for the country. I hope it doesnt happen. But if theres change through elections, thats something else entirely. The ultra-Orthodox party Yahadut HaTorah is a close partner of Netanyahu and its leaders have made it clear that they would stay with him even after an indictment. Some have even come out to defend him. Knesset member Uri Maklev, for instance, said, You cant ignore the fact that the investigation occurred in a context of political and personal persecution. The investigation was tainted the whole time. The position of ultra-Orthodox Mizrahi party Shas is even clearer. Its chairman, Aryeh Deri, was forced to resign from the government after he was indicted in 1993. Deri then and now opposes forced resignation due to indictment. He has also been Netanyahus most loyal partner in recent years. He told Al-Monitor that Netanyahu should stick to the law and resign only if heaven forbid convicted. Former Minister Avigdor Liberman of Yisrael Beitenu has no problem cooperating with Netanyahu despite an indictment, and he even recommended that the prime minister not resign if it happens. Among the new parties formed recently, the most relevant as a future partner is Gesher, headed by Orly Levy-Abekasis, the daughter of Likud veteran David Levy. She has already expressed doubt over Netanyahu continuing to serve with an indictment. She said, When the moment comes, I think it would be impossible. Netanyahu, who crowned himself chief strategist of his partys election campaign, is now striving to muster as many supporters for the Likud as he can to prove that a large public around 30 mandates, according to the polls, representing about a million voters as well as his coalition partners trust him despite his legal situation. To do so, he turned to the public Jan. 7 in a prime-time television announcement and attacked the police, which he says did not allow him to directly challenge the state witnesses against him. Journalists were not allowed to enter the studio at his residence, and his announcement came off as more of a propaganda video aiming to damage the integrity of the investigators and recruit public support. At least according to the polls, the right-wing-voting public indeed believes Netanyahu and his claim that the investigations have been unfair. Netanyahu is searching for other means to escape his predicament, including pressuring Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit to postpone his announcement of any indictments and the hearing process it would precipitate. In the course of the hearings, Netanyahu and his legal team would have an opportunity to lay out their arguments against the police and prosecutors recommendations and to convince Mandelblit that there is no reason for criminal charges against the prime minister. If indeed Mandelblit postpones the announcement until after the elections, Netanyahu will gain some precious time. The hearing process could take months and allow Netanyahu to form a coalition in the meantime. It would also resolve the problem with Kahlon, who clarified recently in an interview with Army Radio, Ill say it again, if an indictment is submitted against the prime minister, following a hearing, Netanyahu could not continue to serve. At the same time, Netanyahu is working to bolster his potential partners and advance alliances, for instance with Eli Yishai, who left Shas for Tekumah, and HaBayit HaYehudi as well as between the ultra-Orthodox parties, to maintain the numbers needed for the vote threshold, which prevented Yishai from getting into the Knesset after the last election. Theres another, less likely possibility that Netanyahu could succumb to public pressure or legal demand (from the Supreme Court, for instance) and resign. In such a case, aside from Meretz and the Joint List, the rest of the parties would not reject the idea of joining a coalition headed by the Likud. Labor chair Avi Gabbay said so this week at a conference of the Kibbutz Movement. Everything would depend on Netanyahus replacement, whoever wins the Likud primary next month and is crowned number two on the list. The reimposition of US sanctions on Iran has created many difficulties for Iranian students who are studying abroad including in Europe. The root of these hardships seems to be European companies fear of potential US penalties. Sima is an Iranian student pursuing a doctorate in mechanical engineering who traveled to Spain in September to take part in a one-year research program. She has not yet been able to open a bank account in the country, and told Al-Monitor she has had to hide the money she brought with her from Iran in her bag and take it wherever she goes in Madrid. Other Iranian students have faced similar difficulties in Europe; since the United States reimposed sanctions against Iran last year, European banks seem to have increasingly imposed restrictions on Iranian students including refusing to open accounts. Sima said, I went to Bankia, Banka and Caixa in Madrid and none of them agreed to open an account for me. As soon as they realized I was from Iran, they said they could not open accounts for Iranians. Sima said only one bank was willing to do this for her but on condition she present her residency card, which takes up to three months to be issued. Santander was the only bank that agreed to open an account for me. So, until I get my residency card, I have to carry my money with me in my bag, which has been the case since September. Similar cases have been reported in Germany, Italy and France. Ali is a masters student in economics and marketing in the city of Lyon. He moved to France in 2018 and has also faced many difficulties with opening a bank account. He told Al-Monitor, When I arrived in France, I searched the internet to see which banks in France were better known so I could open an account with a reliable bank. In the end, Ali decided to go with BNP Paribas. The people at the bank were very nice to me and gave me the necessary forms to fill out, but then one of the clerks asked where I was from. As soon as I said Iran, he apologized and said that they cannot open an account for Iranians. I was surprised and asked why. The clerk said that it was because of US sanctions, to which I responded: But what do US sanctions have to do with me, a student in France, and with you? His answer was that they had a lot of dealings with the US and unfortunately could not open an account for an Iranian. Ali told Al-Monitor he had also approached banks such as Citibank, Banque Populaire and CIS, but that all of them had given him a negative response. Only Post Bank agreed to open an account for him. The situation in Italy isnt much better for Iranian students. Hamed, an international relations student at Florence University, said he went to several banks such as Unicredit, UBI, BNL, Firenze Bank and Banca Monte Paschi di Siena and that they all turned him down. Ultimately, Post Bank was the only bank that agreed to open an account for him on condition he present his tax code card, which takes 45 days to arrive. As recently as 2016, it was much easier for Iranian students to open accounts at various Italian banks. Now most students have no choice but to go to Post Bank. There does not appear to be a set protocol within banks when it comes to this issue. For example, it could be that one bank branch will not open an account for an Iranian student, but another branch of the same bank will. Hamed told Al-Monitor about his experience with a clerk at a branch of Banca Monte Paschi di Siena. After the bank clerk told me he could not open an account for Iranians, I asked to speak to the branch manager. I told the manager that my friend had opened an account with the bank just last year and so how was it that they were not willing to do it for me now? He responded that I was correct but added that the bank could easily return the Mastercard or Visa debit cards that were previously issued to Iranians and close their accounts. He then said that an Iranian who worked here [in Italy] had approached him to apply for a credit card but that he had told that Iranian that he should be happy that the bank had not closed his account, adding that because of US sanctions, it is impossible to issue a credit card to Iranians. As a result of conducting many interviews with Iranian students in Italy, Al-Monitor has learned that there have been numerous instances where Italian banks have frozen their accounts. Although the closures are temporary, they can sometimes last for months. Given that Iranians have no other option to make bank transfers to Europe, these students are faced with constant difficulties. This uncertainty has also increased in Germany in recent months. Golnaz, a master's student in architecture at Frankfurt University, told Al-Monitor she had waited for more than 18 months just to get a visa appointment at the German Embassy in Tehran. After finally arriving in Germany in October, she faced many challenges for opening a bank account. Golnaz said, I went to Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank to open an account, but both told me that they could not do so as soon as they found out I was Iranian. They gave no explanation for their decision other than that I come from Iran. With the United States barring the entry of Iranian nationals as well as the US withdrawal from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, the situation has become very difficult for Iranian students in the United States, too. The challenges such students face include extensive waiting periods to get student visas. However, after interviewing several Iranian students in the United States, Al-Monitor became aware that none of them faced any difficulties with opening bank accounts. This pattern would suggest that European signatories to the nuclear deal which have sought to reprimand the United States for pulling out of the accord appear to have taken over the lead from the United States when it comes to making life difficult for Iranian students, a group Europe has claimed will not be the target of sanctions. Hamas to Netanyahu: Money or Rockets The heads of Israels defense establishment believe that Qatars financial grant to Gaza played a major role in preventing an armed conflict between Israel and Hamas, but now the third installment of that grant is at risk, reports Shlomi Eldar. As of Jan. 8, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given an order that the money is not to be transferred to the Gaza Strip, and Hamas is once again threatening Israel. Netanyahu reportedly sent a message to Hamas that he is ready for a cease-fire, now that Knesset elections will be held April 9. What Hamas wants is Qatari money, writes Eldar. Failure to transfer it could lead to an unwanted armed conflict between it and Israel. Then there is the deepening rift between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA), which continues to hover in the background. On Jan. 6, President Mahmoud Abbas ordered PA inspectors to leave the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. It was the latest in a series of steps through which he is trying to disassociate his government from the Gaza Strip, which has not been controlled by the PA for over a decade now. The bottom line, adds Eldar, is that $15 million were not transferred to Gaza this month. In response, either Hamas or some group acting on its behalf fired a warning rocket at Israel on the night of Jan. 6-7. The rocket was shot down by the Iron Dome missile defense system. This is Hamas undiplomatic means of declaring its intent: If there is no money, there will be rockets instead. Iran steps up support for Palestinian factions The pause in Qatars support for Hamas provides an opening for Iran. Tehrans police chief has offered to train members of Palestinian armed groups, as Netanyahu blamed Iran for the lack of progress in peace talks. Further consolidation of relations between Iran and the Palestinian factions is possible, as Hamas and the PIJ [Palestinian Islamic Jihad] recognize that Iran is their main supplier of arms and money, writes Adnan Abu Amer. If that happens, it is likely these factions would enter a military battle in a unified front with Iran, Hezbollah and Syria against Israel. Former Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman had warned of that possibility in October 2017. Al-Monitor spoke to a senior military commander in the Palestinian Popular Resistance Committees, an alliance of armed factions that opposes reconciliation with Israel, adds Abu Amer. He, too, pointed out that Iran has spared no effort to provide Palestinian factions with military expertise that has significantly improved their capabilities. He noted on condition of anonymity that during the recent military escalation with Israel, the Palestinian factions demonstrated these advanced military capabilities. Russia turns to Iraq-Syria border It is not clear how well Russia, Iran and Turkey were prepared for the announced withdrawal of US forces, writes Anton Mardasov. Due to the possibility of a vacuum appearing, the Astana format guarantors of the resolution in Syria may face additional challenges and burdens in the geopolitical and economic realms. The void temporarily left in the trans-Euphrates region could potentially be settled by the active involvement of the Arab states that are interested in restraining Iranian and Turkish ambitions. Certain Russian experts cautiously point out that Russia may make a deal on this with the Gulf nations. This argument suggests that Riyadh and Abu Dhabi influenced the opposition in Syria's southwestern de-escalation zone in exchange for the restoration of diplomatic contacts with Damascus and Moscows permission to expand their presence in eastern Syria. Previously, Emirati and Saudi delegations repeatedly visited the areas controlled by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Considering the obvious politicking with the Kurds and obscure prospects of stabilization in the region, keeping the border between Syria and Iraq secure becomes a priority, adds Mardasov. To accomplish this, military and counterintelligence methods alone will not suffice. It is also necessary to rebuild infrastructure in the areas where numerous Arab tribes, both large and small, live. Their own views have transformed substantially during the years under Islamic State (IS) control. Moreover, permanent poverty, destruction, involvement of pro-Iranian militants and the opening of cultural centers compel the communities to support radical structures. However, Russia had supposedly failed to develop fully functioning counterterrorism structures in Iraq, continues Mardasov. As a result, Moscow focused on the ad hoc approach, solving issues such as the identification of Russian nationals fighting in Iraq and the deployment of special forces in the town of Abu Kamal near the border. Thus, even if this type of cooperation is suitable for the local counterterrorism effort, it is hardly efficient to eliminate developed Islamist networks. But these measures allow for diversification of logistic routes inside the so-called Shiite corridor between Iran and Lebanon. UAE leads Syria rapprochement Despite probably preferring not to deal with Assads regime, the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] states accept that doing so is the only way for the oil-rich Gulf monarchies to exercise influence in post-conflict Syria, writes Giorgio Cafiero. It appears logical that apart from Oman, which never cut its ties with Assads government, the UAE [United Arab Emirates] is the GCC member most supportive of the greater Arab world re-accepting Damascus into its diplomatic ranks and re-engaging the regime, explains Cafiero. In contrast to Saudi Arabia, the UAE was never a major supporter of the anti-Assad rebellion due to its strong and overriding Islamist identity that led Abu Dhabi to fear that the secular Syrian leaders ouster could pave the way for a Muslim Brotherhood government to ascend to power in Damascus, much like in Cairo in 2012. The closeness between the crown princes of Abu Dhabi and Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Zayed and Mohammed bin Salman, will be key to observe when it comes to GCC-Syria relations, adds Cafiero. Analysts expect bin Zayed to use his influence over bin Salman to facilitate a Saudi-Syrian rapprochement with Abu Dhabi, serving as a diplomatic bridge between Riyadh and Damascus. The GCC state that might prove to be the biggest outlier with respect to political and diplomatic re-engagement of Syria is Qatar, concludes Cafiero. Despite Qatars past role as a major foreign state sponsor of the Syrian rebellion, officials in Doha, like all Arab capitals, recognize that Assads regime has won the civil war. Thus, the pragmatic reasons for any GCC state to engage Damascus also apply to Qatar. As the Qataris move toward engaging Syria diplomatically and politically, Dohas view of both Turkish and Iranian activity in post-conflict Syria will differ from Riyadh and Abu Dhabis with the Qatari leadership far more accepting of Ankara and Tehrans determination to heavily influence the war-torn countrys trajectory. Whereas the UAE has supported the dominant Syrian Kurdish militia the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria to push back against Turkeys actions in the war-torn country, Qatar has expressed its full support for Ankaras anti-YPG/anti-Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) operations in both Syria and Iraq. Similarly, in a sign that Qatar has truly escaped the Saudi shadow, earlier this month Dohas ambassador to Moscow spoke about Irans legitimate interests in Syria. The US decision and subsequent indecision about withdrawing troops from Syria has created a shifting and complex lineup of alliances that would puzzle Rube Goldberg. Syria's Kurds, the Syrian regime and Turkey are hoping Egypt and/or Russia can negotiate an agreement among them despite their very different goals. A Kurdish delegation is expected to visit Cairo soon. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hopes to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow this month. The Kurds have also been in contact with Russia. On Dec. 28, at the Kurds' request, the Syrian government sent forces to stop what appeared to be an imminent Turkish offensive against the Kurds around Syria's Manbij area. Syria's assistance has allowed 400 fighters from the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) to withdraw from the area. The YPG fights under the umbrella of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). Turkey considers the YPG to be affiliated with terrorists, while the SDF has helped the United States fight the Islamic State in Syria. A US withdrawal would have left the Kurds at Turkey's mercy without Syria's intervention. Ankara, meanwhile, said Jan. 9 that it won't be deterred from pursuing the Kurds if it feels threatened. Now, Kurdish leaders from the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), the SDFs political wing, want negotiations as soon as possible that could lead to a political settlement between Damascus and the Kurdish factions. Our brotherly Egyptians declared their readiness to play a role in converging views with Damascus. And we believe Cairo has what it takes politically and regionally to play this role," SDC member Hushnak Darwish told Al-Monitor. Darwish headed an SDC delegation during a visit to Cairo in late November, where he met with senior officials from the Egyptian Foreign Ministry to discuss a settlement with Damascus. He stressed that reaching a political settlement has become an urgent necessity. The SDF, a coalition of Kurdish fighters and Arab tribes, controls about 26% of the Syrian territories, mainly in the north and east of the Euphrates River, according to a report published Aug. 1 by the Jusoor for Studies Center in Turkey. The SDF seeks to create a federation in areas inhabited by Kurds in northern Syria. It also wants to ensure that the Kurds' political and social rights are included once a new constitution is developed. The Syrian regime, however, has merely offered Kurds expanded local administration in Kurdish areas. The Syrian leadership must realize we are facing new political realities in light of all these political and geographic changes in Syria after this long war, Darwish insisted. Elham Ahmed, head of the SDC's executive body, confirmed to Al-Monitor that the SDC is hoping Cairo will sponsor an agreement between the Syrian government and Kurdish factions. Brig. Khalid Okasha, a member of Egypt's National Council to Confront Terrorism and Extremism, told Al-Monitor that Egypt is qualified to play an important role in the negotiations between Damascus and the SDC because of its good relations with both parties. Since Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi acceded to power in 2013, Cairo has stressed its support for the official Syrian institutions. However, he added, Each of the two parties has its own demands and each of them is attempting to convey them to the other, but no progress regarding these demands has been made so far." Egypt is accepted as an impartial mediator by all the warring parties except Turkey and has mediated temporary cease-fires in Syria in the past. On Dec. 28, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan questioned how long the Kurdish fighters' withdrawal from Manbij will last. He added that Ankara's mission in northern Syria is to purge terrorist groups from the entire area, not only Manbij. Under the current regional circumstances including the potential US pullout from northern Syria and Turkey's threats to launch a military operation the Kurdish fighters have little leverage and will have to reduce their demands, according to Ibrahim Kaban, a researcher at the Kurdish Center for Studies based in Germany. Given the current adverse conditions and the massive Russian support for Damascus, a Kurdish federation has become a thing of the past, Kaban told Al-Monitor. He added that the SDC will only demand semi-autonomous administration of the Kurdish areas, similar to a previous Damascus proposal granting the Kurds an expanded local administration. Regarding the SDFs future, the Kurdish researcher said the Syrian government will probably depend on the Kurdish fighters to maintain local security in northern Syria by enlisting them within the regular forces. Would you like to receive breaking news notifications from The Post and Courier? Sign up to receive news and updates from this site directly to your desktop. Breaking News Columbia Breaking News Greenville Breaking News Myrtle Beach Breaking News Aiken Breaking News Click on the bell icon to manage your notifications at any time. Success! Please click the 'Allow' button in the 'Show Notifcations' alert in your browser if one is available. Thank you for signing up! Please enable notifications in your browser and reload the page. With the traditional bull turnout date for most producers coming in the next couple weeks, the South Dakota Grassland Coalition says a later b MILO, Iowa Robby Dittmer owns a Porsche. In fact, he owns three of them. But the vehicles Dittmer owns are not race cars. They are tractors. WASHINGTON, D.C. (AP) - The top House Republican says he and Rep. Steve King will discuss King's future in the party following the Iowa congressman's remarks in defense of white supremacy. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy tells CBS' "Face the Nation" he intends to have a "serious conversation" with King on Monday. The California Republican says King's "language has no place in America." The New York Times recently quoted King saying, "White nationalist, white supremacist, Western civilization - how did that language become offensive?" Recently re-elected to a ninth term, King has since insisted he is an advocate for "Western civilization," not white supremacy or white nationalism. King said it was a "mistake" to use phrasing that "created an unnecessary controversy" and he denied being racist. BAKERSFIELD, Calif. - Six are dead, including the gunman, following a mass shooting in Bakersfield on Sept. 12. The violence started on Wednesday night at a trucking business. Reports say that a man and his wife were arguing. The argument escalated and resulted in him killing her and another man. A bystander tried to get involved and shoot the gunman, but was shot dead as well. The gunman also went to a nearby home and killed two more people. According to police, the gunman then hijacked a car with a woman and child inside to try and make an escape. When deputies closed in on the suspect, he then shot himself. The killing spree lasted about 15 minutes and police are still investigating the motive behind the violent attacks. The names of the suspect and victims have not yet been released. Stay with KHSL Channel 12 and actionnewsnow.com for the latest updates as they become available. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... U.S. Sen. Tom Udall is encouraging Gov. Michelle Lujan Grishams new administration to reconsider a state government decision made just before she took office Jan. 1 that changes how radioactive waste volume is measured at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, in effect allowing more waste to placed in the underground repository near Carlsbad. Udall said last week that limits on how much waste WIPP can hold were critical to federal-state negotiations that led to WIPPs creation and were a major reason New Mexico agreed to this mission in the first place. I am encouraging the new administration to take a hard look at this action, and hopeful that it will pause and reconsider this last-minute change that has major ramifications for our state, the senator said in an email statement. The controversial state permit modification for WIPP, approved by then-New Mexico Environment Department Secretary Butch Tongate on Dec. 21, changes the way waste volume is calculated to exclude empty space inside waste packaging. With the alteration, WIPP becomes only about a third full instead of 50 percent full. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ And there have been indications that the federal Department of Energy which oversees the nations nuclear weapons operations wants to bring new kinds of waste to WIPP, which the additional space could accommodate. Thats one reason activists opposed the volume calculation change. In May, DOE Secretary Rick Perry said in a letter to a key member of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee that 34 tons of excess weapons-grade plutonium was headed to WIPP. Perry at the time was pulling the plug on a troubled, costly and long-delayed effort at the DOEs Savannah River Site in South Carolina turn the plutonium into fuel rods for nuclear power plants. Perry confirmed that DOE is removing plutonium from South Carolina, adding, We are currently processing plutonium for shipment to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant and intend to continue to do so. I certify that the Department will work with the state of New Mexico to address the capacity issues related to receipt of the full 34 metric tons at WIPP, Perry wrote in his letter to U.S. Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb. Udall said at the time he had serious questions about whether there was enough room at WIPP to store additional waste from Savannah River, given the clear legal limits in the 1992 federal act creating WIPP that resulted following a lawsuit New Mexico won against DOE when I served as Attorney General. Udall added: If DOE is asking New Mexico to take on additional waste missions beyond what is authorized by current law, unilateral action (by DOE) is absolutely not an option. WIPP now takes transuranic waste, largely contaminated items and material leftover from plutonium work, including protective clothing. Changing what kind of waste WIPP can hold would require another permit change. Udall said last week, If New Mexico is being asked to take on additional waste missions beyond what is authorized by current law, New Mexicans need to have a say and we should only agree to a new agreement that is in the overall best interest of New Mexico. There needs to be ample time for public input and awareness, and we must ensure that the safety of workers and the public is protected long into the future. James Kenney is Lujan Grishams recently dubbed secretary-designate of the state environment department. He said in an interview last week that he needs more time to analyze the previous administrations decision on WIPP volume measurements before speaking on it, but the topic remains high on (his) list of priorities. The change in how the volume of waste is measured came after a request by DOE and WIPP operating and managing contractor Nuclear Waste Partnership, LLC. There was public comment period and a three-day public hearing in Carlsbad. The plutonium that had been slated for conversion to fuel in South Carolina would likely be first diluted with an inert, cement-like material, essentially turning it into waste, an idea called dilute and dispose that was conceived by the Obama administration as cheaper than trying to make the excess weapons plutonium into fuel rods. Critics like Don Hancock, a WIPP watchdog at the Albuquerque-based Southwest Research and Information Center, have said theres no way WIPP can take all the weapons-grade plutonium under dilute and dispose, and still make room for all the transuranic waste from Los Alamos National Laboratory and other national labs that it was built for. But members of the Carlsbad community, including Mayor Dale Janway and city councilors, spoke out in support of the volume measurement change at the public hearing in October, saying it was would just allow a more efficient use of WIPPs space for storing waste from DOE sites. A consultant for WIPPs operators declined to answer questions at the hearing about whether they wanted to take other kinds of wastes, but emphasized that the permit modification that has since been approved did not include requests for other waste streams or types of waste. Parties have 30 days to appeal the Martinez administrations decision and groups like Hancocks have said they will continue to fight the permit modification. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal Brian Percy and Barry Fancher are used to learning as they go. Its a skill that comes with working for the U.S. military, both nationally and internationally. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ A lot of our experience in work historically is, you know nothing about what youre doing, now heres a project, go to Serbia, make this happen, Percy explained. So when the retired Air Force buddies decided to go into business together, purchasing a cidery was another chance to do just that. Its something new, something out on our own, and something we can learn, said Fancher, who with Percy assumed ownership of Santa Fe Cider Works in mid-November. With plans to renovate and move into a new production facility by spring, the duo hopes to expand the businesss profile. Their plans include increasing production, offering new flavors and opening a small on-site taproom. Percy also emphasized that they want the business to be more about helping to build community wherever their ciders or served their own taproom, other brewpubs or bars or at home rather than just the drinking. Santa Fe Cider Works, which has been around since 2013 and is now located on Center Place off Airport Road, distributes hard cider to taprooms and stores across northern and central New Mexico. Its flagship product is Enchanted Cherry cider and it also produces Cider Different, a semisweet, non-carbonated apple cider. Its current sellers include Second Street Brewery, Santa Fe Brewing Co. and, in Albuquerque, Nexus Brewery and Bosque Brewing Co. Stores that carry Cider Works include Susans Fine Wine and Spirits on St. Francis Drive and Albuquerques Jubilation Wine and Spirits. The company was co-founded by brewer Jordy Dralle and business manager Michelle Vignery. Dralle, who is sticking around until the end of January to help teach the new team the ropes, said she and Vignery were looking for buyers when Percy and Fancher came along. It was time to let it go to some people who could take it to the next level, which are these guys, said Dralle. Looking for something new Fancher and Percy met in 1987 at Californias Beale Air Force Base. For several years, they and their families moved around to the same bases. First to Spokane, Wash., then to Colorado Springs. Which is kind of weird in the military to have that happen, said Percy. But we had fun doing it, Fancher added. After his time in Colorado, Fancher was briefly stationed in Alaska before retiring from the military in 2003, while Percy was sent on special duty assignments at embassies in Serbia and Brazil before working at Floridas Cape Canaveral. Over the past five years, following his Air Force retirement, Percy worked at the U.S. Embassy in London. His department acted as a liaison between the U.S. Department of Defense and the host countrys military. Fancher has been living in Colorado Springs working in defense contracting since his own Air Force retirement. When I was getting ready to leave London, I was tossing around the idea of completely jumping ship and started looking into some random opportunities, said Percy, adding that he and Fancher had previously talked about getting into the alcohol-related field together. They first looked at a distillery in Alabama. After that was purchased by someone else, they randomly came across the cidery in Santa Fe early last year. Percy moved to Santa Fe in July to focus on the business. Fancher is still living and working in Colorado, traveling back and forth as they work on their new business. They openly acknowledge their newcomer status in the cider industry. When they bought the business and started seeking approval from the city, we both knew what an apple was, Percy said with a laugh. We knew what cider was, but we didnt know how the two came together, Fancher added. Percy said he and Fancher are utilizing their quality management and process improvement experience. And then take as much advantage of people who are experts to get us on track, he added. Earlier this year, Percy took cidery-focused business courses at Oregon State University. They also worked out a deal for Dralle to stick around and assist during these first few months. To manage the cider-making, Percy and Fancher tapped Dave Shepard, a Los Alamos native with a longstanding passion for craft brewing, as the lead fermenter. Like his bosses, this is a new professional venture for Shepard, but he comes with a background in chemistry and biotech. For the past 25 years, hes been working across the country in pharmaceuticals and was looking to retire from that field. Hes currently receiving his certification in Brewing Technology from Central New Mexico Community College. A lot of the equipment that we use here is really similar to what Ive used in my career, too, and the microbiology and chemistry aspect of it, too, so it was a good fit, said Shepard. Expanding the product Right now, the business is producing as much cider as it can, which Dralle said is about 2,000 gallons a year. In a new location off Bisbee Court just south of town along N.M. 14, Percy said, the team wants to triple the output, which he hopes will allow the company to seek more distributors. Fancher and Percy said they hope to receive all of their zoning approvals to start production in the new, 1,500-square-foot space by the end of March. If we were going to stay the same size, we would stay in here, Fancher said while standing in the current, 500-square-foot warehouse. But we want to bring in the bigger tanks and more of them. The team plans to add one or two new 1,100-gallon fermenters, along with other new machinery. Currently, they have four 300-gallon fermenters. They will also bring over a large cider press, which Shepard said can be used toward Percy and Fanchers goal of collaborating with local orchards in the spring to create small-batch flavors. The team is currently working on some new flavors, supported by the larger equipment. Percy said the new offerings will incorporate Southwest-related flavors and labeling. Something theyd also like to start later this year, Percy added, is hosting occasional tastings through pop-ups or at bars that sell their cider, to test out new creations. We want to expand it to many different people, he said of the craft cider scene. Millennials seem to be one of the giant groups jumping on this because they want something different than wine, they want something different than beer, they dont want to drink your grandmas Schlitz. Everyones looking for a new flavor. Hopefully, well be able to tap into some little niche thats different than the local bar scene. The new facility also has space for a small taproom for serving Santa Fe Cider Works products and other locally brewed drinks. Percy said the cidery team doesnt expect the spot to be as high-profile as other brewery-based taprooms like the one at Santa Fe Brewing Co.. But he said it could be a chance to take advantage of proximity to the Interstate 25/N.M. 599 interchange or serve a niche audience of people who live or work near the Turquoise Trail. In the United Kingdom, he said, nearly everyone has what they call a local, meaning their neighborhood pub where they regularly go to drink and hang out with friends. Our taproom is more maybe going to be under the premise of we have tourists that are passing by from Madrid, from Albuquerque, to Santa Fe, to come take a (break), or we find that opportunity to have our own little local for that portion of the area, said Percy. Further down the line, Percy and Fancher foresee taking Santa Fe Cider Works to neighboring states like Colorado and Arizona. The question they still need to answer, however, is how to do that while avoiding mass production. They say they want to maintain the small-business roots and artisanal creation process that they inherited. So whether expanding across state lines means long-distance distributing or setting up nano-cideries in other cities remains to be seen. Its a learning situation of how we can be different, Percy said. Different, small, sustainable, local. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... SANTA FE, N.M. Weve entered that month named after the two-faced Roman god Janus, and having looked back reflectively in our last column, it is now time we face forward and full speed ahead for 2019 with the firm resolve to be as fair, honest and open as we can be. Any comments, criticisms or complaints, call our editor. In that spirit, we begin 2019 with the observation that some of the best restaurants weve ever enjoyed have been in that most pedestrian of pedestrian American spaces, the shopping mall. One particularly memorable Japanese place was in the ugliest shopping mall near OHare airport outside Chicago. Well never forget the name Yasuki. A Japanese businessman hipped us to it. Unbelievable. I think they got the fish right off a plane a few miles away. We digress . Atrisco Cafe and Bar in the DeVargas Mall, along with several establishments from the Sanbusco diaspora, such as Teca Tu pet shop, Santa Fe Pens and Op. Cit. Books, kinda reminds me of that. And apparently Atrisco is no secret. A couple of visits, with friends and then solo during the holiday season, also put me in mind of the great metaphysical observation by my guru Yogi Berra, who once said of a particularly popular spot in New York, Nobody goes there anymore. It got too crowded. The Wednesday 12:30 lunch with friends found a wait, but only 10 minutes, and our subsequent visit found every barstool filled before noon with a chummy local crowd, men and women, single and solo, enjoying everything from a pint to margaritas ($6.75/house) to a Brandy Alexander (but no iced teas) from the friendly, efficient mixologist. By noon, there was a wait at the door, but not long as bustling is the word that comes to mind and things are moving right along. Atrisco is a sister establishment of the local institution Tomasitas on Guadalupe next to the train station (and Tomasitas in Albuquerque) and cousin to Tia Sophias, all part of the Gundrey family whose grandmother Tia started business in Albuquerque in the 40s with Central Cafe at the corner of Atrisco Boulevard and Central Avenue So, talk about roots, talk about family. And talk about excellent northern New Mexico fare at great value. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ A Roast Leg of Lamb Burrito ($12.95) is thinly sliced Colorado lamb, and a combo of green chile with a bite to it and musky red chile (theres something about ordering Christmas at Christmas time), and it is a perfect hit of the Mediterranean-meets-New Mexico. Excellent call and definitely up for a re-order next time. The Chimayo Plate ($11.95) with house-made pork tamale, not too mealy, a chicken enchilada with green chile, rice and beans was spot on and, having lived there years ago, a credit to the village. The true test of any and every northern New Mexico restaurant is their Green Chile Stew. Atriscos passes the test with flying colors, of course ($7.50/bowl; all their red and green chile is grown in the lower Rio Grande Valley near Hatch and Salem, N.M.). OK, perhaps a little heavy on the potatoes, but we love potatoes and the little dollop of green chile on the top is a nice touch. Consistency, great value, friendly, surrounded by shopping and free parking (!), full bar head over to Atrisco Cafe and Bar. Atrisco Cafe and Bar 3 stars LOCATION: DeVargas Center, 193 Paseo de Peralta, Santa Fe. INFO: 983-7401; www. atriscocafe.com HOURS: Lunch and dinner, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. Weekend breakfast, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. FOOD: Traditional northern New Mexico fare, and burgers and BLTs ATMOSPHERE: Friendly, family, informal SERVICE: Fast, efficient, friendly, no frills. Full bar. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal In the belly of the University of New Mexicos scientific laboratories building, past key-card locked doors, cleaning stations, locker rooms, and extra scrubs and booties, sits the cavernous lab room used by the Office of the Medical Investigator. A long row of tables spans the length of the room, each one set up with instruments of dissection and high-powered spotlights, in preparation for autopsies. And in a smaller room off to one side lives the offices computed tomography (CT) scanner a high-powered device used to X-ray roughly 3,000 bodies each year for blunt force injuries, bullet wounds, and other deadly factors. It is used frequently in cases where families object to autopsies which involve cutting a person open for cultural or religious reasons. After eight years of service, the most used CT scanner in North America, is barely limping along. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ So this year, in the 2019 legislative session, the Health Sciences Center will ask for $1.4 million in capital funding to replace it. Dr. Kurt Nolte, the chief medical investigator, said recently the device has broken down every couple of weeks, causing delays in examining and releasing bodies. He said Philips, the company that makes the scanner, told him OMIs device has been used more than any other scanner they make. Its one of the things that keeps me awake at three in the morning, whether we can keep this scanner going in time to get funding to get it replaced, Nolte said in a recent interview. Its so important for what we do. Nolte said the scanner, purchased in 2010, has transformed the way investigators examine bodies for clues on cause of death. OMI investigates all homicides, suicides, drug overdoses, traffic fatalities, unexpected and unattended deaths, childrens deaths and more for all of New Mexico. Investigators use the scanner to X-ray bodies at very high resolution much higher than in living patients where there is a fear of radiation poisoning and at very close intervals, about half a millimeter apart. The images help investigators look for internal injuries and any anomalies that may be missed with a traditional autopsy. In some cases, the scanner can be used instead of an autopsy, but it is also used in addition to an autopsy to glean more exact images. Nolte said avoiding an autopsy is especially important in Native American communities, and since the office got the scanner it has doubled the number of bodies investigators examine externally rather than through an autopsy. He said at a recent meeting of the OMI Governing Board, the cabinet secretary for the New Mexico Indian Affairs Department, talked about how important CT scans are for the Native American community. The department declined to comment to the Journal. We can now more frequently honor family members requests that we not perform an autopsy in a certain case, for religious, cultural or other personal reasons, Nolte said. We can more easily accommodate these requests because we can get the information through the CT scan. In addition to being used to determine cause of death, Nolte said, the scanner can also be used to aid criminal investigations. Investigators can 3D print a model of a decedents mouth and teeth and compare the mold with dental records in order to identify the person. They can also create models of how a gunshot pierced a body to show jurors the nature of an injury without all the blood and guts. When I say its transformed our practice it really has transformed our practice, Nolte said. Which is why its so critical to get this scanner replaced and to get it replaced in this legislative session. This is one of my highest priorities right now. Nepal, India agree on building embankments, half a dozen projects India has agreed to construct an embankment along Nepals West Rapti, Banganga and Khando rivers. The agreement was reached during the eighth meeting of the Nepal-India secretary-level Joint Commission on Water Resources (JCWR) on Friday. The meeting also agreed on half a dozen other projects. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... WASHINGTON The FBI investigation into President Donald Trump that was opened almost immediately after he fired then-Director James Comey also included a counterintelligence component to determine if the president was seeking to help Russia, and if so, why, according to people familiar with the matter. The decision by then-acting FBI director Andrew McCabe to open an investigation of a sitting president was a momentous step, but it came after Trump had cited the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election in his decision to fire Comey, these people said. The counterintelligence component of the Trump investigation was first reported by the New York Times. Late Saturday night, Fox News host Jeanine Pirro asked Trump in an interview if he is or ever was working for Russia. Trump responded, I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked. Referring to the New York Times story, he went on, saying, I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Trump earlier responded Saturday morning on Twitter, blasting former FBI leaders, criticizing their handling of an earlier investigation into Hillary Clinton and ripping the ongoing Russia probe. Trump has repeatedly denounced the FBI and Justice Department in such harsh terms, underscoring the gulf between the White House and the nations top law enforcement agencies in his administration. The corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin James Comey, a total sleaze! the president tweeted. My firing of James Comey was a great day for America. He was a Crooked Cop. McCabe was fired last year, and a grand jury is weighing possible charges against him for allegedly misleading investigators in a leak probe. Counterintelligence investigations are different from criminal probes, in that their chief purpose is to understand what a foreign adversary like Russia is trying to do to influence American society or counteract U.S. policies, and if any Americans are assisting in those efforts, either knowingly or unwittingly. In the case of the investigation into Trump, the FBIs decision to open a file on the president so quickly after Comeys firing in May 2017 was a source of concern for some officials at the Justice Department because the FBI acted without first consulting leadership at the department. But those worries were allayed when, days later, special counsel Robert Mueller III was appointed to oversee the Russia probe, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal deliberations. At the time the FBI began directly investigating Trump, it wanted to understand if he was attempting to obstruct justice by firing Comey and understand the reasons for his behavior, which also included comments in an NBC interview two days after Comeys dismissal. In that interview, Trump said, When I decided to just do it, I said to myself I said, You know, this Russia thing with Trump and Russia is a made-up story. In addition to that statement, top bureau officials were also concerned about a draft letter to Comey that Trump had wanted to deliver but never did with a belligerent and defensive tone that made repeated references to Comeys private statements to Trump that he wasnt personally under investigation in the Russia probe, according to people familiar with the matter. The FBI sees [these actions] and it has two jobs: It needs to try to figure out why the person is behaving that way thats the counterintelligence part and it needs to suss out whether that behavior is criminal in nature, one official said. It is hard to overstate how devastated the leadership of the bureau was when Comey was fired not because they loved him, although many in the FBI did love him but because it completely broke so many norms and appeared to be a move that had nothing to do with Comey and everything to do with the presidents own interests. The official said that the counterintelligence and criminal inquiries were always linked. Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., a member of the House Intelligence Committee, said the revelations are disturbing. A lot of the behavior which has sent people to jail largely about lying about Russia occurred before the firing of Comey, he said in an interview. So if the FBI had concerns that the president was wittingly or unwittingly acting in the Russians interests as late as the firing of Jim Comey, thats a pretty scary thought especially since we dont know what else they [the investigators] know. He added that the FBI opening any investigation is a highly documented, well-considered and well-reviewed process. This one would have been particularly carefully undertaken. The Washington Posts Josh Dawsey contributed to this report. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal SANTA FE After several years of tight budgets, political barbs and bottled-up bills, this years New Mexico legislative session has all the trappings of a Roundhouse geyser thats set to explode. Consider the following: Theres a new governor in town, Democrat Michelle Lujan Grisham, who has vowed to pursue an aggressive policy agenda; an expanded Democratic majority in the state House; and a court-ordered mandate to improve the states public education system for at-risk students, including Native Americans and English-language learners. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ And dont forget an unprecedented amount of new money an estimated $1.1 billion thats expected to be available for the coming budget year, due primarily to booming oil production levels in southeastern New Mexico. Senate Majority Leader Peter Wirth, D-Santa Fe, said Lujan Grisham has indicated she plans to be more involved in the legislative process than her predecessor, former Republican Gov. Susana Martinez. This is a new day, Wirth said. Not everything is going to go screaming through, by any means. But I think, overall, theres real excitement about the new energy the governor is bringing. Lujan Grisham has said she wants to go big during this years session, proposing an expansion of prekindergarten programs statewide, salary increases for teachers and state workers, new renewable energy standards and a sizable increase in the states $7.50-per-hour minimum wage. The people in this state are ready to reimagine what New Mexico can be, and they are willing to step into the arena and make it a reality, Lujan Grisham said in her Jan. 1 inaugural address. Add it all up, and the 60-day session that starts at noon Tuesday could end up looking a lot like 2003. Thats the year lawmakers passed laws setting up a new pay system for teachers, cutting personal income taxes for upper-income New Mexicans, outlawing employment and housing discrimination based on sexual orientation, and allowing undocumented immigrants to obtain New Mexico drivers licenses. There was also a new Democratic governor in 2003, former Gov. Bill Richardson, who had taken over the reins of state government from an outgoing Republican chief executive. Senate Minority Whip Bill Payne, R-Albuquerque, said majority Democrats will face weighty expectations this year, after reclaiming control of both the Governors Office and both chambers of the Legislature for the first time since 2010. Theres going to be a lot of pent-up demand for activist legislation, Payne said. This is a Democrat-run show right now. Extra money More money will likely mean a cheerier Roundhouse than in recent legislative sessions, but it could also mean more headaches. Supreme Court Chief Justice Judith Nakamura said during Lujan Grishams inaugural ceremony that the session could be like Christmas, with many groups including the judiciary submitting a budgetary wish list to lawmakers. And although the unprecedented revenue uptick could allow for a hefty spending increase on public schools and other programs, there is no shortage of needs across New Mexico state government. Both of the states two large retirement systems, the Public Employees Retirement Association and the Educational Retirement Board, plan to push for legislative fixes aimed at putting them on firmer financial footing that could eat up some of states available revenue. A June 2018 downgrade of the states credit rating cited concerns about New Mexicos pension liabilities and other deeply rooted spending challenges, including a high Medicaid enrollment rate. Then theres the landmark ruling on New Mexicos public education system, which found that the state was failing to meet its constitutional requirement to provide an adequate education to all students. Although some lawmakers have applauded the ruling, Payne said that ultimately complying with it could prove difficult for lawmakers. The judge ordered the Legislature and new governor to come up with a plan by April but did not stipulate how much money should be spent on such a plan or what its specific contents should include. It sets us up for endless debates and litigation, he said. Rep. Patricia Lundstrom, D-Gallup, the chairwoman of the House Appropriations and Finance Committee, said lawmakers will end up spending hundreds of millions of additional dollars on programs and teacher salary increases for K-12 schools statewide as part of their ultimate response to the judges ruling. But she said the Legislature also has work to do backfilling other agency budgets that were trimmed in recent years. There are a lot of departments that are really behind the curve when it comes to salaries, she said. New faces Change will also be evident when it comes to the Legislatures makeup. In all, about one out of five legislators will be a new face from last years session, as there will be 20 new members of the House, due to retirements and election outcomes, and three new members of the Senate. Everybody is anxious to see how they can help New Mexico, said Rep.-elect Susan Herrera, an Embudo Democrat who knocked off veteran Rep. Debbie Rodella, D-Espanola, in last years primary election to win the House District 41 seat. She said she has been meeting with other lawmakers to get up to speed on key issues, including a backlog of road maintenance projects and a high vacancy rate across many state government agencies. Its exciting, but its also daunting, Herrera said. Weve kind of had a backlog for eight years where we havent got a lot of things done. But the newcomers could also face a steep learning curve in the Legislature, which does not pay its members a salary and relies heavily on a small number of longtime staffers. The key House appropriations committee, for instance, will have to replace one-quarter of its 16 members. And new committee chairs will have to be appointed for four House panels: the Education; Agriculture and Water Resources; Labor and Economic Development; and Business and Industry committees. Rocket docket Unlike some 60-day legislative sessions, this years could start with a bang. Both chambers plan to move quickly once the session starts to pass bills that were approved by overwhelming margins in previous years but vetoed by Martinez, Wirth said. Although few bills typically reach the governors desk until the final weeks of a 60-day session, Wirth said legislation included in the rocket docket could be debated on the House and Senate floor by the end of the sessions second week after being fast-tracked through their assigned legislative committees. Constituents that Ive talked to are pretty excited that were going to come in and get right to work, Wirth told the Journal. Other measures could face a tougher slog. A renewed attempt to legalize and tax recreational marijuana use in New Mexico, for example, will likely draw close scrutiny and prompt lengthy debates. That could also be true for proposals to overhaul New Mexicos tax code by lowering the states gross receipts tax base rate and eliminating many existing tax breaks and to take more money from the states $17 billion Land Grant Permanent Fund and earmark it for early childhood programs. Both of those ideas have ultimately stalled in recent legislative sessions before making it to the finish line. Already, 440 separate bills had been prefiled as of late Friday. The final number of proposed bills is expected to end up in the thousands, which could lead to packed committee agendas and plenty of late-night floor sessions before lawmakers head back home March 16. Online Follow legislative coverage at ABQJournal.com/legislature, where you can find Journal stories, live news updates and other information about the 60-day session. Key dates The 60-day legislative session starts at noon Tuesday. Here are key dates: Jan. 15 opening day Feb. 14 last day to file bills March 16 session ends April 5 last day for governor to act on most bills .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. The 7-year-old girl kept slipping through the cracks, falling through the holes, the cruelty of her young life hidden behind a shy smile, a frozen stare. She might as well have been invisible. But not to Sandra Torres and Carrie L. Perez. The two colleagues at Lew Wallace Elementary Torres was a teacher there last school year, Perez is the school nurse saw the little girl. They saw her pain, saw how neglected she appeared, saw that something bad was happening to her bad enough for them to make repeated calls to social services and law enforcement. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ The girl and her brother missed school repeatedly, always on Wednesdays, a half-day at the school. Court documents in the case also indicate that she often came to school hungry, often in need of sleep. Sometimes, she talked about hustling and stealing. Some days, her clothes were so dirty their original colors were hard to discern, and she reeked of urine. Her neck and chest appeared on occasion to have bruises or hickeys. Once, she came to school wearing white high heels, fake nails and eyeliner. In November 2017, Torres was helping the girl into some clean clothes and saw blood on her panties, according to court documents. By then, 22 referrals had been made about the girl and her siblings to the state Children, Youth and Families Department. The call about the soiled panties had been the third call in two weeks. Most, if not all, of those calls came from Torres and Perez. Torres remembers hearing one of the investigators describe her as a pain in the ass for calling so much. And thats exactly what you should be if youre doing whats right to protect a child, Torres said. If somebodys life is in danger, especially a childs, Im not going to stop calling until I know shes safe. She and Perez didnt stop calling. They called for months. They wouldnt take no for an answer. They finally called the Attorney Generals Office, which took action almost immediately. Today, that little girl is safe, and her parents are in the Metropolitan Detention Center. The persistence of Torres and Perez and their commitment to the well-being of children are why they are among the Albuquerque Journals 2018 Spirit of New Mexico award winners. They along with the other recipients who make a difference in the community will be feted at a luncheon Jan. 28. Stories of the accusations that the little girl was forced to perform sex acts in exchange for drugs, encouraged to steal and pickpocket and panhandle on street corners, that she felt uncomfortable sleeping with her father, that she was left alone in strip clubs where her mother worked and drank have made headlines. So, too, have the stories of how authorities with CYFD and the Albuquerque Police Department failed to realize the gravity of the childs situation even throwing away the bloody panties instead of preserving them as evidence and how both agencies ended up re-evaluating how they handled the case. But this is the story of the two women who did understand the gravity, who saw something bad happening to a child and spoke up, again and again and again until someone acted. Torres is the fire, an effervescent woman in boots and pearls whose fearlessness is as bright as the ruby red lipstick she favors. Perez is the earth, a calming, nurturing presence in nursing scrubs whose hugs are simply part of her nature. They worked closely together while at Lew Wallace, Torres classroom being right across the hallway from Perezs nursing office. Carrie was the perfect person to team up with, because she has this passion for the wellness of children and wanting to make sure each child is OK, said Torres, who now teaches at Lavaland Elementary. It was like we were buddy teachers. If I saw something concerning about a child, Id ask for her advice and to check me. She is a wealth of resources, too. It was truly a beautiful team, and it worked. Earth mother Carrie Perez thinks of her role as a nurse not just as caring for the health of an individual but for the health of the community. A healthy community is a happy one, and she and her family spread that happiness through the block parties they are famous for in their Academy Hills neighborhood. For Christmas, they go caroling and serve bizcochitos, posole and tamales. For Superbowl Sunday, they invite the neighbors over to make their own sundaes. For Halloween, they host a non-scary get-together. The Perez family also helps serve a sit-down meal to homeless guests every Sunday as part of the Bread and Blessings Ministry at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. Perez also volunteers her time taking photos of foster children for CYFDs Heart Gallery of New Mexico. Perez is in her third year at Lew Wallace, leaving her job at the University of New Mexico Hospital for a school job so she could spend more time with her children, ages 15, 17 and 19. Now, she has far more children to spend time with. I bring three extra apples each day to school for the kids, she said. Apples keep the doctor away, but they also keep nurses happy. Perez also enlists parent volunteers to keep the school stocked with leggings for girls who need a change of clothing but dont want to wear whats available from the donated clothing box, much of which consists of odd-colored sweatpants and boys pants. Children, she said, deserve dignity. They deserve a childhood, she said. They need a place to call home. They need to eat and be loved. You dont come to school to learn with an empty stomach and a heavy heart. But when a child needs more than an apple or leggings or a hug, Perez pulls out her cellphone and rummages through her contact list of people and resources she has acquired over the years with expertise in a variety of subjects. Its my network, she said. One of those contacts is Special Agent in Charge Anthony Maez with the Attorney Generals Office. She met Maez at a human trafficking awareness workshop he presented to the school in January 2018. He gave me his phone number and his card and told me to call whenever I needed him, whenever I thought maybe I was seeing the signs of a child in danger, she said. She made that call to Maez about the 7-year-old girl. The Attorney Generals Office took the case, and on May 2 agents arrested James Stewart, 38, who is charged with human trafficking, promoting prostitution, criminal sexual contact, child abuse and other crimes. His wife, Teri Sanchez, 38, was arrested a day later on five counts of child abuse and a charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Both parents are awaiting trial. The girl and at least one of her brothers are believed to be in foster care. Bringing the fire Becoming a teacher was almost predestined for Sandra Torres, though she initially tried to avoid it. She owned a jewelry store. She sold real estate. It was awesome, she said. But I had no impact on people. So 12 years ago, she became a teacher. Her parents are educators her mother, Nieves Torres, worked with marginalized, undocumented women; her father, Dr. Eliseo Cheo Torres, became vice president of student affairs at the University of New Mexico. Thats where my fight was ingrained in me, she said. I learned very young that educating others went beyond books, that community is everything. Still, she wasnt completely prepared for what she found when she stepped into her first classroom of 36 fourth-graders at La Mesa Elementary. It was just crowd control, just surviving, she said. I realized quickly that a lot of these kids needed help. And they needed someone to tell their stories to. So she listened. And she learned that, of those 36 students, six came from homes in which at least one parent was severely addicted. Teaching encompasses not just the children, but their families, their communities, she said. I cant teach ABCs and 123s if a child doesnt feel safe. Torres began seeking community resources to help not just her students but their parents. She became their voice. And she used that voice to advocate for her students and to protect them. In between, she earned her masters degree and became a mother herself. Having a daughter, she said, strengthened her resolve to speak out to help children. What happened in the case of the 7-year-old girl, one of her students at Lew Wallace, showed her how many holes are in the safety net, how broken the system set up to protect children is, despite the good intentions of social workers and police. Torres said she met with CYFD Secretary Monique Jacobson and shared her thoughts about the problems she sees from the trenches. But with Jacobson now out of office, Torres said she stands ready and willing to speak with incoming CYFD Secretary-designate Brian Blalock. So, sir, consider yourself on notice. I want to talk to that man, she said. The system needs reform. These kids need to be safe. Its game on now. I must fight. Its my fight now. UpFront is a front-page news and opinion column. Comment directly to Joline at 823-3603, jkrueger@abqjournal.com or follow her on Twitter @jolinegkg. Go to www.abqjournal.com/letters/new to submit a letter to the editor. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former U.S. officials said. Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. U.S. officials learned of Trumps actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Tillerson. The constraints that Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States main adversaries. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ As a result, U.S. officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trumps face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to install through what U.S. intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Trumps continued secrecy underscore the extent to which little is known about his communications with Putin since becoming president. After this story was published online, Trump said in an interview late Saturday with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that he did not take particular steps to conceal his private meetings with Putin and attacked The Washington Post and its owner Jeff Bezos. He said he talked with Putin about Israel, among other subjects. Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs, he said, without offering specifics. When Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working for Russia, Trump responded, I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked. Former U.S. officials said that Trumps behavior is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Trumps secrecy surrounding Putin is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous, said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. It handicaps the U.S. government the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump. A White House spokesman disputed that characterization and said that the Trump administration has sought to improve the relationship with Russia after the Obama administration pursued a flawed reset policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement. The Trump administration has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities, said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Tillerson in 2017 gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other U.S. officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press. Trump allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organizations revealed details about what Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a nut job, and said that firing Comey had removed great pressure on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the presidents interactions with foreign leaders. Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him, said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Trumps meetings with Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Rep. Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Trumps encounters with Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. Its been several months since Helsinki and we still dont know what went on in that meeting, Engel said. Its appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head. The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Trump has taken as president that are seen as favorable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russias election interference as a hoax, suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull U.S. forces out of Syria a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Trumps decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the presidents two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Trump also had other private conversations with Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Putins interpreter was present. Trump also had a brief conversation with Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favorable to the Kremlin. In an email, Tillerson said that he was present for the entirety of the two presidents official bilateral meeting in Hamburg, but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreters notes. In a news conference afterward, Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Trump had pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement in election interference. President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past, Tillerson said. Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Trump had rejected Putins claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of U.S. intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Tillersons account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the U.S. election and that Trump responded by saying, I believe you. A White House spokesperson, responding to this detail from the Hamburg meeting, said: The President has affirmed that he supports the conclusions in the 2017 Intel Community Assessment, and the President also issued a new executive order in September 2018 to ensure a whole of government effort to address any foreign attempts to interfere in US elections. Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Tillerson. We were frustrated because we didnt get a readout, a former senior administration official said. The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable with Trumps interactions with Putin, the official said. God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to. Because of the absence of any reliable record of Trumps conversations with Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by U.S. intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. U.S. intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Trumps presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them, said a former administration official who worked in the White House. The feedback tended not to be positive. The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the U.S. delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Hill was among those briefed by Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Tillerson. I recall Fiona reporting that to me, one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Tillerson didnt offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didnt brief senior staff, although he gave a readout to the press. A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal U.S.-Russia summit since Trump became president. Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other U.S. officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Trump, Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Trump and Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Trumps interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Trumps meeting with Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Putin afterward, Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of U.S. intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Putins powerful denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Talbot took of Clintons meetings with Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. The Washington Posts John Hudson, Josh Dawsey and Julie Tate contributed to this report. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... Copyright 2019 Albuquerque Journal Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller wants to more than double the number of housing vouchers the city distributes, expanding the rental assistance to another 1,000 individuals who may have no other place to sleep at night. That will cost about $13 million, and the leader of New Mexicos largest city says it will require more than government support. In fact, the city will ask citizens to contribute to the housing program, one of a thousand opportunities Keller said his administration plans to offer residents who want to directly help fix some of the citys biggest problems. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Flanked by screens with the citys One Albuquerque slogan, Keller on Saturday delivered his first State of the City address since taking office Dec. 1, 2017. The 39-minute speech to a crowd that included Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and Congresswoman Deb Haaland, fellow Democrats consistently circled back to a message of teamwork and community-driven problem-solving in a city with about 560,000 residents. Albuquerque, were going to ask a lot of you. I know you should ask a lot of us, he said. But I believe if we do this together, we are going to be One Albuquerque. Kellers speech covered the citys latest economic victories and new efforts to expand after-school and summer offerings for kids. He said the city saw summer program participation spike 30 percent in 2018, thanks in part to additional funding approved by the City Council, and that the ultimate goal is to have at least one opportunity available to every child who wants one. He also touted a new $2 million grant Bloomberg Philanthropies awarded Albuquerque to help with carbon reduction efforts and other sustainability measures underway. As he has on many recent occasions, Keller also spoke about public safety in a city that had in recent years ranked worst in the nation in auto theft and had a violent crime rate more than twice the national average. I believe we found ourselves afraid, not feeling safe anymore in our homes and our own streets, he said of the trends he saw before taking office. To address the issue, the city has aggressively recruited to bolster its police force, which Keller said had dropped to 840 officers by late 2017 compared with 1,130 two decades ago. He said the Albuquerque Police Department is on pace to meet its goal of 100 new officers this fiscal year and noted that overall crime in the city decreased in 2018 for the first time in several years. Albuquerque used to be a meme, essentially, for high rates of auto theft, and we still have a long way to go, he said. But I will tell you there is nothing but positive news when we know that auto theft is down by 30 percent in the city. That drew applause from the few hundred people watching him live inside an auditorium at the National Hispanic Cultural Center. But Keller sparked the most rousing response when he noted that the Albuquerque International Sunport is once again international with the newly introduced flight to Guadalajara, Mexico. In Albuquerque, we build bridges, we dont build walls, he said, bringing many in the audience to their feet and prompting some whoops from the crowd. Keller gave his address during what the city dubbed a community celebration at the Cultural Center. There was a cash bar and live music in the lobby, and jugglers, pet adoptions and a One Albuquerque merchandise table outside. Before the formal presentation began, an announcer implored the crowd to Make some noise! The program included a blessing by Native American Community Academy students, two Albuquerque highlight videos, and remarks from Cultural Services Deputy Director Hakim Bellamy and first lady Elizabeth Kistin Keller. So, yeah, this is not like your normal state of the city address, eh? Bellamy said. Keller who has embraced the nickname the metal mayor walked on stage to Metallica and left as Pantera piped into the room. It was a bigger production than addresses by many of Kellers predecessors; in addition to the live events at the Hispanic Cultural Center, watch parties were held at four locations throughout the city. While the rows of chairs set up for viewers at Civic Plaza remained largely unoccupied, around a dozen Keller supporters gathered at the Tractor Brewing on Fourth Street to watch a livestream of the program. I like the fact its an event, that its engaging people in the community, said Albuquerque native Tim Keegan, owner of Nob Hills Maple Street Dance Space. Im shocked at how many people are here and how many people are (at the Hispanic Cultural Center). If this many people are interested in our city, maybe something will change. For many, including Keegan, it was their first time hearing a State of the City address. That was really positive, said Lisa Padilla, a masters student at New Mexico Highlands University. I think that he has so much vision. Its amazing all the things hes taken on. Im really impressed. Padilla was especially taken with Kellers speaking on the environment and immigration. I thought that was really important that he mentioned that we build bridges, not walls, Padillas friend Santiago Vaquera said. Journal staff writer Maddy Hayden contributed to this report. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... WASHINGTON On Saturday the current government shutdown became the longest in American history. And it hit another historic milestone: It is, far and away, the stupidest government shutdown in American history. In 2019, the federal government will spend a whopping $4.407 trillion. Yet Congress and the president are shutting down the government in a dispute between the $1.3 billion the Democrats have approved for border security and the $5.7 billion the president is demanding precisely 0.0998 percent of the total federal budget. In Washington, that is considered a rounding error. Worse, Democrats are doing it over a border wall strikingly similar to one that they almost unanimously supported just five years ago. While House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., now says that a wall is an immorality, back in 2013 she supported a bill that required the construction of 700 miles of border fencing. Trump has called for a wall of anywhere from 700 to 900 miles long. The bill negotiated by the Gang of Eight, which included current Democratic leaders Sens. Charles Schumer, N.Y., and Dick Durbin, Ill., declared that not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary (of Homeland Security) shall establish the Southern Border Fencing Strategy, to identify where 700 miles of fencing (including double-layer fencing) should be deployed along the Southern border. Thats not all. The bill further said that the Secretary may not adjust the status of aliens who have been granted registered provisional immigrant status until 6 months after (the Secretary submits) a written certification that there is in place along the Southern Border no fewer than 700 miles of pedestrian fencing. In other words, Democrats agreed that no undocumented immigrants could get a path to citizenship until all 700 miles of border fencing had been fully completed. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ Every Senate Democrat voted for the Gang of Eight bill including 36 Democratic senators still serving today. President Barack Obama agreed to sign it. Indeed, he praised the bill for including what he called the most aggressive border security plan in our history and said that the Senate bill is consistent with the key principles for commonsense reform that I and many others have repeatedly laid out. That bears repeating: Obama said building a 700-mile fence on the southern border was consistent with the principles of the Democratic Party. Pelosi supported the Gang of Eight bill, saying at the time that every piece of this legislation has had bipartisan support. But now we are shutting down the government over a wall much like the one that Pelosi and Senate Democrats fully supported just five years ago? Democrats will object that the Gang of Eight bill did fund a border wall, but it was in exchange for a lot of concessions. Of course it was. As Obama said at the time, the bipartisan bill that passed today was a compromise. But today, Democrats are refusing to compromise or lay out what concessions they would accept in exchange for wall funding. When Trump rhetorically backed off the wall and talked about steel slats a fence Democrats ignored it. When Vice President Mike Pence reportedly offered a deal for $2.5 billion, Democrats dismissed it. In a White House meeting Wednesday, Trump asked Pelosi whether, if he agreed to end the shutdown and negotiate separately on border security, she would support wall funding. She said no. That is ridiculous. In their response to the presidents address to the nation, Schumer and Pelosi accused Trump of manufacturing a crisis. That is simply untrue. As The Post reported this week, the United States now faces a bona fide emergency on the border as record numbers of migrant families are streaming into the United States, overwhelming border agents and leaving holding cells dangerously overcrowded with children, many of whom are falling sick. Democrats could not possibly be in a better position to demand concessions from Trump if they had manufactured a crisis. So put some demands on the table, for crying out loud. If Democrats think they have Trump cornered, then squeeze him and try to get a lot out of him. But dont refuse to negotiate and tell us the wall is an immorality because their voting history shows they dont believe that. Twitter, @marcthiessen. (c) 2019, The Washington Post Writers Group. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... New Mexico families are paying the price for the longest government shutdown in American history because President Trump refuses to stop holding our federal workers, our economy and basic government services hostage to his political gamesmanship. Congress has taken the votes to pass a bipartisan solution to reopen the government immediately. In December, the Senate passed a unanimous compromise to keep the government open. The House has passed Republican-authored funding bills that would reopen our critical agencies. But President Trump said he is proud to shut the government down, and Republican leaders refuse to stand up to him. New Mexico is one the most vulnerable states to the impacts of a shutdown because of our significant federal workforce and the importance of the federal government to our economy. Over 10,000 federal workers in our state are working for agencies that have been shut down and the vast majority of them have been furloughed or are working without pay. Last week, the Senate passed a bill we co-sponsored guaranteeing federal employees be paid retroactively after the shutdown. But many workers were already living paycheck-to-paycheck before their first missed paycheck on Friday. Thousands of additional New Mexico families have also been affected and are scrambling to find ways to make their mortgage or rent payments or put food on the table. For tribes across Indian Country, the shutdowns consequences are particularly dire. Federal programs critical to health and public safety on tribal lands have ground to a halt, and lives are endangered. Without access to critical federal funds that should be guaranteed under treaty rights, tribal governments are now under great distress to meet many basic needs for their communities. The shutdown has also shuttered the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which funds agricultural loans for farmers and ranchers and many economic development programs for rural communities. The shutdown has delayed food safety inspections that protect New Mexico families from potentially deadly food contamination. If the shutdown continues into the next months, more than half a million New Mexicans who rely on USDAs SNAP benefits or food stamps will be left without this critical financial support that helps them feed their families. Many of our states national parks and monuments like Bandelier, Carlsbad Caverns and White Sands remain closed or mostly shuttered. The impacts of reduced visitation and the costs of repairing damage accrued during the shutdown will hurt communities all across our state. Important work in our national forests that prevents more destructive wildfires has also been put on hold. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ And as he talks about border security, the president is actually forcing the officers working at our southern ports of entry and agents along our border to either work with no pay or be furloughed. In addition, staff at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Artesia, the only training academy for U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents, are also furloughed or working without pay. And the shutdown is adding considerable stress to local law enforcement and local governments who are just working to protect their communities. There is a time and place for debating the most effective way to secure our border. We support smart investments in border security and ports of entry that keep our communities safe and build a more prosperous nation. And we join New Mexicos border communities in opposing the presidents border wall a wall that would be wasteful and ineffective. But we need to separate that debate from one of our most basic constitutional responsibilities, to keep the government open and working for the American people. New Mexicans shouldnt have to pay for the presidents reckless decision to keep the government closed indefinitely. President Trump has the power to end all of this right now. We will keep doing everything within our power to re-open the government without delay and protect the workers and communities in New Mexico that have been hurt by the shutdown. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... LONDON The Chinese tech company Huawei on Saturday announced it has fired a sales director who was arrested in Poland and charged with spying for China, saying he has brought the firms reputation into disrepute. The company said it has decided to terminate the employment of Mr. Wang Weijing, who was arrested on suspicion of breaking Polish law. Polish authorities said Friday they have arrested Wang, a Chinese citizen and former diplomat, along with a Polish cybersecurity expert who had held several top government cybersecurity jobs and also worked at the telecom company Orange. Huawei said Wangs actions have no relation to the company and that he was fired because the incident in question has brought Huawei into disrepute. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ The arrest rekindled tensions between China and the West over cybersecurity concerns surrounding Huawei. Its the worlds biggest maker of telecommunications equipment but has been banned in the U.S. since 2012 over fears its a security risk. Earlier this week, Polish security agents searched the Warsaw offices of Huawei and Orange, Polands leading communications provider, seizing documents and electronic data. The homes of both men, also in Warsaw, were also searched, according to Internal Security Agency spokesman Stanislaw Zaryn. Huawei had ambitious plans in Europe to roll out next-generation 5G mobile networks. But some European governments and telecom companies are following the U.S. lead in questioning whether using Huawei for vital infrastructure for mobile networks could leave them exposed to snooping by the Chinese government. One thing is clear: this is another nail in the coffin of Huaweis European ambitions, said Thorsten Benner, director of the Global Public Policy Institute, a think tank. Poland is Huaweis headquarters for Central and Eastern Europe and the Nordic region. Maciej Wasik, deputy head of Polands Special Services agency, said the operation that resulted in the arrests had been underway for a long time. He said both carried out espionage activities against Poland. Zaryn told The Associated Press that prosecutors have charged the two men with espionage, but agents are continuing to collect evidence and interview witnesses. Further indictments are expected, he said. Polish state television TVP reported that the men have proclaimed their innocence, but Zaryn could not confirm that. If convicted, they could face up to 10 years in prison each. TVP identified the arrested Chinese man as Weijing W., saying he was a sales director in Poland at Huawei. It said he also went by the Polish first name of Stanislaw and had previously worked at the Chinese consulate in Gdansk. A LinkedIn profile for a man named Stanislaw Wang appears to match details described by Polish television. Wangs resume said he worked at Chinas General Consulate in Gdansk from 2006-2011 and at Huawei Enterprise Poland since 2011, where he was first director of public affairs and since 2017 the sales director of public sector. The resume said he received a bachelors degree in 2004 from the Beijing University of Foreign Studies. State TV identified the Polish man as Piotr D., and said he was a high-ranking employee at the Internal Security Agency, where he served as deputy director in the department of information security, until 2011. The Polish state news agency, PAP, said the man had also held top cybersecurity positions at the Interior Ministry and the Office of Electronic Communications, a regulatory body. It said, while at the Internal Security Agency, he was involved in building a mobile communications system for top Polish officials, and he was fired in 2011 amid a corruption scandal. Geopolitical tensions over Huawei have intensified since Canada arrested a top executive last month at the request of U.S. authorities. Last year Australia, New Zealand and Japan instituted their own bans against using Huawei. An official at the Chinese Embassy in Warsaw said Chinese envoys had urged Polish Foreign Ministry officials to arrange a consular visit with Wang as soon as possible. Orange Poland told the AP on Friday it was cooperating with Polish security services in the case and had handed over belongings of one of our employees in Tuesdays search of its offices. Orange told the AP it did not know if the suspicions against its employee were related to his work at Orange or his previous jobs. Huaweis chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, was arrested Dec. 1 in Canada in connection with U.S. accusations that the company violated restrictions on sales of American technology to Iran. The United States wants Meng extradited to face charges that she misled banks about the companys business dealings in Iran. She is out on bail in Canada awaiting extradition proceedings. On Dec. 10, China detained former Canadian diplomat Michael Kovrig and Canadian entrepreneur Michael Spavor on vague national security allegations in apparent retaliation for Mengs arrest. ___ Gera reported from Warsaw. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... WASHINGTON Freshman Rep. Joe Cunningham, D-S.C., made a rookie mistake Friday morning when he attempted to bring a six-pack of craft beer onto the floor of the House of Representatives. Cunningham laughed off the incident after he was stopped, according to a reporter on the scene. He later explained that he was trying to bring beer from local breweries in his home state to Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., co-chairman of the House Small Brewers Caucus. Only water is allowed on the House floor. DeFazio was spotted on Capitol Hill later Friday with the beers in hand, which came from South Carolinas Westbrook Brewing Co. and Coast Brewing. DeFazio is a major supporter of local beer, and hes not alone. The Small Brewers Caucus included 234 members across 43 states as of July, according to its website. He said Congress should bend its ban on booze to accommodate craft beer. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ A spokeswoman for Cunningham did not respond to a request for comment on the incident Saturday. She told Charlestons Post and Courier that the congressman brought the beer to the floor because he was rushing to catch a flight. Otherwise, she said, he would have sent it to DeFazios office. Hes not the first freshman to goof up the rules. When Rep Conor Lamb, D-Pa., was new, he tried to bring a cup of coffee onto the House floor. House guards sent him to the coatroom instead. Even so, Cunninghams faux pas brewed trouble with Republicans. Republican National Committee spokeswoman Mandi Merritt issued a statement to the Post and Courier that said the stunt showed Democrats werent serious about working with Republicans on border security. We knew Democrats were playing partisan games with our national security, but now, they apparently want to play drinking games too, she said. Rep. Joe Cunningham should be ashamed. In another tweet on Friday, Cunningham said he would never apologize for promoting the local businesses. .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Paula Paul was born Paula Griffith on her grandparents cotton farm near Shallowater, Texas, in Lubbock County. But she grew up on a farm and ranch 30 miles from Muleshoe, Texas, in Bailey County, and 30 miles from Morton, Texas, in Cochran County. Put another way, Paul, 80, longtime Albuquerque resident, former newspaper reporter and prolific writer of fiction, was born, raised, shaped and fitted out for her future calling in West Texas. It started, as it usually does for writers, with reading. ADVERTISEMENTSkip ................................................................ I used to read all the pulp Western novels, short stories in the Saturday Evening Post and other magazines, Paul said during an interview at her home between Tramway and the Sandia Mountains. I went through a Nancy Drew (girl detective) period. I was going to read all the classics when I was in high school, but, of course, I didnt get them all read. Up until third grade, I wanted to be a librarian because I thought all a librarian had to do was sit in a library and read books. Once I found out that wasnt true, I decided to write books. And so she has. Soul-deep In about 35 novels, she has taken readers around the world, from Santa Fe and Albuquerque to Charlottesville, Va., from the eighth-century Europe of Charlemagne to the 18th-century Russia of Catherine the Great, from the Yucatan to frontier Colorado, from 14th-century Italy to Victorian England. She has written gothics, childrens books, young adult novels, historical fiction, cozy mysteries and literary novels, under her own name and pseudonyms such as Catherine Monroe and Paula Carter. Her most recent book, The Mind of a Deviant Woman, published this past summer, is a fictional account of the disturbingly real eugenics movement, which, supported by a 1927 U.S. Supreme Court decision, called for the sterilization of undesirable women such as epileptics, prostitutes, criminals or unwed mothers. She got the idea from a book about famous American court cases. I thought it was an interesting point in American history, Paul said of the novel. I didnt know much about it and thought others would not have heard about it either. But no matter what Paul writes, no matter what time period or in what far-flung place she sets the story, the West Texas in her bones shines through. And thats a good thing. Her writing reflects her down-home Texas roots through the voices she gives each of her characters, said Albuquerque writer Melody Groves, the author of six Western novels as well as three books of nonfiction. I find her writing to be real. It is not contrived or made up. It comes from the depths of her soul. Groves, 66, a Las Cruces native, said Pauls writing shows a connection to the earth that many people from the Southwest share. The themes and plots vary in each book, she said. But they all have a sense of place, purpose and personality. Sometimes, Paul actually sets her fiction such as the novels Crazy Quilt (2005) and Inherited Sins (2008) in West Texas. When that happens, her writing makes it seem as if she never left. Take, for example, the following sentence from her short story Divine Intervention, which appeared in the 2002 anthology Hot Biscuits. The wind had given up all its moisture swooping across the Sonoran Desert on its way to the panhandle of Texas where it had come for its mission of drying out the grass and the skin of the women and of turning the blades of the windmill on the Chapman ranch. I like the West Texas books, Paul said. It sort of feels like I go home for a while, although I dont often go back to where I was born and raised except for high school reunions and funerals. A newsroom start She got her start as a writer working for the Morton Tribune, a weekly newspaper, during the summers between her student years at Eastern New Mexico University in Portales. She also worked for a year and a half at the Portales News Tribune, doing everything from reading copy and reporting to taking photographs and writing editorials. Newspaper work helped me learn how to do research, Paul said. And it gave me lots of insights into the people of eastern New Mexico and West Texas. I wrote a series of stories about old cowboys from the open-range days. I have always said that if you have to work you should be a newspaper reporter because thats the most fun job. She earned a journalism degree at ENMU and met Kenneth Paul there. After marrying, they settled in Albuquerque in 1961. Kenneth worked 40 years as a computer analyst at Sandia National Laboratories, and Paula worked as a reporter at The Albuquerque Tribune from 1961 to 1963 and again from 1981 to 1987. My plan was always that I was going to work for a newspaper and then I was going to quit and write books, she said. Her first attempt at fiction was a young adult novel that was never published. It was horrible, she said. But in the 1970s, she clicked with Inn of the Clowns and The Wail of La Llorona, gothic suspense novels, both of which are set in New Mexico and were published by Avalon. Since then she has been published by Random House, HarperCollins and Dutton, among others. In fact, only one of her nearly three dozen novels has been self-published. Her most successful books have been the five Dr. Alexandra Gladstone novels published by Berkley Books between 2002 and 2016. Like many of the protagonists in Pauls fiction, Alexandra Gladstone is a woman of keen intelligence and die-hard persistence who overcomes extreme obstacles to achieve her goals. In Gladstones case the goal is practicing medicine in Victorian England, something almost unheard of for women at the time. The Gladstone books are mysteries in which Alexandra gets involved in and solves murders. In 2015s Medium Dead, Queen Victoria herself is a suspect in a killing. Paul enjoyed writing the series and said she may send Alexandra off into new adventures in the future. But When It Rains, a novel that is with her agent now, is about racial tensions in 1950s West Texas. Paul grew up in the segregation-era and has vivid and unsettling memories of that time. To some degree, the novel is an attempt to deal with that. It just feels like there is some unfinished business, she said. I was so much in the middle of it. Pass the Pulitzer Paul is the mother of a son and a daughter and the grandmother of six. She lost her husband to cancer in 2013 and has herself battled and beaten back the disease. But she looks much younger than her years and her enthusiasm for writing has not waned. She is pleased with a writing career that has brought her recognition from the likes of the Texas Library Association and New Mexico Press Women. But she is not yet satisfied. Because I want to win the Pulitzer Prize, she said with the kind of determination you would expect of one of her characters. Paul is already thinking about the next novel she intends to write. Its in the embryonic stages, she said. Itll (be based on) a boarding house in Anton, Texas, which was run by my mothers grandparents in the early 1920s, mostly for railroad employees. In case youre wondering, Anton is in Hockley County. Thats in West Texas. Nepal Communist Party still struggles to finalise unification deal The Nepal Communist Party (NCP), which was formed after the merger of two largest communist parties in May 2018, is still struggling to finalise its unification deal, including merger of two powerful trade unions. Kelda Pharris kpharris@aberdeennews.com Reformation and Prison Fellowship: More than 70 children on the Pine Ridge Reservation will receive gifts through the efforts of Christian Banley of Aberdeen, Evangelical Free Church, the Aberdeen community and the Prison Fellowship Angel Tree program. The number of children benefitting was incorrect in a story on 1A in Sundays American News. We regret the errors. The American News tries to be fair and accurate. Errors discovered by our staff or our readers will be corrected in this space. If you find an error, email americannews@aberdeennews.com. Bart Pfankuch South Dakota News Watch The pending closure of Shopko department stores may have devastating effects on six South Dakota small towns that will suffer job losses, decreased access to basic necessities and reductions in sales-tax collections that could limit municipal services. The announcement that the retail chain will close several stores has stunned city and chamber of commerce officials in Webster, Redfield, Chamberlain, Custer, Dell Rapids and Wagner, who say their economies and residents will suffer from the closures. They say shoppers will soon have to drive up to an hour each way to buy home and living products, and they worry that opportunities for future growth of their towns could be hampered. The Wisconsin-based retail chain said in December that as part of a restructuring strategy it will close more than three dozen Shopko stores across the Midwest. The closures in South Dakota will take place in six towns under 4,000 in population that do not have another department store. Five of the towns are geographically isolated. Analysts say the closures are being driven by the increased ease of online shopping and the growth of mega-stores like Walmart that combine a traditional department store with a full grocery. Furthermore, some experts say the explosive growth of discounters like Dollar Tree, Dollar General and Family Dollar all of which operate in the South Dakota towns losing their Shopkos have squeezed mid-sized retailers that cannot compete on price. Officials from Shopko did not respond to several phone and email messages from South Dakota News Watch. But in previous press statements, the chain that has 363 stores in 24 states said it chose locations for closure based on a review of the long-term outlook on profitability, sales trends and potential growth. The chain announced four South Dakota closures in December and added Chamberlain and Custer to the list in early January. In isolated rural areas of South Dakota, the pending closure of the Shopko stores all of which opened within the past four years has exposed the fragility of small-town economies. The store closures are taking both an economic and emotional toll on residents, business owners and those who work to ensure a vibrant future for their communities. Major trickle-down effect expected The shifting nature of retail has led to store closings and financial concerns in both urban and rural areas of the country. Aberdeen, Sioux Falls, Rapid City have been hit by the downfall of Herbergers and Kmart, which is about to close its last South Dakota location in Rapid City. Consumers in larger cities are protected by the diversity and depth of remaining retail offerings. However, the closure of a single business, particularly one with a wide variety of merchandise, can cause a ripple effect through the economy of a small town. It definitely hurts more than it would in a larger city, said Gianna Lantero, executive director of Grow Spink, an organization that pushes economic development in Spink County, of which Redfield is the county seat. Its a huge deal when you have something like this close because it affects a lot of people and other parts of the community. In the six South Dakota towns losing a Shopko, the closures are causing concern on several levels. Each closure will cost about 15 to 25 people their jobs in communities where skilled labor positions are plentiful, but decent-paying retail positions are hard to come by. The towns will each lose their only major retail outlet and access to the wide variety of clothing, toys, small appliances, food and other home goods typically sold by Shopko. Though all six communities are home to dollar stores, residents in Chamberlain, Custer, Redfield, Wagner and Webster will have to drive roughly an hour and those in Dell Rapids about 20 minutes to shop at a comparable retail outlet. The lack of access to retail goods may cause a hardship for some populations, particularly lower- income and elderly residents. People dont want to travel all the way to Aberdeen, and some just cant, Lantero said. We serve a good-sized elderly population in Redfield, and some dont drive, but they knew they could shop for those goods right here in town. Inconvenience, however, is only part of the problem. The closures, officials say, could also inhibit future growth by limiting retail options that entice new residents and businesses that are critical to long-term economic stability in small towns. Having a large building sitting vacant at the entry point to their downtowns wont help encourage growth, either. While overall the economy has been strong in Webster, a town of about 1,900 along U.S. 12 in Day County, losing a prominent, highly visible retail outlet is a significant setback. With our businesses, it all adds up to a well-rounded community, which attracts people to come here for a job, to move here or for an industry to locate here because the more you have, the better off you are, said Webster Mayor Mike Grosek. It gives you an uneasy feeling, and its a big downer when a corporation comes down and just says, Thanks for everything, but see you later. The towns losing their stores also will see the evaporation of a sizable chunk of sales tax revenue that could affect municipal operations ranging from police and fire protection to upkeep of streets and parks. Towns worked hard to land Shopko stores Dell Rapids Shopko opened about two-and-a-half years ago on the northwest side of the city, said Justin Weiland, city administrator of Dell Rapids in northern Minnehaha County. Sales at the store likely were hampered by an invasive road project in front of the store, Weiland said. It was a three-year project that really disrupted the traffic pattern in the region, Weiland said. All of our retailers on that corridor, the entrance to Dell Rapids, said the traffic problems really affected them. Several small businesses saw a slowdown and the city experienced a corresponding decline in sales tax collections, Weiland said. A down year for agriculture or another major industry can also hurt a local economy. With ongoing trade wars and losses due to tariffs, heavy rains that made harvesting difficult and low commodity prices, many rural South Dakota small towns took a hit in 2018. Local officials and business leaders fear the Shopko closures will have a significant economic ripple effect as patrons who now must leave town for clothes and other basic goods are likely to do more shopping in larger cities nearby. In Wagner, a reservation town of about 1,600 people in Charles Mix County, losing Shopko is likely to entice even more people to make the hour drive to Mitchell or Yankton to shop for basic necessities and more, said Kelsey Doom, director of economic development for Wagner Area Growth. She also worries that the towns dozen or so retailers, as well as its service providers and two grocers, will lose money when shoppers leave town. Doom said some residents are connecting on social media to car pool or plan for multiple purchases when a friend or relative announces they are heading to a bigger city to shop. Its going to be a huge trickle-down effect, said Doom, who also heads the Wagner Chamber of Commerce. When theyre at Walmart in Mitchell or Yankton, theyre going to grab all their groceries and have dinner and spend money that theyre not going to spend locally. Mayor Grosek of Webster seems like someone who might see an upside to Shopko closing since he runs the towns full-service grocery store, Mikes Jack and Jill. The loss of Shopko, which sold some dry goods and frozen foods, could at first buoy some businesses in Webster, including his own. But ultimately, the closure will hurt his store and others when people leave town to shop for home goods, Grosek said. Its nothing for individuals to hop in a car and drive 50 miles out and back, Grosek said. They may get out of town for an outing, but more times than not theyll buy other things rather than get them here. The towns where Shopko is closing are also losing out on investments made to lure the stores to locate there. For instance, in Webster, the city and local economic development group ponied up $50,000 in incentives to upgrade the building Shopko inhabited. Expert sees closings as opportunities Officials in the six South Dakota towns losing a Shopko all expressed some optimism that their local economies will survive and may even thrive if something new and exciting can replace the shuttered stores. A positive, proactive approach to planning may help that process, said Rand Wergin, an associate professor of marketing in the business school at the University of South Dakota. Wergin specializes in understanding small-town economies with a focus on how those municipalities can attract spending by both locals and visitors. Two keys to retail success in isolated small towns, Wergin said, are to push hard for locals to spend locally, but also for businesses and development officials to create an experience and an emotional connection to their town that makes it a destination for visitors. Wergin said Sioux Falls has used its art walk and a diverse offering of unique shops and eateries to make its downtown a destination, just as Rapid City has used its Main Street Square and presidential statues to create a place where visitors will spend both time and money. In an isolated small town like Wagner, Wergin said the community could focus intently on its connection to hunting and fishing opportunities along the nearby Missouri River and Lake Francis Case to create a mix of retail and dining options that capitalize on and cater to that population of visitors. Its either a threat or an opportunity for Wagner, Wergin said of the Shopko closing. If they do nothing, they could shrivel up and die. But its a really interesting place because of its proximity to the lake and river, so they need to ask themselves, What can we do to brand that? Wergin has created an economic index called the Small Town Retail Pull Factor, which uses state population and sales tax revenue data to determine if a town pulls in more revenue from locals and visitors than it loses to other nearby cities and towns. If everyone in a town shopped locally only, the factor would be 1.0. A town with a factor higher than 1.0 is luring more outside spending and a town with a factor below 1.0 is losing local revenue to other areas. Wagner, for example, is losing sales to outside communities and has a factor of .91, while Webster appears to be more of a regional hub and has a positive pull factor of 1.84. For comparison, the small town of Lake Andes loses significant local spending and has a pull factor of only .29, and similarly Dell Rapids has a pull factor of .73 because shoppers have the easy option to head into Sioux Falls, Wergin said. To improve its economy and fight the trend of rural economic shrinkage, Wergin said a small town should focus on making itself well-known for something or play up unique shops or restaurants that set it apart from other towns. Were seeing that, in general, the retail situation is deteriorating in small towns; its not an alarm, its something weve been seeing for a long time, Wergin said. But theres still room for small-town retailers to be successful if they can offer the experiences their customers want. As the Shopko liquidation sales go on, economic officials in South Dakota are working feverishly to find replacement businesses to inhabit the soon-to-be-vacant buildings before they become worn. In Wagner, Doom said she is pitching an idea to possibly divide up the 22,000 square-foot Shopko building and turn it into an event hall, multi-use retail plaza or hub for offices. Doom said she would love to attract a family-oriented enterprise such as a laser tag facility to the site. Grosek said he and others in Webster are trying to lure a new, similar retailer to the Shopko site to replace the merchandise, convenience and jobs that will be lost. Were not just letting this thing close up and do nothing about it, Grosek said. Were making some calls and knocking on doors to see if theres something comparable that we can get in there. This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, a nonprofit news organization. Find additional in-depth coverage at www.sdnewswatch.org. GREAT FALLS- A new Miss Rodeo Montana has been named. Winner Kayla Seaman from Kalispell shares with us what the title means and how she's planning to empower ladies across the Treasure State. Seaman tells us if it was up to her, all of the girls up on stage would share the title with her. This crown means much more than just a title to Seaman. She's a proponent for women doing great things and wants every girl to know that if you dream it, you can do it, and keep on trying. "No one can take knowledge away from you," she said. "If you do your hardest, and you put your nose in those books If you go out and ride those horses, you're going to get better. It may take a year. It may take 5 years. It may take 10 years, but there's a 10,000-hour rule where after 10,000 hours you should be an expert at something." Seaman wants to be an approachable Miss Rodeo Montana and encourages girl's to reach out to her any time. For 2019, Seaman's goal is to travel to as many rodeos as possible representing the special community built around rodeos. With this title, she's won multiple prizes including items to help her travel throughout 2019. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. DEER LODGE- As the government shutdown enters its third week, many of Montana's national parks and historic sites are feeling the impact. Sites across the country aren't receiving funds to keep operations going. A sign at the Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site said, "Area closed because of a lapse in federal appropriations, this national park facility is closed for the safety of visitors and park resources." Deer Lodge residents said it's too bad this large tourist attraction is shutdown. "It's a very important part of our history and now tourists that come through from other states are unable to see it," said resident Debra Crow. The ranch was set up to commemorate the cattle frontier in the 19th century when cattle men made there way to Montana. Crow is a teacher in Powell County and said students in the area can't take field trips to the ranch because of the shutdown. Crow also said ranch employees would participate in outreach programs and come to the schools to teach kids about the cattle frontier. "Which is sad because the students are loosing out on this government shutdown," said Crow. There is no word yet on when the government shutdown will be over but until it is employees at the ranch will not receive their paychecks. DEER LODGE- A local restaurant has received a lot of positive attention online after being featured in an article on "only in your state." Prison Pizza opened up in Deer Lodge abut a year ago and restaurant staff said theyre excited about the positive feedback they received online. The restaurant is conveniently located right next to the Old Montana State Prison Museum. Owner Kelly Cutler said they wanted the restaurant to match the theme of the prison. The prison receives thousands of tourists each year said Cutler and it's one of the many attractions in Deer Lodge. Cutler said there are also live theaters, museums and historic sites to visit in Deer Lodge. "I think Deer Lodge is a great place to visit and it doesn't get as much credit as it should, you could literally spend two days here there's so much to do," said Cutler. Prison Pizza uses only fresh ingredients and makes their dough from scratch. For non-pizza lovers there are different options such as soup and salad. In the future, Cutler said they're trying to add theatrics to their restaurant by having their employees act like prison inmates but for now patrons will be greeted by regular employees. Ministry caught in tussle between two secretaries The dispute at the Ministry of Health and Population that stemmed from the governments unsuccessful attempt to replace Health Secretary Dr Pushpa Chaudhary with Kedar Bahadur Adhikari is unlikely to resolve anytime soon. Brian Morton in the New York Times: Not long ago, during an Amtrak ride, I met a college student who told me he was a fiction writer. I asked him what hed been writing and reading, and he said that he was writing a novel about time travel, and that he was reading well, he had been reading Edith Whartons The House of Mirth, but after about 50 pages, he said, hed tossed it into the trash. The House of Mirth, which was published in 1905, describes the efforts of a young woman named Lily Bart to find an acceptable husband. The student explained that he had been sailing along until he came to a description of one of Lilys suitors, Simon Rosedale: a plump rosy man of the blond Jewish type, with small sidelong eyes which gave him the air of appraising people as if they were bric-a-brac. At that point, the student said, he lost sympathy not only for Lily, but for the novel as a whole. It would have done no good for me to lecture him about the difference between a characters point of view and the authors. Whenever Rosedale appears in the novel, Wharton describes his repulsiveness with such gusto its clear that she isnt just describing Lilys feelings; shes describing her own. Whartons anti-Semitism, the student said, filled him with rage. I dont want anyone like that in my house, he said. Anyone whos taught literature in a college or university lately has probably had a conversation like this. 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from the Association of Community College Trustees. She became eligible for that national award after receiving the 2015 Central Region Chief Executive Officer Award. The associations central region includes Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada. Nominees were evaluated based on their development of innovative programs, demonstration of caring attitude for the college community and overall outstanding characteristics. We too will be sorry to see her leave the college. Allen has always been open and available to our reporters and editorial board and has been forthcoming with ideas and collaborations. But we also support her decision and wish her well when that retirement date comes up. We also feel a need to mention the HCC board, which recognized the value of Allens leadership, as they installed her as interim president in 2010 and then turned the reins over to her on a permanent basis. She was already in demand. In 2009, she was one of five finalists for president of South Arkansas Community College in El Dorado, Ark. Exactly right. A premature impeachment would do little more than satisfy cable TVs need for political melodrama without persuading voters that Democrats can actually govern. In my opinion, it would also be Trumps only real hope of political survival, much less of re-election come November 2020. Self-discipline is definitely in order. Because while we hear a lot about the passions of Trumps cult-like base, less gets said about how Democrats feel a cohort already considerably larger, and growing. The 2018 midterm elections showed that. And real-world issues aside, the single strongest emotion uniting them is sheer contempt for Trump and Trumpism, his pro-wrestling-style, authoritarian spectacle. David Leonhardt has laid out the case for removal in a powerfully restrained New York Times column headlined The People vs. Donald J. Trump. He has repeatedly put his own interests above those of the country. He has used the presidency to promote his businesses. He has accepted financial gifts from foreign countries. He has lied to the American people about his relationship with a hostile foreign government. Mills demand sugar price hike, stops crushing cane Sugar mill owners that criticised the governments decision to raise the floor price of sugarcane have stopped crushing the crop, demanding to raise the minimum price of the sugar from Rs70 per kg to Rs90. FORT DODGE A Fort Dodge woman died in a crash near Highway 20 on Saturday evening. The Iowa State Patrol identified her as Sheila Ross, 54.. The crash was reported about 5:10 p.m. in Webster County, on County Road P59 about a half-mile north of Highway 20. Ross was driving a Jeep was southbound on P59 when the vehicle crossed the center line due to icy road conditions and went into the path of a northbound SUV. Two others were injured in the crash. They were identified as Laurie Mullen, 56, of Fort Dodge, and Paul Ross, 63, of Fort Dodge. Both were transported to UnityPoint Health-Trinity Regional Medical Center in Fort Dodge. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 2 Angry 0 CLINTON --- One of the Clinton Fire Department's five battalion chiefs was to be in the audience in the U.S. House at Tuesday's Sate of the Un Jubilee UMC hosts dinner WATERLOO -- Jubilee UMC Resource Center, East Fourth and Newell streets, will host a LeChristophers Southern cuisine dinner, starting at noon today. The dishes are prepared by the food specialists at Jubilee. Cost of the meal is $15 for adults and $10 for children. For take-out dinners, call 234-5307. Ice House program set CEDAR FALLS -- Kamyar Enshayan of the University of Northern Iowa Center for Energy and Environmental Education will present "Keeping our Cool: What Can we Learn From the Ice House" at 7 p.m. Jan. 16 at the Cedar Falls Public Library. People from Iowa to Maine have been cutting ice and storing it in farm ice sheds or in community ice houses. Enshayan will explore the region's ice traditions in pictures. Welcome to Medicare seminar planned WATERLOO -- RSVP and Covenant Medical Center are offering a "Welcome to Medicare" seminar from 5 to 6 p.m. Feb. 6 at Covenant Medical Center, 3421 W. Ninth St. People should use the visitor entrance. Specifically, USGS findings signaled underlying geology in the form of a horse shoe-shaped complex in Decorah and similar rings in the area of Elkader, Manchester and Vinton. There are a lot of minerals up there, Clark said. From what Ive been told by the USGS, if one or a few of these anomalies do end up being similar to the Duluth Complex, what we have is larger. It could be a significant find, if in fact it turns out, he said. But we are still a long way from proving that. Needle in a haystack Right now, only one window into the regions mystery mineral prospects exists a core drilled near Elkader by a mineral company in the 1960s. UI researchers are pulling rocks from that core and testing the age of minerals found within. We have used modern techniques to try to find a needle in a haystack, Clark said, noting colleagues have been going through with fine-toothed combs for anything we can find that could possible yield an age. The Iowa Geological Survey could seek funding to drill a second core for further research in the hilly region. The USGS had a plan to do just that before its budget was cut last year. WATERLOO The Board of Education on Monday will consider submitting a state application to fund programs for students at risk of dropping out. The board meets at 5 p.m. in the Education Service Center, 1516 Washington St. According to a board memo, Waterloo Community Schools is eligible for $5.32 million in modified supplemental aid during 2019-20. The money would fund its 12 programs for at-risk students. District officials are recommending the board submit an application for $3.63 million in additional budget authority to the School Budget Review Committee. If approved, Waterloo Schools would raise the funds through property taxes. The district must provide a 25 percent match of $1.21 million through state aid and property tax funds. An estimated $485,000 in supplemental funding will also be available to the district, based on a formula involving the percentage of students receiving free and reduced-price lunch. Money would go toward credit recovery and after-school programs, the alternative learning center, and a number of intensive guidance and support programs. In other business, the board will: Hold public hearings on the sale or disposal of a house at 5643 Kimball Ave., which is south of Orange Elementary School, and asbestos removal at the former Longfellow School. The board is also expected to approve listing the house for sale and seeking bids for asbestos removal. Accept donations of $13,633 from the Waterloo Community Foundation/LORAL Trust for six reading-related projects proposed by teachers at four district schools. Approve a memorandum of understanding with the city of Waterloo to purchase salt for snow and ice control purposes. Salt will cost $82 per ton and salt/sand mixture will cost $58 per ton loaded into district vehicle. Approve the resignation of Rachel Savage as principal of Bunger Middle School, effective July 1. She is leaving to become superintendent of the Moline-Coal Valley School District. Hold a Partners in Education signing ceremony between West High School and Hope City Church. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Want to see more like this? Get our local education coverage delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. MATT DAVIS and JADE HEINE joined First National Bank in Waverly. Davis, of Waverly, is a business banker and has seven years of experience in commercial banking and sales management. A graduate of the University of Northern Iowa, he has a degree in business administration. Heine, also of Waverly, is a personal banker. She has more than two years of personal banking experience and received her finance and management degree from Iowa State University. McKENZIE KIELMAN, a Waverly native, joined the Iowa Association of Business and Industry Foundation in Des Moines as marketing and engagement coordinator. She graduated from Wartburg College in December with a bachelors degree in communications. LISA PARSONS was promoted at Veridian Credit Union to indirect lending team leader. Parsons, of Waterloo, has worked at Veridian for seven years and was an indirect lending loan officer. She has a bachelors degree from the University of Northern Iowa. MARK OLIVER was promoted at BerganKDV to sales leader for the Cedar Valley market. A graduate of the University of Northern Iowa, Oliver has a degree in marketing with a focus on sales and advertising. The event takes place from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. Jan. 24 at the Independence American Legion Hall, 205 Second St. N.E. Lunch will be served at 11:45 a.m. with the presentation beginning at 12:05 p.m. Presenter Marcie Van Note will provide tools to help employers and employees create and tap into positivity in the workplace. Van Note is the interim director of the MBA Program at Mount Mercy University. The Lunch and Learn cost is $10 per attendee and free for BCEDC investors. To register, call George Lake at 334-7497 or email director@growbuchanan.com with the companys name and the names of those attending the workshop. Registration is due by noon Jan. 22. Pay at the door, by credit card at www.growbuchanan.com or by check to BCEDC, P.O. Box 109, Independence, 50644. Rod Library gets grants CEDAR FALLS University of Northern Iowa Rod Librarys Special Collections & University Archives was selected to receive Preservation Assistance Grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities in the amount of $5,986. Twenty-four-year-old Jessie Sims was born in the United Kingdom but now resides in the United States of America after moving to the state of Maine at twelve years of age. Now a dual citizen of both the USA and the UK, Jessie is a talented model who has gained acclaim on social media, especially through her Instagram page and YouTube channel where she models swimwear, lingerie and discusses fitness, pranks, clothing reviews, and occasionally shares stories with her fans. Jessie was a competitive gymnast when she was younger, but she has recently started putting the focus more on her budding acting career. She has since gone on to work for top-name brands such as Hasbro, Puma, Panera Bread, Eddie Bauer and many more. Jessie is also a very giving person who frequently volunteers for good causes that give back to the community. Specifically, she has given out care packages at homeless shelters and also donates to animal shelters to help raise awareness about the importance of animal adoption. Jessie recently granted an exclusive interview where she discussed all these wonderful endeavors and more. Acting, fashion, and brands Meagan Meehan (MM): You moved to America from the UK when you were twelve, so how big of an adjustment was that to make? Also, what was it like to move from Maine to California? Jessie Sims (JS): I imagine that moving anywhere as a pre-teen is a difficult situation. It was especially hard moving halfway around the world, not knowing anyone. Being the new kid is a challenge for anyone but being the new kid and being different just added to my pre-teen angst. My first year of school in the US made me feel like a show pony. Everyone wanted to hear my accent, and I just wanted to fit in. It took a few years for me to assimilate into American culture. Moving from Maine to California was also a huge culture shock. Coming from a small town in southern Maine where the population was just over 1 million to densely populated Los Angeles was incredibly stressful. Whenever anyone asks me how I like LA, I always say that it's the epitome of bitter sweet. It's filled with opportunity and challenges but being here too long tends to make people callous. I've been living in LA for almost three years now, and I couldn't imagine moving back to the east coast. MM: How did you get into gymnastics and how did that lead to your interests in acting and modeling? JS: I always had an interest in gymnastics, but when I was living in the UK there was not training centers anywhere close to where I was living. However, I was a competitive dancer in the UK, so I guess that filled the void. Finally, after moving to Maine, there was a gym about 15 minutes away from where I was living, so my parents caved and let me join. The acting was always something I wanted to do. I was in all the school plays before starting gymnastics, and I always loved performing. Modeling was something I did after my friend bought a camera and needed models to practice on. I was not particularly confident in my modeling abilities and never really expected to turn it into a career. MM: How have you gone about breaking into acting and what sorts of roles and genres do you enjoy taking on? JS: When I first moved to LA, I was taking scene study classes and improv classes about 40 hours a week for about a year. I really enjoy taking on roles that are very different from who I am. It's a challenge, and it's also really fun to be able to let your creativity take over and become the character. MM: You are really well-known for your YouTube and Instagram postings, so how would you describe your content and how do you get the ideas for pranks, story times, and more? JS: I would describe my content as embracing my inner child. I love just being myself and being real. I really focus on trying to convey that in my content while still trying to keep things exciting. As for the process of creating content I have days where I just sit down and brainstorm ideas. Sometimes I'll be about to fall asleep, driving or taking a shower and I just get some random ideas for videos. MM: You are known for doing lots of fashion hauls and reviews, so how would you describe your personal style and how do you go about selecting products to review? JS: I think that my personal style doesn't really have a genre. It's really all over the place. I like what I like, and I don't really let what's "trendy" influence what I wear or promote. If I don't like a brand or find that it is fitting for me, I won't work with them. MM: You have ended up working with some really huge brands--what kind of work did you do for Panera Bread, Puma, and Hasbro? JS: While working in Boston I was doing a lot of commercial print work which I really enjoyed. Hasbro was actually my first modeling gig. I signed with my agency, and the same day they sent me out for a Hasbro casting which I ended up booking. I don't think the product was ever released but we were doing a photo shoot for the packaging and other marketing materials. I worked with Puma numerous times doing shoots for their website. I worked with Panera Bread right before moving to LA. It was for their Panera at home campaign. Unfortunately, I didn't get a live time of free Panera, but a girl can dream, right? Charity work, outfits, and dreams MM: What is it about swimwear and underwear per se that makes them fun for you to model and what other kinds of outfits do you like trying on? JS: Growing up I have always been very insecure and lacked self-confidence. Modeling has really helped me to change that. I believe that doing things that are outside of my comfort zone really help with self-growth. I think that modeling has helped me to mature and become comfortable with myself. It's not that modeling swimwear/underwear is fun for me I just feel that it is empowering. I'm not exactly great at "acting sexy" nor do I want to be. I love being a fun-loving goofball because that's what comes naturally to me. MM: You also do a lot of charitable work, but what is it about the plight of animals and the homeless that interests you in particular? JS: I love animals. I've always had pets growing up. I want to help in the community as much as I can. Whether that's raising awareness or making donations. I always want to pay it forward. I really enjoy volunteering at the homeless shelters because it really is a huge reality check. It puts things into perspective. I think that often we forget how minuscule our problems actually are. I want to help as many people and animals as I can. It gives me a sense of purpose. I know that I can't always give back due to my own financial standing, but volunteering is free. I want to influence others to do the same. You either have time or money, if you're lucky you have both. MM: How do you intend to expand and evolve your social media content in 2019? JS: I plan just to keep busy creating content throughout the year. MM: What are your biggest dreams regarding your modeling and acting career and what is coming up in 2019 that you would like to discuss? JS: I'm very excited for what's to come in 2019. I am planning on getting more involved in traditional acting and modeling this year rather than having my main focus on social media. Labour departures for Japan possible by April this year Labour migration of Nepali migrant workers to Japan, which recently announced it would hire Nepali workers, will be possible in the next few months if negotiations go the right way. Para poder comentar debes estar registrado y haber iniciado sesion. Olvidaste la contrasena? Ole Schemion Wins the $1,100 PCA National for $148,220 January 13 2019 Yori Epskamp Winning a big live poker tournament is a great accomplishment. Winning multiples puts you in a select group. And then, there are players who are in a league of their own, such as Ole Schemion. On a day that saw a field from 122 whittled down to one in the span of twelve hours, the man from Germany reigned supreme for the 17th time in his poker career. The win in the 2019 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (PCA) $1,100 National, worth $148,220, also propelled Schemion over the $15M mark in lifetime winnings on The Hendon Mob. "I didn't really care [about the opponents], I just wanted to play my cards." Schemion defeated Florida native Maurice Costigan heads-up after Costigan made a costly misstep in the final hand. Platinum Pass winner Dragos Trofimov claimed the bronze medal, online legend Conor "1_conor_b_1" Beresford finished in fifth, WSOP Europe Main Event champion Jack Sinclair finished sixth and EPT13 Malta champion Aliaksei Boika ended up in eight place. Like last year, when he won the WPT in his home town of Berlin, Schemion started the year with a bang. He followed up on last year's victory with a successful series in Monaco before taking time off from the live circuit for the birth of his second child, which also made him opt out of the 2018 World Series of Poker. Schemion-fans don't need to worry: "wizowizo" is back in full force after making his second six-figure ship in short succession, following up on a second place in the 10,300 EPT Prague High Roller last month. "I feel good, very good," Schemion said shortly after receiving another spadie for his mantlepiece. The final table went smoothly, and despite facing some tough opposition Schemion wasn't singling anyone out. "I didn't really care [about the opponents], I just wanted to play my cards," he told PokerNews. "It's a good start to the year, I had a good finish and start last year too," he grinned. $1,100 PCA National Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize 1 Ole Schemion Germany $148,220 2 Maurice Costigan United States $90,080 3 Dragos Trofimov Moldova $63,540 4 Alexandre Santo Brazil $47,660 5 Conor Beresford United Kingdom $37,580 6 Jack Sinclair United Kingdom $28,120 7 Timo Kamphues Germany $19,780 8 Aliaksei Boika Belarus $13,900 9 Joseph Cote United States $11,040 $1,100 PCA National Final Day Action At noon local time, 122 survivors from an 812-player field returned to the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas for the second and final day of the PCA National. Although the buy-in was one of the lowest on tap, the field was chock-full of big names looking to parlay their investment into a sweet six-figure score. With the bubble done and everybody already having a min cash secured, chips were flying everywhere right off the bat. A flurry of early bustouts saw the likes of Will Givens, Joe McKeehen, Marvin Rettenmaier, and Jon Turner all hit the rail in quick succession. Defending champion Maria Konnikova's title defense attempt also came to an end in the early stages after losing the majority of her chips to Maria Ho with ace-ten versus queens. Ho wasn't able to make those chips work for her and busted shortly after. Chino Rheem claimed the spotlight during most of the day, even holding the chip lead at various points. Ultimately, the American just missed out on the final table. It was Schemion himself who pulled the trigger with pocket nines against Rheem's ace-ten on the final table bubble. The big flip landed in Schemion's favor, and Rheem had to settle for $9,100 as a consolation prize. "It's a good start to the year, I had a good finish and start last year too." -Ole Schemion At the final table, Joe Cote was the first player to bow out. The elderly statesman made his first recorded cash outside of the U.S. by finishing in 9th place. Following him out the door was Aliaksei Boika, a former EPT Champion. The Belarusian added $13,900 to his lifetime winnings of over $1.6M. Germany's Timo Kamphues was the third victim at the final table and won $19,780. For Jack Sinclair, there wouldn't be a second victory after his big win at the WSOP Europe three months ago. Sinclair was wrestling with Schemion all day, and the latter was the one to make him tap out. Sinclair met his demise by four-bet shoving ace-queen into Schemion's ace-king to finish in sixth place. Conor Beresford, Alexandre Santo, and Platinum Pass winner Dragos Trofimov were the three next to go, leaving Maurice Costigan as the only one left to oppose Schemion. Costigan started the heads-up with a 2:1 chip disadvantage and went big during the first sizable hand of the heads-up to turn things around. Holding ace-eight, Costigan check-raised on the turn when an ace fell, then shoved all in on the seven river for heaps. Schemion had ace-seven and called to win his seventeenth career title. Ole Schemion The Stars Group owns a majority shareholding in iBus Media. Off the Felt: Baby On the Way for Bellande & Beautiful Weather in the Bahamas January 13 2019 Eric Mertens In last week's edition of Off the Felt, we had another engagement, a little boy for the Galfond family, and New Year's Eve! This time, we have a baby on the way for Jean Robert Bellande, a lot of players enjoying the weather in the Bahamas, and a belated Happy Birthday to Andrew Neeme. Baby for Bellande In the last few weeks, it is all about babies, engagements, and weddings. This week is no different as Jean-Robert Bellande announced his wife's pregnancy: Bahamas! A lot of poker players are in the Bahamas for the PokerStars Carribean Adventure. Some have more luck on the tables than others, but all of them can enjoy the beautiful weather: Trevor Savage also traveled to the Bahamas and his son Andrew met some of his idols: Happy Birthday Andrew Neeme recently reached 100,000 subscribers on YouTube and last week he celebrated his birthday. A belated Happy Birthday for Andrew! A British man who masterminded a large scale cyber attack on a telecommunications company in Liberia has been jailed. Daniel Kaye, 30, of Egham, Surrey, was paid 30,000 US dollars by a rival company to disrupt the systems of mobile phone company Lonestar between October 2016 and February 2017. He created a botnet called Mirai #14 whose purpose was to trigger a distributed denial of service (DDoS) assault on the businesss computer network, causing it to spend 600,000 US dollars (467,000) in remedial action. Kaye pleaded guilty to two offences under the Computer Misuse Act and to one charge of possessing criminal property and was sentenced at Blackfriars Crown Court on Friday to a total of 32 months in prison. The court heard how the virus turned thousands of internet-connected devices into zombies that overwhelmed Lonestars network and costed it tens of millions of US dollars. Kaye was extradited back to Britain in August 2017 under a European Arrest Warrant following an investigation involving the National Crime Agencys (NCA) German counterpart, the Bundeskriminalamt (BKA). Sentencing, Judge Alexander Hugh Milne QC said Kaye had pursued a large scale unlawful attack on Lonestars computer systems. You were paid by a rival company to disrupt and undermine the legitimate business of Lonestar, he said. He said that Kayes actions were a cynical and financially-driven attack upon a legitimate business enterprise. Kaye, who was supported in court by his girlfriend, could be seen weeping as the sentence was delivered. Prosecutor Robin Sellers told the court how Kaye made a rolling arrangement with a third party who worked for the company Cellcom under which he was paid 30,000 US dollars (23,000) between late 2016 and early 2017. The self-taught hacker adapted an existing virus to create a botnet variant called Mirai #14 whose purpose was to trigger DDoS assaults on internet networks. Story continues The court heard that the DDoS attack involved the Mirai code searching out devices that connected to the internet to turn them into zombies. Hundreds of thousands of internet-ready devices are in effect taken away from their usual use, Mr Sellers added. The devices became a conduit for the attack upon the Lonestar servers with the effect of overwhelming it with the sheer number of connections. Mr Sellers said Lonestars servers collapsed and couldnt operate properly. The court heard that the company estimated its revenue dipped from 84 million US dollars (65.3 million) to 17 million US dollars (13.2 million) between October 2016 and February 2017. Kaye was arrested at Heathrow in February 2017 under a European Police Warrant in relation to interference with the systems of Deutsche Telekom. He was found to be carrying 10,000 US dollars (7,800) in cash, which Mr Sellers said he had been paid for his work against Lonestar. A mobile phone was also seized which contained a Mirai monitor that showed Kayes code connecting to hundreds of thousands of devices. Kaye was convicted in Germany of attempted computer sabotage and given a one-year and eight months sentence, suspended for three years. The hacker had initiated controlled attacks on internet routers that knocked out the internet connections of Deutsche Telekom customers. It also affected the Cologne water treatment facility and other telephony systems. Kaye pleaded guilty to two offences under the Computer Misuse Act (Yui Mok/PA) Mitigating, Jonathan Green said the impact of Kayes cyber attacks had been greater in Germany than in Liberia. Nobody died, nobodys life was imperilled, at worst Lonestar customers suffered slow internet speeds, he said. He rejected Lonestars estimates of its losses which he claimed were were unsupported by any evidence. Mr Green argued that Kaye was an intelligent young man who had received interest from illustrious businesses and could be a valuable support to the internet technology industry. All the best gamekeepers were at one time poachers, he said. Addressing Kaye, Judge Milne QC said: You are an intelligent, talented and skilful young man capable of understanding what your powers can do. It makes it even more worrying that you used your abilities for the purposes of this cyber attack. Kaye was sentenced to 32 months for unauthorised acts in relation to a computer under the Computer Misuse Act. He also received 12 months for a charge of making an article for use in the commission of an offence under the same act, and 12 months for possessing criminal property. The judge ruled that the sentences would be served concurrently. Kaye had previously been charged with blackmail and other offences under the Computer Misuse Act in relation to cyber attacks on the Lloyds Banking Group in the UK, but these were dropped by the prosecution. FILE PHOOT: Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif delivers his statement, during the Geneva Conference on Afghanistan, at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, November 28, 2018. Salvatore Di Nolfi/Pool via REUTERS DUBAI (Reuters) - Iran's foreign ministry summoned a senior Polish diplomat to protest at Poland jointly hosting a global summit with the United States focused on the Middle East, particularly Iran, state news agency IRNA reported on Sunday. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday said the summit -- to be held in Warsaw over Feb. 13-14 - would focus on stability and security in the Middle East, including the "important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilising influence". An Iranian foreign ministry official told Poland's charge d'affaires in Tehran that Iran saw the decision to host the meeting as a "hostile act against Iran" and warned that Tehran could reciprocate, IRNA added. "Poland's charge d'affaires provided explanations about the conference and said it was not anti-Iran," the agency added. The Polish foreign ministry confirmed that the meeting took place on Saturday. "The international community has the right to discuss various regional and global problems," it said in a statement on Sunday, adding that Poland has the right to co-host a conference that aims to develop a platform for action for the stability and prosperity of the Middle East. Relations between Tehran and Washington are highly fraught after the decision in May by U.S. President Donald Trump to withdraw from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers and to reimpose sanctions, including on Iran's oil sector. CHANGING IRAN'S "BEHAVIOUR" Speaking in Qatar on Sunday, Pompeo said the aims of the summit will include changing the "behaviour" of Iran, which Washington accuses of destabilising the region and supporting terrorism. Tehran denies the accusations and says U.S. military presence in the Middle East causes tensions and instability. "We will gather around a number of different topics ... fighting ISIS is part of that ... and address how we can get the Islamic Republic of Iran to behave like a normal nation," Pompeo told reporters in Doha. Story continues "There will be countries from Asia, Africa and all across the world. It won't be confined to the U.S., Europe and the Middle East." The United States and its regional ally Saudi Arabia back opposing sides in the conflicts in Yemen and Syria as well as rival political groups in Iraq and Lebanon. On Friday Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif criticised Poland for hosting the meeting and wrote on Twitter: "Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus." Zarif was referring to Iran hosting more that 100,000 Polish refugees during the Second World War. Iranian Vice President Eshaq Jahangiri said the summit was being held because U.S. sanctions had failed to bring Iran to its knees. "Americans thought pressures would break down our economy. They wanted to bring our oil exports to zero but failed ... Now they've decided to hold an anti-Iran conference in Europe," the semi-official news agency Fars quoted Jahangiri as saying. Meanwhile, a cultural official said that a planned Polish Film Week in Iran would be cancelled if the summit plans are not dropped. "Iranians have hosted various nations and ethnic groups with open arms, especially the Poles," Hossein Entezami, head of the Cinema Organization of Iran, said on Twitter. "To protect the honour of Iran and Iranians, the holding of the Polish Film Week will depend on Warsaw's appropriate behaviour." (Reporting by Dubai newsroom, additional reporting by Anna Koper in Warsaw and Erik Knecht in Doha; Editing by Kim Coghill, Raissa Kasolowsky and David Goodman) The Guardian British farmers: What do you think of the UK-Australia trade deal?Wed like to hear how British farmers feel about the information that has so far emerged about the new trade agreement, and how they believe it might impact them A display of pork products available in store at a Morrisons meat counter in Leeds, as the supermarket announces they are supporting British pig farmers who are suffering as a result of changes in demand from EU countries by introducing deals on sausages, bacon and pork, Indian arm smuggler arrested with weapon Nepal Police on Sunday arrested an Indian gang-member involved in illegal smuggling of arms into Nepal from India. The Comic Relief Spectacular event is set to wow Wembley this February as many of the undoubted giants of British comedy will look to provide an unforgettable night of fun and frolics for their eager audience. For the first time, 8 of the countrys top comedians will share a stage on one night to raise funds for the worthy charitable cause. It promises to be an amazing evening, with long-established comics such as Lenny Henry, John Bishop, Catherine Tate and Jimmy Carr all bringing their own distinct brand of humour to proceedings. Not forgetting Chatty Man Alan Carr, nor some of the fast-emerging talents of the industry such as Rob Beckett, Romesh Ranganathan and Katherine Ryan who are all set to appear on 28th February at the London comedy extravaganza. There could yet be more surprises on the night, as organisers have promised that additional special guests will be joining the merriment. Comic Reliefs beginnings Comic Relief was founded back in 1985 thanks to the initial energy and commitment provided by the partnership of the brilliant comedy scriptwriter Richard Curtis and funnyman Henry, quickly establishing itself as a hugely successful vehicle for raising much-needed monies for worthy causes thanks to the gift of comedy. The wonderful partnership of Curtis and Henry Curtis may be unfamiliar to many in person, but his back catalogue of film successes will be fondly remembered by fans of popular offerings such as Notting Hill, Four Weddings and a Funeral and Bridget Joness Diary. Henry has become one of the most familiar faces on Television over the years, thanks to his charisma and an ability to portray an array of characters that are genuinely funny. Their combination provided the starting point for the original concept to expand and gradually gain momentum. Ethiopian famine inspiration The inspiration behind Comic Relief was the distressing images that were being beamed across the world at the time depicting the effects of the ongoing and heart-breaking famine in Ethiopia. So much so that the world of comedy felt as though it was time for them to show their compassion and pull together in the African nations time of dire need. Welcome addition to Red Nose Day As ever, Red Nose Day on 15th March and its integral permission to be silly for one special day and sport a colourful appendage to your face remain the focus for television viewers, allowing millions of Brits to get involved. But the addition of the Comic Relief Spectacular event at the SSE Arena looks set to add extra interest and hopefully to boost the coffers significantly this year. Interesting articles, stories, news. Views on happenings. Current activities, ideas and events. International and Antipodean affairs - scientific, cultural, political, economic, sociological, anthropological, archaeological and historical environment. We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. This week on Foreign Correspondent Eric Campbell travels with two caravans of people from from Honduras & El Salvador making their to the US border. What drives Tatyana, 21, heavily pregnant and with two tiny kids in tow, or 13-year-old Daniel, to make an epic trek over thousands of kilometres? Eric Campbell tells the stories of the people behind Donald Trumps wall. Rarely does America see anything like this a huge press of humanity streaming through Mexico, dreaming of life across the US border. Donald Trump, his administration paralysed over the $8 billion wall he wants to shut them out, calls them invaders. So who are these people and what are they fleeing? Theyve killed most of my family my dad, my brother. Were running. Only God is with us. Tatyana, on the gang violence in her homeland Honduras. Now Tatyana and the other migrants have been warned, by none less than President Trump, that they risk being shot by US agents if they push too hard at the border. She and her husband Ruben, with their two small children and another well on the way, press on. Im prepared to die trying to make a better future for my family. Ruben. Daniel, 13, is risking his life to buy a future. He is estranged from his mother, who sells drugs for a gang back home in El Salvador. His only choice there, he says, was to join a gang or run. Too much violence and drugs, they kill you for nothing. I need to study, just study. Daniel. On the long road, rumours swirl. I heard that the president will open the doors for us. Victor, a teenager from El Salvador. Over several weeks Foreign Correspondent follows the halting progress of two migrant caravans one from Honduras, one from El Salvador as they slowly wend their way through Mexico. Most migrants say they are fleeing gang violence. Now they face a kidnap and murder threat from drug cartels as they make their way up La Ruta de la Muerte, or Road of Death. Constant movement equals constant fatigue. At 5am a weary mother rouses her teary child when its time to move again: Lets go, lets go No, no I dont want to, I want to stay here on my own! Some give up on their American dream and turn back home. We have come this far for nothing. Honduran man. But when Eric Campbell catches up with the thousands of migrants massing in Tijuana, near the US border, he finds that for a lucky few, fortune has swung their way. 8pm AEDT Tuesday January 15 on ABC. Related 10 has revealed their first cast members for Im a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, all of which had been tipped by various press and observers this year. Night one included snakes, scorpions, powder bombs and some celebs struggling to recognise one another Gone were the skydiving entrances as the cast simply strode into a South African resort. Former politician Jacqui Lambie stood out from the pack with her unbridled, occasionally uncouth, personality, tackling ex-collgeaue Sam Dastyari to the ground and mucking in. A year ago TV Tonight threw her name into the mix (And while were assembling a networks dream casting lists. two words: Jackie Lambie) but it has taken until 2019 for it to be realised. Former Biggest Loser host Ajay Rochester was also not holding back, revealing she has not had sex in 9 years and teasing her attraction to male co-stars (ex-AFL player Dermott Brereton, former Love Island participant Justin Lacko or Seven personality Luke Jacobz). Ex-Gogglebox ladies Angie Kent & Yvie Jones were also not shy on some of the blokes, suggesting Dr. Chris Brown must be bad in bed because he couldnt possibly be perfect at everything. The cast also includes comedian Tahir Bilgic, news presenter Natasha Exelby, TV chef Justine Schofield, and showbiz correspondent Richard Reid. Director Alex Mavroidakis has thrown in a Big Brother-style twist with a divided camp of Campmates / Caretakers designed to ramp up the conflict. So far the cast lacks an international name along the lines of Shane Warne, Maureen McCormick or Tom Arnold but there are rumours of Pamela Anderson. Often big names enter the camp on night 2 when the show has been up against My Kitchen Rules and Married at First Sight, but while the competition may be the Australian Open this year, it has been left to the Gogglebox ladies to spike the second night. Thats a long way short of Baywatch super-stardom. But the show is also Live, and known for reacting quickly to audience feedback. After a network summer in the doldrums so far, it will need to be. There will also be others poised to parachute into the jungle over its 4 week season. Related The lives of hundreds of villagers in central Vietnam are returning to normal in a new place after they were evacuated from the area once struck by a fatal landslide more than one year ago. A typhoon in November 2017 brought down four houses, devastated crops and triggered a landslide that killed five people in a remote area of Nam Tra My District, part of disaster-prone Quang Nam Province. The mountainside village there was damaged beyond recognition. A man walks near a house destroyed by a landslide in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam, November 6, 2017. Photo: Tuoi Tre Over 600 affected locals were forced to relocate to Khe Chu Valley, around four kilometers away from the original place. They started life anew on a shoestring, with financial support from the local government and corporate and private donors. The residents erected stronger houses, chose pieces of land for rice-farming purposes and have been encouraged to use fields in their original village again, while the authorities have built dirt roads, a school, hospital and electricity grid. The government is trying to have the roads covered with concrete prior to Vietnams largest public holiday the Lunar New Year fest in February and make sure the residents have enough food to eat a few months after that. A woman dries rice at a her house in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre A family cooks a meal after returning from rice paddies in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre A first grader smiles at her classroom in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre Schoolchildren study in a classroom in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre A man lays bricks to build a shop in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre The new village in Khe Chu Valley in Quang Nam Province, central Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Government lifts restriction on land plotting The government has announced to relax the restriction enforced on land plotting. As per the Land Management Act 1964, the Ministry of Land Management on August, 10, 2017 had restricted plotting of land without permission from the concerned authorities. Police in a southern Vietnamese area have given a large number of emergency hotline keychains to local people in an effort to better combat crime. More than 1,000 complimentary keychains have been given since October last year to many people by the police bureau in Phu Binh Commune, Tan Phu District, Dong Nai a neighbor of Ho Chi Minh City. Each of the keychains has a fob emblazoned with the phone numbers of police offices and a police chief in the district. The items were all made thanks to private donations, according to Truong Minh Chanh, head of the Phu Binh police department. Emergency hotline keychains to be handed to residents by a police bureau in Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam. Photo: Tuoi Tre Police officers said they had received hundreds of phone calls reporting crimes and local public security has improved considerably, as they can respond more effectively to tip-offs. Do Dang Hung, a motorbike taxi driver in Dong Nai, praised the keychain initiative for enabling people to contact police more easily. Locals previously did not know available police phone numbers, resulting in tardiness in handling illegal activities, Hung said, adding that the initiative should be applied in many other places in Vietnam. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! We hope you have enjoyed your complimentary access for the month. To continue viewing content on tucson.com, please sign in with your existing account or subscribe. Dear Luis: Over the last few years we have seen an enormous increase in Central American migrants attempting to come here. Most are fraudulently claiming asylum, when they are really just seeking economic benefits. Democrats in Congress now oppose any border structure. Why? Because if a border structure was built, these Central Americans could not enter illegally and claim asylum. Asylum Con Dear Asylum: There has been an increase of Central Americans requesting asylum, but even if the wall were built tomorrow, it would have zero effect on asylum seekers. Regardless of the merits of their claims (thats for a judge to decide), it is perfectly legal to ask for asylum. If anything, the money the president is asking for could be put to infinitely better use improving the immigration court system, so it can better handle the backlog of cases that has made asking for asylum so attractive since it can take years for a case to be adjudicated. There is an undeniable attraction to simple solutions, but the reality is that a barrier as envisioned by President Trump, along the entirety of the border, would not fix anything. It would be a waste of resources and a national embarrassment. We can all agree that illegal immigration is a problem, but no serious person can claim a wall is the answer. Luis F. Carrasco is an editorial writer at the Star. Email him at lcarrasco@tucson.com. Subscribe to stay connected to Tucson. A subscription helps you access more of the local stories that keep you connected to the community. I was not sure I would even survive the ordeal, she says. She left Romania following the fall of the dictatorship in December 1989 and came to the United States by way of Hungary to become a graduate student at the UA in neuroscience, under Hildebrands tutelage. Gothards initial doctoral work at the UA was in the hippocampus of rats, the area of the brain responsible for the processing of long-term memory and spatial navigation. But after hearing Yale University brain researcher Patricia Goldman Rakic speak about her work with monkeys, Gothard says, I had that moment in life where I had to follow my heart and move her focus to monkeys. Finding the way to reach our human potential is not a matter of pushing a hypothetical button in the brain. There are multiple elements in each individual that account for who each of us is. We carry with us an enormous history. The factors affecting humans and triggering their emotional responses range from the life events of the individual, the family, the nation, the tribe and even the history of our species, to ones physical condition, nutrition, sleep, stress and more, Gothard says. Have you ever attended the College of Science Lectures Series, or read an article about an amazing discovery from a University of Arizona scientist? Then, did you have the desire to learn more? Do you want to be a part of the scientific community? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you should consider joining the Galileo Circle. Eighteen years strong, the Galileo Circle was formed to bring together an engaged group of individuals who wanted to support the college and help nurture the future of science. Through annual and endowed charitable gifts, Galileo Circle members support both established and budding scientists. In return, a meaningful connection is created between donors and the UAs scientific community. The primary purpose of the Galileo Circle is providing scholarships to College of Science students with exceptional academic abilities and potential. In 2018, the Galileo Circle awarded $168,000 in scholarships to College of Science undergraduate and graduate students. The impact of these awards goes beyond the financial support of our students. As Galileo Circle scholar Makayla Freitas said, Research is not just my future, but the way to move knowledge forward. When I can, I will donate to ensure students can keep the field growing. As new deposits are found, scientists must carefully examine the stones to see what characteristics are shared and which are distinct. Gem labs working on origin determination rely on careful observation as well as advanced testing utilizing a myriad of spectrometers. These commercial labs provide documentation for important and valuable stones, ensuring the consumer is protected. Society expects a report when purchasing diamonds, and now the colored-stone market is following as well. Why would collectors care, or more importantly, pay more, for a rock or gem from a specific area? Sometimes, it is simply coming from an exotic enchanted land not easily accessible. Maybe there is no longer production from these places, making the stone rare and unattainable. Many fine gems and minerals come from areas of political unrest, making collecting a challenge. As with any collection, much of the joy is in the hunt buying the best you can afford or trying to find as many localities as possible. It is often all about the story. Where does the UA fit in this story? As one of the top geoscience universities in the country, the University of Arizona is developing a gem science program. This is a story that begins and ends with children who are too frequently overlooked. Approximately 5.9 million children in the U.S. have a developmental language disorder. Yet, the best estimates are that only 20 percent of these children are correctly identified and receive needed services. These children outnumber those with more recognized disorders like autism by a factor of four. Why do these children go unrecognized? One possibility is that they look and act like normal children, with one notable exception. They do not acquire their ability to convert their thoughts into language and have difficulty understanding language they hear or read. Their normal cognitive and physical skills make them easy to overlook, to their detriment. We encounter young children who become visibly frustrated trying to make others understand them and find it hard to make friends. We see older children become demoralized when faced with classroom instructions or whose reading skills lag because reading and writing are language in printed form. As adults, those with developmental language disorder may struggle with the language load involved in both higher education and employment. The Border Patrol contracts with interpreter and translating services that offer more than 150 languages and dialects. The Border Patrol also tries to contact consulate officers to help. But the realities on the ground are different, said Chris Montoya, a former Arizona Border Patrol agent who retired in 2017. Oftentimes, he said, agents have to rely on others in the group who speak the same language to fill out the initial form that documents the migrants biographical information, where they crossed and whether they fear returning to their country of origin a legal piece of paper that follows them through the process. At the ground level, theres no time at all, said Montoya. If its busy and (the migrant) doesnt speak any Spanish, you do your best to figure it out. You have 100 more to do. Its hard for the agent and unfair for the border crosser, he said. For example, you get a guy trying to tell you something important or relevant and you cant communicate and its 1 a.m. Who is going to be an interpreter? All these little obstacles pop up in the field. What do you do now? he said. Fasting surgeons health deteriorates The health of Dr Govinda KC, who is on the fourth day of his 16th hunger strike, has started to deteriorate, doctors have warned. A Pima County jail inmate has been charged in the November 2018 killing of a man outside a restaurant on Tucson's south side, police say. Augustino Martinez, 29, was jailed on unrelated charges Jan. 11, when counts of first-degree murder and aggravated assault were added against him in connection with the killing of Bernardo Marin, 25, Tucson police spokesman Sgt. Pete Dugan said in a news release. Marin was shot and killed Nov. 23 after an argument in the parking lot of a restaurant in the 5100 block of South 12th Avenue. The Arizona State Gang Task Force has been working with Tucson police on the case, though police now say the killing appears not to be gang related. As well, Alfredo Caballero, 32, has also been arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection to Marin's death. Anyone with information is asked to call 88-CRIME, the anonymous tipster line. PHOENIX Gov. Doug Ducey and state lawmakers begin the new legislative session Monday with a deadline to act and soon on two issues crucial to Arizona residents. The more pressing one is to get sufficient votes for a drought contingency plan crafted by various interests to deal with the problem of declining water supplies coming from the Colorado River. Most significant in the deal is a requirement for Arizona to leave some of the water to which it would otherwise be entitled in Lake Mead, near Las Vegas. That is designed to keep lake levels from dipping below a certain point when Arizona would otherwise lose its allocation. To do that, however, means someone who normally gets Colorado River water will not. Some of that would be made up with purchases of water rights from tribes. Ducey, who gives his State of the State address Monday afternoon, has committed to putting up $35 million. And there also are plans though not yet fully funded to allow Pinal County farmers to replace some of what they will not get from the Central Arizona Project with groundwater from new wells. Editor: President Trump's U-turn on withdrawing U.S. forces from Syria probably has more to do with Israeli wishes than anything else. It's no secret that the Netanyahu regime wants U.S. forces to stay in Syria, and National Security Advisor Bolton's announcement about the withdrawal being delayed (indefinitely) came shortly after he'd met with Israeli officials. It's not that hard to figure out. As long as U.S. troops are in Syria they'll be killing and maiming Arabs, most of whom have no love for Israel no matter which faction they belong to. Once the Islamic State and Al-Nusra jihadis are effectively defeated, then the U.S. forces can focus on what Netanyahu's hawkish bunch thinks should be their main mission -- bringing down the government of Bashar al-Assad. Circumstances might well develop that would also give the U.S. an excuse to attack Iran, a country that worries Israel even more than Syria does. President Trump's initial decision to withdraw was the right one. America is now $22 trillion in debt and we've already wasted way too many lives in the Middle East. Let the Israelis fight their own battles, which they're well-equipped to do with all the billions of military aid Washington has given them over the decades. RICHARD MILLER, Thermopolis Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 On Monday, Wyomings newest governor swore his oath of office and gave an inaugural address. The event was one that aimed to celebrate all of Wyoming not just the voters who cast their ballots for Mark Gordon. Its encouraging to see our new leader start his tenure off with inclusivity. And it bodes well for the future of Wyoming under his leadership. Wyoming needs a leader who wont just govern to and for his own base, but rather by whats best for the state as a whole, a practice that isnt as common as one might hope in todays politics. Moreover, Gordon has appointed a Democrat to lead the Department of Health. Gordon was victorious in a Republican primary against many candidates who, it did not appear, would have run as inclusive an administration. We hope Gordons inauguration sets the tone for the next four years to come. In Gordons speech, he outlined his priorities for the next four years. Were glad to see that he is committed to finding a sustainable solution to our education funding crisis and that hes planning to continue the work of Endow in diversifying the economy. With a determination to clean up pollution in places like Boston Harbor and New York City waterways, he launched a $400 million program to assist cities with secondary sewage treatment. He also enacted a 100-year moratorium on offshore oil drilling in California, Washington, Oregon, the Georgia Banks, North Carolina and the Florida Everglades. President Bush had a passion for wildlife. During his 4-year presidency, he launched an unprecedented expansion of our National Wildlife Refuge System. He created 54 new refuges more than any other president including President Roosevelt adding 940,000 acres to the existing refuge system. His leadership also extended beyond American shores. With the passage of the African Elephant Conservation Act, the U.S. gave assistance to conserve African elephants and attack poaching. Our country led the effort to ban the international trade in ivory and initiated a global effort to control illegal wildlife trade. Using the Pelly Amendment, Japan was pressured to end trade in shell carvings and leather from sea turtles and there was an effort to regulate the harmful practices of oceanic drift net fishing. Parents can also homeschool their children or take advantage of the free online virtual academy available through a variety of statewide virtual academies. Particularly in a rural state like Wyoming, these options provide critically important access for families who might live miles, or even hours, away from the nearest brick-and-mortar school. This National School Choice Week, parents, teachers and students will gather at more than 40,000 events nationwide the week of Jan. 20-29. These events will show the many ways that school choice has transformed the lives of millions of American children, giving them access to more, and better, educational options and hope for a bright future. Here in Wyoming, we will start celebrating National School Choice Week a bit early. Our first annual Wyoming School Fair, scheduled for 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Jan. 19 at Cheyennes Little America Hotel, will host representatives from various public, private, charter, homeschooling and online education groups. If youre interested in learning more about these quality learning options, I invite you to come to our fair and find out how one of these schools could change your childs life. As the old saying goes, a little knowledge can go a long way. The more parents learn about their school choice options, the more their children can know by ending up in the best learning environment for them. At Wyoming Parent, we hope that every parent can know about all their school choice options and that every parent has the ability to choose the right school for their children. Melissa Denton is managing editor for Wyoming Parent. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 POWELL (WNE) After some large rocks fell onto U.S. Highway 14/16/20 west of Cody last month, Wyoming Department of Transportation geologists climbed up the cliffs on Monday to see if there was a potential of further danger. WYDOT says the workers found evidence that more rocks could fall on the eastern (Cody) side of the tunnels that lie near the Buffalo Bill Reservoir. We have remaining rock above the roadway that is still unstable, WYDOT Principal Geologist David Vanderveen of Cheyenne said in a Wednesday news release. The rock slide that triggered WYDOTs Monday inspection occurred on Dec. 27 on the east (Cody) side of the tunnels near the Buffalo Bill Reservoir. The falling rock damaged guardrails and blocked one lane, disrupting traffic for part of the day. WYDOT has put up cautionary signs on each side of the area. The transportation department is bringing in contractors this week to assess the area and bid on the work of mitigating the risk of falling rocks. When a contractor is chosen to mitigate the rockfall hazard, we will ask them to conduct several days of rock scaling to remove the loose rocks, Vanderveen said. Traffic delays are expected. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 HELENA, Mont. A Republican lawmaker in Montana is proposing to give more than $8 million to help build President Donald Trumps proposed wall on the Mexican border, while South Dakota senators voted Thursday to endorse the presidents plans. As Trump traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border Thursday to make his case for $5.7 billion to build the wall in the government shutdowns 20th day, state lawmakers in some parts of Trump Country are backing him up with their own legislation. Their efforts are mostly symbolic. The resolution passed in the South Dakota Senate simply urges construction of a steel barrier. The separate $8 million proposal in Montana would have little chance of getting past a Democratic governor who is exploring a run for president. Scott Sales, a fiscally conservative Republican who leads the Montana Senate, says his proposal is a small token to show border security is of vital interest to all citizens regardless of what state they live in. Gov. Steve Bullock said he respects Sales, but I dont know that he has ever strongly advocated for or supported infrastructure investments in Montana, so its a little bit of a puzzle for me why he would even consider spending taxpayer dollars on construction projects in California. ROCK SPRINGS (WNE) A Sweetwater County legislator is making another push to legalize hemp extract in Wyoming. Rep. Stan Blake, D-Green River, is the main sponsor behind House Bill 100, which was introduced into the House on Thursday. The measure would allow residents 18 years old and older to possess or use hemp extract, which comes from the marijuana/hemp plant. It would also eliminate registration requirements and authorizes a parent or legal guardian to administer the extract to a minor or vulnerable adult. Blake introduced two bills related to hemp in 2018. One was the same measure he is sponsoring, House Bill 64, which died in the Senate. The other, House Bill 62, would have provided for the administration of hemp extract by a parent to an adult dependent and modified physician authorization required to administer the product. The House did not consider it for an introduction vote. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 3 POWELL (WNE) A former trooper with the Wyoming Highway Patrol is suing the owner of a food delivery truck that turned in front of his patrol car and caused a head-on crash in 2015. In a complaint filed in Wyomings federal court last week, former trooper Rodney Miears and his wife Marian, of Cody, seek compensation from Sysco Montana. The legal complaint alleges that Sysco negligently failed to keep, maintain, enforce and follow safe driving practices and safe driving policies, including in failing to properly supervise and train truck driver James Friede. On June 15, 2015, Friede had been attempting to make a delivery to the Yellowstone Valley Inn on U.S. Highway 14/16/20. According to law enforcement accounts of the crash, Friede never saw Miears coming; the truck made a left-hand turn into the inn, pulling directly in front of Miears patrol car. In the ensuing collision, Miears was pinned into his vehicle and suffered injuries to his back and spine. The Wyoming Highway Patrol cited Friede for failing to yield to approaching traffic while making a left-hand turn. He is not named as a defendant in the recently filed suit. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 1 Every breath we take Kathmandu should hold itself to a higher standard in protecting health DENVER New Colorado Gov. Jared Polis made it clear Thursday he intends to grant more local control in decisions about where and how the state's $32 billion oil and gas industry can drill and operate tank farms and other facilities. Shortly after delivering his first State of the State speech, the Democratic governor acknowledged his advocacy of local influence on the state's chief regulatory body for oil and gas. "Right now, international investors don't know the approach that Colorado will take with regard to regulating oil and gas," Polis said. "The sooner that we can work with the Legislature to pass local control, the sooner we can improve the confidence of markets, and at least let them know what's going on in Colorado." Polis inherits a long-running conflict in Colorado involving the industry and environmentalists concerned about the health and safety impacts of drilling along Denver's ever-expanding suburbs. Thanks to advances in technology, Colorado has become the nation's No. 5 natural gas producer. It ranks No. 7 in oil production. Concerns about noise, methane emissions, tanker traffic and possible industrial accidents have fueled several ballot initiatives to restrict drilling. None have been successful. Charging documents said Mark Klingbeil called police from Florida the night of the slaying, telling them his father had confessed to shooting Donna Klingbeil before overdosing. The defendant was just coming out of a potentially fatal coma, Domonkos wrote in the motion. The defendant was suicidal. The defendant did not understand what was happening which is evident from the fact he believed his son, as his power of attorney, could sign a document stating the defendant understood his rights. Any statements made during this assessment in the presence of law enforcement should be suppressed as voluntary statements. Klingbeil was released from the hospital and booked into the Park County Detention Center the day after the assessment test, where he has been since. *** Domonkos cited the incident as a Miranda violation and also mentioned the Wyoming Supreme Court Case Madrid v. Wyoming, which determined, the defendants statements must result from free and deliberate choice rather than intimidation, coercion and deception. CHEYENNE The first day in the Legislature almost feels like the first day of high school. In bags and in binders, colored pieces of paper green for the Senate, yellow for the House of Representatives outline the days schedule: what committee meets in what room, what legislation is being discussed and where and how close a bill is to becoming law. In the dim and droll hallways of Cheyennes Jonah Business Center, lawmakers and lobbyists zip from door to door, discussing votes and the developments of the day. For the uninitiated, the experience can be overwhelming, as the responsibility of helping to run a state falls on their shoulders. I kind of laughed and dismissed that drinking from a firehose saying, said Rep. Shelly Duncan, R-Torrington. I understand completely now. You hurry up through the campaign trail to hurry up and get the win, you get here and get all of the training, and then all of the sudden youre here and then boom. Pieces of legislation fly across desks and debates proceed quickly, with amendments and changes coming undone as quickly as they enter the record. In the hallways, legislators bump from conversation to conversation and in between, lobbyists seek familiar faces, looking to sell lawmakers on something one last time. What surprised me most was the volume of materials that started coming my way right after the election, said Rep. Art Washut, R-Casper, a freshman lawmaker in his first week as an elected official. From interest groups inviting you to meetings or presentations to mailings and materials to read in the middle of November, I was receiving lots and lots of stuff. Hitting their stride Rep. Sara Burlingame, D-Cheyenne, is the director of an LGBTQ advocacy group that would often lobby in the Capitol. During the campaign, she often sold her knowledge of the legislative process as proof she was ready and able to make an impact in politics on day one. Behind the scenes, shes discovered a learning curve she didnt quite anticipate. Its a different beast, said Burlingame. As my fellow freshman can attest, theres not a lot within your purview. For those in government for the first time, its about finding your niche. On the campaign trail, candidates have to opine on everything, from bulldozers to bronchitis. Once elected into office, however, their areas of expertise can really come through. At the party caucuses in November, new members are given a survey where they can list their top-three committee choices. Based on lawmakers backgrounds and expertise, party leadership assigns them to where theyre best suited. Washut, a criminal justice instructor at Casper College, was assigned to the Judiciary Committee and, in week one, had already contributed significantly to the discussion of several bills expected to eventually reach the House floor. Others took the bull by the horns. Rep. Sandy Newsome, R-Cody, was among the first of the freshman legislators to sponsor a bill of her own a bill requiring hospitals to report gunshot wounds inspiring other newcomers to follow suit. Older lawmakers, said Burlingame, have been supportive in the effort, offering technical advice to help the freshman succeed. Even if they dont agree with you policy-wise, they want to be sure your ideas see the light of day, said Mike Yin, D-Jackson. When they come to light, you can work the bill and make it better, whether its bills Im supporting myself or whether Im arguing for or against a bill. Allegiances to support those bills sometimes form organically. In the weeks leading up to the start of the general session, Washut approached the legislative service office for assistance drafting a bill that would freeze the property tax level for senior citizens, only to find a similar bill was already being drafted by a fellow freshman legislator, Richard Tass, R-Johnson County, which Washut signed on as a cosponsor for. Other allegiances are formed strategically, and can occasionally be coordinated based on factors that may help a bill become more successful than others. Theres a strategy to bills, said Washut. Getting people from different places and backgrounds to cosponsor your bill, because theres a certain amount of influence in getting a certain chairman of a committee to cosponsor a bill or getting a Democrat from another county to cosponsor it. Theres different factors people will consider to be important. So getting a nice cross-section of cosponsors could be advantageous to your bill. Theres other help to be found too. Sometimes, even right next to you. Our minority floor leader has been very good about seating us next to legislators with some experience, said Andi Clifford, D-Fremont. I was fortunate enough to be seated next to John Freeman, who is a teacher. I can literally ask him 101 questions and hell put on his teacher hat and get me through my little moment where I feel like I dont have control and dont know whats going on. But each day, Im feeling more and more confident, she added. Well get it. Balancing life as a legislator Legislators with day jobs, however, can find it difficult to balance it all. While legislators like Yin were able to take a leave of absence, some like Washut are still working. He will continue teaching an online criminal justice class at Casper College throughout the start of the session, on top of the several hours of committee meetings each day, addressing emails from constituents and negotiating with other lawmakers. Its difficult to unplug from your career for 40 days and come to Cheyenne, he said. Youre not going to see a lot of blue-collar tradesmen and so forth in the Legislature. As members of a citizen legislature, lawmakers dont get paid they receive only enough to cover their expenses while performing their duties and the time required to perform their jobs is extremely demanding, with two intense months of lawmaking followed by a full year of committee meetings, spread far and wide across the state. Our legislature actually makes it harder for people who are middle class and have full-time jobs to be able to take two months off and go to the Legislature, said Yin. A high school teacher cant exactly do that unless youre taking a whole half of the year off. I do think it would be better if we could have a Legislature that could be a middle-class, citizen legislature. Working class, clarified Burlingame. Yesterday, two people on the floor of the House said that if you dont have the money, you shouldnt run for office. Without flinching, clear as day, this is for people with financial means. Thats so offensive. Engagement, however, is the only way to change things. It was one of the reasons why Duncan a realtor tired of some of the policies facing her industry decided to run, knowing from an insiders perspective that there were ways Wyoming could do better. If you dont have a seat at the table, you might as well be on the menu, said Duncan. I wanted a seat at the table I was tired of arguing across the table. Remembering your roots On the campaign trail, newly elected legislators pitched to their constituents that they were the best choices to represent their interests, and would serve as their strongest advocates once elected. This requires maintaining dialogue with the people who elected them. Legislators like Duncan try and boost their engagement with constituents through daily broadcasts on Facebook Live. Others take pains to work through the mountains of emails and correspondence they receive on a daily basis throughout the session, making sure to answer locals first. But Clifford, a member of the Northern Arapaho Tribe whose upset win in Indian Country marks a symbolic victory for voters on the Wind River Reservation, feels a duty to use her new platform as a means to inspire those who elected her and break the trend of a Wyoming politics long defined by old, white men. That was seen at her swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, when a bus of 30 tribal members visited Cheyenne to watch her take the oath of office, despite the fact the roads were closed. I just remember who I am and where I came from, an indigenous woman, said Clifford. I dont have to state it I just am, thats how I was raised, thats my culture. And when I look at things or decide on things, it comes from that grounding of where I come from, tribal values and the culture I come from. I remember that. Follow politics reporter Nick Reynolds on Twitter @IAmNickReynolds Love 0 Funny 2 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get Government & Politics updates in your inbox! Stay up-to-date on the latest in local and national government and political topics with our newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Cynthia Hom, a vice president of one of the firms who performed that independent analysis, said the company had performed an analysis but directed further comment to Silverstein. He declined to provide the name of the other company, citing a nondisclosure agreement. He said it appears that tribal members have been uniquely targeted by SageWest for higher billing. He said he works with tribes in 20 states and that SageWests billing is uniquely egregious. This correlates with the acquisition by Apollo, he said of the price increases. They are now asking the tribe for more money, above and beyond what the plan was traditionally paid and above and beyond what SageWest has accepted from the tribe for years. Eric Kuo, who works for a public relations firm hired by Apollo, declined to comment and directed questions to LifePoint after the Star-Tribune sent him the tribes statement. In turn, Michelle Augusty, LifePoints vice president for communications, directed comment to SageWest itself. In a statement sent in response to detailed questions from the Star-Tribune, SageWests marketing director Lindsey Anderson said the hospital was not aware of any billing errors and that it expected the tribe to pay many patient claims that have not been paid to date. Certain inmates are allowed out for parts of the day to go to work. Those inmates will sometimes fail to return to the facility when they are expected back. Fountaine, however, climbed a wall and chain-link fence before getting into an SUV and leaving the area, according to a search warrant request filed by law enforcement Dec. 29 in Natrona County Circuit Court. The search warrant request states that Belcher gave Fountaine a cellphone while he was in the facility. After Fountaine made his escape, his brother told law enforcement that Belcher and Fountaine were traveling to Texas together, the warrant request states. The center is a privately owned and operated facility that houses inmates completing prison stints. It sometimes serves as an enhancement to probationary sentences. The Wyoming Department of Corrections contracts with the GEO Group, a private prison company, to house inmates in the facility. In recent years, other workers at the facility have made news after prosecutors accused them of having sexual encounters with inmates. A Natrona County Sheriffs Office spokesman said Friday morning that the white SUV found in Georgia is the same one Belcher and Fountaine are thought to have left Casper in. Follow crime reporter Shane Sanderson on Twitter @shanersanderson Love 0 Funny 6 Wow 2 Sad 0 Angry 1 Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Young Anikha became the darling of moviegoers as a child artist with films like Sathyan Anthikkad's 'Katha Thudarunnu,' in which she debuted. In a short period, Anikha displayed her acting talents in several notable films in Tamil as well as Malayalam. Among Anikha's favourite pastimes is travelling and she shares interesting incidents from her trips with Onmanorama. A student of Class 9, Anikha eagerly looks forward to excursions from school. Trips with classmates and friends give me a special feeling. The latest trip from school was to Thiruvananthapuram. Our state capital is rich in all kinds of attractions, she says. "Padmanabha Swamy Temple, Kuthira Malika, Sanghumugham beach, Veli Tourist Village, Kovalam, Museum, zoo and Magic Planet were interesting. But it was the visit to Sanghumugham beach that was most thrilling," according to the young lass. She loved frolicking in the waves and spent a lot of time there. "When visiting a beach with family, I am not allowed to venture into the waters. My mother especially objects to my stepping into the water. I know that she is concerned over my safety, but the trips with friends are special," she elaborates. Travels for film shoots Most of Anikha's trips have been as part of film shooting. "I am lucky to travel to several interesting places in various parts of India. The other states present a diverse culture. Ever since learning about Indias history, languages, places of importance, food and traditions in school, I wanted to learn more about these topics," she says. Among the places Anikha has visited as part of shooting are Rajasthan, West Bengal, Punjab, Sikkim and Delhi. "The culture of those places attracted me," adds the actress. In Rajasthan, Anikha found Jodhpur and Jaipur most interesting. "Rajasthan is a colourful paradise where there is a desert as well as dense forests," she explains. In Jodhpur, called the 'Blue City,' even the forts, temples and houses are painted in blue colour. This colour would captivate any traveller during the first visit itself," informs Anikha. She has vivid memories of the trip to Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim also. "The journey as well as the stay in Gangtok was splendid. Houses with pagoda-shaped roofs, the scenery of the hill station and the natural beauty of the place offer fantastic sights," says Anikha. Trips with family As her parents and other close relatives are busy most of the time, family trips have been few and far between for the young actress. "Munnar is the destination where more than one trip took place with family. I simply adore that place. The cold and mist can be experienced at the same place," says Anikha. "We stay at least two to three days at a resort during every trip to Munnar. One never gets weary of the sights in the destination. Rolling hillocks that extend in every direction remind you of a landscape painting on canvas; the mist-covered paths and the pleasant weather all make the place unique," Anikha describes Munnar's attractions. "The natural beauty of the hill station is indescribable, especially the small water falls among the rocks," continues the actress. Malappuram's Ooty Anikha belongs to Malappuram district in Kerala and goes for an outing with family to nearby places during every weekend. "Many people feel that Malappuram lacks attractions. However, there are in fact numerous tourist spots in my district. Among them, my favourite is Arimbra hill, locally referred to as 'Mini Ooty.' It is situated at an altitude of about 1,050 feet above sea level. Along with people belonging to Malappuram, the hill station witnesses a steady stream of visitors from other places too," she informs. "Stunning natural scenery is the main draw of Arimbra. A mist surrounds the place most of the time. I became more familiar with the place during a film shooting. It is an area that will inspire you to make repeat visits," elaborates Anikha. The highlight of a visit to Arimbra is the sight from the view point on the hill, adds the youngster. Her dream Even though Anikha is still a school student, she has been fortunate to travel to most of the major destinations in the country. "I thank cinema for this. But I wish to travel to more interesting spots, including Maldives, Mauritius, New York, London and Paris. I have enjoyed watching videos and photos of these places and plan to travel there one day. It is in fact my dream that I have to realize in future. There is plenty of travelling left and I certainly will make my dream come," stresses the young actress. Another pro tip for getting what you want: Don't loudly and publicly take personal responsibility for negative consequences that would result from a breakdown of negotiations. With television cameras running, Trump boasted that everyone should blame him for a shutdown. Polls show this is exactly what the public has done, and Trump's numbers will surely get worse as the effects of the shutdown on families and communities become more dire. The Democratic proposal -- fund the government while continuing to debate border security and the wall -- is eminently reasonable. But Trump is scared. He went back on the original deal after the far-right commentariat went ballistic. The president must realize that having failed to get funding for the wall when his party had control of both chambers of Congress, he is less likely to get it following a blue-wave midterm election that gave Democrats the House. But Trump doesn't want Limbaugh, Coulter, et al. wailing to his base that their hero has surrendered to the snowflakes and given up on "the wall," which from the beginning was more of a rallying cry than a serious proposal. Trump's approval numbers have always been underwater, but as long as he retains overwhelming support among Republicans, he can expect GOP senators to worry that crossing him would amount to political suicide. Bordering villages at a high risk of erosion Half a dozen villages near the Nepal-India border area in Parashuram Municipality, in Dadeldhura district, are at a high risk of soil erosion. He said the Leapfrog survey, which he considers the "diamond standard" for rating hospitals, is an indicator. It is crucial the RMC participates in the survey, he said. "You go to school, you are in class every day, a test is administered," Richburg said. "You have an option. You take the test and you are given a grade. If you don't take the test, you fail the test. Our decision was to do that, which I felt strongly against. But that was the decision of the previous administration." He noted that the survey's grading does not necessarily look at safety incidents but at volumes of a given procedure over a period of time and is taken from data going back two years. The survey is not an accurate indicator of the hospital's safety record, Richburg said. "I would not be apprehensive about coming here to receive health care, (and I would not bypass coming) here or (go) to Columbia" he said. "I may have that option but I am not going to do that. I feel more than comfortable in coming to RMC for good health care. I think that is going to continue." Richburg stressed that quality at the Regional Medical Center needs to be from the top down. Colonels William Mellard Bill Connor and W. Thomas Smith Jr. have been named to the National Security Task Force of the newly formed South Carolina Floodwater Commission. Their appointments were effective Dec. 27, 2018. Connor, an Orangeburg-based attorney and U.S. Army Reserve Infantry officer (Airborne Ranger), is a decorated combat veteran and former senior U.S. military adviser in Helmand Province, Afghanistan. He currently serves as the Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer (EPLO) for S.C. As EPLO, Connor is the ranking military representative of U.S. Army North for the Palmetto State. Connor also frequently writes for The T&D. Smith, a retired S.C. Military Department officer and former U.S. Marine Corps Infantry leader, counterterrorism instructor and SWAT team officer in the nuclear industry, is a professional writer, a New York Times bestselling editor and an internationally acclaimed military technical consultant. A veteran war correspondent, Smith has covered the conflict in the Balkans and throughout the Middle East (twice in Iraq during the war). Orangeburg-Calhoun Technical College is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a series of free family movie nights featuring films that were released in or are about 1968, the year OCtech opened its doors to students. The series continues on Thursday, Jan. 17, with Parts I and II of CNNs 1968: The Year That Changed America, which looks back at a year marked by seismic shifts in American politics, social movements and global relations, including cultural icons who forever changed the landscape. Other dates and titles in the series are: Thursday, Jan. 31 1968: The Year That Changed America, Parts III and IV Thursday, Feb. 14 A race car driver becomes a champion with a Volkswagen Beetle with a mind of its own in The Love Bug. Movies begin at 6:30 p.m. in Roquemore Auditorium on the OCtech campus. Free popcorn and bottled water will be served. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Bamberg County First Steps Children and Parents Sharing Program has earned a prestigious endorsement by Parents as Teachers National Center as a Blue Ribbon Affiliate, making it one of the top performing home visiting affiliates within the international Parents as Teachers network. The official designation was made on Oct. 1. Being named a Blue Ribbon Affiliate affirms that the program is a high-quality member of the home visiting field, implementing the evidence-based Parents as Teachers model with fidelity. Families in the Bamberg community are positively impacted by the services delivered by this program, which include home visits, group connections, child screening and connections to community resources, equipping parents with knowledge and resources to prepare their children for a stronger start in life and greater success in school. Tate stated that the condition of the roof was OK, but it still needed to be replaced. The galvalume roof was up there previously. I think it was from the 90s. For the most part that galvalume roof was OK. But it had some exposure problems at the hips where wind had lifted some portions. And of course, we came here right after one of the recent hurricanes where it had ripped off a whole hip corner cover, he said. We knew we were going to replace the roof, and the question was what kind of roof would we go back with? Tate said. Through discussions and pros and cons, copper, while its more expensive than other roofs, it has a durability that can be greater than 60 years. In this environment, it works extremely well and its one that the county shouldnt have to worry about. In that process, we decided to eliminate the built-in gutters. We roofed over them, we covered them with copper, and then hung external gutters. If the external gutters get leaves and debris in them, and they get clogged, water will only spill into the outside and wont actually spill into the building, he stated. Renovations to the courthouse included: The installation of a new copper roof. Restoration of the wood cornice. SPARTANBURG The South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind Foundation has a new leader. The foundations board of trustees has appointed Samuel Hook to serve as executive director of the statewide, non-profit organization. Hook most recently served as president of development for The Palladian Group located in downtown Spartanburg. He also served six years as executive director of the Spartanburg Community College Foundation. Hooks experience extends well beyond South Carolina having held executive level fundraising positions in five states. He began his career as a Methodist minister and served as an Army chaplain with the Tennessee National Guard for seven years. We were fortunate to find an individual with such a broad range of fundraising experience coupled with the compassion of a former minister, said Lynne Burton, foundation board chair. Were looking forward to working with Sam to meet the needs of the students attending the SC School for the Deaf and the Blind and the children served through the schools statewide outreach division. Claflin welcomed new students to the University during its Spring 2019 New Student Orientation week activities. University administrators, faculty, staff and orientation leaders led information sessions and other activities to acclimate students to the University Jan. 8-10. Terrence Weeks, a mass communications major from Columbia, S.C., and Niela Elmore, a business management major from Orangeburg, both expressed their excitement about attending a HBCU. "I feel like here, you're not just a number, it's more personable. I'm looking forward to the academics and seeing what opportunities will come from enrolling at Claflin," Weeks said. "I'm actually transferring from another school, so I'm excited to get involved on campus and with the other students," Elmore said. Exchange student Shahzadi Fatima is from the second largest city in Pakistan, Lahore, but she feels she can really make an impact by attending Claflin. "Claflin has some very iconic things here, and everyone has such a friendly nature," Fatima said. "I'm excited to take all the courses that I've selected and to see what difference can be brought in Pakistan by starting here. I want to see how I can serve my country by starting here at Claflin." It is one of the great privileges of my career to share the podium with the great Joe Flummerfelt. I am equally gratified that he will be conducting the ensemble created to honor my parents. What a special moment for the Taylor Festival Choir. Taylor said. Musical America's 2004 Conductor of the Year, Flummerfelt's musical artistry has been acclaimed in many of the world's concert halls for nearly 40 years. He is founder and musical director of the New York Choral Artists, an artistic director of Spoleto Festival USA, and for 33 years was conductor of the world-renowned Westminster Choir. A gifted orchestral conductor, Flummerfelt has conducted more than 50 performances with the Spoleto Festival Orchestra in Italy and in the U.S. He has also appeared as guest conductor with the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, the Juilliard Symphony Orchestra, and the San Antonio and Phoenix Symphonies. The Taylor Festival Choir is a professional chamber choir based in Charleston. Founded and conducted by Robert Taylor, the choir is inspired by the life and career of Bob Taylor, the conductors late father and a noted choral musician and pedagogue. Since its inception in 2001, the Taylor Festival Choir has toured and been heard in prestigious venues and festivals throughout the U.S., and has garnered a reputation of excellence among critics and choral specialists alike. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The business community is united: it is time for South Carolina to overhaul its broken tax structure, including the unfair property tax system, and we are ready to partner with stakeholders from across the state to get it done, said Lou Kennedy, S.C. Chamber of Commerce chair and president and CEO of Nephron Pharmaceuticals. Tax reform is going to make South Carolina more competitive, and that is a win for families and businesses." 2019 Competitiveness Agenda Comprehensive Tax Reform South Carolinas business tax climate is ranked 35th least competitive in the nation. Taxpayers need a modernized, simplified and more competitive system as proposed in the Chambers Road Map for Tax Reform. 1. Simplify and lower the 7 percent personal income tax rate. South Carolinas top marginal rate is the highest in the Southeast and kicks in at $14,860. In many cases the effective rate is also the highest in the Southeast. 2. Update and modernize the sales tax base to lower other taxes. South Carolina and Virginia have the narrowest sales tax bases in the Southeast. I missed J.B. Pritzkers impromptu speech to a gathering of Republicans last week by a few minutes. But the fact that Pritzker even stopped by the event, hosted by Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady and House Republican Leader Jim Durkin, was notable in and of itself. As one top Republican said after Pritzkers speech, just imagine Gov. Bruce Rauner showing up to speak about bipartisanship and then heap praise House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton at a Democratic reception. If you cant imagine such a thing, well, that was the Republicans whole point. It never would have happened (Rauner did show up for a Black Caucus event his first year in office, but he used the occasion to bash the Democratic Party, which didnt exactly go over too well). The Republicans have every right to be demoralized in Illinois. They hold no statewide office, their party lost two suburban congressional seats and they are now firmly in the super-minority in both the House and Senate. And yet, in conversations with both Republican legislative leaders last week, it seemed pretty clear to me they were both pleased and optimistic about finally having a governor they believe they can work with. Bee tourism can create plenty of buzz Beekeeping or apiculture has always been an important income generating activity in many places, particularly in the rural hill and mountain regions. And this activity could be transformed into bee tourism or apitourism, a move that could have a large impact at the village levels, bee farmers and concerned stakeholders said. In the years since, the only thing that has changed is the occupant in the White House. Its time for Democrats in Congress to work seriously with President Trump and Republicans to keep our communities safe and uphold the rule of law. After all, that's what they used to want. Perhaps the most frustrating part of the crisis at our southern border is that this situation was entirely preventable. Last year, I joined with other members in the House in voting for two bills that secured the border once and for all, reformed the broken asylum process, resolved the problem of family separation, and provided long-term certainty to those who were brought here as children. Unfortunately, that legislation was bogged down by partisan politics from extreme ends on both sides of the aisle. Turn the calendar to one year later, and the crisis has only gotten worse. The Washington politicians who once claimed support for a barrier along our southern border are now calling it immoral. And with each passing day, the government shutdown adds a day to its already record length. Though few used the term "trauma," in her interviews, Vargas found people were "extremely conscious of what others were going through. If you asked someone about their own experience they would tell you about their neighbors or family members, she said. As some residents relocate, or struggle to pick up the pieces, "the feeling of community that has been lost can be as significant as the structures," Vargas said. This is the first time Vargas, an SIUC Chancellors Scholar, has done anthropological fieldwork. It has been so rewarding and energizing, Vargas said. Its made me a better researcher, a better writer, and its gotten me really interested in policy. With most of his interviews now finished, Barrios plans to create an interactive map that shows how neighborhoods throughout Houston experienced Harvey differently. Hes also got plans for a book that tells the story of Harvey from the diverse perspectives of the Houstonians he met, examining the political policies and social factors that contributed to the disaster. I hope this can lead to more citizen engagement, Barrios said. My task as a scholar is to present information to the public, so they can make informed decisions, and understand whats at stake when they vote. Love 0 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. CARBONDALE Snow continued to fall as the sun came up Saturday after the first powder of the year lay about half a foot thick in parts of Southern Illinois. A winter storm warning was in effect for much of the region Friday as the National Weather Service projected upwards of more than half a foot of snow, particularly in the northern portion of Southern Illinois from Friday through Saturday. Schools got out early and grocery stores boomed as people readied for the first real storm of the winter season. According to charts from NOAA in Paducah, Randolph County east to the Indiana border and north to Mount Vernon were still under a storm warning Saturday while portions south to Cape Girardeau and east to Indiana were merely under an advisory. Snow transitioned into rain, some of it freezing rain, on Saturday with travel conditions still forecast to be slick in places. NOAA warned travelers to be on the look out for small, additional accumulations of snow as well as the potential for light icing. Local law enforcement praised the Illinois Department of Transportations efforts to keep main arteries clear into the night as snow came down. Stephens said he has sent inspectors out and they came back with a count: At least 16 trailers are not occupied and are likely uninhabitable, and another 15 need to be demolished. The other 60, he said, are inhabitable but have other comparatively more minor code violations. This is unacceptable for our community to allow this to go on, Stephens said. The people that live there deserve to have a quality of life and representation of government as anyone else. On top of the living conditions, Stephens said there have been shady dealings of various kinds. One story stuck out. He said a resident came to him saying that he had purchased a trailer from a man who owned two lots there. He paid $8,000 for the mobile home after receiving payment, the seller disappeared. Stephens said the resident told him that when the new owners took over, they asked who they were and why the family was there. The resident explained that they purchased the trailer from a former resident. After a document check, the new owners said that man had never even lived there and had no rights to sell the property they had been scammed. Take two unique backgrounds ... one, a landscape architect with a knack for designing and building patios, pergolas and outdoor kitchens. The other, a retired chiropractor finding himself gaining construction skills as he turns fixer-uppers into quality rental homes. Add in a the family connection of a father and the man who married his daughter and the perfect team is the result the Southern Illinois Home Team. This Carterville-based company made up of former landscaper Justin Vancil and his father-in-law, John McConnaughy widely known in the region as Dr. John, a chiropractor of 33 years has offered home remodeling, repairs, custom woodworking and handyman services for four years. We get into all types of different work, Vancil said. We do anything from a small addition and bathroom and kitchen remodels to custom decks, porches and more. Vancil says once the pair got to working together, the business grew quickly. Weve found a really good niche, I think. There are lots of guys around here who build homes, but few that focus on remodeling and the things we do. Its really just taken off for us from word of mouth. He adds that it hasnt hurt that people have known Dr. John throughout the area for many years. 4 Nepalis arrested in Kuwait for illegally operating liquor store Kuwait police have arrested four Nepalis for illegally operating a liquor store. The arrested individuals include two male and two female. Is this Seattle Penny Pot Stock a Potential Blockbuster? (Ad) A small, rapidly expanding Seattle cannabis company is gaining attention from investors. Founded by two cannabis veterans, the company has increased sales 8-fold and is looking to double sales again in the next two years. Now selling for less than $1 per share, this is an opportunity to acquire thousands of shares a potential windfall. Get Free Report on #1 Cannabis Pick for 2021 For one, though the Robinsons were considered working class, they lived with their great-aunt and uncle in a home that eventually became her mother and fathers. This stability allowed the Robinsons to, as Michelle put it, make the kids the familys sole focus. Both her parents worked and, by the time Michelle was in high school, had been married nearly 20 years. Neither one of them had ever vacationed in Europe. They never took beach trips or went out to dinner. ... We were their investment, me and Craig. Everything went into us, Obama wrote. Plus, the Robinson kids had all kinds of social capital. Like preternaturally excellent parents who believed in letting their children manage their own affairs even when they were young. And access to piano lessons and recitals in downtown Chicago auditoriums given by their great-aunt who, incredibly, long ago sued Northwestern University for discrimination after having been denied a spot in the womens dorm. There were also several other relatives who had the experience of working in respectable if not well-paying professions. There were trips to visit family in the South as well as to see relatives who had managed to move to the majority-white, well-heeled suburbs of Chicago. Whether 400,000 or 10 million, the wall's defenders are all going to need chain armor. And many must be trained in the most fearsome weapon of medieval times: the trebuchet. This monster, 100 feet tall and thousands of pounds, can hurl huge projectiles 1,000 feet. Cancel the F-35 contract. Lockheed Martin is going to have to build these suckers by the thousands. On the positive side, my experts said it will not be necessary to stock the moats with alligators (this was a Hollywood invention) nor to hurl diseased animal carcasses at the migrants (ineffective). This is all going to cost well more than the $5.7 billion Trump has requested for the wall and requires mass conscription of civilians. But if we don't win the medieval arms race, we risk a bloody repeat of the Sassanian Siege of Amida in 359, when Romans holding the city were overrun and killed (much as Trump claims illegal immigrants are doing to Americans). Of course, there is an easier way to protect our wall. We could use drones, ground-penetrating radar and that newfangled invention called "gunpowder." But this would defeat the very purpose of building a wall in the first place: the frivolous novelty of using a fifth-century solution to a 21st-century problem. Ironically, the main evidence offered to support these charges of Khashoggis links to Qatar is a Dec. 22 story in the Post by Souad Mekhennet and Greg Miller. The Qatar Foundation link was hardly a secret; I mentioned it in a long column about Khashoggi that appeared on Oct. 12, 10 days after he disappeared in Istanbul. Even MBS strongest supporters in the U.S. appear concerned by the new social-media campaign. Ali Shihabi, the head of the Saudi-backed Arabia Foundation, commented in an email to me Thursday: I have no idea who is behind this new campaign, but it certainly does not seem wise. He argued that despite a concerted campaign funded by Qatar and others ... the kingdoms media organs had so far exercised great self-control since the Jamal tragedy, and I would hope that continues. The videos and web postings in the new campaign all have the professional feel of modern media studios in Dubai. According to a Saudi source, Qahtani recently made two trips to the United Arab Emirates, even though he is supposedly under house arrest in Riyadh. The trips couldnt be confirmed independently. The Treasury Department said Nov. 15 in sanctioning Qahtani that he was part of the planning and execution of the operation that led to Khashoggis death. We know that throughout Washington state, we are facing enormous challenges that are very costly, Franz said. Weve got education, weve got mental health, weve got affordable housing, weve got infrastructure. All of those are competing needs, and theyre significant needs. What people may not be aware of is how much it actually costs us to fight fires, she continued, saying the state spends upwards of $150 million a year fighting fires, far exceeding her budget request. The state has also developed a 20-year plan for portions of the state east of the Cascades that calls for the treatment of 1.25 million acres of forestland that has been prioritized based on proximity to population centers. Rep. Timm Ormsby, the Spokane Democrat who chairs the state House of Representatives Appropriations Committee, said its still too early to say for certain how much of Franzs request could be included in the states budget. But, he said, Franz who is also a Democrat has earned high marks from state lawmakers and local fire officials for her responsiveness to their concerns. This one is a big one because its so obvious, Ormsby said, referring to the wildfire efforts. You can see the fires and smell the smoke I cant tell you how that translates into policy and budgets. The goal, she said, is to equip officers across the bureau with cameras by October 2020.Mayer is a former U.S. Air Force security forces officer and commander who joined the Police Bureau in October 2015 and spearheaded the rollout of a new regional law enforcement computer records management system. She said she recognizes shes repeating a process that others in the Police Bureau have already undertaken and will incorporate the earlier public comments on body cameras in the renewed effort. Questions to work out, she said, include: Determining who will wear the cameras, when they must be turned on or shut off, how long to keep the footage and whether officers can view the video before writing reports or getting interviewed for internal affairs inquiries. U.S. District Judge Michael H. Simon, who monitors the citys settlement with the U.S. Justice Department over police use of force against people with mental illness, has voiced support for the cameras. In a 2014 ruling approving the agreement that called for police reforms, he wrote: If lawmakers pass the proposal, people who ignore it could face severe penalties. For example, anyone who possessed a firearm without a permit could be fine up to $6,250 and sentenced to as much as 364 days in jail. Its one of 11 bills dealing with firearms that are scheduled to be introduced on Monday, when lawmakers and Gov. Kate Brown return to Salem to be sworn in for their new terms. The Legislative session begins Jan. 22. Not all of the bills would regulate guns. For example, House Bill 2287 would allow school districts to allow firearm safety courses on school property. In a press release on Friday, Rep. Bill Post, a Republican from Keizer, said the ammunition purchase limit would make it difficult for gun owners to become proficient and should worry duck hunters. Post also said he was worried the bills ban on magazines to hold more than five rounds of ammunition would mean your old six-shot revolver would be required to be turned in or destroyed. However, the bill exempts .22-caliber revolvers and any lever-action revolver. However, the board is waiting to choose between a 650- or 950-student school at Lexington. Plans for the smaller building were released in October, while plans for the larger building were released in December. The Lexington decision will likely determine the districts ultimate bond plans. Tack said its important to provide time for school staff and community members to review and respond to the designs before the board makes its decision. She anticipates the board will vote on the matter at its Jan. 28 meeting. Also Monday the board will vote to approve the bond-funded projects at Kelso High School, which include renovations for the trades program and replacing the main gym floor and bleachers. These projects are estimated to cost about $3.3 million, which is about $600,000 under budget, Westlund said in a district memo to the board. The district is set and ready to being the bidding process for these projects, Tack said, and construction is scheduled to being in the summer. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Kelso High School media center (1904 Allen Street). It will be preceded by a public work session about the elementary school schematic designs, starting at 4:30 p.m. Love 3 Funny 1 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 6 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Every two to three years were were picking up and starting all over somewhere else, MacLeod said. During that time, MacLeod wrote letters to her high school friend, Jan Hughes. Though the women have been friends for more than 60 years, Hughes had not seen any of MacLeods paintings until Saturday, when she drove down from Whidbey Island to stop by the Koth Gallery. In her letters, shes said she was painting, but I didnt have a clue. I was just prepared to say something nice, Hughes said with a laugh, But they just took my breath away. I wasnt prepared for the quality and range and skill level. Other gallery visitors Saturday commended MacLeod on her ability to paint beautiful landscapes, but also portraits and more contemporary pieces. Its a dream, MacLeod said of the show. If it encourages someone and brings happiness to their life, then it was worth it. MacLeods is the first of about nine shows scheduled in the Koth Gallery this year. Gallery Coordinator Daniel Tate said the library usually rotates in a new artist every month. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Trot Insider has learned that Al Aikin of Angus, Ont. passed away peacefully on Friday, January 11 at the age of 77 after a long battle with diabetes. Aikin was a longtime harness racing industry participant, most recognized through his operation of the paddock kitchens at both Barrie Raceway and Georgian Downs. Al will be sorely missed by his many friends. A celebration of Al's life will take place at a date yet to be determined this coming spring, with further details to be posted when available. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Al Aikin. We are sorry, but, the blog or user you are looking for can not be found. Checkout some of the blogs in our showcase. Robert Gilpin, R.I.P. - The Washington Post : His greatest book was written in 1981, but the main theory in it is perhaps more trenchant now... President Donald Trumps National Security Council called on the Pentagon to provide military options to strike Iran last year, reports the Wall Street Journal. The report, which cites unnamed current and former U.S. officials, claims the request sparked concern among officials at both the Pentagon and the State department. It definitely rattled people, a former senior administration official told the paper. People were shocked. It was mind-boggling how cavalier they were about hitting Iran. The request from the council, which is led by National Security Adviser John Bolton, came after a group of militants with ties to Iran fired mortars into the diplomatic section of Baghdad. That area includes the U.S. embassy but the mortars landed in a vacant lot and no one was injured. Even though no one was hurt, the mortars triggered unusual alarm in Washington, notes the Journal. There were meetings led by Bolton to discuss a possible response, and thats when the request for military options were requested. Although the Pentagon moved forward with the request, it isnt clear whether they were ever handed over to the White House or whether Trump even knew that the request had been made. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Many were surprised that the administration would even consider such a strong action for an attack that didnt hurt anyone. But some officials at least saw it as very serious. Mira Ricardel, the former deputy national security adviser, described it at a meeting as an act of war and called on the United States to react accordingly. Ricardel was forced out in November. Bolton, who took over the position of national security adviser in April is known as a hawk who has long advocated taking a stronger stance against Iran. Before joining the administration, Bolton often talked in favor of regime change in Iran, and wrote a 2015 New York Times op-ed that was titled To Stop Irans Bomb, Bomb Iran. At a time when President Donald Trumps relationship with Moscow is under the microscope, the Washington Post reveals a distressing fact: there are no detailed records of the commander in chiefs five personal meetings with President Vladimir Putin. Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to keep the details of his conversations with Putin hidden. And its to a degree that some experts have characterized as unprecedented. In one particularly galling example, Trump took the notes from his own interpreter. After a 2017 meeting in Hamburg, Trump told his interpreter not to discuss what had taken place behind closed doors with members of his own administration. So when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official went asking for more details about what had taken place in the more than two-hour sitdown, the interpreter declined to elaborate. That may have been the most extreme example, but its not that out of the ordinary considering there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Trumps face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years, notes the Post. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The secrecy is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous, said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state. It handicaps the U.S. government the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve and it also gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump. Lawmakers have also found the secrecy shocking and Rep. Eliot L. Engel, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has vowed to launch an investigation. The White House denied the characterization of the story. The Washington Post story is so outrageously inaccurate it doesnt even warrant a response, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement. Trump also denied it as nonsense during an interview with Fox News Saturday night. Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs, Trump said. He also dismissed suggestions that he would not release details of his conversations with Putin. I would. I dont care, he said. Im not keeping anything under wraps. I couldnt care less. President Donald Trump took time out of his Saturday night to call one of his favorite TV hosts, Jeanine Pirro. The two had a very amiable interview that lasted a little more than 20 minutes, throughout which, as expected, Pirro practically tripped over herself to be nice and friendly with the president. The conversation began with talk of the wall and Pirro very much pushing Trump to declare a national emergency. The two joined forces as a team in mocking Democrats for failing to come to an agreement that would hand Trump the funds to build his wall. Throughout the conversation, Pirro made Trump sound like the more reasonable voice in the room as she egged him on to declare a national emergency and ignore Democrats. I want to give them a chance to see if they can act responsibly, Trump said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The conversation then turned to the bombshell New York Times report that said the FBI launched an investigation into the president and whether he was acting as a Russian agent. Other outlets confirmed the report. So Im going to ask you, Pirro says with a laugh, Are you now or have you ever worked for Russia? Trump fired back: I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written. The president went on to note that those who read the article will see that they found absolutely nothing but the headline gave a different impression. Its called the failing New York Times for a reason. But then he goes on to make it seem that the substance of the story is accurate as he criticizes the FBI and James Comey, describing him and other top officials as corrupt while also defending his actions on Russia since becoming president. Advertisement Advertisement Obviously nothing was found, Trump said. And I can tell you this, if you ask the folks in Russia, Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any otherprobably any other president period, but certainly the last three or four presidents, modern day presidents. Nobodys been as tough as I have from any standpoint including the fact that weve done oil like weve never done it, were setting records in our country with oil, exporting oil and many other things. Trump went on to attack the Washington Post for its report that said Trump has worked to hide the details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin from members of his own administration. He dismissed the papers credibility, calling it the lobbyist for Amazon and saying that it is almost as bad, or probably as bad, as the New York Times. When Pirro asked why he would not release the details of his conversations with Putin, Trump said that he had no problem doing so. I would, I dont care, he said. Im not keeping anything under wraps. During President Donald Trumps Saturday night interview with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro, the conversation eventually turned to his potential Democratic opponents in the 2020 election. And while the president claimed he wasnt really concerned about any of the candidates who had tossed their hats in the ring so far, he dedicated a bit more attention to someone who hasnt actually announced his candidacy yet: former Vice President Joe Biden. Im not worried, Trump said. So far, I love the competition. I love what I see. The president expressed confidence that there will be a huge pool of DemocratsI heard as many as 32but none of them will be able to beat him because were doing too well. When Pirro asked him who he would like to run against, Trump said he didnt want to pick anyone out but then proceeded to talk about Biden. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement You know, a lot of people say Bidens doing OK, but he was always a 1-percenter. He was a 1 percent guy. He ran two or three times, he never got above 1 percent, Trump said. And then Obama came along and took him off the trash heap, and he became a vice president, and now hes probably leading. But hes basically a 1 percent guy. Hes weak. Advertisement Trump spoke on the same day as Axios reported that Biden had told some top Democrats that he was definitely running for president and has suggested that an announcement could come as early as Tuesday. If Im walking, Im running, he has apparently told some friends. But the outlet also said that Biden hasnt officially decided anything yet. That report came a few days after his youngest brother, Frank Biden, told the Palm Beach Post that he thought the former vice president would run. You can say that Frank thinks his brothers going to run. Now, he could surprise me, he said. But I know the familys behind him 100 percent. Biden hasnt been shy about making it clear he thinks hes the best person to move into the White House. I think Im the most qualified person in the country to be president, Biden said during a book tour event in Montana last month. The issues that we face as a country today are the issues that have been in my wheelhouse, that Ive worked on my whole life. Julian Castro, long seen as a rising star within the Democratic Party, officially launched his campaign for president Saturday by criticizing President Donald Trump for a crisis of leadership. Castro, a 44-year-old former mayor of San Antonio and U.S. housing secretary during President Barack Obamas second term, is likely to be the youngest candidate from a major party as well as the only Latino who will seek to become commander in chief. Castro highlighted his Mexican-American heritage at his campaign launch in the city he once led on Saturday as he was introduced by his mother and most of the supporters who had gathered to hear him were Hispanic. His twin brother, Rep. Joaquin Castro, who is the chairman of the Hispanic congressional caucus was present for the campaign launch. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When my grandmother got here almost a hundred years ago, Im sure she never could have imagined that just two generations later, one of her grandsons would be serving as a member of the United States Congress and the other would be standing with you here today to say these words: I am a candidate for President of the United States of America, Castro said in a statement. Castros first official stop as a presidential candidate will be in Puerto Rico, which will give him plenty of opportunity to criticize the current occupant of the White House. Im running for president because its time for new leadership. Because its time for new energy, Castro said. And its time for a new commitment to make sure that the opportunities Ive had are available for every American. Advertisement Even though Castros profile has long been seen as appealing to an increasingly diverse Democratic Party, he is still a longshot contender considering most people dont actually know him. By holding his formal presidential announcement so early in the race he is at least assuring himself a bit of media coverage in what is expected to be a very crowded field of Democrats. And some are suggesting that Castro is playing the long game, as Politico puts it, launching a presidential campaign with the goal of ending up as the running mate. Castro, whose grandmother was born in Mexico, has harshly criticized Trumps policies at the border. Yes, we must have border security, but there is a smart and humane way to do it. And there is no way in hell that caging children is keeping us safe, Castro said. Castro also rejected Trumps characterization that there was any kind of invasion from Mexico. He called it a national security crisis, Castro said. Well, there is a crisis today. Its a crisis of leadership. Donald Trump has failed to uphold the values of our great nation. Ron Prestage admits he is a bit nervous about the opening of his companys hog processing plant, scheduled for March 4. We had originally planned to start next week, but things got delayed for a variety of reasons, he said. The technology in this plant is incredible, so there are still some things we need to do before we can get rolling. The Prestage Foods plant, located near Eagle Grove, Iowa, will add an additional 10,000 pigs per day in capacity for Midwestern producers, or roughly 50,000 per week. Prestage said with a faster line speed, that capacity could grow to 12,000 hogs processed per day. We have told our contractors that we will start taking hogs the first week of March, he said. We are doing that even though it means taking our own hogs to other markets. The contracted pigs are our priority. The north central Iowa plant will eventually employ between 400 and 450 people, Prestage said. He said 50 to 60 have already been hired and will oversee production. Im scared to death when it comes to labor, Prestage said. We are trying to hire a secure and stable labor force, and Im confident we can get that labor to start the plant. We just need to be able to keep it. America's federal debt is closing in on $22 trillion. Twenty-two trillion. A strategy of deficits and rising debt is unsustainable. At some point, our country must give this problem the attention it deserves through what will be a difficult, but essential national conversation. The 2020 campaign for president forming in Iowa strikes us as a good place to start. In anticipation of next year's first-in-the-nation caucuses, visits to Iowa by potential presidential candidates have begun. Their numbers and the frequency of their visits will grow as the calendar pages turn. What is predicted to be a large field of perhaps nearly two dozen candidates seeking to be the Democratic Party's nominee against President Trump will make obligatory promises. Most, if not all of them will involve spending money. Lots of money. The question to which Iowans should demand an answer in response to candidate wish lists: How will you pay for everything you propose? It's easy for candidates to make broad pledges. What we as Iowans should do is pin them down on how exactly they intend to fulfill them. The problem is that Trump has repeatedly rejected deals on the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. And the same anti-immigrant voices who pushed Trump to shutter the government have put him on notice that they would see concessions of this sort as a sell-out. Right wing commentator Ann Coulter tweeted her spleen last Sunday by referring to Jared Kushner, Trump's son-in-law thought to be interested in a deal, and Neville Chamberlain, the British prime minister famous for appeasing Hitler: "If Kushner (Trump) trades amnesty for a wall, history books will have to be pulled from the shelves to replace 'Neville Chamberlain' with 'Donald Trump.'" Trump is willing to keep hundreds of thousands of government workers idle and unpaid. He lacks the guts to stand up to Coulter and her allies. Which means that the only path forward is for sensible souls to pressure McConnell and other Senate Republicans to stop enabling the blusterer-in-chief and put bills on Trump's desk to reopen the government. Already, at least three Republican senators (with others titling that way) have said it's time to do this. More should join them. On Fox News after Trump's speech, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., warned that if Republicans "undercut the president, that's the end of his presidency and the end of our party." Graham was at best half-right. Yes, Republicans might humiliate Trump by forcing him to acknowledge that this whole business is a fool's errand. But in doing so, they would be taking a step toward rehabilitating a party that has regularly abetted the depredations of a man who cares only about the spotlight and a totem he claimed Mexico, not American taxpayers, would finance. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Sioux City Kip Lennon, 64, of Sioux City, died unexpectedly Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018. A memorial gathering will be noon to 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 27, at El Fredo Pizza, 523 West 19th Street, in Sioux City. Arrangements are under the direction of Meyer Brothers Colonial Chapel. Kip was a devoted daughter, wife, mother, grandmother and loyalist to all of her many friends. Kip is survived by her husband, John; children, Jessica Borg, Libby (Jake) Bouma, and Fred (JoAnn) Lennon; grandchildren, Grayson Bouma age, 3, and Riley Lennon, age 2; siblings, Jim Grego and Ted Grego; and nieces, nephews, other relatives, and many friends. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the Siouxland Humane Society. A supervisor noticed his discontent and asked Ladwig if he'd try welding. Ladwig did. He took a test, passed it and spent the next three years welding for Midwest. When a construction job opened at the plant, he threw his name in and earned the position. "I got to help build additions to the plant and all sorts of projects," he said. "Eventually, I became construction supervisor." Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Thirty years ago, Ladwig moved into Midwest's "special projects" position and he's been there ever since. Recently, the role had him executing the creation of a cedar ship's wheel at the entrance of Lake La June, an entrance that leads to the Hangar, the Chalet and the Bounty, a touristy boat on Lake La June, a boat where, for years, Ida Grove High School senior classes posed for their class picture. "I held pieces of the original wheel when it was built in 1972," Ladwig said, noting how the original was based on a sketch by Wally Hanson. Ray Williams did the turnings for the first wheel, one made of Douglas Fir. Mother Nature and Father Time wore down the original, causing the wood to rot, causing a piece to break off. When it was decided this fall to replace the wheel, Ladwig served as...well...captain for the project. SIOUX CITY -- "History at Nigh Noon: Founders of Sioux City," which will feature rarely seen, early Sioux City photographs, will be presented at 12:05 p.m. Thursday at the Sioux City Public Museum, 607 Fourth St. The free presentation, conducted by former museum curator Grace Linden, will share the history of the men and women who founded Sioux City 165 years ago this month. Sioux City traces its founding back to 1854 when the city was platted by government surveyor Dr. John K. Cook. Cook was also the president of the Sioux City Townsite Company that sold lots to early settlers and promoted the city. It wasn't until Jan. 16, 1857, however, that Sioux City became an incorporated city. Attendees are invited to bring their own lunches to the History at High Noon presentation. Copyright 2018 The Sioux City Journal. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. In the series, Peretti plays the police captains civilian assistant, Gina Linetti, someone who knows everything thats going on and, frequently, surprises with details about her own self-centered life. In reality, the 40-year-old California native doesnt have much time to dabble in Ginas narcissism. Having a baby helped me become way more concentrated and focused, she says. Ive been trying to write during his naps. Before he was born, Id spend an hour writing and then an hour on Twitter. Now, its like I get from 6:30 to 7. Work happens. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} During the shows last hiatus, Peretti played the lead in Spinster, a drama that shot in Canada. My first day I was crying at a cemetery in the middle of Nova Scotia with a child actor, she says. I wanted the movie to be a movie that if I had never gotten married it would have been cathartic for me. It was cool to inhabit that space. It also was a big step for the comedian who started on variety shows, wrote for Parks and Recreation and didnt really start acting until Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Ive always been a self-starter, Peretti says. Writing was her way into the business. Now, as she prepares to leave Brooklyn (she announced this will be her last season), shes looking for other opportunities. 125 Years Ago Library lights: The foundations for the city lighting plant dynamo and engine are in place. It has not yet been decided by the city light committee whether any of the city buildings, other than the library, will be lighted from this plant. Roundup time: Sioux City Chief of Police Hawman said the police have started another crusade against women of doubtful character, who have resorted to rooms in various parts of the city. Chief Hawman expressed his intention of keeping it up until the women are all driven out of town. Adoption available: The Woodbury County authorities are caring for a robust baby boy, aged one week, at the county poor farm where he was taken after being abandoned. It is the desire to have the little one adopted into a family who will give him a good home. 100 Years Ago By Geert De Clercq and Antony Paone PARIS (Reuters) - Paris police fired water cannon and tear gas to push back "yellow vest" demonstrators from around the Arc de Triomphe monument on Saturday, in the ninth straight weekend of protests against French President Emmanuel Macron's economic reforms. Thousands of protesters in Paris marched noisily but mostly peacefully through the Grands Boulevards shopping area in northern Paris, close to where a massive gas explosion in a bakery killed two firefighters and a Spanish tourist and injured nearly 50 people early on Saturday. But small groups of demonstrators broke away from the designated route and threw bottles and other projectiles at the police. Around the 19th-century Arc de Triomphe at the top of the Champs Elysees boulevard, riot police fired water cannon and tear gas at militant protesters after being pelted with stones and paint, witnesses said. Groups of protesters also gathered on and around the Champs Elysees, the scene of disturbances in recent weeks, many of them calling loudly for Macron to resign. "Macron, we are going to tear down your place!" one banner read. The Interior Ministry estimated that there were a maximum of about 84,000 demonstrators nationwide on Saturday - more than the 50,000 counted last week but well below the record 282,000 estimated on Nov. 17, the first day of the protests. In Paris, the ministry counted 8,000 demonstrators, more than in the past two weekends, when authorities tallied just 3,500 people on Jan. 5 and only 800 on Dec. 29. Much of central Paris was in lockdown on the first week of post-Christmas sales, with bridges across the Seine river closed and official buildings such as parliament and the Elysee presidential palace protected by police barriers. In Paris, 156 "gilets jaunes" (yellow vest) protesters were arrested, some for carrying objects that could be used as weapons, police said. As of 2000 GMT, 108 remained in custody. Nationwide, 244 people had been arrested, of which 201 remained in custody. Story continues By nightfall, there had been no looting or burning of cars as seen in previous weeks and traffic circulation had resumed around the Arc de Triomple area. NATIONAL DEBATE There were also thousands of marchers in the cities of Bordeaux and Toulon in southern France as well as Strasbourg in the east and the central city of Bourges. Bourges authorities said nearly 5,000 yellow vests stuck to the designated demonstration area. The historical city centre was off-limits for demonstrators, but some 500 protesters made their way to the centre where they scuffled with police and set garbage bins on fire. Many businesses in Bourges had boarded themselves up to avoid damage and authorities had removed street furniture and building site materials that could be used for barricades. In Strasbourg, up to 2,000 demonstrators gathered in front of the European Parliament building and later marched to the centre of the city on the Rhine river border with Germany. No serious violence or looting was reported there. More than 80,000 police were on duty for the protests nationwide, including 5,000 in Paris. The "yellow vests" take their name from the high-visibility jackets they wear. Their rage stems from a squeeze on household incomes and a belief that Macron, a former investment banker seen as close to big business, is indifferent to their hardships. Macron, often criticised for a monarchical manner, is to launch a national debate on Jan. 15 to try to mollify the yellow vest protest, which has shaken his administration. The debate, to be held on the internet and in town halls, will focus on four themes - taxes, green energy, institutional reform and citizenship. But aides to Macron have said changing the course of Macron's reforms aimed at liberalising the economy will be off limits. (Additional reporting by Caroline Pailliez and Emmanuel Jarry in Paris, Claude Canellas in Bordeaux, Mourad Guichard in Bourges and Gilbert Reilhac in Strasbourg; Writing by Geert De Clercq; Editing by Hugh Lawson) As the trade war between China and the United States rumbles on, its focus has shifted from deficits and surpluses towards more technological matters. Washington is not only demanding Beijing end its practice of forcing foreign joint venture partners to transfer technologies to their Chinese collaborators, but also scrutinising the work of Chinese researchers based in the US. In the third of a series of reports on these issues, we look at the how the US is using legislation to address its grievances. When it comes to the trade war against China, US President Donald Trump likes to wield one particularly big stick: a piece of legislation that allows him to take unilateral action, free from the constraints of international treaties and World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements, against another country. Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act may sound arcane to anyone not closely following the progress of the trade war negotiations, but in fact it is one of Washingtons most effective weapons in bringing pressure on Beijing. For the president to be able to take such action against another country, an investigation initiated under Section 301 must first establish that it is engaging in unfair trade policies. And, a month before Trump fired the first shot in his trade war against China last April, US Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer produced just such a report. Lighthizer nicknamed the trade war general by Bloomberg produced a 200-page document under Section 301 which reads like a charge sheet. It paints a sinister picture, accusing the Communist Party of carefully orchestrating an elaborate onslaught against American businesses to weaken the economic and technological advantages enjoyed by the US. The report provided the legal basis for Trumps escalating series of tariffs against Chinese imports, currently on hold at 10 per cent on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods, but threatened to rise to 25 per cent if the 90-day truce does not end in agreement. Story continues The USTR investigation was ambitious and extensive going far beyond the US trade deficit with China with almost every area of Chinas economic and investment activities coming under scrutiny, particularly those related to technology. The main allegations levelled against Beijing included forced technology transfer, discriminatory investment restrictions, predatory acquisitions, cyberattacks and espionage. Beijing has vehemently protested the reports findings and challenged the use of Section 301 at meetings of the WTO, which itself is coming under intense pressure from the Trump administration. The USTR feels Chinas intellectual property and technology transfer are practices that are not sufficiently covered under the World Trade Organisation. The WTO is not clear enough on these issues, said Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council. At least in my view, the Section 301 investigation is very significant. But what we hope from the [ongoing trade] negotiations is the lifting of Section 301 sanctions on March 2, he said. Some Chinese experts see the USTR report as an underhanded way to stop China from challenging US leadership in technology and the global economy. Even more moderate observers agree the report lacks verifiable evidence and seems to have selectively chosen data and examples to fit its narrative. Some cases, particularly those related to technology transfer and outbound investment, are misleading and exaggerated, they say. The US administration has labelled China as one of its two strategic competitors, and the USTR report highlights US concerns on intellectual property and state-owned enterprises, although many of its accusations are not factual, said Wang Huiyao, director of the Centre for China and Globalisation, a think tank based in Beijing. For instance, the USTR report omitted findings by the American Chamber of Commerce in China and the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China which showed intellectual property rights (IPR) protection had gradually improved, although much work remained to be done, he said. The EU Chamber of Commerce in China, in its 2018 Business Confidence Survey, noted that European business sentiment about IPR enforcement had shown a steady improvement in recent years, with the proportion of respondents who viewed IPR enforcement as adequate or excellent rising from 13 per cent to 34 per cent between 2013 and 2018. There is still progress to be made, however, with 29 per cent of respondents reported having suffered significant damage as a result of IPR infringement, the report said. In 2016 AmCham China published an article on its website that said that while IPR protection remained a significant problem, it had improved immensely since the 1990s, when it was the cause of major frictions between China and its trading partners. By last year, further improvements were reported by AmCham China in its 2018 American Business in China White Paper. China continues to promote an innovation-driven society. In line with this, several reforms have been made to improve IP protection, such as introducing specialised intellectual property courts, the revision of the trademark law and the patent law, and the incorporation of the plant variety protection concept into the seed law, AmCham China said. Although IP challenges receive considerable attention from Chinese authorities, significant issues continue to challenge both foreign and domestic companies operating in China. One Chinese trade policy adviser said that Beijing needed to seriously study the [USTR] report, including its 1,139 footnotes and to think if there is room to fix the shortcomings in its rules and industrial policies. No matter how mistaken or distorted the report is, this is a chance to create a [more] level playing field in China, he told the South China Morning Post. But the war of words rages on. In an update to its report in November, the office of the USTR said China did not respond constructively and failed to take any substantial actions to address US concerns. It said China had largely denied there were problems with its policies on technology transfer and intellectual property protection. Chinas Ministry of Commerce responded swiftly that the accusations in the updated Section 301 report were groundless and completely unacceptable. The bad industrial and trade practices documented in the USTR report are a key aspect of the negotiations which have been under way since December when China and the US agreed to the 90-day tariff ceasefire. While many economists in China agree Beijing should use the opportunity to restart its stalled economic reforms, they also see the Section 301 report as biased and unfair. The report was drawn largely from a public hearing and written submissions to the USTR, which sought comment from private sector advisory committees. It received about 70 written submissions from trade associations, US companies and workers, academics, think tanks and law firms. Chinese law and trade associations also submitted their opinions but these were largely disregarded in the final document. The following are some examples from the four key issues listed in the USTR reports: Unfair technology transfer In many sectors that Beijing considers important, it requires foreign companies to set up joint ventures with Chinese partners. Car manufacturing and new-energy vehicles are two sectors cited in the report as examples of how China is using that strategy to gain access to US technology. The report alleges that China is using complicated and non-transparent administrative approvals and licensing processes to force foreign companies to comply with its policy. Vaguely worded provisions and uncertainty about the applicable rules provide Chinese authorities with wide discretion to use administrative processes to pressure technology transfer, restrict investments to protect domestic competitors, or otherwise act in furtherance of industrial policy objectives, it said. In addition, China imposes administrative licensing requirements on more than 100 different business activities, such as food and drug production, mining, or telecommunications services, for all enterprises in China. The report claimed these information disclosure requirements put US companies at risk of sensitive information leaking, with some of the reviewing panellists drawn from their competitors. The USTR cited business surveys and studies, consultancies and Chinese government documents in the past decade to support its claim that China deliberately forced technology transfers. At a USTR public hearing in October 2017, Stephen Ezell, vice-president of global innovation policy at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, said China had tied General Motors access to government subsidies for electric vehicle purchases to the companys willingness to disclose key information about its electric hybrid car. Ford had been forced to do the same, he said. The Chinese side said the claim was exaggerated and not supported by concrete evidence. In response, Richard Ellings, of the Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property who was also cited in the report said most interviews had to be done in private and remained anonymous because companies were worried about possible reprisals by the Chinese government. The report quoted an annual member survey by the US-China Business Council in 2017, which found 19 per cent of companies polled had been directly asked to transfer technology to China in the previous year. But the Section 301 report did not say that the council also found that the request had come most frequently from a Chinese business partner, rather than a government entity. Of the companies that said they were asked to transfer their technologies, 33 per cent said the request came from a central government entity and 25 per cent said it came from the local government. China watchers said the numbers were not solid evidence but agreed that China could do more. Two US consultants based in Beijing said on condition of anonymity that part of the problem was the poor negotiation skills of US companies. Forced technology transfer is not a state-sponsored issue, although there may be one or two cases, said one. Part of the reason is insufficient preparation and the poor negotiation capabilities of US companies. Lu Xiang, a US specialist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said there was no national policy on forced technology transfer, but many Chinese partners may have acted aggressively to acquire technology from their foreign partners. Since the US has raised concerns, it is necessary for China to be more specific in its rules to eliminate any possible leeway, he said. A former trade official in Beijing said the fact some Chinese partners in these joint venture were state-owned companies made it difficult for them to convince the US side that contracts on technology transfer were based on market rules and voluntary principles. In a draft law on foreign investment unveiled in December, Chinas legislative body proposed to ban administrative authorities from forcing technology transfers from foreign companies and to offer equal opportunities for them to participate in drawing up industrial standards with domestic rivals. Discriminatory licensing restrictions The Section 301 report also criticised discriminatory restrictions faced by American businesses, with some laws and regulations such as the regulations on administration of the import and export of technologies (TIER) and contract law applying unequally to domestic and foreign firms. TIER imposes a number of procedural requirements that the contract law does not, it said, adding that the regulations imposed restrictions such as indemnity items and ownership in technology improvements on US companies to negotiate market-based terms for technology transfer into China. Under TIER, all technology import contracts must be notified to China and copies of such contracts provided. If such contracts are not duly notified as required, the foreign technology licencer is denied the ability to remit any royalty payments back to its home country, the report said. From the outset, foreign imported technology licensers, including US technology licensers, must meet obligations that are not imposed on their Chinese competitors under the contract law. The US did not provide examples to support the argument but a Chinese law professor, who declined to reveal his name due to a reluctance to criticise the government, admitted there was room for China to fix the conflicts in the laws. This is what China should eradicate the conflicts of rules and offer equal treatment, but this part matters little to the overall investigation, he said. Cyberattacks and cyberespionage Starting in 2008, experts expressed concern that Chinas cyberintrusions were becoming more frequent, more targeted, and more sophisticated, the USTR report said. Citing law enforcement and private sources, it said the Chinese government had gained access to trade secrets, technical data, negotiating positions, and sensitive and proprietary internal communications in the fields of oil exploration, shale gas technology and high-end steel production. Beijing, it said, provided the intelligence to Chinese state-owned enterprises through a process that includes a formal request and feedback loop, as well as a mechanism for information exchange via a classified communication system. The USTR report also cited a 2013 study by cybersecurity firm Mandiant that the Peoples Liberation Army stole data from at least 141 organisations, 115 of which were based in the US, representing 20 major business sectors, to support commercial interests in China. In another example included in the report, the US Steel Corporation filed claims of unfair trade actions under Section 337 of the 1930 Trade Act to the US International Trade Commission in 2016 against Chinas largest steelmaker Baosteel, claiming it was known to be one of the beneficiaries of Chinas state-sponsored cyberattacks. But the US Steel Corporation dropped the cyberattack claim in February 2017 due to a lack of evidence. Lu, the US specialist from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said China and the US had yet to a reach consensus on how to identify state-backed cyberattacks and the US had barely offered any evidence to China. The accusations are groundless, he said. Both countries really need to sit down and take the time to negotiate. There is still a long way to go. In its updated report in November, the USTR quoted cybersecurity firms and government reports that China had increased cyberattacks on the US in 2018, including hacking related to an Alaskan trade mission to China and around the US midterm elections. The accusations of cyberintrusion and cybertheft have expanded to include Australia, Germany, Japan and South Korea, with the USTR report citing Japan and Australia considering bans on Chinese hi-tech giants ZTE and Huawei. However, Arne Schoenbohm, head of Germanys Federal Office for Information Security, has expressed scepticism about the calls to boycott Huawei. He told news weekly Der Spiegel in December that the IT watchdog had found no evidence Huawei could use its facilities to spy for the Chinese government. For serious decisions such as a ban, you need evidence, Schoenbohm said, after his office examined Huawei products and visited its facilities in Bonn. Outbound investment Nearly 100 pages of the USTR report are devoted to Chinas outbound investment policies over the past two decades, from government approval procedures through financial support to attempts at acquiring foreign technologies. Despite Chinese participants in the public hearing asserting that all Chinese investment in the US was driven by market considerations rather than government policies, the USTR said it does not find these statements persuasive. The report quoted official US data on investment flows, as well as US research agencies such as Rhodium Group and the American Enterprise Institute, to assert that Chinas outbound investment had grown significantly in the technology and innovation-related sectors targeted by Chinese industrial policies. It also said Chinese state firms had played an important role in shaping these investment flows, with a quarter of acquisitions from 2000 to 2016 carried out by state firms, representing a 29 per cent share in the total transactional value, according to Rhodium data. In its updated report, the USTR said multiple data sources including Chinese and foreign media reports, data providers and company filings to stock exchanges had concluded that Chinas sustained interest in acquiring technology in the United States increasingly relies upon venture capital investment. The report reviewed in detail Chinas acquisitions in seven hi-tech sectors in the US: aviation, integrated circuits, information technology, electronics, biotechnology, industrial machinery and robotics, renewable energy and the car industry. It also listed 25 outbound acquisition projects conducted or led by Chinese state-owned companies. In short, the Chinese government has the means and authority to prevail (and does prevail) on Chinese firms on where to invest, what to invest, and how much to invest, the report concluded. Shou Huisheng, a researcher on international relations at Tsinghua University, said foreign companies were worried about losing competitiveness in the face of Chinese state intervention in outbound economic and investment activities. This has caused the US-China rivalry to escalate to a full-blown competition about ideology, he said. There have been voices in China to reform the state support model given the severe external situation we are facing, because a strong government hand will ultimately strangle enterprises ability to innovate. More than a trade imbalance Whatever the outcome of the US-China negotiations, it is clear from the wide-ranging claims of the report that the dispute is about much more than a trade imbalance. How effectively Beijing can address the concerns it raises may determine the success or otherwise of the talks and what happens after the current truce ends. Chinese government advisers have said that even though both sides want to find a solution to the trade war, it is unrealistic to expect Beijing to make any radical changes of its industrial and technology catch-up policies, while Washington is unlikely to stop boycotting Chinese technology. This article Why the US-China dispute is about so much more than a trade imbalance first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. More from South China Morning Post: A transatlantic tiff over Europe's natural gas supply came to the boil Sunday, as Donald Trump's ambassador to Germany threatened firms involved in a pipeline from Russia with sanctions. At stake is a mixture of economic and security interests for Moscow, Washington, Berlin and Paris -- with equally direct consequences for Ukraine and other eastern European nations. A letter envoy Richard Grenell sent to several businesses "reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector is in danger... of US sanctions," an embassy spokesman told AFP. The letter by Grenell, a close ally of President Donald Trump, "is not meant to be a threat, but a clear message of US policy," the spokesman said. Pressure has been mounting on Berlin for months to turn away from the under-construction pipeline, which is set to double the capacity of an existing connection beneath the Baltic Sea. Trump accused Germany last year of being "totally dependent" on and a "captive" of Moscow because of the natural gas supply. But the louder the volume of complaints from Washington, the more Berlin has dug in its heels. Chancellor Angela Merkel, backed by France and Austria, has in the past insisted the pipeline is a "purely economic project" that will ensure cheaper, more reliable gas supplies. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also weighed in on the transatlantic row last week, saying "European energy policy should be decided in Europe, not in the United States." The confrontation echoes European leaders' sticking to a 2015 deal with Iran to limit that country's nuclear programme. Trump has renounced the pact and threatened sanctions against EU firms doing business with Tehran. - 'Blackmail' - In an angry reaction from Russia Sunday, senator Alexei Pushkov tweeted that Trump was using "direct threats" to sell "more expensive American gas to Europe." The US embassy spokesman said that "the only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies." American officials argue that routing more gas through the Baltic and the planned TurkStream pipeline under the Black Sea will deprive Ukraine of vital transit income and isolate it from its allies. That could be bad news for Kiev, which saw the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014 and is battling Moscow-backed separatists in a conflict that has so far claimed over 10,000 lives. "Firms supporting the construction of the two pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe," ambassador Grenell wrote. US objections are shared by "nearly 20 European countries" such as vital EU member Poland, as well as the European Parliament and the US House of Representatives, the embassy spokesman said. Merkel -- a key player in Moscow-Kiev peace talks -- says Ukrainian interests will be protected as some Russian gas will still be transported via the country once Nord Stream 2 is online. - Gas ahoy - But Germany has also appeared to make concessions to Trump by looking into construction of liquid natural gas (LNG) terminals on its north coast to accept sea shipments from the US. Berlin was "studying options" to help fund gas facilities, Merkel spokesman Steffen Seibert said in October -- although he denied the government was caving to US pressure. Beyond Ukraine, Trump has explicitly linked his complaints over Russian gas to his push to get European members of the NATO alliance to spend more on defence. "Germany just started paying Russia, the country they want protection from, Billions of Dollars for their Energy needs coming out of a new pipeline," he tweeted in July. "Not acceptable!" Merkel has long since committed to reach the NATO defence spending target of 2.0 percent of GDP -- albeit by 2024. Last year, just 1.24 percent of Germany's output went on its military, compared with 3.5 percent for the US. South Korea to get its first F-35A stealth fighter jets in March. How will the North react? South Korea will receive its first F-35A stealth fighters in March, a milestone in the countrys effort to boost its defence capabilities despite a diplomatic thaw with its nuclear-armed neighbour North Korea. A South Korean military official said the first two jets would be combat-deployed in April or May and that 10 jets would be ready for deployment by the end of this year. The jets and their pilots have been put through their paces at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona, a training facility for the state-of-the-art jet fighter. South Korea is among a handful of US allies to buy the jet, including Japan and Australia. However the jet programme, which launched in 2001, has been plagued by cost overruns and technical problems. South Korea approved a deal in September 2014 to acquire 40 F-35As for about 7.3 trillion won (US$6.8 billion). By the end of 2021, all of the 40 F-35A strike fighters will be deployed, combat-ready as planned, the military official said. The F-35A is one of three variants of the aircraft, including the F-35C used aboard aircraft carriers. The jets have radar-evading capabilities and can perform ground-attack and air-superiority missions with a variety of precision weapons. That would give it a significant advantage over North Koreas air defences and fleet of ageing combat aircraft. However, it remains undecided whether South Korea will want to give its new F-35A jets a high-profile welcome ceremony when they are delivered in March. It may instead consider something more low key to avoid provoking the North following months of rapprochement that includes three inter-Korean summits and a meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. North Korea reacted angrily after high-ranking South Korean officials attended a ceremony in March last year for the first jets to roll off the assembly line at Lockheed Martins production facility in Fort Worth, Texas. Story continues The Souths war maniacs are indulging in a spending spree to buy F-35A Stealth jet fighters. This stems from an adventurous plot to stage a pre-emptive strike against us that goes along with US attempts to start a war, the ruling Workers Party daily, Rodong Sinmun, said at that time. South Korea, meanwhile, is pushing ahead with its 2019-2023 midterm defence project known as Defence Reform 2.0 to help to counter potential threats from North Korea and elsewhere. Souths defence ministry plans to spend 32 trillion won during this five-year period, up 30 per cent from the previous five-year period, the defence ministry said. This programme includes the F-35As, tactical surface-to-surface guided missiles, the upgrading of Patriot air-defence missile systems and strengthening other assets with surveillance and strike capabilities. The most outstanding point in the Defence Reform 2.0 is the shift of focus from threats from North Korea to overall security threats (including those from other countries), the ministry said. South Korean President Moon Jae-in last month called for a strong defence capability all the more although negotiations have been underway with the North. Peace is being made on the Korean peninsula but it is still a precarious peace, he said, urging the military not to lower its guard. This article South Korea to get its first F-35A stealth fighter jets in March. How will the North react? first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. More from South China Morning Post: Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:10-13 KJV. Former communist militant Cesare Battisti, wanted in Italy for four murders in the 1970s, began serving a life sentence in a Sardinian prison on Monday after an international police squad tracked him down and arrested him in Bolivia. Jailed in 1979 for belonging to an armed revolutionary group outlawed in Italy, Battisti escaped from prison two years later, and had spent nearly four decades on the run. An Italian-flagged Falcon 900 plane carrying Battisti landed at Rome's Ciampino airport on Monday morning. Battisti, who was not wearing handcuffs, smiled grimly as he was escorted off the plane by a dozen policemen. "I know that I'm going to prison," an apparently resigned Battisti said, according to police. The 64-year-old was later transferred to a prison on the island of Sardinia "for security reasons", according to Justice Minister Alfonso Bonafede, where he begins his life sentence with six months in solitary confinement. Oristano prison is home to more than 250 convicts, many of them living under the tough "41-bis" prison regime usually applied to Mafia members. "This is not the finish line but the starting point," Italy's far-right Interior Minister Matteo Salvini told journalists at Ciampino, citing the presence of "dozens" of other former militants still on the run in countries from Latin America to France. Italy had repeatedly sought the extradition of Battisti, who lived in Brazil for years under the protection of former leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, himself now in prison for corruption. Battisti was seized without a struggle late Saturday in the Bolivian city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra in an operation carried out by a joint team of Italian and Bolivian officers. - 'It's over' - Battisti was sentenced to life imprisonment for having killed two Italian policemen, taking part in the murder of a butcher and helping plan the slaying of a jeweller who died in a shootout that left his teenage son in a wheelchair. "It's over, now the victims can rest in peace," said Alberto Torregiani, the son of the slain jeweller. Battisti has admitted to being part of the Armed Proletarians for Communism, a radical group that staged a string of robberies and attacks, but he has always denied responsibility for any deaths, painting himself as a political refugee. Rome is determined to punish one of the key figures from Italy's so-called Years of Lead, a decade of violent turmoil which began in the late 1960s and saw dozens of deadly attacks by hardline leftwing and rightwing groups. During his election campaign, Brazil's far-right President Jair Bolsonaro -- who took office on January 1 -- vowed that if elected he would "immediately" send Battisti back to Italy. Battisti had filed for asylum without receiving any response from authorities, Bolivia's ombudsman said in an article published in the local El Deber de Santa Cruz newspaper. The ex-communist militant had been hoping to find favour with Bolivia's left-wing President Evo Morales after saying in his asylum request he had been forced to quit Brazil due to "the ominous coincidence" that Italy and Brazil were both now run by "far-right" governments. Salvini and Bolsanaro have been basking in the success of Battisti's capture on social media. European Parliament President Antonio Tajani, a member of Italy's right-wing Forza Italia, criticised the presence of "a cohort of political admirers" for Battisti's arrival. Others noted that while Salvini and Bonafede were present at Ciampino, only non-partisan President Sergio Mattarella had received the body of journalist Antonio Megalizzi, 29, who was murdered in an Islamist attack in Strasbourg in December. - Italian anger - Since his jailbreak Battisti had reinvented himself as an author, writing a string of noir novels. In 2004, he skipped bail in France, where he had taken refuge. He then went to live clandestinely in Brazil until he was arrested in 2007 in Rio de Janeiro. After years in custody, then-president Lula issued a decree -- later upheld by Brazil's Supreme Court -- in 2010 refusing Battisti's extradition to Italy, and he was freed, angering Rome. Battisti, who has a five-year-old Brazilian son, in 2017 told AFP he would face "torture" and death if he were ever to be sent back to Italy. burs-cjo/boc A member of a Canadian parliamentary delegation wrapped up a trip to China this week saying they were not satisfied with Beijings treatment of two detained Canadians and calling the limited consular access unacceptable. One of the issues we have is the failure of the Chinese government to provide Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor with the consular access that they are entitled to, according to the consular agreements between Canada and China, Michael Cooper, a Canadian member of parliament, said in Hong Kong on Saturday after stops in Shanghai and Shenzhen. That is unacceptable. They are entitled to routine consular access and they have been denied the right to a lawyer, Cooper said. I am not satisfied at all. What our delegation conveyed was the need for immediate release. The visit by members of the Canada-China Legislative Association, which began on January 5, came after Kovrig and Spavor were detained separately by Chinese authorities on December 10 and amid the most tense diplomatic stand-off between the two countries in years. Both men have been accused of endangering national security a phrase often used by Beijing when alleging espionage. Canadian consular officials have been able to meet both Kovrig and Spavor twice since they were detained. Their detentions came nine days after Canadas arrest of Huawei Technologies executive Sabrina Meng Wanzhou at the request of the United States. Meng, who is accused of fraud related to violating Iran sanctions, has been released on bail and faces extradition to the US. China has not linked the cases, but the detentions of the two Canadians have been widely seen as retaliation. Cooper compared the treatment of Meng in Canada to that of the two Canadians in China, saying there was a stark contrast between the way the Canadian and Chinese governments had acted. Story continues Canada arrested Ms Meng pursuing an extradition treaty with the US, that was the basis upon which Ms Meng was arrested. Secondly, Ms Meng was provided access to consular services and legal representatives. She was granted bail, Cooper said. By contrast, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have been denied consular services and legal representation. A former diplomat and now adviser to the non-governmental organisation International Crisis Group, Kovrig was arrested in Beijing. The ICG said it had not heard anything directly from Kovrig since he was detained and did not know where he was being held. Spavor, who runs a non-profit business focusing on North Korean cultural exchanges in the Chinese city of Dandong, in northeastern Liaoning, was detained by the provincial state security bureau. On Friday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused China of ignoring former envoy Kovrigs diplomatic immunity when it detained him along with Spavor. It is unfortunate that China has arbitrarily and unfairly detained two Canadian citizens, and indeed in one of the cases is not respecting diplomatic immunity, Trudeau said. It was the first time Trudeau or the Canadian government had accused Beijing of violating diplomatic immunity. Canada has called for the immediate release of Kovrig and Spavor, receiving widespread backing, including from Australia, Britain, France, Germany, the European Union, the United States and the Netherlands. Earlier this month, Chinas chief prosecutor Zhang Jun said at a briefing that Kovrig and Spavor had broken the countrys laws without a doubt. Chinas foreign ministry did not immediately reply to faxed requests from the South China Morning Post for comment. This article Canadian MP Michael Cooper calls Chinas treatment of detainees unacceptable first appeared on South China Morning Post For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2019. An extensive aerial search for a German tourist missing in the vast Australian outback for almost two weeks has been called off, police said. Monika Billen, 62, was reported missing last week after leaving her resort in Alice Springs, a remote town near the geographical centre of Australia. She is believed to have hitched and walked her way to the Emily Gap, a site popular with tourists in a remote nature park famed for its rocky ravines and gorges. Police had launched land and aerial searches for Billen, including the use of drones. They believe a motorist may have seen her looking dehydrated and a disorientated as early as January 2. "Despite our efforts no further evidence has been found to indicate Monika is still out there," Northern Territory Police Superintendent Pauline Vicary said in a statement on Saturday. "Neither is there any evidence to indicate foul play. The last physical sighting we have for her is the Emily Gap and surrounding area, which we have thoroughly searched." Temperatures have soared above 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) during the southern hemisphere summer in the central desert region. Police said Billen had only a yellow cashmere scarf to protect against the scorching sun. Vicary urged any witnesses to come forward and report any sightings or encounters with Billen. Supreme Court adds three (little?) criminal cases to its docket | Main | "Prisoner-to-Public Communication" In prior posts here and here and here, I highlighted a series of lengthy articles in The American Conservative that were part of "a collaborative series with the R Street Institute exploring conservative approaches to criminal justice reform." These folks are at it again with this new lengthy essay titled simply "Why Conservatives Should Oppose the Death Penalty." The extendded essay, authored by Arthur Rizer and Marc Hyden of R Street Institute, merits a full read, and here are some excerpts: If conservatives want to convince others that a smaller, more nimble government is best, then those values should be reflected in all policy areas, including the death penalty.... Our suspicion of government should not end with the criminal justice system. With respect to capital punishment, the United States has a track record of acting in an arbitrary and biased fashion. Some examples are obvious. For instance, a 19th century North Carolina law mandated the death penalty when a black man raped a white woman, but gave a maximum punishment of one year in prison to a white man for the same crime. While such blatantly racist laws no longer exist, the disproportionality in death penalty cases has long been an issue. For instance, a Justice Department study established that, between 1930 and 1972, when an individual was sentenced to death for the crime of rape (a crime that no longer carries the death penalty), 89 percent of the defendants put to death were black men. More disturbing was the fact that in every rape execution case, the victim was white. Not one person received a death sentence for raping a black woman, despite black women being up to 12 times more likely to be rape victims. Furthermore, a murder victims race also seems to influence whether or not the accused will be put to death. Indeed, there is a much higher likelihood of this occurring if the victim is white: over 75 percent of victims in cases that resulted in executions were Caucasian. Additionally, only 15 percent were African American even though they represent a far higher percentage of murder victims. This seems to suggest that, at least through the criminal justice lens, some lives are more valuable than others.... Conservatives claim to hold the government and its bureaucrats to high standards. We expect the state to be the flag bearer of moral precepts and criticize it when it fails. Indeed, the Republican platform uses the word moral nine times to describe topics ranging from healthcare to the environment. And regardless of a citizens source of morality, be it secular or ecclesiastical, the government should reflect those standards. Despite this expectation, a core belief among conservatives is that the government is too often inefficient and prone to mistakes. Why should the death penaltys administration by government bureaucrats be any different? We know individuals are wrongfully convictedand to be sure, some wrongful convictions are unavoidable. However, when dealing with capital punishment, that inevitability could have irreversible consequences and can never be tolerated in a free and law-abiding society. This is why government should not be in the business of killing its citizens. This view hews to a core conservative tenet, that the government should be inferior to the people from which it derives its power. True, we invest in the state the authority to protect its citizens, which might require lethal protection by police officers in the line of duty. But when it comes to the death penalty, executions arent a matter of self-defense or a response to imminent danger. Rather the defendant has already been neutralized as a threat and housed in a correctional facility. In contrast to just wars and police responses, our penal system can and should take all necessary time and devote all appropriate resources to achieve its ultimate endjustice. Death penalty proponents often claim that executions are beneficial because they serve as a general deterrent to murder. According to this argument, people will hesitate to commit the most heinous crimes for fear of capital punishment, which could mean the firing squad, gas chamber, electric chair, lethal injection, or hangingwhich are all legal in some states today. The problem with this theory is that there is very little valid data to support it.... Murder victims families deserve better than the system that they must endure, but policymakers are faced with a catch-22. The death penalty process cannot be shorter, less complex, or have its appeals limited without virtually guaranteeing that innocent people will be executed by the state. It seems that if murder victims well-being was a primary focus, then prosecutors would more frequently seek a briefer, simpler, surer proceeding like LWOP. The creation of the Grand Old Party, and in many ways the modern conservative movement, traces its lineage to anti-slavery abolitionists. Their beliefs about human dignity have influenced current conservatives views on the sanctity of life. Conservatives should return to the root principles of liberty and dignity to ensure that the criminal justice system is fair, just, and respects life. Some midsummer highlights from Marijuana Law, Policy & Reform | Main | "Incarceration, Recidivism, and Employment" I spotlighted in this post last week this lengthy commentary in The American Conservative under the full headline "Where the Right Went Wrong on Criminal Justice: Ending our 'incarceration nation' would help return conservatives to their roots, acting on principles most of them already hold." Now comes the second extended piece in a series appears here under the full headline "Law-and-Order Texas Takes on Criminal Justice Reform:Seeking alternatives to bloated prison populations and recidivism, the Lone Star state leads others to pursue to the same." Here are excerpts Texas, even more than most other states at the time, had been on a prison-building spree. It had reached a point where the return on investment was low. Madden used his training as a statistical engineer to hunt down the data about what wasnt working, or could easily be changed, throughout the corrections system. Along with his counterpart in the state Senate, John Whitmire, Madden put together a package to overhaul parts of the states criminal justice system.... Recidivism fell quickly in Texas. Back in 2005, the state was paroling 21,000 prisoners, 11,000 of whom returned. A decade later, the state paroled 28,000 prisoners and about 4,500 came back. Its an effort to continue getting the gains in public safety weve been getting for 20 years now, while also reducing our extraordinarily high levels of incarceration, says Vikrant Reddy, a senior fellow at the Charles Koch Institute. The success of the Texas model stirred other states to replicate it, beginning with Kansas, Ohio, and South Carolina. The fact that Texas had a hang em high reputation, built not just on high incarceration rates but also on its status as the nations most active executioner, helped convince conservative legislators in other states that the idea of providing treatment for prisoners wasnt some bleeding-heart proposal. Rather it was a skeptical redirection of government funds away from a strictly brick-and-mortar approach that demonstrably had not worked. And so the Texas experiment became a model elsewhere. Cost savings and statistics that might on paper have been just as impressive out of California or Vermont wouldnt have swayed so many red-state legislators, Reddy says, particularly the Deep South converts the criminal justice reform movement has found in places such as Louisiana, Mississippi, and Georgia. It was a tremendous stroke of luck for the country that Texas was the first to step out of the gate, says Adam Gelb, who directs the Pew Charitable Trusts public safety performance project, which provides technical assistance to states on criminal justice policies. Nearly three-dozen states have now enacted policies that mirror, to a greater or lesser extent, the Texas template. Every state has done something to address prisoner reentry programs and employment. The impact of these efforts is now being felt in Washington. Notable District Judge struggles against mandatory minimums, especially stacked gun charges | Main | Judge Jack Weinstein laments overuse of federal supervised release (and especially its revocation for marijuana use) July 6, 2018 The American Conservative explains "Where the Right Went Wrong on Criminal Justice" Arthur Rizer and Lars Trautman from the R Street Institute have this remarkable new commentary in The American Conservative under the full headline "Where the Right Went Wrong on Criminal Justice: Ending our 'incarceration nation' would help return conservatives to their roots, acting on principles most of them already hold." Long-time readers are surely aware of my long-enduring contention that a lot of conservative ideology and rhetoric would seem to push toward advocacy for sentencing and other criminal justice reforms, and thus I really enjoyed this full lengthy piece (which, according the editors, is "the first in a collaborative series with the R Street Institute exploring conservative approaches to criminal justice reform). I recommend the piece in full, and here is just a small snippet: When it comes to criminal justice, the Republicans have for decades declared themselves to be the party of law and order. This commitment to tough on crime policies helped it win elections in the latter half of the 20th century, but at the cost of a society in which a third of working-age Americans have criminal records and more than 10 million people go to jail each year. The fact that the United States, with nearly 2.2 million Americans behind bars, incarcerates more of its citizens than any other nation is not a point of pride. This shameful position is put in even starker relief when one considers that the nations with the second and third highest number of incarcerated individuals are China and Russia, respectively. These realities, products of the lock em up and throw away the key sensibility of yesteryear, have tarnished the image of Republicans and conservatives in the minds of many. Though Republicans have greatly increased their political power in recent elections, they have nevertheless alienated many of the fastest growing segments of the electorate, casting a pall across the impressive electoral successes of the past decade. The extension of conservative principles to criminal justice policies offers a chance to court new constituencies and bring conservative messages to voting blocs that will dominate American politics in the future, all without risking the current base of conservative support. Already, right-leaning organizations, armed with polling data that show significant backing from many conservatives, are mobilizing on criminal justice issues. Its time to leverage these efforts to rebuild the conservative identity. Perhaps no other policy area holds more potential than criminal justice reform.... The inherent dignity of every human life is another tenet of the Republican Party that lives on in the conservative movement today. However, it is also an issue that permeates too few aspects of the criminal justice system. From abhorrent prison conditions to the stigmatization of the formerly incarcerated to the negative public safety implications of ill-conceived criminal justice policies, there is no shortage of ways in which the justice system cheapens life. Efforts to alleviate these various forms of suffering and protect our communities offer conservatives another path to better defend the intrinsic worth of every human life. Given the Christian Rights prominence within modern conservatism, it seems prudent to at least consider how current criminal justice policies compare to Christian values. While conservatives certainly do not hold dominion over Christian values, Christians represent a substantial portion of the conservative base. Further, Christian interest groups hold special power within the conservative movement, with many, particularly on the Left, being wary of how this influence might be used. Maybe the most obvious lesson is from Christ himself a criminal in the eyes of the state, subject to a miscarriage of justice by an imperfect criminal justice system. Beyond the despicable treatment of Christ, however, are the lessons he gave on how those accused and those guilty of crimes should be treated. He recognized the legality of stoning an adulteress but nonetheless shamed the crowd by asking for the one who had not sinned to cast the first stone. This is an important lesson for conservativesthat the legality of punishment should not be the end of the inquiry of what is just. While the Bible certainly has examples of harsh punishments, its important to note that throughout his life Christ spoke persistently and passionately about reconciliation over retribution. He famously told his followers: You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, do not resist one who is evil. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. Criminal justice reform offers conservatives an opportunity to secure a more favorable image by returning to their roots and acting in concert with principles that most of them already hold. The examination of principles and morality helps to answer why criminal justice reform nestles into a renewed conservative identity, but this does little to detail how such reforms will sustain this identity and propel it forward. For these answers, its necessary to look at the problems that afflict each stage of the criminal justice cycle and how conservatives can reap political rewards from remedial action. With the preamble of the Republican Party platform touting limited government and the rights of the people as bedrock principles, there is perhaps no better place to begin than pretrial jail reform. Of the roughly 615,000 individuals held in our local jails at this very moment, around 465,000 are awaiting trial and have yet to be convicted of whatever crime has been alleged. Too often, these incarcerated individuals are not the most dangerous, but the poorestthose unable to afford bond. Further, the incarcerated are hardly the only ones to suffer from this loss of freedom. Even a short stay in jail raises the risk of criminal behavior after an individuals release, meaning that unnecessary jailing is a public safety matter of concern to all. We also pay dearly when we lock up so many of our fellow Americans, with the price tag of a single day in jail as high as $571.27 in some jurisdictions. July 6, 2018 at 10:57 AM | Permalink Comments The Romans were on the verge of the scientific discoveries of the Renaissance. had Christianity not destroyed them from within, their advances would not have been stopped. Christ, if real, was the bad guy. The Romans were the good guys. Imagine where we would be without a 1000 years of Dark Ages. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 6, 2018 11:55:52 AM che idiota Posted by: Claudio Giusti | Jul 6, 2018 3:12:11 PM This commentary says a lot about why the Republican "establishment" lost control of the Republican Party. While it may be consistent with the thoughts of the conservative intelligentsia, my experience with voters in my state is that these views are completely foreign to the conservatism of Republican voters in rural areas and small towns. Posted by: tmm | Jul 6, 2018 5:23:35 PM well, tmm, thus was not at all the tune of the Republican "establishment" throughout most of the last half-century, except when a libertarian-leaning official (like the Pauls) got a moment in the establishment sun. The tough-on-crime talk of AG Sessions is actually much more representative of the establishment, but in this area the libertarian wing is starting to show some great growth and power. Whether that will extended to all aspects of the GOP base remains to be seen. Posted by: Doug B | Jul 6, 2018 5:51:00 PM Is the R Street Institute in Washington DC? If it is, the article is dismissed. Swamp people, rent seeking interests are being promoted. Posted by: David Behar | Jul 6, 2018 7:47:21 PM Criminal solved the re-entry problem, became a lawyer. Thieves will become bankers. Pedophiles will become daycare teachers. Arsonists will become firemen. https://www.facebook.com/60minutes/posts/10156457974454395 Posted by: David Behar | Jul 6, 2018 7:57:30 PM As a conservative myself, I believe we need to focus punishment on the right things. Anything that involves intentional physical harm to another person, or even threatening such harm, needs to be punished with extreme severity, up to and including the death penalty, which in particular should be applied to attempted mass murder, regardless of whether or not anyone is actually hurt. Any type of physically dangerous robbery should be punished heavily -- more heavily than is generally the case today. Consensual crimes should, for the most part, not be crimes at all. This is particularly true of drug crimes. Let's be honest. What we are criminalizing with drugs is not the potential harm to users; it's the high. Bleach, for example, is legal. I think punishments for embezzlement and the like are generally reasonable. Posted by: William Jockusch | Jul 7, 2018 8:27:48 AM "The inherent dignity of every human life is another tenet of the Republican Party that lives on in the conservative movement today." But we are going to avoid talking about how this principle and the alleged love of "limited government" apply to the death penalty. Posted by: Paul | Jul 7, 2018 10:40:20 AM Paul, that wasn't particularly in the spirit of Doug's blog, which frequently invites people to comment on their own opinions. Reasoned disagreement is one thing; sniping is something else altogether. If you want to try reasoned disagreement, here are some people who richly deserved a quick end but avoided it under our system: Richard Reid, Umar Abdulmutallab, Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, Lee Malvo. Posted by: William Jockusch | Jul 7, 2018 11:00:08 AM What tmm said. That is my experience too. Posted by: Daniel | Jul 7, 2018 12:38:04 PM Post a comment Woburn, MA (01801) Today Plenty of sunshine. High 76F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 52F. Winds WNW at 5 to 10 mph. The infection spread rapidly into his heart and brain. Even if he survived, Van de Wetering said he was told his client may have no or limited cognitive function. Van de Wetering said he informed both the court reporter and state of Christensens condition. I told both that I was not sure if we would be appealing after all (certainly not if were to die) and I told them I was not sure how to proceed if he were to live, but his functioning was substantially diminished, Van de Wetering wrote. Christensen remain hospitalized until early August. It is against that backdrop that I forgot to send the court reporter the $4,000 advance she had requested, he wrote. When reminded of it in September, I sent her the money as soon as I could and acknowledged truthfully that it was an oversight. On Dec. 31, the day the transcripts were due, Van de Wetering said he closed his office a little early to attend a New Years Eve performance and awoke the next day with a bad case of gout in his big toe and foot. He didnt log back into his email until Jan. 2. He found an email with the court reporters affidavit that had been sent near the close of business on Dec. 31. Well, not just to Ted McBride, the bow-tied, arts-inspired, dog-loving federal prosecutor with the admirable mix of zeal and compassion. But also to friends and journalists Dave Kranz and Denise Ross, journalism professor Dick Lee and state Supreme Court Justice Steve Zinter, thespian Graham Thatcher and legislator-Mayor Chuck Turbiville. All people I knew and cared about, and all lost to the great beyond in 2018, the last being Ted McBride. Losses are part of life, of course. And they pile up along with the years, which is perhaps the most essential mixed blessing of age. I was considering some of that eight days ago as I sat in the sanctuary of First Congregational United Church here in Rapid City, where McBrides memorial service was held. We were listening to local Musicians James Van Nuys and Arjun Ayyangar sing the Grateful Dead song, Hes Gone. And while I didnt look around, Im pretty sure I wasnt the only one smiling at lyrics like: Nine mile skid on a ten mile ride. Hot as a pistol but cool inside. Cat on a tin roof, dogs in a pile. Nothin' left to do but smile, smile, smile. Now he's gone. Now he's gone. Lord he's gone, he's gone. Did I mention that Ted McBride had a sense of humor? Oh, yeah. And Ill bet he grinned when he picked that song. Hoping to cauterize the Conservative Party's long-festering wound, in 2016 then-Prime Minister David Cameron succumbed to the plebiscitary temptation, scheduling the referendum that he thought Remain would win. It lost, he resigned, and Theresa May, who had voted Remain, became prime minister. She called an election expecting to increase her parliamentary majority and thus her leverage negotiating terms of divorce from the EU. Instead, she lost her majority and was forced into an alliance with a Northern Ireland party. It is dismaying that most of the binding law in Britain comes from the European Commission in Brussels. But why, with its primacy at stake, did Parliament punt one of the most momentous decisions in British history to a referendum? The bedrock principle of representative government is that "the people" do not decide issues, they decide who shall decide. And once a legislature sloughs off responsibility and resorts to a referendum on the dubious premise that the simple way to find out what people want is to ask them, it is difficult to avoid recurring episodes of plebiscitary democracy. The pilot program Beef to School kicked off on Jan. 4 at the Wall School. Ninety pounds of locally raised beef were served to more than 200 students during lunchtime. Students were very enthusiastic about the hot hamburger sandwich. The Wall School Lunch program, Wall Meat Processing, the Wall FFA and the Ag Committee of Wall Economic Development have been working to be the first in South Dakota to utilize locally raised beef in their school lunch program. This program started as a pilot project. Local ranchers are donating the beef. Wall Meat Processing is contributing the cost of processing two head and delivering the beef to school. The purpose of this program is also educational. We are educating our kids about what they eat, where it comes from, and how important it is to eat fresh food that comes from natural sources. This program will offer students an opportunity to engage in conversation and activities revolving around beef nutrition. That is an important element in building beef demand for our future generations. The major thing about local food is that it helps your local economy. That money goes back to the community and gets spent several times, said local rancher Josh Geigle. Kim Vanneman is not boastful about her new role as South Dakotas agriculture secretary. She doesnt need to be. After all, her new boss is handling that. Gov. Kristi Noem picked Vanneman, a Tripp County farmer and former state legislator, to be her new secretary of the states Department of Agriculture. Noem then specifically praised Vanneman in Tuesdays State of the State Address at the Capitol. Kim is very different from any ag secretary South Dakota has ever had before, Noem said. She truly brings a new perspective to the table. Im grateful for the ways she has been an ag leader in our state on the farm, in the legislature, in the boardroom and as a mom passing along her love of agriculture to her kids. She is going to make a great ag secretary. Vanneman said in an interview this week that agriculture is my life, while adding that Noem and herself were both pretty much on the same page when they met about the job. As secretary, shell be the states top representative for a $25 billion industry that is responsible for 20 percent of the states economic activity and has 46,000 producers on 31,000 farms or ranches. That does not mean the area's aquifers, lakes and streams will be drained by then. It means a point will have been reached at which further increases in usage could outpace the natural replenishment of water resources. Were working further on that now to try to understand, where is this line you dont want to cross as far as use is concerned? Katzenstein said. The team is also studying pipelines to learn the possible cost of piping Missouri River water to the Rapid City area, whether a new pipeline project could piggyback on existing pipeline rights-of-way, and where pumping stations would need to be located. After listening to the presentation Monday evening, Gjovik expressed his hopes for the teams final report, which is due this summer. Gjovik said he wants a report with tiered options for projects to bring Missouri River water to the Rapid City area. I dont want this just to be another study that sits on somebodys shelf and gathers dust, Gjovik said. I want this to be a good expenditure of taxpayer funding that we can use to present to decision-makers. Contact Seth Tupper at seth.tupper@rapidcityjournal.com You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Cody Kaspar and Kelly Holden do their best to avoid using the contaminated water that pours from their mobile homes faucet. It's a different story, however, for their three young children. We catch them running to the sink all the time to fill up their water glasses. They dont understand water is water is water, said Kaspar, 29, from his cramped kitchen on a brisk mid-December night as Jimmy, his rambunctious 2-year-old, ran into the room and hugged his fathers legs. Hell try to get in the bathtub and drink the bathwater. Hes a kid. Its what they do. Kaspar and Holden live in a trailer with Jimmy and two daughters, April, 6, and Danielle, 5, in Plainsview Mobile Manor just southeast of Ellsworth Air Force base where hundreds of residents have their water contaminated with per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at levels 10 times what the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deems safe. PFAS has been linked to cancer, thyroid disease, weakened immunity and other health problems. It has infiltrated 26 private wells in an undisclosed area the base has broadly described as "within two miles southeast of the base." Decades of PFAS-laden firefighting foam use by base crews in training and emergency responses is the contamination's cause. Of the 26 wells, 15 contain PFAS at levels above what the EPA deems safe, including the well serving Plainsview Mobile Manor that provides water to around 200 people across approximately 75 mobile homes. Since October, Plainsview residents and other affected households have received free water from the base, with each household receiving a weekly ration of five gallons per person. "Where we find contamination, we have a rapid response plan to immediately provide safe drinking water to all of those contaminated wells as we work on a longer-term solution," Col. John Edwards, commanding officer at Ellsworth, said at a Nov. 1 informational meeting with affected residents. "We count on our partnership with Box Elder, the community and the neighbors. That's an important relationship for us." But Edwards' words offered scant comfort to those affected. My kids cant even enjoy having bath time with their toys, said Holden, 26, a waitress in Rapid City. A relaxing shower or soak following a long shift is no longer an option, either. Its just like youve got to get in, get washed and get out as quick as possible, she said. She then motioned toward Jimmy. I have to make sure I grab a towel before I put him in the bath, or Ill be gone for like two seconds and hes drinking water when I get back, Holden said. 'I have a paper house' Near Plainsview, 18 additional homes have drinking water wells with PFAS above the EPA level 70 parts per trillion, equal to about three-and-a-half drops of water in an Olympic-sized pool for the two most closely studied PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS). NanCee Maynard, 69, has lived at 730 Halsey Drive since 1976, where one well contains PFAS almost seven times the EPA level. Water bottles populate each room of her one-story house, sitting atop window sills, end tables and nightstands, and alongside kitchen and bathroom sinks. We have bottles of water everywhere, she said in early December. Maynard raised two sons there with her late husband, who passed away suddenly in 2013. I drank the water every day, she said. Im getting to the age where things start going wrong. Is that [contamination] going to be a factor? Like most of those affected, money is a consideration for Maynard. Kitchen cupboards are stocked with green beans, pickles, horseradish, potatoes, beans, jams and jellies canned in years past with the contaminated water. Im not throwing them out, she said. Its money. Its a food source. No, Im not going to throw it out. Im going to use it up. What am I going to do? Maynard has a much larger financial concern, too. I have a paper house because who is going to buy it when I have contaminated water? she said. Thomas McCarty lives at 14682 Country Road and had water from his well test at levels 38 times the EPA level. He worries, too. My concerns? Property value, number one, he said in December from his front porch. McCarty and his wife, Christine, have lived there for 18 years. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} We used it for everything, he said of his well water. Whats it done to our health already? Who knows? Kaspar said the contamination has foiled his plan to move from the cramped trailer to a house. We dont want to live in a trailer forever, said the stay-at-home dad. The goal was move in, fix it up and then turn a little bit of a profit on it and see if we couldnt jump start into a house. Now, should I even put the money into it because theres no resale value unless they get the water situation completely fixed? I mean, do you want to buy a trailer thats in a contaminated spot like this? Kaspar's children are his primary concern. His needs are secondary. I dont drink enough water now. I try, but my kids come first, he said. You go into water conservation mode. Discernible distrust Kaspar researched PFAS and its health effects shortly after base officials notified him in early October of the contamination. But Sandy and Richard Clary, who live next door to Maynard at 720 Halsey Drive, said they still dont completely understand the health risks from PFAS exposure even after attending the base's November informational meeting meant to address those concerns. To them, the obfuscation feels intentional. Theyve [base officials] never really explained to us any of the health issues possible from it, Sandy, 68, said from her kitchen. The Clarys have lived in the same home for 31 years and have PFAS in their well water 26 times the EPA level. I just dont feel comfortable when they tell us something, Sandy continued. You know how people can tell you something, but they dont really tell you anything? Thats how I feel they are. They say the water is bad, but they dont get into how bad it could be for you or what it could do to your health. Theyve known for how long? her husband interjected. In 2011, Ellsworth officials began to investigate whether firefighting foam had contaminated the bases soil and water with PFAS. In February 2013, the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources sent a letter to the base urging them to begin testing private wells as soon as possible in the current calendar year. Five-and-a-half years later, the base completed the first stage of testing. We will continue to assess the nature and extent of the PFOS/PFOA contamination and whether it poses a risk to drinking water, reads a statement from the base provided to the Journal on Jan. 4. Richard scoffs at such assurances. Did they tell anybody until just two months ago? he asked in December. Sensitive subject Emotions run high in Plainsview and the other affected homes, where discontent is often paired with despondency. You cant be happy without clean water. You cant live without it, Kaspar said. Weve been basically family, Maynard said of the base. When the base was going to get closed, we all jumped, save the base, save the base and then they pretty much forgot about us. Maynard shook her head. Moments later, her voice cracked when she thought of the issue affecting her friendship with the Clarys, who have rented the lot at 720 Halsey Drive from Maynard for 31 years. I suppose they could sue me, she said. I dont know, maybe not? I dont know. Im providing water. Its something you have to think about. Theyre like family and it kind of changes because now theyre saying well, you have contaminated water. I now have become a landlord instead of a neighbor friend and that kind of worries me. One minute, Maynard is joking about the Clarys Christmas tree. The next, her eyes cast downward. Its no longer the neighbors, or New York, or Omaha. Its here in Box Elder, South Dakota, on my doorstep, she said. So, it makes it pretty emotional and pretty difficult to deal with. Anger afflicts Richard Clary, who was boiling food when he first learned of the contamination from Air Force officials. They showed up and said Were going to give you water and dont use it to boil your food in as I was boiling beets to skin, he recalled. Shes [a base official] standing at the door saying Dont boil your food in it. I should have threw them at her. While reactions differ depending on the person, they all seem to desire the same end. Wake up and this is over, Maynard said. Wake up and this was all a bad dream. But its not going to be. This is something were going to have to face. Contact Samuel Blackstone at samuel.blackstone@rapidcityjournal.com and follow him on Twitter or Facebook @SDBlackstone. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 2 Angry 1 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. When asked how he got to Aberdeen, Buntin replied, "We drove." While he still gives lectures and researches history, he said there was something special about teaching college. "It's refreshing to deal with young folks, even if you're getting older," Buntin said. "It helps keep you youthful." Most recently, he presented research about the local response to the 1918 Armistice at the December meeting of the Aberdeen Area Retired School Personnel. It was a recycled presentation, he said. He first used it at a history conference in Rapid City earlier this fall. "I got caught in a snowstorm and my car froze up," Buntin said. "I had a hard time getting back." Now, he's working on a paper about how the 1918-19 flu epidemic affected Brown County, he said. He'll present it at the Dakota Conference in Sioux Falls in April at Augustana University. "We had one person die on campus," Buntin said of Northern. "There were hundreds of thousands that died all over the world." Much of his research comes from archived copies of local newspapers, he said. He heads to either the K.O. Lee Aberdeen Public Library or the Beulah Williams Library at Northern to find sources. If all of this sounds a bit familiar, we understand. Iowas own conversion of its Medicaid program to managed care has had its own implementation problems. Services have been cut and doctors and hospitals have seen many of their claims go unpaid by the managed care organizations, sometimes for years. The fact is, it took until late last year just to get a reliable estimate on the financial impact of converting to managed care. So, we ask, why add a new requirement with the potential to cause even more dislocation? Advocates for this kind of requirement say it is aimed at "able-bodied" adults, not at the disabled who rely on Medicaid for their health care but also to be able to function in society, live independently and, yes, to work. But advocates for the disabled have expressed concerns nonetheless. One worry we've heard is how an "able-bodied adult" might be defined and whether people who are disabled might get caught up in this. We understand the concern. A 2016 report from the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported on the experience of state officials who were called on to administer a work requirement for "able-bodied adults without dependents" who were part of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly known as food stamps). Tewksbury Assistant Town Manager Steve Sadwick discusses details of a memo sent to the Andover Planning Board regarding impacts from a proposed development on Dascomb Road in Andover near the Tewksbury line during the Andover Planning Boards public hearing on Tuesday evening. (Paige Impink photo) Over the next year, Iowa Democrats face the daunting task of starting to winnow what most expect will be a gargantuan field of candidates running for president. Kim Reynolds, the states Republican governor, said she welcomes all of those candidates. And she said shes glad to be watching this one from the sidelines. There was a definite and relaxed, "been there, done that" vibe to Reynolds response to a recent question about the 2020 Iowa caucuses and what promises to be an endless parade of Democrats coming to the state between now and next February. More than 20 Republicans sought the partys presidential nomination in the 2016 caucuses. The number of Democrats who run in 2020 is expected to reach, if not surpass, that. "I hope they have to have debates that cover two nights. I think they will. We lived through all of that, so its going to be kind of interesting to see this take place on the flip side," Reynolds said with a laugh. "We had the onslaught in 16, so it will be interesting to see." This is the Republican legislator's lot in the Trump era -- trying to provide ex post facto justifications for absurd presidential choices. The border "crisis" did not break because of some tragedy caused by a porous southern border. It did not result from some serious determination of national security priorities. The whole GOP strategy and all the arguments they are using are really backfill for an intemperate choice made by a president in response to media coverage. It is a dynamic we've seen again and again. Trump announced a summit with Kim Jong Un because, well, for the hell of it. Then the whole government had to backfill a policy and process to fit his wrongheaded announcement. Trump announced the withdrawal of American troops from Syria on the spur of the moment, perhaps to assert himself against the influence of his now-departed Defense Secretary James Mattis. Then the whole defense and national security establishment has to scramble to backfill the details of coherent policy (which they still haven't really done). The National Weather Service extended a winter storm warning into the Quad-Cities area until late Saturday, with at least 6 inches of snow expected by the end of the storm, and 5-9 inches forecast south of Interstate 80. Snow-covered roads and slippery surfaces made for hazardous driving all day on Saturday. The official snow totals Saturday night were 6.6 inches in Moline and 6.1 inches in Davenport. The snow is expected to end on Sunday. The forecast for Sunday calls for party sunny skies and a high in the mid 30s. Two semi-trucks crashed on Interstate 280 westbound, near Milan, around 8:15 a.m. Saturday. Traffic was delayed for about a half hour, but no injuries or hazardous spills were reported, according to Illinois State Police. A semi-truck rolled over into the median on I-80 eastbound in Colona, Ill., around 9:45 a.m. Saturday. No injuries were reported, but there was a fuel leak. Clean-up led to traffic delays, police said. The left lane of I-80 eastbound near the I-74 and Middle Road exits were blocked around 5 p.m. because of a crash, according to 511ia.org, the state's traffic website. Rock Island has seen a major improvement in the past few years, skyrocketing up to 27th in the state of Illinois out of 102 cities, up from a ranking of 49th in 2017. The county still has a lot to work on, however. The unemployment rate is higher than the Illinois average at 6.3 percent, as well as children in single-parent households at 42 percent. Alcohol-impaired driving deaths were also at 42 percent in 2018, higher than the Illinois average of 33 percent. A 2018 community needs assessment, which combines data and input from the Scott, Rock Island and Muscatine counties, also allowed the community to identify health needs. Rock Island Health Department Chief Operating Officer Janet Hill said they would focus on mental health, nutrition, physical activity and weight and access to healthcare services. Our states challenges in many cases are national challenges. While Hill said she couldnt directly link the improvement to the health assessment, she believes the health assessment has helped create a greater emphasis on health in the community. The data for the Annual Health Rankings come from about 12 different public health organizations that contribute data. It looks by health very comprehensively, and then the Scientific Advisory Committee takes those 35 different majors and gives them each an appropriate weight, and thats how we form the overall rankings, adviser to the Annual Rankings Dr. Rhonda Randall said. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. He wants the public to "drive the price" of college, plus help schools attract more students. "As I've paid attention to this, I've been amazed by how this pricing dilemma was actually really hurting colleges," Salisbury said. "We've all heard about someone looking at colleges and they see the sticker price of school, and it's $60,000, and they're like 'forget it.' And then, they charge $50 to send in an application just to find out if you can get the price cut in half. Its not worth the risk." Salisbury argued the high sticker price has stopped students from applying to certain colleges, leading to dropping enrollment, especially at private institutions. Instead of trying to fix the system, Salisbury hopes TuitionFit gives some power back to the public. Students can sign up for free to anonymously share award letters. Then students with similar economic situations and test scores can view the letters to see how much they may receive from the same college. Colleges, he said, may pay for a subscription to access the database of award letters, to see what other schools are offering. Administrators can also invite students to consider their schools if they have an award package to offer, Salisbury said. The last Kmart store in the Quad-Cites closed this past week. Sears Holdings, which operates both Sears and Kmart, announced it would close 142 unprofitable stores this past fall, including Kmart in Moline, at 5000 Avenue of the Cities. The company filed for bankruptcy, following a May announcement that Sears is closing underperforming stores this fall, including Sears at NorthPark Mall in Davenport. The SouthPark Mall location closed in 2013, and the Davenport and Rock Island Kmart stores also have closed in the past few years. Sears started as a mail order catalog in the 1880s. In recent years, it has lagged behind its peers, incurring losses and struggling under a massive debt load. Chairman Edward Lampert has said he is trying to buy the company to keep Sears in business and thousands of workers employed. Bethany for Children & Families names new director Bethany for Children & Families, based in Moline, named a new director of development and communication this past week. If Trump wanted his "wall" so badly, why didn't he get funding from his own Republican Party when it was in total control of government? Apparently he couldn't convince his own party to fund his "wall" for the two years it held complete and total power. Now he's trying to blame Democrats for not paying for the "wall" Mexico was supposed to fund. Tuesday night Trump tried blaming everyone but himself for this stalemate, with wildly unsupported facts, and fear mongering. He's painted himself into a corner and is putting our country at great risk. Hundreds of thousands of government employees work to protect our country, from Transportation Security Administration workers to Coast Guard employees, who are keeping us safe without pay. Is this not making us more unsafe? There is a humanitarian crisis, not a national security crisis on our Southern border. Democrats have never said they don't believe in border security, just not a ridiculous and ineffective "wall." Trump's acting like a petulant spoiled child. Are we not being taxed enough, without paying for his insane "wall'? Are you a viable person? Do you have a reasonable chance of surviving? If not, should you be terminated? Would you like to be terminated in 15 weeks or 24 weeks? Oh, is your viability greater than that? Some people are terminated as early as 4-6 weeks. Regardless of a person's age, only the Creator of all things has the right to end a life. To quibble over how many weeks or years old a precious human being should be before he or she can be killed is ridiculous; at any age, it is murder. I am a fan of the letters and columns in the Viewpoint section of the Dispatch-Argus. Some are well written and interesting; others are, well, ridiculous and pathetic. A recent letter from a writer in Cordova about the border wall was a good letter. After all, a country without border security is not a country. We have to protect our borders. We are now dealing with a different class of immigrants than those that came to our country 150-200 years ago. The illegal immigrants trying to get into our country now include drug dealers and gang members. Most of the rest are unskilled and uneducated, and eventually end up in our welfare system. They provide very little to our country except cheap labor. Since they are uninsured, the rest of us have to pick up the cost for their welfare and health care. Another recent letter that was on the pathetic side was the fanatical letter claiming Russia is running U.S. foreign policy. If Russia's Vladimir Putin had that much influence over President Donald Trump, he would be asking Trump how to fix Russia's struggling economy. So what is the controversy about the wall all about? That can be summarized in one word: politics. During the 2016 campaign, candidate Trump repeatedly stated that he would build a wall on our border with Mexico to keep undesirable people out of our country and that Mexico would pay for it because he would tell them they needed to pay for it. That was a foolish promise because there was no way that Mexico would pay for Trumps wall. And, indeed, that not surprisingly turned out to be the case. During the first two years of Trumps presidency, he enjoyed the rare advantage of his party having majorities in both houses of Congress. The Republican majorities might have appropriated money to build Trumps wall, but they did not. Now Democrats have a substantial majority in the House of Representatives and show no inclination to do what their Republican predecessors chose not to do. Trump has responded by stating that he will veto any appropriations bill that does not include money for his wall, which has resulted in a substantial portion of the federal government being shut down, leaving a large number of federal employees without paychecks. In effect, he is holding federal employees as hostages in an effort to force Democrats to fund his wall. That is unconscionable. Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. Today is Sunday, Jan. 13, the 13th day of 2019. There are 352 days left in the year. 1919 100 years ago: Solution of Moline water troubles came today, as manufacturers and city officials get together this afternoon, on a plan recommended by the Illinois health officials, and one that promises protection to the health of the city and yet affords fire protection essential to the factories. When water problems were first presented during the typhoid epidemic last summer the proposition was put to the state department of health: Shall the present system of dual factory and city systems be continued or shall the two systems be divorced? The answer of the department was that they should be divorced. Then there was months of study of the Moline situation, some of the best engineering talent of the country be called into consultation. 1944 75 years ago: Quad-City Theater Managers association is cooperating in the fourth war-bond campaign opening next Tuesday by giving free tickets to a movie premiere of Destination Tokyo to all persons who buy at least a war bond next Tuesday. In Moline the movie will be presented at the Illini; the date in all cities is next Thursday. DAVENPORT Two Quad-City police officers will soon be featured on the true crime network Investigation Discovery, or ID. The show will air two Iowa cases, including a garbage truck crash in the Quad-Cities that left Buffalos police chief seriously injured. The ID show BODY CAM will feature Buffalo Police Chief T.J. Behning and Davenport Police Cpl. Michael Schneider, who both were involved in the high-speed chase involving a garbage truck in September 2017. The episode will air at 9 p.m. Tuesday. ID on channel 246 for Mediacom subscribers, channel 285 for Direct TV subscribers and channel 192 for Dish subscribers. For full local listings, visit http://investigationdiscovery.com/channel-finder/. The episode will show body camera footage of the officers responding after Logan Shoemaker steals a pickup truck and lead police on a high-speed chase. Schneider spots the vehicle, but it refuses to stop and speeds off through Davenport. On a dusty gravel road, the suspect tries to elude police by stealing a garbage truck. As Chief Behning attempts to block the trucks path, he is struck when the truck crashes into his squad car. For class details, visit www.bhc.edu/computers. To register, call 309-796-8223 or go to www.bhc.edu/pace. Create floral arrangements Become your own floral designer or train to be an entry-level floral designer with Basic Floral Design at Black Hawk College. The class will be from 5:45-8 p.m. Tuesdays, Jan. 29 to Feb. 19, at the colleges Quad-Cities Campus in Moline. Cost is $150. The registration deadline is Tuesday, Jan. 22. For details or to register, call 309-796-8223 or visit www.bhc.edu/pace. Learn sign language basics in 8 weeks Learn basic signs, finger spelling and sign language syntax with American Sign Language (ASL) Beginning at Black Hawk College. The class will be from 6-8 p.m. Tuesdays, Jan. 29 to March 19, at the colleges Quad-Cities Campus in Moline. Cost is $159. Professional development/continuing education credits are available. For details or to register, call 309-796-8223 or visit www.bhc.edu/pace. Fall 2018 honors lists At the end of the fall and spring semesters, Black Hawk College publishes High Honors and Honors lists to honor students for their academic achievement. The Fall 2018 honors lists can be viewed at www.bhc.edu/honors. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 1+ days ago | June 14th, 7:00 AM Why Your Retirement Calculator Might Not Tell the Whole Story I got to thinking about the retirement calculators that automatically pop up when I check my retirement account balances. In my case, I always get a message that says, "You are XX% on track toward your retirement goals." When you check out an online calculator, you can use them, but remember that a retirement calculator could miss the boat Finding its support from the kings prerogative (sovereign power and privileges) and not bound by the common law, Star Chambers procedures gave it considerable advantages over the ordinary courts. It was less bound by rigid form; it did not depend upon juries either for indictment or for verdict; it could act upon the petition of an individual complainant or upon information received; it could put an accused person under oath to answer the petitioners bill and reply to detailed questions. On the other hand, its methods lacked the safeguards that common law procedures provided for the liberty of the subject. The individual must answer truthfully to all questions, however, the inquirer knew what the answers were he was seeking and any other response would be a lie. It was abolished in 1641. Editor: Our illustrious governor, the recently re-elected (?) liberal Democrat who has the nerve to criticize Mister Trump, a man who puts country and Americas people first, released from prison 22 criminal immigrants facing deportation, four murderers and three armed robbers. This is the same "man" who would relieve you of your guns, while he struts around with armed bodyguards. Did anyone hear any kind of protest from our Post-Star newspaper? The smallest children know better than to set fire to plastic. It is toxic! But yet this newspaper, so worried about the liberal fictitious climate change, quaking in fear of the powerful advertisers that are keeping this farce afloat, is silent. Hello, the climate of this earth has been changing since year one! For the last 55 years, the homeowners, those elites who live on Lake George, the ones so opposed to that (gasp) "free" dog beach, have been polluting and killing the cold, clear waters of our lake. The mayor stands aside, duck tape across his mouth, as the clear waters turn cloudy, wringing his hands, not a clue where the pollution comes from. He said occasionally he sees the effects of the program in real time, with some students turning a corner in a single day. Teachers and I have seen a kid, in the day, do a 180, Feurstein said. Ive had kids stand up on their chairs at the end of the day and say, I just want to say Im sorry, everybody, and start crying, and its a really sweet moment. The videos Feurstein has helped produce have over a million combined views online and connected an international network of students around the same cause. They have also been featured before movies at theaters in the area, and have appeared in French textbooks as well. Students in Jen Martells fifth grade classroom operated the camera, wrote scripts, recited lines and called action on a makeshift movie set where she and Feurstein stood back and let the students take charge. Each student has to apply for the role of their choice by writing about why they would be a good fit for the job. Moore said sometimes children will make choices that seem out of character, but spark a new attitude. All of the sudden the student will have this really strong voice in the video that youve never heard before, Moore said, So its giving adults in the building a chance to see kids in a new light. Since amendments were made to the Clean Air Act in 1990, Hopke and other researchers have seen a decline in respiratory infections and cardiovascular disease. One would like to not see that undone, Hopke said about the current presidential administrations attempts to rollback environmental regulations. We can show pretty clearly that the improved air quality has had a significant effect on a variety of hospitalizations and emergency department visit rates across New York state. As far as the Warren County cancer study is concerned, Hopke said there is the potential for emissions to have had an effect. He was skeptical, however, adding that cancer typically has a long lag period between exposure and the onset of the disease, and there are many questions that would need to be answered before making the link to air pollution from local companies. Tim McAuley, an environmental consultant out of Queensbury who has worked with some of the areas facilities, agreed. He said linking the cancer study to the larger emitting facilities fails to consider all factors, including whether residents had moved to the area and traffic emissions, for examples. The measure has the support of numerous former lawmakers, officials and scholars from across the partisan spectrum, as well as that of Democrats in the legislature and Gov. Ralph Northam. Republicans have been more non-committal but there are plenty in GOP who recognize the benefit of a more transparent, independent system in Virginia. Between 5 to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters) of snow is expected near Washington and in higher elevations where Interstates 64 and 81 intersect in Virginia. Southwest Virginia could see up to 6 inches (15 centimeters) of snow and Baltimore and western Maryland could receive 3 to 7 inches (7 to 18 centimeters) of snow. "This isn't your typical doctor's office where you get a checkup and go," Robinson said. "On Christmas Day, they will take their kids or grandkids to a patient's home that they have developed a relationship with, so that person is not sitting alone or coming to the hospital because that's their only means of socialization." The entire operation is oriented to reduce its carbon footprint. He re-purposes old Irish whiskey barrels from his friends at Teeling Whiskey Company in Ireland. He sells no plastic bottles or straws and prefers to use glassware. They wash everything and recycle the water back through the brewery's machinery to help cool it down. Who is making threats runs the gamut, network data found. More than four-fifths were male and about the same percentage were students at the impacted school. But the age was evenly divided just over two-fifths were between 13 and 15 years old, about the same were 16 to 18. The handgun used in the crime was later found in a garbage can at a Hampton home where both Vinston and Smith were arrested. A mixture that included DNA from Vinston, Smith and another person were on the gun, a forensic expert testified. "We want to be everything a 21st-century library can be. What can it be? We want to find out what that can be," said one source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. "We're looking at what is our niche and what can we do to serve that need." A "very, very happy" Saudi teenager who caused a sensation by defying her family and seeking asylum abroad was welcomed with open arms in Toronto Saturday at the end of a dramatic but exhausting international odyssey. Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland greeted Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun after she landed in Toronto, wearing a skirt, a gray hoodie emblazoned in red with the word "CANADA" and a blue cap with the logo of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Smiling broadly, the 18-year-old posed for photographers with Freeland at her side, but made no statement. Later, she tweeted a video of her arrival, with the comment: "I love Canada I love you all." Freeland said Qunun "wanted Canadians to see that she's here, that she's well and that she is very, very happy to be in her new home." "She had a pretty long journey and is exhausted and prefers not to take questions for the moment," the diplomatic chief added, with an arm around Qunun's shoulder. She was taken in by Toronto-based refugee group Costi, a spokeswoman said. Shortly after her arrival, Qunun went shopping for some warm clothes in central Ontario, according to the spokesman, noting the teenager knows several people there and contacted them. In the coming days, Costi representatives will help her open a bank account and perform various administrative tasks before finding her a permanent home. In the meantime, she is staying in a facility constantly under guard. Costi has recommended Qunun that she avoid sharing her address. - A trail of tweets - The arrival in Canada marks the epilogue of an international saga. Qunun captured the world's attention with a trail of Twitter posts that ignited a #SaveRahaf movement as she fled what she said was physical and psychological abuse from her family in ultra-conservative Saudi Arabia. Rights groups also said she had renounced Islam, risking prosecution in Saudi Arabia. Her family has denied the abuse allegations. The publicity thwarted an attempt to deport her to Saudi Arabia after she arrived in Bangkok on a flight from Kuwait a week ago, with Thai authorities instead turning her over to the UN's refugee agency. Then on Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the surprise announcement that Canada would welcome her. Freeland said that in granting Qunun asylum, Canada was "standing up for human rights around the world, and we believe very strongly that women's rights are human rights." The move is sure to further strain Canada's relations with the kingdom. Ties went sideways last August over Ottawa's rights criticism of Saudi Arabia, prompting Riyadh to expel the Canadian ambassador and sever all trade and investment ties in protest. Canada also sparked fury in Riyadh by demanding the "immediate release" of jailed rights campaigners, including Samar Badawi, the sister of jailed blogger Raif Badawi, whose family lives in Quebec. Qunun's attempt to flee Saudi Arabia was embraced by rights groups as a beacon of defiance against repression. -'Precarious situation'- "Ms al-Qunun's plight has captured the world's attention over the past few days, providing a glimpse into the precarious situation of millions of refugees worldwide," said Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. "Refugee protection today is often under threat and cannot always be assured, but in this instance international refugee law and overriding values of humanity have prevailed." Raif Badawi's wife Ensaf Haidar also praised Canada, calling Freeland on Twitter "the real hero" behind efforts to prevent Qunun's repatriation to Saudi Arabia. Qunun first said she was aiming for Australia. But late Friday, Thailand's immigration police chief Surachate Hakparn said a smiling and cheerful Rahaf was bound for Toronto. "The only country that really helped me in the end was Canada," Qunun said after arriving in Toronto. "The rest were afraid and cowards." In a tweet, the UNHCR said: "We welcome Rahaf's arrival in Canada and the Canadian Government's decision to provide protection and a long-term solution for her there as a resettled refugee." - Death threats - On Friday, Qunun posted a cryptic tweet on her profile saying, "I have some good news and some bad news." Her account was deactivated shortly afterward in response to death threats she had faced, her friends said. But she was back online later in the day, tweeting: "I would like to thank you people for supporting me and saving my life. Truly I have never dreamed of this love and support." She opened and began using a new Twitter handle on Friday, citing the threats. Qunun's use of Twitter saw her amass tens of thousands of followers within a week, highlighting her plight at a time when Saudi Arabia's human rights record is under heavy scrutiny following the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year. Her deployment of social media allowed her to avoid the fate of countless other refugees who are quietly sent back home or left to languish in Bangkok detention centers. She refused to see her father, who traveled to Thailand and expressed opposition to her resettlement. One of France's most celebrated screenwriters is taking on its biggest taboo, the bloody conflict in Algeria, in a new war film. Abdel Raouf Dafri told AFP that he had been itching for years to broach the delicate subject. The writer of the Oscar-nominated "A Prophet", and the Emmy-winning television series "Braquo", has Algerian roots but was born in the French port of Marseille, where many former French "pied noir" colonists who were forced to flee Algeria settled. The film's title "May an impure blood..." is plucked from the most controversial line in the French national anthem, "La Marseillaise", which ends "...water our fields". Dafri cleverly turns it around to refer to "the blood of the colonised" who suffered under the French, which "just goes to show how universal our national anthem is", he argued. His story, however, centres on a group of French conscript soldiers sent on a "grotesque mission that none of them want to go on. "Like a lot of military operations, it serves little or no purpose," said Dafri, who also scripted the acclaimed "Mesrine" gangster films. "When you make a film about World War II, you know who the good guys are," the writer said. "The war in Algeria is more complicated, because nobody was nice." - Torture - The film opens with a brutal interrogation of three Algerian villagers -- the sort of violent questioning that the founder of France's far-right National Front party, Jean-Marie Le Pen, said he proudly took part in. It was only last year that the French government finally acknowledged that these interrogations were part of an official system of routine torture during the bloody seven-year war, before Algeria declared independence from France in 1962. "All the violence which I show in the film happened in reality," Dafri insisted. Yet the film's lead character -- a tough non-commissioned officer who has survived France's earlier colonial defeat in Indochina -- is inspired by the rather more sympathetic figure of Roger Vandenberghe. Vandenberghe, a tragic and highly decorated hero of that earlier conflict, died aged 24 in Vietnam. "I wanted a hero, but not a Rambo," the first-time director said. "A man who was both fragile deep down but who was also capable of cruelty." With France and Algeria still unable to agree on a death toll more than half a century after the war ended, Dafri insisted that he wanted "to be as honest and as just as possible". After much research, he borrowed a phrase from the ethnologist Germaine Tillion as his guiding light. Tillion was a French resistance hero and concentration camp survivor who secretly met Algerian guerrilla leaders in a bid to end the bloodshed. She tried to win hearts and minds as the military stepped up their repression. - French-Algerian identity - "When in 1828 our ancestors crossed the sea to seek revenge for a slap with a fly-whisk, Algeria was an archaic country, and France was too," Tillion wrote. The quotation refers to how France used a clash between the country's former Ottoman ruler Hussein Dey and the French consul in Algiers as a pretext to invade the country. Tillion tried to bring health services and education to Algeria's "pauperised" indigenous population as the war raged. She was among the first to condemn the systematic torture of suspects. To understand the Algerian war, "you have to go back to the beginnings of the history of France and its principal colony", Dafri said. But writing the film he also had to confront his own personal history and identity as the French-born son of Algerian emigrants. "I wanted to understand why my parents brought me into the world in France in 1963" -- a year after the war ended -- "when their own country had just been liberated from its oppressors." Dafri said he is dedicating the film, which will be released later this year, both to the Algerian people and to the young French conscripts who were forced to serve there, "thrown into a disaster" that was not of their own making. According to the French historian Benjamin Stora, conscripts made up two-thirds of the 23,000 French soldiers killed in Algeria. Estimates of the number of Algerians who died ranges from around one million to between 300,000 and 400,000, three percent of the local population at the time. Dafri is less forgiving of those in power. "The Algerian people suffered from colonisation and then independence led by corrupt men who are still in power," he said. "I don't want people to say that I have taken sides" when they see the movie, Dafri said. "I do not have a side to take: France is my country." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday arrived in Riyadh, where he is set to press Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to hold the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi accountable. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, embarked on his second politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia since Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate sparked an international outcry. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told reporters in Qatar, before flying to the Saudi capital. "We'll... make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well." After landing in Riyadh, Pompeo pushed for Saudi Arabia to continue its investigation into the murder, in talks with Adel al-Jubeir, minister of state for foreign affairs, and the Saudi Ambassador to Washington, Prince Khalid bin Salman. Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, was murdered on October 2 in what Saudi Arabia called a "rogue" operation, tipping the kingdom into one of its worst diplomatic crises and subsequently straining ties between Riyadh and Washington. Pompeo's visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will be hosted by Prince Mohammed, is part of an extensive eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. - Smiles with MBS - US President Donald Trump has brushed aside international outrage to stand by Prince Mohammed over the murder of Khashoggi, whose corpse was dismembered at the consulate. His support has come despite the US Central Intelligence Agency's reported conclusion that Prince Mohammed very likely ordered the murder. A bipartisan resolution approved by the US Senate last month also held the crown prince responsible for the killing. Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the oil-rich kingdom, which he sees as a bulwark against common foe Iran and a lucrative buyer of US arms. Rights groups have called on Pompeo to also press Prince Mohammed over the jailing of women activists in the kingdom, amid claims that some of them faced sexual harassment and torture during interrogation. "I am struck by what is not included in Pompeo's itinerary: the brave women activists of Saudi Arabia, who are being held in the kingdom's prisons for seeking rights and dignity," Alia al-Hathloul wrote in The New York Times Sunday. Hathloul's sister, Loujain, is among more than a dozen activists arrested last May -- just before the historic lifting of Saudi Arabia's decades-long ban on women drivers. - Gulf crisis - Pompeo met the Qatari emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani during his visit to Doha, where he refused to comment on reports Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. "As for the GCC... we are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world," Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. "Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He added that "President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long". However, Pompeo later admitted in a Q&A session with US embassy staff in Doha that no progress was made on resolving the issue. Mediation efforts by the United States, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second "strategic dialogue" between the two countries on Sunday and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. What a difference just one year can make. This time last year energy planners in Beijing were caught in an embarrassing situation when they moved too quickly to replace both residential and commercial coal usage with cleaner-burning natural gas. Beijings move came just months before a colder than expected winter season slammed much of the country, particularly its northern provinces. The result was gas shortages that forced temporary shutdowns of key industries and the diversion of gas to residential end-users to make up for the lack of gas supply. The increased demand coming from China at the time also caused prices for LNG on the spot market to increase, exacerbating the problem for the countrys gas suppliers that were trying to keep a lid on prices. Yet, over the ensuing year not only did China prepare better than the previous season, including earlier procurement of LNG and filing more storage tanks but warmer weather this winter has helped, also causing the country to procure less LNG on the spot markets via short term contracts. China also ramped up its domestic gas production to multi-year levels last year, increasing production by 7.5 percent on the year in October 2018 and by 6.3 percent between January and October, compared to the same period last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics of China. Related: The Natural Gas Crash Isnt Over Warmer temperatures have also been putting downward pressure on LNG spot prices in the Asia-Pacific region, which accounts for 72 percent of LNG demand with that demand forecasted to increase soon to as much as 75 percent, amid increased usage from China and South Asia (Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh). Spot prices this winter have been hovering around six-month lows. For February delivery to Asia LNG-AS were assessed at $8.75/MMBtu compared to $9.10/MMBtu last week, industry sources said, also citing low liquidity as the reason for the fall. Chinese appetite for spot dries up Meanwhile, industry sources recently said that Chinese appetite for spot cargoes between November 2018 and March 2019 will not be as strong as the same period in 2018, with traders having started preparing to meet a spike in winter gas demand early last year. They are understood to have arranged enough supplies via long-term contracts. The sources added that Chinese buyers had lined up delivery of 3.4 million tonnes of LNG either from the spot market or via short-term supply contracts this winter, down from 5.1 million tonnes during the colder 2017-18 winter season. Traders have also prepared for softer gas demand growth in anticipation of the warm winter. By securing enough long-term supply, buyers have shielded themselves from spot market price fluctuations. Yet, Chinas continued efforts to shift industrial facilities, commercial outlets and residential heating from coal to gas is anticipated to lift gas demand this winter by 8 percent year on year to 29 bcm. Chinas total winter LNG supply, however, is predicted to climb to 20 million tonnes, up from last winters 17.9 million tonnes. In November 2018, China imported 5.9 million tonnes of LNG. Media in China has reported that industry officials are not worried about capacity constraints at LNG terminals, claiming that the countrys 21 receiving terminals are operating well below their capacity. The plants have a combined import capacity of 64.7 mtpa. China has not experienced any supply shortages so far this year, partially thanks to the relatively warm winter, they added. Chinas northern cities can now access multiple gas supply sources, including PetroChinas West-East Pipeline network, LNG imports as well as locally produced gas from on and offshore fields. By Tim Daiss for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Late last year, Royal Dutch Shell gave the greenlight to a massive LNG export terminal on Canadas Pacific Coast, one of the largest investments in LNG in years. But like other fossil fuel projects in Canada, the plans have run into some trouble. Shells LNG Canada project hinges on a crucial pipeline that will connect gas fields along the border of British Columbia and Alberta to the Pacific coast at Kitimat. The Coastal GasLink pipeline is to be constructed by TransCanada (or, rather TC Energy, as the company now wants to be known). The Coastal GasLink pipeline was supposed to mark a departure from previous long distance pipelines in Canada a project that would, from the start, adequately consult with First Nations. Prior pipeline projects Enbridges Northern Gateway and Line 3; TransCanadas Energy East; as well as Kinder Morgans Trans Mountain Expansion ran into stiff resistance from various First Nations. TransCanada hoped that Coastal GasLink would be different. But, it too is now meeting resistance. Members of the Wetsuweten nation threw up makeshift barricades to stop construction on their land in recent weeks. On January 7, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police broke through those barricades and arrested at least 14 people. RCMP said it was enforcing a court order, but the clash made national and international headlines. The situation is complex because the Wetsuweten nation never signed a treaty with Canada, so their territory is neither ceded nor even formally acknowledged by Canada. What I see is a long history of the Canadian government doing its best to avoid acknowledging the existence of other systems of government, Gordon Christie, a scholar of indigenous law at the University of British Columbia, told The Guardian. Related: Americas Remarkable Dual Achievement In Energy TransCanada inked agreements with elected officials from First Nations tribes along the route, the company maintains that it has conducted extensive consultation with First Nations. But at least five Wetsuweten chiefs oppose the project. The goal has always been the same for Canada and indigenous people: its to remove us from our land and have access to the resources, Jennifer Wickham, a member of one of five clans making up the Wetsuweten nation, told The Guardian. That storyline has never changed. The protest camp sparked protests across the country. On Wednesday, a testy and fragile truce between Wetsuweten chiefs and the police dialed down tensions. Workers for Coastal GasLink pipeline gained access to certain areas to proceed with preparations for construction, but the police agreed not to dismantle a nearby camp. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has aggressively supported Shells LNG Canada export terminal and the associated Coastal GasLink pipeline, hailing the $40 billion project as the largest private sector investment in the countrys history. Still, at a rally in British Columbia, he faced angry crowds. Its unclear what happens next. The Wetsuweten said that their resistance was not over in a statement on their website. The Wetsuweten Hereditary Chiefs have by absolutely no means agreed to let the Coastal GasLink pipeline tear through our traditional territories, the statement read. The agreement we made allows Coastal GasLink to temporarily work behind the Unistoten gate. This will continue to be a waste of their time and resources as they will not be building a pipeline in our traditional territory. Related: Haynesville Shale About To Break All-Time Gas Output Record The pipeline company seems a bit anxious about potential delays. Its important to understand that construction time lines require us to gain access to the area and begin activities as soon as we safely can to keep the current construction schedule and time lines in place, Jacquelynn Benson, a spokeswoman for Coast GasLink, told Bloomberg. Any delays to that would affect our ability to meet those dates. A separate issue could create another hurdle for TransCanada. A lawsuit alleges that the pipeline falls under federal, not provincial, jurisdiction. If that turns out to be the case, the pipeline project could potentially face a lengthy delay as it would then require federal regulatory reviews. It is way too early to suggest that Shell and TransCanada are facing the same obstacles that killed Northern Gateway, Energy East and severely wounded the Trans Mountain Expansion. But Shells LNG project, which is one of the largest investments in new LNG export capacity in the world in recent years, may not experience the smooth ride that company executives had expected. By Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: At the beginning of July Gabon joined the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) after an absence of more than two decades. Gabonese authorities are looking for enhanced coordination with other global oil producers to alleviate some of the pressure of low energy prices and to help cultivate an environment more conducive to expanding domestic production. Back into the fold The country had asked to rejoin OPEC earlier this year, after leaving the organisation in 1994 due to an inability to pay its annual membership dues. At the time, the country requested that its contributions be adjusted in line with its production levels; however, the groups larger members rebuffed this proposal. While Gabon is again the cartels smallest producer contributing just 0.3 percent of the global oil supply, amidst OPECs combined 40 percent officials are hoping the benefits gained from closer international coordination, as well as technical and other assistance, will outweigh costs in the long run. The move brings the total number of countries in OPEC to 14, following Indonesias re-admission in January, and will allow Gabon to better coordinate and strengthen ties with other members that are also dealing with the economic fallout of weaker energy receipts. Gabon has already trimmed its budget twice in response to lower crude sales, but its economy remains highly dependent on oil, accounting for more than 80 percent of exports, two-thirds of state revenue and 43 percent of GDP. Coordinated response to energy headwinds The country will take part in the next OPEC meeting, which will be held alongside an energy conference in Algeria in late September. The meeting is expected to address the ongoing supply glut. OECD crude stockpiles surpassed the 3.1bn barrel mark in July, as supply has continued to increase. Global demand growth, meanwhile, is projected to slow at a faster rate than initially forecast by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, for a gain of just 1.3m barrels per day (bpd) this year. Related: How Long Will OPEC Hot Air Continue To Fuel Oil Prices Any concerted effort to trim supply could help rebalance the market, giving producers greater fiscal breathing room after prices neared breakeven levels over the last 18 months. At present, Brent crude is priced slightly above the $40 per barrel threshold laid out in Gabons 2016 budget, trading at around $48 in early September. What is important for us is how we can work with OPEC towards fighting against the situation of oil prices going down, Ali Bongo Ondimba, the incumbent president, told international media in mid-April. It is just important that all the members be going in the same direction. Significantly, Iran which has ramped up its production to 3.6m bpd since sanctions were lifted in January has pledged to attend the Algeria talks. Irans continued commitment to increase its output to pre-sanctions levels of around 4m bpd has been widely seen as a stumbling block to collective action to defend flagging energy prices. Gabonese production prospects Lower oil prices have coincided with a broader decline in Gabonese production due to maturing oil fields and a lack of new projects. The country produced around 219,000 bpd of crude last year, down from 222,000 in 2014 and a peak of 370,000 bpd in 1997, though output has picked up somewhat in the first six months of this year, averaging 230,000 over the second quarter, according to OPEC figures. Gabonese authorities are looking to stabilize production at around 250,000 bpd in the short term and double it by 2025, relying on increased output from offshore blocks. According to official estimates, without new discoveries, production is expected to ease to 100,000 bpd by 2024. These goals are seen as ambitious given the high exploration costs associated with the countrys offshore formations. International oil majors Total, Shell and Eni all announced offshore discoveries in mid-2013; however, many of these blocks are in deep or ultra-deep waters, which in turn necessitates high levels of capital spending before commercial production can begin. Even with limited production, demand for Gabonese crude remains high. The country profits from a relatively light crude that is low in sulphur, which allows refiners to produce a wider range of products, such as liquefied petroleum gas, petrol and fuel oil. By Oxford Business Group More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Washington, PA (15301) Today Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds. High 72F. Winds NNW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Some clouds this evening will give way to mainly clear skies overnight. Low 43F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. A Canadian slat-back chair is sometimes found in the United States. There were many more chair makers in the United States than in Canada, so the chairs are harder to find. This Canadian chair sold for $1,200, well over the estimated price. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tspiras on Sunday called for an "immediate" confidence vote in parliament over the resignation of a top minister, after his coalition government collapsed in a row over a name change deal with Macedonia. The move raises the possibility of snap elections and came after Defence Minister Panos Kammenos resigned in protest over an agreement to end the 27-year Macedonia name dispute. "We will proceed immediately to the renewal of the confidence in our government by the parliament in order to proceed with the major issues for our country," Tspiras said. Parliament speaker Nikos Voutsis suggested a debate on the confidence motion could start on Tuesday, with a vote on Wednesday night. Tsipras' leftist party Syriza has 145 deputies in the 300-member Greek Parliament but could win the confidence vote with just 120 votes if enough lawmakers abstain. Kammenos, who is head of the nationalist Independent Greeks party (ANEL) which has seven MPs, said he was "sacrificing" his post over the Macedonia name issue. "I thanked the prime minister for the cooperation and I explained to him that for this national issue we cannot continue," Kammenos said, adding that his party "is pulling out of the government". Macedonian lawmakers voted on Friday to rename their country the Republic of North Macedonia but the agreement will only come into effect with backing from the Greek parliament. The proposal faces resistance in Greece, which has a northern province of the same name, over implied claims to Greek territory. For many Greeks, Macedonia is the name of a history-rich northern province that was the cradle of Alexander the Great's ancient empire. - 'Staged government divorce' - Kammenos first threatened to pull out of the government after Tsipras signed the name change deal with Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev in June last year. Kammenos said he and two other ANEL lawmakers would vote against the government but analysts say some ANEL MP's could be willing to back Tsipras in the confidence vote. If a motion of no-confidence had been tabled by the opposition, the voting math would have been more difficult for Tsipras as the government would have needed 151 votes to avoid an election. New Democracy on Sunday described the end of the Tsipras-Kammenos coalition as "a staged governmental divorce". The conservative party said the "charade" aimed to allow the ratification of the Macedonia name change deal and keep Tsipras in power. Centre-left To Potami leader Stavros Theodorakis said on Sunday that his party "won't give a vote of confidence to Mr. Tsipras" because "inefficiency and populism can't be rewarded". - Coalition collapse - Tsipras has already said he wants the Macedonia name change vote to take place soon. New Democracy is vehemently against the agreement but Tsipras hopes to convince opposition MPs from smaller parties to back the historic name change deal. Tsipras has said a separate vote on a protocol to enable Macedonia to join NATO would be held "not long afterwards". Greece has previously blocked Macedonia's accession to NATO and the European Union. The collapse of the Greek coalition has raised questions over how much longer Tsipras can stay in office. Parliamentary elections are scheduled in October but local media speculate that polls could be held in May, coinciding with European parliament and local elections, or even sooner. Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called for the confidence vote after meeting with Greek Defense Minister and coalition partner Panos Kammenos in Athens WASHINGTON William Barr's 19-page memorandum was striking enough when it emerged last month. The attorney general under President George H.W. Bush had just been nominated to the same post in Donald Trump's administration when the document revealed his stinging critique of Russia special counsel Robert Muellers inquiry into possible obstruction by Trump. Not only did Barr object to any demand that the president submit to interrogation by Muellers team, but he asserted that the special counsels likely theory that Trump sought to obstruct Muellers inquiry by firing FBI Director James Comey was fatally misconceived. Barrs unsolicited counsel directed last June to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who was overseeing Muellers work, was not meant for public consumption. But it promises to be among the most incendiary flashpoints in the 77th attorney generals bid to become the nations 85th chief law enforcement officer Tuesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Last week, Barrs controversial work was thrust further into the spotlight when it was revealed that Rosenstein intended to leave the department after Barrs anticipated confirmation. More: Mueller grand jury gets more time Some Democrats, concerned that the nominees memo represented a threat to Mueller, called on Barr to recuse himself from the Russia inquiry as a condition of his confirmation. I want him to completely disavow that theory of limits of the authority of the special counsel, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., a committee member, told USA TODAY. I want ironclad, specific limits and possibly even recusal. Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California, the top Democrat on the panel, asked Barr who requested the memo and to whom he provided it after seeing reports he gave it to Trumps personal lawyers in addition to Rosenstein. She said that in 25 years on the committee, she had never seen a nominee write such an in-depth legal memo for no reason. Story continues Former Republican attorneys general concede that Barr has some explaining to do, signaling that the nominee could best calm the turbulent political waters by ensuring lawmakers that his private counsel was offered as just that without the benefit of any inside knowledge of Muellers investigation. This is someone who has held the biggest jobs at the Justice Department, former Attorney General Michael Mukasey told USA TODAY. He was attorney general, deputy attorney general and directed the Office of Legal Counsel. He is a formidable lawyer who might best explain his work as any good lawyer would: that he will always follow the law. Barr will have to assess a multitude of weighty questions, from the boundaries of the presidents executive authority to the challenge of lifting sagging morale inside a sprawling department that for the past two years has been a punching bag for the president. More: Senate rejects expedited vote on bill to protect special counsel I cant think of a more potentially consequential time for any attorney general than the issues facing Justice today," Mukasey said. Trooping to and from private meetings with committee members last week, Barr declined public comment, though he made a few brief exceptions. Asked about his relationship with Mueller, who served under Barr during the investigation in 1988 into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, the former attorney general responded with one word: "Terrific." The legal challenges ahead Indeed, if confirmed, the first days and weeks of a Barr tenure are likely to bring a host of challenges, any one of which would probably define an entire term in any other administration. As Barr prepares for Tuesday's hearing, the president is weighing a key test of his own executive power: whether to declare a national emergency that would allow him to bypass Congress and tap billions in federal money to build a long-promised wall along the U.S.-Mexican border a possible path toward ending a shutdown of the federal government. The move is all but certain to prompt a legal challenge from Democrats that would require the Justice Department to argue the president's case. There are questions about whether Trump as a sitting president could be subject to indictment, given the criminal investigations that claimed some of his former top aides. The Justice Department has taken the position that such a prosecution would unconstitutionally interfere with any president's capacity to run the government. This month, new House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., declared the proposition an "open discussion." As attorney general, Barr would serve as the ultimate arbiter on the public release of any final accounting of the investigative work by Mueller's team. The special counsel has filed charges against 33 people since taking control of the inquiry in May 2017. "I think you have to go back to the Nixon era to appreciate the issues awaiting a new attorney general," said David Weinstein, who served for more than a decade as a federal prosecutor in Miami. Jimmy Gurule, a University of Notre Dame law professor who was an assistant attorney general under Barr in the Bush administration, described his former boss "as a decent and honorable man," but his confidence was shaken by Barr's writings. Citing a passage deep in Barr's memo to Rosenstein in June, Gurule said the nominee appeared to take the position that the president had the authority to shut down a criminal investigation if he believed the inquiry to be "bogus" and run by "political opponents." "It would neither be corrupt nor a crime for a new president to terminate the matter and leave further investigation to Congress," Barr wrote. "There is no legal principle that would insulate the matter from the president's supervisory authority and mandate that he passively submit while a bogus investigation runs its course." Gurule said Barr's reasoning "should be alarming to every American." "It appears to place the president beyond judicial review in direct conflict with the fundamental principle that no one is above the law," Gurule said. Asked about Barr's memo shortly after it was first made public in a report by The Wall Street Journal, Rosenstein defended the author, saying it merely reflected the opinion of the former attorney general, who had not been briefed on the Mueller investigation. Rosenstein said he had not shared any details about the investigation with Barr. "Bill Barr will be an outstanding attorney general when he is confirmed," Rosenstein said. 'This is not a good starting point' Confirmation will be up to the Senate, where Republicans control a solid majority. Nevertheless, Barr is likely to be closely vetted by wary Democrats. Rosensteins departure definitely increases the threat level, Blumenthal said. Amid the prospect of additional subpoenas and criminal charges, Blumenthal said, the attorney general would have to support, not just avoid active interference. Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin, the assistant Democratic leader and a committee member, said determining whether Barr is a worthy candidate became more urgent in light of Rosensteins impending departure. Durbin said his concern extended to acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker, who has served in the interim since November when Jeff Sessions was ousted by Trump. Citing Whitaker's separate criticism of the Mueller inquiry, Durbin said he worried that Whitaker might intervene in the Mueller investigation before Barr took office. More: DOJ ethics officer urged Matthew Whitaker to recuse himself Im concerned when this man, who has a good reputation as a lawyer and professional, volunteers to the Trump administration that they should constrain Muellers investigation, Durbin told USA TODAY about Barrs memo. This is not a good starting point for someone who as attorney general would have supervisory authority over the investigation. Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Del., said Thursday after meeting with Barr that he found his answers about the Mueller investigation encouraging but that he would repeat his questions at the public hearing. Barr said he knows and respects Robert Mueller and served alongside him, that he intends to allow that investigation to conclude, to reach its natural conclusion unhindered, that he sees it as critical to the rule of law and the legitimacy of the Department of Justice, Coons said. Republicans were confident Barr would be confirmed. I had a good meeting with him, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the Judiciary Committee chairman, adding that Barr told him he has a high opinion of Mueller and thinks he is doing a professional job. I think hell be fine. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, said Democrats will certainly try to block Barr because they have demonstrated that they will treat almost anything like a political circus. I fully expect more Spartacus moments in the next two years ahead of us, Cruz said. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., said the shutdown diverted his attention from the Barr hearing but vowed that he would be prepared. Ill ask him tough questions, Kennedy told USA TODAY. Im sure the question about the Mueller investigation will come up. Im sure the question about his opinion about the relationship between Justice and the other parts of the executive branch, including but not limited to the office of the presidency," will be reviewed. 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Historical Performance: What has DFSs returns been like over the past? Go into more detail in the past track record analysis and take a look at the free visual representations of our analysis for more clarity. Other Attractive Alternatives : Are there other well-rounded stocks you could be holding instead of DFS? Explore our interactive list of stocks with large potential to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing! 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. Daniel R. DePetris Security, Middle East And counting. The real question: Is America any safer? The War on Terror's Total Cost: $5,900,000,000,000 By any reasonable estimate, the monetary and human costs of the U.S.-led war on terrorism has been considerable. To the political scientists at Brown University, the numbers have been astronomical. The Ivy League universitys Cost of War Project calculates that Washington will spend approximately $5.9 trillion between FY2001-FY2019, a pot of money that includes over $2 trillion in overseas contingency operations, $924 billion in homeland security spending, and $353 billion in medical and disability care for U.S. troops serving in overseas conflict zones. Add the cost of interest to borrowed money into the equation, and the American people will be paying back the debt for decades to come. The never-ending war on terrorism, of course, has also twisted the U.S. Armed Forces into a pretzel. With the United States operating in 40 percent of the worlds countries and leading sixty-five separate security training programs from the jungles of Columbia to the jungles of Thailand, is it any wonder why defense-minded think tanks, the Pentagon leadership and the armed services committees continue to talk about a readiness crisis? Washington is deploying troops, trainers and advisers to so many places that even Americas elected representatives are frequently in the dark about how the military is being used, what it is doing and where it is operating. Indeed, when four U.S. special forces troops were ambushed and killed by a small group of Islamic State-affiliated tribal fighters during a joint U.S. raid near the Niger-Mali border, lawmakers in Washington were aghast that American soldiers were in Niger to begin with. In a televised admission about how out-of-the-loop lawmakers were, Sen. Lindsey Graham commented that [w]e don't know exactly where we're at in the world, militarily, and what we're doing. Story continues Presumably, all of this expenditure of monetary and military resources should buy Americans at least a decent level of security. The high investment would be worth it if the United States was any safer from terrorism. Yet the opposite would appear to be the case. An October 2017 Charles Koch Institute/RealClearDefense survey found that a plurality of Americans (43 percent) and veterans (41 percent) believe U.S. foreign policy over the last twenty years has actually made the country less safea result not exactly conducive to what U.S. policymakers are looking for. The American people arent crazy for feeling the way they do. There is hard data supporting their concern. Taking a comprehensive look at the terrorism problem over many decades, the Center for Strategic and International Studies Transnational Threats Project discovered that the number of Salafi-jihadist fighters has increased by 270 percent since 2001. In 2018, there were sixty-seven jihadist groups operating around the world, a 180 percent increase since 2001. The number of fighters could be as high as 280,000, the highest in forty years. And in a disturbing sense of irony, many of those fighters reside in countries (Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya) the United States has invaded and/or bombed over the last seventeen years. All of this begs the question: is Washingtons counterterrorism strategy having the desired effect of enhancing the security of Americans? Or is the strategy simply creating more terrorists than it is killing, throwing more taxpayer money down the toilet, and further straining the U.S. militarys limited resources? We wont know the answer until President Donald Trump orders his administration to conduct an honest, impartial, whole-of-government appraisal of the current policy. When he does, perhaps Trump will be more likely to overrule his conventional national security advisers who continue to argue for an unconditional and timeless American military commitment in Syria and Afghanistan. Daniel DePetris is a fellow at Defense Priorities, a nonpartisan foreign-policy organization focused on promoting security, stability and peace. Image: Flickr. Read full article Abu Dhabi (AFP) - The United States and Poland will hold an international meeting on the Middle East that will seek to build pressure on Iran next month, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Friday. Pompeo made the announcement on a tour of the Middle East aimed at reassuring US allies after President Donald Trump's shock decision to withdraw all US troops from Syria, which sparked concerns among Arab states and Israel that Iran's influence could grow. The United States and Poland in a joint announcement said that ministers from around the world will be invited to take part in the February 13-14 meeting in Warsaw. "We'll bring together dozens of countries from all around the world," Pompeo told Fox News. They will "focus on Middle East stability and peace and freedom and security here in this region, and that includes an important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence," the top US diplomat added. The joint statement, however, did not explicitly mention Iran, saying that the meeting was focused on "creating a more peaceful and stable Middle East." "The ministerial will address a range of critical issues including terrorism and extremism, missile development and proliferation, maritime trade and security, and threats posed by proxy groups across the region," it said. - Iran denounces Poland - Iran poured scorn on the meeting and pointed out that the country, then impoverished after invasion by Britain and the Soviet Union, welcomed more than 100,000 Polish refugees during World War II. "Polish Govt can't wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts a desperate anti-Iran circus," Foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeted. He also posted a picture of the 1996 "Summit of Peacemakers" in the Egyptian summit of Sharm el-Sheikh involving then US president Bill Clinton, Israeli prime minister Shimon Peres and Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak. Story continues Clinton had spearheaded the conference to boost Peres after a wave of suicide attacks in Israel claimed by Hamas, the militant group with ties to Iran. "Reminder to host/participants of anti-Iran conference: those who attended last US anti-Iran show are either dead, disgraced, or marginalized," Zarif wrote. A State Department spokesman acknowledged that Poland, like other European nations, supports the international accord from which Trump exited last year on ending the Iranian nuclear program. The Warsaw meeting "sends an important signal that countries with differing views on the nuclear deal can come together to address other critical issues in the region," the spokesman said. Poland, led by a right-wing populist government, is a longstanding US ally that has better relations with Trump than key European powers Germany and France. Trump has reimposed sweeping sanctions on Iran in hopes of changing the course of the clerical regime but has found no support among Western governments, which note that Tehran is abiding by the United Nations-backed nuclear accord. But Trump's hardline stance on Iran has been cheered by regional US allies Saudi Arabia and Israel. Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Justice, Bill Barr, faces tough questions in the Senate next week on whether he intends to curb Special Counsel Robert Mueller's Russia collusion investigation. After the conservative lawyer criticized Mueller last year, opposition Democrats fear Barr as attorney general will protect Trump from the investigation and a possible impeachment effort arising from it. Mueller has spent 20 months investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election, and possible collusion between Trump's campaign and Russia, in a probe increasingly focused on Trump and his inner circle. Mueller has issued indictments for 33 individuals, most of them Russians, and secured convictions of three former top Trump aides. Barr, a longtime Republican ally who served as attorney general once before from 1991-93, will go before the Senate Judiciary Committee in confirmation hearings on Tuesday and Wednesday. Democrats want him to pledge publicly to protect the investigation. Barr's approval is likely, given the Republican majority in the committee and the full Senate. Senators who spoke to Barr in private meetings say he has indicated that he will not interfere with Mueller, but that he also supports Trump using his executive powers to defend himself. "I think the main thing people want to know is, what's his view of the Mueller investigation?" said the Judiciary Committee's Republican Chairman Lindsey Graham, after meeting with Mueller on Wednesday. "I can assure you, based on what I heard, that he has a high opinion of Mr Mueller." - He echoed Trump claims - Barr "has no reason for Mr Mueller to stop doing his job, and is committed to allowing Mr Mueller to finish," he added. Senator Dianne Feinstein, the senior Democrat on the committee, said Thursday that Barr had told her he would not disrupt the probe, according to media reports. But The Washington Times quoted her as saying: "I don't take to the bank anything unless it is in the public sector and everyone can hear, and it's on the record." Story continues Trump nominated Barr in December, a month after sacking Jeff Sessions, who irked the president by recusing himself from overseeing the Mueller probe, which Trump labels a "witch hunt." Barr has a record of endorsing strong executive powers, which could play into high-stakes legal battles on everything from immigration policy, to war powers, to whether the president can be required to provide testimony or release privileged documents in the Russia investigation. He expressed support in May 2017 when Trump fired then-FBI director James Comey, which has led Mueller to allegations that Trump obstructed justice. He has also echoed Trump's own claims that Mueller's team is packed with investigators allied with the Democratic Party. Barr himself, though, is a strong Republican supporter. Over the past two decades he and his wife donated nearly $800,000 to Republican candidates and groups, according to The Washington Post. - Memo criticized Mueller probe - Last year, he submitted an unsolicited legal criticism of the Mueller probe to the Justice Department, and reportedly to the White House. It argued that Trump's presidential prerogatives are protection against any obstruction allegation in the Comey firing. The memo in particular has focused the opposition to Barr's nomination. Barr is "fatally conflicted... when it comes to the special counsel," Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, said, calling for Trump to withdraw the nomination. The biggest concern is what Barr will do with the report Mueller is expected to prepare on his findings. According to The Washington Post, the president's lawyers are already planning to use executive privilege to stifle material that could be damaging to Trump or support an impeachment effort by Democrats. Graham said Barr indicated he would be "erring on the side of transparency." President Donald Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, including on at least one occasion taking possession of the notes of his own interpreter and instructing the linguist not to discuss what had transpired with other administration officials, current and former US officials said. Mr Trump did so after a meeting with Putin in 2017 in Hamburg that was also attended by then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. US officials learned of Mr Trump's actions when a White House adviser and a senior State Department official sought information from the interpreter beyond a readout shared by Mr Tillerson. The constraints that Mr Trump imposed are part of a broader pattern by the president of shielding his communications with Mr Putin from public scrutiny and preventing even high-ranking officials in his own administration from fully knowing what he has told one of the United States' main adversaries. As a result, US officials said there is no detailed record, even in classified files, of Mr Trump's face-to-face interactions with the Russian leader at five locations over the past two years. Such a gap would be unusual in any presidency, let alone one that Russia sought to instal through what US intelligence agencies have described as an unprecedented campaign of election interference. Special counsel Robert Mueller III is thought to be in the final stages of an investigation that has focused largely on whether Mr Trump or his associates conspired with Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign. The new details about Mr Trump's continued secrecy underscores the extent to which little is known about his communications with Mr Putin since becoming president. After this story was published online, Trump said in an interview late Saturday with Fox News host Jeanine Pirro that he did not take particular steps to conceal his private meetings with Putin and attacked The Washington Post and its owner Jeff Bezos. Story continues He said he talked with Mr Putin about Israel, among other subjects. "Anyone could have listened to that meeting. That meeting is open for grabs," he said, without offering specifics. When Mr Pirro asked if he is or has ever been working for Russia, Mr Trump responded, "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked." Former US officials said Mr Trump's behaviour is at odds with the known practices of previous presidents, who have relied on senior aides to witness meetings and take comprehensive notes then shared with other officials and departments. Mr Trump's secrecy surrounding Mr Putin "is not only unusual by historical standards, it is outrageous," said Strobe Talbott, a former deputy secretary of state now at the Brookings Institution, who participated in more than a dozen meetings between President Bill Clinton and then-Russian President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s. "It handicaps the US government the experts and advisers and Cabinet officers who are there to serve [the president] - and it certainly gives Putin much more scope to manipulate Trump." A White House spokesman disputed that characterisation and said that the Trump administration has sought to "improve the relationship with Russia" after the Obama administration "pursued a flawed 'reset' policy that sought engagement for the sake of engagement." The Trump administration "has imposed significant new sanctions in response to Russian malign activities," said the spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity and noted that Mr Tillerson in 2017 "gave a fulsome readout of the meeting immediately afterward to other US officials in a private setting, as well as a readout to the press." [[gallery-0]] Mr Trump's allies said the president thinks the presence of subordinates impairs his ability to establish a rapport with Mr Putin, and that his desire for secrecy may also be driven by embarrassing leaks that occurred early in his presidency. The meeting in Hamburg happened several months after The Washington Post and other news organisations revealed details about what Mr Trump had told senior Russian officials during a meeting with Russian officials in the Oval Office. Mr Trump disclosed classified information about a terror plot, called former FBI director James Comey a "nut job," and said that firing Comey had removed "great pressure" on his relationship with Russia. The White House launched internal leak hunts after that and other episodes, and sharply curtailed the distribution within the National Security Council of memos on the president's interactions with foreign leaders. "Over time it got harder and harder, I think, because of a sense from Mr Trump himself that the leaks of the call transcripts were harmful to him," said a former administration official. Senior Democratic lawmakers describe the cloak of secrecy surrounding Mr Trump's meetings with Mr Putin as unprecedented and disturbing. Representtive Eliot Engel, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in an interview that his panel will form an investigative subcommittee whose targets will include seeking State Department records of Mr Trump's encounters with Mr Putin, including a closed-door meeting with the Russian leader in Helsinki last summer. "It's been several months since Helsinki and we still don't know what went on in that meeting," Mr Engel said. "It's appalling. It just makes you want to scratch your head." The concerns have been compounded by actions and positions Mr Trump has taken as president that are seen as favourable to the Kremlin. He has dismissed Russia's election interference as a "hoax," suggested that Russia was entitled to annex Crimea, repeatedly attacked NATO allies, resisted efforts to impose sanctions on Moscow, and begun to pull US forces out of Syria a move that critics see as effectively ceding ground to Russia. At the same time, Mr Trump's decision to fire Comey and other attempts to contain the ongoing Russia investigation led the bureau in May 2017 to launch a counterintelligence investigation into whether he was seeking to help Russia and if so, why, a step first reported by the New York Times. It is not clear whether Mr Trump has taken notes from interpreters on other occasions, but several officials said they were never able to get a reliable readout of the president's two-hour meeting in Helsinki. Unlike in Hamburg, Mr Trump allowed no Cabinet officials or any aides to be in the room for that conversation. Mr Trump also had other private conversations with Mr Putin at meetings of global leaders outside the presence of aides. He spoke at length with Mr Putin at a banquet at the same 2017 global conference in Hamburg, where only Mr Putin's interpreter was present. Mr Trump also had a brief conversation with Mr Putin at a Group of 20 summit in Buenos Aires last month. Mr Trump generally has allowed aides to listen to his phone conversations with Mr Putin, although Russia has often been first to disclose those calls when they occur and release statements characterizing them in broad terms favourable to the Kremlin. In an email, Mr Tillerson said that he "was present for the entirety of the two presidents' official bilateral meeting in Hamburg," but declined to discuss the meeting and did not respond to questions about whether Mr Trump had instructed the interpreter to remain silent or had taken the interpreter's notes. In a news conference afterward, Mr Tillerson said that the Trump-Putin meeting lasted more than two hours, covered the war in Syria and other subjects, and that Mr Trump had "pressed President Putin on more than one occasion regarding Russian involvement" in election interference. "President Putin denied such involvement, as I think he has in the past," Mr Tillerson said. Mr Tillerson refused to say during the news conference whether Mr Trump had rejected Mr Putin's claim or indicated that he believed the conclusion of US intelligence agencies that Russia had interfered. Mr Tillerson's account is at odds with the only detail that other administration officials were able to get from the interpreter, officials said. Though the interpreter refused to discuss the meeting, officials said, he conceded that Mr Putin had denied any Russian involvement in the US election and that Mr Trump responded by saying, "I believe you." Senior Trump administration officials said that White House officials including then-National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster were never able to obtain a comprehensive account of the meeting, even from Mr Tillerson. "We were frustrated because we didn't get a readout," a former senior administration official said. "The State Department and [National Security Council] were never comfortable" with Mr Trump's interactions with Putin, the official said. "God only knows what they were going to talk about or agree to." Because of the absence of any reliable record of Mr Trump's conversations with Mr Putin, officials at times have had to rely on reports by US intelligence agencies tracking the reaction in the Kremlin. Previous presidents and senior advisers have often studied such reports to assess whether they had accomplished their objectives in meetings as well as to gain insights for future conversations. US intelligence agencies have been reluctant to call attention to such reports during Mr Trump's presidency because they have at times included comments by foreign officials disparaging the president or his advisers, including his son-in-law Jared Kushner, a former senior administration official said. "There was more of a reticence in the intelligence community going after those kinds of communications and reporting them," said a former administration official who worked in the White House. "The feedback tended not to be positive." The interpreter at Hamburg revealed the restrictions that Mr Trump had imposed when he was approached by administration officials at the hotel where the US delegation was staying, officials said. Among the officials who asked for details from the meeting were Fiona Hill, the senior Russia adviser at the NSC, and John Heffern, who was then serving at State as the acting assistant secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs. The State Department did not respond to a request for comment from the interpreter. Mr Heffern, who retired from State in 2017, declined to comment. Through a spokesman, Ms Hill declined a request for an interview. There are conflicting accounts of the purpose of the conversation with the interpreter, with some officials saying that Ms Hill was among those briefed by Mr Tillerson and that she was merely seeking more nuanced information from the interpreter. Others said the aim was to get a more meaningful readout than the scant information furnished by Mr Tillerson. "I recall Fiona reporting that to me," one former official said. A second former official present in Hamburg said that Mr Tillerson "didn't offer a briefing or call the ambassador or anybody together. He didn't brief senior staff," although he "gave a readout to the press." A similar issue arose in Helsinki, the setting for the first formal US-Russia summit since Mr Trump became president. Ms Hill, national security adviser John Bolton and other US officials took part in a preliminary meeting that included Mr Trump, Mr Putin and other senior Russian officials. But Mr Trump and Mr Putin then met for two hours in private, accompanied only by their interpreters. Mr Trump's interpreter, Marina Gross, could be seen emerging from the meeting with pages of notes. Alarmed by the secrecy of Mr Trump's meeting with Mr Putin, several lawmakers subsequently sought to compel Ms Gross to testify before Congress about what she witnessed. Others argued that forcing her to do so would violate the impartial role that interpreters play in diplomacy. Ms Gross was not forced to testify. She was identified when members of Congress sought to speak with her. The interpreter in Hamburg has not been identified. During a joint news conference with Mr Putin afterward, Mr Trump acknowledged discussing Syria policy and other subjects but also lashed out at the media and federal investigators, and seemed to reject the findings of US intelligence agencies by saying that he was persuaded by Mr Putin's "powerful" denial of election interference. Previous presidents have required senior aides to attend meetings with adversaries including the Russian president largely to ensure that there are not misunderstandings and that others in the administration are able to follow up on any agreements or plans. Detailed notes that Mr Talbot took of Mr Clinton's meetings with Mr Yeltsin are among hundreds of documents declassified and released last year. The Washington Post Donald Trump has claimed that thousands of illegal immigrants who have sexually abused children are currently in prisons in Texas, upping his rhetoric as he seeks to justify funding for his border wall. Mr Trump was quoting John Jones of the Texas Department for Public Safety (DPS). Late last week, Mr Jones appeared at an immigration roundtable at the White House and said that more than 4,000 have been incarcerated for sexual assault in the last seven years. Sixty-two per cent of them are sexual assault against children. Statistics from the Texas DPS show that between 2011 and the end of 2018, 2,837 people were convicted of a sexual assault or sexual offence from 5,580 arrests. The statistics do not show how many of those arrested were charged, or how many of those offences were against children. The statistics also do not show how many of those offenders are still in prison. Mr Trump has claimed the thousands number despite not being able to fully justify that figure, as he hardens his rhetoric over the border wall - the central issue in a government shutdown that is now the longest in US history at 23 days. In his tweet he said that the crime could be ended "easily" with a wall. Mr Trump has spent the last week - including an address to the nation from the Oval Office - trying to convince the public that there is an immigration crisis on the southern border, with criminals and drugs pouring into the country. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Democrats have accused the president of misinformation and malice over his stance. Mr Trump has reportedly told advisors he sees the shutdown as a win for him. But as the pressure increases on the president to find a solution to the shutdown, his frustration is clear. Democrats have stood firm in saying they will not sign-off the presidents request for $5.7bn in wall funding as part of any legislation to open the government, offering $1.3bn in general border security funding and accusing Mr Trump have throw a temper tantrum over the wall. Story continues More than half of Americans say that the president and Republicans are responsible for the closure. Fifty-three per cent of the public blamed the White House and Mr Trumps party for the shutdown, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released on Sunday, 29 per cent blamed the Democrats and 13 per cent a combination of the two. A separate CNN said that 55 per cent people blamed Mr Trump for the stoppage, with 32 per cent blaming the Democrats and nine per cent blaming both. WASHINGTON (AP) It wasn't the weekend that President Donald Trump wanted: largely alone at the White House, irked by a pair of startling Russia headlines and baffled that he's not getting more credit for staying put during the partial government shutdown. Trump surprised his aides by deciding, with just a few hours' notice, to call in to Jeanine Pirro's show on Fox News on Saturday night to push back against coverage of his presidency on multiple fronts, particularly published reports about his approach toward Russia. Even then, the president avoided directly answering when Pirro asked whether he currently is or has ever worked for Russia. The question came after The New York Times reported that law enforcement officials began investigating, in 2017, whether Trump had been working on behalf of Russia against U.S. interests. The newspaper said the investigation came after the president's firing of FBI Director James Comey. "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked," Trump told Pirro, a personal friend. "I think it's the most insulting article I've ever had written, and if you read the article you'll see that they found absolutely nothing." Trump went on to assert that no president has taken a harder stance against Russia than he has. "If you ask the folks in Russia, I've been tougher on Russia than anybody else, any other ... probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents," he said. White House aides expressed regret that the president did not more clearly and forcefully deny being a Russian agent when asked by the usually friendly Fox News host, according to three White House aides and Republicans close to the White House. The three spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss private conversations. Trump also objected to a report in The Washington Post that said he went to extraordinary lengths to conceal details of his conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin even from high-ranking officials in his own administration. The report cited unnamed current and former U.S. officials. Story continues In the Fox News interview, Trump questioned why the newspaper made such a "big deal" out of his discussions with Putin in Helsinki last summer. "Anybody could have listened to that meeting, that meeting is up for grabs." The Russia reports came as Trump plays up his presence at the White House during the standoff with Democrats over funding for his long-promised wall at the U.S.-Mexico border. Large swaths of the government have been shut down for weeks while Trump and Democrats in Congress remain at an impasse over money for the border wall. Trump has been trying to play up his presence at the White House during the standoff as a sign that it's Democrats who won't negotiate a deal. "I like the symbol of me being here," Trump told Pirro. "I like that symbol because I am ready to sign. And they're not. And they're not." Trump has expressed bafflement that he is not getting more credit for largely staying put during the shutdown. Aides acknowledge that the West Wing mishandled the first few days of the shutdown, when Trump remained out of sight, and are now trying to use the trappings of his office, with an Oval Office speech, a visit to the Texas border and the president's frequent tweets about waiting in the White House for Democrats to act. By Sunday night, a blanket of snow in Washington seemed to provide a calming backdrop for the discontented president. He tweeted: "Wish I could share with everyone the beauty and majesty of being in the White House and looking outside at the snow filled lawns and Rose Garden. Really is something - SPECIAL COUNTRY, SPECIAL PLACE!" Trump's claim that he's been tough on Russia was disputed Sunday by Virginia Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee. The senator said almost all the sanctions on Russia arose not in the White House but in Congress, due to concerns by members of both parties about Moscow's actions. Warner accused the White House of being very slow to put in place the penalties. The Times reported that FBI agents and some top officials became suspicious of Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 presidential campaign but didn't open an investigation at that time because they weren't sure how to approach such a sensitive probe. Trump's behavior in the days around Comey's May 2017 firing helped trigger the counterintelligence part of the probe, according to the newspaper. In the inquiry, counterintelligence investigators sought to evaluate whether Trump was a potential threat to national security. They also sought to determine whether Trump was deliberately working for Russia or had unintentionally been influenced by Moscow. Trump tweeted early Saturday that the report showed that the FBI leadership "opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof" after he had fired Comey. Robert Mueller took over the investigation when he was appointed special counsel soon after Comey's firing. The overall investigation is looking into Russian election interference and whether Trump's campaign coordinated with the Russians, as well as possible obstruction of justice by Trump. The Times says it's unclear whether Mueller is still pursuing the counterintelligence angle. Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani told the Times he had no knowledge of the counterintelligence inquiry but said that since it was opened a year and a half ago and they hadn't heard anything, apparently "they found nothing." ___ Lemire reported from New York. Associated Press writer Lynn Berry contributed to this report. Donald Trump has denied working for Russia and concealing his conversations with President Vladimir Putin from US officials. In an interview with Fox News, Mr Trump claimed he was tougher on Russia that any recent US president and lashed out at the idea of collusion with the country as a hoax and a witch hunt. A number of senior Democrats have said that the reports raise serious questions about the presidents relationship with the Russian leader. The presidents latest Russia-related tirade follows a report in The New York Times that the FBI opened a counterintelligence investigation in 2017 into whether the US president was actively working for Moscow. The investigation was said to have been launched after Mr Trump fired then-FBI director James Comey out of concern the presidents actions may have presented a threat to national security. And according to The Washington Post, Mr Trump has gone to extraordinary lengths to hide details of his conversations with Mr Putin, including removing notes from his interpreter. As part of an astonishing outburst over the reports, the president urged prosecutors to look into the finances of his former lawyer Michael Cohens father-in-law. Mr Trump said his former fixer, who provided prosecutors with information about the Trump campaign before he was found guilty of financial crimes, should give information on his father-in-law. Thats the one people want to look at. I think its the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked, Mr Trump said of the story about the FBIs national security probe. I think its the most insulting article Ive ever had written Obviously nothing was found. Mr Comey was leading an investigation into Russias alleged interference in the 2016 presidential election at the time. US intelligence agencies have said Moscow tried to tip the election towards Mr Trump, something Russia has denied. The New York Times reported the counterintelligence probe was sparked in part by growing alarm about Trumps behaviour, including comments he made suggesting he fired Mr Comey over the Russia investigation, which is now being led by special counsel Robert Mueller. Story continues If you ask the folks in Russia Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else, Mr Trump said. And probably any other president, period, but certainly the last three or four presidents. Mr Trumps claim was disputed by Virginia Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the chambers intelligence committee. He told CNN that almost all the sanctions on Russia arose not in the White House but in congress, due to concerns by members of both parties about Moscows election meddling and other actions. Mr Warner accused the White House of being very slow to put in place the penalties. Unnamed US officials revealed to The Washington Post that there are no detailed records from any of Mr Trumps five face-to-face meetings with Vladimir Putin over the past two years. Im not keeping anything under wraps, the president insisted. I couldnt care less. I mean its so ridiculous, these people make it up. The Washington Post thats basically the lobbyist for Amazon. The DC-based paper is owned by Jeff Bezos, the founder of the online marketplace giant. He added: Im going through all this nonsense its all nonsense, but I have to be careful because these are dirty players. You got the Mueller investigation, you got all this nonsense and theres no collusion, no nothing. Senior Democrats said the report underscored the need for legislation to protect Mr Muellers probe. When he takes the interpreters notes and wants to destroy them so no one can see what was said ... it raises serious questions about the relationship between this president and Putin, Dick Durbin, the Senate minority whip, said on ABCs This Week. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. I do think its curious that throughout that whole summer when these investigations started, you had Vladimir Putins policies almost being parroted by Donald Trump, Mr Warner told CNNs State of the Union. I would need a firm commitment that he will not allow any interference in the Mueller investigation, Senator Chris Coons, a Democratic member of the judiciary committee, said on Fox News Sunday. The Republican head of the Senate Judiciary Committee said he plans to ask the FBI about the probe report, suggesting the agency may have gone too far. I am going to ask the FBI director was there a counterintelligence investigation opened up regarding the president as being a potential agent of the Russians? I find it astonishing, Senator Lindsey Graham also told Fox News. If this really did happen, congress needs to know about it, he added. How could the FBI do that? What kinds of checks and balances are there? White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders responded to the story about Mr Trumps conversations with Mr Putin by saying: The liberal media has wasted two years trying to manufacture a fake collusion scandal instead of reporting the fact that ... President Trump has actually been tough on Russia. Bizarrely, Mr Trump also told Fox News he hadnt left the White House for months, even though he went to Texas on Thursday to make the case for his border wall and also travelled to Iraq in December. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. On the planned border wall along the southern border with Mexico the cause of the ongoing government shutdown after Mr Trumps request for $5.7bn in funds to build it the president said he could still declare a national emergency over what he has called an immigration crisis. That would allow Mr Trump to appropriate funds for the wall without congressional approval. Democrats have offered $1.3bn in general border security funding, but no direct money for the wall. They have accused Mr Trump of throwing a temper tantrum over the wall and called on him to open the government. I have the absolute right to call a national emergency. Id rather see the Democrats come back from their vacation and act, Mr Trump said. Over a period of several hours, Mr Trump also addressed a whole series of topics on Twitter in an angry thread on Saturday, attacking Mr Comey, Hillary Clinton, illegal immigrants, the Democrats and US news organisations. Washington (AFP) - President Donald Trump blasted the FBI on Saturday, insisting it acted "for no reason & with no proof" when it opened an investigation into whether he was acting on Russia's behalf after he fired the agency's director, James Comey, in May 2017. The New York Times reported that the FBI launched the previously undisclosed counterintelligence investigation to determine whether Trump posed a national security threat, at the same time that it opened a criminal probe into possible obstruction of justice by the president. The FBI investigation was subsequently folded into the broader probe by Special Counsel Robert Mueller into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election and possible collaboration by the Trump campaign. No evidence has publicly emerged that Trump was secretly in contact with or took direction from Russian officials, the Times said. "Wow, just learned in the Failing New York Times that the corrupt former leaders of the FBI, almost all fired or forced to leave the agency for some very bad reasons, opened up an investigation on me, for no reason & with no proof, after I fired Lyin' James Comey, a total sleaze!" Trump tweeted. According to Trump, "the FBI was in complete turmoil... because of Comey's poor leadership" and the way he handled the investigation into Hillary Clinton's use of a private server to send some government emails. "My firing of James Comey was a great day for America," Trump said, describing the former FBI director as "a Crooked Cop who is being totally protected by his best friend, Bob Mueller." Asked in a late Saturday interview with Fox News whether he had ever worked for Russia, Trump replied: "I think it's the most insulting thing I've ever been asked... I think it the most insulting article I've ever had written and if you read the article, youd see that they found absolutely nothing." Story continues - 'Increasingly unhinged attacks' - Such standard reactions from Trump "do nothing to address the incredibly serious nature of these allegations," said Democratic Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. "There is no reason to doubt the seriousness or professionalism of the FBI," Nadler said in a statement which said his committee "will take steps to better understand both the president's actions and the FBI's response to that behavior, and to make certain that these career investigators are protected from President Trump's increasingly unhinged attacks." The Times said that the FBI had been suspicious of Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 campaign. But it held off on opening an investigation until the president sacked Comey, who refused to pledge allegiance to Trump and roll back the nascent Russia investigation. Trump has repeatedly criticized the Mueller probe as a "witch hunt" and views it as an attempt to besmirch the legitimacy of his presidency. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who was CIA director at the time the investigation was launched, declined to comment on The New York Times report, but insisted in an interview with CBS that "the notion that President Trump is a threat to American national security is absolutely ludicrous." Mueller has indicted 33 people, including members of Russia's GRU military intelligence, and chalked up convictions against some of the president's close associates. Trump's ex-national security advisor, Michael Flynn, pleaded guilty to lying to investigators about his Moscow ties. His former personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, has been sentenced to three years in prison for multiple crimes, including felony violations of campaign finance laws that prosecutors allege were carried out under Trump's direction. Trump's former presidential campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, has been convicted in one case brought by Mueller and pleaded guilty in another, over financial crimes related to his work in Ukraine before the 2016 campaign, and for witness tampering. Cell phone records show that Cohen was near Prague during the summer of 2016, supporting claims that he met there with Russian officials during the presidential election campaign, McClatchy news service has reported. Cohen, who will testify in Congress on February 7, insists that he has never been to Prague, but added in a tweet: "#Mueller knows everything!" A teenager who crashed her car into another vehicle while taking part in the Bird Box challenge may face reckless driving charges. Police say the 17-year-old from Layton, Utah caused the highway collision after taking to the wheel blindfolded. The social media challenge, inspired by the hit Netflix horror film starring Sandra Bullock, involves participants completing everyday tasks with their eyes closed. Lieutenant Travis Lyman told Fox13 that the female motorist was driving a pickup truck on the Layton Parkway with a 16-year-old male passenger when she decided to take part in the challenge by putting her beanie over her eyes. She soon swerved into oncoming traffic in the other lane and collided with another vehicle. Images from the crash posted to the Layton Police Department show the two badly damaged vehicles. Bird Box Challenge while driving ... predictable result, the caption read. This happened on Monday as a result of the driver covering her eyes while driving on Layton Parkway. Luckily no injuries. 17-year-old girl crashed her truck into a car while doing the Bird Box challenge (Layton Police Department) Lieutenant Travis Lyman warned others against following in her footsteps and emulating the characters in the film, who evade sight-targeting creatures that make them kill themselves. Honestly, Im almost embarrassed to have to say, Dont drive with your eyes covered, but you know apparently we do have to say that, he said. The stakes are just so high and its such a potentially dangerous thing as it is: to try and do it in that way is inexcusable. It really puts everybody at risk. Netflix previously urged fans not to participate in the dangerous stunts. Cant believe I have to say this, but: PLEASE DO NOT HURT YOURSELVES WITH THIS BIRD BOX CHALLENGE, the streaming giant tweeted from its primary account. We dont know how this started, and we appreciate the love, but Boy and Girl have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes. One person is dead and 12 others hospitalized after suspected fentanyl overdoses in California that sickened two responding police officers, authorities said. Of the 12 overdose victims, four remained in critical condition hours after authorities responded to a 911 call around 9 a.m. Pacific time on Saturday at a home in Chico, said Chico Police Chief Mike OBrien. Certainly theres potential for additional fatalities, he said at a press conference. I want to emphasize that. Chico Fire Chief Steven Standridge described it as a mass casualty incident that saw four fire engines and Butte Countys entire fleet of eight ambulances at the scene. Authorities in Chico, California, said drug overdoses at this home are believed to have killed one person and hospitalized 12 others. (Photo: KPIX) Six doses of the opioid antidote naloxone were administered to the victims, who are believed to be friends 19 to 30 years old. Officers began carrying naloxone only last year, said OBrien. The exact type of drug taken by the victims is not yet clear. OBrien said its believed to have been a form of fentanyl that was mixed with another unknown substance. He said they expect to have test results on the drug within a few days. Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid pain reliever, is 50 to 100 times more potent than morphine. It has been blamed for a significant rise in overdose deaths across the country in recent years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. These substances are extraordinarily dangerous, and it takes a very minute amount to cause [life-threatening] conditions, OBrien said. The drug is so potent that two officers who responded to the home started to feel its effects and were transported to a hospital for examination, then released. Related Coverage Opioids Have Sparked An HIV Outbreak In Massachusetts How Fentanyl Changes The Opioid Equation The FDA Just Approved An Opioid 10 Times More Powerful Than Fentanyl Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Today well evaluate Softcat plc (LON:SCT) to determine whether it could have potential as an investment idea. Specifically, well consider its Return On Capital Employed (ROCE), since that will give us an insight into how efficiently the business can generate profits from the capital it requires. First of all, well work out how to calculate ROCE. Next, well compare it to others in its industry. And finally, well look at how its current liabilities are impacting its ROCE. Return On Capital Employed (ROCE): What is it? ROCE is a measure of a companys yearly pre-tax profit (its return), relative to the capital employed in the business. All else being equal, a better business will have a higher ROCE. In brief, it is a useful tool, but it is not without drawbacks. Author Edwin Whiting says to be careful when comparing the ROCE of different businesses, since No two businesses are exactly alike. How Do You Calculate Return On Capital Employed? The formula for calculating the return on capital employed is: Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) (Total Assets Current Liabilities) Or for Softcat: 0.67 = UK68m (UK294m UK193m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to July 2018.) Therefore, Softcat has an ROCE of 67%. See our latest analysis for Softcat Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. Is Softcats ROCE Good? One way to assess ROCE is to compare similar companies. Softcats ROCE appears to be substantially greater than the 11% average in the IT industry. We consider this a positive sign, because it suggests it uses capital more efficiently than similar companies. Regardless of the industry comparison, in absolute terms, Softcats ROCE currently appears to be excellent. In our analysis, Softcats ROCE appears to be 67%, compared to 3 years ago, when its ROCE was 41%. This makes us wonder if the company is improving. Story continues LSE:SCT Last Perf January 13th 19 When considering ROCE, bear in mind that it reflects the past and does not necessarily predict the future. ROCE can be misleading for companies in cyclical industries, with returns looking impressive during the boom times, but very weak during the busts. This is because ROCE only looks at one year, instead of considering returns across a whole cycle. Future performance is what matters, and you can see analyst predictions in our free report on analyst forecasts for the company. How Softcats Current Liabilities Impact Its ROCE Liabilities, such as supplier bills and bank overdrafts, are referred to as current liabilities if they need to be paid within 12 months. Due to the way the ROCE equation works, having large bills due in the near term can make it look as though a company has less capital employed, and thus a higher ROCE than usual. To counteract this, we check if a company has high current liabilities, relative to its total assets. Softcat has total liabilities of UK193m and total assets of UK294m. Therefore its current liabilities are equivalent to approximately 66% of its total assets. Softcat boasts an attractive ROCE, even after considering the boost from high current liabilities. Our Take On Softcats ROCE In my book, this business could be worthy of further research. Of course, you might find a fantastic investment by looking at a few good candidates. So take a peek at this free list of companies with modest (or no) debt, trading on a P/E below 20. I will like Softcat better if I see some big insider buys. While we wait, check out this free list of growing companies with considerable, recent, insider buying. 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. By Eric Knecht and Lesley Wroughton DOHA/RIYADH (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that a rift between Qatar and its Gulf Arab neighbors had gone on for too long and was threatening regional unity needed to counter Iran. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and non-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member Egypt cut diplomatic, transport and trade ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism and their regional foe Shi'ite Muslim Iran - something Doha denies. The United States, an ally of the six-nation Sunni Muslim GCC, sees the rift as a threat to efforts to contain Iran and has pushed for a united Gulf front. "When we have a common challenge, disputes between countries with shared objectives are never helpful," Pompeo, who is on a tour of the Middle East, told a news conference in the Qatari capital, Doha. "They never permit you to have as robust a response to common adversaries or common challenges as you might," he added. Gas-rich Qatar says the boycott is aimed at undermining its sovereignty and it has started charting a course away from its Gulf neighbors, including forging new trade partnerships, strengthening ties with Turkey and quitting OPEC. Those moves have deepened expectations that the dispute will not be resolved quickly. "We're hoping that the unity of GCC will increase in the days and weeks and months ahead," Pompeo said, adding that Gulf unity was essential for a planned Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) that would also include Jordan and Egypt. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have repeatedly said the dispute is not a top priority and assured Washington it will not affect defense cooperation. Pompeo later told reporters that he had also raised the rift with officials in Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE. "It's ... not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday and I regret that," he said. KHASHOGGI MURDER Later, Pompeo traveled to the Saudi capital, Riyadh, where he pushed Saudi authorities to continue to investigate the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, the U.S.-based Washington Post columnist from Saudi Arabia. Arriving in Riyadh, Pompeo was greeted at the airport by Adel al-Jubeir, the Saudi minister of state for foreign affairs, Prince Khalid bin Salman, the Saudi ambassador to Washington, and U.S. Charge D'Affaires Christopher Henzel. Pompeo and the two Saudi officials met for an hour, according to reporters traveling with him and they discussed tensions with Iran, the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, Libya and Afghanistan and the Khashoggi case, the State Department said in a statement. "The secretary emphasized the importance of Saudi Arabia continuing its investigation into the murder of Jamal Khashoggi in order to ascertain facts, assess information, and hold those responsible accountable," it added. Pompeo is also expected to meet with the kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the de facto ruler known in the West as MbS, to discuss the investigation into Khashoggi's death. A CIA assessment has blamed Prince Mohammed for ordering the killing of Khashoggi, a longtime royal insider who had become a critic of the crown prince, inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Top Turkish officials have also tied the death of the journalist, whose body was dismembered and removed from the building to a location still publicly unknown, to the highest levels of Saudi leadership. Saudi officials have denied accusations that the prince ordered the murder, which has left the kingdom facing its worst political crisis in generations, strained ties with Western allies and focused attention on the prince's domestic crackdown on dissent and the war in Yemen. The sister of Loujain al-Hathloul, one of several Saudi women's rights activists detained in the kingdom since last summer and accused of treason, pressed Pompeo to raise the issue with officials in Riyadh. In a New York Times op-ed, Alia al-Hathloul described how her sister was allegedly tortured and threatened while in detention. "Even today, I am torn about writing about Loujain, scared that speaking about her ordeal might harm her," she wrote. Saudi authorities have denied such torture charges. (Reporting by Eric Knecht in Doha and Lesley Wroughton in Riyadh; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Catherine Evans and Peter Cooney) WASHINGTON Secretary of State Mike Pompeo landed in Riyadh on Sunday, promising to press the Saudi royal family for greater accountability on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and American resident killed inside a Saudi Consulate in October. But critics do not expect a truly forceful reprimand of the Saudis from Trump's chief diplomat, and some experts said the real audience for Pompeos message on Khashoggi may be the newly empowered House Democratic majority, which is preparing to grill the administration on its handling of the journalist's murder and a slew of other foreign policy issues. Pompeo's stop in Saudi Arabia part of a broader diplomatic swing through the Middle East is his second since Khashoggi's killing. He is scheduled to meet top Saudi leaders, including the kingdom's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the country's de facto ruler. Lawmakers briefed by CIA Director Gina Haspel say the evidence shows the crown prince was complicit in Khashoggi's murder. Khashoggi was a critic of the Saudi regime, and the crown prince in particular. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring that the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told reporters traveling with him on the Middle East trip. "So well continue to talk about that and make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well where appropriate." US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, is greeted by Saudi's Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Adel al-Jubeir in Riyadh on Sunday, January 13, 2019, during his Middle East tour. A senior State Department official told reporters that Pompeo would press Saudi Arabia to provide a credible narrative for what happened in the consulate and subsequent events. The remarks came during a Jan. 4 media briefing to preview Pompeo's trip. This official, who spoke on background to adhere to State Department policy, said that so far, the Saudi account has not hit that threshold of credibility and accountability. He said the administration wants to work with the Saudis to underscore its in their interest to pursue this as aggressively as they can to get this albatross off their backs. Story continues But foreign policy experts say it sounds like Pompeo's goal is to quiet the controversy rather than hold the Saudis accountable. Lawmakers in both parties have looked for ways to penalize Saudi Arabia for its role in Khashoggi's death, including curbing U.S. support for the Saudi's bombing campaign in Yemen and halting arms sales to the kingdom. "They have to demonstrate to the Hill and to the American public that theyre taking this thing seriously," said Gerald Feierstein, a former ambassador to Yemen and now a senior vice president at the Middle East Institute. But as long as the Saudis refuse to acknowledge the possible role of the crown prince, "were going to have a problem reconciling where we are with Saudi Arabia," he said. Natan Sachs, director of the Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution, a liberal think tank, said the White House "would love for this to just disappear because the administration wants to have close ties to Saudis, to continue with business as usual." Pompeo's Middle East trip: 'The age of self-inflicted American shame is over,' Pompeo declares in rebuke of Obama's policy Syria: As Trump's timeline for withdrawal slips, U.S. allies are nervous, angry, confused This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Secretary of State Pompeo to press Saudi Arabia to provide a 'credible narrative' on Jamal Khashoggi's murder By Tom Hals WILMINGTON, Del. (Reuters) - Sears has survived the Great Depression and world wars. Whether the 126-year-old retailer stays afloat or goes out of business now hinges in part on paying for the enormous bill piled up by going broke. The fate of Sears Holdings Corp highlights a harsh reality of U.S. bankruptcy - it requires armies of pricey specialists in a system driven by an outcome, not costs. On Monday, Sears will consider bids for its assets, including a last-ditch $5 billion proposal by chairman and controlling shareholder Eddie Lampert. To ensure his chances of outbidding proposals to liquidate the chain, Lampert last week agreed to assume more than $600 million in additional liabilities that Sears has incurred since filing for bankruptcy protection last October. Those so-called administrative claims includes taxes, and payments to vendors and the professionals advising Sears. "The fees in a case like this will be tremendous, you've got people working round the clock," said David Wander, bankruptcy attorney at Davidoff Hutcher & Citron. "A massive case requires a massive amount of legal talent." Sears, which also owns the Kmart discount chain, is picking up the tab for six law firms, three investment banks, two financial advisers and seven others that are providing tax, real estate advice and other services, according to court filings. Although the final tally will not be known until the case ends, the fees mount quickly. The law firm of Weil, Gotshal & Manges, for example, billed Sears about $5 million for the first two weeks after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Oct. 15, according to court documents. Weil did not respond to a request for comment. Sears declined to comment. Bankruptcy veterans said the fees reflect the realities of Chapter 11, which can inflate costs: only a handful of law firms can put scores of experienced staff on a case on short notice. Corporate leaders are happy to pay top dollar when the company's survival is on the line. Story continues The 2008 bankruptcy of investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc has been the costliest case by far, surpassing $2 billion, and large failures such as Enron Corp in 2001 typically run up bills of hundreds of millions of dollars. Since lawyers and other advisers generally get paid first, critics such as academics often blame their fees for reducing the amount left for creditors and employees. The rising cost of Chapter 11 also reflects increasingly complicated corporate structures, and the sometimes convoluted financial dealings that a struggling company might undertake to avoid failure. For example, Sears struck a series of refinancing deals with Lampert, which will now be investigated by a special restructuring committee of the board. The committee will get its own set of lawyers and advisers to avoid potential conflicts of interest, piling on costs. In addition, Sears will also pay for professionals for an official unsecured creditors committee, which is typical. At least 36 lawyers are billing Sears $1,000 or more an hour, according to court filings. Of course, high hourly rates could be worth it. American Airlines and General Motors arguably thrived thanks to bankruptcy, although retailers in particular tend to perish in Chapter 11. Legal experts say that comparing the cost of Chapter 11 cases is nearly impossible because of the large number of variables in each case. "Im not sure we really know what a large chapter 11 case should cost, so its hard to 'control' fees unless they are extreme," said Stephen Lubben, a professor at Seton Hall Law School. Toys "R" Us in its first three months piled up more $45 million in fees, according to court records. The retailer, which went out of business after filing for bankruptcy in 2017, has paid 72 firms $375 million through December. Judges have ordered fee examiners to hunt for unnecessary charges in the enormous fee statements - Weil's for the first two weeks of Sears ran 330 pages, breaking down each lawyers' time into six-minute intervals. Lynn LoPucki, a professor at the UCLA School of Law, called fee examiners mere window dressing on a broken system. He said judges should require evidence from firms that they charge the same rates for clients in or out of bankruptcy. "Most lawyers would tell you bankruptcy is a highly profitable practice," he said. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware and additional reporting by Richa Naidu in Chicago; editing by Noeleen Walder and Grant McCool) Across some of the biggest U.S. cities, rent prices are continuing to rise for lower-income Americans. Meanwhile, an estimated 553,000 people experienced homelessness in 2018, according to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) data. And a recent Zillow study which estimated the number of homeless people in America to be closer to 661,000 found a specific correlation between rent affordability and the rate of homelessness at a certain threshold: Communities where people spend more than 32 percent of their income on rent can expect a more rapid increase in homelessness. Alexander Casey, a policy advisor on Zillows Economic Research team, explained to Yahoo Finance that 15% of the U.S. population lives in areas where a staggering 47% of the homeless population lives. And these are areas where rents are 29% higher on average than the rest of the U.S. And most of these communities are already past this 32% tipping point. High rent in America can contribute to a homelessness crisis. (Photo: Courtesy of Zillow) New York City, Los Angeles, and Seattle stand apart Zillow researchers clustered different communities together based on how theyre experiencing rising poverty rates, existing homelessness, homelessness rates, and declining affordability. The places where people are most at risk of homelessness, according to the study, included New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and Boston, which all have crossed the 32 percent affordability threshold. The three U.S. cities with the most homeless people in 2018 were New York (78,676), Los Angeles (49,955), and Seattle (12,112), according to the most recent HUD data. A 2016 Wall Street Journal report highlighted that while overall homelessness in America was declining, the homeless population in these cities and others had risen rapidly since 2010. Fashionistas pose for photographs in front of a homeless man outside Moynihan Station following a showing of the Rag & Bone Spring/Summer 2013 collection during New York Fashion Week September 7, 2012. (Photo: REUTERS/Lucas Jackson) We attribute a great majority of homelessness to rent affordability, Megan Hustings, interim director of the National Coalition for the Homeless, told Yahoo Finance. She added that gentrification plays a big role in it, along with public housing developments in urban areas being torn down and the overall continuous decline of affordable housing units. Story continues In June 2018, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) received widespread criticism after an Associated Press analysis found that a proposed HUD plan would raise the rent of low-income tenants by about 20%. (Due to the ongoing government shutdown, HUD could not be reached for comment about public housing developments.) An AP analysis that a 2018 proposal from HUD would have made the issue of high rent in America even worse, especially for children. (Graphic: AP) High rent in America is a fact of life these days Weve seen rent rising, Casey said. Why is that? Can we disentangle that? You start to realize the story of rent affordability and homelessness doesnt read the same in every single community. Over the last five years, the U.S. median rent has risen 11%. As a result, renters earning the national median income have spent 28.2% of their earnings on a rental. According to Zillow, that is significantly above the 17.7% that median-income households buying a typical home today spend on their monthly mortgage payment. When rent affordability exceeds 22%, according to the study, that leads to more people in that community experiencing homelessness. And any increase in rent affordability beyond 32% leads to a faster-rising rate of homelessness which could mean a homelessness crisis, unless there are mitigating factors within a community, Zillow reported. A good example, according to Casey, is in Houston, Texas. The researchers looked at trends in the citys rising rent prices and chronic high poverty rates. High rent in America can be relative to individual cities. (Photo: Courtesy of Zillow) You see that homelessness rates are significantly lower to similar peer communities in Houston, Casey said. The model helps identify Houston as an example as a place of: Heres other peer communities where national policy folks might want to start to look to see what lessons can be learned. What kind of policies are they implementing? According to National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC)s Out of Reach 2018 report, a full-time worker earning the federal minimum wage of $7.25 needs to work approximately 122 hours per week for all 52 weeks of the year, or approximately three full-time jobs, to afford a two-bedroom rental home at the national average fair market rent. And, the report stated, in no state can a worker earning the federal minimum wage or prevailing state minimum wage afford a two-bedroom rental home at fair market rent by working a standard 40-hour week. A group of homeless people sleep in the courtyard of the Midnight Mission in Los Angeles. Experts say high rent in America impacts certain cities differently. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) The problem is that theres just so much poverty Although it may seem that raising the minimum wage is the solution to fixing this rent affordability issue, Casey argues that may not be the case. Los Angeles is a fascinating example, Casey said. In L.A., the rent affordability there is really off the charts, no matter how you measure it. Even if youre a person in L.A. whos earning the typical income, its going to be pretty stretched to afford even a modest-priced rental in that area. Casey continued: So what I think L.A. really speaks to is that even if you raised incomes for people that are the most vulnerable to becoming homeless to a significant degree, there just isnt the availability of housing for them, where you might think in a different city, there are some cheaper rental options available. The problem is that theres just so much poverty, so few resources, that even if theres a place that wouldnt require that much moneys rent every month, that money isnt there. High rent in America can be relative. (Photo: Courtesy of Zillow) The interconnected web of the housing market Casey, like Hustings, said that gentrification is a significant factor. When we think about gentrification, we think about displacement spillover from one area to the other, Casey said. As rent increases that outpaces someones income, theyre probably not the people that are going to be experiencing homelessness. Theyre just going to rent at a cheaper price. But, the fact that data is available at the median and changes for the median income renter are predictive to homelessness rates is just a really powerful illustration of something I think a lot of people fail to recognize, Casey said, which is the interconnected web of the housing market. If changes to affordability is affecting someone at the median income level, they might restitute, replace, and bump people down further and further. Casey added: Gentrification is a topic that illustrates how interconnected the rental market is, and that changes to rental prices to one person is kind of a trickle-down effect. Illustrative for policymakers to bring to Washington On an unseasonably cold day, a homeless person tries to stay warm at the entrance of a subway station near the White House in Washington January 20, 2016. High rent in America ultimately goes back to D.C. (Photo: REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque) Casey concluded that there were several key takeaways from the report. This research has helped identify that its not going to be a one-size-fits-all solution, and that each of these markets are dealing with very different types of problems, he said. In one market, there are things that need to be done in terms of increasing the supply of affordable housing because even with income-based subsidies, and even with vouchers or tenant support, there havent been the number of units to help house people. He continued: In other places, there might be units available but theyre sub-standard and there needs to be substantial resources put to the rehabilitation of affordable housing stock. In other places, housing might be decently affordable relatively, and its a matter of providing vouchers or income subsidies to families. And still, in other places, there are a wide variety of these types of approaches. Flexibility can be implemented in more local solutions. As for the future, Casey hoped policymakers used this kind of research to tackle the nuance of the issue. This has helped be illustrative for policymakers to bring to Washington to show we might have different problems here than folks over here, he said, and we can shape responses accordingly. Adriana is an associate editor for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter @adrianambells. READ MORE: Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, YouTube, and reddit. President Donald Trump reacted sharply to a New York Times report published Friday that said after he fired FBI Director James Comey, the bureau began to investigate whether Trump was "knowingly working for Russia or had unwittingly fallen under Moscows influence." "Are you now or have you ever worked for Russia, Mr. President?" Fox News host and vocal Trump supporter Jeanine Pirro asked Trump during a phone interview Saturday night. "I think it's the most insulting thing Ive ever been asked," Trump replied. "I think it's the most insulting article Ive ever had written. And if you read the article, you'd see that they found absolutely nothing." The article said, "No evidence has emerged publicly that Mr. Trump was secretly in contact with or took direction from Russian government officials." But Trump felt the Times' headline was unfair and attacked the "disaster of a newspaper," which is a frequent target of his criticisms. Report: President Trump went to 'extraordinary lengths' to hide details of Putin meetings More: Trump blasts Comey as 'total sleaze' in response to FBI probe reports "It was a great insult," Trump said of the Times article."It's a very horrible thing they said, and they've gone so far that people that weren't necessarily believers are now big believers because they said that was a step too far." The Times reported that FBI officials first became suspicious of Trump's relationship with Russia during the 2016 campaign but did not initially act, "in part because they were uncertain how to proceed with an inquiry of such sensitivity and magnitude." "But the presidents activities before and after Mr. Comeys firing in May 2017, particularly two instances in which Mr. Trump tied the Comey dismissal to the Russia investigation, helped prompt the counterintelligence aspect of the inquiry," the Times said, citing unnamed law enforcement officials. Story continues Several critics noted that for all his outrage at the report, the president never answered "no" when Pirro asked if he was working for Russia. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Trump asserted that "Ive been tougher on Russia than anybody else probably any other president period," citing increased U.S. oil production, "which is, obviously, not great for them, because that's where they get their money for the most part. But many other things." While Trump and his supporters tend to see the report as confirmation of a strong anti-Trump bias within elements of the FBI, Democrats say it shows how deep the concerns about the president's Russian ties run. They assert it underscores the importance of special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian election meddling. House Minority Whip Steve Scalise argued Trump's foreign policy record belies theories he is doing the bidding of Russian President Vladimir Putin. "President Trump has taken more steps to stand up against Russia than anybody weve seen in a long time," the Louisiana Republican said Sunday on ABC's "This Week." "Youve seen time and time again with sanctions, with other things, President Trump standing up against Russia. "Look at what hes done with the Ukraine. Russia was running through Ukraine when Barack Obama was president," and Trump approved the sale of "tank-busting missiles," which Obama had denied, Scalise said. Scalise echoed the president's claim that he was a victim of a "witch hunt." "Theyve put no facts on the table to show theres collusion," he said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation" that "the notion that President Trump is a threat to American national security is absolutely ludicrous." But Democrats said there were many reasons to be concerned about Trump's behavior toward Russia. Sen. Mark Warner, the ranking minority member on the Senate Intelligence Committee, pointed to Trump's behavior during the campaign when "you had Vladimir Putin policies almost being parroted by Donald Trump." "You had Trump say only nice things about Putin. He never spoke ill about Russia. The Republican campaign doctrines softened on Russia and decreased their willingness to defend Ukraine," the Virginia Democrat said Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union." "I think we all remember when Trump, in his bluster, basically said to the Russians, if you have got more emails, bring them on," he said. "These are not actions of a traditional president of the United States." The Virginia Democrat also cited a July 2018 meeting in Helsinki between Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, which he called a "frankly, pathetic, embarrassing encounter where Trump was kowtowing on the world stage." Warner added that he was troubled by the news that Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort shared polling data with a Russian agent and that Trump wants to lift sanctions on a Russian oligarch who is close to Putin. "Why is he so chummy with Vladimir Putin?" asked Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. "This man, who is a former KGB agent, never been a friend to the United States, invaded our allies, threatens us around the world, and tries his damnedest to undermine our elections, why is this President Trump's best buddy? I don't get it." Durbin and Warner both pointed to a Washington Post report that Trump tried to conceal details from his meetings with Putin. "When he takes the interpreters' notes and wants to destroy them so no one can see what was said in written transcript, you know it raises serious questions about the relationship between this president and Putin," Durbin said. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump: NYT report on FBI fear that he worked for Russia is 'most insulting article' ever Riyadh (AFP) - US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday arrived in Riyadh, where he is set to press Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to hold the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi accountable. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, embarked on his second politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia since Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate sparked an international outcry. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told reporters in Qatar, before flying to the Saudi capital. "We'll... make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well." After landing in Riyadh, Pompeo pushed for Saudi Arabia to continue its investigation into the murder, in talks with Adel al-Jubeir, minister of state for foreign affairs, and the Saudi Ambassador to Washington, Prince Khalid bin Salman. Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, was murdered on October 2 in what Saudi Arabia called a "rogue" operation, tipping the kingdom into one of its worst diplomatic crises and subsequently straining ties between Riyadh and Washington. Pompeo's visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will be hosted by Prince Mohammed, is part of an extensive eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. - Smiles with MBS - US President Donald Trump has brushed aside international outrage to stand by Prince Mohammed over the murder of Khashoggi, whose corpse was dismembered at the consulate. His support has come despite the US Central Intelligence Agency's reported conclusion that Prince Mohammed very likely ordered the murder. A bipartisan resolution approved by the US Senate last month also held the crown prince responsible for the killing. Story continues Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the oil-rich kingdom, which he sees as a bulwark against common foe Iran and a lucrative buyer of US arms. Rights groups have called on Pompeo to also press Prince Mohammed over the jailing of women activists in the kingdom, amid claims that some of them faced sexual harassment and torture during interrogation. "I am struck by what is not included in Pompeo's itinerary: the brave women activists of Saudi Arabia, who are being held in the kingdom's prisons for seeking rights and dignity," Alia al-Hathloul wrote in The New York Times Sunday. Hathloul's sister, Loujain, is among more than a dozen activists arrested last May -- just before the historic lifting of Saudi Arabia's decades-long ban on women drivers. - Gulf crisis - Pompeo met the Qatari emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani during his visit to Doha, where he refused to comment on reports Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. "As for the GCC... we are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world," Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. "Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He added that "President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long". However, Pompeo later admitted in a Q&A session with US embassy staff in Doha that no progress was made on resolving the issue. Mediation efforts by the United States, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second "strategic dialogue" between the two countries on Sunday and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. Jayme Closs was reunited with her aunt Jennifer Naiberg Smith (left) after the ordeal - AFP Police have praised the bravery of Jayme Closs, a 13-year-old girl who was held captive for 88 days, saying it was her "will" that broke the case. It came as photographs emerged of the rural house in Wisconsin where she was held prisoner. Her alleged kidnapper, Jake Patterson, 21, was expected to be charged today [MON]. He is alleged to have broken into her home in Barron, Wisconsin, before murdering her parents and abducting her. After escaping last week Jayme was found, skinny and disheveled, about 60 miles away. Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald, who led the investigation, said: "The will of a 13-year-old girl is what broke this case. We've actually been able to bring her home to Barron County. That's been the goal of mine for 88 days. And we got to bring her home." Giving further details of the investigation, he said the 911 call made at the time of the murder and kidnapping was 48 seconds long. This aerial photo shows the cabin where 13-year-old Jayme Closs was held by Jake Thomas Patterson, is surrounded by law enforcement vehicles Credit: Aaron Lavinsky/Star Tribune via AP "You can't hear words. You hear yelling or maybe a scream," he said "And it ends by getting hung up. The time from the 911 call until our deputies arrive is less than four minutes. We think this was well planned out." He said Patterson had fired a shotgun through the family's front door to get in, and had "targeted" Jayme for kidnapping. He left no fingerprints at the scene. The sheriff said: "He prepared himself to try to beat the forensics. Things like he cut his hair all off so that he wouldn't leave trace evidence. He did other things to cover up forensic and digital evidence." Jake Thomas Patterson has been charged with murdering Jayme's parents and kidnapping her Credit: Universal News Police originally thought her parents Denise and James Closs, who worked at a turkey processing plant, must be the targets, the sheriff told CBS's 48 Hours crime programme. But there proved to be no link to Patterson. He said the motive was the "million-dollar question" and "I'd love to know the answer to that." The FBI confirmed it was Jayme who gave details of Patterson's car that led to him being found. Story continues Sheriff Fitzgerald said the suspect was now "sitting in his cell looking at the wall, all by himself". He said Patterson had no criminal record, or job, and no known link to Jayme or her family. The sheriff added: "This is a true mystery. We believe the first time they met was the night of the incident." Jerusalem (AFP) - A Palestinian wounded by Israeli fire during Gaza border protests and clashes three weeks ago has died from his wounds, the health ministry in the Hamas-run enclave said Sunday. Anwar Quday, 33, was wounded in the neck east of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, said ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra. At least 242 Palestinians have been killed since protests and clashes with Israeli forces erupted along the Gaza border on March 30. Two Israeli soldiers have been killed over the same period, one by a Palestinian sniper and another during a botched special forces operation inside Gaza. Protests and clashes have calmed in recent months amid an informal truce between Israel and Hamas that has seen Israel allow Qatar to provide millions in aid to blockaded Gaza. But an expected delivery of fresh funds from Doha did not arrive last week, leading to fears of another increase in unrest. Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket at Israel late Saturday, Israel's army said, prompting retaliatory strikes on Hamas. Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008. With artificial intelligence to detect falls, virtual reality to combat isolation and "powered" clothing to assist the incapacitated, the tech world is stepping up its effort to "disrupt" aging. At the Consumer Electronics Show this week in Las Vegas, exhibitors were showcasing new ways to help the elderly remain independent, mentally fit and connected. Some systems took a page from the gaming world of youngsters to help seniors "travel" to new places and connect with loved ones. "Everyone knows seniors get lonely but that isolation can also lead to a lot of medical problems, including the acceleration of dementia," said Kyle Rand, founder and chief executive of Rendever, a startup which works with assisted living homes to give seniors a way to virtually visit remote locations. "They can stand atop the Eiffel Tower, they can go on an African safari, or revisit their childhood home." Rendever was launched in the Washington DC tech incubator created by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP), which in recent years has been funding efforts to develop new technologies for seniors. In the consumer space from the AARP incubator, Alcove VR enables seniors to be part of a virtual world with loved ones who may be far away. "You can step into a virtual living room (with a friend or family member and just hang out," said Cezara Windrem, the AARP product manager for Alcove. Alcove was launched this week as a free application on Oculus, the Facebook-owned virtual reality unit. The AARP exhibit also included VRHealth, which offers cognitive behavioral therapy using virtual reality, and Pillo, a device which serves as a personal assistant and medication dispenser focused on health for seniors. - Virtual caregivers - Other exhibitors showcased technology that could help seniors remain in their homes, and give family members peace of mind by monitoring their condition, in some cases using predictive analytics to determine if they are at risk. Story continues Walabot, a wall-mounted monitoring system developed by the Israeli startup Vayyar, uses radio waves and three-dimensional imaging to keep tabs on seniors living alone. "You don't need to wear anything, there are no cameras," said Ofer Familier, head of business development for Vayyar. The company, which makes a range of sensor equipment, says Walabot can detect subtle changes in gait, movement or breathing which could signal a risk of a fall or other problem. "We can detect falls, but the predictive aspect of it is to monitor changes in behavior so we can alert family members," Familier said. Also launched at CES was the Addison Virtual Caregiver, a video-based assistant with a female avatar which can converse, offer reminders on medication and detect potential health issues. With the data gathered from the device, "we can classify people as high-risk or low-risk fallers," said David Keeley, research director for Addison parent firm SameDay Security. "We can predict the rate of functional decline." Alicia Mangram, a Phoenix-based trauma surgeon who is an advisor to Addison, said the system can be useful in helping seniors remain independent. "Right now when we send people home (from a hospital) we don't know what happens to them," Mangram said. "This allows us to check on them." Florida-based startup CarePredict exhibited its system based on a wearable band that helps monitor seniors in assisted living facilities. "We can passively and unobtrusively monitor the daily activities of seniors, and our predictive tools can help identify if they are at risk of falls, depression, malnutrition or urinary tract infections," said CarePredict's Jerry Wilmink. Tech firms see a promising market in these kinds of devices, with public attention focused by the Apple Watch's feature of fall detection. According to research firm eMarketer, Americans of age 55 and older are the fastest-growing group of electronic wearable users in the US, largely due to the devices' enhanced health features. - Artificial muscles - For those with mobility issues, the California startup Seismic unveiled its wearable tech body suit which can augment a user's muscles and help them maintain posture. The "core wellness suit," which weighs under five pounds and can be worn under street clothes, has robotic components that provide up to 30 watts of power to each hip and the lower back to support sitting, standing, lifting, or carrying -- similar to an exoskeleton but without the bulk. Sarah Thomas, a Seismic vice president and advisor to tech startups, said the new product is designed not only for the elderly but for factory workers to ease fatigue and anyone with mobility issues. Thomas said tech products for seniors should not be "stigmatized" with unsightly products. "We should be designing with age in mind but without the ageist perspective," Thomas told a CES panel. Carlos Ghosn, the recently ousted Nissan Motor chairman, received about $8 million in pay in 2018 from a Netherlands-based entity that was owned by both Nissan and partner Mitsubishi Motors, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The publication, citing a person familiar with Nissan's probe, reported on Sunday that the motor giant found that Ghosn signed a contract with a Dutch entity that granted him a $1.7 million signing bonus and salary of $6.7 million for the year through March 2019. The amount Ghosn reportedly made was more than any of his peers who had held his roles at Nissan, Mitsubishi and Renault SA. It undercut Ghosn's previous claim that his salary was short of his peers, the Journal said. A spokesperson for Nissan did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. Ghosn has been charged with under-reporting his income in Japan where prosecutors allege that the former Nissan chairman understated his pay in the company's financial statements by more than $80 million over eight years. Ghosn, who was removed from the company after his arrest, has denied the accusations. The $8 million alleged payments in the Journal report would be in addition to those mentioned in the charges in Japan. The entity that made the payments is called Nissan-Mitsubishi BV, was founded in the Netherlands in June 2017, with the two automakers each having half of the ownership. Ghosn managed to authorize the payments without other executives' knowledge because he had earned the board approval to have the sole authority to disburse the entity's cash in January 2018, according to The Journal's report. Nissan has been looking into a number of Dutch entities fully or partly owned by the company, including Renault-Nissan BV, jointly owned with alliance partner Renault, the Journal reported. The original Wall Street Journal report can be found on its website. Jerusalem (AFP) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel had at the weekend carried out an air strike on Iranian weapons in Syria, a rare public confirmation of such attacks. "Just in the last 36 hours the air force attacked Iranian warehouses containing Iranian weapons in the Damascus international airport," Netanyahu said at the start of a cabinet meeting, according to his office. "The accumulation of recent attacks shows that we're more determined than ever to act against Iran in Syria, just as we promised." Netanyahu added that Israel had attacked Iranian and Hezbollah targets in Syria hundreds of times. Israel has pledged to prevent its main enemy Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, where it is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime alongside Russia and Hezbollah. It rarely publicly confirms such strikes, though outgoing military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot has spoken of them in interviews in recent days. Eisenkot told the New York Times that "we struck thousands of targets without claiming responsibility or asking for credit". Netanyahu is also facing April 9 elections in Israel and has been seeking to burnish his security credentials. The strike Netanyahu was referring to occurred on Friday night. Syrian state news agency SANA cited a military source saying on Friday night that Syrian air defences had shot down Israeli missiles, but a warehouse had been hit. Most of the missiles fired by "Israeli military planes" were intercepted at around 11:00 pm (2100 GMT), the source said. "Only a ministry of transport warehouse at Damascus international airport was hit," SANA cited the military source as saying. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights war monitor said "two areas hosting military positions of Iranian forces and the Lebanese Hezbollah movement have been targeted". They were near the airport and around the Kisweh area south of Damascus, said the Britain-based Observatory. President Donald Trump's National Security Council asked for military options on striking Iran in response to that country's support of insurgents in Iraq, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. The council, under national security adviser John Bolton, made the request after militants aligned with Iran fired three mortar rounds into the diplomatic section of Baghdad, which includes the U.S. Embassy, according to the report. The mortars landed in a vacant lot, and no one was injured. The Journal reported that the Pentagon developed plans for a strike on Iran in response to the National Security Council request, but it is unclear whether those plans were shared with the White House or Trump. Unnamed sources told the Journal that the request raised alarm within the Defense and State Departments. "It definitely rattled people," a former senior administration official told the newspaper. "People were shocked. It was mind-boggling how cavalier they were about hitting Iran." NSC spokesman Garrett Marquis said in a statement that the council "provides the president with options to anticipate and respond to a variety of threats." "We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate, and we will consider a full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests," Marquis said. Related: U.S. Navy veteran has been held in Iranian jail since July, mother says More: 5 facts about John Bolton, Trump's new national security adviser Former U.S. officials told the Journal "it was unnerving that the National Security Council asked for far-reaching military options to strike Iran in response to attacks that caused little damage and no injuries." Bolton has long backed a more aggressive U.S. policy toward Iran. He was a strong proponent of pulling out of the Obama administration-era deal in which Iran agreed to pause its nuclear weapons program in exchange for a reduction in sanctions. Story continues Not long after the mortar attack that riled the National Security Council, Bolton warned the Iranians that "if you cross us, our allies or our partners; if you harm our citizens; if you continue to lie, cheat and deceive, yes, there will indeed be hell to pay." Before joining the administration, Bolton was a strong advocate of a U.S. attack on Iran. In a New York Times op-ed in 2015 titled "To Stop Irans Bomb, Bomb Iran," Bolton argued the "inconvenient truth is that only military action" could stop the nuclear program and called for "vigorous American support for Irans opposition, aimed at regime change in Tehran." Bolton has said the Trump administration "policy is not regime change, but we want to put unprecedented pressure on the government of Iran to change its behavior." Citing unnamed sources, the Journal reported that since joining the administration, Bolton "has made it clear that he personally supports regime change in Iran." After Bolton replaced former Gen. H.R. McMaster in March, The American Conservative wrote that his appointment creates a "prospect of war with Iran that is very real." "He has been obsessed for many years with going to war against the Islamic Republic," The American Conservative said. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: National Security Council asked for military options to strike Iran, report says Mark Episkopos Security, Rostov-on-Don, or B-237, is a modernized Kilo-class attack submarine. The second of eight units commissioned as part of a series called Project 636.6, Rostov-on-Don boasts across-the-board iterative improvements over the original Soviet Kilo-class line. Meet the First Russian Submarine To Fire in Anger Since World War II (And Its New Cruise Missiles) On December 8, 2015, a submerged Russian submarine launched a missile barrage at a Syrian rebel citadel. The ensuing press statement from Russias Ministry of Defense was nothing short of triumphant: "Several Kalibr submarine-based cruise missiles were launched in salvo by the Rostov-on-Don submarine for the first time. The strike eliminated two command posts of the IS terrorist organization in al-Raqqa province. But why would the Russians send a submarine to attack land-based encampments in Syria? There are, after all, any number of more conventional means to target a hostile base in a region where the Russian Army Force has total free reign. The story of Rostov-on-Don, the first Russian submarine to fire in anger since World War II, shows how the Syrian experience shaped a generation of Russian military personnel while influencing ongoing weapons research and development projects. Rostov-on-Don, or B-237, is a modernized Kilo-class attack submarine. The second of eight units commissioned as part of a series called Project 636.6, Rostov-on-Don boasts across-the-board iterative improvements over the original Soviet Kilo-class line. These included a slightly more powerful engine and lower noise levels, but the greatest change comes from much more capable armaments. The original Kilo-class Strela-3 missiles were replaced by more versatile 3M-54 and 3M14 Kalibr cruise missiles with a dual anti-ship/land attack function. Laid down in 2011, Rostov-on-Don was presented to Russias Black Sea Fleet in 2014. After completing a series of trials and training exercises in Northwestern Russia, Rostov-on-Don was to make the trek to join with the Fourth Submarine Brigade of the Black Sea Fleet. But while en route, Rostov-on-Dons crew was notified of a sudden change of plans: they were to take part in a strike against an ISIS stronghold in the Northern Syrian region of Al-Raqqa. Story continues Rostov-on-Don was ordered to fire its Kalibr-PL missiles on several ISIS emplacements. Russian defense minister Sergei Shoigu described the attack in a press conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin: "We used Kalibr cruise missiles from the Rostov-on-Don submarine from the Mediterranean Sea we can say with complete confidence that fairly serious damage was done to weapons stores and a factory for preparing mines and, naturally, oil infrastructure. The same serious damage could unquestionably have been inflicted by the many Russian bomber aircraft active in the area, but the use of Rostov-on-Don was far from purposeless. First, it was a live-fire exercise to evaluate Project 636.6 submarines combat efficacy against land targets. Second, it was an advertisement for Kalibrs export variant, the 3M14E Club-S, to prospective buyers. Finally, this was one of several displays of Russian sea power to deter Turkish maritime intervention into the Syrian Civil War. After the success of the Raqqa operation, Rostov-on-Don went on to join up with the Black Sea Fleet as originally planned. However, its Syrian performance did not go unnoticed. In 2017, the Rostov-on-Don became one of two Project 636.6 submarines, along with Novorossiysk, to be awarded Russias new honorary military title of shock submarine. The Russian Defense Ministry explained that the right to bear this title goes to submarine crews with a high level of training, demonstrated through the accomplishment of missions with Russian Naval units in the Mediterranean Sea. Rostov-on-Don is one of countless Russian weapons to cut its teeth on the Syrian Civil War, providing its crew with live combat experience while furthering Moscows export ambitions and geopolitical designs. Mark Episkopos is a frequent contributor to The National Interest and serves as a research assistant at the Center for the National Interest. Mark is also a Ph.D. student in History at American University. Image: Youtube screenshot/Russian media. Read full article Malaysian government officials have come out to say they are still undecided on whether or not they will legalize cryptocurrency. The matter is still under consideration, which is frustrating those looking to seize the moment to help the Malaysian cryptocurrency industry grow. As neighboring South East Asian nations such as Thailand, Singapore, and Hong Kong continue to regulate their crypto markets with one eye on greater adoption, Malaysia is lagging behind the forerunners on the sub-continent. Indecision on Malaysian Cryptocurrency Future Malaysia is currently one of the few South East Asian nations not to have a clear and defined stance on digital currency at this moment in time. Nobody is quite sure when or if a decision will be made in the near future. And nobody is sure if crypto is legal or not. The Malaysian Federal Territories Minister Khalid Abdul Samad recently confirmed the indecision when attending a charity event in Kuala Lumpur, reported on by the local media outlet, the Malay Mail. Samad said they are still not sure which direction to take in regards to legalizing cryptocurrency. He was quoted as saying: People have asked me if these (cryptocurrency and digital currency) currencies are legal or illegal. At the moment, the answer is neither legal nor illegal as the situation is still unclear. Yes, I was involved in the launch of Harapan Coin. However, I was not appointed as finance minister. Instead, I became federal territories minister. As you can see, these recent comments in regards to Malaysian cryptocurrency legalities are greyer than 50 Shades of Grey in black and white on a dull day. They are more unclear than Stevie Wonder circumnavigating the North Pole in a dingy in a continual fog. Malaysia Getting Left Out in the Crypto Cold Because of such indecision from the Malaysian government, they are lagging behind other financial powerhouses in SE-Asia. Although Thailand also took its time to draft a regulatory framework for its crypto sector, they are now powering ahead with the Thai SEC recently issuing more licenses to crypto-related businesses. Story continues As Hong Kong and Singapore also push ahead with greater regularity measures, the best we can get from Malaysian officials when pushed on the subject is the same old familiar story that Samed told the local Malaysia media when he said: As the matter is not under my jurisdiction, I cannot push too much. To be fair on Samad, he is one of the main advocates of Malaysian cryptocurrency integration and previously tried to push both the Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad and the Bank Negara Malaysia to use the Harapan Coin for governmental transactions. But to no avail. Featured image from Pixabay. The post Malaysian Government Still Deciding Whether or Not to Legalize Cryptocurrency appeared first on CCN. Skopje (AFP) - Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev on Saturday called on Greece to end the two nations' decades-long dispute by ratifying the deal to rename his country The Republic of North Macedonia. Macedonian lawmakers approved the agreement late Friday. It now needs backing from the Greek parliament to come into effect. "Our parliament found the strength but it wasn't easy. But I am convinced that the Greek parliament will also find the strength to make the decision," Zaev told a press conference in Skopje. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo welcomed the parliament's decision, praising the Macedonian leader's "vision, courage and persistence" in seeking a resolution to the dispute with Greece that would allow it to join NATO and the European Union. "The United States sees this as a historic opportunity to advance stability, security and prosperity throughout the region," Pompeo said in a statement released from Washington. Eighty-one of the Macedonian parliament's 120 members backed the name change, securing the required two-thirds majority to push it through. Zaev, who came to power in May 2017, is now looking to his Greek counterpart Alexis Tsipras to uphold his end of the deal, which the pair brokered last year. "Within 10 days... if we see everything is in order, we will vote," Tsipras said on Friday evening. Athens has promised to lift its veto on Skopje's attempts to join NATO and the EU if Macedonia changes its name. Zaev said he was "convinced that Greek lawmakers will recognise the historical significance of the agreement." The accord aims to start unraveling one of the world's longest diplomatic disputes. It began nearly three decades ago, with Macedonia's declaration of independence, but has roots dating back centuries. Since 1991, Athens has objected to its neighbour being called Macedonia because it has a northern province of the same name. In ancient times it was the cradle of Alexander the Great's empire, a source of intense pride for modern-day Greeks. Last June, Zaev and Tsipras reached a landmark compromise over the name dispute. Their efforts brought the pair a nomination for the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize. Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez are looking to offload a spectacular Park Avenue love nest that they purchased last March in favor of a new spot with more space for their family. The superstar pair, who each have two kids from a previous marriage, need something bigger for the family, a source tells Page Six. They love the building, but when their kids are all together, its too small. The apartment in question spans 4,000 square feet and includes three bedrooms, four and a half bathrooms, and a sizable library. The unit also features a spacious combination living and dining room and a master suite with his-and-hers bathrooms as well as a separate dressing room. The building itself boasts many amenities that did in fact appeal to J-Rodincluding a lounge, a private restaurant, a 75-foot indoor swimming pool, a fitness center, and a screening and performance venuebut ultimately, even those perks didnt offset the smaller space. They love the services, the amenitiesthey use the gym, they use the boardroom for meetings, the source says. But for the size of their family, they need something much larger. Lopez and Rodriguez purchased the apartment for $15 million last spring, and currently have it listed on the market for $17.5 million. (The unit will not come furnished, but if a buyer is interested in snapping up the magnificently furnished apartment as is, that possibility is on the table). Last August, it was also revealed that the couple keep a secret apartment in NYCs Upper West Side neighborhood, a 1,079-square-foot pied-a-terre with an 111-square-foot outdoor terrace. At the time, the couple was shelling out $11,500 a month for the space, likely also taking advantage of the buildings gym and boardroom. Between the two of them, they also own homes in Miami, Los Angeles, and elsewhere in New York. Lopez put her enviable NoMad penthouse on the market for $27 million back in fall 2017, shortly after she and Rodriguez started dating. Story continues Related: A Peek Inside Reese Witherspoons Pacific Palisades Home, Courtesy of Vogue GORDON, Wis. Jake Thomas Patterson remains a mystery. At Northwood School District in Minong, where he graduated from the K-12 school in 2015, Patterson was quiet and withdrawn, yet smart enough to be on a quiz team and able to crack a quick joke. In the school's yearbook, he said that after graduation he planned to enlist in the Marine Corps. and wrote, "I'm finally done with school." It's not clear whether Patterson ever followed through on joining the military. He did work, for just one day, at a turkey plant, and he appears to have drifted in the background in this rural swath of Wisconsin. He did not have a criminal record. The blanks in Patterson's story will fill in over the coming weeks and months as he faces charges of killing Denise and James Closs and kidnapping their 13-year-old daughter, Jayme. More: Jayme Closs reunited with aunt More: Suspect's goal was kidnapping Jayme Closs, not killing parents, police say On Thursday, 88 days after she was abducted, Jayme escaped from a home in Gordon where authorities said she was kept by Patterson. Sheriff's deputies quickly apprehended Patterson, who they believe was out driving and looking for Jayme. He surrendered without incident. Jayme is now staying with an aunt, who said in a Facebook post that the teen had a "pretty good" night's sleep and that her family would support her throughout her healing process. "It will be a long road, but we are family strong and we love this little girl so much!!" she said. Patterson, 21, is due to make his initial court appearance Monday in Barron. Authorities have said he acted alone, using a shotgun to blast his way into the Closs home. He was targeting Jayme, they said. "We don't think there are any other suspects who helped him with this plan and ... kidnapping," Barron County Sheriff Chris Fitzgerald said Saturday. Patterson will be represented by state public defenders Charles Glynn and Richard Jones, with assistance of the Public Defender's Office in Barron County. Story continues "This is a very tragic situation," Glynn and Jones said in a statement issued late Friday. "There is a substantial amount of information, interest, and emotion involved in this case. Mr. Pattersons legal team will be relying on the integrity of our judicial system to insure that everyones rights are protected and respected." Patterson graduated from high school in a class of 34 students. A description of his high school years was provided by former students who didn't want to be named. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Classmates described him as quiet and seemingly indifferent. "He was just kind of there," said one former student. Patterson was voted as the "most quiet" boy in the class of 2015. "Randomly in class, Jake would crack a joke and it would be absolutely hilarious and the whole class would hear it," the classmate said. Another former student, who was a year behind Patterson, said, "He seemed like he was just one of those guys in school that wanted to fit in but couldn't because he lacked social skills. (He) never really made an impact in any way." Patterson wrestled in elementary school, a classmate said, but wasn't interested in going to sporting events in high school. He was a member of the school's Quiz Bowl team, a club described by Northwood School Superintendent Jean Serum as "a battle of the brainiacs" competition between schools. In his freshman yearbook picture, he had tousled hair and a shy smile. He shaved his hair close sometime between the end of his sophomore year and the beginning of his junior year. Jayme Closs smiles with the family pets at her aunt's home Saturday, two days after escaping from a cabin in Gordon in Douglas County. Authorities say Jayme was kidnapped 88 days ago when her parents were murdered in her Barron home. In many ways, he was known by what he didn't do. He didn't go to prom and didn't go on the senior class trip to Florida. He didn't pose with fellow graduates in the class photo. Classmates said they don't recall him participating in the ceremony. "Which pretty much sums up, he was just there," a classmate said. His home life remains unclear. Patterson's parents divorced in 2007. Patterson has an older brother and sister. His older brother has a criminal record, including a no contest plea to a fourth-degree sexual assault charge in 2013. The older brother was sentenced to a year's probation. The only job that Patterson was known to have held was at Jennie-O Turkey Store in Barron. He worked there three years ago but quit after one day. Jayme's parents worked at the company for 27 years but authorities have said it's not believed they crossed paths with Patterson on the job. "How did he get like this?" a classmate asked. "He just disappeared after high school." USA TODAY-Wisconsin Network photographer T'xer Zhon Kha contributed to this report. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Jayme Closs abduction suspect was a quiet student who hoped to join Marines JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems and businessman Avihai Stolero have offered to buy unmanned aerial vehicle maker Aeronautics for 850 million shekels ($232 million). The news sent shares of Aeronautics up 37 percent in morning trade in Tel Aviv on Sunday. Aeronautics rejected a 430 million shekel offer from Rafael and Stolero last August. Aeronautics, which had a market value of 507 million shekels on Jan. 10, said the latest offer for all its shares would be done as a reverse merger executed through a company jointly owned by Rafael and Stolero. The company would become private and its shares delisted from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Aeronautics said it had agreed to hold talks with the potential buyers and committed to giving them exclusivity. Negotiations will take place until Feb. 15, during which time Rafael will conduct due diligence. Earlier this month, state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries [ISRAI.UL] said it was in early talks to invest in Aeronautics. In 2017, Aeronautics said the Defence Ministry had suspended the marketing and export license for one of the firm's attack drones to a significant customer in a foreign country. The company denied any wrongdoing. Israeli media reported at the time that the ministry had opened an investigation into Aeronautics over whether during a product demonstration in Azerbaijan one of its drones was used to attack a military position in the neighboring country of Armenia, and if so, who was at fault. Aeronautics manufactures unmanned aerial vehicles for military surveillance and defense purposes, as well as for the commercial sector. (Reporting by Steven Scheer; Editing by Tova Cohen/Keith Weir) Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel said Sunday it had uncovered all cross-border attack tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon and will bring its operation to find and destroy them to an end after more than a month. The operation had raised concerns that Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Shiite group and enemy of Israel, would respond and spark a new conflict between them, but the border has remained calm throughout. An Israeli military spokesman declined to say how many tunnels had been discovered in total, but the army has announced six since the operation was launched. The last tunnel was exposed on Saturday, the army said. "We have found yet another Hezbollah cross-border attack tunnel from Lebanon to Israel," said Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Conricus. "According to our intelligence and our assessment of the situation there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel." The latest tunnel began in the Lebanese village of Ramyeh, some 800 metres (yards) away from Israel, the army said. It reached a few dozen metres into Israel, and at 55 metres underground was the deepest as well as "the longest and most detailed" of all the tunnels the army exposed, Conricus said. The army said its discovery marked the end of the operation launched on December 4 and that the last tunnel would be destroyed in the coming days. On a visit to an area near the Israeli border with Lebanon on Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed the success of the operation dubbed "Northern Shield". "A very serious threat was averted here," said Netanyahu. "Hezbollah's operational plan was to use the tunnels weapon to infiltrate many fighters, between 1,000-2,000 terrorists, into the Galilee to seize communities here... We have prevented this -- and will continue to prevent it," he said. - 'Achieved the goal' - The tunnels are being destroyed either with explosives or by filling them with a cement-like material to make them unusable. Story continues Conricus said there were no more tunnels reaching Israel from Lebanon but the army was still monitoring "facilities" being dug by Hezbollah inside Lebanese territory. "We have achieved the goal (to expose and destroy the tunnels from Lebanon) which we set out to achieve at the beginning," Conricus said. He also reiterated that Israel holds the Lebanese government accountable "for any act of violence or violation of 1701", the UN resolution that ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah. UNIFIL, the UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon, was informed of the latest tunnel, Conricus said. Israel alleges Hezbollah had planned to use the tunnels to kidnap or kill its civilians or soldiers, and to seize a slice of Israeli territory in the event of any hostilities. It has said, however, that they were not yet operational. A month-long war in 2006 between Israel and Hezbollah killed more than 1,200 Lebanese, mostly civilians, and more than 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers. Israel says all anti-tunnel operations have taken place within its territory, and the highly publicised mission has gone ahead without drawing a military response from Hezbollah. The announcement that the operation is ending comes as military chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot steps down at the end of his term. Israeli analysts see the operation as one of Eisenkot's important achievements. Neither Lebanon nor Hezbollah has commented directly on the end of the operation. Lebanese officials however held talks on Sunday with US Under Secretary of State David Hale that included discussion of the border area, statements from both sides said. One of the best investments we can make is in our own knowledge and skill set. With that in mind, this article will work through how we can use Return On Equity (ROE) to better understand a business. By way of learning-by-doing, well look at ROE to gain a better understanding of Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation (NYSE:MIC). Macquarie Infrastructure has a ROE of 15%, based on the last twelve months. Another way to think of that is that for every $1 worth of equity in the company, it was able to earn $0.15. See our latest analysis for Macquarie Infrastructure Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. How Do You Calculate ROE? The formula for ROE is: Return on Equity = Net Profit Shareholders Equity Or for Macquarie Infrastructure: 15% = 485.976 US$3.2b (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2018.) Most readers would understand what net profit is, but its worth explaining the concept of shareholders equity. It is all the money paid into the company from shareholders, plus any earnings retained. The easiest way to calculate shareholders equity is to subtract the companys total liabilities from the total assets. What Does Return On Equity Signify? ROE measures a companys profitability against the profit it retains, and any outside investments. The return is the profit over the last twelve months. A higher profit will lead to a higher ROE. So, all else equal, investors should like a high ROE. Clearly, then, one can use ROE to compare different companies. Does Macquarie Infrastructure Have A Good ROE? By comparing a companys ROE with its industry average, we can get a quick measure of how good it is. However, this method is only useful as a rough check, because companies do differ quite a bit within the same industry classification. As you can see in the graphic below, Macquarie Infrastructure has a higher ROE than the average (11%) in the Infrastructure industry. Story continues NYSE:MIC Last Perf January 13th 19 That is a good sign. In my book, a high ROE almost always warrants a closer look. For example, I often check if insiders have been buying shares . The Importance Of Debt To Return On Equity Most companies need money from somewhere to grow their profits. That cash can come from retained earnings, issuing new shares (equity), or debt. In the first two cases, the ROE will capture this use of capital to grow. In the latter case, the use of debt will improve the returns, but will not change the equity. That will make the ROE look better than if no debt was used. Macquarie Infrastructures Debt And Its 15% ROE Macquarie Infrastructure clearly uses a significant amount debt to boost returns, as it has a debt to equity ratio of 1.06. while its ROE is respectable, it is worth keeping in mind that there is usually a limit to how much debt a company can use. Investors should think carefully about how a company might perform if it was unable to borrow so easily, because credit markets do change over time. The Bottom Line On ROE Return on equity is useful for comparing the quality of different businesses. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. All else being equal, a higher ROE is better. But ROE is just one piece of a bigger puzzle, since high quality businesses often trade on high multiples of earnings. The rate at which profits are likely to grow, relative to the expectations of profit growth reflected in the current price, must be considered, too. So I think it may be worth checking this free report on analyst forecasts for the company. But note: Macquarie Infrastructure may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt. 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. The Royal Mail ship arrives at St Helena bringing supplies - AFP PHOTO/JEAN LIOU The remote British island of St Helena is facing a health time bomb with seven in 10 adults now overweight or obese while half of its young people still smoke regularly. The volcanic outpost in the South Atlantic, has a population of just 4,534 yet many people suffer from chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease. According to the islands Health Directorate, 75 per cent of adults and 40 per cent of children are now overweight or obese, 30 per cent have high blood pressure and 25 per cent have diabetes - in contrast to just six per cent of the British mainland population. The problem lies in St Helenas isolation with islanders dependent on imported processed food which can survive the long journey from South Africa. Although an airport opened last year, until then locals relied entirely on the Royal Mail boat for supplies which arrived every three weeks. Lisa Niemand, the Health Directorates Nursing Officer, said: The intertwined issues of geographical isolation, low resource base, dearth of specialist skills and lifestyle risk factors are a toxic challenge for the health sector here. There are large number of smokers particularly young smokers, prevalent harmful alcohol use, and the global obesity epidemic has been intensified by the lack of fresh food available on the island and the dependence on imported long-life produce. The consequent high incidence of cancers and cardiovascular diseases are a major financial burden on the health sector as we have to offer treatment for many overseas at high cost. The new record system links up all the services on St Helena Last year St Helenas Director of Health Services Akeem Ali set out the growing health problems that the islands was facing, saying he was concerned that the poor health of islanders would lead to blindness, limb amputation, cancer, heart attacks, stroke and early death. Health experts are also concerned about the growing risk of kidney failure and liver disease on an island where it is virtually impossible to offer organ transplants. Story continues Mr Ali wrote an open letter to public health organisations asking for help in tackling the growing public health crisis, saying: If you were in my shoes, what would you do next? One of the companies to respond was PatientSource, which has created a system which pulls together all the islands health records together then uses artificial intelligence to track symptoms, spot diseases, detect deterioration and prevent illnesses from getting worse. The programme which went live in November uses data from pharmacies, laboratories, hospitals, GPS, and community and mental health services. PatientSources co-founder, former NHS doctor Michael Brooks said: St Helena will build up a rich repository of patient data covering symptoms, signs, test results and treatment outcomes. Doctors in St Helena will be able to track progress in real time and will be able to identify where best to direct healthcare resources. The island will jump decades ahead of where they are now. The island has also begun a new campaign called Saints Together where a distinctive heart symbol is placed on healthy food and drinks and has organised running competitions and health awareness days. The government is also cracking down on tobacco sales, reducing advertising, bringing in plain packaging and limiting access to flavoured cigarettes. The island has also set up outreach programmes such as Chronic Disease Management Clinics and Workplace Wellbeing Clinics designed to encourage islanders to take ownership of their health and make informed decisions about their lifestyle choices. Deputy Director of Health, Helen Lawrence, said: We hope the future brings a scenario of full community engagement whereby our population are self-managing their health as far as possible as a result of the diagnosis and preventative technology data we will receive from PatientSource. Health care is an integral part of the community and will always be needed. It is rewarding to know that working in health services, regardless of our role, makes each of us personally a contributor to the positive well-being of our island community. Gaza City (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - The military wing of Gaza's Hamas rulers said Saturday that the aim of a botched undercover Israeli operation in the Palestinian enclave aimed to plant spying devices in their communications network. The November 11 special forces operation, which Israel said was an intelligence-gathering mission, turned deadly when the undercover soldiers were spotted near Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. The ensuing firefight claimed the lives of an Israeli army officer and seven Palestinian militants, including a local Hamas military commander. A spokesman for the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said that 15 members of an elite Israeli military unit had infiltrated Gaza via the border fence and travelled in the enclave using cars disguised as vehicles belonging to a local charity. Their goal was "establishing a spy system to eavesdrop on the communications network of the resistance in the Gaza Strip", Abu Obeida said, showing video footage of what he said was the soldiers in action. Hamas also managed to capture equipment used by the group, Abu Obeida added, promising a million dollars to any local "collaborator" who would supply Hamas with information about the operation. On Tuesday, Hamas said it had arrested 45 Gazan "collaborators" with Israel following the Khan Yunis incident. Hamas had already published photos of eight people and two vehicles it said were linked to the operation, prompting the Israeli army censor to appeal to the public and media not to republish the images. The incident prompted Hamas to vow revenge and sparked the deadliest flare-up between the two sides since a 2014 war. A November 13 ceasefire brokered by Egypt ended the fighting that had raised fears of another war between Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza. Hamas and its allies have fought three wars with Israel since 2008 and the Gaza Strip has been under an Israeli blockade for more than a decade. Israel says the measure is necessary to isolate Hamas and prevent it from obtaining weapons, though critics say it amounts to collective punishment of the territory's two million residents. government shutdown .gov tls certificate The partial US government shutdown is now affecting TLS certificates for some government websites. The websites of key branches of government like the Justice Department and the Court of Appeals are no longer secure or accessible, as first reported by Netcraft. The partial government shutdown affected their abilities to renew TLS certificates to keep their websites functional. Domino Effects of Shutdown Includes Security Issues Many government websites house sensitive government payment portals and remote access services. Securing them is essential. Transport Layer Security (TLS) certificates protect the security of these sites. Many of the government workers who are responsible for renewing the certificates have been furloughed. So far, more than 80 TLS certificates used by .gov websites have expired without being renewed, according to Netcraft. From the report: To compound the situation, some of these abandoned websites can no longer be accessed due to strict security measures that were implemented long before the shutdown started. Time is of the Essence government shutdown justice department website security certificate On Sunday, the partial shutdown hit its 23rd day. This makes it the longest in US history. Whats more, there seems to be no end in sight. President Donald Trump and congressional leaders remain at an impasse over border security funding. Specifically, the presidents desire to fund a border wall along the US-Mexico border to the tune of $5.7 billion has met flat out refusal from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. The House is responsible for approving appropriations. Its anybodys guess as to when congressional leaders and President Trump will reach an agreement. In the meantime, the White House Office of Management and Budget is readying plans. The Wall Street Journal reports officials are preparing for the shutdown to last through the end of February. The last time the president met with Congressional leaders, he walked out. He tweeted the talks were a waste of time because Democratic leaders refused to budge over taking up funding the wall while the government is partially shut down. Story continues The longer the government shutdown lasts, the worst the situation becomes for government agency websites. Netcraft states: As more and more certificates used by government websites inevitably expire over the following days, weeks or maybe even months there could be some real opportunities to undermine the security of all U.S. citizens. Man-in-the-Middle Attack Concerns Netcraft found that sites with expired TLS certificates display warnings, but visitors can bypass them. People who ignore the warnings may inadvertently render themselves vulnerable to man-in-the-middle attacks, according to the report. For example, the Justice Departments website uses a certificate that expired in December. Featured Image from Shutterstock The post Government Shutdown Leaves Websites Inaccessible as Security Certificates Expire appeared first on CCN. Riesa (Germany) (AFP) - As the British parliament prepares for a crucial Brexit vote Tuesday, Germany's far right voted Sunday to break a national taboo by campaigning to quit the European Union if its demand for reforms within the bloc are not met. A party congress gathered in Riesa in Saxony state -- the Alternative for Germany's (AfD) biggest stronghold -- voted for the demand to be included in its manifesto for European Parliament elections in May. Aware that a vast majority of Germans remain in favour of their country's EU membership, delegates advanced cautiously. They called for a so-called "Dexit" only "as a last resort" if fundamental reforms do not reshape the EU "in an appropriate timeframe". But the decision marks the first time in Germany's post-war history that a political party has dared suggest blowing up the nation's EU membership. - European identity - Alongside the transatlantic alliance with the United States, membership in the EU project has long been a key element of German national identity, and one way the country has sought to move on from the Nazi past while defending its interests. By contrast, "AfD is trying to rehabilitate a German nationalist position" in political debate, historian and political scientist Klaus-Peter Sick told AFP. "This position is a normalisation of the nationalist right relative to what's going on in neighbouring countries like Italy or France," he added. "By moving onto this territory, AfD is carrying out a test within the party and among voters to discover whether it's a theme that can glean support." Germany's biggest opposition party since September 2017 elections, the AfD produced its manifesto only after intense internal negotiations. If "deep reforms" are not made, "we judge it necessary, as a last resort, for Germany to leave the EU or for the EU to be dissolved" in favour of an economic community, it declares. Story continues Among the changes demanded by the party are the abolition of the European Parliament and the euro single currency as well as an end to the "Islamisation" of Europe. - Maximalist demands - Many delegates originally hoped for an even tougher programme on "Dexit" that would allow just one European Parliament term -- until 2024 -- for reforms before the AfD would campaign directly for departure. But party chiefs urged the congress not to tie its hands with a fixed date. "I think we would be badly advised to campaign with a maximalist demand," said joint leader Alexander Gauland. He warned that if Brexit causes significant upsets to the British economy, comparable demands from a German party could scare off voters. More generally, with a massive pro-EU majority in Germany, AfD bosses know they could deter swathes of potential voters by talking too loudly about quitting. A European Parliament survey in November found 82 percent of Germans would vote to remain in the EU if the country held a UK-style referendum, while 75 percent saw Brexit as either "probably" or "definitely" the wrong decision. The move opens up a new front for the AfD alongside opposition to Islam and immigration, the foundation of the party's electoral successes since 2015 and the arrival of more than one million asylum seekers. Far-right leaders need fresh issues to whip up sentiment, after their favourite punching-bag Chancellor Angela Merkel announced her retirement for 2021 at the latest. Their European sally comes two days before a critical UK parliament vote on whether to accept a deal that London has negotiated with Brussels. At present the accord looks set for rejection, increasing the danger of a chaotic departure with unforeseeable consequences. BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's antitrust authority has expressed concerns to the European Union's competition watchdog about the planned merger of the rail operations of Siemens and France's Alstom , a newspaper reported on Sunday. The EU watchdog is set to decide by Feb.18 whether to approve the merger, with French newspaper Les Echos reporting that the European Commission was likely to veto the merger, which would create a Franco-German rail champion. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said the German competition body had written a confidential letter to its EU counterpart stressing concerns about the planned deal and saying it completely shares the Commission's reservations. The German body said it did not believe that the recent pledges of both companies removed those competitive concerns, the paper cited the letter as saying. The merger was designed to create a European champion to challenge the advance of China's state-owned CRRC <601766.SS> and Canada's Bombadier Transportation . However, four other national regulators expressed their reservations about the merger in December, saying the two firms fell far short of addressing concerns over their deal. The concerns over how the merger would affect competition center around the supply of very high-speed rolling stock for trains such as the Eurostar which links Britain, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. Siemens and Alstom are the two largest suppliers of this product in Europe. (Reporting by Emma Thomasson; Editing by Keith Weir) Many investors are still learning about the various metrics that can be useful when analysing a stock. This article is for those who would like to learn about Return On Equity (ROE). By way of learning-by-doing, well look at ROE to gain a better understanding of Amcor Limited (ASX:AMC). Amcor has a ROE of 67%, based on the last twelve months. That means that for every A$1 worth of shareholders equity, it generated A$0.67 in profit. Check out our latest analysis for Amcor Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. How Do You Calculate ROE? The formula for ROE is: Return on Equity = Net Profit Shareholders Equity Or for Amcor: 67% = 724 US$1.1b (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2018.) Most know that net profit is the total earnings after all expenses, but the concept of shareholders equity is a little more complicated. It is all earnings retained by the company, plus any capital paid in by shareholders. The easiest way to calculate shareholders equity is to subtract the companys total liabilities from the total assets. What Does ROE Mean? ROE measures a companys profitability against the profit it retains, and any outside investments. The return is the profit over the last twelve months. That means that the higher the ROE, the more profitable the company is. So, all else being equal, a high ROE is better than a low one. Clearly, then, one can use ROE to compare different companies. Does Amcor Have A Good ROE? One simple way to determine if a company has a good return on equity is to compare it to the average for its industry. Importantly, this is far from a perfect measure, because companies differ significantly within the same industry classification. As you can see in the graphic below, Amcor has a higher ROE than the average (12%) in the Packaging industry. Story continues ASX:AMC Last Perf January 12th 19 Thats clearly a positive. In my book, a high ROE almost always warrants a closer look. One data point to check is if insiders have bought shares recently. How Does Debt Impact ROE? Companies usually need to invest money to grow their profits. That cash can come from retained earnings, issuing new shares (equity), or debt. In the case of the first and second options, the ROE will reflect this use of cash, for growth. In the latter case, the debt required for growth will boost returns, but will not impact the shareholders equity. In this manner the use of debt will boost ROE, even though the core economics of the business stay the same. Amcors Debt And Its 67% ROE We think Amcor uses a lot of debt to boost returns, as it has a relatively high debt to equity ratio of 4.12. Its ROE is no doubt quite impressive, but it would probably be a lot lower without the use of significant leverage. The Key Takeaway Return on equity is a useful indicator of the ability of a business to generate profits and return them to shareholders. A company that can achieve a high return on equity without debt could be considered a high quality business. If two companies have the same ROE, then I would generally prefer the one with less debt. Having said that, while ROE is a useful indicator of business quality, youll have to look at a whole range of factors to determine the right price to buy a stock. Profit growth rates, versus the expectations reflected in the price of the stock, are a particularly important to consider. So I think it may be worth checking this free report on analyst forecasts for the company. But note: Amcor may not be the best stock to buy. So take a peek at this free list of interesting companies with high ROE and low debt. 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. VIENNA (Reuters) - The European Union should consider regulating to stop member states from poaching each other's doctors and other professionals, German Health Minister Jens Spahn said. Spahn, a conservative heavyweight among Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrats who recently lost a contest to become the party's leader, described a knock-on effect of countries attracting doctors from neighboring countries, as is the case with Switzerland taking in German physicians. "I can understand them. Switzerland is a beautiful country. But what is clear is that there is a shortage of these professionals in Germany. And then Polish doctors work in our country, and in turn there is a shortage of them in Poland," he told Swiss tabloid Blick am Sonntag. "That cannot be right. We should therefore think about whether we need to create new regulations on the luring away of people with certain professions within the EU, and without fundamentally calling into question the freedom of movement within Europe," he was quoted as saying. Spahn added that there were currently such agreements within the World Health Organization that could serve as a model, but he did not spell out what those were or how they might be applied within the EU. Asked if Germany might charge Switzerland, which is not an EU member state, for educating German doctors who then went to work there, he said: "No, that is not my plan." (Reporting by Francois Murphy; Editing by Mark Heinrich) Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel, who faced heavy criticism for his handling of the 2018 Parkland shooting, was suspended by newly inaugurated Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday, following days of speculation. Sheriff Israel has repeatedly failed and has demonstrated a pattern of poor leadership, DeSantis said in a statement on Friday, accusing Israel of demonstrating repeated incompetence and neglect of duty. He failed to protect Floridians and visitors during the tragic Fort Lauderdale International Airport shooting in 2017, DeSantis said. He failed in his duties to keep our families and children safe during the devastating shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The two-term sheriff came under fire for his handling of the February 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 people were killed by gunman Nikolas Cruz, who has confessed to the shooting. An investigative report released last week by a public safety commission detailed the failings of law enforcement officers in response to the shooting. In his executive order suspending Israel, DeSantis detailed the failure of the sheriffs office to follow up on potential warnings about Cruz, as well as its policy for dealing with an active shooter, which said that a deputy may confront an active shooter, but could use their discretion. Surveillance video released in March showed Broward County Sheriffs Office school resource officer Scot Peterson approach a school door as the shooting was happening, never entering the building. He then ran toward another building and took up a tactical position. Petersons actions were heavily criticized, leading to an internal affairs investigation led by Israel. Peterson later resigned. Shortly after the shooting, Republican lawmakers called on then-governor Rick Scott to suspend Israel for incompetence and neglect of duty. This item is available in full to subscribers. Attention subscribers We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription. If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you've not yet logged in to your account on this new site. If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free website account by clicking here. Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing. crypto blockchain mckinsey Consulting giant McKinsey & Co recently published a report on the state of the blockchain industry, claiming that while crypto technology has potential, it has been unable to break away from the early pioneer phase with most use cases failing to take off. The Report: Blockchains Occam Problem The report is not entirely critical, stating that blockchain is viewed as a potential game-changer in many industries. It does, however, point out that a huge amount of money has been pumped into blockchain projects, adding the view that little of substance has been achieved. The consulting firm states that blockchain is an infant teleology that is unstable, expensive, and complex. It is also unregulated and selectively distrusted. A chart is included in the report, illustrating the industry struggling to emerge from the first stage of a four-stage cycle moving from pioneering to growth, maturity, and decline. The report goes on to detail emerging doubts regarding crypto technology, with the report title referring to Occams Razor, the concept that the simplest answer or solution is the best one. The implication here, of course, is that blockchain technology is not the simplest solution. Crypto Firms Respond Anyone reading the report could be forgiven for taking a rather dim view of the technology. While not an outright dismissal of blockchain tech, McKinseys report certainly aims to drastically temper the expectations of any blockchain enthusiasts who firmly support the technology as a potential solution for many cross-industry problems. Blockchain firms have not remained silent in the face of the report, with multiple CEOs addressing and debunking various points made within. CEO Angel Versetti of blockchain supply chain tracking company Ambrosus acknowledged that blockchain hype had clouded expectations, but firmly asserted that in its intended use case, blockchain is indeed the best solution by far: Story continues The report claims that competing emerging technologies are hindering the progress of blockchain, however, I think there is no technology that really competes with Blockchain in terms of its core value proposition: censorship-resistant, universally trusted ledger of transactions and contracts with no central point of failure, said Versetti. Blockchain will not solve all the problems of the world. But in the core value proposition of data integrity and immutability, blockchain is king. Utopia Music CEO Brent Jaciow focused on solutions to the issue, pointing out that blockchain tech was still an emerging industry. Developers must work hard to remove any roadblocks to firms harnessing its capabilities. This feat may be accomplished by creating APIs which integrate into existing solutions or developing a user experience that is simple and easy to use whilst integrating blockchain technology as the backend software. Is Blockchain The Future? The McKinsey report runs the gamut of regulatory, scaling, and security concerns which have of course featured heavily in all criticisms of blockchain technology. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Blockchain company responses to CCN seem to tackle these concerns with the suggestions of API development and the assertion that blockchain truly does outshine competing technologies when it comes to immutability and data protection, but its perhaps too soon to say whether the crypto industry is ready to break through to the second phase of the growth cycle outlined in the report. However, the report reads more like a stern lecture from a well-meaning parent than it does a smear campaign from competing interests. While highly critical in some cases, even McKinsey agrees that blockchain is potentially revolutionary. Three guiding principles are cited: Organizations must start with a problem. There must be a clear business case and target ROI. Companies must agree to a mandate and commit to a path to adoption. The report states that industries are downgrading expectations regarding blockchain, but acknowledges that the technology has the potential to revolutionize processes in banking, healthcare, insurance, shipping, and more but only if the above principles are observed. Companies are urged to adapt their strategic playbooks, honestly review the advantages over more conventional solutions, and embrace a more hard-headed commercial approach. The consulting firm concludes an occasionally bleak report with a more hopeful outlook by saying: If they can do all that, and be patient, blockchain may still emerge as Occams right answer. The post Crypto Firms Speak out Against Critical McKinsey Report appeared first on CCN. Chinese companies will soon be able to get paid in yuan instead of dollars when selling products through U.S. online sites, says Reuters. The New York branch of the Bank of China says that it's system, e-MPay will be able to facilitate such payments starting this year, according to Reuters which cited China's Xinhua news agency. At a time when China is challenging the U.S. for the title of the world's biggest economy, the two nations are embroiled in a trade war, and the ripples in China's economy can hobble corporate giants like Apple, payments in yuan vs. dollars could give a boost to smaller Chinese businesses selling on U.S. based portals. The new payment capabilities will facilitate trade finance for e-commerce players, Xu Chen, president and CEO of Bank of China USA said according to Xinhua. The Bank of China has previously faced allegations of money laundering and Xu said that artificial intelligence and other cyber security safeguards will ensure that the new e payment functions abide by U.S. regulations. More Money: China, India close gap with U.S. as world's top economy More Money: Ambassador: After 40 years, China-U.S. relations come to a crossroads More Money: China, U.S. express optimism ahead of trade talks This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Chinese companies selling on U.S. sites will be able to get paid in yuan instead of dollars While some investors are already well versed in financial metrics (hat tip), this article is for those who would like to learn about Return On Equity (ROE) and why it is important. By way of learning-by-doing, well look at ROE to gain a better understanding of Bioventix PLC (LON:BVXP). Over the last twelve months Bioventix has recorded a ROE of 51%. One way to conceptualize this, is that for each 1 of shareholders equity it has, the company made 0.51 in profit. Check out our latest analysis for Bioventix Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. How Do You Calculate ROE? The formula for return on equity is: Return on Equity = Net Profit Shareholders Equity Or for Bioventix: 51% = 5.663347 UK11m (Based on the trailing twelve months to June 2018.) Its easy to understand the net profit part of that equation, but shareholders equity requires further explanation. It is all the money paid into the company from shareholders, plus any earnings retained. The easiest way to calculate shareholders equity is to subtract the companys total liabilities from the total assets. What Does Return On Equity Signify? Return on Equity measures a companys profitability against the profit it has kept for the business (plus any capital injections). The return is the amount earned after tax over the last twelve months. A higher profit will lead to a higher ROE. So, as a general rule, a high ROE is a good thing. That means it can be interesting to compare the ROE of different companies. Does Bioventix Have A Good Return On Equity? Arguably the easiest way to assess companys ROE is to compare it with the average in its industry. Importantly, this is far from a perfect measure, because companies differ significantly within the same industry classification. As you can see in the graphic below, Bioventix has a higher ROE than the average (24%) in the Biotechs industry. Story continues AIM:BVXP Last Perf January 13th 19 Thats clearly a positive. In my book, a high ROE almost always warrants a closer look. One data point to check is if insiders have bought shares recently. The Importance Of Debt To Return On Equity Virtually all companies need money to invest in the business, to grow profits. The cash for investment can come from prior year profits (retained earnings), issuing new shares, or borrowing. In the first and second cases, the ROE will reflect this use of cash for investment in the business. In the latter case, the debt used for growth will improve returns, but wont affect the total equity. That will make the ROE look better than if no debt was used. Bioventixs Debt And Its 51% ROE Bioventix is free of net debt, which is a positive for shareholders. Its high ROE already points to a high quality business, but the lack of debt is a cherry on top. At the end of the day, when a company has zero debt, it is in a better position to take future growth opportunities. The Bottom Line On ROE Return on equity is one way we can compare the business quality of different companies. In my book the highest quality companies have high return on equity, despite low debt. If two companies have around the same level of debt to equity, and one has a higher ROE, Id generally prefer the one with higher ROE. But ROE is just one piece of a bigger puzzle, since high quality businesses often trade on high multiples of earnings. It is important to consider other factors, such as future profit growth and how much investment is required going forward. So you might want to take a peek at this data-rich interactive graph of forecasts for the company. If you would prefer check out another company one with potentially superior financials then do not miss this free list of interesting companies, that have HIGH return on equity and low debt. 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. LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- More than four months after Missouri became the first U.S. state to regulate the term "meat" on product labels, Nebraska's powerful farm groups are pushing for similar protection from veggie burgers, tofu dogs and other items that look and taste like real meat. Nebraska lawmakers will consider a bill this year defining meat as "any edible portion of any livestock or poultry, carcass, or part thereof" and excluding "lab-grown or insect or plant-based food products." It would make it a crime to advertise or sell something "as meat that is not derived from poultry or livestock." Similar measures aimed at meat alternatives are pending in Tennessee, Virginia and Wyoming. They come amid a debate over what to call products that are being developed using the emerging science of meat grown by culturing cells in a lab. Supporters of the science are embracing the term "clean meat" language the conventional meat industry strongly opposes. The issue strikes a particularly strong chord in Nebraska, one of the nation's top states for livestock production, where cars roll down the interstate with "Beef State" license plates and the governor each year proclaims May as "Beef Month." Farm groups have found an unusual ally in state Sen. Carol Blood, a city-dwelling vegetarian from the Omaha suburb of Bellevue. Blood, who grew up on a farm, said she introduced the measure because agriculture is Nebraska's largest industry and needs to be protected for the good of the whole state. "I'm not bringing this bill to tell people what they can and can't eat," she said. "All I'm asking for is truth in advertising. It's clear that meat comes from livestock, and livestock is our livelihood in Nebraska." Nebraska led the nation in commercial red meat production in 2017 and had the most feed cows as of last year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Livestock and livestock product sales generated an estimated $12.1 billion for the state's economy in 2016, according to the USDA's most recent available data. Story continues The measure is certain to face resistance from food producers that sell plant-based alternatives, as well as those working to bring lab-grown meat to market. Critics say the bill infringes on the free-speech rights of companies that produce vegetarian alternatives to real meat. The Good Food Institute, the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri, the Animal Legal Defense Fund and plant-based food company Tofurkey have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Missouri law . They argue the law unfairly stifles competition. The Nebraska bill "would censor food labels and create consumer confusion where there is none," said Jessica Almy, director of policy for the Washington-based Good Food Institute. "You can't censor speech just to promote one industry's financial success." Supporters of the Nebraska measure say they want to ensure people aren't misled about what they're eating. Blood said she proposed the measure after seeing two women in a grocery store who couldn't tell whether a product contained meat or a substitute. She said her proposal wouldn't require inspections of product labels, as Missouri's law does. "I don't want to be the meat police," she said. Under the Nebraska bill, violations would bring a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine. "Consumers have a right to know what they're buying," said John Hansen, president of the Nebraska Farmers Union. "That's the case whether it's a vegetarian product or not. There ought to be clear, honest and accurate labeling, and then let the marketplace make the choices." Hansen said his group's livestock producers are particularly concerned about whether consumers will be able to differentiate between meat grown in the lab and farm-grown beef, pork and chicken. Pete McClymont, executive vice president for the group Nebraska Cattlemen, said his organization's concern rises partly from the growth of products labeled as almond and soy milk, which have become an increasingly popular alternative to cow's milk. McClymont said his group still needs to review specific details of the Nebraska proposal, but will push for any law that protects the state's livestock producers. "When I go out and speak to our membership, this is right near the top of what people are passionate about," he said. ___ Follow Grant Schulte on Twitter at https://twitter.com/GrantSchulte Kris Osborn Security, Asia The latest version of the B61 thermonuclear gravity bomb, which has origins as far back as the 1960s, is engineered as a low-to-medium yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon, according to nuclearweaponsarchive.org, which also states the weapon has a two-stage radiation implosion design. Atomic Warrior: How the B-2 Stealth Bomber Is Getting Ready for Nuclear War The testing and integration of the B61-12 is one piece of a massive, fleet-wide B-2 upgrade designed to sustain the bomber into coming years, until large numbers of the emerging B-21 Raider are available. A range of technical modifications are also intended to prepare the 1980s-era bomber for very sophisticated, high-end modern threats. The Air Forces B-2 Stealth bomber has test-dropped an upgraded, multi-function B61-12 nuclear bomb which improves accuracy, integrates various attack options into a single bomb and changes the strategic landscape with regard to nuclear weapons mission possibilities. (This first appeared several months ago.) Earlier this summer, the Air Force dropped a B61-12 nuclear weapon from a B-2 at Nellis AFB, marking a new developmental flight test phase for the upgraded bomb, Air Force spokeswoman Capt. Hope Cronin told Warrior Maven earlier this year. The updated weapon will include improved safety, security and reliability, Cronin said. The B61-12 adds substantial new levels of precision targeting and consolidates several different kinds of attack options into a single weapon. Instead of needing separate variants of the weapon for different functions, the B61-12 by itself allows for earth-penetrating attacks, low-yield strikes, high-yield attacks, above surface detonation and bunker-buster options. The latest version of the B61 thermonuclear gravity bomb, which has origins as far back as the 1960s, is engineered as a low-to-medium yield strategic and tactical nuclear weapon, according to nuclearweaponsarchive.org, which also states the weapon has a two-stage radiation implosion design. Story continues The main advantage of the B61-12 is that it packs all the gravity bomb capabilities against all the targeting scenarios into one bomb. That spans from very low-yield tactical clean use with low fallout to more dirty attacks against underground targets, Hans Kristensen, Director of the Nuclear Information Project, Federation of American Scientists, told Warrior Maven. Air Force officials describe this, in part, by referring to the upgraded B61-12 as having an All Up Round. The flight test accomplished dedicated B61-12 developmental test requirements and All Up Round system level integration testing on the B-2, Cronin said. The B61 Mod 12 is engineered with a special Tail Subassembly to give the bomb increased accuracy, giving a new level of precision targeting using Inertial Navigation Systems, Kristensen said. Right now the B-2 carries only B61-7 (10-360 kt), B61-11(400 kt, earth-penetrator), and B83-1 (high-yield bunker-buster). The B61-12 covers all of those missions, with less radioactive fallout, plus very low-yield attacks, he added. The evidence that the B61-12 can penetrate below the surface has significant implications for the types of targets that can be held at risk with the bomb. By bringing an earth-penetrating component, the B61-12 vastly increases the target scope or envelope of attack. It can enable more narrowly targeted or pinpointed strikes at high-value targets underground - without causing anywhere near the same level of devastation above ground or across a wider area. A nuclear weapon that detonates after penetrating the earth more efficiently transmits its explosive energy to the ground, thus is more effective at destroying deeply buried targets for a given nuclear yield. A detonation above ground, in contrast, results in a larger fraction of the explosive energy bouncing off the surface, Kristensen explained. Massive B-2 Upgrade: The testing and integration of the B61-12 is one piece of a massive, fleet-wide B-2 upgrade designed to sustain the bomber into coming years, until large numbers of the emerging B-21 Raider are available. A range of technical modifications are also intended to prepare the 1980s-era bomber for very sophisticated, high-end modern threats. The B-2 is getting improved digital weapons integration, new computer processing power reported to be 1,000-times faster than existing systems and next-generation sensors designed to help the aircraft avoid enemy air defenses. One of the efforts key modifications is designed to improve whats called the bombers Defensive Management System, a technology designed to help the B-2 recognize and elude enemy air defenses, using various antennas, receivers and display processors. The Defensive Management System is to detect signals or signatures emitting from ground-based anti-aircraft weapons, Air Force officials have said. Current improvements to the technology are described by Air Force developers as the most extensive modification effort that the B-2 has attempted. The modernized system, called a B-2 DMS-M unit, consists of a replacement of legacy DMS subsystems so that the aircraft can be effective against the newest and most lethal enemy air defenses. "The upgraded system integrates a suite of antennas, receivers, and displays that provide real-time intelligence information to aircrew," a service official told Warrior Maven. Upgrades consist of improved antennas with advanced digital electronic support measures, or ESMs along with software components designed to integrate new technologies with existing B-2 avionics, according to an Operational Test & Evaluation report from the Office of the Secretary of Defense. The idea of the upgrade is, among other things, to inform B-2 crews about the location of enemy air defenses so that they can avoid or maneuver around high-risk areas where the aircraft is more likely to be detected or targeted. The DMS-M is used to detect radar emissions from air defenses and provide B-2 air crews with faster mission planning information - while in-flight. Air Force officials explain that while many of the details of the upgraded DMS-M unit are not available for security reasons, the improved system does allow the stealthy B-2 to operate more successfully in more high-threat, high-tech environments referred to by Air Force strategists as highly contested environments. Many experts have explained that 1980s stealth technology is known to be less effective against the best-made current and emerging air defenses newer, more integrated systems use faster processors, digital networking and a wider-range of detection frequencies. The DMS-M upgrade does not in any way diminish the stealth properties of the aircraft, meaning it does not alter the contours of the fuselage or change the heat signature to a degree that it would make the bomber more susceptible to enemy radar, developers said. Many advanced air defenses use X-band radar, a high-frequency, short-wavelength signal able to deliver a high-resolution imaging radar such as that for targeting. S-band frequency, which operates from 2 to 4 GHz, is another is also used by many air defenses, among other frequencies. X-band radar operates from 8 to 12 GHz, Synthetic Aperture Radar, or SAR, sends forward and electromagnetic "ping" before analyzing the return signal to determine shape, speed, size and location of an enemy threat. SAR paints a rendering of sorts of a given target area. X-band provides both precision tracking as well as horizon scans or searches. Stealth technology, therefore, uses certain contour configurations and radar-absorbing coating materials to confuse or thwart electromagnetic signals from air defenses. These techniques are, in many cases, engineered to work in tandem with IR (infrared) suppressors used to minimize or remove a "heat" signature detectable by air defenses' IR radar sensors. Heat coming from the exhaust or engine of an aircraft can provide air defense systems with indication that an aircraft is operating overhead. These stealth technologies are intended to allow a stealth bomber to generate little or no return radar signal, giving air dense operators an incomplete, non-existent or inaccurate representation of an object flying overhead. The absence of vertical structures more likely to generate a return signal from enemy radar is another key element of stealth strategy; this is why the B-2 is flat, with an internal engine designed to limit heat emissions. The idea is to make a B-2 appear to be equivalent to a bird or insect to enemy radar. The B61-12 is also being prepared for the F-35 and a few other Air Force platforms. Also, the B-2 is slated to fly alongside the services emerging B-21 Raider next-generation stealth bomber; this platform, to be ready in the mid-2020s, is said by many Air Force developers to include a new generation of stealth technologies vastly expanding the current operational ranges and abilities of existing stealth bombers. In fact, Air Force leaders have said that the B-21 will be able to hold any target in the world at risk, anytime. The Air Force currently operates 20 B-2 bombers, with the majority of them based at Whiteman AFB in Missouri. The B-2 can reach altitudes of 50,000 feet and carry 40,000 pounds of payload, including both conventional and nuclear weapons. The aircraft, which entered service in the 1980s, has flown missions over Iraq, Libya and Afghanistan. In fact, given its ability to fly as many as 6,000 nautical miles without need to refuel, the B-2 flew from Missouri all the way to an island off the coast of India called Diego Garcia before launching bombing missions over Afghanistan. Kris Osborn became the Managing Editor of Warrior Maven in August of 2015 . Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army - Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at CNN and CNN Headline News. This first appeared in Warrior Maven here. Read full article Theres a signature look to a New York brownstone, a Philadelphia row house, or a New Englandstyle colonial. But what does an Atlanta-style building look like? Thats part of what Atlanta Planning Commissioner Tim Keane is trying to define. To keep ugly buildings from being built in the city, he recently threatened to hold up construction on projects that didnt meet design standards. Since he started, three developers have revised their plans in order to accommodate the citys wishes for a higher quality of design. Before coming to Atlanta, Keane was working in the same role for Charleston, South Carolina, a city thats now seen a massive jump in popularity with tourism booming, much of which is thanks to his work. Keane says hes found a tougher audience in Atlanta, though, as developers seem less concerned with aesthetics. Photo: Courtesy of Atlanta Department of City Planning Atlanta doesnt really have much of a physical identity, Keane tells AD PRO. If we could get the planning department to think of the city as something that needs to be designed and not just planned, that would be a huge step forward. We started working on smaller scale stuff, architecture, the design of buildings, he continues. Weve put too much emphasis on zoning, that you can make a great city based on zoning, and thats just not the case. Residents look at the design of buildings, and they dont know or care about the zoning. They look up and ask, Does this building inspire me? Thats what we need to focus on in Atlanta, to keep insulting buildings from happening. Keanes commission is ready to get more involved in improving the quality of design. Ignoring this would only stifle the growth of the city, he argues. People need to understand that Atlanta is growing, the city will get denser, and if we dont design the buildings well, in that urban context, then our growth will be thwarted. We cant just let buildings get built that when people see them theyll be discouraged, if not appalled. Story continues Photo: Courtesy of Atlanta Department of City Planning Keanes comments and authority to potentially hold up projects for design review leaves developers with the task of defining good design. If design, like art, is subjective, how can planners meet Keanes commissions requirements? For those looking to build in Atlanta, the citys not here to stand in the way of progress, Keane assures. Its not as much about a building type or a style, he says. Were not telling people, Thats what you have to do. Were going to evaluate your design based on the basics of architecture in an urban setting. Honestly, were focused on the buildings that are of the poorest design. I met with a developer yesterday whos doing a really nice job on a 30-story building downtown. And were not going to get involved in that or stand in his way; we dont need to spend our time on that. We need to get involved with buildings and proposals that arent doing the basics right. When asked just what elements of design he and the commission are referring to when threatening to hold up projects, there are definite examples the commission points to. Theres a category that I think Atlanta has done poorly: The base of buildings, where the building meets the street, and the other thing is the appearance of these buildings from a distance, Keane says. I think those are areas where Atlanta has to do better. Photo: Courtesy of Atlanta Department of City Planning The reality is, the city cant impose strict design standards from a legal perspective. Even if it did, it would mean developers would have to challenge the city to court, which costs more time and money than anyone would like to spend, particularly when the alternative would yield a better result anyway. Its for this reason that most developers have begun working with the city to adjust designs accordingly and refrain from what Keane calls Mr. Potatohead buildings, where a handful of aesthetic features are attached to the facade of a building to hopefully slide past the new design-quality guidelines. Keanes vision, though, isnt one of higher taste in design or style; its pragmatism in city planning brought to the drafting table. His plan is based on the idea that a better-looking, better-designed city will make Atlanta a more effective one for its residentsand a better realm to live in. For the good of Atlantas future as a bustling, growing city, Keanes vision could keep Atlanta from facing any number of issues as the city continues to grow. More from AD PRO: Has Instagram Made Design Shows Better? Sign up for the AD PRO newsletter for all the design news you need to know BEIRUT (AP) He has survived eight years of war and billions of dollars in money and weapons aimed at toppling him. Now Syrian President Bashar Assad is poised to be readmitted to the fold of Arab nations, a feat once deemed unthinkable as he forcefully crushed the uprising against his family's rule. Gulf Arab nations, once the main backers of rebels trying to oust Assad, are lining up to reopen their embassies in Syria, worried about leaving the country at the heart of the Arab world to regional rivals Iran and Turkey and missing out on lucrative post-war reconstructive projects. Key border crossings with neighbors, shuttered for years by the war, have reopened, and Arab commercial airlines are reportedly considering resuming flights to Damascus. And as President Donald Trump plans to pull out America's 2,000 soldiers from northeastern Syria, government troops are primed to retake the area they abandoned in 2012 at the height of the war. This would be a significant step toward restoring Assad's control over all of Syria, leaving only the northwest in the hands of rebels, most of them jihadis. Related Video: US Forces Begin Withdrawal Process From Syria This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. It can seem like a mind-boggling reversal for a leader whose military once seemed dangerously close to collapse. But Russia's military intervention, which began in 2015, steadily reversed Assad's losses, allowing his troops, aided by Iranian-backed fighters, to recapture cities like Homs and Aleppo, key to his rule. Assad rules over a country in ruins, with close to half a million people killed and half the population displaced. Major fighting may still lie ahead. But many see the war nearing its end, and the 53-year-old leader is sitting more comfortably than he has in the past eight years. "Rehabilitation by Arab states is inevitable," said Faysal Itani, a resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council's Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East. Story continues A key motive for Sunni Muslim Gulf countries is to blunt the involvement of their Shiite-led foe, Iran, which saw its influence expand rapidly in the chaos of Syria's war. "Saudi Arabia tried briefly to help overthrow him when he seemed most vulnerable using proxy militants," Itani said. "With his regime likely to survive, however, Saudi Arabia would prefer to try and exercise influence over Assad to balance against Iran while avoiding escalation with Iran itself." After Assad led a crackdown on protesters in 2011, Syria was cast out as a pariah by much of the Arab and Western world. It lost its seat at the Arab League and was hit by crippling sanctions by the international community, as the U.S. and European diplomats closed their diplomatic missions. But Syria's isolation was never complete. China, Russia, Brazil, India and South Africa maintained diplomatic ties. In the Arab world, Lebanon, Iraq and Algeria never broke ranks with Syria. Propped up by Russia, China and Iran, Assad never really felt the pinch politically. A Saudi attempt to patch up relations with Assad would be a public acknowledgement of the kingdom's failure to oust him. At the same time, the involvement of Gulf Arab governments and private companies is crucial for any serious reconstruction effort in Syria. Reconstruction costs are estimated between $200 and $350 billion. Last month, Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, himself an international outcast, flew to Damascus on a Russian jet, becoming the first Arab leader to visit Syria since 2011. The visit was largely seen as a precursor for similar steps by other Arab leaders. On Dec. 27, the United Arab Emirates reopened its embassy in Damascus with a public ceremony, in the most significant Arab overture yet toward the Assad government, almost certainly coordinated with Saudi Arabia. The Bahrain Embassy followed the next day. The debate now appears to be about when, not whether, to re-admit Syria to the Arab League. At a meeting in Cairo on Wednesday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shukri said Syria's return to the League is connected to developments on the political track to end the crisis. Iraqi Foreign Minister Mohamed Alhakim, speaking in Baghdad at a joint press conference with his Iranian counterpart, said Sunday that his country supports efforts to restore Syria's membership in the Arab League. In Lebanon, some officials insist Syria should be invited to an Arab economic summit the country is hosting next week, although final decision rests with the League. "It could happen slower or faster, but if Assad is going to stay where he is, then obviously countries in the region are going to try to make the best of that situation," said Aron Lund, a fellow with The Century Foundation. "American politicians can sit in splendid isolation on the other side of an ocean and pretend Syria isn't what it is," he said. "But King Abdullah of Jordan can't." The Arab overtures come amid a shifting landscape in the Western world. The planned U.S. pullout from Syria is part of Trump's "America First" policy. He has repeatedly said he was not interested in removing Assad from power or keeping American troops involved in "endless wars" in the region, most recently describing Syria as "sand and death." Right-wing parties and populist movements on the rise in Europe are also on friendly terms with Assad, seeing him as a secular bulwark against Islamic extremists. Even Turkey, whose president in 2012 famously vowed to pray at Omayyad Mosque in Damascus after Assad's ouster, has signaled it would consider working with Assad again if he wins in free and fair elections. For Syrians who rose up against Assad's rule, it can seem like the country is right back where it started eight years ago, only with half a million dead and cities in ruins. Analysts believe Syria under Assad will likely continue to face conflicts and sputter on in limbo for years to come, with only a partial recovery. But he will likely cling to power and do business with anyone who will do business with him. "I don't imagine Assad's Syria becoming a fine upstanding member of the international community, but nor do I think it will languish in isolation," Itani said. Harare (AFP) - Zimbabweans reacted with outrage Sunday to a sharp rise in fuel prices announced by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in a move to improve supplies as the country struggles with its worst gasoline shortages in a decade. After years of international isolation, Zimbabwe's economy has been in decline for more than a decade with cash shortages, high unemployment and a recent scarcity of basic staples like bread and cooking oil. In a televised address late Saturday, Mnangagwa said prices of petrol and diesel would more than double to tackle a shortfall caused by increased demand and "rampant" illegal trading. Mnangagwa, who took over from longtime leader Robert Mugabe and won a disputed election last July, also announced a package of measures to help state workers after strikes by doctors and teachers over poor pay. He said from midnight Saturday, petrol prices would rise from $1.24 a litre to $3.31 (2.89 euros) and diesel from $1.36 a litre to $3.11. But many Zimbabweans criticised the move, worrying a knock-on spike in other costs would worsen an already difficult economic situation and trigger protests and strikes. "I am not a politician and neither am I an economist but you don't need a rocket scientist to tell you that we are now headed for the worst following the fuel price madness," said William Masuku, 32, a car dealer in Bulawayo, the country's second largest city. Victor Nyoni, head of a local business body, said the fuel prices would push up the cost of other goods with businesses likely to pass on the higher transport costs to consumers. - Government 'against the people' - The president's announcement came after fuel shortages which began in October last year worsened in recent weeks with motorists sometimes spending nights in fuel pump queues that stretch for kilometres. The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) said the government had demonstrated a lack of empathy for the already-overburdened poor. Story continues "The government has officially declared its anti-worker, anti-poor and anti-people ideological position," it said. "Workers' salaries have been reduced to nothing and our suffering elevated to another level." Nelson Chamisa, who heads the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said the situation was "descending into a humanitarian crisis". Evan Mawarire, a cleric and activist who led the 2016 anti-government protests that shut down major cities, added: "You have cornered us and you leave us no choice. It's time to mobilise every person who truly loves Zimbabwe." - 'Piecemeal solutions' - "Those in government may not admit it but they know in their hearts that they have failed," said Edmore Phiri, a tired-looking motorist who had just spent a second night in a petrol queue in Avondale suburb. "We are not going anywhere with these piecemeal solutions that are not solutions. "You cant have a country where people sleep in cars for days for a commodity that should be readily available." Mnangagwa, who has pledged to revive the moribund economy, blamed the shortfall on increased fuel usage "compounded by rampant illegal currency and fuel trading activities". The government claims fuel prices were lower than in other regional countries, saying some foreigners were taking advantage and buying fuel in bulk for resale elsewhere. Mnangagwa said the new measures were aimed at curbing a burgeoning speculative parallel market in which fuel was being sold at five times the official price. "It's going to reduce demand for fuel because it's now a bit expensive and that will deal with speculative demand if it was there," said economist Godfrey Mugano. Mnangagwa also warned the government would deal harshly with those "bent on taking advantage of the current fuel shortages to cause and sponsor unrest and instability in the country". Government doctors went on a 40-day strike in early December, demanding salaries in US dollars and improved working conditions, while teachers' unions called a strike this week for better pay but their calls went largely unheeded. Although Mnangagwa announced a package of measures "to cushion government workers", he gave few details. Despite the price hike, diplomats and tourists would be able to access cheaper fuel at certain pumping stations. "The intention is to create a constant supply of fuel for diplomats and tourists to manage the country's image," said Mugano. "Those designated fuel stations will be able to restock easily from the sales they make in US dollars." Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez hit out at CBS News for an apparent lack of black journalists covering the 2020 US presidential election. The newly sworn in congresswoman responded to a tweet from CBS producer Ben Mitchell which announced the team covering the upcoming election and published their headshots. The Democrat, who represents New York's 14th congressional district, said: This WH admin has made having a functional understanding of race in America one of the most important core competencies for a political journalist to have. "Yet CBS News hasnt assigned a *single* black journalist to cover the 2020 election. The rising political star, a self-avowed socialist from the South Bronx, added: Unacceptable in 2019. Try again. The Twitter post, which has been shared over 4,500 times, faced some criticism from other reporters over the comments. This included Josh Kraushaar, politics editor at the National Journal, who said she had another thing in common with US president Donald Trump: media scold. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. But Ms Ocasio-Cortez fired back at Mr Kraushaar, saying: Or: maybe having powerful editorial positions awash in people from one race, class, or gender isnt a good idea; since we get 1000% more takes on 'brown lady says a curse word' than an actual white supremacist in Congress. If you wont look the mirror, people will do it for you. Ms Ocasio-Cortez, who volunteered for Bernie Sanders in his 2016 presidential campaign, appeared to be referencing data released by the liberal group Media Matters for America on Friday. Mr Kraushaar later said the seven campaign reporters looked racially diverse but conceded there was no black representation currently on the team. He tweeted: For what its worth, the mix of 7 embedded campaign reporters looked racially diverse (at least based on last names), with the exception of lacking an African-American. If there arent strict racial quotas for every batch of hires, does it mean a company is racist? he added. Story continues But Ms Ocasio-Cortez responded to Mr Kraushaar's analysis in another tweet in which she also contended that "one race isnt substitutable for another. She added: It doesnt work like that. Its not about 'quotas.' Its about understanding the country youre living in. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Ms Ocasio-Cortez worked as a bartender before thrashing Democrat stalwart Joe Crowley the 10-term representative and then-fourth-ranking Democrat in the House. She supports abolishing the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency and the creation of a universal healthcare system. This year, she has asserted that Mr Trump is no question a racist, and beaten back a manufactured controversy over a video of her dancing while in university. Reuters GENEVA/MOSCOW (Reuters) -Don't expect a major breakthrough at a summit on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, a U.S. official said on Tuesday, given relations between Washington and Moscow are their most strained in years. The two leaders are expected to talk for four of five hours, the U.S. official said. Both leaders say they hope the Geneva meeting, their first in-person encounter since Biden became president in January, can lead to stable and predictable relations, even though they remain at odds over everything from Syria to Ukraine. PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) Kosovo's prime minister met Sunday with two fellow former fighters in a bloody war for independence from Serbia two decades ago who are preparing to be questioned by prosecutors for a special war crimes court. Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj's Facebook page showed photos from the meetings at the homes of former Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) members Sami Lushtaku and Rrustem Mustafa. He said the 1998-1999 war was "clean and sacred." Mustafa is set to be interviewed on Monday and Lushtaku on Wednesday by the Specialist Prosecutor's Office, their lawyer, Arianit Koci, said. The office is part of a court established in 2015 to investigate atrocity allegations against some KLA fighters from during and after the war for independence. The court is governed by Kosovo laws but is run by international judges and prosecutors and funded by the European Union. It is based in the Netherlands to prevent witness intimidation. Haradinaj, a former Kosovo Liberation Army leader, was twice acquitted of war crimes and crimes against humanity by a United Nations court. "Together we shall come out spotless from this challenge," he wrote on Facebook. President Hashim Thaci, who also fought with KLA, expressed support for the pair as well. "You are the war national heroes and you always will remain as such for the Kosovo institutions and the people," Thaci wrote on his Facebook page, which included a photo of the president with Lushtaku and Mustafa. While preparing for a flight to The Hague, Lushtaku facetiously told journalists at the airport he would "feel bad" if he hadn't been summoned by the court. Mustafa said before leaving for the Netherlands they consider themselves innocent. The court was set up following U.S. and EU pressure four years after a 2011 report by the Council of Europe, the continent's top human rights body, catalogued allegations of widespread crimes committed by Kosovo independence fighters. Story continues ___ Llazar Semini reported from Tirana, Albania. ___ Follow Llazar Semini on Twitter: https://twitter.com/lsemini Blogger Alexander Lapshin wrote a post on his Facebook page under the heading of "They killed a blogger." In his post, he noted about the brutal killing of the Azerbaijani blogger Mehman Galandarov and keeping of the second Azerbaijani blogger, Mehman Huseynov, at the remand facility. I know the two Azerbaijani bloggers, they're both named Mehman. I have met Mehman Galandarov, who was brutally murdered in the Kurdakhani prison in Baku at the end of April 2017, personally and I was the last person who saw him alive. I was kept in the same prison at the same time," he noted adding that he doesn't meet the second Azerbaijani blogger personally. "I know about him from the mass media. Today he is being held in the same Baku detention center in Kurdakhani on fabricated charges," as a revange to his brother Emin Huseynov, a well-known journalist and human rights activist living in Switzerland. "I met with the late Mehman Galandarov by chance. His face was unfamiliar to me. But the man told me Alexander, hello! I am also a blogger. You probably dont know me, and I saw you on TV. My name is Mehman. Help me, they will kill me here ... ". I answered him that I had no idea how I could help him, since I myself was abducted here and held illegally. We could no longer talk, the jailers rudely ordered to shut up. The only thing I could do for him was to convey information about him when meeting with the ambassadors of Russia and Israel, who periodically visited me in prison. Those took note. After being freed from Azerbaijani captivity and returning to Israel, I began to look for this man. I asked some Azerbaijani friends and they said that this person was Mehman Galandarov, a Baku-based blogger convicted for writing something critical about Ilham Aliyev. It turned out that the blogger Mehman Galandarov was brutally murdered in prison just three days after our random meeting in the corridor. The authorities declared that he allegedly hanged himself, exactly as they had said about me. Although, as we know, four bastards broke into my cell, beat and strangled, then hung up in the toilet to simulate a suicide, But I was lucky," Lapshin noted. "But blogger Mehman Galandarov was killed, and then was secretly buried his body in the city cemetery, by simply digging a hole and throwing off a lifeless blogger into it. Without a monument, without a sign. Relatives many days refused to report what happened. Despite a serious scandal, the Baku authorities managed to hush up the case, and the crime was never solved. The killers were not punished. Now they are keeping the blogger Mehman Huseynov, in the same prison there is still the same brigade of murderers that killed Mehman Galandarov. I'm scared for the guy's life ... ", - wrote Alexander Lapshin. US President Donald Trumps national security team asked the Pentagon last year for options to strike Iran, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday, citing unidentified U.S. officials, Bloomberg reported. The request was made after militants in Iraq aligned with Iran fired mortars at Baghdads diplomatic district, which includes the U.S. Embassy, the report said. The request generated concern at the Pentagon and State Department, current and former U.S. officials told the newspaper. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declined to comment when asked by reporters in Qatar if he could confirm the report. Pompeo is doing a nine-nation tour of the Middle East, in part to court support against Iran. Trumps National Security Adviser John Bolton led the approach to the Pentagon, which compiled options, the newspaper reported. It isnt clear whether the information compiled by the Pentagon was relayed to the White House or whether Trump was aware of the request, the newspaper said. Relations between Iran and the U.S. have become more confrontational since Trumps election and his May 2018 decision to withdraw from the nuclear deal and reimpose severe economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic. Hundreds of Arab Christians clashed with Israeli police in a protest on Friday in the city of Haifa over a controversial museum exhibit, The Times of Israel reports, Sputnik reported. The clashes erupted when protesters attempted to force their way into the Haifa Museum of Art, prompting law enforcement forces to deploy stun grenades and tear gas. Three officers sustained injuries after being pelted with rocks. According to the newspaper, the protests were sparked by a sculpture known as "McJesus", which depicts fast-food chain McDonalds mascot Ronald McDonald on a cross. The sculpture, made by Finnish artist Janei Leinonen, was put on display at the museum in August as part of the "Sacred Goods" exhibition which also "features a number of other pieces depicting Jesus", including one of him as a Ken doll, as well as imagery related to other religions. Reacting to the protests, Haifa Museum Director Nissim Tal said that after conversing with local officials and church leaders, they decided to put a warning sign at the entrance to the exhibit to alert visitors that it contains "potentially offensive content". Israeli Culture Minister Miri Regev sent a letter to the museum administration on Thursday, urging them to remove the sculpture. "[The] Disrespect of religious symbols sacred to many worshippers in the world as an act of artistic protest is illegitimate and cannot serve as art at a cultural institution supported by state funds," she argued. Armenia 2nd President: There is a need to increase funding for education Armenia Police record 172 cases of electoral violations Armenia Police on acting PM being accompanied by many officers during campaign: Assessment is made in each case Artsakh MFA: Shahumyan region is integral part of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Did Russias Putin offer proposal to end Artsakh war on October 10? Putin-Biden meeting kicks off in Geneva Armenia ruling party promises $1,000 for videos proving vote buying, says acting PM Karabakh opens criminal case on Azerbaijan vandalism of Armenian cemetery of Askeran Aliyev: Minefield maps will give us big advantage Armenia 3rd President Sargsyans nephew is sentenced to 3.5 years in prison Former President Kocharyan: Russia military presence in Armenia should be further modernized Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan: State is obligated to take care of issues of those who lost homes in Karvachar Armenia ombudsman: Acting PMs constant display of hammer, figurative comparisons are inadmissible Harvey Weinstein to be extradited to California Trump to arrive in Texas at US-Mexico border European Commission organizes online event Proposal Writing Camp for Armenia Four new cases of coronavirus reported in Artsakh Ex-President Kocharyan: Armenian authorities actions are sabotage or stupidity? Kim Jong-un says North Korea faces tense food situation 124 intellectuals call for supporting "Armenia" bloc in snap parliamentary election 14 Armenian POWs trial begins in Azerbaijan 99 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Two Armenian captives still on trial in Azerbaijan Armenia ombudsman's office hosts OSCE/ODIHR delegation Armenia dissolved parliament sitting not convened again White House announces exact time of Biden-Putin meeting in Geneva Israel carries out airstrikes on Hamas targets in Gaza Newspaper: How "hijacked" plane is managed to be transported to Armenia? Newspaper: Armenia acting premier instructs provincial governors to sack school principals who support another force Emirates airline posts $5.5bn net loss as coronavirus disrupts travel Newspaper: Armenia is left out of important world developments Germany issues nearly 5 million COVID-19 vaccination certificates Few attend Armenia acting PM's election campaign rally in Kajaran town (PHOTOS) Republican Party of Armenia: We Armenians must be concerned about Turkey appearing on Karabakh's borders Armenia ex-Ambassador to Vatican: Nikol Pashinyan rejected Putin's offer to stop war on October 10, 2020 Robert Kocharyan: Armenia is seeing US on brink of radical review of position on the region Britain, Australia announce free trade deal Armenia 1st President: The whole world considers Karabakh a part of Azerbaijan Armenia 2nd President says he doesn't see himself as a member of the opposition Armenia 1st President: There will be post-election developments, even clashes during elections Switzerland President assesses Russia's role in establishment of ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh Turkey's Erdogan expresses support to "Zangezur corridor" project Armenias Pashinyan makes threat in Kapan Armenia 3rd President on Nikol Pashinyan: The capitulator no longer has majority of votes Mayor of Armenia's Kajaran says acting PM's campaign meeting in Syunik Province was a cheap show His Holiness Karekin II hosts Bishop of Coventry Armenia Parliament Deputy Speaker interferes in work of Tert.am's reporter, urges her to leave premises Armenia 2nd President suggests that Pashinyan visit a psychiatric clinic to get document on mental health Catholicos of All Armenians receives representatives of Catholic Near East Welfare Association "I Have the Honor" bloc campaigns in Armenia's Ararat Province, led by Serzh Sargsyan Decision on abolishing registration of Mihran Poghosyan as Armenia Member of Parliament annulled US Ambassador visits Armenia MOD National Defense Research University Putin and Biden to discuss Karabakh, Azerbaijani troops seen near Syunik roads, Jun. 15 digest Karabakh MFA: Erdogan's visit to Shushi is clear manifestation of xenophobia, genocidal and terrorist policy Armenia MFA issues statement regarding Turkish and Azerbaijani Presidents' visit to occupied territories of Artsakh Erdogan challenges Russia in Shushi Robert Kocharyan on return of Armenian POWs ahead of snap parliamentary elections Armenia acting PM holds march in Agarak village, surrounded by children There are serious doubts about acting PM's deal with Azerbaijan, says Armenia 2nd President Kocharyan St. Petersburg court to review verdict against Armenian ex-deputy regional governor One dollar drops below AMD 516 in Armenia 2021 developments point to faster-than-expected economic growth recovery in Armenia, says Central Bank Karabakh Parliament: Erdogan's visit to Shushi poses a new challenge to Armenia, Artsakh, Russia and Iran Deputy mayor of Armenia's Meghri: Police troops are being brought in buses Central Bank: 12-month inflation falls to 5.9% in Armenia Armenia former President Kocharyan: Personal relations are important component of interstate relations Armenia 2nd President doesn't rule out return of ex-PM Karen Karapetyan Armenia opposition bloc: Mine maps are of strategic significance for Azerbaijan Ex-President Kocharyan: Economic integration is beneficial for Armenia, Russia "Armenia" bloc member: If Pashinyan stays in power, Armenian flag will be replaced with Turkish or Azeri flag Bright Armenia Party: We have high chances of winning during elections Aliyev, Erdogan arrive in seized Armenian city of Shushi Armenia ex-deputy regional governor appointed mayor of Spitak Armenia former President Kocharyan on applying to CSTO: Why give air to each other in vain? Armenia 2nd President: Authorities included in their electoral list the director of company suspected of corruption Armenia ex-President Kocharyan on Artsakh war: Was necessary to fight, keep front, not to retreat, hand over everything 2nd President Kocharyan, ex-PM Karapetyan meet at Armenia bloc headquarters (PHOTOS) Armenia MP candidate: "I Have the Honor" bloc promises to work actively for determination of Karabakh's status Armenia former President Kocharyan: Our goal is to win the elections, form independent government Armenia 2nd President: It would have been better if mandate of Russian peacekeepers in Karabakh was termless Armenia acting PM's supporters attack reporters Armenia first deputy justice minister pays working visit to Washington Armenia ex-President Kocharyan, former deputy PM Gevorgyan case court session again rescheduled Sniper spotted on rooftop during Armenia acting premiers visit to Goris town Armenia acting premier: Russia peacekeepers shall be deployed along border points Deputy mayor: Armenia acting PM is using administrative resources in Goris (PHOTOS) Ushakov: Putin, Biden will pay special attention to Karabakh Acting PM at Sisian: We will break, cut off every hand that tries to oppose Syunik Province to rest of Armenia Refinancing rate raised by 0.5 percentage point in Armenia Prosperous Armenia parliament faction secretary: We call on authorities to show restraint Armenia ex-President Sargsyan: We must be ready to resist civil war 82 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia Large number of men awaiting Armenia acting PM Pashinyan at "gates" of Syunik Armenia parliament session not convened Newspaper: Armenia acting official, Etchmiadzin mayors controversial phone talk "dissemination" is deliberately made Large number of Armenia Police forces heading to Syunik Province Turkeys Erdogan arrives in Azerbaijan Biden delegation reporters slam White House for organizing meeting with Erdogan Newspaper: It will be heated at Armenias Syunik today "Armenia" bloc on 1,400 policemen-accompanied motorcade: Classic example of administrative resource abuse On the surface, the standoff that has shut down large parts of the federal government is about funding President Donald Trumps campaign promise of a Southern border wall. But its really a confrontation between two sharply different concepts of the United States: one more purist, one more melting pot. Trumps concept exemplifies his signature slogan of Make America Great Again, his belief that modern-day America is a disaster or, as he said in his inaugural speech, a carnage. He wants to restore the country of an earlier day by keeping out, expelling or limiting those he blames for changing it. Its not only erecting a concrete or steel wall to curb predominantly brown-skinned immigrants from the South. He would also restrict legal immigration that, in recent years, has come more heavily from Asia, as he yearns for more immigrants from white European countries like Norway. His targets go beyond immigration to ending rules and guidelines aimed at helping minorities overcome prior discrimination. Trumps opponents hold a directly contrary belief that the good old days werent so good for many Americans, especially non-whites and the burgeoning minority racial and religious groups. People with this point of view exemplify an open door and look ahead. I also grew up in an environment where government service was seen to be a good thing, a useful thing, even a noble thing, he added. My father used to say to me that as far as he was concerned, there were only two really useful careers: one of them was teaching and the other was government service. I could hear my fathers voice saying these words. He was immensely proud of his service to the government, starting in the U.S. Navy and extending to nearly 40 years with the State Department (with a brief spell as a public school teacher in between). It caused him intense irritation when Ronald Reagan campaigned for limited government by saying things like The nine most terrifying words in the English language are Im from the government, and Im here to help. Whatever you may think about the scope and role of government, he said, rhetoric like that undercut and devalued the very serious and dedicated work of the people who undertake a life of public service. Libraries are often thought of as quiet and orderly places. But visitors of all ages turned out for Saturdays How-To Festival at the downtown Napa County Library and bustled from class to class, hoping to pick up a new skill. The downtown Napa library was one of four Napa County Library locations that participated in the festival. Libraries in American Canyon, Calistoga and Yountville hosted their own classes. Participants in Napa learned to draw, strum a ukulele, dance merengue, line dance, build robots, play the Japanese taiko drum and perform acupressure, a practice similar to acupuncture. Home Depot had its own classroom and showed visitors how to install a bathroom faucet, light switch, light fixture, drip irrigation system and tile. Kids built robots, wove paper animals and brightly colored yarn crafts and practiced yoga. A total of 13 presenters led 20 classes. At Summer Sempervirenss yoga class, two girls tapped on drums while kids lay sprawled out on yoga mats. Sempervirens, a yoga instructor who works with schools and after school programs, says the activity fosters love and community between kids of all ages. I want them to keep their sense of wonder because we seem to lose that as adults, she said. Her final words were Did I almost die?, according to the lawsuit. The hospital told McMahons family that they would have to conduct a surgery to remove the A- blood, but assured them that she would be fine, according to the lawsuit. Doctors discovered during surgery that McMahon had a mediastinal hemorrhage and tamponade, which meant substantial bleeding in the cavity between the heart and chest, according to the lawsuit. The surgeon removed 700 to 800 ml of blood and the blood clot. Her family was told after the surgery that McMahon had received a medicine that she was allergic to despite the fact that her allergies were listed on her admissions paperwork and the wall of her hospital room, according to the lawsuit. On Sept. 8, 2017, McMahon received a CT scan that revealed a subdural hemorrhage, or internal bleeding in the head. The hospital told her family that they did not have a neurosurgeon but felt she needed to see one, so it arranged for her to be sent to Washington Hospital in Fremont, according to the lawsuit. Francis Verngren, a religious brother at Mont LaSalle from 1969-84 and at Justin Siena 1984. He tutored in math at Saint Apollinaris from 1990 2002. He retired in 2002 and died the next year. The Santa Rosa diocese is the latest across the nation to release lists of priests accused of sexual misconduct. Several of the priests in the report had previously been disclosed in reports from other dioceses where they served. Unlike reports from some other dioceses, the Santa Rosa report offered few details of the accusations against the priests, nor did it offer details on which churches most of the priests served in, so it was not immediately clear if others on the list had Napa County connections. In many cases, the report said, the alleged abuse happened outside of the Santa Rosa Diocese or before the priest was in ministry. The report says there are six additional priests who face allegations, but for various reasons they were not named. Please log in to keep reading. Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. I found an early Christmas present this past year sitting on our front porch. I first thought it was from Santa, but no, it was from a longtime friend, Carol Berg. As soon as I opened it up, I started laughing and could not believe what I found inside the bag. Carol had been shopping. She found a gift for me that she could not resist. What added to her fun, was that she knew this gift was not really me. However, it was so darn cute, she bought it anyway and dropped it off at our home. So if you saw a woman walking around downtown Napa in December wearing a red Christmas sweater with two long-haired dachshunds dashing through the snow on the front, it was me. Carol has known our dogs since they were puppies. She recognized the fact that the dogs on the sweater look exactly like our dogs. I wondered if the company who make the sweater had their picture. Wagner has long hair with streaks of black in it, a black nose and black eye liner. Gunther has shorter red hair and a brown nose. That evening, we were volunteering for the successful annual Napa Landmarks Holiday Candlelight Tour expertly run by Ernie Schlobohm with his wife Carol Lanes support. I tried on my new sweater and Philip encouraged me to wear it for the evening. My only problem was that I needed to wear a hat that evening. Ghana has taken security issues for ... The South African police and Sars have cracked down on super-cheap second-hand cars being imported into the country, leaving many motorists without a ride. According to a report in the Sunday Times, around 20,000 vehicles are illegally registered and sold in South Africa each year. Since late 2018, however, the police and Sars have started taking action. The second-hand vehicles are mainly from China and are shipped to South African ports. There, they are taken by criminals and fraudulently registered on the eNatis system after which they are sold to buyers, many of whom are not aware of the vehicles status. An example of the fallout is a local woman who purchased a 2017 VW Touran for R120,000 from a car dealer, who is a Congolese national, in February 2018. The car normally retails for over double this price, stated the report. In October, she was visited by police who confiscated the car and said it had been fraudulently registered. Another example is a when a local woman purchased a 2017 Toyota Yaris for R60,000 which would normally sell for R170,000. Her car was also seized in October by police for the same reason. The SA police stated that hundreds of South Africans have fallen victim to the same fate, and that anyone who bought an illegal vehicle would have no legal recourse. Once the illegal vehicles are seized by police, they are handed to Sars. The tax authority then destroy the vehicles. Previously, they were sold on auction for export, but invariably found their way back into SA. A police source added that they are looking into how the vehicles are taken through local customs by the criminal groups and how they are registered on the eNatis system. It is suspected that the vehicles are legally shipped to South Africa, but are intended for further shipment to neighbouring countries. A portion of these vehicles destined for sub-Saharan Africa are taken by criminals and brought into South Africa. Not owning a car While South Africas public transport systems leave a lot to be desired, private companies like Uber and Taxify make it much easier for people to get around without owning a car. A recent test by MyBroadband showed that both platforms offer good service in Johannesburg and users are able to quickly hail a ride and get to their destination in good time. This can be a much cheaper option than owning a car, as users only pay for transport when they need to use it instead of fixed monthly car repayments and insurance fees. We recently ran an article detailing the best graphics cards right now, showing readers the great GPUs on the market and how much they cost. Those considering a new graphics card should hold out a bit longer before upgrading, however, thanks to product launches from Nvidia and AMD and CES 2019. Nvidia unveiled its GeForce RTX 2060 card at the show while AMD revealed the Radeon VII GPU. The RTX 2060 aims to dominate the mid-range gaming market and features Nvidias Turing architecture, ray tracing, GDDR6 memory, and 240 Tensor Cores for deep learning. Thanks to its launch after the RTX 2070 and RTX 2080, we know that the card is aimed at gamers who want good performance at a relatively affordable price. The term relatively affordable is important here, as the first online listings for the RTX 2060 in South Africa show that the card will range from R7,500 to R10,000. For the this price, Nvidia promises that users will receive better performance on games compared to using a GeForce GTX 1060 or GTX 1070 Ti. On the other side, AMDs Radeon VII is the companys highest-performance gaming graphics card to date and is the worlds first GPU using a 7nm process. AMD said the Radeon VII will provide 29% better gaming performance and 36% better content creation performance compared to its previous flagship GPU, the Radeon Vega 64. Nvidia has dismissed the new AMD card, however, with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stating that their GeForce GTX 2080 would crush the Radeon VII in benchmarks. Older cards are the way to go With these new cards on the way, there is a window to make a potentially money-saving decision: Should I buy an older graphics card? For Nvidia fans, the RTX 2060 launching means that the price of older cards , such as the GTX 1060, GTX 1070, and GTX 1070 Ti may come down in price as retailers look to move older stock and as the cards become less attractive to buyers thanks to them being the old generation. The GTX 1070 Ti, for example, has already come down in price substantially since launching in South Africa in October 2017. The MSI Gaming version of the card sold for R8,999 at launch, and is now available for R6,499. This price makes it a good buy compared to the RTX 2060. The GTX 1070 Ti features more CUDA cores than the RTX 2060 2,432 vs 1,920 and has more VRAM 8GB vs 6GB. This RAM is slower, however, GDDR5 vs GDDR6. The memory bandwidth is 256GB/s for the GTX 1070 Ti, and 336GB/s for the RTX 2060. Other areas where the GTX 1070 Ti wins on paper is memory bus width 256-bit vs 192-bit and base clock frequency 1,607MHz vs 1,365MHz. Adding to the argument to buy a GTX 1070 Ti over the RTX 2060 is its performance in games. According to benchmarks by Toms Hardware, the 1070 Ti can produce the following results: Battlefield 1: 1440p Ultra 85FPS Doom: 1440p Ultra 130FPS The Witcher 3: 1440p Ultra 84FPS Where the GTX 1070 Ti falls short, however, is in the ray tracing and deep learning segments. The RTX 2060 has 240 Tensor Cores, which can deliver 52 teraflops of deep learning horsepower. Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) leverages a deep neural network to extract multidimensional features of the rendered scene and intelligently combine details from multiple frames to construct a high-quality final image. The result is a clear, crisp image with similar quality as traditional rendering, but with higher performance, said Nvidia. Battlefield V is set to receive a DLSS support update soon, it added. In terms of the benefits of ray tracing, Nvidia said it blurs the distinction between movies and games thanks to the realistic visuals it provides in titles. Radeon VII vs Vega For the AMD camp, a good old card which may come down in price when the Radeon VII launches is either the Radeon Vega 56 or Vega 64. The Vega 56, for example, can be purchased for around R6,000 locally with high performance models such as the ASUS ROG Strix Vega 56 OC edition available for R6,600. According to benchmarks by Toms Hardware, the Vega 56 can handle 1440p games well producing the following results: Battlefield 1: 1440p Ultra 82FPS Hitman: 1440p Ultra 89FPS The Witcher 3: 1440p Ultra 77FPS Unlike the RTX 2060 vs the GTX 1070 Ti, however, the Radon VII comfortably beats the Vega 56. It has 3,840 stream processors, 16GB of memory with 1TB/s bandwidth, and uses a 7nm process. The Vega 56 packs 3,584 stream processors and 8GB of memory with 410GB/s bandwidth. The Vega 64 is a more powerful option, with 4,096 stream processors, 8GB of memory with 483GB/s bandwidth, and benchmarks which show it can handle 4K gaming with ease. It is more expensive, though, with South African pricing for the card starting at around R8,000. This may drop once AMD launches its Radon VII internationally and better yet, is a bargain compared to what the new AMD card is expected to sell for. At $699 in the US, local gamers are expecting starting prices of over R13,000 for the Radeon VII. So, if you are looking for a new graphics card, it may pay to wait until all the new models are on the market and bargains on powerful older cards come through. SUNDAY, JAN. 13 SPAGHETTI DINNER Butte Historical Memorials Inc. is having a Meaderville-style spaghetti dinner from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Butte Depot, 818 S. Arizona St., to raise funds for a statue at Fire Station #1 for the Kenyon Connell explosion victims. Tickets are $10 a person or $25 per family. Ticket holders will be eligible for a door prize, and there will be a Dutch auction. Tickets can be purchased at Headframe Spirits, Butte Depot, the Butte Chamber of Commerce, or at the door on the day of the dinner. Details: Jim McCarthy at 406-490-5299, Chris Fisk at 406-490-0646, or Judy Chadwick at 406-498-3079. Bugni said he isnt familiar with Rediske and Basiricos mental health survey results but would be more than happy to work with them to better communicate what AWARE services there are. He said he also thinks a possible disconnect could stem from the media coverage around the state health departments budget cuts being restored. Just because some service rates are back to what they were beforehand, that doesnt mean programs forced to completely shut down are back up and running, Bugni said. While Rediske said she didnt quite expect to see this communication-based disconnect, she also said its not unique to Anaconda-Deer Lodge or Montana. After researching the subject, she found that a lack of mental health services is common in rural areas around the world. Moving forward, Rediske plans to work with Basirico and county health officials to learn more about how mental healthcare providers are communicating with the public in other rural areas across the state. She and Basirico hope this information will help them better understand how to better inform Anaconda-Deer Lodge residents about what care is available to them and allow the county health department to act as the middle man or third-party messenger. During his Jan. 8 broadcast, President Trump failed to explain why he was proud to cause the current shutdown. In particular, if he truly does have a coherent plan for drastically augmenting existing border barriers, then the White House should have a website where key matters are explained to all U.S. citizens and residents. For instance: The Jan. 8 guest column by Tom Burnett and Paul Nachman is more of the tired whining characterizing Republican thinking all across the country: taxes are too high, we cant afford to protect people who cant protect themselves. The state might have to pay $90 million. Oh, the horror! Ninety million dollars is not a financial outrage. Here are some genuine outrages: Donald Trumps tax cuts will cost government revenue $5.5 trillion and raise the deficit $3.2 trillion over a decade. In 1950 the average CEO made 20 times as much as the average worker and in 2018 he made 361 times as much. What Burnett and Nachman ought to do instead of making it harder for low-income people to get insurance is to make it easier for them to get jobs with decent wages. For instance, support the governors infrastructure program. All members of our new Legislature who dont support Medicaid expansion must refuse to accept the $900 per month Montana taxpayers provide them for their health insurance. To not do so would be rank hypocrisy and deserve to be widely reported. Bill Ferguson, Missoula You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 U.S. Sen. Steve Daines: Tourism is a leading industry here in Montana. It continued its strong economic performance in 2017, supporting over 53,000 jobs. According to the Institute for Tourism and Recreation Research (ITRR) preliminary report, non-residents spent over $3.4 billion in Montana in 2017. The lodging taxes deposited into Montana's general fund for 2017 is expected to have exceeded $20 million. Daines, tourists are not going to visit Montana if the parks are closed and the airports are in turmoil because Transportation Security Administration agents understandably are not going to work because they are not being paid. Families planning their upcoming vacations are not going to come to Montana when your president tells the nation repeatedly that this shutdown "could last for many many months maybe even years." You represent Montana, not Mitch McConnell, not Kentucky, not the Republican Party and not the Trump family. While we urgently need your leadership on this issue, your silence has been deafening. U.S. Sen. Jon Tester is already working for Montanans to end this silly shutdown. Wont you join your fellow GOP Sen. Cory Gardner of Colorado and fight for your constituents? Put Montanans before your party and stop putting our local economy in jeopardy! Lets start with a question: where are you sitting right now? Are you reading this newspaper in your office or your home? Now, pick up any object around you. Chances are good that whatever you have in your hand perhaps food or a coffee mug its labeled Product of where it was made. But what about the beef you eat? Maybe your beef actually has a label on it; it might say Product of USA. Unfortunately, that label can be extremely misleading. Your beef may have been processed in the U.S., but it could have been born, raised and slaughtered overseas in Brazil or China. If it was packaged here in the U.S., however, it is eligible for a Product of USA label. That just isnt right. Imported meat labeled Product of USA betrays American ranchers and misleads rural communities and consumers. It is downright fraudulent. As consumers, we have the right to know where our food comes from and the right to choose American. Not only do many of us want to support our local economies, we also want to support American ranchers, meat cutters and food safety oversight. Some people wont even buy dog food produced overseas because they only trust American safety standards! Social issues are a challenge," he said. "Its hard to measure." Despite the pessimism that some are expressing, he says he remains optimistic. There is a lot of pessimism. Its driven by the enormity of the task we have to do, he said. How many is too many? Pretty much everyone agrees the Madison is overcrowded. FWP has the data to prove it. According to FWP, there were 207,000 angler days on the Madison River in 2017. Tony Schoonen, a long-time Butte angler, remembers the old days on the Madison. Now in his late 80s, he used to love to fish the Madison in a different era, but he hasnt been there in a while. Why? A few years back, it was so crowded I had to wait in line, he said. There were 10, 12 outfitters. The experience isnt like it used to be in the 60s and 70s. Its so totally different. Its overrun by outfitters. But some outfitters say the numbers dont hold up to that criticism. Of those who used the Madison in 2017, somewhere between 11 and 13 percent were outfitters. If we had the checklist that they used at Warm Springs, we might have known, Kimmo Virtaneva said. He was like the poster child for schizophrenia. Mika was also a young man whose smile could light up the room. His creativity was sought after by students in Hamiltons MAPS Media Institute. He served on the board of directors for Literacy Bitterroot and the teen-based Community Cooking Connections. Last January, he suffered his first psychotic breakdown at his parents home, which started his downward spiral. The Virtanevas had never seen anything like it. We thought he was having a seizure, Monica Virtaneva said. He was shaking. He was not making sense when he was speaking. He didnt know who we were. He didnt know who he was. The couple tried to get him into their car so they could take him to the hospital. When his mother attempted to take hold of one of his arms, Mika punched her. From there, the couple pushed him outside. It was cold out there, she said. We thought maybe the cold air would wake him up. He used a shovel from outside to break the window and then threw himself through the glass. He cut himself on way back inside. A second thing they quickly agreed on: No workshops in July or August. As Pelah Hoyt of the land trust put it, We all have better things to do then. That put pressure on getting lots done this winter and spring. It starts with a community open house on Feb. 21 designed to be as much a celebration of the rivers as an information-gathering function. Arnold suggested it avoid looking like a facilitated workshop. Instead, he envisioned a chance to let the community know what the rivers offered and how residents could get involved on issues that matter to them. The Clark Fork River picks up the Blackfoot just east of the metropolitan area at Bonner where Milltown State Park has lots of public facilities. The Bitterroot River bounds Missoulas southern edge before joining the Clark Fork at Kelly Island on the citys west side. Missoula Parks and Recreation conservation lands manager Morgan Valliant said one of the first tasks needs to be defining the term facing the river. Its not just the view out your window, Valliant said. It includes things like making river access part of a business plan, or considering how sewage might be kept from hurting water quality. Curled up with a large illustrated book on a secluded couch in the Missoula Public Library last week, 10-year-old homeschool student Roisin ORiordain didnt hold back about her feelings for the library. I love coming here, she said without hesitation. Its my favorite place in the entire world. The library is a second home for Roisin and her siblings, Sean, 8, and Shea, 4. Their mother Erin ORiordain takes the kids to use the librarys many services, from toddler storytimes to writing courses, almost every week. The ORiordain family is an example of just one subset of all the various user groups that take advantage of the public librarys wide range of services. Homeschool families are a frequent sight in the building, meeting up with each other and learning together in the winter months when its not as easy to be outside. On any given day at the library, an architect using the computers for freelance projects can be found alongside people updating their resumes or connecting with family members on social media. Young families can be seen checking out books and movies, and staff members scurry about helping other people looking for a specific item. "The library represents our society's most successful use of a sharing model," said Karl Olson of the Missoula Public Library Foundation. "Not everyone can afford design software, a large collection of children's books, or even an internet connection. Our community, via the library, ensures that everyone has access to cultural activities, good information and literacy tools." The county is in the midst of constructing a new $36.7 million library building next door to the current one on East Front Street. Officials say it will better serve the needs of the more than 1,500 people who visit the building every day (the average last week) and many others who use off-site services. Theres a huge homeschool community in Missoula, Erin ORiordain explained. Oh, my gosh, its massive. And the public library, which is open at nights and on weekends, is the pumping heart of that community. "Weve been going there forever. Its our touchstone," she said. We meet friends here, the kids work together. Weve studied here. I dont know, its just really comfortable here. And the library is sort of the heart of the city, you know? Its indicative of the health of the city or the nation, how the library is faring. Her daughter Roisin has been coming to the library for the entire decade comprising her life. Weve been taking Ro since she was an infant, she said, using her affectionate nickname for her daughter. Our house is full of books. Ro reads constantly. Indeed, young Roisin said she cant even count the number of books shes read, quite an accomplishment in an age where many kids her age are into video games, television shows, online videos and various social media platforms. I like that you can open up a page and transform, you just roll yourself into that place, wherever you are, Roisin explained. Erin ORiordain calls the facility an extension of the familys living room. Its a good place to get out of the house and do some studying. Ro was in a book club. Its just a good supportive place to be. You get the kids interested in books. And its not just educational, its recreational too. My youngest loves the gnome house (the entryway to the childrens department). Its very comfortable there. It was a huge moment in their lives then they each got their own library card. The kids know almost all of the librarians on a first-name basis, and they scurry about checking out different books as ORiordain supervises. Her husband Traolach is the director of the Irish studies program at the University of Montana, and the kids are bilingual in Irish and English. The new library is being paid for by a 20-year, $30 million bond approved by Missoula County voters, a $5.65 million capital campaign and a $500,000 pledge from the Missoula Redevelopment Agency. The new 105,000-square-foot facility will have a fourth-floor event space and will house Missoula Community Access Television, the SpectrUM Discovery Area, the Familys First Childrens Museum and a cafe. Library director Honore Bray said there are two free writing programs, on Wednesdays and Fridays, that are pretty popular and extremely successful. She has staff members that teach everything from Internet technology to watercolor painting to accounting to software. We have a whole variety, she said. We have a mindfulness class thats popular. It teaches people how to de-stress. All of our classes have to be free and accessible. I poked my head into our watercolor class the other day. Its taught by a maintenance guy whos an artist. I looked in the door and there was absolutely no more room for another body in the room. "Its a good way for people to learn how to do something and spend their free time," she added. Young families use the facilities to watch movies or rent DVD players, and small business owners utilize the wireless internet, the copy and fax machines and computers. The come in and use the services at the library to do business, Bray explained. Were always busy. We had 1,700 people coming in every day during the Recession a few years ago, because people had to stop paying for wireless Internet at home, so they came here to use it. Staff members from the Missoula Job Service often come in to teach classes about gaining employment, resume writing and other tips. A full schedule can be found online at www.missoulapubliclibrary.org. The wireless-on-wheels WOW Bus makes stops at various locations around the county, allowing those who cant reach the main branch a chance to access technology. Bray said the bus gets a lot of use when it stops at the Poverello Center homeless shelter. A lot of people are applying for jobs or contacting families wherever they live back home, she said. Another reference librarian takes a mobile book check-out service to elderly and assisted living homes, Bray said, which has proven extremely popular. For the ORiordain family, the news that the old librarys time is ticking down is bittersweet. Theyre excited for the new, bigger and improved facility and the expanded services it will offer when it opens sometime in 2020, but theyll miss the place theyve called a second home for the last decade. Its on all the levels, Erin ORiordain explained. Its emotional, its intellectual, its creative. Theres no going wrong with the library. You must be logged in to react. Click any reaction to login. Love 2 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. 1944: As 75th anniversary commemorations go, nothing in Montana figures to match D-Day on June 6, not even President Franklin Roosevelt's signature on a bill authorizing $40 million to build Hungry Horse Dam the same day. Construction on the uppermost dam of the Columbia River Basin began in 1948 and was completed five years later. One of Stoltzs favorite wacky" anniversaries is coming up March 21. On that evening in 44, in the midst of world war, an Air Force bomber from Colorado Springs dropped 16 150-pound bombs in the Yellowstone River near Miles City to break up an ice jam. May 23 will mark 75 years since Pvt. Henry Schauer, who honed his rifle skills shooting coyotes on his boyhood farm near Scobey, gunned down 13 German snipers and soldiers near Cisterna di Littoria, Italy. The next day he forced a German tank to retreat by killing its four occupants. Schauer died in 1994, the last of seven Medal of Honor recipients from Montana to pass away. Word came from the FBI on Dec. 18, 1944, that a Japanese balloon bomb 52 feet high and 105 feet around had been found by Owen Hill and his father, O.B. Hill, while cutting wood near Kila southwest of Kalispell. 1969: Seems like only yesterday that Dustin Hoffman and the gang were filming scenes for Little Big Man in Montana. MyStudentInNeed.org is a website that provides a private way for teachers and staff members of Missoula County Public Schools to ask for help for a student in need, and a way for the community to give back. A fifth-grade boy, age 5, is in need of shoes. If you would like to help with this need you can make a donation of $40 to My Student In Need and we will purchase a gift card so the teacher can take the student shopping for shoes. Russell School. A fourth-grade girl, age 9, is in need of new shoes. If you would like to help with this need you can make a donation of $40 to My Student In Need and we will purchase a gift card so the teacher can take the student shopping for shoes. Russell School. If you would like to help, visit mystudentinneed.org/Missoula-MT. The number next to the school represents the current needs at that school. The needs can change every day. Click the school, find a need request and click the "Fulfill This Need" button. Complete the donor form and press the "Submit" button, or call 406-750-2542. A member of our team will contact you. Staff Reviews Variant (book one) and Feedback (book two) by Robison Wells (2011, 2012 Harper Teen) Call Number: Y WELLS This would be a great read for fans of Enders Game, The Maze Runner, and The Hunger Games, but it would also be appreciated by anyone who likes great sci-fi mystery set in a contemporary world. Teenager Benson Fisher accepts a scholarship to an elite academy, hoping it will change the aimless course of his life. Instead, he finds himself in a semi-comfortable prison, with rival gangs and no chance of escape. He makes friends, enemies, and even begins a romance, but everything unravels when he stumbles upon the schools dark secret. At the end of book one, Benson finally escapes, with painful costs, but book two finds him and an ally in what seems an even more hopeless situation. Besides the wonderfully suspenseful plot and pacing, the other strengths of this series are the great characterizations and relationships, and Bensons absorbing first person narrative. His internal struggle with the consequences of his actions is as gripping as his external struggle to solve the mystery and escape the threats. Reviewed by Dana McMurray w/ @jkbjournalist and @MartinDVassolo Theres a new sheriff in town. Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday appointed Gregory Tony, a former Coral Springs police sergeant, as Browards top cop, replacing Scott Israel, the embattled sheriff who has been widely blamed for the chaotic response to the Feb. 14, 2018, mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. After weeks of speculation, DeSantis surrounded by many of the parents of students who were slain announced at a news conference at Browards public safety building in Fort Lauderdale that he was suspending Israel, a two-term sheriff and 30-year law enforcement veteran. He cited overwhelming failures of leadership that led to egregious breakdowns that may have contributed to the deaths of the 14 students and three staff members. The gunman, Nikolas Cruz, now 20, was a former student who had made several threats of violence before the killings. At least two of the threats were reported to BSO, but were not adequately investigated, DeSantis said in his suspension order. Under Floridas constitution, the governor can suspend a sheriff for neglect of duty or incompetence, which is what DeSantis cited in his official order. I have no interest in dancing on Scott Israels political grave, DeSantis said, but suffice it to say the massacre might never have happened had Broward had better leadership in the sheriffs department. Israel, at a subsequent news conference, vowed to fight being stripped of his elected office. His lawyer, Stuart Kaplan, said that while mistakes were made in responding to the massacre, they were not serious enough to warrant his suspension or removal from office. Israel, clad in a blue suit and red tie, called his suspension a massive power grab by the governor to subvert the will of Broward County voters, and he accused critics of singling him out for his vocal support of gun control. I understand its easier to say Suspend Sheriff Israel than it is to address the real problem the problem around this nation of gun violence, Israel said at his own news conference at New Mount Olive Baptist Church in Fort Lauderdale. But the parents of the students who were killed applauded the governors action. Read the rest here. Via @TayDolven Miami International Airports Concourse G closed at 12:45 p.m. on Saturday 15 minutes earlier than planned as the federal government remained shut down for a 22nd day, making it the longest shutdown in U.S. history. The airport was forced to shutter the concourse for the afternoon due to a shortage of Transportation Safety Administration officers, who have been working without pay for three weeks and are missing more shifts as the shutdown drags on. The closure allowed the airport to send TSA workers to busier checkpoints. Concourse G used by United, Bahamasair, Aruba Airlines, Frontier Airlines and Sun Country is the least busiest of the terminals; around 12 planes usually fly out of G after 1 p.m., making up just 3 percent of the roughly 450 flights from MIA on a typical day. As 1 p.m. approached on Saturday, TSA agents turned passengers away from Concourse Gs checkpoint and told them to head to F or H. At 12:45 p.m., TSA agents spread large, red NO ENTRY signs across the metal detectors, and filed out of the concourse. The inside of the concourse looked deserted. Security lines at F and H checkpoints remained normal despite the extra foot traffic. Read the rest here. Contrary to what Jim Jones says, Medicaid expansion is not a done deal. Proponents of Medicaid expansion believe that the November election settled the issue of expansion and that the Legislature now simply needs to fund it. Recently, Jim Jones took that one step further by both attacking the Idaho Freedom Foundation and showing his ignorance of our form of government. Judging by Jones comments, you might think IFFs legal challenge is a novelty. Its not. Recall Idahos Constitutional Amendment 2, the 2006 measure that banned same-sex marriage, which passed by 63 percent of the vote. A federal judge eventually declared it unconstitutional. Legal challenges are part of our system. Jones was quick to fault IFFs suit, suggested it was flawed without citing why, and attempted to signal to the Idaho Supreme Court, the challenge is bound to fail (although I have no inside information as to how the Supreme Court might rule). Consider the following points. UPSTART (Utah Preparing Students Today for a Rewarding Tomorrow) is a publicly-funded program that started in 2009 in Utah and has since expanded to other states. More than 15,000 children participated last year. Idaho is among only five U.S. states that dont have publicly funded preschool. The price tag of private preschool education is out of reach for some families. Advocates say the lack of state-funded preschool is holding children back. But opponents say its the responsibility of parents, not the government, to prepare children for school. Idaho children who are in the attendance zone for a school district or public charter school that qualifies as rural as defined by the federal government is eligible to participate in UPSTART. All of south-central Idahos school districts, including Twin Falls, qualify. UPSTART officials plan to start recruiting children this spring, Miner said. The program aims to enroll 200 children across Idaho for the upcoming school year and 400 the following year. Were very excited about working with our neighbor, Idaho, Miner said. Through UPSTART, children spend 15-20 minutes each day, five days a week on the program. The bill was endorsed by Mothers Against Drunk Driving and AAA, and it had bipartisan support, passing the House 55-14 and the Senate 21-12. When the bill was signed, Mothers Against Drunk Driving called it a triumph in deterring repeat offenders. A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that ignition interlocks devices reduced repeat offenses for DUIs by about 70 percent if the device was installed. During the 2017 holiday season, 292 people were arrested for drunk driving across the state, according to the Idaho Transportation Department. The total count for the 2018 holiday season wasnt immediately available. The Idaho Transportation Departments Office of Highway Safety did not have an immediate estimate on how many new interlock devices would be needed nor for the expected cost of the devices. ITD said last year when the bill was under consideration that the cost of the interlock devices could vary. ITD reported that installing an interlock device can range from $50 to $150, and their use costs between $50 and $175 a month. That means a first-time DUI offender could be required to pay as much as $2,250 a year for their interlock device. The price varies based on the company providing the device, so some could be closer to $1,000 a year. TWIN FALLS The monthly meeting of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees will be held at 11:30 a.m. Monday at the Loong Hing Restaurant, 1719 Kimberly Road, Twin Falls. The speaker will be Sgt. James Ellisor who is an Army recruiter. He will speak about availability for people joining the Army, etc. The meeting provides a chance to discuss questions about your benefits. Information: 208-732-0360. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Though 2019 has arrived, it is not my pleasure to announce that 148 law enforcement officers lost their lives in the line of duty in 2018. Sadly, that is nine more than in 2017 but 14 less than in 2016. I must add that we also lost 27 K9s in 2018. Lets hope for a much smaller number in 2019 (zero would be best). Q: I was stopped for my tires being too wide for my truck (I have been stopped a few times). One officer gave me a ticket and told me that if I fixed my trucks fenders before the court date I could come into the police department and get the ticket dismissed. I was given another ticket a different time and the officer cited me. I asked him about getting the ticket dismissed if I fixed the truck. The officer told me that he would not dismiss the ticket and told me I would keep getting tickets until I fixed my truck. Why the discrepancy in tickets? George A: The simplest answer here is to tell you that citations are done with officer discretion in mind. Im sure youve seen one officer issue a warning on violations that another cites for. These citations can also be given to infinity and beyond until the issue is taken care of or taken off the road. There is nothing in Idaho law that says officers have to give warnings. There are some exceptions to that but they are mainly farming issue warnings. Albions future looks bright. The town just paid off water and sewer bonds and is in good shape financially, Loveland said. The city is debt free, he said. Although it is in good financial shape, some of the towns infrastructure needs repairs, including the roads and the sewer system, which are difficult to fund with $27,000 in yearly tax revenues, Loveland said. If we dont start doing some of it were going to be in trouble, he said. Loveland intends to pursue grant funds for road repairs along with putting in a dump station and maybe an RV park eventually. Because the city can only afford to pave small sections of road at a time, it can be difficult to get contractors to take on the projects. I really think Albion is in a transition phase, he said. There are about a half dozen new homes being built in town and in the Albion Valley. Its not many, but percentage wise its a considerable increase. Ive lived here all my life and I think it has changed more in the last five or 10 years than in the last 50, he said. Its a balancing act with the old and the new. We kind of have a foot in both worlds. It is not known whether the couple has a pre- or post-nuptial agreement. It's also unclear whether they might file for divorce in a different state. They own properties in California, Texas and Washington D.C., among other locations. Assuming there is no prior agreement in place, the Amazon CEO may need to either sell off or transfer half of his more than 16% stake in the company to fulfill an equal split for the divorce, lawyers say. MacKenzie Bezos could then try to use her large stake in Amazon to push for changes at the company, potentially in opposition to her ex-husband. But it's unlikely this would lead to actual corporate change. "It's only 8% of the stock," said Michael Pachter, an analyst with Wedbush, "...not enough to actually exert any control." "Jeff remains focused on and engaged in all aspects of Amazon," Drew Herdener, vice president of corporate communications, said in a statement provided to CNN. A few dozen people, some armed with rifles, handguns and extra ammunition, gathered outside the state Capitol Saturday to protest potential gun control measures they fear could come from either newly inaugurated Gov. Tony Evers and his administration or the federal government. Attendees of the We the People rally spoke primarily of three amendments to the U.S. Constitution they believe are under threat: the Second Amendment, which guarantees the right to bear arms; the Fourth Amendment, which protects citizens against searches and seizures without due process of law; and the 14th Amendment, which awards all protections of the constitution to any person born or naturalized in the U.S. We have a right to our own things that we want to own as long as Im not harming anyone, Chris Hinkley, of Waukesha, said. As the small group gathered at the top of the Capitol steps facing State Street, the rally was met with counter-protesters who met on the 100 block of State Street and advanced to the lower levels of the steps to shout down the We the People speakers. Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain said about 45 people attended the We the People rally and there were about 250 counter-protesters. No arrests were made, DeSpain said. It just seemed like a really wonderful opportunity to showcase a UW alum who is out there in the world living the Wisconsin Idea, and also bring a really important and wonderful body of work to the museum, Gilman said. In terms of Southern Rites, photography was Laubs initial, but, by no means only, storytelling tool, Gilman said. Since she developed a relationship with the community over more than 10 years, and has continued to follow community members and engage with them, Laubs photojournalism has deepened, Gilman said. Its so nuanced and complex, she said. You get a sense of the personalities and of the place, but it is actually by seeing the group of (photographs) altogether, in addition to the other materials, that she has put together in this show, that you really have a sense of delving into the complexity that is this place and these people. Surprised by level of segregation You may know Huma Abedin as Hillary Clinton's longtime close aide and a top advisor of her 2016 presidential campaign. You almost definitely know her as the ex-wife of Anthony Weiner, former congressman and currently registered sex offender, whose habit of sexting with minors may have indirectly sunk said presidential campaign. Abedin would like to reintroduce herself, in her own words. ... More than 50 years ago, at a point when the Republican Party of Wisconsin had taken a turn toward extremism that threatened to divide the state along the ugliest and most destructive lines, Bill Kraus and a brave band of political visionaries saved their party and their state. The political history of Wisconsin is poorly recalled by those who fail to recognize the great ideological battles that have played out in both major parties. But Bill remembered. And that is one of the many reasons why his death last month at the age of 92 was such a loss for a state that can ill afford to be without his strategic good sense and humane vision for what is possible in politics. Kraus, whose legacy will be honored today at the University of Wisconsin Memorial Union, is well recalled as the Common Cause board member who refused to surrender the old-school Wisconsin faith that politics should be about ideas rather than money. This will not be a celebration of MLK the Dreamer, but an event that will reflect on MLK's Revolution of Values and the outcome of the Brown v. Board of Education decision, the event description says. I Have a Dream Scholarship Ball at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center, 1 John Nolen Drive, from 6:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. The annual event from Women In Focus Inc. raises thousands of dollars, which is then given away as college scholarship money for students of color. Over the past 33 years, the organization has given away $505,000. While we are very proud of this accomplishment, each year we realize again how great the need is when we only have funds to award scholarships to a fraction of those who apply, said Sally Hestad, co-chair of the event. Tickets ($90) are available at womeninfocusmadison.org until Sunday, Jan. 13. Sunday, Jan. 20: MLK: Jesus Dream at Sherman Avenue United Methodist Church, 3705 N. Sherman Ave., at 9:15 a.m. Joshua Ciafullo remembers the moment he knew he wanted to cook for a living. The exuberant owner of Antojo Tacos in Edgerton grew up with 12 brothers and sisters in Highland Park, New Jersey. At dinner time, appetites were big and resources were sometimes scarce. By the time we sat down to the table and my mom had food ready, all the portions were so small that we were still hungry right after, Ciafullo recalled with a laugh. So 12-year-old Joshua devised a strategy. I came up with this idea that I would help my mom or dad in the kitchen and I could eat as I go, Ciafullo said. By the time were served, Im already full and I can play on the Super Nintendo. Thats how I fell in love with cooking. I had the passion for it. That passion led Ciafullo, now 35, to the kitchen at the Sheraton Hotel in Madison in 2013. Ciafullo found the experience valuable, but the constraints of corporate mandates limiting. In 2015, he opened his first venture in Edgerton, Craving Burgers. The tortilla-wrapped burgers and Crave sauce gained a following, but not wide or deep enough to sustain the business model. Finding staff was a challenge, too. Together they are accused of orchestrating a multimillion-dollar racket that nearly brought Mozambiques fragile economy to its knees. Nearly three years ago, Mozambiques war-ravaged economy was buoyed by the 2010 discovery of one of the worlds largest natural gas deposits . Then in April 2016 revelations of a hidden debt of over $1 billion shook this newfound confidence. The IMF suspended hundreds of millions of dollars in much-needed aid and investors were spooked. Later investigations revealed that the debt was closer to $2 billion. Days after Changs arrest, three Credit Suisse bankers, Andrew Pearse, Surjan Singh and Detelina Subeva were arrested in London , while Lebanese businessman Jean Boustani was arrested at New York Citys JFK airport and refused bail. Boustani negotiated on behalf of Abu Dhabi-based holding company Privinvest. Manuel Chang was arrested on Dec. 29 at O. R. Tambo International Airport, en route to Dubai from Maputo. He appeared in a Johannesburg court twice this week where his lawyers tried, but failed to argue, that his arrest was unlawful. Hell have a cell to himself while he awaits a decision on whether he will be sent to New York to stand trial alongside three Credit Suisse bankers and a Lebanese businessman. They face charges related to bribery, securities and wire fraud and money laundering. The blueprint Now, a 47-page indictment filed in a New York court details how Boustani and the bankers harmed Mozambiques recovering economy. In a series of emails revealed in the indictment, they casually orchestrated whole maritime projects to enrich themselves and bribe officials like Chang (who served as finance minister from 2005 to 2015) along the way, amounting to $200 million. The investigation, led by the US, reveals a blueprint for how desperately needed development could be exploited by unscrupulous international bankers and greedy politicians. The indictment also fingers three Mozambicans in addition to Chang, one a senior official in the finance ministry and the other a relative of a senior official. To secure that the project is granted a go-ahead by the HoS [Head of State], a payment has to be agreed before we get there, read one email to Boustani, written by a person whose name has been redacted from the public document. The head of state at the time was former president Armando Guebuza, who stepped down in 2015 after serving two terms. In democratic governments like ours people come and go, and everyone involved will want to have his share of the deal while in office, because once out of the office it will be difficult writes another redacted name in an email on Nov. 14, 2011, adding that the ministries of defense, interior, the air force and others will all have to be looked after. Current president, Filipe Nyusi was defense minister at the time. Credit Suisse is not named in the indictment, only a bank referred to as Investment Bank 1. The indictment shows how the banks internal processes were manipulated or bypassed in order to secure loans worth hundreds of millions. In one example, they concealed red flags, in another the three oversaw secret due diligence processes to get ahead of the banks. In yet another, they created fake competing bids to convince their colleagues. Then in 2013, Singh allegedly led the banks due diligence trip to Mozambique, to scrutinize a project he had earlier set up using private emails. No action has been taken against CreditSuisse, the bank said in a statement emailed to Quartz. The indictment alleges that the former employees worked to defeat the banks internal controls, acted out of a motive of personal profit, and sought to hide these activities from the bank. A second bank is also cited but not named. When the scandal broke, it was revealed that Russian bank VTB also issued loans to Mozambique. Tuna roll The investigation shows just how susceptible state companies are to corruption. In 2013, Privinvest, the shipbuilding and offshore construction company Boustani represented, scored a $366 million contract with Proindicus, Mozambiques state-owned coastal surveillance company. The deal would see Privinvest supply materials and training to the country still exploring newly discovered off-shore gas deposits. Thanks to Pearce and his colleagues, Boustani helped Mozambique secure a loan that ballooned to $622 million from an investment bank, assumed to be Credit Suisse and the second bank, likely VTB, to fund the contract. They used thinly veiled coded language, referring to money and bribes as chickens and poultry, to ensure Chang would be paid $5 million before he signed off with the Mozambican government as guarantor of the loans, and ensured that Mozambiques attorney general never scrutinized the tender process. Proindicus never did any significant work or generated any real revenue and was set to default on its loan repayments. Still, between 2013 and 2014, $45 million linked to ProIndicus passed through Pearses UAE bank accounts, some of which he shared with Subeva. Mozambican government officials shared $50 million in kickbacks and bribes, and got another $12 million from Privinvest. The investigation shows just how easily state officials can be corrupted. To create a cushion, the co-conspirators established a state-owned tuna fishing company through Mozambiques state fishing company Ematum in 2013. Again with Boustani and Privinvest, a $785 million contract was secured and another loan, this time of $850 million, was incurred to ensure that Proindicus interest payments would be covered. We will go got $800 million so we keep a cushion for Proindicus interest payment next year, Boustani wrote. Between 2013 and 2014, an alleged $4.5 million linked to the Ematum deal *was* wired into Singhs UAE account, according to the indictment. A further $8.5 million was wired to an unnamed Mozambican citizen, and amounts of $3 million and $8.5 million were wired to two other Mozambican citizens. Two additional redacted names received $8.5 million and $15 million while Chang pocketed $7 million. The bank sent $500 million to PrivInvest, and sold bonds to investors in the US and elsewhere with the understanding that the fishing company would generate $224 million in three years, by December 2016. Unsurprisingly, Ematum did no fishing, made no money and defaulted on its first loan payment, due January 2017. It was Ematums $25 million losses that first raised suspicions with investors. It became clear Mozambican officials were hiding something when they refused to hand over their books. But, that wasnt before Pearce and his colleagues set up an infrastructure project in 2014 through the Mozambique Asset Management entity, under the pretext of building a shipyard and naval vessels to support the two earlier projects. With a syndicated loan of $535 million from the second bank (earlier reported as VTB) and guaranteed by the Mozambican government with Pearces signature, yet another state-run project was set-up to benefit the alleged co-conspirators. When the projects were clearly bankrupt, they tried to swap the Ematum loan participation notes for Eurobonds issued by the Mozambican government to hide the scheme by restructuring the countrys debt. A default on these is what finally led to a surprise public scandal in 2016 and the subsequent criminal investigation. Another surprise Like the debt three years ago, Changs arrest was a surprise to Mozambicans says Jorge Matine, a public finance researcher at Maputos Center for Public Integrity. In the years since the scandal, businesses have closed and jobs were lost as foreign investment decreased, says Matine. Angry Mozambicans want redress. The FBI is only the first step, Matine says. My opinion is something else is coming from other governments that invested. Mozambican civil society has welcomed the US-investigation, which they believe will absolve tax-payers from paying for a crime. Mozambiques attorney general, however, complained this week in a public statement that the Americans refused to comply with earlier requests for assistance. Changs arrest has also triggered a flood of fake news on social media, warned journalist and analyst Joseph Hanlon. In an election year, a scandal implicating members of the ruling party could be a political disaster, but not so says Matine. Nyusi has spent his first term cleaning up party scandals, now with it all out in the open the second term, that he will likely win, hell feel relief. Its unclear though, just how this investigation will affect the powerful members of the ruling party. Yet, even in a jail cell, Chang is likely a confident man, says Matine, sure that his connections to Mozambiques political elite will protect, or fall, with him. In https://qz.com/africa/1519653/mozambique-finance-minister-arrested-credit-suisse-fbi-caught-up/?utm_source=email&utm_medium=africa-weekly-brief St. Louis city and county are floundering like two shipwreck survivors fighting over the same life jacket. Instead of sharing resources and energies for the sake of survival, they claw and compete, making it harder and harder to continue treading water. Or they talk endlessly about coordinating, then do nothing. Outsiders watching the city-county struggle over dwindling revenue resources and business investment would immediately identify this arrangement as a formula for disaster. Given the years of local inaction and frustrated efforts to consolidate city and county government operations, maybe its time for outside intervention to shake things up. The nonprofit group Better Together is preparing to launch a $25 million campaign aimed at putting a merger on the statewide ballot in 2020. Missourians from across the state would have a chance to see the regional dysfunction for themselves and hear the best arguments from both sides. Were normally reluctant to invite outside intervention in local matters, and the natural local inclination is to tell the rest of Missouri to butt out. Submit an Obituary Funeral homes often submit obituaries as a service to the families they are assisting. Obituaries submitted by family members are also accepted pending proper verification of the death. Submit an Obituary Lightning strikes west of Uniontown on Monday night as a storm passes over the Palouse. Rain fell in Lewiston and the surrouding area Tuesday, amounting to about 0.24 inches at the Lewiston-Nez Perce County Regional Airport, according to the National Weather Service in Spokane. Moscow got 0. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. Cambodias centuries-old tradition of masked dance was almost completely lost during the genocidal rule of the Khmer Rouge. But a small number of people have managed to keep the ancient art alive. Now, they are passing it down to a new generation. The Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975 after a bloody, five-year civil war. During the Communist groups rule, it opposed education and religion and banned Cambodias traditional arts and written language. An estimated 1.7 million Cambodians were killed in the four years the Khmer Rouge was in power. The deaths were mostly caused by starvation, overwork, disease, execution or torture. Among the victims were artists, writers and dancers. Sun Rithys father and grandfather were both performers of the countrys traditional dance, which is called Lakhon Khol. Study of the dance was banned in Cambodia during most of Sun Rithys childhood. In the Khmer Rouge, I was young and they didnt teach people dance. Lakhon Khol was destroyed, he told the Reuters news agency. Sun Rithy was finally able to start learning the dance once the Khmer Rouge was removed from power. He was 14 at the time. He is now 48 years old and leads one of the last remaining groups performing the dance. The group includes about 20 performers and students between the ages of 6 and 15. Sun Rithy says the best way to help the tradition survive is by teaching the dance to new generations. I dont want Lakhon Khol to go extinct, he said. The traditional dance was recently identified by the United Nations as an art form that should be protected. The U.N.s Education, Science and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, added Lakhon Khol to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Different kinds of the dance are performed in other nations in Southeast Asia as well. The dancers wear colorful painted masks that are made to look similar to characters from an ancient poem. The poem is called Ramayana. It tells the story of a prince who rescues his wife from a demon with help from an army of monkeys. People who study the dance recently rehearsed at a special theater at a Buddhist temple outside Cambodias capital, Phnom Penh. Pum Pork said his 11-year-old son, Pum Meta, is learning the dance. I want to have my son trained to perform so that in the future we wont lose the ancient art, he said. Cambodias Minister of Culture and Fine Arts, Phoeurng Sackona, said the dance needs to be protected. She urged all people to get involved to help. Elderly performers are trying to preserve the dance, she told Reuters. But it is up to young people whether they agree or not to receive knowledge from the elders. Neighboring Thailands version of the dance has not suffered the same problems. But dancers there also see the importance of bringing the art to a new generation of performers. In Thailand, the dance tradition is called Khon. It is based on royal history. Many Thai schools and universities now teach the dance. Mom Luang Pongsawad Sukhasvasti followed in his fathers footsteps in making Khon masks. He started doing so at age 10. Now he is 67. He still makes dance masks by hand from his home in Thailands Ayutthaya province, north of Bangkok. Pongsawad said each mask takes about a month to complete. He says he hopes the UNESCO listing will raise awareness of the issue. Teachers now must do more than teaching the dance. They need to help students understand the roots, as well, to preserve it, he said. Im Bryan Lynn. Reuters reported on this story. Bryan Lynn adapted it for VOA Learning English. Ashley Thompson was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story mask n. a covering that hides the face extinct adj. no longer existing demon n. an evil spirit rehearse v. to practice a play, dance, etc. in order to prepare for a performance elderly adj. an old or aging person preserve v. to keep something the same or prevent it from being damaged or destroyed A community outside Quito, Ecuadors capital, has a building that appears to resist the laws of gravity. The unusual-looking structure was supposed to be a sign of South American unity. It lies close to the Equator, the imaginary line dividing the world into north and south. The building has two glass wings that extend high above a pool of water. They look like something from a Hollywood movie. They are said to represent freedom and openness. But for all its stately appearance, the headquarters of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) seems almost as inactive as the group itself. Once the building was a promising diplomatic center with officials and parties for visiting diplomats. Now it is largely empty, with half the workers it had when it opened in 2014. The groups chief organizer, former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, is in jail on corruption charges. Another major supporter, Venezuelas Hugo Chavez, has died. In addition, a changing political environment has left South America more divided than it has been in many years. Fewer people seem interested in an anti-imperialistic song identified with the group: Soy del Sur, or Im from the South. UNASUR was a good idea, but ultimately didnt deliver concrete results, said Michael Shifter, head of the Inter-American Dialogue, a Washington-based research group. UNASURs current problems In April of 2018, half of UNASURs 12 member-states suspended their membership. Those countries are Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru. Then in August, newly elected Colombian President Ivan Duque rejected its treaty, setting the way for his countrys withdrawal in February. The result is a $20 million deficit that has led to extensive budget cuts. UNASUR has been without a secretary-general for two years. At the current rate, the group will spend all of the money it has by April. That is about the same time that Brazil takes control of UNASURs rotating presidency. However, Brazils new president, Jair Bolsonaro, has criticized the group. For critics of UNASUR, its headquarters is an easy target. The $43 million structure was built and donated to the group by former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa, a follower of Chavez. Diego Guayasamin, another Ecuadorean, designed the prize-winning building. Seventy-five percent of the structure is underground. It is equipped with a high-technology meeting room and a notable collection of artwork. It also has salons named for Chilean poet Pablo Neruda and Nobel Prize-winning writer Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Just like in public buildings in Venezuela, Chavezs bright-red signature and spirited comments are painted on the walls. Its absurd that a building that cost several dozens of millions of dollars has no usefulness, said Ecuadorian President Lenin Moreno in July. Moreno demanded that UNASUR return the building to the government so that it could be used as a university for the local community. His demand was later found to be illegal. But for critics, perhaps the buildings biggest problem is the large bronze statue at the entrance of Nestor Kirchner, the first secretary-general of the group. Since his death in 2010, the memory of the former Argentine president has been damaged by reports of corruption. Supporters of Moreno are leading a campaign to have the statue removed. Successes and failures UNASUR was created in 2008 to bring life to independence hero Simon Bolivars dream of a large, borderless South American homeland. Bolivar strongly opposed United States and European influence on the continent. While plans to create a common monetary system for UNASURs members failed, other proposals have had more success. One example is the common Unasur work visa, which has helped South American nations take in the large number of Venezuelans fleeing their country. However, Michael Shifter said the final blow to the group was its failure to deal effectively with the crisis in Venezuela. During 2015 and 2016, the groups then-Secretary-General, Ernesto Samper, traveled to Venezuela with Vatican representatives to support talks between the government and opposition. When those negotiations collapsed, many blamed Samper, a former Colombian president, for not doing more to get action from the government. Samper admitted that for UNASUR to survive, it needs to take on a less-progressive plan of action. But, he argued that breaking up the group would be a huge mistake. He said there is a need for South American nations to speak with a common voice. He noted that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened military action against Venezuela. He added that the administration is critical of Latino Americans seeking to enter the U.S. and has withdrawn from international efforts to fight climate change. The sad thing, Samper said, is that at the same time the region desperately needs unity, we are more fragmented than ever. I'm George Grow. And I'm Caty Weaver. Joshua Goodman reported this story for the Associated Press. George Grow adapted his report for VOA Learning English. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story wing n. a solid structure that extends from both sides of an aircraft or building imperialistic adj. relating to an extension of a countrys power and influence through military force or diplomacy rotate v. to move or cause to move in a circle around something salon n. a store or business where a beautician works absurd adj. unreasonable; laughable region n. a specific area in the world or within a country or territory fragment v. to break to cause to break into small pieces There are many reasons why college and university students often fail to get full nights of sleep. Many American students are away from their parents for the first time when they attend college. They might not be used to having total freedom in how they plan their days and nights. Parties, late night study meetings, or just time spent relaxing with friends these are all things that cut into college students sleep habits. A few years ago, Michael Scullin began teaching the science of sleep to psychology students at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Scullin is an assistant professor at Baylor and the director of its Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory. The class centered around why the body needs to sleep and the physical and mental health problems caused by a lack of sleep. This includes difficulty focusing on studies or controlling ones emotions, and increased risk of many diseases. When you are at your most sleep-deprived is when you are least likely to be able to judge how sleepy you are, and how much that sleepiness is impacting you, Scullin told VOA. He says his students seemed to enjoy the class and were interested in the material he was teaching. But when he asked them whether they were choosing to get more sleep after what they had learned, most of them said no. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that adults need at least seven hours of sleep a night to stay healthy. So Scullin came up with a plan to get his students to sleep more: he offered to give them extra points on their final exam, the classs most important test. The plan worked better than Scullin expected. Students who slept more performed better in two different classes, and Scullin published his findings in two academic publications last November. How did the study work? Scullin started the experiment with his psychology students. He told them that if they agreed to sleep at least eight hours a night for the last five nights before the final exam, they would get several extra credit points. But if they agreed to take part in the study and failed to get the required amount of sleep, they would lose points on the exam. The students would wear special devices that recorded their sleep data. Only eight out of the 18 total students in that first group agreed to take part in the experiment. Yet all the students who took part performed better on the exam than those who did not, even before the extra credit points were added. On average they earned about 5 points more on the exam. Scullin then decided to repeat the study with another group of 16 design students. He chose not to punish students who failed to sleep the full eight hours per night, and got the same results. Daniel Bessesen is a medical doctor who researches sleep, and was not involved in the study. He is also the Associate Director of the Anschutz Health and Wellness Center at the University of Colorado outside Denver. Bessesen notes this study does lend support to the idea that sleeping enough helps academic performance, and students who cram are likely worse off. Cramming is a common activity for American college students. When students cram, they study most or all of the night before the exam. They get very little or no sleep because they think they will do better if the test material is fresh in their minds. Bessesen says there are some problems with Scullins experiment. He says to be more scientific, the students should have been randomly chosen for sleeping or staying awake. Also, the two groups should have been studying the same subject and taking the same test. All of this may have affected the results of the study. How to get people to sleep more Yet Bessesen says this experiment does fit in with a larger body of research on the importance of sleep. In fact, the amount of sleep people get has been decreasing greatly, he says. A 2015 study found the number of Americans who sleep less than six hours a night increased by about 30 million between 1985 and 2012. Scullin and Bessesen offer some ways to avoid health problems caused by a lack of sleep. Among these, they say, parents should try to get enough sleep themselves to demonstrate its importance to their children. Bessesen notes that even some medical school programs have begun to require student doctors to sleep more to prevent accidents. Scullin also offers a few pieces of advice to his students who have difficulty falling asleep. They include the following: Avoid looking at electronics before you are about to fall asleep. Do not drink anything with caffeine in it, such as coffee or tea, less than six hours before you go to sleep. in it, such as coffee or tea, less than six hours before you go to sleep. Try to go to sleep at the same time every night. If you are lying in bed trying to sleep and cannot calm your mind, get out of bed. Take out a piece of paper and spend five to ten minutes writing down all of your thoughts. If you wake up in the middle of the night and cannot fall back asleep, get out of bed and go into another room. Do not turn on the lights! Instead, wait there until you start to feel tired again. Im Pete Musto. And Im Dorothy Gundy. Pete Musto reported this story for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. How often do you sleep at least eight hours? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Quiz Quiz- Sleeping More May Help College Students in the Classroom Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story relax(ing) v. to spend time resting or doing something enjoyable especially after you have been doing work habit(s) n. a usual way of behaving focus(ing) v. to direct your attention or effort at something specific deprived adj. not having the things that are needed for a good or healthy life impact(ing) v. to have a strong and often bad effect on something or someone point(s) n. praise, credit, or approval for doing something good or helpful academic adj. of or relating to schools and education randomly adv. chosen or done without a particular plan or pattern caffeine n. a substance that is found especially in coffee and tea and that makes you feel more awake Sunday, January 13, 2019 A summary of a recent disbarment from the web page of the Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers On July 21, 2015, Joseph P. Bernardo (respondent) was convicted after a bench trial in the Pittsfield District Court of larceny over $250 by a single scheme in violation of G.L. c. 266, 30(1), a felony. He was sentenced to one year in the house of correction. His conviction was upheld by the Appeals Court on June 20, 2017. The respondents conviction was based on the following facts. The respondent represented his elderly mother in obtaining Veterans Administration benefits to which she was entitled as the widow of a combat veteran. The respondent became the representative payee of his mothers account into which the monthly benefit payments were deposited. From August of 2012 through January of 2013, the respondent wrote numerous checks from the account for his own benefit totaling at least $21,000 without his mothers knowledge or consent. Sanction The parties waived hearing before the Court and assented to disbarment as recommended by the board. On December 14, 2018, the Supreme Judicial Court for Suffolk County (Lowy, J.) so ordered. The Berkshire Eagle reported on the conviction. A Canton man has been sentenced to a year in jail for stealing more than $20,000 in Veterans Affairs benefits from his 97-year-old mother, who resided in assisted living facilities in the Berkshires until her death. Joseph Bernardo, 67, was convicted on Tuesday after a three-day bench trial in Central Berkshire District Court. Prosecutors accused him of abusing his role as his mother's attorney and representative payee for Veterans Affairs and Social Security benefits and taking $21,329 for his own use. Bernardo testified that the payments were for his services as her attorney in applying for the Veterans Affairs benefits, and that she still reaped a net benefit thanks to his work. She has since died. The investigation into Bernardo began in June 2013 when his mother, Lucy Bernardo, notified Elder Services that her son had not been paying for her care, resulting in her eviction from the Melbourne Place assisted living facility. Elder Services, in turn, notified the Pittsfield Police Department. During her stay at Melbourne Place, Lucy Bernardo racked up about $23,000 in unpaid rent, according to the criminal complaint filed by Pittsfield Police. Her niece stepped in and helped her move to the Devonshire Estates assisted living facility in Lenox. Assistant Berkshire District Attorney Dana Parsons portrayed Bernardo as a dispassionate son, going as far as to point out that he did not hold a funeral for his mother and did not claim her ashes for about a year after she died. Parsons methodically pored over each of the duties Bernardo claimed to have performed on behalf of his mother, questioning why many of them such as obtaining a copy of her birth certificate required legal assistance at all. Bernardo, an attorney in Massachusetts for 35 years, testified that he gave his mother a discount on his services, knocking down the price from $300 per hour to $150. He maintained there was a complexity to obtaining the benefits, including writing an essay on behalf of his mother. In advocating for a one-year direct jail sentence, Parsons blasted Bernardo for abusing his position of trust both as the victim's son and as an attorney. "He should be held to a higher level of ethical trust," Parsons said. Parsons said that Lucy Bernardo has "spent her life saving and being frugal," but that Bernardo "squandered" her money to his own benefit. In asking for probation, defense attorney Joseph G. Vosit argued that Bernardo's 35-year career as an attorney is "unblemished," and noted his client's efforts produced $40,000 in veterans benefits for his mother. "I know in his heart he feels all he ever did was try to help his mother," he said. Judge Michael Ripps ruled that Bernardo was guilty of a single count of larceny over $250 by a single scheme and sentenced him to a year in the Berkshire County Jail and House of Correction. At Vosit's request, Ripps delayed the start of the sentence for two weeks while Bernardo sets his affairs in order. Bernardo sat quietly after the verdict was read and did not appear to show emotion. (Mike Frisch) https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/legal_profession/2019/01/a-summary-of-a-recent-disbarment-from-the-web-page-of-the-massachusetts-board-of-bar-overseers-the-respondents-conviction.html Routine FDA Food Inspections Halted by US Government Shutdown NEW YORK (AP) Routine food inspections arent getting done because of the partial government shutdown, but checks of the riskiest foods areexpected to resume next week, the Food and Drug Administration said Wednesday. The agency said its working to bring back about 150 employees to inspect riskier foods such as cheese, infant formula and produce. FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the agency cant make the case that a routine inspection of a Nabisco cracker facility is necessary during the shutdown, however. ADVERTISEMENT The FDA doesnt oversee meat and poultry and those inspections are continuing. Gottlieb said FDA inspections would have ramped up this week for the first time since the holidays, so the lapse in inspections of high-risk foods will not be significant if they resume soon. He said his concern would grow if those inspections were halted for several weeks. The FDA conducts about 8,400 domestic inspections a year, or an average of 160 a week, Gottlieb said. He said about a third inspections are at places that handle high-risk foods. Factors that determine whether a food is more susceptible to contamination include the type of food, how its made, and the facilitys history of violations. The FDA oversees about three-quarters of the food supply, including packaged foods and produce. The agency said all imported foods will continue to be inspected and that critical functions, such as monitoring for food poisoning outbreaks, remain up and running. Sampling of some foods such as frozen berries for contamination has also continued, Gottlieb said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which helps with tainted food outbreaks, is not affected by the partial shutdown and on Wednesday said the E. coli outbreak linked to romaine lettuce appears to be over . The FDA said its investigation into that outbreak will also continue. The Department of Agriculture has said its inspections of meat, poultry and processed eggs will continue, and that 89 percent of its food safety employees are still working. Restaurants are overseen by local health agencies. ADVERTISEMENT Sarah Sorscher, deputy director of regulatory affairs at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, said the FDAs short-term lapse in routine food inspections isnt a cause for worry, but will be if the shutdown continues. Thats more and more issues theyre potentially not catching, she said. She said a long shutdown could hinder the FDAs work on implementing new food safety standards . In 2017, a government report noted the number of facilities the FDA inspects has declined, and that it did not always take effective action to ensure violations were corrected. The report noted that the agency inspected about 19 percent of all food facilities in 2015. ___ Rep. Maxine Waters Calls for an End to the Trump Shutdown WASHINGTON Congresswoman Maxine Waters (CA-43), Chairwoman of the House Financial Services Committee, entered the following statement into the Congressional Record on the Trump Shutdown. I request unanimous consent to address the House for 5 minutes. I rise to call for an end to the Trump shutdown. This Republican-imposed shutdown is threatening job creation, harming small businesses and leaving families with uncertainty and instability. ADVERTISEMENT It is shameful that President Trump and Congressional Republicans are so desperate to secure taxpayer funding for a senseless border wall that theyre willing to harm hardworking Americans by shutting down the federal government. This outrageous shutdown is forcing 420,000 federal employees to work without pay. These dedicated public servants have been doing their jobs and serving the public without pay since December 22nd. They include about 14,000 FBI agents, 6,000 Forest Service firefighters, and 54,000 Customs and Border Protection agents. Furthermore, thousands of airport security screeners and air traffic controllers are working without pay to protect the safety of the flying public at airports throughout the country, including LAX in my congressional district. In addition, 400,000 federal employees have been furloughed without pay. This includes federal workers at the Departments of Transportation, State, Commerce, Interior and Agriculture. These dedicated public servants are sitting at home wondering how they will pay their mortgages and buy food for their families. Yet, they want nothing more than to go back to work serving the American people! As the Chair of the House Committee on Financial Services, I am especially concerned about the impact of the Trump Shutdown on American homebuyers and renters. Millions of families that rely on Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Agriculture (USDA) rental assistance programs are dangerously close to eviction and foreclosure due to lapses in funding. Families aspiring to become homeowners may see their Federal Housing Administration (FHA) or rural housing loans delayed or be unable to close on their loans altogether during the shutdown. In rural communities, very low-income, elderly homeowners who rely on HUD grants and loans to address health and safety hazards will not receive payments and may be forced to live in dangerous conditions. In addition, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the agency that investors and the public rely on to police Wall Street and maintain the safety of our capital markets system has furloughed roughly 94% of its staff, leading to a backlog of complaints that could delay enforcement actions. Companies looking to go public and enter the stock market for the first time may also have to delay their Initial Public Offerings (IPOs). Meanwhile, our National Parks are overflowing with uncollected trash, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has stopped conducting inspections of drinking water systems, hazardous waste facilities, and chemical facilities. ADVERTISEMENT If the Trump shutdown continues beyond January, about 40 percent of 40 million individuals and families across the country who are dependent upon the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as Food Stamps, will see their benefits reduced. These are just a few examples of the harm being caused by the third shutdown this nation has experienced since Trump took office. It is time for Republicans to stop jeopardizing livelihoods, the financial system, and our economy by ending this shutdown immediately. Its long past time to end this Trump shutdown, and put Americas public servants back to work serving the public! I yield back the balance of my time. Rep. John Lewis Statement on Trump Shutdown and Provides a FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN: FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS GUIDE IN RESPONSE TO TRUMP SHUTDOWN, REP. JOHN LEWIS PROVIDES STATEMENT AND PUBLISHES SHUTDOWN GUIDE Federal employees do not deserve to be used as hostages in a political debate, said Rep. John Lewis. People of good will have different approaches to the same issue. But using federal workers like they are not human, but are pawns in a game of chess, is playing with peoples lives. Thousands of hard-working Americans who have dedicated their careers to preserve and defend our democracy will face delayed mortgage and rent payments, school tuitions, weddings, funerals, credit card payments, medical treatments, car repairs, and many other responsibilities to weather this unnecessary storm. It is wrong that their lives should be thrown up in the air simply because the White House refuses to put the goodwill of the people and its responsibility to governing before politics. This shutdown demonstrates that the federal government is not a bunch of buildings in some distant corner of Washington, DC. The government is you and me. It is our friends, neighbors, and relatives. It is a dedicated work-force who commit to serve our nation despite the slings and arrows of misguided leadership and the worst kind of political gamesmanship. These committed public servants work day and night to keep this nation running smoothly and efficiently in spite of all the ways they are criticized and misrepresented. Many today are working critical and even dangerous jobs on our behalfin prisons, on police forces, in secure locationswithout being paid just to ensure that we as a nation survive this cruel, thoughtless stunt. They should be honored and respected for their dedication by their boss, the leader of the executive branch, instead of placed in jeopardy. The federal government is the largest employer in the United States, employing approximately 2.7 million people. This guide helps answer many questions Atlanta constituents and government workers may have about the shutdown. Currently, House Democrats are passing legislation to reopen the government and hope the president will return to the business of governing and sign these bills into law. Bipartisan discussions about border security can continue once federal workers are no longer unfairly placed in harms way. ADVERTISEMENT Miami International Terminal Closed Due to Government Shutdown MIAMI Miami International Airport closed one of its terminals this weekend as the federal government shutdown stretches into a third week. Airport spokesman Greg Chin said Terminal G will close at 1 p.m. Saturday. Security screeners have been calling in sick at twice the normal rate for the airport. He said they feared there wouldnt be enough workers to handle all 11 checkpoints during normal hours over the weekend. Friday marked the first day screeners missed a paycheck. ADVERTISEMENT Chin said some passengers have complained about longer waits since the shutdown, but says there have been no abnormal security delays. The Miami Herald reported the terminal will reopen for flights Sunday morning and close again at 1 p.m. that day. The restaurants and shops in the terminal that depend on departing flights for business are also closed. MAYOR GARCETTI: CITY WILL SUPPORT L.A. FAMILIES AFFECTED BY STRIKE LOS ANGELES During the event of a strike, recreation centers, libraries, and public transportation will be available to students affected by a walkout. Mayor Eric Garcetti said that City recreation centers and libraries, as well as Metro and L.A. City DASH and Commuter Express, will provide additional support for L.A. Unified families during the event of a strike offering places with adult supervision, lunch, resources, and free transportation to students until an agreement is reached to end a potential teacher walkout. ADVERTISEMENT During the event of a strike, the City will keep 32 recreation centers open for extended hours with additional staffing, lunch, and programming focused on elementary-aged children, such as arts and crafts and sports/fitness activities, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on regular school days. Parents planning to take their children to one of these sites must complete this registration form (tambien en espanol) and submit it at the recreation center upon arrival. Free lunch for children will be provided at these centers . Public libraries will offer additional staffing, learning resources such as STEAM exercises and educational workshops and programming focused on middle and high school-aged Angelenos. Metro and L.A. City DASH and Commuter Express will work to ease transportation concerns for families for the duration of a strike by offering free rides to L.A. Unified students with school ID from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m. LAPD is coordinating with the Department of Recreation and Parks, public libraries, and other City departments to make sure added security is available during the event of a strike. Mayor Garcetti has encouraged City Departments to provide flexibility to affected employees, urging general managers to work closely with staff to better understand and accommodate workers child care needs. The Mayors Office has contacted some of L.A.s largest private-sector employers to urge preparation of similar plans. More information about resources and services can be found at LAMayor.org/StudentsAndFamilies and by dialing 311. ADVERTISEMENT Para mas informacion sobre recursos y servicios, visite la pagina LAMayor.org/EstudiantesyFamilias o llame al 311. WASHINGTON The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) released the following statement calling on House Republicans to take substantive action against Iowa Congressman Steve King, who this week added to a long history of racist statements by again defending white nationalism and white supremacy during an interview with the New York Times. In response, CBC Chair Karen Bass (D-CA) released the following statement calling on Republicans to go beyond statements and actually reprimand Congressman King by removing him from his committee assignments and asking that he leave the Republican Party. Like Donald Trump, Steve King has sought again and again to give comfort to white supremacists, something that should never be allowed in the halls of Congress or the Oval Office. If Republicans really believe these racist statements have no place in our government, then their party must offer more than shallow temporary statements of condemnation. Instead, they must actually condemn Mr. King by removing him from his committee assignments so that he can no longer affect policies that impact the very people he has made it clear he disdains. Republicans should make clear Mr. King is no longer welcomed in their party or Congress. Anything less than these substantive actions is another tacit acceptance of racism from the Republican Party. Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer Highlights Notable Legislation Effective in January 2019 (Sacramento ) Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer (D South Los Angeles) released the following statement about his 2018 accomplishments that went into effect on January 1st. I am pleased to share some of my 2018 successes which will improve the lives of the people of California. Last year, my colleagues and the Governor voted to approve 17 of my Assembly bills (AB) and my budget proposal to allocate $37.3 million to create the Youth Reinvestment Fund (YRF). The YRF protects our most vulnerable children and keeps them out of the juvenile justice system by funding alternatives to incarceration and critical services such as education, mentorship, and counseling, said Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer. An important part of my job is to ensure that the issues that are important to the residents of the 59th Assembly District are being addressed. Successful alternatives to youth incarceration are an important issue to the communities I represent and all Californians. ADVERTISEMENT Among the bills going into effect in 2019, Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer is especially proud to spotlight: AB 1892 (CalFresh) Increases the number of people who are able to participate in CalFresh Employment Training programs, improving access to employment resources; AB 1934 (Dependent persons: definition) Closes a loophole to ensure individuals with disabilities who are living independently are protected against elder and dependent adult abuse; AB 1941 (Misdemeanors) Gives judges more discretion in sentencing decisions in order to better incentivize completion of probation and reduce barriers to successful reentry, such as accessibility to housing and employment options; AB 2532 (Infractions: community service) Standardizes the traffic infraction process in order to make it easier for low-income individuals experiencing financial hardships to pay off some of the nations highest total fines; and AB 2944 (Personal income taxes: voluntary contributions: Schools Not Prisons Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund) Creates the Schools Not Prisons voluntary tax contribution fund to support programs working to end the school to prison pipeline and keep students in schools. ADVERTISEMENT It is an honor to represent the people of 59th Assembly District. I am looking forward to continuing last years work and tackling issues that help keep California moving in the right direction. Assemblymember Reginald Byron Jones-Sawyer, Sr. represents South Los Angeles, Florence-Firestone, Walnut Park, and a portion of Huntington Park. For more information about Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer, Sr., please visit https://a59.asmdc.org/ Assemblymember Jones-Sawyer, Chair of Assembly Public Safety, Applauds Governor Newsoms Announcement to Redesign the Juvenile Justice System The Governors budget is a true reflection of our California values. Over the past few years, we made a number of sound fiscal decisions and produced a surplus with which we can make targeted investments to improve the lives of Californians. By addressing critical needs such as education funding, health care access, and affordable housing, California is again proving to be a model for the rest of the nation. (Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer) ADVERTISEMENT As Chair of the Assembly Committee on Public Safety, I am delighted by Governor Newsoms announcement to end the juvenile justice system as we know it. Moving the juvenile justice system from the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) reflects our growing understanding of what conditions contribute to criminal acts by children and what we must do to help them mature into productive members of our communities. For far too long we have been treating our children as adults instead of providing them with developmentally appropriate rehabilitation services. These efforts will be a much more efficient and effective use of tax payer dollars. This great news follows on the heels of our work last year to further support youth offenders. Last years budget extended Division of Juvenile Justice eligibility, allowing young people to remain in juvenile facilities through the age of 25. This provides more youth offenders with access to rehabilitation programs tailored to their specific needs. Combining this expansion with the $37.3 million we secured last year for the Youth Reinvestment Fund, we can both provide alternatives to incarceration for our youth and ensure that young people, who are incarcerated, successfully reenter society with the skills and training needed to lead productive lives. I look forward to working with Governor Newsom to end the school to prison pipeline. If youre a fan of the Pennsylvania Farm Show, youve likely been toggling between LancasterOnlines coverage and PCNs on TV. I know thats how Ive spent a chunk of my downtime in the last week following stories such as these: But I also follow a bunch of photographers on Instagram, too, and a few were at the farm show in addition to LancasterOnlines own crew. (You can follow LNPs own Instagram account here and see the work of our photographers here.) And as it does often on Instagram, the beautiful work of Lancaster County photographer Jennifer MacNeill caught my eye. She was at the farm show for much of its 2019 run, so I asked Jennifer if we could share a few of her images with our Sunday followers. (For more, follow Jennifers Instagram account at @jmacneillphoto or here.) Back in 2017, we featured Jennifer in the pages of Sunday magazine as part of our own showcase of Lancaster County artists done in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Governors Awards for the Arts event. If you recall, National Geographic selected a photograph of hers to feature. It was a moment worth celebrating. As youll see, that image and her new photographs from this years farm reveal farm life in the same vein. All of the talk about the farm show struck a chord with me as like many of Sundays readers I grew up a country boy. My dad a wannabe farmer in his own right made an annual trip to the farm show from northern Pennsylvania. Whenever I could, I went along. Hed try to plan our trip for a Tuesday so we could watch the horse pull competition in the main arena. I still try to catch that event on PCN whenever Im unable to get to Harrisburg and see it in person. And we probably ate like kings, too and that was well before all of the fun and funky food hit the food court. Enjoy your Sunday. TED SICKLER, EDITOR Also in this edition: THE ISSUE Raymond Rowe, 51, pleaded guilty Tuesday to the rape and murder of 25-year-old schoolteacher Christy Mirack on Dec. 21, 1992, in Miracks Greenfield Estates townhouse in East Lampeter Township. The case of Miracks killing had gone unsolved for 26 years until homicide investigators last year identified Rowe as a suspect after crime scene DNA matched DNA that one of Rowes half sisters had uploaded to a public genealogy database. Rowe was arrested June 25. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to first-degree murder, rape, forced deviate intercourse and burglary seven counts in all. The negotiated plea agreement enabled Rowe to escape a potential death sentence. Lancaster County President Judge Dennis Reinaker sentenced him to life in state prison without the possibility of parole for the murder, and to another 60 to 120 years for the other crimes. There is so much in the terrible story of Christy Miracks murder that haunts us. The fact that her mother, Gerry, died in November 2002 without knowing who had robbed her of her beloved middle child. There were the Christmas presents Christy Mirack had wrapped the night before that were found strewn around the murder scene. Gifts for her sixth-grade students at Rohrerstown Elementary School, they were paperback copies of a childrens book titled Miracles on Maple Hill. Each one was adorned with a candy cane and a note reading, Wishing you a very Merry Christmas and a great 1993! Love, Miss Mirack. How could such generosity, such spirit, have been extinguished with such brutality? There were, of course, the long years of not knowing who had committed this heinous act agonizing years for Miracks friends, her students, her school colleagues, and her family most of all. Rowes secret And then there was Rowe DJ Freez, a popular disc jockey who had performed at so many weddings, so many high school proms. As LNP staff writers Jeff Hawkes and Lindsey Blest reported, Only a few months before the slaying, Rowe was a co-organizer of a Stop the Violence rally on Lancaster Square. The irony is painful, but perhaps not as painful as this: When he was arrested, he was living an outwardly normal life with his fourth wife. As Hawkes and Blest noted, he had remained free for longer than his victim had lived. He had been working as a disc jockey at an elementary school think about that when he left behind used chewing gum and a water bottle for undercover detectives to collect, so they could confirm that his DNA matched that taken from Miracks body and the carpet underneath her body. The work done by investigators on this case was remarkable. They caught a break when Rowes half sister uploaded her DNA to a public genealogy database. Without that hit, Hawkes and Blest noted, Rowe would likely have gotten away with murder. Still, without the tedious and diligent work that followed, this case might not have been resolved. We thank Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman and law enforcement for carrying out that work. The DNA question In a Sunday LNP article in July, Hawkes examined the question of how much privacy people can reasonably expect to have when blood relatives share their DNA with the world. Rowes attorney, Patricia Spotts, told Reinaker on Tuesday that she consulted legal experts about the evidence gathered through a DNA ancestry website. She said she and co-counsel David Blanck concluded Rowes privacy was not violated when a half sister, whom he did not know, made her DNA public to learn about her genetic heritage. This is new territory for everyone. Were relieved it opened up a path to the resolution of this case. The question of why It remains frustrating, of course, that we still dont know why Rowe murdered Mirack. As Blest reports today, authorities arent obligated to disclose a motive. As much as we wish Rowe could be compelled to explain his motive for killing Mirack, theres no legal means of making this happen. We just fervently hope Miracks family gets answers even if the rest of us dont. Harry Goodman, principal of Rohrerstown Elementary at the time of Miracks killing, was the person who discovered her body after she failed to turn up to work. Hell continue to wonder why Rowe murdered her, he told Blest last week. Why would he do this to such a wonderful person? Goodman asked. Why? is the question always asked when something so horrific occurs. Its human nature, we suppose, to want the inexplicable to be explained perhaps because we want to protect ourselves or our loved ones from something so awful. But even if we knew what Rowe believes drove him to act, it wouldnt explain the savagery he inflicted on his victim. Theres just no explaining that. Why? Why are we sitting here together? Miracks brother, Vince, asked Rowe in the courtroom Tuesday. For his part, Rowe said, with a shaking voice, To the Mirack family, I cant imagine what youre going through. I apologize. Given the 26 years he spent living with the knowledge of what hed done, given the cruelty of keeping that silence not to mention the hell Mirack endured as she fought for her life his apology was grossly inadequate. For 26 years, Miracks family had no idea who had taken their daughter, their sister, from them. Miracks father, Vincent, provided a glimpse of the agony they suffered when offered an opportunity to address the court he collapsed, weeping, into his daughter Alicias arms, saying, I cant talk. I cant talk. No wonder. What happened to his daughter, Christy, was unspeakable. Perhaps the most useless word in the English language is this: Closure. There is no closure in a case such as this, even when there is some resolution. All anyone can do is what Christy Miracks brother, Vince, said Tuesday: We must struggle to find peace in our hearts. We wish the Miracks and everyone who knew and loved Christy Mirack peace. THE ISSUE Columbia River Park might add a 700-person amphitheater, a pavilion, an expanded pier, a playground and more as part of the boroughs ongoing revitalization plan, LNPs Junior Gonzalez reported. Last month, an advisory committee discussed the most detailed plan to date to redevelop nearly 11 acres of riverside property from Veterans Memorial Bridge (Route 462) to Wrights Ferry Bridge (Route 30). Columbias location on the banks of the scenic Susquehanna River is a tremendous asset to the borough and one which, frankly, we believe has been underutilized. So were excited that the final phase in the development of Columbia River Park, though still in the early stages, is a step closer to reality. Those 11 riverfront acres between the two bridges have great potential to be enjoyed recreationally by not just Columbias residents, but the rest of Lancaster County and others, too. A project with this much benefit to the public should be fully supported. The estimated $8 million to $9 million price tag is high, so it might take a private-public partnership, or some creative financing, to raise the necessary funds. A caveat, and its a significant one: Borough officials are going to need to do everything they can to minimize the impact on taxpayers. As LNP reported Friday, more than 200 residents and business owners packed a Columbia Borough Council meeting to express their dismay over the boroughs recently enacted 21.2 percent tax increase. The tax rate was hiked from 6.6 mills to 8.0 mills, which would cost the owner of a $137,500 home an additional $192. Thats a whopper of a tax increase. So were guessing Columbia residents arent going to be in the mood for new borough spending. Borough officials will need to make a strong case for the benefits of the riverfront project, and explain how its going to be funded. Discussion on funding for the project hasnt even started, Borough Manager Rebecca Denlinger told LNP, explaining that the long planning process allowed residents to dream big about what can happen. However, the more implementable parts of the final phase may begin construction as early as next year, she said. As Gonzalez noted, the planned expansion would be the final and most ambitious phase of the river parks beautification. Previous phases over the past two decades included the creation of walkways, a launch for boats, canoes and kayaks, and the Columbia Crossing River Trails Center operated by Susquehanna Heritage. The 14-mile Northwest Lancaster County River Trail begins at the Columbia Crossing trailhead. Not all the design questions on the proposed expansion have been answered, but the aim is for the park to showcase the best of Columbia, Denlinger told Gonzalez. In addition to amenities such as the amphitheater, a highlight of the park will be large, open space a Great Lawn overlooking the Susquehanna. Columbia Mayor Leo Lutz described his vision for the lawn to LNP: On a summer day, I can see people spreading a towel out, laying down and reading a book facing the river. The proposed new phase also includes a welcome plaza and history and heritage markers throughout the park. The Columbia River Park Advisory Committee was formed nearly 20 years ago with the goal of honoring the river as well as the history of the site, Denlinger said. The Veterans Memorial Bridge that connects Columbia to Wrightsville has been part of the borough in some form for more than two centuries and guided its 19th-century boom in transportation services and iron production, Gonzalez wrote. An earlier version of the bridge was burned down by Union troops during the Civil War to prevent a Confederate invasion of Lancaster County. Instead, Confederate soldiers marched to Gettysburg for what became the wars pivotal battle. The bridge also has ties to the Underground Railroad, which helped slaves from Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina escape to freedom. Denlinger told LNP the borough received a $45,000 grant from the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources money that was matched by the borough to begin the projects planning and design phase. The funds were used to hire Environmental Planning and Design Architects. The Pittsburgh-based firm used input from town meetings and more than 600 survey responses to design the expanded park around the concept of convergence of paths, people, culture and time, Gonzalez reported. Half of the official plan will be unveiled at the next river park advisory committee meeting Jan. 17, with a full report due at a later meeting. Lutz told Gonzalez his constituents cant wait for the project to be completed. So many times we hear from residents, We dont have stuff to do in Columbia, and were trying to give them that. The river park expansion will certainly give the public, of all ages, plenty to do whether its boating, kayaking, canoeing, trail walking, picnicking, fishing on the enlarged pier, sunbathing on the Great Lawn, running around the playground, or attending a production in the amphitheater. Columbia, a historic but hardscrabble town with a 20 percent poverty rate, needs a shot in the arm. As LNPs Chad Umble wrote last April, Many people in Columbia believe the key to Columbias future is the same thing that spurred its past: the Susquehanna River. Before, many people thought of it as a run-down, blue-collar town, but now people see it as a recreation destination, Brenda Sieglitz, board president of the Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce, told Umble. May it prosper. I am honored to have been selected to lead one of the most important policy discussions facing Pennsylvania today. As the new chairman of the state Senate Education Committee, I understand that the issues before us are as diverse as our commonwealth. It is therefore crucial that we work together to understand and address those issues so that all Pennsylvanians will have the opportunity to achieve success and experience upward economic mobility in an increasingly competitive and dynamic global environment. To that end, I will be reaching out to all of the members of the Education Committee to gather their input, hear their policy priorities and collect feedback. I intend for the work of this committee to be member-driven and bipartisan, with an emphasis on collaboration through an open, ongoing dialogue about the issues that we collectively face. Further, we will be results-oriented. Accordingly, I believe we have an obligation to focus the committees energy on legislation that genuinely has a chance at becoming law. This is not to say that we will not debate and advance an issue for further discussion, but I intend to prioritize advancing those bills on which there is agreement, while also continuing to engage in meaningful conversations to build consensus where it is lacking. By building consensus and arriving at workable solutions, we can create sustainable change in Pennsylvanias education system for the benefit of our students. Specifically, I intend to emphasize those facets of education I believe are central to creating a student-centered system, including, but certainly not limited to: Rigorous academic standards. Meaningful, accurate and fair systems of accountability and transparency. Attracting and retaining high-quality teachers and school leaders. Individualized and customized learning opportunities for students. Throughout my time in the General Assembly, I have believed in the critical role our teachers play in the classroom. The data clearly tells us that teachers are the No. 1 in-school factor determining student academic achievement. It is imperative that we do all that we can to ensure our students have access to high-quality teaching, and that those educators are given the resources they need to deliver a world-class education. These ideas are among many that have been brought to my attention by educators, students and their families, and I intend to continue to incorporate their views into the committees activity over the next two years. In addition to continuing discussions about bolstering school safety, reducing dependence on property taxes for school funding and tackling student loan debt, one of our top priorities will be to make needed changes to the way we evaluate the performance of our teachers. The General Assembly has already taken appropriate steps in the recent past to de-emphasize the use of standardized tests as the sole path to graduation. The next logical step in that process is to reduce the overemphasis of those standardized tests in the statewide teacher evaluation system. As the author of the original teacher evaluation bill in 2012, I can confidently say that the implementation of the current system does not match the original intent. As such, it is our responsibility to get it right, and we are working toward that goal by collaborating with teachers and stakeholders to ensure effective implementation of an accurate, fair and meaningful evaluation system. Accordingly, we must remove existing barriers within the system that have served only to limit the creativity of our professionals in the classroom. Removing these barriers will leave more room for teachers to teach, unleashing their ability to be entrepreneurial and innovative in the classroom. I would also like to devote attention toward increasing support for career and technical education and computer science education. I firmly believe that developing strong CTE and computer science curricula will prepare students for success in the modern job market, cultivate a workforce with relevant skills and secure Pennsylvanias position in the expanding technology sector of Americas economy. Finally, I would like to make higher education funding reform another priority of the committee this session. It is time that we take a look at higher education funding in a more holistic and comprehensive manner by studying all of the players in the system, including the state-related institutions, the state system and the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, among others. I am confident that, along with my own priorities outlined here, the committee as a whole will be committed to a productive and results-oriented agenda over the next two years. I am eager to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle so that together we can continue efforts to build a world-class model of success for our students in Pennsylvania. State Sen. Ryan Aument, a Republican who resides in Mount Joy, represents the 36th District. Nobody is home at Lancaster Countys regional IRS office, where federal workers have been furloughed during the extended, history-making partial government shutdown. But the office in East Lampeter Township still has a message for local taxpayers. Under federal law, all tax payment and filing deadlines remain in effect during this period, the voicemail says from the empty office at 1720 Hempstead Road. Dont forget, the voice emphasizes: People should file and pay their taxes as normal. The Internal Revenue Service announced this week it still plans to process tax returns, and provide refunds as scheduled starting Jan. 28. A significant portion of its workforce will be recalled, the bureau said, even if the shutdown continues. But as long as federal funding is lapsed for the U.S. Treasury Department and several other federal agencies during the now 23-day shutdown, the paychecks for those employees and the services they provide will be at risk. In Lancaster County, shutdown effects have not yet been widespread. Most residents and taxpayers havent personally felt the impact of the wrangling between President Donald Trump and Congress over funding for a southern border wall. Still, thousands of other groups and individuals rely on federal funding and services that have no foreseeable restoration. Theres a real anxiety out there and nervousness about what services are affected and what agencies are closed, said Kristy Aurand, chief development officer for Community Action Partnership of Lancaster County. Her organization is concerned about continuing to receive federal funding for the Women, Infants and Children Nutrition Program known as WIC. Benefiting about 9,000 individuals in the county annually, WIC provides nutrition services, breastfeeding support and food vouchers to pregnant women, mothers and infants in need. Funding through the U.S. Department of Agriculture is ongoing for now and the department said this week it has identified funds for next month but Aurand said her office is eager for guidance on the funding for February and beyond if the shutdown drags on. In the meantime, theyre dealing with questions and misconceptions from those who think theyre closed or not offering other services, such as child care, that arent funded through USDA. The most important thing for us is assuaging some of that anxiety among our customers that we are open and your checks are good and were going to figure it out, Aurand said. Local federal employees About 1,300 Lancaster County residents are employed by the federal government, according to the latest available data from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry. The portion of those who are furloughed or working without pay because they are within one of the affected departments is likely much smaller, though state and federal data do not clearly offer those figures. The total number of affected federal employees across Pennsylvania ranges from 12,600 to 14,200, according to a few estimates based on U.S. Office of Personnel Management data. Its unclear how many workers are furloughed from the local IRS office, which is one of 19 locations statewide, or from the local Farm Service Agency, whose employees work out of the Farm and Home Center in Lancaster. All FSA employees are on furlough due to the lapse in federal government funding, a voicemail at the office says. Please leave us a voicemail. Please note we do not have access to the voicemail due to the current lapse in funding but we look forward to returning your message once funding has been restored. Meanwhile, in the same building, the six employees of the National Resource Conservation Service field office are working, said Molly Hippensteel, spokeswoman for the states NRCS office. Their funding comes from the recently passed Farm Bill, but the FSA offices funding doesnt. Lancaster County Agriculture Council President Lisa Graybeal said she had not heard from any farmers feeling negative impacts at the moment including any who are potentially waiting on the current round of subsidies because of the presidents tariffs. The local NRCS employees have been instructed to collect applications for those subsidies until the FSA office employees return and can process them, Hippensteel said. I dont see any huge impact of the shutdown on day-to-day farming operations and agriculture, Graybeal said. Its a matter of waiting to see how long this is going to last. Airport security Across the country, federal prison employees paychecks have stopped and airport security lines are slowing as Transportation Security Administration agents arent showing up for work. Lancaster County isnt home to any of Pennsylvanias federal prisons or shuttered National Parks, and Lancaster Airport in Manheim Township is operating normally. Theyre here. They're doing their job, airport director David Eberly said of the roughly five TSA employees who work there. No one has refused to work that Im aware of. Eberly said he wasnt sure if they or the roughly seven air traffic control tower employees were being paid. But while it doesnt have a major effect now, he said, the longer it goes, the more impact it has for all of us. We cant load an airplane, we can't depart without TSA screening passengers, he said. Housing and business loans Without the U.S. Housing and Urban Development or the Small Business Administration in operation, others are waiting on loan and mortgage approvals. On the business side, the SBA-funded SCORE Lancaster-Lebanon was open this week, but chapter President Bobb Bewley deferred comment to the national office and declined to talk about how the shutdown was affecting them. And while small business loans have halted across the country, Lancaster Chamber President and CEO Tom Baldrige also said he had not heard from any local businesses on the effects of the shutdown. On the housing side, local Realtors and mortgage brokers say theyre currently mostly at a standstill with getting approval for USDA loans, which allow buyers in rural areas under a certain income to put no money down on a home loan. We dont do a lot of USDA here in Lancaster County but we do some, and whether its one person or many it has an impact, said Richard Boas Jr., president of the Lancaster County Association of Realtors. Boas, whose organization has 13,000 members, said he doesnt have any USDA loans in progress. Wayne Angelo, a mortgage specialist at GMH Mortgage Services in East Hempfield Township, said he has a few USDA loans right now and only one scheduled to close this month that is potentially impacted. But in his case, the seller let the buyer take early possession and the sellers next home isnt dependent on the buyers loan coming through. Other cases could be different where someone needs the proceeds of the settlement on their home to buy their next one, Angelo said. Ada DelValle, an agent with Hostetter Realty in Lancaster city, said shes heard of similar USDA issues creating a domino effect but she isnt dealing with any such loans now either. DelValle, who also has seen a slowdown in sales as buyers are hesitant to begin the process, said shes also had issues acquiring essential tax transcripts to determine if buyers are eligible for their mortgages. I just cant wait until this is over, she said. When David Ludwig drew a pistol and shot a Lititz-area couple to death in 2005, his motive soon became clear: He was furious about not being allowed to see their 14-year-old daughter. When four young men lured 65-year-old Raymond Diener outside his Elizabethtown home, where he was shot to death in May 2007, the motive became clear: The killers were intent on stealing money for drugs. And when Lisa Michelle Lambert committed one of Lancaster Countys most sensational homicides, the 1991 slaying of Laurie Show in East Lampeter Township, her motive came out: She slit the young womans throat in a fit of jealous rage over a boy. But there are murder cases in which the most obvious answer why? is never answered, cases in which guilt beyond a reasonable doubt is proven in court but final closure remains elusive to the families of the victims and a curious public. Prosecutors closed one such case last week. After more than a quarter century of holding his secret, Raymond Rowe admitted Tuesday he raped, strangled and killed 25-year-old schoolteacher Christy Mirack on Dec. 21, 1992. But he did not explain why. Neither have prosecutors. And Miracks friends and family, not to mention a public that was rapt by coverage of her slaying, are left with that singular unanswered question. Why? Why would he do this to such a wonderful person? asked Harry Goodman, the former principal at the school where Mirack taught. Were all very disappointed that that wasnt addressed. The answer may never come. The legality of motive Authorities are under no obligation to disclose a motive. A motive, in many cases, is just a theory and does not serve as hard evidence. And if a killer hasn't disclosed a motive by leaving a note at the scene of a crime or, later, in a courtroom, there's a good chance the family and the public will never get an explanation. Alec Kreider killed himself in prison without divulging a motive for the 2007 stabbing deaths of Tom Haines, his wife Lisa and son Kevin in their home on Peach Lane in the Blossom Hill section of Manheim Township. And two weeks before Rowe pleaded guilty, prosecutors secured a first-degree murder conviction against Raymond Torres without presenting a confession or motive to the jury, District Attorney Craig Stedman said in an email to LNP. We always strive to find out as much as we can about every homicide, including motive, if applicable, Stedman said. In the Rowe case, Stedman said they didnt find enough indisputable facts regarding motive, although authorities believe Rowe targeted Mirack. Rowe confessed his crime through his defense attorney in court. Like motive, a confession also is not needed to secure a conviction, Stedman said. And if he had chosen to give an explanation, it would not necessarily have been the truth, he said. While we understand it is something Christy's family asked for in court, any reason Rowe could have provided would not have diminished his culpability in any way, nor altered the outcome of the case. Whatever deranged logic (there is) behind why he did it ultimately makes no difference, Stedman said. Reasons for giving motive Criminal experts say motive is more likely to come out in a jury trial than in a guilty plea. Lancaster County President Judge Dennis Reinaker said part of the instruction a jury gets indicates that having a motive makes it more likely that a person would have committed a crime than somebody who had no motive. Pegging motive can be used by both the prosecution and the defense. If there's no motive, that's something the defense will bring to the attention of the jury, he said. Or the prosecution can build a motive case as proof. Prosecutors will often try to prove motive because it's persuasive for a jury: a robbery, retaliation, a love affair gone bad, said David Rudovsky, senior fellow at the University of Pennsylvania and expert in criminal law. Rudovsky There's no compulsion for the prosecutor to show motive. There's no compulsion on the defendant to say, This is why I did it.'" - David Rudovsky However, in a guilty plea, motive isn't as likely to come up, he said. There's no compulsion for the prosecutor to show motive. There's no compulsion on the defendant to say, This is why I did it, Rudovsky said. Reinaker, who presided over Rowe's plea, spoke specifically about the hearing. He said while Stedman mentioned circumstances as to how Rowe could have known Mirack, motive or lack of motive didn't enter into it. It was a question of Mr. Rowe admitting his guilt, said Reinaker, who accepted the plea and sentenced Rowe to life in prison without parole, plus 60 to 120 years. Prosecution could consider using motive as a tool in arranging a plea agreement, Rudovsky noted. But he's never seen a case like that. Reinaker also said he's never heard of motive as part of a plea. It could be risky if the defendant refuses, the case goes to trial and the sentence ends up being lower than the original plea. The defendant has a right not to testify," he said. If he or she doesn't' choose to do that, there's no way to get that out of a person." Right to remain silent The only person who can explain motive is a defendant. Everyone else is left in the dark, even defense attorneys at times. Mike Winters, a defense attorney in Lancaster, said attorneys approach this differently. He tries to get as much information from a client as possible. If the motive is helpful in a defense, it's important for the defense attorney to learn and be able to present, he said. Also, motive can help a defense out. A defendant can offer an explanation in hopes of swaying a jury or getting a judge to go for a lesser sentence. If I admit I shot someone in the head, and I did it for a reason that may mitigate my action or decrease the punishment, I'm going to bring that out in court," said Chris Patterson, another Lancaster defense attorney. Most plea deals in Lancaster County Court come with a recommended sentence. If there's an open plea, where the judge gets to decide a sentence based on the sentencing code, it could benefit a defendant to try to get a lower sentence. However, defendants have a right to remain silent even through sentencing, both Winters and Patterson said. Will we ever know? From his perspective as a citizen and not a judge, Reinaker said he finds it hard to believe Mirack was a random target. Rowe could, perhaps, offer an explanation. But that would be really unusual in my experience, Reinaker said. quote "None of us like to think of an event being random. Then we have to face the prospect that it could happen to any of us." - President Judge Dennis Reinaker We'll probably never know what it was. Mr. Rowe is the only one who would be able to say that," he said. Reinaker noted that law enforcement have been actively working on the Mirack case for over 26 years. If they knew a motive, I'm sure law enforcement would say that. None of us like to think of an event being random. Then we have to face the prospect that it could happen to any of us, Reinaker said. There's something more comforting from a psychological point that takes it from that truly random circumstance. It is human nature to ask why. I am a lawyer, not a psychologist. But I've also been asking why since I've been a toddler we all have, said Winters, the defense attorney. Greg Rowe, executive director of the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association, said motive can fill in the blanks, add context and provide reasoning. Were all trying to get to the truth, he said. We can figure out the who, the what, the when and the where. The why we all want to know it. But we dont always know it because we have to deal with the facts and circumstances that the case presents. Jennifer Storm, the Victim Advocate of Pennsylvania, said one of the best things an advocate can do for a victim is empower them with as much information about the criminal process as possible. Even getting the answers can be unsettling. Sometimes victims leave court with more questions than when they entered, she said. Its about putting those pieces together. Ita about putting together what happened to their loved ones, she said. The state office runs programs that lets offenders and victims communicate with each other and even meet in an attempt to fill in the why, she said. When a crime comes into your life, it shatters your life. The why is a big question, Storm said. Sometimes the justice system can answer that question; sometimes it doesn't. A 10-year-old boy was struck by multiple vehicles and killed Saturday while crossing Marietta Avenue with a group of people in West Hempfield Township, according to police. A 17-year-old girl also was hit, and her 21-year-old sister may have been struck by debris, causing a laceration to her head, police said. Both were taken to Lancaster General Hospital, where the 21-year-old was treated and released. The girls condition was unknown Saturday night. Police said they would release names later in the investigation. West Hempfield police and other first responders were dispatched to the 3600 block of Marietta Avenue for a person struck at 5:45 p.m. A 17-year-old female motorist traveling east in a maroon Ford Taurus struck the boy and the girl as they crossed Marietta Avenue from the Silver Spring Cemetery parking lot heading toward Saint Marys Coptic Church, according to police. The motorist was taken to the hospital as a precaution and was later released, police said. The boy was thrown into the westbound lane and the girl was knocked to the side of the eastbound lane on impact, according to police, who added the boy was struck once and possibly twice by motorists traveling in the westbound lane. One of the vehicles traveling in the westbound lane remained at the scene, but police said witnesses reported a black SUV that struck the boy did not stop. Anyone with information about the accident or the SUV can contact West Hempfield police at 717-285-5191 or 1-800-957-2677. State police say a Honduran man living in Leola used a Puerto Rican birth certificate and Social Security card obtained on the black market to stay in the U.S. and work illegally from 2010 onward while waiting to be granted citizenship. Jesus Humberto Guardo Tejada, 35, has been charged with forgery, tampering with public records, identity theft and related charges. He turned himself in to authorities on Friday and was sent to Lancaster County Prison to await arraignment, police said. Police said Guardo Tejada used the Puerto Rican identity documents to obtain a Pennsylvania ID card, which he submitted to tree maintenance companies as evidence of his eligibility to work. After he received citizenship, he reportedly applied for and received a drivers license. PennDOTs security software flagged his other identity, and the case was referred to the state police. When Ismail Smith-Wade-El recalled Saturday that perhaps the one thing his mother, Rita, knew best was how to create a village, the evidence was right there in front of him. Filling the pews at Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Lancaster, a few hundred mourners gathered to pay their final respects to the longtime Millersville University professor of psychology and African-American studies, a woman known as a fierce leader on social justice issues and racial equality in Lancaster and beyond. Rita Smith-Wade-El was to the many family, friends, former students and admirers who attended her funeral services Saturday an unmatched advocate and mentor. I would not be the person that I am today, the thinker that I am, had it not been for Rita, said a former student who is now an MU trustee and state House of Representatives member, Jordan Harris. I am unapologetically black. And I learned to be that from Dr. Smith-Wade-El. After a 10-year battle with triple-negative breast cancer, Smith-Wade-El died in her home Dec. 29 at the age of 70. Her prolonged illness and decision last summer to forgo further treatment had allowed her to plan her funeral months in advance. From the church where she served as a lector, Eucharistic minister and social justice committee member to the pallbearers, eulogy-givers and even the red color of her casket, Smith-Wade-El made the decisions to alleviate any burdens on her sons, Ismail and Ayodele. She always worked to ensure that in her experience, any pain, any suffering, that she had endured, no one else should have to, said Ismail, who delivered one of the eulogies. Dr. Rita Smith-Wade-El was my hero. Ismail, a Lancaster City Council member, described his mother as someone who maybe loved a little too much who always left their Lancaster city home unlocked and with the lights on to show they were open to helping anyone. He recalled a moment as a child when the family was in a financial crisis and at risk of losing their home. They were driving by the Route 30 exit near the Park City Center mall when his mother pulled over to give a homeless man a few dollars. She taught me if you see someone with a need, if someone asks for something that is in your power to give, you give it. And even if it is not in your power, you try anyway, he said. A native of Washington, D.C., Rita Smith-Wade-El earned a bachelors degree in psychology from Barnard College and her doctorate from the University Pennsylvania. She spent the last 35 years teaching at Millersville, where she was the founder and director of the schools African-American studies minor. We had no better credentialed colleague than Rita, said Barbara Stengel, a former MU professor and close friend who also gave a eulogy. She was relentless but also fun, and seemingly impatient even though she rarely was, Stengel said. And her contributions to African-American studies at MU are incalculable, she said. In September, Millersvilles trustees renamed its intercultural center the Dr. Rita Smith-Wade-El Intercultural Center. And her impact goes far beyond the campus. Her involvement in local groups included the Lancaster branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, Compeer Lancaster, and Silvery Moon Chapter No. 56 of the Order of the Eastern Star. She was the recipient of the Essence of Humanity Award from Crispus Attucks Community Center in 2015 and previously was awarded commendations such as the Lancaster YWCA Racial Justice Award and the Church Women Uniteds Lancaster Chapters Valiant Woman Award, as well as its United Nations office Human Rights Award. The mission of the Environmental Protection Agency is to protect human health and the environment. EPA works to ensure that Americans have clean air, land and water, [and to assure that] national efforts to reduce environmental risks are based on the best available scientific information. During the last two years, this mission has been completely subverted by presidential appointments. Trump-selected EPA leadership has aggressively promoted a pro-pollution agenda. Previously leading this campaign was former EPA Director Scott Pruitt, whod described himself on his Oklahoma governmental website as a leading advocate against the EPAs activist agenda. Before being EPA director, Pruitt had filed multiple lawsuits attacking the EPAs work. Since July 5, Trump has left the EPA director position vacant. EPA is currently headed by acting administrator Andrew Wheelan, who spent eight years lobbying for increased fossil fuel use. From one company alone, Wheelans firm received $300,000 or more, annually, to promote the use of coal. PRAIRIE DU SAC About 200 people bundled against a frigid east wind and armed with cameras and binoculars had come to the VFWs Veterans Memorial Park here to take in the release of four bald eagles. Had they stuck around a little longer they could have seen how Marge Gibson and her volunteers at Raptor Education Group Inc. (REGI) in Antigo go about capturing an injured eagle. One of the four eagles, a 2-year-old male that was found injured and emaciated in a wastewater treatment plant in Merrill in early 2018, was re-injured shortly after its release Saturday, forcing Gibson and her crew into action with blankets and sheets as they ultimately corralled the bird near a fence on the west end of the parks campground about 40 minutes after its release. It was a rare instance in which a release has not been a success for Gibson, an internationally renowned raptor rehabilitator. The good news is that the bird suffered only a scratched cornea when it flew into a wooded area. After two or three more weeks in Gibsons northern Wisconsin facility, the eagle should be ready to go again, she said. Its a young bird. The people were a problem for him, Gibson said. He was freaked out. GENOA U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service mussel biologist Megan Bradley has been working without pay since the longest government shutdown in U.S. history began more than three weeks ago. The animals Bradley has been rearing at the Genoa National Fish Hatchery to restore mussel populations native to the Upper Mississippi River some of them federally endangered are too important to let die. Bradley, who has been studying mussels for 12 years and has been with the Fish and Wildlife Service for three, begins the morning as usual with chores: clean the tanks, feed the fish, make sure water is flowing and the oxygen stores are full. But theres no room for error. Colleagues she would normally consult at the La Crosse Fish Health Center if disease broke out have been furloughed because of the shutdown. Funds, including those for fish food that must be ordered a month in advance and will run out in two months, have been frozen. Bradley and her colleagues are on their own. They follow the news from Washington, wonder when government funding will be restored, and continue their work. Its stressful being used as leverage for someone elses priorities, Bradley said. She loves her job and assumes the back pay will arrive, but if this goes on long enough, youre going to have to find another job that pays the bills. The shutdown The government shutdown has taken a toll on federally funded science across the country, including on research and resource management along the Mississippi River. Hundreds of federal scientists and support staff have been forbidden to work or are working in skeleton crews without pay, including those at federal wildlife refuges along the Mississippi River. Interagency planning meetings for river restoration have been canceled or hampered. Delays in data analysis, seen by state partners as minor inconveniences for the time being, could have consequential ripple effects if the shutdown continues much longer. The impasse leading to the government shutdown began when President Trump demanded Congress fund a U.S.-Mexico border wall, or he would refuse to sign appropriations bills needed to fund nine out of 15 federal departments beyond Dec. 21. After Democrats took control of the House in the new congressional year, they proposed separating immigration issues from funding to restore government operations. That approach received some Republican support in the House but not the Senate. Trump has threatened to declare a national emergency so he can bypass congressional approval for the wall. Science on the river Meanwhile, an estimated 800,000 federal workers missed their first federal paycheck Friday, including Bradley and her hatchery colleagues in Genoa and about 90 employees at the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center in La Crosse. The center, UMESC for short, is run by the U.S. Geological Survey and is a hub for aquatic and river ecosystems research, including invasive carp species, as well as a source of scientific support for other agencies.Scientists there work on topics from persistent environmental contaminants that move through aquatic systems into wildlife and climate change impacts on amphibians to the effects of nutrient-driven dead zones on fish and plants that live below the rivers surface. Theyve also worked on hand-held devices that detect invasive carp DNA in fish bait samples and have adapted the technology to identify other species. Sharing data and research with federal, state and academic scientists, as well as the public, is a big part of their mission. The Genoa fish hatchery works primarily on restoring Mississippi River mussel populations decimated by water pollution and commercial overfishing. North America has the highest diversity of freshwater mussels in the world, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and many of them are concentrated in the upper Midwest. Mussels play an important role in repackaging phytoplankton so that the tiny organisms can be used by other animals up the food chain. They also filter out toxic chemicals including heavy metals and petroleum-based pollution. The mussels Bradley works on are endangered or threatened, and have distinct life cycles that hatcheries scientists are trying to optimize in house. Mussels in the wild use food-like appendages to lure certain fish species into carrying their larvae. Bradley scuba dives in the river during the summer to extract larvae from river mussels, which she then sprays into the gills of host fish. The larvae grow within the gills until theyre ready to detach, when theyre about the size of a speck of glitter. Bradley collects the baby mollusks and grows them in tanks until theyre old enough to reproduce, and releases them into the wild. The process takes between one-and-a-half to almost four years, depending on the species. Bradley also studies a species of larvae that latch onto mudpuppies, a type of Wisconsin salamander. These facilities produce science that shapes resource management, promoting clean rivers that enhance recreational value for the public, said Roger Haro, River Studies Center director at the UW-La Crosse. These are interconnected support systems, Haro said. When you decouple one from the other, all of this stops. The centers are also training grounds for the next generation of environmental scientists, including local undergraduate and graduate students who gain valuable experience in areas including water quality analysis, invasive species management and fish culture, Haro said. And theres a human and professional cost to the shutdown. Not only have these people spent years honing specific and unique areas of expertise, Haro said, but they also work extremely hard and provide a public service. The shutdown sends the message that their work is expendable, he said. Canceled meetings The shutdown is also having an effect on the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program, the first comprehensive large-river monitoring, research and ecosystem restoration project in the world. The program, run by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, spans 1,200 river miles and partners with federal agencies and state natural resource departments from Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.Although the Corps is funded for the fiscal year, upcoming planning meetings that require the presence and expertise of federal counterparts from the Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Agriculture have been canceled or put on hold, said Marshall Plumley, the restoration programs regional manager. The Fish and Wildlife Service in particular is a key partner because some of the restoration projects take place on national refuges under its jurisdiction, he said. A meeting this week in Dubuque, Iowa, to identify and discuss criteria for future restorations had to be scrapped because about a third of the attendees couldnt make it, Plumley said. Committee members last met to evaluate project indicators almost a decade ago. The quarterly meeting in February to discuss existing feasibility and restoration projects is up in the air.Gretchen Benjamin, a large river specialist at The Nature Conservancy, is trying to launch a similar interagency restoration program on the lower Mississippi River. Benjamin traveled from La Crosse to Vicksburg, Miss., for a planning meeting Wednesday, but the team leader from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service wasnt able to make it. Shes still furloughed, Benjamin said. But if we dont have this meeting, were going to get behind and miss important deadlines. Trickle-down effects The Upper Mississippi restoration program also conducts resource monitoring across six field stations in five states. Data from river samples, collected year-round, go back more than 30 years. The data is used by to gauge the long-term health of the river. Despite the shutdown, monitoring continues at the field stations, which are run by state partners funded under Army Corps grants.While some monitoring parameters including temperature, acidity and dissolved oxygen levels can be read on site, others including nitrogen and phosphate loading, which drive rampant algal growth, must be analyzed at the Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center, said Jim Fischer, Wisconsin DNR field station leader in La Crosse. Because UMESC has been closed since the shutdown, Fischers team, normally based at the center, had to move its equipment to the local DNR office, including the airboat, ice augers, sampling bottles and water quality meters used to take winter water samples. The relocation and sample analysis delays are inconvenient, Fischer said, but nothing they havent dealt with before. Its a different story if the government shutdown persists, said Mel Bowler, Iowa Department of Natural Resources fisheries specialist at the Bellevue field station. Field samples have a limited shelf life, Bowler said. No amount of freezing or formaldehyde will preserve them after a few months. If the 150 samples they collected this and next week cannot be used, that would be a waste of manhours, he said, but a task theyd want to repeat rather than break more than 30 years of continuous data. And theres always a tipping point. If the shutdown went on long enough that people at UMESC and other federal scientific posts had to go find other jobs after several months of not getting paid, its questionable whether theyd reopen the center, said John Chick, team leader at the Great Rivers field station in Illinois. The science at UMESC is beyond what we do here, Chick said. If the center goes, so do the field stations, the economy of the small towns that depend on field stations, and the continuous resource monitoring program itself. That would be devastation. Jennifer Lu is the La Crosse Tribune environmental reporter. You can reach her by phone at 608-791-8217 and by email jennifer.lu@lee.net. Love 2 Funny 1 Wow 1 Sad 3 Angry 4 La Crosse Tribune Extra Effort Awards The La Crosse Tribune Extra Effort Awards honor seniors in our area who have been chosen by their high schools for their perseverance and dedication to overcoming obstacles or providing exemplary service to the community. As original partners in our 23-year-old program, the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Viterbo University and Western Technical College continue to provide scholarship support and host a year-end reception for winners, their families and area educators. In addition, the list of scholarship contributors continues to grow as the inspiring stories of Extra Effort winners bring more generosity from our community. Donors include Johns, Flaherty & Collins; the La Crosse Community Foundation through its General Fund, Randy Smith Leadership Fund, Neil P. Hengst Scholarship Fund and Robert and Eleanor Franke Charitable Fund; the Mitchell/Kruck Scholarship, and the American Association of University Women, La Crosse chapter; Trust Point; Fred and Ruth Kurtz of Onalaska; Mary Jo and Shawn Werner, town of Campbell; Jerry Raddatz of Winona, Minn.; Marine Credit Union; and the La Crosse Tribune. Morgan forwarded a note to Gow from alumnus Andy Ellingson, who wrote: Rest assured your association wont get a dime from me. I could win the Powerball and I wouldnt give (UW-La Crosse) a dime. Another angry alumna, Sharon, whose last name was withheld, wrote that she would stop donating to the university after 27 years of doing so. But the majority of email senders stood behind Gow. A UW-La Crosse student whose name was withheld wrote that she transferred to the campus last spring and Gows invitation reinforced that it was the right decision for her. University library services assistant Liz Bass wrote along those same lines: Porn is pervasive in our society via the Internet, and to not shine a light on it through open, rational discussion means it remains in the dark, secreted away to be manifest in unhealthy and often injurious ways. Thank you for trying to bring this darkness into the light. Alumnus Matthew Dockter acknowledged he personally wouldnt be interested in listening to Hartley speak, but applauded Gow for providing a forum for someone outside the mainstream. Thats the Wisconsin Idea in action, he wrote. Three others asked for Gows resignation. In addition to the strain on their agencies resources, Waldhart, Fortner and Brown lament the stigma and other obstacles that the people they serve endure merely to survive, let alone having opportunities to thrive. I think the population we serve has enough to deal with, and this is one thing more that they shouldnt have to worry about, Waldhart said. Disadvantaged individuals and families often are the first to suffer during such government actions, Fortner said. I have thought for some time that we have been victimizing low-income people with increasing regulations for assistance, she said. The assumption that low-income people are not working is wrong. The majority on Food Share and other programs are working at low-income jobs, but the prices are going up. Assuming they are not working is just not fair its like saying all gun owners are irresponsible or violent because a few are, Fortner said. Generalizations are not fair. The shutdown isnt necessarily surprising, given the political climate in the country, Couleecaps Brown said, adding, Many of us have some level of doubt about the speed with which it will be resolved. Obviously, its gone on longer than expected a month or two is critical for programs. The savory, spicy aroma of chili wafted up the stairs and out the front doors of the La Crosse Center on Saturday, drawing in hungry passerby and community-minded diners for the fifth annual Beer By Bike Brigade Chili Slam. With 53 varieties, ranging from mild to heartburn-inducingly hot, meat-free to meat-lovers, the estimated 1,000 patrons at the fundraiser had plenty of options to please their palates and satisfy their hankerings for a steaming bowlful on a cold day. The Beer By Bike Brigade, which hosts regular philanthropic-minded community gatherings, was founded by a group of people who wanted to do a silly little bicycle bar hop, said Alan Kantowski, co-organizer of the Chili Slam with Mario Youakim. It grew and grew, and through the generosity of the group started to support community needs. Each year, the Chili Slam supports a local organization, including Habitat for Humanity and Big Brothers, Big Sisters, with proceeds from the 2019 cook off benefiting the La Crosse Area Mountain Bike Race Team for the second consecutive year. More $5,000 went to the group last year, funding bikes and helmets for low-income team members, bike racks and repair tools. The team has doubled in size during the past year, from 35 members to 80, and donations from yesterdays event will help the team support its members with equipment from Coulee Bicycle Co. in Onalaska and continue to grow. Were extremely fortunate to have their support, said Traci Breit of the La Crosse Area Mountain Bike Race Team. Kids are able to participate who wouldnt normally be able to. The mountain biking community is really close, said six-year team member Avery Luebke, 16. You meet a lot of good people. Patrons paid $5 to enter the event, voting for their favorite chilis with additional $1 donations. The winning chef will take custody of the coveted, traveling BBBB trophy, crafted by Paul Reardon of Blue Steel Bike and bragging rights. Smiths Bike Shop took the honors in 2018, with Fazyes earning the title in 2017. Chili makers, which include local businesses, restaurants and nonprofits, pay for their own ingredients, some using the preparation as social gathering. We made it last night as a team, said Breit, who created the recipe for their sweet venison chili. It would be spectacular, super fortunate if we won. Fanny Freckles of Mississippi Mayhem (also known as Rebecca Brown) was looking to convert the carnivores in attendance with her Vegan Monster Mash Chili, tagline No frank, just beans. I like the cause, and just wanted to come out and support the community and eat good food, Freckles said of entering a dish for the first year. People are saying its one of the best vegan chilis here and the best theyve had overall. Taking her monster mash theme seriously, with frosty makeup and a zig-zag striped beehive hairdo, Freckles attracted curious customers to her booth and hoped they would walk away pleasantly surprised by her hearty chili. A lot of people say chili isnt chili without meat they dont know beans, Freckles quipped. Tasting their way around the La Crosse Center North Hall, friends Ellie Hoffman and Erica Flynn cast their vote for the chili verde Three Rivers Lodge, which followed Hoffmans motto of dont be afraid of spice. Three Rivers Lodge, which earned the trophy in 2016, appeared a top contender once again, with tasters abuzz with compliments. Restore Public House, which is slated to open soon at the former location of The Mint at 1810 State St., introduced future customers to its culinary skills, serving up a vegetable-centric, spicy duck fat delicacy. Local artist Annie Morris, whose husband helped man the booth, was delighted to take part in the Chili Slam, selling greeting cards she collaborated on with Youakim at the event merchandise booth. Card sales will support local arts education, from large scale murals to paints, paper and colored pencils for classrooms. Mario is a beautiful conduit for bringing the community together for a good cause, Morris said. He puts in so much time to support the community. Whose chili is best? Results from the BBBB Chili Slam are posted on the group's Facebook page. Emily Pyrek can be reached at emily.pyrek@lee.net. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. - Jinkee Pacquiao and her twin sister Janet Jamora celebrated their birthday together in Los Angeles, California, U.S.A. - The twins threw a yacht party along the popular coastal community of Marina Del Rey - The twin wore complementing athleisure OOTDs and enjoyed their yacht party PAY ATTENTION: Click "See First" under the "Following" tab to see KAMI news on your News Feed! Jinkee Pacquiao celebrated her birthday with her twin sister Janet Jamora in Los Angeles California, U.S.A. yesterday, January 12. They threw a lavish yacht party in Marina Del Rey. Their outfits had always fascinated their followers as they are equally fashionable. On one of her birthday posts, Jinkee wrote, "With each new dawn, delivered to your doorstep is a fresh new package called "today"... God has designed each of us in such a way that we can handle only one package at a time... And all the grace we need will be supplied by Him as we live out that day. So today be a reflection of what you like to see in others. If you want love, give love... If you want honesty, be honest... If you want respect, give respect... If you want to be blessed.. Be a blessing! " PAY ATTENTION: Using free basics app to access internet for free? Now you can read KAMI news there too. Use the search option to find us. Read KAMI news while saving your data! In a previous report by , Jinkee received five expensive gifts from Manny. Pacman's family celebrated new year in the U.S. as Manny is getting ready for his upcoming fight with Adrian Broner on January 19, in Las Vegas, Nevada. Jinkee Pacquiao worked as a sales attendant for a cosmetics brand before she met Manny Pacquiao. Her uncle introduced her to Manny, who happened to be the latter's trainer at that time. They first met in a shopping mall where Jinkee used to work. They got married in 2000 and they have 5 children - Emmanuel Jr., Michael Stephen, Mary Divine Grace, Queen Elizabeth and Israel. POPULAR: Read more about Jinky Pacquiao here Enjoyed reading our story? Download KAMI's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major Filipino news! Social Experiment: Dropping Wallet in Quiapo and Cubao | HumanMeter A social experiment testing people's honesty was done in Quiapo and Cubao. The experiment was done by dropping a wallet on purpose to find out how many of the respondents would return it. Click the play button and restore your faith in humanity. Source: Kami.com.ph The Morning Show KENOSHA WGTD (91.1 FM) is owned and operated as a public service of Gateway Technical College and is an affiliate of Wisconsin Public Radio. For an updated schedule, visit its website at www.wgtd.org. The Morning Show airs every weekday morning between 8:10 and 9 a.m. Following is a schedule of show topics for the coming week: Monday 12-year-old Racine entrepreneur Alex Hart-Upendo. His business, Build-a-Bow, creates custom designed bow ties. Tuesday Joshua Goldstein, author of A Bright Future: How some countries have solved climate change and the rest of the world can follow. Wednesday Guida Brown talks about alcohol addiction and calls for changes in the laws for OWI. Thursday Mount Pleasant Village President David DeGroot, Village Administrator Maureen Murphy, and Foxconn Project Director Claude Lois. Friday Ryan Robinson, author of #Chill: Turn off your job and turn on your life. As debate continues around the United States about what should or shouldnt be done to protect the southern border, another debate is playing out locally the proposal for Wisconsin drivers licenses for people here illegally. If the law changed to allow people here illegally to get drivers licenses, an estimated 32,000 people in Wisconsin would be able to do so, according to a report by Kids Forward, a left-leaning research organization. That is a lot of people. In recent weeks, the Racine Unified School Board and the citys Affirmative Action and Human Rights Commission met to discuss resolutions supporting law changes that would allow drivers licenses for people here illegally. As this discussion has been taking place, there has been a glaring issue a shortage of public notice. On Dec. 3, when the Unified School Board resolution to support drivers licenses for undocumented residents was first presented to board members, not all board members were prepared because the proposal wasnt actually on the published agenda. In addition to board members not having time to digest the proposal, the public also wasnt notified. But three members of the public were there to speak in support of the resolution. BURLINGTON Burlington Area School District Superintendent Peter Smet is set to formally submit his resignation at Mondays School Board meeting. He plans to step down at the end of the school year, on June 30. Smet started his career at BASD in 1988 as the vocational education and computer systems coordinator and served in that capacity until 1996 when he became the districts business manager. He has been certified to be a superintendent since 2007, according to the district. When former Superintendent Dave Moyer resigned in 2012, Smet was selected to succeed him as superintendent. In a Journal Times article on Smets nomination, he said he would focus on budgeting since the district would receive less state aid, becoming more dependent on property taxes, a situation that still rings true. During his time as superintendent, the district offered 4K classes, partnered with Gateway Technical College to move the Architecture Construction and Engineering (ACE) program to its campus next to Burlington High School and has overseen a district that consistently has nets positive student test scores. Do you want to manage your remote workers effectively? If yes, you are in the right place. In this article,... Its a play about our dreams, as young people, how we dream and how fragile they are, he said. Rachel Proite, a senior theater and education major at Carthage who plays Clara, said the biggest challenge for her when taking on this role was understanding the situation her character was in. I came from a very sheltered lifestyle, she said. I grew up in a bubble. The subject matter was eye-opening to her. Both Proite and Ben Braun, who plays Trey, Madisons love interest, talked with people whove seen opioid addiction up close in preparation for their roles. During that preparation, two mothers who lost their sons to heroin overdoses spoke to the cast about that experience. It made it all the more human to me and all the more real, Proite said. I think that was the most impactful thing. It was heartbreaking. Braun traveled to Milwaukee to speak with veterans who struggle with addiction, and said he learned how to better research an acting role when prepping for the play. For its first 45 years, Racine Dental Group was still at its original location,1320 S. Green Bay Road. As the practice grew and grew over the years, so did the building. Then, in 2014, Racine Dental opened its new clinic, with its majestic atrium and abundant windows and wood, on Airline Road. The next year it won the Group Practice Design of the Year Award from the Dental Practice Design Group, highlighting the excellent patient flow and comfort the building provides. It was a big deal for outside groups, nationally, to come in here and look at our practice and say, What a great facility you guys built, Scherrer said. Were proud of that, and were proud that we were able to give this back to the community that has supported us for so long. Its not just a pretty building; Racine Dental has the latest technology and capabilities to maximize its quality of care. Those include: intraoral cameras; digital x-rays that allow earlier detection with significant reductions in radiation; same-day crowns; same-day tooth implants; and 3D CT scans. The latter makes implant surgeries much more precise, much less risk, less recovery time when you have that technology, Cruthers explained. Our mission is to devote excellence in our patient care and the continued professional growth of our team, Scherrer said. Our vision is to be southeastern Wisconsins premier center for comprehensive dental care. Love 6 Funny 1 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 The business news you need With a weekly newsletter looking back at local history. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. Detailed master plans would be created for those areas, Palenick said. He said the city would also ask for a less detailed, conceptual plan for the large, mostly vacant High Ridge Centre property to the north of Regency Mall a property which is in bankruptcy. That way, if there is future developer interest in the area, the city would be able to share those ideas in relation to what will happen at and around Regency Mall. Tens of millions in return Palenicks memo to the RDA states that city policy on the use of IG funds requires at least a five-to-one return on money used from that source. In the case of hiring Franke and Rinka, that would necessitate a return of more than about $454,000. But city staff thinks that would be a cinch. We believe the use of IG is entirely appropriate in this case because (the money) will go toward furthering what we believe can ultimately be tens of millions in new investment in exchange for a relatively modest, one-time expense for high-quality, conceptual and design plans, along with the marketing and development skills to recruit and solicit he developers who will put such plans and investment in place, Palenick wrote. Building a wall or a steel fence on our southern border is absolutely critical to our national security and long overdue. Unlike what you may have heard, a barrier is not saying immigrants can't come to our country. Instead, it's saying to come here legally through the proper channels, and do not cross into our country illegally. In conjunction with drones, increased border patrol officers, and other surveillance methods, a barrier will help cut down the flow of illegal drugs and weapons from entering our country. Some Democrats have said walls and fences don't work and they are a waste of money, but they know that's not true. In fact, just a few years ago these same Democratic leaders were all in for constructing a wall. What's changed? Less drugs and weapons? Less human trafficking? If you don't think walls work, do some research or ask Israeli citizens. Israel has a barrier along the West Bank. It's more than 250 miles long, and they'll confirm it works exactly as planned. Israel has demonstrated its security barrier is close to 100 percent effective in stopping illegal entry by migrants, terrorist infiltration and weapons trafficking. To continue to do nothing is encouraging illegal immigration, and that's what is really inhumane. Dave Kirby, Lincoln Love 5 Funny 3 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 Monday morning, I would have bet that Gov. Pete Ricketts couldn't disappoint me any more than he already has. I would have lost that bet. On Monday, Ricketts refused to issue a proclamation honoring the 2019 One Book One Nebraska awardee, "The Blessed Earth." Ricketts hasn't actually read the book. He just doesn't like the political views of the author, Ted Genoways. Quoting our censorious governor: "The author has been a political activist, been very critical of our national leaders and so forth." Apparently, if you criticize Donald Trump, you don't receive honors given to other Nebraskans. This case reminds me that another Nebraska novelist, also a political activist, once wrote the novel "Capital City," a barely disguised critique of the corruption in Lincoln. To punish her, her apartment was ransacked, and in fear of her life she was forced to move to Denver. Maybe Ricketts would like to remove Mari Sandoz's bust from the State Capitol? Gerard Harbison, Lincoln Love 11 Funny 2 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 Kennedy may not be a good example for the point Smarick is making: As the word "continued" suggests, Kennedy was already a leading Democrat, thanks largely to his last name, before that 1980 challenge. I would defer to others who were paying closer attention to politics than I was at the time, but my sense is that the 1980 run detracted from rather than enhanced his reputation: A disastrous interview with Roger Mudd stuck to him, and some Democrats blamed him for softening up Jimmy Carter before the general election. Leaving that aside, there's a reason Smarick has to ask us to recall such primary challengers: Serious primary campaigns against the renomination of a sitting president have gotten rarer. The last one was Patrick Buchanan's challenge to George Bush in 1992, and even that campaign was only somewhat serious: It posed a threat of harming the incumbent president, not really of denying him the nomination. The next most recent example? Kennedy. Why don't incumbent presidents draw serious primary challengers anymore? I suspect the answer has to do with two related trends: the increased ideological uniformity of the parties and the rise of negative partisanship. President Trump, in his address to the nation, defended the righteousness of his proposed border wall. "Some have suggested a barrier is immoral," he said, but it's really an expression of "love." He has a point. The trouble with the wall isn't that it's evil, but that it's medieval. If the plan is to bet the United States' national security on the siege-warfare technology of the ancient and medieval worlds, which is what a wall does, then our strategy has to be much more Byzantine. I therefore reached out to various medievalists around the world to get their recommendations on how the United States can use technology that became obsolete in the 16th century to deter the murderous hordes of Trump's fantasy amassing on the Mexican border. Just as the Pentagon undertakes a Nuclear Posture Review every few years, I did a Medieval Posture Review -- and we're slouches. To turn the 2,000-mile border into the walled fortress Trump desires, my experts suggest a medieval arms race as terrifying as the plague. Not only will we need a 30-foot "glorious wall" (Trump will like that term) with towers rising to 50 feet, but we'll also need two more "curtain" walls, a moat and an earthen berm to keep away the invading migrants' siege towers, ladders, battering rams and poleaxes. By ceding telecommunications infrastructure to big, monopolistic carriers such as Comcast, Verizon and AT&T, the U.S. government has effectively given up its role in information technology policy, Crawford says. The Federal Communications Commission under President Obama as well as President Trump, allowed the companies to develop vertically integrated systems in which they own the distribution systems as well as the content moving over those systems; Comcast owns NBC Universal, AT&T owns Time Warner properties including CNN and Warner Bros., and Verizon owns Huffington Post, Yahoo, and other former AOL properties. These guys plans will be to have islands of exclusive content, Crawford told me. You will join the Comcast world when youre born, or the AT&T world. That control removes the incentive for the internet carriers to spend much to upgrade their distribution networks to fiber, she argues. Theyre looking for ways to make more money out of the same physical infrastructure, not for ways to expand that infrastructure. They feel theyve reached the number of people they want to serve, and now theyre just looking for how to make more money from them. Californias largest power company faces an existential crisis as it confronts the looming possibility of tens of billions of dollars in wildfire liability. Shares of PG&E Corp. which owns Pacific Gas & Electric Co. sank 22.3 percent to $18.95 on Monday after reports that the utility could face at least $30 billion in liability related to fires and has considered filing for bankruptcy protection or unloading its natural gas operations. The consequences of bankruptcy or an asset sale could ripple far beyond the utilitys shareholders, some experts say, affecting 16 million Californians who depend on PG&E for energy and potentially threatening the states ability to meet its climate-change goals. The utility has faced tremendous scrutiny over the last decade, starting with a 2010 gas explosion that killed eight people in San Bruno and continuing with among the deadliest and most destructive fires in state history, some of which may have been sparked by PG&Es infrastructure. The California Public Utilities Commission is considering breaking up the company as part of an investigation into PG&Es safety culture. It's a rare moment when Gov. Pete Ricketts gets to pause and reflect on his first term as the 40th Governor of Nebraska. But on Saturday evening at the 2019 Inaugural Ball, a crowd of more than 2,300 got the chance to see the governor and first lady Susanne Shore stand together onstage at Pinnacle Bank Arena and do just that. "Oh, you're staying up on stage?" Ricketts joked to his wife during his opening remarks, before the first lady made an impromptu speech of her own. With a term under her belt as first lady, Shore reflected on the journey she's been on with her husband, one she joked she never even intended to embark upon. In the end, she said she couldn't be more grateful. "I did not anticipate this path we took," Shore said. "And we can't thank you all enough for letting Pete and I make this state and the world a better place." The theme was a celebration of not just the beginning of Ricketts' second term as governor, but one for all Nebraskans. Even the food followed the theme, with Nebraska beef flank steaks and a dessert by Lincoln High Society Cheesecakes. Zipline Brewing Co. does seasonal beers in both the summer and fall, as well as a half-dozen small batches each year. While the company plans well ahead with all of its federal and state filings, delays are likely to be inevitable this year if the federal government shutdown continues. "We are generally ahead of the curve on filings and try to do as much in advance as we can," said Tom Wilmoth, one of the owners of the Lincoln-based craft brewer. But Wilmoth said all of those projects "will be held up" if the shutdown continues. The Treasury Departments Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau has to sign off on all new beer labels and formulations, and with the shutdown ready to enter its fourth week, many of those activities have been delayed or suspended. "They usually process labels in 10 days or so, but now its 45, and the backlog is growing daily," Wilmoth said in an email. He said that even after the shutdown is over and federal offices reopen, Zipline expects to wait up to 90 days to get necessary approvals. "Pretty much anyone who ships beer out of state is affected, potentially," Wilmoth said. A take action reception will follow with various nonprofits on hand so viewers can learn ways to connect with mental health resources in Lincoln. The documentary premiering Wednesday will be the first in a four-part series, said Brittany Mascio, director of marketing for Nebraska Loves Public Schools. The first episode is what were calling 101 a way for us to understand that mental health is something that affects students in school today, she said. The episode captures what happens in a school counselors office. Thats really what we tried to do, be a fly on the wall. The next episodes will focus on the science of whats happening with students, the challenges in both rural and urban settings, the impact of social media, and short- and long-term solutions. The movie features public schools in Crete, Elkhorn, Exeter-Milligan, Millard, Ralston, Seward, Wilber-Clatonia, Educational Service Units 6 and 13, Project Harmony (which supports child abuse victims and non-offending family members in Omaha), state Sen. Kate Bolz of Lincoln and Daniel Siegel, a clinical professor of psychiatry at the UCLA School of Medicine and executive director of the Mindsight Institute. The organization hopes to release at least two more episodes this year. Cindy Lange-Kubick Columnist Cindy Lange-Kubick has loved writing columns about life in her hometown since 1994. She had hoped to become a people person by now, nonetheless she would love to hear your tales of fascinating neighbors and interesting places. Follow Cindy Lange-Kubick Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Last week, Martha Shulski was talking about what she knows best. Rainfall and drought. Heat and cold. Past weather and future weather and what it all means. As always, the state climatologist tailored her message to her audience, which in this case was made up of irrigators who had gathered in Fort Collins to talk water. She planned to talk about climate in the short term seasonal outlooks, managing surface water, and a bit about our changing climate, too, she said on the eve of her Friday talk. The 44-year-old has been Nebraskas climatologist for three years; a climatologist for 17. Shes the director of the State Climate Office and an associate professor in the School of Natural Resources at UNL. So she has the credentials. And shes often asked to share what she knows, which means she was tolerant of a newspaper reporters many questions, which are best summed up as: IS THE WORLD COMING TO AN END IN 2050? While I have zero scientific credentials when it comes to global warming and climate change, I do have a propensity to panic. But Im also pretty smart and I rely on science and scientists to help me understand whats happening on my home planet and why. Public health officials at the Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha released an individual they had been monitoring for Ebola symptoms for over two weeks Saturday morning, according to a medical center news release. The release stated the individual never developed the disease and poses no risk to the public. "This person completed the required 21-day monitoring period and did not develop symptoms of the disease," Dr. Ted Cieslak, an infectious diseases specialist at Nebraska Medicine, said in the release. The individual is an American health care provider who was admitted to the medical center on Dec. 29 for monitoring following a possible exposure to the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Nebraska Medicine has previously monitored several individuals for Ebola since the virus' outbreak in 2014. If the individual had shown symptoms of the disease, they would have been transported to the Nebraska Biocontainment Unit for treatment, which was previously used to treat three Ebola patients in 2014. Reach the writer at 402-473-7214 or eclopton@journalstar.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 A three-vehicle accident near Pioneers Park sent five people to the hospital Saturday evening. Rescue crews were dispatched just before 6 p.m. to 3216 W. Van Dorn St. on a reported collision involving two pickups and one four-door sedan. The sedan and one of the pickups slid into a ditch on the side of the road. Lincoln Fire and Rescue acting Battalion Chief Ron Trouba said that when rescuers arrived, they had to extricate five people who were trapped in one of the vehicles. All five were transported to Bryan West Campus for further medical care. The conditions and identities of the five patients was unknown as of Saturday night. This is a developing story. Stay with JournalStar.com for updates. Reach the writer at 402-473-7214 or eclopton@journalstar.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Paramedic Rob Ravndal went on hundreds of emergency calls before the one response that ultimately ended his career at Lincoln Fire and Rescue. The trauma of that call, a 3-year-old's drowning in 2015, sent the father of young children into a spiral. Nightmares. Breakdowns. A general sense of fear. Even after his bosses pulled him off the ambulance, Ravndal struggled at work and at home as he grappled with post-traumatic stress disorder. One of five firefighters or paramedics nationwide will suffer from PTSD during their career, according to the Journal for Occupational Health Psychology. Ravndal sought treatment, eventually becoming the first Lincoln firefighter to use a service dog. But he never returned to full-duty and ended his nine-year tenure in October, walking away from the job the he said made him feel like a superhero. Ravndal, 46, hopes sharing his experiences grappling with the disorder and trying to continue his career will help change the culture toward first responders experiencing PTSD. "If the people don't do something to change it, they can't be upset if they call 911 and nobody comes," he said. The injury Lisa Ravndal could tell her husband loved his job when he joined the force in Lincoln in 2009 after serving as a paramedic in Gillette, Wyoming. Rob Ravndal, she said, was passionate about the work he did out of Station 8 in Irvingdale and "it showed." Ravndal was well-liked and well-respected among his peers, Lincoln Firefighters Association President Adam Schrunk said. He was one of a few paramedics trusted by Lincoln Fire and Rescue to perform an emergency medical procedure, rapid sequence intubation, a high-risk technique to preserve an airway in patients with life-threatening injuries, Schrunk said. "It's a lot of fun being Superman," Ravndal said of the paramedic job. But in October 2015, Ravndal was called to a home where a 3-year-old child had drowned. His daughter had just turned 3. Just how much that call changed him wasn't immediately apparent to Ravndal or his family. But two weeks later, he was crying for no reason, waking up in the middle of the night. His nightmares grew in intensity. So did his anger. One day, he broke down while on-duty in the garage of his station. "Every time that the tones (for emergency calls) went off, I had this feeling that the whole thing was going to happen again," he said. After talking to his captain, he went to see the Employee Assistance Program counselor. In those sessions, he felt anxious about his participation and worried notes would be shared with his superiors. Still, he continued working on the rigs and continued the sessions for 18 months, until his symptoms got worse. Though he was seeing the counselor, he wasn't receiving treatment, Ravndal said. "After that (call), I literally lost my soul," he said. "I was just a shell." Finally in May 2017, he connected with a therapist in Omaha who specializes in working with first responders. She told Ravndal to take time off because he needed to heal. But ineligible for injury leave, he burned through sick time and vacation time until August, when he took family medical leave, Ravndal said. Ravndal had already hired an attorney and filed a worker's compensation claim that June, but he wasn't treated the same as firefighters who suffer physical injuries in the line of duty, he said. State lawmakers in 2010 extended workers compensation coverage to mental injuries suffered by first responders in the line of duty. But injury leave for a mental injury suffered in the line of duty wasn't specifically mentioned in the city's contract with the firefighter's union. Fire Chief Micheal Despain, who was hired in 2016, declined to comment on Ravndal's case, citing the personnel issue. The primary wage earner in his household, Ravndal had to return to work "because the city had not taken any ownership of my injury," he said. On Sept. 1, 2017, he returned to work on light duty. And despite his sessions with therapists and the aid of a specialized six-day retreat in California, being at work made his life harder. Doing paperwork and running errands for the fire department weren't the difficult, grueling shifts he'd worked as a paramedic, but Ravndal said he continued to struggle at home and on-duty. "It was hard; it was exhausting." 'Living one hour at a time' By November 2017, Lisa worried about her husband every day she went in to work as a substitute teacher. That summer, she'd noticed he'd been separating from his family, gaining weight, sleeping all the time or not at all. While on light duty, he'd call in sick some days when his anxiety proved too much, and Lisa felt uneasy. What would happen on the days she left him by himself, she thought: "We're hunters. We have guns." That year, first-responder suicides in the U.S. exceeded all line-of-duty deaths for police officers and firefighters, according to a study released in April 2018. One night around Thanksgiving, Ravndal had deteriorated to the point his friends at work intervened. He had called out sick, and they went to his home asking him to get help. "The day they came over, I was just living one hour at a time," he said. "I would get to 12 o'clock, and I'd be like, 'OK. I can hang on 'til 1.'" Ravndal sought admission to Lasting Hope in Omaha Nov. 30 and received mental health treatment there for several days before he was accepted for treatment at the International Association of Fire Fighters Center for Excellence in Maryland. In Lincoln, his coworkers rallied in support, working overtime to cover his shifts so the Ravndal family could continue to receive a paycheck while he was away. An online crowdfunding platform raised more than $8,000. And in Texas, on the recommendation of Ravndal's therapist, a trainer prepared a black and tan coonhound to be his service dog, capable of quelling anxiety attacks and managing his PTSD symptoms. He arrived home Jan. 13, 2018, with new coping strategies, awaiting his service dog's arrival. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} He researched how paramedics like him in other states had brought their service dogs to work, offering hope that he could resume his life-saving career. "Why should this be a big deal?" Ravndal recalled thinking. "It's the law." Ravndal's return On Jan. 10, 2018, Ravndal emailed Despain and asked for accommodation for his service dog under the Americans with Disabilities Act. He explained the dog would remain kenneled at the station and would not go on any emergency calls. Ravndal would provide its kennel, feed and any necessary housekeeping. The next day, Lincoln's fire chief responded that he was exploring the issue and told Ravndal, "Hope to see you back here soon." City officials declined to answer specific questions, but emails Ravndal provided to the Journal Star offer insight on his request for accommodation. After follow-up emails to Despain, the city's human resources staff and City Attorney Jeff Kirkpatrick's office, his request was acknowledged, but an answer didn't come until Feb. 2. In an email that day, Assistant City Attorney Don Taute told Ravndal the city needed more information from his doctor and therapist addressing his ability to return to full-duty. "Leaving aside for the moment your question about a 'service dog' which you characterize as a request for a reasonable accommodation, the first matter to be addressed is your work status and whether you can return to work at this point in time," Taute said. Meanwhile, Ravndal found an instant connection with Pride, the coonhound that arrived on Feb. 1. Pride would get between other people and Ravndal to give him a sense of anxiety-reducing protection. When he'd sense an attack coming, Pride would get up on Ravndal's lap, applying a deep pressure therapy that calmed him, he said. "He's the perfect dog for me, and I'm the perfect person for him," Ravndal said. On Feb. 20, Ravndal again asked to discuss bringing Pride to work, but he was told that city officials were still talking it over and needed other information about his medications. The next day, Ravndal faced a pivotal decision. He had to show up for work on light duty without Pride or be terminated because his time under the Family Medical Leave Act had expired. So he went to work. On Feb. 22, Taute told Ravndal his light duty was the accommodation being made for him, since he wasn't able to return to full duty. The debate continued, even as Ravndal completed simple tasks. His therapist, Stephanie Levy, began pushing for Taute to allow Ravndal to bring Pride to work, stressing the service dog's role in helping him to return to full duty. Taute asked whether Ravndal would be able to perform his paramedic duties on the scene without his service dog. "I am saying (Ravndal) is not able to even try full duty at this point because his symptoms are too severe," Levy responded. "I'm hoping with having (his) service dog on light duty his symptoms would stabilize and help (him) progress to full duty." A month later, Ravndal, a staff attorney from Disability Rights Nebraska and others met with city officials. And on Aug. 27, Taute sent an email approving Ravndal's request to have his dog at work for up to six weeks. "In summary, the City is willing to allow the requested accommodation, but there must be considerable progress exhibited during the time the dog is with Mr. Ravndal in the workplace," Taute said. "The modified duty assignment cannot continue for an indeterminate amount of time." Ravndal rushed home to pick up Pride. They were a team for a month, until time ran out. After a year on light duty and still not cleared to return to the ambulance, Ravndal needed to retire or be fired for exhausting his time on modified assignment. Ravndal loves the department, but not the way he was treated. "I may have gone back to the rigs," said Ravndal. "What is clear is that I tried to go back, and City Hall would have no part of making an accommodation." 'Thank You, Rob' Retiring wasn't what Ravndal had in mind, but by September 2018 he was ready to move on. Those who turned out for the retirement party organized by his wife and coworkers left him humbled. The circumstances weren't like other firefighter retirements he'd attended, but everyone from recruits to the fire chief stopped by, he said. In the days after, he reflected on his fight with the city and what it all meant. "I did not cower," Ravndal said. "I recognized a just fight, and I did not cower." The city conceded in the worker's compensation case that Ravndal's PTSD was caused by his work duties and settled the case in September. "It is the Citys position the handling of Mr. Ravndals case was done completely in compliance with the law taking into consideration the factual circumstances and medical information available throughout the pendency of Mr. Ravndals case," Taute said in an email response to the Journal Star. "The matter has now been voluntarily settled by the parties, and Mr. Ravndal is currently receiving full duty disability benefits pursuant to the provisions of the Citys Police and Fire Pension Plan." Stephany Pleasant Maness, a staff attorney with Disability Rights Nebraska, said employers asked to provide accommodation to an employee with a disability often take six to eight weeks. "It shouldnt have taken 8 months," she said. The city's reversal to allow the service dog at work in August, four days after a meeting, showed they didn't handle his case as they should have, Pleasant Maness added. Pleasant Maness said she believes there's a public suspicion of service animals, and she hopes city staff will better educate themselves on how to accommodate these requests so workers with disabilities aren't mistreated and left out of the workforce. Despite his strong belief he was discriminated against, Ravndal doesn't want to file a lawsuit against the city, he said. Instead, Ravndal wants the city to treat mental injuries that first responders suffer on the job just like physical injuries sustained in the line of duty. The work the city asks first responders to do every day, on every call, demands they be cared for if they're injured in the line of duty, he said. Schrunk, the union president, said the city's lack of experience on this issue shows the need for ongoing consideration of the mental health of firefighters. At Lincoln Fire and Rescue, Despain noted investment in professional counseling services, internal peer-counseling and debriefings. Assignments are rotated to help crews deal with mental health issues. An initiative to increase staffing is reducing the net workload, Despain added. Since his retirement, Ravndal has focused on rebuilding the relationships with his family and considering the next step in his career. He's receiving a monthly disability pension from the city under the fire pension plan for permanently disabling line-of-duty injuries. And wherever Ravndal goes, the store, the doctor's office, the gym or church, Pride is often right beside him. "I still have bad days," Ravndal said. "(Pride) doesn't cure it, but it definitely makes it far easier to go and do things ... and just stay focused. Life itself is not simply survival." Reach the writer at 402-473-2657 or rjohnson@journalstar.com. On Twitter @LJSRileyJohnson. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 1 Angry 0 Sign up for our Crime & Courts newsletter Get the latest in local public safety news with this weekly email. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The Gateway Sertoma Club presented its 2018 Service to Mankind Award in December to Randy Palmer, a survivor of multiple strokes, to honor his work with other stroke survivors. The award is the highest honor bestowed by Gateway Sertoma. It honors community members who have demonstrated exemplary service to the community and to mankind. Palmer also received the Stephanie Wever Award presented by the Nebraska State Stroke Association to a person demonstrating courage in the aftermath of a stroke, and for encouraging fellow stroke survivors. Palmer volunteers twice a week at Bryan Health as a peer provider. He gives hope and encouragement to stroke survivors. He shares his story and uses humor to motivate others as he tells of the challenges and mistakes he has made during his recovery. He gives much support to others impacted by stroke across Lincoln -- from grocery store meetings, to the Bryan Health stroke support group (Comeback Club), to stroke survivors at LifePointe. He was also instrumental in helping Bryan LifePointe establish neuro-based education and exercise programs for stroke survivors. A primary focus of the Gateway Sertoma Club is raising money to support efforts to educate the general public about stroke, which is the leading cause of death and long-term disability in the United States. For more details on the club, see gatewaysertoma.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 "We have to find some compromise; everyone has to win something." "Yes," she said, "it's doable." "I will encourage a lot of input," Linehan said, and provide an opportunity to hear from all senators "before we try to cobble everything together." The committee's public hearings on revenue bills will be "very, very important" in helping craft a path forward, Linehan said, and it's her intention to not attempt to fashion a tax package until those hearings have been completed. Yes, Linehan said, she expects to work with the governor's office "they have the facts and figures" but she's not sure Gov. Pete Ricketts will have a bill of his own this time. "My goal is to lower taxes," she said. "Taxes in Nebraska are too high." In approaching tax reform, Linehan said, "property taxes have to come first, but you can't have long-term property tax relief unless you also fix the state school aid formula." Linehan will also hold a seat on the Education Committee. Some current sales tax exemptions may be "questionable," she said, but elimination of any tax exemptions should not be tied to new spending. The story was the same a year later. In fiscal 2007, Sears invested $570 million, while Target invested almost $4.4 billion. What was Target doing with its money? While a lot of it went to technology and distribution centers, about 70 cents of every dollar in capital spending that year went into new Target stores. That may not look as wise in retrospect, as Amazon.com was already coming on strong by then, but at least Target was playing offense. In Targets DNA is an approach to business thats all about careful allocation of capital to ideas that generate a return. Investors in Target have been able to read all about that approach for years. It might not always work, and its not easy to manage, but capital spending discipline is one thing that makes a company like Target as successful as it has been. Lampert put a lot of his thinking about what to do with Sears money into chairmans letters, and one he sent just as the Great Recession began was both triumphant and defensive in tone. He pointed out that a recent slip in the stock price had brought Sears Holdings stock down to an increase of only 10 times investors money since Kmart emerged from bankruptcy, down from nearly 20 times their money. Originally from the Scottsbluff/Gering area, Bauers father was a school superintendent. His family moved several times and he attended various schools before graduating from Newman Grove High School where he met his wife, Bonnie. Bauer received a bachelors degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. Bauer says living in locations across the state has enhanced his community banking career. As regional president of Pinnacle Bank, Bauer has had numerous opportunities to become familiar and work with many Nebraska communities and has seen firsthand the positive impact NCF affiliated funds are having in communities across the state. He believes that experience will enhance his service to NCF. Yesenia Peck is originally from Lima, Peru, where she worked as an attorney for the Supreme and Superior Courts. Peck holds a masters degree in Leadership from Bellevue University and is certified in workforce diversity management by Cornell University and Bellevue University. Peck is a diversity manager for Nebraska Public Power District (NPPD) at their Columbus general office. She is appreciative of NPPDs concerted efforts in advancing community cohesiveness and for the opportunity she has been given in her chosen field of professional practice. MURPHYSBORO, Ill. (AP) William Moore knows first-hand how a traumatic family life can impact the education of a child. He and Murphysboro Middle School are part of Resilient Southern Illinois 2018. Resilient Southern Illinois is a partnership among The Poshard Foundation for Abused Children, Illinois Education Association and Partnership for Resilience, along with 16 Southern Illinois school districts, working to support students dealing with childhood trauma or experiencing adverse childhood experiences (ACES). "Together, we are working as a community to help improve students' lives," Mary Jane Morris, IEA director of teaching and learning, said. "It is so important to educate the whole child, and through this program, we are making sure that's happening across Southern Illinois. We are building strong students, strong schools and strong communities." The program to build trauma-sensitive schools began in 2015 in three high-need, low-resource districts. Early results showed referrals decreased by 72 percent, suspensions decreased by 79 percent and detentions decreased by 87 percent. Students in kindergarten through eighth grade made significant gains in English and math. The program began with a three-day training for teachers in June to discuss effects of toxic stress on students, identify stressors and issues, and offer strategies for teachers as they assist traumatized students. One of the teachers in that training was William Moore, eighth grade social studies teacher at Murphysboro Middle School. One of his tactics is to help relieve stress and build relationships with students while teaching them to empathize with one another. Eighth graders in Moore's classes got a break from regular classroom activities a couple days before Christmas break. Instead, they had a "snowball" fight and created paper plate art. No, Moore did not import snow from a frozen area of the country or use the fake snowballs sold in snowball fight kits. First, he asked students to write a Christmas wish, or just a wish for those who do not celebrate Christmas, on a piece of paper without writing their names on the papers. When the wishes were written, Moore explained how the snowball fight would work. Students would wad their papers into "snowballs." Then, the class was divided into two groups for a five to seven-minute snowball fight. After the snowballs had crossed the room enough to mix them up and make sure no one knew whose snowball he or she was holding, Moore asked the students to read the wishes. Sure, some of the wishes ranged from the latest shoes to Nintendo Switch, cookies and Christmas socks, but others wished for a good 2019 or that school was less stressful, or for more time with family and friends. A few wishes put into perspective the lives of some students, like no family fights, that mom would continue to be able to live on her own, to see a brother not seen for five years, that great-grandma was still alive or for a student and his or her mother to be able to like each other. "Part of the reason we do that is to let students see there are people in our own classroom wishing for things that are not Nintendo or X-Box," Moore said. "Everyone's life is a little different. Go to the hallway. You never know when somebody just needs a little love." After the snowball fight, the students did an art activity, turning paper plates to Christmas or winter-themed art. Students Haiden and Isabelle say Moore is a favorite among their friends. "Mr. Moore straight-up helps me and chooses to be my friend," Haiden said. The 13-year-old has experienced trauma and is a victim of bullying. "We come in here and actually learn and in here we do this kind of stuff," Isabelle said. She added that she has never heard one kid say anything negative about Moore. "He cares about our feelings and talks to us," Isabelle said. As a part of Resilient Southern Illinois 2018, Moore is learning how to respond to the trauma his students face in hopes of making them more resilient. "We teachers sometimes get so focused on teaching standards that we forget we're teaching students," Moore said. He said students often go home and care for themselves and younger siblings, then come back to school without their homework. He told a story of one student who slept on the front porch of a home because he or she was scared to sleep inside. Another student who lives near the middle school gets up extra early to walk to Murphysboro High School to avoid bullying that takes place on the school bus. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Unless a teacher takes the time to get to know his or her students, Moore said they would never know this is what the lives of their students look like. "Project Resilient Southern Illinois most of all stresses communicating with students," Moore said. The project also did something for Moore personally. It gave him a way to share his own story of trauma. Moore never met his biological father growing up. His mother had five children with a total of four fathers. His stepdad had a drinking problem and was abusive. "I remember when I was in the third grade, there was a 2 a.m. bust in our house. The people upstairs called the police," Moore said. His fifth grade year, his family spent Christmas in a women's shelter. Then, the summer before his seventh grade year, he ran away from home. "As the oldest, I took most of the violence. Leaving them was hard for me," Moore said. "They felt abandoned." Moore became the seventh grade class clown. When he got to eighth grade, the teachers were waiting for him. He spent most of that year at a desk next to the assistant principal. "I got to high school, and the trouble I got into was a lot different," Moore said. He skipped school, then would be suspended for skipping school. When the suspension was over, the cycle started again. He was kicked out of three schools, two of which were alternative programs. He ended high school earning a total of 2.5 credits. "The last principal said, 'school's not a place for you'," Moore said. "Grandma cried. It was heartbreaking. If school's not a place for me, she knew where was." Moore did a lot of things during the next four years. One of them was meeting the girl who would become his wife. When she gave birth to their daughter in March 1997, Moore realized that baby would be affected by what he became. He took the GED test and passed it. After a series of sales, restaurant and factory jobs, Moore started taking classes at Richland Community College for sales and marketing. The first class was Economics 231, and he had no clue what it meant. When he looked at his life and the people who influenced him, he thought of his fifth grade teacher Sheila Myers. She treated him fairly, bought him Burger King. She cared for him even on days he misbehaved. "When I was standing at Richland Community College wondering what I was going to do, she popped into my head. My dream, goal, vision became clear. I wanted to be somebody's hero," Moore said. After finishing at Richland, Moore went on to major in education at Southern Illinois University. He was assigned to student teach at Sesser-Valier in the classroom of Dennis Overturf. "Had I not met Mr. O, I wouldn't have gotten the job here (at Murphysboro Middle School)," Moore said. When the school started the resilience program earlier this school year, Moore had never shared any part of his story with his colleagues. "When the program started, it spoke to me because I know that being a kid's hero not only changes lives, but it also changes their kid's lives," Moore said. "I want to be hope for students to know that what they have lived through is not the truth. If I am only able to reach one person, I want to become hope for that one kid who needs it." ___ Source: The (Carbondale) Southern Illinoisan, https://bit.ly/2AAdoEd ___ Information from: Southern Illinoisan, http://www.southernillinoisan.com Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 The first attack occurred in June, at the annual gathering in Paris of the Iranian opposition, the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI). The French Government said the attack was planned by a now sanctioned MOIS unit. Then, last November, Denmarks security service and police stopped a plot by the MOIS to assassinate an Iranian dissident on Danish soil. On Twitter, US Secretary of State wrote, European nations sent Iran a clear message that terrorism will not be tolerated. The US strongly supports the new sanctions and stands with our European allies as we counter this common threat. Not only the 28 EU member states, but Albania, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Canada have cut diplomatic ties with the regime in order to protect their citizens. In fact, senior American officials praised Albanian Prime Minister Edi Ramas decision to expel the Iranian Ambassador and another diplomat weeks ago, for threatening the countrys security. The MEK members relocated to Tirana after leaving Iraq under the supervision of the UN. The regime in Tehran sees the group as a threat to its existence. At a Persian New Year celebration on March 22, 2018, two Iranian operatives were arrested in Tirana on charges of plotting a terrorist attack against thousands members of the Iranian dissident group. This highlights the extent to which senior regime officials are frightened by the activity of the Peoples Mojahedin Organisation of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Also taking to Twitter, Foreign Minister Javad Zarif attacked the EU, writing, Europeans, incl (including) Denmark, Holland and France, harbor MEK. This is an allegation Zarif also made during the UN Security Councils meeting over Irans missile program in December last year. Pundits believe that such statements against the opposition only serve to point out the groups political clout. The Iranian opposition successfully inspires and leads popular protests against the regime inside the country. Maryam Rajavi, the President-electe of the NCRI welcomed EUs decision. However, according to Mrs. Rajavi, the imposed sanctions are not enough to stop the MOIS. She called on International Community to list the entire MOIS as a terrorist entity. She also said that she believes sanctions are necessary to fight terrorism in Europe in a tweet, they must be completed by blacklisting of the entire intelligence and IRGC (Revolutionary Guard) apparatus and by prosecuting and expelling the regimes terrorist diplomats and mercenaries. The Europeans should keep in mind Rouhanis recent threat that the EU will be flooded by drugs and terrorism, as well as the fact that the MOIS gains experience from its failures in Europe, and future plots may not be so successfully foiled by European security. Part of the reason for this lack of specificity may be that many leading US allies, as well as partners whose allegiances are divided between the US and Iran, are still struggling with unresolved questions about the direction their foreign policies will take as tensions between the two adversaries continue to escalate. Pompeos current, nine-country tour of the Middle East highlights the White Houses apparent optimism regarding support for its policies among Irans immediate neighbors. But the forthcoming Warsaw summit points to ongoing efforts to convince European nations to likewise join in the administrations effort to exert maximum pressure on Iran through economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation, in order to convince the Iranian regime to bring an end to its malign activities. Presently, there are both positive and negative signs coming from both the European and the Middle Eastern targets of the White Houses outreach. In the first place, the European Union has shown more and more willingness to openly confront the Islamic Republic over threats and activities that are considered to be in violation of international law. On Tuesday, for instance, the EU announced the imposition of new sanctions on the Iranian intelligence service over several credible reports of Iran-backed terror threats, including a plot to bomb an international rally organized near Paris by the National Council of Resistance of Iran on June 30 of last year. The Reuters report on next months Warsaw summit concluded by describing the new EU sanctions as a significant shift in policy for countries that have so far been wary of giving up on Iranian trade deals or providing the Islamic Republic with potential incentive to leave the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. That agreement remains in force among six of its seven signatories, although the US withdrew from it last May after President Trump declared Tehran to be in violation of the spirit of the deal, owing to its malign behavior in the region and its ongoing development of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles. European concern over these issues has also led to positive signs of compliance with, or participation in, the US sanctions that returned to force after the US withdrawal. Since that time, the EU has teased the notion of a special purpose vehicle to facilitate transactions with the Islamic Republic, but details of the mechanism have been slow to emerge. Whats more, it was suggested in December that the SPV may not even cover purchases of crucially important Iranian petroleum, casting doubt on both the level of European commitment and the likelihood of Iran recognizing sufficient incentives to remain in the deal. Against the backdrop of those doubts, France and other EU member states have continued to press the Iranian regime over their disregard for the clearly-stated expectations of the international community. On Friday, French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Agnes von der Muhll reiterated that Irans ongoing development and testing of ballistic missiles violates the United Nations Security Council resolution that governed implementation of the 2015 nuclear agreement. France calls on Iran to immediately cease all ballistic missile-related activities designed to carry nuclear weapons, she added. Tehran responded with predictable dismissiveness, vaguely describing the French criticism as irresponsible and incorrect. Bahram Qassemi, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson went on to say that the Iranian missile program is the nations natural right. The Iranian regime has long maintained that it will not limit its missile development activities or enter into any negotiations with Western powers over the issue. And just one day before the exchange between the Iranian and French Foreign Ministries, Irans Foreign Minister Javad Zarif declared that plans for the nations aerospace program would remain unchanged even in the face of growing economic and political pressure from the United States. In recent days, regime officials have boasted of a supposed plan to launch two satellites into orbit using Iranian rockets that are effectively identical to the ballistic missiles that might carry an Iranian nuclear weapon over extremely long distances. Iranian media has suggested that the satellite launch might take place in early February to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the Iranian Revolution. But this would also put the launch ahead of the schedule for the Warsaw summit on February 13th and 14th, thereby potentially giving the US additional fuel for its argument in favor of further confrontational shifts in European policy. The benefits of such a shift for the US may, however, be undercut if the Islamic Republic manages to interfere with American plans to maintain a vigorous resistance to Iranian influence among other nations of the Middle East. Tehran is certainly working toward that end, as evidenced by meetings between Iranian and Iraqi officials that took place on Thursday, just one day after Secretary of State Pompeo held his own meetings with Iraqi leaders as part of his Middle East tour. The office of the Iraqi prime minister said that his meeting with Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh confirmed the deep relations between the two countries, the two neighboring peoples and the importance of strengthening them in areas that serve the interests of the two peoples. Newsweek reported upon the meeting on Thursday and highlighted its potential significance to broader concerns about Irans regional influence. It pointed out, for instance, that Iraq has provided some support to Iran and Russia in their mutual defense of Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, and that Iraqi Foreign Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari recently called upon the Arab League to reinstate Syrian membership after it was suspended due to Assads human rights violations. This support of Assads position constitutes de facto support of Tehrans, given Assads long relationship with Tehran and his newfound indebtedness to them for preserving his office in the midst of an eight-year rebellion and civil war. But even though the apparent expansion of networks of Iranian allies constitutes a threat to Western interests in the region, that very same trend may help the US to galvanize resistance against Iran in other areas of the Middle East. The National Council of Resistance of Iran highlighted this possibility on Friday when it reported that officials in Afghanistan had responded with outrage to the confirmation of Iranian efforts to collaborate with the Taliban. I think it would be impossible to have a future Afghanistan without any role for the Taliban, said Irans Foreign Minister after acknowledging the secret talks had been rumored for several months. This led to criticism from Afghanistans Deputy Foreign Minister, who said that relations between the two countries would be weakened if Iran continued to circumvent the Afghan government in this way. The NCRI also quoted Shah Hussain Murtazawi as saying that the Iranian regime was defending the Talibans arguments because Iran is worried that the freedoms in Afghanistan will set an example for the Iranian people, many of whom participated in anti-government protests throughout the country over the past year, wherein they pushed for an end to restrictions on freedom of speech and assembly, as well as a wholesale change in the Iranian government. Both the Afghan criticism and Irans domestic unrest point to potential sources of additional support as the US works to build an international network of opposition to Irans regional influence. Yet Iran has made significant in-roads in places like Syria and Iraq, while the nations of Europe apparently remain uncertain about the trade-offs involved in either tolerating Iranian threats or sacrificing economic relationships with Iranian partners. Under these circumstances, it remains very much uncertain what the outcome of the forthcoming summit in Poland will be, or even which countries will choose to attend. For the past year, the people of Iran have been participating in anti-government demonstrations and taking to the streets in protest against the clerical regime. They have called it out for its widespread corruption and its meddling abroad. Numerous sectors of society have participated in sit-ins and strikes because of the poor wages and conditions they are subjected to, in particular teachers and truck drivers. It is expected that more protests and demonstrations will break out in the near future as the economic sanctions really start to take hold. People are getting more and more angry at the government and the different factions of the regime are displaying their weaknesses and differences. At any time, more protests will break out and take the regime by surprise. Iranian officials know it is coming too, but it and the rest of the world may be surprised at the power of the people. In November, the tough sanctions on Irans oil sector came into effect. The economic uncertainty for the people is very difficult to deal with. Literally from one day to the next, the value of goods can fluctuate to such an extent that the people do not know where they stand. Many have lost their savings and more and more people are falling into extreme poverty. Reports from the country indicate that people are flocking to the Grand Bazaar in the countrys capital to stock up before their savings are exhausted. Making the people even more frustrated is the regimes denial about the reality of the situation. Some officials are making out that the problems are not as serious as they are, while others are saying that the economic problems are because of enemies and foreign influences. The more pressure that is put on the regime, the sooner it will eventually collapse. The European Union announced earlier this week that it has passed several fresh sanctions on Iran. Although this is a positive move, it is not going to have much of an impact because they are not tough enough. In any case, the people of Iran have made it very clear that they will not relent in their pursuit of freedom, democracy and the respect of human rights for all. The collapse of the clerical rule, driven by the people, will happen very soon. And it is not just the people that will benefit, but also millions of other victims across the region. And across the world. Union minister Nitin Gadkari on Sunday, 13 January, advised fellow politicians not to interfere in "other fields". The senior leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was speaking at the valedictory function of an annual Marathi literary meet at Yavatmal, which has been embroiled in a controversy after an invitation to noted writer Nayantara Sahgal was withdrawn by the organisers. Without making a direct reference to the row, Gadkari said, "Politicians should learn not to interfere in other fields. The people in universities, educational institutions, literature and poetry should be dealing with their (respective) areas." "When I say there should not be any interference, it does not mean there should not be any contact between the people from the field of literature and politicians," he added. Also Read: What Did Nayantara Sahgal Want to Say That Got Her Speech Canned? "During Emergency, the speeches of (Marathi) writers like Durga Bhagwat and PL Deshpande drew bigger crowds than political rallies. Both of them, however, returned to literature after the election. They did not even seek political postings such as a Rajya Sabha membership," the Union minister for road transport and highways noted. While Bhagwat had criticised the Emergency openly, Deshpande had campaigned for the Janata Party after the Emergency was lifted and the polls were announced in 1977. "There should be cooperation, coordination and communication between writers and politicians. Lack of communication leads to miscommunication and then, arguments. " - Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister "We should only respect the person who is expressing the opposite views," he added. Sahgal, a noted English-language writer who was at the forefront of the "award wapsi" campaign a few years ago, was invited to inaugurate the 92nd Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, which started at Yavatmal on 11 January. Story continues But the organisers of the event withdrew the invite subsequently, after local leaders of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) opposed the invitation to the "English-language writer". The decision drew flak from several quarters even as MNS chief Raj Thackeray said it was not his party's official stand. Opposition parties alleged that it was the BJP which did not want Sahgal to attend the meet, a charge the Maharashtra government denied. Also Read: Emergency Was Dictatorship but Today Its Worse: Nayantara Sahgal . Read more on India by The Quint.RSS & BJPs Nehru-Netaji Cosplay: Irony Dies a Thousand DeathsKejriwal Wont Contest LS Polls From Varanasi, To Focus on Delhi . Read more on India by The Quint. Two terrorists including top Al-Badr commander Zeenat-ul-Islam have been killed in an encounter with security forces in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Sunday, 13 January. "The two militants killed in the Katpora encounter have been identified as Zeenat-ul-Islam and Shakeel Dar. Both were involved in several terror crimes," a police official said. Islam, a category A++ militant, had switched over to the Al-Badr from the Hizbul Mujahideen in November last year following agreement between the two outfits to strengthen the Al-Badr. Islam was active since 2015, the police official said. He said security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Katpora area of Yaripora in south Kashmir's Kulgam district Saturday evening after receiving specific information about the presence of militants there. As the forces were conducting the searches, the militants fired on them. As per policy, the militants were given an opportunity to surrender, but they continued to fire, the official said. The forces retaliated, ensuing an encounter in which the two militants were killed. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the encounter site, the official said, adding, no collateral damage has been reported during the encounter. Also Read: 4 Militants Killed in Encounter in J&Ks Pulwama, Ammo Recovered . Read more on India by The Quint.RSS & BJPs Nehru-Netaji Cosplay: Irony Dies a Thousand DeathsShakti Samanta: The Kolkata Man Behind Tinsel Towns Stars . Read more on India by The Quint. I missed J.B. Pritzkers impromptu speech to a gathering of Republicans last week by a few minutes. But the fact that Pritzker even stopped by the event, hosted by Senate Republican Leader Bill Brady and House Republican Leader Jim Durkin, was notable in and of itself. As one top Republican said after Pritzkers speech, just imagine Gov. Bruce Rauner showing up to speak about bipartisanship and then heap praise House Speaker Michael Madigan and Senate President John Cullerton at a Democratic reception. If you cant imagine such a thing, well, that was the Republicans whole point. It never would have happened (Rauner did show up for a Black Caucus event his first year in office, but he used the occasion to bash the Democratic Party, which didnt exactly go over too well). The Republicans have every right to be demoralized in Illinois. They hold no statewide office, their party lost two suburban congressional seats and they are now firmly in the super-minority in both the House and Senate. And yet, in conversations with both Republican legislative leaders last week, it seemed pretty clear to me they were both pleased and optimistic about finally having a governor they believe they can work with. We all know the history. Gov. Rauner is an extremely difficult person to deal with even for those who agree with most of his political agenda. He assumes hes right and he assumes you feel the same way, or else. He demands complete loyalty, but offers little in return. His word cannot ever be trusted. He seems incapable of making small talk beyond a few minutes and no one has ever accused him of having a warm personality. The same lack of interpersonal skills held back Rauners immediate predecessor, Pat Quinn. Gov. Quinn wouldnt have been cracking jokes last week about how his microphone wasnt working at a Republican inaugural reception. He just wasnt that sort of guy. And he most definitely didnt have the natural ability to put a legislator at ease and do a deal. Pritzker has yet to be tested, so well see if he can be trusted to keep his word and offer as much respect to others as he expects for himself once he delves into the difficult process of governing a state with huge problems. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. But its pretty obvious to anyone whos spent time with him that Pritzker most definitely has a warm personality, and that trait is charming the heck out of Springfield right now. And while he was a hit at last weeks Republican reception, that was nothing compared to how crowds reacted to him at the Democratic parties. Building personal relationships is an integral part of governing, and the dude has that down pat so far. Rauner would do things like call you on your birthday, but his words were always stilted and seemingly scripted. He had legislators over to the mansion during his first spring session, but, again, the conversations just werent natural, and many departed with the impression that he was, um, less than genuine. Quinn spent most session nights deliberately holed up in the governors mansion with his staff. Both men just didnt appear to be comfortable in their own skin. I have no idea if finally having a governor with a real personality will make a huge difference when it comes to solving this states extremely serious problems. Eventually, of course, Pritzker is going to have to do things that people are not going to love and well just have to wait and see how that all turns out. But in almost 29 years of doing this, Ive never seen Statehouse types more excited about the end of a governors term than they are now. After presiding over the Senates inauguration, governors by tradition quietly leave through the door behind the podium which leads into the ante room. Last week, Gov. Rauner was given a formal escort out the front door and members loudly applauded. Several explained later that they werent cheering for him. They were, instead, cheering his final exit. Pritzker has an opportunity here that has been afforded few of his predecessors. But this also means that expectations are sky high. And the higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment if and/or when they arent met. Rich Miller also publishes Capitol Fax, a daily political newsletter, and CapitolFax.com. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 SPRINGFIELD J.B. Pritzker finally gets the keys to drive Illinois today, Monday, and there's no shortage of voices offering suggestions about what route he should take as governor. Pritzker, a Democrat, is scheduled to take the oath of office at a two-hour ceremony at 11 a.m. at the Bank of Springfield Center in Springfield. A black-tie-optional celebration, which tickets starting at $250 each, is at the Illinois State Fairgrounds tonight. Monday Pritzker, billionaire heir to the Hyatt hotel chain fortune who defeated GOP Gov. Bruce Rauner, will lead a state mired in deeply rooted financial problems and a hemorrhaging population. He has pledged to overhaul the income-tax structure, advance a capital construction plan for roads and bridges, legalize marijuana, explore sports betting and increase the minimum wage. The 101st General Assembly was sworn in on Wednesday. Democrats have been in control of the legislature for more than 15 years. This session sees Democrats with supermajorities in both chambers, meaning they don't need Republican votes to advance legislation if they stick together. State Sen. Bill Brady, R-Bloomington, who's already working closely with Pritzker as senate minority leader, said he's confident Republicans will still have input, including on his highest priority: repairing the state's shaky financial future. Brady said his caucus could work with the governor on increasing gambling revenue or motor fuel tax, but a "mileage tax" is a nonstarter. That would track how many miles each resident drives and tax accordingly. He anticipates disagreement on some of Pritzker's broader economic measures, including a graduated income tax that would tax residents more if they make more, and a minimum wage increase. The Cabinet also is taking shape. Lawmakers last week backed a plan by Pritzker giving approval to a change in state law to increase salaries by 15 percent for Cabinet members he hopes to hire. "Some folks in the campaign team approached me and I had ... lengthy conversations, kind of going up the ladder, until I had a long conversation in excess of an hour as a matter of fact with the governor-elect himself," said former state Rep. David Harris, an Arlington Heights Republican tapped to run the Department of Revenue. "I think people will find him to be an engaging, enthusiastic individual who wants to move this state forward," Harris said last week at what was his Stratton Building legislative office. Harris, 70, didn't seek a new term in the House, so his tenure as a legislator ended Wednesday with the inauguration of the 101st General Assembly. And former state Sen. John Sullivan, a Rushville Democrat, said that after many people prompted him to apply to head the Department of Agriculture, he did so. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Sullivan said he had meetings with "some of the governor's folks," trying to get an idea if Pritzker would be micromanaging agencies something he said has been "part of the problem" in the Rauner administration. "Then I had almost a two-hour sit-down with the governor-elect himself," Sullivan said. "And we really, really had a good discussion." Sullivan, 60, said he wasn't too involved in the Pritzker campaign, but did support him locally. Roads and marijuana 2 major issues Illinois lawmakers could move on in 2019 DECATUR Monday starts a new era in Illinois politics, one that area lawmakers and others say could bring major legislation such as a capital "Every time I met him, I came away from the conversation more impressed with ... just who he was, I mean his frank, honest assessment of issues," said Sullivan. "To me, a sign of a good leader is somebody that, when they don't know the answer, they say, 'I don't know ... but I'll do my best to try and find it out.' "And he has done that on several occasions. He comes right out and says, 'I don't know anything about agriculture, and I'm going to have to rely on people that know.'" Sullivan also said he was "very impressed" with Pritzker's talk of bipartisanship. State Rep. Tim Butler, a Springfield Republican, said he's not sure how many Republicans Pritzker will ultimately have in his administration, but "certainly, putting Rep. Harris in there was a big deal." He noted that Harris also led the Illinois National Guard as the state's adjutant general and is "one of our top people in the state when it comes to revenue and the budget. So I think that's really good." Butler also noted Sullivan's involvement with agriculture Sullivan has a 200-acre farm that produces mostly grain but also has a small cow herd and has long worked in his family's auction business bodes well. Sullivan is, Butler said, "well respected across both sides of the aisle. I've heard nothing but positive things about John as the director-designate. I think he'll do a great job." Pritzker on Sunday held an open house at the Old State Capitol in Springfield. State Sen. Jason Barickman, a Bloomington Republican, said one way or the other, citizens will know a lot more about what kind of governor Pritzker will be soon. Pritzker is expected to deliver at least one major address on the state's budget in the next two months. "I think the tone for the next four years is going to be set by how things go this spring," said Barickman. "The fortune tellers will be able to predict a lot based on what happens between now and March." The Bloomington Pantagraph and The State Journal-Register contributed to this report. GALLERY: J.B. Pritzker Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 1 DECATUR Former Macon County Sheriff Howard Buffett and local law enforcement officers who have gone to help with border security near his rural Arizona ranch are featured prominently in a two-part series published by a Phoenix alternative newspaper. The articles by Beau Hodai rely in part on emails obtained through public records requests between Buffett and Decatur police detective Chad Larner. The Herald & Review reached out to Larner and Buffett with interview requests, but was unsuccessful. The majority of the New Times series focuses on the relationship Buffett has with officials in Cochise County, Arizona, where his Christiansen Ranch is adjacent to the Mexico border, and the arming of a private volunteer group to handle security at the property. Hodai writes: Buffett has also purchased the loyalty of and influence over the Cochise County Sheriffs Office (CCSO). He has done this through a steady stream of gifts and grants totaling tens of millions of dollars, used to buy guns, vehicles, surveillance equipment, helicopters, and other toys. For his part in this relationship, Buffett has gained legitimacy and support under the color of law for his border war. The second article highlights several emails between Buffett and Larner. In one 2015 exchange, the two discussed the Black Lives Matter movement and protests related to police treatment of minorities. Larner in the email said that while people expect to be treated with respect and dignity, he would not allow left wing liberal lunatics to tell him how to do his job, according to the New Times story. This is the big stage. Every day is a rock concert, Larner wrote to Buffett, according to the article. If these once proactive cops are slowing down ...... they weren't worth a s*** in the first place. The story says that Buffett responded by telling Larner that he should run for office. When the detective declined, Buffett wrote: Oh come on man .... don't be so selfish, serve the public, support those on welfare and probation. Be a sport! Buffett, whose term as Macon County sheriff ended Dec. 1, did not respond to a request for comment that the Herald & Review made through a spokesperson for his Decatur-based charitable foundation. A former Archer Daniels Midland Co. executive, Buffett has donated millions of dollars to Decatur-area causes. Larner, citing department policy, declined to comment when reached by phone Friday afternoon. Decatur Police Chief Jim Getz did not return a message. Decatur Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe, asked to comment on the articles, said she knows Buffett and what kind of person he is. Hes dedicated his life to trying to improve the lives of others, she said. I think that speaks for itself. Moore Wolfe, a former television reporter, said in a text message that she was not familiar with the publication, but given the language included in the article, I dont have any idea what kind of journalistic ethics the author is guided by. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. The first article begins by referring to photos from a 2016 gathering in Arizona among Buffett and two men the story says are likely Larner and Macon County sheriff's deputy T.W. Houk. The three took several pictures of themselves posed with guns and other accessories near Buffetts ranch, according to the story. Macon County Sheriff Tony Brown, who was elected in November, in an email said he did not wish to comment about the New Times story due to me not having knowledge of the conversation in its entirety. He did say that deputies employed with the Macon County Sheriffs Office and along with many others agencies do send employees out of our jurisdiction to both receive and conduct training. Brown did not respond to a request to make Houk available for comment. Fox News on Friday evening posted a story about the New Times series under the headline, Buffett son spends millions to boost border security in rural Arizona, report says. Buffett was Macon County sheriff from September 2017 until November 2018, serving out the remainder of former Sheriff Thomas Schneiders term. Buffett is the son of billionaire investor and Berkshire Hathaway founder Warren Buffett. Berkshire Hathaway's portfolio also includes investments in Lee Enterprises Inc., owner of the Herald & Review. Lee also is under contract to manage the Berkshire Hathaway newspaper division. Howard Buffett's selection made national headlines when he took over the role of sheriff. Schneider did not immediately respond to questions about the Phoenix story on Friday. Buffett began volunteering at the office as an unpaid auxiliary deputy sheriff in 2012. He later became an undersheriff in 2014. He has given more than $100 million to Macon County law enforcement agencies and charitable efforts since he moved to the city in 1992. Even with his tenure over, Buffett said in an interview in November that he still plans to spend time in Decatur and contribute to local causes. His largest single donation to the area, announced last year, is a $30 million drug rehabilitation and social services campus now under construction near the heart of the city. UPDATE: An earlier version of this story did not include the relationship between Berkshire Hathaway and Lee Enterprises. This version has been updated. GALLERY: Former Macon County Sheriff Howard Buffett Contact Ryan Voyles at (217) 421-7985. Follow him on Twitter: @RVVoyles Love 1 Funny 4 Wow 2 Sad 0 Angry 4 Get local news delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to our Daily Headlines newsletter. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. DECATUR -- The Macon County Conservation District will take a van trip to Starved Rock State Park near Oglesby, Illinois on Sat., Jan. 19, leaving from Rock Springs Nature Center at 9 a.m. and returning around 4 p.m. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Take a sack lunch or eat at the park restaurant. Guests can watch for wintering eagles, warm up in the visitor center or visit the the lock and dam on the Illinois River. Dress for the outdoors. The cost is $25 per person, which covers transportation. Register online by Fri., Jan. 18 at MaconCountyConservation.org. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Donnette Beckett "Together Decatur" Columnist and Food/Drink Reporter Together Decatur columnist and food and drink reporter for Lee Enterprises Central Illinois. Follow Donnette Beckett Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today DECATUR When you find a group of like-minded people, you form a club. Thats what Alice Boliek has done with three of her friends. They meet once a month with their Cooking Club, but not just any cooking will do. The dishes are detailed and unique. For their January meeting, they made Pho, a Vietnamese-French soup. One of the ladies found the dish during a visit to a restaurant in Texas. We hear about a restaurant and we will travel to experience it, said Karen Penn. We get our ideas everywhere, said Sid Shonkwiler. Cookbooks, food television. The Cooking Club makes sure they are all able to meet once a month, but no time is scheduled. They admit calendars are too full with family activities and travels. The ladies choose the next date while enjoying that months dinner. We work around everybodys schedule, Boliek said. The meetings often have a theme. Pie Day, Pasta Night, Julia Child's Recipes, Fondues and "Downton Abbey" are just a few of the featured nights. The ladies have created their own traditions since they began meeting in 2010. Cookies and candies are reserved for December meetings. The host provides a lunch before they begin cooking the special evening meal. And the husbands join them to test out the results. The ladies found four cooks are ideal for this type of club, since most dining room tables fit eight. "If we had more, it would be awkward," said Marcia Johnson. Each cook brings their own utensils, depending on the dish she is making. But we know now what everybody else has in their kitchen, Boliek said. We are taking a lot less than we used to. Please log in to keep reading. {{featured_button_text}} Enjoy unlimited articles at one of our lowest prices ever. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} All four ladies are retired. Like most retirees, they wanted to try out new things. There is a lot of potluck groups where people come together and bring food, Shonkwiler said. But this is different. We spend the afternoon together cooking. Boliek created the group after witnessing a friends success with a painting group. I cant paint, she said. But I do like to cook. She knew the other members of the Cooking Club through various life avenues. All have a love of cooking. Their first meeting was spent baking various breads, such as English muffins, biscuits, french bread and bagels. One of their early meetings involved creating crepes. We realized that we needed to coordinate a little bit more, because they all ended up with cheese and something else in them, Boliek said. The four ladies have been known to visit a restaurant for their monthly meetings. They have traveled to Chicago, St. Louis and wineries. However, they have an ulterior motive. We get a lot of our ideas from going out, Penn said. But wed rather eat our own food then go out, Shonkwiler said. The husbands agree. As a member of the self-titled Eating Club, Chuck Shonkwiler said he is always happy to provide his home for the Cooking Club. Why not, he said. We have wonderful food and everybody likes everybody else in the group. You dont have to work real hard, said Mike Boliek. And we enjoy all of the results. Although they have never complained, the men have their favorites, including the Presidents favorite foods and the "Downton Abbey" menu. The four husbands arrive around 5:30 ready for a glass of wine, a bottle of beer and a plate full of food. By the time we get there everything is ready, Chuck Shonkwiler said. In the past, the husbands have tried to influence their wives choice of foods and menus. But it doesnt usually work, Mike Boliek said. They hit a home-run every time. Contact Donnette Beckett at (217) 421-6983. Follow her on Twitter: @donnettebHR Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Satisfy your cravings With our weekly newsletter packed with the latest in everything food. Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. The activity also demonstrated: 1. Many hands make light work. Making sausage can be accomplished much more quickly and efficiently when people work together. The same can be said for making laws. 2. Everyone needs help sometimes. Without guidance from Bennion, who learned how to make sausage from the Volga Germans on his mothers side, the results of last weekends sausage-making activity could have been disastrous. Similarly, lawmakers who will not listen to those who have researched the problems and opportunities facing our state are doomed to make decisions that have disastrous consequences for Montanans. 3. The opposing side is not that much different. Though Democrats and Republicans dont agree on everything, they have more similarities than differences. And its important for our political leaders to find that common ground whether its a shared appreciation for sausage or a shared love of clean water and safe communities which leads to the types of compromises that benefit all Montanans. Montanas U.S. senators say theyll take up a bill targeting the federal governments handling of missing or murdered Native Americans. Sens. Jon Tester and Steve Daines said the bill known as Savannas Act needs to advance, despite the departure of its author Sen. Heidi Heitkamp. The North Dakota Democrat was defeated in the 2018 elections. The bill was named for Savanna Greywind, a murdered member of the Spirit Lake Tribe who was eight months pregnant when her baby was cut from her womb by a female neighbor in Fargo, North Dakota. The number of murdered and missing Native American women is believed to be in the hundreds, but scant records have made tracking those cases difficult. The Urban Indian Health Institute has accounted for 506 cases, while acknowledging there could be more. (Tester) might be a nice guy, except he tried to destroy Admiral Ronny Jackson, who was the most clean-cut, wonderful person youve ever met, Trump said Nov. 3 in Bozeman. He tried to destroy him. And Ive never forgotten. And its honestly one of the reasons Ive been here so much. Despite his withdrawal, Jackson denied the allegations. Trump was not the only person to grab headlines at the rallies, however. Billings high school student Tyler Linfesty gained social media fame at Trumps Sept. 6 rally, when the 17-year-old was removed from the gallery behind the podium at Rimrock Auto Arena. Linfesty, who became widely known as Plaid Shirt Guy, could be seen just above the Presidents right shoulder on the rallys television broadcast and made what the Billings Gazette described as puzzled facial expressions throughout the first 50 minutes of Trumps speech. On the right side of his titular shirt, Linfesty wore a sticker adorned with a red rose, a symbol of the Democratic Socialists of America. In addition to the seminars, there will be an opportunity for attendees to network and rub elbows. Hahn said this is an event where businesses can make connections. This is a big deal for the Department of Transportation, as representatives will share information about doing business with the department. We really want businesses that do business with the Department of Transportation, Hahn said. In order to work with the department, small businesses must be certified. They also must be compliant with Equal Employment Opportunity requirements. The best part of this, Hahn said, people can attend and get free EEO training. A department specialist will present a free two-hour training course with a focus on EEO requirements on MDT contracts. The training class typically cost about $150. Hahn said the department always is looking for businesses that can do transportation related jobs. From fencing to dirt work, from press releases to consultants, Hahn said there are many needs that might not be apparent to an outsider. Anything the department needs in their whole arena, Hahn said. Danish English On 26 June 2018, rsted announced that the company initiated a structured divestment process for the Danish power distribution business, the residential customer business for power and gas and the city light business. These businesses are all well-run and have a high customer satisfaction, but in future, they are expected to decrease in strategic and financial importance for the Group concurrently with rsteds significant international growth within green energy. In 2017, the mentioned businesses accounted for 5.6% of rsteds total operating profit. On 26 June 2018, rsted's Board of Directors therefore decided to initiate a structured divestment process with a view to finding a new owner for these businesses after having discussed this with the Danish State, rsted's majority shareholder. All interested bidders were invited to take part in the process. The criteria for a transaction were to achieve a good price and satisfactory terms of sale as well as a buyer who would carry on business in a responsible manner. In this context, rsted defined a number of criteria that a buyer would have to meet. These criteria are based on international guidelines for responsible business operations, including the fields of tax legislation, international sanctions, money laundering legislation and anti-corruption legislation. It was expected that the Board, with support from the shareholders, would decide on a possible divestment before the end of the first half of 2019. The group of possible buyers has now been limited to a small number of potential buyers, which all meet the buyer criteria. The potential buyer group covers only pension funds and utility companies from Denmark and Western OECD countries, who all have extensive experience in owning and operating infrastructure and similar activities in Western Europe. To rsteds surprise, the Danish Ministry of Finance has now informed rsted that there is no longer political support for continuing the structured divestment process. It is still rsteds assessment that it is in the best interest of the company, the shareholders and the customers that the ownership of the power distribution business, the residential customer business for power and gas and the city light business is transferred to another owner. rsted's Board of Directors will now assess the situation and discuss the next steps. The information provided in this announcement does not change rsteds previously announced outlook for the 2018 financial year. For further information: Media Relations Investor Relations Martin Barlebo Daniel Lerup +45 99 55 95 52 +45 99 55 97 22 Attachment NEW YORK, Jan. 13, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Danske Bank A/S (Danske or the Company) (OTC MKTS: DNKEY). Such investors are advised to contact Robert S. Willoughby at rswilloughby@pomlaw.com or 888-476-6529, ext. 9980. The investigation concerns whether Danske and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices. [Click here to join a class action] On September 5, 2017, Reuters reported that Danske had hired the former head of Denmarks intelligence agency to help it in its effort to counter money-laundering claims. Then, on September 21, 2017, the Company issued a press release revealing that it had expand[ed] its ongoing investigation into the situation at its Estonian branch. Two months later, on December 21, 2017, Reuters reported that Danske had been fined 12.5 million Danish crowns ($2 million) by Denmarks Financial Supervisory Authority (the DFSA) for violating anti-money laundering rules in relation to the monitoring of transactions to and from correspondent banks, and that Danske was examining whether its Lithuanian and Latvian branches had been involved in money laundering, expanding an investigation beyond its Estonian operations. On May 3, 2018, Reuters reported the DFSA issued a report stating it had identified serious weaknesses in Danskes governance and that the Company was exposed to significantly higher compliance and reputational risks than previously assessed. On July 18, 2018, Danske stated that it wished to pay back approximately $230 million earned in connection with its alleged role in an international money laundering scheme involving illicit funds from Russia, Azerbaijan, and Moldova, calculated based on profit from Danskes Estonian office. On this news, Danskes American depositary receipt price fell $1.43, or 9.42%, to close at $13.81 on July 18, 2018. On September 14, 2018, The Wall Street Journal disclosed that a whistleblower had approached the SEC at least two years earlier, and, as a result, U.S. law enforcement agencies had begun investigating the scandal. On October 23, 2018, the full extent of the Companys misconduct was releveled when The Wall Street Journal published an article disclosing that in 2013 the whistleblower had alerted Danskes senior executives and that Danske sought to silence the whistleblower for years. Upon the full revelation of the Companys misconduct and the extent to which it relied upon the illegal profits, the price of the Companys American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) had plummeted approximately 54%, from a high of $20.90 on February 16, 2018, to a low of $9.50 on October 23, 2018. The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Paris, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com. Left-wing activists smash windows with bats to protest conservative speakers. They burn property and threaten opponents in public, violently lashing out at individuals for holding conservative views. Its 2019 but could be mistaken for 1969. Thats no accident, observers of history say. The roots of disorder go back to a style of agitation and organization made famous half a century ago by left-wing activists. Because it so often worked for the left, it has become common in mainstream politics today, and has even been copied recently by a few on the right. Kenneth Starr, the former federal judge and solicitor general, discussed one of the most notorious cases in which radicalization moved out of the realm of theory into practical, aggressive politics. Addressing the Washington Examiners first political summit, at Sea Island, Ga., in November, Starr recalled the 1969 college graduation of Hillary Clinton and her affection for the philosophy of community organizer Saul Alinsky, who advocated personal targeting by radical activists in the 1960s and 70s. Alinsky was unhappy with what he saw as left-wing academics and politicians timidity and acceptance of political norms. He tried to organize businesses, labor unions, churches, and neighborhoods into radical activists who could force swift change with direct action that circumvented the traditional political process. Starr recalled Clinton, who went on to be first lady, senator, and secretary of state, giving the first student speech at her commencement in 1969. The former Goldwater Girl was student body president at Wellesley College and had just finished her senior thesis about Alinsky, who two years later would release his most enduring work, Rules for Radicals: A Political Primer for Realistic Radicals. Clinton, who entered the White House 23 years later with her husband, President Bill Clinton, spoke just after commencement speaker Sen. Edward Brooke. A moderate Massachusetts Republican, Brooke was the first African-American elected to the Senate. He died in 2015. Brooke believed in achieving incremental social improvements through collaboration, cooperation and established civil processes. In his address, the senator explained how coercive protest is wrong and one reason it is wrong is because it is unnecessary. The system works, he explained, if people use it peaceably and deliberately. Brookes advice was the antithesis of Hillary Clintons thesis on Alinsky. She approached the lectern and went off script to counter Brooke. Were not interested in social reconstruction, she said in defiance of Brookes advice. Its human reconstruction. She told Brooke powerful men for too long misrepresented politics as the art of the possible. She advocated a more human, more progressive perspective than what he stood for. Every protest, every dissent is unabashedly an attempt to forge an identity in this particular age, she said in a 15-minute speech that repeatedly quarreled with Brooke. News media responded with a mix of positive and negative commentary, but either way, national attention for Hillary Clintons tirade buried Brookes message. Life Magazine sent a photographer to shadow Hillary Clinton at her familys home in Illinois and wrote a story that concluded, through their scathing words and clenched fists, the Class of 69 made clear that the protest will go on. Time magazine followed, featuring excerpts of Hillary Clintons speech in a roundup of select commencement messages. The nonsense did not start with Occupy Wall Street, Starr pointed out. Indeed, Hillary Clintons speech was a sign of things to come. A spirit of Alinsky-style activism ebbed and flowed for the next half-century. Alinsky had bold and clear advice for the left, long before Hillary Clinton interviewed him for her thesis and 25 years before publication of the now-famous Rules for Radicals. His suggested method was to attack opponents personally, intimidate them, disorient them, dissuade them, throw them off their game, and consider breaking their necks. Conservative interests know that while liberals are most adept at breaking their own necks with their tongues, radicals are most adept at breaking the necks of conservatives, Alinsky wrote in his 1946 book Reveille for Radicals. The radical may resort to the sword. He hates these individuals not as persons but as symbols representing ideas or interests which he believes to be inimical to the welfare of the people. The obscure Reveille book ushered in the classic 1971 Rules for Radicals, which has become increasingly consequential. Alinskys 13 rules include tactics to increase insecurity, anxiety and uncertainty in opponents. Pick the target, freeze it, personalize, and polarize it, he advocated in rule 13. To give radicals a cause worth fighting for, Alinsky based grievance on a zero-sum game view of economics. Nothing was written or said about a lower-class kid from Cleveland learning guitar and making millions on stage, a once-poor inventors work improving the world, or a worker saving and investing his way to a better life. Alinsky spoke only of the poor and middle class the have nots taking from the haves. Even the rich ultimately must take from each other to maintain their lifestyles. In Alinskys Marxist paradigm, wealth and power are neither earned nor created. They must be taken. Alinsky coursework is now common in many disciplines at universities and colleges across America. The Manhattan Institutes Heather Mac Donald says most students know little of Alinsky, but his views commingle with similar left-wing doctrines in a pervasive academic culture of grievance and resistance. Academics neither hide their use of Alinskys work, nor apologize for it. By influencing millions of children and young adults for the past 50 years, say Alinsky supporters and critics alike, educators have made radicalization a central component of political activism. I reached out to three acclaimed university professors, who each defended Alinsky and their use of his books in their classrooms. My search of course curriculum found everything from semester-long Alinsky courses, to lectures, to reading assignments at Ivy League schools and all other variety of universities from coast to coast. In 2009, the National Education Association, the nations biggest teachers union, recommended that teachers read Alinskys books, calling him an inspiration to anyone contemplating action in their community! And to every organizer! The NEA praised union organizer Paul Booth a day after his death in 2018 for his ties to Alinsky. Paul was a contemporary and protege of Saul Alinsky, with whom he worked to fight for social, economic and environmental justice for urban communities, explains a letter on the NEA website by NEA President Lily Eskelsen Garcia and Executive Director John Stocks. In a 1985 interview with Insiders Report, a publication of concerned educators against forced unionism, former NEA leader John Lloyd minced no words in describing the close relationship between the teachers union, Alinsky, and the union organizers work. To understand the NEA to understand the union read Saul Alinsky, said Lloyd, former president of the Kansas NEA, a chapter in Massachusetts, and director of the NEAs Uniserv. If you read Rules for Radicals, you will understand the NEA more profoundly than reading anything else. Because the whole organization was modeled on that kind of behavior which was really begun when the NEA used Saul Alinsky as a consultant to train their own staff. A 2014 article in the journal Jesuit Higher Education spends 18 pages urging faculty nationwide to include Alinskys books and thinking as a central feature of the curriculum at the countrys 221 Catholic colleges and universities. Eric J. Fretz, associate professor of peace and justice studies at Denvers Regis University, explains in the journal how he taught a course called Stand Up and Fight: Saul Alinsky and the Community Organizing Tradition at Regis University and two other colleges over the past decade. Fretz describes the Jesuit communitys political turn to the left in the mid-20th century and Pedro Arrupes call for collectively entering upon a more severe way of the cross. We should go back and revisit that bifurcation we have created between academics and activists, Fretz wrote, adding, We are all, in varying degrees, both academics and activists, and those two things can live together in harmony in one being. History professor Michael Kazin, of the Jesuit Georgetown University in Washington, defends Alinsky while speaking of him alongside a community organizer from Calcutta named Mother Teresa. Alinsky frequently spoke at Catholic venues and regularly advised young seminarians who were eager to improve the well-being of the men and women they would soon be serving, many of whom were poor and needed help organizing themselves to demand jobs and better services from local authorities, Kazin wrote in the New Republic in 2012. The FBI described Alinskys ties to Catholic organizations in the narrative of a 1972 investigation in Baltimore. The agency found Alinsky working with the Industrial Areas Foundation, a nationwide network of faith-based community organizing groups, and Baltimores North East Community Organization. Alinskys mentors included labor leader John Llewellyn Lewis, president of the United Mine Workers of America and the Congress of Industrial Organizations, and even Chicago mob boss Al Capone. The FBIs Baltimore report includes a copy of Alinskys 1972 interview with Playboy magazine, in which he describes his connection with Capone and the status he earned as the Chicago mobs college-boy mascot. He worked his way into Capones circle by kissing up to Big Ed Stash, a professional assassin who was the Capone mobs top executioner. Alinsky described befriending Stash by listening to boring stories about women few others had time for. By his account, Alinsky worked within the mob for two years to hone his skills at organizing for outcomes. I learned a hell of a lot about the uses and abuses of power from the mob, lessons that stood me in good stead later on, when I was organizing, he told the magazine. Playboy asked if Alinsky had any compunction about consorting with if not actually assisting murderers? None at all, Alinsky said, since there was nothing I could do to stop them from murdering. Alinsky described his association with Capone as heaven and called the boss a public benefactor. The Capone gang was actually a public utility; it supplied what the people wanted and demanded, Alinsky said. The man in the street wanted girls: Capone gave him girls. He wanted booze during Prohibition: Capone gave him booze. An essay by Brooklyn-based, self-described socialist Aaron Petcoff explains the relevance of Alinkys relationship with organized labor. Alinskys experience with the CIO profoundly shaped him. Communist and socialist influence was rising in the labor movement, Petcoff explains in the May 2017 issue of the socialist quarterly Jacobin. Gerald Rosenberg, an attorney and associate professor of political science at the University of Chicago, does not trace the lefts original widespread embrace of radical protest to anything Alinsky wrote. Alinksys actions and antics, not his precise written words, captivated the left before he wrote Rules for Radicals. Rosenberg points to a protest Alinsky organized to counter objections to neighborhoods developing around Chicagos OHare Airport. Alinsky and other opponents claimed the airport and surrounding developments benefited affluent white travelers at the expense of blacks, who were increasingly relegated to the citys deteriorating core. He organized a shit-in at OHare, with protesters occupying all of the bathrooms, Rosenberg recalls with admiration. This stuff works. The left discovered him right away after that. Alinsky and his followers understood that when flights arrive at airports people flock to bathrooms, explained Andrew F. Kaufman in the journal Society and Space. And they understood that the inability to conduct basic bodily functions could disrupt Mayor [Richard J.] Daleys dream of airports, infrastructure, modernization, and the cosmopolitan specter of unencumbered circulation. Rosenberg, an Alinsky enthusiast, hopes the 20- and 30-something millennial generation will increasingly embrace the spirit of Rules for Radicals, whether they read it. Rosenberg insists violence was not Alinskys intent. Yet its hard to see why violence isnt a predictable outcome. Democratic California Rep. Maxine Waters publicly called on supporters to use tactics strikingly similar to those of rule 13, saying last June: If you see anybody from [President Trumps] Cabinet in a restaurant, in a department store, at a gasoline station, you get out and you create a crowd, and you push back on them, and you tell them theyre not welcome anymore, anywhere. Three months later, a group of protesters chased Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and his wife out of a Washington restaurant, shouting, We believe survivors! We believe survivors! They opposed the confirmation of Justice Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court. After Waters advocated personal intimidation and social isolation, other leading Democrats chimed in with additional appeals for radical activism that conforms with Alinskys instruction to go after people. Thats my call to action, here, said New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker at a speech to supporters in July. Booker, who seems sure to run for the Democratic presidential nomination, added, Go to the Hill [Capitol Hill] today. Get up and, please, get up in the face of some congresspeople. Clinton followed Waters and Booker, nearly 50 years after confronting Brookes promotion of change through civilized process. You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about, she declared in an October interview with CNNs Christiane Amanpour. Her party would be civil upon return to power, she continued. Former Democratic Attorney General Eric Holder followed Clinton in October. When they go low, we kick em, Holder declared. Or mess with their food. That was the mid-October advice of James Thomas, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of Mississippi. Dont just interrupt a senators meal, yall, tweeted Thomas. Put your whole damn fingers in their salads. Take their apps and distribute them to the other diners. Bring boxes and take their food home with you on the way out. They dont deserve your civility. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and his wife, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, subsequently endured an attack that appeared to follow Thomas prescription. An activist verbally abused them and threw their food on the floor in a Kentucky restaurant on Oct. 19. About 10 protesters chased McConnell out of a Kentucky restaurant on another such occasion, following him to his car and threatening him with the chant, We know where you live. Whatever Alinskys intent, it is perhaps disingenuous to posit that he didnt know where it would lead. Republican state representative candidate Shane Mekeland was dining at a restaurant on a late fall Sunday in Minnesota, where he lives. As he sat at a high-top table, a left-wing attacker sucker-punched him. Mekeland fell to the floor and suffered a serious concussion, including memory loss. Physicians diagnosed six weeks of recovery when they released him from the hospital. The crime against Mekeland came just after an assault on Minnesota Republican State Rep. Sarah Anderson after she confronted a left-wing activist for destroying Republican yard signs. The man punched Anderson, bruising her arm before she ran to her car and fled for safety. Before the October confirmation of Kavanaugh, suspects sent a text to moderate Republican Sen. Cory Gardners wife containing a gruesome video of a human beheading. The text contained addresses that ensured the sender knew how to find Gardner family members and other loved ones. It makes you worry about your wife and kids, Gardner told the Washington Examiner. You worry what people will do to them, constantly. Alinsky-style activists seldom give Gardner and other Republican politicians a break, and most incidents dont make the news. Protesters surrounded the senators Colorado home on New Years Eve in 2017, destroying outdoor Christmas decorations in protest of his opposition to Obamacare. There are efforts by radicals to get teachers to do bad things to our children at school. The school calls and reports these to us, Gardner said. We often have the police calling and telling us there is reason to step up patrols near our home. Gardner has said he wont be bullied and nothing protesters do alters what he says or does in the Senate. Smash Racism DC, a militant Alinsky-style Antifa group, converged on the home of Fox News host Tucker Carlson Nov. 7 to terrorize his wife with threatening chants and pounding on the front door. Tucker Carlson, we will fight! We know where you sleep at night! they chanted, along with other threats. Despite the more recent widespread torrent of left-wing protests and intimidation events, news media downplay the trend. Right now conservative speech is considered violence and liberal violence is considered speech, said 2018 Michigan Republican U.S. Senate candidate John James in a TV interview. Its an attack on what we hold dear and fundamental, and that message is getting out. Washington Post columnist Karen Tumulty minimized recent left-wing tumult by comparing it to right-wing tea party assemblies during former President Barack Obamas first term. There were plenty of shoving matches, and Democratic lawmakers were burned in effigy, Tumulty insists. Evidence to support her claim is scant, at best. Tea party activists mostly gathered in parks and on courthouse lawns with municipal permits to oppose high taxes, new regulations and the costs of the Affordable Care Act. Small-business owners comprised disproportionately high percentages of tea party crowds. Typical tea party events consisted of scheduled speakers, usually candidates, at gatherings that more resembled church picnics than protests. Tea party activists didnt smash windows with bats. They did not bully couples on dates, or mess with their food. They did not silence campus speakers with whom they disagreed. Political leaders and academics did not advocate incivility by conservatives to target the left. Alinsky was clearly on the left, says the University of Chicagos Rosenberg. But his work can be used in a nonpartisan way. Anyone can use these tactics. I think in the last decade or so the right has discovered Alinsky, but only after pillorying him for decades. As Rosenberg spoke to the Washington Examiner, 25-year-old conservative activist Laura Loomer provided him an example of radical, albeit peaceable, right-wing activism the professor perceived as something straight out of Alinskys playbook. She handcuffed herself to the New York City headquarters of Twitter in protest of the companys suspension of her account, over a tweet critical of incoming Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar. Such tactics, though, preceded Alinsky by decades, having been used by suffragettes in the early 20th century. Chaining oneself is not a threat to others. Alinsky would approve of her protest, Rosenberg speculates, to emphasize his belief conservatives can, do, and will use Alinskys tactics to their advantages. Hes not wrong, though. There are groups on the right that are now catching on to the lefts tactics. In October, members of the right-wing self-described Western chauvinist group Proud Boys got into a violent altercation with left-wing protesters at a New York speech by founder Gavin McInnes (who has since officially distanced himself from the group). McInnes in 2017 told Mother Jones he considered himself a student of the immoral Alinsky: This isnt us taking on a brilliant book because we admire the guy. Its us seeing what your tactics are and using them against you. Months earlier, conservative Town Hall columnist Kurt Schlichter crowed, Finally, the right has taken Saul Alinskys Rules for Radicals and shoved it up where #TheResistance dont shine. Right-wing provocateurs had been calling for such a table-turning: A FreedomWorks press secretary told Politico in 2009 he was given Rules for Radicals upon his hire at the free-market group. Around that same time, activist-filmmaker James OKeefe told the New York Post he was inspired in part by Alinsky. In 2012, John Hawkins implored his Town Hall readers to not become an evil person like Alinsky, but learn from what he wrote and give the left a taste of its own medicine. Rosenberg believes anyone employing Alinskys advice to justify violence has mistaken the authors philosophy. He was about shit-ins, not Antifa, Rosenberg said. Clark McPhail, emeritus professor of sociology at the University of Illinois, taught courses on social movements and collective behavior and used Rules for Radicals as a requisite textbook. Alinsky favored strikes, nonparticipation, or anything social psychologists call power-dependence conduct, McPhail said. You engage in activity that makes your opponent dependent on you until the opponent sits down and negotiates. Today, McPhail said, theres no question some take Alinskys rules out of context and misuse them. The targets of Alinskyite provocation would like organizers to find a new hero. Alinsky is a radical of radicals, Gardner warns. It is dangerous for everyone when any party or political movement takes up his torch and follows his advice. Wayne Laugesen is The Gazettes editorial page editor. This article originally ran in the Jan. 8 edition of the Washington Examiner Magazine. Val Snider wants to reclaim his old seat on the Colorado Springs City Council. Snider, a retired Air Force officer, served a single, four-year term in one of the councils three at-large seats from 2011 to 2015 and now hes vying for his old seat in the citys April election. All three at-large seats are up for grabs in the election, though the field of candidates is crowded and includes two incumbents seeking to hold their seats. But Snider said hes confident voters will hear his ideas and gravitate toward him. In short, Snider said he wants to maintain the good relationship between the council and the mayors administration, boost funding for parks maintenance, and increase the amount of available affordable housing, among other things. Sniders first term coincided with former Mayor Steve Bachs, which was the first time the city employed a strong-mayor form of government rather than a council-manager form. At the time, there was a lot of trial and error with the new form of government, he said. For those first four years we were building an airplane while we were flying, he said. Except we were trying to run a government. Toward the end of that term, Snider had difficulty containing his frustrations with then-council president Keith King, who he said had a habit of presenting long proposals to the body with little or no notice before meetings. He was difficult to predict and often the swing vote on key issues, including a 5-4 vote in 2014 banning retail marijuana sales for recreational use within the city. He also led the council, which serves as Colorado Springs Utilities board of directors, in discussions about decommissioning the coal-fired Martin Drake Power Plant downtown. Shortly after his term ended, the council voted that the plant be shuttered no later than 2035. Before his departure, Snider predicted other council members would face difficulties with the strong mayor form of government. But watching over the years he said it appears the relationship among council members and with the mayors office has improved. From what I can tell, theyre on the right track, he said. The mayor looks to collaborate with the council, tell the council his priorities. And the council collaborates with the mayor. So theres not a lot of real surprises there. With Mayor Bach, there were no rules, if you will. There wasnt a lot of thought as to how we were going to do it, he added. I was challenged in trying to determine what the heck we were supposed to be doing as council members. But I think thats by the wayside now. Certainly, Snider would have an advantage in maintaining or improving that relationship among council members because he knows several of them. Snider is a slight and soft-spoken man and as he sat in a downtown coffee shop discussing his priorities, Council President Richard Skorman and President Pro-Tem Jill Gaebler walked in. The three spoke for several minutes, laughing and recalling old times. Skorman and Gaebler said they were pleased Snider is running for the council. I cant wait to be back, Snider said with a smile as the pair walked away. And if hes elected, Snider said his goal would be to maintain and improve relationships like those with Skorman and Gaebler. In addition, he said hed like to see what can be done to close Martin Drake sooner than 2035. That was as much of a do-nothing option as possible, he said of the past councils decision to set that date. It needs to be (closed) earlier than 2035. Four to six years ought to be enough time. Snider also said he wants to work closely with veterans to get to the root of the citys homelessness problem, ensure stormwater management is properly handled and finish the citys Legacy Loop trail project. Council candidates have until Jan. 22 to submit 100 valid signatures of Colorado Springs voters to the city clerk for nomination. position. Once those signatures are validated, theyll have earned a spot on the ballot. Pending that validation, Snider will be joined on the ballot by at-large incumbents Bill Murray and Tom Strand. The third at-large councilman, Merv Bennet, is term-limited and cannot run again. Army veteran and former county planning commissioner Tony Gioia, former Will Rogers Elementary School principal Terry Martinez, former state Rep. Gordon Klingenschmitt and former Colorado Secretary of State Wayne Williams are also vying for the at-large seats. Colorado Springs, CO (80903) Today Mostly sunny skies this morning will become overcast during the afternoon. A stray afternoon thunderstorm is possible. High near 95F. Winds NNE at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Partly cloudy. Low 63F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph. Call it a midlife crisis or a calling. In the spring of 2017, Tom Ori was looking for a challenge that would take him far from his everyday life in Colorado Springs. Ori, founder of Next Level Performance, a leadership training and development consulting firm, was recently divorced and at a point where all these kind of big personal questions began to get raised. In younger days, the 1987 Colorado College political science and government graduate challenged himself by climbing mountains. Now he wanted to leverage an interest in conservation with a desire to test himself mentally and physically. I was reading about how there are paramilitary groups that are helping with the anti-poaching effort, Ori, 53, said. They are trying to outmaneuver poachers and set up protective perimeters around herds of rhinos and elephants. He searched for a way to get involved and discovered Tac Trac Anti-Poaching Academy, an organization that trains anti-poaching rangers in Touwsrivier, South Africa. Oris age made him an anomaly at the academy, typically a proving ground for those in their 20s looking for a career in the African bush. Despite his doubts, Ori was accepted into a five-week program of intensive training that started on his 53rd birthday May 21, 2018. Ori trained hard before traveling to South Africa. He was given special consideration when it came to past injuries to his rotator cuff and knee and was permitted to modify some physical demands of the course, such as substituting pull-ups and sit-ups while others did push-ups. Navy SEALS of anti-poaching Academy tuition was $3,500, not including travel to South Africa. You basically pay to get tortured for five weeks, Ori said. Its kind of like the Navy SEALS of anti-poaching. They train people to become front rangers in the battle against poaching. The first week of training is designed to thin the herd, so to speak. My class started with seven people, and three dropped out in those first days, Ori said. He made it through Hell Week, only to learn that a close friend back home had been diagnosed with aggressive brain cancer. He made the tough decision to return to America immediately to spend time with his friend, asking to return for a later training. The answer was yes, but Ori would have to go through Hell Week again. Im not someone who likes to start things and not finish them, he said. Three months later, Ori returned to South Africa. Seven cadets began this training, but only five saw it through. Ori was one of two Americans in the group. The balance were South African, two to three decades his junior. It had the physical demands of a paramilitary training. When youre babysitting a rhino, youre needing to sit underneath a tree, still, for five hours and at a moments notice get up and sprint, he said. Two weeks were spent on a rangers reserve that Tac Trac owns in the Klein Karoo region of the Western Cape province in South Africa. The remainder was spent in the Eastern Cape, outside Port Elizabeth, living in the bush on a Big 5 game reserve home to lions, elephants, rhinos, buffalo and leopards as well as other predators such as cheetah, hyena, jackal and lynx. Roughing it Training brought plenty of challenges for Ori. Accommodations were the floor of a concrete barracks or under a tarp in the field. Food was whatever could be cooked over an open fire. He lost 15 pounds over the five-week course. Ori said he thought about quitting more than once, such as when he woke up to shotgun fire outside the barracks on his second night. He recalled instructors yelling at the sleeping trainees to get up, get dressed on the double. Im shaking and its cold and I cant find my headlamp, he said, and somehow I managed to put my boots on without my pants. The instructors were yelling, Ori, what do they teach you in the U.S.? Words of encouragement written by friends and family helped him see it through. His father cited the Japanese proverb, Fall down seven times, stand up eight. Ori took it to heart. The benefit is, you get to immerse yourself in this amazing wilderness of beauty, he said. Poaching often happens under the full moon, with no light pollution, in the middle of the savannah. Its gorgeous. But at the same time, theres this edginess. Wed see people dash out of the bushes. Education matters In Africa, rhinos and elephants routinely are killed by poachers for the ivory in their horns and tusks. Tac Trac executive director Geoffrey Phipps said by email that the media projects that rhinos are being killed every day in horrific situations. This is of course to a degree very correct, but what gets left behind are all the other wildlife that is also under immense pressure for the bush-meat trade, and also for export. Pangolin for example are poached and exported by thousands, along with lions, elephant, hyena and an array of wildlife that doesnt get mentioned. The snaring of animals for meat is a major problem, Phipps said. He said academy graduates make a difference, and many reserves in South Africa could benefit from people like Tom. Generally, foreigners have a different concept to the problems here in South Africa ... whereas once they have been through the course they understand the problems firsthand, and the reality of being on the ground which can be very mundane, tedious, underpaid and very often thankless, Phipps wrote. While many Americans apply to Tac Trac, few actually end up coming through to do the course, he said. Applicants are mostly 20-something men, though women have gone through the course and can do very well. Woefully understaffed Tac Trac provides three levels of certification. Ori achieved Level 1, which allows him to carry a firearm and detain a suspected poacher under force until police arrive. The certification is recognized by several South African countries. I love my day job as a leadership development consultant, Ori said. But I would surely love the option this certification gives me to go back to Africa and volunteer for weeks at a time, to work with an anti-poaching unit helping out and getting some relief to current rangers. The anti-poaching community is woefully understaffed, he said. The rangers go into communities and befriend locals to get information on poaching nearby. They track people and animals and detain poachers. The aim in tracking is to remain undetectable to the rhinos and elephants, whose eyesight is poor but sense of smell is advanced. Oris group approached a mama rhino and baby and were successful in that the animals, only 50 feet away, didnt alert to their presence. Their final exam entailed spending a night in the bush without weapons or instructors. They gathered tree branches to create a boma, a natural barrier that keeps predators out, and build a fire from scratch. For Ori, the oldest Tac Trac graduate, the experience was invaluable. Phipps said, It is definitely a young mans game. It is quite something to see young people in their 20s dropping or burnt out, and then to see Tom keep ticking along at least beside them, if not at times in front of them! Ori said friends encouraged him to share his story. It raises the issue that people who are in their 50s can still go out and do inspirational and extraordinary things that others might think are not practical, he said. If it gets other people motivated about conservation, Ive done my job. Contact the writer, 476-1602 Doane University recognized graduates from the College of Professional Studies and College of Education at its December Commencement ceremony on Dec. 16. Approximately 300 undergraduate and graduate degrees were awarded during the university's commencement celebration held inside the George & Sally Haddix Recreation Center on the Crete campus. Graduate students from the College of Education in the following programs were recognized: Doctorate of Education, Education Specialist, and Master of Education in Curriculum & Instruction. In the College of Professional Studies, graduate students from the Master of Arts in Management, Master of Business Administration, and Master of Arts in Counseling programs were recognized. Undergraduate students in the College of Professional Studies were honored as well. The following area students were awarded degrees: Arlington: Chelsea A. Lambert, Master of Arts in Counseling. Dodge: Lyza A. Noyd, Bachelor of Science in Nursing, Magna Cum Laude. Benedictine College has recognized those students who have distinguished themselves academically during the fall semester, which ended in December. Any full-time student carrying a minimum of 12 hours and a perfect 4.0 grade point average through the spring term is named to the president's list. Full-time students with 12 hours and a grade point average of 3.5 are named to the dean's list. Of the 1,914 students on campus for 2018-2019 academic year, 127 made the president's list and 623 made the dean's list. Royal Bank of Canada (TSE:RY) has pleased shareholders over the past 10 years, by paying out dividends. The company currently pays out a dividend yield of 4.1% to shareholders, making it a relatively attractive dividend stock. Does Royal Bank of Canada tick all the boxes of a great dividend stock? Below, Ill take you through my analysis. Check out our latest analysis for Royal Bank of Canada Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. 5 questions to ask before buying a dividend stock When researching a dividend stock, I always follow the following screening criteria: Is their annual yield among the top 25% of dividend payers? Has it consistently paid a stable dividend without missing a payment or drastically cutting payout? Has it increased its dividend per share amount over the past? Does earnings amply cover its dividend payments? Will it be able to continue to payout at the current rate in the future? TSX:RY Historical Dividend Yield January 13th 19 How well does Royal Bank of Canada fit our criteria? The company currently pays out 45% of its earnings as a dividend, according to its trailing twelve-month data, which means that the dividend is covered by earnings. Going forward, analysts expect RYs payout to remain around the same level at 47% of its earnings. Assuming a constant share price, this equates to a dividend yield of around 4.4%. Furthermore, EPS should increase to CA$8.97. When considering the sustainability of dividends, it is also worth checking the cash flow of a company. Cash flow is important because companies with strong cash flow can usually sustain higher payout ratios. If there is one thing that you want to be reliable in your life, its dividend stocks and their constant income stream. RY has increased its DPS from CA$2 to CA$3.92 in the past 10 years. During this period it has not missed a payment, as one would expect for a company increasing its dividend. This is an impressive feat, which makes RY a true dividend rockstar. Story continues In terms of its peers, Royal Bank of Canada produces a yield of 4.1%, which is on the low-side for Banks stocks. Next Steps: With this in mind, I definitely rank Royal Bank of Canada as a strong dividend stock, and makes it worth further research for anyone who likes steady income generation from their portfolio. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, you should always research extensively before deciding whether or not a stock is an appropriate investment for you. I always recommend analysing the companys fundamentals and underlying business before making an investment decision. Below, Ive compiled three essential factors you should look at: Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for RYs future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for RYs outlook. Valuation: What is RY 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 RY is currently mispriced by the market. Other Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here. To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements. The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. The request, reportedly made the National Security Council which is led by national security advisor John Bolton, alarmed Pentagon and State Department officials, the Journal wrote on Sunday. The Council made the move after an Iranian-aligned group fired missiles into Baghdad's diplomatic quarter, which hosts the U.S. embassy in Iraq. No one was harmed. The White House requested options for a military strike against Iran last September, a report by the Wall Street Journal revealed on Sunday , citing current and former U.S. officials. The request, reportedly made the National Security Council led by national security advisor John Bolton, alarmed Pentagon and State Department officials, The Journal wrote on Sunday. The Council made the move after an Iranian-aligned group fired missiles into Baghdad's diplomatic quarter, which hosts the U.S. embassy in Iraq. No one was harmed. According to the publication, it remains unclear whether President Donald Trump himself knew about the request, whether the Pentagon ultimately delivered military options to the White House, and if concrete attack plans against the Islamic Republic were actually formulated. But officials who spoke to the publication confirmed that the Defense Department did indeed comply with the National Security Council's request to develop those options. Bolton, an avid proponent of the Iraq invasion during the George W. Bush administration, has long taken one of the hardest lines against Iran in Washington and has openly supported the idea of regime change in Tehran. A spokesperson for the White House did not immediately reply to a CNBC request for comment. Garrett Marquis, a spokesman for the National Security Council told The Journal: "We continue to review the status of our personnel following attempted attacks on our embassy in Baghdad and our Basra consulate, and we will consider a full range of options to preserve their safety and our interests." Story continues The full report from the Wall Street Journal can be found on its website . More From CNBC Sebastien Roblin Security, Europe Get ready, Russia. Ukraine is Developing Remote-Control Killer Robots to Wage War in Eastern Ukraine For several years, Ukrainian troops have been locked in a frozen conflict with Russian-backed separatists for control of the Donbas region in Eastern Ukraine. The maneuver warfare and urban/airport siege phase of the conflict ended in 2015. Now the opposing forces glare at each other across no mans land from fortified outposts and periodically lash out with sniper fire, artillery and mortar barrages, or even precision-attacks delivered by anti-tank missiles. When the slightest exposed movement spotted by adversaries could provoke a deadly bombardment, its easy to understand why Ukrainians are seeking to introduce robotic vehicles to minimize the risks to flesh-and-blood combatants. In the past, Ukraine harbored a major share of the Soviet Unions military-industrial sector, building Antonov transport planes, T-64 tanks and even aircraft carriers. Ukraine is seeking to leverage that industrial base to strengthen its hand in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine. The most high-profile Ukrainian Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) is the Fantom, a 6x6 first unveiled at a defense exposition in 2016. The diminutive robotic fighting vehicle is only one meter tall and three meters long, and can carry a 12.7-millimeter machine gun, or a pop-up turret mounting four Ukrainian-built Barrier anti-tank missiles that can bust tanks up five kilometers away. The pop-up launcher could allow the low-profile vehicle to hide safely behind cover, with only its raised launcher exposed to picks off enemy tanks. However, the Fantom more routinely could be used for reconnaissance missions, or to lug up to 770 pounds of cargoconceivably delivering food and ammunition to isolated outposts, or even medically evacuating wounded soldiers from combat. The Fantom is manually controlled from a Ground Control station (basically an extra-large laptop case with two monitors and embedded control sticks) which transmits orders across both a fiber-optic cable link which can extend 5 kilometers and a radio link with a range of ten kilometers. The operator benefits from one 360-degree focused camera and five fixed all-aspect cameras for situational awareness, all of which are day/night capable. Story continues At this juncture, its worth noting that remote control appears to remain the Achilles Heel of UGVs, as unlike high flying drones, UGV radio-links are easily disrupted by terrain features and buildingor worse, enemy jamming and electronic warfare. Most UGVs in operational use today are demining robots, in which the operators can remain within line-of-sight of the vehicles. However, for a combat drone, operators would ideally be situated at a safe distance, removed from enemy fire. However, when Russian combat-tested the Uran-9 in Syria, a heavier and theoretically more advanced robot fighting vehicle, it found that a system that supposedly had a 3-kilometer range only reached out an impractical 400 meters in lightly urbanized terrain. Thus, the Fantoms practicality will depend on the robustness of its data link and fiber-optic cable under realistic operational conditions. Power generation and endurance is another UGV design challenge. The Fantom uses a hybrid propulsion system with a separate engine for each of its three pairs of wheels, and a 30-kilowatt capacity generator which draws upon twenty liters of stored fuel to propel the vehicle to a maximum speed of 23 miles per hour. The generator periodically activates to replenish the battery but can be suppressed if thermal stealth is important. The Fantom can be recharged from the power grid in ninety minutes. In 2017, a larger 8x8 Fantom 2 model was exhibited, this time with a turret capable of mounting a twin-barrel 23-millimeter cannon for blasting infantry and light armored vehicles, or a rocket-pod loaded with twenty 80-millimeter rockets. The 2.6-ton vehicles 80 kW generator can sustain speeds of 37 miles per hour and its datalink supposedly has a 20-kilometer range. Reportedly, the Fantom 2 attracted interest from potential North African and Middle Eastern clients. In contrast to the beefy Fantom 2, Ukrainian firm Global Dynamics recently unveiled its 4x4 Iron Clad UGV weighing only 1.2 tons, with an articulated two-segmented configuration with sophisticated all-terrain capabilities. Like the Phantom, it has a dual fiber-optic and radio-link control system and hybrid diesel-electric propulsionthough the 12 kW generator means the vehicle can only jog at 12 miles per hour. However, the Iron Clads modular armor is reportedly only six millimeters thickbarely enough to protect against small arms at long range. An optional remote weapon station on the front segment can carry a stabilized heavy or medium machine gun, which is accurate within a 5 centimeter-radius on targets one kilometer away. The rear segment has a cargo bay which can accommodate 300-pound cargoes, or significantly less if the weapon station equipped. The robot has an endurance of four hours fully-loaded, or up to ten with lighter payloads. The little UGV is patrol and reconnaissance-oriented, with integrated thermal cameras and rangefinder. Theoretically, the robot could rove around infantry squads and outposts, performing boring but potentially dangerous patrol routines. An even smaller 680-pound drone, the Laska (Weasel) developed by Infocom, resembles a machine gun-armed quad bike. The Laska is powered by a 19-horsepower motor and boasts an extensive array of sensors. The machine gun supposedly has a track-and-engage Hunter Killer capability. However, the Laska appears designed for much shorter range use within 100 to 300 meters of the operatorwho can command the vehicle using a robotic smart glove. However, proclamations at press junkets to the contrary, its not clear how soon these UGVs will enter service with the Ukrainian militaryor if they will at all. The lack of verified orders could mean the Ukrainian Army is not prioritizing the UGVs, or that it is interested but lacks necessary funds, or that the trials and testing for entry into service are simply happening quietly behind the scenes. One factor that must weigh heavily is potential UGV susceptibility to electronic warfare, which Russian forces have ruthlessly used to deadly effect in the Donbas war. Nonetheless, the principles behind remote-control vehicles are simple enough that in 2016, Ukrainian citizens crowd-funded the development of a Myslyvets (Hunter) robot carrying a 12.7-millimeter machine gun and a camera sight for the equivalent of $10,000, as detailed in this article by the Digital Forensic Research Lab. In December 2016, the primitive-looking Hunter was commanded via a laptop computer to direct machine gun fire at separatists taking cover in a house in Avdiivka, Ukraine, as seen in this video. One cant imagine the Hunter was a particularly accurate firing platform, but that may be less important for the purposes of suppressing enemy troops. Afterward, the Kiev-based Robotics firm began selling a Hunter 2 model that was upgraded with an infrared camera, an encrypted datalink, a 36-hour battery life, and a streamlined laptop control system. In May 2018, the Ukrainian Army reportedly began formally testing the Myslyvets, claiming it would have application for casualty evacuation and potentially could mount heavier weapons such as automatic grenade launchers or anti-tank guided missiles. The Hunter 2 still resembles a cart with a machine gun on topbut if it gets the job done at a cheaper cost, that may make it easier to rapidly introduce into the service, despite limitations it may have compared to more exquisite prototypes. Of course, a paradoxical outcome of using drones to reduce the risk to humans while waging war is that it can make it easier for societies to wage those wars perpetually, as evidenced by the United States endless drone wars. As the robotization of twenty-first-century warfare seems increasingly inevitablein part because it can be implemented relatively cheaply, as demonstrated in Ukraineone can only hope that tendency wont end up costing more lives than it saves. Sebastien Roblin holds a masters degree in conflict resolution from Georgetown University and served as a university instructor for the Peace Corps in China. He has also worked in education, editing, and refugee resettlement in France and the United States. He currently writes on security and military history for War Is Boring. Image: Youtube screenshot. Read full article Federal investigators became alarmed by President Donald Trump's behavior in the immediate aftermath of his firing in 2017 of former FBI director James Comey, and opened a probe into whether the president had been secretly working with Russia, The New York Times reported late Friday. The publication said that counterintelligence officials weighed whether Trump's actions were undermining national security, and whether he was either working at the behest of Moscow. Federal investigators, alarmed by President Donald Trump's behavior in the immediate aftermath of his firing in 2017 of former FBI director James Comey, opened a probe into whether the president had been secretly working with Russia, The New York Times reported late Friday . Citing unnamed sources familiar with the investigation, the publication said that counterintelligence officials weighed whether Trump's actions were undermining national security, and whether he was either working at the behest of Moscow, or was somehow influenced by the Kremlin. Trump has repeatedly denied that he colluded with Russia, while even Comey has stated publicly that Trump himself was not a focus of the FBI's probe into his campaign's ties to Moscow. In a lengthy diatribe on Twitter, the president blasted The Times, and renewed his critique of the former FBI director as "a total sleaze" and a poor leader. Twitter Trump tweet2 Allegations that Trump was somehow compromised by Russia were first broached by the controversial Steele dossier, a raw intelligence document assembled by a former British spy that was interspersed with lurid and largely uncorroborated accusations against the president. The Times reported on Friday that agents and senior FBI officials had their suspicions aroused about Trump's ties to Russia during the 2016 election, but refrained from opening an investigation into him because of how sensitive the undertaking would be. However, sources told the publication that on two occasions, Trump tied Comey's dismissal to the Russia probe, which led to a counterintelligence track being added to the original Russia inquiry. Story continues In theory, Comey's axing would constitute obstruction, because of the impact it would have had on the FBI's ability to learn about Moscow's meddling, and whether U.S. citizens were involved. On Saturday, Trump reiterated his position that he's been far tougher on Russian than any of his predecessors. Russia tweet According to The Times report, it's unclear if Special Counsel Robert Mueller is still pursuing the counterintelligence probe as he pursues a wide ranging investigation into whether campaign officials, or Candidate Trump himself, knew of Russia's efforts to influence the election. Still, the investigation into whether the president obstructed justice by firing Comey was lumped in with the counterintelligence inquiry, according to former law enforcement officials who spoke with the Times. Rudolph W. Giuliani, Trump's personal lawyer and the former mayor of New York City, dismissed the counterintelligence effort. "The fact that it goes back a year and a half and nothing came of it that showed a breach of national security means they found nothing," Giuliani told The Times on Friday, but added that he had no insight into that particular track of the investigation. A spokesperson for the FBI did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. The Times' full report can be found on its website . More From CNBC The Trump administration has rolled back Obama-era pollution and fuel efficiency rules for cars and light trucks, saying they were too stringent Canadians cant seem to get enough of sport utility vehicles and trucks. More than 70 per cent of all vehicles sold in Canada in 2018 were light trucks, according to statistics released by DesRosiers Automotive Consultants on Thursday. It is the first time the light truck market which includes trucks, SUVs and vans cracked the 70 per cent threshold in Canada. At the same time, just 29.1 per cent of the new vehicles bought last year were cars, a market that has been steadily shrinking for years. And dont expect Canadians interest in SUVs particularly the ever-popular compact models to go away anytime soon. Consumer interest in light trucks saw a surge following the last economic downturn in 2008-2009, and hasnt looked back since, DesRosiers president Dennis DesRosiers wrote in a report released Thursday. The last time the market was this dominated by a vehicle type was in 1990, where passenger cars held close to a 70 per cent market share. Overall vehicle sales in Canada fell 2.6 per cent from 2.039 million in 2017 to 1.985 million last year. According to DesRosiers, the momentum from a record-breaking sales year in 2017 carried over to January and February, but slowed in the second half of the year, where there was a year-over-year decline for the first time since 2009. While regional sales data has yet to be released, DesRosiers said he expects weakness in the Prairie provinces, largely due to struggles in the oil patch. Ford Motor Co. ended the year selling the most vehicles in Canada, representing 15 per cent of the market with nearly 300,000 vehicles sold, down 3.4 per cent from a year earlier. General Motors saw its sales dip nearly 5 per cent to 288,310 vehicles sold, while Fiat Chrysler saw a decline of 15.8 per cent to 224,889. Going into 2019, DesRosiers expects more of the same. We expect the market to be down another two to four per cent, but it will continue to be single-digit declines, he said. There is nothing out there that says the market will collapse, but at the same time its hard to find anything that would spur it to grow. Story continues While sales may have been relatively strong in 2018, it was still a turbulent year for the Canadian auto industry. In late November, the industry was stunned when GM announced a major restructuring plan that will see up to 14,000 workers in North America lose their jobs, nearly 3,000 of which are in the Oshawa assembly plant. The plan, which will save the company $6 billion annually, was in part a response to changing consumer demand towards trucks and SUVs. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. The north magnetic poles rapid and inexorable shift requires the early release of a new model of Earths magnetic field for military and civilian navigation around the Arctic. The partial federal government shutdown will delay the release of this model from January 15 until at least January 30, despite the U.S. militarys request for the update ahead of schedule. No one is quite sure why the change has accelerated nor why the field has surged in recent times, according to Nature. The previous model of the magnetic field was released in 2015 and updates have been slated for 5-year intervals. However, the changes are massive enough for military and civilian navigationmostly in the Arctic Oceanthat the latest revision had to appear in 2019. A surge in 2016 happened just after the last model was set, making the update more critical four years out. This update doesnt affect GPS receivers, which dont rely on the magnetic north pole. A receiver instead picks up signals from multiple satellites for which the exact position in orbit is known, and use trilateration (the intersection of their signals) to determine a location. However, satellite orbits are optimized for reception in the most-populated parts of the world, and other factors reduce GPS accuracy and reception in the Arctic. The magnetic north pole never been a fixed point, but that northern apex, towards which compass magnets point by their nature, has accelerated its movement over the last 40 years from movements recorded in early decades. (The geographic north pole and the magnetic north pole have no particular relationship: the former is fixed in place by cartographers.) First measured in 1831 in the Canadian Arctic, the pole moved slowly northward. By the 1990s, the change accelerated from about 10 miles a year to 30 miles a year. Thats led to a total shift of 600 miles over 150 years. Its now in the Arctic Ocean and heading for Siberia. The Earths liquid core contributes most towards the planets magnetic field. As it churns and flows, the field changes around the world, as well as the top that identifies the north pole. It is not uncommon to see companies perform well in the years after insiders buy shares. On the other hand, wed be remiss not to mention that insider sales have been known to precede tough periods for a business. So before you buy or sell China Oriental Group Company Limited (HKG:581), you may well want to know whether insiders have been buying or selling. What Is Insider Selling? Most investors know that it is quite permissible for company leaders, such as directors of the board, to buy and sell stock on the market. However, most countries require that the company discloses such transactions to the market. We would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing. But it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing. For example, a Columbia University study found that insiders are more likely to engage in open market purchases of their own companys stock when the firm is about to reveal new agreements with customers and suppliers. View our latest analysis for China Oriental Group Want to help shape the future of investing tools and platforms? Take the survey and be part of one of the most advanced studies of stock market investors to date. China Oriental Group Insider Transactions Over The Last Year Independent Non-Executive Director Man Chung Wong made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for HK$10m worth of shares at a price of HK$6.58 each. Although we dont gain confidence from insider selling, we note that this large sale was at well above current price of HK$4.91. So it may not shed much light on insider confidence at current levels. Man Chung Wong was the only individual insider to sell over the last year. Man Chung Wong divested 3.90m shares over the last 12 months at an average price of CN6.48. You can see the insider transactions (by individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. By clicking on the graph below, you can see the precise details of each insider transaction! Story continues SEHK:581 Insider Trading January 13th 19 For those who like to find winning investments this free list of growing companies with recent insider purchasing, could be just the ticket. Insider Ownership Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. I reckon its a good sign if insiders own a significant number of shares in the company. It appears that China Oriental Group insiders own 3.0% of the company, worth about HK$492m. While this is a strong but not outstanding level of insider ownership, its enough to indicate some alignment between management and smaller shareholders. So What Does This Data Suggest About China Oriental Group Insiders? It doesnt really mean much that no insider has traded China Oriental Group shares in the last quarter. Its great to see high levels of insider ownership, but looking back at the last year, we dont gain confidence from the China Oriental Group insiders selling. Of course, the future is what matters most. So if you are interested in China Oriental Group, you should check out this free report on analyst forecasts for the company. Of course China Oriental Group may not be the best stock to buy. So you may wish to see this free collection of high quality companies. 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. Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told CNBC on Sunday that Moscow has moved "slower than I'd like" on its crude production cuts. OPEC members, along with several non-OPEC countries like Russia, in December agreed on output cuts totaling 1.2 million barrels per day in order to stem a sinking market and support their own export-dependent economies. The energy minister also said his country "will work with all interested producers who want to bring stability to the market ... OPEC plus and anybody else who would like to do it with us." Saudi Arabia energy minister said Sunday he's positive OPEC and partnered nations will meet their production cut commitments to balance oil markets in 2019, despite what he described as a slower than anticipated pace by some. "We've already done it, we've done enough," Saudi Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih told CNBC on Sunday in Abu Dhabi , when asked what OPEC's largest producer would do to balance markets this year. "Not only the kingdom but other countries, we've heard from the United Arab Emirates , I've talked repeatedly to my colleagues in Iraq , they've already taken action," he told CNBC's Hadley Gamble. He then mentioned the performance of the largest non-OPEC producer that's partnered with the cartel on cuts: " Russia has started, slower than I'd like, but they've started, and I am sure as they did as in 2017 they'll catch up and be a positive contributor to re-balancing the market." OPEC members, along with several other countries, in December agreed on output cuts totaling 1.2 million barrels per day in order to stem a sinking market and support their own export-dependent economies. "OPEC plus" refers to the group's cooperation with the non-OPEC producers like Russia and other former Soviet states, as well as Mexico. Russia was more reluctant to cut its output, as its growth is heavily dependent on robust crude exports. Story continues Russia has initially let the Saudis shoulder the bulk of output cuts. The top OPEC ally, which in late 2016 began a cooperation agreement with Riyadh to stabilize oil prices, has often said that $60 per barrel is enough to meet its economic needs. Moscow in December said it would cut production by 50,000 to 60,000 barrels a day in January, while Saudi pledged a cut of 900,000 barrels. The last quarter of 2018 was defined by dramatic volatility in global oil markets, during which concerns over global oversupply and slowing demand sent prices from October highs of more than $86 per barrel plunging to just above $50. The commodity has staged a recovery into January, with the international Brent crude variety currently hovering slightly above $60. In 2017, when OPEC and its allies first agreed to cut production, Russia similarly took baby steps compared to its Saudi counterpart due to the challenge of making changes to oil fields in the freezing Siberian winter. Willing to work with 'all interested producers' Earlier Sunday, al-Falih told CNBC that his country is willing to work with all parties to balance the crude market in 2019, and that could include coordinating with U.S. President Donald Trump . Asked if he would work with Trump, al-Falih replied, "We will work with all interested producers who want to bring stability to the market ... OPEC plus and anybody else who would like to do it with us." The American president has been vocally critical of the 14-member oil cartel, calling for increased production to keep prices low and tweeting more than once that the group was "ripping us off." The energy minister also confirmed the timeline for the long-delayed public listing of Aramco, Saudi Arabia state energy giant. In response to questions over whether the listing was still planned for 2021 , al-Falih replied, "Yes, yes that's the correct target." More From CNBC By Nerijus Adomaitis OSLO (Reuters) - Oil and gas investment in Norway is expected to grow for a second year in a row in 2019 but will fall back between 2020 and 2023, an industry lobby group said on Monday. Western Europe's largest oil producer has seen a recovery in oil industry activity thanks to higher crude prices, after a slump in 2014-2016. Investment in Norway's oil industry is estimated to rise by 16 percent year-on-year to 184.5 billion crowns ($21.5 billion), the Norwegian Oil and Gas Association (NOG) said. It previously expected 2019 investment of 153 billion crowns. "It is good news that activity is so high on the Norwegian continental shelf. We believe this is because of the significant restructuring the industry has done in recent years, which has increased competitiveness," the lobby said in a statement. But it said investment would start to fall after 2019 to 182.5 billion crowns in 2020, 168 billion crowns in 2021, 156.5 billions crowns in 2022 and 141.5 billion crowns in 2023. The group said its forecast for investment was based on a survey of companies that was completed before October when oil was trading at above $70 a barrel. Since then prices had dropped and were trading at $58 a barrel on Monday. NOG head Karl Eirik Schjoett-Pedersen said the price fall was not expected to have a major impact. "We think the projects are quite robust, because the companies have been focused to make them economic at even lower oil prices," he said. Norway's Equinor said its new projects had an average break-even price of $21 a barrel, while Aker BP said it would not invest in projects with break-even price higher than $30 a barrel. "I'm very concerned about the need to focus on the costs," Schjoett-Pedersen said. NOG said exploration spending was expected to rise to 30 billion crowns in 2019 from 26 billion in 2018, although the number of wells being drilled was not expected to change from last year's 56. ($1 = 8.3304 Norwegian crowns) (Writing by Gwladys Fouche; Editing by Edmund Blair) By David French and John Tilak NEW YORK/TORONTO, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Citigroup Inc has hired Greg Saksida from TD Securities to head energy investment banking in Canada, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Sunday. Saksida will be based in the bank's Calgary, Alberta, office starting in mid-January. He will report to Steve Trauber and Michael Jamieson, co-heads of global energy at Citi, as well as John Hastings, chief executive of Citibank Canada. A representative for TD Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A Citi representative declined to comment. M&A activity in the Canadian energy sector is expected to pick up again this year, having produced modest volumes in recent years versus other sectors of the economy. Small and midsize companies are struggling with the effects of lower oil prices and reacting to that pressure by seeking combinations. Saksida was most recently head of U.S. energy investment banking at TD Securities. At Citi, he will be tasked with helping the bank increase its energy market share in Canada and supporting the bank's efforts in the global energy space. Kasey Fukada, the previous leader of the Canadian energy group at Citi, is leaving the bank to "pursue other opportunities," the memo added, without providing further details. Fukada's departure comes after more than eight years at Citi, according to his LinkedIn page. Fukada could not be reached for comment. The memo also said that Ken Davis recently joined Citi as a director of investment banking in Calgary from Goldman Sachs Group Inc, where he had previously focused on the upstream oil and gas sector. A spokeswoman for Goldman Sachs declined to comment. (Reporting by David French in New York and John Tilak in Toronto; Editing by Peter Cooney) HENDERSON, NV / ACCESSWIRE / December 20, 2018 / December has been a big month for cannabis. First, the House and Senate passed the Farm Bill which will make hemp legal federally. Then, Trump commented that he was open to making cannabis legal. Finally, this week Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, called for legalizing recreational Marijuana in New York. The news keeps coming, and cannabis stocks look ready to breakout. Today we are highlighting: Real Brands, Inc. (RLBD), Canopy Growth Corporation (CGC), CV Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: CVSI), Aurora Cannabis, Inc. (NYSE: ACB), and Tilray, Inc. (TLRY). Hemp/CBD beverages could be the biggest winners in the cannabis industry. Take Real Brands, Inc. (RLBD) (Market Cap: $14.649M, Share Price: $0.13), the company is developing a CBD-infused beverage called Omegahemp. RLBD has strong management with a solid background in branding and the beverage industry; and plans to expand their holdings focusing on at least three CBD categories: smokables, edibles and topical balms and lotions. Peter N. Christos, Chairman of Real Brands, Inc. since June 2015, is a Wall Street executive with 30+ years experience. He has also been a co-founder in both private and public companies; The company is very close to its next production run, meaning there could be major news on the way. Nows the time to research RLBD. Canopy Growth Corporation (CGC) (Market Cap: $9.716B, Share Price: $28.10) made big news earlier this year receiving investment capital from Constellation Brands and announced recently that it has entered into two agreements with 48North Cannabis Corp. 48North will supply Canopy Growth with dried cannabis produced from high-grade, unique genetics, grown at 48North's wholly-owned facility, DelShen Therapeutics Corp. The total volume of the Supply Agreement is estimated to be a minimum of 1,200 kilograms and deliverable over the course of 12 months. CV Sciences, Inc. (CVSI) (Market Cap: $441.062M, Share Price: $4.61) just built expansive manufacturing operations, which also house numerous marketing and distribution teams responsible for a growing list of consumer products and marijuana edibles containing plant-based CBD. CV Sciences is helping to secure San Diego as a global hub for the state's cannabis supply chain after the passing of favorable local and federal regulations. Story continues Aurora Cannabis, Inc. (ACB) (Market Cap: $5.305B, Share Price: $5.29) a Canadian marijuana producer, was just selected to supply medical cannabis to Luxembourg. The decision by the Luxembourg Health Ministry helps Aurora expand its footprint in the European Union and comes more than a week after the company announced it completed the first shipment of medical marijuana to the Czech Republic. Tilray, Inc. (TLRY) (Market Cap: $6.615B, Share Price: $71.00) has been busy recently, investing $5.6 million in Canada-based Rose LifeScience, a producer of cannabis. Also, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tilray called High Park Farms entered into an exclusive sale, distribution, and market agreement to deliver its Dubon branded cannabis products in the province of Quebec. Legal Disclaimer: This article was written by Regal Consulting, LLC (Regal Consulting). Regal Consulting has agreed to a three-month term consulting agreement with RLBD dated 8/31/18. The agreement calls for $100,000 note issued to Regal Consulting, and 2,500,000 restricted 144 shares of RLBD for three months of service. Regal has elected to convert $73,000 of principal of the $100,000 note into 2,761,872 Restricted 144 shares of RLBD. All payments were made directly by Real Brands, Inc. to Regal Consulting, LLC. to provide investor relations services, of which this article is a part of. Regal Consulting also paid one thousand dollars cash to microcapspeculators.com to distribute this article. Regal Consulting may have a position in the securities mentioned in this article at the time of publication, and may increase or decrease its position without notice. This article is based on public information and the opinions of Regal Consulting. RLBD was given an opportunity to edit this article. This article contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any results predicted herein. Regal Consulting is not registered with any financial or securities regulatory authority, and does not provide or claim to provide investment advice. http://www.regalconsultingllc.com/full legal disclaimer/ Microspeculators.com Full Legal Disclaimer Click Here. Contact Information: Company Name: Microcap Speculators Contact Person: Media Manager Email: info@microcapspeculators.com Phone: 1-702-720-6310 Country: United States Website: http://microcapspeculators.com/ SOURCE: Regal Consulting, LLC (Reuters) - California utility PG&E Corp is exploring filing some or all of its business for bankruptcy protection as it could face billions of dollars in potential liabilities if it is held responsible for fatal wildfires in 2018 and 2017, people familiar with the matter have told Reuters. Trouble for PG&E also means trouble for California, which relies on PG&E to provide power to 5.4 million customers and make the investments necessary to shore up its system of wires and poles and mitigate the risk of future fires. PG&E is also a key player in helping California meet its ambitious climate goals. Here are a few of the options California could consider to shore up the utility: A DO-OVER OF LAST YEAR'S WILDFIRE LEGISLATION California policymakers could extend assistance provided in a bill passed last year that allows utilities to raise rates to recover some of the costs related to wildfires. The law mitigates liability from fires in 2017 and others starting in 2019, but made no provision for fires last year. The move would give PG&E an outlet for recovering billions of dollars in potential liabilities from last year's fires, but might not be enough to assuage deep investor concerns about its long-term financial health given the increasing regularity of catastrophic fires. Insurance claims from the Camp Fire that erupted on Nov. 8 in PG&E's service territory have topped $7 billion and are expected to grow. "I don't know that that would be enough to put the company in capital markets access, which is where they need to be," said Michael Wara, a scholar focused on climate and energy policy at Stanford Law School. It also may be a challenge politically, particularly since public and legislative sentiment has soured since the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) said last month it is considering penalties against PG&E for falsifying safety documents for natural gas pipelines. Story continues "I am not interested in another piece of legislation that allows them to pass cost off to the ratepayers for these liabilities," Assemblyman James Gallagher said in an interview on Saturday. "We need a much bigger shake-up and reform." Ratepayers are already bracing for higher rates due to the increased risks from wildfires. PG&E last month asked the CPUC for a $1.1 billion rate increase, more than half of which would be for wildfire prevention and risk reduction. The CPUC could possibly interpret last year's law to include 2018, or new legislation could be passed. A legislative solution would likely be faster. Asked about PG&E's fate at a news conference on Tuesday, California's new governor, Gavin Newsom, said, "I'm not going to make news on that." But he said he'd had a meeting on the subject at 8:00 a.m. State lawmakers said they are leery of responding to PG&E's bankruptcy threat too quickly, saying they have lost their trust in the company. "I don't know if I can trust this information," State Sen. Bill Dodd said in an interview. "It's really too bad that their credibility has been shattered so gravely. That just puts us and the legislature in a position where we are going to take the time that's necessary to do this and to do it right." DIRECT SUPPORT California could intervene directly by providing credit support for future debt financings or municipalizing all or some utility assets, Morgan Stanley analyst Stephen Byrd said. If the utility became state-owned, California would assume all future wildfire risk, Byrd wrote in a client note last week. One scenario would be that the state takes over ownership of all of the electric distribution business and leaves the remaining businesses with shareholders. Byrd said this was the most bullish scenario for shareholders but added that it was unlikely that California would insulate shareholders from future wildfire liability while also giving them full value of the non-electric distribution businesses. State ownership would not necessarily result in better maintenance of the utility's distribution system, said Catherine Sandoval, a professor at Santa Clara Law School and former CPUC commissioner. "If you change to municipal control without changing the underlying dynamics of the maintenance and operation of the utility and its transmission network, you haven't really solved the problem," Sandoval said. State support for debt financing would result in a lower impact on consumer bills because all future wildfire liabilities would be absorbed by the remaining equity rate base in PG&E. This option would be less favorable for shareholders due to the threat of future fire liabilities. A perceived bailout of PG&E is losing luster among legislators and regulators and is far from assured, S&P Global said when it stripped the company of its investment-grade rating late on Monday. "Previously, we assumed that given California's robust renewable portfolio standards and the increasing risks of climate change, legislators and regulators would proactively work with the utility to preserve credit quality to achieve these goals," S&P Global analysts said in a note. "However, based on recent developments, we no longer believe this to be true given the utility's own missteps." RESTRUCTURING VIA THE CPUC The CPUC last month said it was considering a range of options for addressing PG&E's safety problems, including replacing some or all of its directors, splitting the utility's gas and electric divisions into separate companies, and reforming it into a publicly owned utility. Since then, PG&E has said it is shaking up its board and reviewing its structure and corporate governance, but has not filed a specific plan with the CPUC. The CPUC did not return a request for comment. UTILITY FAIL California could allow PG&E to go bankrupt, for the second time in its history. Under that scenario, shareholders would be the big losers. But California could benefit if the utility installs new management and can rebuild trust in Sacramento and on Wall Street. The state would also have time to consider how to reduce the risk from the cost of increasingly devastating wildfires over the long term. "The fundamental problem is the utility at the current rate structure doesn't generate enough revenue to cover expenses" from catastrophic wildfires, Stanford's Wara said. "The utility's management has gotten understandably very focused on the short term... The most important thing the state could do is slow things down. One way that happens is in bankruptcy." Though PG&E can continue to operate in bankruptcy, ratepayers could still see higher bills. When PG&E went bankrupt in 2001 amid the state's energy crisis, California customers had to pay higher bills for years to help repay $13 billion owed to creditors. Another bankruptcy today could potentially lump individual claims from wildfires in with Wall Street's claims, possibly ballooning the payout and leaving victims to compete with creditors. Dodd, the state senator, said on Monday that he would ask the state's Legislative Analyst's Office to assess the impact of a PG&E bankruptcy on ratepayers and fire victims. "I wouldn't be surprised if a PG&E bankruptcy would lead to much higher rates for ratepayers and devastation for victims of previous wildfires," Dodd said. "What we need to do is get some independent verification of what those numbers are and that will lead to a determination if legislation is necessary or not." PG&E spokesman Andy Castagnola said the utility would not comment. (Reporting by Nichola Groom; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall) FILE - This Sept. 21, 2016 file photo shows Unit one of the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station near Jenkinsville, S.C. Dominion Energy says its completed a merger with the South Carolina utility reeling in the wake of a multibillion-dollar nuclear construction failure. The Virginia-based company made the announcement Wednesday, Jan. 2, 2019 about its deal with SCANA Corp. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton) COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Dominion Energy announced the completion of its merger on Wednesday with a South Carolina utility drowning in debt after the failure of a nuclear construction project. In a news release, the Virginia-based company said that it had finalized the deal to pay $6.8 billion for SCANA Corp.'s stock and also assumed SCANA's consolidated net debts of $6.6 billion. Dominion was the only buyer that expressed interest in SCANA, the parent company of South Carolina Electric & Gas, following the company's abandonment of a nuclear reactor construction project at the V.C. Summer Nuclear Station. Along with state-owned utility Santee Cooper, a minority owner in the project, SCANA said in the summer of 2017 that it was shuttering the effort following the bankruptcy of lead contractor Westinghouse. The implosion spawned multiple lawsuits, some by ratepayers claiming company executives knew the project was doomed and misled consumers as well as regulators as they petitioned for a series of rate hikes. State and federal authorities also are investigating the debacle. More than 737,000 SCE&G customers have already paid more than $2 billion toward the project, which never generated any power. State lawmakers haggled for months over possible plans to recoup some of those losses, ultimately overriding Gov. Henry McMaster's veto of a plan that scrapped all but $5 of a monthly surcharge fee. Last year, customers did see retroactive credits applied to bills after lawmakers passed a temporary rate cut that knocked about $25 a month off the average residential customer's bill from April through December. The deal approved last month by South Carolina regulators forces SCE&G customers to keep paying billions more toward the defunct endeavor over the next 20 years. According to Dominion, SCANA's operations will be housed within a new operating segment, Southeast Energy Group, to be headed up by P. Rodney Blevins, senior vice president and chief information officer at Dominion Energy. Blevins will report directly to Dominion chairman Tom Farrell and work in Cayce, South Carolina, where SCANA is currently headquartered. Story continues Several SCE&G executives are staying on in similar roles, including SCE&G President Keller Kissam and Iris Griffin, SCANA's chief financial officer. SCANA CEO Jimmy Addison is serving in an advisory role until his retirement in February. Before the deal, Dominion was already among the largest electric and gas utilities in the country. According to the utility, it now serves 7.5 million customers in 18 states. Dominion already owns a South Carolina gas pipeline, which it bought from SCANA in 2014. The South Carolina Small Business Chamber of Commerce, one of the intervenors in the regulatory hearing on cost recovery for the project, has asked the Public Service Commission to reconsider its decision. Chamber CEO Frank Knapp said in a news release Wednesday that the merger finalization allows regulators -- who he said were previously focused on ways to get the merger done -- to correct what he says are errors in the order. ___ This story has been corrected to restore dropped word in the name of SCANA subsidiary South Carolina Electric & Gas. ___ Meg Kinnard can be reached at http://twitter.com/MegKinnardAP . News UAE emerges stronger after extraordinary resilience during pandemic, says Sheikh Mohammed "In many ways, the UAE has proved to be one of best prepared countries to deal with this pandemic. Not only have we effectively safeguarded the health and wellbeing of citizens and residents, we have also weathered the economic impact of the crisis," says Mohammed. Areas of Mutual Interest For Israel, meanwhile, Bolsonaros interest is well-timed. Israel, a relatively small country, depends on trade and collaboration with other states to keep its economy humming. Surrounded as it is by rivals, however, it must look beyond the Middle East to find suitable partners. Latin America is a natural choice. The regions many developing markets and trade potential make it an attractive destination for Israel, which, according to the latest World Bank figures, derives 30 percent of gross domestic product from exports. South America remains a largely untapped market for Israel, and it boasts a wealth of natural resources and numerous opportunities for investment, technology development and military modernization. Over the past couple years, Netanyahu has paid official visits to Colombia, Argentina and Chile, along with several countries in Central America. But Brazil is a standout in the region. Not only does it have a $1.93 trillion economy the worlds ninth-largest, by the World Banks most recent data but it also has recently pulled itself out of recession. Now that Bolsonaro has taken office, promises of deregulation and more open markets have made Brazil even more enticing. The focus on economic ties in Latin America is something of a departure for Israel. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Israel built its relationships with regional states, including Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, Argentina and Colombia, on military backing and support for various armed groups. Its ties with Brazil and nearby countries today are broader in scope by comparison. Nevertheless, military equipment still has a role to play in the partnerships. In Brazils case, technology transfer and development are the priority. Brazil began talks with Israel in March 2018 to acquire and exchange scientific and defense technologies, an arrangement that would at once satisfy Israels desire to export military goods and services, its area of expertise, and Brazils need to acquire more advanced technology. The two also have reached nascent agreements over defense technology, such as missiles, radar and high-tech surveillance cameras, that could help modernize Brazils military and law enforcement. (Some recent Brazilian governments have shied away from making these kinds of deals, but Bolsonaro, a champion of the military and security forces, will welcome them.) Space exploration and satellites are other points of mutual interest. Brazil can benefit from Israels know-how on the subject, while Israel takes advantage of Brazils strategic launch sites near the equator. Along with defense, water scarcity is an issue where Israels knowledge and experience will come in handy for Brazil. Israel is a global leader in irrigation technology, including drip watering, desalination and extracting moisture from the air. Innovation in the field has enabled it to overcome arid and desert conditions to sustain agriculture, and that ingenuity could be invaluable for Brazil. The South American countrys semi-arid Northeast region is currently in the throes of a yearslong drought that has hurt local economies and populations that rely on rainfall for their agricultural activities. The Brazilian government historically has taken an ad hoc approach to addressing these problems, for example by trucking in large volumes of water to alleviate droughts. Working with Israel, Brazil could devise a longer-term strategy to mitigate the effects of uneven rainfall and lay the necessary groundwork to keep developing the Northeast. The Brazilian Senate unveiled plans for such an initiative early last year, and the topic will be a priority when Bolsonaro visits Israel, as he is expected to do in the first quarter of this year. A Pragmatic Partnership For all that renewed cooperation has to offer Brazil and Israel in the economic and tactical spheres, from a political standpoint, the gains are modest. Aligning with Israel will help Brazil ingratiate itself with the United States, while giving Israel more diplomatic support an asset for a country surrounded by enemies and frequently subject to scrutiny, if not censure, on the international stage. Other than that, though, neither side has much political capital to offer the other. Its shift toward Israel, in fact, has prompted speculation that Brazil would lose allies in the Arab world. But as Netanyahu works to normalize relations with Arab countries in response to Irans growing influence in the Middle East, the risks of a diplomatic backlash will diminish for Brazil. The growing partnership between Israel and Brazil is a pragmatic one, based on complementary needs and priorities. These needs whether economic, military or environmental are driving the two countries together, Brazil in its quest to develop its economy and assume greater influence in global affairs, and Israel in its effort to find new overseas markets to boost its economy. Book exploring modern ao dai published VietNamNet Bridge Many people agree that the ao dai tan thoi (modern traditional long dress) or Le Mur long dress designed by painter Nguyen Cat Tuong (1912-1946) is symbolic of Vietnamese women. Family: A silk painting by painter Cat Tuong featuring his wife Nguyen Thi Noi and their first daughter Nguyen Cat Minh Nguyet in 1940. Photos thethaovanhoa.vn Though it appeared rather late in history, in 1934, it rapidly spread throughout Vietnam and the whole of Indochina. A reference book titled Ao Dai Le Mur va Boi Canh Phong Hoa & Ngay Nay (Le Mur Long Dress and Its Birth through Phong Hoa and Ngay Nay Newspapers) by Pham Thao Nguyen explores the fashion icon. The book will be released soon by Khai Tam Books and Hong Duc Publishers. The book includes three main parts. The first part of 60 pages is about painter Tuong (literally translated as Le Mur in French). The second part talks about the Phong Hoa and Ngay Nay newspapers to give some background on the birth of the modern ao dai. The third part includes illustrations, sketches and the front pages of newspapers capturing the dress. Dedication to writer Nhat Linh On February 11, 1934, editor-in-chief Nhat Linh of the Phong Hoa newspaper opened a new column in its spring edition titled Ve ep Rieng (Special Beauty) aimed at a female audience. Tuong, a graduate from the Indochina Fine Arts College, wrote the column. Loving beauty is a common characteristic among people, he wrote in the spring edition. The fair sex has been offered beauty and gentleness by nature. So they tend to make up to make them more beautiful for themselves, for other people, as a respect to all people. Womens value and happiness is making up and beautification. In 1936, Phong Hoa newspaper was renamed Ngay Nay and Tuong continued to host the column advising women on fashion and make-up. In 1937, Tuong and his wife opened a tailors shop named Lemur Tailor. In Phong Hoas 90th edition issued on March 23, 1934, Tuong introduced the first design of the modern ao dai. Cultural symbol: Cover of the book by Pham Thao Nguyen Lemur ao dai on Newspaper Phong Hoa and Ngay Nay. Modern dress: A Lemur ao dai design by Cat Tuong printed on Phong Hoa newspaper edition 90 on March 23, 1934. Big step: Cat Tuongs pants designs were a revolution in Vietnamese fashion history. Photo tienphong.vn Influential: Painter Cat Tuong (1912-1946). Photo tienphong.vn Some materials have been kept for the past 60 years by the painters son, Nguyen Trong Hien. The Vietnamese traditional long dress from the Nguyen dynasty, in the late 19th century and early 20th century, covered the whole body carefully like the outer dress of todays Buddhist monks. The design of the dress is the same, straight up and down the body. The dress consists of two panels: front and back. On his first ao dai design published in Phong Hoa, painter Tuong made a change at the torso. The long dress was a little tighter here, enhancing the wearers breasts, which is a feature of western fine art. Painter Tuong also came to order a special kind of bras for ao dai wearers at Cu Chung shop on Hang Bong Street, which specialised in producing coats and swimsuits. This kind of bra is the first made-in-Viet Nam produced in 1935. Vietnamese women were more confident to wear the bras with modern ao dai in public. Not only dress, but also pants If I say this, few people will believe me, wrote Tuong in Phong Hoas 89th edition. Another important thing in womens costumes is the pants. He suggested three new designs of pants: 1. With waistband tied on the side, may be closed with a press stud; 2. With open space in the bottom, tied with buttons like on mens trousers; 3. Pants with bell-bottoms, tighter above the knees, easing the wearers movements. After publishing all his modern designs of ao dai in the newspaper, in 1935, Tuong travelled throughout the country to introduce his designs to women. In Hue, he met some members of the royal family and was invited to design a collection of ao dai Le Mur for the Queen. He then travelled to the south to draw ao dai for various cai luong (reformed opera) artists including noted artist Phung Ha. In 2013, Tuong was named in Japans Dictionary of World Great Names as a painter and a modern fashion designer. Hien also revealed that in December 1946, when all Hanoians evacuated the city to the countryside to join the war of resistance against the French invaders, his wife nearly reached her due day to give birth to their child, painter Tuong returned home to take some medicine and clothes for his wife and their children. But he never met his family again. Hien also said his father not only designed fashion and accessories for women, he also made designs for bicycles, created wooden items and toys for children. He also encouraged friends to open barbers shops with hot shower services for men. He also taught painting at the Thang Long Private Fine Arts School and joined various charity works. Designer Sy Hoang, who specialises in designing ao dai in HCM City, commented that Nguyens book was great. Its not only a book on certain historical people, he said. Its like a historical book on ao dai in Viet Nam at that time as a talented persons fate associated with cloth and silk a beautiful cultural symbol of Vietnamese people. Various documents say initially, the French opened the Fine Arts College of Indochina to train workers for carving, painting, drawing and decorating furniture and houses for them. Yet, Principal Victor Tadieur discovered some talents among students. He tried to teach them oil-on-canvas painting and western fine arts. The trial class on western fine arts in 1929 gathered the four best students of the courses 1, 2, 3 and 4 namely Le Pho (1907-2001), To Ngoc Van (1906-1954), Le Thi Luu (1911-1988) and Nguyen Cat Tuong (1912-1946). By Tran Hoang Nam Source: VNS Bengaluru: India is keen to fly a woman among the three astronauts who will be sent to space by 2021, a top space official said on Friday. "We want women astronauts also to be part of the human spaceflight, which we are aiming to achieve by December 2021," the state-run Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) Chairman K Sivan told reporters at the space agency's headquarters here. There will be two unmanned flights by the space agency onboard a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) before the manned mission 'Gaganyaan.' "ISRO is targeting to conduct its first unmanned mission by December 2020 and the second unmanned flight before July 2021. "We are aiming to launch the human spaceflight by December 2021, so as to achieve the target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi," ISRO chief said. On August 15 last year, the prime minister announced in his Independence Day address in New Delhi that Indians will be put into space by 2022. Three astronauts, who will be sent to space, will be chosen by the Indian Air Force (IAF) and trained by the Institute of Aerospace Medicine in Bengaluru. "The training of astronauts will be done largely in India, while the advanced training will be done in collaboration with foreign space agencies," Sivan said. The Rs 10,000-crore mission will involve Indian astronauts taken into space to a height of 350-400 km above the Earth and orbit around the planet for at least a week. The astronauts will also be conducting experiments in space, details of which are yet to be announced by ISRO. For developing critical technologies related to human space mission, ISRO has constituted a 'Human Spaceflight Centre' in Bengaluru, Sivan said. "The centre will function under the leadership of S Unnikrishnan Nair as the director, while the Gaganyaan project will be headed by R Hutton, who was the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) project director," he said. India's attempt to reach the space by 2022 is about six decades after Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first human to take a journey into the outer space and orbit the earth in 1961. The US, Russia, and China alone have launched human spaceflights. The human spaceflight will enhance ISRO's capabilities, which have so far been restricted to launch vehicle and satellite making, Sivan said. "ISRO will expand its capabilities of creating conducive environment for a human to travel to space, as well as crew selection and training, which is new to us," he admitted. Beijing: Twenty-one workers were killed after a roof collapsed at a coal mine in north-western China, state media reported on Sunday. Eighty-seven people were working underground in the Lijiagou coal mine in the Shaanxi Province at the time of the accident on Saturday afternoon, a state-run news agency reported. Initial reports said that 19 people were killed while 66 others airlifted to safety. Rescuers found two more bodies of trapped miners on Sunday, the report said. The cause of the accident at the site, run by Baiji Mining, is still under investigation. Though the number of deaths has reduced at coal mines in recent years, mining accidents are common in China, the world's largest coal producer. Some mining firms in major coal hubs in Shandong and Henan provinces and parts of northeastern China have received notices from the National Coal Mine Safety Administration asking them to halt operations for inspections that will last until June, the agency reported on Friday. Read latest in World Dubai: Hours after the SP and BSP announced their alliance without the Congress in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said his party will fight the elections in the state with full force. Addressing a press conference in Dubai, Gandhi said he has "tremendous respect" for the leaders of the two parties and "they have a right to do what they want to do". "The BSP and SP have every right to have an alliance. I think the Congress party has tremendous amount to offer to the people of Uttar Pradesh so we will do our best as the Congress party and we will fight with full capacity to spread our ideology." "BSP and SP have made a political decision. It's on us on how to strengthen the Congress party in Uttar Pradesh and we will fight with our full capacity," he said. He said the Congress party might give a surprise or two in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh "about what the party is capable of doing and to mobilise people." Rejecting suggestions that not being part of the SP-BSP alliance was a setback for the Congress, he said, "I won't be disappointed about the BSP-SP alliance as long as the BJP does not come to power." "They have said some wrong things about the Congress, but we accept it. Because that's how we work." Gandhi said it does not matter if his party fights separately or together with the SP and BSP, because the end result would be the same the BJP won't get their seats Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced Saturday their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. Asked about his "misogynist" remarks about Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on which the NCW has issued a notice to him, Gandhi said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has helped Anil Ambani steal Rs 30,000 crore and the House of the People Lok Sabha is where he should have defended himself but he chose to send another person and that person happened to be a woman. "I would have made a very similar comment if it had been a man. Do not impose your sexism on me. I am very clear that the prime minister should have delivered that defence but he did not have the guts." He said the Congress has not yet got the answer whether defence ministry officials objected to the prime minister "bypassing" the Rafale deal. Sitharaman had spoken on behalf of the prime minister and defended the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha, countering questions raised by Congress and other opposition parties. Attacking the Modi government on rising intolerance, Gandhi said like the UAE, which had declared 2019 as the 'Year of Tolerance,' India also believes and celebrates tolerance but "there is a little bit of aberration going on in India where BJP is being very aggressive, intolerant and attacking and destroying our institutions." He said it is a "temporary blip" which will be "taken care of" after the 2019 elections. He alleged that every single institution in the country has been "destroyed by the government and the idea of the BJP and the RSS is that there should only be one institution in India that is RSS." "They insert their people in very single institution and pressure every single institution...universities, colleges, the CBI, Election Commission every institution." "RSS thinks that voice of the people is irrelevant. One of the reason why we will win 2019 elections is because there is a massive response coming from bureaucrats and institutions saying we are not going to accept this." He said the Modi government is "attacking the strength of India by strangling our institutions". "We will start to do what Congress party has successfully done; put India on a economic path," he said. "The government is failing and we have a massive unemployment crisis. Demonetisation by Prime Minister Modi was a rash and irresponsible action. He was directly responsible for the decimation of informal sector." He said bringing businesses to India is fundamentally connected to the environment of the country. "India is facing a 14-year low with regard to investments flow in India. The central reason is a couple of ill-advised economic policies like demonetisation and and poorly designed GST and also the atmosphere that is being vitiated. India is known for non violence and its peace loving nature when people look at India and see violence they they get worried. We will put an end to the anger that has been spread by the BJP," he said. "We will rebuild trust in our institutions like RBI, ECI, Supreme Court which are under systematic attack by the Modi govt," he said. He said if the Congress will come to power it will take some rational economic decisions and restructure the GST. Asked about Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan's overtures to start bilateral talks, Gandhi said, " I am all for peaceful relationship with Pakistan, but, I will absolutely not tolerate violence being carried out on innocent Indians by the Pakistani State." "You cannot carry out acts of terror in India and expect India to talk kindly to you," he said. Asked about special status to Andhra Pradesh, he said, "I have made the commitment to the people of the state that the moment we will form the government in New Delhi will will give special status to the state." He said it is a "tragedy and shame" that the Prime Minister Modi has not delivered the commitment to the people of the state. Read latest in Nation Pune: Martyred Major Shashidharan V Nair, who was killed in an IED blast in Kashmir on Friday, had spoken to his mother on the fateful day, a family member said. Major Nair, who grew up in Khadakwasla area on the outskirts of Pune and studied at the famous Fergusson College in the city, was killed along with another soldier in the IED explosion in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir Friday. A pall of gloom descended on the area after the news came. Friends and relatives as well as local people thronged the family's house. "He was passionate about army. After getting BSc degree from Fergusson, he never thought about any other career option and started preparing for army exam," said Harish Kasarkhod, a childhood friend. Having graduated from a premier college, Nair could have got a comfortable job elsewhere but his passion was the armed forces, Kasarkhod said. Originally from Nedumbassery in Ernakulam, Shashidharan was the son of late Vijayan Nair and Latha. Nair's father, who worked at the Central Water & Power Research Station located in Khadakwasla, died some years ago. His mortal remains reached the National War Memorial in Pune Saturday evening where wreaths were laid in the presence of family members including his wife and officials from the Southern Command. The last rites are likely to take place at the Vaikunth crematorium in the city Sunday morning. Read more: Latest India news Srinagar: Two militants, including the one of the dreaded Zeenat-ul-Islam, were killed on Saturday in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Katpora area in south Kashmir's Kulgam district last evening after receiving specific information about the presence of militants, a police officer said. As the forces were conducting the searches, the militants fired upon them. The forces retaliated, ensuing an encounter in which two militants were killed, he said. Arms and ammunition were recovered from the encounter site, the official said, adding that no collateral damage has been reported. One of them was identified as dreaded militant Zeenat-ul-Islam, who was associated with the terror group Al Badr, the officer said, adding that the identity of the second militant is being ascertained. Zeenat, considered as an Improvised explosive device (IED) expert, was earlier associated with another militant group Hizbul Mujahideen, the officer said. Read more: Latest India news Alappuzha: The Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) is planning to explain to its followers the organisation's stand on controversial issues which have a bearing on it. Study classes have been planned from next month after the realisation that members have been confused about the Yogam's approach to issues like Sabarimala, Women's Wall, income-based reservation and the attitude towards the state government. Vice president Thushar Vellappally will lead study classes where SNDP positions will be made clear to office-bearers from the sakha or unit level. He will attend classes at every union across the state. The classes will get over before the Lok Sabha election. A list is being drawn up of persons who can explain matters without any confusion. Those attending will include office-bearers of the union, the sakha yogam, SNDP youth movement, the women's wing, microfinance division etc. Thushar had expressed a position different from that of his father and SNDP general secretary Vellappally Natesan on the income-based reservation now mandated by the Central government. While Vellappally criticised such reservation, Thushar held the view that it extends to all sections which are economically backward and hence brings extra quota for the backward sections. Committed to devotees The classes seek to explain that the Yogam stands with devotees on the Sabarimala issue. It is felt that confusion was created when the general secretary took charge as convenor of the Women's Wall. Office-bearers of the Yogam itself protested as the government facilitated the entry of young women at Sabarimala. Against this background, a clarification on the Yogam's approach to the government will be given at the classes. Dubai: Congress president Rahul Gandhi has taken a U-turn on his stance over the Sabarimala row, stating that it was an emotional issue of serious nature. The Congress chief had earlier said young women should be allowed to enter the Sabarimala temple. Speaking at a press meet in Dubai on Saturday, Rahul said he came to know about the gravity of the situation only after talking to Kerala leaders. There is truth in both sides. It was not possible to take a unilateral stand on the Sabarimala issue. That's why I left the it for the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee leaders to decide. The Congress leader had welcomed the September 28 Supreme Court order lifting the ban on entry of women of child-bearing age into the Lord Ayyappa Temple. Two women - Kanakadurga and Bindu had entered the Sabarimala temple on January 2. The BJP and several saffron outfits had carried out widespread protests across the state against the LDF government's decision to implement the SC order. The Congress leadership in Kerala had also organised protests. But the Congress leaders in Kerala found themselves cornered after former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi reportedly admonished the party MPs who wanted to wear 'black badges' inside the Parliament as a symbolic protest against the entry of two women into Sabarimala. The CPM leadership was quick to point out that the Congress-led UDF was adopting a stand against the AICC's views on the issue. Rahul Gandhi's latest statement assumes significance in this backdrop. Immediately after the verdict, Rahul Gandhi had said: "My personal view point on the issue of Sabarimala temple is that men and women are equal. All women should get permission to enter into the temple. However, my party's Kerala units view is that it is a very emotional issue for both men and women. Read more: Latest Sabarimala news New Delhi: NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, thanking him for the 10 per cent reservation in government jobs and education for those in the general category. What is more significant is that he has flayed the Congress in his letter for having failed to bring in the legislation. The letter, which lauds Modi's leadership, gives some indications against the background of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The BJP national leadership, which is moving to ensure support from different communities in Kerala, sees Nair's letter as significant. The BJP is also excited that the NSS, which keeps a policy of equidistance, has now criticised the Congress party. Sukumaran Nair wrote to Modi as soon as the Constitution Amendment Act, 2019 cleared the Rajya Sabha. The NSS had earlier hailed the reservation move. The decision reflects the central government's determination to enforce social justice, Sukumaran Nair said. His letter said the community was thankful that its long-held demand has been accepted. It also says that the Congress government had appointed a panel to study reservation on the basis of economic status, but there had been no further action. President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday gave his assent to the constitutional provision to provide 10 per cent reservation in government jobs and education to economically backward section in the general category. Read more: latest Kerala news Thiruvananthapuram: The Congress party in Kerala has been opposing the entry of young women to Sabarimala temple though the national leadership has held the view that the Supreme Court judgement has to be enforced. However, Congress working committee A K Antony has for a first time expressed in public his view that the Supreme Court was wrong in allowing women of child-bearing age to enter Sabarimala. The former defence minister is known to have aired his comment the other day in the absence of the media at the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee general body meeting. On Saturday, however, he spoke openly at the Youth Congress leadership meet. Different states follow different customs, Antony said. Diversity is India's beauty. India did not dissolve like the Soviet Union because this diversity is protected. One single order cannot wipe out this diversity. The Sabarimala issue called for a more mature approach. Antony slammed Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for rushing to enforce the judgement, though nearly 40 apex court rulings from the past three months have been kept in the freezer. The BJP was provided with ammo by letting young women enter Sabarimala. The Congress has nothing to lose from the issue. All these emotions are just temporary. The blood will not keep boiling for ever. People will think calmly and vote for the Congress as elections arrive. Two Kerala women had entered the Sabarimala temple on January 2, three months after the Supreme Court allowed women of all ages to enter the hill shrine. Read more: Latest Sabarimala news Thiruvananthapuram: More than 200 convicts who were released before their term ended are unlikely to return to the jails even though the High Court recently stayed the 2011 order of the LDF government. They will remain free based on a government report attesting to their model conduct for a specified period after their early release. All of them have adhered to the release condition that had a four-year 'good behaviour' clause, says an official report. In all 209 convicts benefited from the early release order issued towards the end of the VS Achuthanandan government in 2011. The High Court, which stayed the order, has also directed the government and governor to review the release order within six months, upon which the behaviour of the releasees for the last seven years could be considered. One releasee dead DIG S Santosh collected details of all 209 releasees from central and open jails. One of them died sometime in the last seven years. Some have moved abroad and some have shifted to other locations within the state. This report will be handed over to Director General of Prisons and Correctional Services R Sreelekha on Monday. Incomplete reports The jail authorities who submitted incomplete, ambiguous reports will face government action. The first report on the 209 submitted by the advocate general (AG) was incomplete, the reason why the court ordered a report on their details. Most glaring mistakes were seen in reports from those released from Cheemeni open prison. Precise details of days spent in jail, on parole and on release were not mentioned separately in the reports. Reports from jail superintendents and welfare officers had not applicable written in many of these columns. Other jails too had similar issues. The Home Ministry asked the jail DGP to investigate the officers concerned after the AG raised a red flag. The government has taken serious note of the issue though no action is yet been taken. Established practice Convicts are released early with strict conditions. They should not be involved in any kind of offence within four years of release. They have to appear and sign at police stations at regular intervals. Officers of the social welfare department have to make sure the releasees stick to their bond conditions. Only a clean slate in the four years guarantees complete freedom. Involvement in a case or an unfavourable report from welfare officers could land them behind bars again. None of the 209 released in February 2011 have returned, an official report has said. Read more: Latest Kerala news New Delhi: Three youths from Thrissur spread the message that trees are a boon and they do it in style. After having travelled to various places in the country spreading the message of afforestation, the trio are gearing up to cross the country's border. The young men plant tree saplings, which will be eventually reared by local people, at places they visit during their remarkable journey. They reached New Delhi on Monday and are planning to travel to the neighbouring country, Nepal. Amal Krishna, hailing from Koduganlur, Akhil Subash and Shibin Gopi, both from Cherpu, started their journey with around 100 saplings from Cherpu in Thrissur district on December 28. The saplings were first planted at Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu with the support of Isha Foundation. From there, they touched Salem in Tamil Nadu, Bengaluru and Hampi in Karnataka, Jaipur and Ajmer in Rajasthan, Manali in Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Punjab, and now the youths are in Delhi. They, with the help of Malayalee Association member Chandran, have planted tree saplings at R K Puram in Delhi. Till now, they have planted 240 saplings. The trio source tree saplings from the places they visit and plant them not only on roadsides but also on school premises and even near to dhabas, wayside eating outlets. And their worthwhile travel continues to reach out to more people. Read more Thrissur News Ayoor, Kollam: The site of the accident involving a car and a KSRTC bus at Akamon, near here, on Saturday afternoon, in which six members of a family were killed, presented a gory scene. For those who rushed to the spot upon hearing the loud sound of the collision, the trauma of seeing six people, including two children, dying right in front of their eyes is not going to get over any time soon. Though the onlookers were taken aback by the grisly sight of blood stains and pieces of flesh strewn all over the vehicle, regaining their composure, they launched rescue operations immediately and attempted to pull out the victims stuck inside the mangled car. In the impact of the collision, the front end of the car got trapped beneath the bus, making efforts to retrieve the victims difficult and complicated. The deceased were identified as Mini, 48, daughter Anjana, 22, sister-in-law Smitha, 33, her children Abhinaj, 8, and Harsha, 3, and Smithas nephew Arun, 24, who drove the car. All of them were natives of Vadasserikara near Chengannur. According to eyewitnesses, five of them died on the spot. When they reached the spot, one of the two children, who was later identified as Abhinaj, had been found to be alive. Without wasting time, the locals smashed the glass window and took out the boy and his three-year-old sister Harsha. The police, with the help of passers-by, tilted the bus and moved the car away. They broke open the car using metal tools being brought from a nearby automobile workshop and pulled all the victims out. The first to rush to the spot was employees of the workshop and shopkeepers in the vicinity. Following the incident, free movement of traffic was affected on MC road for over several hours. Fire and safety department officers cleaned up blood and oil spills from the site and applied stone dust along the path to prevent vehicle slips. Soon after the news of the accident broke, people from the surrounding areas started to throng the site, resulting in traffic snarls. Following which vehicles heading towards Ayur were diverted through the old road near Akamon. Abhinaj, who was alive when he was brought out of the car, was rushed to the SAT Hospital in Thiruvananthapuram, but doctors declared him dead two hours after admission. The other victims were shifted to different hospitals in police jeeps and ambulances. The mangled remains of the car were later removed using a crane. The victims were identified with the help of their identity cards and mobiles that were scattered inside the vehicle. Officials sifted through their belongings and discovered Aadhaar cards of Mini and Arun, and the driving licence of Anjana. They contacted the Vadasserikkara police after it was found that Arun hailed from there. The incident occurred around 1.30 pm. As per witnesses accounts, it was a head-on collision between the bus and the car. The ill-fated car was trying to overtake a truck at a curve resulting in the collision with the KSRTC which was heading to Thiruvananthapuram from Kottarakara, they said. New Delhi: National carrier Air India has defended its move to stock extra meals for the two-way trip to some foreign destinations to save on catering expenses. "Any misgiving about stale food is unfounded as food stay fresh in chillers onboard and served piping hot to ensure authentic taste all over our network," the airline tweeted. "Food uplifted at the country of origin is industry practice favoured by pax for taste, quality and reliability. We are following this practice on our flights up to Europe and not on our longer duration flights to USA." According to the airline, return catering is done by leading flight kitchens adhering to laid down standards and protocols regarding quality of food. On January 9, briefing reporters Air India CMD Pradeep Singh Kharola said that the airline has already started to stock extra meals for the entire two-way trip to destinations like Stockholm, Copenhagen, Birmingham and Madrid. Accordingly, the airline intends to save on catering expenses as domestic vendors cost 3-4 times less than their international counterparts. Further, the airline plans carry extra meals on the flights to Gulf region. Read more: Business news U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sunday that a rift between Qatar and its Gulf Arab neighbors had gone on for too long and was threatening regional unity needed to counter Iran, Trend reported citing Reuters. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and non-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member Egypt cut diplomatic, transport and trade ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorism and their regional foe Shiite Muslim Iran something Doha denies. The United States, an ally of the six-nation Sunni Muslim GCC, sees the rift as a threat to efforts to contain Iran and has pushed for a united Gulf front. When we have a common challenge, disputes between countries with shared objectives are never helpful, Pompeo, who is on an eight-day tour of the Middle East, told a news conference in the Qatari capital Doha. They never permit you to have as robust a response to common adversaries or common challenges as you might, he added. Gas-rich Qatar says the boycott is aimed at undermining its sovereignty and has started charting a course away from its Gulf neighbors, including forging new trade partnerships, strengthening its ties with Turkey and quitting OPEC. Those moves have deepened expectations that the row will not be resolved quickly. Were hoping that the unity of GCC will increase in the days and weeks and months ahead, Pompeo said, adding that Gulf unity was essential for a planned Middle East Strategic Alliance (MESA) that would also include Jordan and Egypt. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have repeatedly said the dispute is not a top priority and assured Washington it will not affect defense cooperation. Pompeo later told reporters that he had brought up the rift with officials in Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE. Its ... not at all clear that the rift is any closer to being resolved today than it was yesterday and I regret that, he said. US President Donald Trump refuted on Saturday media reports that he had allegedly hidden some details of his one-on-one conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trend reported citing Sputnik. Earlier in the day, the Washington Post reported, citing sources, that Trump had hidden the details of his conversations with Putin from his administration. The publication claimed that even the classified US files did not contain a single detailed record of conversations in five locations over the past two years. "It was a great conversation. I'm not keeping anything under wraps. The Washington Post that's basically lobbyists for Amazon," Trump said in an interview with Fox News. He noted that he had been holding one-on-one talks with the leaders of all countries without delegations, but "no one says anything about it." "Everyone knows there was no collusion [with Russia]," Trump added. The Washington Post said that it remained unclear whether Trump took away the recordings of translators in other cases, however, according to officials, they did not manage to get a reliable report on the two-hour meeting of the two presidents in Helsinki. Then, unlike the meeting in Hamburg, Trump did not allow representatives of the administration to be present at the negotiations. In addition, Trump held personal conversations with Putin at meetings of world leaders without the presence of his aides. In particular, he spoke with Putin at a banquet in Hamburg in 2017 in the presence of only Putin's interpreter. Five people were hospitalized on Sunday after a fire broke out at an oil refinery in Novopavlovsk, in southern Russias Stavropol Region, doctors at a local hospital told TASS, Trend reported. Shortly after the fire three people were sent to a hospital and then two others were hospitalized. "Two more patients have arrived, they have burns to their faces, and they are in a trauma unit," the doctors said. A container caught fire at the Shigl oil refinery at 9:47 a.m. and the fire covered the area of 40 square meters. The blaze was fully extinguished and the effort involved 32 personnel and 13 units. Two people are in intensive care. A fire broke out at an oil refinery in Ufa, in central Russias Bashkortostan Region, Trend reported citing TASS. "On the territory of the oil refinery in Ufa cables and a power unit are on fire on the area of 100 square meters", the source said. Tokyo has asked Seoul to respond within 30 days to its request for diplomatic talks over Japan's wartime forced labor, government sources here said Sunday, Trend reports citing Yonhap. Japan made the request last Wednesday, after a South Korean court approved a petition to seize Korea-based assets of Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal at the request of people who performed forced labor during Tokyo's 1910-45 colonial rule. South Korea said last week it will review the request carefully. Now with Japan's insistence on a deadline having come to light Sunday, the government, according to the sources, will not be tied down by the 30-day window to make the decision. Japan's call for the talks is based on Article III of a 1965 treaty between Seoul and Tokyo that normalized bilateral ties. It stipulates that the two sides are to settle any dispute related to the treaty primarily through diplomatic channels. Tokyo has argued that all reparation-related issues related to its colonization of South Korea were settled through the treaty. But the treaty doesn't specify any deadline within which to arrange diplomatic talks. Under the treaty, if the two sides are unable to reach a resolution through diplomatic talks, they must form an arbitration committee, which must involve a third party, to settle disputes. The day before, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in the statement that the US would continue to use the full weight of US economic and diplomatic power to press for the "restoration of democracy in Venezuela", Trend reports citing Sputnik. Venezuelas opposition-controlled National Assembly speaker Juan Guaido was allowed to walk free after brief detention on Sunday, according to the TN news website. The speaker was detained en route to the northern coastal town of Caraballeda near Caracas. He was reportedly released less than an hour later. Earlier in the day, it was reported that Guaido had been detained by the country's intelligence agents, two days after he was declared the interim President of Venezuela by the disempowered National Assembly. "Alert the world and the country that today # 13Ene a SEBIN command intercepted the President of the National Assembly of Venezuela @jguaido and we do not know his whereabouts," a message on Guaido's official Twitter account read. Later in the day, Organization of American States (OAS) President Luis Almagro accused Venezuelan authorities of kidnapping Guaido. "[We] totally condemn and reject the kidnapping of Venezuelan interim president Juan Guaido. The international community must stop the crimes of [Venezuelan President Nicolas] Maduro and his henchmen," Almagro tweeted. Earlier this week, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was sworn in for the second presidential term for the period from 2019 until 2025. Maduro has faced criticism from a number of states after his re-election in May, with some countries claiming that the vote was illegitimate, something vehemently denied by Caracas. Earlier in January, the Peruvian Foreign Ministry said following the meeting of the Lima Group foreign ministers that the union did not recognize the legitimacy of Maduro's new presidential term that will begin on January 10 and urged him to call a new presidential election. Cesare Battisti, a former leftist militant wanted in Italy for murders has been arrested in Bolivia and will be handed over to Brazil for extradition, an aide to the Brazilian president has said, Trend reported citing Sputnik. Italian terrorist Cesare Battisti was arrested in Bolivia this night [Saturday] and will soon be brought to Brazil, from where he will probably be taken to Italy, Filipe Martins tweeted. Brazilian media said the 64-year-old is wanted in Italy on four murder charges committed in the 1970s as part of an outlawed terrorist group. An Italian court gave him a life sentence in absentia in 1993. Battisti was arrested in Brazil in 2007 and in 2017 but attempts to get him extradited failed. Then-Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva granted him political refugee status. Incumbent Jair Bolsonaro vowed to hand Battisti over to Italy during his presidential campaign. Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini on Sunday praised the new Brazilian government, national law enforcement agencies and the Interpol for catching Battisti, in a statement on Facebook, and promised the extremist would spend the rest of his life in jail. Ten member countries of the Lima Group have distanced themselves from interfering in Venezuela's internal affairs, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza said Saturday, Xinhua reports. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, Panama and Saint Lucia, once urging Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to cede power, have rectified their position, Arreaza said at a news conference at the headquarters of the ministry. These governments distanced themselves "not only from a position that violates international law and from interference in Venezuela's internal affairs, but also from the position ... of Washington," said Arreaza. The United States has imposed a series of sanctions on Venezuelan individuals involved in the country's controversial Constituent National Assembly, including Maduro, to support the opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable. Thirteen of the 14 member countries of the Lima Group, except Mexico, on Jan. 4 signed a declaration in the Peruvian capital Lima to urge Maduro not to assume a second presidential term on Jan. 10 due to his government's alleged violations of democracy. Maduro on Wednesday said he would give the Lima Group 48 hours to rectify their position or he will respond with "crude" measures. Paraguay and Canada have not yet sent diplomatic notes to Caracas and Venezuela will wait until Jan. 14 "so that these two countries can rectify," the foreign minister said. The Lima Group, comprising mostly Latin American countries, was formed following the Lima Declaration in the Peruvian capital in 2017 with a proclaimed aim to settle Venezuela's domestic crisis. German police on Saturday launched a major operation against criminal clans in the cities of North Rhine-Westphalia, Xinhua reports. About 1,300 police officers were dispatched simultaneously at 21:00 local time (2000 GMT) in Bochum, Duisburg, Essen, Recklinghausen, Dortmund and Gelsenkirchen. Tax authorities, customs and city administrators also participated the crackdown. It was said to be the biggest operation in Germany against the criminal gangs to show lawless areas were not tolerated. Some Shisha bars and local facilities were searched, local media Focus reported, citing sources from the interior ministry. The initial results of the operation will be disclosed on Sunday. In the following month Serbia plans to initiate changes in its criminal policy in order to impose stricter sanctions against perpetrators of heaviest criminal acts such as multiple homicides and child murder, President Aleksandar Vucic announced at a press conference on Saturday, Xinhua reported. The government stated in a press release that senior officials attended a session of the National Security Council, the topic of which being the establishment of systemic, comprehensive measures against criminality and corruption, mostly related to a more stricter penal code. Addressing the public after a meeting of the National Security Council, Vucic said Serbia will introduce lifetime imprisonment in its criminal policy. He announced a long term fight against criminality in which Serbia plans to crush criminals and introduce stricter sanctions than those in the European Union (EU). According to Vucic, the proposals of concrete measures will soon enter parliamentary procedure in order to be adopted, while "everything will start to change in one month." Measures will include a 35-50 percent increase of sanctions for violent behavior - from family violence to murder. Vucic explained that the punishment for rape will be from 5 to 15 years, while murder will cost perpetrators 10-20 years in prison. Moreover, Vucic insisted that in the future all trials will have to end within one year. He criticized the current criminal policy which has so far been delivering minimal sentences for heaviest criminal acts. "Sentences over 5 years became more of an exception, as if they (legal system) do not care if children are being killed, that criminals own taverns, restaurants, and gather celebrities around them," Vucic said assuring that the fight against criminality will last for years. He praised Friday's police operation which resulted in the arrest of some 150 suspects for heavy criminal acts, saying it shows clear intention of the state to defeat heaviest forms of criminality and corruption. However, he concluded that the solution requires a more comprehensive approach. Saudi Arabias Energy Minister Khalid al-Falih said on Sunday the oil market is on the right track and will quickly return to balance, but oil producers are willing to do more if needed, Trend reported citing Reuters. If we look beyond the noise of weekly data and speculators herd-like behavior, I remain convinced that were on the right track, and that the oil market will quickly return to balance, said Falih, addressing an oil conference in Abu Dhabi. If we find that more needs to be done, we will do so in unison with our OPEC and non-OPEC partners where collaboration is essential too, he added. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and other leading global oil producers led by Russia, agreed in December to cut their combined oil output by 1.2 million barrels per day starting from January to prevent a supply glut and boost sagging prices. Falih said that secondary sources suggest OPEC production in December was already more than 600,000 barrels per day lower than in November. We in Saudi Arabia went beyond our commitment, and have lowered both production and exports, he said. Falih later told reporters that he sees no need for an extraordinary OPEC meeting before April, when the group is set to decide its output policy for the rest of 2019. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif sat down for talks with Iraqi Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi late on Sunday, Trend reports with the reference to IRNA. During the meeting, the two officials discussed bilateral relations as well as areas of cooperation and regional developments. Iraqi premier hailed cultural and historical commonalities between the two countries and stressed the need for boosting mutual ties. Zarif, for his part, expressed pleasure over his trip to Iraq and appreciated Iraqi governments positive stance vis-a-vis regional developments and Islamic Republic of Iran. Zarif, heading a politico-economic delegation, is currently in Baghdad for talks with the neighboring states officials. Iranian Foreign Ministry has summoned Polish charge d'affaires Wojciech Unolt to protest over co-hosting an anti-Iran meeting, Trend reported citing IRNA. The managing director of Iranian Foreign Ministry for Eastern Europe conveyed Iran's formal protest to the Polish side for cooperating with the US to hold the anti-Iran meeting on February 13-14. Referring to US hostile measure, the Iranian diplomat said Poland is expected to avoid accompanying US in this case. He warned Poland of taking reciprocal act if the Polish government did not take urgent compensation measures. Meanwhile, the Polish diplomat elaborated on the details of the upcoming meeting. He also underlined the fact that Polish officials' stances are different from Americans'. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier announced holding a meeting with the focus on Iran on February 13-14. He claimed that countries from Asia, Africa, Europe and the Middle East will participate in this meeting. Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 13 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: Since the beginning of this Iranian year till the end of the ninth month, 2,000 tons of fish feed have been produced and exported from Irans Qeshm county, Director of the Veterinary Department of Qeshm county of Iran's Hormozgan Province Amin Dara said. During the reporting period, 900 tons of fish feed were exported to Vietnam, China and Sri Lanka, he added. Moreover, 1,100 tons were also supplied to the livestock and poultry farms throughout the country, Dara said. There are five companies producing fish feed in Iran, he said. Tehran, Iran, Jan.13 Trend: Association of Iranian Airlines has demanded compensation from the government for discharge of 23 Russian Tupolev planes. The Secretary of Association of Iranian Airlines Maghsoud Asadi Samani has submitted the request to the parliament and demanded payment to four Iranian companies which have faced losses due to discharge of 23 Tupolev planes, Trend reports citing ISNA. "Iran Civil Aviation Organization has ordered to discharge all the Tupolev planes in 2011, so 23 planes owned by four airline companies were discharged, as a result of which those companies faced huge losses," he said. He noted that the government has not paid any compensation since 2011. We suggest the government to calculate the losses of airline companies and pay the cost. Samani noted that if the request is approved, the credit of compensation for these airliners will be added to the next Iranian year (March 21, 2019) budget plan. Referring to the government`s decision on discharging the Tupolev planes due to multiple crashes in 2011, he said "the planes were capable of flying until 2020. In 2011, following several accidents involving Russian-built Tupolev passenger planes in Iran, the country discharged its entire Tupolev fleet. Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 13 Trend: The first meeting of India - Central Asia Dialogue with participation of Afghanistan at the Ministerial level took place on 13 January 2019 in Samarkand, Republic of Uzbekistan, Trend reports referring to the Uzbek Foreign Ministry. Foreign Ministers of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the Republic of India, the Republic of Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and the Republic of Uzbekistan participated in the meeting. The Sides noted ancient civilisational, cultural, trade, people to people links between India and Central Asia and expressed commitment to dynamic and fruitful friendly relations and mutually beneficial cooperation between India and the Central Asian countries at bilateral and multilateral formats. The Parties reaffirmed the willingness for cooperation, mutual support, joint solution on relevant issues in order to ensure security, stability and sustainable development. In this context, the participants of the meeting welcomed the successful holding of the First Working (Consultative) Meeting of the Heads of States of Central Asia, held on March 15, 2018 in Astana. All Sides condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and agreed to cooperate in countering terrorism which posed a threat to the people and economies of the world. The Ministers emphasized the importance of developing and implementing projects, that provide a concerted solution to the problems and issues of economic growth of the countries of Central Asia based on the principles of equality, mutual benefit and respect for their interests. The Parties expressed their intention to strengthen cooperation in order to create real opportunities for expanding economic cooperation, ensuring favorable conditions for mutual free trade. Heads of Foreign Ministries discussed promising opportunities and areas of cooperation in promoting mutual trade, attracting investments, innovations and technologies in key spheres of industry, energy, information technologies, pharmaceuticals and agriculture, education and training. The Parties confirmed their readiness to promote the development of direct contacts between the business community and business organizations, entering new formats of cooperation between companies and enterprises. They noted the need to promote cooperation at the level of small and medium-sized businesses, start-ups, venture business. The Ministers stressed the importance of holding industry-specific business forums and other mutual business events on a regular basis. The Heads of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs noted the importance of concerted efforts to improve the investment climate and the market attractiveness of the regions economy, business opportunities of the Central Asian countries on the world stage. The Ministers paid special attention to the need to expand and establish direct mutually beneficial economic and cultural ties between the regions and cities of India and the countries of Central Asia and expressed their intention to contribute to this direction. Ministers noted interest in further deepening cooperation in development of transit and transport-communication potential of the countries of Central Asia, improving the transport and logistics system of the region, promoting joint initiatives to create regional and international transport corridors. In particular, the participants welcomed the accession of India into the Ashgabat agreement on creating an International transport and transit corridor. The Heads of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, stressing the need to develop trade relations between the countries of Central Asia and India, noted the desirability of considering the issue of multilateral mechanisms of interaction. Ministers stressed the commitment of the countries of Central Asia and India to create favorable conditions for increasing mutual tourism flows, the development of tourism infrastructure. The Parties noted the importance of creating regional tourist routes and combined tours in the countries of Central Asia. The Sides paid particular attention to the implementation of joint youth projects in the field of culture, science and education, sports, including in framework of the implementation of the UN General Assembly Resolution A/RES/73/128 Education and religious tolerance. Ministers expressed interest in deepening bilateral and multilateral cooperation in cultural, scientific, educational, medical and information spheres by implementing joint projects, as well as enhancing cultural and humanitarian exchanges in the framework of people-to-people diplomacy, developing interaction of expert-analytical and public circles, Mass Media. The Parties gave priority to interaction in the preservation and study of joint cultural heritage and historical monuments. The Head of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs confirmed their readiness for further cooperation in multilateral forums and organizations, including coordination of positions, information exchange, mutual support of candidates. The Ministers welcomed the participation of Afghanistan in the first meeting of the India- Central Asia Dialogue as an important land link in the regional cooperation, transit of goods and energy and expressed support and commitment of Central Asian countries and India to peace, security and stability of Afghanistan; to promote inclusive Afghan-led, Afghan owned peace process and reconciliation; and to assist in economic reconstruction of Afghanistan through the implementation of joint infrastructure, transit and transport, energy projects including regional cooperation and investment projects. The Heads of Foreign Ministries noted the importance of sustainable economic growth in Afghanistan by attracting Afghan women to participate in the public life of the country and welcomed the successful holding of forums and conferences on this issue in the countries of Central Asia. The Ministers noted the results of the Seventh Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA VII), held in Ashgabat in November 2017, and confirmed their willingness to cooperate in preparation for the Eighth Regional Economic Cooperation Conference on Afghanistan (RECCA VIII) in Tashkent in the second half of 2019. Participants drew attention to the significant potential for joint initiatives in the implementation of cultural events, educational and research projects with Afghanistan and expressed their intention to promote the participation of the Afghan side in international youth forums, festivals, competitions, scientific conferences, exhibitions and other joint events. The Sides noted with satisfaction the successful organization of the meeting in Samarkand and expressed deep gratitude to the Republic of Uzbekistan for its organization. The Participants agreed to continue holding the India Central Asia Dialogue with participation of Afghanistan at the level of Foreign Ministers on a regular basis and agreed to meet in this format in New Delhi in 2020. Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan.13 By Leman Zeynalova Trend: SOCAR Energy Ukraine, Ukrainian subsidiary of Azerbaijans state oil company SOCAR, plans to open up to eight new filling stations in Ukraine in 2019, the company told Trend. SOCAR Energy Ukraine said that currently the main tendency not only in Ukrainian, but also in European filling stations market is the decrease in sales of traditional fuel types. "Correspondingly, the priorities for SOCAR for 2019 remain the expansion of the complex of services at gas filling stations and increasing the sales of related products. We also plan to open up to eight new filling stations, install modules for the sale of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) at all existing filling stations, where, according to Ukrainian legislation, their operation is possible," said the company. SOCAR Energy Ukraine said that as before, the company focuses on million cities, in particular, Kyiv. "We will actively develop the network of modern filling stations for electric cars. We will continue to surprise customers with a high level of service, innovative offers that save time and increase the speed of service," the company said. SOCAR has been operating in Ukraine since 2008. SOCAR has 59 filling stations and two oil loading bunkers in this country. --- Follow the author on Twitter:@Lyaman_Zeyn Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 13 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: Iran is ready to export gas to Pakistan, Executive Director of the National Iranian Gas Company Hassan Montazer said. The pipeline has been partially laid and infrastructure has been built, Montazer added, Trend reports referring to ILNA. Pakistani officials should decide whether they will buy gas or not, he said. A gas production plant is being constructed in Irans Assaluyeh city and the plant will be commissioned in the near future with the participation of the president, Montazer added. Iran will become the third country after France and Russia in the gas production, he said. Presently, Iran exports gas to Iraq from two directions, namely, Iraqs Baghdad and Basra cities. Taking into account the need for gas in summer, the volume of export will increase, he said. As for the payments for gas in euros or dinar, he said that so far, Iran has received euros, Montazer added. The opportunities have been created to export Iranian gas to Oman, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. If special attention is paid, gas may be transported at a low cost, he said. Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 13 By Elnur Baghishov Trend: The number of plants of Iran's Sengan Iron Ore Complex will increase from one to five through the investments worth 100 trillion rials (about $2.3 billion), head of the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO) Executive Board Khudadad Garibpour said. The production will be increased as a result of an increase in the number of plants, Garibpour added, Trend reports referring to Fars News Agency. As for the investments made by Parsian and National Banks, Mobarakeh Steel Company, Khorasan Steel Complex Company and Khouzestan Steel Company, he said that 5,000 jobs were created in Sengan village through these investments. All companies that invest in Sengan are reliable companies. Moreover, investments worth 100 trillion rials will be made in Sengan. Thus, 17.5 million tons of concentrate and 15 million tons of pellets will be produced, Garibpour said. The Sengan Development Committee will be established at IMIDRO, he said. In the first half of the next Iranian year (to start on March 21, 2019), the pellet plants of the National Development Industry and Mining Company will be put into operation, Garibpour said. Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 13 Trend: Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 22 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Jan. 13, Trend reports. The 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. Iranian officials have lashed out at the United States and Poland about a Middle East and particularly Iran-focused global summit Washington plans to host in Poland in February. It is still not clear how many countries will attend the summit and what is the exact goal President Donald Trumps administration is pursuing by organizing an international gathering. In the meantime, economic pressures on Iran mounted dramatically as the United States announced that Washington will grant no more waivers to buyers for importing Iranian oil, in another push to choke off Tehran's sources of income, reported the National on Saturday. It is hard to miss the signs that Washington this week has ramped up the pressure on Tehran. Iran's National Security Chief Ali Shamkhani on Saturday January 12 labelled the U.S. as a "looser" whose idea of exerting "maximum pressure" on Iran has led to holding a "conference." Shamkhani said the measure marked the United States' "confusion and lack of success." A day earlier, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohamad Javad Zarif reacted to his U.S. counterpart, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's remarks who broke the news about the summit during his Middle East tour. Zarif termed the plan a "desperate anti-Iran circus" and particularly lashed out at Poland, reminding that Iran had saved polish World War II refugees, probably not mindful of the fact that the Islamic Republic did not exist then and was established some 35 years after the end of the war. The February 13 and 14 event to be held in Warsaw would focus on stability and security in the Middle East, including on the "important element of making sure that Iran is not a destabilizing influence," said Pompeo on Friday. Europes participation would be an important factor for the summit to be considered a success. Major European countries did not approve of the U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and promised trade facilities to Iran to calm its protests as the U.S. sanctions hurt its economy. Reacting to Pompeo's remarks in a January 11 tweet, Zarif made references to a 1996 summit in Sharm al-Sheikh, Egypt, "Reminder to host/participants of anti-Iran conference: those who attended last U.S. anti-Iran show are either dead, disgraced, or marginalized. And Iran is stronger than ever." He went on to write that "The Polish Government cannot wash the shame: while Iran saved Poles in WWII, it now hosts desperate anti-Iran circus." Zarif posted a picture that shows former US President Bill Clinton, former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, and former Russian leader Boris Yeltsin as well as former Israel leader Shimon Peres, and former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat. Zarif's deputy Abbas Araqchi also said that Iran has respected Polish refugees for decades and preserved thousands of their graves in Tehran for 77 years now, although graveyards can be demolished after 30 years based to Iranian laws. According to the State Department, tens of states with an interest in bringing about stability in the Middle East are expected to be represented at the Warsaw meeting. Pompeo has said that the summit is aimed at promoting stability and freedom in the Middle East, with an emphasis on confronting Iran's influence in the region. The event looks like yet another landmark in the deterioration of relations between Tehran and Washington which have been more than tense since the U.S. pull-out from the nuclear deal in May and re-imposition of sanctions against Iran in August and November 2018. In another development, Iran Action Group Chief at the Department of State, Brian Hook, who broke the news of removing the waiver to import Iranian oil granted to a select group of friendly countries, said, "Iran is now increasingly feeling the economic isolation that our sanctions are imposing... We do want to deny the regime revenues," adding that "Eighty per cent of Irans revenues come from oil exports." Indeed Iran's oil exports have halved in the past six months, but U.S. waivers granted to countries such as South Korea, Japan and India have enabled Tehran to export more than a million barrels a day. "We want a new and better deal [with Iran] but in that process, we are denying the Iranian regime billions and billions of dollars and they are facing a liquidity crisis," Hook said, adding that Iran would not return to the negotiating table without pressure, the National quoted him as saying. Members of the House of Theater in Tehran have issued a statement addressed to the heads of the three branches of power in Iran to protest the detention and prosecution of drama directors. More than 300 people rallied at the theater on January 13 and issued a resolution to conclude their protest assembly. "The family of [Iranian] theater and drama is facing the harshest restrictions from the judicial department, the [monopolized] state-run Radio & TV, and some newspapers. The restrictions are so harsh that they could be branded as unprecedented, read the resolution. Deploring "illegal and unprofessional" meddling in drama affairs and "indicting theater directors," the signatories said, "We cannot tolerate disrespecting the members of this great family and ignoring its role as a critic in society. They called on the deputy of the arts at the Culture and Islamic Guidance Ministry to define his legal stance and end the persecution of those involved in arts and cultural activities. "The official arts director and deputy are just scarecrows," theater director Mahmoud Azizi said. "If it is decided that our theater should continue on the current path, one might ask, what is the use of an art director and deputy [at the ministry]?" The director of a popular drama Mohammad Rahmanian, and House of Theater Director Shahram Gilabadi were recently summoned to court and released on bail. Rahmanian was summoned because one of her actresses was allowed to sing. Women singing solo in public is prohibited by Iranian law; they are only allowed to perform for female-only audiences or as part of a chorus. "The performance of a play is different every day. On some days, the voice accompanying the actress in a song is lower than hers, and, some may think that the female actress is performing a solo song," Rahmanian said. The director of the Theater Shahr, Saeid Saeidi, and the director of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Nights Dream, Maryam Kazemi, were also detained two months ago and later released on bail. On December 22, 2018, Tehran Prosecutor-General Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi had warned the Culture and Islamic Guidance Ministry to address problems concerning a play performed at a Tehran hotel, saying it went "against the principles of religion." "Hijab codes are ignored; men and women are mixed together on stage," Dolatabadi said in an apparent reference to a production of Victor Hugo's Les Miserables staged at Tehran's Espinas Hotel. "The use of France's flag in the play also supports, and in the meantime dismisses, certain values." With a cast, crew, and orchestra of over 450 people, the sold-out production has played to 2,500-strong audiences for six nights a week since its debut in November. The director, Hossein Parsaee, maintains that Hugo's classic is a "masterpiece without borders. Previously, other plays, including Shakh-i Nabat and Hot Egg Tango, were banned following the prosecutor-general's criticism. Iranian dramatists, directors, and actors have complained of increased monitoring by security forces. With the election of Jair Bolsonaro to Brazils presidency in October 2018, Irans situation has become more precarious in Latin America than it was. Ever-increasing tensions between Iran and the U.S. and Tehrans escalating proxy wars with Israel are reaching a crescendo, which are adding unprecedented pressure on Irans domestic stability. With a population of over 211 million (the 5th largest population in the world) and a gross domestic product of two trillion dollars (the 9th largest in the world) Brazil is a powerhouse and a major player on the international scene. The Islamic Republic of Iran had developed very close relations with Brazil, particularly under the presidencies of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff. Bolsonaros election can lead to a serious negative impact on Irans Latin America grand strategy. Unlike Lula and Rousseff, Bolsonaro is a far-right populist whom has been nicknamed the Trump of the Tropics. Moreover, Bolsonaro is a very close ally of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. Brazil plays a major role in Irans Latin America grand strategy. Iran and Israel have a long-standing bitter feud. Countries who align with one, are typically opposed by the other. Latin America has been steadily aligning itself with Iran to Israels detriment. However, with the election of a Trump-like Bolsonaro as Brazils new president, Irans presence in Latin America will likely weaken at least temporarily. Irans Latin America relations have been long established despite accusations of Iranian terrorist actions on Latin American soil. However, countries like Argentina have clearly chosen to side with Iran against Israel as illustrated with the bombing of the Asociacion Mutual Israelita Argentina (AMIA). Former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has been indicted on charges of treason for her suspected role in covering up the Iranian connection to the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish center, resulting in the death of 85 people and wounded 300. Brazilian presidents have previously maintained close relations with Iran (some closer than others). Although with the election of far-right Bolsonaro, this relationship will be put on hold. Bolsonaro has announced his intention to move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem. The newly elected leader further indicated his intention to move toward an Israeli-Brazil alliance when in December Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu visited Brazil. The official visit was a first for an Israeli head of government. If Bolsonaros words can be believed, then the amicable relationship previously exisiting between Iran and Brazil is likely to end. The Brazilian leader stated to Netanyahu that they would be more than partners, we will be brothers. This type of rhetoric does not bode well for Iran. Not only are these early indicators of a reduced relationship with Iran, but it is possible that Brazils change of policy could have a domino effect on other Latin American countries relations with Iran. Iran has had very close diplomatic and political relations with several anti-American leftist regimes in Latin America such as Brazil, Bolivia, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. Brazil under former president Lula, supported Irans right to its nuclear program and also persuaded Iran to shift a major part of its uranium enrichment overseas. Brazil also has large uranium deposits and other nuclear rich resources, in fact, it is estimated that Brazil possesses 40% of the worlds Tantalum- a refined version of the metallic ore coltan- which is capable of holding a high electric charge which is necessary to operate the electronic system in a nuclear weapon. Thorium which is a potential source of nuclear fuel is abundant in Brazil. All of these elements are able to be used in a dirty bomb to spread radiation. Although Russeff and Temer did not have the same close bond with Iran that Lula did, they still maintained ties to Iran. Brazil is home to more than one million Muslims making it a prime recruiting ground and it has operated as a terrorist hub to Hezbollah, al Qaeda, and the Islamic Jihad. Front companies in the oil and beef industry are used to provide cover for Iranian operatives. Brazil is one of the many countries in Latin America which have served as a significant base of operations for Iranian and Iranian linked militants. The militant group Hezbollah has viewed Latin America as a venue by which to potentially attack Israeli or Western targets. Some Hezbollah sympathizers of Lebanese origin in Brazil and other Latin American countries have been exploiting corruption and lax tax enforcement to help the militant group by illicit activities like money laundering and trafficking counterfeit goods. Iran has spent the last 40 years in relative diplomatic and economic isolation mainly due to tensions with U.S. Having close relations with Latin American countries, at Americas doorstep is a big prize for Tehran and Brazil is the regions big powerhouse. The loss of Brazil as an ally, also reduces the fundamentalist regimes ability to fund Hezbollah through illegal channels. Although there are other Latin American countries with which Iran has continually had closer ties, the potential for Brazils pro-Israeli attitude to spread throughout the region is where the real threat to Iran lies. With the Maduro government faltering under a struggling economy, conditions are ripe in Venezuela for a populist style right-wing leader to replace him. If this happens, Irans Latin America grand strategy will cease to be viable. Venezuela has consistently been Irans top supporter in Latin America since Chavez shared an anti-American and anti-Israeli policy with the rulers in Tehran. If Iran losses both Brazil and Venezuela as allies, Irans attempts to pursue its grand strategic design to pose a military and terrorist threat from Americas southern flank would cease to exist. Bolsonaros presidency could not have come at a worse time for the fundamentalist regime. The regime is arguably at its most vulnerable time in its history. Since Trumps presidency began two years ago the U.S. has re-imposed crippling sanctions on Iran and Irans economy is deteriorating precipitously with its currency, the rial suffering major decline and wild fluctuations. In addition, Iran has been weakened by the following: (1) the recent EU sanctions on intelligence entities in Iran; (2) an emboldened Israel, which having had a free hand, has conducted over 200 attacks on Iran bases and its proxies in Syria; and (3) persistent protests since December 2017. It might not be the proverbial straw that breaks the camels back, but it certainly is a bushel of straws on the regimes back. Irans Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei will have to see whether or not he can outlast leaders like Trump, Netanyahu, and Bolsonaro and hope that others like them are not elected. For Iran it is a waiting game. If they are replaced with leaders like those which preceded them then the Islamic Republic will be able to prolong its rule and reassert its policies both in the region and the world. Many European companies are considering acquiring smaller domestic players in Russia, as a means to circumvent import bans. Fears over potential new U.S. sanctions against Moscow and a flare-up in tensions in eastern Ukraine have damped hopes for renewed business ties with Russia among major European corporate groups. A naval clash between Ukraine and Russia in November has set back efforts to rebuild ties with Moscow, the head of Russia's largest foreign business association has said, amid concerns over Washington's next steps and pressure from the U.S. for Brussels to hold the line on anti-Moscow measures, the Financial Time (FT) said. Read alsoDW: U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell threatens German firms over Russian pipeline "Companies that are in Russia are certainly delaying investment decisions, and those planning to enter are being cautious about it," said Frank Schauff, chief executive of the Association of European Businesses. "The mood in Brussels towards Russia is not great, but it's not terrible either. But everything that is being said and done is very much influenced by a big 'if' of U.S. sanctions. This is the main point of relevance for everybody in the end," he told the Financial Times. "Everything the U.S. is doing regarding Russia has direct implications for the Europeans. And that is obviously not improving the mood." The EU is Russia's largest trade partner, accounting for more than half of Russia's total turnover, according to central bank data. Six of the top eight sources of foreign direct investment in Russia in 2017 were European countries, while European carmakers, banks and retail companies are some of the country's most prominent foreign investors. But almost five years of U.S. and EU sanctions imposed after Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea have dented western businesses' appetite for Russian investments. Some European countries have lobbied for better relations with Russia and, by and large, Brussels' position on sanctions against Moscow has been less aggressive than that of Washington. But hopes of a friendlier European approach in 2019 have receded after the naval clash between Russian and Ukrainian ships off the coast of Crimea in November, which many western capitals have blamed on Moscow. "EU countries are displeased with the Azov incident," Mr Schauff said in an interview. "During 2018 there were good attempts to find ways to reach common interest points, ways to deal with each other. But the Azov sea situation has made the picture more complex." "The expectation in the end is that the European authorities are defending European business interests here in Russia . . . through lobbying or communication with Washington, to stop the next wave of sanctions or introduce ways to protect companies here from secondary sanctions. But it is not so easy," said Mr Schauff. "But at a certain point you always hit a wall the question of what will happen in Washington. And for everyone it is unpredictable." As a result, many European companies are considering acquiring smaller domestic players in Russia, as a means to circumvent import bans and protect their operations from other potential curbs. Grenell reportedly warns of possible sanctions. German companies building the Nord Stream 2 pipeline between Germany and Russia received letters from U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell warning them of "a significant risk of sanctions" if they did not pull out of the project, Germany's mass-circulation Bild am Sonntag has reported. In the letter cited by Bild am Sonntag, Grenell wrote that the pipeline would make Europe dependent on Moscow and increase the threat of Russian interventions, Deutsche Welle (DW) reported. Read alsoGermany's Maas says U.S. sanctions against Nord Stream 2 would be wrong way to solve dispute media "We emphasize that companies involved in Russian energy exports are taking part in something that could prompt a significant risk of sanctions," the ambassador wrote. The paper also quoted a Grenell spokesman who said that the letter should not be seen as a threat, but as a "clear message of U.S. policy." The large pipeline is set to deliver gas from northwestern Russia to northern Germany under the Baltic Sea and effectively double the amount of gas Germany imports from the country. The U.S. opposes the project over fears that the gas link would tighten Russia's control of Europe's energy supply and diminish the importance of gas transit countries such as Ukraine. U.S. companies are also keen to sell gas obtained by fracking to many European countries. Russia smuggles tonnes of coal from occupied Donbas minister Ukraine is aware of Russia's shady schemes for smuggling coal illegally mined in parts of Donbas occupied by Russian proxies to foreign seaports. If you see a spelling error on our site, select it and press Ctrl+Enter Trump says record-long govt shutdown could be resolved 'in 15 minutes' Donald Trump met with border patrol agents and police as he visited McAllen, Texas to push his plan for a wall on the US-Mexico border. Photo by AFP/Jim Watson The US government shutdown entered the 22nd day, as Trump remains steadfast in his demand for $5.7 billion to build a Mexico border wall. However, Democrats in Congress determined to refuse the funds. The president issued a series of tweets Saturday in an effort to defend his stance and goad Democrats to return to Washington and end what he called "the massive humanitarian crisis at our Southern Border." "Democrats could solve the Shutdown in 15 minutes!" he said in one tweet, adding in another, "We will be out for a long time unless the Democrats come back from their 'vacations' and get back to work. I am in the White House ready to sign!" But most lawmakers left town on Friday and will not return before Monday, leaving little chance for any solution to the stalemate before then. The impasse has paralyzed Washington -- its impact felt increasingly around the country -- with the president retaliating by refusing to sign off on budgets for swaths of government departments unrelated to the dispute. As a result, 800,000 federal employees -- workers as diverse as FBI agents, air traffic controllers and museum staff -- did not receive paychecks Friday. The shutdown became the longest on record at midnight Friday (0500 GMT Saturday), when it overtook a 21-day stretch in 1995-1996 under president Bill Clinton. Retreat from 'emergency' On Friday, however, Trump backed off a series of previous threats to end the deadlock by declaring a national emergency and attempting to secure the funds without congressional approval. "I'm not going to do it so fast," he said at a White House meeting. Trump described an emergency declaration as the "easy way out" and said Congress had to step up to the responsibility of approving the $5.7 billion he says is needed. Trump has made building a wall -- like these prototypes seen from Tijuana on January 7, 2019 -- the central theme of his nationalist domestic policies. Photo by AFP/Guillermo Arias "If they can't do it... I will declare a national emergency. I have the absolute right," he said. Until Friday, Trump had suggested numerous times that he was getting closer to taking the controversial decision. One powerful Republican ally, Senator Lindsey Graham, tweeted after talks with Trump: "Mr. President, Declare a national emergency NOW." But the president himself acknowledged in the White House meeting that an attempt to claim emergency powers would likely end up in legal battles going all the way to the Supreme Court -- as other Republicans and some of his advisers have reportedly cautioned him. Opponents say that a unilateral presidential move would be constitutional overreach and set a dangerous precedent in similar controversies. 'Under siege' The standoff has turned into a test of political ego, particularly for Trump, who came into office boasting of his deal-making powers and making an aggressive border policy the keystone of his nationalist agenda. In two of his tweets Saturday, Trump pushed back on a media report that his White House was "chaotic" with no plan or strategy to end the shutdown. "The Fakes always like talking Chaos, there is NONE..." he tweeted. "I do have a plan on the Shutdown." "But to understand that plan you would have to understand the fact that I won the election, and I promised... a Wall at the Southern Border. Elections have consequences!" Democrats, meanwhile, seem determined at all costs to prevent the president from getting the wall he has often promised in his campaign-style rallies. Both Democrats and Republicans agree that the US-Mexican border presents major challenges, ranging from the violent Mexican drug trade to the plight of asylum seekers and poor migrants seeking new lives in the world's richest country. But Trump has turned his single-minded push for more walls into a political crusade that opponents say is a stunt to stoke xenophobia in his right-wing voter base while willfully ignoring the border's complex realities. For the president, who visited the Texas border with Mexico on Thursday, the border situation amounts to an invasion by criminals. Only in recent days has he begun describing the problem as "humanitarian." Some studies show that illegal immigrants generally commit fewer crimes than people born in the United States, although not everyone agrees on this. More certain is that while narcotics do enter the country across remote sections of the border, most are sneaked through heavily guarded checkpoints in vehicles, the government's own Drug Enforcement Administration said in a 2017 report. Ho Thi Hoa (R) is by her sister Ho Thi Dao after the reunion. Photo by VnExpress/Anh Quan A social media post helped Ho Thi Hoa return home after 20 years in China with a horror story. To call Hoas story tragic would be an understatement. A few weeks ago, Hoa, 50, returned to her family in the central province of Nghe An. Her sisters house in Hoang Mai Town greeted her with welcoming words and visits from concerned and sympathetic neighbors. Hoa used to live in the town, but when her marriage broke after a very short while, she was broke and penniless. She had neither a house nor a job. She took her two kids to stay in her sisters house, and made a living by collecting scrap and hiring out her labor whenever she could. One day in 1998, an acquaintance coaxed Hoa into a trip to neighboring Thanh Hoa Province with the promise of a good, highly paid job. Hoa left after asking her relatives to take care of her kids. Ho Thi Dao, Hoas sister, recalled being happy that Hoa was being helped by kind people. It was much later did she find out that her sister had been trafficked to China. The familys attempts to find her proved futile. Hoa was sold to a Chinese man in a remote area. She tried to fight against it, not eating in protest, but was violently subdued. "Later I gave birth to five children, but the husband and his family only allowed me to see them rarely. They did not let me speak in Vietnamese, but I could not speak Chinese," said Hoa with deep sadness. After eighteen years in China, Hoa started falling sick frequently and the Chinese man kicked her out of the house. Without any money, acquaintance or clue about her hometown, she wandered around the Vietnam-China border, eking out a living from collecting scrap. At night, she would make herself some shelter or sleep under a bridge. On a 2018 winter day, Hoa fainted in the freezing cold. This proved to be a turning point as Hai, one of the people who helped her that day, uploaded her picture and story on Facebook. The piece of information was circulated until it reached Quach Huu Thuan, Hoas son. "The picture of that tired woman struck me. I sent it to my aunt Dao," Thuan said. Once it was confirmed that the picture was that of his mother, Thuan called Hai, the person who posted the information. Then he and his relatives went to the Tan Thanh border gate area in the northern province of Lang Son to find and meet Hoa. It was a tearful reunion. "I was torn between sadness and happiness. I am glad to see mom again after 20 years, and sad because of her miserable condition," said an emotional Thuan. Thuan has since left for the south to resume his work. This Tet, or Lunar New Year, he will bring his wife and children home to meet his mother. "I want the whole family to reunite and have a chance to make up for my mother," he said. Hoa is still in poor health and depressed. She has emotional swings and is forgetful. Dao is always by her sisters side, reminding her of the warm memories of the family. Hoa is one of many Vietnamese female victims of cross-border sex and labor trafficking. 75 percent of trafficked victims are transported to China, Nguyen Van Pha, Vice chairman of Judicial Committee said at a meeting last August. According to Mimi Vu with the Pacific Links Foundation, a Vietnamese woman is typically sold over Chinese border for a paltry VND1 million ($45). Citizens of the Asia Pacific region have twice the chance of becoming enslaved compared to a developed country, according to a report by the International Labor Organization. Vietnam is considered a major source of cross-border sex and labor trafficking. The majority of trafficked victims are women, children from ethnic minorities or rural areas with poor economic conditions and lack of skills, according to Vietnams Ministry of Public Security. Female victims are often forced to become commercial sex workers or married to older foreign men. Vietnam one of the most beautiful countries in the world: UK magazine The charming landscape of Ninh Binh in northern Vietnam is captured from above. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Trang Readers of travel guide publisher Rough Guides have chosen Vietnam as one of 20 most beautiful countries to visit. Vietnam, one of three Asian countries in the list, was ranked 20th, while India was placed 13th and Indonesia, sixth. Scotland topped the list, followed by Canada and New Zealand. Other countries in the top 10 included Italy, South Africa, England, Iceland, the U.S. and Wales. More than 40 years after the end of the Vietnam War, the S-shaped country has rebounded with vigor, Rough Guides remarks. Infrastructure upgrades, the launch of direct flights that connect Vietnam with major cities in the world and modern development with a bunch of luxury hotels and skyscrapers have made Vietnam more attractive to foreigners. The U.K. travel site mentioned the "impressive" rock formations in Ha Long Bay, four hours drive to the west of capital city Hanoi, and terraced rice fields in the northern highlands town Sa Pa as "not-to-be-missed" beauty sites in Vietnam. Tourist boats sail on Ha Long Bay in the northern province of Quang Ninh. Photo by Shutterstocks/andien The Van Don International Airport, which opened on December 30, 2018, has made it easier for foreign tourists to visit Ha Long Bay, which was named among the worlds seven new natural wonders by Swiss organization New Open World in 2011. Foreign visitors to Vietnam rose 20 percent to a record 15.4 million last year, making it the worlds fourth fastest growing travel destination, according to a United Nations World Tourism Organization report. The country raked in VND620 trillion ($26.7 billion) from tourism last year and the industry is aiming to make $35 billion per year by 2020, contributing 10 percent to the economy, compared to the current 7.5 percent. Observers have remarked that Vietnam has not done very well in balancing tourism growth with preserving its natural beauty, and there is a lot of room for improvement in this aspect. Many workers seek jobs abroad, but high brokerage and other fees are demanded of them, often illegally. Le Giang Lam On Taiwans Shifen Old Street, famous for its sky lanterns, I came across the sign "Viet Nam Quan," meaning a Vietnamese shop. The saleswoman there was from Ninh Binh, a province in the Red River Delta in northern Vietnam. She said she had come to Taiwan several years ago as a guest worker. She asked me about how much I had paid for a visa and the visa application procedure. "It was easy. I got my tourist visa for free through an online application and am allowed to stay for two weeks. The plane ticket and accommodation cost the same as a trip from Hanoi to Saigon," I told her. "Then you can come, find a job and then overstay, right?" she asked, but clammed up soon after. I didn't want to tell her that a Taiwanese tourist visa is only easy to get for someone who has got a U.S. or European visa before. After speaking to about 10 other Vietnamese workers in Taiwan, I understood more about why the conversation at the lantern street had been a bit awkward. For Vietnamese tourists, going to Taiwan is cheap - VND15-25 million ($647 1,079) for a five-day tour. In contrast, guest workers, who need the work to help their families make ends meet, need to cough up $5,200-6,000 to brokers. This figure, according to the Migrant Forum in Asia, is the highest any Southeast Asian worker has to pay to get the same job in Taiwan. It is two or three times what a Thai or Filipino worker pays to get there. Vietnamese citizens carry banners during a protest in Taiwan asking for an end to labor brokers on January 7, 2018. Photo by VnExpress/Andy Ip Hai Phong City native Nghia is one of the thousands of Vietnamese workers in Taiwan. He decided to go abroad to work since he was earning just VND5 million ($215) a month in Vietnam and could not take care of his wife and two children. So, when he saw an advertisement seeking workers for Taiwan with a salary of NT$22,000 a month ($717) plus opportunities to work overtime, he decided to borrow money and apply for the job. However, when he arrived in Taiwan, he found there was almost no opportunity to work extra shifts. Furthermore, after deducting taxes and fees, the actual wage was only $400-500. After living costs and paying off debts, he practically had nothing left after the first year. "Brokers have no idea what theyre talking about," he said. Nghia found ways to work extra hours on his own. When Vietnamese everywhere were watching the 2018 AFF Cup semi-final between Vietnam and the Philippines last month, he was busy selling roasted sweet potatoes at a night market. By his calculation, it would take him six years to make a meaningful profit. Nghia is not the only person to "feel tricked." According to the Migrant Forum in Asia, the labor export market is dominated by private companies which compete with each other to find the cheapest labor for employers. This happens at the expense of the workers, who end up paying higher commissions. In Vietnam, studies show that the high costs for workers result from mismanagement by authorities and because of corruption. According to a study published in 2013 by Daniele Belanger and Hong-zen Wang on Vietnamese emigration to East Asia, many private brokers hire workers by renting the licenses of licensed agencies. Then, they collect the departure costs from the workers themselves, though the recruiters should be responsible for the cost of training, visas and air tickets. Most workers are disadvantaged by the fact they do not know their rights, the study found. Hence many people are also tricked by fly-by-night operators who collect thousands of dollars as fees, take victims to Taiwan on tourist visas and abandon them there. Some others manage to find a job through acquaintances in Taiwan, travel there and overstay their visas. This option is less expensive than the legal channel and more lucrative because they do not have to pay tax or health insurance. Two Vietnamese shop owners in Taipei told me that two months pay in a restaurant (illegal job) is equal to three months wages at a factory. Taiwans National Immigration Agency has said Vietnamese top the list of illegal immigrants followed by Indonesians. If brokers fees are the highest in Vietnam, it is second highest in Indonesia. Happens at a cost But staying illegally comes at a cost: The workers must live underground and are not protected by law. Pham Thao Van, who managed a fund that supported Vietnamese workers experiencing hardship in Taiwan, said more than 200 people have died in the last four years, mostly due to accidents or sickness. The workers do not dare go to a hospital because they are not legal residents. Although the governments of Vietnam and Taiwan have introduced a number of measures to protect workers, effective implementation remains a challenge. Vietnams Ministry of Labor has stipulated that agents should not charge more than $4,000 for sending a guest worker to Taiwan. Since the beginning of last year, the ministry has also carried out a direct recruitment program that charges only VND13 million ($560). But many brokerages still function with impunity, collecting additional fees without invoices. Convention 181 of the International Labor Organization bans private recruitment companies from charging workers, but Vietnam has not ratified this. It is reported that there are around 25,000 illegal Vietnamese workers in Taiwan. Their path to illegal status had most likely begun in Vietnam, where thousands of illegal brokers continue to trick workers with fake promises of a better future. Twin Bright, one of the companies allegedly involved in the recent case of 152 Vietnamese tourists going missing in Taiwan, is not a licensed tour operator. This case has highlighted the urgency of Vietnams labor export market needing better management. When there is not enough work available in the country and the official labor export route is too expensive, poor workers are faced with tough choices and decide to take risks. But the truth is that, given a choice, as Nghia says: "Nobody wants to live in exile." *Le Giang Lam is a journalist based in Hanoi. The opinions expressed are her own. Apartments are taken down in Loc Hung area in Ho Chi Minh City's Tan Binh District. Photo by VTC Many households whod settled down in a HCMC area 65 years ago have had their apartments demolished. Authorities say they are about having long-standing residents of the Loc Hung area of Tan Binh District vacate it despite the latter having lived there for more than than six decades. According to the district authorities, up to 112 out of 134 apartments in the area were "built without permission" in the Loc Hung area that spans 4.8 hectares (less than 12 acres). On January 4 and 8, Tan Binh authorities demolished the 112 apartments. The city has earmarked the area on Chan Hung Street for schools, parks and other public projects, a district representative told local media. Long dispute In previous letters sent to the central government, 90 families in Loc Hung said they had been living in the area since 1954 and have only used the area for farming. They also paid taxes in accordance with law, but in 1999, when they asked local authorities to confirm their land use rights, their requests were rejected. For years since, it has been a common story that the authorities visit them regularly to put their apartments on record, and, on occasion, take some down. District officials say Loc Hung initially belonged to the telecommunications division under the U.S.-backed South Vietnam regime. After the Vietnam War ended in 1975, the lot was used as a radio station for HCMC and in 1991, its ownership was transferred to the HCMC postal department. In 2008, the city issued a decision to revoke the lot and Tan Binh District was assigned the task of resettling local residents in apartment projects. After the relocation, the city will spend an estimated VND117 billion ($5 million) on building a kindergarten, elementary and secondary schools, parks and traffic infrastructure around the lot. But through these years, residents in Loc Hung have built apartments for different purposes for their own accommodation, leasing out space for tenants and doing other businesses. Authorities say all this was done without any formal permission from local authorities. Tan Binh District authorities say they had issued a decision on the eviction and informed Loc Hung residents of the plan before pulling down their apartments. However, the expulsion has been strongly objected to by the residents. Those protesting the plan have had their statements recorded by the police. For families who have not had enough time to resettle or find temporary accommodation, the district has helped them find rented accommodation and given them VND3 million ($130) per month for three months. The district officials say their moves aim to ensure social order, avoid illegal construction and at the same time, limit the situation in which people sell and buy properties on public lands illegally. Local Party chief Nguyen Thien Nhan says Tan Binh has suggested since 2017 that the city forces unlicensed works out of Loc Hung area, but this proposal was not green lighted. By last year, more illegal apartments were built in the area, pressing the city to act. Many families are willing to move out of the area; only a few dozen people object to the plan, Nhan says. A man is about to get on a Vinasun cab in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo by VnExpress/Phuong Dong Grab has appealed a verdict by a Vietnamese court to pay compensation to domestic taxi firm Vinasun for causing it losses. Arguing that the order to pay VND4.8 billion ($208,000) by the first instance court was unlawful, the Singapore-headquartered Grab has asked the appellate court to quash the case. It wants the court to quash the verdict on the ground that the HCMC People's Court had seriously violated procedures and dismiss the case. The court had no jurisdiction to hear the case, handed a verdict that exceeded the scope of the lawsuit and did not summon the witnesses it had sought, the company said. The ride-hailing firm maintained it did not commit any wrong against Vinasun. If the appellate court is not willing to dismiss the case, it should at least amend the earlier ruling, ruling that Grab does not carry on a transportation business and has not violated any laws, and dismissing Vinasuns claims. Grab said the court did not fully and objectively evaluate the facts and evidence of the case, but instead relied on biased information based on an inaccurate assessment of losses done by a court-appointed inspection company. "Vinasun could not prove its actual damages and/or the causal link between any of Grabs alleged violations and Vinasuns alleged damages," Grab said in the statement. The court verdict came after an 18-month battle between Grab and Vinasun since last June when Vinasun filed a suit saying Grabs illegal activities had caused it nearly VND42 billion ($1.8 million) in losses. The latest draft of a Ministry of Transport decree requires firms offering taxi services to register as taxi firms before they can apply ride-hailing technology. This means Grab and other ride-hailing firms have to register afresh as taxi businesses and comply with legal requirements related to operating licenses, drivers profiles and taxes. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Gary Schnabel, the executive director of the state's Board of Pharmacy from 1999 to 2014, said the board floated the idea of the state monitoring controlled substance prescriptions for years before the legislation was passed. He got the idea while at a national conference and learned what other states were doing. "It was the very beginnings of the opioid crisis, and it was a way to actually monitor opioid use," Schnabel said. The point was to identify people using more than a certain amount whatever program administrators thought was appropriate and let doctors know. Pharmacists hoped that the program could prevent issues like doctor shopping by having doctors intervene when they found a patient had multiple prescriptions for the same or conflicting drugs. But they didn't want to share the database with police or investigators. "The only people who (would have) access to that data were the patient themselves, or the patient's physician," Schnabel said. "Nobody else would have access to it." The state association representing doctors and the ACLU of Oregon resisted at first, Schnabel said. The ACLU of Oregon worried the program would invade patient privacy and could be susceptible to data breaches. Some health care providers also voiced privacy concerns, legislative records show. The Corvallis Goodwill store was briefly evacuated Saturday afternoon following an explosives scare in the donation processing area. Support Local Journalism Your membership makes our reporting possible. {{featured_button_text}} Sgt. Brian Stahl, with the Corvallis Police Department, said the department received a call at 1:42 p.m. about a grenade that was found while employees were sorting donated goods at the outlet on Northwest Ninth Street. An Oregon State Police expert was called in, the grenade was examined, and was determined to be inert, Stahl said. Stahl said the store was evacuated as a precautionary measure after the item was found. The store was reopened by about 2:30 p.m. Anthony Rimel covers weekend events, education, courts and crime and can be reached at anthony.rimel@lee.net, 541-758-9526, or via Twitter @anthonyrimel. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 1 Sad 0 Angry 0 The issue of 'capital punishment' might once again come under the spotlight with the Ministry of Justice and Parliamentary Affairs hinting that if the country is to amend the Constitution, then the abolishing of the death sentence might be discussed. Zimbabwe's Constitution allows the death penalty but the country has not executed anyone for the past 14 years despite there being convicted murderers on the death row. Since the year 2005, the country has not carried out any executions despite the courts of law sentencing convicted murderers to the gallows. The Constitution that came into effect in the year 2013 allows for capital punishment but the actions appear to suggest Zimbabwe is moving with times and might do away with the death penalty. Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi confirmed that abolishing capital punishment will in the future be discussed if the Constitution is to be amended. Harare lawyer Mr James Makiya said the right to life must be absolute if the Constitution is to respect the sanctity of human life. It is the duty of legislators to amend the Constitution and follow other progressive nations in removing the death sentence, said Mr Makiya. South Africa, a country with a very high rate of murder, the death sentence was abolished on the 6th of June 1995 after the famous state versus Makwanyane constitutional application. In Zimbabwe, some, however, believe the death sentence can deter would be offenders. Despite the assertions that the death penalty deters would be murderers, research shows otherwise. There are no scientific facts that prove that imposing the death penalty reduces the cases of murder in any country. Another worrying fact is that Amnesty International has recorded 55 cases in 5 countries namely China, Maldives, Nigeria, USA and Zambia whereby prisoners who had been sentenced to death were later exonerated. At least 21 919 people were known to be on death row worldwide at the end of 2017. In Zimbabwe, the Constitution does not allow for the execution of people under the age of 21, those above the age of 70 and women. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde bulawayo24.com, January 13, 2019 A Somali military court has sentenced an army officer to the death penalty after he was found guilty of intentionally killing a civilian. The victim was identified as Dayah Iman Hassan on 21st October last year near Seybiyano locality in Hodan district, Mogadishu on Saturday. The judge of the court, col. Hassan Ali Nuur Shute said the decision of the court was based on the evidence provided by the witnesses before the court. The accused was sentenced to death. "After seeing the medical report that proved the main cause of the deceased death and the evidence provided by five witnesses who were on aboard the vehicle of the accused, the court has sentenced Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed to death for killing the late Dayah Iman Hassan, " said the judge. The court also said that the convicted person can apply for an appeal if he is not satisfied with the verdict. The deceased Dayah Iman Hassan graduated from Plasma university in Mogadishu before his death. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde A Saudi teenager fleeing alleged family abuse arrived in Canada Saturday as an asylum refugee after a harrowing journey in which she was almost forcibly deported back home while changing planes in Thailand. RELATED | Saudi Woman Who Fled to Thailand Fears Death if Sent Home At one point, 18-year-old Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun had barricaded herself in an airport hotel in Bangkok to avoid being taken by Thai authorities. She stirred worldwide sympathy by tweeting about her plight during the week-long ordeal, prompting the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to declare that she was fleeing alleged family abuse and was in a dangerous situation. The teenage said she feared her family would kill her because she renounced Islam. Under Saudi's strict system of male guardianship, women must get permission from their father, husband, brother or even a son in order to travel or marry. Thailand's immigration police chief Surachate Hakparn told CNN that Alqunun had continued to refuse to meet with her father and brother who had flown to Thailand to take her back. Alqunun's Twitter account, which had been her lifeline to the outside world, was temporarily deactivated Friday but sprang back to life Saturday, sporting pictures of what appeared to be an airplane seat, passport and boarding pass. "3rd country," she wrote, referring to resettlement in Canada. "I did it." RELATED | Saudi teenager Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun dumps Islam, granted protection stay in Thailand The declaration by the UNHCR prompted Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to offer her asylum in Canada. Canada has been unequivocal, Trudeau said. We will always stand up for human rights and womens rights around the world. Alqunun smiled broadly as she exited an arrival door at Torontos airport Saturday sporting a Canada hoodie. With Alqunun by her side, Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland declared: This a very brave new Canadian. Freeland said Algunun had made a long journey and preferred to get settled before talking to the media. She joked that the teen did comment about the cold weather but was assured it gets warmer. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, who had put Alqunun's on a fast-track, emergency basis, said her plight had underscored the precarious situation faced by millions of refugees worldwide. "Refugee protection today is often under threat and cannot always be assured, but in this instance international refugee law and overriding values of humanity have prevailed," he said. Because Saudi women cannot leave the country without a guardian's permission, some have been forced to flee while on a family vacation in another country. Several have slipped away in Turkey, a popular Saudi tourist destination, then fled to neighboring Georgia, which does not require Saudis to have a visa, the New York Times reports. Many who have fled in the past or seek to in the future exchange information with other Saudi women in private online chat groups, the Times notes. Canada's decision to offer asylum to Alqunun will likely add to the strains with Saudi Arabia that erupted last summer after Canadian officials accused Saudi Arabia of human rights violations and demanded the release of imprisoned activists. The Saudi government responded by freezing all Saudi air flights to Toronto, suspending bilateral trade deals and cancelling scholarships for thousands of Saudi students in Canada. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde Alexandr Ruzmatovich Bekmirzaev, 45, was one of five men detained by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in the east of the country on December 30 Bekmirzaev, originally from Belarus, moved to Ireland in 2000 but left in 2013 when he took his family to the Middle East. He was an associate of a Jordanian man deported from Ireland in 2016. The State had dubbed him the main recruiter of Islamic State in Ireland. Gardai, who trailed Bekmirzaev for months following his radicalisation, also believe he was pals with suicide bomb flop Khalid Kelly, who blew himself up in March 2016. Cops expect Bekmirzaev will now face an extended spell in a Syrian prison, or even face the death penalty at the hands of the US-backed Kurdish-Arab Syrian Democratic Forces. A source said: He will spend some time in prison there you can be sure of that. He could even face the death penalty. Its hard to know at this stage. Kurdish officials are desperate to send captured fighters back to their home countries to stand trial as Kurdish prisons and displacement camps housing suspected IS fighters and their families are already overstretched. Abdel Karim Omar, co-chair of the Kurdish administrative centre in Syria, said: Each country must be pressurised to repatriate its own citizens, and prosecute them on their own soil. Bekmirzaev, who could face ten years in jail if convicted here, was on a garda watch-list and under constant surveillance. However, he was seen as harmless during his stay here. Our source added: He was never not getting any attention in Ireland once he had been radicalised. He was harmless while here but that changed when the Jordanian and Kelly started chipping away at him. Once he was radicalised, he was mad to get away and go off and fight. If anything, he is a good example of how a normal person can be radicalised by dangerous preachers. | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: deathpenaltynews@gmail.com Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE! "One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed, but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde State Police at Chambersburg said 11 people have been indicted in relation to a 2016 triple homicide in Franklin County, though details will not be made public until partnering agencies are reopened due to the partial government shutdown. Police said the indictments come after an investigation spanning two and a half years. Police collaborated with the Drug Enforcement Administration and other local and state law enforcement agencies. The indictments stem from a triple homicide at a barn in Montgomery Township, Franklin County on June 25, 2016. Police had arrived at the scene to find two men dead and one severely injured. That man, Philip Jackson, 36, of Greencastle, died after being flown to the hospital. The two found dead at the scene were identified as Wendy Chaney, 39, of Hagerstown, Maryland, and Brandon Cole, 48, of Fayetteville. Police at the time had not known of a motive, and in April 2017, Franklin County Crime Solvers offered a $2,000 reward for information regarding the case. Police did not release any further details about the arrests, instead noting that a joint news conference will be held when all agencies involved in the investigation are available. Garth Friesen In rural South Africa, many students walk up to 70 miles per week to get back and forth to school. Healthcare workers with no access to transportation see a limited number of patients a day. Productivity for entrepreneurs and farmers is limited to the goods they can carry to markets. A bicycle can address these needs. Coconut Grove Rotary about his clubs initiative to collect used bikes and ship them to South Africa. The club has sent 800 bikes in the last two years and another shipment is scheduled for this month. On January 17, Cypress Creek Rotarian Garth Friesen will address theabout his clubs initiative to collect used bikes and ship them to South Africa. The club has sent 800 bikes in the last two years and another shipment is scheduled for this month. Friesen is CEO at III Capital an investment management firm. A native of Canada, he has been in the finance industry for 25 years in London and New York, and he has lived in South Florida for the past 18 years. The Rotary Club of Coconut Grove meets every Thursday at the Coconut Grove Sailing Club, 2990 South Bayshore Drive at 12:30 pm. The cost of the meeting is $25 with lunch or $10 without lunch. Open to the public. The 2018 Cigar of the Year Countdown is now in the annals of history. The #1 Cigar of the Year was awarded to the Aladino Corojo Reserva by JRE Tobacco Company while the #2 Cigar of the Year was awarded to the Crux Epicure Robusto. There are a couple of things that these cigars had in common. First both of these cigars were 5 x 50 Robustos, however if you have been following our Countdown over the years, these companies share a common bond namely, both companies also occupied the #1 and #2 spots in 2016 with the Crux du Connoisseur No. 2 and the Aladino Elegante respectively. Ironically both of those 2016 cigars were lanceros. The difference was while Crux occupied the #1 spot in 2016, the roles were reversed in 2018 with JRE Tobacco taking #1 this time. That even surprised this author and curator of the list. Both companies are relatively new as both did not exist when the Cigar Coop Countdown started in 2010. Seeing Crux and JRE Tobacco at the top of the Countdown in 2016 was an unlikely #1 and #2 punch. It was even more unlikely that it would happen again two years later, but thats the way it turned out. However, the companies took very different roads to get to this point. Crux Cigars is a relatively new company. The company was co-founded by Jeff Haugen and went to market in 2014. To build his brand, Haugen carefully discerned who his manufacturing partner would be and made the decision to go with Plasencia Cigars in Esteli, Nicaragua. Haugen just didnt contract for a brand, he immersed himself in the whole cigar making process spending countless weeks in Nicaragua. Haugen does all of his blending and in a short amount of time is making cigars with the best of the best. Crux Cigars have garnered numerous accolades and not just from this media brand (mostly notably Prime Time Host Aaron Loomis had the Crux Limitada Show Exclusive 2016 as his #1 Cigar for 2016 as well). One could say Crux Cigars has a very contemporary approach to its packaging and marketing, yet delivers cigars satisfying traditionalists and modernists alike. JRE Tobacco Company is a brand started by the legendary Julio R. Eiroa. Originally his blends were showcased at the 2015 IPCPR Trade Show by his son Christians CLE Cigar Company. In 2016, Julio made the decision to form a separate company and bring his other son Justo Eiroa into the mix. The brands of JRE are anchored by Aladino, which is a brand of cigars geared at delivering smokes reminiscent of the golden age of cigars in Cuba from 1947 to 1961. Julio is an all-time great in the tobacco industry, and has the Eiroa Tobacco Farm that produces true Authentic (non-hybrid) Corojo. He also has his own factory. While the Eiroas have a fully vertically integrated model, they still have had to start from the ground up to build their brands. Ive had numerous discussions on the ranking process and everyone in the media has their own algorithm and process. Critics will say one shouldnt do a repeat of a #1 and #2 in such a short period of time. But in my view, its about ranking the best cigars and the ones that have made an impact. In the end, JRE Tobacco and Crux were the brands that had the two cigars standing. Reflecting back on how these brands went to the top and seeing the road both companies took, I can certainly see why things turned out the way they did. These are newer companies that I am willing to place my bets on are in it for the long haul, and will only continue to grow their footprint. Will there be a rubber match down the road? The odds would tell me no as I still think some stars aligned for the same two companies to land at #1 and #2. More #1s and #2s for these companies? With the way both of these companies are moving forward, thats one that is a real possibility. Photo Credits: Cigar Coop Chinese authorities have ordered a church to remove the First Commandment from a display on the grounds that it contradicts the policy of China's President Xi Jinping. According to Bitter Winter, which reports on religious freedom in China, about 30 officials in Henan Province's Luoning country conducted an inspection at the church and wiped off the commandment from a display on the wall. The commandment says: 'You shall have no other gods before me'. President Xi Jingping has said that 'active efforts should be made to incorporate religions into socialist society'. (www.kremlin.ru) The church belongs to the state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement. However, when its pastor protested he was told, 'Xi Jinping opposes this statement. Who dares not to cooperate? If anyone doesn't agree, they are fighting against the country.' The official said: 'This is a national policy. You should have a clear understanding of the situation. Don't go against the government.' The move reflects China's policy of 'sinicisation', which has seen religion coming under increased pressure to be subservient to the state in its teachings and practices. Christians have been harassed and arrested and churches have been closed. The Vatican has struck a controversial deal with the Chinese government allowing it a say in the choice of bishops, though the final choice on their appointment will be made in Rome; the agreement's defenders say it will help protect believers. Muslims have also suffered under the regime's determination to increase state control over religion. Around 1 million Muslim Uighurs have been detained in 're-education camps' in an attempt to stamp out their unique culture. And according to the regime-friendly Global Times, China instigated a new plan on Saturday with representatives from China's eight Islamic associations where participants agreed to 'guide Islam to be compatible with socialism and implement measures to sinicize the religion'. Hinting at an expansion of the programme to other religions, the article says: 'Governing religion is a common challenge faced by all modern countries. The main purpose of China's five-year plan to sinicize Islam is to seek governance that tallies with Chinese practice, and it is not only limited to Islam.' Pro-pipeline convoys disrupt traffic in Calgary, around Alberta in tee up for Ottawa A few dozen cars, trucks and semis disrupted traffic in Calgary on Saturday as a pro-pipeline yellow vest convoy rolled through the city. The convoy left the Flying J truck stop in south Calgary Saturday morning, before being escorted by police up Macleod Trail and through downtown where it briefly brought C-Train and bus service to a halt, before causing some delays in the early afternoon. It had to split up semis were diverged from the rest of the group as they couldn't fit under the Ninth Avenue downtown underpass at Macleod Trail before reconvening, heading north to Deerfoot Trail and out of the city. Trucks were decorated with signs like "build the pipelines feed the families" and protesters outside city hall waved signs like one that read "Trudeau pays the media to lie to us." A simultaneous convoy drove from Red Deer to Sylvan Lake to call for action on pipelines, both a continuation of a movement that began in December with some held in Grande Prairie, Medicine Hat, Nisku, Slave Lake and Drayton Valley. And another convoy travelled with hundreds of trucks from Grimshaw to Peace River, with Energy Minister Marg McCuaig-Boyd taking part. Some of the convoys were organized by Canada's yellow vests, while others have seen yellow vests in attendance. Canada's yellow vest protests have targeted a wide swath of grievances, from the Trudeau government, to the carbon tax to immigration. Some politicians and protest groups have distanced themselves from Alberta yellow vests, which have welcomed attendees like members of anti-immigration group Soldiers of Odin. Saturday's convoys were likely a warm-up for February, when a yellow vest convoy will head from Red Deer to Ottawa to bring the province's pipeline plight straight to lawmakers who protesters say have ignored their concerns. In Red Deer, Glen Carritt, organizer of the planned yellow vest convoy to Ottawa, said the 500 trucks participating Saturday were just a "glimpse" of what's to come when they head east. Story continues "We're just tired of the current government, we just want some change," he said. "We're coming to Ottawa to show [the government] they need to make changes." Carritt says these changes include getting pipelines built, getting Alberta's oil to tidewater and eliminating the carbon tax. Debra Gillespie-Sweetnam attended the Red Deer rally out of concern for the "way Canada is heading," she said. She worries the government is overspending and is concerned about Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's ability to get pipelines built. "He has the power to force this through, and he's ignored that," she said. "Canada is supported a lot by the prosperous province of Alberta, and we are being completely ignored. People are suffering." Gillespie-Sweetnam says she is not currently working, and her husband and son who both work in the oil patch are working sporadically. "The oil patch has literally fed and clothed my family for basically now three generations, and we're all suffering." The yellow vests will have to share the Trans-Canada highway with another pro-pipeline convoy on its way to Ottawa next month non-profit Canada Action, which says it wants no affiliation with the yellow vest brand. A new multi-media art exhibition in Vancouver explores questions of Indigenous jurisdiction and land and water rights. Marianne Nicolson is a member of the Dzawada'enuxw First Nation in Kingcome Inlet on B.C.'s central coast. She worked with more than 10 other artists there last summer using film, video, social media, weaving, animation, drawing, language and song to create an Indigenous perspective on environmental rights. Hexsa'am: To Be Here Always is now open at the University of British Columbia's Belkin Art Gallery. "I wanted to create a project that would include my community, and help them to have a voice regarding these kind of very heavy political issues that we were facing," Nicolson told The Early Edition host Stephen Quinn. The exhibit aims to explain the Dzawada'enuxw First Nation's lawsuit to extend Aboriginal title to the ocean in order to fight Marine Harvest Canada and Cermaq Canada fish farms in the Broughton Archipelago, a group of islands located between Vancouver Island and the B.C. coast. Nabidu Taylor 'We really see the destruction' The Dzawada'enuxw First Nation has protested fish farms in the community for years over concern for local salmon, shellfish and eulachon species. Nicolson says the fish farms in her nation's territories have been affecting their traditional fishery and lifestyle. "From our perspective we have jurisdiction over those lands that we have never given up.... By living in those places, we really see the destruction that is happening in our territories," said Nicolson. She says the exhibition frames issues about Indigenous jurisdiction, land and water in a way that journalism or political protest in the streets do not. "What has become so important in the continuing generations of our people as First Nations is the health of the land and the health and wellbeing of our people.... We find that this massive resource-extractive economy is detrimental to us and to the land," said Nicolson. Story continues Hexsa'am: To Be Here Always is open until April 7 at UBC's Belkin Art Gallery. Listen to the full interview here: With files from The Early Edition. A plentiful picnic basket, a red-and-white checkered blanket and a bottle of rose that postcard image of a perfect summer picnic could soon be changing in Quebec, according to wine and consumer specialists. A wine distribution company will soon be marketing its canned wine products throughout Quebec, a trend that has already found a niche in the rest of Canada, as well as other countries, like the United States and France. Vins Triani, based in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., will be filling up those cans with a blend of Moscato wine produced in Australia, according to its vice-president of sales, Benoit Lemieux. Jeff McIntosh/Canadian Press Lemieux said he doesn't expect wine purists or the baby-boomer generation to be the first to jump on board. "I think the new generation, all the Millennials they really like innovative, fresh ideas like this," said Lemieux. Moscato wine has a low alcohol content between five and seven per cent and has a slightly sweet, fizzy taste, which Lemieux said will appeal to "people who maybe drink occasionally." While the product isn't targeting high-end wine aficionados, the taste of the canned wine shouldn't be affected by the metal cans, Lemieux said, because they are lined with a thin film. Lemieux said his company will be targeting grocery and chain stores in the spring, rather than the province's liquor board. The SAQ already sells four types of canned wines of its own, but sales haven't cut a big dent in the bottle market yet with annual sales around $187,000. Growing market Moscato is, however, growing in popularity south of the border. In California, it has taken up five per cent of the market, and the number of Muscat grapes grown in the state has more than doubled since 2011, according to the California Wine Institute. Bernard Korai, a professor at Universite Laval's faculty of agro-food sciences, said even in France, where wine is a sacred tradition, canned wine is on the rise. Story continues He said new varieties and packaging are "democratizing wine for a new clientele." "For a picnic it's a lot more practical to bring a small can than to buy a $14 bottle," said Korai. The younger generation will also likely be more attracted to products that are more environmentally-friendly, he said. "Aluminum is much easier to recycle than glass," Korai said. Demand for alternatives to glass will be on the rise in the coming years in North America, according to a study by the Wine Trade Monitor 2018, with consumers turning toward wine in boxes or in cans. Whether that demand will subsist on the long-term, however, will come down to the quality of the product, according to Gale West, a retired professor of consumer sciences at Universite Laval. AP Photo/Larry Crowe West believes the "controversy" brought on by the perception of wine as a high-end product will become a marketing tool for companies like Vins Triani. West hopes that distributors will be responsible and make the right choices when it comes to preventing excessive drinking. "Having a small, thin can that you can hold in one hand, instead of a heavy glass of wine, gives you the impression that you can drink more," West said. Quebec's Tamil Community is holding a special event on Sunday to recognize their community's contributions to science, culture and society, both in Canada and abroad, as part of Tamil Heritage Month. Canada is home to one of the largest populations of the Tamil diaspora in the world. In 2016, parliament unanimously adopted January as Tamil Heritage Month in 2016. Vinoth Navajeevanantha came to Quebec when he was only two years old with his parents, as a refugee. "There were 150 Tamils in [Canada in] 1983 and now ... we number about 300,000 Tamil people," he said, citing Statistics Canada. The month chosen is significant because Jan. 14 marks the start of Thai Pongal, the harvest festival, celebrated in India and Sri Lanka. It's one of the most important holidays to Tamil people. This linguistic group is found primarily in India and Sri Lanka, but there are Tamil-speaking people in Malaysia, Singapore, where Tamil is an official language, and a few countries in Africa. The largest migration of Tamil people started in the early 1980s, during Sri Lanka's violent civil war, which only ended in 2009. Navajeevanantha is the vice president of the Quebec Tamil Community Centre and organizer of the celebration being held in Laval, Jan. 13. The community will honour a few Tamil-Canadians for their contributions, including a young Montrealer who discovered a bacteria strain that can help clean up oil spills, as well as a Tamil-speaking film and television producer. The free event will also feature traditional and fusion dances. The celebration is very important for Tamil-Canadians, but it's not only to pat themselves on the back. "We're very proud Tamil-Canadians and we want to be able to celebrate our culture with our neighbours, with our family here. This is why this is an opportunity for us to be able to share it. It gives us a platform to share it with others," said Gayathri Kathiresu, who also helped organize the event. Story continues It's not all butter chicken CBC A big part of Sunday's celebration is the food. Because Tamil-Canadians come from different countries in South Asia, their cuisine sometimes gets lost in the shuffle of Indian dishes, such as butter chicken. Make no mistake their food is as unique as their language. Kathiresu says the food has stronger spice flavours, not necessarily heat, but the overall flavour profile. Their dishes feature a lot of rice and coconut as well as curries and lentils. "My favourite food is Idiyappam or string hoppers, steamed rice noodles," a very popular dish in Sri Lanka and South India, she said. Navajeevanantha has been trying out traditional recipes from a cookbook called Handmade which features stories from 34 widows of the war in Sri Lanka. He recommends it for people looking to learn more about the food and history of Tamil people. CBC If there's one signature dish that both of them can agree on, it's Kothu Roti. A popular street or snack food, it consists of flatbread cut into thin strips and mixed with spices and meat or eggs. Proud to be Canadian As for why Tamil-Canadians have become such a tight-knit group with a passion for maintaining their language and culture, Navajeevanantha believes it's because they now have the freedom from persecution to do so in Canada. "Tamils weren't allowed to be Tamil, you know, to give a short short version of the story. And part of it included the burning of the Jaffna public library, which housed a collection of all Tamil artifacts, even written on Palmyra leaves from thousands of years ago," he explained. "Tamils literally left Sri Lanka with the clothes on their backs and their cultural identity. And the ability to live in Canada and add to this cultural mosaic is what makes us proud to be Tamil-Canadians." Kathiresu said the willingness for many Tamil refugees and immigrants to contribute to Canadian society is a part of who they are as well. "There's a really nice Tamil saying that says 'Whatever town I am, everyone is my kin.'" The celebration for Tamil Heritage Month takes place Jan. 13 at Chateau Royal in Laval, 3500 Boulevard du Souvenir, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. B.C.'s watchdog for seniors' welfare says 2017 saw a "troubling" increase in the number of seniors who reported being the victims of crime. The Office of the Seniors Advocate released its fourth annual Monitoring Seniors Services report Wednesday. The report said both the B.C. RCMP and the Vancouver Police Department reported an increase in crimes against seniors between 2016 and 2017. In Vancouver, there were 173 cases of physical crimes against seniors, a 20 per cent increase from 2016. There were 254 cases of financial crimes, a 26 per cent rise from 2016. Those crimes overwhelmingly consisted of fraud or scam attempts by strangers, such as lottery or Canada Revenue Agency scams, but also included financial abuse by family members or others known to the victim. In parts of the province policed by the B.C. RCMP, there were 1,095 seniors who were reportedly the victims of violent crime in 2017 an increase of 11 per cent from 2016. "Those are troubling statistics and they're dramatic percentages," seniors advocate Isobel MacKenzie told On The Coast host Gloria Macarenko. "The numbers are still relatively small but the trend line, unfortunately, is fairly steady at showing an increase." The vast majority of violent crimes against seniors reported to RCMP were assaults. Threats, robberies, harassment and sexual assaults were also recorded but in much smaller numbers. RCMP numbers on property crime showed only a one per cent increase in crimes against seniors compared to 2016, with 16,244 cases in 2017. However, that number has increased 30 per cent since 2013. Mackenzie said the report's findings show the need for vigilance about the safety of seniors, who may be more vulnerable to crime. The other takeaway, she said, is that any crimes against seniors must be reported. Her report is available online. Listen to the full interview: With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast Income investors love financially stable companies with high dividend yields and the potential for capital appreciation. These factors make for a steady stream of income in the form of dividends. In this regard, Royal Bank of Canada (TSX:RY)(NYSE:RY) is one of the top TSX bank stocks investors can purchase. Lets consider why RY is an excellent choice for income investors. Growth prospects RY is part of a group of six banks that share 90% of the market share within the Canadian banking environment. Even among these well-established corporations, RY commands a respectable portion of the market. The Toronto-based financial institution is either first or second in every major Canadian banking product, which includes checking and savings accounts, among others. The ability to increase the amount of deposits it holds is critical for any bank. The more deposits a bank has, the more money it can lend, which directly translates to higher earnings. Over the past five years, RYs personal deposits have increased by 29%. The companys net interest income grew by 32% over the same period. The percentage of total earnings RYs personal and commercial banking (P&C) revenue contributes has been decreasing over the years, despite making up a bulk of the firms income. In 2013 P&C revenue accounted for 56% of the companys revenue. That number decreased to 48% at the end of last year. This trend is primarily due to RYs growing wealth management unit, which grew to 18% in 2018 from 11% five years ago. RYs average assets under management increased by 117% since 2013, and the companys net interest income from its wealth management segment increased by 152%. The companys return on equity for this segment has remained constant at 17%. All these figures demonstrate RYs potential for growth a desirable trait for any company to possess. Final thoughts The Canadian economy is currently doing well and is projected to keep growing at a steady pace, at least for the foreseeable future. Business and personal loans increase when the economy is booming. Thus, the current economic climate is good for banks, and RY is very well positioned to take advantage. The company will be one of the dominant banks in Canada for many more years. Story continues RYs current dividend yield is 5.03%, which is higher than that of most of its competitors. The company has increased its dividend per share by 22% over the past five years. RY also has an explicitly stated goal of keeping its payout ratio between 40% and 50%. But most of all, RY has a competitive advantage in the Canadian banking market and strong growth potential. Income investors should consider purchasing shares of RY. More reading Fool contributor Prosper Bakiny has no position in the companies mentioned. Opinion / Columnist Don Chigumba is a mixed methods research specialist can be found on twitter @Donchigumba If you divide $2,5 million with 80 Members of Parliament you will get $31,250. It means that, if ED is not going to Davos via other four countries to attend an economic forum between 22-25 January 2019, he will be able to save money that can buy 80 twin cab rangers for MDC Alliance MPs. This piece seeks to advise MDC alliance and citizens that MPs deserve to be given their cars (equivalent to the total cost of ED's trip to Russia-Belarus-Kazakstan-Azerbaijan-Davos). The trip is not only unnecessary but also immoral in the light of the bleeding economy. For President ED to hike fuel prices (in the middle of 'January disease', before salary payment, when parents are struggling to pay tuition fees) portrays a dirty image of ZANU PF as a party.I can now agree with the foxes who believe that ED was forced to cut short his holiday in order to attend the Davos' World Economic Forum between 22-25 January 2019. Because of a partial shutdown currently affecting the United States of America, President Trump promised not to go to Davos if a solution to the shutdown is not found on time. In Tanzania, we are told that President Bulldozer Magufuli has been refusing to attend world conferences in order to save money for the citizens.It is true that the Zimbabwe's economy has collapsed, what we are experiencing is a typical shutdown of the economy. President ED should stay at home and come face to face with the consequences of his more than 200% increase of fuel prices with effect from the midnight of 13/01/2019. President ED does not have people at heart, imagine a servant leader increasing fuel during the peak of 'January disease'. If President ED was not a cruel leader, he should have increased the fuel prices after paying salaries for civil servants. Please, I want you to have a moment of silence (23 seconds), ask yourself deeply on the rational (of ED) to increase the fuel prices by more than 200% at the peak of 'January disease'.To Mr. President ED, I am asking you to withdraw your fuel prices increase, this is the first time in the history of colonial and post-colonial Zimbabwe for a president to increase fuel prices in the middle of 'January disease'. Mr. President, civil servants are complaining of being incapacitated, your move is going to place civil servants in ICU. Mr. President, you have broken a World-Record, it has never happened in the world for a president to increase fuel prices in the middle of 'January disease'. There is no difference with operation Murambatsvina that was done during the peak of winter. It is obvious that making people feeling the heat/sufferings is a ZANU PF slogan.To Mr. Nelson Chamisa and his team, there is no need for stopping your MPs from getting their cars. The MPs should be respected and are also human beings. I would have agreed if every Zimbabwean is playing a part in saving money. President is going to Davos (soon after hiking fuel prices at the peak of 'January disease') just to burn the remaining forex reserves while civil servants are incapacitated. I believe that the trip to the five countries will cost more than $2,5 million (unless otherwise). Can Zimbabweans afford to allow Mr. President to waste limited resources at this hour? Our leaders are telling the citizens to persevere while they are in honeymoon. Mr. Nelson Chamisa, our current leaders are hardliners, how can a rational president hike fuel prices in the middle of 'January disease'?. Please, allow your 80 MPs to get their loan and serve the Zimbabweans before the cash is taken to Davos.I am therefore requesting the Zimbabweans to join me in condemning ED's trip to five countries at the time when $500 thousand is significant for buying medicine to serve the citizens. Zimbabwe is experiencing an economic shutdown and ED should be with us during this trying time. It won't be good for ED to cut short his Davos trip in order to solve problems at home, civil servants are threatening to strike during the period matching with the Davos forum and ED should solve this threat in advance. News / National by Staff reporter The rate at which things are falling apart in Zimbabwe calls for serious and urgent action by the government.The fuel situation has deteriorated to unprecedented levels, way deeper than the UDI and 2008 crises and as expected, prices of goods and services have shot through the roof. Industry has warned of impending shutdown in a matter of days with a good number already scaling down and retrenching.The economic nightmare is getting worse every day and the nation is on the edge of implosion and strife.What is baffling is government's deafening silence, broken only by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube's curious 12-month currency plan. Since he cut short his annual leave, ostensibly to deal with the national crisis, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has not been heard addressing the problem, his only notable appearances being at his offices receiving credentials from foreign envoys and somewhere on the streets of Harare sweeping.It is difficult to understand how the government hopes to deal with the growing economic catastrophe given the apparent casual approach they are exhibiting. The people expect the Finance minister to be providing immediate solutions to the currency crisis, not to speak of unconvincing 12-month plans.The country needs immediate solutions to the crippling fuel shortages and not untruthful claims by Joram Gumbo, the Energy minister, that there is enough fuel in the country or his condescending and provocative argument that long queues indicate fuel availability.The many hours that people spend in queues is a huge loss in production time and the ailing economy suffers, but the apparent carefree attitude that government is showing presents the greater danger. The long-winding fuel queues that have become a permanent feature all over the country are fomenting frustration and anger among the people.The government does not seem to know what to do to solve the problems and that may explain their silence and strange decisions such as offering civil servants $41 salary increments. This apparent governance failure is fueling unrest and despondency.The performance of this new dispensation has not been convincing. They have promised the people milk and honey, but it is clear they have no idea how to put their promises on the table. The economy has collapsed since they took over power from Robert Mugabe at the end of 2017 and it is sinking deeper every day.What the people expect is urgency and seriousness in dealing with issues that have plunged them into this misery. Promises to deal with the currency problem in 12 months will not be acceptable to the suffering masses who cannot envisage another year of the status quo.Instead of acting like he is not aware of the crisis, Mnangagwa should stand up and put in place a clearly defined roadmap that allows Zimbabwe's economyto get out of the crazy see-saw dance, which is responsible for our poverty and hardship.What our politicians should learn to understand is that Zimbabweans may be a tolerant lot who value peace, but the survival instinct has the last word.That, today presents the real threat to national stability hunger, poverty and insensitive arrogance by those who rule! News / National by Staff reporter ADRIAN Ndhlovu (not his real name) is stranded after his car, a 2018 Toyota D4D twin cab on hire purchased in South Africa, has been placed under seizure by the Customs and Excise Department.He has lost the car, or it will take weeks if not months of rigorous written explanations as well as appeals and sometimes court proceedings culminating in a steep fine to get his vehicle back.All plans of a holiday with his family back in Zimbabwe have been scuttled.At the compliance point, the last checkpoint on arrival in Zimbabwe after all the border formalities are done and one is about to leave, plain clothes officials told Ndhlovu that he had a fake temporary import permit (TIP).According to the officials, he was trying to smuggle his South African-registered car into Zimbabwe. But in reality, Ndhlovu, whose family sits dejected as they wait for officials to lock their car in the vehicle pound, some middle-aged smartly dressed "customs clearing agent" who offered to do his import papers and charged him US$200 is the source of their misfortunes.Ndhlovu is not alone in this predicament. The new normal at Beitbridge, the country's biggest entry point, is the presence of an army of plainclothes immigration and customs officials and secret law enforcers.While the logic behind the deployment of these plain clothes officials and secret police may make sense to catch smugglers and complicit customs officials the move has opened floodgates for criminals masquerading as police or customs officials.By and large, it is the presence of these plain clothes officials inside the Beitbridge Customs and Excise yard that has invited undesirables like pickpockets, thieves, conmen and all types of criminals into the Customs Yard.This new practice may have hurt unsuspecting travellers like Ndhlovu now, but the reality is that the image of the country is at stake just as the tourism industry and the economy in general stand to take a knock."The border post is the last place I expected to meet a conman. I am devastated. I have lost my money, my car and worst of all, the confidence in the country of my birth," Ndhlovu said.He will tell his story to a family member, a friend and eventually the story goes out to the world."The guy told me he worked with the Department of Customs and he would now and again go to the counters and come back with a smile and results, good results. He was fast and friendly, too smooth to be unreal," Ndhlovu said.Almost every holiday, dozens of unsuspecting travellers fall to this trick by what have come known as maguma-guma prowling the border post day and night.They personify police, members of the Criminal Investigations Department (CID), Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) and other plain clothes government agents and officials deployed at the border post.The government last year created an anti-smuggling unit comprising of various security agents mostly in plain clothes in a bid to arrest the rampant corruption at the country's entry points.This opened the border, once manned by uniformed officials, to other elements.Maguma-guma, some of whom are ex-policemen, government officials or even genuine officials who may be on leave, took advantage of this development to con travellers."There are too many plain clothes officials at the Zimbabwean border posts. It becomes difficult to control. On our side officials without uniforms operate from inside buildings where they are identified by their offices," a South African policeman who attends inter-border security meetings between Zimbabwean and SA officials said."Your border area is a jungle, there is very little information available to arrivals and they are easily swayed by conman owing to confusion there," he said.Just recently a Zimbabwean resident in South Africa had his Porsche car seized by Customs after he fell victim to a similar scam.Francis Chimanda, the corporate affairs spokesperson for the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) under which Customs falls, confirmed the problem and said his office was working with other departments to rid the border post of these conmen."Zimra is working with other stakeholders to ensure that touts and pick pockets are removed from the border. Members of Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) are also operating inside the border post to deal with the issue of touts and pick pockets," Chimanda said."A significant change has been witnessed since their deployment. Zimra hopes that other stakeholders enforce internal codes of conduct and anti-corruption measures that ensure that even without visible identity cards, their staff perform their duties ethically and professionally."Many people said they believed the presence of soldiers had brought a breath of fresh air at the border post, but that was short-lived as the same soldiers soon fell to corruption as well."Their command is the same and they now know the drill and they have become accustomed to the sweetness of money. After a few days of arrival we tune them into line," said one well-known con-artist at the border post."They are not effective anymore; just as they have failed to control movement at the bridge where they are stationed and have become known for taking bribes from border jumpers and criminals."Criminals have taken over the old Alfred Beit Bridge reserved for bona fide travellers. The bridge is now impassable because of marauding thieves who operate in full glare of soldiers camped at the bridge but who are paid to look the other way.Snatch and dash thieves operate freely at the 472-metre-long steel girder bridge where Dennis Masera from Dulivhadzimo was murdered and thrown off the bridge. No arrests were made over the murder since it happened in June last year.Police and soldiers manning the bridge have been accused of shutting out or shifting away a camera that was installed to film goings-on at the bridge to conceal their nefarious activities that include demanding money from and assisting border jumpers. News / National by Staff reporter Replying to @ProfJNMoyo All that I wanted Prof Moyo to be truthful about is that I did not travel to Maputo with President Mugabe. Either I travelled or I did not. I have said I did not. I have also said that I have not been to Mozambique in my entire life. Truth is sacred. Prof Lovemore Madhuku (@ProfMadhuku) January 12, 2019 Responding to @ProfJNMoyo Secondly, I never had any conversation with Prof Moyo on any matter whatsoever until he became our law student in Oct 2015. Prof Lovemore Madhuku (@ProfMadhuku) January 12, 2019 1/10 My good Professor, let us shame the devil by telling the truth. Given the gravity of the matter at hand, it's fair & in the public interest to answer your question with reference to its surrounding circumstances & factual background in order to tell a COMPLETE narrative! https://t.co/GOejtAyJkW Prof Jonathan Moyo (@ProfJNMoyo) January 12, 2019 SELF-EXILED former Cabinet Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo, who turns 62 yesterday, may have had a birthday he would want to quickly forget after Professor Lovemore Madhuku exposed him for stretching facts yet again.Moyo has of late been having a pillar-to-post social media tussle with Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa, dragging many names into the fight, many of whom have been quick to expose Professor Moyo for stretching facts.Moyo was also humiliated this week when lawyer and businessman Tawanda Nyambirai produced evidence that contrary to Moyo's claims that Econet funded the ZANU-PF campaign in 2013, the money paid by Econet was for a legitimate telecoms licence fees, and that the money was paid to a Treasury account which was being supervised by then Finance Minister Tendai Biti (now MDC deputy chairman).Nyambirai provided supporting documents to his long reply. Nyambirai also said "Professor Moyo had a reputation of creating falsehoods for purposes of misleading and deceiving those who are gullible."Former Advisor to the late Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Morgan Tsvangirai, Dr. Alex Magaisa, also dismissed Professor Jonathan Moyo's claim that Econet founder Strive Masiyiwa funded the ZANU-PF election campaign.In the latest incidence, Professor Moyo claimed that Madhuku was part of the tag-team built by Mugabe to travel with him to Mozambique to convince SADC to let Zimbabwe hold elections at a time the MDC was not ready.Madhuku has dismissed that as pure drivel."I did not travel to Maputo with President Mugabe. Either I travelled or I did not. I have said I did not. I have also said that I have not been to Mozambique in my entire life. Truth is sacred," Professor Lovemore Madhuku has said, forcing Jonathan Moyo to change the meaning of what he said on Thursday.Madhuku added: "Secondly, I never had any conversation with Prof Moyo on any matter whatsoever until he became our law student in Oct 2015."May I add, for the sake of completeness, that I never had any conversation with Prof. Moyo on any matter whatsoever until he became our law student in Oct 2015. This is sacred truth. My first conversation in my life with Prof Moyo was at law school 2015."Since 11 March 2007(that fateful day when the late Morgan Tsvangirai and I were targeted for assassination) I have lived with life threatening scars from ZANUPF brutality. I will never sell out my principles to ZANUPF or any other political party."(Former) President Mugabe s view of me is well documented and has been permanently recorded in that circulating video where he refers to, and mocks, what he terms the "Madhuku strategy""As a matter of fact, I never met President Mugabe during his entire tenure as the leader of our beloved country between 18 April 1980 and 21 November 2017. My only contact with HE Mugabe in his 37 yrs in power was at UZ graduations (my own and those of my students)."The widely circulating falsehood that I was part of ZANUPF delegation to the SADC summit in Maputo in 2013 was started by the Daily News. I sued the paper for defamation. It apologised under the mediation of the VMCZ. I then withdrew the legal suit."May I correct a false statement of fact from Prof J MOYO. I did not go to Maputo with President Mugabe for the SADC summit in 2013. I have not been to Mozambique in my entire life."This was after Professor Jonathan Moyo had alleged that in the run-up to the 2013 elections period, Madhuku had travelled with former President Robert Mugabe to the SADC Maputo summit to help convince the regional leaders that conditions were right in Zimbabwe for the holding of elections.At the time, SADC leaders were believed to be advising late MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai against participating in the elections as conditions were not favourable for holding a poll that would meet the SADC guidelines.Said Moyo: "Buoyed by its Supreme Court strategy to end #Sadc mediation & to set a date for the 2013 election outside GPA negotiations, the group got Prof Lovemore Madhuku to fly with President Mugabe to Maputo for the 15 June 2013 #Sadc Summit to explain the Supreme Court decision!But Madhuku has denied he was part of the trip, saying he has never been to Mozambique al his life.In a long string of tweets in response, Moyo said:All that I wanted Prof Moyo to be truthful about is that I did not travel to Maputo with President Mugabe. Either I travelled or I did not. I have said I did not. I have also said that I have not been to Mozambique in my entire life. Truth is sacred.Secondly, I never had any conversation with Prof Moyo on any matter whatsoever until he became our law student in Oct 2015.1/10 My good Professor, let us shame the devil by telling the truth. Given the gravity of the matter at hand, it's fair & in the public interest to answer your question with reference to its surrounding circumstances & factual background in order to tell a COMPLETE narrative!2/10 The #ZanuPF poll group I adumburated on the thread I tweeted here on 10 January 2019 extensively ENGAGED YOU Prof; on its strategy to END #SadcZim mediation ahead of the 2013 election, and to SET THE ELECTION DATE through a ConCourt process, outside GPA negotiations!3/10 It was out of its engagement with you that the #ZanuPF 2013 poll group got you, @CharityManyeruk & me accredited for the June 2013 #Sadc summit in Maputo. That accreditation was done in advance of the summit by submitting names & passport details to the #Sadc secretariat!4/10 You were accredited for the Maputo summit as a legal expert. Prof Charity Manyeruke, with whom you recently served in the Motlanthe Commission, was accredited as an officer in the Ministry of Justice. I was accredited as coming from the Office of the President & Cabinet!5/10 The circumstances surrounding our accreditation is a story yet to be told. I was the lead person who coordinated the group's ConCourt case. I have first hand knowledge, and documentation, of what happened. I originated key paperwork for the court case, such as affidavits!6/10 I led the group's case for going to the Concourt but Mnangagwa & Chinamasa did not buy it; taking a contrary view made by @Welshman_Ncube in public & within GPA negotiations. Chinamasa changed after hearing your view & Mnangagwa changed after being engaged by Austin Zvoma!7/10 The group authorized me to approach Terence Hussein to take up the case. He declined because the case was against President Mugabe, his client. I then approached Joseph Mandizha who took up the case. The first choice as applicant was Austin Zvoma, former Clerk of Parliament!8/10 Mnangagwa was impressed by Zvoma's take of the case & Chinamasa was impressed by yours Prof. It was later felt that Zvoma could not be the applicant because of his office but that he should do a supporting affidavit, which he did. The applicant had to be a registered voter!9/10 Outside the group, the professional & impartial sources with factual & legal information on how the case started & who did what to file the ConCourt case are Austin Zvoma (who at the time said he might write a book), Terrence Hussein & Joseph Mandizha. The rest is history!10/10 In light of the surrounding circumstances that I have highlighted, especially your accreditation to attend the Maputo Sadc summit in June 2013, I reiterate that the #ZanuPF 2013 group made all the necessary arrangements to get you to fly to Maputo with President Mugabe! News / National by Staff reporter PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has been extensively restructuring the army ever since assuming power through a millitary coup in 2017, confirming that the security apparatus remains deeply steeped in the country's body politic and the quest to retain political control.The army, then under the command of General Constantino Chiwenga, now Vice-President, orchestrated "Operation Restore Legacy" that toppled long-time ruler Robert Mugabe, leading to the ascendency of Mnangagwa.However, as deep fissures between Mnangagwa and Chiwenga began to widen, the president has vastly been transforming the complexion of the army since the coup to maintain his grip on power while clipping the wings of his rival.During last month's Zanu-PF conference in Esigodini, Mnangagwa was endorsed by delegates to run for the presidency in 2023.In December, Mnangagwa promoted two key players in the 2017 coup Presidential Guard commander Anselem Sanyatwe from Brigadier-General to Major-General, as well as Head of Military Intelligence Thomas Moyo, also from Brigadier-General to Major-General. .Sanyatwe, who commanded the army units which gunned down six civilians on the streets of Harare on August 1 last year in the aftermath of the disputed July general election, is believed to be very close to Chiwenga.As commander of the Presidential Guard, he had the responsibility of securing Harare as well as providing protection to the President.His promotion will ensure that the critical unit, based in Dzivaresekwa, will have a new commander.As head of military intelligence, Moyo played a critical role in gathering intelligence ahead of the coup.Other central players in the coup have also left the army including Chiwenga, who demanded the vice-presidency after Mugabe's ouster, with the aim of succeeding Mnangagwa in 2023.Retired Lieutenant-General Sibusiso Moyo, who announced Operation Restore Legacy on national television, was moved from the army into government as Foreign Affairs and International Trade minister."The changes we are seeing in the military are part of Mnangagwa's power consolidation process," a government official said.As a result of the changes, the command element of the army has also changed, with former Zipra commanders assuming more senior positions ahead of their Zanla counterparts, unlike during the Mugabe era.The Zimbabwe Defence Forces (ZDF) is now under the command of Phillip Valerio Sibanda, a former Zipra commander, while the Air Force of Zimbabwe is being commanded by Elson Moyo, also a former Zipra cadre.Before the coup, Mugabe had begun making changes in the army after getting wind of plans to oust him.Former Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) Chief of Staff (General Staff) Major-General Trust Mugoba was moved to the African Union (AU) to command a millitary wing of the bloc's force, weeks before the coup.His redeployment was an attempt to neutralise the potential threat of the military which was perceived to be backing the then under-fire Mnangagwa who was leading a faction angling to succeed Mugabe. The move was part of Mugabe's coup-proofing strategy. Entertainment / Music by Staff reporter HOTSHOT Hollywood actress Danai Gurira has said she struggled to nail down her true identity in the earliest stages of her life, as she grappled with life in what was then a recently liberated Zimbabwe in the 1980s.Gurira has over the last few years become one of Hollywood's brightest lights, with roles as a zombie slayer on The Walking Dead and blockbuster movie Black Panther enhancing her reputation in the home of film and television.However, while she is now celebrated as one of the Africa's greatest exports to Hollywood, her earlier life as a budding actress in Zimbabwe is still largely a mystery.In an interview with the LA Times, Gurira shed light about her life in post-colonial Zimbabwe, saying she had struggled to discover her true roots as the country battled to also leave it's colonial past behind.Those early struggles provided the actress cum playwright with some of the material that she had used for plays such as the The Convert, a production set in colonial Zimbabwe in 1896 and reflecting on the period solely from the African perspective, with no white characters on the stage."I left Zimbabwe and came to the United States for university, and in liberal arts colleges, you're allowed to start thinking about, "Who are my people? Who am I? What's our history?" And start to really explore that in a way that's necessary for your own journey. And I think it's even necessary for the Brits, quite honestly. Their history doesn't seem to involve those who were colonised, in how it's assessed. So it is exciting for me to see this play performed in front of a British audience," she said.Gurira also said before penning The Convert, she had felt that the Zimbabwean story had never been told sufficiently."Where is the history of my people told from our perspective on the screen or on the stage? Where is our experience of the colonial impact and assault? And who would I have been if I'd been born 150 years ago and what journey would I have trekked?"A lot of those questions were at the fore. I grew up in a British colony, in Zimbabwe, when it was a young ex-colony. It was very much a British schooling system, and I was taught very little about the land I was living on," she said.Despite the success of Black Panther, a movie centred on African culture, Gurira said she felt that the continent had been largely mistreated by Hollywood."That's what drove me to start writing. Like, "This cannot be the way my people are portrayed in a cinematic form." For me, it was theatre at the time - that's my medium. It was really that dearth. Every time I saw a film - and not all - there were many interpretations of the continent I found really disturbing and limited and from a perspective that wasn't ours," she said. - Forbes releases list of Africa's richest billionaires and five South Africans made the list - Nicky Oppenheimer, Johann Rupert, Koos Bekker, Patrice Motsepe and Michiel le Roux were named among Africa's top billionaires - This is the eighth year in a row that Dangote would top the list as the richest billionaire in Africa PAY ATTENTION: Click See First under the Following tab to see Briefly.co.za News on your News Feed! Five South Africans have topped the list of Africa's richest billionaires in Forbes' newly released ranking for 2019. The list shows that 3 people have lost their billionaire ranking from last year, with only twenty making the cut for 2019. In the 2019 list Nicky Oppenheimer, Johann Rupert, Koos Bekker, Patrice Motsepe and Michiel le Roux are the South Africans who made the list. The wealthiest local on the list was Nicky Oppenheimer, with a net worth of $7.3 billion. Johann Rupert came in as the second wealthiest citizen with a worth of R5.6 billion. Koos Bekker and Patrice Motsepe came in third with a net worth of R2.3 billion. Michiel le Roux came in fifth with a net worth of R1.1 billion. PAY ATTENTION: Save mobile data with FreeBasics: Briefly is now available on the app Source: Forbes Source: Original Nicky Oppenheimer According to the list Oppenheimer made his fortune in the diamond sector. He is the heir to his family's vast fortune and sold his 40% stake in diamond firm DeBeers in 2012 for $5.1 billion. Nicky was the third generation of the Oppenheimer family to run DeBeers, taking the company private in 2001. Until 2012 the Oppenheimer family was a leader in the worlds diamond trade. Nicky now owns approxiametly 1% shares in Anglo American, a company his grandfather had founded in 1917. He was the third generation of his family to run DeBeers, and took the company private in 2001. Johann Rupert Johann is the chairman of Compagnie Financiere Richemont, a Swiss luxuary goods firm. Richemont is well known for their popular brands Cartier and Montblanc. The company was former in 1998, consisting of assests owned by Rembrandt Group Limited ( Now Remgro Limited), which was formed in the 1940s be Anton, his father. Johann owns a 7% stake in Remgo, an investment firm he chairs, as well as 25% of an investment firm, Reinet. Koos Bekker This billionaire is famous for transforming local newspaper publisher Naspers into an eCommerce investor and cable TV giant. During his time as CEO of the company, beginning in 1997, Koos saw a rise in the market capitalization of the company from $600 million to $45 billion. Bekker drew no salary or benefits from the company during that time, earning money instead by stock option grants. Patrice Motsepe Founder and chairman of African Rainbow Minerals, Motsepe earned his billionaire status in 2008. Patrice bought low-producing gold mines in 1994 and turned them into profitable opportunities. He was the first African partner at Bowman Gilfillan in Gauteng and subsequently being doing contract work conducting mine scut work. This businessman also owns shares in Sanlam and is the president and owner of the Mamelodi Sundowns. READ ALSO: SA Teachers Union demands reinstatement of Schweizer-Reneke teacher Michiel le Roux This self-made businessman created Capitec Bank in 2001 and still owns an 11% share. Michiel had previously ran Boland Bank, a small bank in the Western Cape. Enjoyed reading our story? Download BRIEFLY's news app on Google Play now and stay up-to-date with major South African news! Source: Briefly.co.za Chinese internet users can't type the numbers "1984" into social media, but Chinese bookstores freely sell copies of Orwell's novels, including Nineteen Eighty-Four, as well as other books whose titles are banned on social media. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, the inner Party members are allowed to read the literature that is banned for consumption by proles and outer Party members, and the same is true in China: the Politburo treats books as the purview of intellectual elites, who are on the one hand able to circumvent these bans while traveling abroad, and, on the other hand, are more invested in the system and viewed as less likely to be subverted by Orwell's anti-authoritarian message. This kind of double-standard is shot through Chinese censorship policy (and, as Amy Hawkins and Jeffrey Wasserstrom write in The Atlantic, through western society, too: think of how kids are banned from movies that depict nudity, but there are no age-limits on touring museums where the same nudity is on display). The Party understands that keeping elites in line requires a lighter touch, but they treat the masses as a kind of herd that is subject to epidemics of unrest. The inconsistencies in Chinese censorship aren't the result of incoherence so much as they are a form of class warfare, where internet-bases proles are strictly limited, while the elites enjoy much more freedom of access and thought. Western commentators often give the impression that Chinese censorship is more comprehensive than it really is due, in part, to a veritable obsession with the government's handling of the so-called "three Ts" of Taiwan, Tibet, and Tiananmen. A 2013 article in The New York Review of Books states, for example, that "to this day Tiananmen is one of the neuralgic words forbiddennot always successfullyon China's Internet." Any book, article, or social media post that so much as mentions these words, the conventional wisdom holds, is liable to disappear. Even when it comes to the "three Ts," though, things are a bit less simple than they appear. Contra The New York Review of Books, references to Tiananmen, as a place, a tourist attraction, and so on fill the web in China. What's verboten is reference to the killings that took place around there or to the date of the 1989 massacre, June 4. Moreover, although on the mainland no bookstore would dare stock a work by a Chinese author that mentions the massacre, there is some discussion of this taboo topic in the mainland translation of a biography of Deng Xiaoping by Ezra Vogel, a prominent American scholar. The government's approach to contentious individuals can be as surprising as its approach to contentious texts. On occasion, the government cracks down fiercely. The exiled writer Ma Jian, who has compared Xi's China to 1984, told The New York Times that, "to Chinese readers, I am a dead man," referring to the total ban on his books on the mainland. In July of last year, the political cartoonist Jiang Yefei was sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison for "inciting subversion of state power" and "illegally crossing the border." Why 1984 Isn't Banned in China [Amy Hawkins and Jeffrey Wasserstrom/The Atlantic] In many ways, Richard Grenell was the perfect pick for Trump's ambassador to Germany: a longtime Fox News pundit and John Bolton protege whose vanity and narcissism cause him to lash out constantly (and undiplomatically) at the nation he's meant to be charming, and whose thin-skinned insecurity sends him into spirals of misery and approval-seeking a the first hint of criticism. Since arriving, Grenell has isolated himself from German politics, leaders and people, advocating regime change in Germany (and violating the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relationships in the process) and devoting his energies to getting face-time on Fox News (the only way to get out-of-sight, out-of-mind Trump to pay attention to you) rather than seeking to influence German politics to coincide with US interests. The only German political bloc that Grenell has time for (and vice-versa) are the neo-Nazi AfD (he's fond of posing for selfies with AfD leadership) and the xenophobic Christian Social Union. A deeply reported profile in Speigel paints a picture of an isolated, irrelevant figure who is only invited to functions when it would be impossible to exclude him, where he stands alone in a corner, looking awkward. They contrast Grenell with his predecessor, Obama pick Philip Murphy, who had to rent out the Olympic stadium for his farewell party, and who had immeasurable influence on German policy during his tenure. Grenell epitomizes Trumpian values: one part contempt for the reality-based community, one part naked racism, and two parts total administrative incompetence. Reading the profile, you get the impression of the kind of prepper who envisions himself riding out the end of the world while ruling over a kingdom of subservient concubines, toiling field-hands and stone-faced praetorian guards; but who actually ends up dying of lysteria in the first week after the disaster because he doesn't bother to wash his hands after taking a shit. Embassy staff made it clear to the ambassador that it would be counterproductive to set up an official meeting with the AfD. But Grenell isn't shy about consorting with the right wing. In early September, he was a guest at an annual dinner held by the Achse des Guten, or Axis of Good, a blog run by the journalists Henryk M. Broder and Dirk Maxeiner that sees itself as a counterbalance to the allegedly left-wing mainstream media. It offers an intellectual home to Islamophobes, Merkel-haters and EU-skeptics. The event took place in Berlin's Moabit neighborhood, in a historic tram depot now filled with classic cars. The audience listening to Grenell's address that evening included Thilo Sarrazin, infamous for authoring a bitingly critical book about Islam in Germany, and the former East German human rights activist Vera Lengsfeld, who left the CDU out of hatred for Merkel and now supports the AfD. Such appearances have not been well-received in political Berlin. In late October, he sent out invitations to a Halloween party at his residence in the tony neighborhood of Dahlem. The theme for the evening was "super heroes." Grenell invited several prominent Berlin political figures, but many politicians declined to attend. One of the most prominent invitees who did choose to attend was Henryk M. Broder from the Axis of Good. He came dressed as a Muslim woman in a burka. Trump's Ambassador Finds Few Friends in Germany [Konstantin von Hammerstein/Spiegel] "The World's Richest Man Caught Cheating!" screams a National Enquirer special edition devoting 11 lurid pages to Amazon chief Jeff Bezos and his alleged marriage-wrecking affair. You can loathe the tabloids for their flagrant disregard of facts, their rampant dishonesty, flights of fantasy and mean-spirited personal attacks, but one thing they undeniably do well is stalk celebrities. And while it's highly debatable whether such intrusion into the deeply personal life of a private businessman is morally or journalistically acceptable, there is no denying that it was the impending publication of a special edition of the Enquirer revelations that prompted Bezos to issue a public statement confessing his marital split. "The cheating photos that ended his marriage," promises the Enquirer cover. "Text sex and wild romps on his private jet! How he stole another mogul's wife!" Just in case you've been living in a sensory depravation tank for the past week or been locked in a pitch-black bathroom for a month to win a $100,000 bet, Bezos and his novelist wife of 25 years MacKenzie have announced their separation after the Enquirer claimed that he has been cheating with TV reporter Lauren Sanchez, who happens to be married to one of Hollywood's most powerful agents, Patrick Whitesell. The Enquirer boasts that it spent four months pursuing Bezos's secret romantic trysts across America, traversing five states and 40,000 miles, and claims to have the photos to prove it. There's Jeff and Lauren arriving in Los Angeles on October 18, 2018 after a "Miami getaway." There they are boarding his private Gulfstream jet in Boston on October 29. They're there again exiting his jet in Santa Monica, California and dining at a nearby restaurant on October 30, 2018. Enquirer photographers were alongside when the couple arrived at Sanchez's Santa Monica home on November 26, and watched Bezos depart at 1pm the following day. Three days later the Enquirer was there yet again as Bezos and Sanchez enjoyed dinner at a nearby restaurant, and followed them to the Beverly Hills Hotel where Bezos had rented a private bungalow. The Enquirer boasts that its photographers caught the lovebirds "doing the dirty on their unsuspecting spouses together no fewer than six times in 14 days." But how "dirty" dd the couple actually get? In fact, the "photos that ended his marriage" all show Bezos and Sanchez walking, dining or driving together without the slightest show of affection. After its four-month investigation there isn't a single photo of Bezos and Sanchez so much as holding hands, let alone kissing or hugging. Their romantic dinner in Santa Monica on October 30? They were joined by two friends, so it was hardly a secret romantic tryst. That night Sanchez reportedly stayed at Bezos's Los Angeles mansion and departed around noon the following day but the Enquirer has no way of knowing whether Sanchez actually shared her host's bed or stayed in one of his many guest bedrooms. "Explosive photos" of their arrival in Bezos's jet at California's Burbank airport on October 18 are billed as "plane raunchy!" But in fact these snaps merely show Bezos and Sanchez standing near one another, barely touching, with Sanchez seemingly focused on her phone, not on Bezos. Another secret liaison? Not exactly, since they were accompanied by Sanchez's sister and assistant. On October 27, when Bezos and Sanchez stayed at the Intercontinental hotel in Boston, Massachusetts, the Enquirer admits that she stayed in a separate room, and only saw them both leaving the hotel the following day without any way of knowing what went on behind closed doors. The Enquirer has never needed facts to leap to conclusions, so it was an easy leap of faith for them to link the dots and decide that Bezos and Sanchez were lovers. Flying in his private jet together? They must have joined the "Mile High Club," the Enquirer assumes. Having dinner together with two friends? They must be playing "footsie," says the Enquirer. Armed with a plethora of suspicion and supposition, the Enquirer confronted Bezos with its allegations on January 7 and Bezos blinked. Two days later he issued a public statement announcing the break-up of his marriage, and the assurance that he and estranged wife MacKenzie remains friends. But he made no mention of Sanchez, and there is still no proof only circumstantial evidence linking the two romantically, though it seems highly likely that the Enquirer finally got one right. Was it guilt that pushed Bezos to confess, even though he has not admitted any affair? The clincher for the Enquirer seems to have been a series of gushing and sexually-charged text messages allegedly sent by Bezos to Sanchez and yet their provenance and content seem dubious. "I want to breathe you in," he allegedly wrote. "I want to hold you tight . . . I want to kiss your lips . . . I love you . . . I want to kiss you right now and tuck you in slowly and gently." Bezos reportedly sent Sanchez photos of himself posing shirtless wearing only a towel, along with "a below-the-belt selfie too explicit to describe in detail." And that's what sets alarm bells ringing, because the Enquirer has never found anything too explicit to describe. In fact, they rejoice in publishing such photos, albeit with some discreet pixilation. The iPhone displays of Bezos's text messages are not actual photographs, and a discreetly hidden small-print caption reveals they are only "text re-creations." How much confidence does the Enquirer have in the accuracy of its text message trove? Rather than quote them elsewhere in its 11-page expose as proof of Bezos' supposed love for Sanchez, the leading article states: "We can reveal Bezos has been telling a confidant that he's 'in love' with Sanchez, that his 'heart never felt safer . . .'" Why would the Enquirer choose to quote an unnamed source when it supposedly has Bezos's own declarations of love from his text messages? Because they don't believe them, or seriously doubt the texts' accuracy. Not that the Enquirer is lacking for named sources: it brings us an interview with Bezos' aunt, Kathy Jorgensen, who assures us that abandoned wife MacKenzie Bezos "will take him to the cleaners . . . She knows the dirtiest secrets about him . . . they'll probably settle and add in the agreement she can never discuss what she knows about Jeff." Would it be churlish to point out that Bezos was two years old when his parents split and he was raised by his mother, so that his father's side of the family including aunt Kathy Jorgensen has not seen Bezos in 53 years, since he was just out of diapers? And that's what qualifies as a great source in the Enquirer universe. The Enquirer claims that Bezos, when confronted with its suspicions, "mused to one source: 'Could I buy the story from them?'" From past experience, it's perhaps surprising that the Enquirer wouldn't have leaped at this opportunity to cash in, while maintaining leverage over the world's wealthiest and most influential men. Ultimately, the Enquirer ended its "four-month investigation" which only appears to have covered a period of less than three months with a collection of photos showing Bezos and Sanchez together, often with other friends and colleagues accompanying them, but nothing catching them in flagrante delicto. Circumstantial evidence was enough to push Bezos to confess the end of his marriage but will he admit an affair with Sanchez? "Enquiring minds are first to know the truth," concludes the rag's investigation. Only time will tell. Truesee's Daily Wonder Saturday, January 12, 2019 Archives Truesee presents the weird, wild, wacky and world news of the day. 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The House and Senate appropriations committees unanimously approved a forecast that assumes a $42.50 per barrel North Dakota oil price for the 2019-21 biennium. Thats lower than the executive forecast from Gov. Doug Burgums office and the forecast by IHS Markit, a firm hired by legislators for a second opinion. The executive figured prices would increase from $46 to $50 per barrel over the next two years, while IHS forecast them a few dollars higher. Legislators expect oil production of 1.35 million barrels per day. They estimate the oil and gas revenue from the production will be around $4.06 billion in the next biennium, thats 12.2 percent less than Burgums prediction. The Tribune Editorial Board believes committees were correct to follow a conservative forecast. Oil prices have been volatile the last few years and when you are budgeting ahead for two years based on an educated guess, you need to be careful. At the peak of the oil boom it was easy to be optimistic. Those days appear over. Commodities prices also have suffered and need to be considered, especially as the trade war continues. He was contacted by someone at Missouri River Correctional Center who floated the idea. Things came together and a mini-tour was hatched for just before the holidays. It gave Dobson some time to craft an appropriate routine. "You do your show for the most part. Theres a new minefield of issues that you didnt have to take into account at a normal show. You still want to stay away from religion," Dobson said. "They did say, dont go too deep into sex stuff, dont graphically go into drug stuff. Its amazing how much you touch on things (in regular shows) that you dont think about." He does a little crowd work in his routines where he interacts a bit with his audience. He tries to avoid asking about tattoos, because those can have personal and sometimes bad memories associated with them. Talking about family or his own marriage is also usually avoided because the men he's performing for can't be with their own families. As Dobson describes some of the banter, it's clear the shows maintained an R-rating. What goes over well are comments on loneliness and odd things only prisoners might get. Dobson has a bit on ramen. It's nearly a currency in prison, he said. Each inmate seemed to have his own way of dressing up the instant noodle packets. Hoeven was hopeful Wednesday the shutdown would conclude by the end of the week. He said impacts of the shutdown have so far been pretty well managed. He said lawmakers are working to mitigate harm as negotiations are ongoing. Hoeven said border security extends beyond just the wall and the funding would help address a growing humanitarian crisis related to undocumented immigration. Rep. Kelly Armstrong, R-N.D., said the immigration system has been broken for a long time. He said both parties can see there are problems within the system and changes could benefit and improve the legal immigration system, also. Shutdown is a waste In Minnesota, Democratic lawmakers see things differently. Klobuchar called for an end to the shutdown Tuesday after Trump addressed the nation in a live White House address. Trump requested $5.7 billion, which would help fund a steel wall he claims will be indirectly paid for by Mexico as part of a trade agreement that has not yet been signed. By and large parents, they want schools to be talking about comprehensive sex education, she said. They really do. Dodson said there are study battles about whether abstinence-based or comprehensive sex education is more effective. Studies have shown contraception availability does not actually decrease pregnancy, he said, except slightly when long-term forms are used, such as an intrauterine device. After several years, the sex education program for at-risk teens has shown results, Secor-Turner said. The program is adapted from a Planned Parenthood curriculum that is evidence-based and has been proven effective, she said. After the program, communication with trusted adults increased by 20 percent on abstinence, by 14 percent on how to say no to sex, and more than 10 percent on birth-control methods. We talk about the whole range of topics in the course, including how to stay healthy and how to connect to your own values, Secor-Turner said. The course, which targets at-risk teens, many referred by service providers, consists of 18 to 22 hours of instruction over six to eight weeks, said Kailyn Ohm, education and outreach programs manager for Planned Parenthood of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. But as our world becomes more interconnected, this diversity of parenting approaches may dwindle. In fact, most countries have become more individualistic over the last 50 years a shift thats most pronounced in countries that have experienced the most economic development. Nonetheless, theres still a huge difference in parenting styles and childhood development across cultures a testament to the enduring influence of societal values. This article has been updated to indicate that Thucydides was a historian, not a philosopher. Samuel Putnam, Professor of Psychology, Bowdoin College and Masha A. Gartstein, Professor of Psychology, Washington State University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Its sad when people believe profanity makes them clever and brilliant. Sadder still when used to garner favor and acceptance among peers. Shame on Michigan voters who voted in a vulgar, foul-mouthed person to represent them. Most migrants who flee from fear and persecution leave what brought them here behind. They don't harbor contempt for this country. They don't teach children to despise the government and people who welcomed them. They don't launch personal and filthy attacks against the president and those who support him. They show gratitude and respect. The elected woman should have resigned, not be praised and condoned by Nancy and the swamp rats. This sets an awful precedent for future candidates and demeans and dishonors the office she holds. The U.S. deserves better. It is not election laws at fault. It is uninformed voters who chose people they know and faces they recognize, not the issues that matter and how candidates stand. It's not always the incumbent or newbie who is most qualified. Being a seasoned official who has become complacent and self-serving, or a young vibrant progressive may not always serve the needs of the people. They need to replaced with a candidate who knows whats best for the country. As an independent I find it interesting that Sen. Steve Daines and Congressman Greg Giantforte were just fine with funding the government and providing $1.3 billion for border security a few weeks ago, but when Hannity and Limbaugh told Trump to change directions, Daines and Gianforte also changed directions. This clearly shows that these two politicians put party ahead of Montana and country. Most Montanans agree that the government should not be closed, and that a 1,900-mile wall (that Mexico is not going to pay for) is not the most cost-effective means to achieve border security. We need flexibility a variety of techniques: barriers, drones, infrared technology, increased border patrol all strategically focused. Daines and Giantforte apparently would follow Trump over a cliff, rather than use their own brains to help solve our nations problems. Maybe we need a law that whenever politicians allow a government shutdown to happen, all members of Congress, the president, and all members of the White House staff would immediately have all of their assets frozen. No access to checking or savings accounts, ATMs, credit cards, investments, loans, etc. Then maybe politicians would think twice about putting party ahead of country, and using our government agencies as their pawns. How do you feel getting on a plane knowing that the TSA agents are not getting paid? County Commission Chairman Denis Pitman said the judicial remodeling project is costing the county about $2 million, which includes some new air handlers and other building upgrades. Jan. 21 was the target for finishing construction, but some changes were ordered, so Pitman expects the finish will be later in January. After that, furniture, phones and computers have to be moved in and connected. Having two more judges at work will require more clerks to be in courtrooms spread out on three courthouse floors. The commission approved two new deputy clerks. Thats going to be sufficient, Halpin said. Our work has already lessened on the criminal side with e-filing. So far, only criminal cases and other matters involving the County Attorneys Office are being filed electronically, but the plan is to have e-filing for all matters. Judge Greg Todd, the districts chief judge, said he has been told to expect fourth-floor move-in in early February. It might be the first of March or later before the dust settles, he added. Meanwhile, the judges offices are coordinating to make sure all court proceedings have space when needed. A meeting room on the first floor has been furnished with chairs, tables and microphones so that it can be used as a courtroom, although it couldnt be used for a jury trial. Ironically, the main evidence offered to support these charges of Khashoggi's links to Qatar is a Dec. 22 story in the Post by Souad Mekhennet and Greg Miller. The Qatar Foundation link was hardly a secret; I mentioned it in a long column about Khashoggi that appeared on Oct. 12, 10 days after he disappeared in Istanbul. Even MBS' strongest supporters in the U.S. appear concerned by the new social-media campaign. Ali Shihabi, the head of the Saudi-backed Arabia Foundation, commented in an email to me Thursday: "I have no idea who is behind this new campaign, but it certainly does not seem wise." He argued that despite a "concerted campaign funded by Qatar and others ... the kingdom's media organs had so far exercised great self-control since the Jamal tragedy, and I would hope that continues." The videos and web postings in the new campaign all have the professional feel of modern media studios in Dubai. According to a Saudi source, Qahtani recently made two trips to the United Arab Emirates, even though he is supposedly under house arrest in Riyadh. The trips couldn't be confirmed independently. The Treasury Department said Nov. 15 in sanctioning Qahtani that he "was part of the planning and execution of the operation" that led to Khashoggi's death. Gilbertzs class will include a trip to the museum and site. But the course isnt just a history class as a geography professor, Gilbertz said the course will have an emphasis on questions about how place and time interact with cultural identity. This is a geography of war. Maybe it wasnt a battle, but it was certainly something that happened because of war, she said of Heart Mountain. The course will examine questions like where are these geographies of war that are not in the news or not visible to us? It will also use a somewhat experimental format; students in other disciplines, like environmental science, can earn two credits through the geography course then earn a credit within their major by working with an adviser to write a term paper about Heart Mountain that pertains to that discipline. The class is also open to the public to audit, though there is a trip fee for the museum visit. Like Russell, Gilbertz also noted the political climate. This is a really good thing to do right now to talk about immigrants to the American society, how important they are, their contributions, she said. Its right here in our backyard. I can use this real place to really force us to think about immigration, not in the abstract. The Zweig Group has once again named Sanderson Stewart as one of the Best Firms to Work For in the Multidiscipline and 50-99 Employee Categori Big Surf and Lots of Sun This Week on Oregon Coast; Sneaker Wave Advisory Published 01/12/2019 at 6:23 PM PDT By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff (Oregon Coast) Sun and sneaker waves. Thats the forecast for the next few days on the Oregon coast, as the National Weather Service (NWS) is warning about higher-than-usual waves on Sunday. (Above: sunny and splashy at Fogarty Beach, near Depoe Bay). Its been sunny and warm on the beaches Saturday, and that will continue for a few more days but with some wild surf. A building and powerful swell will provide the potential for dangerous sneaker waves along the Washington and Oregon coasts on Sunday, the NWS said. Water may rise further up on beaches than observed within the previous 30 minutes and easily sweep unsuspecting beach-goers into the frigid water. A number of sneaker wave incidents and fatalities have occurred under similar scenarios in the past. Please use caution if you plan on recreating on area beaches and avoid jetties on Sunday. This is an important time to keep clear of smaller beaches, like those at Oceanside, Gleneden Beach, Nye Beach in Newport and many parts of Lincoln City. Especially dangerous such as those are beaches that arent very broad and that also have a cliff wall behind you. This will not allow escape if a sneaker wave hits. Areas with rocky ledges will put on quite a show, however. Look to Depoe Bay, Oceanside, perhaps Cape Kiwanda and much of the Yachats area. All these have viewing spots where you can stay clear of the melee. The NWS said some offshore gale winds may create more heavy surf later in the week, but that is yet unclear. Forecasts are indicating wave height around 10 to 12 feet this week. Saturday highs on the Oregon coast reached close to 60. Sunday brings more sun to the beaches with a high around 53 and winds about 10 mph. That will keep it rather chilly. Monday clocks in at 51 for a high and still plenty of sun also with similar winds. Tuesday remains sunny but colder at around 48. Wednesday brings in more clouds but still some sun, and Thursday and the rest of the week remain cloudy and at least slightly rainy. More Oregon Coast Weather. Oregon Coast Lodgings for this event - Where to eat - Maps - Virtual Tours More About Oregon Coast hotels, lodging..... More About Oregon Coast Restaurants, Dining..... Coastal Spotlight LATEST Related Oregon Coast Articles Back to Oregon Coast Contact Advertise on BeachConnection.net All Content, unless otherwise attributed, copyright BeachConnection.net Unauthorized use or publication is not permitted In late December, the Coconino County Public Health and Safety District reported that two foxes had attacked several people in both the areas of the Continental Country Club and Mars Hills. All people attacked were taken in for treatment, according to the attending agencies. Foxes are a common host for the virus, according to data from the state's health department. The state department also listed data showing that foxes have also been the highest contributors to confirmed rabies accounts this year. There have been 52 foxes confirmed with rabies throughout the state, close to half of which came from Coconino County. Last year, there were only 34 confirmed cases and 2 in Coconino County, according to data from the state's health department. Bites are just one way that the disease spreads, Runge explained. "If prey animals are infected, it can spread to the predator animals who prey on that species," Runge said. Runge added that they are unsure about why the disease is spreading so significantly. He added that the police department wants to ensure that people and their pets are safe. Runge also said that animals that might be staggering when walking should be considered suspicious. Jeannine Braggs, a spokesperson for Verizon, said it is not unusual for residents to find out about a cell towers construction shortly before it goes up for approval with the municipality as the process for planning these projects can take many years. Braggs could not speak to the use of a nondisclosure agreement, but said such agreements are not unheard of. If the tower is built, the whole site will be just a few feet north of the original location behind the church. This is because of the Kinder Morgan natural gas pipeline that runs under the churchs parking lot. Joseph Simonsen, the operations manager for Kinder Morgan in the Flagstaff area, said the company had been informed by Verizon that it was looking to build a tower a few years ago, but had not been informed of the exact location or timeline for construction until early last week. Some nearby residents had been concerned about the construction of a tower and the installation of electric utilities under a high-pressure gas pipeline, but Simonsen said if construction is done properly there is really nothing to fear. And with close to 70,000 miles of gas pipelines controlled by Kinder Morgan, there are plenty of places where water, sewer and electric utilities cross the pipeline. Kinder Morgan took no position on the construction of the tower, Simonsen said, only wanting to make sure that if construction does occur near the gas pipeline, it is done properly. Kinder Morgan is in contact with Verizon about the project. Adrian Skabelund can be reached at the office at askabelund@azdailysun.com, by phone at (928) 556-2261 or on Twitter @AdrianSkabelund. Love 0 Funny 2 Wow 1 Sad 1 Angry 4 Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! * I understand and agree that registration on or use of this site constitutes agreement to its user agreement and privacy policy. "The bar features Arizona-grown ingredients such as pecans, chilis, honey and mesquite beans wild-harvested on the Tohono Oodham reservation in southern Arizona," Hupp said. "Mesquite trees are ubiquitous in the desert regions of the Southwest. It is a plant I had become well acquainted with as a river guide in the Grand Canyon: we used them for shade, to tie up our boats, or chew on a pod occasionally while on a hike," Hupp wrote on her website. Hupp has reached the goal she originally set: she can now eat a nutrient dense, tasty, natural whole-food bar on her adventures. So what is her next mountain to climb? "For now, we will continue to focus on producing a high quality product and maintaining our integrity as a small company, growing as we feel appropriate and what makes sense," Hupp said. "The energy bar market is incredibly competitive and saturated. In order to reach national brand status, it would require a huge amount of firepower." When Hupp recalls the creation of Huppy, she admits that she may have had some visions of grandeur. "When you start out on an endeavor like this you have to think big the whole shoot for the stars and maybe youll get the moon in order to get the thing rolling," she said. Feed tests reveal lower digestibility New seasonal feed quality test results showing the stark differences between wet and dry seasons have underlined the need for end users to measure and know what they are feeding. What I love about Camp Colton is the character-building experience it provides. Being away from home and immersed in nature can be a transformative experience for kids at an early age, Giovale says. It made perfect sense for Kahtoola. In the past decade, the Kahtoola Uphill has raised more than $200,000, with 100 percent of profits from each race supporting Friends of Camp Colton and a fellowship program that gives low-income students the opportunity to experience the camp. In 2017, funds aided the construction of two sustainable and handicap-accessible cabins. Helping kids learn to value and connect with the natural world is a cornerstone of the event. Those early experiences can root a sense of childhood wonder that is hard to outgrow. It might also explain why costumes are such a big part of the Kahtoola Uphill. Camp Colton and Ga-Ga Ball might be reserved just for kids, but the outdoors and costumes are two things that never are. Tutus, silly hats, wigs, onesies, an imitation Rob Krar and beyond it all comes out when the uphill community gathers on the mountain with a familiar energy that is all-at-once wonderful and weird. The Kahtoola Uphill is a celebration. A celebration of good mountain fun, community, the incredible cause it supports and those early days that made us love the outdoors. You can feel it just by standing at the starting line. Andrew Wisniewski is the communications associate for Kahtoola. Hes a Flagstaff native, aspiring ultrarunner, journalist and former Ga-Ga Ball champ whose love for the outdoors was also shaped by his experience at Camp Colton as a kid. Do you have a column, tip or idea for High Country Running? Run it over to coordinating editor Julie Hammonds at runner@juliehammonds.com, or tweet her @highcountry_run. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Theatrikos Theatre Company announced Jan. 10 the appointment of its new executive director, Chris Verrill. Verrill comes to Flagstaff with extensive background in all aspects of theater operation and production, said the Theatrikos announcement. Most recently he worked in Beijing where he founded and was operations director of the Beijing Playhouse, an English language community theater. Verrill operated the playhouse from 2006 to 2018 and was responsible for all aspects of the organization, including fiscal management, creative, marketing and business development. He also has experience in public television broadcasting in the San Francisco Bay Area. "The greater northern Arizona community is obviously very proud of Theatrikos' amazing long track record of producing excellent theater and enriching arts throughout the region, Verrill said. I'm very much looking forward to working together with the theater's talented artists and building on that success." President of the Theatrikos board of directors Al White said he is eager to have such expertise to guide the theaters growth. Chris demonstrated leadership in all areas theatrical gives me a great sense of confidence and excitement for the future of Theatrikos." In an announcement that surprised many people in Cayuga County, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs on Jan. 2 said it will be moving its Auburn outpatient clinic from Auburn Community Hospital to a vacant building on the edge of the city's downtown. As the provider of the clinic for more than 20 years, the hospital has expressed concerns about the decision to award the contract to a private, national clinic operator named STG International. It is hoping that the VA's decision will be reconsidered, and has asked for the help of its congressional representatives in getting that message to the VA. The VA this week issued a statement that makes a reversal seem unlikely. The plan is to have STG open the new clinic in the spring at the former Rite Aid on East Genesee Street. As we evaluate the situation, it's hard to determine if the VA is making the right decision. A system is in place to have clinic contracts competitively bid every five years, which can be a good practice for ensuring quality. On the other hand, it's not necessarily good for veterans receiving care to be shuffled around to different facilities and doctors, especially if they are satisfied with the care they now receive. ACH insists that patient surveys reflect that the veterans in its clinic are happy. "I think what we're urging our representatives to do is listen to the veterans and listen to what they want and what they need," Chadderdon said. Schumer's office did not indicate whether or not the senator would intervene. Sen. Schumer is always working to ensure that New Yorks veterans receive the best possible care in an accessible way," Schumer spokesperson Lincoln Zweig said in an email. "Well continue to closely monitor the issue to ensure thats the case for veterans in the Auburn area." Erin O'Connor, deputy chief of staff and director of communications for Katko's office, said the congressman has been in contact with the hospital and "is working as a liaison between the Hospital and the Department of Veteran's Affairs regarding the decision to establish a new Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Auburn." "At the Hospital's request, Rep. Katko has asked the VA to provide a written explanation as to how the decision to select an outside provider was made, as well as the criteria used in making this decision," O'Connor said. As state Sen. Bob Antonacci began a new phase of his career as a public servant, his wife Michele had a message for him. "This is where you need to be," she told him as he stood, for the first time as a state senator, in the state Capitol. Antonacci, R-Onondaga, shared the story and more about his first day of session in an interview with The Citizen Friday. He joined 62 of his colleagues for the first meeting of the state Senate this year. The chamber, which is now led by the Democratic majority, passed procedural resolutions to name officers and adopted the rules of the Senate. For the first session day, Antonacci's wife and children joined him in Albany. The current state of his family is why he feels confident he can do the job effectively. His children are older now his daughter, Jacqueline, will head to college in September and he feels this is the right time in his life to be serving in higher office. "It's good for me to be down there," he said. A blindfolded driver has crashed her car while attempting the Bird Box challenge, based on the Netflix film where characters must cover their eyes to avoid danger. The teenager was driving with a hat pulled over her eyes when she drove into oncoming traffic in Utah, southwestern US, the BBC reports. In the Bird Box challenge, people cover their eyes while doing ordinary activities and post the results on social media. A driver caused a car crash after doing the Bird Box challenge. Source: Twitter/LaytonPolice The apocalyptic Netflix movie stars Sandra Bullock and two children known only as Boy and Girl, who must cover their eyes with blindfolds to avoid being affected by a mysterious force. Police in Utah tweeted a photo of two cars involved in the crash. Bird Box Challenge while drivingpredictable result, Layton Police tweeted on Friday. This happened on Monday as a result of the driver covering her eyes while driving on Layton Parkway. Luckily no injuries. Social media users have slammed the irresponsible driver. This is worse than drunk driving, one Twitter user fumed. She deserves to have her licence taken away for a very long time, another tweeted. Bird Box is a Netflix film starring Sandra Bullock and two characters known only as Boy and Girl (still pictured). Source: Getty They could have hit someone with kids in the vehicle or killed someone. Ignorance at its finest, another said. Other social media users joked about the incident. Its not her fault she couldnt see, due to evil spirits on the streets, one said. Can I start a Quit being stupid challenge, another tweeted. The challenge has gained so much traction online that Netflix released a statement, warning viewers against attempting anything with their eyes closed. Cant believe I have to say this, but: please do not hurt yourself with this bird box challenge, Netflix US tweeted on January 2. We dont know how this started, and we appreciate the love, but Boy and Girl have just one wish for 2019 and it is that you not end up in the hospital due to memes. There doesn't seem to be much love in the air in Washington these days, as a long and bitter government shutdown drags on with no end in sight. But couples whose marriage plans were thwarted by the partial shutdown have gotten a break, thanks to the action of Mayor Muriel Bowser and city council. The city's Marriage Bureau, part of the US capital's federally funded court system, had been deemed "nonessential" and shuttered as part of the thorny standoff between President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats. But on Friday, Bowser signed an emergency measure authorizing city officials to validate marriages in the absence of the Marriage Bureau, which closed when the budget standoff began on December 22. "They can shut down the US government, but they cannot shut down love in the District of Columbia," City Council member Brandon Todd said when he introduced the measure. Titled the Let Our Vows Endure Emergency Amendment Act, or LOVE act, the law is valid for 90 days and will spare future brides like Claire O'Rourke from finding themselves in Kafkaesque situations. "Practically, we couldn't sign all the legal certificates during the shutdown without having a marriage license," O'Rourke, a Washingtonian who was preparing to wed fiance Sam Bockenhauer, told AFP. "So we were going to have a wonderful party, of course, but couldn't be legally married in DC until we got our marriage license." Some couples, like Dan Pollock and Danielle Geanacopoulos, had no time to spare. They managed to get their wedding license on December 27, just two days before their scheduled wedding. - 'A speed bump' - "By the time we figured out we couldn't get a license, we were running out of time before friends and family were coming to Washington to celebrate with us," Geanacopoulos said. "So we focused on the really important thing -- celebrating -- and decided to figure out the rest later." Her mother, Daphne, said she was "delighted." "We had a really great big wedding two weeks ago... (but) it feels wonderful to have it official." For Caitlin Walters, who plans to wed Kirk Kasa on February 2 on the campus of Catholic University, the shutdown was simply "a small speed bump in the road." "Obviously we knew about the shutdown, but we didn't know that it would directly affect our ability to get married in DC legally," said Walters, a New York resident who was determined to get married in the nation's capital. But while some have taken the shutdown in stride, it has brought "chaos" to those in the wedding business. "It's a lot of chaos, it's a lot of uncertainty," said Rachel Rice, a wedding planner who recently had to shift a wedding ceremony from Washington to nearby Virginia. Even if the shutdown were to end next month, Rice said, "some people might say, 'I can't wait to book my venue; I have to book my catering, my photographer.'" On top of that, the approximately 800,000 federal employees sent home or forced to work without pay -- some of them with wedding plans, no doubt -- have just missed their first paycheck and will be forced to scale back their plans. Claire O'Rourke has her own shutdown-related regret. She had hoped to have her official wedding photo taken in the National Portrait Gallery. But like most of the capital's vast Smithsonian system, the popular museum remains closed. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser signs the LOVE Act to allow city officials to certify weddings in the district during the government shutdown that closed the local Wedding Bureau on January 11, 2019 A sign outside the National Zoo in Washington explains that it was forced to close by the shutdown Rachel Rice, a wedding planner, had to move one ceremony from Washington to nearby Virginia People bike past trash uncollected on the National Mall in Washington due to the shutdown A transatlantic tiff over Europe's natural gas supply came to the boil Sunday, as Donald Trump's ambassador to Germany threatened firms involved in a pipeline from Russia with sanctions. At stake is a mixture of economic and security interests for Moscow, Washington, Berlin and Paris -- with equally direct consequences for Ukraine and other eastern European nations. A letter envoy Richard Grenell sent to several businesses "reminds that any company operating in the Russian energy export pipeline sector is in danger... of US sanctions," an embassy spokesman told AFP. The letter by Grenell, a close ally of President Donald Trump, "is not meant to be a threat, but a clear message of US policy," the spokesman said. Pressure has been mounting on Berlin for months to turn away from the under-construction pipeline, which is set to double the capacity of an existing connection beneath the Baltic Sea. Trump accused Germany last year of being "totally dependent" on and a "captive" of Moscow because of the natural gas supply. But the louder the volume of complaints from Washington, the more Berlin has dug in its heels. Chancellor Angela Merkel, backed by France and Austria, has in the past insisted the pipeline is a "purely economic project" that will ensure cheaper, more reliable gas supplies. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also weighed in on the transatlantic row last week, saying "European energy policy should be decided in Europe, not in the United States." The confrontation echoes European leaders' sticking to a 2015 deal with Iran to limit that country's nuclear programme. Trump has renounced the pact and threatened sanctions against EU firms doing business with Tehran. - 'Blackmail' - In an angry reaction from Russia Sunday, senator Alexei Pushkov tweeted that Trump was using "direct threats" to sell "more expensive American gas to Europe." The US embassy spokesman said that "the only thing that could be considered blackmail in this situation would be the Kremlin having leverage over future gas supplies." American officials argue that routing more gas through the Baltic and the planned TurkStream pipeline under the Black Sea will deprive Ukraine of vital transit income and isolate it from its allies. That could be bad news for Kiev, which saw the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014 and is battling Moscow-backed separatists in a conflict that has so far claimed over 10,000 lives. "Firms supporting the construction of the two pipelines are actively undermining the security of Ukraine and Europe," ambassador Grenell wrote. US objections are shared by "nearly 20 European countries" such as vital EU member Poland, as well as the European Parliament and the US House of Representatives, the embassy spokesman said. Merkel -- a key player in Moscow-Kiev peace talks -- says Ukrainian interests will be protected as some Russian gas will still be transported via the country once Nord Stream 2 is online. - Gas ahoy - But Germany has also appeared to make concessions to Trump by looking into construction of liquid natural gas (LNG) terminals on its north coast to accept sea shipments from the US. Berlin was "studying options" to help fund gas facilities, Merkel spokesman Steffen Seibert said in October -- although he denied the government was caving to US pressure. Beyond Ukraine, Trump has explicitly linked his complaints over Russian gas to his push to get European members of the NATO alliance to spend more on defence. "Germany just started paying Russia, the country they want protection from, Billions of Dollars for their Energy needs coming out of a new pipeline," he tweeted in July. "Not acceptable!" Merkel has long since committed to reach the NATO defence spending target of 2.0 percent of GDP -- albeit by 2024. Last year, just 1.24 percent of Germany's output went on its military, compared with 3.5 percent for the US. US President Donald Trump accused Germany last year of being "totally dependent" on and a "captive" of Moscow because of the natural gas supply One of France's most celebrated screenwriters is taking on its biggest taboo, the bloody conflict in Algeria, in a new war film. Abdel Raouf Dafri told AFP that he had been itching for years to broach the delicate subject. The writer of the Oscar-nominated "A Prophet", and the Emmy-winning television series "Braquo", has Algerian roots but was born in the French port of Marseille, where many former French "pied noir" colonists who were forced to flee Algeria settled. The film's title "May an impure blood..." is plucked from the most controversial line in the French national anthem, "La Marseillaise", which ends "...water our fields". Dafri cleverly turns it around to refer to "the blood of the colonised" who suffered under the French, which "just goes to show how universal our national anthem is", he argued. His story, however, centres on a group of French conscript soldiers sent on a "grotesque mission that none of them want to go on. "Like a lot of military operations, it serves little or no purpose," said Dafri, who also scripted the acclaimed "Mesrine" gangster films. "When you make a film about World War II, you know who the good guys are," the writer said. "The war in Algeria is more complicated, because nobody was nice." - Torture - The film opens with a brutal interrogation of three Algerian villagers -- the sort of violent questioning that the founder of France's far-right National Front party, Jean-Marie Le Pen, said he proudly took part in. It was only last year that the French government finally acknowledged that these interrogations were part of an official system of routine torture during the bloody seven-year war, before Algeria declared independence from France in 1962. "All the violence which I show in the film happened in reality," Dafri insisted. Yet the film's lead character -- a tough non-commissioned officer who has survived France's earlier colonial defeat in Indochina -- is inspired by the rather more sympathetic figure of Roger Vandenberghe. Vandenberghe, a tragic and highly decorated hero of that earlier conflict, died aged 24 in Vietnam. "I wanted a hero, but not a Rambo," the first-time director said. "A man who was both fragile deep down but who was also capable of cruelty." With France and Algeria still unable to agree on a death toll more than half a century after the war ended, Dafri insisted that he wanted "to be as honest and as just as possible". After much research, he borrowed a phrase from the ethnologist Germaine Tillion as his guiding light. Tillion was a French resistance hero and concentration camp survivor who secretly met Algerian guerrilla leaders in a bid to end the bloodshed. She tried to win hearts and minds as the military stepped up their repression. - French-Algerian identity - "When in 1828 our ancestors crossed the sea to seek revenge for a slap with a fly-whisk, Algeria was an archaic country, and France was too," Tillion wrote. The quotation refers to how France used a clash between the country's former Ottoman ruler Hussein Dey and the French consul in Algiers as a pretext to invade the country. Tillion tried to bring health services and education to Algeria's "pauperised" indigenous population as the war raged. She was among the first to condemn the systematic torture of suspects. To understand the Algerian war, "you have to go back to the beginnings of the history of France and its principal colony", Dafri said. But writing the film he also had to confront his own personal history and identity as the French-born son of Algerian emigrants. "I wanted to understand why my parents brought me into the world in France in 1963" -- a year after the war ended -- "when their own country had just been liberated from its oppressors." Dafri said he is dedicating the film, which will be released later this year, both to the Algerian people and to the young French conscripts who were forced to serve there, "thrown into a disaster" that was not of their own making. According to the French historian Benjamin Stora, conscripts made up two-thirds of the 23,000 French soldiers killed in Algeria. Estimates of the number of Algerians who died ranges from around one million to between 300,000 and 400,000, three percent of the local population at the time. Dafri is less forgiving of those in power. "The Algerian people suffered from colonisation and then independence led by corrupt men who are still in power," he said. "I don't want people to say that I have taken sides" when they see the movie, Dafri said. "I do not have a side to take: France is my country." French scriptwriter Abdel Raouf Dafri told AFP he had waited years to make a film about the Algerian War French paratroopers, members of the Foreign Legion, near Algiers in April 1956 US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Sunday arrived in Riyadh, where he is set to press Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to hold the killers of journalist Jamal Khashoggi accountable. The top US diplomat, on an extensive Middle East tour, embarked on his second politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia since Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate sparked an international outcry. "We will continue to have a conversation with the crown prince and the Saudis about ensuring the accountability is full and complete with respect to the unacceptable murder of Jamal Khashoggi," Pompeo told reporters in Qatar, before flying to the Saudi capital. "We'll... make sure we have all the facts so that they are held accountable, certainly by the Saudis but by the United States as well." After landing in Riyadh, Pompeo pushed for Saudi Arabia to continue its investigation into the murder, in talks with Adel al-Jubeir, minister of state for foreign affairs, and the Saudi Ambassador to Washington, Prince Khalid bin Salman. Khashoggi, a Washington Post contributor, was murdered on October 2 in what Saudi Arabia called a "rogue" operation, tipping the kingdom into one of its worst diplomatic crises and subsequently straining ties between Riyadh and Washington. Pompeo's visit to Saudi Arabia, where he will be hosted by Prince Mohammed, is part of an extensive eight-day trip to Amman, Cairo, Manama, Abu Dhabi, Doha, Riyadh, Muscat, and finally Kuwait City. - Smiles with MBS - US President Donald Trump has brushed aside international outrage to stand by Prince Mohammed over the murder of Khashoggi, whose corpse was dismembered at the consulate. His support has come despite the US Central Intelligence Agency's reported conclusion that Prince Mohammed very likely ordered the murder. A bipartisan resolution approved by the US Senate last month also held the crown prince responsible for the killing. Riyadh prosecutors have announced indictments against 11 people and are seeking the death penalty against five of them. But Prince Mohammed, whose right-hand aides were allegedly involved in the murder, was exonerated by prosecutors. On a previous visit to Riyadh at the height of the Khashoggi affair, Pompeo's broad smiles with the crown prince outraged some Americans. However, Trump has said Washington wants to preserve the alliance with the oil-rich kingdom, which he sees as a bulwark against common foe Iran and a lucrative buyer of US arms. Rights groups have called on Pompeo to also press Prince Mohammed over the jailing of women activists in the kingdom, amid claims that some of them faced sexual harassment and torture during interrogation. "I am struck by what is not included in Pompeo's itinerary: the brave women activists of Saudi Arabia, who are being held in the kingdom's prisons for seeking rights and dignity," Alia al-Hathloul wrote in The New York Times Sunday. Hathloul's sister, Loujain, is among more than a dozen activists arrested last May -- just before the historic lifting of Saudi Arabia's decades-long ban on women drivers. - Gulf crisis - Pompeo met the Qatari emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani during his visit to Doha, where he refused to comment on reports Washington had recently considered military action against Tehran. He also called on Qatar and other Gulf countries to end the worst political rift in the region for years, which has seen Doha diplomatically and economically isolated by neighbouring former allies for the past 19 months. Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt -- all US allies -- cut ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups and seeking closer ties to Saudi arch-rival Iran. Qatar -- also a US ally -- denies the allegations and accuses the countries of seeking regime change. "As for the GCC... we are all more powerful when we're working together when we have common challenges in the region and around the world," Pompeo said, referring to the six member nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council. "Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He added that "President Trump and I both believe the ongoing dispute in the region has gone on too long". However, Pompeo later admitted in a Q&A session with US embassy staff in Doha that no progress was made on resolving the issue. Mediation efforts by the United States, which at first appeared to back the boycott of Qatar, have stalled, as highlighted by the recent resignation of US envoy Anthony Zinni. For Washington, turning the page on the crisis is essential for the successful launch of the Strategic Alliance of the Middle East (MESA), which is a NATO-style security pact that includes Gulf countries as well as Egypt and Jordan. The US and Qatar held the second "strategic dialogue" between the two countries on Sunday and signed agreements on defence, education and culture. The top US diplomat embarked on his second politically sensitive visit to Saudi Arabia since journalist Jamal Khashoggi's murder inside its Istanbul consulate sparked an international outcry Pompeo is set to press Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to hold the killers of Khashoggi accountable US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is on an extensive Middle East tour US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with the Emir of Qatar Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani at the Sea Palace in Doha on January 13, 2019, during his extensive Middle East tour. Prosecutors will seek a life sentence for a suburban Chicago man accused of beating a four-year-old girl to death after she spilled juice on an Xbox video console. Prosecutors said heinous circumstances justify the sentence for 19-year-old Johnathan Fair, of Waukegan, if he is eventually convicted of first-degree murder in the death of his girlfriends daughter, Skylar Mendez, the Chicago Tribune reported. Fair was babysitting Skylar on December 13 at a Waukegan apartment when she was fatally injured. Prosecutors said heinous circumstances justify the sentence for 19-year-old Johnathan Fair if he is eventually convicted of murder in the death of his girlfriends daughter Fair. Source: Waukegan Police He brought her to a hospital after she lost consciousness and initially claimed she had fallen. She died a few days later at a Chicago hospital after surgery doctors had hoped would relieve swelling of her brain, the Lake County States Attorneys Office said. Skylars mother was not at home at the time of the alleged beating, Waukegan police have said. Fairs attorney, Sam Amirante, told The Associated Presson Sunday his client deserves the presumption of innocence accorded to anyone accused of a crime. When the real facts come out, he will be acquitted, Amirante, who declined to comment specifically on the allegation that juice spilled on the Xbox triggered a beating, said. A grand jury handed down an indictment on Wednesday that charges Fair with four counts of first-degree murder. After his arrest last month, he was initially charged with aggravated battery. Prosecutors announced their intentions on sentencing on Thursday. Fair remains jailed after bail was set at $5 million. His arraignment is scheduled for February 17. Greece's defence minister, who is head of the main coalition partner of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, announced his resignation on Sunday ahead of an upcoming parliamentary vote to end a 27-year name dispute with Macedonia. "The Macedonia issue does not allow me not to sacrifice my post," Panos Kammenos said after a meeting with Tsipras. "I thanked the prime minister for the cooperation and I explained to him that for this national issue we cannot continue," he said, adding that his Independent Greeks party (ANEL) "is pulling out of the government". The nationalist ANEL supports the Tsipras administration with its seven lawmakers and has six ministers and junior ministers in the government. Kammenos had threatened to pull out of the government when the name deal comes to a vote in Athens from the moment Tsipras signed the agreement with Macedonian Prime Minister Zoran Zaev in June. However some of his ANEL party's MPs remain ambivalent. Macedonian lawmakers voted late on Friday to rename their country the Republic of North Macedonia but the agreement now needs backing from the Greek parliament to come into effect. For the Greeks, Macedonia is the name of a history-rich northern province that was the cradle of Alexander the Great's ancient empire. "Within ten days, in any case as soon as the (Macedonia parliamentary vote) result is notified to us and if we see that everything is in order, we will vote (to approve) the Prespes Agreement," Tsipras told Open TV earlier this week. The Greek prime minister believes the agreement can be ratified with the 145 lawmakers of his leftist Syriza party but also the votes of the small pro-EU To Potami party as well as some ANEL lawmakers that disagree agree with the position of Kammenos. The main opposition party of New Democracy is vehemently against the agreement. Revising the constitution to The deal was signed in the border Prespes region, after months of talks with Skopje. Tsipras added that a separate vote on a protocol to enable Macedonia to join NATO would be held "not long afterwards". Greece has previously blocked its neighbour's accession to NATO and the European Union ever since Macedonia broke away from the former Yugoslavia in 1991. Kammenos had threatened to pull out of the government when the name deal comes to a vote in Athens As the British parliament prepares for a crucial Brexit vote Tuesday, Germany's far right voted Sunday to break a national taboo by campaigning to quit the European Union if its demand for reforms within the bloc are not met. A party congress gathered in Riesa in Saxony state -- the Alternative for Germany's (AfD) biggest stronghold -- voted for the demand to be included in its manifesto for European Parliament elections in May. Aware that a vast majority of Germans remain in favour of their country's EU membership, delegates advanced cautiously. They called for a so-called "Dexit" only "as a last resort" if fundamental reforms do not reshape the EU "in an appropriate timeframe". But the decision marks the first time in Germany's post-war history that a political party has dared suggest blowing up the nation's EU membership. - European identity - Alongside the transatlantic alliance with the United States, membership in the EU project has long been a key element of German national identity, and one way the country has sought to move on from the Nazi past while defending its interests. By contrast, "AfD is trying to rehabilitate a German nationalist position" in political debate, historian and political scientist Klaus-Peter Sick told AFP. "This position is a normalisation of the nationalist right relative to what's going on in neighbouring countries like Italy or France," he added. "By moving onto this territory, AfD is carrying out a test within the party and among voters to discover whether it's a theme that can glean support." Germany's biggest opposition party since September 2017 elections, the AfD produced its manifesto only after intense internal negotiations. If "deep reforms" are not made, "we judge it necessary, as a last resort, for Germany to leave the EU or for the EU to be dissolved" in favour of an economic community, it declares. Among the changes demanded by the party are the abolition of the European Parliament and the euro single currency as well as an end to the "Islamisation" of Europe. - Maximalist demands - Many delegates originally hoped for an even tougher programme on "Dexit" that would allow just one European Parliament term -- until 2024 -- for reforms before the AfD would campaign directly for departure. But party chiefs urged the congress not to tie its hands with a fixed date. "I think we would be badly advised to campaign with a maximalist demand," said joint leader Alexander Gauland. He warned that if Brexit causes significant upsets to the British economy, comparable demands from a German party could scare off voters. More generally, with a massive pro-EU majority in Germany, AfD bosses know they could deter swathes of potential voters by talking too loudly about quitting. A European Parliament survey in November found 82 percent of Germans would vote to remain in the EU if the country held a UK-style referendum, while 75 percent saw Brexit as either "probably" or "definitely" the wrong decision. The move opens up a new front for the AfD alongside opposition to Islam and immigration, the foundation of the party's electoral successes since 2015 and the arrival of more than one million asylum seekers. Far-right leaders need fresh issues to whip up sentiment, after their favourite punching-bag Chancellor Angela Merkel announced her retirement for 2021 at the latest. Their European sally comes two days before a critical UK parliament vote on whether to accept a deal that London has negotiated with Brussels. At present the accord looks set for rejection, increasing the danger of a chaotic departure with unforeseeable consequences. Germany's far-right AfD is the first party to ever call for Dexit -- Berlin's exit from the EU A fisherman was almost killed by a hippo in a terrifying attack which left him covered in blood with shredded clothes. Mathew Wanjiuku was overpowered by the hippo for 10 minutes at Lake Naivasha in Kenya, which is home to 2000 hippos. Four fishermen were caught off guard by the beast before Mr Wanjiuku was seized by the hippo. The attack was caught on camera by Italian photographer Federico Genovese, 47, who described the horrific incident. I have never seen anything as shocking as this before, Mr Genovese said. The hippo was caught on camera attacking Matthew Wanjiuku. Source: Caters He was grabbed by the head and rattled, the hippo penetrated his ribs, and his two arms were passed from side to side by the teeth of the hippo. Stamping its feet and swinging its head vigorously, the hippo appeared to be trying to trample its victim. The hippo bit the fishermans arm, shoulder, and torso, leaving him bleeding on the ground. Quick thinking onlookers banged on a metal sheet, which eventually distracted the hippo and prompted it to move away, allowing Mr Wanjiuku to escape to the shore. He was lying on the side of the lake, covered in blood, with most of his clothes torn and tattered, he looked to have escaped death after the beating he had just received, Mr Genovese said. Fisherman Matthew Wanjiuku (left front) and photographer Federico Genovese (right). Source: Caters Mr Wanjiuku was rushed to the closest hospital, where he was treated for external injuries and puncture wounds to his torso and arm. He has since made a full recovery. Im good, Im lucky, Mr Wanjiuku said in footage of him being discharged from hospital. Thank you for coming and seeing me, Im still breathing. God is good because Im alive, God bless you guys. Caters A possible land swap between Serbia and Kosovo, suggested by their leaders to end one of Europe's most volatile territorial disputes, has sparked concerns that the border could be redrawn along ethnic lines and reignite festering communal ethnic animosities. With few details yet made public, media reports say that the Serb majority northern border region around the city of Mitrovica would be incorporated into Serbia under the plan, which would also see Belgrade hand over a mainly ethnic Albanian region in Serbia. The trade-off would also see Belgrade finally recognise its former province as an independent state, 20 years after a bitter war between Serbia's forces and pro-independence ethnic Albanian guerrillas that led to Kosovo breaking away from Serbia in 2008. Kosovo's President Hashim Thaci, who along with Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic last year raised the possibility of redrawing the border, has insisted a revised version would not be drawn along ethnic lines. - 'Clear ethnic division' - But the plan has sent ripples of alarm through minorities in these regions, notably among ethnic Serbs living in enclaves dispersed in Kosovo who would be unaffected by such a deal. A territory swap would mean "clear ethnic division so that within decades there will be no Serbs left in Kosovo," said Stefan Filipovic, a 24-year-old Kosovan Serb activist in Gracanica, one of those enclaves and a short drive south of the capital, Pristina. There are an estimated 120,000 Serbs living in Kosovo in total. Of those some 40,000 are thought to live around Mitrovica -- and are likely set to be part of the land swap -- while a further 80,000 live deeper in Kosovo and would remain under Pristina. Gracanica, home to one of Kosovo's main Orthodox monasteries, is one of six mainly Serbian municipalities that are like islands surrounded by Kosovo Albanian neighbourhoods. For Rada Trajkovic, an ethnic Serb politician in her 60s living in Gracanica, the border change would amount to creating "two mono-ethnic spaces" and lead to Serbs leaving Kosovan enclaves. Trajkovic is one of few Kosovar Serbs willing publicly to criticise Srpska Lista, or Serbian List, the minority's main political outlet. Most of Trajkovic's fellow Serb colleagues back the Belgrade line of President Vucic. - 'Abandoned by Belgrade' - Long a taboo subject, a territorial exchange has the backing of the United States as well as several EU officials. Germany, however, is opposed, warning of the potential for a renewed flare-up of the hardline nationalism which has marked the still fragile Balkans in the past. A NATO-led peacekeeping force has guarded Kosovo since it broke away from Serbia in a bloody war in 1998-99 that left more than 13,000 dead. Border revision "is a very dangerous, particularly dramatic idea," says Filipovic, who feels "abandoned by Belgrade". For Trajkovic, "if they cede the north of Kosovo to Serbia, I don't see why the (Kosovar) Albanians would show empathy with those (Serbs) living" in the enclaves. In the nearby village of Laplje Selo, a mainly Serb area home to around 1,000 people encroached upon by the glass and steel residences of Pristina, few people will speak openly of the border topic, still less openly criticise Vucic. But in the local pub four Serbs sip "rakija" brandy as they debate whether Vucic is abandoning them to "an Albanian prison". With barely a hint of irony one explains that "if someone can save us it's (Ramush) Haradinaj," the former Kosovo Liberation Army fighter-turned prime minister who Belgrade and the Serbs consider a war criminal. Haradinaj opposes border revision, warning that it will only lead to "new wars." - Monkish defiance - "I imagine president Vucic won't leave us to fend for ourselves," says Jagoda Trajkovic, a 69-year-old pensioner dropping off a grandson at Laplje Selo's tiny school. Others are not so confident. They include Father Sava Jancic, abbot at Visoki Decani, a Serb Orthodox medieval monastery and a UNESCO world heritage site. Recent years have passed in the vicinity in tranquil enough fashion, save for occasional demonstrations by Kosovar Albanians demanding the monks give up some of their land. But in 2008, the year Kosovo declared independence, an Albanian fired a missile at the churchyard wall. "I am personally in possession of very credible information... according to which they are already working on the details of an exchange of land along ethnic lines," says Father Sava, who during the conflict protected Kosovar Albanians from Serbian forces. In his view, border alterations "would amount to abandoning 80,000 Serbs, leaving them with a very low and dubious level of security and protection." One of the very few to oppose President Vucic in public, Father Sava was last year the target of a Belgrade tabloid press campaign that described him as a "great Albanian patriot" -- or, essentially, a traitor. Serbian President Aleksander Vucic, together with Kosovo's Hashim Thaci, raised the possibility last year of redrawing their border Map showing the border between Serbia and Kosovo and zones with a majority population of Serbs or Albanians Visoki Decani is a Serb Orthodox medieval monastery and a UNESCO world heritage site Gracanica, a short drive south of the capital, is home to one of Kosovo's main Orthodox monasteries Kosovo Serbs are dispersed in small enclaves like Gracanica Image: Getty Australia has a dangerously low stockhold of fuel and its a threat to both fuel and national security, a major union is warning. The Maritime Union of Australia is the latest to sound the alarm over Australias fuel stockpile levels, after the latest Department of Energy figures revealed there is only 22 days of petrol in reserves. Thats significantly lower than the International Agencys 90-day fuel stockholding requirement. However, Australia has failed to meet this obligation since March 2012, the Maritime Union of Australia said, pointing the figure at the Morrison, Abbott and Turnbull governments. The union, which is a division of the Construction Forestry Maritime Mining & Energy Union (CFMEU), said Australias fuel and national security was in a precarious position. There are now zero Australian-crewed tankers supplying fuel to our nation and just four refineries. This means we now import well over 90 per cent of our fuel and that will be 100 per cent before we know it, unless government policy changes the direction of the industry, Maritime Union national secretary Paddy Crumlin said. Crumlin noted industry claims it has 56 days of import coverage out of mega-refineries in Asia. However he warned a similar catastrophe to the Aulac Fortune which killed one crew member on Tuesday, highlights the wobbly nature of the industry. A similar fire at one of the mega-refineries in Singapore could bring Australia to its knees not only due to lost production, but also the fact that vessels on the spot market would most likely shoot through to the highest bidder and we would have a price war on our hands, Crumlin said. This isnt only a matter of fuel security but also national security. Unlike Australian seafarers, foreign crews have no background checks yet they are carrying petroleum products, ammonium nitrate and liquified natural gas around the Australian coast. Australia is one of the few countries which doesnt have a government-mandated reserve of fuel. Story continues And as retired major-general and Coalition Senator Jim Molan told The Australian, the dwindling reserves are a growing concern given continued tension in the Middle East, the South China Sea and the Korean Peninsula. According to the Maritime Unions report, Australias Fuel Security Running on Empty, released last year, Australia requires the equivalent of nearly 60 full-time fuel import tankers to maintain supply. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced a review into Australias liquid fuel security in May last year and has committed to develop a strategy to return to 90-day stockpiles by 2026. However, this strategy is still classed as under development. Make your money work with Yahoo Finances daily newsletter. Sign up here and stay on top of the latest money, news and tech news. Now read: This metal is becoming the most precious of precious metals Now read: The 5 property red flags you NEED to know Now read: Australians are owed $6.2 billion from their friends The government is anything but intact. The real question is what are O'Neill, Abel and their foreign cronies, who have become millionaires on our people's tax money, doing to ensure they have the numbers to defeat a motion of vote of no confidence? Really? If the government was really intact then why did it adjourn parliament until this month to avoid sitting during the first week of February, which has been the practice in the past. We [the government] are fully intact as far as I am concerned, the prime minister has our support, Abel has said. MADANG Papua New Guineas deputy prime minister Charles Abel has gone on record in an interview with the Post Courier newspaper claiming he is not at all fazed by the looming vote of no confidence in Peter ONeill. Abel claims the people gave the mandate to govern to the Peoples National Congress Party after the 2017 national general election. PNC Party got the mandate of the people and I think any incoming government after an election must continue to have the opportunity to govern," Abel is reported as saying. I dont think changing governments or prime ministers and disturbing the mandate of the people is conducive to good governance. Wrong! PNC did not get the mandate of the people. PNC went into the 2017 general elections with 52 sitting members and endorsed a total of 93 candidates. Of the 52 sitting MPs only 22 were re-elected representing a return of just 42%. And of 93 candidates endorsed, only 29 (32%) were elected. These results are hardly a mandate of the people. A majority mandate would be returning 56 MPs not 29. Further, independent international observers described the 2017 general election as marred by widespread violence, vote rigging and bribery, declaring it anything but free and fair. The question is just how many seats would PNC have won if the election was free and fair - perhaps just 10, if any. An interesting fact is that Abel lost support even in his own electorate. In 2012 Abel polled 15,000 votes; however in 2017 his vote dropped to 11,000. His primary vote dropped from 12,000 to 8,000. With Abels praise of the purported achievements by PNC and the ONeill government, one would think his voter base would be going forward not backwards. The recent unrest and ongoing social issues facing Alotau suggest Abel is at serious risk of not being returned in 2022. Now while some will say the same of issues facing Madang, the difference is I inherited the issues. Ive been in office only one year of my first term, while Abel has been the Member for Alotau for 11 years. So there is no real excuse on his part. Abel talks of good governance, well I believe Abel is confused between opportunity to govern with opportunity to steal. O'Neill is known for everything but good governance. It is my view O'Neill will go down in the history as PNG's most corrupt prime minister. Abel goes on to declare his unwavering support for prime minister ONeill. "The prime minister certainly has my support and our PNC Party is fully intact, we are not particularly fazed by vote of no confidence, it is part of politics and we just have to deal with them. One would understand Abel wouldn't support a change of government for starters, it would mean he would be stripped of his position as deputy prime minister and treasurer and may end up becoming politically irrelevant. Meanwhile, the people have to deal with a flat-lining economy, record increases in the cost of living, increasing taxes, a hike in tertiary fees, little or no job prospects, hospitals without drugs, escalating law and order issues, and no payment of entitlements and allowances, to name a few. Another issue of serious concern is Papua New Guineans forced to live in poverty and watch the influx of Chinese nationals, who arrive with nothing but a suitcase and end up as overnight millionaires on our resources and public funds thanks to stupid and corrupt politicians and government officials who are only too willing to award them inflated multi-million kina contracts. Parliament will resume in eight days on 22 January. If Abel is of the view it would be wrong to disturb the peoples mandate, maybe it time to ask the people where their mandate lies. If there is an opportunity, the governor should take it. The Opposition's impending vote of no confidence in prime minister Peter ONeill is that golden chance. A person lives only once and golden opportunities do not come very often. The post of prime minister would be his final crowning accomplishment for Enga and Papua New Guinea. This could be his time. He has been a politician all his adult life. His achievements for the Enga people speak for themselves. WABAG Over the next few days, the Enga Governor, Grand Chief Sir Peter Ipatas, must give serious thought to consider putting up his hand to become the next prime minister of Papua New Guinea. Ipatas has experience at all levels of the three-tier system of government in PNG - local, provincial and national. He is one of the longest serving governors and one of the most experienced politicians in government ranks right now. He must not miss this golden chance like Don Pomb Polye did. Instead Polye became instrumental in making Peter ONeill the national leader. He must now be regretting all those lost opportunities when he should have had a crack at the top job in the 15 years he was in parliament. The other highlands provinces (pre Hela and Jiwaka) have had their share of governors-general and prime ministers. Enga has patiently waited and hoped. Politics can be brutal. Waiting and hoping dont count. The vote of no confidence is that golden chance. Ipatas should consult with the experienced and wise Enga quartet of Rimbink Pato, Alfred Manase, John Pundari and Tomait Kapili, who are all in government. Sir Peter Ipatas addressing a crowd in Enga When O'Neill formed his Peoples National Congress, Ipatas formed the Peoples Party, Pato resurrected the United Party and Pundari started the PNG Peoples Revival Party. Meanwhile Polye built the Triumph, Heritage and Empowerment Party, that other Enga hausman. Any one of them could have become prime minister if their political party had been more successful. But instead they spread their voices. The five Enga MPs in government have supported O'Neill long enough. They are all educated and understand what is happening to this country. PNG desperately needs a change of leadership to point this resource rich, sovereign nation in a different direction. The five Engan MPs in government must move with Ipatas in one accord to prevent PNG sinking deeper into anarchy and total chaos. They need to let the Enga people see them unite to install Ipatas as prime minister. They should discuss among themselves who should replace him as governor of Enga and negotiate with the Opposition to retain the ministerial portfolios they already have. Besides poor governance, law and order is the number one threat to peace and unity in Enga and PNG. Because there is poor governance, there are unprecedented law and order problems, deep rooted corruption, cold blooded killings, illegal logging and so many other serious problems including those in education and health - which worry the people of this country. In scenically beautiful Enga, violence is posing terrible problems The use of high-powered guns in tribal warfare is increasing in Enga Province, resulting in hundreds of people being killed and property worth billions of kina destroyed every year. Many impact projects have been initiated by Ipatas and Enga MPs past and present. But many of these projects have been destroyed by tribal warfare and the government now finds it hard to replace them. It is time for Engas elected leaders to unite and move to opposition and help Ipatas become the next prime minister. A united stand will unite Enga and save Papua New Guinea. It is time for Grand Chief Sir Peter Ipatas to make his move. . , . " " . , , . - ... Open source German companies constructing the Nord Stream 2 pipeline received a letter from the US ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, warning of "a significant risk of sanctions," DW reports. We emphasize that companies involved in Russian energy exports are taking part in something that could prompt a significant risk of sanctions," the letter says. The US ambassador noted that "the gas pipeline has serious geopolitical consequences for our European allies and partners." The Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate appointed the chairman of the Kyiv Stauropegion - that is, St. Andrews Church, which is the permanent representative office of the Church of Constantinople in the Ukrainian capital. It is the Archimandrite Mykhailo (Anischenko). It is reported by the BBC with reference to Romfea and sources in Constantinople. Archimandrite Mykhailo (Anischenko) had been previously serving as the head of the church in the Turkish city of Antalya. The Kyiv Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate re-established Kyiv Stauropegion in October last year. Soon after, the Verkhovna Rada approved the decision to transfer the St. Andrews Church to Ecumenical Patriarchate for permanent use. This step was then called the "symbolic gesture of unity with the Mother Church." St. Andrews Church that serves as the residence of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and the representation of the Church of Constantinople. Earlier we reported that granting the autocephaly to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine became a historic achievement. This is the key message in the statement by Mike Pompeo, the U.S. Secretary of the State. The text might be found on the Department of the State's website. 'The January 6th announcement of autocephaly for an independent Orthodox Church of Ukraine marks a historic achievement as Ukraine seeks to chart its own future. On this momentous occasion, the United States reiterates its unwavering support for a sovereign, independent Ukraine. The United States maintains its strong support for religious freedom, including the freedom for members of religious groups to govern their religion according to their beliefs, without external interference. We welcome remarks by Metropolitan Epiphaniy that the Orthodox Church of Ukraine is open to all Orthodox believers and encourage government and Church officials to promote tolerance and respect for the freedom of members of all religious affiliations to worship as they choose', says the message. The death toll of an explosion in Paris bakery, which happened the day before, increased to four people. It is reported by Le Figaro. Parisian prosecutor's office reports that rescuers have found another body under the rubble. The explosion took the lives of two firefighters and two civilians, about forty people got injured, some of them were in serious condition. A citizen of Ukraine received minor injuries as a result ofan explosion at a Paris bakery, the head of the Ukrainian Embassy in France consular department, Mykola Sobko, informed. "The man lived in a hotel opposite the building, where the explosion occurred, and received minor injuries," the diplomat said. According to him, Ukrainian was provided with the necessary consular assistance. His health condition is assessed as satisfactory. As reported, a strong explosion thundered at a bakery located on rue de Trevise in Paris downtown, around 9 a.m. local time. As a result of the blast, windows in neighboring houses were broken. According to preliminary data, the explosion occurred due to a gas leak. After it, a fire started in the building. The media noted that this bakery was supposed to be closed on Saturday morning. Thousands of people came to the streets of Belgrade, the Serbian capital, and other cities of the country on January 12, opening the sixth week of mass protests against President Alexandar Vucic and the ruling Serbian Progressive Party. This is reported by Reuters. Protesters brought together by the Alliance for Serbia, a loose grouping of 30 opposition parties and organizations, chanted Vucic, thief!... Protesters in Belgrade have also accused Vucic of preparing a negotiated settlement with Kosovo, a key precondition for Serbia to join EU," as said in a statement. The rally was held on the eve of the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Serbia. Although Vucic claims that the country's goal is to join the EU, he continues to maintain close relations with Russia. It is noted that the demonstrators consider Vucic an autocrat, and his party a corrupt one. In an interview with the pro-government Studio B TV during the protest, Vucic said he was ready to discuss the opposition demands. Vucic earlier suggested he was willing to test his partys popularity in a snap vote, although Vuk Jeremic, a former foreign minister and the head of the small Peoples Party, part of the alliance, said the opposition would boycott any election. The 18-year-old teenager went against her family and the whole kingdom of Saudi Arabia 18-year old citizen of Saudi Arabia named Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun, who escaped from her family, fearing execution for renouncing Islam, arrived in Canada, AP reports. Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun smiled broadly as she exited an arrival door at Torontos airport Saturday sporting a Canada zipper hoodie after a dramatic week that saw her flee her family while visiting Kuwait and before flying to Bangkok, where she barricaded herself in an airport hotel to avoid deportation, reads the message. Related: Germany not to sell arms to Saudi Arabia because of death of journalist Khashoggi Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada Chrystia Freeland met the girl at the airport. Canadian authorities granted asylum to Alqunun. She asked the U.S. and Australia for asylum as well. 18-year old Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun became known after she told her story. She faces prison, and death after it because she declined Islam. Even if she is not sentenced to capital punishment, her relatives who have not accepted the rejection of Islam will kill her. Open source U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Qatar Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abderrahman Al-Thani signed a memorandum of understanding, which provides for the expansion of the U.S. El-Udeid airbase in Qatar, Interfax-Ukraine reports. "We signed a memorandum of understanding with Qatar on the expansion of the American military base El Udeid, which has thousands of American troops stationed. This base is very important for us, and we are grateful to Qatar for hosting our contingent in this country," Pompeo told the press on Sunday, January 13th. The U.S. Secretary of State previously stated that the base is currently receiving 13 thousand US troops. Mike Pompeo also noted that Washington is counting on forming an alliance of the six Gulf states, as well as Jordan and Egypt. Since the outbreak of hostilities in eastern Ukraine, sappers have inspected about 30,000 hectares of territory and eliminated 429 thousand explosive items. It is reported by the Office of Environmental Safety and Mine Action of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, reports UNN. "Since the beginning of the hostilities, about 30 000 hectares of territories have been checked and over 429 thousand explosive objects have been destroyed," the ministry said. At the same time, the territories are still not considered completely safe and ready for transfer to the use of local communities. Earlier we informed that 65 explosions of mines and explosive items occurred in occupied Donbas and in the gray zone in 2018, as a result of which 25 military men died. As reported, three children died from the explosion of a mine near the occupied Horlivka. We recall that in late August, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that since the start of the hostilities in Donbas, 21 children had died because of mines. In total, 1858 people suffered from mines. 65 explosions of mines and explosive items occurred in occupied Donbas and in the gray area in 2018, as a result of which 25 military men died. This was reported by the Department of Environmental Safety of the Ministry of Defense, UNN reports. "During 2018, numerous cases of servicemen injured on mines and explosive remnants of war in certain regions of Donetsk and Luhansk regions temporarily, not controlled by the government of Ukraine, and in the gray area were recorded. There were 65 cases, as a result of which 25 soldiers died, 84 got injured, among which were also sappers," reported in the Department. As reported, three children died from the explosion of a mine near the occupied Horlivka. We recall that in late August, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that since the start of hostilities in Donbas, 21 children had died because of mines. A total of 1858 people suffered from mines. On January 12, the militants shelled the drone of OSCE SMM near Chermalyk village in Donetsk region. Ukraine's Joint Control and Coordination Center (JCCC) reported this on the Facebook page of the Joint Forces Operation. According to the data of the Ukrainian side of Joint Control and Coordination Center, such activities are connected with an intention to hide its fire activity in the direction of the Joint Forces units. The Bangladesh government on Sunday announced its decision to revise wages for readymade garment workers to end the week-long unrest. The state Labour and Employment Minister Munnujan Sufian announced the governments decision of a wage hike in the grades 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. Sources in the Awami League-led government said, This decision was announced after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina intervened to end the unrest and asked the ministers to immediately hike the wages. Earlier in the day, the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exports Association had threatened to shut down all factories if workers did not return to work immediately on Monday. The country witnessed a week-long violent agitation by the readymade garment workers ever since they began their movement against the government from January 6, demanding a wage hike. While one worker died amidst clashes with the police, over 100 workers were injured in Mirpur, Savar and Ashulia. On Sunday too, violent clashes broke out at Dhakas outskirts in Ashulia between the readymade garment workers and police leaving as many as 20 workers injured. Agitators had put up a road blockade on the Dhaka-Tangail highway for several hours. The agitators pelted stones at the police when the police in return charged batons, fired tear gas and used water cannons to disperse the agitators. NEW DELHI: Controversial Uttar Pradesh Minister Om Prakash Rajbhar has mocked the newly announced pre-poll alliance between Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party and the BSP headed by Mayawati in Uttar Pradesh. The minister said that the SP-BSP alliance, which was announced just ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha polls, will not be able to dent BJP's poll prospects in Uttar Pradesh. However, he said that the coming together of the two parties has indeed made the task difficult for the saffron party. Taking a dig at the pre-poll tie-up between the two parties, Rajbhar said, ''The SP-BSP alliance in UP is like a used cartridge. It won't impact the prospects of the ruling BJP here.'' The minister said that the political alliances are being forged across the country today, so the SP-BSP tie-up was also no big deal. ''Everyone knows about the fate of the two parties in 2017,'' Rajbhar said. When asked if it was right on his part to keep commenting on the BJP since his party shares power with the former in UP, the minister said he was just speaking the truth and was not afraid to be called a rebel. Referring to the recently passed upper caste quota bill, Rajbhar suggested the BJP to provide reservation in three categories of the backward castes. Rajbhar said that doing so will help BJP as there are nearly 5-7 lakh voters from the backward castes in each Lok Sabha constituencies which might vote favour the saffron party-led aliance in the polls. Interestingly, Rajbhar had sometimes back warned that the ruling BJP will be wiped out in the state in Lok Sabha elections if the BSP and Samajwadi Party join hands. Rajbhar is a state cabinet rank minister in the Yogi Adityanath government in UP. He also heads the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) party. "It is very clear that if these two one-time rivals come together, the BJP will certainly be decimated in the state" where it won 71 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats in 2014, Rajbhar had said. He had also announced that his party would stage state-wide protests on the issue of 27 percent reservations. Rajbhar has made several controversial statements in past questioning the BJP's government's functioning in UP and attacked the central leadership of the saffron party for not valuing the smaller NDA allies. New Delhi: Ahead of grand Kumbh Mela at Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj, police on Sunday conducted checkings at Shahjahanpur Railway Station along with bomb squad and the dog squad. "We've started a checking campaign in view of Kumbh Mela. GRP, Civil Police, RPF among others are conducting the checkings," Arvind Kumar, Station Officer, Government Railway Police said. Shahjahanpur: Police along with bomb squad & dog squad conducts checkings at Shahjahanpur Railway Station; Arvind Kumar, Station Officer, Govt Railway Police, says, "We've started a checking campaign in view of 'Kumbh Mela. GRP, Civil Police, RPF among others conducted checking" pic.twitter.com/QRkEPjN6LU ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) January 13, 2019 With just two days left for the 55-day long Kumbh Mela to begin, preparations are in full swing at Prayagraj. In the wake of the Mela, police will keep a strong vigil and monitor the areas adjoining the banks of the river Ganges and its tributaries. The official informed that Police, Industry Department, Environment Department, and District Magistrate will work in coordination to ensure that river Ganges remains clean during the Kumbh Mela when million take a dip into the holy river. Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the Kumbh Mela, with intelligence agencies, central police forces, and contingents of civil police been deployed tactfully to work in a coordinated manner informed the official. Also, the administration is taking help of Non-Government Organisations (NGO's) and citizens in maintaining law and order. The Kumbh Mela or the festival of the sacred pitcher will start on January 15 and will end on March 4. The Mela area has been lit by setting up more than 40,000 LED lights. This year, the auspicious bathing dates are Makar Sankranti (January 15), Paush Poornima (January 21), Mauni Amawasya (February 4), Basant Panchami (February 10), Maghi Poornima (February 19) and Mahashivratri (March 4). It is the largest human congregation in the world, with over 130 million pilgrims expected to participate in the festival with the belief that taking a dip in the holy water of Ganges River will pave the way for their salvation and would rid them of their sins. Lucknow: Left out of the SP-BSP pre-poll tie-up in Uttar Pradesh, the Congress on Sunday announced that it would go it alone on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state in the upcoming general election. After a brainstorming session with senior party leaders, Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi. Azad, however, said his party would accommodate any secular force that was capable of taking on the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Lok Sabha polls. The meeting of the Congress was held a day after the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) announced their alliance in Uttar Pradesh, sharing 38 seats each and leaving two seats for the smaller parties, besides leaving Rae Bareli and Amethi for United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi respectively. Speaking to reporters here, Azad said, "The Congress will contest on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh and defeat the BJP." He also expressed hope that the Grand Old Party would double the tally of 21 seats it had secured in the state in the?2009 general election. To a question on whether the Congress will forge a coalition with any other political party, Azad said, "If any party is willing to accompany the Congress and the Congress feels that it can fight the BJP, then it will definitely be accommodated." On his party being left out of the SP-BSP alliance, the Congress leader said, "We wanted that the Congress should have been a part of the Grand Alliance (against the BJP) in Uttar Pradesh. But if someone does not want to walk along, nothing can be done." Asked whether the Congress would field candidates in seats which will be contested by BSP supremo Mayawati and SP chief Akhilesh Yadav (since the SP-BSP alliance will not field nominees from Rae Bareli and Amethi), Azad?did not give any clear answer. On the possibility of a post-poll alliance with the SP and the BSP, he said at the national level, the Congress would welcome all the secular regional parties. Replying to another question on the SP-BSP tie-up, Azad said, "The Congress workers are not at all disappointed on being left out of the alliance. On the contrary, they are saying the party would have had to contest on 25 seats, but now it would be contesting on all the 80 Lok Sabha seats in the state. Congress president Rahul Gandhi will hold at least 13 rallies in Uttar Pradesh." At the joint press conference with Yadav held here on Saturday, Mayawati had explained why the Congress was left out of the pre-poll tie up of the SP and the BSP. She had said that during the Congress's rule in the country, poverty, unemployment and corruption grew, and there were scams in defence deals. The BSP chief had also pointed out that in the past, her party had not benefitted from seat-sharing pacts with the Congress. "In the past, I have seen that our votes get transferred to the Congress, but not vice-versa. We do not gain from an alliance with the Congress, whereas the vote transfer is perfect in an SP-BSP tie-up," Mayawati had said. Drawing a parallel between the Congress and the BJP, she had said while the former had imposed Emergency in the country, the latter was responsible for the current state of "undeclared Emergency". Azad on Sunday accused the BJP of dividing the country for power and claimed that the saffron party had failed to fulfil any of its poll promises. "The coming Lok Sabha election is a battle to unite India and safeguard the democratic values," he said. Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress leader said, "Modi is not concerned about the country, he is bothered about his own chair. One of the biggest scams has taken place during the tenure of this government. The government has not gone for a probe. Not going for a probe does not mean that the scam has not been committed." Stating that the Congress had always put the country before everything else, he cited the examples of the party sacrificing power in Jammu and Kashmir to strengthen Sheikh Abdullah and how it had sacrificed power to put an end to terrorism in Mizoram. "The Congress has been fighting for the rights of the poor, farmers, backward castes and Dalits since even before Independence and after Independence, it is following the same ideology," he said. On the possibilities of an alliance with the Ajit Singh-led Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), Azad said he would not like to speak to the media about it. Hyderabad: With thousands of families living in Hyderabad heading to their native places in both the Telugu states for Sankranti, the Telangana government on Saturday decided to waive toll tax for commuters on national highways. Chief Secretary S.K. Joshi issued instructions to waive off the toll gates charges to the commuters on national highways to and fro from Hyderabad on January 13 and January 16, a day before and a day after the three-day festival, according to an official release. The move is expected to provide relief to many families travelling to their native towns and villages in Telangana and neighbouring Andhra Pradesh. It will ease long traffic snarls seen at the toll gates on Hyderabad-Vijayawada, Hyderabad-Warangal and other highways since Friday night. Hundreds of four-wheelers were waiting at the toll gates for their turn, slowing down the movement of vehicles on the highways. Sankranti is a major harvest festival of Telugu people. Thousands employed in Hyderabad head to their homes in towns and villages. South Central Railway and Telangana State Road Transport Corporation (TSRTC) were operating special trains and buses respectively between Hyderabad and other destinations to clear the Sankranti rush. PUNE: The mortal remains of Major Shashi Dharan V Nair, who lost his life in an IED blast in Nowshera, were brought to his home in Pune's Khadagwasla on Sunday where his last rites will be conducted. Nair had attained martyrdom after being seriously injured in an IED blast in Nowshera along the Line of Control (LoC) on January 11. The Army officers mortal remains were transported in a service aircraft from Jammu to Pune on Saturday. #Pune: Mortal remains of Major Shashi Dharan V Nair brought to his home in Khadakwasla. He lost his life in IED blast in Nowshera on 11th January. pic.twitter.com/SETpjPHj72 ANI (@ANI) 13 January 2019 Major Nair was earlier given a tearful adieu by the Army, which hailed the valiant officer for making the supreme sacrifice for the nation. The IED, which killed Major Nair, was planted by the Border Action Team of the Pakistan Army with the help of terrorists along the LoC. At Rajouri, General Officer Commanding, Ace of Space Division, Major General H Dharmarajan paid homage to the officer. At Technical Airport, Jammu, Inspector General of Police, Jammu, MK Sinha; Station Commander, Jammu; Chief Security Officer, 16 Corps; Station Commander, Air Force Station, Jammu, and others paid tributes to the Army officer. Major Nair hailed from Khadagwasla, Pune and is survived by his wife Trupti Shashidharan Nair. Born on July 30, 1985, Major Nair had joined the Army 11 years ago. The last rites of Major Nair will be conducted today. Meanwhile, another soldier - Rifleman Jivan Gurung - was killed in an IED attack along the LoC in the Nowshera sector of Rajouri. He was from Lamahatta village, Darjeeling, West Bengal. He is survived by his mother Poonam Gurung. New Delhi: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan is a doting husband to Gauri and a caring father to his three children, Suhana, Aryan and AbRam. The actor often shares deets from his life on social media and keeps his fanbase happy and updated. SRK is one of the actors who have a huge fan-following in not just the home country, but abroad as well. On Sunday, the actor took to Twitter and shared a picture with his younger son. The pic is captioned as, Weekend Research: A survey has found that One in Three men are just as lazy as the other Two! We r the other two and we dont agree....mom! Weekend Research: A survey has found that One in Three men are just as lazy as the other Two! We r the other two and we dont agree....mom! pic.twitter.com/BRhzslpD73 Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) January 13, 2019 Did the pic give you lazy Sunday vibes? SRK got married to his first love, Gauri on October 25, 1991. The two make for one of the most loved couples of Bollywood today and continue making us believe in true love! On the work front, SRK's latest outing 'Zero' has received mixed reviews from the critics as well as the audience. The film also starred Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma in lead roles besides SRK. Though the script of the film was not upto the mark, all three lead actors have received a lot of appreciation for their performance in the film. SRK plays a happy-go-lucky man named Bauua Singh while Katrina plays a glamorous actress named Babita Kumari. Anushka plays a scientist named Aafia who is battling a cerebral palsy. Israel's biggest relief and rescue team, United Hatzalah, has praised the relief and rescue operations underway to trace and rescue the miners stranded in Meghalaya. Lauding the National Disaster Response Force, United Hatzalah said that NDRF is a very professional organisation and are doing a fantastic job. A small team of United Hatzalah had recently visited India related to community based awareness program. ''It is a very complicated operation and NDRF is a very professional force. It would be wrong to say who is better between us. I have seen the operation of NDRF in Orissa and Nepal, they are fantastic'', Dov Maisel, Vice President of Operation, United Hatzalah said. It has been a month since 15 miners have been trapped in an illegal coal mine in Meghalaya's East Jaintia hills district. Around 250 rescue personnel of the NDRF, Navy, Coal India have been involved in operations. The Centre has also roped in the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI), the National Institute of Hydrology (NIH) for rescue operations. United Hatzalah is a free, volunteer-based emergency medical services (EMS) organization based in Jerusalem. Its mission is to provide immediate medical intervention during the critical window between the onset of an emergency and the arrival of traditional ambulance assistance. The team was garnered praise by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Israel two years ago. The PM had even invited the outfit's founder and president Eli Beer to the hotel where he was staying to learn more about the service. The PM had after the meeting said that he was deeply impressed by Israeli innovation. Founded in 2006, the team has grown to become the largest independent, non-profit, fully volunteer EMS organization in Israel, with over 4,500 volunteer medics nationwide. The organisation provides free services to all citizens regardless of race, religion, or national origin. Indore: Five persons, including a BJP leader and his three sons, were on Saturday arrested for allegedly killing a 22-year-old woman two years ago, with police claiming that the plot was inspired by the 2015 Bollywood film 'Drishyam' starring Ajay Devgn. Indore Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Harinarayanchari Mishra told reporters that BJP leader Jagdish Karotiya alias Kallu Pahlwan (65), his three sons Ajay (36), Vijay (38), Vinay (31) and their associate Neelesh Kashyap (28) were arrested in connection with the murder of Twinkle Dagre (22), a resident of Banganga area. He said Dagre was allegedly having an illicit relationship with Jagdish Karotiya and this was causing trouble in the latter's family as the woman wanted to stay with him. Mishra said, "Due to family discord, Karotiya and his sons plotted to kill Twinkle Dagre. They strangulated her on October 16, 2016 and later burnt her body." The DIG said police recovered a bracelet and other ornaments from the place where the woman's body was burnt, following which the five were arrested. "We have come to know that the accused had watched the film Drishyam before planning the murder. Inspired by a movie scene, they buried the body of a dog at one place. They spread the word that someone had buried a human body in this pit," he said. "When the police dug up the pit, the remains of the dog were recovered. This had misled police investigation," he said. Mishra said a scientific approach was adopted in order to solve the case and Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature (BEOS) test was conducted on Karotiya and his two sons in a Gujarat laboratory. This was the first time the BEOS test was conducted in a criminal incident in Indore, he claimed. BEOS profiling is a non-invasive, neuro-psychological technique of interrogation, sometimes referred to as 'brain fingerprinting', in which a suspect's participation in a crime is detected by eliciting electrophysiological impulses. Meanwhile, the deceased's family has alleged that Karotiya was given police patronage at the behest of a former BJP MLA. When asked about this, the DIG said no evidence has been found regarding the role of the former MLA. Further investigation is underway, he said. Ranchi: A top Naxal commander was on Sunday gunned down in an encounter with Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and police in the forests of Chatupada in Jharkhand's Dumka district. Naxal Commander Sahdev Rai was carrying a reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head. Dumka: Naxal Commander Sahdev Rai carrying a reward of Rs 10 lakh on his head killed in an encounter with Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) & police in forests of Chatupada. Search operation underway. Arms & ammunition recovered. #Jharkhand pic.twitter.com/6EpNzzQ5fZ ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2019 Arms and ammunition have also been recovered from the encounter spot. A search operation is, meanwhile, underway. SRINAGAR: Two dreaded terrorists, including Zeenat-ul-Islam associated with terror outfit Al Badr, were killed in an encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district on Saturday. It was a joint operation by the Army, Police and CRPF in Kulgam. The two were killed after the security forces launched a massive cordon and search operation in Katpora area in south Kashmir's Kulgam district on Saturday evening following specific information about the presence of two terrorists there. As the forces were conducting the searches, the two terrorists fired upon them forcing the security forces to retaliate strongly. In the ensuing encounter, the two dreaded terrorists were killed, a J&K Police spokesperson said. A large cache of arms and ammunition were recovered from the two slain terrorists, the official said, adding that no collateral damage has been reported. Several documents related to jihad in Kashmir were also recovered from them, the official said. Of the two slain terrorists, one of them was identified as Zeenat-ul-Islam, who was long associated with the terror group al Badr, the official said, Jammu&Kashmir: Two terrorists were killed in a joint operation last night by the Army, Police and CRPF in Kulgam. The terrorists have been identified as Zeenat-ul-Islam and Shakeel Ahmed Dar. Weapons and other warlike stores recovered. Operations concluded. ANI (@ANI) 13 January 2019 The other slain terrorist was identified as Shakeel Ahmed Dar, according to news agency ANI. Zeenat, considered to be an Improvised explosive device (IED) expert, was earlier associated with another terror group Hizbul Mujahideen, the official said. On Friday, an Army Major and a jawan lost their lives in an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district. An IED device was planted by suspected militants in Lam area of Nowshera sector, according to an Army spokesperson. MUMBAI: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday hit out at alliance partner Bharatiya Janata Party questioning if the promise of building a Ram temple in Ayodhya was 'jumla' just like the promise of depositing Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts. "Rs 15 lakh in accounts was a 'jumla' and now even this (Ram Temple) is a jumla? When we went to Ayodhya, people said, 'he is Bal Thackeray's son, he will get Ram Mandir built'. If you're making this issue also a jumla, how can you expect people to trust you," Thackeray said. He also targeted BJP for holding the Congress responsible for not building the temple. "They say Congress comes in between when Ram Mandir issue comes up. Just because Congress comes in the middle, people punished them by taking away the majority and giving you the power. However, we dont see any Ram Mandir built by you so far," he said. Unlike the BJP, he said, the Sena has raised the Ram temple construction issue before the polls to "expose" those who used the issue as a poll plank. "I raise the Ram mandir issue during elections only to expose others who always use it as an election plank," the Sena chief said. He also asked the BJP how could it build the Ram temple when it has allies like Nitish Kumar of the JD(U) and Ram Vilas Paswan of the LJP opposing it. "The BJP should come clean on it," he added. Targeting the Centre over the recently passed quota bill for upper caste economically weak people, he questioned if the government has considered how it will be implemented. "If you really want to help financially weaker section, then why dont you exempt those below Rs 8 lakhs per annum income from paying taxes? You have given reservations but have you calculated or considered the actual way of implementing reservations," he said. Thackeray also attacked BJP leaders for discussing Lord Hanuman's caste. "Why is Lord Hanumans caste being discussed? If any other religions castes are discussed, it will be made a huge issue, but its okay to discuss Lord Hanumans caste. How sad it is," he said. NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday released a commemorative coin to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh. While releasing the coin, the PM said that pilgrims will soon be able to have a visa-free entry at Darbar Sahib in Pakistan. "Through Kartarpur corridor, Sikh devotees will be able to make visa-free pilgrimage to Darbar Sahib in Narowal in Pakistan on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev," he said. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was also present at the event. He also patted his government on the back saying that it's because of the efforts of the Central government that the Kartarpur corridor is being built. "Now, Indians and Sikh don't need to use binoculars, they can go to Narowal without visas and can pay respects at the Darbar Sahib." Recalling the partition of India, he said that the corridor is "atonement of the mistake of August of 1947". Earlier in the day, President Ram Nath Kovind and the Prime Minister paid homage to the tenth Sikh master on his 352nd birth anniversary. "Homage to Guru Gobind Singh on his birth anniversary. He devoted his life to serving the people and upholding truth, justice and compassion. The example and teachings of Guru Gobind Singh continue to inspire us," Kovind tweeted. In his tweet, Modi said: "I bow to Sri Guru Gobind Singhji on his jayanti." Guru Gobind Singh is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the 'Khalsa Panth', the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. MUMBAI: BJP's estranged NDA ally Shiv Sena has taken a dig at the pre-poll tie-up between the Samajwadi Party and the BSP in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha elections and said that the absence of Congress has put a question mark on the proposed Grand Alliance or 'Mahagathbandhan' of the on-BJP parties. Taking potshots at the SP-BSP alliance for Lok Sabha polls, Shiv Sena spokesperson Manisha Kayande said both parties are ideologically opposite and none was people-oriented. "This alliance is not a people-oriented alliance. The only aim is to keep right-wing parties away. People know both parties have in the past bitterly opposed each other and their coming together now is purely for electoral purposes without a definite development agenda," Kayande said. She further said the alliance has dealt the first "blow" to the Congress's vision of a grand alliance. "This alliance has surely put a question mark and made the fate of 'mahagathbandhan' uncertain. Only the future will tell if (NCP chief Sharad) Pawar and (Congress president) Rahul Gandhi are able to do something for themselves before the elections," she said. NCP leader Dhananjay Munde, meanwhile, claimed the 2019 Lok Sabha polls against the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi would be the "second freedom struggle". "For this, all secular parties will have to come together and act responsibly. The SP-BSP-Congress and all other like-minded parties have to come together to safeguard our Constitution and democracy," the Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Legislative Council said. Once-arch rivals, the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Saturday announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 LS seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The parties, however, said they would not field candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by Congress president Rahul Gandhi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi respectively. The SP-BSP also left two seats, out of 80, for smaller allies. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said the alliance of SP-BSP was a state-specific issue. "However, in Maharashtra, we will ensure proper discussions take place and a consensus is arrived at for an alliance of like-minded parties," Sawant said. (With Agency Inputs) A day after Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) chief Shivpal Yadav on Sunday announced that his party is ready to form an alliance with the Congress. The SP president Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati made the alliance keeping the Congress out. Speaking to news agency ANI, Shivpal clarified that though his party hasn't had talks with Congress yet but they are open to talks with the grand old party. "Abhi humari baat toh nahi hui hai lekin jitne bhi secular party hain, Congress bhi hai. Agar Congress humse sampark karegi, humse baat karegi, toh main bilkul taiyaar hu (We haven't had a talk yet but there are many secular parties and Congress is one of them. If they contact us, speaks to us, then we're absoltuely ready)," said Shivpal. On Saturday, reacting to the alliance, Shivpal had said the "alliance is incomplete without Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party as only a secular front can defeat BJP." Peeved over Mayawati's accusation that it was being run by the BJP, Shivpal's party had hit back at the BSP chief, saying everyone knew who had formed the government with the saffron party earlier. "The allegation against Shivpalji is baseless. Everyone in the state knows who formed the government with the BJP, and which party sells ticket and is involved in corruption. Shivpal's fight against communalism is four-decade old," Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) chief spokesperson C P Rai had said. Mayawati had asked the party cadre "to not waste their vote on his (Shivpal's) party, (which is) funded by the BJP". "The BJP's money will go down the drain as it is running Shivpal's party," she said. Rai had said Akhilesh Yadav should understand that the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had earlier taken the votes of Dalits, Other Backward Class (OBC) and Muslims, and went with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), adding "history can be repeated". "The SP workers were framed in fake cases during the BSP regime. The SP allied with the party which humiliated Mulayam Singh Yadav and Janeshwar Mishra. This is an alliance of opportunism. Any 'samajwadi' will not accept it," he said. Supreme Court Judge AK Sikri on Sunday withdrew his consent to the offer extended by the government to nominate him to Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal, reported by news agency PTI citing sources. The government had earlier recommended Justice AK Sikri's name as India's nominee for president/member in the London-based Commonwealth Secretariat Arbitral Tribunal (CSAT). Official sources said nomination of Sikri, who retires on March 6, was made in December 2019 following an internal process carried out by the Law Ministry. Justice Sikri, the second senior-most judge in the apex court after Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, was part of the three-member panel along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior Congress leader Mallikajurn Kharge which decided on the removal of Alok Verma from the post of CBI Director. Sikri's vote proved crucial to remove Verma from his post as Kharge opposed the move strongly while the government was pushing for Verma's sacking. Justice Sikri supported the government. The External Affairs Ministry communicated to CSAT about India's nomination, the sources said. There was no reaction from either the Ministry of External Affairs or the Ministry of Law and Justice on it. The Commonwealth Secretariat, established in 1965, plays the role of an arbiter in case of disputes among its 53 member-countries. The CSAT has a total of eight members, including its president. The members are picked up on the basis of regional representations. A CSAT member has a tenure of four years. Ballia: BJP national spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain Sunday said that Congress president Rahul Gandhi must keep India's dignity in mind while speaking on foreign soil. Hussain criticised Gandhi a day after the Congress president, in a news conference in Dubai, accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of "helping" Anil Ambani "steal Rs 30,000 crore" of the country. In Dubai, Gandhi also reiterated his allegations that the prime minister shied away from defending himself personally in Lok Sabha on Rafale deal and fielded a woman, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman, instead for it. Gandhi also dubbed India as having become "intolerant" during the last four years under the BJP rule. Speaking to reporters here, Hussain said, "Rahul Gandhi (in Dubai) made indecent remarks against Prime Minister Modi and said that intolerance in India has gone up in the past four years." "The Congress president should have kept India's dignity in mind (while making statements). Terming India as intolerant is unfortunate," Hussain said. "Rahul should keep in mind that on foreign soil, he is not speaking against the leader of a political party, but speaking against the prime minister of the country. Using such unfortunate words will hurt Indians," Hussain rued. He added that "the people of the country will give a befitting reply to the Congress for using undignified language." On a question over the SP-BSP alliance, Hussain said, "This alliance will not pose any challenge to the BJP. The result of the SP-BSP alliance will be similar to the SP-Congress alliance forged ahead of 2017 UP assembly elections. People had then rejected 'UP ke ladke' and 'UP ko yeh saath pasand hai' and reposed its faith on the prime minister." Jaipur: Terming the Modi government's decision to provide 10-per cent reservation for the economically backward section in general category a move towards social justice, Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said thousands of seats will be there in higher education institutions under the new category from the next academic session. President Ram Nath Kovind has given his assent to the constitutional provision to provide 10-per cent reservation in government jobs and education to the economically backward section in the general category. The bill was passed by Parliament on January 9. "This is a revolutionary decision to deliver economic justice. This is a decision of social justice and my preparation has started. In June, when institutions open (for next session), thousands of seats will be there under ten per cent reservation in institutions like IIT, IIIT, NIT, central universities and others,? Javadekar said at a function here on Sunday evening. He said that no one's reservation was abolished and an additional 10 per cent reservation was given to economically backward sections of general category. Javadekar said Congress and other left parties had also promised such steps in their election manifestos but they did not take decision for providing reservation to economically backward people. Attacking Congress, the minister said corruption was rampant in Congress led former UPA government and claimed that no scam took place in the BJP government's rule. He also highlighted the achievements of the NDA government. The party's national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi also targeted the Congress president Rahul Gandhi in the intellectuals' meeting here, that was also attended by the party's state president Madan Saini and others. Puducherry: Chief Minister V Narayanasamy said here on Sunday said that the cabinet has decided to ban production, sale and use of single-use plastic products in the Union Territory from March 1. He said a massive drive would also be launched to create awareness among the merchants and the public on the necessity of the ban. "We want to gift a plastic-free Puducherry to the future generation and curb the plastic in the larger interest of the environment," he told newsmen after the cabinet meeting. The neighbouring Tamil Nadu government had in June 2018 announced that it would ban the use of plastic items including non-biodegradable carry bags from January 1, 2019, to "gift a plastic-free state to future generations". A nominated BJP MLA caused a flutter on the Assembly premises here on December 31 by resorting to sudden dharna urging the Puducherry government to ban immediately production, sale and use of plastic products in the Union Territory on the lines of neighbouring Tamil Nadu. Narayanasamy also said the cabinet has decided to introduce 'voluntary retirement scheme' for the workers and staff of the century old Anglo-French Textiles (AFT) mill and two other textile mills, named Bharathi and Swadeshi (run by Puducherry Textile corporation) in a phased manner in the next six months. The liquor business of the Puducherry Agro Service and Industries Corporation Limited, popularly known as PASIC and the Civil Supplies Corporation (PAPSCO) would be handed shortly to private players by auctioning licenses, the CM said. Narayanasamy also said the staff in the government-owned Pondicherry Industrial Promotion Development and Investment Corporation Limited (PIPDIC) and Distillery and Power Corporations would be extended the benefit of the report of the Seventh Pay Commission as these three organisations were functioning profitably. He said one per cent quota of reservation would also be provided to the members of the 'Irular, Villi and Vettaikaran' communities under the Scheduled Tribes Category in education and employment opportunities. NEW DELHI: President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid homage to the tenth Sikh master Guru Gobind Singh on his 352nd birth anniversary. "Homage to Guru Gobind Singh on his birth anniversary. He devoted his life to serving the people and upholding truth, justice and compassion. The example and teachings of Guru Gobind Singh continue to inspire us," President Kovind said in a tweet. Homage to Guru Gobind Singh on his birth anniversary. He devoted his life to serving the people and upholding truth, justice and compassion. The example and teachings of Guru Gobind Singh continue to inspire us #PresidentKovind President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) 13 January 2019 Paying tribute to the Sikh guru, PM Modi said, "I bow to Sri Guru Gobind Singhji on his Jayanti." I bow to Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji on his Jayanti. -- pic.twitter.com/Pt4k2BgLDS Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) 13 January 2019 The PM also shaared a video on the tenth Sikh Guru. Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the `Khalsa Panth`, the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. The festivities this year coincided with the festivals of `Lohri` and `Makar Sankranti`. Besides paying tributes to the Sikh Guru, President Kovind also exchanged greetings on the occasion of various festivities celebrated across the nation today. "As the sun enters Capricorn, and the weather begins to change and harvesting season begins in many parts of our country, greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens as we celebrate Lohri, Makar Sankranti, Bhogali Bihu, Pongal, Uttarayan and Poush Parbon," he said in another tweet. As the sun enters Capricorn, and the weather begins to change and harvesting season begins in many parts of our country, greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens as we celebrate Lohri, Makar Sankranti, Bhogali Bihu, Pongal, Uttarayan and Poush Parbon President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) 13 January 2019 "This festive occasion, which is celebrated in diverse yet similar ways across India, is a moment to celebrate the hard work and perseverance of all our people, especially farmers. May it herald prosperity and good fortune across the country." Meanwhile, thousands of devotees thronged gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Patna and other places across the country on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of 352nd birth anniversary of the tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. The holiest of Sikh shrines `Harmandir Sahib`, popularly known as Golden Temple, in Amritsar and other gurudwaras elsewhere, saw religious fervour to mark the guru`s birth anniversary. People braved the early morning chill to offer prayers at gurdwaras. The rush of devotees continued in most gurudwaras later in the day also. Long queues of devotees could be seen waiting for up to two hours to offer prayers inside the main shrine. The entire Golden Temple complex was decorated with special lighting. Heavy rush of devotees could be seen at the Takht Keshgarh Sahib gurudwara in Anandpur Sahib town, around 85 km from here, since early Sunday morning. It was at this place that Guru Gobind Singh founded the `Khalsa Panth`. Reports of hundreds of devotees offering prayers at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Patna city in Bihar, the birthplace of Guru Gobind Singh, were also received. Hundreds of people offered prayers at gurudwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, where the guru stayed for a few days during his lifetime. Gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh were decorated to mark the guru`s birth anniversary. Religious processions were taken out at all places in the region on Friday and Saturday to mark the birth anniversary. Tight security arrangements were made around all leading Sikh shrines in Punjab in view of recent terror-related incidents in the state. At the Golden Temple complex, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) task force members and volunteers kept a strict vigil inside the shrine complex. (With Agency Inputs) New Delhi: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is on a two-day visit to Andaman and Nicobar islands starting Sunday, will review Special Forces', amphibious warfare operations. The Defence Minister will witness a joint military drill involving the Army, the Air Force, the Navy and the Coast Guard, officials said. She will also witness three exercises - general survival exercise, amphibious drill and a joint drill, an official said. Andaman and Nicobar is also the armed forces' tri-service command. At least two drills will see the participation of the three armed forces, the official added. The defence minister's official handle tweeted saying, "Smt @nsitharaman arrives in Port Blair to oversee a major joint exercise involving the @adgpi , @indiannavy , @IAF_MCC and @IndiaCoastGuard during her 2 day visit." Smt @nsitharaman arrives in Port Blair to oversee a major joint excercise involving the @adgpi , @indiannavy , @IAF_MCC and @IndiaCoastGuard during her 2 day visit. pic.twitter.com/XvJ4svQgc7 Raksha Mantri (@DefenceMinIndia) January 13, 2019 Andaman and Nicobar archipelago is straddled strategically near the mouth of the Malacca Straits. The Malacca Straits is also an important Sea Lane of Communication and used by the navies of several countries, including China which has been stepping up its military infrastructure in the Indian Ocean Region. (With inputs from agencies) NEW DELHI: The Narendra Modi government recently announced a series of measures to try to win over farmers, small business owners and the less well-off, after the ruling party suffered setbacks in state elections and with a general election due in months. The measures are likely to be a drain on finances in Asia's third-biggest economy, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government is trying to stick to a decade-low fiscal deficit target of 3.3 percent of the gross domestic product. But the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has promised even more perks ahead of the general election, which must be held by May. "They will be for development, they will be for transformation," Ravi Shankar Prasad minister for law, justice, and information technology, told parliament this week, referring to inducements for the electorate. "Who wins or loses, the people will decide. We are confident when elections happen, the country`s public will again give a big majority to the ruling coalition led by Narendra Modi." Reuters reported this week that the Reserve Bank of India could transfer an interim dividend of Rs 300 billion-400 billion to the government by March to help meet the fiscal deficit target as spending rises ahead of the election. Following are steps the government has taken, in addition to proposals for farm-loan waivers worth billions of dollars after the main opposition Congress defeated the BJP in the agrarian states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh in state assembly elections late last year. HELP FOR SMALL BUSINESSES The government on January 10 announced a change in national sales tax rules that would exempt an additional two million small businesses. Businesses with annual sales of up to Rs 4 million will be exempt from the Goods and Services Tax (GST). Currently, firms with an annual turnover of up to Rs 2 million are exempt. The change will come into effect in April. HELP FOR FARMERS Modi is considering three options for a relief package to help farmers suffering because of low crop prices at a cost of as much as Rs 3 trillion, according to three government sources. The possibilities are a direct payment to all landowning farmers, compensation for those who sold produce below government prices, and a loan forgiveness programme. JOB RESERVATION Parliament passed a landmark bill on Wednesday reserving 10 percent of government jobs for people outside high-income brackets. Under the amendment to the constitution, floated by the BJP, people with an annual income of less than Rs 800,000 rupees, and owning less than five acres of land, would be eligible. India already has job and education quotas for its lowest social classes, but this is the first time upper caste Hindus and people from other religions will benefit from affirmative action. ONIONS The government on December 28 doubled export incentives for onion farmers to 10 percent, following a steep drop in prices of the important staple. The export incentive programme allows farmers to get credit from the government, which can be used to pay various taxes. E-COMMERCE RULES The government said on December 26 it would ban e-commerce companies such as Amazon.com and the Walmart-owned Flipkart Group from selling products from companies in which they have an equity interest. The rule will be applicable from February 1, and came after complaints from retailers and traders, who say the big companies are using their control over inventory from their affiliates, and through exclusive sales agreements, to create an unfair market that allows them to sell some products at very low prices. SALES TAX CUT On December 22, the government slashed the sales tax rate on more than 20 items - including televisions, batteries and movie tickets - aiming to appeal to traders and the middle class. Patna: RJD national president Lalu Prasad on Saturday took to Urdu poetry for sending across a message that he has not lost his verve despite failing health and his incarceration. Prasad, who is serving sentences in a number of fodder scam cases and lodged in a Ranchi hospital for a number of debilitating ailments, shared the verse on Twitter along with a video and a post by an English magazine. The video talks about the various challenges faced by Prasad, whose bail plea was rejected by the Jharkhand High Court earlier this week. The accompanying post also questions if the RJD chief would be an absentee kingmaker in 2019. "I belong to a tribe of revolutionaries, a small army of those who stand for truth. It is not for nothing that I am in a fight with the order of the day, I have taken a stand for a cause," his tweet said. Reacting to the RJD chief's attempt at poetry, JD(U) spokesman Sanjay Singh tweeted with a verse wherein he accused Prasad of corruption, lies and deceit. Yadav's party, RJD, which is the largest constituent of the opposition in Bihar, faces the tough task of taking on the formidable alliance ruling the state which comprises Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U), the BJP and Ram Vilas Paswan's LJP. Leaders of the opposition alliance here, comprising RJD, Congress, RLSP and some other smaller parties, look up to the wily leader for finalising seat-sharing for the upcoming general elections. The former Bihar chief minister has been away from active politics since his conviction in December 2017 in the Deoghar treasury case, which was followed by conviction in two more cases of the multi-crore fodder scam. His official Twitter handle is operated by his close aides. Alex Wong/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- As the partial government shutdown enters its fourth week, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Illinois, told ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos on Sunday that he believes President Donald Trump needs to "put an end to this shutdown and put everything on the table." "We're not going to stand here and be blamed for this. We believe the government should be opened," Durbin said on "This Week." "There should be timely negotiations on border security after the government is open." Durbin, the minority whip, has been involved in the numerous meetings between Trump and congressional leaders. Last week, he visited Transportation Security Administration workers who are on the job without pay at Chicagos OHare International Airport. He told reporters that there is a breaking point for federal workers who arent receiving pay. The partial government shutdown entered its 23rd day Sunday with no signs of a potential deal. An ABC News-Washington Post poll published on Sunday showed 53 percent of those polled blamed congressional Republicans and Trump for the ongoing shutdown, while only 29 percent place the blame on congressional Democrats. The poll also showed increased support for a border wall with 42 percent for it, though a majority of 54 percent still oppose it. In a series of tweets on Saturday and Sunday, Trump continued to blame Democrats for the shutdown. In one, he claimed that "Democrats could solve the Shutdown in 15 minutes!" Durbin said that the president could "open the government tomorrow," and that "one phone call from Mitch McConnell can get it started." Over 800,000 federal workers missed their first paychecks on Friday. Last week, Trump said that he could relate with the unpaid workers, but claimed many of them support his wall proposal. In the Oval Office on Wednesday, Trump told ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Jonathan Karl that he wouldn't sign bills to pay federal workers because that strategy would "would never get anything done." Trump has continued to float the idea of declaring a national emergency in order to redirect Pentagon funds to build a border wall, a maneuver that would circumvent Congress. ABC News reported that there is not a legal consensus on whether the president would ultimately succeed in declaring a national emergency in this case. When asked whether a national emergency is a "likely" way out of the shutdown, Durbin said while he "doesn't know" if such a declaration by the president is the way out of the current situation, hes concerned about precedent. "If this president is going to turn to national emergencies every time he disagrees with Congress, I'm against it, he said. Make sure the branches of government are bound by the same Constitution." One potential legal argument against the declaration could come from landowners along the border, according to Brookings Institution Senior Fellow William Galston. Galston told ABC News on Thursday that "the landowners whose property was seized to build a wall would have suffered a concrete injury that would entitle them to go to court." Durbin also addressed new reporting regarding investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. elections. On Friday, the New York Times reported that days after the president fired then-FBI Director James Comey, the FBI initiated a counterintelligence inquiry to investigate whether Trump "had been working on behalf of Russia." The Washington Post reported on Saturday that Trump had gone to "extraordinary lengths to conceal details" of his meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin, even from members of his administration. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement that "The Washington Post story is so outrageously inaccurate it doesn't even warrant a response." Stephanopoulos asked Durbin what the Senate will do about the revelations. Durbin said the Republican majority holds the power to investigate on behalf of Senate. "The Senate is controlled by Republicans," Durbin said. "We found in the last two years they were unwilling to hold investigative hearings." He said that he doesn't understand why Trump is "so chummy" with Vladimir Putin, and that the Washington Post report about the presidents confiscation of his interpreter's notes "raises questions about the relationship between this president and Putin." Meanwhile, Durbin spoke about the "delicate political situation" surrounding oversight of the Mueller investigation, which has been in question since Jeff Sessions was forced out as attorney general. "Bill Barr had better give us iron-clad, rock bottom assurances in his independence and his willingness to step back and let Mueller finish his job." The confirmation process for Barr, who is nominated to be the next attorney general, is underway. Hearings are expected this week. Copyright 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. NEW DELHI: Peace and stability in Afghanistan was the main focus of India at the first India Central Asia dialogue in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The Indian delegation was led by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Speaking at the dialogue, the Minister said: "peaceful and stable Afghanistan, which lies at the Heart of Asia, can be a bridge to connect Central Asia with South Asia." Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani was also present at the dialogue. Hitting out at the scourge of terrorism, Swaraj said, "We need to ask that who these terrorists are, who funds them, how do they find sustenance, who protects and sponsors them." Emphasising on the perils of terrorism, she said that it erodes all development possibilities in the country where it is spread. "For almost two decades now, these are the people who would not let Afghanistan return to peace and normalcy. Terrorism seriously erodes all avenues of development which a country can have. No business development, no investment can take place in a country suffering from terrorism," she said. Reiterating India's official stand on the Afghan peace process, the minister said: "India supports all efforts for peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan which are inclusive and Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled." She added that the violence and terror imposed on Afghan people should end. New Delhi has been a major development partner of Afghanistan and has extended assistance worth over US$ 3 billion to the country. Under the New Development Partnership launched in September 2017, new projects are being taken up which include the Shahtoot Dam which is a drinking water project for Kabul city, low-cost housing in Nangarhar province, 116 High Impact Community Development Projects. Over 3500 Afghan nationals are trained and receive education in India every year. India built the Afghan Parliament and the India Afghanistan friendship dam in Herat which were inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi who has been to the country twice. Swaraj also focussed on promoting connectivity for better trade prospects in the region. "While geographically Afghanistan and Central Asia are landlocked, there are several ways in which India, Afghanistan and the Central Asian countries can join hands to work on promoting connectivity in the region so that trade and commerce may flow between us and our people to people exchanges may prosper," she said. India has two projects to connect Afghanistan with India. The Chabahar port and the India Afghanistan air corridor. India has partially taken over Chabahar port, which has been built with New Delhi's help and will provide a viable and operational trade route to connect to Afghanistan and Central Asia. New Delhi is also looking at developing the Chabahar-Zahedan railway link which would bring it closer to the Zaranj-Delaram road link which India has already built in Afghanistan. Central Asian countries are also increasing connectivity with Afghanistan. Uzbekistan has built a rail link between Hairatan to Mazar-i-Sharif and reports suggest that it might be further extended to Heart. During the dialogue, India also announced a 2-week training course for 8 diplomats from each of the five Central Asian countries at the Foreign Service Institute in New Delhi. PM Modi had visited all the five Central Asian countries in 2015 and India has been focusing on increasing ties with the region. CHANDIGARH: Thousands of devotees thronged gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Patna and other places across the country on Sunday to offer prayers on the occasion of 352nd birth anniversary of tenth Sikh master, Guru Gobind Singh. The festivities this year coincided with the festivals of `Lohri` and `Makar Sankranti`. Guru Gobind Singh (1666-1708) is revered by the Sikh community as he founded the `Khalsa Panth`, the warrior Sikh community, at Anandpur Sahib in 1699. The holiest of Sikh shrines `Harmandir Sahib`, popularly known as Golden Temple, in Amritsar and other gurdwaras elsewhere saw religious fervour to mark the guru`s birth anniversary. People braved the early morning chill to offer prayers at gurdwaras. The rush of devotees continued in most gurdwraas later in the day also. Long queues of devotees could be seen waiting for up to two hours to offer prayers inside the main shrine. The entire Golden Temple complex was decorated with special lighting. Heavy rush of devotees could be seen at the Takht Keshgarh Sahib gurdwara in Anandpur Sahib town, around 85 km from here, since early Sunday morning. It was at this place that Guru Gobind Singh founded the `Khalsa Panth`. Reports of hundreds of devotees offering prayers at Gurdwara Janamasthan in Patna city in Bihar, the birth place of Guru Gobind Singh, were also received. Hundreds of people offered prayers at gurdwara Nada Sahib in Panchkula, adjoining Chandigarh, where the guru stayed for a few days during his lifetime. Gurdwaras across Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh were decorated to mark the guru`s birth anniversary. Religious processions were taken out at all places in the region on Friday and Saturday to mark the birth anniversary. Tight security arrangements were made around all leading Sikh shrines in Punjab in view of recent terror-related incidents in the state. At the Golden Temple complex, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) task force members and volunteers kept a strict vigil inside the shrine complex. At other gurdwaras in cities, towns and villages, hundreds of people could be seen coming to offer prayers. `Langars` (community kitchen), were arranged at most gurdwaras. Punjab Governor V.P. Singh Badnore and Chief Minister Amarinder Singh greeted people on the occasion and urged them to follow the Guru`s teachings and to maintain peace and harmony. NEW DELHI: The Election Commission of India organised a two-day conference of the Chief Electoral Officers of all the states and UTs to review the poll preparedness for the upcoming general elections. The primary focus of the Election Commission in the meeting that was held on 11, 12 January was the integrity of the electoral roll, meticulous planning for elections, EVM and VVPAT assessment and training and extensive voter outreach. Addressing the CEOs, the Chief Election Commissioner of India Sunil Arora emphasised on the fact that the electoral roll that is currently under the process of revision and finalisation will be used in the forthcoming general elections. He also said that every effort must be made so that all voters are registered well in time. He reaffirmed the significance of the 1950 Helpline for the voters and its role as the First point of Care for the voter in finding her name in the Role, EPIC status and in connecting to the Election machinery and exercising her democratic right. He directed all the state CEOs to set in place support systems for the 1950 Helpline as early as possible. Through the two day conference, several aspects regarding conducting of elections including the availability of sufficient budget, manpower, resources, SVEEP, planning, polling station arrangements and IT applications including Suvidha, Sugam and C-Vigil were discussed in detail and their preparedness was assessed. The five states which had recently undergone Assembly elections Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Telangana and Rajasthan gave a presentation on the takeaways and the learnings from their experiences. All the other CEOs of States and UTs made comprehensive presentations to the Commission on the key areas of their preparations for the forthcoming elections. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Sunday claimed the recently-forged alliance between the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party will have no impact on the politics of the state, and that the BJP will "effectively wipe them off". Speaking at a programme in Lucknow, Adityanath noted that the BSP-SP alliance denoted "casteist mentality" and "anarchic elements". "The (SP-BSP) alliance means giving power to people who are corrupt, anarchic elements and have casteist mentality. This alliance will have no impact on the politics of the state. "It is good that both these parties have come together. It will help us to effectively wipe them off," he asserted. Once arch-rivals Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had on Saturday announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The priest-turned-politician said his party faced no challenge by the alliance. "SP chief Akhilesh Yadav should clarify who is the PM candidate this time -- his party patron Mulayam Singh Yadav or BSP supremo Mayawati. A leader-less alliance will be rejected by the people," Adityanath said. He also went on to say, "Why are SP and BSP different parties? They should be merged". "From 1993 to 1995, SP-BSP coalition functioned in Uttar Pradesh. Everyone has seen their style of working. They sow the seeds of casteism in the state," Adityanath said. On the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya, the chief minister said, "The BJP had said that it will resolve the issue while staying within the ambit of the Constitution. The matter is in Supreme Court. We are making repeated appeals to it that this issue must be resolved at the earliest for the sake of development of the country. "If there is anyone, who can resolve the issue, it is the BJP. Those, who had created this problem, cannot resolve it," he added. New Delhi: Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav took a potshot at the BJP on Sunday and said that central leadership of the saffron party has become restless ever since he announced a pre-poll tie-up with Mayawati-led BSP. The young SP president also suggested that the BJP workers in UP appear to have lost all hopes of their party's victory in the wake of an alliance between the SP and the BSP. Further taking a dig at PM Narendra Modis mantra of Mera Mooth Sabse Mazboot (my polling booth, the strongest), Akhilesh claimed on Twitter that the BJP workers are now saying Mera Booth, Hua Chaknachoor (my polling booth is now splintered). Akhilesh also claimed that apparently frustrated with the SP-BSP alliance in Uttar Pradesh, many BJPs leaders and workers were now willing to switch sides ahead of the crucial Lok Sabha polls. - . , . - - - . pic.twitter.com/z9EEB0io4G Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) 13 January 2019 The SP chief's latest comment on the ruling BJP came hours after SP and BSP - once arch-rivals - announced their tie-up in Uttar Pradesh for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, sharing 38 seats each and keeping the Congress out of the alliance. The parties, however, said they would not field candidates in Amethi and Rae Bareli, represented by Congress president Rahul Gandhi and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. They also left two seats out of the 80 in the state for smaller allies, without naming them. But there have been talks with Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal. Making the announcement jointly with SP president Akhilesh Yadav in Lucknow, BSP chief Mayawati mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah. ''This press conference will rob the guru-chela of their sleep,'' she said on Saturday. "I have full confidence that just as our alliance defeated the BJP in the Lok Sabha bypolls, we will crush the saffron party in the general elections," she said, referring to the BJP's defeat in Phulpur, Gorakhpur and Kairana parliamentary bypolls. In Varanasi, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram hoped the Lucknow announcement wasn't the last word and a broad-based alliance would be formed in the state as polls approach. But he also asserted the Congress was ready to fight alone. Senior Congress leaders including the UP in-charge at All India Congress Committee, Ghulam Nabi Azad, will be in Lucknow Sunday to discuss the party's strategy, a spokesperson said. Reacting to the alliance announcement, the BJP's Ravi Shankar Prasad said the two parties had come together just for their own survival. In his address at the BJP national convention a little after the UP development, PM Modi didn't refer directly to the SP-BSP deal but dismissed opposition efforts at coalition-building as a failed experiment to bring in a 'helpless government.' Explaining why the Congress was not included in the alliance, Mayawati said during that party's rule over the years, poverty, unemployment and corruption grew and there were scams in defence deals. "Just as the Bofors scam uprooted the Congress, the BJP will witness the same fate because of its involvement in the Rafale scam," she said, referring to the graft allegations against the ruling party in a deal for French military aircraft. She also said her party has not benefitted in seat-sharing pacts with the Congress. "In the past, I have seen that our votes get transferred to the Congress, but not vice-versa. We do not gain from an alliance with the Congress, whereas the vote transfer is perfect in an SP-BSP tie-up," Mayawati said. Drawing a parallel between the BJP and the Congress, the BSP chief said the Congress had imposed Emergency while the BJP is responsible for an undeclared Emergency. In 2014, the BJP had won 71 seats in Uttar Pradesh, which sends the largest number of MPs to the Lok Sabha. BJP ally Apna Dal bagged two. The SP won five seats and the Congress two, while the BSP drew a blank. (With Additional Agency Inputs) NEW DELHI: An Indian Army jawan posted in the Tank regiment in Jaisalmer has been arrested by the Rajasthan Police on alleged espionage charges. The arrested Army jawan was allegedly found to be honey-trapped by Pakistan-based ISI operatives on social media and passing critical military information to them. "The jawan has been arrested in Jaisalmer by the Rajasthan Police and the Army is providing all possible assistance to the civilian authorities in this investigation," Defence PRO Colonel Sambit Ghosh said. Army is providing all assistance to civilian authorities in the investigation related to the Army jawan who was arrested by Rajasthan Police: Defence PRO Col Sambit Ghosh https://t.co/tky9btyMck ANI (@ANI) 13 January 2019 The jawan, identified as Sombir, belongs to Haryana and was posted in the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. According to Army sources, the jawan was in constant touch with a suspected ISI spy who was using a fake profile name of 'Anika Chopra' on Facebook. The two were chatting regularly on the social media and exchanging details and information about the Army's armoured unit and its movement. After the arrest of the jawan, the Army is now tracking multiple accounts of officers and jawans to determine if the Pakistani spy account was in touch with other personnel to extract valuable information from them, the sources claimed. In the recent past, a Group Captain of the Indian Air Force was apprehended by the counter-intelligence units of the Army, Air Force and the Intelligence Bureau for sharing information about transport aircraft operations as he was posted in the Air Headquarters here. A BrahMos employee was also caught where the Pakistani spy had used the same modus operandi to trap the official. Sources in the Army said the jawan was apprehended and interrogated by intelligence agencies for over four months after he was found to be in touch with Pakistani ISI operatives on social media and was being interrogated by the intelligence agencies and the Army for the information supplied by him to the Pakistani spy agency. (With ANI inputs) New Delhi: Actor Shahid Kapoor is shooting for his upcoming film 'Kabir Singh' which is a remake of superhit Telugu film 'Arjun Reddy'. The actor took to Instagram on Sunday and shared a picture from sets of the film in which he can be seen in a swagger avatar! Shahid poses while sitting on a bike and his look will make you go weak in your knees. Check it out here: Kiara Advani plays the female lead in the film and fans eagerly await more details about the venture. In November last year, Shahid had shared his first look from the film leaving us all surprised. The actor got rid of his beard for 'Kabir Singh' and looked handsome as ever. The film is being helmed by Sandeep Vanga, who also directed the original 2017 Telugu blockbuster. 'Kabir Singh' will hit the screens on June 21, 2019. Earlier, actress Tara Sutaria who will make her Bollywood debut with 'Student of the Year 2' was to play the lead but she backed out of the project. To replace Tara, Kiara was roped in. Expressing her happiness over being a part of the film, Kiara had earlier written on Twitter, "#WaitForIt This is NOT a still from the Arjun Reddy remake but our film shoot begins today! wishing the team an amazinggg start!!! All the best @shahidkapoor @imvangasandeep @ashwinvarde @TSeries @MuradKhetani and team #ArjunReddy cant wait to join youll super soon Patna: A woman on Sunday was assaulted by a group of unidentified goons after she allegedly refused to pay extortion money to them. The woman runs a private school in Bihar's Saharsa. According to news agency ANI, four goons, in a video, were seen suddenly running towards the woman and then one of them pushing her to the ground. In the clip, the victim was also seen requesting the attackers to spare her but they were in no mood to stop the assault, ANI reported. Moments later, one of the attackers rushed towards the main gate of the school with a gun in his hand and fired a few shots before fleeing the spot. Some of the attackers fled on a motorcycle. A probe into the incident has been initiated, said police. Efforts are on to nab the accused, they added. (With inputs from ANI) IMPHAL: The ongoing protests against the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill, 2016 have intensified in the Northeastern states with shutdown called by various outfits crippling normal life and vehicular movements across the region in the past few days. From Assam, the protests against the controversial bill have now reached Manipur where six student organisations had called a bandh on Saturday. Six student outfits - All Manipur Students' Union (AMSU), Democratic Students' Alliance of Manipur (DESAM), Manipur Students' Federation (MSF), Kangleipak Students' Association (KSA), Students' Union of Kangleipak (SUK) and Socialist Students' Union of Manipur - observed "Black Day" at various places. A protest rally was jointly organised at Kwakeithel Akham Leikai in Manipur's Imphal West district by several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) like All Manipur United Clubs Organisation (AMUCO), Irawat Foundation, COHR, Poirei Leimarol Network and AMOVA and others in protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill. AMUCO president Ph Devan said that the bill will uproot the existence of indigenous people of the Northeastern region of India. He further appealed the CSOs and political parties to come together to fight against the bill. Another protest rally against the bill was also held at Wangoo area in Manipur's Bishnupur district. Workers of National Students' Union of India (NSUI), Manipur state and Manipur Pradesh Youth Congress Committee staged a protest demonstration against the bill at the heart of Imphal city and they also submitted a memorandum to the Governor of Manipur, Najma Heptulha. The bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who fled religious persecution in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan and entered India before December 31, 2014. The North East Students' Organisation (NESO), a conglomerate of students' bodies of the region, also observed 'Black Day' in neighbouring Assam to protest firing in Tripura during the bandh against the Bill on Tuesday. Pro-talk ULFA threatens to pull out of parleys over Citizenship Bill The pro-talks faction of the United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) has threatened to pull out of the ongoing peace parleys with the Centre on Saturday if the controversial Citizenship Amendment Bill was passed in Parliament. Besides, a government lobby was backing certain people to fan communalism among the Assamese and Bengali-speaking people of Assam, it claimed. "The ongoing peace talks are likely to be discontinued if the Centre goes ahead with the citizenship bill, against which protests have erupted in Assam with all sections of the society participating in the agitation," prominent ULFA leader Mrinal Hazarika told reporters here. The issue was raised on the organisation's platform that the talks would be redundant if the bill was passed, he said. Head of the Centre-appointed panel for Assam quits M P Bezbaruah, who was appointed as the head of a Centre-nominated committee to assess the implementation of Clause 6 of the Assam Accord, has declined to be a part of it, leaving the nine-member body in the lurch. Bezbaruah is the fifth member to leave the committee. He has written to the Union Home Ministry in this regard. The development comes close on the heels of four members-- eminent litterateurs Nagen Saikia and Rong Bong Terang along with educationist Mukunda Rajbongshi and the nominee of the influential All Assam Students Union-- deciding not to be a part of the committee. The committee was formed on January 6 to assess the quantum of seats to be reserved in the Assam Assembly and in the local bodies of the state for Assamese, besides providing other safeguards. Clause 6 of the Assam Accord states "constitutional, legislative and administrative safeguards, as may be appropriate, shall be provided to protect, preserve and promote the cultural, social, linguistic identity and heritage of the Assamese people". The bill seeks to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant Indian citizenship to the Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who fled religious persecution in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan and entered India before December 31, 2014. (With Agency Inputs) Pilgrims heading to Balaji Temple in Andhra Pradesh are in for a five-star experience as the Railways will soon inaugate a premium lounge at the Tirupati station. The first glimpse of the 'atithi' lounge was shared by Union Minister for Railways Piyush Goyal on Saturday. Tweeting the pictures, Goyal wrote: "Railway Station or 5-Star Hotel? There is a surprise in store for devotees travelling to Balaji Temple, with 'ATITHI', a premium lounge at Tirupati Station set to be inaugurated soon." The pictures show a lounge with premium facilities including what look like massage chairs along with magazine racks, couches and recliners. Photos of Balaji Tirupati can also be seen hung on the large walls of the hall. The photos also show two luxurious restrooms for women and men. Railway Station or 5-Star Hotel? There is a surprise in store for devotees travelling to Balaji Temple, with 'ATITHI', a premium lounge at Tirupati Station set to be inaugurated soon pic.twitter.com/O5LTJxxit2 Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) January 12, 2019 The announcement comes close on heels of another announcement regarding by the minister where he shared a detailed "futuristic" plan for the Tirupati station. The nearly 2-minute-long video had a visual plan showing a drop-off area, a section for a hotel, proposed multiplex, railway station plaza, enhanced security checking facilities, a waiting area and food court, departure concourse and platform. While sharing the plan Goyal said: "Om Sreenivasaya Namaha: Travel will soon become easier for devotees seeking Lord Balaji's blessings in Tirupati. Check the futuristic plans for Tirupati Station which will serve as a benchmark for other stations across the country." Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 Constanta. Elevii protesteaza in fata Prefecturii Astazi, 16 iunie a.c., are loc sedinta de guvern pentru aprobarea proiectului de OUG ce are ca scop eliminarea gratuitatii la transport pentru elevi si trecerea la decont.Ca raspuns, la ora 14.00, membrii Asociatiei Elevilor din Constanta sunt prezenti azi in fata Prefecturii pentru a picheta. Elevilor [citeste mai departe] Stiri pe aceeasi tema - The National Liberal Party (PNL) is consistent in its support for the abolition of the Section for the Investigation of Judicial Crimes (SIIJ) and has flexibility in finding the best solution agreed upon in the coalition, said, on Monday, the Liberal chairman Ludovic Orban. "PNL is consistent - Presedintele PNL, Ludovic Orban, a declarat sambata, la Timisoara, ca relatia partidului sau cu USR PLUS este singura formula politica buna pentru Romania, desi a trecut si prin momente grele, fiind o relatie care sufera permanent imbunatatiri, potrivit Agerpres. Practic, eu am condus negocierile - Presedintele PNL, Ludovic Orban, a declarat sambata, la Timisoara, ca relatia partidului sau cu USR PLUS este singura formula politica buna pentru Romania, desi a trecut si "prin momente grele", fiind o relatie care sufera permanent imbunatatiri. "Practic, eu am condus negocierile din partea PNL prima - Presedintele PNL, Ludovic Orban, care s-a aflat sambata, la Timisoara, a raspuns, in cadrul unei conferinte de presa, fostului presedinte al PNL Timis si fost primar al municipiului, Nicolae Robu, care spunea ca asocierea PNL cu USR PLUS este una nociva, Orban fiind de parere ca aceasta este singura - A number of 3,594 people infected with COVID-19 are hospitalized in the specialized health units, out of which 590 in intensive care, the Strategic Communication Group (GCS) reported on Sunday. In total, 10,623 people confirmed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2 are in isolation at home and 3,865 - Chamber of Deputies' Speaker and National Liberal Party (PNL) leader Ludovic Orban reaffirmed that the party he represents supports the abolition of the Special Section for the Investigation of Justice Crimes (SIIJ) and expressed his hope that a formula agreed in this sense would be found in the - The chairman of the National Liberal Party (PNL), Ludovic Orban, said on Wednesday that for the Liberals there is no other political solution of government than the current coalition and stressed that Save Romania Union - Party of Liberty, Unity and Solidarity (USR PLUS) must make a new proposal - The chairman of the National Liberal Party (PNL), Ludovic Orban, said on Wednesday that for the Liberals there is no other political solution of government than the current coalition and stressed that Save Romania Union - Party of Liberty, Unity and Solidarity (USR PLUS) must make a new proposal Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 01:22:13|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close PARIS, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- After showing signs of fatigue during the holidays, "yellow vest" social movement drew more people on Saturday in the ninth consecutive weekend protests, as the government is seeking public consultations in a bid to end the unrest. Citing police sources, BFMTV news channel said 32,000 protesters took to the streets by 1300 GMT across France. The turnout was up from a week ago when 26,000 people demonstrated. In Paris, Saturday's protests coordinated by "yellow vests" via social media against President Emmanuel Macron's leadership has gathered 8,000 participants compared with 2,000 on Jan. 5. Posing serious test to the government's policing tactics, the fresh round of the social movement was relatively calm with no major incidents reported at the start, unlike last weekend when some protesters violently clashed with anti-riot police, invaded a government building compound and set cars a blaze near the Champs Elysees avenue. However, tension flared hours later. Tear gas clouds rose into the air above L'Arc de Triomphe and the Place de L'Etoile where first clashes between police and protesters broke out at around 1430 GMT, after "yellow vests" tried to break through security cordons. Anti-riot officers responded with tear gas, stun grenades and water cannon to disperse the crowd that threw projectiles at them. Similar incidents were also reported in Bourges, Toulouse and Nimes. In the French capital, 102 people were arrested for carrying objects that could be used as weapons, according to figures released by the Interior Ministry. The "yellow vest" movement, a nationwide protest against weak economic performance and stagnant income increase under President Emmanuel Macron, started as a campaign against surge in fuel prices in November 2018. Since then, thousands of drivers wearing highly visible yellow vests had blocked roads across the country and staged street protests that had been transformed into social rebellion demanding Macron to step down. Despite capitulating over plans for fuel taxes, France's youngest president in its modern history has struggled to ease the anger that cast doubt on his political credentials to reform one of Europe's major powers and lead the countrymen, most of whom disapprove his action, according to the country's pollsters. Working hard to regain his support, Macron will launch a three-month national debate on Jan. 15 to try to address the people's complaints which they have already expressed in "grievance books" opened up by mayors of 5,000 communes. The debate will focus on four themes - taxes, green energy, institutional reform and citizenship. "This debate is a great opportunity for the country... I want a real debate. It is not a debate whose terms and outcome are known. It is a debate to which I wish that we all commit ourselves," Macron told reporters late on Friday. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 06:11:31|Editor: yan Video Player Close WARSAW, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The mayor of northern Polish city of Gdansk, Pawel Adamowicz, was stabbed by a man while he was on stage of a charity event held in the Baltic city of Gdansk on Sunday evening, local media reported. According to the Polish Press Agency (PAP), Adamowicz was attacked during the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity. He was immediately taken to hospital and is in serious condition. The suspect was arrested at the scene. Grazyna Wawryniuk, the spokeswoman for the Gdansk Regional Prosecutor's Office, told PAP that the investigation was taken immediately after the incident. "Four prosecutors are working very intensively, together with police officers," Wawryniuk said. Polish broadcaster TVN reported that the attacker shouted on the stage that he was imprisoned under the government of Civic Platform, a party to which the mayor formerly belonged, despite being innocent. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 06:11:31|Editor: Li Xia Video Player Close Visiting French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian (L) and Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi attend a joint press conference in Amman, Jordan, on Jan. 13, 2019. Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi said on Sunday that France and Jordan agreed that the lack of a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict threatens the security of Middle East. (Xinhua/Mohammad Abu Ghosh) AMMAN, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi said on Sunday that France and Jordan agreed that the lack of a solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict threatens the security of Middle East. At a joint press conference with his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian in Amman, Safadi said the two countries believe that lack of a solution could lead to eruption of crises in the region, said a statement by the Jordanian Foreign Ministry. "We will work together with the international community to create the necessary political environment to move forward towards a two-state solution (to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict)," Safadi said. The Jordanian top diplomat said that Jordan highly values France's support to the two-state solution, adding that France plays a pivotal role in supporting the Palestinians. The bilateral discussions also covered the Syrian crisis and the need for coordinating efforts to reach a political solution in the country. "Our priority is to end the crisis," Safadi said, adding that Jordan will continue to coordinate with France, Russia and the U.S. to achieve a political solution as soon as possible. On the same day, King Abdullah II of Jordan also met with the French official to discuss ties and regional developments. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 05:46:26|Editor: Li Xia Video Player Close ABU DHABI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) on Sunday named Francesco La Camera of Italy as its new director-general. La Camera is to take office as of April 4 to succeed Adnan Amin, who has been the first director-general of the Abu Dhabi-based IRENA since 2011, reported the United Arab Emirates (UAE) official news agency WAM. La Camera was appointed during the closing session of the three-day ninth IRENA general assembly, the highest decision-making body in the agency, which was held in Abu Dhabi. La Camera currently serves as director-general for sustainable development, energy and climate at the Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea. He had led the Italian negotiation team to the conference of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. La Camera was elected for a four-year term and will lead the IRENA Secretariat and the implementation of the agency's work program and budget. IRENA serves as the principal platform for international cooperation on renewable energy, and a center of knowledge and innovation which supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future. At the meeting, the IRENA general assembly approved a draft resolution forwarded by the UAE to grant Amin the title of "director-general emeritus" of the agency in recognition of his work as its first chief. Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Song Aiguo (C), Egypt's Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Khaled Abdel Ghaffar (2nd L), President of Renmin University Liu Wei (2nd R), President of Ain Shams University Abdel Wahab Ezzat (1st L) attend the opening ceremony of the Belt and Road Cooperation Research Center in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 13, 2019. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa) CAIRO, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- China's Renmin University and Egypt's Ain Shams University on Sunday inaugurated the Belt and Road Cooperation Research Center in the Egyptian capital Cairo. During the opening ceremony, President of Ain Shams University Abdel Wahab Ezzat said that establishing the center came after one-year negotiations, which resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding that his university signed with Liu Wei, president of the Renmin University. "This is the second center of its kind after a similar one was established in Russia," he said, adding that the center aims at conducting economic, commercial and technical studies for projects and cooperation between Egypt and China. For his part, Liu lauded the establishment of the center in cooperation with Ain Shams University. "Egypt and China are countries with ancient civilizations...We were connected in the past by the maritime Silk Road which reached Alexandria," he said, referring to the northern Egyptian port city. Liu added that the new center is a cornerstone for increased cooperation between the two countries, mainly in the field of economy. "Ain Shams is one of the great universities which started its relations with China through establishing Chinese Language Department. It is considered one of the largest and oldest Chinese language departments in the world," he said. Liu noted that thousands of Egyptians have graduated from the department and played key roles in promoting cultural exchanges between Egypt and China. "Renmin University ... has valuable researchers," he said, adding that the two universities signed an agreement in 2018 which represented the starting point of mutual cooperation. "I hope this center will be a bridge linking Egypt and China for increasing cultural and economic ties," Liu said. Chinese Ambassador to Egypt Song Aiguo said the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a huge project that calls for large-scale cooperation in vast regions across the world. "It is important for China and other countries to make great efforts to make this happen," he spoke at the inauguration ceremony. "We should enjoy the benefits of the BRI." Proposed by China in 2013, the BRI refers to the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, which aims to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe, Africa and beyond along the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road. The ambassador said that when the initiative was proposed, it received positive response from a large number of countries in Asia, Africa and Europe. "Egypt is a very close friend of China. Today we can conduct better cooperation for the future of our countries," Song said. He added that as Egypt is working hard to raise living standard of its people and improve its economy, Egypt and China face great opportunities to boost cooperation in this regard. "If we want to do a good job, we should first make a good academic study of cooperation...That's why the inauguration of the center is of great importance," the ambassador said. "I wish that we will benefit a lot from the ideas of this center," he added. After upgrading the relations between China and Egypt to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2014, cultural exchanges have been growing between the two sides. In this Feb. 13, 2017 photo dead animals lie in the snow in a rural area of Khuvsgul province in northern Mongolia. ULAN BATOR, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia's National Agency for Meteorology and Environmental Monitoring on Sunday issued a cold weather warning. Heavy snow is expected to hit the northern and western parts of the country, and overnight temperatures in these areas are expected to reach minus 40-45 degrees Celsius during the next week, the weather monitoring agency said, urging citizens, especially nomadic herders, to take extra precautions against possible disasters. The agency also warned that strong winds and snow storms are expected to hit the eastern and central parts of the country. Overnight temperatures in these areas are expected to drop to minus 35 degrees Celsius. Mongolia's climate is strongly continental, with long, frigid winters, and short, warm summers. A temperature of minus 25 degrees Celsius in the country is normal during the winter. Traders work on the floor of New York Stock Exchange in New York, the United States, April 9, 2018. U.S. stocks opened higher on Monday after the U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to soften his tone on China-U.S. traderelations. (Xinhua/Wang Ying) NEW YORK, Jan. 11 (Xinhua) -- There is an urgent need to address the U.S.-China trade issues through talks and work together to make a deal, a group of economists and political scholars from both countries have said. "Looking ahead this year, I think the key words or catchwords in the international economic diplomacy or relationship would be talks rather than wars," said Lu Feng, director of the China Macroeconomic Research Center at Peking University, during a panel discussion in New York on Thursday. With a focus on U.S.-China trade frictions, the event was jointly hosted by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and Peking University's China Center for Economic Research. The China-U.S. trade relations have seen twists and turns after Washington announced high tariffs on Chinese products worth hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars in 2018. However, both sides have since engaged in extensive, in-depth exchanges on trade and structural issues of common concern to promote mutual understanding and lay a foundation for addressing each other's concerns. An American buyer looks at exhibits of a Chinese fabric producer at the Chinese Textile and Apparel Trade Show in New York, the United States, July 23, 2018. The 19th China Textile and Apparel Trade Show, an initiative to help Chinese textile and apparel makers and factories explore the U.S.market, has exhibitors from 17 countries and regions. (Xinhua/Wang Ying) The panelists noted that it's mutually beneficial for the United States and China to find common ground while voicing their differences. Beijing has always been willing to negotiate, so Washington should also feel the need to make a deal, Lu said. "The U.S. economy is facing downward pressure. Nobody wants some external sort of negative impact from escalating the trade tensions... the trade deficits in the United States actually increased rather than declined, which indicates tariff measures are not working in addressing the imbalances between these two countries," said Lu. His views were widely shared by the panelists during the discussion. Customers shop at a sporting goods store in Alhambra, Los Angeles County, the United States, Aug. 1, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Ying) Catherine Mann, global chief economist at Citi Group, emphasized the importance of mitigating the trade rifts between the world's two largest economies since there would be a vicious circle of damages. The collateral damages are not only in terms of the global supply chains, but "we have to recognize the collateral damage to the global economy through the sentiment," Mann said. The damage to the global economy may also further weaken the underlying macroeconomic framework in both countries as well as the rest of the world, she added. Calling himself "an optimist," Nicholas Lardy, a senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said if economic rationality prevails, there should be an agreement and "sooner is better." "I think both sides have very strong interests in coming to an agreement ... we will see increasingly the evidence that tariffs are actually disadvantaging the U.S. economy, reducing employment and slowing growth," said Lardy. Qin Xiao, former chairman of China Merchants Group and China Merchants Bank, also expressed optimism about the prospects for a possible U.S.-China trade deal. As the interactions between the two sides are increasing, it is inevitable that the two economies become competitors. However, "even rivals can cooperate in the global arena, including on topics such as international peacekeeping, climate change, and anti-terrorism," Qin said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 01:00:48|Editor: yan Video Player Close TRIPOLI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- France is willing to provide logistics support for the Libyan Interior Ministry, French Ambassador to Libya Beatrice du Hellen said Sunday. The French envoy made the remarks at a meeting with Libyan Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha, during which they discussed ways to boost mutual cooperation. "The French ambassador reiterated her country's willingness to provide logistics support for the Ministry of Interior by signing agreements and Memorandums of Understanding in the fields of training," the Libyan Interior Ministry said in a statement. Libya has been suffering incessant violence and insecurity since the downfall of former leader Muammar Gaddafi in the 2011 uprising. Libyan security services have been struggling to improve security in the country, particularly in the capital Tripoli. Kathmandu, January 13 The government of Nepal has finalised a plan to construct the countrys biggest convention centre, which will have a capacity of around 5,000 people, in Sano Thimi of Bhaktapur, east of Kathmandu. The Ministry of Urban Development says the Ministry has begun preparing a design for the centre. The Ministrys spokesperson, Krishna Prasad Duwadi, says cost estimation and other details of the project will be finalised after the finalisation of design. After the government began using Naya Baneshwor-based Birendra International Convention Centre for parliamentary meetings, Nepal lacks a venue to host international events. The government and private agencies have been using five-star hotels for the events. Likewise, traders and businesspersons have also been demanding for a spacious place to host trade fairs and exhibitions. Government officials believe the construction will help the government cut down its spending on formal events and attract more foreign tourists and traders. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 00:15:43|Editor: yan Video Player Close GAZA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- A Palestinian man has died of wounds he suffered two months ago after being shot by Israeli gunfire in southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian medics said on Sunday. Ashraf al Qedra, spokesman for the Health Ministry in Gaza, said in a press statement that 33-year-old Anwar Qudeih died of his wounds on Saturday afternoon. He added that Qudeih was shot in the abdomen and suffered critical wounds during a protest in east of the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis, close to the border with Israel. Al Qedra said that, since the beginning of the "Great March of Return" to protest against the Israeli siege in March last year, the Israeli army has killed 245 Palestinians and wounded more than 25,000 others. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-14 00:05:42|Editor: yan Video Player Close TRIPOLI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Libyan Red Crescent Society on Sunday recovered seven bodies of immigrants off the shore of the city of Sirte, local media reported. The bodies were recovered with the assistance of the Libyan coast guards and will be handed over to the authorities for legal procedures, the Al-Wasat news site reported. A total of 20 bodies of immigrants have been recovered off Sirte, some 450 km east of the capital Tripoli, so far this month. Libya has become a preferred departure point for illegal immigrants hoping to cross the Mediterranean Sea into Europe because of insecurity and chaos in the North African country following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi. Earlier last December, the Libyan Red Crescent said that 15 illegal immigrants drowned when their boat capsized off the city of Misurata, some 250 km east of Tripoli. A traffic sign is seen outside Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow July 24, 2013. (Reuters) MOSCOW, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- One of the runways of the Sheremetyevo airport in the Russian capital was closed Sunday after a plane of the Czech airline Smartwings taxied out of the runway during acceleration, the airport said. None of the 40 passengers and seven crew members were injured and the runway was closed to facilitate their evacuation, the airport said in a press release. Sheremetyevo airport has made every effort to quickly eliminate the consequences of the incident, it said. According to the airport, Smartwings representatives are working with the passengers, who are being offered to take the next flight on the same route from Moscow to Prague. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 23:25:33|Editor: yan Video Player Close KAMPALA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 15 Congolese were killed and several others injured on Sunday when a truck they were riding in overturned in the northwestern Ugandan district of Pakwach, a police spokesperson said. West Nile regional police spokesperson Josephine Angucia told Xinhua by telephone that the tragedy occurred when the driver of the truck transporting mainly Congolese traders to Panyimur fish market lost control and the vehicle overturned at Got Malara. The traders were mainly fishmongers from Ariwara in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Angucia said. "Some 15 people have so far been confirmed dead and many injured. The death toll is likely to rise," the spokesperson said. "Our officers are on the ground to establish the cause," Angucia said. Uganda registers about 20,000 road accidents each year, with some 2,000 deaths, making it one of the countries with the highest traffic death rates, according to police statistics. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 23:20:32|Editor: yan Video Player Close BEIRUT, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Russian Ambassador to Lebanon Alexander Zasypkin on Sunday urged Lebanese officials to speed up the government formation in order to start necessary reforms in the country. "We are communicating with all political parties in a bid to facilitate the government formation," Zasypkin was quoted as saying by Elnashra, an independent online newspaper. Lebanon has been struggling to form a government since Saad Hariri was designated Prime Minister after the parliamentary elections in May. The formation of government has been repeatedly delayed mainly due to differences among parties over their representation in the new government. Lebanese authorities must speed up the formation of the new government to start necessary reforms to obtain the help pledged at the CEDRE conference, an international conference held in April 2018 in France to support Lebanon's development and reforms. Lebanon secured pledges of loans from international donors at CEDRE to revamp its ailing infrastructure and bolster its economy, but it is at risk of losing the pledges if it fails to form a government sooner. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 23:10:30|Editor: yan Video Player Close HANOI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam, known as a motorcycle kingdom in the world, recorded motorbike sales of nearly 3.4 million units in 2018, breaking the record of 3.3 million vehicles in 2011, the Vietnam Association of Motorcycle Manufacturers (VAMM) said on Sunday. The motorbikes were sold by five members of the VAMM, namely Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, Piaggio and SYM. In recent years, urban dwellers in Vietnam have preferred scooters, while their rural peers still have had high demand for motorcycles, VAMM said, noting that its members currently have 80 product models, including 24 models provided by Honda, 19 by SYM and 13 by Suzuki. Although the capital city of Hanoi has decided to ban motorbikes from running in its urban districts from 2030, the local motorbike market will remain stable in the near future, the association said. Vietnam spent 647 million U.S. dollars importing motorbikes, components and spare parts in 2018, up 45.2 percent from 2017, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 23:10:29|Editor: yan Video Player Close ARUSHA, Tanzania, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Tanzania on Sunday vowed to continue strengthening its relationship with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as it grants asylum to refugees from neighbouring countries. Home Affairs Minister Kangi Lugola made the pledge when he met with UNHCR representative to Tanzania, Chansa Kapaya. The two discussed issues related to refugees as well as how Tanzania will continue to host asylum-seekers in collaboration with the UN refugee agency and in accordance with the laws and regulations. Lugola asserted that Tanzania will hardly succeed in accommodating refugees without the cooperation of the UN refugee agency. "Some refugees have started to voluntarily return to Burundi hence the need to work closely with the UNHCR to ensure their safe return," Lugola said, adding that his ministry has been in regular meetings with the agency to accomplish the mission. Kapaya commended the Tanzanian government for being supportive to the agency. She said there had been regular consultations between the UNHCR and the government to ensure successful cooperation. "I am impressed with the discussion with you. We promise to continue forging relationship and cooperation with the Tanzania government," Kapaya said. Tanzania is the largest host of Burundian refugees in the region. Women and children make up 78 percent of the total refugee population. It has also granted naturalization to more than 162,000 Burundian refugees who fled in 1972. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) and Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, hold a joint press conference in the Qatari capital Doha on January 13, 2019. (Reuters photo) DOHA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and his Qatari counterpart Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Sunday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the expansion and renovation of Al-Udeid Air Base. Al-Udeid, which is considered the largest U.S. base in the Middle East, hosts around 10,000 U.S. troops and scores of U.S. combat and supporting aircraft. In a joint press conference, Pompeo said: "We're all more powerful when we're working together. Disputes between countries that have a shared objective are never helpful." He was referring to the boycott imposed on Qatar by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Egypt. Earlier this month, Anthony Zinni, a former commander of U.S. Central Command, resigned as special envoy to resolve the dispute. "The departure of Mr. Zinni in no way reflects any change in America's Middle East efforts, our strategy or our ongoing commitment to the region," Pompeo said. "It was a time for change. He made this decision to move on, but America's commitment remains unchanged." Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 22:30:23|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close AMMAN, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Egypt will provide Jordan with half of its natural gas needs for power production in 2019 under an agreement signed Sunday. The agreement, signed during a visit by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and his meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan, stipulates that Egypt provides half of Jordan's needs for electricity production in 2019. Jordanian Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Hala Zawati said the deal will help enhance the stability of the electricity supply system in Jordan and reduce the energy bill, according to a statement by the ministry. The remaining half of Jordan's needs of gas for power production will be received from global energy giant Shell and other local resources, said the minister. Voicing appreciation to Egypt, the minister said the price of natural gas is less than the imported liquefied natural gas. She said the resumption of Egyptian natural gas supply is important for Jordan's energy security and will reduce burden on citizens. The two sides also looked into providing Egyptian natural gas to industries in Jordan. Jordan needs 330 million cubic feet of natural gas per day for power production, according to the ministry. Jordan used to receive around 250 million cubic feet of gas from Egypt in 2004 and the volumes were reduced in 2009 and came to complete halt in 2011 after attacks by terrorist groups on the pipeline in Sinai that provides gas to Jordan. After the halt in Egyptian gas, Jordan resorted to importing more expensive liquefied natural gas. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 22:25:22|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close DOHA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo arrived in Doha Sunday to co-chair the second round of Qatar-U.S. Strategic Dialogue, the state-run Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported. The Dialogue was also chaired by Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani. The two sides would sign several agreements on defense, security, economy, and trade exchange. The dialogue tackles the latest developments in the Gulf crisis and international efforts to solve the repercussions of Qatar blockade, the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The two sides will also target strengthening partnership between them in combating terror; opening new markets for Qatari investments in the United States; consolidation of military and defense relations; and enhancing cooperation in the fields of energy, ports, and banks. Meanwhile, Pompeo will meet with Qatari officials to discuss regional issues, such as Afghanistan and the importance of a united Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) in standing against the Iranian regime's "destabilizing activity" and advancing peace, prosperity, and security in the region. The secretary of state traveled to Doha from Abu Dhabi, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed on Saturday. Pompeo is later expected to head to Riyadh, where he will meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 22:10:16|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close BEIRUT, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon witnessed Sunday nationwide protests over corruption and demanding for citizens' basic rights, the National News Agency reported. Hundreds of people in Saida, Tripoli, Bekaa and Zouk Mosbeh marched, demanding for their access to uninterrupted power supply, proper solution to trash crisis and preserving the salary scale which was approved last year for public sector employees. Protesters said that these marches in different areas of Lebanon are only a preparation for a bigger protest expected on Jan. 20 in Beirut to reiterate their demands. Protesters demanded for reforms in the public health and education sectors in addition to imposing taxes on imported agricultural products. Protesters also asked for the formation of a new effective government that deals transparently with citizens' needs and issues. "We call upon officials to form a government that deals seriously with the alarming level of public debt," one protester said. Lebanon's economy is saddled with one of the world's highest debt-to-GDP ratios as a result of recurring and widening fiscal deficits and economic slowdown. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 21:45:13|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close TEHRAN, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Defense Ministry announced on Sunday that homegrown long-range cruise missile Soumar will be delivered to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in near future. Iran's Deputy Defense Minister Qassem Taqizadeh told Tasnim news that the Soumar missiles will be delivered to the Iranian armed forces, but mostly to the IRGC. The ground-launched cruise missile, which was unveiled in March 2015, enjoys modern technologies in navigation, propulsion and structure, said the report without further details on the missile specifications. West, with the U.S. atop, has urged Iran to cease developing missiles and activities designed to carry nuclear weapons, and to start negotiations over them. However, Iran has announced that it will continue to develop and test missiles in line with its deterrence policy despite adversarial positions taken on this issue by the U.S. officials. The Soumar is equipped with a solid rocket booster and is thus a ground-launched missile. Besides, the cruise missile has a range of 2,500-3,000 km. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 21:35:11|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close STOCKHOLM, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The six people who died in a tragic road accident in Sweden on Saturday have been identified as Swiss citizens, Swedish Television (SVT) reported on Sunday. The accident occurred just before 02:00 a.m. on Saturday near the city of Kiruna in northern Sweden when a freight truck collided with a minibus carrying seven people. Six people perished at the scene, and a seventh with moderate injuries was airlifted to hospital by helicopter. While Swedish police undertook official victim identification, the survivor -- also a Swiss citizen -- was able to name the others travelling in the car. All the victims were born in the 90s and had been on a ski trip in Norway, according to a press release published by the Swedish police. Out of consideration for the families of the victims, the police have not revealed further details of the crash. Police have contacted the victims' families. The Swiss Regional Consular Center in Stockholm is in contact with local authorities and has sent an employee to the region to assist the families of the victims. Federal Councilor Ignazio Cassis, the head of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA), expresses his deepest sympathy to the relatives of the victims and the injured Swiss on behalf of the Federal Council. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:55:07|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close PARIS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- A woman who was reported missing was found lifeless, a day after a gas explosion blew up a building in the center of Paris, a state radio reported on Sunday. French rescuers have found the victim's body buried under the rubble earlier on Sunday, France info said, citing a source from Paris prosecutor office. The death of the 28-year-old woman, who lived in the exploded building, brought the death toll to four. Two firefighters and a Spanish tourist were confirmed dead on Saturday. A powerful explosion caused by gas leak occurred at around 9:00 a.m. (0800 GMT) on Saturday in a closed bakery on the Rue de Trevise in the 9th district of Paris, one of the French capital's main shopping area. At least 47 people were wounded, of whom 10 were seriously hurt, according to data released by the Interior Ministry. The blast blew out the entire ground floor of the building, with storefronts blown out and windows shattered up to the fourth floor. Shop windows were smashed, and other buildings and parked vehicles nearby were also damaged by the force of the blast. "The explosion was particularly violent, it spread over 100 meters," Paris fire brigade commander Eric Moulin told reporters. Paris authorities were mobilized to help the evacuated residents and tourists with temporary accommodations. An investigation has been under way, according to the Regional Directorate of Judicial Police. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:50:03|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close KABUL, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Increasing militancy and counter-militancy have claimed lives of more than 70 people in Afghanistan over the past 24 hours, officials said Sunday. In the latest waves of bloody clashes erupted between security forces and Taliban insurgents in Aqcha district of the northern Jawzjan province early Sunday and lasted for several hours, 16 people including nine militants and seven security personnel were killed, district governor Ghulam Sakhi Subhani said. A clash between government forces and Taliban militants killed 13 armed militants and three security personnel in Imam Sahib district of the northern Kunduz province, district governor Mahboubullah Sayedi has confirmed. The clash, according to Sayedi, flared up with Taliban attacks on security checkpoints in Kunjak area on Saturday night and lasted for several hours, also left six militants and one security personnel injured. In another case, eight Taliban fighters were killed and 12 others injured after government forces stormed a Taliban hideout in Arghandab district of the southern Zabul province on Saturday night, an army statement said Sunday. Another statement of the national army released Sunday also reported military operations, which killed 15 militants outside Tirin Kot, the capital of southern Uruzgan province on Saturday. Twelve militants, according army spokesman Mohammad Hanif Rezai, were killed after military aircraft pounded a Taliban motorbike convoy in northern Balkh province on Saturday. However, a Taliban deadly attack on a police station in the western Herat province on Saturday evening left six people including two civilians dead. The government forces have intensified operations against militant groups during the freezing winter in Afghanistan, observers said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:50:03|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Sunday that Israel had attacked multiple Iranian sites in Syria over the weekend, in a rare public acknowledgment of such airstrikes. "Just in the last 36 hours, the air force attacked Iranian warehouses with Iranian weapons at the international airport in Damascus," Netanyahu said at the start of his weekly cabinet meeting, confirming earlier Syrian reports. He warned that "the accumulation of recent attacks proves that we are determined more than ever to take action against Iran in Syria, just as we promised." The remarks were part of farewell comments marking the stepping down of Lt.-Gen. Gadi Eisenkot as the chief-of-staff of the Israeli military. "We worked with impressive success to block Iran's military entrenchment in Syria," Netanyahu said, addressing Eisenkot. "In this framework, the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) attacked Iranian and Hezbollah targets hundreds of times." Netanyahu emphasized the actions that Israel took against the manufacture of "precision weapons" by Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite militia in Lebanon, noting the ongoing Operation Northern Shield to destroy tunnels crossing from southern Lebanon into northern Israel which according to Israel were built by the Hezbollah. "We took action against Hamas tunnels on the Gaza border. We thwarted hundreds of terrorist attacks in Judea and Samaria (West Bank) and we carried out very many other actions, open and covert," he said. According to Syrian reports, Israeli fighter jets carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Syria over the weekend, striking several targets including a weapon facility. Israel has mostly kept silent on its actions against Iranian targets in Syria, including strikes of Iranian weapon convoys delivered to Israel's arch-foe, Hezbollah, fearing such comments might trigger an escalation. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:45:01|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close BAGHDAD, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- After the landmark visit of new Iraqi President Barham Salih to neighboring Turkey, Turkey expects to double its trade volume with Iraq to 20 billion U.S. dollars in 2019. Turkish Ambassador to Iraq Fatih Yildiz told reporters in Baghdad on Friday that "our goal in the trade volume between the two countries is 20 billion dollars as the first stage if some obstacles are removed." Yildiz said the biggest obstacle is the double taxes collected on the goods coming from Turkey to Iraq via Kurdistan region. Thousands of trucks carrying goods from Turkey to Iraq have to go through the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern Iraq, imposing double taxes on the trucks as they have to pay tariff on the border crossing points between Turkey and Kurdistan region and then checkpoints between Kurdistan and Iraq. Yildiz pointed out that Salih promised to remove such obstacles during his last visit to Turkey on Jan. 3. Yildiz said that the two countries have a special relation, and that Ankara's priority towards Baghdad is to preserve Iraq's unity and territorial integrity. According to information derived from Trade Ministry and Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) data, Turkey's trade volume with Iraq soared to 10.6 billion dollars in 2017 from nearly 870.7 million dollars in 2003 when the Iraqi war broke out. In 2017, Iraq ranked fourth among Turkey's export markets. Sabah al-Sheikh, a political expert, told Xinhua that the latest U.S. sanctions on Iran opened the doors wide for the Turkish goods to dominate the Iraqi market to replace the Iranian goods. "The products that have been purchased from Iran will be supplied by Turkey now, and this is a real opportunity for Turkish businesses," al-Sheikh said. "Iraq will find it difficult to depend on trade with Iran despite the close bilateral ties because of the sanctions, and then it will try to fill the gap with Turkish products," he added. Late last year, the United States has restored sanctions on Iran's oil industry as well as its banking and transport industry. Washington withdrew from the landmark 2015 Iranian nuclear deal in May 2018 and re-imposed sanctions on Iran, targeting its shipping, financial and energy sectors. On Jan. 5, Salih paid a visit to Turkey aimed at opening a new page of better mutual relations as the region is witnessing complex developments. A statement by the presidency office said Salih and the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed to "expand cooperation horizons ... (and) exchange views on the developments in the region." For his part, Erdogan said at a joint press conference with Salih that "Turkey is seeking to develop cooperation with Iraq in the areas of security, energy and investment, and contribute to building in all over Iraq. We are keen on continuing coordination with Iraq in all fields." Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:24:55|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close ATHENS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said Sunday he will seek a confidence vote in his government in the parliament after the junior party's departure from the ruling coalition. The Independent Greeks (ANEL) party is quitting the government over the Macedonia name deal, Greek Defense Minister and ANEL leader Panos Kammenos said earlier Sunday. The prime minister said that he has accepted Kammenos' resignation and will accept any other resignations submitted by ministers belonging to the ANEL, adding that Kammenos will be replaced by Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis, chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff. Kammenos had repeatedly said in recent months that his party would not vote for the Macedonia name deal, which was due to reach the Greek assembly for a vote later this month. Kammenos did not clarify whether the right-wing party will continue to support the left-wing SYRIZA party in parliament. The Macedonian parliament, in an initial vote, on Friday passed an amendment to the constitution, paving the way to changing the country's name to the Republic of North Macedonia. Macedonia is also the name of a northern province in Greece. Athens is worried that the use of the same name by the neighboring state could lead to territorial claims. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 20:19:52|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close RAMALLAH, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Saeb Erekat slammed Washington's call for a conference over Middle East peace in the Polish capital Warsaw. Erekat told Voice of Palestine, the official Palestinian radio station, that the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's initiative proposed to the UN Security Council last February are still on the table, urging the international community to adopt them since they are based on the two-state solution on the borders of 1967 and international legitimacy resolutions. Erekat highlighted that the Palestinians reject any peace proposal that undermines their right to establish their state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. He described Israel as the "source of evil." U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday that Washington will jointly host a global summit in Warsaw on Feb. 13-14 focusing on Iran and its role in the Middle East region. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 19:44:45|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close Panos Kammenos (L), outgoing Defense Minister and party leader of the Independent Greeks (ANEL), exits the Maximos Mansion following a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in Athens, Greece, Jan. 13, 2019. The junior party in Greece's ruling two-partite coalition, the Independent Greeks (ANEL), is quitting the government over the Macedonia name deal, Panos Kammenos said on Sunday. (Xinhua/Marios Lolos) ATHENS, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The junior party in Greece's ruling two-partite coalition, the Independent Greeks (ANEL), is quitting the government over the Macedonia name deal, Greek Defense Minister and ANEL leader Panos Kammenos said on Sunday. Kammenos told Greek national broadcaster ERT and other media about the decision after a meeting with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. He did not clarify whether the right-wing party will continue to support the left SYRIZA party in parliament. Kammenos is scheduled to hold a press conference later. Kammenos had repeatedly said in recent months that his party would not vote for the Macedonia name deal, which was due to reach the Greek assembly for a vote later this month. The Macedonian parliament, in an initial vote, on Friday passed an amendment to the constitution, paving the way to changing the country's name to the Republic of North Macedonia. Macedonia is also the name of a northern province in Greece. Athens is worried that the use of the same name by the neighboring state could lead to territorial claims. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 19:39:44|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close ULAN BATOR, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in Mongolia has donated medicines and medical devices worth 107,000 U.S. dollars to Mongolia, the country's health ministry said Sunday. The donation included a total of 7,132 medicines of six different types and medical equipment which is used to treat respiratory infections in children, the country's Health Minister Davaajantsan Sarangerel said in a statement. The donation was delivered as part of a cooperation program between the Mongolian government and UNICEF in the areas of child protection, education and health, the statement said. "Cases of influenza and other respiratory diseases have been increasing due to air pollution. UNICEF's assistance is now vital for us," Sarangerel said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 19:34:42|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close ADEN, Yemen, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chief of Yemen's military intelligence agency Brigadier General Saleh Tamah injured in a Houthi drone strike against an army parade died of his wounds on Sunday, a government official told Xinhua. The Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi group targeted the strategic military air base of Anad three days ago, leaving six soldiers killed and injuring 20 others including high-ranking army commanders. General Tamah was seriously inured along with the army's chief of staff and moved immediately to receive treatment in the southern port city of Aden, sources said. According to medical sources based in Aden, the injuries of Tamah were very severe and he underwent a number of surgeries but died of his wounds earlier in the day. General Tamah was born in 1950 in Lahj province, in Yemen's south, and appointed by the internationally-backed Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to lead the military intelligence agency last year. Commander of the Fourth Regional Military Command General Fadhel Hassan and the governor of Lahj Ahmed Abdullah Turki are still receiving treatment in Aden. The Houthis claimed responsibility and said through their official media that the drone attack on the military parade in Lahj came as a "response to the continued raids of Saudi aggression targeting innocent citizens." Yemeni observers warned that the Houthi drone strike that targeted the Saudi-backed Yemeni army commanders could jeopardize the ongoing efforts aimed at ending the country's conflict peacefully. They said that the Houthis deliberately attacked the pro-government military parade in an act aimed to put the country's peace process in jeopardy and to escalate the situation militarily just to get away from implementing Sweden's agreement. The impoverished Arab country has been locked in a civil war since the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa, in 2014. Saudi Arabia leads an Arab military coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 to support the government of President Hadi after Houthi rebels forced him into exile. The United Nations has listed Yemen as the world's top humanitarian crisis, with seven million citizens on the brink of famine. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 18:39:35|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close NEW DELHI, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Eight Indian sailors have been stranded for the past several months on a ship detained at Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as their passports have been confiscated by local authorities, said a media report. The ship was detained by the UAE Coast Guard on April 15, 2016, and the passports and seaman books of the sailors confiscated. One of the stranded sailors was quoted as saying that they were living a pathetic life and were not able to return home as they have not been given a sign off by the management of the ship. Even their salaries were pending for past several months. The stranded sailors have sent out a video message appealing for their rescue from the ship which has been practically abandoned. The video was forwarded to the concerned authorities by a local human rights activist who works with Justice Upheld, an international humanitarian organization, reported the Times of India on Sunday. Besides the eight Indian sailors, there is one Sudanese sailor and one Tanzania who are onboard the abandoned ship MV Azraqmoiah. The Indians hail from different states, including Assam, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh, according to the newspaper. The ship's management company Elite Way Marine Services in Abu Dhabi, has run into financial issues and thus the crew are not being paid their salaries. The crew were said to be suffering from health issues too. They were getting only a limited amount of provisions from the Consulate General of India in Dubai, which, according to the crew, were insufficient. Amid all this, the Federal Transport Authority of the UAE has banned the ship's commercial operations, reported the newspaper. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 18:24:32|Editor: Yamei Video Player Close TEHRAN, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry denied that Tehran considers withdrawal from the 2015 international nuclear deal, Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday. The Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi strongly denied recent "rumors" inside the country about the country's plan to pull out of the landmark deal as "untrue." It seems that certain groups are "systematically" fomenting mental chaos in the society and disrupting the market to favor the profiteers, Qasemi was quoted as saying. "They are attempting to spread biased and false news to create negative psychological atmosphere in the market," he said, adding that any decision about the nuclear deal comes within the purview of the Iranian high council monitoring the accord. Qasemi also ruled out any disagreement between the Iranian foreign minister and President Hassan Rouhani over the ongoing political affairs of the Islamic republic. He dismissed the idea that Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is going to resign or that there is a division between the foreign ministry and the administration, saying that "certain elements inside the country are insanely spreading false news to weaken the foreign ministry and its hardworking personnel." Iran has stressed that the country will remain in the nuclear deal as long as the nuclear deal serves its interests. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 18:09:31|Editor: Yamei Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Nobel laureate Dr. James Watson, co-discoverer of the DNA helix and father of the Human Genome Project, has been stripped of honors by his laboratory following "reprehensible" remarks on race and ethnicity. The Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), the New York facility where Watson worked for nearly four decades and which has a school named after him, said that it was acting in response to his remarks made in a television documentary which aired earlier this month. The 90-year-old geneticist resigned under fire from his laboratory in 2007 after telling a British newspaper that people of African descent tend to have lower intelligence. However, in the new PBS documentary titled "American Masters: Decoding Watson," when asked about his views on race in the decade since his departure from the lab, Watson said he stood by his former remarks, citing the difference in IQ tests results to suggest black inferiority. While the DNA pioneer also expressed his hope for everyone to be equal, he added, "people who have to deal with black employees found this is not true." "Dr. Watson's statements are reprehensible, unsupported by science, and in no way represent the views of CSHL, its trustees, faculty, staff, or students. The Laboratory condemns the misuse of science to justify prejudice," the laboratory said in a Friday statement before revoking three titles -- chancellor emeritus, Oliver R. Grace Professor Emeritus, and honorary trustee soon afterwards. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 17:54:28|Editor: Yamei Video Player Close TEHRAN, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry summoned Polish charge d'affaires to voice Tehran's protest at the European country's decision to host a conference that the U.S. is going to hold against Iran next month, Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday. "This is a U.S. hostile move against the Islamic republic, and Poland is expected to refrain from keeping the U.S. company in holding such a conference," an Iranian Foreign Ministry official said. In response, the Polish diplomat provided an explanation for the conference, saying it would not be an anti-Iran gathering and that Poland's stances differ from those of the United States. The Iranian official said the explanation was "insufficient," stressing that the Polish government must take immediate action over its decision, otherwise, "the Islamic Republic of Iran will have to take retaliatory measures." Iran's protest followed U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's remarks on Friday who said that Washington will jointly host a global summit in the Polish capital Warsaw on Feb. 13-14 focusing on Iran and its role in the Middle East region. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 17:39:26|Editor: Yamei Video Player Close BEIJING, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Communist Party of China (CPC) adopted a communique at its third plenary session held from Friday to Sunday. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, addressed the session, while other Party and state leaders, including Li Keqiang, Li Zhanshu, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji and Han Zheng, attended the meeting. A work report of CCDI, delivered by Zhao Leji, head of the CCDI, was passed at the session, according to the communique. CCDI members agreed that it is an important political task for all the Party members to carefully study and implement Xi's speech delivered at the session, the communique said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 16:39:19|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close DOHA, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Qatar's former Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber al-Thani said that the Arab world needs to find ways to settle the disagreements among them, the state-run Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported on Sunday. "Arab leaders have to find ways to heal rift and put the Arab world in its rightful place," al-Thani said in an interview with Russia Today channel. Asked about the Gulf crisis, Thani said that it is intended at the present "to remain without escalation or solution." He mentioned also that the failure of the mediator to solve the Gulf crisis is because of the conflicting positions of Washington and the intransigence of the parties. "Qatar is fine despite the siege and is overcoming the fabricated crisis. The blockading countries have not come up with any evidence so far of the accusation that Qatar supports terrorism," Thani added. On the murder of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, he said that they are waiting for justice. Meanwhile, he also called for an immediate end to the Yemeni war, which he described as a "grave mistake." Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 16:39:18|Editor: ZX Video Player Close CHICAGO, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- Chicago is preparing to celebrate the Chinese New Year, which falls on Feb. 5 this year, with cultural, culinary and music events, organizers said Saturday. "The atmosphere of celebrating Chinese New Year is getting heavier in the United States, particularly in cities with a big Chinese population," Liu Jun, acting consul general of the Chinese Consulate General in Chicago, said at a press conference. Liu said dozens of programs have been organized for the upcoming Chinese New Year, in which cultural and artistic troupes from China will work with the local Chinese community to provide a glimpse of Chinese cultural traditions. "Chicago has more wonderful celebration programs this year, and I believe all of you will enjoy a happier Chinese New Year here," Liu said. Chicago is the first city in the United States to launch a Chinese New Year celebration in the name of the city government, and 2019 will be the sixth year for the city to mark the Chinese New Year. On Feb. 4, the China National Peking Opera Company will kick off the Year of the Pig with a performance at the Chicago Cultural Center. The Hubei Opera and Dance Drama Theater and Shanxi Cultural Troupe will also join in celebrating the Chinese New Year with a festive display of Chinese dance, music, and traditional food. Chicago is paying a lot of attention to obtaining Chinese investments and attracting more Chinese tourists. Choose Chicago, the city's tourism promotion agency, has set up tourism promotion offices in several big Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Chengdu. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 16:14:16|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close JERUSALEM, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced Sunday morning that it has found another cross-border tunnel allegedly dug by the Hezbollah militant organization. The tunnel reaches a few tens of meters into Israel and stems 800 meters into Lebanon, the army said. Lt. Cl. Jonathan Conricus, head of the International Media Branch at the IDF, said the goals, set approximately six weeks ago when the Israeli military announced the beginning of Operation "Northern Shield" to thwart such tunnels, have been reached. "According to our intelligence, there are no longer any cross-border attack tunnels from Lebanon into Israel," he told reporters at a briefing, "There are however still facilities that Hezbollah has dug within Lebanese territory that have yet to cross into Israel and we are continuing to monitor them." "We assess we have found the last tunnel," Conricus added. He would not confirm the total number of tunnels found, but a count of previous IDF announcements makes this one the sixth. According to a statement issued by the IDF on Sunday morning, the IDF has now exposed all cross-border tunnels dug by Hezbollah from Lebanon into Israel and the tunnels will be neutralized in the coming days. The statment added that this marks the completion of Operation "Northern Shield," which aims to expose and neutralize attack tunnels which infiltrate into Israeli territory. The IDF is simultaneously monitoring several locations where Hezbollah is digging underground structures which have yet to cross into Israel. The Lebanese government is responsible for everything happening in its territory, noted the statement. Hezbollah and Israel fought a war in 2006. Since then, there has been tension along the border with isolated violent incidents. Israel has reportedly conducted hundreds of airstrikes against arms shipments for Hezbollah in the past two years. For over a year, Israel has been fortifying its border with Lebanon, using technological means and physical barriers to make attacks more difficult. The intent of the tunnels, according to Israeli officials, was to launch a massive attack against Israeli population centers in the north of the country in order to begin an offensive. The latest tunnel was found hours ago and was described by Conricus as the "longest and most detailed yet." Tensions along the border have been running high since the Israeli military began its efforts to discover and dismantle the tunnels. Both Israel and the UN say the tunnels violate the fragile cease-fire reached at the end of the 2006 war. Hezbollah has remained silent on the issue. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 15:19:09|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close MAZAR-E-SHARIF, Afghanistan, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- A total of 12 militants including the shadow district governor for Zari district of the northern Balkh province were killed after fighting aircraft targeted a Taliban motorbikes convoy in the neighboring Sholgara district on Saturday, an army spokesman said Sunday. Acting upon intelligence reports, the sorties were launched on Saturday afternoon when a Taliban convoy was going to Zari district, leaving 12 insurgents including the shadow district governor Qari Qudratullah, dead on the spot, said Mohammad Hanif Rezai, an army spokesman in the northern region. The militants were travelling on motorbikes and all the 12 motorbikes were also destroyed in the raids, the official said. Taliban militants have not commented. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 14:24:01|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- The geomagnetic field makes lives possible by deflecting harmful radiation and keeping water and atmosphere in place. But now it's acting up, with increasingly unpredictable bipolar course change which renders compasses redundant. Unlike previous anomalies recorded at intervals averaging several hundred thousand years, recent movements of the magnetic poles have been alarmingly "erratic" -- frequent and faster -- from around 15 km per year before the mid-1990s to around 55 km right now, skittering away from Canada and towards Siberia, according to science journal Nature. The Earth's magnetic field is generated in the fluid outer core of sloshing molten iron by a self-exciting dynamo process. However, abrupt and irregular changes within the core has prompted scientists to update the World Magnetic Model, which describes the the planet's magnetic field and underlies all modern navigation, from the systems steering ships at sea to Google Maps on smartphones. The Clock is ticking right now for geomagnetists to release the updated model by the Jan. 15 deadline, the most recent of which issued in 2015 and supposed to last until 2020, according to Nature. Researchers from the U.S.-based National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the British Geological Survey in Edinburgh has been checking annually to see if the model is able to capture all the variations in Earth's magnetic field. Starting 2018, the World Magnetic Model was not functioning well, its precision close to exceeding "the acceptable (safe) limit for navigational errors," Nature reported. Besides such errors, a disrupted geomagnetic field may also leave living beings on the planet vulnerable to an increased dosage of solar radiation. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 13:38:55|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close PARIS, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A powerful explosion in central Paris on Saturday killed three and injured dozens of others while around 8,000 participated the "yellow vest" protests in the capital city, both pressing the government to take concrete actions promptly. A Spanish female tourist and two firefighters were killed in the explosion that occurred at around 9:00 a.m. (0800 GMT) in a building with a bakery and a restaurant on the Rue de Trevise in the 9th district of Paris. The Spanish national was seriously wounded and died in the afternoon. Two firefighters, aged 27 and 28 respectively, were killed by the explosion as "they were looking for a gas leak in the building," Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said. The two young firefighters were hailed by French President Emmanuel Macron as "heros." In addition, 47 others were injured, including 10 seriously. "It happened when there were people in the street and firefighters inside," Castaner said. The force of the blast was so powerful that storefronts were blown out, windows up to the fouth floor shattered and parked vehicles nearby damaged. Parsi Mayor Anne Hidalgo extended a "message of affection and solidarity" to the victims of the explosion, which the local authorities believed was caused by a gas leak. An investigation has been under way, according to the Regional Directorate of Judicial Police. The mayor said that Paris authorities were mobilized to help the evacuated residents and tourists with temporary accommodations. Gas is commonly used in Paris for heating and cooking but gas-related explosions are rare in the city. The Le Parisien newspaper quoted Paris counselor Alexandre Vesperini as saying that the city's gas network "aged a lot" and "is poorly signposted." Not far from the blast site, thousands of protesters in yellow vest marched on the streets on Saturday. Local reports said the number of the protestors was around 8,000, much more than 2,000 recorded in the previous demonstration on Jan. 5. The fresh "yellow vest" protests started peacefully in the beginning as the French government had taken heavy security measures beforehand, including closing some bridges cross the Seine River and protecting parliament building and the Elysee Presidential palace with police barriers. However, tension flared hours later. Tear gas clouds rose into the air above L'Arc de Triomphe and the Place de L'Etoile where first clashes between police and protesters broke out at around 1430 GMT, after the protesters tried to break through security cordons. Anti-riot officers responded with tear gas, stun grenades and water cannon to disperse the crowd that threw projectiles at them. Up to 102 people were reportedly arrested for carrying objects that could be used as weapons, according to the Interior Ministry. With more than 84,000 people demonstrating nationwide, this Saturday marked the ninth weekend of "yellow vest" demonstration after over 280,000 French people took to the streets across France on Nov. 17. to protest against fuel price hikes planned and later gave up by the government. President Macron is to launch a national debate on Jan. 15 on the internet as well as in town halls, focusing on taxes, green energy, institutional reform and citizenship, mainly to reply to what the "yellow vest" protesters are demanding. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 13:18:53|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close CHICAGO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A winter storm swept through the U.S. Midwest Saturday, where at least five people were killed in crashes on slick roadways, including a woman and her 14-year-old stepdaughter, local media reported. Missouri was worst hit in the storm, with the National Weather Service reporting more than a foot of snow. The storm covered roads and made driving dangerous. Part of Interstate 44 near St. Louis, Missouri, was blocked for several hours Saturday. Most of the flights at Lambert International Airport in St. Louis were either canceled or delayed. By Saturday afternoon, Missouri troopers had responded to more than 3,000 calls for help, involving more than 700 crashes and 1,300 stranded vehicles. In central Missouri, about 12,000 households and businesses suffered power failure at one point, local media reported. The snowstorm also hit Chicago, the third largest U.S. city, which has put a Winter Weather Advisory in effect until 3 a.m. (0900 GMT) Sunday. Weather map of the National Weather Service shows the snowstorm moved into Kansas and Nebraska from the Rockies on Friday, then went eastward into Missouri, Iowa, Illinois and Indiana. It is expected that the storm will bring three to six inches of snow to Washington D.C. and some areas in northern and central parts of Maryland on Sunday before reaching into the Mid-Atlantic region. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 12:33:47|Editor: Shi Yinglun Video Player Close Afghan security force members stand at the site of an attack in Herat city, Afghanistan, Jan. 12, 2019. At least six people, including an assailant, were killed after Taliban gunmen attacked a police station in Herat city, capital of western Afghan province of Herat overnight, provincial government spokesman said Sunday. The incident occurred late Saturday night after at least three gunmen stormed the main police station in Pul-e-Rangina locality of Police District 6 of the city. (Xinhua/Elyas) HERAT, Afghanistan, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- At least six people, including an assailant, were killed after Taliban gunmen attacked a police station in Herat city, capital of western Afghan province of Herat overnight, provincial government spokesman said Sunday. The incident occurred late Saturday night after at least three gunmen stormed the main police station in Pul-e-Rangina locality of Police District 6 of the city, spokesman Jailani Farhad told Xinhua. Those among the killed were three police officers, two civilians, including a child and one of the attackers, he added. Three police personnel responding to the attack were also wounded and Special Operations Forces also defused a car bomb left beyond by the attackers. Two attackers fled the scene as they failed to enter the building's perimeter, he said. The Taliban militant group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Over the past a few months, Afghanistan has witnessed waves of terror attacks by the Islamic State (IS) outfit and Taliban insurgents. On Dec. 24, 47 government employees and visitors were killed and 27 others wounded after five gunmen attacked two government offices in Afghan capital city of Kabul. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 10:38:33|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close CARACAS, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Ten member countries of the Lima Group have distanced themselves from interfering in Venezuela's internal affairs, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza said Saturday. Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Honduras, Peru, Panama and Saint Lucia, once urging Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to cede power, have rectified their position, Arreaza said at a news conference at the headquarters of the ministry. These governments distanced themselves "not only from a position that violates international law and from interference in Venezuela's internal affairs, but also from the position ... of Washington," said Arreaza. The United States has imposed a series of sanctions on Venezuelan individuals involved in the country's controversial Constituent National Assembly, including Maduro, to support the opposition Democratic Unity Roundtable. Thirteen of the 14 member countries of the Lima Group, except Mexico, on Jan. 4 signed a declaration in the Peruvian capital Lima to urge Maduro not to assume a second presidential term on Jan. 10 due to his government's alleged violations of democracy. Maduro on Wednesday said he would give the Lima Group 48 hours to rectify their position or he will respond with "crude" measures. Paraguay and Canada have not yet sent diplomatic notes to Caracas and Venezuela will wait until Jan. 14 "so that these two countries can rectify," the foreign minister said. The Lima Group, comprising mostly Latin American countries, was formed following the Lima Declaration in the Peruvian capital in 2017 with a proclaimed aim to settle Venezuela's domestic crisis. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 08:23:17|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Agriculture experts in Silicon Valley are working with their Chinese counterparts to further collaboration in agritech innovation between the United States and China. The United States and China can collaborate with each other to tackle their common challenges in food and agriculture, such as farm labor shortages, scarce resources, and food security and safety, John Hartnett, an agritech expert in Silicon Valley, said Saturday. Hartnett sees agritech innovation as the only solution to those challenges. He visited Chinese cities of Beijing and Nanjing last month, where he met with government officials and leaders in agriculture. "The meetings were very positive. They were very engaged and very focused on driving leadership in agtech," said Hartnett, founder and CEO of SVG Partners, an investment, technology and advisory firm. "I was impressed with their work and initiative, and how quickly they are moving with this initiative." The initiative he referred to is the Nanjing Modern Agricultural Science and Technology Innovation Pilot Park, the first national-level agricultural innovation zone in China. Launched in July last year, the park consists of a scientific innovation center, an incubation center and a trading center. It is expected to be built into China's "agricultural Silicon Valley" by 2025. "This is a big move, a big investment," said Hartnett. He has been appointed to the expert committee of the park. For the next three years, he will help with working out strategies and building a bridge between Silicon Valley and Nanjing, capital city of China's Jiangsu Province. Hartnett said his Chinese partners are interested in Silicon Valley's ecosystem and the expertise to accelerate the startups that are engaged in improving agriculture and food chain. MicroGen Biotech, a startup that joined his "Thrive" accelerator program in 2017, is an example for the type of company that is going to be successful in China, said Hartnett. The company, which applies constructed functional microbiome technology to increase crop yield and health while protecting food safety, has a specific target market in China. It has established partnerships with several Chinese state-owned companies. Hartnett noted that he sees "two-way opportunity" between the two sides. "We are interested in having access to China, where we can bring our startups solving some of the greatest challenges in agriculture," he said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 08:13:24|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Syrian soldiers are seen in the northwestern countryside of Manbij, northern Syria, on Jan. 12, 2019. Syrian army units have been deployed in Manbij since late last month as the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) have been withdrawing from the area. (Xinhua) Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 07:18:11|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close LAS VEGAS, the United States, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- "CES can be a stage for iFLYTEK and other Chinese companies to showcase themselves," said Li Chuangang, vice president of iFLYTEK during the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, adding that the Chinese leading Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered speech and language technology provider is proud that their product received the CES Innovation Award this year. "Aim high with technologies and stand firm with applications, we believe we can use artificial intelligence to build a better world," said Li in an interview with Xinhua on Thursday. As the largest publicly-listed AI and intelligent speech and language technologies provider in the Asia-Pacific region, iFLYTEK won 12 awards in worldwide voice and AI competitions in 2018, including Blizzard Challenge -- the most authoritative international competition in speech synthesis, SemEval - international workshop on semantic evaluation contest, SQuAD - Stanford Question Answering Dataset challenge, and IWSLT - International Workshop on Spoken Language Translation. "We are very pleased to display our newly upgraded iFLYTEK Translator 2.0, iFLYREC Series' transcription products, iFLYOS Voice Intelligent Interactive System and our partners' products at CES 2019. We want to show people how artificial intelligence can empower industries and individuals, and add values to scenarios including communication, conferences, offices and so on," he added. The iFLYTEK Translator 2.0, the 2019 CES Innovation Award honoree in the Tech For A Better World product category, supports translations between Chinese and more than 50 other languages. The product features offline translation, Chinese dialect recognition, built-in professional AI translation, and one-click global internet access to meet the communication needs of users. The award means that "your product scored highly across all judging criteria, and it joins a small percentage of other products that are given this honor each year," said CES organizer in a letter to iFLYTEK. According to the company's sales figures, iFLYTEK Translator 2.0 has great advantages in the Chinese-speaking market. Li said that he believes the company will play a greater role in global communications when the newly upgraded products can translate between languages other than Chinese. "We hope to promote our artificial intelligence technology to a world-class standard, and also create values for our customers," said Li. Since its founding in 1999, the company has grown to occupy over 70 percent of the market share in the Chinese voice technology market. "We took part in CES for the first time in 2018 and got positive feedback from visitors and customers," Li said. "We made elaborate preparations for CES this year and consider CES as a great platform to showcase our innovation capacity and communicate with our international partners," he said, noting that the company has put more than 20 percent of its marketing income into research and development for five years in a row. CES, the world's largest trade show to present new products and technologies in the consumer electronics industry, closed Friday, attracting about 4,500 exhibitors and 180,000 attendees in 2019. iFLYTEK has set up joint laboratories with universities around the world, promoting development in AI research. Meanwhile, the company has also established partnerships with some excellent companies to pool resources together. The company signed strategic cooperation agreement with the International Telecommunication Union in April 2018, according to the company. "The application of artificial intelligence will affect everyone's life in future, we hope the world can witness the progress of China's AI development and build a better world together," said Li. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 07:34:20|Editor: Liangyu Video Player Close People visit the Grand Bazaar Pedestrian Mall in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Jan. 12, 2019. According to statistics by Culture and Tourism Bureau of Tianshan District of Urumqi, the number of visitors to the Grand Bazaar Pedestrian Mall has reached 14.12 million since its opening in August 2018. (Xinhua/Ding Lei) Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 07:08:09|Editor: Chengcheng Video Player Close AREQUIPA, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Thirteen-time Dakar Rally champion Stephane Peterhansel expressed his hope on Saturday that the event will soon return to Africa, expressing nostalgia for the gruelling Sahara desert terrain. The prestigious off-road race, whose original route was from Paris to Dakar, was shifted to South America in 2009 because of security concerns. Peterhansel, who has won the Dakar seven times in a car and six times on a bike, said the event had lost some of its charm since its relocation. "In Africa you started at one point and ended up at another. Here it's a bit more artificial because you start at one place and do loops. We arrive at a good dune site and we stay for two days," the 53-year-old Frenchman said during a rest day of the race's current edition in Peru. "When you like adventure you want to cross a whole country. The biggest adventure I remember is when we started in Paris and ended up in Cape Town." Peterhansel added: "When I was in Africa we never slept in a hotel. Sometimes a village would be set up in the middle of nowhere to sleep and do some repairs and then we continued the rally the next day." However, Peterhansel stressed that if he had to pick a country to host the Dakar in South America, he would choose Peru because the dunes are the ones that most closely resemble the Sahara desert." This year's event marks the first time the Dakar has been held in a single country since its inception in 1979. Peterhansel, who is competing in an X-Raid Mini, is currently second in the overall standings at the race's midway point, almost 25 minutes behind Qatari Nasser Al-Attiyah. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 06:23:02|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held a telephone conversation Saturday with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu on Syria issue, according to a statement issued by the State Department. Pompeo and his Turkish counterpart agreed on the importance of continuing U.S.-Turkish consultations as part of the deliberate and coordinated withdrawal of U.S. forces from Syria, the statement said. Pompeo reiterated to Cavusoglu the U.S. commitment to addressing Turkish security concerns along the Turkey-Syria border. At the same time, he emphasized the importance that the United State places on the protection of forces that worked with the United States in defeating the Islamic State (IS), referring to the Kurdish militia, known as the People's Protection Units (YPG). The top U.S. diplomat is on an eight-day trip to the Middle East amid rising uncertainty and complexity in the region following the White House's decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. Trump's announcement of pulling the 2,000 troops out of Syria has raised expectations that Turkey could launch a military operation targeting the YPG, which Ankara considers a terrorist group with links to Kurdish separatists in Turkey. Cavusoglu said in an interview on Thursday that Turkey would conduct the planned military operation to thwart the threat in northern Syria, even if the United States delays the withdrawal. U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton said Friday that the military environment in northern Syria was "very complex," warning that Turkey should not take any military action that is not fully coordinated through the military to military channels with the United States. Trump said on Monday that U.S. troops would be withdrawn from Syria "at a proper pace," while at the same time continuing the fight against the IS. Currently, there are about 2,000 U.S. troops deployed in Syria. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 06:02:58|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close DUBAI, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on Saturday the formation of an Arab force and alliance capable of encountering regional challenges, Al Arabiya TV reported. "The United States is not going to leave the Middle East region," Pompeo said in an interview with Al Arabiya on Friday. Asked on reports about the imminent formation of an Arab military alliance or a sort of an Arab Nato, Pompeo replied that it is "an attempt to build a coalition of Middle Eastern forces that can respond to many threats to the region." On whether this coalition force was going to replace the U.S. forces in Syria, Pompeo said "different countries will have to make their own decisions about how they are going to participate in this coalition." Meanwhile, he reiterated that Saudi Arabia is an important partner of the United States. "This relationship, this mutually beneficial relationship, is to create stability in the Middle East," he said. Pompeo outlined Washington's main priorities in the Middle East which include destroying Islamic State and ensuring regional stability. On the Iranian affair, he indicated that announcing withdrawal from Syria does not contradict the U.S. strategy towards Iran. The United States' pullout from Syria does not mean any backing down on fighting against terror, he said. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 06:02:58|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close New York, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese private search engine company Sogou Inc. has been named "Global AI Industry Top Brand of the Year" by International Data Group (IDG), the Massachusetts-based leading technology media, data and marketing services company, Sogou said Friday. The award is meant to highlight winners' scientific and technological innovation and ability to develop products that enjoy attention from industry authorities, consumer electronics enthusiasts and global media. IDG held an award ceremony covering seven categories on Wednesday in Las Vegas. Sogou has invested heavily in developing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies and integrated such technologies into its products and services including Sogou Search, Sogou Input Method, and other smart hardware products. Sogou made its debut at the just-concluded Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, showcasing its AI technologies and products such as facial transfer technology, AI news anchor, smart translation devices. Based in Beijing, Sogou floated its initial public offering on New York Stock Exchange in November 2017 and its stocks closed at 5.87 U.S. dollars per share on Friday. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 05:57:56|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close HOUSTON, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Oil prices continued to rise during the week ending Jan. 11, with the price of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery increasing by 7.6 percent and Brent crude for March delivery increasing by 6.0 percent. On Monday, oil prices continued to rise, erasing part of the steep losses in December 2018, as the OPEC-led output cut deal, going into effective this month, has begun to play its role. WTI increased by 0.56 dollar to settle at 48.52 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude increased by 0.27 dollar to close at 57.33 dollars a barrel. OPEC and its oil-producing allies, including Russia, reached an agreement to slash oil production by a total of 1.2 million barrels per day in December, in a bid to shore up falling prices due to fears of oversupply. On Tuesday, oil prices extended gains. WTI increased by 1.26 dollars to settle at 49.78 dollars a barrel, and the Brent crude rose 1.39 dollars to close at 58.72 dollars a barrel. Crude futures were backed as energy stocks were traded broadly higher on the day. On Wednesday, oil prices surged, sending the crude in a bull market as the United States reported a draw of crude oil inventories. WTI surged 2.58 dollars to settle at 52.36 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude rose 2.72 dollars to close at 61.44 dollars a barrel. On Thursday, oil prices edged up, extending its gains for the ninth consecutive day, as Saudi Arabia announced output reduction volumes in January and February. WTI increased by 0.23 U.S. dollar to settle at 52.59 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude rose 0.24 dollar to close at 61.68 dollars a barrel. On Friday, oil prices dropped, snapping its consecutive rally for nine days, weighed down by the rising greenback and sliding energy stocks due to concerns caused by the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. WTI fell 1 U.S. dollar to settle at 51.59 dollars a barrel, while Brent crude plunged 1.2 dollars to close at 60.48 dollars a barrel. Crude futures sank along with the ebbing energy stocks in the U.S. stock market as the U.S. government shutdown has been stretching for three weeks and showed no signs of ending. Meanwhile, offsetting the adverse political impact, the count of active drilling rigs for oil in the United States declined by four, the second weekly fall, as caution grew among oil producers in their drilling plans for 2019. The market is waiting to see the impacts of supply cut of OPEC countries, which intends to stabilize the crude oil prices. Meanwhile, the market is watching closely on the development of trade talks between China and the United States. Analysts believe that a smooth global trade would help encourage oil demand across the world. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 05:37:53|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close RAMALLAH, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- At least six Palestinians were injured on Saturday evening during clashes with Israeli army forces which stormed the city of Ramallah, Palestinian medics said. The six were injured by rubber gunshots in the fierce clashes that broke out in the center of Ramallah after an Israeli army force stormed the city on Saturday evening, said the Health Ministry in a press statement. Palestinian security sources in Ramallah told Xinhua that Israeli army forces stormed several neighborhoods in the city and reached the surroundings of the city's municipality. They added that fierce clashes broke out between dozens of young men and Israeli soldiers, who fired rubber gunshots and tear gas to disperse the young men who threw stones at the soldiers. The sources also said that the Israeli army forces broke into several stores and shops in the city and confiscated the outside cameras which kept records to look for gunmen who opened fire at Israeli settlers on Saturday. It is the second week in a raw that the Israeli army forces storm in Ramallah, which is classified as Area A that is under the full Palestinian Authority control, where the city is considered as the capital of the Palestinian Authority (PA). The PA government condemned the Israeli army incursion into the city center, holding the Israeli government fully responsible for pushing the situation to more deterioration and giving a free hand to Israeli settlers to continue their terror assaults. An Airbus A330 aircraft of China's Hainan Airlines is seen at Dublin Airport in Dublin, Ireland, June 12, 2018. The direct flight between Dublin and Beijing, capital of China, was launched here as the Airbus A330 aircraft of Hainan Airlines departed Dublin Airport. (Xinhua) DUBLIN, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Ireland and China have developed a strong relationship with plenty of success stories at the people-to-people level, Irish Ambassador to China Eoin O'Leary said on Friday. Speaking at a seminar organized by AsiaMatters, an Irish think tank, O'Leary hailed bilateral ties over the last 40 years and said country-to-country links can only be built on the basis of strong people-to-people links and close local ties. Chinese Ambassador to Ireland Yue Xiaoyong, who also attended the seminar, said he has visited 22 counties of Ireland ever since he became ambassador to the country, during which many local government officials have expressed their interest in forming partnerships with China. Noting the important role of local governments in promoting bilateral ties, Yue said seven pairs of Chinese and Irish provinces and cities have formed sister relationships since 2015. Alan Dukes, chairman of AsiaMatters and former Irish minister for finance, said China is the world's second largest economy and its regions and cities can offer tremendous business opportunities to Ireland. He said there has been an increasing interest by Irish local authorities in seeking a strategic economic partnership with China particularly when Ireland faces the imminent withdrawal of Britain from the European Union. Over 50 people including officials at the central and local levels, senior diplomats, business leaders, experts and scholars attended the seminar, with topics focused on the importance of forming a partnership with China at the local level, how to form such a partnership and lessons drawn from past experiences. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 05:22:49|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close DOHA, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohamed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani met with his Omani counterpart Yusuf bin Alawi and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretary-General Abdullatif Al Zayani here on Saturday. The three officials discussed the course of the GCC cooperation as well as issues of mutual concern, said the Qatari foreign ministry's media office in a statement. Bin Alawi and Zayani arrived earlier on Saturday for an unannounced visit on the eve of an expected visit by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 04:32:42|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A new approach combing Western psychiatric care with traditional Chinese medicine is expected to treat depression in U.S. San Francisco Bay Area. Integral TMS, a recently-launched psychiatric clinic in the Bay Area, aims to provide holistic care to patients with a focus on those Chinese immigrants. "It's really a treatment over time," Hugh Brent Solvason, a psychiatrist and president of Integral TMS, said Saturday. "It's quite a challenge to keep people really well and functioning at their best. So I believe the treatment combined with Qigong and acupuncture can be consistent," he added. The clinic is a partnership between Solvason and Nine Star University, a California-based traditional Chinese medicine university, where the clinic is housed. The university offers acupuncture treatment and Qigong classes in collaboration with Shaolin Temple USA. "When all is in one place, it feels like a therapeutic community. So the patients know we are all working from different standpoints," said Solvason. He started researching in transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), a noninvasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to stimulate nerve cells in the brain to improve symptoms of depression, in 2000. The clinical treatment was approved in 2007. Solvason said "amazing" results have been achieved in some severe depression cases. "Depression has a huge effect on the whole body. Traditional Chinese medicine believes it's a result of unbalanced Qi (energy)-blood circulation," said Philip Yang, president of the university. He said acupuncture has proved to be an effective method to treat depression. One of his patients, a 22-year-old man, has suffered depression for 12 years. "After three sessions, the patient said he had better sleep and appetite. He even had smiles again," said Yang. "Depression is associated with inflammation, and risk of heart disease and diabetes. Depression is an equal risk factor for heart disease and smoking," said Solvason. He has practiced Qigong for three years and has been to the Shaolin Temple in China several times. "So this is a powerful combination, which integrates cultural aspects and makes Western psychiatric care more accessible to the Chinese community," said Solvason. He said the clinic is recruiting bilingual psychiatrists to accommodate the needs of Chinese-speaking patients. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 02:57:30|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close PARIS, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A Spanish female tourist was killed in a powerful explosion in the centre of Paris on Saturday morning, bringing the blast's death toll up to three, French Interior Ministry said. The Spanish national, who was among the ten seriously wounded people, succumbed to her injuries in the afternoon. Two firefighters, aged 27 and 28 years, also lost their lives due to a "dramatic explosion" which happened as "they were looking for a gas leak in the building", Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said earlier on Saturday. At least 37 others, mostly passers-by, had lighter injuries. The explosion occurred at around 9:00 a.m. (0800 GMT) in a closed bakery on the Rue de Trevise in the 9th district of Paris due to a suspected gas leak. Television images showed the capital's shopping district turned to a devastating site. The huge blast blew out the entire ground floor of the building, with storefronts blown out and windows shattered up to the fouth floor. Shop windows were smashed, other buildings and parked vehicles were also damaged by the force of the blast. More than 200 firefighters and 100 police officers have been deployed. Two helicopters also landed on the nearby Place de l'Opera to evacuate victims. The Regional Directorate of Judicial Police has opened an investigation into the explosion. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 02:32:24|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close New York, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Bank of China New York Branch will roll out more services in 2019 for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) engaged in cross-border business between the United States and China, senior officials with the bank said. "We are developing a system with existing e-commerce platform to facilitate trade finance for e-commerce players," said Xu Chen, president and CEO of Bank of China USA in an interview with Xinhua on Friday. The system would stick to anti-money laundering rules by U.S. regulators through artificial intelligence and cyber security technologies, said Xu. Bank of China New York Branch launched a cross-border payment system named e-MPay in 2016 in cooperation with a third-party payment processor. Chinese e-commerce players operating at Amazon, eBay and other platforms only need to pay around 1 percent of commission fees rather than the previous 3 percent to 5 percent while business cycle has been shortened to one working day from one or two weeks, Xu said. In 2019, Chinese e-commerce players, many of which are small and medium businesses, will be able to receive RMB rather than U.S. dollars from their sales at U.S. e-commerce platforms by tapping new functions of e-MPay, said Yu Tong, executive vice president of Bank of China USA on Friday. More than 10,000 Chinese e-commerce players have been using e-MPay with hundreds of millions of yuan saved, according to Bank of China New York Branch. Bank of China New York Branch is also expected to start offering invoice finance for U.S. vendors operating at Chinese e-commerce platforms in the middle of 2019, said Yu. In addition, Bank of China New York Branch would continue with its "matchmaking" efforts, in particular for small and business players from China and those from the United States, according to Raymond L. Qiao, chief lending officer and executive vice president of Bank of China New York Branch. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 01:42:18|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close SKOPJE, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- World leaders congratulated on Saturday the Macedonian Parliament vote to endorse the constitutional changes regarding the name of the country, which will put Prespa Agreement in force and finally open the Euro-Atlantic path to Macedonia. "This is a significant decision for Macedonia, but also for the entire region," declared Albanian President Ilir Meta, adding that Albania will keep supporting Macedonia on its path. Matthew Nimetz, the United Nations mediator in the country name negotiations between Skopje and Athens, welcomed the final steps taken by the Macedonian Parliament towards implementing the Prespa Agreement. "This historic agreement between two neighbors opens the door to a new relationship between them and to a firmer basis for peace and security in the Balkans," said Nimetz in a written statement. German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas expressed in a written statement his wish that the Greek Parliament would approve the Prespa Agreement and for the Republic of North Macedonia to soon join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and start the European Union accession talks. Meanwhile, the spokesman for the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland tweeted that the Secretary General welcomes the decision of the Macedonian Parliament and sees it as an important contribution towards stability of the region. Late Friday after the Macedonian Parliament voted in favor of the constitutional changes, former Greek foreign minister Nikos Kotzias welcomed the endorsement of the Prespa Agreement, saying "history should be a school and not a prison." "North Macedonia welcome in our lives," tweeted Kotzias. Under the Prespa Agreement signed on June 17, 2018, the amendments to Macedonia's constitution will not enter into force and will have no value if Greece doesn't ratify this agreement and NATO accession Protocol. Macedonia is formally called the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) by the United Nations. Macedonia is also the name of a northern province in Greece. Athens has been worried that the use of the same name by the neighboring state could lead to territorial claims. On June 17 last year, Macedonia and Greece signed the Prespa Agreement to resolve a decades-old name dispute. Under the deal, the official name of the country will become the Republic of North Macedonia. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 01:37:17|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close by Olatunji Saliu ABUJA, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Passengers waiting to board a train from Nigeria's capital Abuja on Saturday were wowed when they were informed that the train service had been safely operating for 900 days. A male voice announced from a public address system said that the train service had been in commercial operation for 900 days and without any major accident recorded since its inception. Many looked in amazement, expressing satisfaction at the safe operation of the Abuja-Kaduna train service, the first standard gauge railway in Nigeria and West Africa. The train connects passengers from Idu, an industrial development area of Nigeria's capital city of Abuja, to Rigasa Village of Igabi local area of the northwestern state of Kaduna. The Abuja-Kaduna train service started commercial operation on July 27, 2016, following the smooth completion of the railway construction by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC). With the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) being its main operator, local passengers lauded the CCECC and NRC for working together vigorously to achieve maximum safety with efficient operation. Yakubu Garba, a regular passenger of the Abuja-Kaduna train service, described his experience so far as "topnotch." "It is a wonderful experience. The number one advantage of the train is safety, because of the security challenges in Nigeria," Garba told Xinhua at the boarding gate of the main Idu Station of the train. "When you enter the train you will feel safe. Also, businesses can be done between here and Kaduna in a day," the passenger said, referring to the comfort he feels using the train. He also encouraged more Nigerians to use the train, especially those working in Abuja and residing in any of the satellite towns along the route of the train to "buy into this idea." Garba said he has been more comfortable using the train since he observed that due to the security situation in the country, armed policemen are seen around the train stations and inside the train to ensure the safety of passengers. "It is a commendable effort. I wish it will go around the country and we will be better for it," he said while going onboard the train. Adamu Ahmed, a foreign tourist and first-time passenger of the train, said the train service gave him a first-time opportunity to see rural Nigeria as it connects to the urban areas in a safe and secure manner. "This is my first trip on the train and I like it. It is very nice and interesting," said the Arab. "It is not so different from what I've seen back home in Saudi Arabia." The Abuja-Kaduna rail line is one of the first Standard Gauge Railway Modernization Projects (SGRMP) undertaken in Nigeria. It is the first segment of the Lagos-Kano standard gauge project, which will link the commercial hub of Nigeria and the hub of economic activities in the northwest region of the country. The railway modernization initiative in Nigeria aims at replacing the existing narrow gauge system with the wider standard gauge system while allowing high-speed train operations on the railway network. In an interview with Xinhua, Fidet Okhiria, managing director of the NRC, said the patronage of the train service had increased greatly from the record of its first year. Even the teething troubles it encountered had been addressed, just as the railway has opened up new settlements, making businesses to expand, and making it easier for passengers to move products from one place to another at a cheaper rate, and in safe conditions, Okhiria noted. Only last month, over 80,000 passengers were transported on the Abuja-Kaduna train service, more than double of the passenger flow it previously recorded, the official said. "The train service has opened the eyes of Nigerians," he said. "We now get a lot of support from the people and the government because they are impressed with the progress of the train service even after three years of operation," he added. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 00:32:08|Editor: xuxin Video Player Close Photo taken on Jan. 12, 2019 shows heavy smoke from a state-owned oil refinery in Aden, Yemen. A new powerful explosion hit the the state-owned oil refinery in Aden on Saturday evening, injuring at least 15 people, a security official told Xinhua. (Xinhua/Murad Abdo) ADEN, Yemen, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- A new powerful explosion hit the the state-owned oil refinery in Yemen's southern port city of Aden on Saturday evening, injuring at least 15 people, a security official told Xinhua. "Fire that erupted one day ago extended to a new oil tanker and caused a huge explosion that injured more than 15 workers and firefighters inside the oil refinery," the security source said on condition of anonymity. Ambulances rushed to the site where firefighters are trying to extinguish the blaze after the explosion occurred at around 5:40 p.m. local time (1440 GMT). "There was a strong explosion and the detonation could be heard across the district of Buraigah in Aden with huge columns of smoke billowing from the complex," a witness told Xinhua. On Friday evening, a huge fire erupted just minutes after an explosion that targeted one of the refinery's oil tanks. Civil defense forces failed to contain the fire, causing the new explosion and leaving injuries, according to local sources. Considered Yemen's temporary capital city, Aden is where the Saudi-backed Yemeni government has based itself since 2015. The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since late 2014, when Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa. Source: Xinhua| 2019-01-13 00:12:04|Editor: Mu Xuequan Video Player Close HELSINKI, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Finnish Interior Minister Kai Mykkanen on Saturday repeated his call for tougher punishment on sex offenders who are immigrants or asylum seekers, after police uncovered four new cases of suspected sexual assault against minors in Oulu, northern Finland. Mykkanen reiterated his position that dual citizens who are found guilty of aggravated sexual offenses should have their Finnish citizenship deprived. "If someone violates one of our basic values, the physical integrity of another individual, I consider that a national threat," said the minister in the morning program of Finnish national broadcaster Yle. He pointed out that it is unacceptable that someone who comes to Finland in search of safety only creates more insecurity, emphasizing that these crimes have no ground in Finland. The Oulu Police Department said on Friday that they launched a preliminary investigation into four new cases of suspected sexual abuse of girls under the age of 15. The announcement followed a previous round of investigations on similar offenses in November last year. After the first series of sexual crimes revealed last November, Mykkanen made similar suggestions, saying that immigrants and asylum seekers who commit sexual crimes should be deported or have their citizenship revoked. According to Mykkanen, the suspects in the latest cases came to Finland from North Africa and the Middle East. Some of them were Finnish citizens and some were waiting for asylum decisions. Firefighters work at a blast site amid smoke and dust in Paris, France, Jan. 12, 2019. A huge gas explosion in central Paris injured at least 20 people on Saturday, of whom two were in critical condition, Le Figaro newspaper reported. The explosion occurred at around 9 a.m. (0800 GMT) in a closed bakery on the Rue de Trevise in the 9th district of Paris due to a suspected gas leak. (Xinhua/Chen Yichen) PARIS, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- Two people were killed and at least 47 others were wounded when a suspected gas leak caused "a spectacular explosion" that rocked a building in central Paris on Saturday, Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said. Two firefighters succumbed to their live-threatening injuries following the blast, Castaner confirmed in a Tweet message. The minister corrected the death toll from four to two. He added that 10 people, including one firefighter, were seriously wounded. At least 37 others had lighter injuries when firefighters were searching the building for more victims. "The explosion is very spectacular. The people were in the street at the time of the explosion, the casualties will be heavy," Castaner told reporters when he visited the site earlier on Saturday. "The situation at the moment is under control. We are accompanying the wounded. And all our services are mobilized too," he added. Television images showed the capital's shopping district turned to a devastating site. The huge blast blew out the entire ground floor of the building where the explosion was reported earlier in the day in a closed bakery on the Rue de Trevise in the 9th district of Paris. Charred debris covered the pavement around the building with storefronts blown out and windows shattered up to the fouth floor. Hundreds of meters away, shop windows were smashed, other buildings and parked vehicles were also damaged by the force of the blast. More than 200 firefighters and 100 police officers have been deployed. Two helicopters also landed on the nearby Place de l'Opera to evacuate victims. The Regional Directorate of Judicial Police opened an investigation into the explosion. "We still need to determine the circumstances and cause of the explosion, but at this stage we can say it is clearly an accident, presumably a gas leak," said Paris prosecutor Remi Heitz. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - One local business is preparing people on how to defend themselves against an active shooter situation. Talon Range in Midway hosted a training session on Saturday to safely prepare civilians who are faced with the threat of an active shooter. The course is a total of 12 hours. It includes a four hour classroom session on Friday night and a practice day at the range on Saturday. This Saturday, participants learned disarming techniques and and drills that help develop accurate shooting skills. The co-owner of Talon Range is expressing the urgency when it comes to being prepared for shootings. "The 1st Amendment isn't going any where and the 2nd Amendment isn't going anywhere. As long as those two forces are there, we are going to have more of these things. So we need to be prepared," said Co-owner Charlie Strickland. To learn more information on the "Active Shooter Response" visit TalonRange.com. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL)- Saturday at St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church, members of the community held a meeting about the Tallahassee Community Remembrance Project. About 60 people attended the informational meeting about the project which hopes to memorialize and remember the four people who were lynched in Leon County between 1897 and 1937. Committee Member Byron Greene explains the importance of the project. "We want to provide an avenue for healing, racial healing, so that we can become closer as a community there is a long history of division between blacks and whites here in America that still seems prevalent today," said Greene. The project is still in the planning phase and Greene said they are still getting input from the community on what next steps to take. TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) -With FSU, FAMU and TCC, Tallahassee is home to about 80,000 college students. Some will spend most of their time in the Capital city, just hanging around campus. The Knight Creative Communities Institute, along with the three schools, hope to change that through the city's 4th annual Experience Tallahassee festival. "We have a goal of University and Community connectivity, so we are bringing the students of campus. We are bringing the community to the students," said Co-Organizer, Elizabeth Emmanuel. With over 50 vendors here, one FSU student WTXL spoke to said she has learned a lot about the city she didn't know existed. "I actually learned there is a lot more museums and galleries than I expected. I am really really thrilled about that," said FSU student Brie Williams. "We are trying to bridge that gap so this is an opportunity and a great venue being at Cascades park, which is basically the crown jewel of our city to come together and make those connections," said Project Manager Lindsey Magura. Tallahassee mayor John Dailey said he hopes students take advantage of the Capital City while they're here. "It is important that we showcase Tallahassee, open up our arms, welcome back them back to town for school and just celebrate what we are as Tallahasseeans," said Dailey. Two CFSB Employees Promoted to Vice President By West Kentucky Star Staff BENTON; PADUCAH - Community Financial Services Bank (CFSB) recently promoted two people to the position of Vice President.Nathan Rowton was promoted from Assistant Vice President and Commercial Lender at the Paducah location, while Rhonda Owens was Assistant Vice President and Draffenville Banking Center Team Leader.Both moves were unanimously approved by the board of directors.McCracken County Market President Randell Blackburn said, Since Nathan joined the bank, he has shown his ability in sales and lending in an exceptional manner.Marshall County Market President Jason Jones remarked, "Rhonda works hard communicating, portraying, and instilling the culture and values of CFSB with fellow team members, clients, and the community."Rowton graduated from Paducah Tilghman High School in 1984 and started work in the financial industry in 1989, with multiple positions in management. He has a Bachelor of Business from Murray State University and a Masters of Business from The University of Toledo. Nathan and his wife Shawn live in Paducah with their four children and attend Paducahs Broadway Church of Christ.Owens graduated from Marshall County High School in 1987. She began her career at CFSB in January 2001 and has a diploma from the Barret School of Banking in Memphis. Her duties as the Draffenville Banking Center Team Leader includes lending, team management and market development. Owens lives in Calvert City with her husband Cary and they have two children. They are members of the Sharpe Missionary Baptist Church, where she volunteers with the youth of the church, sings during services, and volunteers with the family as missionaries at the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation in north central Montana. Rhonda also serves as the board chair for the H.O.P.E Clinic in Benton. Rep. Shimkus Collecting Valentines for Heroes By West Kentucky Star Staff SOUTHERN ILLINOIS - Congressman John Shimkus is once again asking constituents to participate in his annual Valentines for Heroes program.The congressmans district offices will collect valentines for distribution throughout the region to veterans and those currently serving in the military.Tens of thousands of valentines have come into my offices every year since we began Valentines for Heroes, Shimkus said. Elementary and middle school classes, church youth groups, homeschoolers, senior citizens and constituents from every corner of the district have been overwhelmingly generous and supportive of our military men and women, past and present.This year, valentines will be accepted at Shimkus offices until February 8 and will then be distributed to local VA and military facilities before Valentines Day.Valentines may be dropped off or mailed to Congressman John Shimkus at any of his district offices: 15 Professional Park Drive, Maryville, IL 62062 City Hall Room 12, 110 East Locust Street, Harrisburg, IL 62946 101 North Fourth Street, Suite 303, Effingham, IL 62401 201 North Vermilion Street, Suite 325, Danville, IL 61832Constituents should return signed valentines, but should NOT: Address them to a specific person Sign their last name or include their address or personal information Seal them in individual envelopes.All valentines are reviewed for content and appropriateness before distribution, and constituents can call the congressmans Maryville Office at 618-288-7190 with questions. Volunteer Groups Discuss Disaster Relief Tonight By West Kentucky Star Staff PADUCAH - An organizational meeting is tonight for a new effort to streamline relief work from area businesses and non-profit organizations during disasters.Disaster Program Specialist Ari Denson of the American Red Cross told West Kentucky Star that the meeting at 6 pm at MSU's Paducah campus is for a local Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, or VOAD.Denson said it's to help coordinate efforts of non-profits, for profits, and churches and direct what they do during a disaster."After a disaster happens here in McCracken County, you might have a lot of different non-profits doing a lot of different activities. Through a VOAD they can communicate what they're doing exactly, and you can avoid duplication of services or you can find out where people are in need, and you can help communicate that to different members," Denson said.In the event of a disaster, the VOAD can coordinate where volunteers or supplies are needed so those who can help know what to do next, or where to pitch in and help. Although they would operate independently, the VOAD would coordinate with emergency management and other county officials so help is provided where it's needed without getting in the way.Denson said churches or groups that provide shelter, cook meals, do construction or repairs, or have a food pantry can be part of the VOAD so that together, any disaster victims have a wider range of resources available.He said, "We want to take in all different sorts of non-profits, so we're reaching out to organizations like Paducah Cooperative Ministry that don't necessarily do something that you imagine as disaster response, but all of the clients that they serve currently become survivors after a disaster."Any organization that wants to be involved should sent a representative to the meeting on Thursday to get more details. The MSU Paducah campus is at 4430 Sunset Avenue. Pizza and drinks will be available at the meeting.Denson said the meeting will review what a VOAD is and does. Those participating will learn specifics on what the McCracken County VOAD can do, and a quick questionnaire will help determine what services are available within the group. Leaders hope to establish an Executive Committee and start planning what will be done when responding to disasters.More information is also available at the VOAD Facebook page (see link below) or by calling Ari Denson at 270-570-5197. James City County fire marshals determined the cause of the fire to be an accident, according to the release. The homeowner was taken to Sentara Regional Medical Center in York County, and is in stable condition, according to officials. Columns and letters of The Daily Beacon are the views of the individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Beacon or the Beacon's editorial staff. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Register for a FREE account to keep reading! Register now for a FREE account to keep reading. No cost and no credit card required! Access up to 5 articles per month when you register, or get unlimited access to all of our content online starting at $1.99 now! Already registered? Click the log in link below ABC News(WASHINGTON) -- Though he has not yet said publicly whether or not he will run for president again, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., faced tough questions this week about his leadership and management skills should he decide to do so, in light of a handful of allegations against a few members of his 2016 campaign staff. Close friends and allies of Sanders tell ABC News the senator has handled the negative headlines well and that clearing the air now about former staff and mistakes from the last campaign could be a positive step to ensure any new 2020 campaign is safer and stronger. Still, other experts in Democratic politics question whether the news could reflect poorly on the senator down the road, delay any possible announcement, or turn off voters who will have plenty of options in the 2020 Democratic primary. Over the past week, a string of stories in the New York Times and Politico have included allegations from former female staff of incidents of serious misconduct ranging from sexual assault to sexual harassment and gender disparity perpetrated by a select few male members of Sanders former campaign team. At a press conference on Capitol Hill Thursday, after a story broke involving a senior member of Sanders' former 2016 campaign, the senator said, The allegations that I have heard, that you have heard, speak to unacceptable behavior that must not be tolerated in any campaign, or in any workplace in our country. To the women in our campaign who were harassed or mistreated, I apologize Our standards, our procedures, out safeguards were clearly inadequate. Sanders sent an apology message directly to his followers over social media as well after Politico published a story wherein a former female staffer accused Robert Becker of forcefully kissing her without her consent. Becker oversaw Sanders operation in Iowa and stuck with the campaign through the Democratic convention. Becker has denied the allegations. Sanders said unequivocally that he would not be allowed to return to his campaign. Winnie Wong, co-founder of People for Bernie, a collective of grassroots organization that backed the senators in 2016 and plans to again this cycle should he announce, told ABC News she felt the Senator was heartfelt in his apology and taking the necessary steps to address the issues. The senator's former campaign manager, Jeff Weaver, publicly confirmed this week that he would not return led any future campaign. Wong applauded the announcement and said it would allow space for more women at the top of a potential Sanders-2020 management team. Wongs group has helped organize over 400 house parties among the senators supporters in 50 states this weekend. This has always been about a political revolution, she said, Its not about the senator; it is about the issues. Another former Sanders political staffer, who worked on the 2016 campaign but asked not to be named, told ABC News the stories this week could help all campaigns and potential candidates set up systems needed to keep employees safe. Last week, a group of former female staffers requested a meeting with top advisers to discuss issues from the last cycle. I dont think these headlines should be politicized the way they have been, the staffer wrote in a text message. These are all conversations everyone in 2020 needs to be having. I know his team is working hard to make sure the meeting is productive and these stories spark change. We should be less focused on the horse race and more focused on the impact that a gold standard policy could have for all workers in 2020." Yvette Simpson, the new chief executive officer for Democracy for America, a large progressive organization that endorsed Sanders 2016 campaign, told ABC News over the phone the story now was still developing and that it was too early to tell any real impacts on the voters yet. Simpson said she appreciated the Senators apology and understood there was a solid effort underway to prevent this from happening again. We expect to hear more things like this about all of the candidates as this race progresses, and we want to make sure we give space and grace for folks to acknowledge those things and correct those things, she said. We do not expect the progressive candidate or the Democratic nominee to be perfect or to have done everything perfectly, but when challenges arise and mistakes are made, we do expect them to acknowledge them and make corrections, she continued. Sanders team says the senator is still weighing the possibility of running for president again and has not decided either way. At least four other Democratic senators are also actively considering getting the race. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., who has a lot in common with Sanders ideologically, is in New Hampshire campaigning this weekend after announcing an exploratory committee at the end of last year. Stefanie Brown James, who worked as National African American vote director for President Obamas 2012 campaign said the stories could give average voters pause and make them question whether Sanders had a handle on his own operation. Sanders has said he was not aware until reporters started asking questions. Brown James that could raise red flags too about questions about why his close team either kept him in the dark or was also unaware. The story has not gone away, Brown James told ABC News on the phone. I think if he chooses to run this will plague his campaign for longer than anticipated. Voters want to know that you can be a strong leader and takes swift action, and have the empathy to be able to respond in a way that shows you have a clear understanding of what is happening and you really want to fix things going forward, James Brown added. She said it was great he was going to have a completely new team in place. Theoretically, if you lose an election and you run again, you would want a whole new team. Copyright 2019, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. News Story not available This story has been published on: 2021-06-16. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site.